do HD TV'S matter?

[all the tramps]

me and my freind have been arguing for a while on if it matters or not
i think they dont as all they do is improve picture quality and nothing much else and he says that it does more than that
and when ever i ask what else it does he doesnt answer
what are your thoughts on it?

 

[Knight Templar]

Does a new and better from of TV matter?
Depends on how you look at it I guess, its kinda hard to say if a device for entertainment matters or not.

 

[Anachronism]

As far as I'm concerned, they won't matter until they become much, much cheaper. Although I suppose even the price is reasonable, given that it's still relatively new. For me, though, the main reason not to get one is that if you do, to get all the benefit from it you then have to pay a whole lot more money for HD TV channels, and probably a Blu-ray player as well. And there are very few channels that broadcast in HD at the moment.

 

[RapidCrash]

HD is just a clearer, sharper picture. With larger screens, it becomes almost a necessity (stretching a mere 480 pixels horizontally across a 40" might do some bad things). There's no improvement on audio, as those are dependent on whatever stereo system you have, and no improvement on just about any other aspect. The only thing that will difference in all televisions, which he may have mistakened to be caused by the HD tv is the television latency (the time it takes for the signal to reach the screen). Many less-expensive televisions will have a latency from 8-10ms (dependent on model), while newer models tend to have 5-6ms latency. Not a HUGE difference.
So HD only affects the picture quality and nothing else. Any other difference is dependent on the television model and whatever you use along with it.

As far as I'm concerned, they won't matter until they become much, much cheaper. Although I suppose even the price is reasonable, given that it's still relatively new. For me, though, the main reason not to get one is that if you do, to get all the benefit from it you then have to pay a whole lot more money for HD TV channels, and probably a Blu-ray player as well. And there are very few channels that broadcast in HD at the moment.

How much more are you thinking? From what I know, our DirecTv package includes HD channels for free (not the subscribed crap like Stars). Blu-ray players still are too expensive for what they're worth though. $200-$300 just to play movies in HD? Unless I wanted to watch A LOT of HD movies, I wouldn't be willing to make that purchase.

 

[Skeleon]

Haven't yet seen any HD TV in action, to be honest.
But it's not high up on my priority list, so I'm just going to say... no.

 

[ThrobbingEgo]

A regular (standard definition) TV is 480i (or 576i, if you're British). A "full HD" TV has a resolution of 1080p. A full HD TV displays about six times as many pixels as a SD TV - and this isn't even counting the fact that it's progressive, which means the SD TV is only displaying half it's vertical information per refresh. Technically speaking, it's a huge improvement.

If you can't tell the difference, you're not watching HD content.

 

[SmilingKitsune]

For games I think it's nice, for films I'm not as bothered, I never buy blu ray films for my PS3 because they're so much more expensive than dvds here, and with the exception of films like 300, I just don't see the point.

 

[Iskenator67]

For games yea. I got a 19 inch LCD and it make my games look great.

 

[PAGEToap44]

For gaming, I see them as a must have, for the full experience.

 

[mikecoulter]

After having a movie night with some friends and my parents new Samsung 1080P HD, with The Dark Knight and Iron Man. Yes, it does matter.

 

[demonsaber]

I have a 60 inch full HD tv and I don't really notice a difference unless It's with the Xbox 360.

 

[Alex_P]

you then have to pay a whole lot more money for HD TV channels

Where I live, it's about $3 more per month than regular cable. Hardly a "whole lot".

-- Alex
(edited)

 

[nova18]

I find that a PS3, HDMI cable and 40" Samsung makes for some pretty good entertainment.
Watched Bladerunner on blu-ray about a week ago, visuals looked AMAZING.

Also makes games look a lot sharper and you get a cleaner image.

Personally, I think anyone with the excess cash should grab one.

 

[Kajt]

I honestly can't tell the difference between normal TV and HD TV.

 

[RetiarySword]

I honestly can't tell the difference between normal TV and HD TV.

Once you use a HD tv for a while, then look at a SD tv, you will see the difference.

They don't matter, a normal TV is fine. I prefere HD TV's because you get a clearer, crisp picture. It depends if you can be bothered to get one really.

 

[Pseudonym2]

Yes. With games like Banjo:Nuts and Bolts and Condemned 2 that are almost impossible to play on standard definition.

 

[Mertruve]

I prefere HD TV's because you get a clearer, crisp picture.

The picture would be clearer if HDTV screens weren't much bigger.

 

[Frank_Sinatra_]

you then have to pay a whole lot more money for HD TV channels

Where I live, it's about $3 more per month than regular cable.

-- Alex

Geeze where do you guys live? Where I live my provider says "If you have 1 of our services, and upgrade to cable TV you get HDTV for free."

On topic: HDTV's do matter for gaming and Blu-Ray movies. If your looking at an HDTV and you don't see a difference there are 2 possible problems.
The person with the HDTV isn't using the correct HDMI cables.
The person with the HDTV isn't using HD content (HDDVD, HDTV, Blu-ray, Next-gen games.)