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Steve asks:

I'm interested in High-Definition TV. How do I get it and how much will I have to spend?

Answer:

Digital TV started becoming popular around 1998 with new TV displays and new transmission signals which require many changes both for the consumer and the television providers. High Definition TV requires a receiver capable of decoding the digital signal and a TV capable of displaying the high-content wide-screen programming.

DTV and HDTV programming is currently available OTA (over-the-air) from local TV stations (free) as well as cable and satellite providers (not free). Consumers willing to purchase a new television for the digital era will find a host of new technology displays including Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD), Plasma Display Panels, DLP, D-ILA, Lcos, and many others available in sizes from tabletop 17 inch to 50, 60 inches and even bigger screen sizes. Many of these can be hung on a wall and when combined with a Home Theater setup (part of the new digital TV signals include surround sound) can create a much fuller environment for the consumer than ever was possible with analog television. 

What you need to get free HDTV over the air from local TV stations is a HDTV tuner, a UHF TV antenna and a TV display capable of showing the High-Definition signals (and connecting cables of course). 

Prices are coming down on all components. A HDTV tuner/decoder can be bought for under $200. Some High-Def TV sets have tuners built-in. A table-top UHF TV loop antenna can go for $10 if you have strong local HDTV signals. This just leaves the display, the most expensive item and the one with the most choices. You need a TV display capable of showing the 720p or 1080i High-Def picture. Plasma or LCD HDTV displays are widely available and in a wide range of prices. The least expensive set has come down under $700 but if you want a large screen, it will set you back a few thousand. Make sure you buy a set with true High-Def capability and not just a flat screen. Many flat screen sets are not HDTV capable.

Karen asks:

I bought a DVD player but I can't hook it up to my TV. What should I do?

Answer:

You need to buy a device called a RF modulator (available at Wal-Mart, Radio Shack) if your TV does not have any connections except an antenna jack. For about $17 the RF modulator allows you to hook up your DVD player's RCA composite video (yellow) and stereo audio (red and white) cables to the RF modulator box and then using a normal cable TV coax antenna cable, connect the RF modulator box to the TV. Your signal from the DVD player is converted to a RF or radio frequency before going to the TV so it is not the best way to watch DVD but until you buy a new TV set with more modern connection jacks, at least you can enjoy your DVD movies.

Mitch asks:

I saw High-Def TVs in stores with resolutions of 1024 x 1024 and others with 1024 x 768. How do I know these TVs will display true HDTV?

Answer:

High-Definition digital TV's have a built in converter/scalar video chip to take care of the interpolation issue with matching up the incoming television signal with the native pixel resolution of the display. A plasma monitor with 1024X1024 will not display a 1080i signal straight out. In order to show a true 1080i HDTV signal, a display monitor must have a native pixel resolution of 1,920 X 1,080. There are some monitors that have this high resolution as of Sept. 2004, but many do not and will therefore have to down-convert the signal.

Contrast, brightness, and black levels come in to play with video images. What the eye picks up may be a much better picture on a lower pixel count monitor because the converter/scalar does a better job of "blending" (through progressive scanning) the color information in such a way as to cause a crisper image. Contrast will necessarily translate into a better picture image given the effectiveness of the scalar/converter, though at the same time the higher pixel count monitor may show a bit better depth.

Native pixel resolutions of 1280X768 or 1365X768 will use progressive scanning to show the best possible picture. An incoming 1080i signal will be cross-converted to 768P (as opposed to down-converted). An incoming 720P signal will be upconverted to 768P. Therefore, the viewer will get a full and true HDTV picture.

Kelvin asks:

I bought a new HDTV and want to watch DVD movies in High-Def. Are High-Definition DVD movies available?

Answer:

High-Definition DVD movies are going to be available in late 2005 according to all estimates. A format battle is underway between Blu-ray and HD-DVD. Both formats have the increased capacity needed to store the High-Def content for movies. A new DVD player will be required due to the use of blue/violet lasers to read the higher density digital information. Standard DVD players for 480i DVD movies use red lasers. The new players will however be able to play your 480i DVD movies as well as the High-Def DVD movies. If you are worried about not being able to watch new movies released in 2006 because you do not have a HD player, never fear, as a combo disc is being perfected which combines both the old and new formats on a single disc.