Harry Krause wrote:
Black Dog wrote:

Harry Krause wrote:

Don White wrote:

JimH wrote:

"Don White" wrote in message
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JimH wrote:

"Don White" wrote in message
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Eisboch wrote:


"Harry Krause" wrote in message
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JimH wrote:



I guess so. We do not have digital cable or HD tv sets so
the S-video works just fine for us.


Comcast hasn't gone to "digital" cable in your part of the
country?


Many subscribers, me included up until a few days ago, just
have a basic cable service meaning there is no cable box. The
cable is simply hooked up to the VHF antenna input on the TV
and you use the TV tuner to choose the channels. In this case,
all channels are analog.

Eisboch

We updated a year ago to digital.
Getting ready for the big shift to HDTV in the near future.
(read:...saving for the TV)


When all channels in the US go digital (I believe in 2008 or
2009) there will be no need to upgrade your TV's to HD if you
have cable.

Huh?
HD and digital are two different things.


I never said otherwise Don.

here's what Consumer Reports says about HD vs standard def vs ED

Image quality: HD vs. standard definition

High definition is the way to go if you want the best TV viewing
possible. The picture quality can be stunning, especially on a
large, wide-screen set. HD is a digital-TV format that can offer
almost-lifelike clarity. That’s because HD images contain more and
finer detail than other formats. In technical terms, they have
higher resolution, or more picture elements making up each image. HD
images are digital, usually with definition of either 1080i (1,080
lines drawn on-screen in an odd/even, or interlaced, pattern) or
720p (720 lines scanned in one sweep, or progressively). You can get
HD capability in all types of TVs: picture-tube sets, LCD, plasma,
rear-projection, and front-projection. However, simply buying an
HDTV doesn't get you HD. You need programming that’s created in HD
and transmitted the same way, plus a digital tuner (usually supplied
by special cable and satellite boxes) that can receive these
signals. See our HDTV report for more details.

Standard definition, the type of TV we've watched for years, has
much less detail. These are analog signals with resolution of 480i
(480 lines drawn onscreen in an interlaced pattern), the format in
which TV content is delivered over regular analog broadcasts and
basic (non-digital) cable. On the best TVs, the picture quality can
be very good or even excellent--but it doesn't compare to the best
that HD can offer. Most standard-definition TVs now on the market
are picture-tube sets; some LCDs of this type are also available.

Enhanced definition falls in between standard and high definition.
ED signals are digital, with resolution of 480p (480 lines scanned
progressively). This is equivalent to DVD quality, which is a little
better than standard definition but not as good as high definition.
Some ED sets can decode HD signals when they're connected to a
digital tuner. However, they have to convert them to a lower
resolution that they can display, so the picture quality won't match
that of true HD. Still, it can be quite impressive. Most ED sets now
on the market are either LCD or plasma TVs.



Don, everything looks better on a good HDTV, but...

wait until you look at a science or nature program filmed in and
broadcast in HD. There are a few "inHD" channels, and when I watch
TV, those are the ones I watch. They're just spectacular, no other
way to describe it.


I second that one. Like I said before, I can't take take my eyes off
Discovery HD. I watched a show about plate tectonics - I have an MSc.
in geology and this was pure freshman stuff, but it was SO BEAUTIFUL.

Stella



I wonder if it was the same one I saw recently. Did it have a segment
about "the next big one" knocking part of the Pacific NW into the ocean?
No wonder boats are selling in Seattle!

Discovery HD is *the best* choice on TV.

Probably the same show. I didn't see the whole thing as the hubby had
the remote and the HD sports channels were beckoning. I do remember a
volcanologist running around grabbing fresh lava in somewhere in Hawaii.

I have a bunch of friends in Comox BC (on Vancouver Island) who keep
ribbing me about my, shall we say, *limited* sailing season. Heehee,
yeah the boat's in the driveway half the year, but I don't need
hurricane, earthquake, tsunami or health insurance. And I kind of like
it like that.

Stella