Nice to see the new HD channels are on

**allargon** · 08-18-2007 01:22 PM

Originally Posted by skyviewmark

Personally, I have not seen any HD programming that looks worse than DVD. I am not talking about stretched or upconverted.. But anything that I get that was produced as HD looks a heck of a lot better than DVD.. I don't even like watching DVD's any more because they just don't look as good as my HD..
I sure as heck don't look forward to replaceing my 500 DVD's with HD-DVD's but I can't stand to watch any of them.

You need a decent upconverting DVD player. All of the high def standalone players (Blu-Ray and HD-DVD) upconvert relatively well. So does the PS3. Standard def DVD's on my Toshiba A20 often look as good or better than HD-lite moves on HDnet, Monsters, HBO, Showtime, etc.

**kstuart** · 08-18-2007 02:03 PM

I have the Toshiba SD4990 upconverting SD DVD player and the PQ is excellent (around ~$80).

Also plays Divx and Xvid files.

(The firmware is glitchy, you need to plug it into a power strip and then turn off the power to it each time you use it in order to clear the memory.)

**SarKen** · 08-18-2007 04:09 PM

I have a Samsung upconverting DVD player and the PQ and Sound are much better then then any of the HD movie channels.

The HD movies channels on E* are still 100% better then SD versions.

**nazz** · 08-18-2007 09:27 PM

HD-Lite or not, I don't see how an upconverted 480p picture can possibly be superior to 1080i. Upconversion cannot create information that does not exist. I guess it's just perception and personal opinion.

**ggw2000** · 08-19-2007 04:39 PM

Obviously this show is upconverted 480. PQ is poor and blurry. Commercials that are actually HD look good- whoopy

. The games we play I guess. Disappointing. Gerry

**drdroo** · 08-19-2007 04:52 PM

It's possible that show is not in HD on anyone else's service either.

Our local ABC HD affiliate on the other hand, will send us ESPN SD feeds of Nascar while the other ABC affiliates in other markets are getting it in HD. Drives me nuts.

**8bitbytes** · 08-19-2007 08:49 PM

Originally Posted by Don Landis

Kstuart- Thanks. It about time others besides me start educating the parrots who really don't know the difference...

blah blah blah

Go listen to your AM radio with the one speaker in the dash.

I'm the last person to complain about any HD channel we get even if the res is 1440x1080 vs 1920x1080. But, if you check the standard, 1440x1080 is not HD. Just because you can throw out mpeg2 mpeg4 like you even know how broadcasting works doesn't mean there isn't a difference.

You really don't want to start up the folks here who really have an issue with down-rezzing and PQ.

In this context, true HD vs HD-Lite is 1920x1080 vs 1440 or 1280x1080.

**kstuart** · 08-20-2007 08:53 PM

Originally Posted by 8bitbytes

But, if you check the standard, 1440x1080 is not HD.

Actually you clearly have never done so, because it certainly is.

You really don't want to start up the folks here who really have an issue with down-rezzing and PQ.

I get the impression that the first time around (a couple of years ago), the discussion was dominated by the "slightly technically knowlegeable" people. These are the same people who argued in the 1990's on the Internet that "bits are bits" and so "all CD players must sound the same". Of course, once jitter was discovered, those people vanished into the woodwork, only to reappear recently with new gibberish.
It's understandable, given that the media and the schools are filled with the post-modern concept that everyone should have an opinion about everything - no matter how little they understand about the situation...