[IP] more on For High-Definition Sets, Channels to Match
Begin forwarded message:
From: Bob Frankston <Bob2-19@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: June 9, 2004 1:45:35 PM EDT
To: dave@xxxxxxxxxx, 'Ip' <ip@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Cc: 'Dewayne Hendricks' <dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>, Monty Solomon
<monty@xxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: RE: [IP] For High-Definition Sets, Channels to Match
My HD STB producers SD as well as HD output for the SD channels and also
DVI-D and component. I can use any TV or computer monitor to view the
programs.
One problem is that watching 1080i on a 1920x120 monitor is a total
waste --
it's far below the capabilities of my monitor (currently $1700 but
obviously
will follow the Moore's law price curve). The broadcast industry is
spending
a zillion dollars to rebuild itself completely for the 1995 interlaced
videos streams.
Already Microsoft is pushing 1080p on DVD and via the Internet and lots
of
experiments are doing whatever aspect ratio the want at any resolution
they
want. The broadcasters simply cannot maintain the necessary rate of
change
because they are the anti-Internet -- everything in the middle must know
about every format and detail.
This is a sharp contrast to the introduction of Stereo records -- the
distribution system was indifferent to the grooves on the vinyl and the
content could be played on mono players which the same quality but just
lacking the stereo (A-B) signal.
All the effort Congress is putting into the dead broadcast model
(remember
that the CableCos are now pushing narrowcasting VOD) is effort taken
away
from extending Internet connectivity which does better-than-HDTV as a
minor
after-thought.
Voom is trying to reach the small marketplace of true believers but is
another oh-so-special system for a temporary niche of people who want to
explain why they overspent for an HD display. Makes more sense to buy
HD-DVD's if you just want to watch movies (so why are most DVD's so
lo-res?).
And after all that you get lots of fat ESPN announcers -- they just
stretch
their 4:3 to 16:9 because Americans is to believe black area on the
screen
(whether above or below) means that are getting less. Just look at the
stretched CNN announcers at any airport club.
Remember how long it took to move from VHS to DVD despite the lousy
quality
of VHS ... but Beta to VHS was quick because image quality is not the
priority. Convenience is.
-----Original Message-----
From: owner-ip@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:owner-ip@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx] On
Behalf Of
David Farber
Sent: Monday, June 07, 2004 18:54
To: Ip
Subject: [IP] For High-Definition Sets, Channels to Match
Begin forwarded message:
From: Dewayne Hendricks <dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Date: June 6, 2004 1:10:54 PM EDT
To: Dewayne-Net Technology List <dewayne-net@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Subject: [Dewayne-Net] For High-Definition Sets, Channels to Match
Reply-To: dewayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
[Note: This item comes from reader Monty Solomon. DLH]
From: Monty Solomon <monty@xxxxxxxxxx>
Date: June 5, 2004 11:08:15 PM PDT
Subject: For High-Definition Sets, Channels to Match
STATE OF THE ART
For High-Definition Sets, Channels to Match
By DAVID POGUE
June 3, 2004
Correction Appended
LET'S face it: those $5,000 plasma screens are popular not just
because they're high-definition TV sets but also because they're
status symbols. Look at Gateway's 42-inch $3,000 plasma screen, a
runaway hit even though it can't actually display images in high
definition. At this rate, someone will surely come up with a $200
plasma screen that doesn't even turn on. It would just hang on the
wall and look cool.
But however cool the screens, as the nine million people who have
bought HDTV's have quickly discovered, the high-definition age is not
yet fully upon us. If you buy an HDTV receiver connected to an
antenna on your roof, you can enjoy a few hours of prime-time HDTV
broadcasts each night on ABC, CBS and so on - if you're within about
50 miles of a big city. If you have cable or satellite, you can
upgrade your plan to include a handful of high-def channels, like HBO
HDTV and ESPN HD.
Otherwise, what you'll mostly watch is low-definition shows, either
stretched to fit your wide-screen set or with black bars on the
sides. It will be years before the networks, cable and satellite
outfits broadcast all HD, all the time.
The executives at Voom, a new satellite service controlled by
Cablevision and offered throughout the continental United States,
don't think you can wait that long. Started in January, Voom already
offers 39 HDTV channels, many more than you can get from any other
source.
Now, HDTV aficionados may already be furrowing their brows.
"Thirty-nine high-def channels?" they're saying. "There aren't 39
high-def channels in the world!"
Actually, there are now. For starters, Voom gives you those
prime-time over-the-air network broadcasts, because Voom's installers
put not one but two antennas on your roof: one satellite dish and one
that picks up NBC, CBS, ABC and so on. (If you live in an apartment,
check on your building's restrictions.)
....
<http://www.nytimes.com/2004/06/03/technology/circuits/03stat.html>
Archives at: <http://Wireless.Com/Dewayne-Net>
Weblog at: <http://weblog.warpspeed.com>
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