I hear a lot of people complain that their brand new HDTV just doesn’t look crisp a lot of the time.  Below is my short list of tips, hints, questions, and answers about why your picture might not be as good as you expected.

1. Are you watching an HD channel?  In comparison to the number of channels your satellite or cable provider sends to you, the number that are actually high definition is pretty low.  For Bell ExpressVu all of the channels are in the 800s.  It’s to the point now where I won’t watch a show if it isn’t in the 800s.
2. Even some HD channels show non-HD content sometimes.  I have tried to figure out what the CRTC says about how much content has to be full 720p HD in order to call the channel HD but I have been unsuccessful so far.  My guess is that there is some percentage of the day which the channel must be showing full HD in order to retain its HD status.
3. Some programs don’t use the highest quality equipment.  My wife often comments on how a daytime show she watches, on CBC HD, doesn’t look nearly as good as the hockey on the same channel.  For a show to look its best the signal has to only be touched by high quality equipment at each step of the process.  It’s a weakest link type scenario.
4. Are you using HDMI, DVI or component cables for the video?  The red, white and yellow cables or an S-video cable are not enough to get full HD video (red, green and blue is a component bundle and is fully HD capable).  If you’re not using one of the three types of cables I mentioned, you need to be.
5. Some programs are widescreen but still standard definition (read: blurry).  These are the ones that really try to fool you.  As a rule of thumb for ExpressVu viewers (unfortunately I have no experience yet with cable or StarChoice HD), the programs in true HD normally have an HD prefix in the program name, not just the channel name.

I’ve done the research.  I know Sony’s Playstation 3 is expensive and is not the world leader in “fun” games or units sold.  I didn’t buy the PS3 based on what it is not.

The PS3 is an incredible DVD upconverter.  So good that the night I plugged in my PS3 I watched 4 movies in a row because I was so blown away by the visual quality of the image (Saving Private Ryan, Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, 300, and Casino Royale).  If you have a large DVD collection and have purchased an HDTV lately, don’t bother buying an upconverting DVD player, buy a PS3 – you get native BluRay support, too.

The PS3 has built-in WiFi.  Within a few minutes of powering up I had the PS3 on the Internet and I was browsing with their (admittedly limited) browser.  Being connected to my wireless network has benefits beyond surfing though.

The PS3 can access media servers on your network.  That sounds like something you’d need a degree to set up but if you own a PS3 just install TVersity on your PC and you’ve instantly set up a media server.  Now I can stream songs, videos and pictures to the PS3 (and thus onto my big screen and home theatre) quickly and extremely easily (even from iTunes now that Apple is removing DRM from all their songs).

Oh yeah, and the PS3 plays amazing games.  So far I have owned Guitar Hero, NHL ‘09, Little Big Planet and Metal Gear Solid 4.  I had to return MGS4 because it was too good but the rest are really, REALLY good.  “Too good” you ask?  The immersion, graphics and story were so good that I knew that I would need to devote a lot of time and effort to really enjoy it and, with 2 kids and 2 jobs it was unlikely that something wouldn’t fall through the cracks.  I’ll try MGS4 when I have more free time – it really is amazing.

Lastly, the PS3 on screen interface is pretty slick.  The XMB, or CrossMediaBar, is really well thought out.  So well thought out that I’ll probably try to copy it in an upcoming web project…

I wish I had more time to write about all of the things I’m learning in the home theatre field but I’m too busy doing…

Crank it to 11, everyone!

J

While I may be pulling the curtain back and exposing the one of the most lucrative markets in North America, below are the top 3 HDTV-related myths and their [probably not-so shocking] facts.

Myth #1: 1080p is much better than 1080i (720p).  (i – interlaced vs. p – progressive scan is briefed at the bottom)

Fact: In tests after tests experts have proven that the human eye just isn’t sharp enough to see the difference at screen sizes and distances typical of North American homes.  So while you may feel like you’re slumming when you ’settle’ for a 720p HDTV to save a few bucks, know that your picture will likely look just as good as your neighbour’s 1080p (all else being equal).  And don’t forget, your incoming Satellite or cable HD signal is coming in at 720p – that’s a perfect match!

Myth #2: You need expensive new HDMI cabling to take full advantage of your HDTV.

Fact: Well, this one is about 50/50.  Yes, you’ll need HDMI cabling to get a higher than 480p picture but you don’t have to spend a lot on it.  There are only two standards when it comes to HDMI: standard and high speed.  If you are being asked to pay more than $10 CDN for less than 2 metres then you’re overpaying.  PMP: Packaging + Marketing = Profit.

Myth #3: 7.1 Surround sound is the best way to recreate that in-theatre experience.

Fact: Guess what?  The audio you’re listening to wasn’t even recorded in 7.1 surround sound.  Even on Blu-Ray.

What’s the difference between 1080i and 1080p?
That’s a good question.  Well, the 1080 is the number of horizontal lines of resolution.  That’s the same on both.  The “i” stands for interlaced and the “p” stands for progressive scan.  Interlaced means that only half of the lines are being refreshed during every other scan while progressive scan means that all 1080 lines are being refreshed on every scan.  Theoretically it means a smoother picture during fast moving action but in the real world, viewers have a really hard time picking out which set is “i” and which set is “p” on typically sized HDTVs.  480p is the maximum that a good DVD player can produce.  Oh yeah, and 720p and 1080i are basically the same – you can choose to have the entire screen refresh 720 lines at once, 720p, or you can have the entire screen refresh 1080 lines every other scan.  Experts say that fast moving sports like hockey sometimes look better on 720p.  I’ll let you know what I think soon.

What’s the difference between 60Hz and 120Hz?
Yet another good question.  60Hz and 120Hz (pronounced hertz) are the refresh rates of LCD TVs.  Not to be confused with response rates, which are how fast the screen can display the signal from the source, refresh rates are the hot topic in 2008.  Film movies and television are shot at 24 frames per second (as opposed to digital which is 30 frames per second).  If your TV has a refresh rate of 60Hz it means that some fancy footwork has to be done to try to show those 24 frames evenly.  Thus the 3:2 pulldown.  Your TV has to adjust the content to 30 frames and this can cause ‘jaggies.’  A 120Hz TV can handle 30 frames per second as well as 24 frames, without having to adjust anything (both 24 and 30 divide evenly into 120).  Jaggies are bad.  Choose 120Hz if you can.  This is not an issue with plasma displays.  Which brings me to my final question.

Plasma or LCD?
Personal preference.  Take your favourite movie into your favourite big box store and ask them to show you on both.  It really is just down to personal preference now.  Don’t let anyone tell you that burn-in or brightness are issues with either – those days are long gone.

Get ready for something completely different, coming January 2009 – jacobkennedysolutions.com – trust me, it’s different…