A closer look at HDTV
Imagine watching a sporting event and being able to see the sweat trickling down the faces of the players. This no longer has to be a dream as the reality, in the form of high-definition television (HDTV), is here.
Andre Coetzee, national trainer and customer care consultant at Philips South Africa, said that anyone who has been in the market recently to buy a new television will have heard the term HDTV.
“Consumers are constantly bombarded with technical jargon that often seems meaningless, however, this is one buzz- word that as a consumer, you need to pay attention to.
“HDTV is an acronym for high-definition television and it is a digital broadcasting system with a significantly higher resolution than traditional formats.
“This ultimately means that your screen at home will be able to display images so clear that they have a lifelike look to them.
“Your television will even have the ability to sing out in digital sound that you have only heard in movie theatres,” Coetzee said.
He said the key to the sharper picture lies in the higher resolution.
The picture people see on their television screens is made up of lines and dots, and the more dots and lines, the clearer the picture.
The standard television set at home has a resolution of about 640×480, which means that there are 640 resolution lines by 480 pixels (dots).
While this was great 10 to 20 years ago, it’s not so anymore as HDTV makes itself felt around the globe.
Resolution applies not only to the television set’s display capability but also to the signal it is being fed.
So a standard-definition signal coming into an HDTV will still be standard resolution. To get HD there must be a high- definition (HD) signal.
“While your new LCD television may be HDTV ready, it will not have the perfect picture until it gets an HD signal such as the HD channel MultiChoice is now broadcasting,” Coetzee said.
He said while South Africa may often be behind in terms of technology , as the World Cup Soccer host for 2010 it is being forced to fast forward a little.
This is because international markets require that the main broadcaster be able to transmit the games in both standard and high definition.
As a result, more pervasive HD broadcasting may be available in South Africa much sooner than would otherwise be the case.
Brad Buchanan, group buyer at Game, said that HD has become a buzzword in the market but that many consumers are not fully aware of what it is.
“Everyone is coming in to inquire about HD and find out whether they need it for their televisions,” Buchanan said.
He said that almost every flat-panel television, LCD and gas plasma screen that is currently sold at Game stores is either HD ready or full HD.
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