Is It Really HDTV?

by Richard Corzo

If you attended the DACS HDTV presentation last August (http://www.dacs.org/archive/0809/review.htm), you heard a lot of great information on high definition televisions. You may have acquired an HDTV since then, but is the picture you're seeing really in high definition, or just a standard definition picture stretched to fill the wide screen? You might be surprised how many people are not watching HDTV on their HDTVs. I've seen it happen with a friend, a relative, and a coworker--they weren't really taking advantage of the high definition capability of their HDTV.

In addition to your HDTV set, you need a source and a proper connection to the TV to be able to view HDTV. If you're one of the few who only receive their TV over the air, then you're probably already set. The U.S. has completed its transition from analog to a digital broadcast transmission system. HDTVs (at least those sold after March 1, 2007) have an "ATSC" tuner capable of receiving these digital broadcasts. Note however, that not every channel or program is broadcast in high definition, i.e. at least 720 lines of vertical resolution. Some channels or programs, although broadcast digitally, are only at the standard definition 480 lines of vertical resolution. But if the program is broadcast in high definition, 720 progressive or 1080 interlaced lines of resolution, there is nothing more for you to do to ensure you are seeing HDTV.

The question I really want to address is for those who are using a cable or satellite TV tuner. That's where you're more likely to be missing out on the full HDTV experience if things aren't set up right. If you're a cable subscriber and your cable box is a few years old, it's likely you'll need to upgrade to a newer HDTV-capable model. The new cable box should have an HDMI connection on the back, or at least a triplet of component video connections, color-coded red, blue, and green. These will correspond to connections on the back of your HDTV. (See picture of TV rear panel.) A single HDMI cable is capable of transmitting both digital video and digital audio. Component cables are only capable of transmitting video, and so must be paired with audio cables (color-coded white and red) to transmit the stereo sound. Alternatively the component video cables could be paired with an optical digital audio cable.

So you might assume that if you had your cable company install a new HDTV-capable cable box or DVR, that they would set it up properly for your HDTV, but that wasn't the experience of my friend in New Fairfield. I went over to see his new TV and he noticed that the picture wasn't as good as he remembered seeing it in the store, or as good as his other friend's HDTV picture. I went into the setup menu of the cable box and discovered a setting to tell the cable box what kind of TV it's connected to. Make sure it says widescreen 16 X 9 instead of standard 4 X 3 TV. There may also be a setting for the TV's resolution, so make sure that matches the capability of your TV, i.e. 720p, 1080i, or 1080p. That made a big difference in viewing the HD channels, and made my friend very happy.

There is likely a similar setting in your DVD player's setup menu, and unless it's at least 7 or 8 years old like mine, there will also be a setting for "progressive scan." Choose that to get the best picture on your HDTV, along with connecting the DVD player with at least the red, green, blue component cables, or better yet HDMI if your DVD player has it.

Another thing you'll want to note when viewing the cable program guide, is which channels are HD channels. For convenience they're often in a block of channels rather than scattered throughout the channel range. If you want to view the network broadcast channels such as NBC, ABC, CBS, at their best, look for them in that HD block of channels, because the place where you used to watch them is still being transmitted simultaneously in standard definition for older TVs connected to cable.

There's another pitfall that might be preventing you from seeing HD channels in HD. My sister had upgraded to a cable DVR last year before getting an HDTV this year, so she already had an HDTV-capable cable box. She even managed to buy an HDMI cable to go from the DVR to the new TV, but she also had a coaxial antenna cable going from the DVR to the HDTV. What she hadn't figured out was that she needed to select a different TV input, i.e. the HDMI input, using her TV remote and the TV menu. This allowed her to view the HD channels in their full high-definition glory. She even noticed the audio sounded better, which was now being transmitted digitally over the same HDMI cable. If I recall, this also meant she had to use the cable remote to change channels, but the TV remote to change volume. This idea of selecting a different TV input should be familiar if you already have a DVD player hooked up to your TV.

I have mentioned DVD players, and many people are happy with the picture they get when connecting it to their HDTV. Although of good quality, standard DVDs are still limited to 480 lines of resolution, At some point you may want to consider getting a Blu-ray player, which gets full 1080p resolution from the new Blu-ray discs.

I hope these tips have helped you more fully enjoy your HDTV.

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