Friday, May 24, 2013

Are OLED HDTVs basically going to be vaporware, never to be released as viable products?

Q. I seriously doubt these things will ever see the light of day. I have been hearing that once manufacturing processes have been perfected, these things will be released, but I have been hearing this for years.

Should I hold my breath waiting for these things?
It's not a hard question, I'm asking for your opinion!

If it takes so long, there's a good chance it's not realistic. That's the motto I live by.

A. If you want to buy a reasonably priced typically sized TV in the next few years, do not count on OLEDs being a viable selection then.

They need to work on several aspects of manufacturing.

1. Getting a large display element, with low dead pixel count.

2. Getting a large display element cheap enough to economically compete with technologies on the market.

3. Making them keep their brightness longer, as in a few years.


Is it cheaper and/or beneficial to buy a plasma HDTV monitor VS a regular plasma HDTV, if i have a cable box?
Q. I currently have a 50" rear projection HDTV monitor I connect to my cabe box and use a a television. I haven't bought a TV for years becuase I have utilized the signal processor in the cable box. With the new technology, is there really any benefit of buying a TV opposed to a monitor if I have an HDTV cable box?

A. A monitor is a little cheaper than a tv, but one advantage of having a tv is that you can us an antenna if your cable ever goes out..... nice to have in case of an emergency (tornado, hurricane, wild fires) or you can purchase a set top box that is a tuner.


How does the whole HDTV thing work?
Q. We're looking at buying a new TV and we deffinitly want a flat screen. However, all the flat screens that we've looked at are HDTV. We're not planning on getting HDTV and we just have plain cable, so wouldn't it be a waste of money to buy an HDTV if we don't even plan on getting HD? Or when you buy an HDTV does it automatically just have high definition? Ah, someone help me out here! I don't get it!
ugh, I knew I was going to get an answer like that. No, I'm sure I DON"T want HDTV, my cable is included in my rent right now and if we switch to anything else we'll have to continue to pay the same amount of rent but also pay the seperate cable bill.
Wow, confusing!! So are you saying that in a couple years we're all going to be forced to get HDTV??

A. In the United States...

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) has imposed a mandatory ‘digital tuner rule’ on the consumer electronics industry requiring that, as of March 1, 2007, all video equipment (including TVs) containing television tuners, which are manufactured, imported, or shipped for use in the United States must include a digital (aka, DTV) tuner; TVs equipped with analog only tuners are prohibited.

If retailers are selling any (remaining) ‘TV equipment’ equipped with analog broadcast tuners only, then those retailers are required by law to inform consumers that the they will need additional equipment to receive digital television broadcasts. At the present time the likelihood of purchasing a new DTV that was manufactured before March 1, 2007 is fairly low.

Be forewarned, the FCC’s “must carry” or “dual-carriage” analog cable TV provision applies ONLY to LOCAL TELEVISION CHANNELS, i.e., local television stations, and no other cable channels. Local television channels (i.e., those TV stations/channels that are capable of being received ‘over-the-air’ using a conventional TV antenna,) that are broadcast in your area will be the ONLY channels transmitted in analog form through February 2012 by the small number of cable TV providers who are yet unable to provide access to digital broadcasts or content for their subscribers.

If you purchase a new DTV that is labeled “Digital Cable Ready” (“DCR”) or “Plug-and-Play” then you should be able to continue viewing your current level of cable TV programming beyond February 17, 2009 without incurring any additional monthly fees.

You do not need to purchase an HDTV to watch television after the February 17, 2009 analog cut-off; you have the option of purchasing an SDTV (Standard Definition Television) or EDTV (Enhanced Definition Television.) Consumers with non-HD televisions - either digital SDTVs, EDTVs, or analog TVs equipped with DTV compliant set-top boxes (aka, digital-to-analog converter boxes,) or DBS/DTH (satellite) receivers - will continue watching broadcast television albeit at a display resolution limited largely by—in many cases—older display technology, with a maximum resolution generally topping-out at 720×480 (the same resolution provided by DVD-Video in North America) or in some cases, 854×480 (depending on the display.)

Not all ‘flat-screen’ TVs are HDTVs; there are several models currently available that are SDTV or EDTV. However, at the present time, HDTVs are being produced in greater volume and are much more plentiful than SDTVs or EDTVs. Thanks to the fairly strong consumer demand for HDTV and economy of scale, you are not likely to find a substantial difference in the prices between the current models of SDTVs, EDTVs and HDTVs.

Many of the latest HDTVs are fairly good at artificially creating high-definition images from non-high-definition content such as DVD-Video, though some brands and models are better than others. Be sure you take the time to carefully and thoroughly evaluate any TV you are considering purchasing; it’s become more important than ever before. Which type of display technology to buy is far from the only criterion to consider when shopping for a new TV. One of the most important factors is the performance of the embedded video and image processors. The simplest tool to evaluate the video and image processing performance of today’s new DTVs is the HQV Benchmark disc from Silicon Optix. Another very important factor is interoperability, i.e., can the TV perform properly with all of the video equipment that will be connected to it. These are but only two of several important reasons why I strongly advocate buying a new DTV from a reputable and knowledgeable local dealer rather than sight unseen from a mail order retailer.

Digital Television FAQs - Consumer Corner
http://www.dtv.gov/consumercorner.html

DTV Definitions
http://www.ce.org/shared_files/resources/95DTV%20Definitions.pdf

HDTV Brochure Final
http://www.ce.org/shared_files/resources/HDTV_Brochure_Final.pdf

Compatibility of Cable TV and Digital TV Receivers
http://www.fcc.gov/cgb/consumerfacts/plugandplaytv.html

National Cable & Telecommunications Association
http://www.ncta.com

FCC: Dual Carriage Will Last Three Years
http://www.multichannel.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articleID=CA6478706

NCTA Backs 3-Year Limit
http://www.multichannel.com/index.asp?layout=articlePrint&articleID=CA6476804

What is the difference between “enhanced digital TV” and analog TV?
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070328193313AA2MwEd

Televisions?
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070607182657AAcjBk6

HDTV resolutions and advertised HDTV specs don’t match. What’s up with that?
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20070811100734AARwzLO

Buying A Digital Television
http://www.dtv.gov/dtvtipsheet.pdf

Read This Before Buying a Plasma or LCD TV
http://www.hdtvexpert.com/pages_b/shopping.html
Article Archive
http://www.hdtvexpert.com/pages_b/archive.html

NIST Flat Panel Display Laboratory
Tips for Buying a HDTV
http://www.fpd.nist.gov/tips.html

DTV Certified, What Should It Mean?
http://www.videoessentials.com/resources_DisplayDeviceSpecs.php

Home Theater Magazine, 2007-03-01 – Test DVDs
http://www.hometheatermag.com/gearworks/307gear/index.html

HQV Benchmark image quality testing tool
http://www.hqv.com/benchmark.cfm
 





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