TV sets and Video Projectors (Sound &
Vision Buyer’s Guide 2003)
Choosing a TV has become more complicated than just figuring out
how big a picture you can get for the amount of money you have
to spend!
There are three main factors to consider: your performance goals,
how long you expect to keep the set, and your budget.
The bets sets today fall under the DTV umbrella and are ready,
willing, and able to help you through the transition from analog
television to digital TV. They can display large, bright pictures in
either widescreen (16:9) or standard (4:3) format, with resolution
limited more often by the source than by thee set. (The 16:9 and
4:3 designations refer to the aspect ratio, width to height, of the
TV screen. A 16:9 display, which is the emerging, more cinematic
standard, has 16 units of width for every 9 units of height, while a
conventional 4:3 display has 4 units of width for every 3 of height.)
Some high-definition TV (HDTV) sets have built-in tuners for both
analog and digital TV, and sometimes satellite TV as well, whereas
others, billed as HDTV monitors, require an outboard HDTV tuner
or set-top decoder to receive digital broadcasts. There are two
good reasons to buy a 16:9 HDTV or monitor: The standard aspect
ratio for HDTV is 16:9, and many widescreen DVDs will exhibit
better vertical resolution on a 16:9 display than on a 4:3 one.
Because a large 16:9 display cathode-ray tube (CRT) is hard to
make and very heavy, most widescreen sets use some variety of
video-projection technology, either with a ceiling or table-mounted
box beaming images at a separate screen (front projection) or as
part of an all-in-one unit which the picture projects onto the rear of
a translucent screen (rear projection).
A step down from widescreen HDTVs and HDTV monitors are high-
def 4:3 models. To fit widescreen programs into the narrower
aspect ratio, these sets normally display them in “letterbox”
format, with bars at the top and bottom of the screen. This allows
you to view the full width of the image at the sacrifice of some
image height and vertical resolution.
Next are enhanced-definition TVs (EDTVs) and monitors, which can
receive high-definition signals but can’t display them in high
definition. EDTVs and monitors must be able to accept and display
progressive-scan signals such as those available from many DVD
players.
Finally we land in the familiar world of purely analog TV sets, large
and small. Most of these are either direct-view sets with picture
tubes or rear-projection models. Although more limited in their
display capabilities than HDTVs, the best of the breed can give you
splendid pictures from conventional analog broadcasts and DVDs,
especially at modest screen sizes.
Which of these paths you should go down is largely a question of
how long you expect to use the set and how much you can afford
to spend on it. Not surprisingly, the most affordable sets are the
basic analog models, while the most expensive are the high-end
HDTVs. If you don’t mind replacing your new set in, say, five
years, it could make sense to buy a good analog TV now – that will
get you more performance bank for your buck in the short term.
There’s still less HDTV programming available than conventional
standard-definition fare. And by the time HDTV dominates, the
prices for compatible sets – already coming down – will have
dropped substantially.
If, on the other hand, you want the new set to last you ten years
or more but care about performance, you’re likely to find yourself
dissatisfied for quite a bit of the period. Since wide-screen HDTVs
and HDTV monitors do a better job of presenting DVDs than
conventional sets, you should think seriously about spending more
up front and console yourself with the thought that on a cost-per-
year basis the expense is actually reasonable.
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