On the HDTV hype

On HDTV:

Last week, I attended Alex, Cul, Daniel and Alexander's housewarming party. Some people went to play some version of Burnout on Daniel's Xbox 360. Daniel has a flat screen hdtv of size 27-30 inches and I saw the game being played on it. The graphics really look good and polished. But I felt like something isn't right, it's "too good". It might be the uncanny valley problem. But that's precisely the point. Whenever I look at the HD displays in shops like Best Buy etc, I always get the similar "too good" feeling. It's like they look really good, but at the same time, it turns me off too. I don't know why, maybe it's because I'm not used to it. But my feeling about the whole HD quality is like seeing a perfectly beautiful woman whose beauty is achieved through plastic surgery ... it's like she looks good, but also at the same time it's really superficial.

... and superficial is how I feel about the whole HDTV hype. The way I see it, the technology and maybe the masses in general are not ready yet. But I just hate the hype created by everyone including but not limited to manufacturers and retailers. I would welcome a next generation entertainment standard like HDTV. But seeing the way HDTV is overhyped now by the manufacturers and retailers, it shows that they're more interested in getting lots and lots and lots of money rather than actually creating a worthy next gen entertainment quality. Here's some of my gripes:

Firstly we have different resolution standards ... 720p, 1080i, 1080p. I won't explain what they are, just do your own research. But basically, the numbers refer to the number of scanlines and "i/p" refers to interlaced/progressive. The general consensus is more lines and progressive standard produce better and sharper resolution. So the manufacturers (especially Sony) are trying to push for 1080p. But I don't like the whole "bigger is better" thinking - especially when the current 480i standard for standard TV has served us well for decades. We have different standards and we can't agree to it, and yet the only thing better about the standards is that they make the pictures look sharper but does that really matter? is the current TV not good enough?
so if it's just about sharper pictures, then it's not really worth the hype, especially when they can't even agree to it.

Then, HDTV prices are high. I know they're coming down as fast as a waterfall, but they're still high. And then, there's LCD, Plasma type and many incoming types including one called SED that is based on same principle as the current CRT TV. and then, I've also read about many stories on how HDTV break down easily.

So, the way I see it it's really not a pleasant experience to get a HDTV. Prices are high, different screen standards and types require research and getting a reliable one requires even more research. and all that, just for better picture resolution? and that's just for the TV. To get content in HD, you have to pay more to the cable company. HD sound? get the set up. HD Games, PS3 and XBOX 360 for $300 -600 depending on configuration and maybe you still need to buy more peripherals. I won't even get into the HD-DVD vs Blu-Ray battle. The whole thing's just too much investment for me. No wonder Nintendo choose to skip HD standard for Wii and look at how it's doing now.

and yet, we can't really avoid the hype these days. HDTV hype is everywhere, manufacturers and retailers are pushing them really hard through ads and store placements. It seems like the consumers are given no choice. I am just sick and tired of the hype. The whole HDTV business have become more like plastic surgery business to me ... it makes people better looking, but everything is just superficial - a lot of brouhaha over nothing.

and by the way, if you're looking for TV now, I'd recommend looking at the last gen standard TV. Since they're last generations, they're picture quality couldn't be better and since they're proven, established technology, they won't break down easily. So, get them for another 5 years perhaps and maybe, hopefully, by then HDTV would have settled on a standard.