freeview HD

amaferanga

Velonutter wrote:

Smokin Joe wrote:

HD on Freeview is not free, you have to pay a subscription for it.

I have a Free Sat box which does come with the HD channels FOC, but there is so little - if any - difference between that and normal picture I would never pay extra for it.

Sorry Joe, I've got HD Freeview on two of our new sets and it's free, but with Sky they want £10 extra a month which they can stuff!

BTW It is absolutely blinding on HD :-)

5 HD channels on freeview vs 59 on Sky. Doesn't really compare. Some of the cycling on Eurosport HD which is true HD is superb.

Silly Old Hector

So here's how I understand it :

Viewing Source = TV :

HD Ready = 720P (p=progressive) = 720 lines (can play 1080P downscaled or 1080i (interlaced = scanned more times).)
Full HD = 1080P Will have HDMI connections

Media Source : Blu-Ray
Plays 1080P, so has to be downscaled for HD Ready TV or can play full HD on Full HD TV
Connect to TV via HDMI for HD

Media Source : Freeview
Free (no subscription) Plays SD (625line) from normal Freeview tuners (built in to most TVs or older Freeview external tuners)
Connects to TV via SCART etc (but not HDMI)

Media Source : Freeview HD
Free (no subscription) Plays SD (as above) plus 625 lines upscaled or 1080i from BBC One HD ch50 / BBC HD ch54 / ITV1 HD ch 51/ Ch4 HD ch52 - built in to new TVs (higher end models) or external boxes
Connect to TV via HDMI for HD

Media Source : Freesat HD
As above, free (no subscription) with BBC One HD on Ch108 / BBC HD on Ch 109 / ITV1 HD on 118 / Ch4 HD on 126
Connect to TV via HDMI for HD

Media Source : Sky HD
as above, but subscription, with additional HD channels
as above

I've had a few beers, so where this is complete b*llox, please amend.....

daviesee

Silly Old Hector wrote:

So here's how I understand it :...............

Almost spot on but then I have had a few beers and a dram.....

Except HD ready TVs can and mostly do have at least one HDMI input.
Not that they can display full (1080) HD but they have the connectivity.

For what it is worth, HD (1080) is already old hat. 4320 is already out there - http://solidlystated.com/hardware/sharp ... elevision/
No sources that I know of although DSLR photos would look very nice! :P

CiB

amaferanga wrote:

5 HD channels on freeview vs 59 on Sky. Doesn't really compare. Some of the cycling on Eurosport HD which is true HD is superb.

You're right, but then you're into the old argument that Sky has a million channels but only a dozen or so are worth watching. The same applies with a load of HD channels (some of which I gather aren't that HD in reality). It might be nice to have a few more to look at but the four on FV / FS (+ the unwatchable Japanese HD new ch on FS) do for us thanks. The cycling coverage on Eurosport is tempting but to get it I'd have to shell out about £40 a month. In my world, it's not worth it, and means I have to pay money to Murdoch which I'd rather not do, esp while they continue to charge a tenner just for HD. They can whistle as long as they maintain that stance.

Silly Old Hector wrote:

So here's how I understand it :

Not forgetting that the option to buy a TV with either a Freeview HD tuner and/or a Freesat HD tuner already built-in. That's what we went for; Panasonic with both HD tuners on board. One remote, no additional boxes & cables etc.

Buy the dish + cabling + everything you need from that well-known online bookseller for about £50 all-in (including the sat tuning meter), spend a couple of hours on a Saturday morning fitting it to the house and you're away. No contracts, no rip-off aerial installers wanting £300 to do a simple job etc.

mfin

If you want to make no mistake....

Look for a TV with a resolution of 1920 x 1080.... then dont forget a good make and model will give a better picture than a lesser, normally cheaper one.

Ignore if it says its '1080', look for '1920 x 1080', cos 1920 x1080 is the 'full HD amount of pixels'.... 1920 x 1080 is what you get off a bluray for example, and off any real HD source.

You can get a TV that has 1080 vertical pixels but has less than 1920 horizontally. You can also get a TV that might have a resolution of 720 vertically etc... but even old 720 TVs normally have 1080 written on them somewhere as they will accept a signal of 1920 x 1080 then scale it down.

So.. all simple... look for 1920 x 1080 and look for Freeview HD and/or Freesat HD in the telly, built in.

If you have a 1920 x 1080 TV but without a Freeview HD or Freesat HD tuner you can always buy an external box for this and you'll be fine, or SKY or whatever.

The only other factor in the equation is 1080i or 1080p, but 99% of TVs that are 1920 x 1080 will offer this anyway.

DonDaddyD

Some Samsung HD Ready TV's can play up to 1080p.

They are physically capable of delivering a high definition image but do not have the means to do so internally. To get a HD image on the OPs TV he'll need to get a source capable of HD playback like Sky HD or a Blue Ray player. These TV's have a buit in SD Freeview receiver (that is incapable of playing HD). On some Samsungs SD freeview the picture quality is actually quite good as it (I suspect it upscales the image or it's just a very good panel). It is not as good as HD sourced from a good signal on a good TV though.

Samsung Freeview HD TV also play up to 1080p.

They have a source capable of HD playback built in. I.e. The built in HD Freeview receiver. Even so, it will only give a HD picture when showing a channel available on Freeview that provides HD. Not all Freeview channels are HD despite the title 'Freeview HD'

As I understand it Sky traditionally provides a high standard of SD with their films, sports and programmes. The quality of HD on other channels can vary.

(Or what the guy said above).

dr11

daviesee wrote:

PS: This applies to Sky HD too.
If you don't have a 1080P TV you are wasting money on Sky HD.

Sky only broadcast in 1080i though not 1080p so the above statement is wrong. HD Ready (rather than 'full HD') usually includes 1080i as well as 720p so Sky HD is fine. I don't think anyone broadcasts in 1080p due to the massive bandwidth needed.

daviesee

dr11 wrote:

daviesee wrote:

PS: This applies to Sky HD too.
If you don't have a 1080P TV you are wasting money on Sky HD.

Sky only broadcast in 1080i though not 1080p so the above statement is wrong. HD Ready (rather than 'full HD') usually includes 1080i as well as 720p so Sky HD is fine. I don't think anyone broadcasts in 1080p due to the massive bandwidth needed.

In which case what is the big deal with HD TV?
That would explain why some people can't see the difference.
Personally I am happy sticking with a 32" screen, HD Ready and standard TV.
The money saved goes towards bike gear :P

fast as fupp

some people cant see the difference as they link their hd box to the tv with a scart lead!

Silly Old Hector

daviesee wrote:

Silly Old Hector wrote:

So here's how I understand it :...............

Almost spot on but then I have had a few beers and a dram.....

Except HD ready TVs can and mostly do have at least one HDMI input.
Not that they can display full (1080) HD but they have the connectivity.

For what it is worth, HD (1080) is already old hat. 4320 is already out there - http://solidlystated.com/hardware/sharp ... elevision/
No sources that I know of although DSLR photos would look very nice! :P

Ahh yes - "HD Ready" and "Full HD" TVs have HDMI (high definition multimedia interface) connectors.

You get full 1080P HD from Blu-ray. I only have a 26" HD-Ready set, but Blu-ray is still amazing

amaferanga

daviesee wrote:

In which case what is the big deal with HD TV?
That would explain why some people can't see the difference.
Personally I am happy sticking with a 32" screen, HD Ready and standard TV.
The money saved goes towards bike gear :P

I hate watching non-HD channels on my tv now. Cycling, football, rugby, etc. are all superb in HD compared to non-HD and the BBC / Nat Geo / Discovery documentaries are stunning.

daviesee

amaferanga wrote:

daviesee wrote:

In which case what is the big deal with HD TV?
That would explain why some people can't see the difference.
Personally I am happy sticking with a 32" screen, HD Ready and standard TV.
The money saved goes towards bike gear :P

I hate watching non-HD channels on my tv now. Cycling, football, rugby, etc. are all superb in HD compared to non-HD and the BBC / Nat Geo / Discovery documentaries are stunning.

I would suggest that is more to do with quality filming in the first place rather than how it is streamed to your TV as these programmes also look markedly better on my TV too.
I could well be wrong though...... and I wouldn't know on my "small" TV.

dilemna

alan sherman wrote:

My parents were buying a TV over Christmas and wanted the hd channels. I had to step in and stop them buying a hd ready set, you need a TV with the freeview hd logo. Sadly a lot of staff in electrical stores seem ignorant of this difference between "hd ready" and "free view hd". Even the John Lewis technical line didn't know.

A lot of reduced Tvs are only hd ready at the moment as stores clear out this old stock.

Yeah the muppets at John Lewis in Cambridge tried to convince me that an HD ready Panasonic L24C3B LCD was full HD at 720p max resolution. I pointed out that HD is actually 1920 x 1080p and so they then claimed it was 75% HD!!!!!

To get HD channels you need a TV with a freeview HD tuner not just the more common older SD freeview tuner which can't receive HD channels which is another con that most people don't realise or are not told they are being sold. Basically HD "ready" TVs are a con and manufacturers and retailers should be prevented from marketing and selling them as such. I shall wait until I can get a true 1920 x 1080HD TV without breaking the bank. I've looked at so many my eyes are spinning. I still think LCD/Plasma/LED picture quality is inferieur to a top quality CRT screen. In the local TV shop all the guys who supply and set LCD/LED TVs have older top notch CRT TV sets that are no longer wanted and they can't give away, connected up to HD freeview boxes and Blu-Ray players. They say picture quality is superb. This is what I am going to go for, a top Philips CRT model. It might be the size of a bungalow but the picture quality is superb - no blown out whites, colour bleed or pixelation with fast moving subjects or action shots.