Television Buyer Beware!
On March 1st this week, there is a new deadline for electronics companies. Apparently, this is the date that all gear, bot televisions and recording devices shipped will be required to have a digital tuner. At least the new stuff that is shipped is supposed to meet this standard.
However, what is going to happen to the existing gear, already on the shelves? Well, if it shipped on February 28th 2007 or before, than it's perfectly fine to sell it! Too bad for the unsuspecting consumer that assumes that their new TV or recording device will have in it a digital tuner. Just because it's in a sealed carton and purchased new, that is no assurance in the end that it has a digital tuner. Therefore, the responsibility falls on the consumer to buy the right gear.
Unfortunately, this problem may continue for the next several months. I've visited electronics retailers, both brick & mortar, and online. Even at this late date, they still don't have digital tuners in the smaller televisions, or the recording devices. I suspect that the next generation of devices with the digital tuners won't arrive for a few more months as they make their way through the distribution channel. Consumers planning a new television less than 27" (the larger ones have had digital tuners for quite some time now), or a TV recorder should put their purchase off until such devices arrive. Even if you get your signal from a cable or satellite source, you never know when you might want to be able to get it "over the air," and options are always a good thing.
--Jonas
However, what is going to happen to the existing gear, already on the shelves? Well, if it shipped on February 28th 2007 or before, than it's perfectly fine to sell it! Too bad for the unsuspecting consumer that assumes that their new TV or recording device will have in it a digital tuner. Just because it's in a sealed carton and purchased new, that is no assurance in the end that it has a digital tuner. Therefore, the responsibility falls on the consumer to buy the right gear.
Unfortunately, this problem may continue for the next several months. I've visited electronics retailers, both brick & mortar, and online. Even at this late date, they still don't have digital tuners in the smaller televisions, or the recording devices. I suspect that the next generation of devices with the digital tuners won't arrive for a few more months as they make their way through the distribution channel. Consumers planning a new television less than 27" (the larger ones have had digital tuners for quite some time now), or a TV recorder should put their purchase off until such devices arrive. Even if you get your signal from a cable or satellite source, you never know when you might want to be able to get it "over the air," and options are always a good thing.
--Jonas
Labels: Digital Television, Television
posted by digitaldoc at 10:27 PM
3 Comments:
Also beware of displays marked "EDTV." I've been seeing these in Sam's and Costco for quite some time and I suspect they show up in retail outlets also. They appear to be a big screen display at a ridiculously low price. When you read the fine print, EDTV means the display is most likely a 480i or 480p display, NOT an HD display. As always, caveat emptor!
So EDTV = Enormously Deceptive Television?
Good point Gyro. In my understanding, EDTV has more than 480 lines of resolution, but less than 500, which by definition is then high definition televison= HDTV. With less than a 20 line improvement, it's no better than regular TV in the end. By the way, regular TV is sometimes branded onto boxes as SDTV, which I suppose stands for standard definition television, but is really the same old thing in the end.
Post a Comment
<< Home