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All About HDTVTCF April 2008

They Look Great

50” Vizio

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All About HDTV - Outline

Digital TV (DTV) and High Definition (HDTV) Frequency Allocation What are Broadcasters Doing Where are the Signals Coming from Plasma, LCD and DLP Displays How to Hook Up HDTV to Your System HD Recording Consumer Guide

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Digital TV and HDTV

OTA Analog transmissions to cease in 2009 after over 50 years. DTV offers better picture quality – no snowy or degraded picture, no convergence problems

Each pixel separately generated Stereo and surround sound (5.1) built-in MPEG-2 compresses 1 Gb/s video stream One 6 MHz Channel can carry 20 Mbits/sec or

several DTV (HDTV and SDTV) sub channels and other data (8-VSB and QAM)

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Digital TV and HDTV(cont.)

DTV Formats – 480i, 576i, 720p, 1080i, 1080p (1080p Blue-Ray, HD-DVD only)

Native HDTV Formats - 720p or 1080i, up or down conversion is required

Aspect Ratios – 4:3, 16:9 – black stripes, missing foreheads or 300 lbs bodies

On-Screen Daily Schedules

2008 TV Receivers

Sets with HD display and no tuners (HD ready or HD monitor)

Sets with HD display, NTSC/ATSC and QAM tuners with or without cable cards (most common)

Sets with SD display (LCD or CRT) and NTSC/ATSC tuner (least expensive)

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Frequency Allocation

Old Assignments: VHF (Ch. 2-13) and UHF (Ch. 14-68)

New Assignments: Upper VHF, lower UHF (Ch. 7-53)

Government Will Auction the Vacated Channels for $$ Billions, is issuing rebate coupons for converter boxes

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What are Broadcasters Doing

Broadcasters take advantage of uninformed public Saving on Quality for Profits – more channels, less HD Few Broadcasters provide a consistent true HD Signal Basic Cable May or May not Include Digital Channels Cable and satellite providers degrade the HD signal by

further compressing it Over-the-air still the best – not publicized and hushed

up by cable providers and retailers

Transmission and Modulation

NTSC/ATSC/QAM Tuners

Video Stream1 Gbit/sec

+MPEG-2

20 Mbits/sec

QAM (Cable) 6 MHz

8-VSB (OTA)6 MHz

Digital Transmission

6 MHz Channel

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Are You Watching HDTV?

Sleeping in the Garage Doesn't Make You a Car

Nearly half of the 24 million households with HDTVs don't actually watch high-definition programs

HDTV Material Doesn't Grow on Trees

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Where are the Digital Signals Coming from

Digital Cable Satellite (Dish Network) Over the Air – A well kept secret. An old

antenna, even rabbit ears will often do Blue Ray DVDs and other new formats

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Plasma, LCD and DLP Displays

Plasma – Generates its own light, vivid colors, best viewing angle, but subject to burn-in, ambient light a problem (glare, reflections)

LCD – Backlit, (Venetian blinds) good pastel colors, poor blacks, low power consumption, low weight, good in lighted areas, 42” or less

DLP – Reflected light (Rear projection), bright colors, relatively expensive, fragile, 50” and up,

www.howstuffworks.com/lcd2.htm

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Plasma Display

Panel Cross Section

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Plasma Display

Cell arrangement

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LCD Display

Polarization

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LCD Display

More Details

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DLP (Projection) Display

How it works

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How to Hook Up HDTV to Your System (A/V Components)

Over-the-air and cable combination Analog vs. digital cable (cable cards, boxes) Use of additional tuners (VCR, ATSC) Analog and digital audio to your HiFi Use with Laptop as Monitor DVD Player Games, computer and other components

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How to Hook Up HDTV to Your System (Inputs and Outputs)

Varies between Manufacturers and Models Composite - AVI (3 RCA cables) Component (5 RCA cables) HDMI Svideo + audio RGB (15 pins) + audio Analog Audio (Stereo) Digital Audio (5.1)

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How to Hook Up HDTV to Your System (Cable Types)

HDMI, RCA, Svideo, RGB

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How to Hook Up HDTV to Your System (OTA and Analog Cable)

Combining Over-the –air with analog cable

VCR

HDTV

Antenna

Cable AV1

DTV/TV

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Recording of HD/SD Programs

Lack of video outputs on most HDTV sets makes recording difficult (DRM raises its ugly head)

Recording to PC hard drive with external ATSC tuner

Regular VCR if analog output available from HDTV or digital cable box

TiVo recording to hard drive DVRs with built-in ATSC/QAM tuners and DVD

recording media coming down in price

Pinnacle PCTV HD Stick

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HD Picture on PC Screen

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Current HD/SD Programming

Networks simulcast their main analog channel Plenty of weather channels News, sports, specials and some shows in HD PBS carries a separate HD channel with high

quality documentaries, cultural and science programs (3 hour operas from the MET, full concerts, etc)

Government Coupon Program

Analog OTA transmission will cease on 2/17/2009

Between 1/1/08 and 3/31/09 you can call 1-888-388-2009 to apply 1-2 $40 Rebate coupons per household Coupons expire 90 days after issue ATSC to analog converters will give new

life to old TVs and VCRs

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Consumer Guide

Fit Size to Your Viewing Area Built-in ATSC/QAM tuner or HD-Ready Plasma. LCD or DLP Availability of Inputs and Outputs Price, warranties, repair cost Ask questions on alt.tv.tech.hdtv and

check http://www.avsforum.com

Additional Resources

Converter box site: www.dtv2009.gov: Find out about OTA reception at your

home: www.antennaweb.org Quiz to tell if you are ready for HDTV:

www.dtvtransition.org: