Do I need HDTV?

[DeardorffV8]

I have not had broadcast or cable TV for over 20 years. Have an older vcr player tv that works fine.

Now have another household mate that wants Satellite TV. Not content with my old Dirty Harry videos I guess.

I understand now there is some kind of chip in the sets. Do I need this for some reason?

Also read that there is a HD system. Do I need this?
I did the two hour drive to get to a town where they have Walmart and some other big stores to take a look at the pictures on these TV sets and was pretty disappointed. Nothing is sharp on them. Looks nice, but no sharpness as I am used to in my photos.

If we do get the Satellite TV, will it work OK on my older set with the two antenna wire screw on leads?

I am not really sold on this stuff but the housemate is getting insistent she would like to watch some programs and it 'would be nice' to have satellite... since we don't get broadcast because I won't put up a 30 foot antenna.

If we go that way I will probably sign up with Dish TV as they allow you to pay by check or MO instead of a credit card. Is one type of TV better than another for this kind of service?

Thanks for any help on this.

 

[jdspencer]

Are you serious? Do some research on your own, please.

My answer to your question is. Of course you need HDTV, it is the wave of the future.

 

[DeardorffV8]

The question is a serious one. I still use a camera made in 1949 and it takes beautiful 8x10 inch negatives. I hand coat the papers I print on for platinum/palladium prints and they sell just fine. The images I do in silver chloride are as sharp as can be and much better than anything in pixel land with the electronic crapboxes people are using these days.

So why wouldn't I ask about the newest TV stuff?

This website took 17 minutes to open enough to read the comment on my question. This is typical of our 'speed' with the dial up internet connection we have where I live. Driving to a city where there are a number of TV stores is a two hour deal, one way. That is if the roads are good.... and winter is on its way. Once we get below zero, 30mph winds and some snow it gets to be a long trip.

Internet searches I have done on HDTV get me to a number of sites that are written for people who already know what this stuff is. Thus, the question.

It appears I have come to a site with know-it-all jerks who answer questions, if the answer is any indication.

Thanks, but no thanks. I won't be back.

 

[Andrewwski]

You'll be fine. Just get an SD receiver from the provider, and use the Channel 3/4 RF output through a 75 ohm to 300 ohm balun to feed it into the two-screw input. Tune the TV to channel 3 and turn the satellite box on...and voila! Satellite TV!

 

[jdspencer]

Sorry if I came across a bit strong. But, if you had explained your situation a little more, I may have answered differently.

 

[bidger`]

It appears I have come to a site with know-it-all jerks who answer questions, if the answer is any indication.

Thanks, but no thanks. I won't be back.

Your choice.

It's pretty clear you're an analog guy in a digital world. A little surprised you found the Internet. I would say if you wanted to see HD sets in operation, WalMart isn't your best choice. You could buy there, but the setup at the local outlet leaves a lot to be desired. Better off going to Best Buy, Circuit City, or Sears to see an honest-to-God HD feed.

The only way you're really compelled to go HD is if your only source of programming is over-the-air since that's where the analog cut-off/digital conversion will occur.

In short, if you go to BB, CC, or Sears and don't see a difference between the sets on display and the one you have at home, maybe HD isn't for you.

 

[stevenl]

You dont need HD to watch satellite. Your TV has a the "two antena leads" You will need a 75ohm to coax converter so you can connect the satellite box to your tv other then that you should be fine.

PS: Ignore the rest of the knucleheads, I assure you they are not a representative of this site or community.

 

[Andrewwski]

Not a "75 ohm to coax converter". No such thing would exist. TV coax cable (RG59 or RG6) is 75 ohms. What he wants is a 300 ohm (impedence of the flat two-lead cable) to 75 ohm (impedence of coax cable) converter.

They're about $5 at Radio Shack or free when you find the ones from your really old TV/rabbit ears, etc.

 

[stevenl]

Well what I meant to say is a 75ohm transformer. To convert the 2 lead into a 75ohm coax line which as you say can be bought at an electronic store. (I dont recomend Radio Shack they are an overpriced junk seller) You cna get that from one of the sat guys gold sponsors much cheaper

 

[vegassatellite]

75 ohm matching transformer. Here is a pic.

You may have two sets of screws on the back of the TV. If you are using a regular satellite receiver, you'll want to screw this down to the screws labeled "VHF". If you are using a dual tuner receiver like a 322 and the TV in question is the TV2, you will want to connect this to the UHF screws on the back of the TV.

 

[stevenl]

Yes that

 

[skottey]

This guys post is so obviously a fake post. Why somebody would do this, I don't know, but this guy is trying to hard to sound backwoods with the 2 hour drive one way and the Walmart talk.. housemate and a vcr, Dirty Harry, 17 minutes load time, still on dial up.... blah blah blah... fooolesh!! Fake post!

I like the part about him being an analog man in a digital world though... good way to put it, if he were real.

 

[rv1pop]

skottey,
I WILL NOT USE THE LANGUAGE YOU DESERVE!
Go to Backwoods Solar Electric Systems and see how a big bunch of us live. My closest Walmart is 1 hour and 20 minutes away and all but 3 miles is on paved roads. Our nearest power line is $18,000.00 away. I have been using packet and BBS' for many years (since 1958) and now have cellular dial up service at ~ 2400 baud.
If you can not help -please keep your mouth shut. (Or your fingers off the keyboard). If it matters, I do have two college degrees.... And I honor my fellowman.

 

[skottey]

skottey,
I WILL NOT USE THE LANGUAGE YOU DESERVE!
Go to Backwoods Solar Electric Systems and see how a big bunch of us live. My closest Walmart is 1 hour and 20 minutes away and all but 3 miles is on paved roads. Our nearest power line is $18,000.00 away. I have been using packet and BBS' for many years (since 1958) and now have cellular dial up service at ~ 2400 baud.
If you can not help -please keep your mouth shut. (Or your fingers off the keyboard). If it matters, I do have two college degrees.... And I honor my fellowman.

Are you DeardorffV8 ???

His post sounded very fake... I realize there is a backwoods segment of society and you do things differently. It just sounded like this guy was making fun of the backwoods lifestyle. Just look at the tone of his message. I mean no disrespect to you or your lifestyle out there.

 

[rv1pop]

No, I am not DeardorffV8. My screen name is the one I have used for almost 4 years and I will not use another. I had a OTA antenna up 36 feet but the wind - over 50 mph - took it down for the third time so I got the Glorystar system. I now have TV. I cannot get AM or FM radio, reliably ---
I would guess the poster in question lives in NE WA, N ID or NW MT.... Just a guess. It does sound logical to me. I have over 300 VHS tapes to cycle through. If she is boggie, It will be obvious in time, until then, try to help, or ignore them. Thanks.

 

[stevelite]

<<Also read that there is a HD system. Do I need this?>>

That really depends on you. If you are happy with what you have then answer is no you don't need.

I will say this, after I have been HDTV programs I do not want to go back to non HD.
It's similar to once you get high speed internet, u don't want to go back to dial up.

Soon or later, what is it year 2009, we all need to jump to digital age since all US broadcasters must end transmitting analog television signals.

 

[Andrewwski]

Irrelevant. As mentioned a million times that doesn't affect satellite or cable subscribers.

 

[Skyhi]

this is obvious flame

 

[JH1949]

Here is some more info from DeardoffV8 from a previous post.

I am glad I found this site and this discussion. We moved from Cable in an Urban area to dial up on a farm in Norht Dakota. Our fastest dial up has been 24kbps and the real download speed is about 2.3 kbps and often under one kilibyte per second. Needless to say we only download updates and similar at night and hope it doesn't disconnect as so often happens when the site itself times out on us.

We are looking at satellite. One reason is when I upload photographs to friends and the lab I want it to do so a lot quicker than a half hour and longer. My photo files are usually 4-8MB and some up to 175MB in size with (very) few at up to 300MB. My wife does genealogy as a hobby and spends a lot of time doing internet research......
is there another provider that covers rural North Dakota. (Wild Blue has no provider closer than 60 miles and HughesNet page tells me the only one is in Williston, a couple hundred miles away) Are they reliable enough to live with service/help so far away?