Did I buy a crap High-Def TV?

[superdave]

The picture under normal circumstances is a dream. However, when something's moving (like soccer players or a soccer ball) the moving objects are really fuzzy. The picture was better on my old TV.

I do NOT have a high-def cable box, just a digital box. Is that the problem?

With my very limited technical knowledge, it would seem like a refresh-rate problem, but I couldn't find that in the TV's specs. Is that an issue for the box?

Help!

[JeremyEritrea]

What TV did you buy? Manufacturer and model number.

You will more than likely need a high-def cable box.

[superdave]

Akia. I know, not one of the big names, but the picture in the store looked dynamite. And like I said, the score bug looks terrific. It's those pesky moving players that are a bit dizziness-inducing.

[JeremyEritrea]

If you don't have a high-def feed from your cable, you'll need to get one.

I'd call the cable company to find out about pricing. I think I pay an extra $4.95 per month for the high-def box.

[SoftTackle]

I get three different standards with my HDTV. The first is a show filmed in HD and broadcasted in HD - i.e. NFL games/Discovery HD shows. It's the highest quality image. The second is a show not filmed in HD, but is broadcasted in HD - Network TV shows. It has a detailed but somewhat grainy Movie like image. Finally, a show not filmed HD and not broadcasted in HD - about 90% of the content on DirecTV. It has a very soft image that at times seems blurry.

I'm guessing you saw the first category at the store and the third at home. A HD receiver probably won't help it. The gradual transition to more HD content will, and a HD receiver of course.

[superdave]

I'd call the cable company to find out about pricing. I think I pay an extra $4.95 per month for the high-def box.
TWC says no extra charge, which is nice.

[Chiquitibum]

yeah, non hd channels for me are "streched" unles i put it in side box mode.

[Kryptonite]

TWC says no extra charge, which is nice.

With TW, there is no extra charge for the box, but there's the HD gold/premium/whatever it's called in your area package.

You'll want to upgrade to that HD box asap. Suppose NBC is channel 6 and ABC is channel 8. With the new box, you'll get the NBC-HD, ABC-HD, etc. channels on new channel locations. Forget all about the old locations, and watch the new locations. (Same thing with TNT, ESPN, etc.)

Regardless of whatever setup you have, any channel under 99 that you can get with no box, is most likely still analog. Digital channels generally start at 100.

[superdave]

I watched the movie Friday Night Lights last night, and with the "cinema verite'" camera work, I kinda got dizzy. I may be sitting too close to the screen; same thing happens if I'm in the front half of a movie theater.

Anyway, I called Akia's customer service line and described the problem, and the guy quickly asked what my source was. He was getting at whether I had an HD box or not, and said the HD box would fix the problem.

We'll see Monday morning.

[needs]

For people who have TWC, do you get ESPN2HD? I can't seem to find it in my channel line up.

[Kryptonite]

For people who have TWC, do you get ESPN2HD? I can't seem to find it in my channel line up.

You can't find it, cause TWC doesn't carry it.

[GringoTex]

I watched the movie Friday Night Lights last night, and with the "cinema verite'" camera work, I kinda got dizzy. I may be sitting too close to the screen; same thing happens if I'm in the front half of a movie theater.

Anyway, I called Akia's customer service line and described the problem, and the guy quickly asked what my source was. He was getting at whether I had an HD box or not, and said the HD box would fix the problem.

We'll see Monday morning.

Understand that without an HD box, you're not getting HD. HD screens don't play standard definition much better than a tube tv. You're going to be wowed when you get your HD box in. You also need to buy component cables to connect your HD box to your tv. Not the $100 Monster brand- find the cheaper ones for around $25. Do you have a surround sound system?

[royalstilton]

There are two types of "appropriate" cables, component quality and HDMI. If your TV isn't 1080i, I'm not sure whether it makes a huge amount of difference whether you use a high quality cable or not. But there is a discreet difference between component and HDMI, according to my geek friend Manny, who works for a telecom outfit and knows everything. He is fortunate to live in a fiber-optic zone.

[Kryptonite]

Understand that without an HD box, you're not getting HD. HD screens don't play standard definition much better than a tube tv. You're going to be wowed when you get your HD box in.

Exactly. As I said above, the HD box will display a whole new set of HD channels. You'll have no reason to watch your current local channels (and whatever else, ESPN, TNT, etc.) after that. Even if a program on ESPN isn't in HD, you'll still want to watch on ESPN-HD.

[USmaximus]

Anyone else out there mad due to the fact that no soccer games are in high-def? Just once I would like to see a game from Espn or espn2 in high def! Am I the only one? Let me hear some feed back!

[JeremyEritrea]

Anyone else out there mad due to the fact that no soccer games are in high-def? Just once I would like to see a game from Espn or espn2 in high def! Am I the only one? Let me hear some feed back!
Actually, I've seen quite a few soccer games in high definition.

It must be you.

[Kryptonite]

Actually, I've seen quite a few soccer games in high definition.

It must be you.

Even on the ESPN channels, we've seen the entire WC and last season's CL final in HD.

When WCQ starts up, hopefully a lot of that will be in HD. It'll be interesting to see how much MLS is in HD when the new broadcasting deal starts.

[white riot]

The picture under normal circumstances is a dream. However, when something's moving (like soccer players or a soccer ball) the moving objects are really fuzzy. The picture was better on my old TV.

I do NOT have a high-def cable box, just a digital box. Is that the problem?

With my very limited technical knowledge, it would seem like a refresh-rate problem, but I couldn't find that in the TV's specs. Is that an issue for the box?

Help!

Well, at your age, maybe you should see an optician.

[royalstilton]

Anyone else out there mad due to the fact that no soccer games are in high-def? Just once I would like to see a game from Espn or espn2 in high def! Am I the only one? Let me hear some feed back!
we have to wait till the next WC is my guess.

[Achtung]

we have to wait till the next WC is my guess.

WorldSportHD (http://www.worldsporthd.com/) has shown La Liga and UEFA Cup games in HD for a couple of seasons now, but its only available through the VoomHD package on Dish Network.