High Definition Television

1
High Definition Television

• Presented By
• Jerry Moore
• jerryamoore_at_cox.net
• 12 August 2009

2
High Definition Television
DEFINITION HDTV is generally recognized as a
digital video broadcast with a minimum resolution
of 1280 pixels wide and 720 pixels high, a rate
of 30 or more frames/second and usually an aspect
ratio of 169.
3
High Definition Television
A standard definition analog television uses a
cathode ray tube with an electron gun to guide
the path of an electron beam to paint 480
vertical lines across the face of the screen.
Each time the beam strikes a dot of phosphor,
light is produced. For a color television set,
each spot consists of a group of three phosphor
elements one for each primary color.
4
High Definition Television
Analog vs. Digital Everything Has A Frequency
5
High Definition Television
Analog To Digital Conversion
Signals in the real world are analog light,
sound, you name it. So, real-world signals must
be converted into digital, using a circuit called
ADC (Analog-to-Digital Converter), before they
can be manipulated by digital equipment.
6
High Definition Television
A high definition digital television generally
uses a Plasma or Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) to
illuminate thousands to millions of tiny dots
across the face of the screen.
So how much better is HDTV compared to
SDTV? 2,073,600 / 345,600 6.0086
7
High Definition Television
Compression

• Controlled by Motion Picture Experts Group (MPEG)
• Is a form of lossy compression
• Only needs to capture pixels that have changed
  from one frame to the next
• Uses sophisticated algorithms to trick the brain
  into seeing more that what is actually there
• DVD uses standard MPEG2
• MPEG4 is the current evolving standard

8
High Definition Television
Aspect Ratios Why Are There So Many???
9
High Definition Television
Aspect Ratios Why Are There So Many???
10
High Definition Television
Screen Refresh Rates

• A rate of 24 frames/second (progressive) has been
  the movie film standard since the mid-20s
• The television industry has used a rate of 60
  frames/second (interlaced) since the 40s each
  frame draws every other line of the picture
• An HDTV will use digital image processing
  circuitry to process the interlaced TV signal,
  upscale the image size and convert the input to
  60 frames/second progressive
• Newer HDTVs are being marketed as 120 Hz and 240
  Hz using circuitry to help reduce motion blur
• Unless you watch a lot of sports or action
  movies, you probably wont notice the difference

11
High Definition Television
Which Type Of HDTV Should I Choose?
12
High Definition Television
Whats A Good Screen Size???
13
High Definition Television
Power Consumption
Some newer HDTVs even have a motion sensor that
will drop down to a lower power consumption mode
when you leave the room
14
High Definition Television
Connections
You will find a confusing array of connections on
both your input sources and your HDTV. Making
the right choice can have a significant impact on
the quality of both your picture and your
sound. DO NOT spend 100 or more for a high
quality HDMI cable. Digital is digital either
it works or it doesnt.
15
High Definition Television
Input Sources

• Antenna
• Cable
• Cox Provided Digital Video Recorder (DVR)
• Tivo
• DVD Player
• Blu-Ray DVD Player
• Sony Playstation 3
• Apple TV
• Window Computer
• Mac Mini PC
• Audio/Video Receiver

16
High Definition Television
Can I Get Free Over The Air HDTV Digital
Broadcasts Maybe?
17
High Definition Television
Cox HD Service
18
High Definition Television
TIVO HD

• Watch and record HDTV broadcasts replacing the
  cable company box uses cable cards
• Order movies from Netflix, Amazon and many other
  sources
• Burn recordings to DVD using TivoToGo

19
High Definition Television
Standard DVD Player
A standard DVD player, without upscaling, can
output video resolution at 720x480 (480i). A
progressive scan DVD player, without upscaling,
can output 720x480 (480p - progressive scan)
video signals. 480i represents 720 pixels
displayed across a screen horizontally and 480
pixels down a screen vertically. This arrangement
yields 480 horizontal lines, which are, in turn,
displayed alternately. In other words, all the
odd lines are displayed, followed by all the even
lines. 480p represents 720 pixels displayed
across the screen horizontally and 480 pixels
down the screen vertically. This arrangement
yields 480 horizontal lines on the screen, which
are, in turn, displayed progressively, or each
line displayed following another. Upscaling is a
process that mathematically matches the pixel
count of the output of the DVD signal to the
physical pixel count on an HDTV, which is
typically 1280x720 (720p) or 1920x1080 (1080i).
20
High Definition Television
Apple TV

• Order on demand movies from Netflix and Amazon
• Watch videos from YouTube
• Watch free high definition video podcasts
• Stream content from your home network

21
High Definition Television
Mac Mini

• Do everything you would do with a desktop or
  notebook using a wireless keyboard
• Order on demand movies from Netflix and Amazon
• Watch videos from YouTube
• Watch free high definition video podcasts
• Play DVDs
• Stream content from your home network

22
High Definition Television
Sony Playstation 3

• Excellent Blu-Ray player
• Wireless Internet access
• Web browser
• Stream video from other computers on home network
• Display photographs from other computers on home
  network
• Play music from other computers on your home
  network
• Keep your grandkids entertained when they come to
  visit

23
High Definition Television
Audio
Many experts recommend that spend as much on your
home theater sound system as you do for the TV.
Granted, the built in TV speakers are usually
poor quality, but for those of use with less than
optimal hearing, there are less costly
alternatives.
24
High Definition Television
Calibration

• There are five basic settings that should be
  adjusted in this order
• Brightness (Black level)
• Contrast or Picture (White Level)
• Color (Saturation or Chroma)
• Tint (Hue)
• Sharpness (Detail)

At amazon.com you can purchase the Digital Video
Essentials DVD for around 20.00 or purchase an
in home calibration service like BestBuy
GeekSquad for around 300.
25
High Definition Television
26
High Definition Television
Is Costco A Good Place To Shop?
27
High Definition Television
Copy Protection
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA)
has gone to great lengths to discourage illegal
copying of digital video. You will hear terms
like digital rights management, region code and
Macrovision. The U.S. Supreme Court, in a
unanimous landmark decision, has sided with the
RIAA (Recording Industry Association Of America)
and the MPAA (Motion Picture Association of
America), via MGM, in their battle against audio
and video file sharing networks and makers of the
video copying devices that can bypass anti-copy
codes. Instead of having to sue individual
audio and video "pirates", the Supreme Court has
ruled that the RIAA and the MPAA can now legally
sue software and hardware makers that manufacture
devices that can be used for such purposes, even
if they are not advocating their use for illegal
audio and video file sharing or copying. So if
you bought a VHS tape of a movie you really like
and later purchased a DVD of this same movie, the
MPAA would like you to now purchase another copy
in high definition Blu Ray format.
28
High Definition Television
Buzz Words To Remember
29
High Definition Television
Web Site Links To Additional Resources
30
High Definition Television
QUESTIONS???