For the past few years, the average income of people has increased and therefore their standards of living have been pushed up. Owing to changes in economic conditions, people now prefer to have better gadgets at home, particularly television sets. Now-a-days many people are leaping from a normal 21-inch television set to HDTVs that provides pleasure viewing along with better picture quality and image sharpness with better resolutions.
So when you want to buy an HDTV do you simply go to a superstore, decide a size, select a model for required price, pay the cashier and come back? No, buying an HDTV is not as easy as it seems. With so many varieties and technologies available in the market, one needs to see if what they are is the best picture resolution for that size and maximizes comforts, is it wide enough, or is it compatible to your new DVD player?
These questions are bound to affect your choices. At the same time, a large range of sophisticated HDTVs in the market can confuse you. Therefore knowing the essentials of HDTV is a great asset when you are going to shop for a big change in the house.
Here is a list of 10 things you need to know before you buy HDTV so that you wonât end up regretting your decision.
1. A true HDTV:
A genuine HDTV is minimum 1280×720 pixels while lower definitions are only Enhanced Definition TV (EDTV). Get HDTV and also see that the set has a connection port that supports 1080p. This will ensure that you will be able to use a Blue-Ray or HD-DVD player.
2. Flatter is better? Not necessarily:
Also donât judge television sets based on flat screen display. With the advent of new technologies, several LCDs use LED lightings that produce dark tones and allows sets to achieve dark blacks in television sets particularly the 46 to 50 inch ones. This has resulted in lesser differences between plasmas and LCD sets and therefore one shouldnât follow old flat screen technology notions.
3. Watch your favorite movie:
While you are in store, you might not notice several loopholes in television sets since the best is presented in front of your eyes. But in real world, problems with video playing can surface. Therefore the best option to test HDTVs is to bring a Blue-Ray Disc of your favorite movie and play it there. Also bring devices like flash drives, camcorders that you plan to use with your television.
4. Video quality:
Test drive your potential HDTV with some colorful, fast-moving video titles. Pay special attention to the televisionâs ability to handle quick action with picture breaking up. See that the elements in the video do not flicker or jiggle when they should be still.
5. Energy consumption:
Since years LCDs have been known to consume lesser power than plasma counterparts. But LED backlit LCD save more energy than general LCDs. So if you plan on watching your dear TV set for longer hours then pay a little more for high quality LED and save your power bill. See the power star ratings to know which one is more energy efficient.
6. Test the HDTV in home use mode:
What you generally see in stores are bright images on HDTV. This is because these television sets have their store-demo mode turned on. But in a darkened living room of your home, this picture might appear annoying. Therefore view the home-use settings to know about picture and color quality.
7. HD viewing:
Most of the cable channels that offer HD generally broadcast in 720p that is good quality. Some may offer 1080p which is better. So instead of going for low resolution like 480p, use a higher resolution, preferably 1080p for your HDTV.
8. Never use animated videos for tests:
Cartoons generally look similar on any kind of digital display. Therefore donât use animated videos to check the video and color quality of your potential HDTV. Check out television shows or movies for knowing about the HDTV.
9. Make adjustments:
Inspect the presets of your device and adjust key controls such as brightness, contrast etc. Notice how these remote keys affect the views of movies, television shows and games or sports.
10. Surround sounds:
While you are in a store, you might not be able to judge the accurate sound of your HDTV. Insist on testing the sound of your system and audio. Prefer the one with built in DVD players or buy a HD-DVD player for your device.
