HDTV Sets

To receive HDTV service, you must have an HDTV-ready or HDTV-capable television set. Most TV's have 525 horizontal screen lines with the screen itself having a 4:3 ratio of width to height. High-definition television sets, by contrast, get their better picture by having either 720 or 1,080 horizontal screen lines. They also have a wider movie-style display with a 16:9 ratio which allows you to view HDTV. While your current television is not becoming obsolete, neither will it be capable of producing the same sound and picture quality that a HDTV set provides.

Today's HDTV sets come in two forms, HDTV-ready and HDTV-capable. HD-ready sets have the HDTV receiver/decoder built-in, while HD-capable sets require the addition of an external receiver/decoder needed to receive digital broadcasts. In an HD-capable set, the TV is essentially a monitor. You may buy the receiver separately, or Alameda Power & Telecom will provide the converter for an additional monthly charge. (Please understand the program that you are watching needs to be broadcast in an HDTV signal in order to truly experience HDTV.) Broadcast HDTV programming is available at no additional monthly charge.

Using Your HDTV Set

The primary reason for getting an HDTV set is, of course, to receive HDTV programming. You may also use it for regular programming. You are cautioned that there is a potential to get what is known as "burn-in" on the sides of the screen. This could ruin your television set, especially if it is a projection-type television. Consult your user's guide for information regarding viewing 4:3 (standard video) programming in its native format.

You may also play your DVDs on an HDTV set: they will look better, but you will not get the highest resolution possible. DVD video does not really support HDTV, since DVD was developed before HDTV. DVDs MPEG-2 video resolutions and frame rates are very similar to NTSC formats (NTSC is the standard video format in North America; other regions of the world use different formats). However, DVD can use the 16:9 aspect ratio of an HDTV set. Eventually the DVD- video format will be upgraded to an "HD-DVD" format. If you buy one of today's DVD players, it will not be able to play HDTV discs when they come out.