Conflicting advice given by Comet and Currys

[HarriettPotter]

Hi, I hope someone can help me...

Last night me and the boyf went looking at TVs. We are pretty undecided about which one we want and to be honest were quite phased by the amount of models on offer. We will definately do our research before parting with the money as we are aware there are many great deals to be had online etc but I wondered if someone could help me out with the conflicting advice we received before we decide.

We spotted a 26" widescreen we liked and a 30" - one was HD and one was not. So we are just browsing about Comet and, as expected in these places, a nice friendly sales guy approaches us and asks what we are looking for. We talked about the ones we have been looking at and he was very helpful, explaining that we should feel in no rush to buy an HD ready TV as if we do; the BBC won't be doing HD until they get rid of analogue in 2012, we won't be able to view Sky unless we get an HD Sky box which he reckons will cost about £400, and most of our other stuff won't be compatible for some time.

Oh, thats useful to know, we thought. So we thanked him and wandered next door to Curry's. Once again we were approached by a nice friendly sales guy - ok, maybe he wasnt so friendly, but anyway - he bombarded us with questions about what size, budget, specification we are interested in and we outlined exactly the same things as we had to the guy in Comet. This time our Curry's friend said that if we are going to spend between £600 and £800 on a new TV we should buy HD. If we don't, none of our stuff will work with the normal telly - Sky, DVD players and apparently the PS3 won't work?!! Along with all this he kindly told us that we are 'going to look pretty silly' when we are the only ones who have bought a new TV and it isn't HD ready.

I managed to offload our new friend and get the boyf out of the shop before he got a bit cross but then we were a bit confused to be honest. We spent a large part of the journey home trying to work out what they had said and what we were going to do about it.

Can anyone here clarify what the hell is going on with these HD TVs? They are really lovely and the picture was very clear but if other things linked to my TV won't get the benefit of it, is there any point? Conversely, if we spend on a non HD TV will other new things, such as PS3 not be compatible? Do you have to buy HD things for it to work on the HD telly?

I dont mean to be thick but I think I need it spelled out to me as to what will work and what wont.

Someone help me!

By the way, I am so tempted to write to Comet and Curry's to enlighten them on the advice their staff are giving!

Thanks in advance for any help....

HP

[lordnoize]

basically if you buy an HD telly there isn't much at the moment that will benefit.
no HD broadcasts for a while and no UK HD dvds for a while

if you buy an HD telly now then you are futureproofing, all your exisiting equipment will work now and all future equipment will be fine

i cant imagine a highdef sky box out for a longtime, same with a highdef dvd player.

if you want to buy a new telly now then getting HDready will at least futureproof you. or you can get a normal telly now and in 5 years time buy an HD telly as the prices will have dropped

[bbdivo]

oh my, where to start, the first guy is probably more right than the second. However the second guy has got it completely wrong about the fact new equipment will not work unless your TV is HD. All new equipment (at least in the near future) will come multiple ways of connecting up to a TV. Scart will more than likely be a minimum, with composite and svideo. HD is not so widespread (even in the US) that devices will only output over HD connections (being HDMI or DVI or Component). Although I havent seen the specs myself if Sony does not give an option to connect to a TV via Scart they will basically be shooting themselves in the foot as that's how most people will likely be connecting their PS3's to their TV's

[Richard Torble]

Originally Posted by lordnoize

i cant imagine a highdef sky box out for a longtime, same with a highdef dvd player.

Er, SkyHD is due before the end of the year mate. So, not that long to wait. HD-DVD is admittedly a long way off (18months-2 years)

Best advice I can give is to buy an 'HD Ready' set, look for the black and white logo point of sale, so you are futureproofing yourself but have a great picture for all of your current, existing sources.

I do think that buying a non HD set at the moment is a little silly. Ok, not so much silly more kind of "well, why not just get an HD set and be done with it?"

[HarriettPotter]

Thank you I appreciate your comments. I can see both sides and we will have to think about what to do. I just wanted to be clear on what will work with it and what wont - the second guy worried me making me think that new stuff out (PS3 being my main concern) would only be HD!!

Thanks again...

[ijd]

my lcd does not show the hd ready signal but certainly had the best picture available, over the ones showing the HD sticker, i went ahead and purchased as i think HD is still a lot of money and a long way off, i am very happy with my set which is the sharp ga5e.
when hd dvd recorders and the new sky box become available at a price i can afford i will buy them,and then when i need to change the set that will be hd compatible along with the rest of my equipment, in my mind by the best quality and not the best technology as i am sure hd will be released upon us and then the sets we are buying today will look poor against those we buy when hd is the norm.
plus i am safe in the knowledge my set will still play hd signls under the sd mode

[mjcairney]

Originally Posted by Richard T

Er, SkyHD is due before the end of the year mate. So, not that long to wait. HD-DVD is admittedly a long way off (18months-2 years)

February 2006 would be appear to be the date.

Cheers,

Martin.

[HSC]

Originally Posted by HarriettPotter

the second guy worried me making me think that new stuff out (PS3 being my main concern) would only be HD!!

Thanks again...

as far as I can tell - the PS3 will only output HD games via its HDMI port...
there may be a standard AV port for Standard Def gaming...?


but the nature of the Blu-Ray disks it will be using - it will require a HDCP output in order to get the data to the screen due to all the security and encryption (along with a persistent internet connection)......
dont know how it will work for certain- off to the PS3 forum to investigate...

p.s. i'm very much in the xbox camp...

[miketrim]

Originally Posted by HarriettPotter

Hi, I hope someone can help me...

Last night me and the boyf went looking at TVs. We are pretty undecided about which one we want and to be honest were quite phased by the amount of models on offer. We will definately do our research before parting with the money as we are aware there are many great deals to be had online etc but I wondered if someone could help me out with the conflicting advice we received before we decide.

We spotted a 26" widescreen we liked and a 30" - one was HD and one was not. So we are just browsing about Comet and, as expected in these places, a nice friendly sales guy approaches us and asks what we are looking for. We talked about the ones we have been looking at and he was very helpful, explaining that we should feel in no rush to buy an HD ready TV as if we do; the BBC won't be doing HD until they get rid of analogue in 2012, we won't be able to view Sky unless we get an HD Sky box which he reckons will cost about £400, and most of our other stuff won't be compatible for some time.

Oh, thats useful to know, we thought. So we thanked him and wandered next door to Curry's. Once again we were approached by a nice friendly sales guy - ok, maybe he wasnt so friendly, but anyway - he bombarded us with questions about what size, budget, specification we are interested in and we outlined exactly the same things as we had to the guy in Comet. This time our Curry's friend said that if we are going to spend between £600 and £800 on a new TV we should buy HD. If we don't, none of our stuff will work with the normal telly - Sky, DVD players and apparently the PS3 won't work?!! Along with all this he kindly told us that we are 'going to look pretty silly' when we are the only ones who have bought a new TV and it isn't HD ready.

I managed to offload our new friend and get the boyf out of the shop before he got a bit cross but then we were a bit confused to be honest. We spent a large part of the journey home trying to work out what they had said and what we were going to do about it.

Can anyone here clarify what the hell is going on with these HD TVs? They are really lovely and the picture was very clear but if other things linked to my TV won't get the benefit of it, is there any point? Conversely, if we spend on a non HD TV will other new things, such as PS3 not be compatible? Do you have to buy HD things for it to work on the HD telly?

I dont mean to be thick but I think I need it spelled out to me as to what will work and what wont.

Someone help me!

By the way, I am so tempted to write to Comet and Curry's to enlighten them on the advice their staff are giving!

Thanks in advance for any help....

HP

This just about sums up Comet and Currys!!

[Thunder]

Originally Posted by HSC

as far as I can tell - the PS3 will only output HD games via its HDMI port...
there may be a standard AV port for Standard Def gaming...?


but the nature of the Blu-Ray disks it will be using - it will require a HDCP output in order to get the data to the screen due to all the security and encryption (along with a persistent internet connection)......
dont know how it will work for certain- off to the PS3 forum to investigate...

p.s. i'm very much in the xbox camp...

I think you will find that only the HD digital output will be HDCP encrypted and that it will output a SD analogue signal via scart etc

[mjcairney]

Originally Posted by miketrim

This just about sums up Comet and Currys!!

What else can you expect when they are trying to sell you a TV, the next person an electric kettle, the next a vacuum cleaner, the next a tumble drier, the next ...........................

Cheers,

Martin.

[origbow1]

Hey Harriett,

You were lucky with the man from Comet..perhaps there training is starting to pay off at last. I agree with him to a certain extent. However, you don't necessarily need an HD Ready TV. You should just get the best picture TV (in your opinion btw) for your budget (£600-800).
HD (via Sky) isn't due until Feb 2006 (estimated earliest date with only 6 channels confirmed so far), and the box will likely cost you another £400. So unless you want to be an early adopter of the technology (and fund the R&D costs as part of that early buy-in) then you could wait. PS3 will have the best pic via the HDMI cable, but will quite happily ouput in SD via the usual socketry.

So, go get the best TV for your money now, and then upgrade in 3-5 years by which time you will get a better spec, socketry almost for the same budget now. Yes there will always be something new, and £2K+ TV's do look stunning... but you should look at best value for your money now.

One final piece - ignore the man from Currys...they are just pressure selling to try and convince u to buy into the latest kit. Personally, I use Currys & Comet to view new products as they arrive in the market, then go to an Independent dealer to see a better setup (improved signals etc) once I have narrowed my choice. The net will likely give you the best price (not always though), but make sure you have good after sales support....cheap is good, but not if you have problems and then its a nightmare as many on here will vouch for.

Go narrow your choices and keep us all posted on how you get on.

Peter

[dan1979]

Originally Posted by HSC

there may be a standard AV port for Standard Def gaming...?

Given that probably less than 1% of their potential buyers have an HD screen then yes there will be.

[HarriettPotter]

Thanks everyone I appreciate your time, and thanks Peter, that has put my mind at rest and helped me understand. I will take your advice and soon hopefully have a lovely new tellybox with more exciting options to look forward to in the future.

HP

[Noggin1980]

If you are planning to buy a PS3 at launch then I would go for HD. The PS3 will definatly work with a normal TV but the picture will be very different.

Try opening up a PC game and playing it for a few mins, then goto the options screen and change the resolution to 640 by 480 (which is basically standard definition TV) and see what you think. Then you will know how different it will be in SD and HD.

If you still think the picture looks great at 640 by 480 then by all means go for the non HD TV.

The PS3 will also have a blu ray drive in it and can play High definition DVD's so it would be a shame to waste that.

In terms of sky HD, thats coming in Feburary 2006 and for the first while at least the box is probably going to be 300 or 400 pounds (probably the later if rumors are correct) and could potentially cost either the same as a top tier sky package or an extra 10 pounds a month.

I'm not sure on the BBC but I think they are currently testing HD and I would expect them to be broadcasting in HD many years before 2012.

So its entirely up to you but the PS3 part of your post makes me think that HDTV is the right choice for you especially if you are the sort of person who buying a new TV is a big deal and won't want to upgrade in a few years time. If you arn't interesting in gaming and arn't too fussed about the new SKY or the new HD DVD's then buy all means save some money and go SD.