Information on Buying a New Digital Television
With the transition to digital television just around the corner for Guam, along the rest of the US, all old analog televisions will not function with the new digital signal coming from Marianas Cable Vision without a converter box to change the signal from digital to analog and vice versa. In addition, many Guam residents will probably use this time as an excuse to shell out some cash to purchase that new digital television they’ve been dreaming about for quite some time, and we thought providing some helpful information on how to choose a new digital tv would be a great idea.
There are many quality levels of digital television programming. The most common are:
Standard Definition TV (SDTV) - SDTV is the basic level of quality display and resolution for both analog and digital. Transmission of SDTV may be in either the traditional (4:3) or widescreen (16:9) format.
Enhanced Definition TV (EDTV) - EDTV is a step up from Analog Television. EDTV comes in 480p widescreen (16:9) or traditional (4:3) format and provides better picture quality than SDTV, but not as high as HDTV.
High Definition TV (HDTV) - HDTV in widescreen format (16:9) provides the highest resolution and picture quality of all digital broadcast formats. Combined with digitally enhanced sound technology, HDTV sets new standards for sound and picture quality in television. (Note: HDTV and digital TV are not the same thing — HDTV is one format of digital TV.)
When you purchase a digital television look for a sticker on the screen which will tell you the quality of the digital television: SDTV, EDTV, or HDTV; or you can ask the salesperson for some help if your unable to find this information labeled on the digital tv. If your looking for the best picture quality to play high-definition DVD’s (Blueray discs) or to take advantage of programs broadcasting in high-definition you will need to purchase a HDTV. The other digital formats (SDTV and EDTV) will still work with high-definition DVD’s and broadcasting but you won’t get the best picture quality like on a HDTV.
Pricing on digital televisions depend on the quality of the digital television and the size the screen your purchasing. SDTV quality televisions would be the cheapest priced, HDTV the highest priced, and EDTV somewhere in the middle; and of course the larger the screen the higher the price goes up.
If your out to get a new digital television we recommend you skip the SDTV and EDTV quality televisions and spend a few extra hundred bucks to purchase a HDTV for the best picture quality. If you don’t have enough to purchase an HDTV today it would be better for you to wait until you can afford one, rather than purchasing a SDTV or EDTV television. Today’s television sets last a lifetime and once the conversion from analog to digital signal takes place it’s safe to say there won’t be another huge change in technology in our lifetimes which will require us to purchase another television set.