Hey look, a real example of DVD limiting a game. (PGR4)

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Answer me this - does this big bad switch to digital in 2009 mean all the SDTVs aren't going to work anymore? I never had that 100% cleared up and I hear it thrown around a lot like millions of damn tvs are going to riot in the streets.
 
That's unpossible. Will never happen. Even if HDTVs become more accepted, who is going to just trash their older sets that are in the bedroom, or the 14 inch tv in the kitchen, or the spare old one in the basement?

SDtv should be the standard for at least another 5-10 years. The people profiting off of expensive Blu-Rays, expensive HDtvs, and expensive HD content would like it to come much sooner than that, however.

I'm not saying it's not better, I'm saying it's not necessary. Nothing wrong with good old DVDs. Cheap, great sound, good enough picture.
 
[quote name='Strell']Answer me this - does this big bad switch to digital in 2009 mean all the SDTVs aren't going to work anymore? I never had that 100% cleared up and I hear it thrown around a lot like millions of damn tvs are going to riot in the streets.[/quote]

Technically, I think that would be the case, without a HD tuner. However, it would be REALLY stupid for broadcasters to just stop broadcasting on THE date.. millions of TVs.. millions of people.. no longer watching.

That would kill ad revenue, so I really don't think that from a business perspective that they would be so shortsighted.

Also.. the 2009 date was has been bumped several times in the last seven years; it will probobly get bumped again with such a low percentage of HDTVs in homes.
 
[quote name='Strell']Answer me this - does this big bad switch to digital in 2009 mean all the SDTVs aren't going to work anymore? I never had that 100% cleared up and I hear it thrown around a lot like millions of damn tvs are going to riot in the streets.[/quote]All SDTVs without digital tuners will not work.

The majority of SDTVs out there are like this. So yeah, every one of my parents TVs won't work anymore. (except for the HDTV I got them)

However every SDTV in stores now have a digital tuner.

Plus I'm sure they will sell little digital tuners to hook up to older SDTVs so you can still use them.

My answer beats out the above 2.
 
So can you not buy a digital tuner and add it to your system?

And if that is the case, what would this have to do with only HDTVs working? Don't some HDTVs not even have digital tuners?
 
[quote name='Strell']So can you not buy a digital tuner and add it to your system?

And if that is the case, what would this have to do with only HDTVs working? Don't some HDTVs not even have digital tuners?[/quote]

Can you NOT buy a digital tuner?
Did you make a typo?

It's a misconception.
It's not ONLY HDTVs working. It's ONLY sets with a digital tuner.

And yes, even early HDTVs, the ones that were labeled 'HD-ready' do not have built in tuners.
You have to buy the digital tuner seperately. So they're already out there.
 
[quote name='munch']Don't cable companies supply digital tuners?[/quote]
Yep. People with cable don't need to worry about it, as they get their signal through the cable box.

Without a digital over the air tuner, though, you can't watch NBC, lets say, in high def over the air. If you have dish or cable, it doesn't matter for you.
 
[quote name='BattleChicken']Yep. People with cable don't need to worry about it, as they get their signal through the cable box.

Without a digital over the air tuner, though, you can't watch NBC in high def.. lets say.. If you have dish or cable, it doesn't matter for you.[/QUOTE]

So my point is that this whole switch to digital sounds like making mountains out of molehills.
 
[quote name='munch']So my point is that this whole switch to digital sounds like making mountains out of molehills.[/quote]
Absolutly correct. Its kind of a bullshit argument, and I'm a bit puzzled why anyone would have even brought it up -- especially in relation to a thread about DVD size vs Blu Ray.

I've dabbled in this thread, thinking it could be an interesting technical conversation.. but they always turn in to a pissing contest where people grasp at the most pathetic of straws to defend a multinational corporation's technology, don't they..?

I personally can accept someone pointing out the shortcomings of my favorite technology without taking as a personal attack.. its not that hard, I can teach you how!

*shrug*
 
[quote name='dallow']Can you NOT buy a digital tuner?
Did you make a typo?

You have to buy the digital tuner seperately. So they're already out there.[/QUOTE]

The point is that this whole "omfg SDTVs r gunna rape u" argument seems to be solved by telling people to buy a digital tuner. If these are available for both SDTVs and HDTVs, then this entire idea that you'll HAVE to spend lots of money on a TV just to watch your Seinfeld reruns sounds like a bunch of crap.

Now I don't know if you can buy a tuner for an SDTV. I'm assuming you can. And I'm assuming those are cheaper than buying a brand new TV (maybe that won't be the case in 2009), so I don't buy the whole argument that come 2009 the PS3 is going to reign supreme because I guess you'll get one free with any HDTV you buy. I only say this because it seems to be a favorite argument from the Sony camp - that some little switch is going to be turned on and absolutely everyone is going to just have to play Afrika.
 
You people. First it was disc space and now its about digital tuners?

Just go eat some delicious Cocoa Puffs and enjoy it's chocolatey goodness.
 
I don't think not being able to watch television would be such a bad thing.
 
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THREAD DERAILED!


[quote name='-Never4ever-']Meh? As long as it doesn't affect game play, I could care less. [/quote]
What the hell? How does driving at night or driving at day have anything NOT to do with "gameplay"?

It's like saying shadow effects in stealth games don't effect gameplay. "Graphics" in this sense have EVERYTHING to do with gameplay, you silly little boy.
 
[quote name='Strell']Answer me this - does this big bad switch to digital in 2009 mean all the SDTVs aren't going to work anymore? I never had that 100% cleared up and I hear it thrown around a lot like millions of damn tvs are going to riot in the streets.[/quote]

There is a huge amount of confusion regarding this issue.

Hardly anyones tv is going to 'stop working' and heres why.

Whenever the changeover happens, 2009, 2010... its been bumped up at least twice that I know of, and it will probably get bumped again, only BROADCAST television is affected.

By that I mean, the 'free' tv you get over the air, without cable or satellite. So if you still use a pair of rabbit ear antennae to get channels 2-13, and you use the big hoop earring antennae to get your UHF channels, then yeah, you wont get those anymore.

ANYONE who has cable or satellite, which is like 90% of the country, wont notice a damn thing. And your sdtv will not stop working.

So yeah, if your sitting there with rabbitears and tin foil on top of your tv, you have until 2009 to get a HDTV, or cable or satellite.
 
[quote name='Thomas96']Well those of you with SDTVs and thinking that HD isn't coming - The Digital Television Trasition Act, says that we are switing, I think in 2009. So unless something else changes, that's what we're looking at. As a broadcaster, I have to use what the government tell me to use.. its not a choice thing.[/quote]
Yes, and the transition is to digital, that's all. The government has not mandated what resolution of content is to be provided, only that it is transmitted digitally. This was specifically done because digital transmission uses far less bandwidth than analog (HD or not) and allows for more content to be broadcast while also freeing spectrum for other purposes.

With that on the horizon, how can anyone here justify the purchase of a SDTV, thats where the market is heading, if you buy an SDTV, might as well purchase that VHS player to go with it. Its not that SDTVs will be totally obsolete, but in the near future, buying one will be a total waste of money. With products they all depreciate in value, but the one thing that makes them value is their longevitiy, why would anyone buy an SDTV now, when most products are going HD. And to stay on topic... People who are buying up these HDTVs are going to want products to take advantage of them, games, movies, tv broadcasts. DVD games, movies, are going to be obsolete, we're good for now, cause HD is in the infancy stages, but you can't deny its coming.
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You're absolutely right that it's better to buy an HDTV right now (though they're still making SDTVs in CRT and smaller LCD formats, with digital tuners). Your argument is flawed, however, in that everyone isn't rushing out to buy a new TV. Hell, huge segments of the population can't even afford to do so. Most people buy a new TV when their old one breaks, not because they want the flashy new technology. Almost everyone I know has a 25-27" tube TV, and has no plans to replace it any time soon. The ones who know about the switch have cable and don't care. The others will probably get a converter box when it's necessary. Sure, HDTV is coming, but it's highly doubtful that the majority of people are going to have HDTV capability in the next several years.
 
[quote name='dallow']AND THANK YOU FOR COOL COLLECTED DISCUSSION.
This is exactly what I wanted.[/QUOTE]

De nada. I prefer to picture myself standing around in a smoking jacket, puffing on a bubble-pipe, saying things like, "Quite right, old bean," whenever I'm so inclined to debate on teh internets.
 
[quote name='Strell']The point is that this whole "omfg SDTVs r gunna rape u" argument seems to be solved by telling people to buy a digital tuner. If these are available for both SDTVs and HDTVs, then this entire idea that you'll HAVE to spend lots of money on a TV just to watch your Seinfeld reruns sounds like a bunch of crap.

Now I don't know if you can buy a tuner for an SDTV. I'm assuming you can. And I'm assuming those are cheaper than buying a brand new TV (maybe that won't be the case in 2009), so I don't buy the whole argument that come 2009 the PS3 is going to reign supreme because I guess you'll get one free with any HDTV you buy. I only say this because it seems to be a favorite argument from the Sony camp - that some little switch is going to be turned on and absolutely everyone is going to just have to play Afrika.[/quote]

You have to buy a digital-to-analog converter for an analog SDTV. Many of the newer SDTVs already have digital tuners built in (KMart still sells a lot of them). However, if you have cable or satellite, your set-top box does that job already, and none of this affects you. In fact, this whole digital switch issue only affects people who watch over-the-air broadcasts, who make up a small percentage of the population. Add to this that the federal government plans to subsidize the purchase of digital-to-analog converter boxes, and it means that there's no hurry to buy an HDTV if you can't afford it or don't care.

So yeah, this notion that everyone is magically going to have an HDTV in 2009 and will suddenly refuse anything but HD content is kind of silly. It'll be the end of the PS3 life cycle (at the earliest) before the HD community reaches critical mass.
 
I know that people aren't going to rush out and buy HDTVs, but if you find your self wanting a TV, then as of today, you'd be wasting your money if you bought anything other than an HDTV. The only reason there are SDTVs out there, because, people will sell you anything. Its not like the retailers are going to say "hey its best to buy HDTV" cause they'll sell you anything.
 
I love it when people talk about disc space like they are some highly recgonized achieved Game Developer:

"Disc space isnt needed! Games are just fine with the disc space that is provided last generation!"

How the hell do you know!? Have you ever tried stuff a next generation game into a tiny little disc?
 
DarkNess: Then why is Sony the only platform not choosing DVD this generation? Hell, PC games still ship on CDs.

Because they stand to profit the most from Blu-Ray, that's why. It's got very little to do with caring about you and giving you the best and the most about using the Playstation brand to make Blu-Ray work.
 
[quote name='DarkNessBear']I love it when people talk about disc space like they are some highly recgonized achieved Game Developer:

"Disc space isnt needed! Games are just fine with the disc space that is provided last generation!"

How the hell do you know!? Have you ever tried stuff a next generation game into a tiny little disc?[/QUOTE]

Don't you ever think out what someone might come back with before you post? Seriously, it's as if you just like playing straight man for other people. Work with me here:

If the people who don't think disk space is a major issue can't know it because they're not "highly recgonized achieved Game Developers," then the people who think it is an issue, and who presumably also aren't actual developers, ________.

Right? Get it? It's like a MadLib.
 
Sony may not have needed to have Blu Ray for this generation, but I'm glad they went with it in their fight against HD DVD.

Having a BD player is very much worth it to me.
7.1 PCM sound is a nice bonus too.
 
just a comment on the digital tuner with sdtv thing, i had one of these digital over the air tuners and it could output through composite and s video as well as component so yes, they should work with sdtvs. now i am unsubscribing from this thread. have fun.
 
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