High Definition television or HDTV refers to video that has resolution (1080p) higher than that of traditional television system. HDTV has one or two million pixels per frame which is roughly five times that of the standard one. During the time of its launch, HDTV broadcasting used analog techniques but nowadays HDTV is digitally broadcast using video compression.
HD television was first developed by Nippon Hs in 1969. HDTV, as we witness it today, had its birth in Japan in 1980’s and in Europe in 1990’s. By 2002, US had only 3 to 4 HD channels and the HD programming was also limited. American Football (NFL) was one of the first sports to air some games in HD. Today a number of HD channels are available in the US. In India, High Definition Television along with picture resolution comparable to a 35mm movie screen, surround sound audio, wider screen image with up to 6times the picture sharpness of standard television, was available in the market by the end of 2008. In addition to a much enhanced viewing experience which is augmented by a crystal clear display, HDTV also provides CD quality sound.
One thing that needs to be taken note of is that all HD television is digital but not all digital TV is HDTV. Today we see a number of commercial, advertisements in televisions, newspapers and magazines about HDTV in India. Many people who buy or are planning to buy are not aware of the fact that by just going for HD DTH connection, they will not be able to see all channels in HD. Only those channels that are telecasted in HD can be viewed in high quality. So, before going for HD DTH connection people must check the number of channels which are offering HD output. Recently a number of channels like Movies Now, Discovery World, National Geographic, Star Movies, Star World, Star Cricket, ESPN, Colors, UTV Stars, History are offering HD output for the viewers.
High Definition Television is popular because of its flat panel matrix displays (FPDs) in the home which have gradually replaced cathode ray tube (CRT) based television sets. FPDs are larger in size than CRT and are about 42 inches to 65 inches diagonal. HDTV broadcast has up to 1080 lines resulting in 6times the picture clarity in respect to standard television output. As already discussed earlier, when it comes to audio, 5.1 surround sound is much superior to the one available in standard television.
The High Definition television apart from being technically so demanding has some drawbacks. They are more expensive than regular standard televisions. Most cable and satellite companies charge additional monthly fees for providing HD programming. HDTV can suffer from ‘burn in’ resulting from static images and they have relatively short life expectancy of 20,000 to 30,000 hours. HD televisions consume a lot of power in comparison to other technologies. Watching HDTV from close distance can cause headache. So experts have recommended sitting at a distance from an HDTV which i equal to two to three times its diagonal length. Another disadvantage of High Definition television is that most of the operators stop short of following full HDTV specifications. Thus the HD picture quality ends up being not as good as promised. Operators use lower resolution or slower bit rates to accommodate more channels with the limited bandwidth; as a result the video quality suffers.
Though there are a number of disadvantages, HDTV is the future and no one can deny the fact that it is much superior to standard television. A revolution in the television viewing experience is waiting to happen. Pictures to die for!!
About the Author-
Sayanti Ghosh is student of Journalism and Mass Communication at Muralidhar Girl's College, Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are those of the author, and they do not reflect in any way those of the Dispassionate Observer.
