[Pocatello]

I was at Circuit City yesterday, and I saw that almost all of their televisions were displaying the same image... and the Showtime HD logo was in the lower right corner.


I thought to myself, this is odd, why is the HD logo being displayed on TVs that are not HD?


And conversely... are any of these HD sets displaying an HD feed?

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I asked a salesman, and he said they were displaying a special demo DVD from Circuit City. No, it was not HD, he added.


As I shopped some more, I noticed the promos for ABC as well. ABC HD.


This is weird, I said to myself.


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I called Circuit City today, and spoke with a man who said he is the store manager. He told me the feed was from Direct TV. It was just a promo feed from the satellite. It was not in HD, he added.


I was told that some of their RPTVs were maybe possibly capable (in the store) of displaying HD, but usually they don't display HD. Just a DVD or something from satellite. Something that is not HD from satellite.


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What is wrong with CC? Why would any neophyte buy HD when it is displaying DVD quality or less?

 

[Gene Cowan]

I have complained about this exact thing at Circuit City for years. There's nothing more annoying to see than a big HD set displaying something that says "HD" but is just a grainy, stretched, and badly artifacted SD image from DirecTV - and speaking with the sales people at CC is impossible, as they generally suffer not only a lack of product knowledge, but a lack of good English. Like any retail environment these days, it's better to be your own salesperson - research your purchase yourself, educate yourself, then search for the best price. Never rely on big box stores to give you the best price nor the best explanation of technology.

 

[David Richardson]

It all comes down to money. If the had a clue they would make an investment in a distribution system for the HD sets. The NON-HD sets would get a down converted composite feed which shows the correct aspect radio.


But since they(local employees) don't have a clue or the ability to make that decision bitching to them is a waste of time.


JMO


Dave

 

[Gene Cowan]

Or - if they weren't so concerned with having each and every set playing a promo reel for the store and hitting us over the head with the all-important branding, they could simply have the HD sets tuned to a local HD station. One antenna on the roof would accomplish this... the same way small independent dealers manage to do it.

 

[magic123]

With CC and..most likely Best Buy, it all comes from headquarters..and not from the stores..what to show on their tv sets. Of course, they are dead wrong. I have told them that many times and most salespeople agree but, as I said, it comes from 'upstairs' and the individual stores have zero to say about it. Just persons making decisions who know nothing about HD. A shame and disservice to their customers.

 

[JamesMH]

In the CC in Rancho Cucho, they had HDNET on all the tvs.

 

[David Richardson]

Quote:

Originally posted by JamesMH In the CC in Rancho Cucho, they had HDNET on all the tvs.

James, was HDnet hooked up correctly on all sets?


Dave

 

[magic123]

Jamesmh..

Good for that store. But, believe me, that is the exception.

 

[Ken H]

Quote:

HD at Circuit City: what is their problem?

Low payed, uncaring employees.

 

[jckessler]

CC in Somerville, MA has HDNet going on their larger TVs.

 

[Rudy1]

I can assure all of you that corporate (both CC and BB) doesn't care too much either. I've written (actual letters, not emails) to both parties over the past two years complaining about everything that has been mentioned here on the Forum, and the responses I've received are nothing short of hilarious. Even when I went to great lengths to explain how their current practices are hurting their sales, the best they could do was reassure me that their sales staff get "the very best training possible". Some of the staff at the "high end" stores are not much better, with the older salesmen tending to lead the pack when it comes to being blissfully ignorant of the latest technology. Usually the younger guys at these establishments tend to display a little more "interest" when you ask them specific questions about HD, and don't just try to shove whatever they happen to have on the sales floor down your throat. But the CC and BB staff, regardless of age, tend to be completely oblivious to what's happening in this sector of the galaxy. Hopefully things will improve with time.

 

[Pocatello]

At CC, they are really cutting their own throats. It frustrates me, and makes me sad as well. Plus, the local broadcast stations in my area have no incentive to have HD broadcasts when no one even knows what HD is, since they have never really seen it.


None of the stations in my area met any of the deadlines for HD broadcasts. They probably won't meet the future deadlines either.

 

[sangs]

Quote:

Originally posted by Ken H Low payed, uncaring employees.

Uncaring employees? Whaddya talking about Ken? Every time I walk through those doors they swarm all over me. "Hi how are you? Need any help?" I must get that greeting 50 times during a visit there. They love me. Of course, when I tell them I'm just there for a DVD, suddenly the love vanishes and I become a leper...

 

[DYH]

You have to remember your average forum member is not the average consumer. Most on this forum are well informed consumers and know what to look for. The average consumer doesn't even know what HDTV is. All they see is WOW what a big screen and some kid telling them it is top of the line technology. The bottom line is they are selling TVs. I did all of my research online to find a TV and then promptly went to Circuit City. The salesman showed me an interlaced DVD player hooked up through the composite input. When I asked for component cables he looked at me like I was nuts. They had their in store feed playing a demo loop that connected to all of the TVs using an RF coax cable. Are they basically dumb? Yeah pretty much. Should you care? Probably not - because being informed consumers we also know they are willing to deal! (I got a great price on my Hitachi and got the salesman to throw in free monster cables too....) I even got the salesman to deliver my TV that night himself (at a discounted rate which he promptly pocketed). I might add he was overly cautious and brought the TV into my house and help me set it up.

 

[Patman]

At my local CC, there are 2 display areas for OTA HDTV, one area showcases the latest Hitachi with the built-in HDTV tuner (and for some reason, they are silly enough to also play the P/S version for the Attack of the Clones DVD on this large HDTV RPTV.


The other area is where they show off 3 of their expensive flatscreen HDTVs and when they show NFL in hi-def on it, it makes a compelling case for the sports fan on Sundays.

 

[nico60513]

And where do they get NFL hi-def? From a tape?

There isn't any NFL hi-def this season (at least until the playoffs / Superbowl).


CBS NFL hi-def? No.


ABC (MNF) NFL hi-def? No.


ESPN (SNF) NFL hi-def? No.


FOX NFL hi-def? No. (although some of the Fox games are in EDTV, a.k.a "Fox High Resolution Widescreen", none of them are actually in HD)


Kevin

 

[Patman]

Fine, Fox 480p.

 

[sangs]

Quote:

Originally posted by nico60513 And where do they get NFL hi-def? From a tape? There isn't any NFL hi-def this season (at least until the playoffs / Superbowl).

It's a tape. CBS ran the Giants-Ravens Super Bowl in HD a couple years back. That reel is played on all the HD displays that I see in Best Buy, so I'm assuming CC would show it also.

 

[Patman]

No, I was talking about the OTA HDTV/EDTV feed on Sunday NFL action. On the Fox feed, it was 480p (or it was just the usual OTA TV feed from the networks being received on the HDTV receiver). I was watching an Atlanta Falcons game live that Sunday afternoon.