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Let me suggest a different approach. Buy the set with analog inputs and boycott the sets with DVI/HDCP. This will expand the market for unprotected content, and eliminate the market for protected content. It will also cause huge pain for CE vendors who see expensive new product launches fail. |
Uh huh... and what is everyone in this forum going to do a year from now, when the first early adopters start raving about the image quality from new all-digital displays, with no D/A-A/D conversions in the signal path?
This is the upside that nobody is talking about. The new equipment will likely show a better picture, and it will be cheaper to manufacture. That makes this just another painful upgrade cycle, like any other. Even if Congress intervenes and manages to kill the copy protection, you’ll still want the new hardware because it’s a better way to get the signal to the display.
Here's what I think is better advice for people who don't know what to do right now, and are looking to buy new display hardware:
1) Buy hardware optimized for 480p resolution, and be happy watching DVD movies during the transition period. You'll still get a decent picture on "down-res'd" HDTV premium content. It won’t be full resolution, but it’s still better than what you get now with most PPV satellite and cable movie channels, which are running at 480i. When the HDTV market stabilizes in a year or two, you can think about upgrading. That's what I just did (by accident)... I bought a Seleco HT200DM (848 x 480 DLP) projector and I'm loving it. No pain about the future, because it only does 480p anyway. Looks terrific on DVD movies. There is a lot of other hardware in this category – Panasonic 42†plasma, CRT-based RPTV’s, etc.
2) The other worthwhile approach is just to keep your investment as small as possible, so you can afford to upgrade sooner when the all-digital equipment arrives. There are some nice deals right now on cheap LCD projectors, and you know there will soon be a lot of "HDTV compatible" RPTV's available at fire-sale prices.
Either approach lets you enjoy DVD movies and whatever HDTV is still available on the analog outputs, while the market shakes out. I don't think it makes sense to invest heavily in high end, high-resolution hardware right now. That's the category that's going to suffer the most depreciation and user dissatisfaction when the new system rolls out.
I know some will see this as heresy, and think we should all be fighting the good fight and telling Hollywood to #$% off. The problem is that HT enthusiasts always go where the best image quality is, and I think that's going to happen with the new all-digital signal path. Even if you don't buy that argument, you know the manufacturers are going to be putting their best efforts into the new all-digital display hardware, and that alone insures that it's going to be desirable. Current HDTV display hardware is good... but it's not good enough, or cheap enough.