Purchasing The Right Time Warner Cable Package

HDTV sets are here to stay. With costs anywhere from a few hundred dollars up into the thousands, it is important to do the research and find an equitable review. Even though the salesman at your local radio shack is probably a good guy, you can often find some great HDTV deals on the web as well if you know what to look for. You need to know things like the type of HDTV you want, which resolution you want, what inputs the TV has, the right viewing angle, and the best contrast proportion to get. If all that confuses you be careful not to let it. I am here to aid in making sense of all of the tech lingo and find the right TV for you.

Most likely you are a digital cable TV or satellite subscriber. Either way, the very first thing you want to do is find out what kind of HD channel lineup your cable or satellite supplier offers. Many major digital cable service providers like Comcast, Time Warner Cable, Charter, and Cox have great high-definition channel packages with some great specials and rates for new customers. Dish Network and DirecTV have the satellite picture covered through equally strong HD tiers. Your digital TV company should have just about each HD channel now broadcast available, but ensure just in case before you buy a new HDTV.

Once you've gotten a great high definition channel package from you cable or satellite provider, you'll need to choose whether you need to go with LCD, LED, plasma, or projection. Rear-projection based HDTV's are based on the oldest technology and usually have lower resolutions, contrast proportions and viewing angles. I usually counsel staying away from rear-projection HDTV's, but if price is a large hurdle you'll be able to find some very good deals on rear-projection TVs and you can at least put your foot in the high-def world. If your budget is not as proscribed, most HDTV's produced today are LCD based. There's wide selection of LCD HDTV's out there but for the best picture concentrate on television's that have a 1080p resolution and stay away from 720p screens. These numbers refer to the screen resolution and determine how clear your picture will be. 1080p is the best and recommended for almost everyone. You'll find some HDTV's that advertise a 1080i resolution. Although it's typically a better picture than 720p, the "i" in 1080i implies that it's an "interlaced" resolution which isn't as smooth or clear as a 1080p "progressive-scan" picture. However , if you find a great deal on a 1080i HDTV, the price difference may make a case for the slightly lower picture definition. Plasma screen HDTV's were the 1st highres TVs that actually made everybody see what a difference an HD picture made. The 1st plasma televisions made, though, were exceedingly pricey costing thousands of bucks. Currently, with competition from LCD HDTV's, the costs have come down significantly. Both plasma and LCD screens have benefits and downsides over one another and often it boils down to personal preference. LED HDTV's are the newest technology in the market. LED screens are LCD's that make use of LED back-lighting to raise color range and contrast ratio while reducing energy consumption. Of course they cost more than standard LCD HDTV's and are targeted to those hunting for the most recent and best. For television connoisseurs, though, LED's offer the best picture and the smallest profiles you can currently order.

After you've concluded which HDTV format  is correct for you it is time to look at the little features and make sure the television you're pondering purchasing has what you want. Make sure the HDTV's you are taking a look at has all the connections you want. These include audio and video input/outputs and computer connections. Next, read the fine print for the TV's greatest viewing angle. This is how far you can be from the side of a TV and still see a clear picture. The larger the viewing angle the better the HDTV and the more places in your living room you can enjoy the picture other than right in front of it. Lastly, have a look at the HDTV's contrast ratio. This is a measure of how dark the dark colors are and how bright the light colors are. Ideally you want a high contrast ratio, but because each manufacturer may employ a different system for calculating the ratio you usually have to decide for yourself by taking a look at the picture. Stay away from TVs that produce blacks that appear gray or whites that are dull and lack "pop".

Even with all of the confusing marketing hype the bottom line is HDTV is fantastic. Prices have come down seriously during the last couple of years and now you can get a huge television and easily stay under $1500 or even a grand. But if you aren't sure what to look for you can end up with a poor picture with faded out colors. I am hoping my article has helped you know precisely what to go looking for when you head online or to the electronics store for a new TV. When you get the right HDTV it will forever change how you watch TV.