Video HDTV Expert Alfred Poor Tells You What to Buy and What Not to Buy (Video) 324
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Alfred Poor's website is called HDTV Almanac. That's where he talks about the latest HDTV industry news and changes. He also writes about HDTVs and monitors for a variety of industry publications and does some marketing consulting for manufacturers in the field. In this 17 minute video, Alfred tells us what features we should look for in our next TV buy and which ones aren't worth spending extra money on. He also says that for a variety of non-technical reasons, you might want to consider buying your next TV between now and June -- and says you should think about getting a 3D TV even if there aren't many 3D TV shows you want to watch right now.
Armchair expert says buy "through my site" (Score:5, Interesting)
This is some guy with a website, with a dull and poorly produced video telling you to buy stuff. I stopped when I got to the part where it says that most people buy smaller TVs than they "need". N-E-E-D.
Now, if he said "people buy smaller TVs than would be AWESOME", okay, fine. But this is basically crass consumerism pumped up by guy who isn't an "industry expert" but rather someone who worked for a crappy rah-rah-buy-stuff computer magazine for 20 years and is trying to trade on that to get some money. That's not wrong in itself, but it sure does translate to being a slashvertisement here.
Two thumbs down.
Re:3D Display... (Score:5, Interesting)
My dad has always been a 3D nutter; he even constructed his own 3D digital camera around ten years ago (consisting of TWO digital cams, measuring the exact distance from each other/shot timing and put onto a homemade wood frame. The images were run through a program on the computer that arranged them to make the pictures viewable through a classic stereoscopic viewer). While he has the new technology, the 3D TV, manufactured digital cams, etc., he has that complex... only it's been a lifetime love affair, organic, geeked-out and really cool to grow up with. :)
Okay, so someone link to some good advice then? (Score:4, Interesting)
Everybody seems to be bashing this guy as some kind of shill, could some of those same folks please point out some advice that they *would* give credence to?
Re:3D Display... (Score:1, Interesting)
Here's more reasons to pants' me and drag me around the track: that's my STEP-dad. My bio-dad worked for a company that put together parts used for Voyager I. I come from a long line of geeks, both blood relation and married-into-fam. :D
3D may never be worth it (Score:3, Interesting)
Re:Listen to what I have to say (Score:0, Interesting)
While I strongly disagree with you about 720p being fine (the difference is quite visible on my 16" laptop screen when watching a movie), I think it's a fair point that even with an 1080p HD TV, you're going to be watching 720 or non-HD content 99% of the time.
Re:Total binspam - why was this even posted? (Score:4, Interesting)
Re:Listen to what I have to say (Score:4, Interesting)
So the issue is not so much whether there is some fixed line that divides Acceptable Image Quality from Not Acceptable. I accept that this is a moving target for many good reasons that make the boundary conditions difficult (probably impossible) to identify with precision. Instead, I'd argue that having a general, fuzzy approximation is better than having none at all, and that while the 1 arc-minute "conventional wisdom" is limited, it probably does okay as a rule of thumb to get closer than an order of magnitude from the optimal choice.
Translation: listen to the experts and the reviews and all, but trust your eyes. Go to the store and look at the screens, and decide for yourself how big a screen you need to have so that you can see the fine detail when you're as far from it as you will be in your living room. Nothing beats the Mark II Eyeball as a predictor of future satisfaction.
Alfred Poor
HDTV Almanac