HDTV Buying Guide - Full HD vs HD Ready

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HDTV - High Definition TeleVision

High Definition TeleVision (HDTV) is a digital television broadcasting system with higher resolution and better sound system than standard television systems (NTSC, SECAM, PAL). The most obvious difference is HDTV uses a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9 as compared to standard TV which uses a aspect ratio of 4:3.

To enjoy HDTV programs, you need to get a HD Ready or Full HD TV set as well as a DTV-T setup box.

How to Choose your Ideal HDTV 

Full HD vs HD Ready, 1080p vs 720p?

HD signals
720i - 1280x720 interlaced
720p - 1280x720 progressive scan
1080i - 1920×1080 interlaced
1080p - 1920×1080 progressive scan

HDTV types
HD Ready - HDTV set capable of accepting HD signals (may not be able to display at full resolution 1920x1080)
Full HD - HDTV set capable of accepting HD signals and able to display full resolution at 1920x1080
720p HDTV - another name for HD Ready HDTV
1080p HDTV - another name for Full HD HDTV

Most of the HDTVs today are able to support 720i/720p/1080i/1080p signals. So the single most important spec that we should be looking for when choosing a HDTV is the screen resolution (pixel resolution).

For HD Ready HDTVs which have screen resolution less than 1920x1080, they are less than ideal. This is because if you feed a 1080i/1080p signal to a HD Ready HDTV, this HDTV will scale down the signal resolution to fit its smaller screen resolution. That is to say, you will lose resolution if you use a HD Ready HDTV to display a 1080i/1080p signal.

For Full HD HDTVs, they have screen resolution of 1920x1080, thus, when a 1080i or 1080p signal is feed to it, it is able to display the picture in its full glory at 1920x1080 with no resolution loss.

So it is not difficult to conclude that if money is not a problem, always go for Full HD 1080p HDTVs with 1920x1080 resolution instead of HD Ready 720p HDTVs which has lesser resolution.

How to Choose a Good HDTV at a Budget 

HD Ready vs Full HD, size does matters

For the same screen size, Full HD HDTVs cost much more than HD Ready HDTVs. If you are on a budget, buying a HD Ready set instead of a Full HD set will save you quite a substantial amount of money.

As a general guideline, if you are getting a HDTV set which is less than 42 inch, you won't be able to notice the resolution difference between a HD Ready set vs a Full HD set. Thus, you will be able to get almost the same visual enjoyment at a lower budget if you buy a HD Ready HDTV (720p) instead.

For screen size 42 inch or greater, going for a Full HD (1080p) will be a better choice as at such big screen size, the pixel difference will be more visible.

HDTV Guides 

Professor Poor's Guide to Buying HDTV - Second Edition

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HDTV For Dummies (For Dummies )

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HDTV Surge Protector 

Monster Cable MP HTFS 1000 Monster Power High Definition Video HTFS 1000 PowerCenterTM 2 AC Outlets for HDTVs

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Protect your prized HDTV from electrical and lightning surge with this Monster Surge Protector.

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HDTV Antennas 

Improve your HDTV reception by using these HDTV reception antennas

Terk HDTVa Indoor Amplified High-Definition Antenna for Off-Air HDTV Reception

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Antennas Direct DB2 Multi Directional HDTV Antenna

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Antennas Direct DB4 Multi Directional HDTV Antenna

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RCA ANT1450M Multi-Directional Digital Flat Amplified HDTV Antenna (White)

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Terk Technology HDTVi VHF/UHF HDTV Indoor Antenna

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Amazon Price: $25.00 (as of 12/09/2009) Buy Now
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Vote For Your Flavorite HDTV Brand 

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Samsung HDTV Advert with Chelsea Players 

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Samsung HDTV 

Samsung PN50B650 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

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Samsung Touch Of Color T240HD 24-Inch LCD HDTV Monitor

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Samsung LN46B630 46-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV with Red Touch of Color

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Samsung LN22B360 22-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

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Samsung LN32B460 32-Inch 720p LCD HDTV

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Sony Bravia HDTV Commercial 

Too many HDTV choices? Can't decide which brand of HDTV to buy?
Well, according to this commercial, you should get Sony HDTV if you like to watch sports.
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Sony Bravia HDTV 

Sony BRAVIA DAV-HDX589W 5.1-Channel Theater System (Black)

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Sony BRAVIA DAV-HDX285 5.1-Channel Theater System (Black)

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Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-52V5100 52-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black

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Sony BRAVIA XBR KDL-32XBR9 32-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV

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Sony BRAVIA V-Series KDL-46V5100 46-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black

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Panasonic HDTV Commercial 

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Panasonic Viera HDTV 

Panasonic VIERA S1 Series TC-L37S1 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

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Panasonic VIERA X1 Series TC-P50X1 50-Inch 720p Plasma HDTV

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Panasonic VIERA S1 Series TC-P42S1 42-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

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Panasonic VIERA G10 Series TC-P50G10 50-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

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Panasonic VIERA G10 Series TC-P42G10 42-Inch 1080p Plasma HDTV

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LG HDTV Commercial 

Don't just watch it, live it. In LG Full HD.
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LG HDTV 

LG 32LH30 32-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV, Gloss Black

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LG 42LH40 42-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Gloss Black

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LG 37LH30 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV, Gloss Black

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LG 37LG50 37-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

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LG 37LH55 37-Inch 1080p 240Hz LCD HDTV, Gloss Black

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Sharp Aquos HDTV Commercial 

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Sharp Aquos HDTV 

Sharp AQUOS LC60E77UN 60-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Gold Bezel

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Sharp AQUOS LC65E77UM 65-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV with Gold Bezel

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Sharp AQUOS BD-HP22U 1080p Blu-ray Disc Player

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Sharp AQUOS LC46LE700UN 46-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LED HDTV

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Sharp AQUOS LC52LE700UN 52-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LED HDTV

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Philips HDTV Commercial 

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Philips HDTV 

Philips 42PFL3704D/F7 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

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Philips 47PFL3704D/F7 47-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

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Philips 42PFL6704D/F7 42-Inch 1080p 120 Hz LCD HDTV

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Philips 32PFL6704D/F7 32-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

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Philips 42PFL5704D/F7 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

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Toshiba REGZA Commerical 

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Toshiba Regza HDTV 

Toshiba REGZA 46XV645U 46-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black

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Toshiba REGZA 55ZV650U 55-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with ClearScan 240, Black

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Toshiba REGZA 42ZV650U 42-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with ClearScan 240, Black

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Toshiba REGZA 40XV645U 40-Inch 1080p 120Hz LCD HDTV, Black

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Toshiba REGZA Cinema Series 55SV670U 55-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV with LED Backlight and ClearScan 240, Black

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Pioneer Kuro Commercial 

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Pioneer Kuro HDTV 

Pioneer VSX-1019AH-K 7-Channel A/V Receiver (Black)

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Pioneer VSX-23THX Elite 7.1 Channel Audio/Video Receiver

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Pioneer PRO 151FD - 60" Elite KURO plasma TV with built-in network media player - widescreen - 1080p (FullHD) - HDTV

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HDTV T-Shirts 

Tell the world about HDTV by wearing those T-shirts

1080p Dark T-Shirt

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1080p White T-Shirt

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