I made the switch to HDTV this week, and it's been a real mixed bag. On the one hand, I finally got rid of goofy Tivo and replaced it with a DVR that has, like, a Stop button. And that responds instantly to changes. And that allows multiple-select. My long Tivo nightmare is over.
Of course, the picture is spectacular...on select programs. My thoughts have turned to when CDs first came out, and I used to walk into record stores and flip through every single CD for sale. It took less than five minutes. So is it with HD programming. At any given moment, looking at your HD programming options takes 30 seconds.
It's infuriating to watch Ohio State beat Texas in low def and then see the highlights on ESPN in high def, but such is commonplace if you go HD. There are few channels that carry it, and then on those, little HD programming. Sure, there's the odd delight like the space shuttle launch, but I pretty much just watch sports, the Discovery Channel, and Letterman in HD. That's scant payoff for my steep cost. Worse, I'm forever futzing with the aspect ratio, trying to make human faces vaguely round again. Didn't watching TV used to be, you know, effortless? Wasn't that a tremendous part of its appeal?
Two other notes: 1) Mark Cuban's HDNet channel is hilarious. Watch hot young babes in bikinis learn about penguin migration! Next! 2) Some things were better off low def. Like Lee Corso. I most definitely did not need to see what's in his pores.