In a few days, I’ll be getting a 52″ HDTV set for my home. And that means I’ll be looking for more HD content. I have Comcast cable and have already signed up for HD content and have the HD box with the HD DVR.
It’ll be quite sad to lose my Tivo Series 2 DVR, but it’s not HD so I’ll need to use the Comcast HD DVR. I’ll actually have both connected at the same time since I still have lots of content sitting around my Tivo that I haven’t watched yet. Plus, the Comcast HD DVR only has about 30 hours available for HD programming which means I’ll probably be filling that up pretty quickly. Having a backup Tivo for SD programming makes sense until I bite the bullet and buy a Tivo Series 3.
When I had an HDTV set earlier this year, I noticed a few rather interesting things.
I Only Watched HD Content. Switching to HD really made me want to only watch HD content. I watched nature shows on Discovery HD, travel shows on the Travel Channel and lots of sports in HD. It really changed how and what I watched on my TV. I thought it was just a phase, but I predict it’ll happen again.
Not Enough HD Content. After getting an HD set, I was hungry for HD content. But I found that it was severely lacking. Sure there were a few movies, sports and some HD channels, but the majority of channels were in SD. Fortunately, some of my favorite prime-time shows–like Lost, 24 and Heroes–are in HD so I’ll be able to enjoy them in HD mode.
I saw a story recently showing research that said consumers are happy with HDTV picture quality, but want more HD programming. A survey of511 HD households found that 85% thought the quality of their HDTV sets was either above average or excellent. Only 39%, however said the same about the selection of HD programming.
Being happy with the programming usually comes down to how you’re getting your HD programming–antenna, cable, satellite or IPTV. Cable and satellite companies are battling it out over who has the most HD channels, and it’s hard to know unless you do the research.
The survey found that sports and movies were the most popular HD programming. In fact, ESPN HD was the most-watched source of sports programming, and HBO was tops in HD movies.
Meanwhile, there’s evidence that HDTV is getting more and more affordable. With the holidays approaching and the Super Bowl just a month away, it is a great time to start looking around for HDTV deals.
A new JD Power study found that consumers love their HDTV sets and would buy HDTV again, like the sets a lot and would recommend them to friends. Among HDTV brands, Sony, Pioneer, and Samsung are top consumer favorites. JD Power’s “2007 Large Screen HDTV Usage and Satisfaction Study” measured customer satisfaction with HDTVs.
In my quest for HD programming, I’ll report back on my search of TV providers in the San Francisco Bay Area on who has the most channels for HD. For now, I have cable but am willing to switch to a new provider if they have a better offering.
Technorati Tags: HDTV, HD, Comcast, cable, Tivo, HD DVR, DVR
