HD? Half Done?

A lot has been written in the last year (2006) about the rise of high definition. I've been hearing and reading about high def for over 10 years now, and now that industry "insiders" (whoever they are) are saying that 2007 is the year HD-DVD takes over, it's time to address the facts of this new format, and dispel some of the myths.

1) Most of the TV install base on Earth (the planet that includes more than net-crazy gearheads) does not have the capacity for HD. Even my TV, which is 16x9 and less than three years old, lacks an HDMI input, even though it can display 1080i if fed to it through component video.

2) The number of people using DVD (which the industry insiders now scoff at as being "old technology") is still growing. Many known to me personally have not even made the switch from VHS. And somehow they seem to be advanced beyond the "banging rocks together" stage.

3) The Blu-ray and HD-DVD players, which probably represent the second easiest way for a home user to "get into" HD are not compatible with any TV lacking an HDMI input. Meaning that any TV bought for less than $1000 and more than a year ago is not going to get the job done. That represents a pretty large barrier for the first-time adopter, even when the number of films available on either format gets large.

4) The easiest way of getting into HD, Digital Cable or Satellite TV, is still adopted only by a few consumers, and is more of curiosity than anything else. This has some capacity for growth, but its success has been rooted in its backwards compatibility. HD signals can be received through component video, allowing users like me and others with higher-end TV's to get the benefits of HD video, and the service is piggy-backed on the reliable, old-fashioned TV service that everyone has come to expect.

5) (And most obvious) Most people are perfectly happy with DVD. It provides excellent resolution, sound quality and special features for all but the most finicky consumer.

Conclusion: DVD isn't going anywhere for a long time. There's no need whatsoever to jump on the bandwagon of HD unless you're a discerning technophile with a large amount of disposable income. For everyone else, TV will continue to mean what it did 20 years ago (a box with programs on it) and DVD will continue to be the rental/purchase medium of choice.

That's not to say that films and TV programs will not continue to be shot in HD, as they should. Most news broadcasts are shot in Beta-SR, but I have yet to see a player in someone's home that can play one of those tapes. We'll still be able to enjoy the benefits of the resolution of an HD picture without buying into an expensive new technology.

And finally, there are far more important things in the digital video/home video/DVD world to be concerned about, such as the number of DVD's that are still sold with the label "full screen", meaning cropped and chopped for 4:3. That's a much more vicious mutilation of a film or program than not broadcasting it or watching it in HD, and something about which we as discerning home video enthusiasts should be concerned.