HDTV Questions – Blu-Ray, HDMI, Xbox 360, Calibration?
Purchased a Samsung 32″ 720p LCD HDTV last night. Now I have questions. Best Buy always has a demo about how their Geek Squad ‘calibrates’ the TVs to look better. I refuse to pay money for that, so I was wondering if there was a guide to do that, if it is even necessary.
Second, since it is only a 720p TV, is Blu-Ray worth the money? Does the HDMI cable come with the system?
Third, I will be using it primarily for my Xbox 360. Is there a cheaper alternative to the $50+ HDMI cables for it from Microsoft? Or is that the best route?
Fourth, I will occasionally connect this to the digital cable upstairs. Is there a good way to connect it to watch the HD channels in full quality?
Thank you for your time. Points will be given for best answer.
There are many calibration DVD’s out there that are very helpful. A full Technician adjustment by Geek Squad is unecessary in my opinion on a 32″ screen as you can get it tuned in pretty easily even without a DVD. Most new TV sets come prest with brightness and color saturation too high as they are trying to get the store display models to bring attention to their TV over the others. Just turn down the brightness, color saturation, and often there is a “Sharpness” setting that can actually cause your picture to be less realistic.
It’s up to you, but Blu-Ray is both beautiful and still expensive. if it were me, I would stick with DVD’s a little longer until at least after Christmas when they are sure to go down in price. A 720P picture will look almost indistinguishable from a 1080p on a 32″ screen, but the added resolution from 480i DVD to 720p (max resolution on your set) will be noticeable but it is up to you and your budget. HDMI cabels typically do not come with Blu Ray players, since it wouls significantly increase the already high cost of the player and keep people from buying them. They usually come with standard component and composite cables.
HDMI cables are definitely the besat route for a number of reasons- they are simpler, requiring just one cable to go between your tv or amplifier and your source. They are digital so they do not degrade signal quality. They are actually less expensive than going the route of quality, seperate audio and video cables. EBay is a good place to pick up any cables or interconnects for cheap, so I would check them out for HDMI.
A few ways to get HD cable in full quality- HDMI (which we’ve talked about), component video (Green, red, and blue rca’s), and VGA (computer monitor input). Keep in mind that if you go any other way than HDMI, you will need seperate audio. To get full Dolby Digital, you will need HDMI, Optical fiber, coaxial digital, or 6 channel pre-outs. Again, HDMI is easier.
Good luck.
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