Quote:
Originally Posted by domfjbrown
Isn't that a widescreen film on the screen? The aspect ratio of the actual picture looks OK, so I'm assuming the black bars are letterboxing?
Nice find though - shame there's only about 10 roundies here in the UK  |
Ooops! My mistake. I looked at the picture of that Zenith roundie a few minutes ago (after having read domfjbrown's post) and did in fact see two blank spaces above and below the picture, which does in fact indicate letterbox formatting. Many TV shows here in the US, in fact all shows telecast in HD, appear this way on standard analog 4:3 TVs using digital cable boxes. Starting early February 2009 this is how all TV pictures will appear on older analog sets using cable boxes, satellite or ATSC OTA converters. I think there will be a huge market for these ATSC converters once digital takes over from analog in 18 months as there are still literally millions of analog 4:3 TVs in active daily use in the US, many if not most of which are nowhere near ready for the landfill yet.
I was one of the early adopters of digital cable when, in 2006 or '05 I think, I first heard about the plan to phase out analog TV. It threw a scare into me, especially after reading that "all existing analog TVs will go dark in 2009 and must be replaced by high-definition flat panels"--words to that effect. I did not realize at the time that analog sets would still be able to receive digital signals through the use of a digital cable box, satellite receiver or ATSC set-top converter, so I immediately called the cable company and had my service upgraded to digital (the lowest level of digital service they had; the cable operator in my area offers at least three levels of HDTV service, each more expensive than the last). I now have Time-Warner digital cable and am ready for anything that comes through the cable connection in my apartment. I am aware that the picture I see on my analog TV (from a digital channel) is not and will not be HD, but it will have to do for the time being since I am not in a position to purchase a flat-panel set at this time. I suppose I could get one tomorrow if I wanted a 15-inch picture, but as I see it, if I replace my 19" analog TV with a FP HDTV I want a set that is at least that large. Most 19-20" HDTV FPs are outside my budget right now, but perhaps in another year or so....who knows? I'll just have to wait and see, I guess.
BTW, I wonder why NBC Nightly News, which claims to be presented in HD, still appears as standard definition (i. e. 4:3 aspect ratio) on my set? I doubt that NBC (or for that matter WKYC-TV, the local NBC affiliate here in northeastern Ohio, whose newscasts, claiming to be HD, show as full-screen SD on most standard TVs) is downconverting its HD image to SD just for the nightly news. (The other networks do this with their nightly news programs as well.) Another question: Three local TV stations in Cleveland are now broadcasting their local 6 and 11 p.m. newscasts in high-definition, but the CBS affiliate is still showing its local newscasts in 4:3 standard definition. Isn't there a rule that states that all TV stations must now transmit all their programming, local as well as network, in HD? The deadline for the digital transition isn't that far off. How long is that station, which went on the air just 22 years ago, going to wait before it retools its operation for the digital age? Time is running out.