So is it HD-lite or not?

[gadgtfreek]

I thought it was like the HR20

Menu-help/settings-setup-HDTV- native "on"

 

[heisman27]

Hey Scott,

I have both Dish and direc. They both are very close in picture quality but I do give an edge to Dish. It just appears sharper.

Also, do you notice that the sound out of the 622 is louder than the hr20.
I have to push the volume up pretty high on the HR20 to match the 622.

I have compared four units I have in my house. Its the same all over.

Oh well.
Nice to see Hd all over the place though.

Still waiting for Sci fi and chiller in HD- Hoping it will happen soon.

All the best,
Joel

I also have both, and I have to say that E*'s HD looks sharper and has more color saturation than D*'s HD. The VIP622 is pretty much better than the HR-20 in every aspect. Probably why tivo is suing them. E*'s biggest shortcoming is their brutal SD. It is god awful. We'll see if Scott finds the same results as us.

P.S. Comparisons made on a Pioneer 5070 connected with HDMI.

 

[lern4483]

I also have both, and I have to say that E*'s HD looks sharper and has more color saturation than D*'s HD. The VIP622 is pretty much better than the HR-20 in every aspect. Probably why tivo is suing them. E*'s biggest shortcoming is their brutal SD. It is god awful. We'll see if Scott finds the same results as us.

P.S. Comparisons made on a Pioneer 5070 connected with HDMI.

Heisman 27,

I left direc about a year ago. Brought them back because of the expectation of plently
of high def channels.

I want nothing more than direc to be better than dish. Dish customer service is horendous.
I think direc is awesome the way they treat people.

Bottom line though. The equipment and picture on Dish is just at this point vastly superior.
Im hopping this will change.

Im pulling for direc but they so far come up short.

 

[iceturkee]

? as directv adds more channels will the PQ stay the same as it is today. Will some channels stay MPEG4 while other HD channels go back to MPEG2. I have a 61" RCA DLP Projection and I never have seen the outstanding PQ quaility

no more hd in mpeg2. all the new stuff is mpef4 and existing mpeg2 stuff will be history sometime next year.

 

[Nubi]

This is the best HD i have seen yet!

 

[vurbano]

This is the best HD i have seen yet!

wow you havent seen much.

 

[tds4182]

wow you havent seen much.

Now this is the old Vurbano that we've all come to know and love.

Glad to see you've reverted to form!!!

 

[vurbano]

Now this is the old Vurbano that we've all come to know and love.

Glad to see you've reverted to form!!!

The best HD I have ever seen was HD DVD, BD and CBS 1080i OTA. Not some pizza dish system where things a reprocessed, downrezzed etc.

 

[the_Drake]

How I feel when reading some of these posts

Anyway, I thought I'd chime in. I am liking the new channels. They brought in all of my favorites. It is obvious when they are essentially upconverting SD broadcasts, but it hasn't been the case completely. I watched parts of two NFL Replay's last night, one was from a Fox HD affiliate, and it showed, the other was upconverted and didn't look that great. At least the words, scrolling effects, etc. on these channels are nice and clear. So I'm guessing it's hit or miss when it comes to a show actually being broadcast in HD.

My buddy has E* and I really liked his setup (the 722?). The menu was better than my HR-20, and there were more details, such as exactly how much time is left on his DVR, rather than a single bar saying 70%. I really liked that feature. But as for the picture quality, while I can't compare side-by-side, I really didn't notice a huge difference. Some programs I've watched have looked far superior to his channels. He's not technologically sound, so I don't know what his TV settings are, as far as res and all, but I can say some stuff just looked better on my D* setup.

I just wish we had a better interface for the menu system !

Still, overall very impressed and can't wait for the rest! come on NGCHD!

 

[Al K]

I would like to know the data rate and resolution on the new channels if for no other reason than to validate the subjective assessments of the members here. It's been proven that some people (mostly nerds and technies) have an intuitive feel for picture quality. Years ago someone did a test my mis-adjusting some old color tvs and asking people to make the picture look good. Some people could do it easily and others didn't even know that the picture was bad. I've read several statements here that sounded as if people actually thought some of the SD material on the new channels was HD. I believe that I can tell identify HD Lite material, but sometimes I'm fooled.

 

[tds4182]

The best HD I have ever seen was HD DVD, BD and CBS 1080i OTA. Not some pizza dish system where things a reprocessed, downrezzed etc.

I haven't seen any HD DVD or Blue Ray so I can't comment on the PQ of those units.

Here in Houston, the OTA CBS signal is strong and the PQ on both my HR20 and H20 is excellent. The PQ from the satellite is very good also, I really cannot tell the difference on my 40" Samsung set.

 

[Paul Wozniak]

Do you see the scam the manufacturers are pulling now by making these smaller sized sets at 1080p? As if consumers havent been lied enough too already.

1080p is this years marketing buzz word. The difference is scientifically proven to be invisible on the smaller sets. As for HD-DVD, and Blue-ray, maybe someday TV will look that good. but for now, I'm liking what I see on D* MPEG4. This whole PQ thing is starting to sound like audiophile sh*t to me. Some of those guys spend more time listening to their audio systems, than they do listening to the music that's playing on them. I spend my time watching the shows playing on my TV, instead of watching my TV, wondering if I'm getting the last freakin' iota of PQ.
OOH, look at that definition- aaa, what are we watching, anyhow?

 

[heisman27]

I would like to know the data rate and resolution on the new channels if for no other reason than to validate the subjective assessments of the members here.

Unfortunately, bitrate and resolution only account for a portion of picture quality.

 

[ssv07]

Hi All--

I have yet to see anything in HD on CNN HD...it's all SD content! What gives?

Same thing with Weather Channel HD...broadcasting SD content in 4:3???????

 

[eschu97611]

College Football on Espn looks great tonight. Boise State vs. somebody. Love that blue turf.

 

[ChrisPC]

College Football on Espn looks great tonight. Boise State vs. somebody. Love that blue turf.

That "somebody" is Southern Miss. They gave the NFL some QB named Favre, ever heard of him?

 

[ONUOsFan]

I haven't seen any HD DVD or Blue Ray so I can't comment on the PQ of those units.

Here in Houston, the OTA CBS signal is strong and the PQ on both my HR20 and H20 is excellent. The PQ from the satellite is very good also, I really cannot tell the difference on my 40" Samsung set.

HD-DVD and BD are obviously vastly superior to ANYTHING broadcast over any medium, so it's not really a fair comparison, and I doubt the poster meant to compare those.

As far as CBS OTA, you're probably right - I think that is the best here as well, but I honestly think the new D* channels are on par or better than any of the other OTA channels I have, the HD I used to have on cable and (of course) D*'s old HD offerings.

EDIT: Actually meant to quote Vurbano's "pizza" comment here...

 

[Ronnie-]

Hi All--

I have yet to see anything in HD on CNN HD...it's all SD content! What gives?

Same thing with Weather Channel HD...broadcasting SD content in 4:3???????

There has been a good bit of HD content on CNN, not as much on TWC.

 

[eschu97611]

That "somebody" is Southern Miss. They gave the NFL some QB named Favre, ever heard of him?

Oh right, sorry. Have trouble recalling events which took place over 15 YEARS AGO. Go Southern Miss.

 

[sprintcarcrazy]

A Direct TV hype again, TWC has No HD, it's all being upconverted until sometime in 2008. It's just an SD channell be upconverted.

Same thing with CNN, except they have a few new HD cameras on their top rated shows shot out of one studio !!!

As many of us has said before, Don't believe the DTV hype, you can't have an HD channel until the network actually buys the equipment and shoots it that way !!!!

In one of the largest capital projects in its history, The Weather Channel expects to spend some $50 million to develop and launch an HD version of its network.

The project includes building a new, 1,100-square-foot studio at its Atlanta headquarters that will be outfitted with HD cameras and other equipment, as well as converting "tens of thousands" of on-screen graphics for HD, TWC president Debora Wilson said.

"We're making major infrastructure investments," Wilson said. "We consider this a cost of doing business." The HD channel, she added, will "give us a new way to engage our viewers. Weather is so visual."

The network is aiming to have all of its programming in HD by mid-2008. At that point, the standard-definition feed of the channel will be a downconverted version of the HD one.

TWC will break ground on the HD studio May 2, which, not coincidentally, is when the network will mark its 25th anniversary. Wilson said the facility -- adjacent to the existing studio building -- is expected to be finished by January.

The Weather Channel HD will launch with DirecTV in September 2007. However, it won't be true HD at first. Wilson said the direct-broadcast satellite operator will upconvert the standard-definition feed until the network's HD studio comes online.

As for carriage on cable, Wilson declined to provide details but said discussions are ongoing. "Every cable operator has a slightly different situation," she added. "In general, we're getting a very positive reaction."

Wilson said it's important for TWC to get placement in operators' HD tiers before they get too crowded. She noted that subscribers who have HDTV service tend to stay in the HD "neighborhood" and don't scan standard-definition channels as frequently.

The channel's live programming accounts for at least 22 hours per day. Prerecorded shows, such as Storm Stories, will also be migrated to HD format. "We're right in the sweet spot because at most, we're two hours of prerecorded programming [per day]," Wilson said. "A lot of networks will have to move to HD piecemeal."

Wilson said the network is examining new ways to present graphics with the move to HD. "We'll be fundamentally changing our environment, and this gives us an opportunity to reevaluate and improve our programming," she added.