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I got the book to fix the quality of my picture on my HDTV and it helped me look for the things I needed to do so.
I'm usually pretty good with new technology and figuring it out. There's a couple of paragraphs discussing Plasma TV's and how high altitudes can affect the TV. I found a couple of really good HDTV forums on the Web but I wanted a book as well. The book clarified information I already kind of knew.
I was also able to weed out the technical stats the sales people talked about that really mean very little when buying a HDTV. I live 6800' above sea level and I would've never thought to ask about this. This saved me a couple of hundred bucks. After reading HDTV for Dummies I felt confident that I knew what I wanted and needed in my HDTV. HDTV for Dummies made it possible to understand what the sales people were talking about. However, with HDTV and all it's marketing hype I knew I needed some additional help.
After reading the chapter on calibrating HDTVs I decided to calibrate my HDTV myself. I purchased a Panasonic Plasma TV with no regrets. HDTV for Dummies defiantly fits the bill. There's a couple of handy chapters covering cabling and connecting surround sound systems, DBS, HD/DVR's, DVD players, and gaming consoles.
Beyond that, there's 1080i and 1080p (for interlaced and progressive). And you don't really need to read it, but it's there if you want it. So you might save money there. The many features and advantages of HDTV are discussed in detail.
I felt this book was money well spent for the information I got out of it. Overall, an excellent presentation on the subject, and I was also impressed enough with the value offered for this book to buy their Home Theaters for Dummies book, just to learn something about that, although I don't have one (yet). They point out the 720 lines of resolution (if I remember right), rather than the standard 525 lines of standard TV, is the minimum considered HDTV. It covered more topics that I even needed (it includes issues relating to gaming consoles and camcorders for HDTV in addition to HDTV itself), and gives a clear and non-technical explanation of the hows and whys of HDTV.
Also, another good feature is the authors point out that some manufacturers are claiming that a digital TV automatically makes it full HDTV, which isn't true. :-) For those a little technical, there is a chapter on standard TV that goes into the technical details a little more, but it's very short, maybe five pages. Also included are a very detailed chapter on almost every possible hook-up and configuration you could want, for those with cable, satellite, and of course DVD players and VCRs to connect.
I actually enjoyed the learning experience and would recommend this book to anyone who simply wants to know how the whole thing works, or who wants to save money by doing it yourself. In addition to hooking everything up, I feel much more informed and understanding of how the whole system works. I do kind of think that someone who has no interest in computers, or anything technical might find the book not to their liking. I found this book to be very helpful in hooking up my new HDTV, VCR, Cable box and Tivo. By doing it myself, it saved me quite a bit of money.
good information, be sure to see what edition you buy to ensure up to date information
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