HDTV Nation Responds

My story about buying and installing my new HDTV last Sunday seemed to hit a nerve.

I'd been searching for 21st-century television nirvana -- beautiful picture, great programming, seamless digital recording and a high-def DVD experience. Alas, it was frustrating and I was forced to compromise on several fronts.

The e-mails from readers poured in -- well over 100 in the first 48 hours. Some were sympathetic to my experience; others chastised me for expecting too much. Several shared their alternatives for getting an HD signal. A few scolded me for misleading readers or excluding important information.

Here's an edited taste of what readers had to say:

All the HD I need : I have to agree with you that the number of available channels is less than we all would like, however, everything I enjoy watching is currently shown in HD. Football is in HD, "24" is in HD, "The Office" is in HD. What more does a guy need? Even "American Idol" is in HD.

Problem fixed for $30: I discovered that all the local network stations broadcast a digital signal, some as many as three. So for a trip to RadioShack and $30 for a set of powered rabbit ears, you can get HD for free. That is, if you purchased a set that has a digital tuner. In fact, the picture -- and sound -- seem better than what my neighbor gets on cable.

Check your settings: Your comment about having to buy HD DVD or Blu-ray to have a correct aspect ratio is completely misleading. You probably had a setting in either the DVD player or the TV that was wrong. If you correct your settings, you won't have that problem. Do yourself a favor and read your user manuals and check your settings.

My DVDs are okay: I think DVD is one of the most important rationales for having an HDTV. Even though it is still [standard definition], a good progressive player or an upconverting DVD player can yield an amazingly clear and detailed picture on an HDTV. Sometimes I have to pinch myself to remember that I am not watching HD, and that's with a progressive Panasonic player I bought two years ago for $60.

Watch that energy bill: Your otherwise excellent discussion of high-definition televisions doesn't mention the varying energy usage. Plasma TVs use significantly more electricity than LCD TVs. A plasma TV will use, according to the Department of Energy, about 849 kilowatt-hours per year while an LCD TV will use 387. At 10 cents per kilowatt-hour (about the U.S. average), that translates into an additional $46.20 per year -- and roughly 500 pounds of additional carbon pollution into the atmosphere.

The price of early adoption: For those of us nerds in the IT biz, "marketecture" refers to glitzy technology that increases sales commissions but doesn't deliver a whole lot (yet). So now you have your own little piece of HD marketecture. Ain't it grand? Another term for marketecture is "bleeding edge." As you might imagine, that is not a pleasant -- or cheap -- place to be.

Howard Bryant covers the Washington Redskins for The Post. His original story can be found athttp://www.washingtonpost.com/technology.