There are three types of sports fans: those who have HD setups and know how to get the most out of them, those who have HD setups and don't have a clue on how to work them, and those who don't have HD setups.

Unfortunately, most people fall into the latter two categories. Stop me if you have seen this guy before:

This Guy: Yeah, thats my 42 inch plasma, got it at Best Buy.

(This is usually said with chest puffed out, arms at the sides- slightly bent at the elbows like he was just at the gym, and head tilted at a 22 degree angle. During mid sentence, he points with index finger and thumb in shape of a gun, toward tv, seemingly allowing the head nod to pull the arm forward)

Friend of "this guy": Wow, is that Hi-Def?

This Guy: Ah, well, its not technically Hi-Def, but its wide screen.

(In some circles this is known as "little fucking picture, stretched out to big fucking proportions")

Friend of "this guy": Why didn't you get Hi-Def?

This Guy: Well, it is a Hi-Def tv, but I didn't get the service. Look how bright the colors are! The picture looks good without it, I can't even tell the difference.

YOU NEVER WANT TO BE THIS GUY. And, I'm going to tell you how not to be.

First, lets go over what HD is.

Resolution

It is all based on resolution, the higher the resolution, the better the picture. There are three types:

480- This is your standard resolution found on tv's for the past 20 years.

720- This begins HD resolution, adding a noticeable difference to the picture detail.

1080- This is the highest HD resolution there is, giving the picture a noticeable bump up over 720.

Basically, HD is anything broadcast in 720 or 1080.

Picture Size

There are two picture ratios for tv:

4:3- 4 units wide, to 3 units high

16:9- 16 units wide, to 9 units high

Anything that is broadcast in HD will be broadcast in 16:9. This means that there is actually more to see on the sides of the screens. Do not confuse this with a wide screen tv that takes a regular 4:3 (almost a square) image, and then stretches it out to fill a wider screen. This does not add any image to the sides, it just stretches out the original image, making it distorted and causing it to lose picture quality. You will see this a lot at bars that have wide screen tvs and don't want to pay for the HD service. It makes the picture bigger, but up close looks blurry.

Image Processing

There are two types of image processing:

Interlaced or i- The tv shoots the even numberd lines at the screen, and the odd numbered lines at the screen a split second later. On regular 480 tvs this is not an issue as the resolution is not high enough to notice, but on HD tvs the difference is noticeable. It will cause anything with a lot of motion to become slightly blurred because half of the image is a split second ahead of the other half.

Progressive Scan or p- The tv shoots the entire image at the screen at once. Allowing shows with a lot of motion to still remain sharp because the image is consistent.

So, how does all this relate?

ALL HD shows will be broadcast in 16:9, so no need to further explain that. There are currently four types of outputs you could be watching. Three of which are HD.

480i- your standard tv, with 480 resolution and interlaced picture (some DVD players will have 480P, as do some Fox Saturday Baseball Games)

720p- HD tv with 720 resolution and a progressive scan picture

1080i- HD tv with 1080 resolution and an interlaced picture

1080p- a new technology that allows the highest resolution, 1080i, to be combined with the clear, progressive scan image

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How to know what you're watching?

Here is what some networks broadcast in HD.

ESPN- 720p
Fox- 720p
ABC- 720p
FSN- 720p
CBS- 1080i
NBC- 180i
Comcast Sportsnet- 1080i
Inhd-1080i
DHDTV-1080i
MHD-1080i

Networks will not be broadcasting in 1080p for a few years, but HD DVD players and some video game machine's can.

Which is better for sports?

Personally I prefer 1080i. Some say that 720p is better because it allows for a lot of motion (which sports has) to not appear without blur on the screen. The only time you can really notice the blur; however, is watching something wiz by the screen- like Nascar or a quick camera movement in a football game. 1080i gives a much more detailed picture, and 90% of the time when there is no fast movement, really makes the picture standout.

How can you decide for yourself?

Watch a football game on CBS (1080i), then switch to a football game on Fox (720p), and see what image you prefer.

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Now you know what HD is, and its different properties. But how do you set it up?

TVS

LCD- Common in HD tvs that are under 37". They have been used on computer screens for years, and have a good track record. They are able to produce higher resolution, true 1080 pictures. Their only downfall is color saturation. There is one light that projects onto the picture on the screen. Because of this, black and dark greens are not as deep as on a plasma tv because there is always some light shining through. They do, however, not get images burned into them- which is good if you play video games or watch a channel that has a ticker in the same spot all of the time.

Plasma- Common in HD tvs that are over 37". A slightly less reliable track record than LCD's. They are known for being the choice for larger tvs, up to 65 inches. They have the ability to produce deep colors and eye popping pictures, although their resolution is usually less than that of LCD tvs, meaning that sometimes 1080 pictures are down converted, causing them to lose detail. They are susceptible to burn, but new technology, that constantly moves the image around, has made this highly unlikely. Uses tiny little lights to display image. This lights can burn out individually, but they are hard to notice unless a lot burn out.

DLP- Stands for digital light processing. Seen in larger tvs, with a bit of a back. They are able to produce smooth images using a light chip, but sometimes suffer in image quality and have a "screen" effect across the image. Also, they are not flat screen.

CRT- Is a "full bodied" tv. These tvs, while slightly outdated, produce some of the best pictures with the deepest colors. They are usually smaller, under 42" and extremely heavy.

Obviously, with tvs, you will want to look at their ability to produce 720p and 1080i, as well as their size, and also the contrast ratio in colors. The higher the ratio, the deeper the colors. For instance 10000:1 is better than 100:1.

Service

If you have cable or satellite you can pay extra (about $10 a month) for the HD service. If your tv has a tuner built in, all you will need is a cable card from the cable company. These cards, however, don't give you access to on-demand, tv guide, and dvr functions that many cable boxes have. Its recommended that you rent a cable box for about $5 a month to go along with the HD service. HD channels are separate from their regular channel counterpart. Programming is the same however, and you can watch a non HD show on an HD channel. In fact, it will usually still look better because it is a digital image.

Wires

If you are using a cable card, you simply plug the cable wire into your tv. If you are using a cable box, you have several choices in wires to connect your box to your tv for HD output: HDMI (highest quality), DVI (high quality), Component (High quality, but less than the other two). S video and RGA do not output in HD, so beware.

HDMI and DVI use a single wire to prevent noise from entering the picture. Component cables, use three wires that transfer the picture. In all 3 choices, HDMI, DVI, and Component, you will get what you pay for. Recommend brands are Monster and Pure AV. A good wire will run about $80, but its worth it to get the best possible picture out of your set up.

For sound, you have the option of 5.1 surround sound for almost all HD broadcasts. You will need a receiver and the appropriate speakers. A good in box set will run you about $250, I recommend these Panasonic speakers.

To hook up your tv or cable box to the receiver, you have two choices: a coaxial wire or an optical wire. This will allow for digital sound to be played. Optical is the highest possible quality, but you can't go wrong either way. Again, you get what you pay for.

Make sure your stereo is set to "Dolby Digital", "5.1", or "Digital", do not set to "Hall" or "Stereo" as this will not separate the sounds into individual channels. 5.1 surround sound will give you the voice in the center, with other sounds coming from the other speakers.

How to Watch

Make sure you are in a room that is well lit, but not too bright. One or two lamps will do. Your tv should not be in direct sun light, or right in front of a window, as this will cause glare and shadow like effects. Be especially careful while watching football in the fall, since the sun in lower on the horizon and more likely to cause a glare.

Finally, invite some friends over, have a beer, and enjoy.