jimmybob479 Posted March 27, 2006 Share Posted March 27, 2006 I've owned a Samsung HDTV-ready screen (supports up to 1080i) but only have a standard definition directv tivo/dvr and love it, and am wondering what are my options for getting to watch some HD content on it. I know I can get a HD normal directv receiver, but I love my tivo and can't part with it. The other option would be to get a HD Tivo, but those things cost an arm and a leg and I just recently bought my normal tivo. I have an Xbox 360, so when I play with that I get to see some high definition, but what else are my options? I'm not sure if there are any Divx-certified dvd players that can play high-definition divx/xvid files, but my other option i'm thinking about is if I use my xbox 360 as a "media extender" and get media center or somehow can transfer xvid/divx over to my 360 i could watch stuff that way. The last option would be to get just an over-the-air tuner and get to watch some local high-definition stuff, but the tuner's i've seen like at www.pricegrabber.com usually aren't any cheaper than $150. Any suggestions for actually getting to use my HDTV besides with my 360? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Derf Veteran Posted March 27, 2006 Veteran Share Posted March 27, 2006 (edited) [Thread Moved from the Media Room to HTD] Presumably the price of OTA HDTV will drop as more people go HDTV. It sounds like some of your existing purchases have you locked in to SDTV. If you had a cable connection then you would only need to upgrade the box (or pay a few extra $ per month if you are renting) to get the various free networks. Edited March 27, 2006 by fred666 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thermal+paste Posted March 28, 2006 Share Posted March 28, 2006 VOOM Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
majortom1981 Posted March 28, 2006 Share Posted March 28, 2006 Hmm . I have an hdtv but I have cable . I say get the hd receiver. Does it really matter to tape a show in hd? I tape everything on my computer. It takes up a lot more space for hd content. The hd receiver is worth it but you dont necessisarily have to tape the hd content Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BroChaos Veteran Posted March 29, 2006 Veteran Share Posted March 29, 2006 cheapest is definitely OTAHD. i've seen them for as low as $80 at radio shack. and it's a 1 time payment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rudy Posted March 29, 2006 Share Posted March 29, 2006 yea i hate having to watch standard tv on my hdtv :pinch: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmybob479 Posted March 29, 2006 Author Share Posted March 29, 2006 BroChaos, I'm not that familiar with HDTV lingo. Is that some type of HD tuner that receives over-the-air stuff? I googled on radioshack and nothing came up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BroChaos Veteran Posted March 29, 2006 Veteran Share Posted March 29, 2006 yeah, OTAHD is just short for over the air hd, like you said. i think that tuner is out of stock now, it was pretty popular on fatwallet and slickdeals. voom doesn't work anymore, but if you know anyone with an old voom box, they have OTAHD tuners built in, so you might be able to find one for cheap. something like this: http://cgi.ebay.com/voom-hd-ota-activated-...1QQcmdZViewItem Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
idoia Posted March 30, 2006 Share Posted March 30, 2006 I recommend you to buy this boy http://www.samsung.com/Products/DVDPlayer/...VD_HD860XAA.asp for less than $100 it does 720p / 1080i dvd upscaling it comes with hdmi and all Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmybob479 Posted March 31, 2006 Author Share Posted March 31, 2006 BroChaos, Thanks. I actually might pick up that Voom box off ebay. There's a few for sale. But first off what was that "other tuner" you keep referring to? You just mentioned "OTAHD", but I'm fairly certain that from previous posts this isn't a brand name of any sort. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BroChaos Veteran Posted March 31, 2006 Veteran Share Posted March 31, 2006 http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.js...oductId=2104191 it's nothing fancy, but it's the cheapest OTA HD receiver i've ever seen. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toastyone Posted March 31, 2006 Share Posted March 31, 2006 :wacko: don't you have a HDTV tuner in your TV? Why don't you just get an antenna and hook it up....if there are any OTA channels within range you will get them that way.... well thats what I do...only get 6 channels in HDTV ATM though :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmybob479 Posted March 31, 2006 Author Share Posted March 31, 2006 Thanks for the link. I actually think I might get this one instead. It's a sleeker box, doesn't have the word "voom" on it, probably smaller too. Electronic program guide seems nice too. Only thing is it says it has HDMI out, and my hdtv only has component video in. Any converter cable things available? edit: If its so great, why was it discontinued? Did the company go under or something (maybe due to selling products at such a low cost?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BroChaos Veteran Posted April 1, 2006 Veteran Share Posted April 1, 2006 i have no idea....but i don't think they are available any more, unless the fatwalleters that swooped them up put them on ebay. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimmybob479 Posted April 1, 2006 Author Share Posted April 1, 2006 I really need to find one of them, from the reviews it sounds like a great buy. One thing that interested me was this review: Reception seems excellent. Digital reception is "perfect" even in cases where analog was basically unwatchable due to ghost or grain. Does not seem very sensitive to antenna type. Has a great signal monitor, which includes SNR readout. Anything above 15 dB (or maybe 15.1 dB) SNR results in solid reception. Very predictable that way. Remote control is quite sensitive to aiming. Picture and sound quality are outstanding. HD pictures will make you an addict. Would be nice if it had a proper channel-select timer, rather than just an on-off timer. I couldn't make the HDMI output work with the DVI/HDCP input in my monitor, but component interfaces work fine. Aside from the HDMI questionmark, all output interfaces are always on, so this can be connected to more than one device. A really good buy, at least in my experience. I was worried because with my normal antenna in analog mode usually channels are fuzzy and whatnot, and i was wondeirng if the hdtv would look like that, because then it really wouldn't be worth it. Howerver, it seems like like maybe in digital it looks good...and it seems that this one takes antennas well. Someone even said I was able to purchase this Accurian tuner and I am very happy with the results. I also purchased the Radio Shack indoor antenna because of what I read in these posts. I am about 20 miles from the broadcast towers and I get most of the stations. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fred Derf Veteran Posted April 7, 2006 Veteran Share Posted April 7, 2006 Don't forget that you may need an amplified antenna depending on where you live for those OTAHD boxes. Reception varies quite a bit based on location/distance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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