Posts with keyword: tv


Not All HD Programs Are Alike

1080i broadcast, KSL TV (local news) note: jaggies on collar(click to enlarge) The picture to the right shows a close-up of the anchor in a local newscast from KSL-TV (channel 5 in Utah). The broadcast is advertised as 1080i (e.g. my TV claims it's a 1080i signal based on the info in the signal). If you look closely, you'll see that the collar (a nice, high-contrast diagonal line) has jaggies--stair-steps in the collar instead of a smooth line. You can see them very clearly. 1080i broadcast, KSL TV (national news) note: collar is smooth(click to enlarge) The second picture
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Getting Free HD TV Programming

As I mentioned before, I bought a new HD TV for Christmas (a Sony 40 inch XBR4). That put me on the hunt for good sources of HD programming. Something I overlooked for a while, and I'm sure I'm not alone, is over-the-air, free programming from local TV stations. We're so used to the "antenna == bad" school of thought that the cablecos dished out for the last twenty years that we don't even consider it. There's no doubt that for analog television antennas almost always produced worse results than satellite or cable, but for digital, that's no longer
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Reasons to Buy a Mac Mini

For Christmas, I bought a Sony XBR4 40" LCD TV from Amazon. I was thinking I ought to get an Apple TV to go with it, but then thought that a Mac Mini might be more versatile. While in the midst of indecision, Dave Winer made up my mind for me and Scoble put the icing on the cake. I'll get a Mac Mini. Dave's new product--not yet released--sounds like a fun convergence of a big, bright beautiful screen hanging on the wall and the Internet. The XBR4 already has a DVI input, so hooking up ought to be
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Dancing with Mavericks

Blogger and Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban is going to be on Dancing with the Stars. Heh. I've never watched it, but I might have to check out Mark gliding across the dance floor.
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EyeTV Hybrid for Macs

A week or so ago, I picked up one of these EyeTV hybrids, a little device that has a USB connector on one end and a cable connector on the other. Plug it into your computer, connect up the cable and you're watching TV. There's an online program guide so you can schedule recordings of upcoming shows--just like TiVo. The device works with the Apple remote that comes with the new iMacs, Minis, and MacBooks. The best part is that it can automatically takes things you record and put them on your iPod (or at least into iTunes, to
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