Cable TV Myths
MYTH #1: I NEED TO PAY FOR HI-DEF TV
Nope. You can get Hi-Def TV for FREE if you have a modern TV, and an antenna that costs less than one month of cable. Typically, you'll get the major networks plus PBS.
MYTH #2: I NEED A SPECIAL BOX IN ORDER TO GET HI-DEF TV
It depends. If you have a newer TV purchased in 2006 or later, you won't need any special box. You can plug your antenna right into your TV. If your TV is older, you might need a tuner box.
MYTH #3: I NEED A SPECIAL ANTENNA TO GET HI-DEF BROADCAST TV
The old rabbit-ear antenna that you (or your parents) used to use before cable will work. That is what I use. Check your closests and garage - you might have one lying around! Or even better, your home might have an existing antenna in the attic!
If you live far from transmitters, you will need a more fancy antenna, but again, it's the same as what people used to use.
MYTH #4: CABLE TV / SATELLITE PICTURE QUALITY IS BETTER THAN BROADCAST TV
False! Broadcast digital TV has better picture quality than cable! I know, this is hard to believe. How can a signal that goes through the air be better than one that goes through a cable? How can something that is free be better than something that we pay for??
The answer is that the cable company tries to cram as many channels as possible on that cable by compressing the the data. In the compression process, picture quality is sacrificed.
But wait, you say, my TV says that I am getting 1080i resolution from my cable service, the best resolution possible!
Well, just because the picture is 1080i doesn't mean the picture uses up all of that resolution. When the cable company compresses it, much of the information is lost and can't be restored even after it is converted back up to 1080i. A 1080i picture on cable can look pretty bad, much worse than a good 720p picture on broadcast, depending on the situation.
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