Sky launched its new HD EPG this week, and thanks to Freesat, Virgin Media (and Sky slashing its prices) it’s now cheaper than ever to shovel hi-def images onto your telly.
But is HD TV breeding a new type of telly addict? Do you know your 1080p from your 720p? Do HDMI cables fill your dreams, and nightmares? Above all, are you a bonafide HD snob? Follow our checklist to find out.
1. Your friendships suffer… if they don’t have HD
Watching football in HD is like discovering fire. Once you’ve seen the light, you never want to go back to living in the dark ages, so if your mates don’t have HD and you find yourself sitting at home to watch the footy alone, yep, you’re a HD snob. And incredibly selfish for not inviting them ‘round.
2. You’ve run out of HDMI sockets
Most new TVs come with a handful of HDMI sockets. Three or four is usual. Older tellies might only have two, but if you’re a true HD snob you’ll have filled them all months ago. Add an HD set top box, games console and maybe a HD camcorder into the mix and you’re going to be low on space. Anyone with more than one console (as long as it isn’t a Wii), an Apple TV or a separate Blu-Ray player will be low on space. It’s at this point you’ll know you need a HDMI switch, and a special badge to proclaim your HD snobbery.
3.Upscaling offends your eyes
Once your eyes have grown accustomed to glistening HD images, your dowdy old DVD collection might look second best. Sure, Blu-Ray players will upscale them, but there’s still a grainy quality, no matter how much you squint. There’s nothing for it, you’re going to have to re-purchase your favourites in proper HD. Hey, whoever said being a snob was cheap?!
4. You feel irked by TV being 1080i, rather than 1080p
True telly heads will tell you that 1080p is ‘better’ than 1080i, since it refreshes the whole image at once, rather than updating odd and even lines of the picture alternately. The trouble is, while almost all HD TVs now support 1080p pictures, Sky and Freesat broadcast in 1080i. And don’t pin your hopes on Freeview HD, it won’t be 1080p either. Of course, the human eye can’t actually tell the difference. Only purists actually care about this one.
5. Your eyes roll at SD menus
So you’ve got a HD telly, a HD TV service and Blu-Rays piled up around your ears, but is there a niggling annoyance whenever you click a button on the remote and have a standard-def menu pop in front of your eyes? Whether it’s the old Sky EPG, a menu on your Blu-Ray player or even a TV set-up screen, if your HD obsession runs that deep you’re a bonafide snob.
How did you do? Are you a HD snob? Drop us a line and let us know your own criteria for HD hoighty toightyness.
