Digital Televisions

Information on Digital televisions:
What is it?
Digital TV is a term that is used for encompassing High Definition Television and other applications including Standard Definition television, datacasting, multicasting and interactivity. Digital Television is the sending and recieving of moving images and sound by digital signals.


What do we use it for?
The main things we use digital televisions is to recieve better quality pictures and sound quality through digital signal processing. It is also used to introduce new services such as multicasting and datacasting. Digital Tv offers more choice, it is clearer and it can be recieved in many new ways.

How is it a part of our multimedia world?
Digital Televisions are part of the multimedia world because televisions use a variety of different media. This includes true digital and high definition image and surround sound audio.

Are there different types? Advantages/Disadvantages?
There are many different types of digital televisions. The first and most basic type is CRT based or a 'Tube' digital television. These look a lot like analog televisions with a larger screen. If you want to get the most out of the digital television features, such as High Definition television and surround-sound audio, another type would be Plasma televisions. Plasma televisions are very thin, large and look terrific with the sound even better. A third type of digital television is a Rear Projection television. In these televisions the image would come from the back of the tv, meaning it would be thicker with also great high-definition television and surround sound. Another type of television is an LCD television, these televisions have a rich high-definition image and surround sound audio. There is also SD (Standard Definition) televisions which produce a widescreen image with DVD standard quality.

A "simple" explanation of how it works.
Digital Televisions work similarily to a standard television set. Depending on what type of television it is, the way in which it works has little difference. Digital televisions all work mainly the same way, but with a different appearance. Digital television uses a digital signal rather than a radio signal, which allows the picture and sound to appear faster and with better quality. In order get your digital television working, you need to get the satellite cable that connects your tv to the digital signal. The satellite cable is plugged into the tv port and your television is ready to go. Depending on signal strength, you picture will come clearer, faster and in good quality.

A rough indication of the cost of the device
The cost of a Digital televisions depends on what you are looking for. Smaller screen resolution televisions cost from $700-$1000. Larger Plasma televisions cost $2000-$2500 and LCD televisions cost $2500-$3000. 3DTV's are much more expensive depending on whether you buy Plasma or LCD Plasma 3DTV's range from $4500-$5500 and LCD 3DTV's cost $5000+.

Future directions, what is waiting around the corner, what is the next "new" technology in this area?
Panasonic plans to develop televisions that enable viewers to browse the Internet with the simple operation of an easy-to-use remote controller. Stepping out more than 10-15 years into the future, visitors to the Panasonic Center can also experience its Digital Wall. Composed of a large grid of touch-sensitive panels, the wall has tiles to display different applications or to project one larger-than-life video image.
WEBSITES:
http://www.hdtv-source.com/hdtv-terms.php (21st August)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Digital_television (21st August)
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http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/HomeAndCommunity/TechnologyInYourHome/DigitalTelevision/DG_10030982 (21st August)
http://www.webopedia.com/DidYouKnow/Computer_Science/2005/HDTV.asp (28th August)
http://computers.families.com/blog/televisions-digital-tv-types-explained (28th August)
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