Whether you’re looking for a direct view TV or a projection TV, there are plenty of options out there. The trick is determining what type of space you have, what type of programming you want to watch, as well as budget.

Direct-view televisions mean exactly that, as in, when you’re looking at the screen, you’re also gazing right at the light source. Cathode ray tube TVs, which are found in most households, still offer a decent picture and are easiest on your pocket book, but are rapidly losing favour to other direct view products like flat screen plasmas and LCD (Liquid Crystal Display) units.

“The Tube TV is slowly becoming a dinosaur,” says TVPredictions.com President Phil Swann, whose expertise has been used by such clients as Bell ExpressVu and the Consumer Electronics Association.

Tony Montpellier of Calgary-based Smart Home Systems also believes CRT days are numbered given that the cathode ray tube’s shape simply cannot compete with flatter, space-friendly models.

“The issue is that making large tubes is difficult—other than in the original shape —and is going to cost a lot,” he says. “It just wasn’t practical in terms of trying to make it more compact.”

When it comes down to the choice between plasma and LCDs, both perform relatively the same with design lifetimes of up to 60,000 hours and display panels that are only a few inches thick, meaning they can be hung on a wall. Beyond that, plasma sets have been around longer and are cheaper than LCDs.

But there are benefits to an LCD. “Its less reflective screen gives it an advantage because its surface is less reflective,” says Montpellier. “If you’re doing computer and video gaming on it, they are also more resistant to burn-in.”

However, Don Abraham of Smart FX in Edmonton says it all comes down to the dynamics of your entertainment space. “It’s totally dependent on how much room you have, and how much ambient light you can control,” he says. “If you’re in a situation where you can control the light, we prefer plasma over LCD. If you don’t have much control over ambient light and it’s for ordinary TV viewing, then go with an LCD.”

But if it’s the absolute big-screen experience you’re looking for, you might have to dig a little deeper into your bank account for projection televisions.

Front-projection TVs are the favourite among households with a home theatre setup in their castles. In fact, they’re the closest experience you’ll get to actually going out to see a Friday night premiere.

“You really get the movie experience,” says Abraham. “You’re sitting close to the big screen and if you have the speakers and surround sound set up right, it’s like a total movie experience that you don’t normally get from a small screen.”

If you accessorize the room, you can create a false ceiling for the screen to furl out of view or a cupboard to store the projector up in the back. But while projections are ideal for movies, the home theatre environment won’t provide the same ‘wow factor’ if you’re watching the news or a soap opera. There are other shortfalls as well.

“The biggest limitations of front projection are lighting conditions in a room and the surface that is required to project the image onto,” says Tim Balay, senior merchandising manager in the TV department of Future Shop’s head office in Vancouver. “Projectors will not typically perform as well as a direct-view TV in rooms that are moderately to brightly lit. Also, to get the best performance from them, you require a wall with a properly prepared surface or a screen.”

Rear projections are considerably brighter than front projections, with the light bouncing off a mirror onto a transparent screen in front of you. But because everything is contained in one bulky unit, they’re also a tad clunky to move around.
 “Rear projection has a terrible viewing angle,” adds Abraham. “You can’t see it unless you’re almost right in front. With other sets you have almost a 180-degree viewing angle.”

Whether it’s a direct view or projection style you seek, all of them offer a crystal-clear view of the forthcoming HDTV revolution. But what to do about your old Model T of a telly? Check out WikiHow.com for ideas on how to convert that set into a fish tank—and might come in handy once summer reruns roll around. NL


Cable guise
Roughing in wiring saves time and money

It wasn’t long ago a home entertainment centre consisted of a bulky TV set plugged into a nearby outlet and—for those with cable—a coaxial connection snaked between a small hole in the floor and the back of the TV.

Well, a consumer electronics and telecommunications boom changed all that. Today, a typical home has set tops and personal computers that can be stacked all the way to the ceiling. Add to the clutter a gnarly mesh of wires that are not only unsightly, but potentially dangerous as well.

Most new homes have upgraded to this electronic invasion with built-in wiring that connects more than the basics. Hidden between baseboards, behind walls and between floors, built-in wiring is now a must to accommodate home theatre, Internet connections and other electrical amenities.

“I’d say the majority of houses have built-in wiring, almost to the point where it’s becoming standard,” says Josh Crippin, project manager at Trecc Electric, which wired up to 2,600 houses last year in Calgary including residences for Greenboro Estate Homes.

Some homes have graduated to structured wiring with high-speed fibre to carry signals for nifty surround sound systems, computers with ADSL connections and even wireless technology. Crippin says most of these upgrades are roughed in at the design stage to accommodate any future electronic features consumers wish to add in the future.

Austin Moland of Connect Home Innovations, which installs wiring for residences in Edmonton, including properties handled by Sabal Homes, says roughing in any built-in wiring is more prudent than retrofitting. “I recommend having the wiring there, even if it isn’t something you plan on finishing right out of the gate,” he says. “It’s a lot less expensive to do it at the roughing in stage than it is to do after the drywall goes up.”