I see many televisions are appearing in the sales at really low prices. The Geeks on this site will know this but Joe Public is not so aware that 'Full HD Ready' does not necessarily mean that you will get a HD picture if you plug in an aerial. It simply means that the screen has enough pixels to show a HD picture if for example, you plug in a Sky HD box. Many of the televisions appearing in the shops with low prices DO NOT HAVE THE HD TUNERS and you will only get Standard Definition pictures via an aerial. This can often apply to big name brands where shops sell the lowest spec models from their ranges.

If you just want to plug in an aerial and get ITV1, CHannel 4 & the BBC in HD you must purchase a TV that says 'Freeview HD'. This makes a hell of a difference to the picture quality and you will find the HD channels load from 101. (On many sets, you can remove or swap the SD channels for the HD ones. So, if your region does not have BBC 1 & ITV 1 in HD, you could simply move the SD versions to say 998 & 999. Then move BBC 1 HD from 101 to 1 & ITV 1 HD from 103 to 3. Then you would only use 998 & 999 for say the local news or any other regional programme. That way, you simply press a single digit for the HD channels). Wales, Scotland & NI already have their versions of BBC 1 in HD.

Even those with Sky or Freesat would also find it prudent to buy a Freeview HD set as they could use single digit numbers to switch between the main channels rather than 3 digit. They would also have 3 programmes clashes covered at once rather than just 2 by using satellite only.

How did people cope before tvs had an HD tuner? Oh yes, you used a box. I suggest people who buy a tv without a hd tuner do likewise. No problem.

It is plain daft to have to shell out more money for a separate HD box that takes up space, has a cable connecting to the TV as well as one to the mains plus the inconvenience of having another remote control for the sole purpose of channel switching. USE THE MONEY TO BUY A TV WITH THE HD TUNER!

What if you want to record two programmes or record one and watch one live?

If all you want is a TV and no recording features and you want HD then yes you need to buy a TV with Freeview HD. On the other hand those of us who want PVR features and haven't watched the TV tuner in years really couldn't care less whether it has an HD tuner or not. The only advantage of the extra tuner on the TV would be for a programme clash of 3 programmes though that's not a problem for me as I have two PVRS (freesat and Freeview).

Anyone who has a PVR (such as Sky) who uses the TV tuner for regular viewing is not getting the best out of their PVR. I always watch HD where available but if I had to choose between PVR features or HD then PVR features would win, losing those features would be like living in the past.

If I was buying a new TV now and I could get the same quality TV cheaper because it didn't have an HD tuner I would get that without any hesitation.

Buyers should also note that many shops are not displaying live television on their displays but are showing material off a hard drive. Such material might well be in HD and therefore give a false impression of the pictures one could expect off air via an aerial on a set not equipped with a HD tuner. So, you are not actually seeing the televisions working off their own tuners!

John Lewis, for example, do usually show pictures coming in off air via the televisions' own tuners. However, some televisions with HD tuners are actually left on in their stores showing say BBC 1 in standard definition (No 1) because the shop staff can't be bothered to type in 101 or they just come on No 1 when they power them up in the mornings. So, check both the standard definition quality and the high definition quality but bear in mind that many televisions in the shops are not set correctly. (Over coloured/contrast etc. but it can be difficult to tell in brightly lit shops. Goodness knows why the shops don't have dimmer lighting in the TV areas)? So, you can't exactly rely on the picture you see in the shops to ascertain which television is the best. It is best to Google the names / model numbers and 'review' to see if the internet can tell you more.

In some shops you will see displays of Ultra High Definition Televisions. These are almost certainly coming off a hard drive with material that has been recorded in UHT. NO ULTRA HIGH DEFINITION IS CURRENTLY BROADCAST IN THE UK.

Don't forget to ask to see the remote control. If you are buying a television for some elderly person, check the clarity of the remote controls. I really don't think that some manufacturers check out their remotes with the elderly. (Even the young have problems with some brands).

Go into stores like PC World and invariably you will be met with a cacophony of noise from music systems. You are about to make a major buying decision, so, ask for the noise to be turned off so that you can hear the sound from your shortlist of televisions.

The store assistant might well say that the sound from the thin televisions is not that good due to lack of speaker space - which is basically true. They will then try and sell you a sound bar or other external sound equipment. Modern televisions will have a HDMI socket on the back marked ARC. This means Audio Return Channel. If you are going to buy a sound bar or similar, try and get one that says it has HDMI ARC; then you can connect it to your television and the television remote will work the sound rather than having a separate remote to work the sound coming out of the sound bar. (HDMI ARC equipped sound bars are not exactly common).

Now for the cheapskate option regarding sound! Some shops (such as John Lewis) sell computer speakers that can be plugged into the headphone socket of your TV. (Turn the sound down & the TV off before doing this). Then switch TV back on and gradually increase the sound - it will work with the TV remote control. This should be better than the television sound.

You should be able to easily instal the television yourself. If you are not up to doing this, check what the charge will be.

Finally check out the guarantee. Do you gat a free 5 year parts & Labour guarantee or is the guarantee extra? (How long is the manufacturer's guarantee and who fixes things when/if they go wrong)?

Buying a Twin Tuner HD recorder makes a lot of sense - that is what I have in addition to the HD tuner equipped television. What does not make sense is buying a television with a standard definition tuner and then buying a separate box (non recording) just to supply HD pictures.

It does if that option works out cheaper for someone. Besides I think you would have been better putting your thread on advice or general discussion, as I am sure everybody on this particular thread already know about what you have been saying.

My full hd sony is indeed one of those that only has a standard freeview (sd) tuner. So if u use it as a standalone tv your only getting a SD image.
But, I and many others don't rely on the built in freeview tuner - I have a freesat hd recorder connected, as well as a bluray & my pc.

The majority of people I know have a sky box connected anyway, while a few have freesat. I don't know many that use freeview even just for the news.

But I don't want to be over critical on this point, I have to agree with the OP, despite my set up and all those others I know, it is still very misleading that freeview hd is not part of the standard spec.

You can add a box, but the pictures on my tvs built in tuner are better than the pictures from my pvr in both SD and HD.

Maybe its the pvr, as bluray looks great.

I presume that you have connected your PVR to the TV via a HDMI lead and not a Scart?
You will often find that the picture settings such as Contrast, Colour, Brightness need to be different between the television's own tuner and when you are feeding the pictures from the PVR. So, make a note of your settings using just the TV tuner. Now switch on the PVR and again, make a note of the settings (like brightness = 6, contrast = 8 etc). Now try altering the settings (with the pictures coming from the PVR) to see if you can make improvements, bearing in mind that you can always return to the previous settings as you have noted them down. Backlight & or Contrast settings should be set to the ambient light in the room. Some brands, such as Samsung will have different modes. So, for example, in a brightly lit sunny room you would select Dynamic Mode, average lighting = Standard Mode - and within each of these modes, the Contrast, Brightness, Backlight & Colour should be set correctly.

Some televisions have an automatic sensor to change the backlight output depending on the amount of light in a room. Usually, if this sensor is switched on, it is necessary to set a minimum backlight level to stop it dimming too much at night.

Some televisions also allow you to make adjustments that reduce/stop jerky motion. (Low Hz ratings such as 50 Hz are more prone to motion problems. The Hertz ratings are not usually shown in the shops - so ask).

If your TV looks too dim or too bright (for the light in the room), then the odds are that the settings are incorrect rather than you have a poor quality TV. Most televisions will be awful straight out of the box unless the above adjustments are made.

Seconded......A lecture would be more appreciated elsewhere.

Agreed.
Perhaps the OP should have done his research better as well. Then he would have known there is no such thing as an HD tuner. It is all down to the decoder.

PMSL

(mock) Shock, horror!! Man finds out that cheap tat really is exactly that, cheap tat, and the old adage "You get what you pay for" is actually true!

ha ha ha

Precisely.

For anyone who does have a STB (whether it be Sky, Freesat, Virgin, YouView or anything else) the question of whether a TV has an HD tuner is moot really.

Indeed I would say that for many people, potentially saving £50 is more sensible than insisting on the HD receiver. My main TV, and I suspect a lot of others, is little more than a monitor.

For all intents and purposes, in the UK, a T2-capable tuner is analogous to being HD capable. It's not really a slip in practice.

You appear to have totally missed the point? - there's no such thing as an 'HD Tuner' nor a 'T2 Tuner' - the T2 part is demodulation and decoding, done long after the tuner (which is the same for both SD and HD).

Fine -- but then there's no such thing as a "digital" or "analogue" tuner either, or indeed a TV or radio one, if we're going to be that specific as to what constitutes the tuner component.

There certainly is for TV and Radio, as they are entirely different tuners with no frequencies in common (not even the bandwidth or IF output)

No one here has ever claimed 'digital' and 'analogue' tuners, just as there's no 'digital' and 'analogue' aerials.

There is no necessity to make the tuners different though, indeed there are plenty of tuner modules now that are quite capable of covering the various bands and bandwidths in a single product, without anything unique at all being present at the tuner stage for the various ranges -- see the Realtek RTL2832U as an example of a device that performs all stages after the (common) tuner in software (DAB, FM, DVB-T, DVB-T2 etc).

It is important to ensure that when purchasing a new television that it is Freeview HD. DVBT2 capable. It is not only so you can receive a simulcast of BBC and ITV etc. in HD. Many channels only available in SD will be switching to T2 multiplexes and thus will not be available to viewers with just bare Freeview. Film 4+1 is a good example. I don't know whether tv manufacturers are continuing to make sets that are Freeview only with no DVBT2 capability or whether it is just old stock or old models that are being sold this way.

Would you care to post your proof that this is happening?, and when you think it might be?

As far as I'm aware there's currently no such plans, and certainly not in the expected lifetime of a new TV.

Several new channels have recently been added in SD T2, the latest being Arise News.

So what is the relevance of that? - it has nothing to do with existing SD channels converting.

Wow talk about over complicating something so simple!

I could say what you said in one or two sentences.

"Hd ready" means 720p, IT IS HD but only 720p not the full 1080p.

And yes if the tv doesn't have a HD tuner then you will get all SD channels unless you plug in a HD source such as a sky HD box.