Should You Buy a Digital TV?

comp0402hdtv_A.gif HIGH-DEF FOR DUMMIES
You can dip your toe into the HDTV pool with Samsung's 15-inch LTM 1575W LCD monitor ($2,000). When you're ready to dive in, you just add the HDTV tuner.

ANALOG TV


Resolution: 480 interlaced lines, meaning half the screen is refreshed at a time


Pros: Can't beat the price. In the future, you'll get analog versions of HDTV with a decoder


Cons: As soon as one of your friends goes digital, you'll notice how lame your picture is


You'll pay around: $1,200 for a 32-inch monitor

DIGITAL TV


Resolution: 480 progressive-scan lines, which allows the entire screen to be refreshed at once


Pros: Much better resolution than an analog TV, half the price of an HDTV


Cons: As with analog, you get black bars onscreen; it's not true HDTV


You'll pay around: $2,000 for a 32-inch monitor

HIGH-DEFINITION TV


Resolution: 720 progressive-scan or 1,080 interlaced lines


Pros: The best picture (a lot of) money can buy. Tip: If you can't afford an HDTV yet, consider an HDTV-ready monitor -- you can add the tuner later


Cons: Bring a credit card or two You'll pay around: $4,000 for a 34-inch HDTV

WHAT'S PLAYING IN PIXELS


There's more HDTV programming than you think: Two-thirds of the nation's 1,200 stations will be serving up digital fare by the end of the year. A sampling:


ABC
Alias, The Practice, Drew Carey Show


CBS
Everybody Loves Raymond, JAG


HBO
The Sopranos


NBC
The Tonight Show, Crossing Jordan


PBS
Cloud: Wild Stallion of the Rockies (April 21), Frontier House (April 29-30)