My new computer has an HD DVD player in it so I bought a movie (The Bourne Surpemacy) just to check it out. At least on my 22" widescreen LCD monitor it doesn't seem orders of magnitude better.

And I have the same reaction whenever I'm looking at HD in the stores. I think it is just that I have a poor visual memory and need to see HD and conventional side by side at the same time showing the same thing (which, for some reason, none of the stores seem to do).

Well, there's most likely a reason for that, at least if it's in Target. My last two months with the company before I left to return to school I was running the Electronics department. We had a big reset and were given all these complicated instructions to set up the HD-TVs to the channel carrying the HD signal (Targets have a dedicated satellite signal running their in-house TV programs). Well, after doing all that, things didn't look any different so I checked into it and discovered that our HD channel was running the standard def signal. No difference. I checked with the other stores in the area and it turned up that they were in the same situation. So, all those fancy HD sets at Target? Plain old standard programming, at least as of October 2006. Cracked me up. After running the Electronics department in a 55 million dollar a year Target store, I still have never actually seen an HD program. Irony…

BTW guys, thanks for the info and opinions regarding the actual impact of HD on programs. I've been increasingly curious as time goes on. I think we'll just wait until '09 and the switchover to pony up for a set though. Maybe by then the prices will have dropped and we'll be able to get an HD player along with it.

No, I'm talking some of the high end stores with faux living rooms set up for display and what not. About a month ago I thought prices may have come down enough that I'd be willing to jump (mostly for a flat TV since I don't intend to pay more for HD cable and I'm not committing to a standalone player until one side wins).

But even at a good store with (presumably) setups totally tweaked to impress, I just wasn't seeing anything that knocked my socks off.

That's the feeling that I've gotten whenever I've checked it out as well. I went down to Frye's and bummed around in their little 'living room" things, and I really don't believe that I was seeing true HD. I was more blown away by the amazing sound systems than the screens.

ditto, but probably because I can hear way better than I can see

Our house is open for demos of HDTV and other fun technologies - I don't call it the Nuclear Muffin Test Kitchen for nothing :D

I am sure it is the same with anyone who has HD and has a broadcast HD source: you can easily switch back and forth between HD and non HD versions of the same program (I have non HD equivalents of most of my HD channels).

I presume that the picture quality is fairly subjective as to whether it is "worth it." Some people will enjoy having it and to others it is not that big of a deal. I'm okay with that. One of the primary reasons that we did it when we did was that I have been working my kiester off for the past several months and felt like rewarding myself (OURselves since Susan has to put up with me not being home much).

HD-DVD and/or Blu-Ray?

Well, for me with my love of old movies, would HD make a real difference to my life? I don't watch sports, Discovery Channel, etc. is great.

Of course, I am still in pure lust mode for a flat panel something tv. Maybe by Xmas I will be able to do that! :-)

For the record, we have Comcast cable and it sucks, digital bits flying about all the time.