DVI with EDTV

[jrhymeammo]

Maybe I should ask this quesion in the HT forum, but here it goes. My friend has a 42" EDTV plasma, and now has a HD converter box from a Comcast Cable Co. He's convinced that by connecting by DVI cable, he will be viewing HD programs on his EDTV. The Comcast installer didn't hesistate to provide him with the box. I'm assuming that the installer just didn't know anything and just trying to make money. I believe that HBO show programs with 480 resolution, but not 720/1080. Would he be just viewing programs with better clarity, but not HD? Or, would I be learning something new by posting here? Please reply, so he doesn't have to spend money on somewthing he doesn't need, since he already uses component cables.

P.S. Vinyl isn't Growing much but it's not Dead.

[davidb]

If he gets the HD box and subscribes to the HD channels, they will look MUCH better on his EDTV than the normal channels, but he'll have to set the output of the box to 480p, so it will not look as good as it would in full-on HD. Whether DVI or component will give him a better picture would depend on the quality of the TV compared to the HD box. In any case, it is very unlikely to make a noticeable improvement if it makes one at all. Even downconverted, however, the HD channels are still going to look very good.