( PCWorld ) Why The Wii Needs an HD Visual Upgrade

[mike_intellivision]

hsrob said:

bardicverse said:
@Mike - I agree with what you're saying, but I think that HDTVs are starting to become reasonable. This upcoming Black Friday, 32 inch HDTVs can be bought for under $300. Thats really cheap. I think the pricepoint is starting to match what people are willing to pay to switch out their SD tvs to HD.

My folks finally upgraded to a 32 inch LCD as their main TV, taking advantage of recent lower prices. Unfortunately the 300 dollars you quote for America is more like $650 in Australia.  My point though is that if MY parents considered upgrading to a HDTV then everybody else in the world can't be too far behind. 

OT: Having said all that the Wii doesn't need a HD visual upgrade any more than it did three years ago.  It is the most popular system, the industry standard for games which means (for normal non gamers) it's a case of the PS3 and 360 just looking very good compared to the Wii, not the Wii looking really bad compared to them.  Furthermore if Wii games really do look crap on your, not just crap relative to 1080p Gran Turismo, then your TV sucks at upscaling 480p, or it's just massive.  I've seen the Wii on a number of HD panels and believe me when i tell you that when it comes to a humble 480p signal, not all HDTVs are created equal.

It is true that people the switch to HD is going on.  But it is still not in the majority.

The main point though is that at the point of system release three years ago, HD was no where near the dominant force or choice -- which is why the Wii did not go for HD at the time.

Mike from Morgantown