<p>Prices go down every day for flat screen and HDTVs. It’s a pattern all technology goes through. Out with the old, in with the new, until the new becomes the old and gets cheaper, then rinse and repeat. This is great news for the consumers, and it means that these days, 720p sets (not Full HD, or 1080p) can retail for as low as $200. However, why should we consumers get all excited? Yeah, there are benefits to watching things in HD, but really, do we want to see the sweat on Pedro Martinez’s brow?</p><p>The HD phenomenon has brought with it many great things: the near-elimination of the practice of pan-and-scan in the film industry, exceptional detail in photography and filmmaking, and a new standard for televisions everywhere. Eventually, there will come a day when every house will have an HDTV. J. Michael Straczynski, creator of the popular Babylon 5 series, anticipated this, filming the series in widescreen as early as 1993.</p><p>The new standard poses problems for the average consumer though, not the least of which the need to buy a set that used to retail for upwards of a thousand dollars. Luckily, that problem is quickly diminishing.</p>