BY JOHN KIESEWETTER
The Cincinnati Enquirer
SYMMES TOWNSHIP -- The future of television was greeted with applause Thursday by more than 250 people watching new high-definition TV at Circuit City.
Or was the ovation for John Glenn's return to outer space?
The crowd squeezed into the electronics store to watch the space shuttle Discovery launch in the Tristate's first experimental broadcast of a live news event in the theater-quality, wide-screen HDTV format.
Most were impressed with the vivid colors, detail and clarity of the national Harris Corp. digital telecast, directed by Clermont County resident Ken Fouts and broadcast by WKRC-TV (Channel 12) and WXIX-TV (Channel 19).
The thundering digital sound of the blast-off blew the cover off the Infinity speaker right on cue.
"It's marvelous. The color is so wonderful," said Judy Benson of Mason, who owns five color TVs.
"It's definitely movie-theater quality," said Jim Barrett of Evendale, an amateur photographer. "Without question, we're looking at the future. It's what we're going to own when the price comes down."
The estimated retail price is $7,000 for the 56-inch Panasonic projection HDTV set. Customers could compare the HDTV quality to Channel 12's CBS News coverage on a 61-inch Panasonic projection TV next to it (for only $2,497).
Those who saw the experimental telecast marveled at the crisp picture and spectacular detail -- the metal lattice supports of the rocket tower, the chain-link rope along a NASA walkway and the rippling water in the bay behind anchor Mary Alice Williams.
Viewers could literally count the red berries on the tree behind a "Welcome to New Concord" sign on a taped feature. On HDTV, a fiery red blast launched the rocket, compared with the muted, dull red on conventional TVs. Every detail of the billowing white smoke could be seen, while it looked like a white blur on the other TV.
"I'm very impressed with the picture quality, the lack of vertical lines. It's almost three-dimensional," said Joe Phillips, a Time Warner cable technician.
All agreed the price tag was breathtaking, too.
"Prices will eventually come down to the $1,000 range. And like with computers, it should take about 10 years," predicted Russ Jenisch, a TV production teacher at Northern Kentucky University who brought seven seniors with him to the store.
Andy Rechenberg, a University of Cincinnati computer science major, can't wait to see football or other sports in the wide-screen format. CBS will air four NFL games next month in HDTV. But Cincinnati isn't required by the government to begin full-time HDTV broadcasts until November 1999.
"Sporting events will make this very popular very soon," said Mr. Rechenberg, who likes to watch movies on his new digital video disk (DVD) player at his Mount Airy home.
"The DVD was the best I had seen so far for regular television, and HDTV surpasses it by far. It's incredible," he said. "In two or three years, I'll definitely have one."
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• 250,000 at launch party
• Awestruck Clinton salutes "genuine American hero'
• Glenn's first words
• Questions and answers
• Discovery Notebook
• Back to Glenn Page
