I finally replaced my aging Sony 27″ CRT with a Panasonic plasma after spending a year and half debating the merits of various different HDTVs. After a couple weeks of HDTV, I’m still extraordinarily impressed. What is most striking is how HD changes what you watch. While I was never a particular fan of the Discovery channel or its variants, I now find myself spending hours tuned in to Discovery HD Theater.

With HDTV, shows which would be pointless on a regular TV become irresistible. Case in point is the Discover HD Theater show “Sunrise Earth”, which is literally just scenes of the sun rising. Different episodes hilight scenery from different parts of the world, but the premise is the same. No narration. No music. No action shots of wildlife in motion. Just beautiful scenes of nature brought into your living room. It sounds foolish, but it is relaxing and surprisingly effective in high definition.