TV TECHNOLOGY WILL BRING MORE VIEWER CHOICES

The future of television technology means viewers will have substantially better quality pictures and sound as well as much more variety in programming, local electronics dealers say.

In recent years mini satellite dishes have hit the market and taken off in popularity.

"I think its the best thing that's happened to the television viewing audience because it does give a well-rounded selection of entertainments and information," said Dick Weber of Weber TV and Appliance Sales, 818 Broadway.

Mini-dish systems cost about $400 for the necessary equipment, which includes dish, decoder and installation.

Programming packages start at $30 a month for about 70 channels. A total of more than 150 channels are available for those who want to pay a little more each month.

Among the options are getting multiple versions of the same movie channels, such as several different Home Box Office, Cinemax or Showtime feeds.

Also, sports fans can order complete season packages for all National Football League, National Hockey League, National Basketball Association and Major League Baseball games, as well as a variety of other sports.

Subscribers can also order movies on demand over their phone lines.

Weber said direct satellite systems offer viewers an alternative to cable television.

"It does give some definite advantages, including a lot more channels and a perfectly clear picture," Weber said.

Because the signal is received directly from satellite, there is virtually no interference, Weber said.

Like color televisions and videocassette recorders before it, mini-dish systems are becoming increasingly popular and affordable, said Jim Zieba, owner of the Home Entertainment Center, 52 S. Plaza Way.

"It's made terrific inroads," Zieba said.

While it took nearly eight years for the first million VCRs to be sold, mini-dish sales topped the 1 million mark in their first year on the market, Zieba said.

Another innovation on the horizon is high-definition television, which is supposed to tremendously improve picture quality.

"It has a much sharper, crisper picture that looks more like a photo in a good quality magazine," said Scott Shivelbine of Shivelbine's Music, 535 Broadway.

Specific band widths for high-definition broadcasts were recently designated by the Federal Communications Commission. It will be several years before stations begin transmitting high-definition broadcasts.

Shivelbine said high-definition televisions will be expensive at first, costing several thousand dollars per set, but will get more affordable as it gains in popularity.

"It will eventually go over well, but how fast it is accepted remains to be seen," Shivelbine said.

High-definition broadcasts will render today's televisions obsolete as the new technology will be transmitted on different band widths.

"It will be kind of like what FM did to AM," Shivelbine said. "Everything we've got now is AM, and we're going to FM."