A couple points on this. They are required to broadcast in ATSC and close their NTSC stations, but not really required to broadcast EVERYTHING in HD. ATSC still supports 480i signals, and the local stations around my house have utilized this by broadcasting their main channel in HD, and also providing 2-3 extra channels in 480i utilizing only 1 ATSC signal.
You can already get decently sized HDTVs for under $500. I paid exactly $500 for my very high quality (1:1600, etc) 27 inch 720p screen. I suspect that 20-27 inch LCD screens will be reasonably priced at the same amount that 20-27 inch NTSC tvs were just 5-6 years ago. $200-400. You'll probably see some $100 or so 20 inch SDTVs that show to ATSC directly.
Plus, as your woot.com link pointed out, 1080p TVs can be pretty cheap already, Both Westinghouse and Spectre have screens for $1000-1300 that are 37-42 inches 1080p. This is too small to tell the difference at 8-10 feet, but at under 4 feet it should be good enough and would make an excellent computer monitor. At further distances, it'd be just the same as a 720p monitor, and maybe $200-300 more in cost.
no subject
You can already get decently sized HDTVs for under $500. I paid exactly $500 for my very high quality (1:1600, etc) 27 inch 720p screen. I suspect that 20-27 inch LCD screens will be reasonably priced at the same amount that 20-27 inch NTSC tvs were just 5-6 years ago. $200-400. You'll probably see some $100 or so 20 inch SDTVs that show to ATSC directly.
Plus, as your woot.com link pointed out, 1080p TVs can be pretty cheap already, Both Westinghouse and Spectre have screens for $1000-1300 that are 37-42 inches 1080p. This is too small to tell the difference at 8-10 feet, but at under 4 feet it should be good enough and would make an excellent computer monitor. At further distances, it'd be just the same as a 720p monitor, and maybe $200-300 more in cost.