First off, big kudos to Comcast for recently adding Fox HD to their lineup of high-definition (HD) cable offerings (albeit only 90 days too late – the first game of the World Series was October 24^th).  Perhaps Comcast realized there would be a major uproar among Mid-Coast HDTV subscribers when they discovered the Patriot’s date with destiny would not be available in HD.  Perhaps Comcast saw subscribers fleeing to satellite.  Whatever the reason, good on ‘ya, Comcast.

Now, if you could just stretch the waxed string a bit tighter between your tin cans and bring us more HD offerings, we’d sure ‘preciate it.

As you know, I took the HDTV leap back in late October, wanting to watch a certain local team playing in a certain fall classic in the majesty of HD (no, I’m not bitter).  Here’s some random things I’ve learned in the first 90 days of HDTV ownership.

HDMI cables are expensive!  HDMI stands for “High Definition Media Interface”, which carries both HD video and audio in one expensive cable.  Somewhat ironically, the cheapest six-foot HDMI cable I’ve found was at an Apple Retail Store.  $20.  The local electronics/houseware superstores want $40 for the same cable.

I am using and enjoying the HD digital video recorder (DVR) more than I thought I would – especially during football season.  However, as I suspected, there still aren’t enough hours in a day to watch everything there is to record.

Another somewhat unexpected benefit of our HDTV is family photo viewing, courtesy of our Apple TV.  As digital photos are actually higher definition than HD, they look phenomenal on an HDTV, and the whole family doesn’t have to huddle around the computer screen.  Soon, Apple TV will let me rent HD movies via the internet. More on that in a couple of weeks.

Finally, my HDTV has made me rediscover nature.  God’s green earth is REALLY green on HD.  And lava is REALLY red.  And the sun is a big orange ball.

While there are many HD nature shows to choose from, my favorite show (and constant DVR target when I sleep in) is “Sunrise Earth” on Discovery HD Theater.  Yes, the name says it all.  High definition cameras capture glorious sunrises, from Machu Picchu to Maine.  Little editing, with the only soundtrack being the ambient sounds of the sunrise site.  It’s a great way to start the day.