mmg bukan HD pun kot.. but what i can see, even viewing on pillar box in ESPN HD, the quality seems better than on 813

Astro....Astro...first you made me jump with joy with beyond, and everything was great, but now you blur my other none HD channels and chop off the actors foreheads, and I no longer have options, moreover i still have to pay the same price for "lower quality pictures" on the none HD channels, as well as I have to start pay extra for the HD channels in April. Even got money also unable to convert all the other none HD channels to HD.....what the blooooody helllll!!!!!  now feel cheated cause I have a dam BIG HDMI TV, but i am force to see a smaller screen. GIVE BACK MY OLD DECORDER!!!!!!!!

Well said Gogo

Unfortunately, some of the complaints are abt reduced SD quality

More than meet the eyes perhaps?

may ask... which is more irritating for you...

1. thinner but accurate relatively higher quality picture with complete information but include 2 lump of black rectangle on each side, or , 2. wider, yet still accurate average quality picture with incomplete information although it is in full screen.


i just want to understand other poeple's taste and perception..

i leave the '3. wider, full screen, non accurate poor quality picture with complete information ' option out as it yet to be available...

see LCW's family screen:



see? they are using scretch mode.. NOT PILLAR BOX as many claimed to have undistorted picture (fatter, blur-er, bla bla bla).

heck why would they want to care for us to see the fat man in action while LCW familt does the same?!?! they just want the screen to fully-filled by LCW's face! (and NOT without his head)

aiyah...just choose the one we like-lah, no matter pillar kah, no head kah or tarik long-long kah...all depending on personal liking...Just gave users the options can dy...& the best if can bring back the quality of SD channels similar to the old DTU can liao

Should have bought a nice Samsung CRT. Coupled with the newer Thompson decoder with component output. And not be bothered at all about HD. At least can enjoy superb PQ on SD channels. Sigh...

Byond already mah. How can use CRT? If not for the 1 year contract, I'll go straightaway to Bukit Jalil now to shove the decoder down Assterung's back side.

right.. there's nothing wrong with pillar box.. but there's equally right to give back the stretch mode to give me back the option to fill up my TV with images with the head still there. i had my own perception and you got urs, so does others. who is using Zoom now? i bet got 1/2 out there. just give me back the stretch mode and retain whatever its right for others will do. weird and wrong? nothing weirder than watching a LCD with two black thingy on the side.. it's like watching 16:9 movie in a CRT monitor.

Why even consider pillar box mode when most, if not all, Beyond subscribers have a wide screen plasma/lcd tv?? The two black bars on the sides does NOT enhance the picture. We stare at our PC/laptop monitors all day and when we watch cable tv, are we USED to seeing the black bars? NO! Not me anyway.

So to conclude the pillar box mode is good for those who use CRT tv to watch Astro.

To give my 02 cents whether or not people should subscribe Beyond, I still think they can give it a try - IF they can put up with this nonsense. We all can watch bluray movies on our bluray players/PS3 but we cannot enjoy NatGeo and History Channel in HD. It is an immense pleasure to see the wildlife and other breathtaking scenes in HD - such that cannot be seen elsewhere.

Sigh. ASTRO - bring back stretch mode NAOOOOOOO~!!1111

When are they going to give back that stretch option???

Can i ask u a question?
Are u currently using the CRT to watch Astro???
If yes, no wonder u always said 'Pillar Box' mode is good for u!!!
If not, how can u using your LCD/Plasma to watch the program in 'Pillar Box' mode???

Astro doesn't want to take the hard way by replacing all existing decoders that doesn't support MPEG-4/H.264. Because only 1.5mb or more bitrate is needed to archieve top PQ for SD channel... Imagine the $$ coming out from Astro HQ...

My suggestion,
1. PLEASE give back my Stretch Mode!
2. Astro, just change the codec from MPEG-2 to MPEG-4/H.264, for we to see good PQ sd channel and you can save bandwidth... eventhough if you want to spend billions of RM... It's a smart long term spending,,,

What's wrong with you? How can it be not important? We pay also, and we deserve to watch anyway we like. You like pillarbox? Fine, just STFU and enjoy your pillar box. Sheesh.

Old decoder still use MPEG-2 though. And bitrate for SD channel for b.yond should be on average 2mb...

agree, let we decide, stretch.zoom or pillar....for me no no to pillar

or maybe the pillar box should not be black, maybe "decorated" like some upscaled SD on HD channels??

dont shove ur pillarbox campaign to us...Option thats the word....

i can appreciate it equally when they got the stretch mode option available back then.. but i appreciate stretch mode more (believe me, i tried). yeah now no choice have to bear with the pillar box (zoom mode is super nono).

question: why the zoom mode is there at the first place? who will appreacite half cut hair + missing subs?

gogo2..are u working for astro..?
coz u dont seem to share the feelings for others here..
u only seem to care about yourself and ur Pillar-Box
i wonder how u would have reacted if astro say according to international standard only zoom mode is allowed
No more pillar box..no other options that suits you...
Or u only have zoom mode and stretch..no more of ur beloved pillar box..
How would you feel for paying extra money and getting the best Tv but cannot watch according to ur style?
I know that will not happen
But damn..i know u dont like stretch mode and like pillar box but people have their own viewing style
Ur eyes like pillar box but others like stretch mode..n u say its not important..to u it isnt
For others it is..so let them choose and stop telling people what they should like or should watch..

I think this gogo2 guy works for astro. maybe he is the idiot who came up with these zoom ideas. That is why he try so hard to defend it with his 'pilar boxes' and stuff.

Gogo2..don't u get it?? the problem is not about the pilar boxes. It is about the strecth function that has been replace with the zoom function. Can u see it clearly now?

Just restore it to as it before. Stretch and pillar box. Or on the other hand, just provide the three functions, zoom, pillar box and stretch. Everyone happy

Hey look..its gogo2 going on and on and on again about his pillar box..
U just dont get it do you?
U might buy the LCD TV to watch in the CORRECT RATIO ASPECT thats why u watch in PILLAR BOX..
But get this in ur head boy, u are not the same with others
Some people buy big LCD or Plasma becaue they wanna see big full screen programmes on TV
They dont care if its the CORRECT RATIO ASPECT or if the picture is distorted..
They dont wanna buy big LCD Tv to watch in Pillar Box..they just want full screen..and not zoomed..get it?
So what if they are not watching it in the intended mode made by the director
People have choices..
N since when did u get ur PHD and make research saying all humans like pillar box?
Ur damn wrong there..there are many here who dont like pillar box so dont put words into people's mouth
Stop campaigning for people to watch in Pillar Box here..we have our own style of viewing
U wanna talk bout Pillar Box 24 hours a day?
Go start ur own thread!!!

owh u dont aceept if ur wife is fat is it?
No wonder u dont accept people have their own choices
Look who's talking nonsense now..
comparing stretch mode in Tv to his wife..
N u sound so silly with this:

stretched is stretched. Actually pillar box is also full screen. Just that it did not fill the screen.

u dont seem top get the point people want stretch mode so that it can fill the screen
Ur Pillar box doesnt fill up the screen..
Gosh u r acting like an SPM kid now..just let people make their own choices and u go enjoy ur pillar box