What is the difference between PrPbY and HDMI cables?

Question

What is the difference between the PrPbY cable and the HDMI? Is one better to have than the other? Can you use one without the other or do you have to use both to get the full effect. I looked on the back of my brighthouse cable box and I noticed under the PrPbY hookup, it says, HDTV. My TV has these hook ups but it doesnt say HDTV on it. Does this mean My tv is HDTV? Also, my DVD player has the same PrPbY set up. Is there a way I can hook up the DVD player, cable box, and a PS3 up to this PrPbY connection because my tv only has one and so does the cable box. Please help me out. Im completely clueless with this HDTV stuff. 10 points and a thumbs up to the best and most thorough answer. Thanx everybody

Answer 1

PrPbY is analog, video only, and HDMI is digital, video and audio.  If your TV has only PrPby (component) then that is what you have to use.  If there is only one component input into your TV, you have two choices

1) get a component level video switch to select the input to your TV  See http://www.monoprice.com/products/produc...

2) use the other connections available on the TV.  The chances are that your TV is an HDTV, and your only source of HD is the cable box, so use the component cables for the cable box to TV connection.  Use s-video (if your set has two of those) for the other connections.   (Unless your PS3 has a blu-ray player in it and you want to play blr-ray movies, then I would use the component cables for that).  You won't get HD from s-video.  If your set does not have 2 s-video inputs, then you will have to (unfortunately) use the composite (yellow) video connection.  There are selector swtiches available for HDMI, component, s-video and composite, so you can arrange the inputs any way you like.  Ideally, component for all (if the TV does not have HDMI) .

Answer 2

PrPbY cables are the video component cables (red, green, and blue); while an HMDI cable is the single cable that kind of looks like a bigger USB.  Both are supposed to give you the best video quality your tv can handle.

If your TV is a plasma, LCD, or the latest projection types, usually they should have an HDMI input already (normally at the front of the Tv you can see a logo that says HD ready).  If not, then you use the PrPbY cables.  

Since you only have 1 input for this on your TV, you can get a 3-way video selector with the PrPbY inputs (available in your nearest electronics shop) which can handle all three of your gadgets.  

If this isn't available, then you must decide which one (Cable, DVD, or PS3) you'd use for the PrPbY input, and use the ordinary RCA (red, yellow, white) cable for the other two.