HDTV LCD's question

[Russ]

can somebody clear this up.

i was under the impression HDTV was broadcast at 1800res, but there's HDTV "ready" LCD's where the max resolution is only 1280. am i missing something.

[steve threlfall]

Originally Posted by Russ

can somebody clear this up.

i was under the impression HDTV was broadcast at 1800res, but there's HDTV "ready" LCD's where the max resolution is only 1280. am i missing something.

The resolutions are 720 and something like 1024 (bit more i think). 1024 being the max and the one that tv broadcasts will be in. 720 is the one that will be used for xbox 360 (for most games anyway)

Obviosuly 1024 while being low compared to a monitor is awesome compared with a current 500 odd line tv

[Russ]

still dont get it, whats all this 1800 business then? :|

[Swafe]

I figment of your imagination

Your probably waffling on about the 1080i, which is the same as 720, but better quality again

[Howard]

HDTV has two resolutions.

720p and 720i (interlaced and progressive)

and 1080i.

1280x720 and 1920x1080 respectively.

Edit: 720 and 1080 lines as opposed to 576. Or 625. One of the two. Lol

[steve threlfall]

Ok,

First modes are actually 1080i (HDTV) • 720p (HDTV) to correct myself

Take a look at this spec for a random Panasonic HDTV

http://digitalmedianet.dealtime.com/...onic_TC_32LX50


When buying just make sure your tv's got capability to display 1080i and has at least one HMDI port (for mega qulaity connection to new dvd players)

[Swafe]

Isnt buying a TV that does 720i now a waste then?

When you can wait and get a mega 1080i @ 1920 lines or something stupid in a couple of years time

[steve threlfall]

Originally Posted by Howard

HDTV has two resolutions.

720p and 720i (interlaced and progressive)

and 1080i.

1280x720 and 1920x1080 respectively.

Edit: 720 and 1080 lines as opposed to 576. Or 625. One of the two. Lol

I didnt realise the resolutions were that high

edit Could you hook it up to a pc for some high res action?

[Howard]

[Russ]

so...

19" tfts are gonna run at 720i? which aint as good as 1080i?

im so confused lol.

does anyone know of a TFT thats runs at 1080 and can be used as a monitor and pc?

[Howard]

Most HDTV LCDs can be used as monitors, although the quality isn't that outstanding

[5lab]

Originally Posted by Swafe

Isnt buying a TV that does 720i now a waste then?

When you can wait and get a mega 1080i @ 1920 lines or something stupid in a couple of years time

720i is pretty rare - 720p is much more likely.

is it a waste? tricky question. arguably the picture quality is higher, due to progressive scan. as well as this, there is some debate as to whether 1080 will *ever* take off. broadcasters are favouring the lower bandwidth requirements of 720p, and the sets are lots lots cheaper - there are very very few 1080 sets around at the moment. i am confident in saying that, at least for the first 5 years or so, 95% of hdtv material will be 720p, which would look BETTER on a 720p set than on a 1080i set (because it will be running native res). admittedly, 1080i meterial will look better on a 1080i set (720p sets will downscale it), BUT is it worth all that extra money and loss of quality on the other shows? imo, no.

if you are looking to buy a hdtv panel, ensure it has hdmi in, and a 1280x720 resolution. some panels have larger resolutions (1280x768, wxga (iirc) seems popular) but this will either lead to source stretching (to make it fit the pixels) or the source will be squished top-bottem slightly (the geometry, to make the pixels match 1:1), and have borders.

all hdtv sets will plummet in price over the next year - i forsee a bit of a price war once the xbox360, ps3, sky and ntl are all pumping out occasional hdtv. i want one for above me bed, but i'm going to wait until the prices have settled a little.

[Russ]

i'll wait till just before the world cup then

[5lab]

sounds like a good plan - the situation may well have changed by then.. who knows?

as for the monitor point - a good quality hdtv set (ie, one thats costing around £500 for a 20") will make a good monitor if viewed from the right distance -in fact it may well look better for lots of games/movies as there will be less artificial artifacts..

[Stoo]

1080i and 1080p will be pretty much limited to pre-recorded media (blu-ray, hd-dvd), or pc connectivity.

You might get the odd satellite channel with 1080i (Euro1080 is one such channel), but they'll be few and far between until there are high-bandwidth VOD lines available (like Japan for example as a single uncompressed 1080 video stream will require a minimum of a 50mbit line).

and yes steve, they can be hooked up to a pc and used as another monitor - the quality isn't an issue if you tweak the settings (if you're connecting via a vga connector), or hook it up via a dvi/hdmi connector.

[Stoo]

Originally Posted by 5lab

if you are looking to buy a hdtv panel, ensure it has hdmi in, and a 1280x720 resolution. some panels have larger resolutions (1280x768, wxga (iirc) seems popular) but this will either lead to source stretching (to make it fit the pixels) or the source will be squished top-bottem slightly (the geometry, to make the pixels match 1:1), and have borders.

1280*720 panels pretty much don't exist, LG have 1280*768 panels, but by far, the vast majority are 1366*768, which allows for 1:1 scaling by a factor of 1.066666etc which is un-noticable.