Topic: Is there really a 1080p advantage? (Read 367 times)

Xbox-Scene · « **on:** November 10, 2006, 05:18:00 PM »

Is there really a 1080p advantage?
Posted by XanTium | November 10 19:18 EST

Quote

For this column, I'm going to go real-world on you and step into our A/V lab, where Mr. Katzmaier and I have set up five flat-panel HDTVs with native resolutions ranging from 1,024x768 (the Philips 42PF9631D 42-inch plasma) to 1,366x768 (the Panasonic TH-50PH9UK 50-inch plasma) to 1,920x1,080 (the Westinghouse LVM-47w1 47-inch LCD, the Sharp LC-46D62U 46-inch LCD, and the JVC LT-40FN97 40-inch LCD). We've hooked up the Samsung BD-P1000 Blu-ray player running the latest firmware and are using a Gefen HDMI Distribution Amplifier to pump out images to all five TVs at the same time. Then we pop in Mission: Impossible III, one of the best-looking Blu-ray movies we've seen to date. Our mission: see what differences we can discern in the picture quality at various resolutions.

Ultimately, we agree with the Imaging Science Foundation (ISF), a group that consults for home-theater manufacturers and trains professional video calibrators, when it says that the most important aspect of picture quality is contrast ratio, the second-most important is color saturation, and the third is color accuracy. Though resolution may be the most talked-about spec these days, it comes in fourth on the ISF list, and after you sit watching five TVs lined up side by side, you understand why. The fact is a relatively pristine high-def source such as Mission: Impossible III looks sharp on just about any HDTV, and your eye, when looking for differences, is drawn first to things like depth of detail in shadowy material (black levels) and the color of the actors' skin tone and how natural it looks.

Read the whole review on cnet.com

rasstar · « **Reply #1 on:** November 10, 2006, 04:33:00 PM »

The difference between the two is not noticable but some people seem to stress that 1080P is the holy grail of HDTV. I kno wI am not buying another television because what I have is 1080I.

This post has been edited by rasstar: Nov 11 2006, 12:43 AM

HamSandwhich · « **Reply #2 on:** November 10, 2006, 04:59:00 PM »

Maybe some people don't want to admit that they spent a shitload of money for little difference.

pdottz · « **Reply #3 on:** November 10, 2006, 05:01:00 PM »

i agree. as it is some 360 games looked awesome in HD at launch. adding more lines is just consumer friendly hype

.

i think i standard needs to be setup for HD thats made final. all these resolutions do NOTHING for the consumer who just wants to be able to see the picture. sdtvs never had this issue; just plug it in and watch.

Burgleflickle · « **Reply #4 on:** November 10, 2006, 05:06:00 PM »

It all just depends on how big your TV is. If you're running a projector with a 12 foot screen, then yeah--a 42" tv, no. Even on Lumenlab (diy hd projector site), the best results are coming more from color depth and shade levels than anything else.

ILLusions0fGrander · « **Reply #5 on:** November 10, 2006, 05:10:00 PM »

QUOTE

Also, although a direct comparison was difficult because we had to switch back and forth between 1080p and 1080i output on the Samsung player, we couldn't discern any difference between those two resolutions on the Westinghouse.

i didnt think 1080p was as big a deal as they try to make it out to be.

i watch HD-Discovery and im blown away time after time when i catch an outdoors show, or something underwater... its amazing...

i guess id have to see it in 1080p to see for myself, but im sure these guys are pretty accurate with saying they didnt notice a difference.

mlmadmax · « **Reply #6 on:** November 10, 2006, 05:48:00 PM »

1080i and 1080p are the exact same resolution and have the same lines of resolution. The only difference is that one is interlaced and the other is progressive. They are going to look the same.

I have understood for a while that there is no difference in picture quality between the two but some companys want 1080p to give them the lead in product marketing.

until 1080p60 comes out and tvs that support that resolution things will look the same and play the same.

This post has been edited by mlmadmax: Nov 11 2006, 01:52 AM

-Spud- · « **Reply #7 on:** November 10, 2006, 06:06:00 PM »

I have an EPSON EMP-TW500 LCD Projector. I can spot the difference between interlaced and progressive very easily on my 120" screen. It's extremely obvious. Interlaced images look much better on a CRT screen than they do on a Plasma or LCD (and dlp) display unit but progressive images look much better on natively progressive display units like Plasmas, LCD's ect.

The article is correct resolutions this high (720p and 1080i/p) don't play a major role but I argue they still do play a role. Because my projector is native 720p I try to stick to that resolution as best I can for the best results. So 720p will by my setting for all Xbox 360 games and HD DVD movies regardless of what higher resolutions they may support. I will use the same settings for the PS3 aswell regardless.

If Xbox 360 starts upscaling games and video to 1080i/p I don't see the point as the games are still 720p native and DVD's are 576p at best.

samsbak · « **Reply #8 on:** November 10, 2006, 06:15:00 PM »

I am plaing GOW and COD 3 in 1080p (60Hz) on a Sceptre 37 in. NAGA ...it is AWESOME...you guys obviously havent seen this yet. The difference between 1080p and 1080i are huge. Its like comparing 480p widescreen to 720p full frame. Once you get set up correctly and fire up GOW then come back and re-post.

This post has been edited by samsbak: Nov 11 2006, 02:16 AM

amb7247 · « **Reply #9 on:** November 10, 2006, 06:55:00 PM »

QUOTE(samsbak @ Nov 10 2006, 08:22 PM)

I am plaing GOW and COD 3 in 1080p (60Hz) on a Sceptre 37 in. NAGA ...it is AWESOME...you guys obviously havent seen this yet. The difference between 1080p and 1080i are huge. Its like comparing 480p widescreen to 720p full frame. Once you get set up correctly and fire up GOW then come back and re-post.

And how arey ou playin it in 1080p when the game isn't made for 1080p hmmm?

ctai010 · « **Reply #10 on:** November 10, 2006, 07:04:00 PM »

QUOTE(samsbak @ Nov 11 2006, 02:22 PM)

I am plaing GOW and COD 3 in 1080p (60Hz) on a Sceptre 37 in. NAGA ...it is AWESOME...you guys obviously havent seen this yet. The difference between 1080p and 1080i are huge. Its like comparing 480p widescreen to 720p full frame. Once you get set up correctly and fire up GOW then come back and re-post.

Dude, either I'm crazy, or you dont know what you are talking about.

If you talking about GOW and COD3 in Xbox360, I'm pretty certain they dont even support 1080p (unless I'm crazy...)

epsilon72 · « **Reply #11 on:** November 10, 2006, 07:11:00 PM »

QUOTE(amb7247 @ Nov 10 2006, 07:02 PM)

And how arey ou playin it in 1080p when the game isn't made for 1080p hmmm?

He's just playing it upscaled to 1080p.

The only advantage of 1080p (using it for TV, movies, gaming consoles) right now is that when there's a lot of fast motion it will look slightly less blurry-and that's about it.

For PC use though, it is a huge benefit to have 1080p.

There is one thing though - I think we can all agree that the difference between 1080 lines and 720 lines is a lot more easy to see than the difference between 1080i/p- keep in mind that digital panel displays will only be able to display 1080 lines (1080i or 1080p) if they're 1080p native, otherwise it'll be just 720p. There's no such thing as a 1080i native flat panel if you know what I'm getting at.

Heet · « **Reply #12 on:** November 10, 2006, 07:12:00 PM »

Splinter Cell is 1080p. And ya to the guy that sad more lines, its the same amount. With 1080p it refreshes at once and there is no flicker like 1080i. And 30hz instead of 60hz.

To tell you the truth, I can tell the difference but it is negligable.

Caldor · « **Reply #13 on:** November 10, 2006, 07:17:00 PM »

Yeah right, we dont need 1080P Wishful thinking at best

Production studios master in 1080P, not 1080i or 720P for good reasons.

Going from interlaced to progressive is an impossible task to do perfectly - and the best consumer level method is an external video processor like the ISCAN VP50 costing $US3000.

There is only two reasons why people could not easily see how much better 1080P is from 720P

1. You have vision problems
2. Your too far away from the display to fully resolve the image

the ISF specifically states that resolution is important, and it is part of the tests used to properly calibrate displays to the standards.

brywalker · « **Reply #14 on:** November 10, 2006, 07:29:00 PM »

Yes, there is.

I bought a 720p set. It looked great. I had problems with it (manufacturer defect that didn't affect the image) and was able to upgrade to 1080p.

I was floored.

720p content looks better, 1080i content looks better (obviously) and 1080p content looks incredible.

Yes, the games output at 720p. I don't output my 360 at 1080i or p because it's just upscaling the image. My display scales it up anyway, so I let it do the work and leave the extra horses in the 360.

Think about it.

1280 x 720 vs 1920 × 1080. Which do you think looks better? Even when scaling a 720p image you are getting a sharper image.

When you dislpay 1080i on a 720p set, you are LOSING resolution. You are scaling down 1920 x 1080 down to 1280 x 720. Just because a display ACCEPTS a 1080i signal, doesn't mean it DISPLAYS at 1080 resolution.

Night and day. I don't see how you guys don't see it.

My HD DVD player looks FAR better on the 1080 set. Yes, I know that it outputs 1080i, but the source is 1080p so all 1920 × 1080 lines of resolution are there, and my display deinterlaces.

This post has been edited by brywalker: Nov 11 2006, 03:31 AM

Author Topic: Is there really a 1080p advantage? (Read 367 times)