Axiom Home Page Forums General Discussion Technical Questions Which gives better picture...720p or 1080i?

Hmm, the Toshiba 50HDX82.
Sounds familiar.
Ah yes, we do own one.

Lovely 1080i picture, just lovely.

Jason,
i found that article you linked very insightful and hopefully worth some more exchange on the topic. What i think i learned from that article, considering it did make the old noggin' hurt a wee bit, is:

-all 720p is @ 60fps
-all 1080p/i is @ 24-30fps
-most (all???) 1080p tvs can only display 24fps???
-the holy grail is 1080p @ 60fps
-the holy grail is unattainable with current technology/bandwidth limitations
-depending on how far you are sitting from your tv you are better off with 720p @ 60fps than 1080p @ 24fps
-save your money and get a 720p set

How far off the mark am i here?

Any more thoughts on this anyone?

so to expand on that a bit then, current 1080i is @ 60fps, but once it de-interlaces it becomes 1080p @ 30fps. I'm trying to wrap my brain around this whole thing because i was hoping to have a new tv for my completed ht room (expected completion date Apr 15).

So if no current 1080p displays will handle 60fps (is this correct?) and that is the holy grail, then there is no way to future proof against this, if i cared to do so. But if current displays of 720p @ 60fps are > 1080p @ 30fps, then one would be just as well suited with a 720p for probably a number of years....until technology can accomodate 1080p @ 60fps. Now i believe this is a complete moot point for me anyways, since i am looking at a 60/61" Toshiba or Samsung DLP set (yes i talked myself down from a 72") which isn't available in a 720p anyway.

If you are looking at a 61" you may still benefit from 1080P but that would depend on how close you plan on sitting to it. General rule is greater than 50" look at 1080 and less than 50" 720. You will still benefit from 1080 at the 61" you are looking at. The pixels are starting to get quite large at that size and your eye can pick up on them easier.

Sid, if you keep waiting for the "holy grail" you will never purchase a TV. The new Holy Grail is now Ultra HDTV which is 7680x 4320 (or 4320P).

More research will show that movie studios film on digital film at a frame rate of 24fps in many cases and there is a whole procedure the processor does called "reverse telecine" that delivers that signal to the output of your TV.

Dont get caught up in the "paralysis by analysis" and take the things you hear from sales clerks with a grain of salt. So many of them told me" 1080P is useless since there is no 1080P source" and that is just wrong.

-Blu-Ray will give you a 1080P source for a 1080P set.
-Many TV's have excellent videoprocessors that will convert a 1080i source to 1080P. Like Samsung 87 series DLP, JVC HDILA, Sony XBR SXRD, Panny Plasma, etc.
-one guy told me there were no issues with DLP, while another said he sold his brother a 44HMX85 and made him get extended warranty because he gets so many back.

If your eyes cant notice that the picture is being delivered by a series of reflective mirrors and a spinning colour wheel with DLP....they will not notice the difference between 24, 30 or 60 FPS.

Do a google search on DLP lamp failures with Toshiba DLP. I almost purchased a 62HMX85 last year and glad I didnt after speaking with a few dealers and seeing the problems.

I was a big DLP fan, but after doing more research decided to go with a technology with less moving parts. I'd seriously look at LCOS or if you want DLP, consider the Samsung as the picture is smoother and seems to have a better track record.

Finally, let your eyes be the judge.

thanks for the continued help on this guys....i think after it's all said and done, i'm going to move on this set currently on sale:

Toshiba 62HM196 for $1800

For that price it is pretty tough to pass up. I think considering the potential for repair issues with this newer technology i am going to consider the extended warranty. I am not typically a big believer in it, but for a couple hundred dollars, it is pretty cheap insurance.

Thanks again

Here’s a good article worth reading. http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_14_1/feature-article-1080p-3-2007-part-1.html

It doesn't specifically address whether 1080i or 720P is better, but gives the reader a fairly good picture of what’s happening in the pixel chain from source to display.

Personally, I prefer 720P over 1080i. Especially for sports.

Sid, if it looks good to your eyes then buy it. Maybe see if Visions has that model and they will cut you another 5% off the advertised price.

Here is a review of that TV. 62HM196 review Like I said before if you search for the holy grail, you will never buy a TV. This set "wobulates" the 960 lines of horizontal resolution to produce 1080P x 1920i. Just a little more tech jargon to confuse the issue.

Sit as far back as you will at home from this TV and watch some HD, SD and DVD on it in store. If you like it, buy it, then enjoy it when you get it home.

Good luck. Man I miss Harry's Ukranian Kitchen in Brandon back when the food was great.

Hi all,

A few comments on this thread. Many broadcasters prefer 1080i because it requires less bandwidth to transmit. By the way, 1080i is made up of 60 alternating fields of 540 lines each per second, which are interlaced together and total 30 frames per second.

Mdrew is correct in that 720p, which presents 30 progressively scanned full frames per second (not alternating fields), is generally felt to be better for sports, with smoother reproduction of fast horizontal motion.

But it isn't a question of which one--720p or 1080i-- is "better" than the other. Both represent the two standards for High Definition TV broadcasts, and both look wonderful with a good set, much, much sharper and clearer than Standard Definition (480i) images.

Upconverting DVD players deliver a digital video image via HDMI or DVI, whereas component video passes HDTV images as analog information. In theory, the digital image via HDMI or DVI should be better because fewer digital-to-analog and analog-to-digital conversions take place. I said "in theory" because in practice, the digital anti-piracy codes that take place with HDMI or DVI connections use up lots of bits or processing power that are not devoted to image quality. Consequently, an upconverted HDMI or DVI image may or may not look better than analog component video connections. Try them and see which produces a better picture; you may not see any differences. Or sometimes, the HDMI image may be inferior to the component video.

Oppo players (and some other brands) tend to deliver remarkably impressive upconversion of Standard Def DVDs. While it's still not quite the equal of true High Def, it's so close that at times you forget you are not watching HD image quality.

Regards,