a basic question on HD

Henryhk,

HD is 720p or greater resolution, so yes, a 1366 x 768 plasma is a high def TV.

Plasma, like LCD, LCos, and DLP, are fixed pixel displays so they must convert any incoming signal to their native resolution before they can display it. And, if the input signal is interlaced rather than progressive, the set must also deinterlace the signal.

So the plasma in question will have to make a small scaling adjustment to expand a 720p input to display at 768p. In the case of 1080i / 1080p input, then the TV has to throw away some of the information as it scales down to 768p for display (and for 1080i it also has to deinterlace).

HD on TV, cable, and satellite is either 720p or 1080i.

For the two high def DVD formats, the data is stored on the disc as 1080p/24. Please note, this is not the same as 1080p/60. If the source is 1080p/24, then it can be transmitted as 1080i with no loss of information, provided the TV correctly deinterlaces the 1080i input.

Apparently, not all TVs deinterlace correctly. So, if the TV accepts a 1080p input, and you have the ability to send it a 1080p signal like some of the new high def DVD players, then its possible to see an improvement in picture quality. But the improvement is due to a problem in the TV's deinterlacing, not in the fact that it's being sent as 1080i.

All of the above does not apply if you have a true 1080p/60 source, which is different than 1080p/24, but I am not aware of true 1080p/60 sources unless the gaming systems have that (TV is 720p or 1080i, and movies are 1080p/24).

Bruce

480p is part of HD. i.e.Can't do 480p without a hdtv.

Bruce,

Actually only the Sony BDP-S1 and Pioneer Blu-ray players output 1080p/24, I am not sure of the HD DVD players.

AVguygeorge,

All Blu-ray players output 1080p, as does the Toshiba HD XA2.

KT

Thanks all. Much more clear to me. I already have a Pioneer plasma 50" that is capable of 720p/1080i...and the vaunted Denon flagship AX1 DVD player. Just bot a house so wanted another set for another room, or more buy an upgraded set and move this one to the bedroom which is fairly large too. It seems to me that I should stick with looking at 1080p capable screens. The Denon is capable of upscaling to 1080P and besides, I think I can take my time with Bluray/HDDVD and see it how it goes in terms of software & new player models availability...but given need to purchase a display anyway, might as well get one that is 1080 ready so as not to regret it down the horizon.

A shame in way. The B&O set up looked really kool. Indeed the motivation for me was actually their speaker set up, Beolab5s. I like that they are not placement sensitive having their own sensors to auto adjust,and all speakers have inbuilt amplifcation so that a power amp is not necessary+ no sep sub needed as the BeoLab 5s have in built subs. Plus they just look interesting. But the problem is their connectivity: to use this system u have to get their processor as B&O uses their own proprierty connectivity methods for the processor/center speaker/display. (the Beolab 5s are not an issue, its the rest of the set up that is)

A sep question. So let's say I get the BeoLab 5s which should really driven via digital inputs (intern DAC/amplification/room equalization)....do think there is way to hook it up with a pre-pro/pwr amp so that the rest center/rears are driven by analogue connections?

avguygeorge,

Regarding "480p is part of HD. i.e.Can't do 480p without a hdtv", 480p is EDTV, although I don't know if they still sell EDTV sets. But I do agree that a regular TV cannot do 480p, only 480i. You need either EDTV or HDTV to display 480p.

Bruce