[samgamgee]

Whats the best way of watching HD contnent without buying a blu-ray?

I have an XBox 360 and there is the option of renting movies from there at 780p (some now at 1080p).

The other option is to download HD movies and connect the laptop to my TV through a VGA cable.

Which would be the best quality picture? Or is there any other methods?

Thanks
SG

[LanceR]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

Whats the best way of watching HD contnent without buying a blu-ray?

I have an XBox 360 and there is the option of renting movies from there at 780p (some now at 1080p).

The other option is to download HD movies and connect the laptop to my TV through a VGA cable.

Which would be the best quality picture? Or is there any other methods?

Thanks
SG

Sky+HD or you may be able to get hold of the Xbox 360 HDDVD player add on and pick up some cheap HDDVD's but if you want current and regular releases in the best possible way then the only way is Blu!

[ash08]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

Whats the best way of watching HD contnent without buying a blu-ray?

I have an XBox 360 and there is the option of renting movies from there at 780p (some now at 1080p).

The other option is to download HD movies and connect the laptop to my TV through a VGA cable.

Which would be the best quality picture? Or is there any other methods?

Thanks
SG

Hi Sam, the quality of downloaded content from the 360 is pretty good IMO, not as good as Blu-Ray but pretty good none the less.

If you decide to connect the laptop to your TV you may be restricted to certain resolutions (some TV's do not accept 1080 via VGA for example). This may only affect you depending on your TV (if your TV is 720 anyway then it may not be a big issue for you).

Sky HD or Blu-Ray for the best quality, downloads a decent second IMO.

[samgamgee]

Originally Posted by ash08

Hi Sam, the quality of downloaded content from the 360 is pretty good IMO, not as good as Blu-Ray but pretty good none the less.

If you decide to connect the laptop to your TV you may be restricted to certain resolutions (some TV's do not accept 1080 via VGA for example). This may only affect you depending on your TV (if your TV is 720 anyway then it may not be a big issue for you).

Sky HD or Blu-Ray for the best quality, downloads a decent second IMO.

Cheers for that Ash. I dont think my TV does 1080 through VGA but would be happy to run at 780p for downloads. Would the quality be good doing this? and would the sound run through the TV?

[vader100]

For all the time,money and effort these solutions take it is so much easier to just buy a BD player.

[samgamgee]

Originally Posted by vader100

For all the time,money and effort these solutions take it is so much easier to just buy a BD player.

Hey its the credit crunch!

[vader100]

Yes I understand money is tight but all HD options cost. Sky HD will set you back £50 a month,downloads cost as well and are nowhere near the quality of Bluray. Now you can pick up a decent player for under £200 BD is the best option (IMO of course).

[samgamgee]

Originally Posted by vader100

Yes I understand money is tight but all HD options cost. Sky HD will set you back £50 a month,downloads cost as well and are nowhere near the quality of Bluray. Now you can pick up a decent player for under £200 BD is the best option (IMO of course).

The thing thats jholding me back from getting one is the price of the discs. £17+ for the major releases is a joke.

[LanceR]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

The thing thats jholding me back from getting one is the price of the discs. £17+ for the major releases is a joke.

Do a search you can get Blu's for less than £17 especially if you buying region b.

[ash08]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

Cheers for that Ash. I dont think my TV does 1080 through VGA but would be happy to run at 780p for downloads. Would the quality be good doing this? and would the sound run through the TV?

The quality would be fair, a step up from SD without a doubt but less than a good Blu-Ray. Yes, the sound would go through the TV if using your Xbox...

[samgamgee]

Originally Posted by ash08

The quality would be fair, a step up from SD without a doubt but less than a good Blu-Ray. Yes, the sound would go through the TV if using your Xbox...

No I meant laptop to TV via VGA

[ash08]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

No I meant laptop to TV via VGA

Not with just a VGA cable mate No, you will also need a separate cable for sound.

Some VGA cables will now come with a phono cable attached which is an easy solution if your laptop has phono out. Failing that you can get a jack to phono cable (jack from laptop output and phono TV input) for a couple of pounds off the net.

[deltafx]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

Whats the best way of watching HD contnent without buying a blu-ray?

I have an XBox 360 and there is the option of renting movies from there at 780p (some now at 1080p).

The other option is to download HD movies and connect the laptop to my TV through a VGA cable.

Which would be the best quality picture? Or is there any other methods?

Thanks
SG

you could buy this WD TV HD Media Player ( WDAVN00 ) good bit off kit

[nwgarratt]

Before HD DVD and BD I used my computer. I have it connected to my projector by VGA and have audio going through my av amp by optical. For a while I didn't have a HD projector but HD downscaled to 480p (resolution of the projector) was still considerably better than what SD produces. Once I got a 720p projector, I was another level again.

[samgamgee]

Originally Posted by nwgarratt

Before HD DVD and BD I used my computer. I have it connected to my projector by VGA and have audio going through my av amp by optical. For a while I didn't have a HD projector but HD downscaled to 480p (resolution of the projector) was still considerably better than what SD produces. Once I got a 720p projector, I was another level again.

how did you run HD material in your PC? What program etc?

[nwgarratt]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

how did you run HD material in your PC? What program etc?

I sent the image to the projector at its native resolution so the PC does the scaling. This was 848 x 480 and now 1280 x 720. I have used all sorts of software from PowerDVD, Nero Showtime and VLC.

I use Ultramon software to set the resolution and have the projector as a second monitor and still use my actual monitor to do other things.

[dude-1981]

The best way to do this would be to download the HD content on your computer (I'll leave your method of doing that up to you) convert what will most like be an MKV file into AVI with some software such as XenonMKV and then pop it on a memory stick and pop in straight into your 360.

The software I suggest even divides the files into <4gb chunks so it will fit onto a memory stick. You'll lose some audio quality though.

[samgamgee]

Originally Posted by dude-1981

The best way to do this would be to download the HD content on your computer (I'll leave your method of doing that up to you) convert what will most like be an MKV file into AVI with some software such as XenonMKV and then pop it on a memory stick and pop in straight into your 360.

The software I suggest even divides the files into <4gb chunks so it will fit onto a memory stick. You'll lose some audio quality though.

cheers dude. How long would the conversion take?

[dude-1981]

Originally Posted by samgamgee

cheers dude. How long would the conversion take?

Hmm, obviously depends on your computer and the file size but as a very rough guide how about 20 minutes for a 2gb file.