is FULL HD overrated?

So what about 42" tv's?

I'm going to get a 42" one shortly and have only SD sources just now and probably only will for some time.

I'm not bothered aboout Blu-Ray, can't ever see me getting Sky and Freeview HD doesn't come for a while and even then only 4 channels.

So, am I selling myself short by going HDReady just now rather than FullHD?:confused:

I'd say future proof. The thing is, at least for me, is that Blu Rays are now just as cheap as DVDs if you shop around, so there's really no reason NOT to buy them instead of continuing to buy DVDs - and a decent Blu Ray player will upscale your DVD collection which will look better than just playing them on an old DVD player on the same HDTV - since you're getting a copy of the film that looks (and often sounds) superior on a large panel compared to the DVD version. I put off buying DVDs ages before I even got a new TV and BR player because I'd seen things like Transformers on Blu Ray on my mate's 50" and knew I'd just end up wanting to replace anything that I would have bought.

I only have a 40" but the difference between 720p and 1080p is obvious to my eyes from the viewing distance I use (which is sort of the point; nice big tv you can sit near for films because the res is high). On a 42" even if it's just HD Ready, SD can look pretty dire when it's not a good source because you're ultimately still blowing up a small image to a large size. It looks worse on a 1080p set but it's hardly pristine on a 720p set either. On my parents non-1080p 32" it's fine, because it's not really big enough to really show off Blu Rays and they don't sit right in front of it, but 42" is noticeably bigger:
Visual TV Size Comparison : 32 inch 16x9 display vs 42 inch 16x9 display

The TV will probably be the most expensive component in the 'video' part of the chain, so you should go the whole hog so that when you eventually do get HD sources (and BR players are getting cheaper, some TVs come with Freeview HD built in e.t.c.) you'll avoid any upgraditis you might get if you went HD Ready now. Most people typically don't replace their TV willy-nilly so you might as well get something that will last a few years. I don't know about you but I hardly watch anything that's not on one of the main channels, which now all have HD versions and will no doubt become the 'default' versions of the channel in time.

The other obvious thing is, how many of the decent brands still make non-1080p panels? The only ones I've seen lately are the really woeful stuff they sell in Tescos!
 
Cheers for that, I had come to a similar conclusion and decided on the S20, got it yesterday and so far so good!
 
does the creen size affect the picture for instance if I had a 37" lcd 720p but a 26" 1080- would i significantly notice the difference?
 
It's really about viewing distance. A 26" 1080p set would basically be like a monitor, but how many people would realistically sit as close to the TV as we are with our computer screens? The smaller the set, the closer you have to get to tell the difference, and I'd wager people with small TVs aren't sitting with their noses right up to them.

I can tell the difference between a 32" 1080p and 720p set but it means sitting that much closer than I would with a 42". If there's a 'point' to high-def, other than the obvious that it's closer to the actual film res, it's that it means you can watch something on a 65" screen without having to sit the other end of the room for it to not look a mess, and obviously gives you more of the 'wow' factor because you're seeing a pretty sharp picture on a large screen at reasonably close viewing distance.

resolution_chart.png
 
yes, full benefit of 1080p begins at 32"-42" but you really need it at 50" !

Even the Samsung 50 C450 plasma (HD Ready 1366X768) is amazing at closer view
with Bluray
 
It already has and while XKCD is cute, you should remember viewing distances for both are completely different, and that I doubt you had any 1080p video to play on it in 2003. I had 1920x1200" on my 15" laptop in 2002/3 and while I had the biggest e-peen on my course for monitor res I also had the tiniest icons!
 
Get good broadcast quality HD transmission and yes its worth having.
 
Is the PWD8 HD ready?

No, it is an Enhanced Definition display, in other words it is an SD progressive display.

Still amazing though for nearly all material.

I have a current 1080p Samsung LCD in my beroom, an LEC32580, which I swapped my Samsung 7000 LED for, and even that is way behind my PW8 for everything other than consoles.

Resolution comes way down the list of what makes a good picture.
 
IMO 1080p is only worth it if you get a proiector,( 72" or bigger screen) while 720p TV is good enough for SD and HD content in standard TV sets, 32-50"

But honestly, we all know that 1080p is better tan 720p but most people dont need it , who cares about 1080p when plenty of people are buying large LCD-LED TV just for SD TV and some DVDs using scart or even worse connections

In fact when you buy a car you can choose beteween different types, if you mainly drive in the city you wouldnt buy a "Hammer", so why if you are mainly going to watch DVD and soupoperas.... do you really need to get a 1080p ?
Why can we choose between different TV resolutions, 720x576 , 1280x720 and 1920x1080 TVs, could you imagine having a 37" Plasma basic TV with a 720x576p native resolution . I would be a very happy customer for a TV like that, excelent for DVD and SD broadcast..just a thouht, crazy one maybe
 
could you imagine having a 37" Plasma basic TV with a 720x576p native resolution . I would be a very happy customer for a TV like that, excelent for DVD and SD broadcast..just a thouht, crazy one maybe

I have one of Sharps LCDs with native PAL resolution - handled SD content better than anything else available at the time (4 years ago).

The idea didn't take off though and nobody else copied Sharp on this.
 
I would say they are not overrated at all, for me I have a 32" full hd which I use for pc, xbox, tv
for pc I don't think I would use anything less as you sit very close and otherwise text will become unclear and more of a nuisance than enjoyment to use, I also watch hd films on pc which is definitely noticeable.
for xbox also very useful, haven't tested the difference between 1080p and 720p but anything lower just doesn't cut it for me.
for tv it's not useful at all as all my channels are sd, but in the near future I will be upgrading to a hd box and am sure it will be an improvement.

I normally sit around 7ft from tv and I can notice the difference, although when I'm sitting on the bed around 11ft away it is very hard to notice.

Another thing I would say is that I think for watching bluray/hd videos the improvement in the sound is much better than the improvement in picture quality.
 
@ertoil

I'm sorry but your 1024x720 428x Plasma may have a stunning picture overall; blacks, colours etc. But it will NEVER be able to display the detail of a 1080p bluray.

A FULL HD set has 2,073,600 phsyical pixels.
your panel has 737,280 physical pixels.

It's IMPOSSIBLE no matter what fancy scaling your tv has to display the detail that a Full HD set can.
 
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@ertoil

I'm sorry but your 1024x720 428x Plasma may have a stunning picture overall; blacks, colours etc. But it will NEVER be able to display the detail of a 1080p bluray.

A FULL HD set has 2,073,600 phsyical pixels.
your panel has 737,280 physical pixels.

It's IMPOSSIBLE no matter what fancy scaling your tv has to display the detail that a Full HD set can.

mmm....a FULL HD set can be 22 inches, then the 2 M pixels have no value at all,
Full HD only above 46"
 
It's all about the viewing distance and getting the right size TV relative to your seating position. There's always an itch to get a bigger TV than the last one, but using myself as an example, my seating position and room size means the 40" I have is in roughly the right area for BDs looking sharper than HDTV but not seeing pixels, and also SD material not looking awful. My parents only have a 32" in the living room but their seating position means I think they'd see a bigger difference between BDs and HD broadcasting if they went to around 42-50" since the room layout means the furniture is on the opposite wall to the TV.
 
@ertoil

I'm sorry but your 1024x720 428x Plasma may have a stunning picture overall; blacks, colours etc. But it will NEVER be able to display the detail of a 1080p bluray.

A FULL HD set has 2,073,600 phsyical pixels.
your panel has 737,280 physical pixels.

It's IMPOSSIBLE no matter what fancy scaling your tv has to display the detail that a Full HD set can.

It was also riddled with Pulse Width Modulation noise which hid a lot of the finer details in the image, so compared with a Panasonic 42" PHD8 of the same time it looked almost blurred when side by side.



Same with the 1080p 9G Kuros, awesome, awesome sets in many areas but they did hide the finest of details, but that is only something you could see when sat next to a Panny VX100 or PF11, it still looked great though.
 
Resolution adds depth, whether that be depth to an image or to audio, generally most people will see or hear it is better but not actually be able to tell you why 'it just is.' will be the usual answer.

I remember having the Pioneer 508 and the 500M in the same room, I had set them up so black levels and colours matched, the only real difference was resolution. Even from 16ft away everyone could instantly tell me which looked the better screen, but not one person could tell me why.
 
OP is correct.

Anyway, can't get "The Bride Of Frank" on bluray.
 
just to stick in my 2p.... I just upgraded from 720 to 1080 and I can hardly tell the difference, feel quite let down to be honest
 
I love my 1080 TV,i was going to go with hd ready but i know i would of lived in regret.
 
It depends of source ! sources are all !
It's funny that. The only "real" people I know who make a big deal of 1080 (3 people) have no intention of getting BD or SkyHD and download lower than dvd quality films.
 

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