Is A 1080p HDTV Worth Buying? Some Say Yes, Some Say No

Should you buy a 1080p HDTV? A Tech.co.uk article from a couple weeks back lays out the positive and negative aspects of a 1080p purchase.

Those that believe 1080p HDTV is not worth buying argue that the fundamental specification for HDTV start at 1280x720 pixels or 720p and that marketing calling 1080p sets "full HD" are misleading. They are adamant that 720p is a valid high-def format. In addition, without any actual 1080p broadcast signals, there is no need to use a 1080p resolution to watch high-def programs and until HD DVD and Blu-ray gain more popularity, DVD is still the most preferred optical disc format, only outputting 720p/1080i at its very best. They would also argue that unless your screen size is 50 inches or more, you really can't tell very much difference between 720p and 1080p. The real difference is seen when viewing an interlaced picture versus a progressive scan picture.

There are also those that believe forking out the extra money for 1080p HDTV resolution is worth it. How do they justify it? 1080p is state-of-the-art, and 1080p fans believe your money should go the newest and highest quality equipment around. They can't imagine purchasing a 720p set that's been around for a few years now when they could get their mitts on one that's 1080p and only released a couple of months ago. They would also argue that the average TV set is our homes is getting larger and only 1080p can fill a bigger screen with a sharp, high-def picture. You can tell the difference between the two resolutions in the larger screen size, and even the pro-720p fans would admit this. Additionally, 1080p sets don't feature some of the side effects of interlacing, namely jagged edges, more so in larger screen sizes. The pro 1080p camp also agues that Blu-ray and HD DVD players will soon gain more popularity than the DVD format and since 1080p output is an option with the newer high-def players, buying a 1080p HDTV that takes advantage of that output makes more sense. The newest HDMI 1.3 socket can carry up to 1440 lines in progressive scan to your HDTV making 720p resolution look like standard-def by comparison and finally, evolving digital compression techniques make 1080p broadcasts very likely in the near future.

Almost seems like two sides of the same argument, doesn't it?

Via Tech.co.uk

November 20, 2007

Is A 1080p HDTV Worth Buying? Some Say Yes, Some Say No