Wednesday, June 6, 2007

1080p= Making Sense Out Of The New Buzzword in Home Entertainment

1080p is the shorthand name for a category of video modes. The number 1080 represents 1,080 lines of vertical resolution, while the letter p stands for progressive scan or non-interlaced. 1080p is considered an HDTV video mode.

The term usually assumes a widescreen aspect ratio of 16:9, implying a horizontal (display) resolution of 1920 dots across and a frame resolution of 1920 × 1080 or exactly 2,073,600 pixels. The frame rate in hertz can be either implied by the context or specified after the letter p (such as 1080p30, meaning 30 frames per second).

1080p is sometimes referred to in marketing materials as "True High-Definition" or "Full High-Definition".

So how do you know if what you are watching is a full 1080p movie or show?

- You are only going to see 1080p on a Blu-Ray movie, HDDVD, or a few PS3 games.

- Most high def broadcasts you see (local, or satellite) are produced between 720p and 1080I. And there's little or no chance they'll jump to 1080p any time soon because of bandwidth issues.

- For normal viewing distances, in order to see a benefit from 1080p content a display must be bigger than usual or the viewing distance needs to be closer than usual