Should Dish change to 1280 x 720?

[Spatch]

Ok since everybody is complaining that 1280 x 1080 is not HD, would it
improve the picture quality if they switched to 1280 x 720?
I am guessing also that this would open a little bandwith.

 

[BFG]

No, if the programmer is not sending them 1280x720p then dish would still be making a conversion that is less than what the program is intended to be seen in.

 

[Ilya]

They should not mess with source resolution. If the source is 1080i, it should stay 1080i. If the source is 720p, it should stay 720p. Each additional conversion damages the PQ.

 

[Tom Bombadil]

1920x1080i source material converted to 1280x720p is not a good thing.

 

[rdinkel]

1920x1080i source material converted to 1280x720p is not a good thing.

Especially if you have to convert it back to 1080i to view on your (my) set.

 

[CPanther95]

1920x1080i source material converted to 1280x720p is not a good thing.

And once converted back to 1080i for your 1080i TV - it's even worse.

 

[NightRyder]

I absolutely agree, conversions are bad, but all this talk of a class action lawsuit and using the threat of false advertising because 1280 x 1080i is not official HD could have some unintended consequences. If I were Dish and a court of law said you can't transmit 1280 x 1080i and call it HD, I would simply convert the channels to 720P. They now would comply with the standard even though the end result might be worse PQ. Just my 2 cents.


NightRyder

 

[Spatch]

I absolutely agree, conversions are bad, but all this talk of a class action lawsuit and using the threat of false advertising because 1280 x 1080i is not official HD could have some unintended consequences. If I were Dish and a court of law said you can't transmit 1280 x 1080i and call it HD, I would simply convert the channels to 720P. They now would comply with the standard even though the end result might be worse PQ. Just my 2 cents.
NightRyder

That was the point I was trying to make.

 

[bxl4]

Well, while I want the best, fully compliant HDTV signal, the fact is that my only choices are a satellite signal or rent the DVD. Where I live there is only very weak OTA, no cable, no fiber.

I'd really like to have my network feeds in BDTV (better definition television) NOW than sit around and pout for a few years waiting for my locals in TRUE HDTV.

 

[Ilya]

You guys are missing the point! The class action lawsuit (and even the discussion about it for that matter) can bring attention to the fact that Dish Network and other providers are messing with the HD PQ. It would make other people aware of that fact. It would make it more difficult for them to mess with the PQ in other ways too. It would force them to take this matter more seriosly and realize that there is a limit to what they can get away with.

I don't believe it will really get to a lawsuit. But even the discussion of it may have positive effect. After all, many thousands of people visit this site each day...

 

[gutter]

If DISH really does monitor this site as suggested, than they know that the members of this site are really independent thinkers. They also should get the idea that Scott's view at a given moment is not necessarily the majority view of his forum. That is also good. This is not a dig at Scott but shows DISH that they have more than once person they need to convince.

 

[kenny911]

Does anyone have comparison pictures?

 

[iKramerica]

While a subset of users have true 1080i televisions, most people actually have LCD, plasma, or projecion TVs that are some form of 720p (or 768p). The future of course is 1080p.

The reason 1080i is so common is it is easier to transmit, and nobody saw the price of LCD and plasma dropping so fast, nor the availability of DLP tabletop tvs either. Broadcasters thought the CRT was going to be the main HDTV mechanism for a long while.

But converting to 720p doesn't save that much bandwidth, only about 8%. It is a better format for films and filmed television, but interlaced is better for live events and NTSC taped formats.

Since my TV is 480p, either is fine for me...

 

[Ilya]

Does anyone have comparison pictures?

Here is one example showing how 1920x1080 compares to 1280x1080: http://www.satelliteguys.us/showpost.php?p=434001

 

[scottrell]

While a subset of users have true 1080i televisions, most people actually have LCD, plasma, or projecion TVs that are some form of 720p (or 768p). The future of course is 1080p.

The reason 1080i is so common is it is easier to transmit, and nobody saw the price of LCD and plasma dropping so fast, nor the availability of DLP tabletop tvs either. Broadcasters thought the CRT was going to be the main HDTV mechanism for a long while.

But converting to 720p doesn't save that much bandwidth, only about 8%. It is a better format for films and filmed television, but interlaced is better for live events and NTSC taped formats.

Since my TV is 480p, either is fine for me...

...And it's not the Leaning Tower of Pizza.

• Most HD sets in homes today are 1080i. Which aren't really native 1080i, but that's another dirty little secret--they'll accept 1080i and display it in it's native (lower) resolution.
• 1080i was the most common beacuse it was the cheapest to implement.
• 1080i is best for films
• 720p is best for live action such as sports
• 1080p is future, but not the future--no one knows but I wouldn't bet the next standard would be a step so small. Too many people today who're ok with their 480p sets.

-sc