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Get a 768p TV before it's too late

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Get a 768p TV before it's too late

Unread postby icycalm » 20 Aug 2009 15:13

I've noticed that 768p TVs, which were the norm until recently, have begun to get quite scarce. Screen prices are free-falling, and all the idiots want 1080p screens -- which is okay if you are planning on using them primarily for Blu-ray movies, but not for gaming (as I've sorta explained already, and as I will get around to explaining in more detail at some point).

So since 1080p screens are getting so cheap, and since that's what everyone wants because they don't know any better, manufacturers have been ramping down the production of 768p screens, and perhaps in a few months will cease making them altogether. This will be a little tragedy for fans of high-quality visuals, following up on the twin tragedies of the extinction of CRT TVs and monitors.

Note that, barring an HD CRT, the best solution for the 360 and the PS3 remains a good quality 720p projector. But for various reasons, including convenience, a 768p LCD or Plasma screen can be almost as good, especially if it has an option for 1:1 signal display (i.e. if you can feed it a 720p image and have it displayed at 720p with black borders).
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Unread postby icycalm » 21 Sep 2009 16:25

So it seems that 768p TVs generally top out at 32" -- and they are all LCDs. I haven't been able to find this resolution in a larger size, with one very notable exception: a 50" plasma TV, though I forget the manufacturer. It cost 799 euros if I remember correctly (in a store in Spain, which is where I am right now), and I would have bought it if I had the space for it. I would really love to play Blazblue et al. on 50 inches, but there is also the question of whether any of these screens allow you to feed them a 720p signal without upscaling it.

So really, like I said before, for anything larger than 32" the only thing that makes sense is a 720p projector.
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Unread postby El Chaos » 21 Sep 2009 18:43

Depending on the TV's brand, you can get its user manual on the manufacturer's official website, with more or less hassle. If there's an option for configuring the output signal to coincide 1:1 with the input one, it surely is documented there.
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Re: Get a 768p TV before it's too late

Unread postby joep » 16 Apr 2010 20:27

icycalm wrote:Note that, barring an HD CRT, the best solution for the 360 and the PS3 remains a good quality 720p projector. But for various reasons, including convenience, a 768p LCD or Plasma screen can be almost as good, especially if it has an option for 1:1 signal display (i.e. if you can feed it a 720p image and have it displayed at 720p with black borders).


Summary: No way to display 720p 1:1 with black borders. What a clusterfuck.


I have two 768p LCDs (32" Sharp and 40" Sony). 1:1 signal display is achievable only through the PC input ports, but unfortunately both of my displays don't support 1280x720 resolution in 1:1 format. The results are that PS3 is scaled from 1280x720 to 1366x768 no matter what. The 360 can display in 768p with the VGA cable, but I'm under the impression that it just utilizes the 360's internal scalar to get 768p output (correct me if I'm wrong).

Any time component video or HDMI is used, the signal is upscaled to 1366x768. A benefit of using the PC input ports is that there is typically zero or minimal post-processing of the incoming signal which introduces input lag. There is simply no way to eliminate the input lag when using component or HDMI.
Last edited by joep on 19 Apr 2010 17:58, edited 1 time in total.
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Unread postby Victory » 18 Apr 2010 01:59

Heads up: there remains at least one 42" 768p TV currently in manufacture for the European market, LG brand, designation 42LH2000. I'm expecting to be able to nab one on sale shortly because 1080p TVs of that size have dropped down to almost the same price point.
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