Blu-Ray vs DVD

[SpHeRe31459]

Uh, sorry, no. You can watch a Blu-ray disc on a standard definition TV right now. No problem. Blu-ray players have a legacy standard definition output on them for backwards compatibility sake, it will downscale the 1080p to 480i no problem, scaling from a higher quality source down is a trivial matter. Sure you won't get much picture quality benefit from it, but it works fine.

I didn't say you couldn't. I said you won't get the extra definition from it, and you'll probably even get a worse definition than what you'd get from DVD, in the case of BluRay.

No what you said is that because it's higher resolution it would somehow intrinsically be incompatible other TVs, which makes no sense. That or you are using the word incompatible incorrectly. The players of any such content would absolutely be backwards compatible.

See below:

The fact that they don't have enough pixels for Ultra HD makes them incompatible with it. Watch an HD movie from a BluRay player on an old projection TV for comparison.

 

[SpHeRe31459]

Uh, sorry, no. You can watch a Blu-ray disc on a standard definition TV right now. No problem. Blu-ray players have a legacy standard definition output on them for backwards compatibility sake, it will downscale the 1080p to 480i no problem, scaling from a higher quality source down is a trivial matter. Sure you won't get much picture quality benefit from it, but it works fine.

I didn't say you couldn't. I said you won't get the extra definition from it, and you'll probably even get a worse definition than what you'd get from DVD, in the case of BluRay.

It won't be any worse, it will just play at the TV's definition. My parents have a bluray player connected to an almost twenty year-old CRT (4:3 too) and they play just fine. If anything the bluray still tends to look better. Using TNG as an example, you have the much (MUCH) improved colors still, and the higher-quality compositing. That all still shows up in SD.

Yep. Starting with a higher quality source is always a good thing.

For example: one of the easiest forms of anti-aliasing for 3D gaming is to render at a higher resolution in an off screen buffer and then output the results at the targeted lower resolution, it creates more data points to then be downsampled into a nicer looking output than compared to the same information rendered natively at that lower resolution. This is a basic rule of digital image data, still or moving images.

 

[Belz...]

It won't be any worse, it will just play at the TV's definition.

Yeah it will, but since the signal isn't designed for it, certain lines may be a bit off (the TV is trying to fit, say 1080 lines into 480), whereas on the right definition you don't have that problem. It might not be noticeable often, however.

No what you said is that because it's higher resolution it would somehow intrinsically be incompatible other TVs, which makes no sense. That or you are using the word incompatible incorrectly. The players of any such content would absolutely be backwards compatible.

You are correct, of course. I have misused the term "incompatible". Not sure what other term I could've used, however.

 

[BillJ]

The Blu-ray's are going to look a ton better than the DVD's, even at 480i. The DVD's are some of the worst transfers of a TV series I've ever seen. They were transferred straight from video-tape and it shows.

 

[Lance]

I didn't say you couldn't. I said you won't get the extra definition from it, and you'll probably even get a worse definition than what you'd get from DVD, in the case of BluRay.

It won't be any worse, it will just play at the TV's definition. My parents have a bluray player connected to an almost twenty year-old CRT (4:3 too) and they play just fine. If anything the bluray still tends to look better. Using TNG as an example, you have the much (MUCH) improved colors still, and the higher-quality compositing. That all still shows up in SD.

Yep. Starting with a higher quality source is always a good thing.

For example: one of the easiest forms of anti-aliasing for 3D gaming is to render at a higher resolution in an off screen buffer and then output the results at the targeted lower resolution, it creates more data points to then be downsampled into a nicer looking output than compared to the same information rendered natively at that lower resolution. This is a basic rule of digital image data, still or moving images.

I too am using my Blu-Ray on a standard def TV. The visual quality improvements over the DVDs in the case of TNG are still very evident even though obviously I'm not getting an output in full HD splendor. I'm probably gonna get an HD TV at some point, but I don't need it at the moment until my current one blows itself to bits.

 

[SpHeRe31459]

It won't be any worse, it will just play at the TV's definition.

Yeah it will, but since the signal isn't designed for it, certain lines may be a bit off (the TV is trying to fit, say 1080 lines into 480), whereas on the right definition you don't have that problem. It might not be noticeable often, however.

You clearly have no idea how a video transmission system works. If it were as haphazard as you seem to think it is there would be no standards for displaying video, but there are. There are resolution, signal frequency and timing characteristics defined for both HDTV systems and analog TV systems like NTSC (the analog TV system used in North America).

In digital video there is no such thing as "a line being off", etc.

The image stored on a Blu-ray disc a digital presentation. There are no lines, only pixels.

From the way you are using the term "lines" it seems to refer to an analog display system which has nothing to do with digital source material such as DVDs, Blu-ray discs, Netflix streaming, etc.

In the scenario of displaying a Blu-ray on an old standard definition TV. The standard def TV is NOT trying to fit 1080 into 480, it has no idea how to display anything other than 480i (NTSC). The standard definition TV isn't doing anything but displaying a video signal it's getting from the player.

Inside the Blu-ray player is an advanced decoding and video scaling chip. It knows perfectly well how to handle different content resolutions and frame rates and how to display it. It is very easy to downscale 1080 to 480. Scaling down is a trivial matter compared to scaling up.
All of this is done in the player, it is then output in a standard NTSC 480i signal, that the old standard definition TV can accept.

As an aside, HDTVs also have scalers. The HDTV is made to handle a variety of input video signals ranging from 480i (SD TV channels, unprocessed DVDs), 720p or 1080i (HDTV channels) and 1080p sources like Blu-ray discs or high quality streaming videos from companies like VUDU. Inside an HDTV is a video processor. It will take the incoming digital video and scale it up or down appropriately to the native resolution of the TV's panel.

 

[Belz...]

The Blu-ray's are going to look a ton better than the DVD's, even at 480i. The DVD's are some of the worst transfers of a TV series I've ever seen. They were transferred straight from video-tape and it shows.

Yes, I hadn't considered that.

You clearly have no idea how a video transmission system works.

Why, thank you.

In digital video there is no such thing as "a line being off", etc.

I might be wrong because projection TVs work differently than LCD ones. But have you ever used the latter at a resolution lower than its native one, say on a computer ? Horrible, horrible graphics. Without upscale, my SD tv signal looks awful on my HDTV.

But you're right. I might be talking out of my ass about higher resolutions.

 

[ATimson]

I might be wrong because projection TVs work differently than LCD ones. But have you ever used the latter at a resolution lower than its native one, say on a computer ? Horrible, horrible graphics. Without upscale, my SD tv signal looks awful on my HDTV.

No matter what, an SD signal is going to be upscaled for display on your HDTV. It's just a question of whether it's the TV or the player that's doing it.

But you're right. I might be talking out of my ass about higher resolutions.

Downscaling is generally easier than upscaling. After all, it's always been easier to destroy than to create.

 

[Belz...]

No matter what, an SD signal is going to be upscaled for display on your HDTV. It's just a question of whether it's the TV or the player that's doing it.

Yes, but not necessarily with good results.

Downscaling is generally easier than upscaling. After all, it's always been easier to destroy than to create.

In six minutes !

 

[Shaka Zulu]

I'm such an old codger though, I like owning something I can sit on a shelf and admire. Digital downloads are more convenient, but they aren't nearly as satisfying.

+1!

I'll always prefer the physical media - even though I take uncompressed rips for viewing on media players with TV box sets. I'd be OK with downloads/streaming if the quality was up to par with Blu-ray - which it most certainly isn't at this point.

^THIS.