720 vs 1080i ? Really Confused !

[Unwell Cat]

Can somebody please tell me which is the better option for movies and games on my 360 please ? I've got my HDTV connected via component and my TV appears to support both of the above resolutions on the xbox 360 but I'm not sure which is the better mode ?

I believe my Samsung TV's native display is 1360x768 so I could us that res over a VGA cable as well.

I'm also thinking of getting the HD-DVD add-on and again which setting would be best to watch the movies in?

I've heard that the PS3 wil not play blu-ray at 720 and only plays movies at 480 if you select 720 as your res so would I be better selecting 1080i if I get a PS3 at some point ?

All these resolutions really confuse me to be honest..!

[sj33]

Oh god this is perhaps the biggest can of worms in the universe.

[Unwell Cat]

Oh god this is perhaps the biggest can of worms in the universe.

Nothing like opening a good can of worms..

[sj33]

Last time we had this topic it got real messy, got to the point of name calling!

Anyway, as a general rule, 720p is regarded as better for games, 1080i for movies. This is based on the idea that a progressive input is better for games, whereas you may actually gain some extra resolution on a 1360x768 screen by using 1080i for HD-DVD's which are 1080 native 24fps.

In reality, on a decent TV, running games (which are usually natively 720p) in 1080i will usually look exactly the same. It's one of those 'on paper' differences that don't really pan out in reality.
In fact, some TV's may actually look better with 1080i, even if the game itself is 720p.
I run my 360 in 1080i as I can get extra resolution from HD-DVD's, while games still look just as good. This might not apply to your TV specifially.

Bottom line, try both and see which looks best to you on your TV specifically. That's all that matters.

The PS3 is simpler, 720p games run in 720p, 1080 stuff runs in 1080i, so you don't need to mess with anything.

[Unwell Cat]

Thanks mate, that makes everything a little clearer. Good easy to understand explanation.

One thing I thought the PS3 Blu-Ray movies would not play in 720 ?

Last time we had this topic it got real messy, got to the point of name calling!

Anyway, as a general rule, 720p is regarded as better for games, 1080i for movies. This is based on the idea that a progressive input is better for games, whereas you may actually gain some extra resolution on a 1360x768 screen by using 1080i for HD-DVD's which are 1080 native 24fps.

In reality, on a decent TV, running games (which are usually natively 720p) in 1080i will usually look exactly the same. It's one of those 'on paper' differences that don't really pan out in reality.
In fact, some TV's may actually look better with 1080i, even if the game itself is 720p.
I run my 360 in 1080i as I can get extra resolution from HD-DVD's, while games still look just as good. This might not apply to your TV specifially.

Bottom line, try both and see which looks best to you on your TV specifically. That's all that matters.

The PS3 is simpler, 720p games run in 720p, 1080 stuff runs in 1080i, so you don't need to mess with anything.

[sj33]

I have not tried, but many people have told me so. They will run in 1080i as standard anyway.

[dvdmike]

I run in 1080i as my tv has a good deinterlacer and to my eye it looks sharper.
My advice is do what I did try both on everything you use the xbox for and pick the one that looks better to your eyes

[Salsa Party Animal]

I find it difficult to tell what the different on my TV.