[Richard C]

To be more specific, if it receives a 720p signal does it display it as 720p or have to convert to 1080i? Or if it receives a 1080i signal does it display as 1080i or have to convert to 720p?

The Sony sales guy told me that it displayed both formats directly, but after reading so many articles that say few TVs do that, I had some doubt. I've scoured the Sony website and cannot find that issue specifically addressed - which creates even more doubt.

So, do any of you know???

Everything is converted to 768 x 1386 - the native rate for the LCD panel. So you can obviously display 720p fully, although there will be a conversion going on. 1080i would be more problematic. Whether the conversion or effective scaling down of 1080i is visible is unknown until we start getting reviews. I love the brightness and sharpness of these sets - I'm not sure if that's enough to counteract the negatives of black level and pixel latency. I'm strongly considering getting the 50" for myself this Xmas.