Ryan-G

PS3 may require HDMI for 1080p output, FAQ unclear

Interesting catch by Firingsquad.com, In PS3's faq it seems there's some footnotes indicating HDMI might be required for 1080p output, but the wording is ambiguous. It's unclear enough I hesitated before posting this, but the wording is odd enough that I felt it deserved discussion.

The Firingsquad article is a little "The sky is falling" as it takes some liberty with what is actually said, but it can be found here. They may or may not have some inside knowledge, being a gaming site.

http://www.firingsquad.com/news/news...searchid=12067

The actual webpage it's refering to can be found here.

http://www.us.playstation.com/PS3/specs.html

The actual commentary triggering this is, referring *only* to 1080p...


The terminology causes the problem. "Copy-Protected" can be read as all BR discs as they're all protected, or it can refer to it as the known ICT flag. But what makes it *really* suspicious is that it is only a footnote for 1080p, and IIRC ICT should apply to 1080i as well, and I think 720p too.

As such, it is sufficiently unclear enough to create the possibility that it may be true that the PS3 will not do 1080p without HDMI. Considering that the low-end player has no HDMI connector, and the high end player ships without the cable, it seems the PS3 as a BR Player is pretty much as expensive as a standalone Player if you want 1080p output. It also seems a near guarantee to tick off a number of people as it would be a restriction not present on any other Player on the market so far.

Sony's made alot of mistakes with PS3, I'm hoping this isn't another one.

Much appriciated if the more technologically educated could share their thoughts here, is this the ICT flag disclaimer, or is this a new twist to Sony's problems with PS3?

Alon Goldberg

Re: PS3 may require HDMI for 1080p output, FAQ unclear

Here’s the exact quote from the Toshiba HD-A1 instruction manual, page 22:

Quote:

HD DVD and DVD video disc creators have the option to include copy protection instructions in their discs that prohibit the output of some standard video or high definition video (original 720p or 1080i or up-converted 480i or 480p) from the COMPONENT OUTPUT jacks. If such instructions are present in the disc you are playing, you must use the HDMI OUTPUT jack to view the disc in a high definition format and the COMPONENT OUTPUT jacks, if activated, will output video only in 480i or 480p resolution.

I believe the upcoming PS3 will be able to output 1080i/1080p via component. But just like HD DVD, component output may be limited by copyright protection imposed by the studio's, requiring HDMI connections with HDCP compatible receivers or TV sets for specific titles.

Sony would be insane not to provide 1080p output over component, if the base PS3 does not have HDMI output.

Ryan-G

Re: PS3 may require HDMI for 1080p output, FAQ unclear

See, that's what is giving me the problem. Maybe I'm so tired I'm missing it here, but isn't this contradicting the Sony quote that only references 1080p as being limited?

If it were ICT then the footnote should apply to 720p and up, but the footnote is only present for 1080p. So either Sony's own PS3 wouldn't be compliant with the ICT flag, or they mean something completely different.

Am I thinking right? Or should I be going to bed and trying to read it again after getting sleep?

Edit:

Thank you btw for the exact quote from a manual on ICT, it is very helpfull!

Rob_Walton

Re: PS3 may require HDMI for 1080p output, FAQ unclear

1080p video is not capable of being transmited along a component cable under the spec of ATSC which governs HD standards. 1080i can be, but 1080p can't. That's not anything to do with the copy protection used in all of this. 1080p games can however be transmitted over component, to the best of my knowledge. The real question though is whether there are enough TVs out there that accept 1080p for this to be an issue early on. And when it does become more important whether there will be enough HDMI capable PS3s to satisfy demand.

Ken_F

Re: PS3 may require HDMI for 1080p output, FAQ unclear

It's been confirmed elsewhere that only the HDMI version of the PS3 offers 1080p output.