EVD, HD-DVD and whatever comes next... (1 Viewer)

[stewart borland]

Maybe it's the reason I'll never be a reviewer, but I can honestly say that out of my 180 odd DVD's I've never been disappointed in the quality of the picture to the point where I'd rather not have bought it, or I wouldn't watch it again!
Maybe it's my eyesight of course, but I'm really happy with the jump in quality from my old VHS tapes to DVD.
I know I haven't got the best of systems, my widescreen Toshiba TV is pretty 'bog-standard'and I'm still on Dolby Prologic via my Kenwood HiFi. I'm also still on my first (fairly budget) multi region Toshiba DVD player, but I think the format is fabulous
I can't imagine upgrading to anything :b and wonder if I'm alone in this respect?
So many of you guys seem to have keener eyesight, better systems etc., and can spot the small flaws I miss - flaws I'm happy to miss, because I love the format and (with the help of US imports) the selection of films I can buy and enjoy for years to come.
I'm only now at the end of (almost) replacing all the titles I had on VHS (I won't mention the 1st 3 SW's again!) and couldn't face the thought of another upgrade down the road a bit.
Am I really going to miss out, or will the actual, real & true visible & audible differences not be that great??

 

[Jack Briggs]

You'll be missing out on an additional hundreds of lines of resolution. And if that's important to you, then prepare to pony up. If not, well, there you go. Up to you.

 

[stewart borland]

I guess so Jack, but the question is - can someone who might only be two steps up from your 'Joe Six pack' clearly see those extra lines? If I had 2 sets side by side would I notice the difference?

 

[Frank PW]

Stewart, I could be way off on this but I thought read someplace where the visual difference between the two formats was minimal.

In other words if a person has a newer widescreen set and an anamorphic transfer of a new film then the difference between that and the new HD version is noticeable but not near the jump that people made from VHS to DVD.

The new players won’t be inexpensive. First generation never is.

 

[Lew Crippen]

We can’t know what the difference will be for something that does not yet exist. But, if the difference is close to the difference of Fox’s EDTV (480p or the same as a progressive scan DVD player) and HDTV (1080i) we should be in for a treat when HD DVD (or whatever) hits.

How fast anyone will pay the premium is another issue.

 

[Lawrence X]

How noticeable the difference will be has directly to do with how large a display you're watching and how much resolution your display device is capable of.

Those watching on WXGA (and above?) front projectors will get see the most dramatic difference.