Upconversion to 480p vs 1080i - which is "better" (1 Viewer)

[daniel reading]

I have had an XBR400 for about four years and one thing that is wonderful about it is the DRC line doubling. To me, it is so good that I am almost as happy with the upconverted analog picture as with the true high def picture.

Of course the Sony does a 1080i conversion. Now I am seriuously considering buying the Samsung TXN3298HF for the bedroom. It does an analog-to-480p conversion. I'm kind of worried about this - I expect to do a lot of non-HD/non-DVD source viewing on this TV. Will I be as happy with an upconverted 480p picture as I am with a 1080i?

I like this model a lot because of its size, price, and (from I what have read) good reviews. This is really my only concern before I pull the trigger... what do you advise?

 

[Chad B]

I think the most significant advantage of 1080i over 480p upconversion is the lower visibility of the scan lines in 1080i. Other advantages are smaller and subjective. The 1080i conversion isn't adding true resolution or detail to the standard definition source- it's only interpolating and averaging the information it is getting. In other words, it might be a bit smoother but not truly more detailed.
Here's my opinion: if you sit close enough to the TV that you can see scan lines with a 480p signal, then going to 1080i would be an advantage because it would make the scan lines invisible. On the other hand, if you can't see scan lines from a 480p source, the benefits of going to 1080i would be small.

 

[Steve Schaffer]

On a 4 year old Sony I beleive the upconversion is to 960i, not 1080i?

For the last 3 years or so, Sonys have had DRC choices of 960i, 480p, or 480p with 3/2 pulldown. I've never heard of a Sony upconverting to 1080i. Hitachi and Toshiba upconvert to your choice of 540p or 1080i, and some other brands may do the same, but not Sony.