Buying a new TV, have a question about console resolutions

[Caris]

Frist off sorry if this is the wrong section, I wasn't sure where to post this.

Okay, I'm considering buying a new TV. If I do it will be a 32" 1080p set. I currently have a 32" Sony at the moment but it only supports 720p/1080i.

Now my question.

What will look better, playing a native 720p game (lets say for example Forza 3, though it could be any game) on a 32" 720p set or on a 32" 1080p set upscaled.

Secondly the same scenario but a game like COD4 or Halo3 that is sub 720p upscaled. Playing that on a 32" 720p TV or a 32" 1080p TV.

One of the main reason I'm thinking about upgrading is for the 1080p resolution, but I'm unsure how the upscaling will look.

Any help would be appreciated.

 

[homerdog]

What will look better, playing a native 720p game (lets say for example Forza 3, though it could be any game) on a 32" 720p set or on a 32" 1080p set upscaled.

The scaler in the Xbox 360 is pretty good, so you won't be able to tell much difference.

Secondly the same scenario but a game like COD4 or Halo3 that is sub 720p upscaled. Playing that on a 32" 720p TV or a 32" 1080p TV.

Again, not much difference. If 1080p is the only reason you're upgrading, you might as well keep your old TV IMHO.

 

[Caris]

Yeah? I meant to ask as well would the upscaling reduce any alaising in games like Halo 3?

 

[holsty101]

Like Homerdog said it might be kinda kinda pointless replacing your current tv if you're keeping the same size & just going for a 1080p res, it all depends how far you sit from it.

There's all sorts of distance calculators & such online, & according to this chart (if I'm reading it right) you'd need to be sitting at under 5' to really notice the difference on a 32" screen, and that's without taking into account upscaling vs native 1080p.

I'd say it's more than likely not worth it unless you're gonna go up in screen size too.

 

[mrcorbo]

At that size, things like contrast ratio and response time will have much more of an effect on your experience than resolution.

 

[djskribbles]

^ +1. But because there is no standard when it comes to measuring and listing response time and contrast ratios, manufacturer's specified numbers are not a good way to compare brands. If comparing within the same brand between two different models, it does give you an idea of which TV is better.
Also, at 32", 1080p isn't important, but the 1080p sets are generally higher-end and have better specs anyway.

I agree with the others, the 360 has a good scaler so you're not likely to see much of a difference. But to answer your question, technically speaking, 720p games (or even sub-HD) will look better on a 1080p set.

Because the smaller sizes (smaller than 40") typically use different panels than their bigger brothers, I'm not as familiar with the smaller models. But generally, I like Samsung and Sony LCD's.

 

[Rurouni]

Yeah? I meant to ask as well would the upscaling reduce any alaising in games like Halo 3?

I believe no is the answer. Downscaling (native 1080p content downscaled to native 720p TV) will reduce aliasing, but upscaling isn't going to have any effect whatsoever on aliasing. Otoh 720p movies can have a sharper look on native 1080p TV because the content is already smooth and usually respond well to upscale with sharpening.

 

[brain_stew]

The vast majority of "720p" sets aren't native 720p at all but instead 1366x768 (and sometime 1024x768 with non-square pixels), so you're scaling in both scenarios either way. As such, it shouldn't make much difference really, just make sure you set your 360 to scale to your panel's native resolution ad enable 1:1 pixel mapping on your set (and you really shouldn't be buying a HDTV that doesn't have a 1:1 mode fwiw) and its all good. The PS3 will just output at 720p and let your TV scale in most cases, just like its been doing all the time on your "720p" set before.

Like Homerdog said it might be kinda kinda pointless replacing your current tv if you're keeping the same size & just going for a 1080p res, it all depends how far you sit from it.

There's all sorts of distance calculators & such online, & according to this chart (if I'm reading it right) you'd need to be sitting at under 5' to really notice the difference on a 32" screen, and that's without taking into account upscaling vs native 1080p.

I'd say it's more than likely not worth it unless you're gonna go up in screen size too.

Those charts are based on film content, not rendered 3D graphics with no (or very low) antialiasing. There's a big difference, and you'll notice the increase in resolution in the latter case much further away than you would with the content those charts were designed around. Although if you're only using it with a PS3/360 there's so little native 1080p game content the point is moot for the most part. Hook your PC up and render your games at native 1080p and now we're talking, the difference will be striking even from a reasonable distance away.