The Promise of 1080p

High definition TVs and high definition TV programming are taking the world by storm as consumers begin to realize how much better they are than traditional standard definition television. In the quest to support this demand for better image quality, many vendors are now offering TVs that offer what, in theory, should be the be-all and end-all of HDTV resolutions-1080p. The real-world benefits of 1080p TVs are limited for most people, however, due to lack of commercial content available in that resolution, technical challenges associated with 1080p displays, and the inability to actually see the resolution enhancements in most viewing environments.

Introduction
Many technology trends that promise a "revolutionary" change in the way we live our lives or the manner in which we enjoy our favorite activities rarely live up to the hype with which they are announced. In the case of high-definition television (HDTV), however, the impact could not be more real. Looking at a high quality program on a large new high definition display is one of the most stunning experiences that consumers have been able to enjoy for quite some time. It really is that much better.

It's no surprise, then, that HDTV set sales are exploding, particularly as more channels in high definition (HD) format are being made available and as set prices decline. Today's new HDTVs offer not just the promise, but also now the reality of tremendously improved image quality. The clarity, color and vibrancy of the image are stunning, regardless of whether you're enjoying a ball game, your favorite drama or a nature documentary. In fact, it's so good, it's hard to go back to viewing regular, or standard definition, TV programs as the image quality seems so much worse in comparison.

The core reason why HDTV looks so good is that the programs and the TVs designed to display them have more resolution than the TVs we've all grown up with. Resolution may sound like a hard concept, but it simply means showing more detail in an image. Just as digital cameras with higher megapixel ratings capture more detail by breaking up an image into finer and finer dots than cameras with lower resolutions, so too does HDTV improve the image quality vs. traditional TVs. HDTVs have the capability to show more smaller elements than regular TVs, much like higher resolution printers (say, 1,200 dpi) can print with more detail than those with lower resolution (such as 300 dpi).

But the HDTV experience is not just about the TVs. Everything from the cameras used to record the programs you watch, to the editing equipment used to refine them, to the broadcast equipment used to send them out (over-the-air, via a cable TV provider or via a satellite) to a TV receiver designed to show them--all of this equipment needs to be upgraded for people to enjoy the amazing quality of HDTV.

Another important point is that not all HDTV is the same. In fact, there are technically 18 different Advanced Television Standards Committee (ATSC) formats for digital broadcasting and six are considered high-definition. However, only two--known as 720p and 1080i--are really in common usage. (As a point of reference, regular standard definition TV has a resolution of 480i.) The number portion of each of those standards refers to how many vertical lines there are in a single image, while the "p" and "i" refer to how the image is created on the screen. The "p" stands for progressive and means that each individual image that appears on the screen (remember--TV is essentially a bunch of different still images that move across a screen very quickly) is created from top to bottom, much like a painter fills in a wall one stroke at a time. The "i", on the other hand, refers to interlaced, which means every other line is painted--typically odd lines first--and then the process starts over again to fill in all the even lines. Once again, think of someone painting a room, but this time imagine they're painting stripes and not switching colors until they completed all the first color stripes from ceiling to floor. On a TV this happens at a very rapid rate, however, so our eyes perceive it as a single image.

In addition to the 720p and 1080i standards, there has been talk about the 1080p resolution standard, which on paper, seems to offer the best of both worlds--the 360 additional lines of image resolution versus 720p as well as the progressively scanned screen. 1080p, some argue, is the penultimate HDTV standard, offering the highest possible screen resolution (for TV applications) as well as future-proofing a purchase for those customers who don't want to be impacted by evolving consumer electronics standards. If you have source material, or content, that's created with 1080p resolution and display it on a screen that supports 1080p, the quality is absolutely stunning, with a level of detail that is more than twelve times higher than that of traditional standard definition TV.

Despite these improvements, however, the real-world benefits of 1080p aren't quite as clear-cut as they may first appear. The main problem is that there is virtually no content that's widely available in 1080p format (other than the output from some PCs, which would require using these TVs as really big computer monitors). As a result, there is currently little that can take advantage of these advancements in screen resolution. In the case of broadcast TV, there is no standard for broadcasting signals in 1080p. High-definition DVDs have been discussed as a possible source for 1080p content, but given the format battle between the HD-DVD and Blu-ray camps (two competing standards--think VHS vs. Beta), there are now serious doubts about how soon regular DVDs (which have just 480p resolution) will be replaced. Plus, not all high definition DVD players--whenever they do appear--will even offer 1080p-capable outputs. Ironically, the only significant source of 1080p material that's expected by 2006 will be the forthcoming PS3 gaming console system from Sony.

Finally, given that much of the material most people watch on their televisions is still not even in high-definition, namely standard definition programming, DVDs, videotapes, gaming consoles, etc., it's also important to realize that a higher definition screen can actually magnify the imperfections of these common video sources. The basic issue is that any television will take whatever source material it receives and fill in the entire screen. With high definition program material on high definition screens, this often results in a direct mapping of source content detail to screen resolution capabilities.

However, with lower definition source materials, high resolution TVs need to "fill in" the missing gaps to create an image that covers the entire screen and not just a small section in the center. This process of filling in, commonly called "upconversion," involves making up image material that isn't there in the original signal. As you might surmise, this isn't an easy process and some TVs are much better at it than others. No HDTV, however, can create an image from standard definition TV material that looks as good as it can with true HD material. In fact, in many cases, a standard definition program that's viewed on an HDTV looks worse than it would on a very inexpensive standard definition TV. If everything that someone watched was in HD, this wouldn't be a problem, but the reality is, standard definition programs and sources will be a significant part of most individuals' viewing habits for many years to come.

As a result of all these concerns, consumers who are considering the purchase of a new HDTV set need to seriously consider the potential benefits of 1080p resolution and determine if the cost differences between 1080p and 720p/1080i HDTVs are justifiable. For AV enthusiasts who are willing to work through the high definition DVD format wars and are eager to enjoy the best possible image quality, 1080p TVs will certainly be worth it. Similarly, media center PC enthusiasts who want to play PC games or view high-resolution digital photos will find that 1080p displays will give them the most satisfying experience. For the general public, however, it will probably be several years before the price premium between 720p/1080i and 1080p TVs narrows enough to motivate consumers to adopt the higher resolution format.

Situation Overview
The 1080p movement is quickly gaining speed to entice consumers with a higher, high definition resolution format that promises more image detail than even "regular" HD. As of the holiday 2005 buying season, 1080p televisions using various display technologies are trickling out of factories and into showrooms, but at expected high price points. Those willing to pay a premium for entry into this cutting edge category will for the short term find native 1080p content in short supply, thus depending on varying degrees of image scaling to feed their new display. This white paper aims to detail the quality promise of 1080p, but will also analyze the long-term issues that are expected to challenge the growth and deployment of this new resolution format.

Widescreen 1080p Content
The ideal solution for 1080p-capable displays would be the creation of more 1080p native content. But as discussed earlier, there are no plans to broadcast any native 1080p material any time soon. However, there are some developments with regard to other video sources, but even those are relatively limited.

In the case of the competing HD-DVD (Gone) and Blu-ray standards, we eventually expect to see some kind of high-definition DVD player on the market, although given the format war, it's not clear if there will be enough discs available to justify the purchase of the players. Plus, like the first generation of DVD players, the first HD-DVD or BluRay players will be expensive--probably around $1,000. (coming down fast) On top of that, it's not entirely clear that the discs and the players will support 1080p--some may be limited to 1080i.

Much attention is being given to the three upcoming, next-generation video game consoles formats, although not all of them will take advantage of 1080p. Only the Sony PS3 is scheduled to be 1080p capable, while the others will focus on mainstream 1080i / 720p and 480p.

High definition camcorders are today a reality, but they currently only support 720p / 1080i resolutions.

Lastly, with regard to computer generated 1080p content, there are a number of movie trailers and Windows Media Video movies (e.g., Terminator 2 and various IMAX DVDs) encoded and available in 1080p resolution.

Supply Side
A number of manufacturers have released, or announced the release of 1080p native TVs in the near future. First out of the gate were a few native 1080p LCD TVs, which is fairly unsurprising given that the component LCD panel makers are leaders in the production of high resolution LCD monitors. Rear projection televisions driven by DLP and LCoS technologies are also currently available in the marketplace.

Soon to market will be native 1080p plasma TVs from all the major players in that respective industry, starting from the larger sizes of 50" on up, as it is currently difficult to mass produce 42" 1080p panels. It goes without saying that these new 1080p TVs will be expensive, priced at a premium above like-sized offerings that display 720p HD resolutions. And today's 720p plasmas, despite recent price drops, are still priced well above legacy standard definition TVs. Many US consumers, in fact, are still buying 4:3 aspect ratio CRT TVs because "they're good enough".

Demand Side
Given the slow rollout of HD programming in this country, even the most ardent videophile would be challenged to envision the near term, mainstream dissemination of 1080p. Although higher resolutions can produce more detailed images, to achieve maximum benefit, the native 1080p hardware must be matched with 1080p content.

Scale away
The solution, then, for a considerable length of time, lies with scaling. For those buyers who dive into the 1080p pool, high quality scaling will be essential to bring lower resolution content up to the native resolution of the 1080p TV.

1080p scaling will take numerous forms:
Upsampling DVD players
A/V Receiver Integration
TV Integration
Dedicated, break-out box scalers
Upsampling DVD players
Just as we have DVD players today that can "upsample" DVD's 480p resolution to 720p or 1080i, for use with HD televisions, we will soon see players that can upsample both DVD and high definition DVD to 1080p resolutions that will feed into the new 1080p TVs.

A/V Receiver Integration
High-end A/V receiver brands will certainly debut top-line receivers with 1080p upscaling in the years ahead. A few of the major brands already advertise 1080i upscaling over HDMI (a digital A/V connection type) to bring DVD or cable TV resolutions to HD quality. As with any new-to-market feature set, 1080p upconversion will only be offered in a brand's leading product for 1-2 years, then eventually trickle down to its mainstream offerings.

TV Integration
Video processors housed within televisions traditionally have not set quality standards throughout the industry, thus paving the way for third-party image processing solutions. However, as the importance of scaling grows and the awareness levels among consumers increases, we expect the built-in scaling solutions to improve dramatically over the next several years.

Dedicated 1080p breakout box scalers
For individuals who want the absolute best quality scaling, however, there will also be a market for standalone video scalers, which sit between the video source and the display. Companies such as Faroudja, DVDO, TAW, etc., have been producing third party image processing solutions for a number of years, and we expect this market to continue although high prices for these devices will keep shipment levels low.

Conclusion
The true benefit of HDTV is the greatly improved image quality that the new format offers. It's no surprise, then, that efforts at extending that quality to its logical extreme--1080p--will attract the attention of both companies building TVs and consumers who want to buy them. But while increases in screen resolution may be technically impressive, they don't have real value unless they can be applied to a practical benefit.

Unlike traditional standard definition TVs, where video sources all conform to the same resolution, the ultimate image quality of high-definition televisions is very much dependent on the source content devices, such as cable and satellite boxes, DVD players and game consoles, that plug into them. The reality is, there are now a wide variety of different sources with different resolutions and that multiplicity of choices will continue for many years to come. At present, only a tiny portion of the content and the devices generating the content support 1080p resolution, although we do expect that percentage to grow somewhat over time. In the interim, both integrated and stand-alone video scaling solutions will help bridge the gap between content resolution and display resolution. As a result, the quality of the scaler built into a TV will have a much larger impact on the final image quality than the resolution of the TV screen.

Ultimately, consumers anxious to make the best choice about TV resolutions will need to weigh the real-world benefits of 1080p resolution displays and determine if the extra costs justify those benefits. For AV enthusiasts, eager to wring the last bit of quality out of any audio or video component that they own, the answer will be a simple yes. But for the vast majority of consumers, the choice will be more difficult.