HD-DVD ?'s

[mrryde]

I was thinking about getting a HD DVD Player. My TV only supports 1080i and most HD movies are 1080p.

Will the HD DVD movies play at 1080i or are they just going to play at standard definition if my tv doesn't support 1080p?

I am not going to spend the money if I can't watch HD movies in 10801.

[Snow Dog]

There's no difference between i and p. 1080i uses 60 half-frames/sec and 1080p uses 30 full frames/sec. Same amount of data. The player should have different output options -- 480i, 480p, 720p, etc. The options may be different for component and HDMI and may be different for high def and when upconverting regular DVDs. You have to check the output modes for the specific player.

[fonixmunkee]

Your HD DVD player will play the lower resolution automagically, so if the DVD is said to be "1080p", it will play in 1080i on your 1080i TV. I'm in the same boat.

[Boss Hogg Barbarian]

Your TV will play it in 1080i. Your next question will be, but do I want to get it if it only plays in 1080i? If you read around on the web you'll realize that even "expert" reviewers can't tell the difference between 1080i and 1080p, especially on sets smaller than 50 inches. So I'd go for it and get the player.

[mrryde]

thanks everyone!

[BradyCU]

As a owner of both HD formats you can't go wrong with HD DVD. Prices are right now days and the difference from DVD is substantial if you are into movies. I haven't herd of a single player having problems with 1080i so you should be good to go.

[Buzzworthy]

Bump to go with TV thread.

[Flexon Phil]

I am still waiting to see what happens between HD and Blu-Ray. I got caught up in the Beta/VHS wars from the 80's and still am jaded. W/ 400+ DVD's I am in no rush to decide.

[StoneCold]

x2 on what somebody said about not being able to tell the difference between 1080p and 1080i. Either one is going to look much better than SDTV.

Secondly, Blockbuster Online has a pretty substantial collection of HD DVDs for rent.

[fonixmunkee]

Secondly, Blockbuster Online has a pretty substantial collection of HD DVDs for rent.

Yes, but Blockbuster doesn't do in-store HD DVD rentals, only Blu-Ray (if you do the Total Access packages, that sucks). I guess Blockbuster has staked out it's side on this silly turf war between HD DVD and Blu-Ray.