Samsung LN46B530 46-Inch 1080p LCD HDTV

45.9" screen (measured diagonally) * widescreen 16:9 aspect ratio * high-gloss black finish * built-in digital (ATSC) and analog (NTSC) tuners for over-the-air TV broadcasts (antenna required) * built-in QAM cable TV tuner receives unscrambled programs without a set-top box (cable service required) * 1920 x 1080 pixels *

Is 720p vs 1080i worth being concerned about? Yes and no. If you're a consumer looking for a new TV, you can happily ignore the 720p vs 1080i debate because every TV which is described as HDTV or HDTV Ready is required to support both formats.

NOTE: You should be aware though that lots of TVs which support 1080i have fewer
than 1080 lines and so scale the 1080 signal down. That's not a huge issue as even
scaled down 1080i is far ahead of a regular NTSC signal. It is worth bearing in mind
that more expensive HDTVs tend to have better scalers than cheaper ones, and this
may be an issue.

However, for broadcasters it's a live issue. Should they broadcast 1080 lines of
interlaced video or 720 lines of progressive scan? They could just broadcast two
signals, one in each format, but that would use up a huge chunk of bandwidth and
be hugely expensive for very little gain.

To answer the question, it's important to understand the difference between 720p
vs 1080i. A 720p signal is made up of 720 horizontal lines. Each frame is displayed
in its entirety on-screen for 1/30th of a second. This is know as progressive scan
(hence the 'p')The quality is like watching 30 photographic images a second on TV.
A 1080i signal comprises 1080 horizontal lines but all the lines are not displayed
on-screen simultaneously. Instead, they are interlaced (hence the 'i'), ie every other
lines is displayed for 1/60th of a second and then the alternate lines are displayed
for 1/60th of a second. So, the frame rate is still 30 frames per second, but each
frame is split into two fields, which your brain then puts together subconsciously.

Most of the time interlacing works fine, but for fast moving images, such as sports
like baseball and hockey it can cause problems which manifest themselves as a
'stepping' effect on-screen. Progressive scan signals don't have this problem and so
are better suited to sports.

ESPN puts it like this: 'Progressive scan technology produces better images for the
fast moving orientation of sports television. Simply put, with 104 mph fastballs in
baseball and 120 mph shots on goal in hockey, the line-by-line basis of progressive
scan technology better captures the inherent fast action of sports. For ESPN,
progressive scan technology makes perfect sense.'

Bottom line? For us, as consumers 720p vs 1080i is not a debate worth worrying
about, so you can relax and focus on all the other criteria on your list when you buy
your next HDTV.

Kenny Hemphill is the editor and publisher of The HDTV Tuner - a guide to the kit, the technology and the programming on HDTV.

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