Is Sky HD full HD ?

Zardoz

I am buying a new 50" plasma tv and I'm trying to work out if its worth getting a Full HD as opposed to HD Ready set.

From what I have read Sky HD broadcasts at 1920x1080 which leads me to believe that I would get benefit from buying a Full HD set.
However a few tv sales people have told me that Sky does not broadcast in Full HD which is odd and some online sources state the same thing ?
They said that I will see no difference between a HD Ready and Full HD set with a Sky HD source which I found odd.

I'm not interested in Bluray or playing console games on the tv (which make use of Full HD) ,it will be used for watching Sky SD,HD and DVD's.
So from a viewing distance of 9-10 feet will I see any difference between a HD Ready (1024*768) or Full HD (1920*1080) set with a Sky HD source.
Thanks

MarkK

If you are getting a 50" screen, get one with 1080 lines.
It is worth it for that size screen IMHO.

fasttalkerchat

Zardoz wrote: »

I am buying a new 50" plasma tv and I'm trying to work out if its worth getting a Full HD as opposed to HD Ready set.

From what I have read Sky HD broadcasts at 1920x1080 which leads me to believe that I would get benefit from buying a Full HD set.
However a few tv sales people have told me that Sky does not broadcast in Full HD which is odd and some online sources state the same thing ?
They said that I will see no difference between a HD Ready and Full HD set with a Sky HD source which I found odd.

I'm not interested in Bluray or playing console games on the tv (which make use of Full HD) ,it will be used for watching Sky SD,HD and DVD's.
So from a viewing distance of 9-10 feet will I see any difference between a HD Ready (1024*768) or Full HD (1920*1080) set with a Sky HD source.
Thanks

Some channels are not full HD for sure (ITV HD). I would go by how the quality looks rather than the stats if you're not bothered about Gaming and Bluray.

NIMAN

I don't think $ky transmit in 'full HD' which is 1080p.


Think they transmit in 1080i.

Zardoz

NIMAN wrote: »

I don't think $ky transmit in 'full HD' which is 1080p.


Think they transmit in 1080i.

I believe they transmit in 1080i as you rightly said, 1920 * 1080 resolution so a Full HD set should be a better picture.

I am going to get a full HD set anyway ,better future proof the set ,I expect to get 10 years out of it.
The Panasonic TX-P50ST50 is what I am getting,its a bit expensive at 1200 euro but getting rave reviews.

NIMAN

Panasonic's do good TVs for sure.

Bro has a 42" and my 2nd TV is a 32", both very good quality.

Zardoz

NIMAN wrote: »

Panasonic's do good TVs for sure.

Bro has a 42" and my 2nd TV is a 32", both very good quality.

Thanks ,looking forward to it .

I'm beginning to think 50" is too big for the room though ,its 15ft deep by 13ft wide and the viewing distance is 9 ft .
I'll be going from a 32" ,might be overkill ?

watty

No HD Ready set does 1080i, natively. "HD Ready" is a con. They are really only useful at small sizes 19" and less or for decent SD, as SD LCD/Plasma are inferior to CRT. "HD Ready" is one of the most misleading logos ever. It says NOTHING about screen quality and only means the set can DISPLAY a resampled HD image, possibly in some cases only from HDMI.


There is no resolution difference between 1080i and 1080p below 25Hz. The difference is with faster movement. But you can't see as much detail in faster movement.

Thus 1080p wastes 2x transmission bandwidth with little benefit. Which is why it's hardly used for broadcast. Most film is shot at 24fps "p" which means even with Bluray on 50Hz (Europe, not US) there is no difference at all between 1080i 25fps 50Hz and 1080p 50fps as the extra progressive frames are just repeat of film frame.

50" is fine for 15' x 13' room. A 42" would be an absolute minimum (Also good value). At 32" WS, there is no point at all in HD. 32" is a little small for 9' viewing even of SD.

Zardoz

watty wrote: »

No HD Ready set does 1080i, natively. "HD Ready" is a con. They are really only useful at small sizes 19" and less or for decent SD, as SD LCD/Plasma are inferior to CRT. "HD Ready" is one of the most misleading logos ever. It says NOTHING about screen quality and only means the set can DISPLAY a resampled HD image, possibly in some cases only from HDMI.


There is no resolution difference between 1080i and 1080p below 25Hz. The difference is with faster movement. But you can't see as much detail in faster movement.

Thus 1080p wastes 2x transmission bandwidth with little benefit. Which is why it's hardly used for broadcast. Most film is shot at 24fps "p" which means even with Bluray on 50Hz (Europe, not US) there is no difference at all between 1080i 25fps 50Hz and 1080p 50fps as the extra progressive frames are just repeat of film frame.

Thank you Watty ,hugely insightful information as always ,much appreciated.

I was looking at a 50" HD ready set in a store and even when it was displaying a Panasonic made bluray file the writing on it looked very blocky and not smooth as opposed to the Full HD set beside it.I could clearly tell the difference from 10 feet.

50" is fine for 15' x 13' room. A 42" would be an absolute minimum (Also good value). At 32" WS, there is no point at all in HD. 32" is a little small for 9' viewing even of SD.

Thanks again .I will go for the 50" Panasonic ST50 so .
I was abit flustered when I found a distance calculator on the Which website and it said the ideal viewing distance for HD on a 50" set is 11ft and 14 ft for SD which seems a bit high.:(
It said 8 and 12 ft for a 42" .
I've seen a number of these calculators though and they all seem to give differing numbers.
I can move the couches back a few feet anyway if necessary ,11.5 feet is the maximum viewing distance I can get .
If you say a 50" is fine though then I will go with that .;)

If you're getting a not "Full HD" one make sure it's 1366x768 rather than 1024x768. At 50inches I would definitely go for the 1920x1080 though, it makes a noticeable difference on games consoles and Blu-Rays.

NIMAN

Personally I think 50" is too big for your room.

I'd go 42" instead.

John mac

acording to this calcuator you need to sit 6.5 feet away from a 50 in tv.


http://myhometheater.homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html

Zardoz

John mac wrote: »

acording to this calcuator you need to sit 6.5 feet away from a 50 in tv.


http://myhometheater.homestead.com/viewingdistancecalculator.html

Thats with a 1080i source ,its a high quality source though.
Sd sources,576i will look crap at such a close distance.
It seems to be a trade off as to the correct viewing distance.
Not too far away to get the benefit of Full HD and not too close for the lower quality sources such as SD and DVD.
Perhaps I need a moving couch .:D

If you're getting a not "Full HD" one make sure it's 1366x768 rather than 1024x768. At 50inches I would definitely go for the 1920x1080 though, it makes a noticeable difference on games consoles and Blu-Rays.

I will take that on board although I'm not particularly interested in Bluray or Gaming,I only have a Wii which isnt HD anyway.
Of course that could change so better to future proof.

The tv I am planning on getting actually looked good on SD in the shop,I was watching RTE1 on it from close enough and it looked better than on other sets I viewed,some of which were horrific.
I guess it depends on the upscaling technology used in the individual set.
Plasma seems to do a better job with SD than LCD/LED .

John mac

when you do get it be sure to set it up correctly.

minder2009

I bought a Sony Bravia full hd other day excellent .... Expensive .... A chap with 30 yrs experience of tvs told me to avoid Panasonic ... Google other reviews before you buy Panasonic....
Only passing on what I felt was unbiased good advice from a tv guy .... No harm to do the research before you part with your hard earned cash

NIMAN

I have always had an interest in TVs and Home Cinema (although waned over recent years) and Panasonic TVs have always been well reviewed.

Some of their high end models are among the best tellies out there.

dubdaymo

Zardoz wrote:

Perhaps I need a moving couch .:D

That is the answer. A friend of mine claims that the arrival of HD changed the mathematics of watching TV distances and he has it all worked out - on the floor. He has a 46" Full HD TV and has done his measurements. On the floor he has three marked out positions from the TV screen:

High Definition...........5' )
................................. ) BUT see below
Standard Definition.....7' )

There is a 3rd marker which he uses for older stuff like reruns of vintage comedy series and he has this set back at 8'. So, he just moves the couch according to whatever he is watching at the time.

It is important to point out that these distances are the points where the front of the couch is set so, when sitting back on it, the eye-to-TV screen distance is approx an extra 20". Having been given a demo I find it hard to disagree with.

Zardoz

minder2009 wrote: »

I bought a Sony Bravia full hd other day excellent .... Expensive .... A chap with 30 yrs experience of tvs told me to avoid Panasonic ... Google other reviews before you buy Panasonic....
Only passing on what I felt was unbiased good advice from a tv guy .... No harm to do the research before you part with your hard earned cash

Thanks for the advice ,worth taking on board.
The Panasonic 2011 Plasma range wasnt without its problems,green splodges on certain screens was the major issue.
That seems to have been resolved but some people are reporting banding issues on the new 2012 range.
The particular tv I plan to buy is generally regarded (by reviewers ) as the best tv ever seen below £1k.

The Panasonic P50ST50's in many ways outstanding pictures deliver a salutary reminder in these LED-dominated times of why plasma was first invented.

To put all this in less technical terms, the Panasonic P50ST50's dazzling contrast performance helps it deliver arguably the most cinematic pictures we've seen from such an affordable TV.

It also looks a steal when you consider that it performs pretty much as well as last year's flagship - and thus much more expensive - VT30 Panasonic plasma TVs.

Its deep blacks are not just the best we’ve ever measured at this price point, they’re some of the best we’ve ever seen, full stop: the contrast performance shown by the ST50 is the closest thing we have today to a large-screen, affordable OLED display

Ideally I'd prefer to wait until the end of the year until more feedback is available on the reliability of the tvs and the price will have dropped a few hundred euro but alas the missus is impatient and I cant fob her off anymore.:)
I have been on the lookout for a new tv for a long time and I should have bought at the start of the year when the 2011 models were heavily discounted .
The 2012 Panasonic models are only out a few months so they are expensive.
The Panasonics come with a 5 year full warranty so if there are any issues there is peace of mind.

That is the answer. A friend of mine claims that the arrival of HD changed the mathematics of watching TV distances and he has it all worked out - on the floor. He has a 46" Full HD TV and has done his measurements. On the floor he has three marked out positions from the TV screen:

High Definition...........5' )
................................. ) BUT see below
Standard Definition.....7' )

There is a 3rd marker which he uses for older stuff like reruns of vintage comedy series and he has this set back at 8'. So, he just moves the couch according to whatever he is watching at the time.

It is important to point out that these distances are the points where the front of the couch is set so, when sitting back on it, the eye-to-TV screen distance is approx an extra 20". Having been given a demo I find it hard to disagree with.

Clever idea that ,lol,I've read a few articles that recommend 3 different viewing distances for HD ,3D and SD .
HD is the closest with SD being the furthest away.
3D viewing distance is recommended as 4 times the height of the screen ,SD 6 times the height of the screen and HD around 1.5 times the diagonal .
For a 50" tv this corresponds with 8.9 feet for 3D,6.25 feet for HD and over 13 feet for SD ,which is the odd one out really.
I mean if you were to watch HD on a 1080p tv at 13 feet you may as well just use a HD ready set ,as the detail is lost at that distance.

5 feet for HD is fairly close to sit ,it would be fairly immersive ,I would imagine its hard to take it all in ?

dubdaymo

Zardoz wrote:

5 feet for HD is fairly close to sit ,it would be fairly immersive ,I would imagine its hard to take it all in ?

But, when you add in the aforementioned 20" extra it becomes 6' 8" from eye position. I thought it looked great but, of course, you'd have to judge this over time rather than on one experience.

Puggy

Zardoz,

I've got a room almost the same size 15 X 13, it used to be 15 X 26 but I divided it into two rooms.

Anyway I've got a 2008 42inch lcd LG full HD ie it does 1080 i and 1080p and its just the right size for the room. My neighbour, who has not divided his room has a 2008 HD Ready Sony 50 inch plasma, and he needs to sit about two feet further away from the TV. So I think 50inch is just on the verge of being to big for your room. Depends on what else you've got in it!

I've also got Sky HD+, as has my neighbour, and although his TV looks fine, he always thinks I've got a new TV because the picture seems much sharper, so get full HD.

Sky HD is 1080i by the way, as are most satellite dvb S2 HD channels. Some terristal dvb T2 are 1080p.

Zardoz

dubdaymo wrote: »

But, when you add in the aforementioned 20" extra it becomes 6' 8" from eye position. I thought it looked great but, of course, you'd have to judge this over time rather than on one experience.

Sorry ,I forgot about the extra 20",makes sense now.

Zardoz,

I've got a room almost the same size 15 X 13, it used to be 15 X 26 but I divided it into two rooms.

Anyway I've got a 2008 42inch lcd LG full HD ie it does 1080 i and 1080p and its just the right size for the room. My neighbour, who has not divided his room has a 2008 HD Ready Sony 50 inch plasma, and he needs to sit about two feet further away from the TV. So I think 50inch is just on the verge of being to big for your room. Depends on what else you've got in it!

I've also got Sky HD+, as has my neighbour, and although his TV looks fine, he always thinks I've got a new TV because the picture seems much sharper, so get full HD.

Sky HD is 1080i by the way, as are most satellite dvb S2 HD channels. Some terristal dvb T2 are 1080p.

Thanks for that information Puggy,I appreciate it.
I'm swaying towards a 42" myself but the missus has her heart set on a 50" and while I have tried to logically convince her otherwise,its no use.:(
I guess thats women for you though ,lol.

NIMAN

A lot of people can be tempted to go for the really massive TVs as there often isn't much price difference between say a 42" and a 50".

But if you are watching poor quality SD sources on a 50" and are sitting any way close, it will look rough as a badgers ....

IT will of course look fantastic with a Blu Ray disc, but most people's everyday viewing is no BR quality.

Personally I'd try to talk her into a 42" but its her call I suppose.

Some 50" sets can really take over a room if it isn't big enough to accommodate them. I've seen a few in rooms maybe 12' x 10' and they look ridiculous.

Zardoz

NIMAN wrote: »

A lot of people can be tempted to go for the really massive TVs as there often isn't much price difference between say a 42" and a 50".

But if you are watching poor quality SD sources on a 50" and are sitting any way close, it will look rough as a badgers ....

IT will of course look fantastic with a Blu Ray disc, but most people's everyday viewing is no BR quality.

Personally I'd try to talk her into a 42" but its her call I suppose.

Some 50" sets can really take over a room if it isn't big enough to accommodate them. I've seen a few in rooms maybe 12' x 10' and they look ridiculous.

I cut out a cardboard sized replica of the 50" just to see how it would look.
It is big but the old crt was massive too and I think it will blend into the room nicely .
SD looked good on it in the shop even from up close,best I've seen in fact.No pixellation or blotches,quite smooth.
I was surpised as I've seen some LCD's ,LED's even with 100hz and 200hz refresh rates and the SD on them looked garbage,pixellated,blocky,and blotchy.None of that on the Plasma.
I am going in to buy it now so I'll have it set up this afternoon ,Santy has come early

Zardoz

I've had the 50" up an running for the last few days and I'm very happy with it.
It blends in quite nicely in the room ,doesnt look out of place at all.

HD looks exquisite on it and SD is fairly good too.
SD can look a bit washed out at times but it doesnt have any pixellation or blockiness.
The picture is pretty much the same at 8 or 11 feet for SD .

As its a new plasma I dont have it running at optimum settings as I have reduced the contrast and brightness for the initial 200 hours to protect from burn in.
Thanks for all the advice guys .:)