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DVD Upconversion
Enjoy your DVD's in High Definition
If you have already purchased a high definition TV or are considering purchasing one in order to enjoy the crisp images along with digital audio, you may be wondering how that DVD collection you spent so much money on is going to look. With an interlaced or progressive-scan DVD player you might be more than a little disappointed, but thanks to DVD signal upconversion you can give new life to your old DVD's.
Just as progressive scan DVD players improved upon interlaced scanning technology, signal upconversion takes your DVD's to the next level by boosting the output resolution to 720p, 768p or HDTV level 1,080i resolution. When you consider that progressive-scan resolution is only 480 lines of resolution the increase in image quality is very apparent. More lines of resolution mean greater picture quality, which means you are viewing DVD's the way you intended to when you first purchased an HD-ready monitor.
The key to increased picture quality is that the conversion occurs at the source. Even though your HDTV may have a converter the image quality will not be what it could be if the signal boost took place at the source. That's why you don't have to worry about upconversion from signals that are transmitted in high definition. The only issue you need to worry about is when what you are watching is not already in high definition format.
With upconversion you will get a sharper picture and have smoother motion with fewer artifacts. The image won't be high definition because upconversion can't create image data. What upconversion will do is make sure that you are getting the best picture possible from your existing DVD collection. The larger your screen is, the more you will notice the difference in quality upconversion brings you. Upconversion technology won't do anything for older television and digital inputs are necessary to take advantage of upconversion. If you plan on watching a lot of DVD movies, particularly older DVD movies, on your high definition big screen then you are going to want to pay extra attention to what inputs are available on the monitor you intend to buy. HDTV's with a DVI input are what you should be on the lookout for. Fortunately, many models should have this feature. This is the preferred input interface because DVI doesn't require conversion to analogue, which can degrade the image and sound quality considerably. While DVI is preferred input method, your monitor may not support it. Most upconversion models have S-Video and Composite Video connections including a large variety of audio inputs. The most important thing will be to make sure that any DVD upconversion device you purchase has the inputs and outputs that meet your needs.
Your other option will be to wait for an HD DVD player. If that's your decision you won't have to wait long because several models of these should arrive in 2006. With an HD-DVD player you will get the most from your high definition TV and you can enjoy all the DVD movies in your collection with all the picture quality that your HDTV can muster!
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