From reading these threads I've been told and read many times that after a certain viewing distance the difference between 1080p and 720p is negligible. Unless the viewer is sitting with in 7ft. (correct me if I'm wrong) the eye can not tell the difference between the two resolutions. I used to think I saw a difference but that was probably because the 1080p HDTV was a newer model than the 720p and therefore had a superior picture. This probably didn't have to do with the resolution (again, correct me if I'm wrong). If all of this is true, does it make any sense at all to get a 1080p model over a 720p. I understand the problems with 768 but would there be as many problems with 720p (obviously scaling to 1080i/p but most sports are in 720p). I really would like to get a plasma it seems to be the closest thing to a CRT and its price per inch compared to LCD is much better. If it's true that there is not much of a difference that wouldn't it make sense to go 720p over 1080p considering the price difference. I apologize if I'm missing something and I look forward to the responses.

Check this out:
http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=768167

The thread that ReD-BaRoN gave you should answer your questions. If you can't find enough info there, post your question in that thread and the members who monitor it should be able to help you.

Thank you both that thread was very helpful.

You may consider this additional perspective beyond simply the distance issue.

http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?p=10562457&&#post10562457

Cheers, :)

Gary

Please take the time to read this Five Part Article and the weight of evidence is it is important to videophiles anyways. :)

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_14_1/feature-article-1080p-3-2007-part-1.html

For most people 720p is what they want, for others its 1080p. (I am using 720 in place of 768 for simplicity)

1080 is sharper than 720, the closer you are the better you can tell the difference.

Most 1080's provide more colors, grays, and blacks then 720, that can be something you may see 15' away! For example one brand of 720 (768) says contrast ratio of 10,000/1 and 3,000 shades of gray..........but the more expensive 1080 version of the set has CR of only 5,000/1 but 4,000 shades of gray. So if you are watching CSI, 24, Bones, Law & Order in "dark scenes"..........the black detail is better on the 1080 set - even if it has less CR. 95% of the population will not see it or care - It Depends on you.

Please take the time to read this Five Part Article and the weight of evidence is it is important to videophiles anyways. :)

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volume_14_1/feature-article-1080p-3-2007-part-1.html

That is a great article, and helps explain all the techno stuff - If you are watching say CSI-NY filmed at night on the dark streets of NY.........that 1080p set looks sooooooooooooo much better then the 720(768), even far across the room. That black detail (not CR), is what makes it great for me.

well I just got the new 58pz700u and let me tell u 1080p is the way to go especially with large screen sizes, the detail is amazing much better than 768p

I know most people buying 1080P tv's probably dont watch alot of SD material, but does it stand to reason that since the TV scales everything to its native resolution, that SD cable and upconverted DVD's might looK WORSE on a 1080P set vs. a 768P TV?

Logically, since it would need to introduce more material to upscale the image, could the end result be worse looking than a TV only needing to upscale to 768P?

Just curious.

Doug

mine is 720p and running HD movies, HD tv and xbox 360 looks great even when I sit like 4-5' away, so it is not that needed. in the long run, the price difference between 1080p and 720p will be so small that you will see 720p phased out over time.

You may notice that many of last years 720 models are being completely replaced by 1080 models. My guess is that by next years models (2008) 720 will only be a fading memory.

I know most people buying 1080P tv's probably dont watch alot of SD material, but does it stand to reason that since the TV scales everything to its native resolution, that SD cable and upconverted DVD's might looK WORSE on a 1080P set vs. a 768P TV?

Logically, since it would need to introduce more material to upscale the image, could the end result be worse looking than a TV only needing to upscale to 768P?

Just curious.

Dougactually the SD looks better on my 1080p 58in than other tv's I've seen in that size

actually the SD looks better on my 1080p 58in than other tv's I've seen in that size

If the tv has a good processor then, I guess it doesn't matter if it needs to upscale it to 768P or 1080P.

Thanks

Doug

1080p does actually have a use in smaller displays. For example, I have a laptop that I use for work with a VGA-out. I frequently connect it to me 20" LCD, because it gives me a great deal of extra space with which to work. Now, at 720/768p, I run into the problem of having text and whatnot stretched out. On the same size screen, 1080p alleviates that problem.

Also, 1080p is the technical "true" Hi-Def standard. Yeah, you can't tell the difference in most cases, but that doesn't mean that it'll stay that way forever.