Larry's Tech Talk
Say You Want a Resolution
25/09/11 22:32
If you’ve purchased or shopped for a new LCD or plasma TV in the past few years, you probably have seen the numbers, 1080i, 1080p, 720p, 480i, 4:3, 16:9. What does it all mean?
The invention of high definition TV has made things a little complicated. Back in the day we all had an antenna or rabbit ears and whatever our TV received was what we watched. Cable and Satellite service gave us more channels. And then we all saw a picture improvement with the DVD. But technically, if you watch a DVD, you’re actually seeing standard definition images. Yes, the DVD was an improvement in resolution, but not as good as high definition as we know it today. OK dude, so what are all of those numbers about?
Those numbers refer to the video resolution that a TV is capable of displaying. Specifically, I am referring to the pixel count. You won’t see pixels a few feet away from the screen, but if you get up close, take a look at the screen. Those little square dots are called pixels. And of course with more pixels, higher definition images are possible. When you move back from the screen the dots appear to merge together and you hopefully have a sharp, bright picture.
DVD players gave us a much improved picture with a format called 480i. If you’re a real Geek, that equates to 704 lines of pixels stacked 480 times. The “i” stands for interlaced, which actually means that there are 240 alternating lines of pixels scanned every 1/60 of a second. We all like to think that the higher the number means the better the resolution. That is true to some extent, but the suffixes “i” and “p” are important too. As I mentioned, “i” stands for interlaced. The suffix “p” stands for progressive. Progressive formats are not interlaced. So a format like 720p, actually has more information than 1080i.
To the human eye, 720p and 1080i will look very much alike. You would have to be very well trained and have phenomenal eyes to be able to see the difference. That brings us to the highest resolution currently available, 1080p. Believe it or not there is not much 1080p video content which we have access to. But if you want to be sure you are seeing 1080p, connect a BluRay player with a “native” BluRay disc and you will have 1080p.
Technology is pushing the limits of the human eye. I’ve read that if you stand 8 feet back from your TV, most people cannot tell the difference between 720p and 1080p. This is true particularly with smaller TVs. If you have a 32” 1080p TV, you probably could have saved a few dollars by buying a 720p set. Almost all broadcasts are in either 720p or 1080i.
Yeah Larry, but what about those “black bars” I see on some channels. I bought a 50” TV and I want a 50” picture! Those bars on each side have to do with something called “aspect ratio”. Standard definition is broadcast in a 4:3 aspect ration. If you think about it, 4:3 is an almost square ratio. Older TVs were square in shape for that very reason. Today’s hi-def TVs are rectangle to accommodate the 16:9 aspect ratio. So, if you see the bars, you are watching square video content on a rectangle TV. Most TVs have a button on the remote control to remove the bars. But by forcing the picture to fill the rectangular screen you will notice some distortion. People may appear to be shorter and gained weight as a result. As more and more programming becomes high definition, the 4:3 aspect ratio will probably fade away.
OK, let’s recap the numbers, 480i was not bad. 720p and 1080i are excellent and very similar to the human eye. 1080p is the highest resolution available and more noticeable in larger TVs. And set your cable or satellite receiver to the 16:9 aspect ration to watch hi-def shows that fill your new TV screen.
Remember that old Beatles tune? Say you want a resolution?
The invention of high definition TV has made things a little complicated. Back in the day we all had an antenna or rabbit ears and whatever our TV received was what we watched. Cable and Satellite service gave us more channels. And then we all saw a picture improvement with the DVD. But technically, if you watch a DVD, you’re actually seeing standard definition images. Yes, the DVD was an improvement in resolution, but not as good as high definition as we know it today. OK dude, so what are all of those numbers about?
Those numbers refer to the video resolution that a TV is capable of displaying. Specifically, I am referring to the pixel count. You won’t see pixels a few feet away from the screen, but if you get up close, take a look at the screen. Those little square dots are called pixels. And of course with more pixels, higher definition images are possible. When you move back from the screen the dots appear to merge together and you hopefully have a sharp, bright picture.
DVD players gave us a much improved picture with a format called 480i. If you’re a real Geek, that equates to 704 lines of pixels stacked 480 times. The “i” stands for interlaced, which actually means that there are 240 alternating lines of pixels scanned every 1/60 of a second. We all like to think that the higher the number means the better the resolution. That is true to some extent, but the suffixes “i” and “p” are important too. As I mentioned, “i” stands for interlaced. The suffix “p” stands for progressive. Progressive formats are not interlaced. So a format like 720p, actually has more information than 1080i.
To the human eye, 720p and 1080i will look very much alike. You would have to be very well trained and have phenomenal eyes to be able to see the difference. That brings us to the highest resolution currently available, 1080p. Believe it or not there is not much 1080p video content which we have access to. But if you want to be sure you are seeing 1080p, connect a BluRay player with a “native” BluRay disc and you will have 1080p.
Technology is pushing the limits of the human eye. I’ve read that if you stand 8 feet back from your TV, most people cannot tell the difference between 720p and 1080p. This is true particularly with smaller TVs. If you have a 32” 1080p TV, you probably could have saved a few dollars by buying a 720p set. Almost all broadcasts are in either 720p or 1080i.
Yeah Larry, but what about those “black bars” I see on some channels. I bought a 50” TV and I want a 50” picture! Those bars on each side have to do with something called “aspect ratio”. Standard definition is broadcast in a 4:3 aspect ration. If you think about it, 4:3 is an almost square ratio. Older TVs were square in shape for that very reason. Today’s hi-def TVs are rectangle to accommodate the 16:9 aspect ratio. So, if you see the bars, you are watching square video content on a rectangle TV. Most TVs have a button on the remote control to remove the bars. But by forcing the picture to fill the rectangular screen you will notice some distortion. People may appear to be shorter and gained weight as a result. As more and more programming becomes high definition, the 4:3 aspect ratio will probably fade away.
OK, let’s recap the numbers, 480i was not bad. 720p and 1080i are excellent and very similar to the human eye. 1080p is the highest resolution available and more noticeable in larger TVs. And set your cable or satellite receiver to the 16:9 aspect ration to watch hi-def shows that fill your new TV screen.
Remember that old Beatles tune? Say you want a resolution?
Are You Ready For Some Football!! Are You Ready For Some Football!!
12/09/11 20:09
We’ve all contemplated the old “chicken or the egg” dilemma. And a famous standup comedian posed the question, does the wind make the trees shake or do the trees shake and make the wind? Hey, it was funny when he said it! Yeah yeah Larry, but what does that have to do with a column titled “Tech Talk?”
I am referring to the concept of how technology has changed our lives. Does culture drive technology or does a new technology change culture? Look at the events that took place recently in Egypt and Libya. It seems like if you want to be an oppressive dictator, you better keep your people in the dark. Back in the Cold War days, there was something called Radio Free Europe. The internet wasn’t invented yet, but radio was and informing populations in communist block countries brought major political changes.
The Berlin Wall is gone. The USSR is over. I wonder what extent the internet had in informing the Russian population and bringing about political change? Maybe Russian girls saw American blue jeans on the internet, and said, hey get our leaders out of here. We want American blue jeans!
So where are we now? It’s the beginning of football season of course! Like it or not, the National Football League is a huge part of American culture these days. And the NFL has embraced technology and created an entertainment giant. C’mon dude, football is about running, blocking and hitting people. You know, Rumblin’, Bumblin’, Stumblin’! What do you mean technology is a part of the gridiron?
Back in the dark ages, professional football made money at the gate. They sold tickets, beer and hotdogs and that was the extent of the revenue. Then television was invented, and TV revenue easily exceeded ticket revenues. Las Vegas contributed to the NFL’s popularity. Football is the perfect game for gamblers. Due to the nature of the scoring, the Vegas point spread has become a big piece of the pie. How about instant replay? Or ESPN? Fantasy Football over the internet? They are just a few examples of the add-ons that increase the NFL’s popularity and footprint.
Let’s not forget the actual video production of a game. The networks that produce the games must be using the most advanced cameras I’ve ever seen. High definition video from an NFL game is fabulous! You can read the coaches lips, and if you get the right angle even read the lips of a player through his face mask! DirecTV has the NFL package. And 3D video is on the league’s horizon. I wonder what a 30 second commercial in this year’s Super Bowl will cost? Want to watch a game on your smartphone or iPad?
I consider the NFL owners to be among the shrewdest business people in the world. How can you squeeze 111 million fans into a stadium to see the most recent Super Bowl? Easy, all you have to do is broadcast the game in the highest definition video available (1080p) with 54 cameras and Dolby 5.1 surround sound to create an at home experience almost as real as being there, that’s how! And a lot of us would prefer to watch from home.
So, did the NFL become the billion dollar entertainment business on its own and casually adopt new technology along the way? Or did technology push the NFL into becoming the billion dollar entertainment industry that it is today? Maybe the chicken knows?
Are you ready for some FOOTBALL??
Hi-Fi, Wi-Fi, Now Mi-Fi? Oh My!
05/09/11 22:33
If you’re familiar with this column you’re already aware that almost all electronic audio and video devices are now shipping with network capability. That means that theses components can connect to the internet. The internet provides a perfect distribution pipeline for movies, music, personal photos and videos, and home entertainment in general.
That new flat panel TV or Blu-Ray player you want, can connect to Netflix to download movies. And your new a/v receiver can connect to Pandora, Slacker and other internet music services. OK Larry, we all know about that from previous articles. What’s the deal here? The deal is the internet service that almost of us use on a daily basis. Thirty years ago we wouldn’t have dreamed of something called the internet, or even e-mail. Now it seems like there is a race for companies like Sprint, AT&T, Verizon, Atlantic Broadband, and Comcast to be our Internet Service Provider (ISP).
It’s another monthly bill to pay, but really, most of us would not want to be without internet service. We need it for business, school and entertainment. A friend of mine recently applied for a job at a large retail food store. He was told that they only accept applications online. The internet is a huge part of our lives, like it or not. But how do we get to the world wide web and what does the (near) future look like?
There are several ways to get there. In Queen Anne’s County we have Atlantic Broadband, Verizon DSL, Satellite, Sprint wireless, and a few other smaller ISPs. A few years ago we had dial-up. Remember how slow that was! Network speeds are much faster today but still not totally there for large files like full motion hi-definition movies. I would think competition will drive speeds up and maybe even prices down. Last week I read about a fairly new product from Verizon that really caught my attention. They call it Mi-Fi.
We all know about wi-fi which gives us the convenience to connect to our wireless router with our laptops, iPods, iPads etc. But what if you could take an internet connection with you? The mi-fi device and service is designed to do just that. Basically Verizon packages a small device that connects to the internet via its 3G or 4G LTE wireless network. The small device allows 5 devices (laptops, iPhones, iPads etc) to connect to the internet and can be powered with a built-in battery. So its kinda like carrying your wireless router with you. A contractor could connect his laptop to the internet from the jobsite, just like he would from his office. If you travel, take your internet connection with you and download movies, e-mail photos, and maybe even check your office e-mail.
Currently I am paying for internet service at my home and at my office. If I had a device such as the Verizon mi-fi that I took with me, I could save as much as $30 a month. Well that a no-brainer Einstein! What’s the holdup? The holdup is that the network is not quite ready for prime time. I read many reviews and while the concept is fabulous, the network speeds are just not quite happening. But sometime in the not too distant future you will be able to take the internet with you and create your own “hotspot”.
I don’t how AT&T, Sprint, and the other players will respond. But connecting to the internet will be everywhere and I’m guessing that competition will probably bring prices down. It’s all about connecting to the network.
Mi-fi, Oh My!
That new flat panel TV or Blu-Ray player you want, can connect to Netflix to download movies. And your new a/v receiver can connect to Pandora, Slacker and other internet music services. OK Larry, we all know about that from previous articles. What’s the deal here? The deal is the internet service that almost of us use on a daily basis. Thirty years ago we wouldn’t have dreamed of something called the internet, or even e-mail. Now it seems like there is a race for companies like Sprint, AT&T, Verizon, Atlantic Broadband, and Comcast to be our Internet Service Provider (ISP).
It’s another monthly bill to pay, but really, most of us would not want to be without internet service. We need it for business, school and entertainment. A friend of mine recently applied for a job at a large retail food store. He was told that they only accept applications online. The internet is a huge part of our lives, like it or not. But how do we get to the world wide web and what does the (near) future look like?
There are several ways to get there. In Queen Anne’s County we have Atlantic Broadband, Verizon DSL, Satellite, Sprint wireless, and a few other smaller ISPs. A few years ago we had dial-up. Remember how slow that was! Network speeds are much faster today but still not totally there for large files like full motion hi-definition movies. I would think competition will drive speeds up and maybe even prices down. Last week I read about a fairly new product from Verizon that really caught my attention. They call it Mi-Fi.
We all know about wi-fi which gives us the convenience to connect to our wireless router with our laptops, iPods, iPads etc. But what if you could take an internet connection with you? The mi-fi device and service is designed to do just that. Basically Verizon packages a small device that connects to the internet via its 3G or 4G LTE wireless network. The small device allows 5 devices (laptops, iPhones, iPads etc) to connect to the internet and can be powered with a built-in battery. So its kinda like carrying your wireless router with you. A contractor could connect his laptop to the internet from the jobsite, just like he would from his office. If you travel, take your internet connection with you and download movies, e-mail photos, and maybe even check your office e-mail.
Currently I am paying for internet service at my home and at my office. If I had a device such as the Verizon mi-fi that I took with me, I could save as much as $30 a month. Well that a no-brainer Einstein! What’s the holdup? The holdup is that the network is not quite ready for prime time. I read many reviews and while the concept is fabulous, the network speeds are just not quite happening. But sometime in the not too distant future you will be able to take the internet with you and create your own “hotspot”.
I don’t how AT&T, Sprint, and the other players will respond. But connecting to the internet will be everywhere and I’m guessing that competition will probably bring prices down. It’s all about connecting to the network.
Mi-fi, Oh My!