High Definition vs Standard Definition

[mobilenvidia]

This is a wee test that I was able to do as I have the standard Definition DVD of Shrek the Third, I got hold of a HD-DVD version of this movie.

I wasn't able to do this test till I got to town with a friend and his HD-DVD drive.

Would have loved to have taken this drive for a proper spin but alas not.

Now I've tried to go to the same spot on the DVD for both then took a capture of the window.

I used Media player classic to play both DVD's.

Screen Resolution was 1920x1200x32

The SD-DVD came from a Region 4 PAL DVD.

The HD-DVD came from a Regionless 1080p DVD

The piccies have been JPG'd with the same ratio.

But any way, below is the SD-DVD piccy (700x383 to fit the frontpage click on picture to see high resolution one):

Now the HD version of this movie (700x383 to fit the frontpage click on picture to see 1080p one):

Without even going to the full size piccy it's as obvious as daylight the HD version of the movie is so much sharper, and brighter.

It's so detailed in places you can see the movies imperfections, ie where the characters are layed over backgrounds.

For those worried that everything becomes in focus, ie forground and back ground this is not the case, although the background does become more clear and sharper.

I chose the above scene due to so many elements being seen at once.

Have a look at Shreks Tunic, crystal clear in HD, and blurry in SD.

The ship in the back ground is quite jagged in SD and no jaggies in the HD version.

Now Puss, is so sharp in the HD version but quite dull in the SD version.

Arty is Dark in the SD version and much brighter in the HD version.

To me there is quite a difference, not as much as some have harped on about.

I'm tempted to go to HD quite soon, I don't have a 1080p TV but 720p/1080i should be OK on a 32"

For those who like their movies with everything crystal clear, it's the way to go.

The above is just my point of view on 2 versions of the same movie, not pushing HD-DVD, only used this as the DVD was available, I'm sure the BD version will be similar.

What happens on a TV may differ from what you see here.

But would be nice to see if the same cropping occurs (any one with this movie that can do a BD screen shot of the same scene ?)

I would love to see Lord of the Rings in HD, may just take the plunge just for that alone.

[cdx47]

As for the Jaggies on the SD version thats just whatever scaler that was being used, nothing to do with the film.

However saying that, High Def is so good that Shrek 3 compressed to 3GB (smaller than a standard SINGLE LAYER DVD) still looks better than the full DVD film at around 5 to 8GB (a standard DOUBLE LAYER DVD). Basically heavily compressed HD sources look better than standard or upscaled DVDs. This is true just about every time. Ive seen it on over 50 films and its amazing.

BTW a better spot to highlight the SD/HD differences might have been at the beginning of the film so you can see all the detail on the Princes cloak, the theater and even the toy horse :)

[mobilenvidia]

As for the Jaggies on the SD version thats just whatever scaler that was being used, nothing to do with the film.

However saying that, High Def is so good that Shrek 3 compressed to 3GB (smaller than a standard SINGLE LAYER DVD) still looks better than the full DVD film at around 5 to 8GB (a standard DOUBLE LAYER DVD). Basically heavily compressed HD sources look better than standard or upscaled DVDs. This is true just about every time. Ive seen it on over 50 films and its amazing.

BTW a better spot to highlight the SD/HD differences might have been at the beginning of the film so you can see all the detail on the Princes cloak, the theater and even the toy horse :)

I took the captures at the same time, using the same resolution on the screen.

I had both DVD's open at once, was trying to be fair, not sure how Media Player classic handles upscaling or if it does any at all.

So both piccies were taken on a 1920x1200 desktop

Using a DVD player upscaler will just blur the jaggies as it guesses the in between pixels.

The above is a basic SD-DVD vs HD comparson, DVD players capable of upscaling will do a better job than standard PAL or NTSC players.

But if you are going to upgrade you may as well tale the next step and go full HD.

Another example, SD-DVD:

vs the HD version:

The bed cover is probably the best to compare, and generally just the brightness

[cdx47]

OK, but I dont think the Jaggies are a result of the DVD transfer. From all the reviews I have read, jaggies are pretty exclusively a scaler issue (not the process of upscaling ). Strange since as you used the same screen/desktop combination. Something might have got in the way. . But this is Techie BS :) We are pretty much in what I like to call "violent agreement" :)

I took the captures at the same time, using the same resolution on the screen.

I had both DVD's open at once, was trying to be fair, not sure how Media Player classic handles upscaling or if it does any at all.

So both piccies were taken on a 1920x1200 desktop

Using a DVD player upscaler will just blur the jaggies as it guesses the in between pixels.

The above is a basic SD-DVD vs HD comparson, DVD players capable of upscaling will do a better job than standard PAL or NTSC players.

But if you are going to upgrade you may as well tale the next step and go full HD.

[mobilenvidia]

The jaggies are of little consequence and I will fight to the death to agree with you :)

I don't have a perfect test bed to do all this on, but you get the general idea.