Xbox 360 HDMI confusion question

[David Lucas]

Like all somewhat popular online message boards, there's bound to be some techno-geeks wandering around here. Techno-geeks, I need your guidance!

Ok, first off let me say that I know absolutely nothing spec-wise of any of the new formats. Blu-Ray, HDDVD, 1080i, HDMI, all of these mean absolutely nothing to me, unfortunately. I would like to rectify that, hence, this thread.

I was looking at Blu-Ray movies at Best Buy last week and was really impressed, I never really understood what all the hubub was about. When they show that demo reel with Batman Begins and so forth where they show half the screen in SD and half the screen in HDDVD, I wasn't really impressed.
In fact, when I looked at the HD movies running on the screens, I wasn't too impressed with that either.

What made me start drooling a little was watching Spider-Man 2's Train Fight, and a few minutes of Chicken Little on Blu-Ray. I dunno if it's just the TV's they had the HD players on, or if it's just Blu-Ray is better.

Regardless of which, because I don't plan on buying a PS3, HD-DVD is the format I'm going to be backing this round. From all the reports I read, it doesn't sound like I'm making a bad decision at all.

Here's my concern, and question:

What is this deal with the Elite and the new 360's having HDMI capabilities and the older models not?

I bought my 360 in June of this year, it does not have any mention of HDMI on the box like the newer ones do. I'm going to buy an HD-DVD player for the 360 probably by the end of the year, but is it the wrong choice to make without HDMI?

Is there no way to ever have my 360 achieve the highest picture quality possible simply because I purchased it 2 months earlier?

If HDMI + HD DVD + a HDTV = 100% of the possible picture quality, what would not having the HDMI drop the percentage down to? Am I better off just buying a HDDVD standalone player?

[Beefy]

Ok, first off let me say that I know absolutely nothing spec-wise of any of the new formats. Blu-Ray, HDDVD, 1080i, HDMI, all of these mean absolutely nothing to me, unfortunately. I would like to rectify that, hence, this thread. First, a little background information: 480p, 720p, 1080i, 1080p all refer to the number of vertical pixels in an image that's displayed on your TV/monitor. Any number greater than 480 (such as 720 or 1080) is considered high-definition (HD).

The i stands for interlaced, and the p stands for progressive.
When a TV draws an interlaced image, it draws the odd numbered lines in one pass, and the even numbered lines on the next pass.
When a TV draws a progressive image, it draws all the lines in one pass.

Both Blu-ray and HD-DVD can have 1080p video.
Progressive images are said to look smoother, and have less jagged lines. However, if your TV/monitor is good enough, you shouldn't be able to notice a large difference between an interlaced and a progressive image.


What is this deal with the Elite and the new 360's having HDMI capabilities and the older models not?HDMI was added to later revisions of the 360 due to popular demand by the consumers/fans. Some people like HDMI because it sends both the audio and video using the same cable, thus reducing the amount of wires needed to connect devices to your TV.


I bought my 360 in June of this year, it does not have any mention of HDMI on the box like the newer ones do. I'm going to buy an HD-DVD player for the 360 probably by the end of the year, but is it the wrong choice to make without HDMI? Even the consoles with HDMI don't mention it on the box. You would have to look at the back of the console or check the manual to see if it has a HDMI port.

HD-DVDs will still look better than standard DVDs even if you do not have HDMI.


Is there no way to ever have my 360 achieve the highest picture quality possible simply because I purchased it 2 months earlier?
It depends on your TV/monitor, it must be able to display 1080p. The 360 can output 1080p using the component video (red, green, and blue) cable. However, some TVs cannot accept 1080p over their component inputs.
Another option is to use the 360's VGA cable if your TV has a VGA input (the 15-pin blue connector to use it as a computer monitor). You will be able to output 1080p using the VGA cable.


If HDMI + HD DVD + a HDTV = 100% of the possible picture quality, what would not having the HDMI drop the percentage down to? Am I better off just buying a HDDVD standalone player? As I mentioned earlier, if your TV/monitor is good enough, you shouldn't be able to notice that much of a difference between 1080i and 1080p video. You can also use the component or VGA input on your TV/monitor to get 1080p if your TV/monitor has/supports them.

[GaryPotter]

Actually, despite what the console says, you CANNOT output a true 1080p signal using component cables. All you'll get is an upconverted 1080i signal. Really, you should use the VGA or HDMI if you want real 1080p.

Also, you should NOT buy HD DVD. That format is losing the war. Don't buy any new format just yet. If you must, though, get Blu-ray.

[BigLouMan20]

Things might pick up for HD when the Xbox 360 w/ built in HDDVD drive pops up next year.

[Mynd Hed]

It all depends on what kind of TV you have. On all but the absolutely highest-end (read: expensive) large-screen HDTVs, you probably won't notice any appreciable difference between component and HDMI. HDMI is superior to component, in part because it keeps the data in a digital format all the way from the disc to your screen (whereas component cables are analog and, hence, more susceptible to interference), but at the end of the day you can't see a better picture than your screen is capable of displaying.

Even on a really, REALLY nice TV, you probably wouldn't notice a difference between component and HDMI unless

A.) you're a total videophile, which it doesn't sound like you are, or

B.) you made a point of viewing the exact same content over each connection back-to-back for comparison.

So I wouldn't worry too much. In every practical, real-world situation I've seen, the 360's HD-DVD peripheral produces a perfectly lovely picture.

[Cyporiean]

What made me start drooling a little was watching Spider-Man 2's Train Fight, and a few minutes of Chicken Little on Blu-Ray. I dunno if it's just the TV's they had the HD players on, or if it's just Blu-Ray is better.

Regardless of which, because I don't plan on buying a PS3, HD-DVD is the format I'm going to be backing this round. From all the reports I read, it doesn't sound like I'm making a bad decision at all.


Actually, HD-DVD would be dead already if it wasn't for Paramount/Dreamworks being bribed into staying on the format.

Spec wise, HD-DVD is worst then Blu-ray (though ethier is amazingly better then DVD). And Blu-ray is winning the format war (Even though Toshiba is saying HD is winning with players sold, they aren't counting the PS3 as a blu-ray player, and BR Software is selling 3-1 to HD-DVD Software.)

Also the 360 is the worst choice for HD-DVD at the moment due to the external drive, when the internal drive version comes out next year (Should the format continue to exist) that will be a much better version.

[Joe]

Actually, HD-DVD would be dead already if it wasn't for Paramount/Dreamworks being bribed into staying on the format.


Well, that and Universal's loyal devotion to it. Also, I don't think HDDVDs will ever truely die as long as the XBOX 360 is still around. If on the offchance it did, it would be kind of funny to see Microsoft sell a machine that supports a dead format.

I still consider the whole "war" a stalemate, personally. I'll continue to wait it out.

[SNS]

If on the offchance it did, it would be kind of funny to see Microsoft sell a machine that supports a dead format.

That's why Microsoft never released a version of the Xbox 360 that plays HD-DVDs internally (instead of having to connect the add-on), so that if it fails it won't be a big deal (they just stop selling the add-on).

[Cyporiean]

Well, that and Universal's loyal devotion to it. Also, I don't think HDDVDs will ever truely die as long as the XBOX 360 is still around. If on the offchance it did, it would be kind of funny to see Microsoft sell a machine that supports a dead format.

I still consider the whole "war" a stalemate, personally. I'll continue to wait it out.

its not like companies haven't tried to sell a dead format..

or are people actually buying UMDs?

[spidl]

First, HD-DVD is not dead. The specs of Blu-Ray are not finished, and the only advantage it has is disc space, for now, and that has not translated to a better picture which is the most important part.

Second, others have already explained HDMI in great detail so I won't go into that. You can get HDMI on the Elite, Arcade, and Halo editions of the Xbox360. You can find HDMI on some Pro versions, you have to check the box. I believe, I might be wrong, the Elite is the only console that comes with a HDMI cable in the box and an audio cable. If you want the other versions you can always get HDMI cables for cheap online.

[GaryPotter]

First, HD-DVD is not dead. The specs of Blu-Ray are not finished, and the only advantage it has is disc space, for now, and that has not translated to a better picture which is the most important part.

Second, others have already explained HDMI in great detail so I won't go into that. You can get HDMI on the Elite, Arcade, and Halo editions of the Xbox360. You can find HDMI on some Pro versions, you have to check the box. I believe, I might be wrong, the Elite is the only console that comes with a HDMI cable in the box and an audio cable. If you want the other versions you can always get HDMI cables for cheap online.

One of the advantages Blu-ray has it that it has a native 720p output. With HD DVD, if you don't have a 1080p set, the best you'll be able to get is a upconverted 480p signal essentially the same as DVD.

[spidl]

One of the advantages Blu-ray has it that it has a native 720p output. With HD DVD, if you don't have a 1080p set, the best you'll be able to get is a upconverted 480p signal essentially the same as DVD.

Not to take this thread too off subject, but that is not true. HD DVD players will output to 720p, 1080i or 1080p just like Blu-ray.

[GaryPotter]

Not to take this thread too off subject, but that is not true. HD DVD players will output to 720p, 1080i or 1080p just like Blu-ray.

Not natively. If you set an HD DVD player to 720p, it will take a 480p signal and upconvert it. It cannot display 720p natively, that is, it can't get a 720p signal from the disc and put it on the screen. HD DVD has no native specs for 720p.

[peacebyanymeans]

Not natively. If you set an HD DVD player to 720p, it will take a 480p signal and upconvert it. It cannot display 720p natively, that is, it can't get a 720p signal from the disc and put it on the screen. HD DVD has no native specs for 720p.

Stop making crap up, you are wrong. HD-DVD can output at 720p natively.


Actually, despite what the console says, you CANNOT output a true 1080p signal using component cables. All you'll get is an upconverted 1080i signal. Really, you should use the VGA or HDMI if you want real 1080p.

Once again, wrong. You can get 1080p over component. You can only up convert DVDs over HDMI/VGA, but that has to do with DMCA and not the 360 itself.

[Tommy Lawson]

There's an alternative to the 360 add-on, although it's certainly going to be in limited supply. Tomorrow, November 2, at 8:00 am local time, Wal-mart will having a big clearance sale on the Toshiba HD-DVD A2 model, at a really, really low price of $98.87, according to Betanews (http://www.betanews.com/article/WalMart_Buy_Price_HD_DVD_Player_at_100/1193929672). The sale occurs the same day as when the $399 PS3 goes on sale. In addition to the clearance sale, Toshiba is suppose to supply HD-DVD players under $200 which is a better value than the external 360 HD-DVD drive would be.