So..does anyone still play on an SD TV?

[robinkom]

I'm still playing on an SD, can't afford HD. And honestly I don't see a big enough difference for it to be worth it. My huge SD has kept me going for over decade and hasn't failed yet.

I said the same thing before I got an HDTV. But really... you're looking at a Cathode Ray Tube with a limited color range and resolution scalability (SD) versus a Liquid Crystal Display or Plasma Screen that can change to whatever the system can push at maximum settings (HD). That is the inherent difference. I guarantee you that there are things in your games that you cannot visibly see or notice through a Standard Def display.

It also depends on the hook up of your consoles. If you have, say, a PlayStation 3 hooked into an HDTV with the standard AV cables, you won't see too much of a difference other than having everything in wide-screen and somewhat blurry. However, if you switch to the Component cables or HDMI, you will see a HUGE leap in clarity and quality. Case in point, I had my PS3 before my HDTV and played Metal Gear Solid 4 on it. It looked alright, I could make most everything out fine aside from a lot of tiny onscreen text that I couldn't enlarge.

I switched to my HDTV and everything became insanely crisp and detailed. I saw texture and depth to things that were impossible to notice on Standard Definition. Heavy Rain is another amazingly detailed game world that cannot be done justice on SD.

My Xbox360 games were no exception, especially titles like Mass Effect and SoulCalibur 4.

Give it time though, HDTV prices are always dropping. If your interest is ever peaked to get one, you can probably find a decently-sized one for a good deal after the Holiday Season.

 

[CATS FTW]

Yes, and it sucks so badly because all games are made with illegible text. I hate it because I love to read through the text. A lot of background information is presented through text in Mass Effect, but I have no idea what any of it says. Assassin's Creed gives out instructions in that god awful print.

This is the one thing that may cause me to make a the jump to HD, which is pathetic really. I have to squint to read the writing on most games now-a-days.

I know me and my friends believe that it's just a gimmick to make us switch to hd, and sadly, it's working.

 

[WhatHityou]

Yup a rather large amount of the gaming market still use sd tv's. Including myself.

 

[robinkom]

SD for me, a lot of my old consoles don't work with HD TVs at all

Yeah, I tried my NES on my HDTV once... never again. I could barely make out what everything was and, in the end, it only strained my eyes. I keeps mah SDTV nearby for my classic games.

 

[Fingolfin High-King of the Noldor]

Yeah I do. I also figured out that I can only play my best on my own TV. So I don't really want to change it up and start sucking at my best games. My standard definition has been fine so far and I don't see the purpose in high def for video games.

 

[Ironic Pirate]

I have a 19'', 25 year old SD tv. So yeah.

 

[KingGolem]

I'm still on SD, as all my monitors and TV screens are SD. It just seems like a waste of money to do away with a perfectly good monitor just for a slightly better picture. After all, I'm one of those folks who places artistic direction over graphics.

 

[DaMan1500]

I have a decade-old boxy monstrosity for a TV, and I don't plan on changeing that any time soon.

 

[Baradiel]

Well, I dont OWN a HD tv. We have one in the front room, but the 360 isn't in there.

So, in answer to your question, yes.

Although saying that, I'll be buying a telly soon, so thatll change.

 

[DustyDrB]

I still play on a 32 inch SD TV. The only reason I want a new TV is because mine is so bulky, I move a lot, and drive a smaller car.

 

[JBGigas]

I still have my 15 years old TV.

 

[Deadlock Radium]

Since my dad is the most nazi person on the planet when it comes to money, I usually don't get to play in HD on my PS3, and then it's off to the 540i (!) SD TV.
And when I do move it to my room to play on the 22" FullHD monitor, my dad goes mad, very, very mad. He's got some serious anger issues, so I usually don't move the PS3 because he gets furious for that small reason.

 

[esperandote]

Until some years ago i still played on a standar tv with a knob to change channel.

 

[Shaun Hastings]

I have a SD tv downstairs and it's terrible. My friend complains about it whenever I turn it out to play my PS3. Though, thankfully when we move, we're updating to all HD tvs.

 

[Treblaine]

If you sit a distance more than 3.5x the diagonal-diameter of your screen you might as well be watching an SDTV even if it is a 1080p screen playing the highest quality blu-ray. That's because even with 20:20 vision you just can't resolve that much detail at that distance (for a screen of a given size).

It's all based on the Lechner distance. Google it.

BTW, that's 3.5x for American SDTV which is only 480p but European SDTV is 576p (that's even for DVDs) and you can't see any greater detail than that further than about 3.0x the screen size (diagonal diameter).

So if you sit 6 feet from your TV (even if HD) and it's only 20 inches then there is no point at all in bothering with Blu-ray nor any HD content, just stick with DVD and SD-consoles like Wii or PS2 (or at least if you don't mind missing the resolution of HD-consoles).

To actually be able to SEE up to 720p resolution you need to either sit as close as only 4 feet away or upgrade to a 30 inch screen and stay at your (perhaps preferred) 6-foot viewing distance.

For 1080p you either need to be within 2.5 feet(!) of a 20 inch screen (basically desktop distance) or from 6-feet have a 45 inch screen!!! Of course, closer than ideal 480p distance you will still be able to see MORE detail (with HD-source and HD capable screen) but it won't be the BEST and with only marginal improvement then it won't be worth it.

Good rule of thumb: If you can't see individual pixels from where you normally view your screen/TV from then there is no point in upgrading resolution without getting a MUCH bigger screen.

Spoiler: formulas n' shit

This is all based around this one statistic:

9 feet (108 inches) can see 1080p on a screen 69 inches diagonal.

108/69= 1.57

Let's take from that the 'distance differential' of 1.6 so you need to be within 1.6x the screen size. That's the important figure when shopping for a 1080p screen or TV.

Now that Unit is scalable

So say you had an odd resolution like 600p (COD4 on console native resolution).

1080/600 = 1.8

that's your 'conversion factor'. Multiply that by 1080p's 'distance differential'

1.8 x 1.6 = 2.88

So, assuming you have good scaling algorithms (and an actual resolution at least as high as 600p) then you should sit within 2.88x the screen size, much more than that and you're losing detail, no point in sitting closer or having a bigger screen as you couldn't see any more anyway.

About 5 feet from a 20 inch screen.

BTW, this only works for screens with 16:9 aspect ratio, you'll have to do some fiddling to calculate fro 16:10 or 4:3 screens. The XXXp has become a byword for a 16:9 image with the number being the vertical resolution (horizontal res in 1.78x vertical). Also this assumes you have 20:20 vision (after corrective lenses).

 

[Jfswift]

I'm going to search for an SDTV soon, for some of my older games.

 

[KiiDWiZ]

I do. But only when play I 360. I have an HDTV but my ps2 is hooked up to that. Don't ask me why I don't switch them.

 

[Tdc2182]

I did until about 2 days ago. Now my TV is fucking Ginormous. It actually took a while to get used to.