HD Televisions – What should you know before buying?

Thinking about getting a High Definition TV? The market is full of models in every size and price range imaginable, and a large selection doesn’t make the purchasing decision any easier. So much technical data and many different logos can be confusing, rather than helpful. What does 1080 mean? What is the difference between HD ready and Full HD? And which features should you choose? Get to know the answers to these and many more questions before you make your big purchase.

• HD ready
• HD ready 1080p
• HDTV
• Other logos

HD ready

The HD ready logo was introduced in 2005 by the European Information Communication and Consumer Electronics Industry Technology Association (EICTA) in order to identify devices that can show high resolution television. The manufacturer distributed logo is the only logo in Europe that specifies a minimum requirement for HD television and accessories. Manufacturers wishing to display the HD ready logo must fulfil these requirements.

Requirements for HD ready

The EICTA is made up of
32 national electronics organizations from
24 countries and over 50 large electrical companies from Europe, the United States, and Japan.

• 16:9 format with at least 720 rows
• Minimum of an analog HD video connection through
  device input
• Minimum of a digital input which is HDCP encrypted
  (DVI-D/-I or HDMI)
• Both input connections must be progressive frames with
  1280 x 720 pixels (720p) and interlaced frames with
  1920 x 1080 pixels (1080i) with 50 and 60 frames per second

HD ready 1080p

In August 2007 the EICTA introduced the HD ready 1080p logo. Manufacturers wishing to display the logo must fulfil the following requirements:

• All HD ready logo requirements are a prerequisite
• 16:9 format with at least 1080 rows and 1920 columns
• Digital inputs must be progressive frames with 1920 x 1080 pixels (1080p) with 50, 60,
  and 24 frames per second
• Digital inputs must include a mode for the pixel-exact display of 1080p frames

The resolutions of common standard formats from the conventional PAL system to HD ready 1080p

HDTV

HDTV is also a EICTA-specified logo. It distinguishes services that can receive and relay HD images, e.g. receivers, set-top boxes, or hard drive recorders. In order to watch HDTV programs on a set-top box with an HDTV logo, the television it is connected to must also be HD ready.

Other logos

Along the way in your search for the ideal HD television you may encounter other logos on the devices you consider including Full HD and True HD. Don’t assume that these logos indicate that the devices they are displayed on are equipped with the necessary connections to receive High Definition TV.

Many manufacturers create and use these logos for marketing purposes, and should not be mistaken for implying any kind of standard.

More information about this topic can be found in the article „What is HDTV?“