great 720p vs an good 1080p projector

[dajaga]

ok guys, im just wondering whats your opinion on this.
i dont know much about front projection, i think im gonna hold out till a 3-d projections are available and more mainstream, but i was wondering what would you guys prefer a really good quality 720p for under 1000, or an ok 1080p for the same price

[Fors*]

I choose what I think is a great 720p projector. But it wasn't really because of 720p or 1080p that I chose it. It had a lot more to do with my room and my needs as far as screen size, throw distance, lumens, black levels, contrast, etc....price played into it too, but I have a 1080p TV and now a 720p projector and my eyes can only see a slight difference. But that is probably some kind of placebo effect, which I am fine with. I also invested in a 720p projector because of the price and the fact that I too will be looking into 3D projectors down the road in a few years when I am ready to upgrade....

[crazyBLUE]

there is some great 720p PJ's . As fors said he can barely tell the difference between 720P & 1080P . I have been told by A Mod here that the human eye cannot tell the difference .

These are screen shots off my 6 year old 720P taken this last year

[Disky76]

I have a 720p projector that I am quite happy with - it works well but I am able to control the light totally as I have setup a dedicated theatre.

My screen size is 100" for 16:9 and 92" for 2.35:1 scope - however, I would imagine that if I chose to go much larger, then 1080p may become necessary to maintain the quality.

I would imagine that 1080p projectors would be for a large room and large screen.

All in all, I personally think 720p projectors work just fine for most home situations, provided that you can control the light and aren't looking to do too large of a screen or too long of a throw.

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by Disky76

I have a 720p projector that I am quite happy with - it works well but I am able to control the light totally as I have setup a dedicated theatre.

My screen size is 100" for 16:9 and 92" for 2.35:1 scope - however, I would imagine that if I chose to go much larger, then 1080p may become necessary to maintain the quality.

I would imagine that 1080p projectors would be for a large room and large screen.

All in all, I personally think 720p projectors work just fine for most home situations, provided that you can control the light and aren't looking to do too large of a screen or too long of a throw.

This is exactly what I have as well.....an average sized throw with an average sized screen with total light control (my HT is in my basement.) When you have control of these factors, 720p projectors will look very good and become an attractive option. Like everyone here, you need to work with the limitations of your room. Good luck!

[killat0n]

Originally Posted by crazyBLUE

I have been told by A Mod here that the human eye cannot tell the difference .

Whoever told you that is 100% wrong.

I have a 1080p projector and a close friend of mine who's running a 720p projector. He is constantly wanting to watch movies at my place because he says the there is just so much more detail he doesn't see with his. And I completely agree. I've seen his setup countless times and the difference is huge. 1080p is twice the amount of pixels compared to 720p no matter how you look at it. And when you're talking screen sizes of 100 inches and up, the difference becomes very apparent.

Originally Posted by Disky76

All in all, I personally think 720p projectors work just fine for most home situations, provided that you can control the light and aren't looking to do too large of a screen or too long of a throw.

I also agree with this. Depending on your budget and available room, light control, etc etc. 720p projectors can definitely do the job.


For fun, here's a picture I took of my screen and 1080p projector.

[killat0n]

This was taken from this article.

"Based on the resolving ability of the human eye (with 20/20 vision it is possible to resolve 1/60th of a degree of an arc), it is possible to estimate when the differences between resolutions will become apparent."

"However, front projectors and rear projection displays are a different story. They make it very easy to obtain large screen sizes. Plus, LCD and Plasma displays are constantly getting larger and less expensive. In my home, for example, I have a 123-inch screen and a projector with a 1280×720 resolution. For a 123-inch screen, the benefits of 720p vs. 480p starts to become apparent at viewing distances closer than 36 feet (14 feet behind my back wall) and become fully apparent at 24 feet (2 feet behind my back wall). For the same screen size, the benefits of 1080p vs. 720p start to become apparent when closer than 24 feet and become full apparent at 16 feet (just between the first and second row of seating in my theater). This means that people in the back row of my home theater would see some improvement if I purchased a 1080p projector and that people in the front row would notice a drastic improvement."

[brokenthumb]

Just this last week I went from a 720p projector to a 1080p projector. I have a 96" 2.35:1 CIH setup, my 1.85:1 image is around 80".

Sitting back 9 1/2 feet from the screen the 80" image looks about the same to my eyes. There is more detail but it doesn't jump out at you.

After zooming to the 96" 2.35:1 image from 9 1/2 feet there is a huge difference. I no longer have any hint of a screendoor effect and the image is full of little details.
I watched I, Robot and Cars last weekend and noticed all kinds of little things that I never seen before.
(I removed the DIY Anamorphic Lens b/c the zoom on this projector looks way better than going through the prisms)

The last thing I'm loving is the 1080p @ 24fps! I never realized how smooth the credits were supposed to roll and the pans are much smoother than before also.

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by brokenthumb

Just this last week I went from a 720p projector to a 1080p projector. I have a 96" 2.35:1 CIH setup, my 1.85:1 image is around 80".

Sitting back 9 1/2 feet from the screen the 80" image looks about the same to my eyes. There is more detail but it doesn't jump out at you.

After zooming to the 96" 2.35:1 image from 9 1/2 feet there is a huge difference. I no longer have any hint of a screendoor effect and the image is full of little details.
I watched I, Robot and Cars last weekend and noticed all kinds of little things that I never seen before.
(I removed the DIY Anamorphic Lens b/c the zoom on this projector looks way better than going through the prisms)

The last thing I'm loving is the 1080p @ 24fps! I never realized how smooth the credits were supposed to roll and the pans are much smoother than before also.

And no pics brokenthumb? C'mon buddy...you know the rule! Congrats by the way!!

[brokenthumb]

Originally Posted by forsberg21

And no pics brokenthumb? C'mon buddy...you know the rule! Congrats by the way!!

Yeah, I need to get on that. lol I've been watching too many football games and movies.

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by brokenthumb

Yeah, I need to get on that. lol I've been watching too many football games and movies.

The main reason I got my 720p was because of placement issues. Thus, I felt I needed an LCD projector that added the flexibility along with an excellent horizontal and vertical shift. All the lower end 1080p projectors that I saw in my price range were DLP, and I didn't feel comfortable with my ability to locate that kind of projector properly. I feel for the price I got for my 720p, I didn't see the difference in price for a 1080p LCD projector justified, especially with the placement a question.

[ditch-digger]

i have been thru this whole scenario. i had an hc1500, and went to an hd65 both dlp 720p. had the urge to get 1080p, i mean come on ps3, blu ray, more pixels better pic. period. well i had a budget as we all do. mine was 1k so i went for the hd20 (one of the many sub 1k 1080p's out) WOW was i not impressed. sent back and was going to go with the 720p lcd panny (some say rivals some pic quality of 1080p's) but i got an insane deal on an epson 6100.

there is a difference between 1080p and 720p anyone who says there is not is just trying to convince themselves.......but make sure its a real upgrade because there is also a difference between 1080p projectors.

if i had not gotten the deal who knows, may have waited but there are deals out there...

[progers13]

Originally Posted by ditch-digger

i have been thru this whole scenario. i had an hc1500, and went to an hd65 both dlp 720p. had the urge to get 1080p, i mean come on ps3, blu ray, more pixels better pic. period. well i had a budget as we all do. mine was 1k so i went for the hd20 (one of the many sub 1k 1080p's out) WOW was i not impressed. sent back and was going to go with the 720p lcd panny (some say rivals some pic quality of 1080p's) but i got an insane deal on an epson 6100.

there is a difference between 1080p and 720p anyone who says there is not is just trying to convince themselves.......but make sure its a real upgrade because there is also a difference between 1080p projectors.

if i had not gotten the deal who knows, may have waited but there are deals out there...

And that was quite a deal you got too, ditch-digger. I've been following your thread on it.

[dajaga]

ok thanks for the info. well i think im set on getting a 720p,
my living room is 90% controllable with the light, got nice thick curtains and just one small walk way that emits light to right of the room not too bad.
i have an 100 diagonal screen from an old projector, and the viewing is about 15feet away.
now does any one have ay info on the optoma hd66, will it be able to do the proper 3-d standard once the ps3 is bluray upgradable, or is this still very unknown.
the optoma claims that it is 3-d ready

cant wait a projector, playstaion 3 and 3-d 2nd best year of bluray

[Beta Man]

Originally Posted by crazyBLUE

I have been told by A Mod here that the human eye cannot tell the difference .
]

That's either taken WAAAAY out of some sort of context, or it's just flat-out-wrong.......

Either way, Resolution isn't the "Most" important factor in Picture-Quality, but for $1,000 a 1080p is in his budget, and you'd probably have to pay $3,000 or so to get a "Better" 720p unit...........

and as far as the "3-D Ready" stuff...... I don't know what that means..... but never have an urge for 3-D in my home EVER.

[DKHK]

Originally Posted by crazyBLUE

I have been told by A Mod here that the human eye cannot tell the difference .

Please note that the issue is not only related to whether human eyes can or cannot resolve the pixels. A more important artifact is the introduction of scaling problem, esp. when you're watching blu-ray (i.e. either the player or the TV/projector needs to scale down the 1080-lines image to an 720-lines image). Here is an interesting and useful reading (please take note of Part V of this article):

http://www.hometheaterhifi.com/volum...07-part-1.html

I have a 37" 768p LCD TV and a 1080p LCD projector - the difference is very noticeable. Seating at the same viewing distance (~9 feet) and feeding with the same 1080i HDTV signal, the picture projected by the 1080p projector (projecting on a 80" screen) is MUCH better than the one shown on the (comparatively tiny) 37" LCD TV.

[STARSCREAM]

1080p.

[D Rock]

I had a panasonic 720p projector that I bought solely because at the time it was $1,000 cheaper than a 1080p projector. I was very happy with the projector but I did upgrade to a panasonic 1080p projector a little over a year ago. As soon as I ordered the 1080p projector I had buyers remorse because every time I would watch a movie on my 720p I was so happy with it that I had a hard time believing the 1080p could possibly look better. I am glad to say once I received the 1080p and watched a movie on it I could tell a difference...maybe it was the 1080p versus the 720p resolution, maybe it was the internal components that made the picture sharper and the colors more vibrant or maybe a combination of both.

So in short, if you have a good 1080p projector you should notice a difference over a 720p projector but don't shy away from a 720p if thats what fits your budget. There is nothing like watching a movie or playing your 360/PS3 on a projector whether it's 720p or 1080p...

[drago3451]

Some people have a hard time telling the difference from SD to HD so I guess it depends on the individual. My sister says she cannot tell the difference between SD cable and HD cable. (I say she is crazy).

My first and only projector is 1080p so I have no point of reference. I can tell you I will never go back to a standard sized TV again. I recommend that everyone find a way to work projection into his or her lives 720p or 1080p, doesn’t matter, get it!

[Fors*]

Originally Posted by drago3451

Some people have a hard time telling the difference from SD to HD so I guess it depends on the individual. My sister says she cannot tell the difference between SD cable and HD cable. (I say she is crazy).

My first and only projector is 1080p so I have no point of reference. I can tell you I will never go back to a standard sized TV again. I recommend that everyone find a way to work projection into his or her lives 720p or 1080p, doesn’t matter, get it!

I agree. I have a pull-down screen, and I use the TV for about 95% of all my viewing. But when we pull the screen down and watch a movie, it's like re-discovering that impressive size difference all over again. I still get a big smile everytime the projector first fires up.