720p.

1080i is kinda like 540p

One word to add to the 1080i vs 720p debate.

If u have a good deinterlacer 1080i can produce a stunning picture as well. Deinterlacing 1080i is not as easy as it seems. Given a good deinterlacing chip (ie, ABT2010, HQV Reon) you would be hard pressed to tell which is better. Where it is normally seen as better for 720p broadcasts would be for fast moving sports. For movies, if your display has a good deinterlacing chip, u shd be good to go. Or of course if u have a AVR or external scaler/deinterlacer (Lumagen, Crystalio, DVDO) it would yield very good results.

The main problem with all HD broadcasts are bit rate compression. That is what you guys/gal shd worry abt. Astro is notorious for that....

I thought all flat panel displays today have inbuilt deinterlacers, which will convert from your 1080i to 1080p internally. In theory, that should give us more details as opposed to 720p, assuming that your display is capable of 1080 resolution.

if astro is going to broadcast in 1080i instead of 720p, then all the more reason for me to skip it although i still hate to see the aspect-ratio distortion (fat and short people like me).

what i mean to say, ar188, is that since i will still stick to the non-hd astro, i will still see the stinking distorted 4:3 playing on my 16:9 plasma tv.

LOL isn't it obvious?The PQ wouldn't be as sharp as 720p on 720p.Just the same concept as playing 640x480 video on a 1920x1080 resolution...the video gets more pixelated

huh..  why? WWII where got HD recording?

on a related note, does anyone know where to buy 50ft and 100ft composite cable? (in Klang valley). Thanks

New dish, new cable and new decoder for HD reception. existing cable tak boleh pakai lagi.

the larger the dish, more gain, less rain-fade problem

It should be the other way around. Using 1080i to display still scenes will cause flickering because of the interlacing that needs to be done. Flickering = bad. The flickering is almost impossible to notice in fast-paced scenes but easily noticeable as you stare at that iguana in NatGeo HD.

And BTW, I'm pretty damn sure that CBS use 1080i for their sport offerings.

I'm curious to know where asellus got the info about 1080i is better for sport. From what I read off the web so far, 720p is for sport, 1080i is for movie.

I have yet to find claim about 1080i is better for sport, 720p for still images, and the so called flicker effect (which I don't even notice on HDTVs).

ESPN HD in Australia is basically the same as ESPN HD US, therefore it is not surprising that it also uses 720p. It wasn't surprising really, as you can see Derek Rae and Tommy Smyth on that channel. The ESPN in SEA is heavily customized (that's why we don't see Tommy Smyth here, but we can see the likes of John Dykes and co. instead).

Sky TV supports 720p on STB level, not on broadcast level. Meaning, viewers who wants to see Chelsea vs Arsenal in 720p in Sky Sport HD will set it in their STB and the STB will convert it to their preferences. Still broadcasted in 1080i though.

If you hang around in internet forums that specialized in broadcasting, home theaters etc. it is accepted that 1080i is preferred than 720p for sports. For example, NBA in CBS looks better than in FOX because it looks sharper, although of course some people disputes this. The whitepapers may say that 720p is better for sports, but in the real world, 1080i trumped 720p when it comes to performance at the same bitrates, according to viewers feedback. The larger number of HD sport channels that uses 1080i compared to those with 720p confirms that.

If 720p is so good for sport channels (or movies etc.), why wasn't it was used then? If the broadcasters uses 720p for HD sport broadcasts, they can actually also simulcast the SD version of the said channel simultaneously on the same spectrum, which will allow them to wring more profits.

i call since friday and i'm still waiting for them for installation process. im from subang jaya btw. while for my house in my hometown my bro told me they just came and install today and they already enjoying it back at home.

b.t.w : u can choose your resolution between 576i,576p,720p and 1080i....i'm now watching 1080i....but if i watch 720p....its a little bit blurry compared to 1080i....