Low-definition television

Low-definition television (LDTV) refers to TV systems that have a lower screen resolution than standard-definition TV systems. The term is usually used in reference to digital TV, in particular when broadcasting at the same (or similar) resolution as low-definition analog TV systems. Mobile DTV systems usually transmit in low definition, as do all slow-scan TV systems.

"288p" redirects here. For the binary comet designated 288P, see (300163) 2006 VW139.

Sources

The most common source of LDTV programming is the Internet, where mass distribution of higher-resolution video files could previously overwhelm computer servers and take too long to download. Many mobile phones and portable devices such as Apple’s iPod nano, or Sony’s PlayStation Portable use LDTV video, as higher-resolution files would be have no perceivable advantage when viewed on their low resolution displays (320×240 and 480×272 pixels respectively). The 3rd, 4th, 5th, and 7th generation of iPod nano has an LDTV screen, as do the first three generations of iPod touch and iPhone (480×320).

For the first years of its existence, YouTube offered only one, low-definition resolution of 320x240 at 30fps or less, later extending first to widescreen 426×240, then to gradually higher resolutions; once the video service had become well established and had been acquired by Google, it had access to Google’s radically improved storage space and transmission bandwidth, and could rely on a good proportion of its users having high-speed internet connections. More recently, YouTube has also extended further into the LDTV realm by adding an even lower 256×144p resolution with a halved framerate giving an overall effect reminiscent of early online video streaming attempts using RealVideo or similar services, where 160×120 at single-figure framerates was deemed acceptable to cater to those whose network connections could not even sufficiently deliver 240p content.

A VHS videotape can be considered SDTV due to its resolution (approximately 360 pixels by 480 or 576 pixels, the latter number depending on if it’s from a NTSC or PAL region), but using VHS for professional production will yield results subjectively comparable to LDTV because of VHS's low bandwidth, particularly in the field of color reproduction. VHS does, however, still provide high motion and a relatively high vertical resolution via interlacing, which is a feature uncommon in true LDTV material, and reasonable luma resolution.

In comparison, professional-level Betacam SP tape produces approximately a 440×486/576 resolution and some college TV studios use Super VHS at approximately 560×486/576, along with an increased colour carrier bandwidth. Both of these systems, whilst showing a marked improvement over VHS, ultimately offer lower resolution images than DVD, but are still comparable to (and thus remain useful for) lower-bandwidth broadcast television, which is compromised in the analogue domain by a narrower available frequency range for each individual channel, and in the digital by a literally lower horizontal pixel count (often 480 or 544, versus the 720 of DVD and full-rate SDTV broadcasts). Again, both systems offer high motion and a high vertical resolution by way of interlacing, and are more justifiably counted as SD rather than LD.

Older video game consoles and home computers often generated a technically-compliant NTSC or PAL signal (480i and 576i respectively) but only sent one field type rather than alternating between the two. This created a 240 or 288 line progressive signal, which in theory can be decoded on any receiver that can decode normal, interlaced signals.[1][2][3] Since the shadow mask and beam width of standard CRT televisions were designed for interlaced signals, these systems produced a distinctive fixed pattern of alternating bright and dark scan lines; many emulators for older systems offer video filters to recreate this effect.

The Video CD format was introduced with the CD-i, and it likewise originally used a progressive LDTV signal (352×240 or 352×288), which is half the vertical and horizontal resolution of full-bandwidth SDTV. However, most DVD and SVCD players, as well as VCD 2.0 players (which can display still images at 704×480/576 pixels and offer limited DVD menu-esque functions), will internally upscale VCD material to 480i/576i (or 480p/576p for progressive-scan players) for playback, as this is both more widely compatible and gives a better overall appearance. No motion information is lost due to this process, as, unlike the single-field output of classic computers and consoles, VCD video is not high-motion and only plays back at 25 or 30 frames per second. A similar recording standard (quarter-resolution and half framerate) is also used for super-long-play home DVD recording, although it does not typically adhere to the same bitrate or encoding specifications, and could therefore be considered LDTV (regular "LP" DVD recording is closest in spec to a high grade VHS or Betamax recording, having half the normal horizontal resolution and a lower bitrate, but otherwise being identical to a full-rate "SP" recording, including high-motion interlace, and thus still qualifies as SDTV).

With the late 1980s introduction of 16-bit and 32-bit computers/game consoles, such as the Atari ST, the Commodore Amiga, the Super Nintendo,[3] and the Sega Genesis, outputs up to 480i/576i were supported for the first time, but rarely used due to heavy demands on processing power and memory. Standard resolutions also had a tendency to produce noticeable flicker at horizontal edges unless employed quite carefully, such as using anti-aliasing, which was either not available or computationally exorbitant. Thus, 240p/288p remained the primary format on most games of the fourth and fifth generation consoles (including the Sega Saturn, the Sony PlayStation and the Nintendo 64). With the advent of sixth generation consoles and the launch of the Dreamcast, 480i/576i use became more common, and 240p/288p usage declined.

More recent game systems tend to use only properly interlaced NTSC or PAL in addition to higher resolution modes, except when running games designed for older, compatible systems in their native modes. The PlayStation 2 generates 240p/288p if a PlayStation game calls for this mode, as do many Virtual Console emulated games on the Nintendo Wii. Nintendo's official software development kit documentation for the Wii refers to 240p as 'non-interlaced mode' or 'double-strike'.[4][5]

Shortly after the launch of the Wii Virtual Console service, many users with component video cables experienced problems displaying some Virtual Console games due to certain TV models/manufacturers not supporting 240p over a component video connection. Nintendo's solution was to implement a video mode which forces the emulator to output 480i instead of 240p,[6] however many games released prior were never updated.[7]

Teleconferencing LDTV

Upcoming sources of LDTV using standard broadcasting techniques include mobile TV services powered by DVB-H, 1seg, DMB, or ATSC-M/H. However, this kind of LDTV transmission technology is based on existent LDTV teleconferencing standards that have been in place for a decade or more.

Resolutions
StandardClassResolution PixelsAspect RatioNotes
MMS-Small96p128×96 12,2884:3Lowest size recommended for use with 3GPP video transmitted by MMS to/from cellular phones, matching resolution of smallest generally used color cellphone screen.
QQVGA120p160×120 19,2004:3Used with some webcams and early colour-screen cellular phones, commonly used in early desktop computer and online video applications. Lowest commonly used video resolution.
QCIF Webcam144p176×144 25,34411:9Approximately one-sixth analogue PAL resolution (one-half horizontal, one-third vertical). Also the size recommended for "medium" quality MMS videos.
YouTube 144p144p256×144 36,86416:9One tenth of 1440p. The lowest resolution on YouTube.
QnHD 180p 320×180 57,600 16:9
NTSC square pixel240p320×240 76,8004:3Comparable to "low resolution" output of many popular home computers and games consoles, including VGA "Mode X". Used in some webcams and for video recordings in early/budget digital cameras and cameraphones, and low-end smartphone screens. Original YouTube resolution. Maximum recommended size for "large" MMS videos.
SIF (525)240p352×240 84,4804:3NTSC-standard VCD / super-long-play DVD. Narrow/tall pixels.
NTSC widescreen240p426×240 102,24016:9Same as current YouTube "240p" mode; screen resolution of some budget portable DVD players. Roughly one-third full NTSC resolution (half vertical, two thirds horizontal).
CIF, SIF (625)288p480×272 130,5604:3PAL-standard VCD / super-long-play DVD. Wide/short pixels. Also a common resolution in early webcam / video conferencing, and in advanced featurephones and smartphones of mid-2000s (ca 2006).
PSP288p30:17Notionally 16:9 with slight left/right edge cropping. Used in many portable DVD player screens and other small-format devices besides.
360p360p480×360 172,8004:3Uncommon, used in some lower-mid-market smartphone screens and as an intermediate screen resolution for some 1990s videogames.
Wide 360p360p640×360 230,40016:9Current base resolution in YouTube, labelled as "360p".
  • The lowest and least computationally demanding resolution supported by hardware able to run mainstream desktop operating systems; the lowest interruption-free resolution with low-end broadband connections.
  • Typically used as the base "SD" standard by VoD services due to subjective similarity (and similar pixel counts) to a mid-grade free-to-air broadcast picture.
  • Effectively, the resolution offered by any higher-definition 16:9 video scaled down for a standard 640×480 (VGA) computer screen. Offers 75% of the pixel count of a true anamorphic NTSC DVD image, or 89% of a letterboxed 16:9 image.
  • Historically used as an ad-hoc standard for intermediate-quality / CD-R-sized MPEG4 conversions on P2P file sharing networks.

See also

References
  1. "Scanlines Demystified". Retrieved 2010-06-03.
  2. "Connecting your old videogames to your new flatpanel TV set". Retrieved 2010-06-03.
  3. SNES Development Manual. Nintendo of America. 1993. p. 2-1-2. Retrieved 2017-08-28. The picture display on the Super Nintendo Entertainment System (Super NES) has two modes. One is an interlace mode, based on the television system. The other is a non-interlace mode, in which one frame takes 1/60th of a second. In the non-interlace mode the same position is scanned every field. Each frame consists of only 262 lines, half that of the interlace mode. There appears to be no flickering compared to the interlace mode, since each point on the screen is radiated every 1/60th of a second.
  4. "N64 Functions Reference Manual - Video Interface (VI) Management". Archived from the original on 2012-03-26. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  5. "GameCube SDK - Video Interface Library (VI)" (PDF). p. 6. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2011-09-25. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  6. "Nintendo Support - Display problems while playing Virtual Console games". Retrieved 2011-06-27.
  7. "Wii Component cable Interlace Mode". Archived from the original on 2012-03-21. Retrieved 2011-06-27.
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