Xbox Video Compare-O-Matic
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to dynamically overlay new image
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DashBoard Video Settings
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Connector
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The images in the centre were taken with a digital camera facing the screen
in a darkened room. The various cables and modes were setup and pictures
taken of the actual screen. For this reason, sometimes Dirk is
not in exactly the same position, although I tried to make it pretty
close.
Look at the wall texture on the right hand side, this only appears
with any resolvable detail of the "bricks" at 1080i, also check out the fine
outline of Dirk himself.
Dirk appears courtesy of "Dragons Lair 3D" game for the xbox, it claims to
be the first to use true HDTV (Although this is technically incorrect as i'm
pretty sure 720P games were out before Dragons Lair and 720P counts as HDTV,
not just 1080i) Sadly my HDTV doesn't work on 720P although I assume
it would be a tad better than 480P)
Note on the meaning of "Prog" in the above listing. My Rank Arena HDTV can
take an interlaced source and pass it through a DSP to make an artificial
progressive scan on the screen., You may choose to skip over any *Prog sample
since it is only proves that my HDTV screen does more post processing than
the source signal, therefore is not a fair comparison of the actual quality
of the xbox video chip output.
Note the SCART connector supplied with Australian systems is simply fed by
the composite connector, therefore I would not expect the quality to be any
better than the composite images above. Apparently the UK might be
another type of SCART RGB connector, therefore one might expect a better
image over composite, however I imagine poorer than the NTSC HDTV quality.
Where are the PAL SDTV or HDTV 576P@50Hz, 720P@50Hz, 1080i@50Hz images?
Firstly you may have already heard Microsoft Australia would "refund" you
a game if you had purchased a component connector in the mistaken belief
you could use it for HD output (576P, 720P, 1080i @ 50Hz.)
Why would anyone think this would be the case?
Well on the back of my cardboard packing box for the xbox, on the spec sheet
area, there was a "cover-up" sticker over the words "HDTV" so it seems perhaps
MS didn't wan't anyone to believe SDTV/HDTV was supported in this country.
( I wonder if its "covered up" on your PAL box ? )
So technically (ignoring the marketing propaganda) the PAL xbox will not
support HD and we must suffer with the lower quality resolutions and blurred
textures.
Surely the US V OZ/UK HD differences (being 60Hz V 50Hz and 576P V 480P in
SD mode) aren't technical show-stoppers for a the flexible video chip in
the xbox? I'm yet to be shown any executable "hack" patch that lets
the xbox run HD on a PAL box.
It seems that MS is acting as the world wide HD "coordinator" choosing what
areas get HD or NOT when differences betweeen say PAL Regions should be left
up to the consumer to setup, not MS trying to have identical setup in PAL/DVB
regions - and in the end pulling the plug so no-one gets HD in those regions.
paul
