Texas Instruments pushes 1080p DLP
Texas Instruments pushes 1080p DLP
- Although still awaiting his Oscar for Best Picture Reviewer, David does hold certifications from the Imaging Science Foundation and the National Institutes of Standards and Technology on display calibration and evaluation.
Update: I went by the DLP booth and stayed for the demo, and as expected, it looked fabulous. They showed 1080p front-projection in both one- and three-chip configurations, and the Sin City sequence in particular looked as sharp as I've ever seen. Afterward. I found out that TI isn't using the same "wobulated" 960x1,080 1080p chip found in its 1080p rear-projection sets; the front-projection chips will have all 1,920x1,080 discrete micromirrors. The company's reps were mum on whether these "full" 1080p chips will be available in rear-projection models anytime soon, but I have no doubt they will.
A couple of announcements at CEDIA were designed to alert the media to the company's 1080p DLP offerings. Texas Instruments manufactures the DLP chips found inside so many front- and rear-projection televisions, and the first announcement trumpeted the widespread availability of 1080p rear-projection sets from manufacturers such as Samsung, Mitsubishi, HP, and Toshiba. More interestingly, it noted that the entire microdisplay rear-projection category, since the first quarter of this year, has surpassed traditional CRT-based RPTVs in sales. The company also announced the availability of 1080p chips for front-projectors--currently these models top out at 720p resolution. The 1080p front-projection chipset will be available in single-chip (with a color wheel) and more expensive three-chip configurations. Current three-chip DLP projectors cost $20,000 and up, so we can only imagine what they'll charge for 1080p.