PS3 downscales 720p to 480p

[SpOoNmAn]

No idea if this can be fixed with an update, thats for you ps3 peeps to worry about

As final PlayStation 3 units continue to trickle into more and more hands, additional details about how the system works and what it can and can't do are hitting the web. The latest (rather major) tidbit is how the console treats the upscaling and downscaling of 720p titles on televisions that don't support that resolution -- specifically those that are only 1080i capable.

As it turns out, gamers who own older HD sets that support only 480i, 480p, and 1080i resolution input capabilities will have to settle for the display quality being downsized as the game boots in its 480p mode rather than upscaling the image from its more desirable 720p mode to the TV's 1080i. We tested this development on older HDTV sets with games designed for 720p but not 1080i -- Resistance: Fall of Man, NHL 2K7, Tiger Woods PGA Tour 07, and Need for Speed Carbon. Sure enough, the system downshifted all four titles to 480p rather than moving up to 1080i.

It is not known yet if this is purely a software issue or a deeper technical problem and whether or not this lack of upscaling might be resolved on launch PS3 systems in future updates of the hardware via downloadable firmware patches.

Source

For the theatre buffs, this wont be a big problem as 720p is pretty much a standard and they can set it to that res, but a lot of people I know still have awesome but older mitsus, pioneers and toshibas that only support 1080i and 480p. Good thing none of them want a ps3 or there would be hell to pay!

[Crippler]

Oh good lord. Are you kidding me? I made sure my choice of TV accepted and upscaled a 720P signal so I would never have a downscaled picture from HD sources. The PS3 not scaling to whatever output you choose is just ridiculous.

Just read this on Shacknews:

In the NeoGAF thread, a developer from Insomniac Games, which produced the 720p-only Resistance: Fall of Man, stated that the problem is "not a software issue," implying that it is the hardware that lacks an upscaler. By contrast, Microsoft's Xbox 360 will upscale 720p games to 1080i for TVs that require it.

Doesn't Sony's own older sets not accept a 720P signal and downscale it to 480P?

[SpOoNmAn]

I've kept quiet long enough!

How in the hell does "the HD era start when Sony says it does" when their 600.00 console not only lacks HD cables of any kind, and now this news!!! If it truly is a hardware issue and cannot be remedied via updates...WOW!

This is wrong and people need to start holding this arrogant, "what we say goes" company accountable or they will drag the industry down with them!!!

[HUFN8OR]

Okay, this makes my mind up once and for all not to get a PS3! This is, pardon my french, TOTAL BULLSHIT!!

The freaking thing DOWNCONVERTS to 480p if you have a 1080i set! Hello, can anyone say "just about every HD-RPTV CRT ever made!!!" None that I know of, certainly from Mitsubishi, have 720p or 1080p inputs...they are all 1080i inputs, that's their native resolution.

And if anyone wants to argue with me that some 720p Plasma, LCD or DLP looks better than my ISFed Mits CRT, it's on like Donkey Kong, baby!! If you layer on all of the shortcomings of the PS3, I'm sorry but I find it hard to believe they will ultimately "win" the gaming wars. I know the Sony fanboys will keep them afloat, but this is the crowning jewel in their ineptitude!

Sony just nailed it's coffin shut!!!

[Jon Liu]

that's really a bummer to hear. I was having higher hopes for them but, it's just so hard when I read things like this.

Only one more day before we start hearing all different reports from end-users. It will be an INTERESTING weekend to say the least! PS3 launch, Wii launch, dang! They really like to cram it in all at once!

[Fragmintz]

post deleted

[Frodo 13]

So I guess if you have an older HDTV, you have to buy a new HDTV?

[Crankbait]

Yet another reason why I will stand pat with my 360. There is no way my Mits is getting replaced anytime soon. It may be big, it may be four years old, but it looks fabulous in all its 1080i glory.

I did want to play MGS4 in HD, but now it would cost me over 5k to do so.

What the hell are they thinking?

[Crippler]

We'll know more tomorrow when it launches in the US. I was talking to Peench earlier and asked him to talk to his buddy at Sony about all this. Maybe we can get an actual comment as to if this info around the net is correct.

[Crankbait]

It seems legit, but I hope not. I just can't see investing that much cash in a system, games, and accessories that will not take advantage of my 1080i resolution.

[XXXSNOWMAN]

I am also the proud owner of a "Legacy HDTV" (No 720P, No HDMI) and have no plans on replacing it untill it dies. If the PS3 downscales 720P, they lost my $$$$

[SpOoNmAn]

I guess I assumed incorrectly when I said most theatre buffs wont be bothered by this. I forgot that a lot of you have ISFd crt sets, slightly older ones that do not support native 720p. I'd be right there with ya if I still had my wonderful Pioneer 533HD5 and was planning on getting the ps3.

And the news is legit as of right now. ALL the sites that got their retail ps3s are having the same exact problem.

THE question now is whether or not the info Crippler found at Shacknews is true or not. If it IS the hardware thats limiting it, theres no turning back and it cannot be fixed via an update. Hopefully for consumers sake, it IS fixable via software.

[BMC]

Originally Posted by Crankbait

Yet another reason why I will stand pat with my 360. There is no way my Mits is getting replaced anytime soon. It may be big, it may be four years old, but it looks fabulous in all its 1080i glory.

I did want to play MGS4 in HD, but now it would cost me over 5k to do so.

What the hell are they thinking?

Crankbait I know it's a rumor, but EGM claims in their rumor section that MGS 4 is coming over to the 360 as well.

For the record I don't plan on buying a PS3 at all as of right now. Too many blunders and too expensive hardware for a VIDEOGAME console, not blu-ray player.

[SpOoNmAn]

BMC, that rumor is still floating around?

[BMC]

It's in this month's EGM, the issue with the Halo3 cover story.

[SpOoNmAn]

May I ask what it says exactly? That its coming out sometime down the road or possibly very shortly after it hits the ps3? Anything along those lines?

I would expect it to hit a year later but if its any sooner, Id be shocked. It would please many fans either way(I don't fit into this category).

Last weeks rumor... MS puts bid in to buy Capcom! That died real quick though.

I keezy'd!

[Kid Pyrrhic]

Che (over at Forza's site, formally of 1up) stated that the rumor is more or less a power move by Konami to get Sony to pay for some of MGS4's cost.

If they threaten to take it to Microsoft (as a multi-platform), Sony may pony up cash to keep it exclusive.