525iSE

I was wondering, is HDMI and Component HD cable different, well I know they're different, but are the graphics equally as good when shown on HD Tvs? Cuz I got an Xbox360 without the damn HDMI and using component right now to display 1080i, same with my PS3. But I was wondering, is it that much of a difference when using HDMI compared to Component cable? I plan on upgrading my TV soon, so it'll take 1080p signals as well. Please let me know fast, I can still return my Xbox360 and await the new one to come out with the HDMI output. Please help!

blinkme_210

Xbox 360 does not have an HDMI output. So you can't even output 1080p over HDMI even if you wanted to. Component cables have the ability to carry 1080p signals, but the Xbox 360 doesn't output 1080p over component. As of right now, to get 1080p, you have to use VGA.

HDMI & component are both a digital format, hence no difference in quality between the 2. Only difference is that HDMI has the audio signal sent with it as well.

Westcoast M5

I have a 50" HD plasma and Xbox 360 (like you with no HDMI so run component in 1080i). I do have HDMI and component cables running from my HD cable box. When I toggle between the two, the HDMI seems to have a bit more "colour saturation" (not a technical term - but what I mean is the colour is slightly more vivid). No difference in clarity though, both are eye-poppingly clear (also not a techical term).

swajames

Component is actually still an analogue format, not digital. Only DVI or HDMI are truly digital formats (with only HMDI carrying audio too).

Iceman

Yep. That's correct!

525iSE

But without the digital and analog output complication and technology, are they both equally clear? Let me rephrase that, without going into detail about how digital signal or analog signal works and all that to differentiate the two types of output, is the quality the same when viewed in HD mode?

525iSE

Yes Xbox360 does not have an HDMI output, which is the whole point of the thread, because I saw posts here, and a few other game sites that a newer Xbox360 is to be released soon with HDMI output, so if there's a real difference in clarity and all that, then I will return a 4 day old Xbox360 I recently bought and wait for the newer one with HDMI output. Mainly, I don't want to spend money on something that will be "outmodeled" in a couple of weeks.

Heiss5

HDMI is replacing the older stuff like component, composite, coaz, etc. HDMI is better and is definitely the future, so in terms of not wanting to buy outdated stuff, I'd say return it and get the new one with HDMI. But even HDMI is going to get an upgrade in the near future to Type B, which will be a 29 pin connection and will be able to support resolutions higher than 3200x2048.

Although that high of a resolution isn't really needed yet seeing as how the best monitors are only capable of 2560x1600, unless of course you're lucky enough to use/see one of IBM's higher up models which allow a resolution up to 3840x2400. Basically, to sum everything up, current HDMI can support the transfer of way higher resolutions than current monitors can handle (I believe it's up to 5 times higher). So while you end up spending big money for the next 5 years on new TVs at least you'll know you wont have to upgrade any digital devices that says HDMI on it.

ImolaRedM

Yes and no. It would mainly depend on what your display is. You're not likely to notice the difference on a CRT, even many of the high end units. On a good LCD or Plasma capable of a true 1080p image, you may notice.

UUronL

Exactly - therein lies the real issue. A lot of consumer TVs actually pass the digital interfaces through the same analog circuit that the component inputs use. My DVI interface is like this on my XBR Grand Wega. Not a big deal, but it's not a 100% digital path. Just means that my DVI will never look "better" than a high quality component interconnect. Not a big deal, since it was designed to look awesome with component and has the hardware to back it up.


Let's be clear about another thing too - DVI and HDMI only make getting a superb picture a much cheaper activity. In the old days, people spent $400+ on high quality component cable sets that were the size of a garden hose. Many still do. If you have a $20,000+ CRT projector with 9" guns, you're using component. DVI and HDMI permit you to use a crap $5 cable instead of paying for top-dollar video interconnects. Copy protection is the other big reason for using DVI and HDMI.


Increasingly, some TVs and video sources are skimping on the hardware and supporting chipsets used for component ins/outs. That can be another reason to try to use only digital interfaces, but this would be very specific to the combination of devices a particular owner uses in his system.