Do you need to playback footage recorded on a hd camcorder onto a HDTV.

Question

if you recorded footage on a hd camcorder would it look a bit naff if you played it back on a normal tv

do you have to have a HDTV

thanx

Answer 1

If you want to use your camcorder as the playback device, you can connect the high def camcorder to any TV using the analog/composite RCA jacked AV cable that comes with the camcorder. This can be any high def camcorder - whether storage is miniDV tape, hard drive, flash memory or DVD based consumer storage media. This will be standard definition analog video.

The trick is that if you have an HDTV, but no way to see the video in high definition. In the miniDV tape HDV world, I import 1080i from the camcorder to the computer, edit, and export that edited video from the computer back to the camcorder. Then I can connect my camcorder with HDMI or component (RGB) + audio cables to the HDTV. This is high def on the HDTV.

I am not aware that this is possible with consumer AVCHD camcorders which use internal hard drive or flash memory or DVD based storage. This does not mean it cannot be done - this just means I have never done it.

Another method is to render a data file and use your computer as the playback device if your computer and the TV have appropriate connectivity. The quality of the playback will depend on how you connect the computer to the TV and the file type and compression type used when rendering the video file.

But to answer your question directly, no, you do not need a HDTV to watch video captured by a high definition camera... but it won't be in high definition, either...

Answer 2

No I don't, thanks for asking anyway.

Answer 3

Your camera will have a downconvert feature to be able to watch the footage in SD, and 4x3 so the picture will be letterbox, most cameras letterbox it automatically when u select 4x3 mode. Obviously the picture won't be in HD quality but will still be a great picture.

Answer 4

It depends...

If you want to see the footage in high definition on a television, then yes, you will need an HD TV.  If you do not have access to an HD TV, you can also view HD footage on a computer that has a monitor set to a resolution greater than 1280x720 such as SXGA, WXGA, WSXGA, and UGA.

If you want to view your HD recording on a TV that is not HD capable, you can, but it will be in SD instead of HD (not a big deal for most people).  You will need to change a setting to have your camcorder downgrade the video signal from HD to SD on the fly.  This setting is usually in the menu under the Play or VCR mode of your camcorder.  You may also need to change a setting to correct the 16:9 aspect ration to display correctly on your 4:3 TV.  The three most common choices are Crop, Squeeze, or Letterbox or Anamorphic.  Your best choice for viewing the entire video is Letterbox or Anamorphic.

Also be aware that if you are connecting your video camera to a standard TV t watch your video in SD and not HD , you will need to use a television that matches the region of your camcorder.  In other words, if your camcorder is set to record NTSC, then you will need an NTSC television.  If your camcorder records in PAL, then you need a PAL television.  This requirement Normally ONLY applies to SD and not HD.