Is it possible to get a True 1920x1080P Resolution from and HDV Camcorder such as the HV-30?

Question

I thought the HDV format was restricted to 1080i (1440x1080 interlaced) or 720P (1280x720 progressive). The advertisement for the HV-30 says FULL HD and HD CMOS 1920x1080. This is a little misleading. Is it possible the format has been improved. Any help?

See website for advertisement.

http://www.usa.canon.com/consumer/controller?act=ModelInfoAct&fcategoryid=177&modelid=16206

Answer 1

The camera has a 1920x1080p sensor and can output full 1920x1080 via the HDMI or component outputs, so the ads are not lying.  However the HDV recording format only supports 1440x1080, so it will be slightly downrezed when going to tape or firewire.

Anyway, the difference between 1440 and 1920 is tiny.  You would never be able to tell the difference unless you only shoot B&W test charts all day.  There are plenty of professional movies being shot on HDV and none of the pros get hung up on the 1920 vs 1440 thing.  Only "measurebators" and "pixel peepers" care about such differences.

BTW, Star Wars Eps 1-3 were shot on HDCAM which is 1440x1080.

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Edit: About what knight rider said, both 1920 and 1440 are 16:9 widescreen formats.  The difference is that 1920 uses square pixels but 1440 uses anamorphic (rectangular) pixels, in the same way that DVDs are always 720x480 but can contain either 4:3 or 16:9 (anamorphic) video.

Answer 2

I don't think so, because capturing on a 1920x1080 sensor and getting 1440x1080 output means you're getting 1440x1080 on your screen (closer to the old 1.33:1 tube tv format, as opposed to 1920x1080 output, which is normal widescreen DVD format, 1.78:1). It is whatever the OUTPUT says it is, so yes it is misleading!

Unfortunately, you'll have to wait another year or so to see if they finally make one where the output matches the sensor input numbers quoted in the ads.

Answer 3

yes, the format has gotten better. But it is also very compressed meaning you need to make sure that you have the right software to edit the footage you take. The reason they give you the full resolution is because they are trying to get you to buy their stuff only to find out they burned you on something else. It wasn't restricted to 1080i, they just weren't willing to lower the price tag for it for average consumers.