What happens when I view 1080i TV programs with a 720p TV?

Question

I have a Samsung LN32A450 TV which only supports up to 720p. But some of the HD programs in the U.S. is broadcasted in 1080i, such as HBO, CBS, NBC, etc. I know I can still watch those HD channels, but my question is what happens when I do? Does my TV downscale it to 720p? Or 720i? Or 480p/i?

Thanks.

Answer 1

1080i means the TV receives  a 1920x540 field every 1/60 of a second (60 fields per second).

The TV needs to display 60 1280x720 frames per second.

Some TVs will simply throw away one 1080i field and scale the other to 720p. Better TVs will combine the two fields to a single 720-lines frame.

Answer 2

If you just view the 1080i Tv programs in 720p, it just wont look as good as it should look with a 1080i TV set. But, if you set your 720p tv to 1080i, it will work fine, but after a while (a few years), your screen will burn out, and you will need either a new bulb for your tv or a new tv. So I reccomend that you just watch the program in 720p which is fine, and dont set your tv to 1080i as this will wear out your TV.