Toshiba is now bringing its super upconversion to LCD HDTV's. Three new models featuring this technology are slated to launch in Japan this October. The new super resolution TV's will contain "Meta Brain Premium", which is an image processing circuit dedicated to the super upconversion processes.
Photo: techon.nikkeibp.co.jp
These TV's will not contain a cell processor, but they will function similarly to previous Toshiba concept TV's that contained cell processing power. The main difference is that the cell equipped TV would process the image multiple times, whereas these "meta brain premium" TV's will not.
So how does it work? The source image is initially analyzed and categorized into three different image areas; texture, edge and flat. The super resolution TV then upscales the texture areas to form a temporary high resolution image. This temporary image is then down scaled and compared to the original source image. If there are any significant differences, the processed image is then adjusted again to improve picture quality. Afterwards, the final image is transmitted to the display.
Toshiba continues to buck the trend and boycott Blu-ray Disc technology. But with the rest of the CE industry backing Blu-ray, it seems inevitable that Toshiba will follow suit at some point. In the mean time, it looks like we will continue to see multiple super upconversion products coming from the electronics giant formerly known for HD DVD.
