You might have noticed that some new DVD players contain an HD up-converter. Or maybe you have seen some single HD up-converters in stores, or you might even have a high-end HDTV with a built-in HD up-converter. But what does this converter actually do?
A standard DVD player translates digital output to an analog signal which an analog television can understand. When a DVD player is connected to an HDTV, it first converts the signal to analog (as it always does), then converts the resolution up to 1080 lines (which is the standard for HDTV) and finally transforms it back again to a digital signal. This results in great loss of image quality because digital noise is added and images are less crispier.
An HD up-converter eliminates the procedure in which the DVD player converts the signal to analog and converts the low resolution provided by a DVD (480 lines, the standard for analog televisions) into a high resolution which fits the HDTV (up to 1080 lines). Besides that, up converters adjust the frame rate (even 35mm) of the DVD to that of the TV. The result is crispier images and the elimination of digital noise and flickering.
So basically this means that an HD up-converter makes sure that your old DVDs look superior on High Definition Televisions, instead of low quality images full of lines, color transformations and noise, which will be the case if you do not use an HD up-converter.
