In the world of super video television, there’s high-definition television (HDTV) and then there’s ultra HDTV, sometimes referred to as true HDTV, full HDTV, or super high res. Ultra HDTV is obviously better than HDTV, and they are both better than traditional television, in terms of resolution. HDTV is advanced video technology that drives what amounts to a much sharper, clearer, and ultimately more colorful picture than in most traditional TV displays, or standard definition TVs (SDTVs). HDTV is all the rage these days, as people line up to buy larger and larger televisions on which to view sports, films, and other pursuits. Many of these larger televisions have HDTV.

By and large, HDTV offers a picture of a higher resolution than traditional displays. With resolution, the larger the number, the better the picture on the screen. That is the more lines, or the more pixels, the sharper and better the picture. Traditional TVs offer resolutions of up to 480 lines.

HDTV can display resolutions of 720, 768, or 1080 lines (or up to 1,920 x 1,080 pixels). These are significant upgrades to previous technology. In order to take advantage of this increase in visibility, you need to buy a bigger screen; that is one main reason that the size of TVs has grown in recent years.

Ultra HDTV takes an even greater leap forward in video resolution technology. Like regular HDTV, ultra HDTV also offers an image resolution of 1080 lines (or 1,920 x 1,080 pixels). The difference between the best HDTV, or 1080i, and ultra HDTV, or 1080p, doesn't have to do with the number of lines or pixels that the screen boasts, rather it all lies in the order of the lines in which the image is displayed. In interlaced resolutions, like the 1080i, the odd lines are displayed first, then the even lines. In progressive resolutions, like the 1080p, the image is displayed line by line, in a sequence. This is why progressive resolutions, like the 1080p, provide for a smoother and crisper viewing experience. While the 1080p can provide for a better image, it requires a lot of bandwidth to broadcast that much data. As a result, most ultra HDTV owners can only take advantage of the benefits of their high quality displays via such things as high-def movie players like Blue-ray and some video game consoles like Sony PlayStation 3.

Plasma TVs and liquid-crystal display (LCD) flat panel TVs are very popular these days, too, and these kinds of sets are manufactured with ultra HDTV in mind. They, too, follow the rule of the larger the set, the better the resolution and the picture. Sound is also important when considering HDTV and ultra HDTV. Customers who buy large-screen TVs are also likely to buy surround-sound systems. In general, the better the resolution of an image, the more likely it is to occur with better sound.

Sound is where ultra HDTV can really make a difference. Unlike today’s video standards, which typically have the capability to deliver five or six different sounds to five or six different speakers, ultra HDTV can process 24 different sounds to 24 different speakers. That is a huge difference, much like the difference in video resolution.