Motion Compensated Frame Interpolation: Video Demonstration

40M86-vs-32LXD70

You’ve read Colin’s excellent article on motion compensated frame interpolation, here’s a real-life video of it in action. We pitted the Panasonic TX32LXD70 (top video) equipped with their 100Hz Motion Picture Pro technology against the Toshiba 32C3030D (bottom video). Click on the “Play” button to start (IE users may have to click twice):

Note: any scanning artifacts are caused by my camcorder and rendering software rather than the TVs themselves.

15 comments

  1. I can’t tell any difference between the 2 on my screen?

  2. Try pausing when bars reach highest speed and see the relative size of ghosting, particularly on the yellow bars.

  3. Thankyou Vincent for another great and important article.
    Motion blur is the only concern i have with LCD.

    According to my eyes it seems to me that the Panasonic 100hz still isn’t perfect, even though it’s much better than the Toshiba.

    Is the Panasonic TX32LXD70 an example of the 100hz LCD TV technology that all manufacturers will incorporate into their current range of LCD TVs later in the year?

    Sometimes on a Saturday morning, when myself and the misses are doing grocery shopping, i would duck into one of the dept. stores and take a look at their hdtv screens for a few minutes. Whenever a live football game or a live car racing event is on, i have noticed motion blur with the LCD panels.

    I suppose i need to find one of the Panasonic TX32LXD70 on display and see if sporting events are much better for me now.

    Vincent, would it be possible to include a third video in that demonstration using a plasma?

  4. Hi guys, your reviews and articles are great.I’ve seen the Samsung m91 (100hz) in action (playing Lord of the Rings)and i think when you “see” 100hz there is no turning back.It is not a great difference but sure is far better that 50hz.The downside is there not much 1080p models out there and they are very expensive.

  5. The more I watch that footage the more amazing the difference is, especially on the yellow bars.

    I’m now slightly questioning my plan to buy a sub £1000 40″ M87 to tide me over until the 120Hz Bravia’s (X2550 in Japan) arrive on these shores.

    Surely though it will take some time for the large screen 100Hz+ models to come down in price to a reasonable level?

    If I can get at least a year out of the Samsung before this happens it will be worth it.

    Any thoughts?

  6. @Phantoma: Colin deserves the credit, he wrote the original article, I just posted the video. :)

    When assessing HDTVs in stores, be aware that motion blurring could be due to the source (poor feed etc.).

    A few weeks ago I uploaded a video of the Panasonic TH42PH9 displaying the same bars, but it’s not easy to compare against the LCDs because of phosphor trails.

    @Johny GR: Yes, it’s one of those things that you’ll never complain of being missing if you’ve never seen it; but once you’ve seen it you cannot bear the thought of going back. When watching football on BBC HD side-by-side with other LCD TVs, our eyes are invariably drawn to the Panasonic TX32LXD70 due to the fluidity of the motion.

    Quick question, where did you see the M91?

    @KeanosMagicHat: Inside info and industry predictions are not my kind of game, but given that so far most manufacturers are having a hard time implementing 100/120hz on larger panels due to technological limitations and cost considerations, and that the 40X2550 is apparently retailing at 420,000 yen (GBP 1,750… bound to be more expensive when it hits our shore), I would say that you’re right.

  7. I can see a huge difference there, could you also do the same test only showing a football match or something. I’m holding out for the toshiba z series with 100hz

  8. Vincent – Thank you for the reply, Samsung it is then whilst I wait.

  9. I don’t know why but the video doesn’t work for me. I ‘m using Firefox 2.0.0.3 and i have quicktime installed.

    Is there a chance that videos in the future will be uploaded to youtube from now on?

    Thanks

  10. @Robbie: sorry… I have since sold the TVs.

    @Yannis: strange… are you using NoScript by any chance? Failing that perhaps you could use Internet Explorer just this once. :)

    The reason I prefer to host the videos myself is because I can encode using the superior H.264 codec (in terms of compression quality and size) as opposed to Youtube’s FLV codec (which will degrade the video quality).

  11. I have finaly managed to see the video. The problem was adblock (Firefox plugin).

    Great work guys.

  12. Given that some of us are seeing the video using an LCD monitor, I guess that we can never truly know what the effect of 100hz is in real life.

  13. rjt, I suppose i can see it clearly then because I’m using a 19″ Viewsonic CRT monitor (G790) which I have had since 1998.
    The bloody thing won’t blow up so that I can get myself a Viewsonic 22″ WS LCD monitor, lol.

  14. 100hz is a old technology the toshiba 32/37/42/46WLT68 range have had this for a good 7months, my friends

  15. I would like to know what software/test disc you use to produce the scrolling vertical bars. I am looking to purchase one of the new Pioneer G9 panels when available in the shops but would like to stress test the display prior to committing my hard-earned cash to ensure that I can detect no ill-effects. If this is not a commercial product, is it something you can make available for prospective punters to burn onto their own DVD disc? Thanks.