HDTVs for Gaming

While most HDTVs are purchased for watching HD video a significant percentage are making their purchase for gaming console use as evidenced by a study by Frank N. Magid Associates. It indicated that for nearly a third of those in the 21 to 34 years old range their HDTV purchase was driven by the desire to connect it to a gaming console such as an Xbox 360 or PS3. Manufacturers of flat panel displays are responding to this consumer trend with their product design with response time improvements and the inclusion of game modes.

Characteristics of Video Games

Video games look better if the display has a high brightness capability and colors are well saturated. Games often contain text to read, menus to scroll and complicated control console details to discern so image sharpness is important. Dark scenes are prevalent in games requiring high contrast for accurate display of shadow detail. While 480p and 480i were common output resolutions, game consoles now have right up to 1080p (Full HD) video output. At the moment, probably the greatest test of HDTVs for gaming is achieving a quick enough response time to match the speed of gameplay.

Gaming, Display Response Time and LCD Motion Blur

Display response time is a critical performance factor for HDTVs which must cope with the fast, motion-intensive video of current games. Plasma and CRT displays have a virtually instantaneous response time and are not prone to motion blurring as are LCD displays. DLP response times are measured in microseconds as opposed to milliseconds for LCD displays which means that DLP pixel response times are some 1000 times faster.

As mentioned, LCD displays are inherently suspect to motion blur due to the nature of the technology. It doesn’t mean however, that you cannot have an LCD HDTV perform well for gaming. LCD manufacturers have recently been able to significantly reduce display response times (minimal latency) and implement strategies including faster frame rates (120Hz rather than 60) to smooth on-screen motion and reduce the likelihood of blurring. Although motion blur is not linked to response time, it is an important factor in achieving picture quality.

When looking for a HDTV for gaming, a consumer should be considering only those HDTVs with a display response time faster (less) than 8ms. Many LCD displays, such as the Sharp AQUOS, have achieved times as low as 4ms. So you can get inherently higher brightness of an LCD display with a satisfactory display response time.

Problems for gamers are likely to surface if they try to use an older LCD HDTV which had much slower display response times. Budget HDTVs can also be lacking the performance standards required for a satisfactory game console display.

Gaming Lag

While display response time is important a primary cause of disappointment for gamers is gaming lag which is a result of video processing performance issues. With the move to higher resolution HDTVs, the video processor has become more critical to picture quality but also, more detrimental in its effect on the time between an action on the game controller and a response on-screen. When playing fast moving games (eg. Guitar Hero), being what seems only shortly behind the action can be fatal (not literally of course).

Causes of Gaming Lag

Picture Quality Processing Lag

To improve picture quality, all HDTVs process the input video stream through a variety of filters and picture adjustment to ensure a sharp image free of video artefacts. However, with current processors and the sheer number of pixels to be processed with higher definitions there is a lag which can be noticed with fast action gaming.

Scaling Lag

A more significant video processing lag derives from the need to scale a video input if it does not match the native resolution of the HDTV display. What makes this a widespread problem is the current level of mismatch between the output resolution of games currently being sold and used and the native resolution of HDTVs being purchased.

The most recent game consoles such as PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 are not a problem as 720p and 1080p resolution games can be run on them. An X-Box 360 also allows you to output game video as 480p, 720p or 1080i giving more flexibility in matching video output to native resolution. Older games on older consoles (such as the PlayStation2, X-Box and Gamecube) are predominantly 480i and provide a significant, lag inducing scaling load on a HDTV processor as it matches the video input to the display size.

Combating Gaming Lag

There are other technologies and strategies for combating gaming lag apart from matching console and display resolutions.

Game Mode

Game modes, such as Sharp’s Vyper Drive or those of Sony and Samsung work by reducing picture improvement processing as a trade-off for a reduction in lag. With lag reductions being of the order of one third game modes should be considered the context that they do not solve the problem of scaling lag. If you can’t match the video console video resolution to the native HDTV resolution then any lag improvement with game mode will be minimal at best.

High Definition Video Processors

A high-definition video processor (up-converter) offers a hardware solution to scaling lag by providing scaling to the native resolution of your HDTV in a much faster time than the HDTVs onboard processor can. AnchorBay’s DVDO iScan high-definition video processors can, when in game mode, scale and output any resolution with very low latency. Up-converters are not a cheap solution but, worth considering for gaming enthusiasts.

HDTV Display Technology Choices

The different display technology choices have different strengths and weaknesses although manufacturers have narrowed the gaps. Plasma panels provide excellent color saturation and almost instantaneous response times however, are not as bright as LCD flat panels which may be better suited to bright viewing environments. DLP rear projection HDTVs offer larger screen sizes for a more immersive experience at a competitive price.

Plasma HDTVs for Gaming

Susceptibility to burn-in has been a reason for not considering plasma displays for gaming. However, this is now not the case with modern plasma displays. Plasma displays under normal or even excessive viewing conditions are not susceptible to image burn-in. Plasma manufacturers been successful in developing materials and techniques to avoid burn-in such as pixel shifting (or orbiting), improved phosphor materials, white washing and scrolling. Tests have shown that even under extreme conditions (still images for 24 hours or more) some image retention (not burn-in) may result but, is quickly and easily fixed with normal viewing. Pioneer is confident enough that burn-in is not a problem to market plasma monitors.

The serviceable life of both plasma and LCD panels is exceptional at up to 100,000 hours or 30 years with 8 hours/day viewing. Panel life is not a deciding factor between plasma and LCD displays.

A reasonable approach is to select the display technology which suits ones all round requirements and then choose the make and model which best handles games.

Resources

HDTV Arcade has a comprehensive database of game resolutions.

Guitar Hero 2 has a HDTV lag test under video options which measures the lag time in milliseconds.

IGN.com have outlined a solution specifically for Xbox 360 users who have a HDTV without a game mode. As many HDTV manufacturers do not apply image enhancement to VGA inputs lag from this source can be avoided. A second benefit is that use of VGA expands the Xbox 360’s output resolution options making it easier to match the native resolution of your HDTV.

IGN.com has survey results on lag problems for various display technologies and brands/models.

Get the Big Picture : Everything you need to know about Plasma Televisions (pdf)

Interesting independent test results on last page.

Detailed comparison of Display Technologies by DisplayMate Technologies Corp

Tabular comparison of multiple display technologies from calibration software provider.

Mythbusting – Just the Facts on Plasma TV Performance (pdf)

Testing related to plasma burn-in including one over 48 hours of gaming.

What’s the difference between LCD and Plasma TV (pdf)

By Panasonic which manufactures plasma and LCD HDTVs.

Plasma burn-in: Seven things you need to know