Televisions manufactured since March 2007 have a built-in digital tuner (ATSC 1.0) for receiving over-the-air High and Standard Definition (HD and SD) broadcast. In 2020 NextGen UHD televisions became available that could also receive ATSC 3.0 Ultra High Definition (UHD 4k) broadcast. Some early NextGen UHD televisions do not have an authorized decryption key to view Content Protected channels. See Home page /
Encryption 
.
Most HD and UHD NextGen televisions can also process analog signals (NTSC) for older recordings etc.
| Also see; |
-- Home page / Digital Televisions -- ATSC 1.0 Standards Website -- ATSC 3.0 Standards Website |
Some digital television tuners do not use a low noise (preamp) receiver and may not get weaker signals. One reason not to use a low noise receiver is to cut cost. Another reason is satellite and cable TV boxes do not need a TV with a low noise receiver. A few television models are video monitors only, and do not have a built-in digital tuner. Television monitors get raw video from a cable or satellite box, or a set top digital TV tuner.
Analog Televisions require a Digital to Analog Converter Box, sometimes just called a Digital Converter, to receive digital broadcast. Most converters are also recorders. The antenna cable connects to the converter. The converter is then connected to the TV antenna input. Televisions with a twin-lead connector will need a coax to twin-lead adapter. Some converters can also connect to the television with HDMI, USB, video, VGA, DVI, or YPbPr cable sets for better picture and audio quality.
PICTURE DISPLAY
A TV channel resolution is set by the broadcaster and can be in SD, HD, or UHD. Picture definition is described by the height resolution in pixels per inch (ppi). The picture scan will be either Interlaced (i) or Progressive (p).
| UHD (4k) | HD | SD |
| 2160p |
1080p 1080i 720p |
480p 480i |
| p | = | Progressive | - | picture lines displayed one after the other. |
| i | = | Interlaced | - | odd picture lines displayed then even lines. |
Specifications
| Definition | Resolution W x H (PPI) |
Aspect Ratio |
Frame Rate |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ultra High Definition (UHD 4k) |
2160p | 3840 x 2160 | 16:9 | 24 fps 30 fps 60 fps 120 fps |
| High Definition (HD) |
1080p | 1920 x 1080 | 16:9 1:1 |
24 fps 30 fps |
| 1080i | 30 fps | |||
| 720p | 1280 x 720 | 24 fps 30 fps 60 fps |
||
| Standard Definition (SD) |
480p | 704 x 480 | 16:9 4:3 |
24 fps 30 fps 60 fps |
| 640 x 480 | 4:3 1:1 |
|||
| 480i | 704 x 480 | 16:9 4:3 |
30 fps | |
| 640 x 480 | 4:3 1:1 |
|||
|
W H |
= width = height |
PPI fps |
= pixels per inch = frames per second |
The 4k Digital Cinema Standard has slightly higher resolution than UHD (4k) TV.
| Standard | Resolution (ppi) | |
|---|---|---|
| 4k Digital Cinema | 4096 x 2160 | |
| UHD (4k) (TV) | 3840 x 2160 |
Most Hollywood movies run at 24 fps. The old analog TV system had a 525 line Interlaced (i) picture at 30 frames per second and an aspect ratio of 4:3.
|
Digital Televisions |