1080i
1080i means 1,080 horizontal lines are used to create your TV picture. The i stands for interlaced scanning which means the picture is formed on the screen by scanning in two consecutive passes where odd numbered lines are displayed in one pass, and the even numbered lines in the pass that follows.

1080p
Also known as "Full HD", 1080p means 1,080 horizontal lines are used to create your TV picture - that's a lot! The format is currently being used to produce Blu-ray discs, but not TV broadcasts. The p stands for progressive scanning, a technique that scans and displays all of the lines at the same time in one single pass on the screen.

720p
720p means 720 horizontal lines are used to create your TV picture. The p stands for progressive scanning, a technique that scans and displays all of the lines at the same time in one single pass on the screen.

Blu-ray
Blu-ray is an optical disc format for storing digital information, similar to CD or DVD but with sufficent capacity for high definition video.
Component Video

Also known as Y-Pb-Pr, Y-Cb-Cr, YUV and Analog Component Video - Component Video refers to a video signal that is transmitted in separate colour components.

DVI (Digital Visual Interface)
Digital Visual Interface is a video interface standard for delivering high quality video to digital display devices such as flat panel TVs. DVI does not carry an audio signal like HDMI does.

Full HD
A marketing label that is usually used in reference to the 1080p standard.

HD (High Definition)
High Definition refers to an increase in quality and resolution.

HDCP (High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection)
HDCP is the industry-wide content protection standard that content producers use to enable you to see their programming after it travels across HDMI or DVI connections.

HD DVD (High Definition DVD)

HD DVD is an optical disc format for storing digital information, similar to CD or DVD but with sufficent capacity for high definition video.

HDMI (High-Definition Multimedia Interface)
High-Definition Multimedia Interface is a connector interface for delivering high quality digital video and audio. HDMI is the de facto standard digital interface for HD.

HD TV (or HDTV, High Definition Television)
HD TV is a digital television system that introduces greater quality and resolution (typically 720p, 1080i and 1080p) than traditional television systems.
HD TV surround sound
HD can use the Dolby Digital" 5.1 sound specification to deliver cinema-style surround sound.

Interlaced scan
Interlaced scanning requires the picture to be formed on the screen by scanning in two passes. The first pass (odd numbered lines), leaves blank spaces between lines, which are filled in by the second pass (even numbered lines).

LCD (Liquid Crystal Display)
A liquid crystal display is a thin flat display device. An LCD screen is made up of coloured pixels in front of a light source - by varying the opacity of the pixels, different amounts of light are allowed through.

Pixel
A pixel is a single dot in an image display. Pixels are rendered in a line horizontally with many lines down the screen (720 or 1,080 lines in the case of HD TV), with an image resulting. More pixels in a given amount of space produce a higher resolution, meaning a clearer image.

Plasma display
Plasma is a display technology for thin flat display devices usually used for large TV screens. Plasma screen pixels are small cells sandwiched between two layers of glass that contain gases, which when electrically charged excite phospors in the cell to emit light.

Progressive scan
Progressive scan displays all of the lines of the image sequentially in a single pass.

PVR (Personal Video Recorder)
A personal video recorder is a device that records video in a digital format on a hard drive, amongst other features..

Resolution
Resolution refers to the amount of detail in a video display. More pixels mean higher resolution and a crisper, clearer image.

SD TV (Standard-Definition Television)
SD TV refers to older television system standards with a lower resolution (576 lines at most) than is available with HD.

STU (Set-Top-Unit)
Also known as a set-top box (STB), an STU is a device that receives an external source signal and turns the signal into content to be displayed on a television set.

Widescreen
Widescreen refers to the aspect ratio (horizontal-vertical proportions) of modern television screens. The HD content format is widescreen, in a 16:9 proportion.