Toshibaís Leadership In Progressive Scan Picture Quality Continues With New Super ColorStreamÆ Pro Technology

Toshiba made history as the first company to demonstrate, introduce and ship a DVD-Video player equipped with image-enhancing ColorStream PRO progressive scan technology. At CES 2000, the company is unveiling the next step in the evolution of this home entertainment breakthrough ñ the industryís first two DVD players with Super ColorStream PRO progressive scan component video outputs. Both new models provide the ultimate in image quality when connected to one of Toshibaís ColorStream HD-equipped TVs or other compatible multi-scan display device. Toshibaís new SD9200 and Cinema Series SD6200 DVD-Video players with Super ColorStream PRO progressive scan technology join the companyís recently introduced Model SD5109 to complete the industryís broadest and most advanced range of progressive scan-equipped DVD players. To ensure a complete solution for the consumer, Toshiba also offers a full range of HDTV and HDTV-ready TVs that have been uniquely optimized for maximum image quality when displaying 480p and high-resolution 1080i signal sources.The Ultimate In DVD-Video Image QualityToshibaís new Super ColorStream PRO? progressive scan DVD-Video technology extends the performance of progressive scan DVD-Video to deliver a dramatic advance in image clarity and definition. The newly developed technology utilizes an advanced digital filter and decoding process that employs 4x oversampling of the Y component video signal and 8x oversampling of the Pr and Pb signals. In addition to the use of a 10-bit/54MHz video DAC, key digital circuits and processing parameters have been optimized and refined for maximum video performance. The result, when connected to a Toshiba ColorStream HD-equipped TV or other compatible multi-scan display device, is a remarkable film-like, flicker-free video image with demonstrably improved edge definition and color detail. Super ColorStream PRO? dramatically enhances color purity and provides color resolution performance that is currently unmatched by any other video source component.Toshiba Digital TVs Provide The Ideal Complement To Progressive Scan DVD-VideoIn addition to pioneering progressive scan in the DVD-Video format, Toshiba has also been a leader in the HDTV-ready TV category. Toshiba offers the industryís broadest range of ten HDTV and HDTV-ready TVs, each featuring two sets of ColorStream? HD component video inputs for optimum flexibility and compatibility with digital video sources. These models include standard and widescreen sets in both direct-view and projection TV. On-board ColorStream HD inputs allow viewers to enjoy true 480p resolution direct from DVD-Video discs when using a Toshiba progressive scan DVD player, as well as true 1080i resolution from an HDTV set-top box (such as Toshibaís Model DST3000). The use of dual ColorStream HD inputs also allows users to connect two digital sources to Toshibaís HDTV and HDTV-ready models and easily switch between them.Progressive Scan BackgrounderIn order to understand the benefits of progressive scan video, itís first necessary to examine the concept of interlaced video, which has been the traditional method of delivering a picture to a television set until now. With interlaced video, half the scanning lines of a complete NTSC picture are displayed in 1/60th of a second, with the other half displayed in the next 60th of a second. Complete fields of video are created by displaying two distinct fields of information in succession. In the first 60th of a second, the electron beam used to create the picture writes (scans) all odd lines (1, 3, 5, 7, 9 etc.) on the screen. On the next pass, the electron beam scans all even lines (2, 4, 6, 8, 10 etc.). The result of this interlaced process is the creation of a complete frame of picture information with every two fields scanned. In total, NTSC Video is made up of 60 fields, or 30 complete frames displayed every second.Lower-resolution interlaced video has a number of technical shortcomings, including image flicker and visible scan lines. Due to the limitations of the analog NTSC format, it had not been possible to display a progressive scan TV image from a source component until the recent advent of todayís digital video source components and display devices.With progressive scanning, every line of information on the screen (1, 2, 3, 4, 5 etc.) is scanned by the electron gun with each pass across the screen. This process virtually eliminates the presence of visible scan lines in the image, greatly improves resolution, eliminates flicker and yields a brighter picture.The SD9200, SD6200 and SD5109 DVD-Video players with ColorStream PRO outputs provide full 480p signal output. In order to maximize the image quality from other video sources, Toshiba HDTV-ready TVs feature the companyís proprietary I.D.S.C. (Intelligent Digital Scan Conversion) technology. I.D.S.C. automatically converts incoming 480i signals into 480p display by using a combination of vertical line doubling, frame doubling, and horizontal pixel doubling technologies to achieve the highest possible resolution minus motion artifacts. The I.D.S.C. system routes 480I signals directly to the line doubler, while native 480p and 1080i signals are passed through without processing for the best possible resolution.

For more information, contact Toshiba at 973 628 8000, http://www.toshiba.com/tacp.