Blu-ray is currently the primary technology for experiencing all high definition has to offer. To fully appreciate this, it is important to know how high definition works.

The primary way HD is measured is through resolution. Resolution is defined by how many pixels and horizontal lines there are. The higher the resolution, the higher the price.

The resolution of regular DVDs is much less than Blu-ray discs. The maximum resolution of a standard disc is 480 lines. The quality of HD can reach as high as 1080 lines and 1920 pixels a line.

There are two methods in which resolutions are displayed. It is best for all the lines to be displayed sequentially, as with progressive scanning. The other option is interlaced scanning, in which all even and odd lines appear first.

The interlaced option has a slightly lower quality than progressive scanning. One benefit of it is that it uses a smaller amount of data than progressive scanning, but not by much.

The main HD resolutions are 720p, 1080i, and 1080p. The number of horizontal lines used is denoted by the number, and interlaced or progressive scanning is done so by the lowercase letter.

Blu-ray players are the only technology that can display the highest form of resolution, which is 1080p. Not even television stations are broadcasting shows in 1080p yet, although they probably will in the future.

With all the talk of the differences between resolutions, it may become important to one to get the best resolution. Realistically, a 720p HDTV looks about the same as even a 1080p one. Logically, it is not economically justified to get the 1080p, especially if you are on a budget.