How well does "super resolution" work? at DVinfo.net

Alen Koebel · August 19th, 2011, 08:44 AM

There are several products out there that claim to be able to scale SD video to HD resolution much better than a standard re-sizing (re-sampling) operation, such as bicubic or Lanczos. Apparently, the concept is that the extra information available in successive frames can be used to reconstruct additional detail. Before I spend any money on one of these products (e.g., Video Enhancer) or invest the time to test trial versions I'd like to know if anyone else has tried them. Do any of them actually work? Frankly, the improvements in actual resolution comparing to standard re-sizing shown in some of the comparisons of single frames seem moderate. Is the difference more noticeable on actual moving content?

Andrew Smith · August 24th, 2011, 02:53 AM

I expect there would be an even better way.

The manufacturers of large screen TVs would have learnt all the tricks of de-blocking (removing subtle compression artifacts) and up-rezzing SD footage for display on a HD screen. I've seen footage that I shot played on one of these screens from a DVD and looking pretty stunningly sharp.

What I would suggest is playing your footage through one of these TV sets and capturing the HD version through the video output connections. If you have a TV where this is possible then it's worth a try.

Andrew

August 19th, 2011, 08:44 AM	#1
Alen Koebel Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2011 Location: Waterloo, ON, Canada Posts: 79	How well does "super resolution" work? There are several products out there that claim to be able to scale SD video to HD resolution much better than a standard re-sizing (re-sampling) operation, such as bicubic or Lanczos. Apparently, the concept is that the extra information available in successive frames can be used to reconstruct additional detail. Before I spend any money on one of these products (e.g., Video Enhancer) or invest the time to test trial versions I'd like to know if anyone else has tried them. Do any of them actually work? Frankly, the improvements in actual resolution comparing to standard re-sizing shown in some of the comparisons of single frames seem moderate. Is the difference more noticeable on actual moving content? Last edited by Alen Koebel; August 19th, 2011 at 11:27 AM.

August 24th, 2011, 02:53 AM	#2
Andrew Smith Equal Opportunity Offender Join Date: Feb 2009 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 3,065	Re: How well does "super resolution" work? I expect there would be an even better way. The manufacturers of large screen TVs would have learnt all the tricks of de-blocking (removing subtle compression artifacts) and up-rezzing SD footage for display on a HD screen. I've seen footage that I shot played on one of these screens from a DVD and looking pretty stunningly sharp. What I would suggest is playing your footage through one of these TV sets and capturing the HD version through the video output connections. If you have a TV where this is possible then it's worth a try. Andrew