What resolution when Dell says High Definition?

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
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Inspiron 15 (1545) Laptop: Intel Pentium Dual Core T4400 (2.2GHz/800Mhz FSB/1MB cache)
15.6 inch High Definition LED Display with TrueLife

it's from Dell Outlet. Thats all it gives me for laptop screen.

is it 720, 900, or 1080?
 
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Oil

Diamond Member
Aug 31, 2005
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It is most likely 1366 × 768 since it has a budget processor
 

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
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isnt 1366 × 768 = wxga?

hd is usually 720,900,or 1080.
But which one for Dell's "High Definition LED Display with TrueLife"?
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
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isnt 1366 × 768 = wxga?

hd is usually 720,900,or 1080.
But which one for Dell's "High Definition LED Display with TrueLife"?

Dell markets a few resolutions under that heading, unfortunately, to confuse buyers. Most of their 15.6in screens come with either 1366x768 or 1600x900, depending on the buyer upgrades. Given the CPU in the Inspiron you gave the specs for, I'd probably say it was a 1366x768 model too.
 

GarfieldtheCat

Diamond Member
Jan 7, 2005
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Dell markets a few resolutions under that heading, unfortunately, to confuse buyers. Most of their 15.6in screens come with either 1366x768 or 1600x900, depending on the buyer upgrades. Given the CPU in the Inspiron you gave the specs for, I'd probably say it was a 1366x768 model too.

This isn't specific to Dell, but in general, from what I've seen:

HD = 7xx lines of resolution
HD+ = 9xx lines of resolution (usually 1600x900)
FHD = 1xxx lines of resolution (usually 1900x1200 or 1900x1080)

Confusing as hell, if you ask me. Which is probably why they do it.
 

corkyg

Elite Member | Peripherals
Super Moderator
Mar 4, 2000
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Garfield is touching on the reality of HD. It also varies by location. Europe and Asia are not necessarily the same as North America. This gives a very detailed history of HD and the table near the end defines the current standards.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/High-definition_television

It really is a case of caveat emptor.
 

JEDI

Lifer
Sep 25, 2001
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This isn't specific to Dell, but in general, from what I've seen:

HD = 7xx lines of resolution
HD+ = 9xx lines of resolution (usually 1600x900)
FHD = 1xxx lines of resolution (usually 1900x1200 or 1900x1080)

Confusing as hell, if you ask me. Which is probably why they do it.

ah.. this is EXACTLY what i was looking for.

so if i want 1080, i need to look for screens that say Full HD.

in my example of "High Definition LED Display with TrueLife", it's probably 720.

PHEW.. lucky i didnt buy. would have been pissed since i'm looking for 1080 resolution.

(my current laptop is 1900 x 1200, but is a 5yr old Pentium M 1.6ghz)
 

CurseTheSky

Diamond Member
Oct 21, 2006
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(my current laptop is 1900 x 1200, but is a 5yr old Pentium M 1.6ghz)

Wow, that's impressive for a 5 year old laptop. Almost everything I've seen from that far back is 1280x800 or so, even on a 15" or higher screen.

Anyway, when in doubt, assume that a manufacturer is purposely hiding or masking details because they know it's not a good selling point. If it was 1080p, they'd be screaming it at the top of their lungs. The same goes for 5400 RPM vs 7200 RPM hard drives in laptops, as well as other aspects like memory configuration (a 2 GB system may come with two 1 GB sticks of RAM rather than one 2 GB stick, limiting your upgrade options later).
 

videobruce

Golden Member
Nov 27, 2001
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769 is HD when it come to US television, but AFAIC, that isn't HD when it comes to computers.
I would say 900 and above would start to qualify.

It seems 90% of the laptops available in the 15" screen size are only 1366x768 which as stated is not HD for a computer screen.At least it surely isn't HD when it comes to photos, then neither is 900. :hmm: