Component video out of computer

[chester-proudfoot]

Is component video much better that s-video when attached to a HDTV?
I'm considering an ATI x700 pro, but have not found out for sure that it works or how much difference it will make.

Has anyone tried it or know of a better way to get component video?
I don't really care about the video capture.

[wwjd]

If you have HD on your computer and want to view it on you TV then YES you want component but if you are just going to view standard def then all you need is 'S' video.

[edDV]

S-Video (Y/C) is standard definition interlace with NTSC or PAL encoded color.

Analog component can be standard definition interlace, standard definition progressive (e.g. 480p), high definition interlace (e.g. 1080i) or high definition progressive (e.g. 720p).

In each case analog component uses separate full bandwidth luminance and color components.

Note that none of these are compatible with the future HD DVD player. In that case you will need a DVI or HDMI output that supports HDCP encryption.

[redwudz]

I use a ATI chipset Radeon 9550 video card on my multimedia computer. It's a fairly inexpensive card with DVI output. I run that through a ATI DVI to Component converter to my video projector. It gets a much better picture than S-video. With S-video printing was mostly illegible on the screen. With component it was easy to read. Check the ATI website for compatibility with video cards. It mostly works on the Radeon series.

[edDV]

I agree for the current cards. Here is the adapter FAQ.
http://www.ati.com/products/hdtvadapter/faq.html

Next generation ATI cards will include hardware decoders for various MPeg4 HDTV including h.264 and VC-1.
http://www.ati.com/technology/h264.html

For now I'd buy a card like the 9550+adapter and wait for a future generation that supports full hardware HDTV decoding.

[chester-proudfoot]

I decided to go with the Radeon 9550 video card like redwudz has. The picture is better and I can squint and read the text, but I would like some info on tweeking it. Does anyone know of any sites? ATI doesn't have much info.
Thanks, Chester

[edDV]

I decided to go with the Radeon 9550 video card like redwudz has. The picture is better and I can squint and read the text, but I would like some info on tweeking it. Does anyone know of any sites? ATI doesn't have much info.
Thanks, Chester

Your HDTV is the main limitation.
TV Model Number?
Resolution settings you are currently using for card?