Since most of the world now is being transitioned over to the HD standard, I am wondering does this mean that the NTSC/PAL formats will be gone? I know that these two forms have been pretty much used since analog broadcasting, and are still around, but when going completely digital, are these formats going to be there, or does going purely digital mean that it will no longer matter if the content of one country is viewed in another, Ex. buying a blu-ray disc from Europe and viewing it in the US, or vise-versa. (For those who don't know, US uses NTSC standards, while MOST of Europe uses PAL, and some parts use SECAM.) So in other words, when going digital, will NTSC or PAL still be a factor?

Also, I am not an expert in signals, and such but I am wondering about one other thing. On my DVD player, I am able to switch signals, from NTSC, PAL, and PAL60. I live in the States, and so if I choose PAL, the image of course is bouncey, in black and white. However when switched to PAL60, it is fine. Why? What is it about PAL60 that makes it compatible with NTSC?


One other note. I know that current DVDs are pure digital, and in either NTSC or PAL, but these discs were made when people had, and still have CRT displays. Not until recently did people begin to buy eithe LCD or Plasma displays which are purely digital, and so does this mean that these types of displays can handle either?

There is a very good explanation of PAL compared to NTSC and SECAM here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pal

I am not very good at those things, but apparently, PAL works at 50Hz, while NTSC at 60hz. This is one of the problems why online console games can't be played between Europe - US. However, a few games in Europe supports both formats. However, to display a game in 60Hz, we need a newer TV and usually a scart, which is always sold separately. Trying to play a game in 60Hz with stock cables usually results in a black and white/bouncy game as you mentioned.

As far as I can tell, PS3 games are REGION FREE, which is a major breakthrough with Online gaming. However, DVD's, Blu-Ray movies, PSOne and PS2 games are still REGION LOCKED on the PS3. So... maybe switching from STD to HD probably won't make everything region free.

I must say though... the fact that you can play PS3 games from any region is a big plus here, especially because a lot of games release in the US and Japan never make to Europe.

Well even though Blu-ray has region locks, it seems to be a bit wider this time, unlike the DVD region codes: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blu_ray#Region_codes , however US and Europe are still in two different regions.

Assuming of course that one buys an HDMI output for their PS3 in Europe (for their HDTV), then the fact that PS3 games are NTSC (US/Japan), would that even matter that that point?

According to Wikipedia, the US is discarding it's NTSC standard next year, when it goes digital, ATSC. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ATSC_Standards , though it looks like the whole NTSC/PAL thing again. It doesn't say anything about ATSC being compatible with DVB/T which Europe has adopted. So, does this mean that when using an HDMI connection for one's DVD/Blu-Ray or gaming console, it will be either those formats, or just a more generic digital signal that can be used in either US or Europe? So in other words, will there still be issues if one buys a PS3 game in europe, and tries to play it, or find a way around Blu-rays idiotic region codes, and tries to view a movie on their TV via HDMI?