Olevia 242 & 542i

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  1. #1

    Join Date
    Sep 2007
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    77

    Olevia 242 & 542i

    Hi All,

    I am looking at buying a TV and wanted to see if anyone has the above models. For what I can see the only difference between the two is one supports 1080p, which from what I understand HK only supports 1080i on their broadcasts. I have seen the 542i for 6700hk and the 242 for 8880hk.

    I asked the local broadway a couple of questions which his answers did not seem correct, so I wanted to see if anyone can answer my questions. The b/w guy said that olevias cannot be used with a computer via a HDMI/DVI cable or HDMI/HDMI only the LG,Samsungs,Sony's. I think the b/w guy was a bit confused, but I could be missing something.

    Does anyone own an Olevia? if so have they plugged a computer into it? and what res? I assume desktop res at 1366x768. I think the b/w guy thinks that you need a vga port not sure. I have plugged a few cheap no names brand LCD's in Australia via the HDMI, using a HDMI/DVI cable no problems at all.

    Also is it worth paying an extra 2000hk for the 1080p? Both don't have a HD tuner.


  2. #2

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    Sep 2007
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    I found out that HKBN HD supports 1080p and currently has about 60% of content in 1080p. Free to air is only 1080i, all of HK will be supported in around August. So it looks like the 1080p might be worth getting, also I guess for the upscale of DVD's from a HDMI supported device.

    If anyone is looking for a TV I found the cheapest price for an Olevia at Sunskin Technology at Golden Computer Centre, also they have a shop at Super Digital Mall at Yau Me Tei, $1000 cheaper then what BW could do.

    Also I found out from the Olevia HK site that I can use the LCD tv to plug a computer into it.


  3. #3

    Join Date
    Feb 2007
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    Olevia's own site lists several 242 models. 242V, 242T, and 242T FHD. It's the FHD model that features a panel containing 1920x1080 native pixels. The others including the 542i are 1366x768 panels.

    The site also indicates both series contain a VGA port. Regardless of what the Broadway drone claimed, I would have insisted on seeing the back panel. Since Olevia seems to keep the same model numbers across worldwide markets, I'll presume the specs and featurelist are mostly the same. Why not download the manual from their site and check the illustration of the back I/O panel for yourself?

    Connecting a PC via HDMI port could result in the set kicking in some improper scaling -- resulting in letterboxing, pillarboxing, or both. A VGA connection on the TV should provide a better chance the computer's display is matched 1:1 to the panel's pixels. My Samsung 32" HDTV is connected to the desktop computer via VGA port. The OS desktop reaches all four edges of the frame, the resolution is set to 1360x768 and everything is super-sharp.

    AVS Forum has ongoing threads on each of the aforementioned models:

    Olevia 242
    http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=946686

    Olevia 242T FHD
    http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=955201

    Olevia 542i
    http://www.avsforum.com/avs-vb/showthread.php?t=756647

    If it were me, I'd immediately dismiss the 542i. The indicated 1366x768 pixels stretched across a 42" span won't hold up when compared to a 42" screen packed with 1920x1080 pixels... all this, of course provided you'll feed them a proper 1080 high-definition signal. If you have no aspirations beyond watching widescreen standard-definition DVDs, either set will do.

    Just for clarification, ALL (HDTV) broadcasts worldwide will be 1080i/720p for a good long time. "i" stands for Interlaced. At any given instant, the even or odd horizontal lines are being broadcast... 1920 multiplied by 540 (odd lines) for example is roughly 1 million pixels pushed through the airwaves. In a "p"rogressive broadcast, 1260 multiplied by 720 (full lines) is also in the 1 million pixel neighborhood. For the given bandwidth in a (Over-The-Air) HDTV channel, I would imagine there's not much more room to pump additional data through... certainly not the 2 million pixels in a 1080p scheme.

    Why do people buy 1080p sets then? Movie afficionados feed those sets with HD DVD or Blu Ray. Content on these next-gen discs are encoded in 1080p; the players with their HDMI ports have plenty of bandwith to push a 1080 progressive signal through. If the TV doesn't contain 1080p playback, the HD player can be configured to scale down the signal accordingly.

    Lots of footnotes and caveats omitted for brevity. YMMV.

  4. #4

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    Sep 2007
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    Thanks for your detailed reply CarterTG. Yes you are right the easier way was to look at the back of the tv. I did have a look at the HK olevia site but the did not list any of the 2 series, it seems the HK sets are different to the worldwide ones, the USA sets have multiple HDMI ports and a build in HD tuner. I could not find the manual on the

    I did confirm though that HKBN HD tv is displayed at 1080p, an added bonus for anyone that has a 1080p set. Also when you are talking about 1366x768, I found even on 1080p LCD tv's I cannot get a desktop res of 1080p without flickering and distortion, I have to change it to 1366x768. Also if you use the VGA port it is not a digital signal, depending on your video card some work better then others at negotiation the supported res via the HDMI, if not you can just set the res before plugging it into the LCD tv.

    I think I will go the 1080p set not much more in cost and you do get the extra resolution. That was a good idea to download manual and have a look.

    Thanks again for your answer.