If you’re looking at a television in the UK, there’s a good chance that if it’s an older model then it’s 50Hz. And, even if the TV is newer, it’ll probably be 100Hz.
This is a little strange, seeing that television sets in the US and 60Hz and 120Hz. It leads many people to think that the televisions in the United States are just a little better than the rest of the world.
However, this isn’t actually true. Here’s the big difference between a 50Hz and 60hz television.
The Difference between 50 Hz and 60 Hz
The answer is that for the most part, it really doesn’t matter whether your television shows 50 or 60 Hz – they are both made with the same capabilities in technical terms.
In the US, televisions state that they are 60 Hz, however in Britain, Australia and European countries, advertising for TVs is with 50 Hz or 100 Hz.
The only reason for this is that television in these countries is broadcast at 50 Hz. This means that there’s no need for them to state that they are 60 Hz, even though the televisions are technically capable of it.
This is exactly the same for 120Hz televisions in America, which are labelled as 100 Hz televisions in the UK.
Television broadcasting systems are based on broadcasting standards, and primarily UK and Europe standards. UK TV broadcast standards are 50Hz, therefore all TV sets output 50 Hz output.
So in conclusion, it’s really not a big deal, and nothing to worry about whether your television says that it is 50 Hz or 60 Hz.
Can 50Hz TVs do 60Hz?
Yes, the answer is that almost all TVs branded 50Hz will be compatible with 60Hz. A 50 Hz television can be switched on, and when you start playing something with a higher refresh rate it will automatically switch over to 60 Hz.
It’s because televisions in the US typically support 60 Hz., and the television shows there are broadcast at 60 Hz. So, there’s no reason for them to display 50 Hz on their televisions.
How does a high processing rate make a difference?
Whenever we watch sports, television programs or movies, we can watch them at slower speeds than 60 Hz. It doesn’t matter that much for movies, as many films are shot with a slow refresh rate anyway to make them realistic.
However, you may find that some televisions and especially monitors have a processing rate well over 50Hz, and others may even be 120Hz or even more. This is primarily for gaming, most likely when you’re playing fast faced action games.
When you play games at this fast speed, even a split second can make a difference, so it makes sense to get the maximum refresh rate you can.
A TV with high refresh rate’s design combines technical tricks to make it smooth and reduce motion blur, giving an overall better gaming experience.
Is Hz the same as FPS?
This is a commonly asked question that’s often asked. The answer is that they’re not the same, but they are directly related to one another.
Your Hz is your Hertz, which is your refresh rate. This is the amount of times your display can refresh every second.
So if it’s 60 HZ, it can refresh sixty times per second. If it’s 120 Hz, it can refresh 120 times per second, which will make your gameplay faster. It’s the upper capabilities of your television or monitor.
Your FPS is the amount of frames per second that can help you make your experience smoother.
You can have a higher refresh rate than your FPS, but not the other way around – you can’t play 120fps games on a 60 HZ television, but you can play 60 fps games on a 120 Hz television.
Conclusion
So, if you found an old television in the basement, hooked it up and realized it was 50Hz – don’t worry – you can still play games that are listed at 60Hz.
The Hz rate represents how often displays will refresh a screen. Typical frequency for the industry is 60Hz, and this is often used for televisions in the US – however, TV in the UK is broadcast at 50Hz.
So, the screen can be resized to 50 Hz and 60 Hz. It becomes somewhat confusing, but you’re a little more familiar with 60Hz now and realise that honestly, it just doesn’t matter that much.
