What is the difference between 1080p and 1080i on televisions?

Question

I'm assuming the "p" means progressive and the "i" means interlaced, but what really is the difference between the 2 and what makes the better one, better?

Answer 1

Interlaced=refreshes half the screen every 1/60th of a second
Progressive=refreshes whole screen every 1/60th of a second
big difference
really 720p is better than 1080i, although 1080i tvs can produce 720p. they just put that because 1080 is a "buzz word"
720p=720 lines of resolution every 1/60th of a second
1080i=540 lines of resolution every 1/60th of a second

Answer 2

Right on. Interlaced writes all the odd numbered lines then all the even ones to the screen before starting again. Progressive writes them in order from top to bottom.

It is a throwback from cathode ray tube technology, when screen refresh rates were slow, typically 25 Hz, interlacing made the screen look less flickery.

With modern screens refreshed at 100 Hz, progressive has the edge during fast action scenes, but in normal viewing there will be little noticeable difference.