The good folks over at iLounge answered questions that I had about the difference between the movies you rent on your computer and those you rent on the Apple TV. This is very good reading and I personally thank them for their research.

Part of their conclusions are. . .

As of right now, it’s fairly obvious that Apple distributes its video content in only two general formats—“standard-definition” and “high-definition.” Because the company is dealing with the challenges of converting a back catalog of titles for viewing on higher-quality displays, “standard-definition quality” will vary with the title; for the time being, it’s safe to assume that the quality of any given standard-definition movie will be the same regardless of whether and how it is downloaded from Apple TV or iTunes.

Check it out for yourself :

The Complete Guide to iTunes Movie Rentals, Part 2