4K Ultra-High Definition will define the future of television – a future that we take one step closer towards every day.
While the name is, in itself, a trifle confusing, 4K (or Ultra HD, or was that UHD?) will become as ubiquitous as HD in the next two or three years.
At its most basic, 4K describes the resolution of your TV set (or the amount of pixels used to make up an image), but it is also increasingly being used to describe a combination of a whole host of new features which together are ushering in a new era in image quality.
There’s always a bit of scepticism about new TV tech (remember how big we thought 3D was going to be and then no one bought on) 4K truly is the next evolution in the way you’ll binge-watch TV. At the moment the only drawback to the technology is the cost of the sets – with many of the best series from LG, Samsung and Sony costing well over £2,000. That said, prices are high now, but these will only get cheaper as the standard is more widely adopted.
At the end of the day it might not be the raw resolution of 4K that tempts you into your next TV purchase, but the inclusion of other cool technologies like High-Dynamic Range, Quantum Dot and OLED panels.
What is 4K?
The headline fact is simple and dramatic: 4K Ultra HD TVs (also known as UHD TVs) deliver four times as much detail as 1080p Full HD, that’s eight million pixels compared to two million pixels.
What that means in terms of potential image clarity is more fine detail, greater texture and an almost photographic emulsion of smoothness.
But this is just for starters. Prior to a roll-out of TV services, broadcasters are working out what else they can upgrade under the 4K banner. In the UK, a working group chaired by the BBC and BSkyB are mulling over every possible tweak, from higher frame rates to greater contrast and a wider colour spectrum. Some of the biggest names in the video industry including Samsung, LG and Sony have split-off to form another group called the UHD Alliance, which we’ll get to in a minute.
But talk to the engineers steering this 4K broadcast bandwagon and they’ll tell you everything spec-wise is up for grabs. If this indicates to you that the 4K standard is anything but set in stone, you’d be correct.
Ultra HD is going to be a work in progress for years to come, but that doesn’t mean you should wait for the dust to settle before improving your image.
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