What will the new television be like? We talk about 4K HDR, a new stage of development

HDR, or high dynamic range, is the latest technology for enhancing TV pictures. What is it, how does it work and where can I watch it?

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Every couple of years, a new technology appears with a name in the form of incomprehensible letters - UHD, 4K, HDCP or OLED. The latest of these innovations, HDR, or “high dynamic range,” is probably the biggest thing in the TV world right now.

This is quite a tricky thing, especially since HDR device manufacturers and content creators are implementing different technology standards.

What is it and what will make your picture even better? Let's talk.

Why is HDR so good?

Look at the sky. White clouds are characterized by volume and multi-layeredness, and the eye distinguishes different degrees of brightness. However, on a TV screen the clouds look flat, the white color is less developed, and the layering disappears.

There are several reasons for this, the first of which is the limited dynamic range of the TV and its inability to convey minute changes in brightness. The human eye is able to discern many more nuances than TV can convey. Secondly, image processing at all stages of film creation is to blame. It radically reduces the amount of transmitted information in order to fit it into the technical limitations of the television format.

And finally, TVs are becoming more advanced. The brightness of a typical TV is 100-300 nits, where one nit is equivalent to the light from one candle. The average HDR TV is closer to 1000 nits. However, the point of HDR is not to illuminate a room, but to expand the color palette to show subtle changes in the penumbra.

Bright and shadowed objects will become more detailed; the sense of depth will be more clear. Colors will become richer and more realistic, with more subtle gradations and tonal transitions. In general, the picture will become more natural.

Availability of HDR on TV

Sometimes people buy a TV based only on screen resolution or without thinking about its capabilities at all. And the presence of HDR technology in the model can be an extremely pleasant surprise.

Is it supported

The easiest way to find out if a TV supports HDR is before you buy it. It is enough to familiarize yourself with the technical characteristics of the model and find the appropriate item. You can do the same with an already purchased TV. You need to find this model on the manufacturer’s or store’s website and check its characteristics.

Also, the presence of HDR can be determined by the box. If it says Ultra HD Premium, then this indicates full support for extended dynamic range and the premium class of the TV. The presence of the 4K HDR label also indicates compatibility with the new technology. However, in such cases, high dynamic range support may be limited to a single format.

If the box is lost or does not have convincing inscriptions, then you can check the presence of HDR in the technical documentation from the TV. It contains all the functions and characteristics, including support for extended dynamic range.

How to turn it on

In most cases, no special actions are required to activate the HDR mode, since it is enabled initially. Sometimes it can be deactivated in the settings of the TV itself. Then it will be enough to switch it to the active state.

To run video in high dynamic range mode, you also don't have to do anything special. All you have to do is play the selected content. Activated HDR will be immediately noticeable.

If the TV does not support this technology, a corresponding error will appear on the screen. It will tell you about the incompatibility of the format of the content being played and the TV model being used.

If initially HDR was a promising technology and was found only in expensive TV models, then later the situation changed. Now it is difficult to imagine TV without support for the dynamic range of this format. And people who have at least once seen the benefits of the new technology will always notice the difference between classic TVs and those models that are compatible with HDR.

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HDR and 4K Ultra HD

HDR should not be confused with another buzzy term - UHD (Ultra High Definition), also known as 4K resolution. Both HDR and UHD improve images, but in different ways: UHD increases the number of pixels, while HDR tends to make the existing ones more accurate.

At the same time, 4K and HDR technologies often go together. Most HDR-compatible TVs on the market are also 4K-Ultra-HD models; even Sony's 2021 Full-HD lineup supports HDR, unlike some less expensive 4K TVs.

Is UHD the same as 4K?

Not really. 4K is under the umbrella of UHD, just like 8K, but it's actually a specification created by DCI - Digital Cinema Initiatives - referring to a horizontal pixel count of 4000 (it's actually a little more, but rounded down) along with some specific coding standards. It is also a format that must be supported by devices such as set-top boxes in order to function.

4K is widely used on TVs, but it's not the only UHD resolution available. Some displays, especially computer monitors, are UHD, but with a different number of pixels—as long as they're larger than 1080p, they may qualify as UHD. Higher resolutions such as 8K are also considered UHD.

Over time, the two terms have become conflated and can be seen as interchangeable, which can lead to confusion. The size and shape of TVs means they are almost always 4K, but you can check the label if you want to be sure. Brands have started using the full "4K UHD" designation to avoid confusion.

What is HDR10?

Today there are as many as five varieties of HDR: HDR10, HDR10+, HLG, Dolby Vision and Advanced HDR from Technicolor. HDR10 is the original and most common form. This open standard has been adopted by many manufacturers, service providers (Amazon, Netflix) and the Blu-ray Disc Association (BDA).

The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has defined standards that HDR10 must meet, including 4:2:0 chroma subsampling, 10-bit bit depth, and BT.2020 color space.

Generally, all current and future 4K TVs support HDR10. This ensures the TV is compatible with most available 4K Blu-ray discs, players and streaming content - and provides better picture quality than non-HDR 4K TVs.

High Definition: 4K Standard

The term 4K comes from the film industry and is the official standard for recording and playback in film cameras, projectors and screens. At the same time, the 4K resolution is 4096x2160 pixels and acts as a direct successor to the previous 2K standard (2048x1080 pixels). The term “4K” includes not only resolution, but also determines the compression ratio, bitrate and color depth of film material.

However, while many TVs are advertised as capable of 4K resolution, few actually deliver 4096x2160 resolution in a 19:10 aspect ratio. When it comes to consumer 4K devices, they usually mean TVs with UHD resolution, which is 3840x2160 pixels. UHD is considered the official standard for displays and televisions, and is also the “successor” of 1080p or Full HD resolution (1920x1080 pixels). Because the difference between 4K and UHD is subtle when evaluating a TV screen, manufacturers and media often confuse the two.

Maximum viewing distance for UHD
UHD resolution takes advantage of devices with large diagonals or at very close distances from the TV screen.

As already mentioned, UHD resolution itself only partially indicates image quality. With good vision, the difference between UHD and Full HD can be seen only at a short distance from the TV screen. For a 50-inch TV, this distance is about 1.5 meters - too short for most living rooms. A comfortable viewing distance is usually 3-4 meters. At a greater distance, achieving a 4K effect would require a projector complete with a screen.

However, the effect of UHD depends on many parameters. Visual acuity and video quality are key factors. 4K Blu-Ray recordings have more of a UHD effect than Netflix's comparatively highly compressed 4K streaming videos. Also, when interpolating materials with a resolution of 1080p, modern UHD TVs adjust their quality quite a lot: thus, regular Blu-Ray video often looks better on them than on Full HD devices. Anyone who wants to see an improved image on their UHD TV, despite the long distance to the screen, does not have to “turn on their imagination.” It’s not the resolution that’s responsible for the real “amazing effect” in UHD TV, but HDR technology.

What is Dolby Vision?

Dolby Vision HDR technology was originally developed for Dolby Cinema, but can be adapted for the home. Its main difference is the addition of dynamic metadata to the base HDR image. Because of this, image enhancement can be performed frame by frame, while static HDR10 is applied only to the entire film - both the darkest and lightest frames.

Netflix and Amazon Prime Video offer content in both formats, and 4K-Blu-ray combo discs have already been released. However, the Dolby format is still less common.

To view content in Dolby Vision, you will need a compatible Blu-ray player, AV receiver and TV; the list of such models is much shorter than for HDR10. Using Dolby Vision requires a license fee, which reduces the number of TVs and Blu-ray players that support it. LG remains the format's biggest proponent; many of LG's 2021 LCD and OLED TVs and all of its 2021 OLED models support it.

Theoretically, the Dolby Vision format is capable of creating a better picture compared to HDR10, but this depends on the quality of its implementation.

Working with shades

What it is? If you look out the window now, you will most likely see gray clouds and snow. Not the most saturated color gamut, but the human eye is capable of distinguishing many shades even in this monotonous landscape, which give the picture transmitted to the brain clarity and volume. A standard modern TV, even a “classic” 4K, does not convey color in such detail, but 4K HDR can handle it.

The main idea behind the HDR format is that it gives a higher level of contrast between the light and dark areas of the image on the screen. In words it doesn’t sound too impressive, but within the framework of technology this is quite a serious step. Contrast, the difference between the brightest white and the darkest black, is measured in candelas per square meter (cd/m2), or nits. The lowest level of the brightness spectrum will be 0 nits (that is, complete darkness), which can now only be achieved on special displays with organic LEDs. But the top rate of 4K HDR models is an order of magnitude higher than that of their ordinary counterparts. True, TVs still have a long way to go before they convey real lighting. Take a look at the following illustration. As we can see, HDR technology has reached the brightness of an ordinary fire, and television technology is still as far away from the brightness of indirect sunlight as it is from Mars. It’s completely awkward to talk about ordinary TVs in this context. The essence of shooting in HDR is that the camera shoots in several modes at once with different shutter speeds in order to fully “catch” both the light and shadows of the objects or scenes being photographed. The information is then processed to combine it into a single, balanced picture that is as close as possible to how humans perceive color and light. Like 4K, the HDR format is already actively used in modern cinema, so that an ordinary TV now “eats” part of the color gamut of the film. HDR technology, according to NVIDIA, can double the color gamut, which covers 75% of the spectrum visible to humans.

The question arises to what extent should all these indicators concern the viewer himself? In no small part. The difference between 4K HDR and a regular HDTV is visible to almost anyone, since HDR significantly enhances the contrast between black and white, that is, white becomes very bright and black becomes extremely dark. The colors look much richer and more saturated, the whole picture, in principle, seems more voluminous and vibrant to the eye. This effect turns out to be psychologically stronger than 3D, and without any glasses or visual fatigue. Since the technology in television is relatively new, not every TV, even with 4K resolution, has the HDR format, and not all devices where the effect is presented implement HDR with maximum efficiency. In fact, the new technology will only be fully revealed in the 2021 models, and we took Sony's XD93 series as an example. Using a “live” example, we will try to consider the future of television in the new format, as well as the technological developments that make it possible.

What is HDR10+?

Samsung has developed its own HDR standard – HDR10+. Like Dolby Vision HDR, it uses dynamic metadata to enhance images frame by frame.

None of Samsung's models support Dolby Vision, and it's no exaggeration to say that HDR10+ was designed as a direct competitor. Unlike Dolby's, it is open source and largely free, making it more accessible to producers.

All 2021 Samsung 4K TVs natively support HDR10+, and a firmware update makes it available for 2016 4K models.

In an effort to expand the use of its format, the company is attracting others from the industry. It was recently announced that Panasonic and 20th Century Fox will license the HDR10+ platform. Amazon Prime Video is the first content provider to announce support for HDR10+; the service promises more than 100 programs in this format.

What is more important when buying a TV?

Both are great technologies for a TV, and since most UHD TVs these days come with some version of HDR, you probably won't have to choose between them. If you ever do, HDR is generally more useful for optimizing color - it improves visuals. UHD adds more pixels - this gives the visuals more detail. Your personal preference is important here, but think about how you use your TV. For example, sports fans may benefit more from UHD resolutions, while gamers may benefit more from HDR effects.

What is HLG?

HLG (Hybrid Log Gamma) is perhaps the most promising of the HDR formats, as it will be used in television broadcasts.

The result of a joint research project between the BBC (UK) and NHK (Japan), HLG promises to be more convenient than HDR10 for broadcast around the world. In this format, standard and high dynamic range video signals are transmitted together, allowing HLG-compatible 4K TVs to decode and playback the HDR signal in all its glory.

The most famous manufacturers have already confirmed that their 2017 models support HLG; 2021 HDR TVs from Samsung, Sony and LG have received HLG support with a firmware update. Panasonic promises the same for the top of the line 2021 models. And if the infrastructure is in place, the content will not take long to arrive.

For now, HLG content can only be enjoyed on BBC Blue Planet II, available in 4K and HLG on BBC iPlayer from January this year. The seven-episode program proves that HLG works – and looks fantastic.

This raises hopes for future 4K HLG broadcasts, although the BBC has announced that it will offer UHD and HDR content on the iPlayer platform rather than on a separate channel.

What will the new television be like? We talk about 4K HDR, a new stage of development

Ultra-high definition television has rapidly entered our lives. Nowadays, neither video with a resolution of 3840 by 2160 pixels, nor games that support this resolution seem unrealistic. Both online cinemas and satellite television operators broadcast in Ultra HD format. Monitors, TVs and projectors with 4K resolution (which usually means those same 3840 by 2160 pixels, or, less commonly, 4096 by 2160) are represented on the market by a large number of models, while only projectors remain relatively expensive, while monitors and TVs prices are already available to the mass buyer. The very essence of doubling the resolution when moving from Full HD to 4K UHD is clear to consumers and does not require special explanation - higher resolution, higher clarity, image detail, you can sit closer to the screen so that the pixel structure is not visible and the picture covers a larger viewing angle, that is, the image approaches reality, what a person sees in the world around him.

The next step in the visualization industry is the introduction of high dynamic range or HDR (from h

igh
d
ynamic
range
), which in combination with ultra-high resolution leads to the concept of
4K HDR
. HDR - what is it? Why do you need HDR on a TV or projector? What does the user get from HDR? We will try to give answers to these questions, but let everyone decide for themselves whether it is worth paying extra for HDR or changing the TV to a model that supports HDR.

Human vision can operate over a huge range of brightness, namely from 0.000001 cd/m² to 100,000,000 cd/m². For those familiar with photography and videography, this corresponds to approximately 46.5 stops of exposure. In this case, the so-called night vision works up to 0.01 cd/m². Under these conditions, photoreceptors with high sensitivity - rods - are active. Night vision features include low resolution and lack of ability to distinguish colors. In conditions with a brightness exceeding 10 cd/m², photoreceptors of a different type - cones - work, and vision becomes daytime, with high resolution and color. In conditions of transition from 0.01 to 10 cd/m², vision is twilight, combining the properties of night and day. Obviously, in order for the image to be color and retain detail, the lower limit of the brightness of the darkest shades should be in the twilight vision zone and, preferably, closer to the limit of daylight vision.

The upper limit is helped by the fact that the established visual contrast is at the level of 5000:1, or just over 12 exposure stops. This is due to the fact that human vision, with the help of various mechanical (pupillary reaction), photochemical and neural adaptive processes, adapts to environmental conditions so as to maintain maximum efficiency. As a result, for example, for 0.1-1 cd/m² perceived by the eye as black, we will obtain the required brightness of white at a level of 500-5000 cd/m².

Thus, in order to be able to transmit an image as close as possible to what a person sees in real life, the TV must display a bright and contrasty picture, with a final static dynamic range of about 5000:1. In this case, it is better if the real dynamic range is higher than this value in order to compensate for the adaptation of vision to changes in the average brightness on the screen and to the level of illumination in the room.

However, in the case of video, HDR support does not mean only high brightness and contrast. Digital video means that the brightness levels of the shades are encoded by numbers with a limited range of values. For example, for a typical video, the brightness of each of the three colors - red, green and blue - is encoded using values ​​from 16 (black) to 235 (white), giving a total of 220 gradations of brightness of one color or shades on the gray scale (8-bit number per color). Such a small number of steps leads to a significant difference in the brightness of neighboring shades, which in relative terms increases as the lightness of the shade decreases. Moreover, if the relative difference in brightness reaches 2% (for dark shades this threshold increases), then the boundary between shades may already be visually noticeable, the image acquires characteristic striping and becomes unnatural. In fact, if we take the brightness below which banding can be noticeable as the lower limit, then in the case of conventional 8-bit color encoding the dynamic range will be only about 40:1, and we, as described above, want to get a minimum of 5000:1, and so that there are no artifacts. Of course, usually the banding effect due to spatial and dynamic color mixing in the case of natural images obtained from a camera is weak or absent even for an 8-bit image, but such a dependence on conditions is unacceptable. The obvious solution is to increase the number of shade gradations, that is, encode brightness levels not with 8-bits, but with 10 or 12-bit numbers. Additionally, you can use special dependences (transfer functions) of brightness on the numerical value of the hue, which keep the difference in brightness between shades less than the change noticeable to the eye throughout the entire brightness range. The resulting combination of high brightness, contrast and the absence of artifacts (banding) in the entire range of shades can already be the basis for displaying an image that is as close as possible to what a person sees in the real world. This is the basic principle of HDR.

Note that HDR technology implies compliance with the necessary conditions throughout all stages: shooting in HDR, processing in HDR, storage in a format that supports HDR, transfer to a display device and actual output in HDR. Currently, several HDR standards have been adopted. The most common seem to be three, namely HDR10, Dolby Vision and Hybrid Log-Gamma. Depending on the standard, in addition to the image itself, additional static data and dynamic data can be transmitted, specific for each scene, helping the display device achieve even greater realism.

What about 4K HDR

, how accessible is it at the moment?

Online services that provide video streaming in up to 4K HDR promising sources of Currently, you can watch films in this format in online cinemas, for example, Amazon Video and Netflix, the domestic Okko, in addition, there are videos in 4K HDR on YouTube. Another source of 4K HDR content is games, in particular the Sony PlayStation 4 Pro game console supports 4K HDR output for almost 80 games, in particular Horizon Zero Dawn.

As an example of a display device that supports 4K HDR, consider the Sony BRAVIA XE94, XE93 and XE90 series TVs.

The new BRAVIA XE93/XE94 series, in addition to the HDR10 standard, also support the Dolby Vision standard, an HDR format developed by Dolby Laboratories, and with the release of a software update, we can expect support for Hybrid Log Gamma, the third common HDR standard.

The XE93 Series' Slim Backlight Drive+ technology provides more precise control over local dimming. Thanks to a special LED edge lighting system (the light panel is equipped with a double block of LEDs), high brightness and contrast of the image are ensured while maintaining the thinnest possible body. The XE94 series TVs are equipped with a carpet backlighting system (over the entire surface of the matrix) with local dimming.

4K HDR X1 Extreme Processor

The XE94/XE93 series delivers high image quality through three new technologies: Object-based HDR remastering, Super Bit Mapping 4K HDR for smooth color transitions, and signal processing using two databases ( Dual database processing), one of which is responsible for noise reduction, and the second for improving image quality.

X-tended Dynamic Range PRO technology enhances video quality in a variety of formats, including HDR, by adjusting the backlight brightness in specific areas of the screen.

TRILUMINOS Display technology further enhances brightness and color accuracy. Thanks to a wider palette of colors and more natural shades, the image becomes more attractive.

The body design of the new line of TVs is made in 360° format - these models look great from any angle. The thin body and special cable management system allow the TV to fit seamlessly into any interior. The models of the new line feature an original system for hidden cable placement inside the stand.

They will remain invisible no matter from which side you look at the TV. For example, the switching on the back of the XE94/X93 series TVs is hidden behind a stylish panel made of high-quality plastic with a mesh pattern. Individual panel elements can be easily removed for quick access to connectors and connecting external devices. This design solution strikes a compromise between style and functionality - the TV looks attractive no matter how you look at it, while at the same time providing all possible connectivity options.

For wall mounting of the XE93/XE94 series TVs, a special swivel bracket was developed that allows you to change the angle of the TV screen so that you can easily reach the connectors if necessary.

Sony BRAVIA XE94, XE93 and XE90 series TVs are equipped with Android TV 6.0 (Marshmallow) pre-installed, which provides improved interface design, intuitive operation and new features. For ease of use of voice search, a separate button has been added to the remote control. The new operating system allows you to use external devices as additional TV memory (storing applications and media files up to 1 exabyst), and also makes it easier to search for content thanks to a new filtering system by genre.

Main characteristics:

Overall, 4K HDR

, very good, manufacturers are offering more and more models of ultra-high resolution TVs and projectors with HDR support, and the quantity and availability of relevant content is increasing.

What is Advanced HDR?

Advanced HDR from Technicolor is another new HDR format introduced at CES 2021. It is the result of a collaboration between LG and video specialist Technicolor. As with other types of HDR, content must be mastered in the desired format and played back on a source capable of reading Advanced HDR data and a compatible TV or projector.

Some 2021 LG TV models, 4K OLED and LCD, support the format, but nothing has been heard about the content yet.

4K Blu-Ray on PC: Comprehensive Prerequisites

Those who want to watch 4K Blu-Ray content on a computer face serious problems. CyberLink recently introduced a new version of PowerDVD 17 that supports the 4K standard; however, to play on a PC, all hardware from the drive to the display must support the AACS 2.0 copy protection standard. Here's a list of what you need: Windows 10 (64-bit), an Intel Kaby Lake desktop processor, and a motherboard that supports Intel Software Guard Extension (SGX) for data protection.

PowerDVD 17 plays UHD Blu-Ray on PC. To do this, all computer components must support the new copy protection standard AACS 2.0

You also need a GPU capable of playing 4K media and supporting HDCP 2.2. Intel's integrated graphics can already do this, but nVidia and AMD are only now starting to adapt their video cards and drivers. The display also requires support for the HDCP 2.2 protocol: for example, via the HDMI 2.0 interface. Blu-Ray drives that can play the BDXL format and support AACS 2.0 are currently only available in Japan. However, they should appear in Europe in the summer. Quite a significant expense - and only to prevent piracy.

Playback requires certified drives such as the BDR-S11J-BK from Pioneer

Displays with HDR10 support are still rare on sale: for example, LG is soon going to introduce a 32-inch model 32UD99 (about 70,000 rubles) in Europe, and Dell announced the release of a model UP2718Q (about 130,000 rubles), supporting HDR, for North America. If we talk about regular 4K models, then the choice here is quite large, and prices start at 23,000 rubles (Samsung LU28E590DS).

How and where to watch HDR?

To view HDR10 and Dolby Vision at home, you will need a compatible display: TV, projector, smartphone or tablet. LG, Samsung, Sony, Panasonic and Philips have already released their own HDR TV models.

The next step is to find the source. Requires content that was originally produced in or converted to HDR; Regular video recordings on an HDR screen won't work as well as they should. Today there are already dozens of Ultra-HD-4KBlu-ray discs in the HDR10 format on sale, and new ones are released every month. Streaming services such as Netflix and Amazon Prime Video also offer a lot of HDR content - usually also in 4K.

If your HDR movie is on disc, you will need an Ultra-HD Blu-ray player. Of the available options, our favorites are the Cambridge CXUHD, Sony UBP-X800 and Oppo UDP-203. Microsoft Xbox One S and Xbox One X consoles also play 4K Blu discs and support HDR10.

HDR streaming can be enjoyed using a compatible TV app or media player, such as the latest Amazon Fire TV or Apple TV 4K (the latter also offers 4K HDR movies via iTunes). This will require a high speed Internet connection.

Prices for plasma panels with HDR technology

PlasmaOnline offers the following models:

• LED TV 4K UHD LG 43UK6200PLA - from 5,000 rubles for 1 day;
• LED TV 4K UHD LG 43UK6390PLG White - from 6,000 rubles for 1 day;
• LED TV 4K UHD LG 70UF771V (178 cm) - from 15,000 rubles for 1 day;
• LED TV 4K UHD LG 75UK6750 (189 cm) - from 18,000 rubles for 1 day;
• LED TV 4K UHD LG 86UK6750 (218 cm) - from 25,000 rubles for 1 day.

You can find a larger range of TVs and prices in the plasma panel rental catalogue.

Technology of the future, accessible to everyone

Screens with standard dynamic range will last a long time. After all, the creators of the new HDR standards are trying to make them backwards compatible: HDR content can be viewed on regular screens, and it will look no worse than SDR content.

The massive transition of video broadcasts to the HDR format is already very close. Until now, these processes have been slowed down due to the lack of adequate hardware. However, recently, screens, technologies, and content have appeared. Therefore, soon HDR support for your next smart TV, monitor or smartphone may become a mandatory option. Enjoy watching!

Conclusion

The HDR function is available on new TVs by default. She reveals her capabilities when showing pictures about nature and travel. In other films and programs its advantages are not obvious. At first, this option causes genuine delight in the viewer, which gradually fades away. The eyes get tired of a bright, oversaturated picture. It should be understood that the equipment is not always ready for such images.

That is why buying a model with a screen, display or monitor that supports HDR does not always meet the expectations of users who are not ready to spend their budget on innovative solutions from manufacturers.

Toshiba 55u5855ec TV review

Toshiba 55u5865 4k uhd smart TV TVs appeared on the market relatively recently, but have already won the love and trust of customers.
Toshiba 55u5865 4k uhd smart TV TVs appeared on the market relatively recently, but have already won the love and trust of customers. Huge screens, high-quality pictures and rich sound are not all the advantages of a device from a popular company.