Why 4K TV is Stupid

James Tanner · « **on:** 21 Jul 2013, 10:54 am »

http://reviews.cnet.com/8301-33199_7-57366319-221/why-4k-tvs-are-stupid/?tag=cnetRiver

HT cOz · « **Reply #1 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 12:26 pm »

I'm looking forward to 4k for the media room in my new house. It will have a 120" screen and I believe the resolution will be of benefit. However, it will be 10 years before I make the move.

mrhyfy · « **Reply #2 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 01:05 pm »

I've seen 4K at my local FS. It is stunning. The difference is not subtle.
It looks like 3d without 3d gimmick.

Andre2 · « **Reply #3 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 01:08 pm »

great article, very informative

brucek · « **Reply #4 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 02:10 pm »

Quote from: mrhyfy on 21 Jul 2013, 01:05 pm

I've seen 4K at my local FS. It is stunning. The difference is not subtle.
It looks like 3d without 3d gimmick.

Yeah, I went and watched the new Sony 4K at FS and I admit it was pretty spectacular.

Unfortunately, I think it's way ahead of its time. Playing a BluRay on my 1080p is quite good, and if all the rest of the sources I watch could only be that good I might start pining to step up to even better resolution. But it just ain't so. There's only so many BluRays I can watch, so the bulk of my watching (and I suspect it's the same for most folks) is television. There's still many channels that aren't yet in HD, and the ones that are in HD are transmitted at 720p. The sources haven't caught up to the 1080p capabilities of todays sets, so introducing the next level of 4K sets seems a bit premature.

brucek

Phil A · « **Reply #5 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 02:20 pm »

In process of a move and will probably do a 4K projector in the main system (100 inch screen). That won't be until early next year but I'll be doing more research. Right now I have a 720p projector in the basement on a 88 inch screen, which looks great with an Oppo BDP-93 as a source. The 1080p projector I have in the main system, which I have not used much as of , will likely go into the bedroom of the place where I have a 92 inch screen that recesses into the ceiling. Much depends on pricing too. CEDIA is coming up not too far off and we'll see what pricing/models are like.

Elizabeth · « **Reply #6 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 05:58 pm »

The article is loaded with assumptions about viewing distance. I sit a ccomfortable four feet from my Plasma. If I went to a bigger screen I would STILL be sitting about four feet away
(as a child i sat three feet from the TV.. My parents always yelling at me..)
4K is going to happen whether the dude writing the article wants it or not.
Like my rant about BluRay.. which is too little over DVD. When 4K happens.. I then may buy whatever is 4K media.. (along with a 65" screen) And be glad i 'skipped' BluRay.

steve in jersey · « **Reply #7 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 06:41 pm »

Sorry gang, an easy "disconnect" for this entire discussion would be , "Who considers most of what they read on CNET as useful information for anyone other than complete A/V novices ?" (Hopefully, not as many people as I suspect may !)

As far as I'm concerned you can never have "too much" resolution "headroom" in audio or video equipment. Technologies catchup with each other at some point in time. I agree w/ others who've viewed 4K movies at their local cinemas, it is definitely a step in the right
direction (I wouldn't be supprised to find out that some of the negative 4K press was somehow instigated by someone promoting 3D; which you will notice is being as heavily promoted at Best Buy these days)

mrhyfy · « **Reply #8 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 08:04 pm »

Quote from: steve in jersey on 21 Jul 2013, 06:41 pm

Sorry gang, an easy "disconnect" for this entire discussion would be , "Who considers most of what they read on CNET as useful information for anyone other than complete A/V novices ?" (Hopefully, not as many people as I suspect may !)

As far as I'm concerned you can never have "too much" resolution "headroom" in audio or video equipment. Technologies catchup with each other at some point in time. I agree w/ others who've viewed 4K movies at their local cinemas, it is definitely a step in the right
direction (I wouldn't be supprised to find out that some of the negative 4K press was somehow instigated by someone promoting 3D; which you will notice is being as heavily promoted at Best Buy these days)

+1... Cnet is not the holy grail of info,,,I think they even like BOSE!!!

jqp · « **Reply #9 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 08:12 pm »

Yes anyting with a "CN.." in it I would take with a huge grain of salt - CNN, CNet...

I want 4K TV - I already have 4K computer monitors and they are great! No sure what "FS" is, but I saw 4K TVs at the Consumer Electronics Show 2011 - they are the real deal. Yes 3D without the 3D. As always the recording device is very important.

The key here is we are getting closer to the promise of wall-sized TVs, flying cars, and the Holodeck in our own home.

brucek · « **Reply #10 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 08:39 pm »

Quote

Not sure what "FS" is,

Sorry - FS is short for Future Shop.....

The one I was looking at is here. Go ahead, ADD it to your cart.

jarcher · « **Reply #11 on:** 21 Jul 2013, 10:42 pm »

I've got no problem with cnet : their gear recommendations are often good - including audio - without having to read about some reviewers rapture with some ridiculously obscure album.

And I mostly agree with the points in that article. Just like with digital cameras resolution capability is not the only or even the very most important spec for picture quality.

With all that said, I'd probably go to 4k if I could get a projector for under $2k and content for reasonable cost and convenience - eg a ultrahd Blu ray. But I'm using a 96 inch screen. For the rest of the house on smaller screens it probably wouldn't make sense.

mkaiser · « **Reply #12 on:** 24 Jul 2013, 09:49 pm »

As mentioned a few times in the blog there is no 4K native material to even understand its full advantages or disadvantages at this time. It is all theory. Right now, your TV's and Bluray players claim to support a "4K medium" that doesn't even exist yet, but only upsamples/upconverts to what they think it may look like. This is similar to an external DAC that has upsampling. Your TV's and Bluray players don't support it currently but the "upsampling/upconverting" acts as an advertisement of what it could be if/when there is a true 4K native format and devises that can actually support it.

Hollywood and others will have to get onboard and install the new 4K hardware/software into their cinematic equipment in order to shoot movies, commercials, sitcoms etc. in real native 4K resolution in order to see what it will look like without "upsampling/upconverting.

People who claim to have watched 4K material have not watch 4K material as it does not exist at this time.

mrhyfy · « **Reply #13 on:** 24 Jul 2013, 10:07 pm »

Quote from: mkaiser on 24 Jul 2013, 09:49 pm

People who claim to have watched 4K material have not watch 4K material as it does not exist at this time.

that makes me even more impressed with what I saw!!

wushuliu · « **Reply #14 on:** 24 Jul 2013, 10:49 pm »

Quote from: brucek on 21 Jul 2013, 02:10 pm

Yeah, I went and watched the new Sony 4K at FS and I admit it was pretty spectacular.

Unfortunately, I think it's way ahead of its time. Playing a BluRay on my 1080p is quite good, and if all the rest of the sources I watch could only be that good I might start pining to step up to even better resolution. But it just ain't so. There's only so many BluRays I can watch, so the bulk of my watching (and I suspect it's the same for most folks) is television. There's still many channels that aren't yet in HD, and the ones that are in HD are transmitted at 720p. The sources haven't caught up to the 1080p capabilities of todays sets, so introducing the next level of 4K sets seems a bit premature.

brucek

Exactly. Without enough content there's nothing to get excited about.

North Star · « **Reply #15 on:** 24 Jul 2013, 10:58 pm »

Not only I want 4K, and it is intelligent, but I also want OLED.

http://www.hometheater.com/content/lg-introduces-first-oled-tv-us

Atlplasma · « **Reply #16 on:** 25 Jul 2013, 01:31 am »

Personally, I'm not going to get excited until the new 8K sets arrive.

jarcher · « **Reply #17 on:** 25 Jul 2013, 02:21 am »

Quote from: mkaiser on 24 Jul 2013, 09:49 pm

As mentioned a few times in the blog there is no 4K native material to even understand its full advantages or disadvantages at this time. It is all theory. Right now, your TV's and Bluray players claim to support a "4K medium" that doesn't even exist yet, but only upsamples/upconverts to what they think it may look like. This is similar to an external DAC that has upsampling. Your TV's and Bluray players don't support it currently but the "upsampling/upconverting" acts as an advertisement of what it could be if/when there is a true 4K native format and devises that can actually support it.

Hollywood and others will have to get onboard and install the new 4K hardware/software into their cinematic equipment in order to shoot movies, commercials, sitcoms etc. in real native 4K resolution in order to see what it will look like without "upsampling/upconverting.

People who claim to have watched 4K material have not watch 4K material as it does not exist at this time.

While it's still early days, the prior comments were slightly misleading, and the last statement seemingly false. 4K is just getting out of the gates, and with all the investment Sony & others are putting into it, wider implementation is not that far down the road. E.g. 4K mastering movies by re-scanning negatives in 4K, shooting popular series in 4K (e.g. breaking bad), etc.

Yes - most digital movie theater projectors are still 2K - though the upgrade to 4K is in progress (e.g at AMC). Now whether for those theaters that have done the 4K upgrade are getting their digital movies @ 4K : don't know. But presumably it can't be that far off.

As for people claiming to have seen 4K material not having seem it as it doesn't exist.........any Magnolia Design Center has 84" Sony 4K sets connected to 4K media servers displaying 4K native demos. Yes, in some cases they'll put spiderman or whatever that are "mastered for 4K", but other demo material, the short clips that are often playing, should be 4K native. So not a very high bar for folks who want to see it : MDC's are not @ all BB's, but finding a BB that has an MDC reasonably close should not be that difficult.

mrhyfy · « **Reply #18 on:** 25 Jul 2013, 02:26 am »

there is always new format bashing when something different comes around!! remember VHS?

WireNut · « **Reply #19 on:** 25 Jul 2013, 03:10 am »

Dam. My only TV is my 31 year old 27" Sony Trintron CRT, no blueray either