Full HD is yesterday’s news, the hot new television standard for your home has today been officially christened “Ultra HD”.
Specifically ‘Ultra High Definition’ (or Ultra HD) is the name that the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) has announced will be the official designation for the display format formerly known as 4K.
A 4K image consists of 8.3 megapixels and a resolution of at least 3840 x 2160 – four times the resolution of the current HD format of 1080p (1920 x 1080).
To qualify as Ultra HD a display must not only be at least 3840 x 2160, but requires at least one 4K-capable digital input and can display 4K content natively without upconverting.
Very few 4K TV’s are on the market at the moment, but a whole bunch are expected to be unveiled at CES in January.
The news comes a few hours after that other next big step in home television – OLED display technology – hits a setback. The Korea Times reports that plans by Samsung and LG to mass-produce 55-inch OLED televisions and have the first models in stores by the end of the year have fallen through.
Both companies are reportedly “having serious difficulties in improving manufacturing yield” and it’ll likely be at least another year before the technology hits stores.
The big question now is if someone at CES can deliver what tech geeks currently consider the ‘holy grail’ of television technology – an Ultra HD OLED TV measuring at least 70 inches for a reasonable (sub-$ 10,000) price tag.
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