While 8K TV may still be in its infancy, with 8K content in short supply, there is at least now an official performance spec to help establish a global standard in the consumer TV market.
The 8K Association has announced a series of performance criteria agreed with its members, including TV manufacturers such as Hisense, Panasonic, Samsung and TCL, and technology providers such as Intel and Tencent.
8K offers 33 million pixels of resolution, four times more than the 4K/UHD standard currently used by most new TVs.
“Defining the key attributes for an 8K TV specification demonstrates the 8K Association’s focus to quickly define a critical step in the growth in next-generation video technology,” says 8K Association executive director, Chris Chinnock.
The newly released tech spec includes specifications for 8K input parameters (bit depth, frame rate, chroma sub-sampling), display performance (resolution, peak brightness, black level, colour gamut, white point), and the interface & media formats (High Dynamic Range, codec). The key details are:
• Resolution: 7680 x 4320 pixels
• Input Frame Rate: 24p, 30p and 60p frames per second
• Display Luminance: more than 600 nits peak Luminance
• Codec: HEVC
• Interface: HDMI 2.1
• Additional performance and interface specifications (members only)
A compliance test set will be developed next by 8K Association members, to enable a transparent testing process. The 8K Association plans to promote a logo on any member's 8K TV that meets or exceeds the newly defined technical standard.
We've already reviewed the first 8K TVs to market in the shape of the Samsung QE85Q900R (85in) and Samsung QE65Q900R (65in) QLED TVs, and had a first look at the Sony ZG9 8K TV. If you've already bought one, it's probably worth checking its tech specs to see if it complies.
MORE
