In September, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) revealed the official industry definition and logo for 8K TVs – and despite Samsung being the TV manufacturer making most of the 8K noise so far, it is LG’s 8K TVs that will be industry-certified first.
LG has announced that every LG 8K TV, including the ‘Real 8K TVs’ it will debut at CES 2020 next month, will bear the 8K UHD logo. That means they meet the set of performance criteria, having, for example, at least 33 million active pixels, a bit depth of 10-bits and the ability to upscale SD, HD and 4K content.
The company says its TVs "exceed" the minimum requirements, too. For example, while the CTA states that 8K TVs must meet a 50 per cent minimum contrast modulation (i.e at least half of their pixels must be distinguishable to the naked eye) threshold to qualify, LG claims its SIGNATURE OLED 8K and 8K NanoCell TV delivers contrast modulation values in the 90 per cent range, 'while some other models in the industry remain in the low double digits'. According to two third-party testing firms, Intertek and Verband Deutscher Elektrotechniker, the company’s existing 75-inch NanoCell 8K TV measures 90 per cent contrast modulation horizontally and 91 per cent contrast modulation vertically.
But while the CTA’s standard is designed to help consumers recognise the gear that meets the industry’s requirements, note that a separate body called the 8K Association – agreed by the likes of Samsung, Hisense, Panasonic, TCL, Intel and Tencent – also has its own set of 8K TV parameters which doesn’t include minimum contrast modulation values. Meeting (and exceeding) the CTA's specs and wearing the badge can only be considered a win for LG, but with other standards being backed by different companies we wouldn't necessarily take it as definitive.
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