# Ultra High-Definition is Better Defined for Consumers and Retaliers



## Todd Anderson (Jul 24, 2009)

At some point in the last year we described Ultra High-Definition as an unavoidable wave; doubters expressed hesitation about its benefits and scoffed at the idea of spending thousands of dollars to replace their minty HD displays (and rightly so...). In hindsight, the use of the word “wave” may have been an understatement. If you’re still in the “resist until the bitter end” camp, you’d better gather your valuables and seek higher ground...riding on the back of manufacturers seeking access to consumer wallets, UHD is quickly becoming a magnitude four tsunami destined to forever alter the Hi-Def landscape. It's a landscape that is changing fast and if you think you might enter the new 4K waters, it's a good idea to be fully informed before you swipe the credit card.








Nearly two years ago, the Consumer Electronics Association established “first generation UHD characteristics.” At that time, the organization’s Board of Industry Leaders unanimously decided to call the technology “Ultra-High Definition” (steering us away from other unofficial designations such as “4K”) and outlined minimum performance characteristics to help consumers and retailers understand the forthcoming rollout of UHD televisions.

Recently, CEA announced updated core characteristics for UHD televisions, monitors, and home projectors in an attempt to better address picture quality attributes and interoperability to provide further clarity for buyers and sellers. Dubbed the “Ultra High-Definition Display Characteristics V2,” these voluntary guidelines are slatted to take effect in September 2014. 

“Ultra High-Definition TV is the next revolution in home display technology, offering consumers an incredibly immersive viewing experience with outstanding new levels of picture quality,” said Gary Shapiro, president and CEO, CEA. “These updated attributes will help ensure consumers get the most out of this exciting new technology and will provide additional certainty in the marketplace.”

Here are the minimum performance attributes a product must meet to be considered Ultra High-Definition (Ultra HD, UHD, or Ultra High-Definition TV 4K):


Display resolution – Has at least 8 million active pixels, with at least 3840 horizontally and at least 2160 vertically.
Aspect ratio – Has a width to height ratio of the display’s native resolution of 16:9 or wider.
Upconversion – Is capable of upscaling HD video and displaying it at UHD resolution.
Digital input – Has one or more HDMI inputs supporting at least 3840 x 2160 native content resolution at 24p, 30p, and 60p frames per second. At least one of the 3840 x 2160 HDMI inputs shall support HDCP revision 2.2 or equivalent content protection.
Colorimetry – Processes 2160p video inputs encoded according to ITU-R BT.709 color space and may support wider colorimetry standards.
Bit Depth – Has a minimum color bit depth of eight bits.

The group also acknowledged that consumers will likely be seeking UHD content through internet streaming on “connected” UHD TVs, and therefore outlined characteristics that define when a display system can be called a “Connected Ultra HD” device.


Ultra High-Definition capability – Meets all of the requirements of the CEA’s Ultra High-Definition Display Characteristics V2 (listed above).
Video codec – Decodes IP-delivered video of 3840 x 2160 resolution that has been compressed using High Efficiency Video Coding (HEVC) and may decode video from other standard encoders.
Audio codec – Receives and reproduces, and/or outputs multichannel audio.
IP and networking – Receives IP-delivered Ultra HD video through a Wi-Fi, Ethernet, or other appropriate connection.
Application services – Supports IP-delivered Ultra HD video through services or applications on the platform of the manufacturer’s choosing.

In addition, CEA revealed that it is currently working with member companies to develop a new UHD logo to identify products that meet the updated guidelines. You’ll likely see this logo later this year.


_Image Credit (CEA Logo): CEA.org_


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