What is 4K HDR TV? How Does 4K Differ from 1080P?
What is 4K?
That seems to be the question on the minds of many consumers – especially during the season of competitive retail price drops and holiday shopping.
Within the past 10-15 years, the world of big screen televisions has essentially transformed into an ever-changing realm of advanced entertainment technology. In today’s market, consumer demand specifically targets 4K HDR TV. Why? What is 4K? How does it stand out from its predecessors and competitors?
A TIMELINE THAT DATES BACK TO 1998
To understand how far the industry has come and the rising popularity of 4K, here’s a quick overview timeline of that journey which dates back to the late 1990s:
- 1998: HDTV digital broadcasting is launched in the United States. It was invented decades earlier, but it was not until the late 1990s that HDTV became mainstream in the United States.
- LCD Bumps Plasma: During the first several years of the 21st century, plasma TVs were “cutting-edge” and reigned as King. That King was dethroned and replaced by “the next big thing” – LCD televisions – around 2007.
- LED Grows Behind the Scenes: LED continued to grow in development and popularity behind the scenes to the point where LED-backlit LCD TVs became the nucleus of consumer focus.
- 4K HDTVs: From the big-screen projection TVs in the late 1990s to the flat screen LED-backlit LCDs of the early 2000s, it did not seem as if the evolution of TVs could grow any further. That was, of course, until the more flexible and thinner 4K TVs made their mark with the rising popularity of curved screens really making their mark with today’s consumers.
WHAT EXACTLY IS 4K?
4K (also referred to as “Ultra-High Definition” or UHD) offers nearly 4,000 pixels across - a substantial increase over what you find in standard HDTV. It generates an impressive image clarity that transcends the convention 1080p HD resolution that used to drop jaws and captivate eyes. In addition to the image clarity, 4K HDR TV also presents a collection of varied, vibrant and more realistic colors along with extended frame rates.
As shown from the above image, 4K exceeds its top predecessor with a high-quality resolution profile that is 2 times higher and wider than 1080 HD:
- Standard: 450 x 540 pixels
- HD: 720 pixels
- Full HD: 1080 pixels
- 4K: 3,840 x 2,160 pixels
TOP 4 BENEFITS OF 4K HDR TV
In addition to the increased level of resolution, investing in a 4K TV allows you to enjoy quite a few other features and benefits that are simply unavailable with standard definition and other conventional TVs.
- Premium Features: 4K UHD allows you to enjoy such premium features as viewing an arsenal of enhanced colors, extremely high refresh rates, special motion rendering and HDR technology.
- Image Enhancement Boosts Your Viewing Experience: Think about the most captivating films that you have in your collection right now. Picture the most colorful scenes and vibrant moments of the film that may drop your jaws with a standard or 1080p HDTV. Now, imagine having the opportunity to view those scenes in a clearer, richer and more vibrant way than you have never seen them before. That is what you will enjoy with a 4K TV.
- 4K Places You Ahead of the Curve: As technology continues to evolve, all consumers will eventually have to grow along with it. Investing in a 4K TV now will allow you to step ahead of that curve by accessing the connectivity and visual specs that may become the “new normal” based on possible changes in the future of broadcasting technology.
- Pricing More Competitive than Ever: Most people look forward to Black Friday shopping due to the drastically low pricing of HDTVs. However, if you have paid attention to the average pricing of HDTVs throughout the year, you would notice that there are still relatively low in comparison to their price points from 2015 or even 2016. You can even buy high-quality 4K TVs for the same price as some other high-end HDTVs available today.
A GROWING LIBRARY OF 4K MOVIE TITLES
The fifth benefit of investing in 4K HDR TVs is the benefit of enjoying the growing number of 4K movie titles available. At HD Movie Codes, we strive to keep our customers satisfied with our own growing collection of 4K movies for a fraction of the price you would pay for them in-store.
How do you personally feel about 4K? If you do not have it yet, do you plan to buy a 4K TV in the future? If you already have one, do you think it was worth the money you spent? Let us know in the comments below.
33 Responses
April
Great Post explaining all this which can be overwhelming.
Carl
I adopter early, but wish I would have waited for the HDR models.
Tjbhysl
What I find limiting with current 4k tv offerings is size. I cannot go with a larger TV in some areas. I need something smaller than 40 inches. I hope that this is just a manufacturing issue for now as the market moves towards this version
Andy
Very informative! Love 4K!
Mark
Perhaps you could do an article on the huge difference in picture quality between 4K streaming and 4K discs? So many people seem to think that the content on the likes of Apple, Netflix, Vudu, Amazon etc. is good but in reality they are watching something barely as good as a Blu-ray disc with very poor audio quality.
Sheryl P
I picked up a new 4k uhd tv on black Friday. I love it. The differences are very noticible from standard tv.
James Thornock
I’m going to shell out for a 4k tv pretty soon here.
Thomas
Good, informative article
Richard
Por qué
Donovon
I am just not that picky when it comes to HD viewing. If the SD is so terrible, that it makes it hard to watch, then I do not watch it.
Frank
Do you need a 4K tv to watch these 4K titles? I’m assuming yes.
ElliotReidMD
I’m relatively new to 4k and am impressed with it. Granted it’s not the upgrade from SD to HD, not to me anyway, but the difference is noticeable. Saying that it’s HDR that impresses me the most.
Brandon
I have a 4k HDR tv but I find that with my current usage I already got my Comcast data cap each month streaming HD movies. I find this data cap to be the real limitation of HDR 4k!
DMA
I would love 4K but it is going to take the prices coming way down before I can afford a quality TV
Amy
4k is awesome can’t wait for more movie to come out
Michael Owens
Thanks for all the 4k content so far looking forward to more in the future
Wesley L Gardunia
I agree
Alex
I like how you raised prices on movies ever since Movies Anywhere launch… but 4K movies are great.
robert
Glad I picked up an Apple TV 4K so my content if available will stream 4K
Alan
I love my 4K crisp and clear. And Movies,from you. Perfect
John Dodson
My only problem with 4k is old movies and shows look fake, you can tell when it’s a prop
John Dodson
My only problem with 4k is old movies and shows look fake, you can tell when it’s a prop
DreGla
Sounds lovely, but still have a lot of DVDs (480p) and mostly Blurays (1080p). HD looks good enough to enjoy my flix. No need to spend more money & time keeping up with the Joneses.
By the time I catch up to 4K, y’all will be on 8K, 16K. Geez! It never ends!
Tanner
I wish more studios included 4k digital codes with UHD discs. Seems like a double standard from when the industry transitioned from DVD to blu-ray.
JB
Always wondered what all the hoopla was about. Thanks for the great info. Guess I need a new TV now…Santa?
Andy
I’m happy with my 4K tv that I picked up recently. Definitely going to try to update more of my movies to 4K.
Jon Martz
So what is the benefit here, Most of the time I cannot tell a difference.
Neil Frazer
I won’t be investing in a 4K TV any time soon, but it reminds me of the tv we had as a kid and how quickly they developed over the years. I’m only 27, so for me it seemed like we had huge box tvs. When I was young there wasn’t anything wrong with the tvs except you had to hit them on the side and wiggle the antenna a lot.
Robb
I prefer the 4K content on iTunes, as I have an hdr Samsung tv, but I wish iTunes would hurry with the Dolby Atmos update.
BustedRC
I enjoy the 4K so much more then 1080P. I am slowly converting my library to 4K. Thanks for posting the info.
Brent Walton
I wish they would support more 3D movies to go with UHD.
Tommy
Great informative post! The 4k movies I get from you guys look awesome on my 4k TV.
Eyeradicate
December 25, 2017
Love 4k. Wish more titles were synced with vudu though.