future proof

[DLD]

It's hard to take industry predictions that seriously sometimes. 4K was supposed to be 'just around the corner' since 2007. In 2016, finally the majority of cameras can finally shoot it, but how many people are actually delivering 4K masters? And how far off is it from broadcast / majority of cinema distribution?...

Most US screens are in 4K (some chains are almost entirely 4K). They're trying the 4K broadcasting as we speak but it seems quite a while away.

4K via the internet or media players is entirely doable, however. Apparently the 4K Blu Ray is more popular than the HD Blu Ray was upon the introduction (which is no high praise but still).

As to VR, I personally don't see it as anything beside its own niche but I can imagine the holographic entertainment coming around at some point.

 

[roxics]

combatentropy is pushing the wisdom out. I agree. I usually make the same points with pencils and t-shirts. They've made mechanical pencils but many still use traditional pencils because they're good enough. The same is true with t-shirts. Though the colors and materials and designs may change, the overall shape remains the same because it fits the human body.
We can only assume the same will be true for video. Once it fits the human eye, anything beyond is cool but not overly useful.
I think for most people that is HD/2K. It's a resolution people watch on their smartphones and pay to see on the big screen in theaters. Sure 4K is better in many ways, but I don't think anyone will look back on HD in disgust they way I do with my first feature shot on an XL1 in 60i. Some HD yeah, if it was acquired poorly, but HD stuff shot today on higher res cameras just looks incredible.

 

[j1clark@ucsd.edu]

Most US screens are in 4K (some chains are almost entirely 4K). They're trying the 4K broadcasting as we speak but it seems quite a while away.

4K via the internet or media players is entirely doable, however. Apparently the 4K Blu Ray is more popular than the HD Blu Ray was upon the introduction (which is no high praise but still).

As to VR, I personally don't see it as anything beside its own niche but I can imagine the holographic entertainment coming around at some point.

While it may be that 4K is The Future... currently many broadcasts use media ranging from SD to HD, and either 'upscale' or what I've seen more recently, pilarboxing with 'fuzzed out' pillars of the content that is playing in the SD window... so that there are no 'black pillars'...

While ATSC 3 may give the option for 4K... there's an incentive to pack more lower resolution subchannels into the existing 6 MHz (US) TV channel. Don't know about PAL land, but I'm sure even with 8MHz channels, PAL broadcasters are thinking about how to pack more into the channel than just one 4K stream...