Might have said it here before but I've been waiting for 4K for a while.
Not just for pictures, or movies, or television.. or Web for that matter, but for games. And some movies admittedly. But mostly for games.
But the question I asked myself back in 1996 regarding dot pitch.. and at the time CRTs because I wasn't a fan of LCDs yet.. was how could that many pixels be sent to the screen in a timely manner.
How could movies or games manage that resolution.
These days the answer is RED, Cinema 4K otherwise cameras. And there's a number of cheap $1000 and not so cheap.. several thousand dollar projectors and HDTVs on the way.
Unlike 3D which still isn't especially interesting, all media can benefit from 4K.
But as there are more manufacturers bringing budget 4K sets to market.. the question decades in the answering is still.. where the content?
Surely we'll be streaming and downloading 4K. But as it is downloading a 50 gig Bluray movie is pushing things.
Asking if people will download a 50-150 gig movie would require that they have that much harddrive space.. and that they have an internet service plan that supports unlimited download/upload.
That doesn't apply to games because a game can be 50 megabytes and still render at 4K, which is why when I asked myself the question back in 96 it was based on games. It is simplest common denominator regarding content for higher resolutions.. it was proven with 480p, 720p, 1080p.. and now 4K. Except that the DVD and Bluray also happened, and their vehicle was Sony's PlayStation and its successors.
Will Sony's PS4 be the necessary vehicle for cheap consumer 4K?
It still isn't clear.
All they've said so far is that the device could support 4K. at 24-30 frames per second.. they can keep it. 60hz and well.. maybe it will be worthwhile short term.. but for gaming, when you're looking at such a pixel rich image.. I've wondered why the focus isn't on 120 frames per second. Literally overkill.
Bluray 1080p, even on a 24 inch monitor is adequate.. but the higher you go with screen size, the higher the resolution needs to be and the frame rate, aside from movies, also needs to be increased for gaming.
Otherwise it is a very pretty slideshow.
I can't argue that most people would be happy with Xbox One and PS4 as they are.. but over 15 years later i highly doubt that any game will run at the 120 frames per second I've been expecting.. but that's also because games have matured to the point where developers put more effort into the visuals (which in most cases are still ugly and not fit for mainstream consumption.. if you compare it to CG movies).
But Xbox did manage much better visuals for 480p than previous consoles. Xbox 360 did manage better visuals for 720p than Xbox. And Xbox One will do 1080p like nobodies business. Doesn't that put them all behind a generation? only hitting a sweet spot for what the previous generation could have accomplished but they are just consoles?
So at least there's movies. DVD, Bluray.. and Bluray XL for 4K. Why is it that movies are the benchmark instead of games? That 4K will be overkill except in the framerate department because the hardware won't be built for 4K.. but just to support 24-30 frames per second for movies.. and possibly 48 so PS4 can do 4K 3D.
It is kinda sad that HFR hasn't caught on.. but moreso because it was attempted for cinema instead of gaming.. but only because there's no effort from the games industry to deliver their games with high frame rates even though technology permits it.
Not just for pictures, or movies, or television.. or Web for that matter, but for games. And some movies admittedly. But mostly for games.
But the question I asked myself back in 1996 regarding dot pitch.. and at the time CRTs because I wasn't a fan of LCDs yet.. was how could that many pixels be sent to the screen in a timely manner.
How could movies or games manage that resolution.
These days the answer is RED, Cinema 4K otherwise cameras. And there's a number of cheap $1000 and not so cheap.. several thousand dollar projectors and HDTVs on the way.
Unlike 3D which still isn't especially interesting, all media can benefit from 4K.
But as there are more manufacturers bringing budget 4K sets to market.. the question decades in the answering is still.. where the content?
Surely we'll be streaming and downloading 4K. But as it is downloading a 50 gig Bluray movie is pushing things.
Asking if people will download a 50-150 gig movie would require that they have that much harddrive space.. and that they have an internet service plan that supports unlimited download/upload.
That doesn't apply to games because a game can be 50 megabytes and still render at 4K, which is why when I asked myself the question back in 96 it was based on games. It is simplest common denominator regarding content for higher resolutions.. it was proven with 480p, 720p, 1080p.. and now 4K. Except that the DVD and Bluray also happened, and their vehicle was Sony's PlayStation and its successors.
Will Sony's PS4 be the necessary vehicle for cheap consumer 4K?
It still isn't clear.
All they've said so far is that the device could support 4K. at 24-30 frames per second.. they can keep it. 60hz and well.. maybe it will be worthwhile short term.. but for gaming, when you're looking at such a pixel rich image.. I've wondered why the focus isn't on 120 frames per second. Literally overkill.
Bluray 1080p, even on a 24 inch monitor is adequate.. but the higher you go with screen size, the higher the resolution needs to be and the frame rate, aside from movies, also needs to be increased for gaming.
Otherwise it is a very pretty slideshow.
I can't argue that most people would be happy with Xbox One and PS4 as they are.. but over 15 years later i highly doubt that any game will run at the 120 frames per second I've been expecting.. but that's also because games have matured to the point where developers put more effort into the visuals (which in most cases are still ugly and not fit for mainstream consumption.. if you compare it to CG movies).
But Xbox did manage much better visuals for 480p than previous consoles. Xbox 360 did manage better visuals for 720p than Xbox. And Xbox One will do 1080p like nobodies business. Doesn't that put them all behind a generation? only hitting a sweet spot for what the previous generation could have accomplished but they are just consoles?
So at least there's movies. DVD, Bluray.. and Bluray XL for 4K. Why is it that movies are the benchmark instead of games? That 4K will be overkill except in the framerate department because the hardware won't be built for 4K.. but just to support 24-30 frames per second for movies.. and possibly 48 so PS4 can do 4K 3D.
It is kinda sad that HFR hasn't caught on.. but moreso because it was attempted for cinema instead of gaming.. but only because there's no effort from the games industry to deliver their games with high frame rates even though technology permits it.