Samsung pitched its 8K QLED displays for store signage applications at the retail industry’s January NRF 2021 trade show as a way to “transform the shopping experience.” The company hopes to help retailers “create an inviting, safe space for customers as stores continue to open up around the country,” said Mark Quiroz, vice president-marketing, display division. It positioned QLED 8K displays as a source for high-impact content and LED displays for in-window presentations that "bring customers in."
A “broader set of video decoding standards” to promote the “wider availability” of 8K streaming content highlights the “updated performance specification” an 8K TV must meet to qualify for the 8K Association’s certification logo, said the group Monday. Samsung, which has downplayed its role as the 8KA’s brainchild, posted the announcement on its own website. The updated spec also requires that 8K TVs “enable access to advanced multi-dimensional surround sound formats,” said 8KA. In keeping with past 8KA practice, only group members are privy to the specifics about the updated certification criteria, emailed Executive Director Chris Chinnock: “We left it intentionally vague as it is still a members-only document but wanted to advise that we continue to add features and try to raise the bar each year a little bit.”
Sharp’s imaging and information subsidiary introduced a 120-inch 8K LCD monitor, its largest 8K display yet, for professional applications. Using a wide-color-gamut filter and “optimized LED backlight phosphors,” the display renders “improved gradations of red, blue and green in the pixels,” said Sharp Tuesday. “This allows it to deliver brilliant clarity and is perfect for environments that require exceptional detail, including corporate lobbies, showrooms, museums and video production.” The display comes with “flexible installation” and easy connection via a single HDMI cable and a LAN port for linking to a PC. It comes bundled with a floor stand and wall-mounting brackets. The display is available on a “special-order basis,” said Sharp. It didn’t disclose pricing.
ABI Research expects COVID-19 will curb 8K TV consumer adoption through 2021, when 8K sets will still be only 1% of global flat-panel TV shipments. “There had been much anticipation of 8K TV market growth” amid broadcast content scheduled for the Tokyo Olympics, it reported Tuesday. The event’s postponement, plus the economic downturn, “has resulted in low 8K TV unit shipments in 2020,” it said: Though 8K TV price points declined in the past year, most are still expensive, and that will combine with lack of content to delay 8K TV adoption.
Acer’s Predator Orion gaming desktops will support Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 30 Series GPUs, said the PC vendor Tuesday. The GPUs power graphics “experiences” at all resolutions, “even up to 8K at the top end,” said Acer.
“The evolution of high resolution has arrived,” reads the homepage of the 8K Association’s new Discover8K.com consumer website, launched Monday to coincide with the runup to IFA in Berlin. It lists 8KA-certified TVs from “leading brands,” currently consisting of 17 models from 8KA members Samsung and TCL. The site also gives information about “current and upcoming sources” of 8K content, and “guidance” for viewing 8K entertainment at home, including “ideal screen sizes” and seating distances. “Ultimately it will be consumers who determine how quickly 8K technology is adopted,” said Aaron Dew, TCL North America director-product development. He chairs 8KA’s marketing working group and said, “Consumers who understand the benefits of 8K ultra-sharp big-screen displays, finely-detailed 8K gaming and the power of immersive 8K video are going to speed the transition to 8K.”
LG announced pricing and availability for its 2020 NanoCell TV lineup. The 12 new models are led by the Nano99 series of 8K TVs, including the $4,999 75NANO99UNA (May) and the 65-inch version ($3,499, June), LG said. The 86-inch Nano90 leads the 4K Ultra HD models ($3,299, available); the line also includes 75-inch ($2,499, May), 65-inch ($1,499, May) and 55-inch ($1,049, April) versions. The Nano85 series of 4K TVs comprises a 75-incher (September, price to be determined), 65-inch ($1,199, April), 55-inch ($849, May) and 49-inch (available, $649). The Nano81 series includes 65-inch ($899, April) and 55-inch ($599, May) models. The 2020 NanoCell 4K TV models, except for the Nano81, feature LG’s Alpha 7 Gen 3 intelligent processor; the Nano99 8K models employ the Alpha 9 Gen 3 AI processor 8K, which is also used in this year's OLED TVs. The 2020 NanoCell TVs support Dolby Vision, HDR 10 and hybrid log gamma along with Dolby Atmos. Other features include the UHD Alliance’s Filmmaker Mode and the HDR Gaming Interest Group’s HGiG gaming profile. The 99 and 91 series TVs support game play with auto low-latency mode; the 90 and 85 series support variable refresh rate.
The South Korean parent company of LG Electronics filed Feb. 28 to register “8K Recording” as a U.S. trademark, Patent and Trademark Office records show. LG wants to use the mark commercially for a wide range of consumer devices, including smartphones, smartwatches and wireless headsets, said the application. LG touted the ability for its dual-screen V60 ThinQ 5G smartphone to capture video in “stunning 8K quality” when it announced the product Feb. 27, a day before the PTO application but made no mention of a feature formally called 8K Recording. LG’s headquarters in Seoul didn’t comment Monday.
Dimenco staked a claim at CES to what it called the first interactive 8K 3D display, and launched its "simulated reality" software development kit for creators. The technology can show users dimension and details of 3D models in a fully spatial environment in a way that 2D displays can’t, at any angle, without headwear, said the company. Microsoft demoed the 32-inch display at CES. Dimenco partnered with Ultraleap to produce wearable-free, 3D graphics users can interact with and feel with bare hands, creating a "new form of interaction with digital media."
8K TV “won’t happen in 2020,” said ABI Research. Though 8K TV announcements by major vendors last year attracted attention and “raised many questions,” said analyst Khin Sandi Lynn, native 8K content is not available and the pricing of 8K TV sets is "exorbitant.” Moving from HD to 4K continues with fewer than 1 million 8K shipments globally, she said Wednesday. Direct-to-consumer offerings will play a larger role in over-the-top video this year as consumers move away from “forced packaging” of channels into fixed bundles (see 2001090012), said ABI. Consumers’ ability to choose channels that best fit their needs will become more important, said analyst Michael Inouye, and that’s creating challenges for vMVPDs facing declining subscribers. In 5G, fixed wireless access will have accelerated growth, said Lynn. Such trials have begun, with barriers similar to those for traditional 5G -- expensive infrastructure and time-consuming to scale, she said. Qualcomm’s recent announcement of 5G FWA partnerships with more than 30 OEMs, and ongoing spectrum acquisitions by operators, indicate “the ecosystem is getting ready to speed up the rate of deployment,” Lynn said.