Sky 4K box to be launched on 18th November

[AMDB9]

This could be great timing as I'm looking for my first 4k TV :-)


http://www.pocket-lint.com/news/135757-sky-teases-...


http://www.whathifi.com/news/new-sky-tv-box-to-lau...

[theboyfold]

Don't count on it being 4k, it's been rumoured that it might be, but from what I understand it's a more intelligent way of pushing content from the box around the home. Sort of like a multiroom v2. Also the ability to record more channels.

I'm still not 100% on where Sky are with 4k, it might happen, but I've not heard that many noises around it

[megaphone]

Their current 'HD' box is only 1080i/720p. So the new one may not quite be 4K.

[theboyfold]

megaphone said:

Their current 'HD' box is only 1080i/720p. So the new one may not quite be 4K.

Don't forget that most of the content shown is 1080i or 720p, so I'm not sure what else you would expect from HD? 1080p is only really being used by 1 or 2 major broadcasters of live content in the US at the moment, ESPN is the first that springs to mind.

[mathmos]

I just hope they don't base it on streaming....unless you have over 25meg netflix won't work in 4k and would be a big disappointment if sky were the same.

[PAULJ5555]

I'm still waiting for Sky 1080P.

[wiggy001]

PAULJ5555 said:

I'm still waiting for Sky 1080P.

Why?

I think some kind of built in "slingbox" is more likely and preferable (to me at least).

[pete]

Yep, IP/wireless based multiroom would be awesome, especially if they also release some sort of small receiver I could tuck behind wall mounted TVs elsewhere in the house. I don't have a frequent requirement to watch different Sky channels at the same time, but I do want access to my planner content from lots of rooms that don't currently have HDMI or Cat5 connectivity.

[theboyfold]

wiggy001 said:

PAULJ5555 said:

I'm still waiting for Sky 1080P.

Why?

Yes, why? As I said earlier, no live content is produced at 1080p

[Zoon]

theboyfold said:

Yes, why? As I said earlier, no live content is produced at 1080p

If only for the movies.

[PAULJ5555]

Zoon said:

theboyfold said:

Yes, why? As I said earlier, no live content is produced at 1080p

If only for the movies.

Yes movies, I pay for sky movies but don't get full HD I have to buy a bluray.

Why is there no live content at 1080p, will they all now jump from 720p to 4k I wonder.

[theboyfold]

PAULJ5555 said:

Yes movies, I pay for sky movies but don't get full HD I have to buy a bluray.

Why is there no live content at 1080p, will they all now jump from 720p to 4k I wonder.

Talking about live TV (which is where I work) 1080p poses too much of a bandwidth problem. Most of the world tends to be 1080i and parts of the US are 720p, and in terms of bandwidth they are about the same. The thing that people forget is that at the point of creation the bandwidth needed is much much higher than the time it hits your Sky box.

The only vendor I've worked with who create content at 1080p is EPSN, and that's only on a few select shows. The uptake of 4k across the industry is quite slow as lots of broadcasters were burnt with investment into 3d, plus the Japanese are already testing 8k and above...

[Ej74]

What we can expect is that it is another billable service

Sky still charges for HD - so 2008

[fullbeem]

Always thought when I had Sky, the picture on NHK was superior to Sky News HD

[theboyfold]

fullbeem said:

Always thought when I had Sky, the picture on NHK was superior to Sky News HD

That's not impossible, it's all to do with when and where in the chain the pictures get compressed. From source to country distribution you'll find sports has a lot less compression than news for example

[shocks]

theboyfold said:

Talking about live TV (which is where I work) 1080p poses too much of a bandwidth problem. Most of the world tends to be 1080i and parts of the US are 720p, and in terms of bandwidth they are about the same. The thing that people forget is that at the point of creation the bandwidth needed is much much higher than the time it hits your Sky box.

The only vendor I've worked with who create content at 1080p is EPSN, and that's only on a few select shows. The uptake of 4k across the industry is quite slow as lots of broadcasters were burnt with investment into 3d, plus the Japanese are already testing 8k and above...

Large broadcaster we work with has said they will not bother with 4k and are working toward 8k. They don't see 4k as anything other than a transitory

linky to a nice little cnet article on this matter : http://www.cnet.com/news/why-ultra-hd-4k-tvs-are-s...

[arch stant0n]

Unless you're sitting closer than 2 metres from a 50 inch screen, there's no point to 4k screens or broadcast. Your eyes can't resolve that much detail.

http://www.cnet.com/uk/news/why-ultra-hd-4k-tvs-ar...

[gizlaroc]

arch stant0n said:

Unless you're sitting closer than 2 metres from a 50 inch screen, there's no point to 4k screens or broadcast. Your eyes can't resolve that much detail.

http://www.cnet.com/uk/news/why-ultra-hd-4k-tvs-ar...

But there is more to it than that.
4k tends to be a much higher bandwidth, it can handle more dynamic range, extended colour ranges, tougher encoding/decoding.


I used to do a demo for AV Forum users showing D-Theater clips on a Panasonic Pro Plasma panel, peoples jaws dropped, even more so when they found out it was a 480p panel. The point was D-Theater was so well mastered, it looked stunning, the fact it was 1080 was a nice bonus if you had a decent 1080 display.

To think that was nearly 15 years ago.

Mind you, I remember seeing MUSE Laserdisc, and that was what? 1992 or something. That was even more stunning. Mate still has a system with an extremely rare disc of the crown jewels that was shot with ultra hi def cameras for the Tower Of London back in the 90s, that makes most 4k look pants.

[Super Slo Mo]

theboyfold said:

Talking about live TV (which is where I work) 1080p poses too much of a bandwidth problem. Most of the world tends to be 1080i and parts of the US are 720p, and in terms of bandwidth they are about the same. The thing that people forget is that at the point of creation the bandwidth needed is much much higher than the time it hits your Sky box.

The only vendor I've worked with who create content at 1080p is EPSN, and that's only on a few select shows. The uptake of 4k across the industry is quite slow as lots of broadcasters were burnt with investment into 3d, plus the Japanese are already testing 8k and above...

Have you heard much about what's happening with regards the kit that was lost/destroyed last week? Quite a few people are speculating that it's an opportunity for a load of new 4K kit to be acquired.

[theboyfold]

Super Slo Mo said:

ave you heard much about what's happening with regards the kit that was lost/destroyed last week? Quite a few people are speculating that it's an opportunity for a load of new 4K kit to be acquired.

Not a huge amount, apart from the insurance paperwork that we've had to go through to replace our kit that was burnt. I've not really spoken to anybody about it yet as I've been out of the country.