Real 4K or Fake 4K ?

asseanontv

Premium Supporter
Apr 13, 2013
461
Somerset, UK
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With the new 4K UHD Blu-ray standard the studios are once again charging you for the upgrade, but many are "faking it" by upscaling 2K films into 4K. While it's true that the 4K UHD standard allows for more beneficial features than purely the upgraded resolution, they are still advertised as 4K which is false advertisement.

Here is an updating list to help you separate the real 4K films from the fake ones. Enjoy the movies!

http://4kblurays.com/
 
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With the new 4K UHD Blu-ray standard the studios are once again charging you for the upgrade, but many are "faking it" by upscaling 2K films into 4K. While it's true that the 4K UHD standard allows for more beneficial features than purely the upgraded resolution, they are still advertised as 4K which is false advertisement.

Here is an updating list to help you separate the real 4K films from the fake ones. Enjoy the movies!

http://4kblurays.com/
Thanks. I was looking for something similar to this :thumbs:
 
Good starting this thread. Until there are an abundance of true 4k discs, people should know that they are getting upconverts which are basically the quality equivalent of what they have now. (which is great. 1080p is the zenith in my opinion. Everything else is pushing the rock back down the other side of the mountain having already reached the top. I can't wait till we get to 8k, and people talk about how great the quality is, when scientifically they can not possibly see it at all.:LOL:)
 
Good starting this thread. Until there are an abundance of true 4k discs, people should know that they are getting upconverts which are basically the quality equivalent of what they have now. (which is great. 1080p is the zenith in my opinion. Everything else is pushing the rock back down the other side of the mountain having already reached the top. I can't wait till we get to 8k, and people talk about how great the quality is, when scientifically they can not possibly see it at all.:LOL:)


Haha - so true.

I have grown sick and tired of throwing genuine stats at the 'true believers' who invariably tell me they can see the difference, no matter the screen size, or my favourite one is that they have 'trained their eyes' :rolleyes::naughty:
Biggest bad joke in 4k is the 'reference standard' 4k LCD :rofl::LOL:
Basically, of course, in otimum conditions with perfect eyesight (less than 1% of the population, even corrected) the difference between 1080p and 4k is pretty marginal and, ultimately, not worth the coin.

Right, now can we have the next generation (ultimate, one imagines) flatscreen plasmas back please :) :thumbs:
Or actually make bloody OLEDS work to their true potential, instead of faffing about with all this 4k and curved screen nonsense;)
 
Haha - so true.

I have grown sick and tired of throwing genuine stats at the 'true believers' who invariably tell me they can see the difference, no matter the screen size, or my favourite one is that they have 'trained their eyes' :rolleyes::naughty:
Biggest bad joke in 4k is the 'reference standard' 4k LCD :rofl::LOL:
Basically, of course, in otimum conditions with perfect eyesight (less than 1% of the population, even corrected) the difference between 1080p and 4k is pretty marginal and, ultimately, not worth the coin.

Right, now can we have the next generation (ultimate, one imagines) flatscreen plasmas back please :) :thumbs:
Or actually make bloody OLEDS work to their true potential, instead of faffing about with all this 4k and curved screen nonsense;)
image.png
 

Yep, so optimally with a small screen you probably sit with your nose pressed into the screen like the little girl in Poltergeist, calling out: "They're here . . . . . " :)

Slight exaggeration - sorry. But in reality, as you're ideally in the middle of the band. for a 50 inch screen (most popular size recently) one is supposed to be seated 5ft away; but frankly, less than 7 ft with a 50 inch screen is rather claustrophobic.

And a 100 inch screen at 9 feet (even if you can get one in the house - most people are restricted to 50/55 by a combination of costs and space) is nothing short of overkill - and by God, you're going to have sore eyes after an evening of viewing!



I'm very happy with what I've got for now :)
 
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Good starting this thread. Until there are an abundance of true 4k discs, people should know that they are getting upconverts which are basically the quality equivalent of what they have now. (which is great. 1080p is the zenith in my opinion. Everything else is pushing the rock back down the other side of the mountain having already reached the top. I can't wait till we get to 8k, and people talk about how great the quality is, when scientifically they can not possibly see it at all.:LOL:)
Are these studio "pre-conversions" any different than the "Upscale" feature that BR players use to enhance dvds?

Or is it basically the same thing?
 
Are these studio "pre-conversions" any different than the "Upscale" feature that BR players use to enhance dvds?

Or is it basically the same thing?
That is a good question. I would assume it would be the equivalent of the best upconversion.
The dvd upconversion on Blu ray players is largely dependent on how good the equipment is.
(The 1080p upscale will be better on an Oppo than, say, a $150 Sony unit).
 
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Are these studio "pre-conversions" any different than the "Upscale" feature that BR players use to enhance dvds?

Or is it basically the same thing?

That is a good question. I would assume it would be the equivalent of the best upconversion.
The dvd upconversion on Blu ray players is largely dependent on how good the equipment is.
(The 1080p upscale will be better on an Oppo than, say, a $150 Sony unit).
I'm guessing it's similar but the equipment they are doing it on will be top of the range worth thousands. I don't think anything we can buy would be able to replicate what they can do. From what I have seen you do get upgrades even from these 2K masters, everything does look sharper though not by a huge amount. It's the HDR that really makes the difference IMO.
 
To my knowledge nearly 99.9% of these 4k releases are upscales from 2k restorations even the "films". The original Ghostbusters is a 4k upscale from a 2k master and sadly it seems to be the norm. So I wouldn't be buying into the format any time soon.
 
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To my knowledge nearly 99.9% of these 4k releases are upscales from 2k restorations even the "films". The original Ghostbusters is a 4k upscale from a 2k master and sadly it seems to be the norm. So I wouldn't be buying into the format any time soon.
There are a lot but it's not that much. There are quite a few that were shot in 4K. The Revenant, Sicario (I think this was shot in 3.4K and then upscaled), Salt, Chappie and most of Sony's other titles. It would be nice if more movies were native 4K though.
 
It's next to impossible to get native 4k films as a lot of effects are done in 2 or 3k and upscaled. The format has shot itself in the foot before it's began.
I have yet to read a review in which the 4k disc walks all over the blu-ray. 90% of the time the reviewers find very very little difference to justify the purchase.
 
It's next to impossible to get native 4k films as a lot of effects are done in 2 or 3k and upscaled. The format has shot itself in the foot before it's began.
I have yet to read a review in which the 4k disc walks all over the blu-ray. 90% of the time the reviewers find very very little difference to justify the purchase.
Yeah the special effects aren't in 4K. A lot of the time it would only end up showing how fake they look anyway. A lot of CGI effects do stand out on UHD. They look even more fake than on the Blu-ray. The more detail the more you can see the flaws. I think with HDR there is definatly a difference, the colours and brightness are far superior to a Blu-ray, the resolution less so.
There is an improvement but it's nowhere near the upgrade that Blu-ray offered from DVD. Unfortunatly there are a lot of discs that don't offer a substantial improvement though. You have to be very selective when picking your titles.
 
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It really is not the quantum leap that going from DVD to blu-ray was. It's simply not the upgrade that was promised.

Quantum leap. Are you expecting things to leap out from the screen? That's what 3D is for. Just kidding ;)

Honestly, some discs are better than others. It's a growing format. I've been super impressed with some releases while others, not so much. CE companies are pushing 4k so like it or not, so, better get used to it.
 
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Just don't see me biting and even when I do eventually get a 4k TV it'll probably because that will be the only types of TV available. The best hope is classic 35m or 70mm film properly restored in 4k and released in 4k. Ben Hur, The Hateful Eight. That's the type of stuff that will shine on the format.
 
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I'm guessing it's similar but the equipment they are doing it on will be top of the range worth thousands. I don't think anything we can buy would be able to replicate what they can do. From what I have seen you do get upgrades even from these 2K masters, everything does look sharper though not by a huge amount. It's the HDR that really makes the difference IMO.
I've mentioned that before. The jump from 1080 to 4k is not as dramatic a jump as 480 to 1080.
The most exciting thing about the new TVs is HDR and Wide Color Gamut. It is a more important distinction than the resolution jump.
There is still a battle (kind of like VHS vs. Beta, or HD-DVD vs. Blu ray) over HDR standard.
Sony and Samsung back the UHD PREMIUM standard, while others are backing the DOLBY VISION standard.
 
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Just don't see me biting and even when I do eventually get a 4k TV it'll probably because that will be the only types of TV available. The best hope is classic 35m or 70mm film properly restored in 4k and released in 4k. Ben Hur, The Hateful Eight. That's the type of stuff that will shine on the format.

I don't see 4K being the only TVs anytime soon. Just looking at BF ads from this year, I was surprised at the number of 720p TVs still being sold.

Haha - so true.

I have grown sick and tired of throwing genuine stats at the 'true believers' who invariably tell me they can see the difference, no matter the screen size, or my favourite one is that they have 'trained their eyes' :rolleyes::naughty:
Biggest bad joke in 4k is the 'reference standard' 4k LCD :rofl::LOL:
Basically, of course, in otimum conditions with perfect eyesight (less than 1% of the population, even corrected) the difference between 1080p and 4k is pretty marginal and, ultimately, not worth the coin.

Right, now can we have the next generation (ultimate, one imagines) flatscreen plasmas back please :) :thumbs:
Or actually make bloody OLEDS work to their true potential, instead of faffing about with all this 4k and curved screen nonsense;)
I agree with you about OLED. I wish that was being pushed more, especially now that they aren't doing plasmas anymore. However, having a 110" screen at 11-12 ft, I fall well within the 4K being "worth it" area, so I'm excited for an affordable 4K projector at some point.
 
I don't see 4K being the only TVs anytime soon. Just looking at BF ads from this year, I was surprised at the number of 720p TVs still being sold.
I'm actually surprised at how fast the prices of 4K TVs has come down.
I'm really contemplating waiting until 8K TVs starts popping out...
 
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I'm actually surprised at how fast the prices of 4K TVs has come down.
I'm really contemplating waiting until 8K TVs starts popping out...
I'm a 30 year veteran of "first adopters" with tech. And I can tell you, that waiting is smart with this particular step.*
They still haven't even settled on standards yet! (UHD premium vs. Dolby vision for HDR).
Waiting will allow a few things: prices go down, Standards are set, content is created (available flms), and you get the time to get a glimpse over the horizon before you commit (will 8K supplant 4K sooner rather than later?).
Whether it be 4K or 8K, the real meat in the stew is HDR & Wide color Gamut, and OLED.

*even I have made mistakes as a "first adopter". I chose HD DVD over Blu ray...
Why? Because HD DVD was region free. I really thought that would win! Can't always choose right!
:rofl: (Hey, at least I never bought a ZUNE!:LOL:)
 
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