What’s the Deal with 4K?

The topic I want to discuss today is probably the most basic of all the questions out there; what is 4K? First, 4K and UHD are synonymous. There is no difference between the two as they mean the same thing! 4K or UHD (Ultra High Definition) refers to how many vertical and horizontal lines or “rows” of pixels a TV has. A pixel is a small dot on the front panel of the television that together with the other pixels, make up the image on the screen. The more tightly packed the pixels are, the greater the resolution. A 4K TV typically has 3840(vertical lines of resolution) x 2160(horizontal lines of resolution). This gives you a little over 8 million effective pixels on a 4K TV. Obviously this number changes based on the size of your TV, but the proportions and ratios are always consistent; the pixels per square inch will never change. In comparison, the “Full HD” or 1080 resolution was the highest TV resolution available to the consumer just a few yeas ago. That TV had 1920(vertical lines of resolution) x 1080(horizontal lines of resolution). This totals a little over 2 million pixels. A Full High Definition TV has 2 million pixels, the Ultra High Definition has 8 millions pixels. Eight divided by two… 4! 4K was born and has been taking the world by storm ever since.