36 TVBEurope NAB Wrap-Up


NHK’s Yoshiaki Shishikui (right) talks Super Hi-Vision at NAB with (from left) Craig Todd, Dolby and Hugo Gaggioni, Sony


rate are up for grabs. According to Todd, many of the HD parameters still have their origins in, and are constrained by, legacy television. The move to 4K and beyond does not have the same backward compatibility constraints and can therefore fully exploit technology advances. Screens are becoming larger than initially anticipated and, with a tendency to sit closer, the original tests prior to the introduction of HD are being challenged, with the claim that images can benefit visibly from further improvements. Developments in image sensors


Beyond HD: should we be bothered?


At NAB, beyond High Def higher resolution was the new 3D model for the future. So where does that actually leave 3D — and 4K, and Super Hi-vision? Guest columnist John Ive, IveTech, examines the NAB higher resolution video format debate


COMING OUTof NAB 2012 one could be forgiven for feeling a little schizophrenic. On the one hand, end users are looking for economy and efficiency with a strong emphasis on workflow and cost savings. On the other, the industry’s fascination with pushing the boundaries on quality continues, this year with a strong emphasis on higher resolution video formats. According to market reports and


statements at NAB, the move to high definition (HD) is well advanced but with much more to be done. Broadcasters still have significant standard definition equipment inventory plus region- by-region HD take-up varies. Good news for suppliers because in the short term HD is paying the bills. The International Association


of Broadcast Manufacturers (IABM) conducts regular end user and supplier studies and at NAB released results confirming end users’ highest operational priority to be “more efficient and save money” with “total cost of ownership” also high up there. So what place does quality


have? Well, undaunted by short


term efficiency priorities, it was encouraging to see suppliers pushing forward with new innovations and in particular higher resolution and image quality. Despite studies that convinced us all that HD represents the ultimate viewing experience, new studies show that we can indeed see and benefit from further improvements. But where does this leave 3D?


Walking the halls it was clear that 3D has lost the prominence of former years. With few exceptions broadcasters are cautious, most confirming that a move toward 3D in the next few years makes little sense with ongoing HD costs, the complexity of 3D production and limited consumer enthusiasm. Confusion over 3D home


viewing with or without glasses doesn’t help. But there was good news at NAB in the form of two prototype displays; one from Dolby and one from Sony, for the first time showing respectable full resolution 3D on large screens, glasses-free. Ironically the push towards higher display resolutions beyond HD is also the key to achieving this. There are still


Demonstrations from Dolby and Sony showed, for the first time, respectable full resolution 3D on large screens, glasses-free


problems to be resolved but, as one observer put it, “I said I would retire before seeing decent glasses- free 3D, I guess now I will have to bring forward my retirement!” NAB indicated that in the short


term 3D will remain the preserve of the movie industry, with films such as Hugo receiving accolades and cinema-goers willing to pay more at the box office. So attention has turned once again to improving the 2D experience, fast forward to beyond HD….


At the NAB conference Higher resolution beyond HD was very much on the agenda, so much so that the SMPTE Technology Summit on Cinema featured a session entitled ‘4K (and beyond!) Update’. However, improving the experience beyond HD is more than resolution. Craig Todd, senior VP and


CTO at Dolby Laboratories, explained that several parameters including transfer function, bit depth, colour space and frame


have led the charge with higher resolution, lower noise and greater accuracy. NHK described the latest compact camera with four 1.25-inch 8m-pixel CMOS sensors and weighing in at a creditable 20kg, developed for its 8k x 4K (16 x HD) Super Hi-Vision system. Yoshiaki Shishikui, the head of the Advanced Systems Research Division at NHK, made it clear that improving television remains NHK’s primary objective, with Ultra Hi-Vision terrestrial broadcasting to be developed over the next three years. The latest camera and other components, including high resolution displays, will be deployed at the Olympic Games as a joint project between OBS, NHK and the BBC for the opening and closing ceremonies and other events. Large screens will be set up for public viewing both in the UK and Japan at which according to Shishikui, “audiences can feel as if they are in the Olympic stadium”. Not satisfied with improving the resolution, Shishikui informed the audience that doubling the frame rate to 120fps is in development too. Discussions about Super Hi-


Vision make the growing use of 4K — four times the resolution of HD — seem quite pedestrian. Not so, because the challenge is to make it practical here and now, not in five to 10 years’ time as with SHV. Hugo Gaggioni, CTO and VP of Technology at Sony Professional Solutions of America, took the conference audience on a whirlwind tour of products available today to shoot, produce and display in 4K. Sony worked with other suppliers to demonstrate a full production chain from camera to display as part of its exhibit at NAB. He commented that “HD has become almost a commodity” and that, in addition to higher resolution, “many manufacturers are now pushing beyond HD by increasing frame rates, colour space and dynamic range”.


www.tvbeurope.com June2012


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