| JerryLBell |
02-07-2022 03:53 PM |
Most television sports coverage is handled by TV networks who broadcast over-the-air (like ABC, NBC, CBS, Fox & PBS) or by cable providers (like Spectrum or Xfiinity) or satellite providers (like DirecTV or DISH Network). The standards for over-the-air are limited to 1080i (1920 x 1080 resolution, interlaced) or 720p (1280 x 720 resolution, progressive). Every cable and every satellite system I am familiar with uses those same resolutions, with a small handful of pay-per-view channels dedicated to better resolution, such as 1080p (1920 x 1080 resolution, progressive) and a VERY small number dedicated to 4K (3840 x 2160 resolution, progressive). The only ways you can get true 4K resolution is through Ultra High Definition (UHD) discs, which don't exactly work for live events like the Superbowl, or through internet-based streaming services. Most streaming services offer multiple resolutions and stream to you the best resolution they can based on your internet download speeds. However, none of them are required to support any particular resolutions, including 4K. Many of them stream no higher resolutions than 1080p.
This Superbowl is being broadcast by NBC and also streamed by their Peacock streaming service. From what I've been able to find on the internet, Peacock is limited to 1080p and NBC is, of course, limited to 1080i. That doesn't mean they can't use 4K cameras and offer the video out as 4K, but to get it you would have to find a source other than NBC or Peacock. That is what they are doing with the Olympics, at least for the opening and closing ceremonies plus certain select events. However, they can only offer the 4K to your cable or internet provider; the provider would have to give up one of their pay-per-view channels to handle the 4K offering. Maybe some cable companies are doing this but I haven't heard of any.
Is there an appreciable difference between HD and 4K? I'm a bit of a videophile and audiophile and I definitely see the difference, just as I can hear the difference between a lossy audio format like Dolby Digital or DTS and a lossless audio format like Dolby TrueHD or DTS Home Theatre Master. After watching really nicely mastered 4K movies like The Lord of The Rings trilogy in true 2160p with Dolby Vision HDR from a high bitrate (90+ Mbps) UHD disc on a well-calibrated OLED-based 4K TV, it is bloody hard for me to watch even a minute of it in 1080i on the same TV from 1080i TV stations coming down from DISH Network satellites. Like I said, I'm a videophile (a 2-dollar word for "video snob").
On the other hand, I have been in many home where the owners happily watched standard definition (720 x 480, interlaced) channels on their HDTVs and thought they were watching HD. When I flip them over to the HD equivalent of the same channel, some are amazed and some don't see the difference. At our ages, most of us don't have the eyes (or ears) we once had! Will those folks see the difference between HD (whether 720p, 1080i or 1080p) and 4K (2160p) TV? Maybe, maybe not. And if you can't, there's no point in upgrading to a 4K TV just to get 4K video. Similarly, if you can't tell the difference between the sound from a TV's built-in speaker and a decent sound bar, don't waste your money on a sound bar, much less a full-blown surround-sound system with a dedicated audio/video receiver and high quality speakers. Instead, take that money (and it's been more tens of thousands of dollars on equipment over the years for me than I care to think about) and spend it on something that you CAN appreciate the differences on!
|
