WEBVTT - BrainStuff Classics: Does TV Resolution Matter?

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to brain Stuff production of iHeart Radio. Hey brain Stuff,

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<v Speaker 1>I'm Lauren Vogelbaum, and this is another classic episode from

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<v Speaker 1>our former host, Christian Sagar. If you've ever been in

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<v Speaker 1>the market for new entertainment electronics, you'll have almost certainly

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<v Speaker 1>gotten an earful about the resolution of whatever TV screens

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<v Speaker 1>or monitors you were considering. But how much does resolution

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<v Speaker 1>really matter? Hey brain Stuff, Christian Sager. Here, when we're

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<v Speaker 1>talking about TV, we're talking about one big thing. Resolution,

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<v Speaker 1>sharper images, crisper action, immaculate detail in everything from sports

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<v Speaker 1>to documentaries to video games. In just a few years,

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<v Speaker 1>we've seen the race move from seven twenty to ten

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<v Speaker 1>a DP to four K and beyond. And this brings

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<v Speaker 1>us to today's question, does TV resolution matter? Spoiler alert?

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<v Speaker 1>The answer is yes at slutely, or maybe a better

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<v Speaker 1>way to say it is yes, absolutely, but with a footnote.

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<v Speaker 1>Before we get to all the weird stuff that footnote represents,

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<v Speaker 1>we need to understand resolution itself. Resolution starts with the pixel.

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<v Speaker 1>A pixel is the smallest possible unit of a digital image,

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<v Speaker 1>a single point of light. When you hear manufacturers talking

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<v Speaker 1>about resolution, they're describing the number of pixels on a

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<v Speaker 1>given screen, So an old school cathode ray TV would

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<v Speaker 1>display the equivalent of three hundred thousand pixels on a screen,

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<v Speaker 1>while an HDTV could pack more than two million pixels

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<v Speaker 1>into a screen. The standard way for TV makers to

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<v Speaker 1>classify resolution is with numbers followed by a letter. The

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<v Speaker 1>numbers indicate the rows of horizontal pixels, so think four

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<v Speaker 1>A D I, ten A d P and so on.

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<v Speaker 1>The bigger the number, the more pixels on the screen.

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<v Speaker 1>The letters at the end of the numbers stand for

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<v Speaker 1>I is interlaced, and P for progressive scan. The differences

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<v Speaker 1>are important, but fairly complicated, so let's save that one

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<v Speaker 1>for another day. Using more pixels to create an image

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<v Speaker 1>creates a smoother, less blocky, or pixelated image. So at

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<v Speaker 1>first glance, it sounds as if more pixels equal a

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<v Speaker 1>better experience, Right, Not so fast. Like here's where our

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<v Speaker 1>footnote comes in. Pixel density itself is not the only

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<v Speaker 1>factor in the race toward a better sharper image. If

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<v Speaker 1>we're looking at resolution as the ability to discern fine details,

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<v Speaker 1>several other factors come into play. For instance, what's the

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<v Speaker 1>source of the image, what roll does color play, how

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<v Speaker 1>close or far are you from the screen and how

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<v Speaker 1>big is the screen? For example, if you're watching a

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<v Speaker 1>small enough screen, say inches from ten or more feet away,

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<v Speaker 1>your I won't be able to tell the difference between

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<v Speaker 1>anything from four eight to four K. The farther you

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<v Speaker 1>are away from the image source, the smoother the picture appears.

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<v Speaker 1>As for the size of the screen, well, sure, you

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<v Speaker 1>could have a twenty six inch TV with ten a

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<v Speaker 1>D line resolution and it would still have the same

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<v Speaker 1>number of pixels as a fifty five inch TV with

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<v Speaker 1>otherwise identical specs, but the pixels would be physically smaller.

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<v Speaker 1>So in this context, size definitely matters. If you put

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<v Speaker 1>a h D t V with seven twenty line resolution

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<v Speaker 1>next to another h D t V with ten a

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<v Speaker 1>D you may not be able to tell the difference

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<v Speaker 1>between the two. These are just a few of the

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<v Speaker 1>pertinent factors in the overall equation. There's another big question

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<v Speaker 1>here too. Does the human eye have a resolution limit?

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<v Speaker 1>How many individual pixels can the human eye perceive? And

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<v Speaker 1>that's a tricky question to our eyes are not cameras. Instead,

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<v Speaker 1>they're an initial step to an intricate process involving loads

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<v Speaker 1>of unconscious estimation and guesswork in our brains. It is

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<v Speaker 1>true that after a certain point, the human eye is

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<v Speaker 1>unable to differentiate or appreciate the differences between some pixel densities.

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<v Speaker 1>With the right source, material, equipment, and viewing distance, four

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<v Speaker 1>K really can make a difference. For example, if you're

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<v Speaker 1>sitting a few feet from a sixty four K television

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<v Speaker 1>with an ultra high definition video feed, you'll be able

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<v Speaker 1>to tell if it suddenly switches to regular HD or

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<v Speaker 1>brace yourself standard definition. The limits of HD TV aren't

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<v Speaker 1>a failure of technology, there a limit of our biology.

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<v Speaker 1>If we can't tell the difference between a lower resolution

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<v Speaker 1>in TV and an HD version, then there's not much

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<v Speaker 1>incentive to buy the latest ultra high definition TV set.

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<v Speaker 1>But this isn't the end of the story. The race

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<v Speaker 1>for higher resolution continues. Cameras that shooting four K have

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<v Speaker 1>already become the norm, and each year bring new innovations.

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<v Speaker 1>These ultra high definition technologies may not make for a

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<v Speaker 1>better picture on a home television, but in a movie

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<v Speaker 1>theater it makes a big difference, and in the future

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<v Speaker 1>we might not care as much about resolution. It's possible

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<v Speaker 1>that other technologies like high dynamic range may become the

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<v Speaker 1>next big thing. Today's episode was written by Ben Bullen

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<v Speaker 1>and produced by Tyler Clang. For more on this and

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<v Speaker 1>lots of other Crystal Clear topics, visit how Stuff works

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<v Speaker 1>dot com. Brain Stuff is a production of My heart Radio.

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<v Speaker 1>From more podcasts in my heart Radio, visit the heart

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