Sharp will be launching the world's first 8K TV on sale, first "super hi-vision" resolution TV to be made commercially available. It is also even sharper than 4K or ultra-high definition (ultra-HD).
Sharp's 8K format offers 16 times as many pixels as 1080p high definition, creating an image so detailed that can appear like three-dimensional. The impressive TV is called LV-85001 and boasts an 85-inch screen, offering 7680 x 4320 pixels with 104 pixels per inch. Viewers can even see the images across a huge display area. Sharp claims the screen's contrast ratio is 100,000:1 and has a viewing angle of 176 degrees.
It comes with a TV tuner built in and consumers have to wait before it receives any 8K content that way and the first broadcast test would not happen until 2016. Analyst Abhi Mallick from IHS Technology believed that the 8K TVs will not one million units until after 2019. Japan's largest broadcasting organization NHK is the only broadcaster that announced its plan to create and broadcast 8K content, according to BBC.
Currently, Sharp is planning to make the panel as a monitor for businesses that can make use of the ultra-high resolution. Actual 8K output requires the use of four HDMI 2.0 inputs.
8K TV will be available to Japanese business customers on Oct. 31, and a demonstration at the CEATEC trade show will follow early next month, The Verge reported. It will cost around $133,000 (cost ¥16 million).
On other news, Samsung unveiled its first ultra-HD Blu-ray player and announced that its current "SUHD" brand of TVs would start supporting high-dynamic-range imaging (HDR) content.