Trending of 4K Videos You Ned to Know About in 2020

4K resolution has with us for so many years. It's now 2020. How about the trend of Ultra HD (UHD) technology and 4K content? Will they be future-proof? See our prediction based on some trustworthy statistics.

70% of human's sensory receptors are in the eyes. It means most of information is acquired through vision. Therefore, the development of display technology and image/video tools is the core to improve the efficiency of information interaction.

4K, as one of the advanced video display format standards, will reflect the progress of capturing, production, streaming and applying of UHD videos. Before we cut to the chase, let's get a clue about the development history of 4K video sources and 4K-capable devices.

The Development of 4K Video Content

• 2009: 4K resolutions were applied in commercials and documentaries
• 2010: 4K began adopted in cinema and Hollywood movies
• 2012: The International Telecommunication Union has issued a recommended standard for the "UHDTV" (also referred to as Ultra HDTV or 4K TV). It refers to TVs with a screen with a physical resolution of 3840 × 2160 (4K × 2K) and above.
• 2016: The first 4K Blu-ray discs were released by Sony Pictures Home Entertainment officially.
• 2017-2020: The overflow of 4K resource coming from the increasing 4K video recording devices

The Development of 4K-capalble Devices

• 2003: Dalsa Origin, the first commercial 4K camera released
• 2007: The first high-profile 4K cinema released
• 2012: The first 4K home theater projector released (by Sony)
• 2013: The first 4K TV, LC-70UD1U, with THX 4K certification was announced by Sharp ^[1]
• 2016: the first 4K Blu-ray player released;Xbox One S released with 4K streaming support and 4K Blu-ray disc drive
• 2017-2020: More smartphones, laptops, desktops, tablets supports 4K video playback.

Will 4K Video Be Future-proof?

There are optimism and pessimism about the trend of 4K. Some think 2160p is just a stunt，but some insist it will become and maintain the mainstream resolution. Let's see what the two opposite opinions are:

Pros:

"More resolution gives you the freedom to crop in post and deliver in 2K without losing significant quality." – by Tihomir Lazarov from fstoppers

Cons:

"4K makes no difference with 1080p HD if you watch on small or medium-sized screen."

"4K spurs demand for huge storage and more powerful internet connectivity."

For the last viewpoint, we don't have to worry at all. The fact is, in 2020, with the advent of 5G technology in 2020, the capacity of network will get improved dramatically. And the resource of UHD video content will pervade.

Actually, 4K will not be alone in 2020; instead, it will come bundled with other cutting edge technologies, including 5G, VR and more. Just keep reading.

Trend 1: 4K + 5G Technologies Will Be Applied in Many Fields

In 2020, UHD content and terminals will speed marketing penetration. With the realization and maturity of 5G ecology, large screen monitors, especially home TVs will be benefited from 4K technology. This year is estimated to be a boom period of interactive applications for family, online education, VR/motion sensing games and the like as a result of combination of ultra HD and 5G technologies.

5G is a kind of communication technology, but 4K is a kind of electronic information technology, why can the two different things be related?

5G technology will provide big traffic flow, high data rates, and low latency. The big traffic flow will definitely contribute to the combination with ultra high definition, including remote live broadcasting. Indeed, it has already been realized – China's 2020 Spring Festival Gala will use 8K/4K/VR + 5G technologies, according to xinhuanet.

Trend 2: Over 50% TVs Will Be 4K TVs in U.S.

"By 2020, more than half of U.S. households are expected to have 4K-capable TVs, a much faster adoption rate than that of Full HD (1080p).", quoted from Wikipedia.

Yes, more and more families are having 4K TVs or going to buy 4K TVs to replace their old ones. And by 2020, more 4k TVs that accord with high HDR, WCG (Wide Color Gamut), three-dimensional sound, high frame rate and high color depth are expected to be sold.

Trend 3: 4K Will Spread More Broadly

By 2020, UHD videos, not only 4K videos, but only 5K, 8K, 10K, 16K videos will be applied in more fields, including but not limited to:
• Broadcasting: cable TV, satellite TV, Internet TV and IPTV (Internet Protocol Television)
• Culture, education and entertainment: games, animation, movies, etc.
• Security surveillance: UHD CCTV, surveillance cameras, etc.
• Medical and health: telemedicine, surgical training, endoscopic surgery, medical image inspection, etc.
• Intelligent transportation: intelligent connected cars (recognizing license plates, vehicle models, etc.)
• Industrial manufacturing field: industrial visualization, defect detection, Robot inspection, human-machine collaboration interaction.

In a word, the gradually growing up UHD ecology will drive the development of industry applications and content services.

Trend 4: The Arrival of loT Era

AI-based UHD video is an important orientation and a to-be layout for technology giants of the world. The giants have invested a lot in researching display, video, TV, AR and VR. Accordingly, the development of AI-based UHD is an important direction of global technology industry in the future.

4K, combining with AI and 5G technologies, equals the change of everything in our lives. Just imagine when you get on a bus or gen in your car after work, your air conditioner at home gets activated, your water heater starts to heat up and your rich cooker starts cooking automatically. It will save you nearly one hour or two for the housework! It’s the arrival of Internet of Things！

Trend 5: There Will Be More Types of 4K Videos in 2020

In the past, many cameras and devices haven't supported shooting HDR, VR, 3D, hyperlapse and slow motion videos in 4K resolution. But in the year 2020, there will be breakthroughs. Shooting video in 4K resolution will become standard in all cameras. So, there will be more forms of 4K videos, including 4K HDR, VR, 3D, hyperlapse, slow motion and vertical videos.

The jump to 4K or even 5K, 8K, 10K, 16K is absolutely necessary especially if you are an advanced player of games and movie production.

How about editing such new-generation 4K footages?

Will the edits be extremely slow and stuttered since the videos are all power-hungry? Actually, you don't have to worry at all even if your computer is average. Taking NVIDIA for example, all GeForce GTX 600 and 700 series GPUs support 4K resolutions.And most professional video tools can take the advantage of GPU-accelerated encoding. Among them, VideoProc is the one that can make rational use of CPU and GPU resource and make full use of GPU acceleration in the entire process, from video encoding, video decoding to video processing. All your 4K video converting, editing and adjusting requirements can be met with this single program.