In the market of home entertainment, high definition has certainly taken hold as the new standard for television sets, offering clearer picture resolution and more vivid color quality for TV programs and movies. However, the wheel of new, emerging technology never stops turning. Now a brand new player in home theater has risen to dethrone and replace HDTV and its name is Super Hi-Vision (also known as SHV, Ultra HDTV, and 8K).

This new technology delivers 16 times more pixels than the highest quality HDTVs can offer with impressive 7680 x 4320 resolution. In fact, special lenses and TVs had to be developed just to handle all of that pixel packin’ power so it will be visible to users. Interestingly enough, it already made its first appearance in in 2003. Since then, companies such as the BBC, Japan’s NHK, and Italy’s RAI have been striving to make it the new standard in television. In the last week, the very first SHV broadcast, featuring a performance by The Charlatans was seen online, courtesy of BBC and NHK, who collaborated to make it possible.

Obviously, viewers weren’t able to enjoy it perfectly in all of the available pixels but this broadcast has definitely started what could be the beginning of the end for HDTV. Nonetheless, even transmitting the kind of data required for Super Hi-Vision is difficult but NHK aims to have a working format developed for wide release in time for the 2012 Olympics.

Source