Vizio is expected to be the first television manufacturer to showcase Dolby Vision at CES 2016 in Las Vegas. Audio pioneer Dolby is branching into video; the first two Vizio Reference Series sets with Dolby Vision will be demonstrated at this week’s confab. Vizio, which recently announced its affordable D-Series 4K TVs starting at just $600, is stepping away from its traditional low-cost business model to offer Dolby Vision. This month, the company will debut a 65-inch model for $6,000, and the 120-inch version will initially run about $130,000. Continue reading Dolby Vision Promises ‘Astonishing’ Brightness, Contrast, Color

Apple’s new iPad Pro is the company’s biggest, priciest tablet and the first aimed squarely at enterprise users. The company says it’s pitting the iPad Pro against laptops, not other tablets, but it almost immediately draws comparisons with Microsoft’s Surface, that company’s business-focused tablet. Apple has not typically targeted the enterprise market, but this new focus is driven by the need to bolster revenues in light of declining iPhone revenues. Sales of the iPad have also declined since the 2013 peak of 71 million units. Continue reading Apple Goes After Enterprise With High-End, Pricier iPad Pro

The future of high dynamic range (HDR), wide color gamut and high frame rate (HFR) are a focus in the industry, so it was no surprise that several presentations at SMPTE 2015 took a closer look at these topics. One panelist made the point that the human visual system doesn’t see resolution, color gamut and frame rate as separate parameters, therefore we can’t treat them as such. Broadcasters working to playback UHD/4K TV are dealing with issues as their plants evolve from SDI-only to SDI/IP hybrid transport. Continue reading SMPTE 2015: Delineating Ways to Broadcast Ultra HD 4K TV

InVisage, a California-based startup, is introducing two new technologies to improve cameras: QuantumFilm is its proprietary nano-coating material that, says the company, results in sharper, higher dynamic range images and more naturalistic motion than silicon-coated CMOS sensors which become less efficient at transmitting light at higher resolution. QuantumCinema uses the nano-coating to replace the silicon-coated COS sensors, to offer “cinema quality” and higher dynamic range imagery for smartphone cameras. Continue reading InVisage Debuts Sensor Coating it Claims is Superior to CMOS

The Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers has published a study group report on the high dynamic range imaging ecosystem, now available for download on the SMPTE site. The report provides a detailed summary regarding “the implementation of HDR in professional media workflows and addresses key questions that will arise for industry members as they move forward in taking advantage of HDR technology.” In addition, it provides recommendations for standardization efforts. According to SMPTE, the report reflects the efforts of 170 international experts. Continue reading SMPTE HDR Report Offers Recommendations for Standards

Valve plans to release the first of its Steam Machines, a hybrid between PC-based and console gaming, to consumers on November 10th. The Linux-based device will be produced by Alienware, and combines the graphical capabilities of a traditional desktop PC with the usability of a home console. Coupled with the Steam Machine will be a new gamepad featuring two haptic touchpads that Valve claims will offer the precision of a mouse and keyboard control scheme. It will launch in three models ranging from $499 to $749. Continue reading Valve to Launch New PC-Based Console for the Living Room

FotoKem VP and principal color scientist Joseph Slomka led a SMPTE webinar yesterday on “Clarifying High Dynamic Range,” detailing his experiences in working with HDR productions. High dynamic range is “gaining traction in both the consumer and professional aspects of motion pictures,” notes SMPTE, but “there are differences of opinion even in its definition and ways to approach it.” Slomka described HDR’s impact on perception of resolution and depth as well as pitfalls in production, post production and display. Continue reading SMPTE Webinar Details the Strengths and Challenges of HDR

Apple is introducing 4K Retina screens for its 21.5-inch iMacs and 5K resolution for its 27-inch iMacs. Displays also tout a 25 percent increase in color gamut. Larger iMacs will feature enhanced graphics capabilities and Intel’s new Skylake processor. And now that the iPhone 6s and 6s Plus offerings include the ability to record 4K video, an updated iMovie supports 4K footage and 1080p HD video at 60 fps. The company has also redesigned its Magic line of keyboards, mice and trackpads to include new features, including the ability to recharge batteries with the same Lightning plug used by the iPhone. Continue reading Apple Goes All Retina with iMac Displays, Updates Peripherals

Google Glass “Enterprise Edition,” expected to go into testing this fall, will feature several notable updates to its hardware, including a larger prism display, a better Intel Atom processor and longer battery life. The new version reportedly corrects the eyestrain problems of the previous Explorer Edition, improves upon screen quality, and exhibits better heat management. Users of Enterprise Edition will be able to look up comfortably, without feeling the need to look up and to the right, as was the case with the earlier version. Continue reading New Google Glass to Feature Larger Prism and Intel Atom CPU

On July 12, GoPro will debut Hero4 Session, its latest action-video camera, priced at $399 and featuring a dramatically different form factor: a 1.5-inch cube that weighs only 2.6 ounces, with one button for on and off. In addition, GoPro founder Nick Woodman has announced the company’s expansion into virtual reality with a 16-camera array for an as-of-yet undisclosed price, to debut in August. Scheduled for next year, GoPro also plans to launch a quadcopter drone with built-in GoPro camera. Continue reading GoPro Unveils Smaller Hero Camera, Plans for VR and Drone

Yahoo Labs researchers have developed a new technology called Bodyprint that works as an alternative to the fingerprint scanners used in high-end smartphones to authenticate users. With Bodyprint, users can convert the screen on their smartphone to function as a biometric scanner capable of detecting users’ ears, fingers, fists and palms when pressed against the screen. The technology has reportedly produced impressive results in classifying body parts and identifying users. Continue reading Bodyprint Scans Body Parts to Authenticate Smartphone Users

We are past marketing and stunt VR, and now need to move quickly to paid live action VR experiences for the media to succeed, Ted Schilowitz, Fox’s Futurist said during the NMX panel “Why Content Creators Should Care About Virtual Reality” at the NAB Show in Las Vegas this week. Tim Street, board member of the International Academy of Web Television, moderated the panel that also included Cosmo Scharf, the founder of VRLA, Ikrima Elhassan from Kite & Lightning, and Michael Kintner, CEO of 260 Heroes. Continue reading NAB 2015: Why Content Creators Should Care About VR (Panel)

Nvidia, a company best known for its graphics chips, has plans to launch a new set-top box with significant processing power and Ultra HD resolution. The $199 console, known as the Nvidia Shield, runs on the powerful new Tegra X1 processor and Android software. The Shield was designed to deliver streaming video games through Grid, described as a “Netflix of videogames.” Consumers will also be able to stream 4K video from Netflix, YouTube, and the Android TV version of Google Play. Continue reading Nvidia Unveils Set-Top for 4K Movie and Video Game Streaming

At this week’s Game Developers Conference in San Francisco, Sony announced that its PlayStation-powered Project Morpheus VR headset has some new specs. The screen resolution has been improved to 1,920 x RGB x 1,080 and its refresh rate has been doubled to 120Hz. Project Morpheus now features a new 5.7-inch screen with nearly 100-degree field of view, and touts lower latency, at under 18 milliseconds. While no price has been revealed, the company says it plans to launch the device by the first half of next year. Continue reading Project Morpheus Gets Bigger Screen and Impressive New Specs

The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) has developed a new standard to enhance the resolution display of laptops and all-in-one PCs. VESA’s improvement to its Embedded DisplayPort (eDP) from version 1.4 to 1.4a will enable laptops and desktops to support images at a 7680 x 4320 resolution. As of now, 8K displays have only existed on high-end TVs but VESA anticipates the technology will be supported by computers, mobile phones and tablets in the coming years.  Continue reading New Standard Could Bring 8K to Laptops and Mobile Devices