Couldn’t watch the Rio Olympics in 4K because you either didn’t own a 4K TV yet or your cable provider didn’t offer a 4K broadcast? Not to worry because if it’s left up to Sony, Panasonic, and Japanese broadcaster NHK, the 2020 Olympics will be aired in 8K.

As Steve Dent writes for Engadget:

 8K requires four times the bandwidth of 4K video, so the group must build new types of streaming and compression technology. Sony and Panasonic, which both have pro video divisions, will also help NHK develop cameras and other broadcast products. For consumers, the benefit will be ultra-realistic video with more resolution than even most theaters can deliver. 

Seeing how consumers, at least here in the US can sometimes struggle with a Netflix HD stream and 4K content and services barely exist, it seems rather ludicrous to take this news seriously. Even Japan, a country that’s much more welcoming to new technology, the idea of jumping to 8K seems unnecessary at best, seeing how neither party is even offering TV sets that support it.

TV technology and bandwidth aside which are so small feet on their own, there is also the camera technology. That means that Sony’s professional grade cameras will need to make the transition to 8K, as well as everything in between, from the switches and boards to all the extra storage required.

Time will obviously tell but this seems like either wishful thinking at best or throwing a lot of money at something that only a handful of people will get to enjoy. Also, as it stands,

 Sharp is the only company that sells an 8K set (an 85-inch, $130,000 model) 

Discuss:

Were you able to view the Rio Olympics in 4K?