We tend to think that we always need the best, the most innovative, the most expensive, the fastest. But it’s not like that. Just as you don’t need several gigabytes of speed contracted in your Internet rate, you don’t need an 8K television that costs thousands of euros now just because you believe that we are betting on the best, that we have the most cutting-edge model and that we are up to date. A TV like this is not necessary and you don’t need it and we explain some of the reasons why you should avoid it and spend much less on a more basic and cheaper Smart TV.
What is an 8K TV? Before understanding why you don’t need a TV with these features, we have to understand, in a basic way, the resolutions and the differences. The original 4K resolution is 4096 x 2160 pixels but it is a resolution that is not adapted to the 16:9 format of televisions. To adapt, Smart TVs use a standard of 3840 × 2160 pixels that matches the UHD (Ultra High Definition) format and are generally called UHD 4K televisions.
And the 8K? The 8K resolution is for a screen with 7,680 horizontal pixels and 4,320 vertical pixels. Four times more pixels than a 4K television and that would allow us to see all the details of any image and with so many pixels that we could barely distinguish them up close. Is it worth betting on this type of television?
You don’t need more pixels
8K resolution gives us four times more pixels than 4K resolution, but do you really need it? You will not notice the difference, with the naked eye, between using an 8K and 4K UHD television unless you stick to the screen and see it a few centimeters away. The normal thing is that your sofa or your armchair is several meters away and we will not find any difference watching TV if we are two or three meters away.
You will not find content
What are you going to see in 8K? You will not be able to take advantage of the benefits or specifications of the 8K TV if there is no content in this quality. Streaming platforms offer us part of their catalog in 4K ( and not all) and we can watch movies and series. But to see content in 8K we have to search for it specifically on the Internet and you will hardly find some images or videos that work as proof but it will not be what you usually play on it. You will not take advantage of this difference.
In fact, most TV channels don’t even broadcast in 4K so you won’t take advantage of having this resolution on your TV and, what’s worse, DTT channels will look even worse since you have to fit a signal with much lower quality (Full HD in the case of DTT channels) on a screen with a much higher resolution. This will make it look blurry when extended.
What do I buy?
Currently, buying an 8K TV is pointless. Also, waiting will allow you to invest in a much better model since there will be many improvements in Smart TVs with this technology in a matter of a couple of years. It is worth spending a little less for a TV that is going to be three or four years old and wait for 8K to become popular or give us something more than boasting of having the best TV.
