I’m proud to say I am not one of those people who sit up close to the TV screen tracking pixels, or who put displays side by side to compare true black. However, that doesn’t mean I’m not aware of the changes happening in video delivery, or what’s making those changes occur. Here’s a list of five factors currently impacting the quality of television viewing. Mix in a few compelling characters and story lines (praise the writers who have gone back to work), and you’ve got a recipe for good TV.
- MPEG-4: An improved encoding standard over MPEG-2, MPEG-4 not only conserves bandwidth, but it uses more intelligent algorithms than its predecessor to deliver a clearer picture. For example, MPEG-4 enables the coding of individual objects on screen. Instead of relying solely on macroblocks sized 16×16 pixels as MPEG-2 does, MPEG-4 uses sub-macroblock sizes ranging from 4×4 to 16×16. More detail = better quality video.
- Compression: Generally speaking, compression degrades video picture, but there’s a wide range of compression levels. As operators increase the quantity of high-def channels on offer, some are making or will make trade-offs on quality by upping the compression. Of course, the more bandwidth they have available, the less compression they need. Everything ultimately comes down to capacity.
- Online Bit Rates: For those watching TV online, Dan Rayburn pointed out recently that bitrates have gone up significantly in the last six months. After years of no change, suddenly we’re seeing bigger video windows online and better frame rates. That all comes from increasing bitrates from 300 kilobits per second to 500 and 750 Kbps. READ MORE
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