'Fake HDR' TVS Are Giving HDR A Bad Name

When ‘HDR-compatible’ doesn’t mean what you think it means.

- Ng Chong Seng

Have you heard about this ‘fake 4K’ kerfuffle that happened several years ago? In short, there was one camp that argued if each pixel isn’t made up of three colored subpixels, it isn’t a true 4K TV. Another camp maintained that a strict RGB matrix is unnecessary, and picture quality concerns can be overcome algorithmically. Personally, I think as long as you’re happy with what you see on screen and it’s appreciably better than 1080p, then sub-pixel layout be damned.

However, there’s now another ‘fake something’ episode that I actually feel strongly about, because I think it’s harming unwitting 4K TV buyers. I’m referring to ‘fake HDR’ TVs.