Samsung has announced that its UHD TVs will now support the updated HDR10+ standard that offers enhanced contrast and colors. The company has partnered with Amazon Video to offer HDR10+ videos on its 4K TVs (including QLED TVs) released in 2017 and 2016. Samsung's 4K TVs released in 2017 already support the HDR10+ standard, and the ones released in 2016 will receive the feature via a firmware upgrade in the second half of this year.
HDR10 is the most popular HDR format right now, but Samsung states that it uses static metadata that does not change during video playback despite scene specific brightness levels, so image quality might not be optimal in some scenes. The updated HDR10+ standard uses dynamic metadata, so compatible HDR TVs can adjust the brightness on a scene-by-scene or even frame-by-frame basis, producing images that are much closer to the director’s intent.
“As an advanced HDR10 technology, HDR10+ offers an unparalleled HDR viewing experience — vivid picture, better contrast and accurate colors — that brings HDR video to life,” said Kyoungwon Lim, Vice President of Visual Display Division at Samsung Electronics. “We’re excited to work with world-class industry partners, including Amazon Video, to bring more amazing HDR content directly to our 2017 UHD TVs, including our QLED TV lineup.”