Thus far the channel repack auction is not going well for the government. There have been only a tenth of the bids expected. That doesn’t bode well for any changes whatsoever.
As well the ATSC 3.0 process is moving slowly. So expect the OTA environment to stay as it is for the next 5-7 years.
That’s about the life span I give my current TVs before I make the move to 8K… Let’s see which one of my PVRs lasts that long.
Good I’ve overhauled and changed my OTA setup\equipment 3 times in the last 5 years and now it is good and stable. Need some peace and rest for the next several years.
When the FCC\government first proposed the repack, quite a few industry experts said, “What, are you nuts?” They predicted that there would not be a great response to the auction.
As Reagan said, “When the government comes along and says we are here to help, be afraid…” Perhaps it’s time for a government repack!
Was this really about efficiency and opening up the spectrum for other uses? Or was it just another ploy for the government to fill its coffers with a massive intake of money to shore up its general budget? Did anybody seriously expect the federal government to use that money for communications infrastructure improvements? This year and last the federal government already has taken in a record tax haul; it’s a money sucking vortex and financial octopus. It doesn’t appear as if the industry is co-operating…
And here I was thinking in 5-7 years to at some point move to 4K … seeing as I just got round to getting a 1080p set.
I keep going to BestBuy and Costco to stare at the 4K sets and I’m still not blown away!
I’m blown away… but you can only watch the vendor’s demo reel for so long 
4K == way to make you buy a new TV you didn’t need.
(and of course, you’ll have to buy a new one if ATSC 3.0 comes out)
I got a UHD Bluray player so that I can have some awesome 4K content (well, at least the meager offer rigs currently). One day in the future my TV will get some OTA 4K. I am more interested in HDR and WCG than 4K resolution though.
How does 4K content look from a UHD Bluray player compared to a normal 1080p bluray? I agree HDR is a very significant development! Any good 4K shows you have?
I don’t yet have a HDR TV, only 4K. I have a few films in 4K and the difference is pretty subtle on my 50" screen. Lucy is one of the films that looks the best with some fantastic picture quality. Also the Star Trek Into Darkness 4K Blu-Ray has 30 minutes of IMAX footage where they removed the crop and let it run full frame, that in 4K is eye-impressive.
When I compare the 4K Blu-Ray content to streaming 4K content (from Amazon and Vudu) there is a stark increase in picture quality. Streaming 4K looks like a decent up scaled 1080p video source.