▲ Samsung Neo QLED 4K TV (QN85F)

Samsung Electronics today announced that its smart TVs and monitors will now support Netflix shows and movies in HDR10+.¹ With HDR10+, viewers can enjoy richer contrast, deeper colors and stunning visual depth, making their favorite Netflix titles more immersive than ever.

“HDR10+ enhances the way we watch content, delivering deeper contrast and more vibrant colors for a truly cinematic experience,” said Taeyong Son, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We are excited to bring this technology to Netflix’s 300 million plus members and will continue collaborating with various partners to expand HDR10+ support across our product lineup and the broader streaming ecosystem.”

HDR10+ is a next-generation high dynamic range (HDR) technology pioneered by Samsung, designed to optimize picture quality scene by scene. By dynamically adjusting brightness and contrast levels, HDR10+ ensures that each frame is displayed with exceptional clarity and detail, staying true to the creator’s intent.

With this integration, viewers can experience enhanced realism and depth across a growing library of HDR10+ content, making every scene feel more lifelike. HDR10+ content on Netflix will be accessible on 2025 Samsung Neo QLED, OLED and Lifestyle TVs — as well as 2025 and 2024 monitor models — with support for additional models in the future.

This launch marks a significant step in expanding HDR10+ content, bringing enhanced picture quality to more viewers. In addition to Netflix, Samsung is actively working with a growing network of industry partners to further extend HDR10+ support. For more information on Samsung TV, please visit www.samsung.com.

¹ Samsung co-established HDR10+ Technologies LLC in 2018 to provide a royalty-free, open dynamic metadata standard in the industry.

– Junhwan Kim, Lead programmer, Engine Program team, Nexon Games

Game development is an art, and like any masterpiece, it requires the right tools. Nexon’s upcoming title, The First Descendant, is set to redefine the looter-shooter genre with its stunning visuals and immersive gameplay. At the heart of this development process is Samsung’s Odyssey OLED G8 — a monitor that not only displays these graphics but elevates them to a new level of realism.

Join us as we dive into the behind-the-scenes journey with the developers at Nexon Games, who reveal how this cutting-edge display technology has helped bring their ambitious vision to life. From the precision of color to the speed of response, discover why the Odyssey OLED G8 is more than just a monitor — it’s a game-changer in the industry.

▲ (From left) Lead Engine Programmer Junhwan Kim from the Engine Program team and Lead World Concept Artist Sinwook Wi, from the Environmental Concept Design team at Nexon Games, sat down with Samsung to talk about their latest project, The First Descendant and how the Odyssey OLED G8 played a role in its development.

Q. Can you tell us about your role in developing The First Descendant and how you contributed to the game’s creation?

Kim: I’m responsible for the game engine. I develop the software that integrates essential elements like graphics, sound and physics engines, make them work seamlessly together.

Wi: I handle the environmental concept design. My role involves creating the overall concept of the game and designing the backgrounds and characters to fit within that environment.

▲ (From left) Gley, Blair and Enzo, key characters from Nexon’s looter-shooter game ‘The First Descendant’ (Image courtesy of Nexon)

Q. What sets The First Descendant apart? What were some of the key innovations and design choices that defined your approach?

Kim: The First Descendant is a looter shooter that blends third-person shooter (TPS) mechanics with role-playing game (RPG) elements. It features spectacular combat scenes, high-quality graphics and a rich loot system filled with powerful guns and gear. The core of the game lies in its storytelling, character development and the pursuit of the best weapons and equipment.

A major focus for us was bringing the open world of The First Descendant to life through cutting-edge graphics. Using Unreal Engine 5, we leveraged Nanite to achieve highly detailed environments, allowing us to render complex landscapes and objects with incredible precision. This was crucial for creating an immersive open-world experience where players can explore vast and visually stunning environments. Lumen played a significant role as well, enabling real-time lighting that reacts dynamically to the game’s world and characters, further enhancing the realism of the gameplay.

* Open World: A game design element that allows players to freely explore most areas with minimal restrictions.

* Unreal Engine 5: A game engine developed by Epic Games, known for key features like Nanite, which efficiently handles high-capacity graphics, and Lumen, which enhances lighting effects.

▲ Junhwan works on the development of ‘The First Descendant’ using the Odyssey OLED G8. The Odyssey OLED G8 delivers superb graphics with its high resolution and color accuracy.

Wi: The game is set in an apocalyptic world where factions — each with their own traditions — battle for survival. The story follows humanity’s fight against the Vulgus, invaders who nearly wiped out the human race. Players take on the role of descendants, embarking on a quest to find the Iron Heart, the ultimate weapon to end the war.

On the design front, our goal was to create an apocalyptic world that felt rich and immersive while avoiding the overly dark and futuristic look often seen in similar settings. The environment itself is a key part of the storytelling. So, we integrated colorful, future-oriented designs for city of Albion to balance the grim atmosphere with a sense of hope. This approach doesn’t just end at the visual appeal but also helps the game engage players on an emotional level, too.

▲ Sinwook works on the design for the city of Albion, a key area in ‘The First Descendant,’ using the Odyssey OLED G8. The monitor’s consistent colors and detailed contrast has helped bring out the intricate design elements.

Q. As a game developer, what do you consider the most important factors in creating a visually immersive gaming experience?

Kim: A high-quality display is crucial to accurately present the game’s graphics and visuals. Today’s gaming standards demand seamless gameplay with vibrant graphics, high frame rates, detailed resolutions and minimal input lag. To fully experience these advancements, it’s crucial to use a gaming monitor with high resolution, a wide color gamut and fast response times.

As part of our collaboration with Samsung, I received the Odyssey OLED G8 during the development of The First Descendant, and what stood out to me was the monitor’s awesome display quality — color accuracy, expressions and its quick response time. The monitor delivers colors and contrast with a high level of precision, which was crucial for developing the game. The 0.03ms (GTG) response time made a noticeable difference during our demonstrations as well.¹

“[With the Odyssey OLED G8,] You get two distinct display experiences with a single monitor—16:9 for working and 21:9 for playing”

– Wi Sinwook, Lead World Concept Artist, Environmental Concept Design team, Nexon Games

Wi: As a World Concept Artist, I constantly ask myself, “How can I best convey the immersive universe to players?” I want players to experience every detail of the environments and even the subtle expressions of the characters as they were intended. For that, a display accurately reproduces colors and fine details is crucial. When players can see the subtle nuances in shading and the vibrant colors, it significantly enhances their immersion in the game.

▲ Sinwook builds out the background concept designs for ‘The First Descendant’ using the Odyssey OLED G8.

Q. Other than picture quality, were there any other the Odyssey OLED G8 features that stood out when you were working on and demonstrating the game?

Kim: The First Descendant is a multi-platform game, available on PC (Steam) and consoles. The fact that the Odyssey OLED G8 supports up to three external inputs,² was especially helpful when we were testing across the different platforms. The sleek, metal design also saved space and complemented the game’s sci-fi aesthetic.

▲ Junhwan demonstrates the console version of ‘The First Descendant’ on the Odyssey OLED G8. The Odyssey OLED G8 offers enhanced convenience with 2 HDMI 2.1 ports, 1 DisplayPort 1.4 and a USB hub.

Wi: Working on the design and demonstrating the game on the Odyssey OLED G8, I found the gameplay smoother and more comfortable compared to my previous monitor. The colors and contrast were balanced and accurate, even on the big screen.

I also really appreciated the ability to switch the screen ratio between 16:9 and 21:9 with just a single setting change. Normally, I avoid wide monitors due to the viewing angle, but the Odyssey OLED G8 made it convenient to switch between ratios for different tasks — 16:9 for working and 21:9 for demonstrating the game. The big advantage is that you get two distinct display experiences with a single monitor.

▲ The Odyssey OLED G8’s Game Bar allows users to switch between 21:9 and 16:9 screen ratios, enabling them to enjoy games in their preferred ratio.

“The fact that the Odyssey OLED G8 supports up to three external inputs, was especially helpful when we were testing across platforms like PCs and different consoles”

– Junhwan Kim, Lead Programmer, Engine Program team, Nexon Games

Q. What features of the Odyssey OLED G8 do you think will elevate the experience for The First Descendant players?

Kim: The First Descendant is the world’s first HDR10+ GAMING title. We collaborated with Samsung to implement this technology in our game, optimizing peak brightness of the monitor and supporting standard HDR without the need for manual adjustments.³ Playing The First Descendant on the Odyssey monitor with HDR10+ GAMING allows you to experience the game’s vivid, high-quality graphics at their best.

* HDR10+ GAMING: A gaming technology that enhances image quality by analyzing game content to enhance the depth of graphics and supporting features like response time and Auto HDR.

▲ The Odyssey OLED G8 supports HDR10+ GAMING, allowing gamers to enjoy an optimized HDR gaming experience without manual adjustments in supported titles. ‘The First Descendant’ is the first game to feature HDR10+ GAMING technology.

Wi: Unlike my previous monitor, where colors near the edges tended to darken, the Odyssey OLED G8 maintained consistent brightness across the entire screen. The thin frame and bezel also made it easier to focus on the game.

▲ The Odyssey OLED G8’s slim metal design and Core Lighting+ on the back enhance user immersion and create a stylish gaming space.

Kim: I also found the Game Bar feature to be helpful. When the Odyssey OLED G8 is connected to a PC or console, it automatically calls up the Game Bar. Selecting FPS mode in the Game Bar brightens dark areas in the game, giving you an advantage over hidden enemies. Also, the sound becomes richer, further enhancing the immersion.

▲ (Left) Default Game Bar settings without a selected genre, (Right) FPS genre selected in Game Bar.

Q. Any final words for The First Descendant players?

Kim: If you’re a fan of The First Descendant, or any third-person shooter (TPS) game with high-quality graphics, the Odyssey OLED G8 is an excellent choice. It has high refresh rate, wide color gamut and fast response time, which really enhance the gaming experience.

Wi: I’ve always debated between choosing a monitor with high resolution and refresh rate for gameplay versus one with accurate colors and contrast for development. The Odyssey OLED G8 meets both needs perfectly, so I can confidently recommend it to any gamer…or developer!

¹ Based on GtG measured under internal test conditions. Results may vary by content, monitor settings and the performance of the input source.
² Supports 2 HDMI 2.1 cables, one Display Port 1.4 and three USB 3.0 ports (1 Up, 2 Down)
³ To use HDR10+ GAMING, the content must be HDR10+ GAMING compatible, and additional settings may need to be adjusted depending on the content.

Samsung Electronics today announced the launch of its latest innovations in home entertainment, The Premiere 9 and The Premiere 7. These ultra-short throw projectors, designed to deliver an unparalleled viewing experience, transform any living space into a premium home cinema with stunning 4K resolution, immersive audio and other advanced features.

“The Premiere lineup is set to redefine the premium home cinema experience by combining our advanced laser technology with cutting-edge, user-friendly features that offer stunning picture quality and immersive sound,” said Cheolgi Kim, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “As we continue to innovate, we envision a future where our products transform everyday living spaces into immersive entertainment hubs, setting new standards for home entertainment.”

Unmatched Picture and Sound Quality

Samsung’s newest entries in The Premiere lineup meet the growing demand for high-quality entertainment solutions, using cutting-edge laser technology to bring the cinema experience directly to homes. The Premiere 9 features triple laser technology for enhanced color accuracy and brightness, while both models offer ultra-short throw capabilities and vibrant 4K resolution on screens up to 130 inches.¹

The Premiere’s vibrant 4K resolution and exceptional color accuracy bring every scene to life. The Premiere 9 and The Premiere 7 projectors provide color gamut coverage of 154% and 100% of the DCI-P3 standard,² respectively, while both models support HDR10+, ensuring clear and vivid images — even in bright environments. With a maximum brightness of 3,450 ISO lumens³ for The Premiere 9 and 2,500 ISO lumens for The Premiere 7, these projectors both deliver sharp and dynamic visuals.⁴

To further enhance picture quality, The Premiere projectors are equipped with innovative AI picture enhancements, including AI Upscaling and Vision Booster. AI Upscaling ensures that content is displayed in stunning 4K resolution, regardless of its original quality, while Vision Booster automatically adjusts brightness and contrast in various lighting conditions for optimal picture quality.

The built-in speakers with Dolby Atmos technology in both models provide powerful and immersive audio, creating a true home theater experience without the need for additional sound equipment. The Premiere 9 features 40W 2.2.2 channel up-firing speakers, while The Premiere 7 includes 30W 2.2ch speakers for an expansive dome of sound.

Samsung Tizen OS Home Brings Streaming and Gaming, Along With Broad Connectivity

The new Premiere projectors come with Samsung Tizen OS Home, offering access to a wide range of streaming services, including Samsung TV Plus, Netflix, YouTube, Amazon Prime Video and more. This extensive selection ensures that users can enjoy their favorite movies, TV shows, providing a comprehensive entertainment experience at the click of a button.

For gaming enthusiasts, the Samsung Gaming Hub⁵ offers a seamless gaming experience. Users can enjoy games without the need for a console, accessing a wide choice of cloud-based games directly through the projector.

For those who want to create a tailor-made interior, Custom Ambient offers personalized home decorations by projecting various widgets onto the living space. Users can combine photos, videos and widgets freely via the SmartThings app on their mobile phones.

Even when not being used as a fully cinematic projector, The Premiere ensures convenience and entertainment for all consumers as a Smart speaker with hands-free voice control and a variety of music applications.

The new Premiere projectors also enhance connectivity, providing a seamless and integrated entertainment experience. Users can effortlessly share content from their smartphones to the big screen with Tap View and Mirroring, while embedded voice assistant support allows easy control of the projector and other connected devices with simple voice commands. Additionally, Samsung’s SmartThings integration enables users to manage smart home devices such as lights, thermostats and security systems from the projector, thereby creating a fully integrated home environment.

A Design Fit for Any Home Environment

The Premiere projectors feature a minimalist, warm white design with rounded edges and a premium fabric finish from Kvadrat, a Danish textile design company that seamlessly blends in with any home decor. The compact size and easy installation make the projectors an ideal fit for any room, maximizing both functionality and aesthetic appeal.

Setting up any model of The Premiere is simple — users merely need to plug in the projector and connect to a wireless network. Ultra-short throw capabilities eliminate the need for complex installations, allowing users to enjoy large-screen projections with minimal effort.

The new Premiere 9 and Premiere 7 projectors are now available for purchase at Samsung’s official online store and select retail locations in the United States, Canada and China. The rollout will continue in other regions later this year. For more information, please visit Samsung.com.

¹ The Premiere 7 provides 4K high resolution on screens up to 120 inches.
² DCI-P3, known as Digital Cinema Initiatives – Protocol 3, is a color space commonly used in digital cinema and is the color standard for the film industry.
³ ISO lumens is the brightness level based on the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) standards.
⁴ The brightness levels for The Premiere 9 (3,450 ISO lumens) and The Premiere 7 (2,500 ISO lumens) reflect approximate increases of 23% and 14% over previous models (2,800 ANSI lumens and 2,200 ISO lumens). Actual performance may vary based on usage conditions.
⁵ Available games and content may vary by country and model and are subject to change without notice. Certain games require a separate controller. Internet connection and subscription may be required. Requires a Samsung account.

“We’re thrilled to join forces with NEXON, a true pioneer in video games, to introduce the world’s first HDR10+ GAMING title, ‘The First Descendant,’” said Seokwoo Jason Yong, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “This is a gaming milestone that goes beyond mere technological advancement; it represents Samsung’s continued commitment to enhance the gaming experience as technology evolves.”

HDR10+ GAMING Technology Ushers in a New Era of Gaming

HDR10+ GAMING provides gamers with the ultimate HDR game experience through deeper color, contrast and brightness. It also enables more accurate depiction of details in dark shadows and bright highlights, which allows users to fully engage in their gaming adventure.

HDR10+ GAMING supports an optimized experience that eliminates the hassle of adjusting numerous manual settings. And it enables enhanced gameplay with near-instant responses through low latency and variable refresh rate support. Furthermore, the standard provides developers with tools that allow consistent and reliable HDR gaming experiences across all HDR10+ GAMING displays.

“The First Descendant” is the first gaming title that will fully leverage the HDR10+ GAMING standard. It is set to provide gamers with one of the most responsive, accurate and frictionless HDR gaming experiences to date.

With Global Adoption and Innovation, HDR10+ Continues To Expand

Samsung co-established HDR10+ Technologies LLC in 2018 to provide a royalty-free, open dynamic metadata standard in the industry. The HDR10+ ecosystem has now grown to comprise 155 partners and over 7,000 certified devices including TVs, monitors, projectors, smartphones, tablets, set-top boxes and more.

This collaboration with NEXON reinforces Samsung’s unwavering commitment to providing superior visual experiences that go beyond entertainment and media consumption. Samsung’s latest gaming monitors and TV lineups¹ also support the HDR10+ GAMING standard, further reinforcing the company’s leadership in the gaming industry.

“By adopting HDR10+ GAMING, we are bringing the game to life in a way that was previously not possible,” said Hyun Kim, Executive Vice President and Deputy Head of Business Development at NEXON. “This partnership with Samsung is also raising the bar in HDR gaming, and we are excited to usher in this new standard of picture quality in video games.”

The open beta test of “The First Descendant” will begin on September 19, allowing gamers around the world² to experience the more realistic HDR gameplay firsthand.

For more information on HDR10+ technology, please visit https://hdr10plus.org/

¹ HDR10+ GAMING is supported on Samsung monitors (Odyssey 7 series and above) and TV models (Q70 series and 120Hz above) since its release in 2022.
² Not available in China.

Samsung has been leading the industry by introducing hardware (HW) and software (SW) that break the existing mold every year for the past 12 years since the unveiling of the first Galaxy S device in 2010. Some of the most game-changing so far include a large-screen smartphone with excellent immersion; a smartphone-stylus combination that enhanced productivity and creativity; and the world’s first dual-pixel camera technology. In addition, the Galaxy Note series, Galaxy tablet series and various wearable devices including Galaxy Watch and Galaxy Buds have contributed to the wider Galaxy ecosystem that has so transformed user’s lifestyles.

Ahead of the Galaxy Unpacked event set for February 10, Samsung Newsroom is providing a look back at the technological legacy of the Galaxy series. Read on to learn more about the 10 innovative Galaxy smartphone technologies that have set new standards and transformed the way we live our lives.

#1. 2010
The AMOLED Display: Bigger Is Better

One of the major benefits of a smartphone is that it allows users to enjoy content on a large screen with clear picture quality that sits right in the palm of their hand. Samsung kicked off the trend of the large screen era in the smartphone industry with the introduction of their AMOLED display. This display, developed using Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Diode (AMOLED) technology, is characterized by its clear picture quality, self-luminescence and larger screen size.

The Samsung Galaxy S was the world’s first smartphone to be launched with a Super AMOLED display, an ultra-thin screen that consumes less power and provides crisper and more vivid picture quality. With the introduction of the Galaxy S in 2010, users’ interest became piqued in obtaining bigger screens — such as the 4- to 5-inch screens of the AMOLED display compared to the conventional 3-inches on other phones — on which to fully immerse themselves in their favorite content.

Samsung has continued to take its AMOLED technology to the next level by unveiling devices with more powerful and more advanced screens, such as the Galaxy S10, the world’s first mobile device with a High Dynamic Range10+ (HDR10+) supported Dynamic AMOLED display, and the Galaxy S21 series, which features a Dynamic AMOLED 2X display with an automatic refresh rate of up to 120Hz based on the content type. Samsung’s innovative technology has enabled silky-smooth scrolling and uninterrupted viewing experiences, even on larger screens.

#2. 2011
The Galaxy Note and S Pen: Adding Analog Touch to Digital Devices

As of 2011, it became no longer necessary to keep notebooks and writing instruments in our bags at all times. With the introduction of the Galaxy Note equipped with S Pen, it is now possible to save and share everything from memos to drawings right on our smartphone’s screen. At that time, the Galaxy Note was launched with an S Pen that supported 256 levels of pressure onto the device’s large screen. Since then, both the Note and the S Pen have become inseparable, and as the series has developed, both have evolved significantly.

For example, Samsung introduced Air Command for the Galaxy Note 3 to give users easy access to signature S Pen features when hovering their S Pen over the screen. The company also then incorporated Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology into the Galaxy Note 9 S Pen so that its stylus pen could also function as a remote control. For the Galaxy Note 10, the addition of Air Action features enabled users to remotely control their device when switching camera modes or zooming in or out, a marked change from previous models which only permitted users to take photos from a distance. In line with this innovative spirit, Samsung introduced the artificial intelligence (AI)-powered S Pen for the Galaxy Note 20 in order to provide users with a more delicate and sophisticated drawing experience, and as of last year, the innovative S Pen is now available on devices such as the Galaxy S21 Ultra and Galaxy Z Fold3 to expand its compatibility.

#3. 2013
Samsung Knox: Your Trusted Mobile Bodyguard

We are now living in the era where most of our daily tasks and experiences can be undertaken all with a singular smartphone, meaning that the importance of security cannot be overemphasized. Samsung Knox has become a reliable shield for users concerned about information leakage or virus penetration.

Samsung Knox, installed on Galaxy devices since the Galaxy Note 3 in 2013, protects devices on a step-by-step basis from the chipset to the operating system (OS) and application level, while also blocking hacking and unauthorized access. In addition, thanks to its encrypted container space, a user’s personal and business data can be separated and managed safely.

In 2021, the company launched Samsung Knox Vault with the Galaxy S21 in order to thoroughly ensure the protection of ever-growing amounts of data. In addition to offering the industry’s highest level of security chipset (eSE, or embedded Secure Element) and a secure processor that prevents HW-level attacks, Samsung Knox Vault features a tamper-resistant security memory to protect a user’s various passwords and biometric information.

#4. 2014
Superb IP Rating: Ultimate Protection From Dust and Water

In the early 2010s, if you accidentally dropped your smartphone while using it in water, nothing but despair awaited you. To mitigate this, Samsung expanded the horizon of smartphone experiences by applying waterproof and dustproof functions to the Galaxy S5 for the first time in 2014.

From the Galaxy S7 in 2017 onwards, IP68,¹ the highest waterproof and dustproof rating, has been applied to Galaxy devices in order to strengthen their performance. The IP68 rating is given to devices after testing in fresh water at a depth of 1.5m for 30 minutes. Galaxy users are now able to use their smartphones with peace of mind thanks to strong waterproof and dustproof technologies.

#5. 2015
Samsung Pay: A Mobile Wallet in Your Pocket

It is no exaggeration to say that, after 2015, the trend of going ‘wallet-less’ saw a surge in increase. At this time, Samsung introduced Samsung Pay, a mobile payment service that replaces the cash and credit cards in a user’s wallet. Since this service was first introduced on the Galaxy S6 in 2015, it has established itself as a core representational service of the Galaxy smartphone.

When using public transportation, as well as when out shopping, users need just touch their smartphone instead of having to get out their wallet to pay. These days, leaving the house without a wallet has become a normal habit.

#6. 2016
Advanced Camera Technology: The World’s First Dual Pixel Sensor

Smartphone camera technologies are advancing day by day, to the extent at which if you have a smartphone, you’re able to capture pictures and videos comparable to that of professionals.

In 2016, Samsung raised the smartphone camera function to a new level by installing the industry’s first dual pixel in the Galaxy S7. At that time, the dual pixel was an image sensor only seen in high-end digital single-lens reflex (DSLR) cameras. By increasing the amount of light received by both the front and rear cameras, the Galaxy S7 was able to focus quickly and accurately, as well as take optimal photos in dark environments.

Samsung then combined an Ultra-Wide angle lens and intelligent SW in the Galaxy S10 to help users take even sharper pictures. The Galaxy S20 features a remarkable four quad cameras, raising the level of camera functionality once again. In particular, the optical zoom performance has been greatly improved; Galaxy S20 Ultra users can harness the Space Zoom function to zoom in up to 100 times, allowing them to take clear pictures of the night sky.

#7. 2018
One UI: Making My Own Galaxy

One UI is an interface that supports the unique user experience of Samsung Galaxy, and was first introduced in November 2018.

By dividing the viewing area and the touching area, the layout of One UI allows users to comfortably perform all operations with just one hand, and all necessary essential functions are included concisely on-screen so that everyone and anyone is able to use it easily. One UI is also characterized by a unified user experience as it has been applied consistently to devices across the Galaxy ecosystem, including smartphones, tablets and wearables.

One UI 4, updated last year, harnesses a completely different color palette with which to decorate a device’s home screen, icons, notifications and wallpapers in your own style. In addition, One UI 4 features strengthened security features, such as allowing users to easily select what to share and what to keep private in order to keep up with users who increasingly value their individuality and their privacy.

#8. 2019
Galaxy Z Series: The Dawn of the Era of Foldable Smartphones

In 2019, Samsung pioneered the field of foldable smartphones by unveiling the world’s first Galaxy Z Fold, equipped with a 7.3-inch Infinity Flex Display.

Samsung’s newly developed hinge technology makes it possible to open and close the smartphone as smoothly as one opens a book, and offers users secure, long-lasting flexibility that passed a test to withstand 200,000 folds. In 2020, the company’s foldable lineup was expanding to include the Galaxy Z Flip, which features a compact design as the screen unfolds vertically.

Samsung not only pioneered a new form factor, but also new usability options through such functions as Flex mode, which allows for more usage scenarios by fixing the hinge at a specific angle, and Multi-Active Window, which can open and run apps at the same time with applications optimized for the foldable screen for a split screen view.

Last year, Samsung expanded their foldable lineup with the Galaxy Z Fold3, which saw the inclusion of an S Pen and waterproof and dustproof technology, and the colorful, pastel-toned Galaxy Z Flip3 Bespoke Edition, leading the era of foldable popularization.

#9. 2021
An AI-Powered Eraser: Removing Unwanted Objects From Photos

As part of Samsung’s mission to expand the application of innovative AI technologies to all smartphones, the company introduced the Object Eraser feature that lets you remove any unwanted objects in your photos with just a touch.

The Object Eraser function, first introduced in the Galaxy S21 in 2021, is a photo editing tool that harnesses artificial intelligence. Simply by touching the object you want to remove from a photo and tapping the ‘object erase’ button, the object is deleted without the need for a separate editing program. Currently, this function is available on smartphones with One UI 3.1 or higher, such as the Galaxy S20 and Galaxy Z Fold3.

Samsung first applied its AI-powered interface, Bixby, to the Galaxy S8 in 2017, and now users can control their major Galaxy devices using only their voice. In addition, Samsung has been incorporating AI technologies into its device OS, battery and camera in order to improve performance and convenience.

#10. 2021
Galaxy for the Planet: For a Sustainable Future

Samsung is fully committed to minimizing the environmental impact of its products throughout the entire lifecycle of its smartphones, from the design to the production stage through to their usage and disposal, in order to ensure that Galaxy smartphones contribute to greater environmental sustainability. Under the sustainability vision of its Mobile eXperience (MX) Business, “Galaxy for the Planet,” Samsung is consistently working to achieve a circular economy by reusing and recycling resources in order to build a better Galaxy ecosystem.

One such effort towards sustainability is a reduction of plastic usage in smartphone packaging. The percentage of plastics used in the Galaxy S21 packaging accounts for a mere 4 percent of the total weight, cutting down the waste generated per packaging unit by 49 percent as compared with that of the Galaxy S7. In addition, the Galaxy S21 packaging contains only 58 percent of the paper used in that of the Galaxy S7, helping save some 44,802 trees a year. Samsung plans to exclude plastic materials in its product packaging and apply recycled materials to all of its products in the MX division by 2025.

The products set to be unveiled at Galaxy Unpacked 2022 are drawing attention thanks to the revelation that they have been designed using eco-conscious materials recycled from marine waste. Samsung has succeeded in transforming discarded fishing nets, a major contributor to marine pollution, into a material with which to produce smart devices, and the company plans to apply this material to all its products in the future.

¹ IP (Degree of Ingress Protection, IP Code) is a product-related protection technology standard established by the IEC (International Electrotechnical Commission) and is applied to various IT products and industrial devices. IP68 is the highest rating for dust and water resistance. Ip68 has a waterproof function that can withstand 1.5m of clear water for 30 minutes, but it is recommended that the device be washed off immediately after contact with water and then dried.

“We are extremely proud to announce that the new HDR10+ GAMING standard will be adopted by Samsung’s 2022 Neo QLED line up with the Q70 TV series and above and gaming monitors, allowing users to enjoy a game-changing experience through cutting-edge visuals and richer, life-like images,” said Seokwoo Yong, Executive Vice President and Head of R&D Team, Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “Samsung will continue to invest in users’ viewing experiences as technology continues to advance and provide enhanced new features and capabilities.”

Advanced HDR Technology Maintains the Artistic Intent of Game Developers

This new standard, developed by HDR10+ Technologies, LLC, gives game developers the tools they need to provide gamers with a compelling and consistent HDR gaming experience without the need for manual calibration across a variety of display technologies for various input sources, including consoles, PCs and more.

Samsung’s 2022 TV and gaming monitor lineup will support the HDR10+ GAMING standard by allowing automated HDR calibration that provides stunning picture quality to meet game developers’ demand. This translates into one of the most responsive and accurate gaming experiences available to date.

By removing the need for manual settings when games are loaded, something previously only possible with movie and television content, the game engine automatically optimizes video game content in real-time. This feature ensures details in the dark shadows and preserves the brightest highlights so that gamers can see and react to everything on the screen. It also configures the display to “true reference mode”, providing better color, also without the need for gamers to spend additional time with game settings.

Several gaming companies, including Saber Interactive, are expected to showcase their HDR10+ GAMING titles during the upcoming CES 2022.

“We are very excited to help usher in a new era of video game picture quality. By adopting HDR10+ GAMING, gamers of all ages will enjoy cutting-edge visuals for the best overall gaming experience,” said Todd Hollenshead, Head of Publishing at Saber Interactive. “The HDR10+ GAMING standard is genuinely raising the bar, and we are proud to be at the forefront of bringing it to market with games like Redout 2, the fastest 8K anti-gravity racer ever made, and with Pinball FX, the king of digital pinball, brought to life in a brand-new way.”

Game Mechanic Studios is also showcasing their HDR10+ GAMING title “Happy Trails and the Kidnapped Princess”, which will be available in 2022.

HDR10+ Continues To Expand With Industry Support and Adoption for Premium HDR Experiences

HDR10+ brings superior picture quality by optimizing brightness and contrast scene-by-scene or frame-by-frame, with more accurate color expression.

Introduced four years ago, HDR10+ has built robust support across the industry, with 128 partners and over 4,000 supported devices, including TVs, projectors, smartphones and tablets from more than 28 manufacturers. HDR10+’s metadata also offers flexible reference tone and mapping curve definition for content creators, allowing them to deliver more impactful images exactly as they intended them to be seen.

In addition, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 30 Series, RTX 20 Series and GTX 16 Series GPUs will support the HDR10+ GAMING standard with drivers scheduled for release in 2022.

“NVIDIA GeForce gamers can enjoy a brighter, more vivid and consistent HDR gaming experience on their monitors or TVs from the support of the new HDR10+ GAMING standard,” said Vijay Sharma, Director of Product Management at NVIDIA.

For more information on Samsung’s upcoming 2022 product portfolio and features, please visit www.samsung.com.

The five papers selected for AES’ esteemed ‘Top 10’ list this year were submitted by the Samsung Research (SR) ¹ Visual Technology Team and Samsung Research America (SRA)’s Audio Lab.

Read on to learn more about the industry-leading papers submitted by Samsung to have received the Top 10 accolade this year.

① A Study in AI for Bass Extension and Distortion Reduction in Loudspeakers (SRA)

The most downloaded paper from this Fall’s AES conference, SRA’s paper entitled ‘Application of AI Techniques for Nonlinear Control of Loudspeakers’, continues the team’s work into bass extension and distortion reduction.

The paper posits that, in order to obtain high loudness that features good bass extension, low distortion and mechanical protection, the motion of the loudspeaker’s diaphragm needs to be accurately controlled.

SRA’s study presents a novel approach to solving these issues that harnesses a neural network to directly map the loudspeaker’s diaphragm displacement to the input voltage, allowing for the loudspeaker to be ‘inverted’. This technique not only allows control and linearization of the loudspeaker without theoretical assumptions, but it is also simpler to implement.

② Developing a Method To Measure Multiple Loudspeakers Simultaneously (SRA)

SRA’s second Top 10 paper, titled ‘Deconvolution of Room Impulse Responses From Simultaneous Excitation of Loudspeakers’, presents a method that allows for the measuring of several loudspeakers in a room simultaneously that reduces the measurement time, compared with typical immersive audio systems, by a factor of ten.

Traditional room-equalization involves exciting one loudspeaker at a time and then de-convolving the loudspeaker-room response from the recording. As the number of loudspeakers and positions within a room increases, the time required to measure loudspeaker-room responses therefore also increases. Therefore, SRA’s paper presents a technique to deconvolve impulse responses after exciting all loudspeakers at the same time.

③ Optimizing the Integration of Audio Systems Into Slim TVs (SRA)

Along with the development of new space-efficient display technologies in recent years has come the trend to decrease the overall size of consumer electronics, including televisions. In order to combat the physical limitations for audio technology development brought about by these designs, SRA has produced their AES Top 10-certified paper titled ‘Transducer Design Considerations for Slim TV Applications’.

The slim TV form factor brought about by industry trends creates a challenge for the design of integrated audio systems as it severely limits the physical performance possibilities of any acoustic transducer. For the most part, modern DSP (Digital Signal Processor) and amplifier technologies have been able to utilize the transducer up to its performance limits and thus maintain audio quality. However, if further thickness reduction of the TV is desired, these technologies will no longer be enough. SRA’s paper discusses the physical limits of current designs and suggests a new layout of a moving coil-transducer for ultra-slim device applications.

④ Discovering the Best Audio Codec for HDR10+ (SRA)

As we move into the HDR10+ era, SRA has been conducting research into the preferred audio codec for HDR10+, resulting in this accolade-winning paper, ‘Bitrate Requirements for an Audio Codec for Stereo, Surround and Immersive Formats’.

The paper shows that the Opus codec would be an excellent choice as the preferred audio codec for HDR10+. The team conducted three listening tests on Opus encoded stereo, 5.1 and 7.1.4 channel content taken from music, cinematic and EBU files encoded at bitrates of 32, 48 and 64 kbps per channel. Current Opus encapsulation in Ogg does not support 7.1.4 with stereo pairing. Therefore, the paper proposes a new stereo pairing schema to accommodate 7.1.4 content in Opus with joint stereo encoding. The results of the study conducted indicate that a bit rate of 64 kbps per channel or higher is required for transparency in stereo, but 48 kbps per channel may be sufficient for 5.1 and 7.1.4 audio formats.

⑤ Developing AI-Based 3D Audio Codec for High-Immersion in OTT Service Environment (SR)

As growing trends indicate that users’ preferred media consumption platform has shifted from cinema or broadcast channels to over-the-top (OTT) services, SR’s paper, titled ‘AI 3D Immersive Audio Codec Based on Content-Adaptive Dynamic Down-Mixing and Up-Mixing Framework’, proposes new 3D immersive audio codec that can support various spatial audio formats for multiple loudspeaker layouts accessible in OTT service environments.

Unlike conventional technologies that use a fixed mixing profile regardless of content type and characteristics, SR proposes a framework that variably applies the determined mixing/de-mixing profile by dynamically performing audio scene classification and spatial energy distribution characteristics analysis based on AI technology. It was also shown through a listening evaluation that the proposed one can provide a higher immersion than the conventional method even in a home entertainment OTT service environment.

¹ Samsung Electronics’ advanced R&D hub, which leads the development of future technologies for its Device eXperience division

During the event, Samsung highlighted its consumer-centric approach to innovation. In particular, the company showcased how advancements in AI, IoT and security work alongside the breadth of Samsung’s portfolio to create experiences that fit into how people live, ultimately unlocking a new era of connectivity and collaboration.

“We are proud of the pioneering work we are able to do in partnership with the creative developer community,” said DJ Koh, President and CEO of IT & Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics. “As society becomes more closely connected through new tools and devices, we want to make people’s lives easier and smarter – wherever they are.”

Platforms Designed for Connected Experiences

A strong platform of technologies across AI, IoT and security enhances the consumer experience and accelerates the ability of developers to build creative applications. Samsung detailed its plans to strengthen core platform technologies such as Bixby, SmartThings and Samsung Knox.

During the SDC21 keynote, Samsung announced improvements to Bixby, which has become a central part of the user experience for more than 300 million Samsung devices. Bixby now uses on-device AI and deep neural networks to process commands on devices themselves. Thanks to on-device AI, this development makes the service up to 35% faster than before.

For developers, Samsung also announced the Bixby Home Platform, which serves as an intelligent layer between Bixby’s natural language processing and SmartThings. With the platform, voice commands can now be executed more intelligently, taking into account the state and context of various devices.

Samsung made further announcements with regard to SmartThings, including how the platform will be fully integrated with Matter, the newest standard in smart home compatibility. Matter solves developer interoperability challenges and with an expansive list of partners, will be the catalyst that makes smart home connectivity nearly effortless. SmartThings Hub software will also be embedded into the Samsung product portfolio, which includes Samsung Smart TVs and Family Hub refrigerators.

Samsung believes that consumer data and personal privacy is just as important as the experiences they enable. Samsung is committed to providing a seamless consumer experience, and to ensuring that its devices and services are secure from beginning to end. Samsung Knox, the company’s defense-grade security platform, offers built-in protection for more than 100 million Samsung devices. To further secure consumer data, the Samsung Knox Vault comes in a combination of security-specific hardware (a new secure processor and isolated secure memory) and new integrated software that shields the most secure data from the Android OS and applications. During the SDC21 keynote, Samsung highlighted the importance of collaboration and its philosophy of open innovation to improve security and privacy, reiterating its work to continue releasing security analysis tools as open source projects.

Samsung also outlined its Privacy Principles at SDC21, highlighting the three commitments that guide all innovation at the company: Protection, Choice and Transparency. With these principles, consumers, developers and partners are given the information needed to make decisions about how data is managed. The company offers users the option to review and manage their permissions from the privacy setting on their Galaxy devices and Smart TVs and discloses Samsung’s privacy policies through the Privacy Portal. Going forward, Samsung will collaborate with global security experts while continuing to release open source security analysis tools to make its ecosystems more secure.

Tizen Takes Smart TV to New Heights

Based on its ‘Screens Everywhere, Screen for All’ vision, Samsung continues to build on its position as the world leader in TVs by developing new experiences that enhance connectivity, functionality and immersive entertainment. At SDC21, Samsung introduced various ways that Samsung TVs are enabling new experiences, including:

• Video communication based on partnership with Google to allow users to enjoy better video calling on TVs via AI-enabled focus and zoom features.
• Samsung Health on Smart TVs that connects with a webcam to analyze movements and provide real-time feedback during a workout.
• More realistic gaming thanks to HDR10+, with automated settings for low latency and HDR calibration.

For enterprises, Samsung will launch Tizen for Business. This service supports interactive e-boards in schools, kiosks in malls, and even displays in restaurants, airports and subways. With new management portals, businesses can conduct real-time monitoring and control screens remotely, easily applying settings to multiple devices with one simple touch.

With the Tizen TV Platform Licensing, manufacturers who want to introduce a premium TV platform like Tizen can do so quickly with minimal cost. This enables them to use the Tizen TV presence to promote their products in the Smart TV market, and ultimately, help more consumers enjoy Tizen.

Innovating Across the Galaxy Ecosystem

Samsung provides a user experience that meets the needs of all users and devices. And with an expanding range of device types and form factors, developers have a breadth of opportunities to innovate in new ways.

At SDC21, Samsung introduced the new One UI 4, the latest version of its user interface for mobile devices. One UI 4 will provide new levels of customization to enable users to create an experience and a device that is truly theirs. It combines Samsung’s leading privacy and security features with options for users to personalize permissions so that they are always in control of their data when using a Samsung device.

Samsung demonstrated the possibilities of One UI 4 to developers at the event, particularly for foldable devices such as the Galaxy Z Fold3 and Z Flip3. Thanks to One UI 4, users will be able to make use of features such as Flex mode and Multi-Active Window, which enable users to enjoy more intuitive and user-friendly experiences that are unique to the foldable form factor. SDC21 also included a Galaxy Watch session that showcased developer tools to help them build new apps in the new watch app ecosystem.

Samsung invites developers and partners on its journey to bring new and secure experiences to life. For more information about the Samsung Developer Conference 2021, please visit developer.samsung.com.

Through this partnership, Samsung will supply its state-of-the-art display technology, The Wall, to CJ ENM’s virtual studio, a part of its television and film production studio complex scheduled to open in Paju, Korea later this year. The custom virtual production volume studio will be the first in the world to leverage The Wall’s boundless LED technology, unlocking new possibilities for video content production operations and virtual production solutions. The main display will be installed in an oval shape with a diameter of 20 meters and a height of seven meters or more, creating a seemingly endless backdrop to capture content.

“We are excited to collaborate with CJ ENM to build a virtual production studio featuring Samsung’s most cutting-edge display technologies,” said Jong-hee Han, President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “With this partnership, Samsung is launching a new virtual production industry initiative with a commitment to deliver innovative products and solutions that offer the optimal environment for next-generation content production.”

This virtual production studio will use LED displays and connected cameras to create virtual settings in real-time. This solution will save time and reduce image compositing and on-location production costs while helping filmmakers to see the camera on the live-action set in any direction.

The Wall’s modular technology allows creators to design environments to their specific requirements, enabling a variety of installation options such as ceiling installation and convex or concave design, depending on the internal studio design.

The 2021 model of The Wall (Model Name: IWA) with Micro LED technology enhances visual expression with ultra-deep blacks and wide viewing angles, giving filmmakers and content creators the ultimate canvas to fulfill their visions. The modular screens are ideal for studios thanks to their precise color expression, HDR10+ and cinema LED picture quality technology and optimized frame rates for production houses. A new molding process is also applied to the modular surfaces of The Wall to minimize any moiré patterns from forming, a nuisance typically associated with filming standard LED screens.

The Wall’s massive screen measures over 1,000 inches, producing vibrant colors and details supporting up to 16K high-resolution¹ content. Dedicated frame rates for studio production, a new addition to this year’s model, allows producers to run content at frame rates such as 23.976, 29.97 and 59.94Hz, ensuring seamless videos sync with the most widely used camera framerates. Frame Rate Sync technology further reduces screen disruptions for true-to-life accuracy. With thoughtful dust and contamination-resistant LED protective films, plus a variety of easy-to-use solutions, such as remote management and color adjustment, The Wall is built for convenient management in any environment.

CJ ENM Virtual Studio Concept Visual

Both companies expect this collaboration to improve content production possibilities while satisfying a variety of customers by reimagining content production for today’s fast-paced entertainment environment.

“The strategic partnership with Samsung will allow CJ ENM to push forward the creation of a new powerhouse of the next-generation content,” said Ho-sung Kang, CJ ENM CEO. “While CJ ENM is investing $4.4 billion over the next five years in entertainment content, we are taking the lead in building a global No. 1 production studio to become a world leading entertainment company.”

About CJ ENM

CJ ENM is Asia’s leading entertainment and lifestyle company headquartered in Seoul, Korea. Since 1995, the company has engaged in a wide array of businesses across the industry spectrum including media content, music, film, performing arts, and animation, providing its top notch original content to various media platforms. CJ ENM has created, produced and distributed globally acclaimed contents including Cannes-winning film Parasite, Tony Award-winning musical Kinky Boots, record-breaking Korean box office hits Roaring Currents, Extreme Job, Ode to My Father, along with sought-after television series such as Crash Landing On You, Mr. Sunshine, Guardian: The Lonely and Great God, Grandpas over Flowers, I Can See Your Voice and more. To offer the best K-Culture experiences worldwide, CJ ENM presents KCON/KCON:TACT, the world’s largest K-culture convention & festival celebrating Hallyu and Mnet Asian Music Awards (MAMA), Asia’s biggest music awards. With regional offices in Asia, Europe and the U.S., CJ ENM currently employs over 3,600 people.

¹ 16K resolution is only available for horizontal layouts with a 15,360 x 2,160-pixel arrangement.

Not only do movie theaters provide lifelike pictures and visuals in ultra-high resolution, but they also control the amount of ambient light in the room in order to highlight the scene shown on the screen. Given that these theaters are built specially to provide such conditions, the at-home experience is never quite the same given that it is harder to control the amount of light in a room depending on the time of day.

But what if we were able to replicate the picture quality at home the way a content creator intended it to be seen? How can we bring the movie theater experience home?

The answer lies within Samsung Electronics’ 2021 Neo QLED TVs, which come with the latest HDR10+ Adaptive standard. Not only do the TVs provide premium viewing experiences, but they are also able to optimize the picture quality regardless of any reflection, luminance and interference brought about by the indoor lighting condition. Samsung Newsroom has pulled the curtains back to find out what HDR10+ Adaptive is and just how it works.

True-to-Life Picture Quality for Impactful Viewing

Unlike movie theaters, the at-home TV viewing environment can change from moment to moment depending on the change of day to night, lighting, interference and the reflection of light.

HDR10+ is the latest advanced High Dynamic Range technology, which Samsung has been incorporating into their UHD and above TVs since 2017 and is also featured in the 2021 Neo QLED TVs. It intelligently adapts your TV to optimally display UHD content the way it was meant to be seen with all the true-to-life highlight and shadow details. HDR10+ uses dynamic tone mapping to enhance the color and contrast and directs the screen to accurately display high dynamic range content on a scene-by-scene or even on a frame-by-frame basis.

HDR10+ is a royalty-free, open standard, accessible to any device maker to adopt and certify their own compatible devices using HDR10+ metadata syntax. This means that Samsung has been able to build complete control over on-screen picture quality into their TV lineup for true-to-life viewing experiences. HDR10+’s metadata also offers flexible reference tone and mapping curve definition for content creators, such as film producers and engineers, allowing them to deliver more impactful images exactly as they intend them to be seen.

AI Analysis for Optimum Experiences Even in Home Lighting Conditions

Samsung’s 2021 TV lineup also supports HDR10+ Adaptive, a technology that improves the HDR10+ viewing experience in users’ homes regardless of the lighting conditions. Samsung’s 2021 TVs come with the HDR10+ Adaptive standard which supports Filmmaker Mode¹ and adapts to brighter rooms so that customers can enjoy true cinematic experiences when viewing HDR10+ movies and television programs in various environments at home.

On the 2021 Neo QLED TVs, HDR10+ Adaptive harnesses its AI engine to analyze the viewing environment, including the lighting, brightness and even reflections using the sensors equipped on the TV. The results are then incorporated into the dynamic metadata, and then through four further steps, the brightness and contrast of a scene are optimized. HDR standards are typically designed with a dark room in mind, similar to that of a movie theater. However, with HDR10+ Adaptive, viewers are guaranteed to see the original creators’ intent regardless of the lighting condition or the time of the day.

Youngwook Son, an engineer at the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics, has been spearheading the development of the feature with his team. “HDR10+ is a premium feature that is geared to optimize the TV’s picture quality by fine-tuning the scene while preserving the original creator’s creative direction. HDR10+ Adaptive takes this one step further by allowing the TV to optimize the picture based on the surrounding lighting conditions, finally allowing TVs to provide a similar viewing experience to those found in dark environments, such as movie theaters.”

HDR10+ Marks Its Two-Year Anniversary with 120 Partners and Over 2,000 HDR10+ Content

The HDR10+ standard was introduced 2 years ago and now has 120 related partners. HDR10+ has robust support across the industry, with several thousand different products from multiple manufacturers offering HDR10+ supported devices. Currently, over 3,100 different TVs and projectors from more than 20 manufacturers support HDR10+. Furthermore, devices including smartphones, tablets and Blu-ray players also support the standard.

Streaming platforms like Amazon Prime Video, Google Play, Rakuten TV, Megogo, Watcha, Paramount+, YouTube and others have helped make accessible thousands of hours of premium content, delivering a wide array of viewing choices to certified HDMI devices, including the Paramount+ Original Series “The Stand” and Universal’s iconic Back to the Future Trilogy. There are now over 2,000 pieces of content available to users that support the HDR10+.

HDR10+ is the only dynamic HDR technology supported on YouTube, which provides content creators and viewers alike with the unique opportunity to have the access to enhanced, premium HDR content right at their fingertips. With the rise of vertical video production and consumption, the standard gives content creators a unique opportunity to film and view user-generated content across any HDR10+ device.

“There are numerous technologies involved in creating the perfect scenes for the ultimate viewing experience,” noted Younghun Choi, EVP and Head of R&D Team, Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “HDR10+ Adaptive is one of the core technologies that enable us to enjoy the pristine picture quality that we enjoy watching today. Samsung will continue to invest and upgrade users’ viewing experiences in line with the latest technological advancements and trends in the home entertainment industry.”

¹ Filmmaker Mode is a viewing mode, which allows viewers to enjoy movies and TV shows the way the filmmakers intended them to be seen. Various Hollywood directors, including Christopher Nolan and James Cameron, are known to have advocated for the feature in August 2019.

As sports leagues and experiences start to return to pre-pandemic operation, consumers now have the option to watch their favorite team from home without missing a beat of the action.

The key to bringing this stadium experience to life at home is with an ultra-large, high quality screen, and Samsung’s The Premiere¹ is a lifestyle projector that offers the dramatic picture quality and immersive surround sound able to provide the feeling of being right there in the stands yourself.

A 130-inch Ultra-Large Screen Is Your Gateway to the Stadium

The Premiere can create a screen far bigger than the average TV using any blank surface in a matter of minutes. Unlike traditional projectors that require three to four meters of distance from a wall for optimal picture quality, The Premiere can be placed almost anywhere and deliver a screen size of up to 130 inches, even when placed just 23.8cm away from the wall.

The projector does not require a complicated installation process either, as users need to simply plug in The Premiere’s power cable and connect to a wireless network – with no need to worry about calculating the ideal distance from the wall or sort out hanging the projector from the ceiling. It also features a compact design so that users can move and rearrange the projector on their own with ease.

Dynamic 4K Resolution for Full Immersion During the Big Game

Conventional projectors typically offer resoundingly average color vibrancy and picture quality, so in order to create an entirely new projector experience, Samsung incorporated its industry-leading TV technologies into The Premiere so that users can enjoy dynamic, 4K resolution on a bigger screen.

By using unique and cutting-edge triple laser technology, The Premiere delivers rich and vibrant picture quality. This laser-enabled model recreates colors more accurately, produces less heat and offers longer lifespan, all of which provides users with a premium product that offers optimal viewing experiences. Whether you are streaming the latest 4K sports documentary or your favorite live sports event, The Premiere provides immersive, ultra-large screen entertainment experiences at high resolution with crystal-clear clarity.

Stunning Picture Quality, No Matter the Time of Day

The media quality of a projector is affected by ambient lighting more than conventional TV screens, meaning that it is important that a projector is able to produce bright images so that you never miss a single critical moment in the game.

As the world’s first HDR10+ projector, The Premiere offers a maximum brightness of 2,800 ANSI lumens² – a brightness level equivalent to 2,800 candles. Users can enjoy cinema-level picture quality even in the middle of the day with sunlight shining directly into the room you are watching in, meaning that you can watch your favorite games regardless of the surrounding ambient light conditions. The Premiere also delivers a 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio, meaning that the projector is able to express all the subtle contrasts and detailing in darker images.

An Immersive, All-in-One Speaker for That Live Stadium Experience

In order to get the real stadium experience at home, powerful sound is key. Hearing fans cheering and the commentators roaring along with the action is all part of the enjoyment of any match.

The Premiere produces three-dimensional, captivating sound without any extra speakers required thanks to the robust sound system built into its compact design. The projector is equipped with powerful 4.2 channel 40W built-in speakers that project sound with significant height and width in order to convey every bit of even the most action-packed audio. The projector also features Samsung’s proprietary Acoustic Beam technology to maximize sound from all angles, emitting sound from 44 holes placed on both sides of the projector so that everyone, regardless of where they are sitting in the room, can be engaged and entertained.

Staying Entertained and Connected With Smart TV Features

Just like Samsung’s leading Smart TVs, The Premiere offers users smart features and access to major sports streaming platforms³ including Amazon Prime and Samsung TV Plus, and music streaming services where popular sports podcasts can be found including Apple Music and Spotify.

The Premiere also supports the ‘Tap View’⁴ feature to mirror the content playing on your smartphone to your projector; by simply gently tapping the side of The Premiere with your device, you can easily cast pictures or videos from your smartphone straight onto the bigger screen.

¹ Model featured in this article is The Premiere LSTP9.

² ANSI Lumen: The level of brightness based on the American National Standards Institute (ANSI)’s standard for expressing the brightness of a projector. 1 ANSI lumen is equivalent to the brightness of one candle.

³ Availability of services may vary by region and each OTT service or platform is available after subscription. The Premiere must be connected to the internet in order to access these services.

⁴ Tap view service only works with Samsung Galaxy smartphones running Android 8.1 and above, when both the mobile screen and The Premiere are turned on.

While viewing HDR content is typically optimal in a darkened environment, customers’ viewing environments may vary greatly depending on a wide array of factors, including room lighting, time of day, and proximity to windows. The HDR10+ Adaptive feature supports dynamic scene-by-scene optimization, following guidelines from the HDR10+ LLC, and can now adjust to any room lighting condition, further enhancing the HDR experience. This feature utilizes the TV’s light sensor and ensures that the screen brings to life the creative intent without any loss of details or contrast. All Prime Video HDR content is automatically delivered in HDR10+.

HDR10+ Adaptive on Samsung QLED TVs also supports Filmmaker Mode, a display setting that Samsung – as a member of the UHD Alliance – developed in partnership with filmmakers, studios and consumer electronics manufacturers. Samsung and Amazon Prime Video teamed up to enable Filmmaker Mode and HDR10+ Adaptive for Prime Video customers.

“We are always looking for new features and innovations that can help improve the customer experience,” said BA Winston, Global Head of Video Playback and Delivery at Amazon Prime Video. “With HDR10+ and Filmmaker mode, Prime Video content is optimized regardless of the viewing environment and customers can enjoy movies and TV shows the way the filmmakers intended.”

More contents are becoming available in HDR10+ with Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (UPHE) and Samsung extending its technology partnership to include even more HDR10+ catalogues and new titles for distribution on OTT services around the world.

“As consumers spend more time at home, Samsung has been looking for ways to enrich consumers’ entertainment experience in the comfort of their homes,” said Younghun Choi, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We are delighted to offer smart picture quality solutions that will enhance consumers’ at-home HDR viewing experience, bringing original-quality cinematic experience to our consumers around the world.”

“Samsung has demonstrated exceptional commitment in developing HDR10+ technology and bringing the industry together in support,” said Michael Aaronson, Senior Vice President, Digital Distribution, UPHE. “We are pleased to further expand our partnership with Samsung as we work to bring more titles into this advanced in-home viewing ecosystem to movie audiences worldwide.”

UHD titles available on Prime Video also include HDR10+ so all Prime Video customers can enjoy the improved HDR experience with most Samsung QLED TVs regardless of room lighting conditions.

For more information on Samsung TV, please visit www.samsung.com.

Samsung Electronics is further expanding its HDR10+ streaming content offering with the addition of Google Play Movies to the services that support its next-generation picture-quality technology.

Google Play Movies, the video streaming service operated by Google, started to support HDR10+ content in July this year. The HDR10+ service is now available on Samsung Smart TV in 117 countries including North America, Europe and Korea.

Users can now enjoy high-resolution HDR10+ 4K HDR content on the Google Play Movies, with numerous HDR10+ titles available such as Joker, Aquaman, Wonder Woman, Shazam!, and Crazy Rich Asians. Google Play Movies plans to support HDR10+ technology on other additional platforms in the future as well.

HDR10+, which is the HDR industry standard led by Samsung Electronics, brings consumers perfect picture quality experience by optimizing brightness and contrast scene by scene for enhanced three-dimensional videos and accurate color expression.

Samsung Electronics formed HDR10+ LLC (HDR10+ technology joint venture) in 2017 and started to engage in certification programs in 2018.

Google Play Movies’s support for HDR10+ is expected to accelerate the expansion of the HDR10+ standard alliance, which already has 108 partners worldwide.

“We are pleased to expand partnerships with the top global streaming providers,” said Younghun Choi, Executive Vice President and Head of R&D team, Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We will continue to strengthen the leadership of our HDR standard and lead the innovation in TV technology in the global market.”

(From left to right) Youngwook Sohn, Guiwon Seo, Martin Junseob Kim, Beomjoon Seo and Seonseok Kim of the Picture Quality Solution Lab of Samsung Electronics’ Visual Display Business

To create the fully immersive picture quality of Samsung’s 2020 QLED 8K TVs, a variety of technologies came together. The 2020 QLED 8K TVs provides users with the best resolution in the industry thanks to 100% color volume, which can recreate around 1 billion different colors on-screen for a natural screen experience, anti-reflection 2.0 technology, which eliminates the effect of bright light conditions on the screen quality, and AI upscaling technology that enhances lower-resolution content into 8K picture quality.

Samsung’s 2020 QLED 8K TVs also feature HDR(High Dynamic Range)10+, an enhanced version of HDR10 that leverages dynamic metadata to maximize the contrast between each and every scene’s black level and peak brightness on a display. HDR10+ performs a key role in delivering users their best display experiences yet by optimizing brightness and contrast for each scene. Along with innovating users’ viewing experience, Samsung’s HDR10+ has also been setting new standards across the home entertainment industry at large.

Samsung Newsroom interviewed the developers at the Picture Quality Solution Lab of Samsung Electronics’ Visual Display Business to learn more about the game-changing HDR10+ technology and how it brings out hidden details on QLED 8K.

Enhancing Display Immersion with Vivid Details

In 2017, Samsung introduced its HDR10+ technology to bring more vivid TV watching experiences to viewers. The reason why HDR10+ has become a key element in ultra-high-resolution video is because of its rich contrast range and wide color gamut. “Previously, we followed the SDR (Standard Dynamic Range) standard that is characterized by a low brightness level of 100 nits and a narrow color gamut,” noted Seonseok Kim. “But when HDR10 was introduced, with its high brightness levels and wide color gamut of over 1,000 nits, we were able to offer brightness and color ranges to users that previously unimagined.”

Each content producer offers content with differing encoding methods, brightness and color settings. The resulting picture quality that viewers see can be different depending on the analysis methods done by HDR technologies. HDR10+ is unique as it breaks down the video into ‘scenes’ while processing the file. “The previous technology, HDR10, applied a singular contrast range curve to an entire video, but HDR10+ analyzes the average brightness, maximum brightness and accumulated data distribution by scene to apply different contrast range curves where appropriate,” highlighted Beomjoon Kim.

For example, when portraying a scene including an airplane flying across a heavily sunlit sky, contrast range is, of course, important but so is the gradation of the scene – gradation being the stages of change as a shot moves between light and dark. When gradation is poorly executed, the signal around the object in a scene can end up bound, meaning that details are blurred or excluded. “A good gradation of such a scene would present viewers with accurate representations of the sky and clouds as well as the airplane,” noted Guiwon Seo. “All characteristics in a video need to be analyzed to successfully achieve this. Our technology will automatically adjust the HDR curve when there is a high amount of gradation signal distribution to ensure these signals are not mixing with other specific gradation features.”

The image on the right, good gradation has been applied to bring out all of the scene’s details, even on the background clouds

Developing Algorithms for All Kinds of Display

Viewers can experience different picture qualities when watching the same video, depending on how bright their displays are. When posed the question of ‘what is the most difficult task in developing HDR technologies’, Martin Junseob Kim responded saying that it was ensuring that different TV products, with different brightness settings, could provide the same display experiences.

It is no small task to maximize the display effects of a video with the same analyzed video characteristics on TVs with various brightness settings. Nevertheless, the Picture Quality Solution Lab’s developers were able to overcome this challenge by developing a proprietary adaptable HDR processing algorithm, a process that took numerous discussions and much trial-and-error.

Development Fueled by Collaboration

Viewers need more than just a good quality TV to fully enjoy a piece of content with high quality detailing. To provide the most immersive TV watching experience possible, Samsung understands that collaboration with the home entertainment market at large, including content creators and streaming services, is necessary. This is why Samsung has been focusing on establishing the industry-wide standard specification for HDR10+.

“Samsung established HDR10+ Technologies, LLC, along with 20th Century Fox and the Panasonic Corporation, and as of January 2020, 94 companies had joined,” explained Youngwook Sohn. “We at HDR10+ Technologies, LLC, provide free specification details on the technology and the relevant tests, along with the verification logo and user guide. This allows us to bring more realistic and richly colored video images to more users. We are set to improve our HDR10+ specification based on feedback from each of our member companies.”

To produce high-quality TV displays, Samsung’s Picture Quality Solution Lab developers are constantly working hard to bring realistic video experiences to users; they are already on their way to realizing technologies that improve on existing ones. “Our goal is to bring about previously unimagined viewing experiences by creating the best possible HDR quality for next-generation displays,” affirmed Sohn.

HDR10+ is an enhanced version of HDR10 that leverages dynamic metadata to maximize the black level and peak brightness of every scene and frame on displays. The result is an image that more closely represents the original creative intent of directors. The HDR10+ Technologies Certification and Logo program makes it easy for consumers to find devices, content and services that deliver this high quality HDR viewing experience.

With VIZIO now adding support for HDR10+ technology to their UHD TV lineup, reach of HDR10+ expands notably. “VIZIO is committed to delivering the best entertainment experience to the consumer, regardless of the format,” said Bill Baxter, Chief Technology Officer, VIZIO. “Adding HDR10+ capability to the roster of HDR signals we already support means our customers will have the best viewing experience possible when they play HDR content on their VIZIO SmartCast TV.”

GooglePlay Movies & TV, a major UHD OTT distributor, will support HDR10+ for their UHD titles. Consumers will be able to enjoy a superior UHD experience with content from major Studios in 2020. The HDR10+ UHD Blu-ray slate continues to grow with titles available in HDR10+ such as, “X-Men:Dark Phoenix” from 20th Century Fox, Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs & Shaw” from Universal, and “IT: Chapter Two” from Warner Bros.. HDR10+ content mastering is currently supported by major post production companies like Deluxe, Giant Interactive and Pixelogic.

In addition, OnePlus, OPPO, Realme and Xiaomi have also announced support of HDR10+ on their mobile devices. Consumers are able to enjoy their favorite shows and movies in HDR10+ as well as capture HDR10+ content with camera then share through YouTube. Viewers are also able to enjoy HDR10+ video across a range of compatible mobile devices and TVs.

Support of HDR10+ also includes AV Receivers to enhance the home theater viewing environment from brands such as Onkyo and Pioneer. “We welcome that the HDR10+ feature is expanded to support AV Receiver.” said Kenji Miyagi, President of Onkyo & Pioneer. “We plan to support HDR10+ on our future products, which we believe helps consumers enjoy a premium experience.”

The HDR10+ Logo and Certification program has expanded support for even more next generation technologies. Announced at IFA, 8K display certification is now available for HDR10+, which brings the technology to even greater display resolutions and includes high-bandwidth HDMI 2.1. In addition, the HDR10+ specification has added DisplayPort connectivity.

Finally, The Alliance for Open Media has published an Implementation Note for HDR10+ support with the AV1 encoding standard. Demonstrations of 8K AV1 HDR10+ content are available at Samsung booth 15006 at CES 2020.

Companies can learn more about the HDR10+ license and logo program, including whitepaper, final specifications and adopter agreements at http://www.hdr10plus.org.

About HDR10+ Technologies, LLC

HDR10+ Technologies, LLC is the company founded by Twentieth Century Fox HDR10+, LLC, Panasonic Intellectual Property Corporation of America and Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd and providing the license of its HDR10+ specifications to source provider, display manufacturer, SoC vendor, content company and tool vendor. To learn more about the HDR10+ Technologies, LLC, please visit: www.hdr10plus.org/

About Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, LLC (TCFHE) is a recognized global industry leader and a subsidiary of Twentieth Century Fox Film. TCFHE is the worldwide marketing, sales and distribution company for all Fox film and television programming, acquisitions and original productions as well as all third party distribution partners on DVD, Blu-ray, 4K Ultra HD, Digital and VOD (video-on-demand). Each year TCFHE introduces hundreds of new and newly enhanced products, which it services to retail outlets and digital stores throughout the world.

About Panasonic

Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development of diverse electronics technologies and solutions for customers in the consumer electronics, housing, automotive, and B2B businesses. The company, which celebrated its 100^th anniversary in 2018, has expanded globally and now operates 582 subsidiaries and 87 associated companies worldwide, recording consolidated net sales of 8.003 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2019. Committed to pursuing new value through innovation across divisional lines, the company uses its technologies to create a better life and a better world for its customers. To learn more about Panasonic: http://www.panasonic.com/global.

In the two years that have passed since its introduction, HDR10+ has not only been revolutionizing the home entertainment market but has also debuted on a variety of other devices, including smartphones.  Bill Mandel, Vice President of Samsung Research America’s Digital Media Solutions Lab, sat down with Samsung Newsroom to provide an update on how far HDR10+ has come since 2017.

Building a HDR10+ Ecosystem

The biggest innovation for HDR10+ since its introduction in 2017 has been the expansion of the types of devices that can support the revolutionary picture technology, as well as the number of partners that have adopted it.

Over the past year, the number of HDR10+ certification program adopters has tripled, including many TV makers and various ultra-high-definition (UHD) device and System on Chip (SoC) makers. As Mandel affirms, the technology has become crucial to providing the best possible big screen television experience. “The additional picture information that comes with HDR10+ enables the TV processor to best recreate the color tones, brightness and contrast details with the highest precision and respect for the creative intent,” he notes. “Every scene and frame of a viewer’s content is delivered to the highest possible quality on larger screens thanks to HDR10+ and QLED TV processors.”

Samsung’s US-based Digital Media Solutions Lab are constantly aware that, just as the number of HDR10+-certified devices is constantly growing, so is the amount of content available. “We develop technologies like HDR10+ to be stable over a long time so that we can ensure we offer consistency across all available picture qualities as well as synergy between content producers and the viewing ecosystem,” explains Mandel of their development process, “and we work to provide a roadmap to enable the industry to develop and grow with these and other new video tools and enhancements.”

Providing High Picture Quality Across the Board

Back in 2017, Samsung partnered with 20^th Century Fox and Panasonic to create a logo and certification program that allows displays to be certified for having HDR10+ implementation. Since then, many more displays and much more content have been developed to support HDR10+ by a wide range of partners and collaborators who see the benefits this picture technology has to offer viewing quality.

“Device adopters see the picture quality benefit to HDR with HDR10+, service providers are finding that they can easily update their existing HDR services, and content providers are finding they can achieve greater consistency of quality across a wider variety of televisions,” comments Mandel on the path HDR10+ has forged in the industry. “Recently, at the Samsung Developer Conference in San Jose, we showcased samples of HDR10+ across a variety of devices including mobile, tablets and TVs to many interested developers.”

Looking to the future, Mandel notes that HDR10+ is set to revolutionize not only TV viewing experiences for users, but potentially also cinematic experiences. “Starting with HDR10+ technologies, we are currently working to understand the needs of filmmakers, post-production facilities and studios in order to help post-production workflows and future generations of displays provide even more capabilities and options to consumers and the media industry.”

The Most Vivid Viewing Experience Yet

What sets HDR10+ apart is that it has been designed to reproduce images faithfully by taking advantage of the brightness, darkness and contrast elements of content paired with the performance range of a viewer’s television. Thanks to its advanced tone mapping technology, HDR10+ is able to better reproduce HDR content with the appearance as intended by the creator. “Not only can users enjoy this quality on HDR10+-certified devices, but HDR10+ technology can enable any TV, even with differing sets of performance characteristics, to provide an immersive HDR content experience that fully showcases the care creatives put into their HDR source masters,” explains Mandel.

Mandel recommends dimming the lights in your home when watching HDR10+ content to make the most of the experience. “HDR10+ works with all the picture modes available on Samsung TVs,” adds Mandel, “and our ‘Movie’ picture mode has been optimized by the picture quality engineering team to deliver colors and cinematic texture as envisaged by the original content creators.” Mandel encourages consumers to look for HDR10+ support when considering their next device, “so that they can be sure they are getting the best HDR viewing opportunity possible.”

HDR10+, along with 8K resolution, stands at the forefront of display technology innovation. “Samsung is committed to continuously expanding the capabilities offered by TV screens,” affirms Mandel. “Through industry collaboration with technology initiatives such as HDR10+ and partners throughout the media ecosystem, we are continuously striving to deliver the best possible viewing experience to consumers now as well as in the future.”

HDR10+ technology optimizes brightness and maximizes the contrast ratio, making bright areas brighter and dark areas darker. The feature is available on all UHD TV and 2019 8K TV models, including Samsung’s lineup of QLED TVs.

“With HDR emerging as one of the most important technologies for ultra-high picture quality, our HDR10+ format enables every image to be accurately displayed on screen just as the creator intended,” said Hyogun Lee, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We will continue to strengthen our industry leadership through establishing partnerships with top streaming service providers and equipping our televisions with the technology needed to support the world’s first 8K HDR10+.”

“Our main goal in this partnership with Samsung is to offer the highest-quality content services available to our customers,” said Victor Chekanov, CEO at MEGOGO. “We will maintain our initiative in the Russian OTT service market and plan to provide dozens of HDR10+ movies to Samsung Smart TV users starting late this summer.”

Aside from the aforementioned OTT streaming services, several other industry-leading content partners are collaborating with Samsung. Rakuten TV, Deutsche Telekom’s Magenta TV and Videociety are all expected to adopt HDR10+ support for its respective VOD services between Q4 2019 and Q1 2020. Also, Molotov, the first French OTT streaming service to offer live and on-demand TV channels all in one place, is also considering to adopt HDR10+. The growing list of premiere content partners is a testament to the industry’s commitment to the best viewing experience possible for consumers.

HDR10+ content availability continues to expand. Recent announcements from Universal Pictures Home Entertainment and Warner Bros. Home Entertainment debuting HDR10+ on UHD Blu-ray with “The Secret Life of Pets 2” and “Godzilla: King of the Monsters”, respectively, add to the UHD Blu-ray discs already released from Twentieth Century Fox and others.

Since Samsung began the HDR10+ logo certification program with Panasonic and 20^th Century Fox last year, 81 companies have joined the program, boosting the program’s influence in the industry. Samsung has also strengthened its effort with the new opening of an HDR10+ center in China last December, following Korea, Japan and the U.S. With TV manufacturers such as Hisense obtaining HDR10+ certification in China, the HDR10+ alliance is expected to expand even further.

Along with HDR10+ certifications of existing TVs and smartphone products, Samsung is working to implement the program for its B2B products. For example, micro LED models such as The Wall Pro and The Wall Lux have been HDR10+ certified, and the company plans to expand the ecosystem to include Samsung’s line of LED products.

For more information on Samsung’s HDR10+-supported products, please visit https://hdr10plus.org/.

https://hdr10plus.org/wp-content/uploads/2019/09/IFA-2019-HDR10-FINAL-CLEAN-b2.pdf

With just a small, centered cutout for the front camera, the Galaxy Note10 ’s edge-to-edge design offers a truly immersive viewing experience. Galaxy Note10 with HDR10+ certification and its Dynamic Tone Mapping delivers rich, vivid contrast and color for unmatched video quality. Nowhere do these features come together better than on the Galaxy Note10+, described by DisplayMate as the most innovative and high-performance smartphone display they have ever lab tested. Whether you are watching the latest TV shows or playing your favorite game, images and graphics come alive on the Galaxy Note10’s best-in-class display. Check out the infographic below to learn more.

The Galaxy Tab S6 is the latest in Samsung Electronics’ innovative tablet range, packed with intuitive and high-performing features to help you do more. For the first time on a tablet, users of the Galaxy Tab S6 are able to enjoy content and media like never before, as it has become the world’s first tablet to receive the HDR10+¹ certification and support next-generation high dynamic range (HDR) video.

The Galaxy Tab S6 has achieved the esteemed HDR10+ certification after extensive quality testing, marking the first time the official HDR10+ logo certification standard has been applied to a tablet. The next-generation open standard for HDR video, HDR10+ optimizes brightness levels to deliver a truly immersive viewing experience, letting users enjoy content exactly as a creator intended it to be seen.

Going even further than static HDR10, which enhances the color and contrast of media, HDR10+ applies dynamic tone mapping to each specific scene, continuously fine-tuning settings as content plays to create richer, more vivid color, and better light and shadow detail. For the very first time on a tablet, HDR10+ is now available for users of the Galaxy Tab S6.

An HDR10+ certification makes for a truly immersive viewing experience, and combined with the Galaxy Tab S6’s Super AMOLED display, plus AKG and Dolby Atmos^® sound, users are able to live and breathe the action when enjoying their favorite media, viewing their creative portfolio or catching up on their favorite television shows. With the Galaxy Tab S6, users can enjoy their favorite content in HDR10+ from Amazon Prime Video in stunning, state-of-the-art detail, just as it was intended to be seen.

The Galaxy Tab S6 is not the first device in Samsung’s Galaxy ecosystem to be leading the industry in terms of immersive screen quality; earlier this year, the Galaxy S10 became the first mobile device to support mobile HDR10+ and the Galaxy Note10 also received the HDR10+ certification. With this latest announcement, Samsung Electronics continues its commitment to developing displays that constantly raise the bar and provide users with the best-possible viewing experience yet.

¹ HDR10+ is a next-generation open standard for high dynamic range (HDR) video. The HDR10+ Logo License Program is the product of a joint venture established by Samsung Electronics, 20th Century Fox and Panasonic Corporation. HDR10+ logo certifications are evaluated by VTM Group, a certification/logo management services company based in the U.S. “HDR10+ logo is a trademark of HDR10+ Technologies, LLC.”

The smartphone revolution transformed the way we see the world: offering access to communication, information and entertainment – all in the palm of our hands. At the center of this revolution lies the smartphone’s display.

From watching the latest blockbuster to snapping breathtaking pictures, the highest levels of brightness, color accuracy and contrast are crucial to delivering the best possible color expression and the optimal mobile experience. The Galaxy S10’s striking colors and beautiful display have garnered considerable media attention, and the device has been designated DisplayMate’s highest-ever “Excellent A+” grade. This outstanding visual experience begins with the Dynamic AMOLED display.

Brilliant (1200-nit) Brightness

No matter where you are, you can enjoy a clear and bright viewing experience with the Galaxy S10 line. The Dynamic AMOLED display ensures that you can check your messages or easily search for restaurant recommendations without having to find a shaded spot when you’re outside and on the go.

When it comes to displays, brightness is measured in terms of luminance – the amount of light per square unit that the display emits or reflects. With a peak luminance of 1200 nits (40 percent greater than the Galaxy S7), the Galaxy S10’s display allows users to enjoy bright, clear images even under direct sunlight, without having to shade the screen with their hand or turn their back to the sun.

The Galaxy S10 is the world’s first mobile display to support HDR10+¹ which optimizes content’s brightness levels to offer users truly immersive viewing experiences. The display is backed by the official HDR10+ logo certification, which was created after several months of discussion with related organizations and companies to expand the HDR10+ certification standard – a standard that had previously only applied to TVs – to mobile devices.

Utilizing its HDR10+ Dynamic Tone Mapping feature, the Galaxy S10 ensures that content like films and shows are depicted precisely as their creators intended. This allows the display to adjust brightness to every single scene, creating better shadow detail, and making light scenes lighter and dark scenes darker.

The Galaxy S10 opens the door for users to enjoy an ever-growing collection of HDR10+ mobile content. This includes the rich library of HDR10+ content that’s accessible via Amazon Prime – the collection which was previously only available on HDR10+-compatible TVs. The Galaxy S10’s camera also allows users to record their own HDR10+-quality content with true-to-life colors and brightness.

Ever-So-Accurate Colors (0.4 JNCD)

Years of innovation in display technology have led to new heights of color expression for smartphone displays.

This is especially noticeable when viewing photos. Have you ever received photos from your friends whose colors looked washed out when viewed on your smartphone’s screen? A lack of color reproduction could be to blame. When it comes to color reproduction, it doesn’t matter how well a photo is shot, nor how high-quality the camera may be. Rather, it all depends on the color reproduction capacity of the display.

Like Samsung’s QLED TVs, the Galaxy S10’s display has been certified by Verband Deutscher Elektrotechniker (VDE) to produce 100 percent color volume in the DCI-P3 color range. This means that just like Samsung’s latest TVs, the Galaxy S10 can be counted upon to deliver a viewing experience that’s second to none. While previous Galaxy devices’ AMOLED displays have supported a wide range of colors, the Galaxy S10’s display takes color reproduction to the next level, producing true-to-life colors at the highest brightness levels.

The Dynamic AMOLED display received a score of 0.4 from DisplayMate for their evaluation of its Just Noticeable Color Difference (JNCD)². This stunning level of color reproduction makes watching a movie or show on the Dynamic AMOLED display a cinematic experience. It also helps ensure that when shopping for clothes or other products online, the colors of the items that you see on your screen will closely match the colors of those items in real life.

A World-Class (2,000,000:1) Contrast Ratio

When watching a movie or playing video games, the deeper the contrast, the more immersive the visual experience. In fact, the ability to make out shadowy figures in the dark can mean the difference between life and death when you’re playing a first-person shooter game.

The Galaxy S10 line takes gaming and watching videos to the next level with an industry-best, VDE-certified 2,000,000:1 contrast ratio. This opens the door for even more accurate color gradation³ and enables the display to produce exceptional detail and deeper contrast.

When gaming, greater contrast makes it that much easier to navigate dark settings and spot items and lurking enemies. When watching dark scenes in a film like the latest space-set thriller, the enhanced contrast allows even the most subtle of details to shine through.

“We innovate with displays to make the mobile experience more enjoyable and immersive,” said Kee-Hyon Park, a display R&D engineer in Samsung Electronics’ Mobile Communications Division. “That’s why we’ve enhanced every aspect of the Dynamic AMOLED display: to add brilliant, high-quality visuals to more aspects of daily life.”

¹ HDR10+ is a next-generation open standard for high dynamic range (HDR) video. The HDR10+ Logo License Program is the product of a joint venture established by Samsung Electronics, 20th Century Fox and Panasonic Corporation. HDR10+ logo certifications are evaluated by VTM Group, a certification/logo management services company based in the U.S.

² The Just Noticeable Color Difference (JNCD) measurement evaluates color accuracy based on the bare minimum color difference that the human eye can perceive. The closer a display’s JNCD score is to zero, the more accurate its colors are.

³ Accurate low-gradation color expression technology is not included in the Galaxy S10e.

* Images and videos included in this article have been simulated for illustrative purposes.

At the Summit, hosted by Insight Media – a display focused consultancy, more than 100 attendees including display and equipment firms, video producers, tech media and global tech reviewers from the US and Europe showed strong interest in basic technologies related to filming and transmission of high-quality images such as 5G network technology, filming equipment and image compression codecs.

This year, the QLED summit was held under the theme of 8K display for one day with intensive sessions of ▲8K technology and current market situation ▲8K content ecosystem and ▲8K-related technologies.

At the event, experts from the 8K ecosystem along with market research firms – ranging from display panels, filming equipment, content production, as well as compression and transmission technology industry to academic circles – shared the recent direction of 8K-related technologies from various perspectives and discussed future prospects.

The activity progress of 8K Association was also shared as it held its first public seminar in the US Broadcasting equipment event NAB Show in April. Since then, the 8K Association continued their activities such as unveiling plans to gradually increase its members from the current orientation towards TV manufacturers to establish a foothold for standardization and expand the 8K ecosystem.

“With the rapid expansion of 5G wireless network technology, 8K display market is expected to make great strides,” said Sonia Chen, Director of Display Marketing at Samsung Electronics’ Device Solutions America. “In particular, it will receive the spotlight among the millennial generation who are familiar with fast internet speed and high-quality image viewing.”

Professor Yung-Kyung Park, Head of the Color Design Research Institute at Ewha Womans University attended the summit to present the experimental results stating, “When we are viewing an ultra-high resolution image, our ability to recognize objects comprehensively tend to increase.”

“8K display technology is not a future technology – it is here today- and is available to viewers in Japan and other regions,” said Chris Chinnock, the president of Insight Media, who co-hosted the summit. He added, “unlike some concerns over a lack of 8K content, the development of all technologies and cooperation in the industry are proceeding rapidly. The industry prospects from experts who attended the summit are very positive, too.”

Meanwhile, guests in attendance, which included academics, industry professionals and members of the media, praised Samsung’s commitment to moving the 8K display industry forward and found value in the demonstrations of the technology through its QLED 8K TVs.

Hyogun Lee, Executive Vice President of Samsung Electronics Visual Display Business, showed confidence in the mainstreaming of 8K TV, stating that “for 4K TV too, there were concerns over a lack of content in its early days, but these concerns faded away after people experienced the actual picture quality. The best picture quality experience will be chosen by consumers after all.”

For more information about Samsung’s QLED 8K TVs, please visit www.samsung.com.

For more information about the 8K Display Summit, please visit www.displaysummit.com.

About Insight Media
Insight Media is a technology consultancy focused on emerging technology in the ProAV, cinema, broadcast, consumer electronics and display industries. The company authors white papers and articles on these topics, provide technology and market assessment services and hosts events to discuss key technology trends in these market segments.

An all-in-one, cross-device video creation and publishing solution, Premiere Rush features an intuitive interface that simplifies video editing into just a few easy steps. Premiere Rush provides content creators with all the tools they need to easily craft professional-grade video content.

As a result of Samsung’s partnership with Adobe, Premiere Rush for Samsung is fully optimized for Galaxy smartphones¹.

Professional Videos, On Your Terms

Premiere Rush harnesses the powerful capabilities of Premiere Pro, optimized for mobile devices. With premium features such as customizable Motion Graphics templates, AI-powered audio clean up, graphics creation and audio mixing, Premiere Rush allows users to cut and edit professional-grade videos and vlogs with ease.

Users can capture high-quality videos directly inside the app and begin editing them immediately by dragging and dropping clips on the multitrack timeline. They also have the ability to freely adjust audio, color saturation, title placement, transitions, voiceovers and more, all from the main interface. Furthermore, users can access built-in, fully customizable animated title templates right from within the app itself. And with easy resizing options, a video can be proportioned for whichever social destination the user desires. All videos and edits are automatically synced to the cloud, so users can work on their videos anywhere, anytime, on any device.

Premiere Rush for Samsung

Premiere Rush for Samsung comes with a full suite of features specially optimized for Samsung devices¹. Special features include GPU optimization for improved editing performance, meaning that exporting videos on the Galaxy S10 is now 70% faster than on previous devices², as well as HDR10+ support and Samsung DeX support to allow users to extend and optimize their workspace options.

Galaxy users who become monthly Premiere Rush subscribers will receive unlimited video exports, 100GB of cloud storage, and a 20% discount for one year³, taking the subscription price down to 7.99 USD a month.

A free starter trial version is also available, giving Galaxy users access to all Premiere Rush features, the use of desktop and mobile apps, 2GB of cloud storage, the ability to create an unlimited number of projects and export up to three projects.

Adobe Premiere Rush for Samsung is available on the Galaxy Store and will be expanded to more Galaxy devices in the near future.

¹ Available on Galaxy S9, Galaxy Note9 and Galaxy S10 series devices. Galaxy S9 and Galaxy Note9 users are encouraged to update to P OS for GPU optimization.

² With Premiere Rush for Samsung, exporting videos on the Galaxy S10 is 70% faster than on the Galaxy S9 before P OS update

³ Available until January 2020

Samsung Electronics and American global content production and distribution company Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (UPHE) announced plans to bring to market titles mastered with HDR10+, the next generation of video standard specification technology developed by Samsung Electronics.

HDR10+ (High Dynamic Range 10+) is an open source-based next-generation video standard led by Samsung Electronics. HDR10+ transforms your TV experience with incredible brightness and contrast for each scene, delivering brighter brights and deepest darks. HDR10+ provides an extraordinary HDR picture-quality experience for viewers and delivers the highest-quality viewing experience.

Through this partnership, Samsung Electronics and UPHE will collaborate on a wide selection of new release and catalog fare with HDR10+ technology, providing consumers with the best-possible home entertainment viewing experience on a variety of displays.

“We are delighted to team with Samsung Electronics on HDR10+ to deliver this striking, cutting-edge technology to entertainment consumers, providing them opportunity to enjoy unparalleled, state-of-the-art movie-watching experiences across an array of Universal physical and digital titles,” said Michael Bonner, Executive Vice President, Digital Distribution, UPHE.

“We have launched a new era of picture-quality technology with HDR10+, providing an amplified vivid viewing experience for consumers” said Hyogun Lee, Executive Vice President of R&D Team, Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “Based on Samsung Electronics’ unique technology and proficiency, we will continue to expand our alliances with premier partners like Universal to provide consumers with the best HDR content possible.”

Samsung Electronics has been collaborating with various companies such as movie studios and OTT operators since the formation of the HDR10+ LLC in August, 2017, leading the next generation HDR technology and expanding the ecosystem. In addition to Korea, Japan and the US, Samsung will continue to strengthen the HDR10+ logo and certification program partnership in other territories around the world.

The HDR10+ certification / logo operating program consists of sharing detailed specifications of technology and test, providing a certification logo and user guide, and certifying the device through a third-party testing laboratory. Logo and technology fees are free. Additional details can be found at www.hdr10plus.org.

About Universal Pictures Home Entertainment
Universal Pictures Home Entertainment (UPHE – www.uphe.com) is a unit of Universal Filmed Entertainment Group (UFEG). UFEG produces, acquires, markets and distributes filmed entertainment worldwide in various media formats for theatrical, home entertainment, television and other distribution platforms, as well as consumer products, interactive gaming and live entertainment. The global division includes Universal Pictures, Focus Features, Universal Pictures Home Entertainment, Universal Brand Development, Fandango and DreamWorks Animation Film and Television. UFEG is part of NBCUniversal, one of the world’s leading media and entertainment companies in the development, production and marketing of entertainment, news and information to a global audience. NBCUniversal owns and operates a valuable portfolio of news and entertainment networks, a premier motion picture company, significant television production operations, a leading television stations group, world-renowned theme parks and a suite of leading Internet-based businesses. NBCUniversal is a subsidiary of Comcast Corporation.

Put simply, the Galaxy S10 features the most beautiful display that the Galaxy family has ever seen. If you thought you’d seen immersive before, you haven’t seen anything yet.

O So Beautiful

The Galaxy S10 introduces Samsung’s new, 19:9 Infinity-O Display, which maximizes screen space to offer users more room to do more, more comfortably. Bezels have been reduced to create more space for what matters most, like watching movies, reading books, and playing games. In fact, compared to the Galaxy S9, the ultra-slim top bezel has been decreased by more than three times.¹

To free up even more pixels for users’ content, the Galaxy S10 features an in-display camera design that packs an array of sensors and camera technologies into a small space. Samsung used a proprietary laser cutting technology to carve a tiny hole in the display – while minimizing damage to the surrounding pixels – that would enable users to enjoy all the essential camera and sensor technologies without losing any screen.

Perfecting this aspect of the design enabled Samsung to craft a revolutionary display that covers the entire front of the phone and makes everything from watching a movie to playing games that much more immersive and enjoyable.

In addition, users can trust that whatever activity they’re engaged in, thanks to its use of Gorilla Glass 6, which is twice as durable as Gorilla Glass 5, the Galaxy S10 is built to last.²

Cinema Screen

The Galaxy S10’s new Dynamic AMOLED display fosters truly cinematic viewing experiences. Featuring a peak luminance of 1200 nits, the display is capable of producing over 16 million colors (36 percent better color range than SDR), with 100 percent mobile color volume in the DCI-P3 color range.

When tested by the experts at DisplayMate, the Dynamic AMOLED display received a 0.4 Just Noticeable Color Difference (JNCD) score. An improvement on the Galaxy S9’s 0.7 JNCD rating, this score confirms the Galaxy S10’s exceptionally accurate color reproduction. In other words, the colors you see on Samsung’s new smartphones are a near-perfect match to colors in real life.

The company’s latest groundbreaking display is also the first smartphone display in the world to support HDR10+: a next-generation open standard for high dynamic range (HDR) video. HDR10+ support effectively delivers cinema-quality visuals to users’ pockets by enabling compatible content to be depicted precisely as the creators intended. This means that when streaming a favorite film, for instance, colors are more accurate, and the viewing experience is more immersive.

The display utilizes dynamic tone mapping technology to optimize colors from scene to scene, and to produce better contrast between light and dark scenes. It also optimizes brightness levels so that even the smallest details look beautiful, and produces true black colors³ for better shadow detail, even in low-light conditions.

The Galaxy S10’s Dynamic AMOLED display utilizes dynamic tone mapping to produce a brilliant, realistic picture

The Galaxy S10’s bright, brilliant screen ensures that colors are crisp even under harsh sunlight. So when you’re out and about or lounging by the pool, the sun won’t stop you from catching up on a favorite show, or checking out that video clip your friend just sent.

Beefed-Up Biometric Security

Embedded beneath the Dynamic AMOLED display is Samsung’s new, in-display Ultrasonic Fingerprint Scanner,⁴ which offers vault-like security to keep your device safe.

The scanner works by emitting ultrasonic waves that map the unique pattern of your fingerprint by sensing the tiny air gaps between your finger and the screen. That wave data is then sent back to the scanner and analyzed by the phone’s main chipset in order to determine whether it’s a match.

It works in the blink of an eye, and features 3D anti-spoofing technology that applies a machine learning-based algorithm to the on-screen fingerprint to offer a high level of security. This ensures that your phone will only open once it’s registered your physical fingerprint, and not an image of it. Its security is backed by the world’s first FIDO Alliance Biometric Component certification, and it’s been tested to work in the most challenging of conditions, including in sub-zero temperatures and under bright sunlight.

Easy on the Eyes

Comfort is key when it comes to the Galaxy S10, which is why Samsung optimized its newest flagships with innovations that make these beautiful devices even easier on the eyes.

If you regularly check your phone before going to bed, you’re likely familiar with blue light emissions, which studies indicate can affect your sleep. The Dynamic AMOLED display has been certified by the experts at TÜV Rheinland to reduce blue light by a full 42 percent,⁵ which can help users protect their eyes. Best of all, in addition to making it easier for users to get a good night’s rest, the smartphones’ blue light-reducing technology doesn’t require filters, and won’t compromise the display’s picture quality.

To offer users greater comfort and convenience, each Galaxy S10 also features a comfortable, lightweight design, as well as Samsung’s revolutionary One UI. The latter features a clean, intuitive interface that reduces clutter to help users stay focused, and places important information at the bottom of the display to enable them to comfortably manage their device with one hand. It also includes a built-in Night Mode that optimizes the display for nighttime viewing, and allows users to seamlessly transition to darker environments.

¹ Figure describes the Galaxy S10

² The Galaxy S10e’s display features Gorilla Glass 5.

³ Accurate low-gradation color expression technology is not included in the Galaxy S10e.

⁴ The Galaxy S10e features a Capacitive Fingerprint Scanner that’s mounted on the side of the device.

⁵ Compared to the Galaxy S9.

The Galaxy S10 line builds on Samsung’s camera leadership – which includes the company’s game-changing Super Speed Dual Pixel and Dual Aperture technologies – by introducing a slew of exciting enhancements and even more advanced intelligence. Together, these innovations offer users all the tools they need to take truly epic shots and videos.

See More, Snap More

Each Galaxy S10 is like a professional-grade camera that fits in your pocket. The devices’ easy-to-use cameras were designed to allow you to capture any shot and angle. So no matter what you’re shooting, you’ll always have the right lens for the job.

At 123-degrees, the rear camera’s new 16MP Ultra Wide lens features a field of view that’s similar to the human eye. It covers approximately 4.3 times more area¹ than a 77-degree Wide-angle lens, and allows you to capture the world as you see it. Perfect for taking epic landscape shots, big panoramas (both horizontally and vertically), or simply fitting the entire family into a photo, the Ultra Wide lens ensures that you’re always able to capture the full scene.

Pictures taken with Galaxy S10’s Wide-angle (left) and Ultra Wide lens

Each Galaxy S10’s rear camera setup also includes a 12MP Wide-angle, Dual Aperture, Super Speed Dual Pixel lens. It combines an f/1.5-aperture lens with an f/2.4, and automatically adjusts to light just like our eyes to help users snap professional-looking photos, day or night. The Galaxy S10 and S10+’s triple rear camera setup also includes a 12MP Telephoto (zoom) lens. For those times when you need to get a little closer to your subject, the Telephoto lens provides two times optical zoom and ten times digital zoom.

Each Galaxy S10 comes equipped with a 10MP UHD Dual Pixel front-facing camera that’s perfect for taking high-quality selfies. The Galaxy S10+’s dual front camera setup offers improved megapixels and super-fast autofocus,² and includes an RGB depth lens for enhanced quality of bokeh effects.

A Smarter Way to Shoot

The Galaxy S10’s hardware is complemented by a next-generation Neural Processing Unit (NPU) – a layer of intelligence for all your photos – that streamlines image processing and makes already smart features better.

The addition of the advanced NPU makes the camera’s Scene Optimizer function that much more powerful. Now, Scene Optimizer is capable of analyzing even more complex scenes, and can simultaneously process more image recognition data than before. The camera recognizes up to 30 different types of scenes in all (up from 20 with the Galaxy Note9), including “Face,” “Baby,” “Dog,” “Vehicles,” and more. The function will also automatically optimize the color, saturation, white balance and contrast in order to ensure that the image you see on your screen appears as true to life as possible.

Pictures (right) taken with Scene Optimizer

When the camera recognizes specific scenes, it will also suggest other ways to potentially improve your photo. For example, if you’re taking a picture of a sunrise, the camera will automatically ask you if you’d like to switch to the Ultra Wide lens to ensure that you capture the scene in all its glory. If you’re taking a picture in extreme low-light conditions, it will propose that you take a Bright Night Shot for a professional-quality picture.

The camera also offers users instant, automatic recommendations on how to best frame their photo through its Shot Suggestion feature. Utilizing a database of over 100 million pictures, Shot Suggestion’s composition guide offers helpful tips to help you improve your photo’s proportions, positioning and overall composition.

The camera’s upgraded Live Focus mode allows you to customize your photos with artistic effects. The Galaxy S10+ utilizes its dual front cameras to support the feature, which includes options to add new spin bokeh, zoom bokeh, and color point effects, while the Galaxy S10 and S10e’s front-facing camera utilizes the NPU’s intelligence.

(From left) Live Focus’s new spin bokeh, zoom bokeh and color point effects

Silky Smooth Videos

Recorded videos are so much smoother with the Galaxy S10, thanks to groundbreaking innovations that ensure that users’ footage looks fantastic.

The camera’s Super Steady video-recording feature is the first of its kind on a smartphone, and offers users up to three times better video stabilization than conventional technologies. Powered by anti-shake stabilization technology (VDIS), Super Steady evens out shaky footage, allowing you to record fluid video during even your most active moments. So whether you’re dancing at a concert or recording a bumpy bike ride, with the Galaxy S10, the content you capture will be nice and steady.

Both the front and rear cameras are capable of recording pro-grade UHD footage, which allows users to step up their social game with true-to-life video quality. And in another smartphone first, the rear camera offers users the ability to take their recordings to the next level by capturing them in stunning HDR10+.

Utilizing dynamic tone mapping technology that provides 2.1 times broader color range than SDR, the Galaxy S10 allows you to take videos that are brighter and more dynamic than those taken with other smartphone cameras. That’s because the camera uses tone mapping techniques to go frame-by-frame and optimize the color for every scene.

A New AR Emoji Experience

Samsung’s latest flagships offer users a brand new AR Emoji experience, highlighted by a revamped design, greater customization options, and the ability to track not just your face but also your eyes, tongue and body movements, including your arms and legs.

AR Emoji’s new Mask Mode offers a fun way to touch up a less-than-stellar photo. Not satisfied with the expression you made in your last shot? Simply choose an AR Emoji that nails the emotion you want to express, and place its face over yours.

Users can also customize their AR Emojis like never before. In addition to choosing from the dozens of expressive stickers that are created for each AR Emoji, you can create your very own stickers, featuring unique backgrounds, expressions and other personal touches. Users who download AR World from the Galaxy Store app will also be able to access tons of new hairstyles, outfits and accessories that’ll make their AR Emoji even more unique.

Samsung’s Most Epic Cameras Yet

In addition to placing more fun and convenient features at users’ fingertips, the Galaxy S10 line’s powerful cameras allow you to capture moments in more detail – and with more lenses – than ever before.

The Galaxy S10 5G truly packs the power of a professional-grade camera into your phone by offering a total of six lenses – two on the front and four on the back. In addition to featuring all of the lenses included in the Galaxy S10+, the 5G model introduces Samsung’s next-generation 3D Depth Camera.

This innovative camera allows the device to accurately capture depth by measuring the length of time it takes for an infrared light signal to bounce off the photograph’s subject. The camera uses the resulting depth information to improve the quality of portrait-style images, and to power exciting new features like Video Live focus and Quick Measure. The former allows you to apply cinema-quality bokeh effects to recorded videos, while the latter enables you to use your phone to instantly measure distance, area or volume.

¹ At a distance of approximately one meter.

² Super-fast autofocus is included in the front cameras of the Galaxy S10e, S10, S10+ and S10 5G, as well as in the rear cameras of the Galaxy S10, S10+ and S10 5G.

Samsung Electronics will introduce its new products and solutions to its business partners around the world at Samsung Forum 2019.

During the two-month event, strategic products including the 2019 QLED TV lineup as well as customized products for regional markets will be showcased. Based on ‘New Bixby,’ Samsung’s intelligence platform, Connected Solution will also be exhibited where global business partners can interact with various Samsung products.

Starting with the European Forum, Samsung will invite media and partners from Europe, Southwest Asia and Latin America to Porto of Portugal from February 12^th to 22^nd. From March 7^th to 11^th, Samsung will host the Middle East and CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) Forum in Antalya of Turkey. Lastly, the Southeast Asian Forum will be held in Sentosa of Singapore to meet key business partners from March 25^th to 26^th.

Marking the 10^th anniversary, this year’s Samsung Forum will be a venue to share the company’s business strategy and vision with key partners under the concept of ‘Samsung Plaza’ in which Plaza, the motif, is where people gather, meet, communicate and engage.

“We are delighted that Samsung will engage with global business partners at the 10^th Samsung Forum this year,” said YH Lee, CMO & Head of Global Marketing Center at Samsung Electronics. “Moving forward, we will remain committed to helping people do things that once seemed impossible with our focus on AI and IoT to provide new experiences for consumers going beyond just connecting devices.”

Expansion of Consumer Choice with the Full 2019 QLED TV Lineup

As a market leader in the TV industry for 13 years, Samsung announced its entire 2019 QLED TV lineup that will be available in more than 60 markets within this year. The company will continuously increase the market share in the 8K TV market to sustain its solid dominance in the premium TV market.

“We have witnessed our customers’ unfaltering confidence and affection towards Samsung QLED TVs within the past year,” said Jongsuk Chu, Executive Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “This year, our 8K and 4K QLED line-ups are widening the gap in the market for ultra-large TVs, and we are proud to be able to deliver our most innovative and immersive lineup to date.”

The key products unveiled in the 2019 QLED lineup were a suite of 8K and 4K TVs, including the 8K Q900R that ranges from 65-inch to 98-inch screen sizes, as well as the 4K Q90R, Q80R, Q70R and Q60R that range from 43-inch to 82-inch sizes. In total, the expanded 2019 QLED lineup features more than 20 models and includes more ultra-large TV models.

As part of Samsung’s commitment to proliferate its QLED technology, its 2019 QLED TVs feature ‘Ultra Viewing Angle’ technology to provide sharp pictures with deeper blacks and a wider viewing angle.* Following its adoption in 8K models, Samsung’s new QLED 4K models are also now equipped with its proprietary ‘Quantum Processor,’ enabling the QLED 4K products to deliver any source content in different resolutions with improved brightness, picture quality and sound optimized for each scene through AI upscaling.

In addition, all Samsung 2019 QLED TVs will feature HDR10+, a premium picture processing format, so that users can enjoy a detail-rich picture. The QLED 8K TVs will also support HDMI 2.1 (8K 60P) transmission, and users of the QLED 8K can also enjoy content in a high picture quality on streaming services through AI-based 8K upscaling.

The ‘New Bixby’ feature on the 2019 QLED TVs gives users the ability to easily access the content they want through voice commands on Samsung’s ‘Universal Guide,’ which helps users search for content they might like based on previous watching habits and preferences.

To provide more entertainment options and open platform functionality, Samsung Smart TVs will offer a new iTunes Movies and TV Shows app and support Apple AirPlay 2. Additionally, through 2019 Samsung Smart TVs that now work with Amazon Alexa and the Google Assistant, a user can enjoy various features such as turning on/off TV or controlling audio volume via simple voice command.

After immersing the participants with its overwhelming size and enhanced resolution at CES 2019, ‘The Wall’ will again impress participants at the events in Portugal and Singapore. Samsung’s leading lifestyle TVs, the new ‘The Frame’ and ‘The Serif’, with unique design values and improved resolution after the adoption of QLED display for the first time, will also be displayed.

New Products Enabling Next Level Experience of Connected Life

As presented at CES 2019 this January, Connected Solution will also be exhibited at Samsung Forum 2019. Based on ‘New Bixby’, global business partners can enjoy the connected life experience with various products including QLED 8K, 2019 Family Hub, POWERBot and Galaxy Home. Not only that, they can get hands-on experience on how they connect with third-party products.

During the European Forum, AR Solutions will be demonstrated to help the participants virtually experience Samsung products and their interworking with other devices in the retailing environment with an aim of expanding the adoption of the technology in local retail stores.

The winner of the CES Best of Innovation award for four consecutive years, the 2019 Family Hub ensures better control of complex features with voice commands by supporting ‘New Bixby’, enabling enriched family communication and enhanced connections with other devices.

Samsung’s various mobile products and latest smartphones will also be on display.

In addition, Samsung will also exhibit customized products tailored to regional needs. ‘Make for India’ products, including microwave ovens with more than 250 Indian recipe features and refrigerators that can be powered by solar energy will be rolled out during the Southwest Asian Forum.

*Product specification may vary by model.

Samsung Electronics announced today its HDR10+ ecosystem expansion to 45 industry partners and the construction of a new certification center in China. The new partnerships with companies, from online streaming and content services to semiconductor industry, will bring more true-to-life picture quality content to viewers and also expand the impact of HDR10+ technology across different market segments.

Last June, Samsung Electronics launched the HDR10+ certification and logo program in partnership with 20th Century Fox and Panasonic. HDR10+ is Samsung’s next-generation standard technology for picture processing, which optimizes brightness levels and contrast for each scene, making bright areas brighter and dark areas darker to deliver a lifelike viewing experience.

Thanks to Samsung’s new partnerships with content providers, consumers can soon access more content in vivid and reality-like colors. Rakuten TV, a European online streaming service, will begin offering HDR10+ content in the first half of next year. One of the largest among CIS and Eastern Europe OTT/VOD services, MEGOGO is currently finishing its HDR10+ licensing process, making its adoption of HDR10+ official, and planning to release HDR10+ contents on its platform, viewable on all Samsung Smart TV devices. ARSPRO, based in Moscow, is another production studio that has implemented HDR10+ technology, including the use of dynamic metadata. It has successfully carried out the remastering of the first several series of programming in HDR10+. On December 3^rd of this year, the largest Russian OTT/VOD service ivi also presented five European series in HDR10+ to Samsung Smart TV users for the first time in Russia and CIS region.

“We continually work on improving the video quality for our users. And we are proud to be the first Russian OTT/VOD service to maximize the opportunities available through Samsung QLED TVs and give a chance to our subscribers to view the contents in this new better-quality format. We plan to expand our HDR10+ collection because our focus is on providing the highest quality content to the viewers, using all the features of Samsung TVs,” said Irina Grandel, Business Development Director at ivi.

In 2017, Samsung also launched its premium video streaming service with Amazon, making Prime Video the first streaming service to deliver all 4K (UHD) videos in HDR10+. In 2018, Amazon integrated HDR10+ support into the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K, which launched in October. Another HDR10+ partner Warner Bros. Home Entertainment has created over seventy HDR10+ compatible titles so far and plans to have over 100 titles available for digital distribution in HDR10+ by early next year.

Samsung is also building partnerships with major smartphone chip manufacturers. Qualcomm, a U.S. semiconductor and telecommunications equipment maker and a member of the HDR10+ alliance, recently announced that HDR10+ will be supported on its new chipset, Snapdragon 855. Arm, U.K.’s innovation-leading company in mobile technology that has successfully collaborated with Samsung System LSI, will also join the HDR10+ network, further growing HDR10+’s influence in the mobile category.

In addition, Samsung plans to build a new HDR10+ center in China with TIRT, a national testing and inspection center for the Chinese consumer electronics, in December. The center is designed to help Chinese TV manufacturers, including Hisense, TCL and Konka to access the certification procedure and in turn accelerate the expansion of the HDR10+ ecosystem. The China center follows the opening of certification centers built in Korea, Japan and the U.S. earlier this year.

“With HDR emerging as one of the most important technologies for ultra-high picture quality, Samsung’s HDR10+ format is gaining recognition,” said Hyogun Lee, Executive Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “HDR10+ has already been well-received by major companies across a variety of industries. Samsung will continue to build on this, solidifying our HDR standard technology leadership and maintaining our presence in the global TV market.”

The company recently received the official HDR10+ logo certification for its 2018 Premium UHD and QLED TVs, including QLED 8K – a testament to the displays’ ability to produce lifelike images that depict content as creators intended. Samsung also continues to forge partnerships that are delivering premium viewing experiences to more consumers’ homes.

Samsung Newsroom recently sat down with Yeong-Taeg Kim, Vice President of Samsung Research America’s Digital Media Solutions Lab, to learn more about what the company is doing to expand this technology, and offer more people access to the best HDR content available.

What Is HDR10+?

 Introduced in 2017, HDR10+ reproduces colors with a level of accuracy that was previously impossible to achieve.

With most TVs, there’s an inevitable gap between the dynamic range of colors that the display is capable of producing, and the depicted content’s true colors. Traditionally, in order to approximate the appearance HDR, TVs with limited dynamic range have utilized a process known as ‘tone mapping’ to amplify images’ color. However, unlike previous HDR10 iterations, which utilized static tone mapping, in which color enhancement is uniform from scene to scene, HDR10+ employs dynamic tone mapping, which allows scenes to be optimized individually.

In a nutshell, the technology enables TVs to preserve creators’ intent in dark scenes and produce brighter highlights, adding a sense of depth to images that makes content seem more realistic and immersive. It works by embedding content with dynamic metadata, which creates an optimized tone-mapping curve based on a mathematical concept known as a Bézier curve. As Kim explained, “While the concept may be somewhat complex, the results are clear: the image optimization creates rich contrast that brings content’s color to life through the beauty of math.”

How It All Started

 It all started with a proprietary tone-mapping technology that was developed by the Digital Media Solutions Lab back in 2016.

The tone-mapping algorithm was unique as it was the first in the industry to automatically optimize colors in each scene on displays with limited dynamic range. While the team had originally planned to use the technology as a picture quality differentiator for future products, later that year, when the idea of dynamic tone mapping being the next big thing for HDR10 was the subject of intense debate within the Society of Motion Picture & Television Engineers (SMPTE), the team decided to utilize the technology to develop a new industry standard. A standard that would accommodate device manufacturers, studios and chipmakers, and offer each the freedom they need to innovate.

“We didn’t set out to build an industry standard from the beginning,” Kim explained. “It was the result of having the right technology in our hands at a time when it was most needed. We knew that by opening it up to the industry, we could accelerate the adoption of a ground-breaking innovation that would truly do justice to creators and their content.”

The Challenges

Despite the team’s optimism, creating a new standard was a challenge at first. Even with headquarters and managements’ support at the time, some within the company were skeptical as to whether Samsung would be able to create a viable industry standard that could be adopted by studios, chipmakers and device manufacturers.

“It was a tough call, but we all understood the significance of creating a new standard,” said Kim. “There was a lot of debate, but everyone came around when they realized that by creating a new standard, we’d also be keeping our promise to our consumers. If the industry relied on just one standard, it would be difficult to update previous HDR10 products.”

The biggest technological challenges laid in creating a mathematical curve that could be used as a base for tone mapping each scene, and figuring out a way to parameterize it into a set of data that could serve as a universal descriptor to represent the tone mapping behavior for a given scene. The mathematical curve not only needed to be optimized for every possible scene, it also needed to be flexible enough to do so. It was therefore important that the team find a curve that would cater to the way studios tend to map their tones: fragmented.

Creating a New Standard

After months of research and multiple simulations, the team, led by Dr. Li Tao, finally landed on a mathematical curve that was flexible enough to do the job.

The idea was to mimic the way that studios edit scenes. The Bézier curve turned out to be the perfect choice for replicating fragmentation, which meant that it would represent creators’ intentions more precisely. However, before they could utilize the curve as a base for creating dynamic metadata through mathematical optimization, the team would have to modify it first. It was at this point that they had the innovative idea to enhance its flexibility by transforming the two-dimensional curve to a one-dimensional data set.

With this increased flexibility came the ability to create optimized tone-mapping curves for each scene. By combining this with an algorithm that automatically transforms each curve into metadata, the team created a powerful tool that would allow Samsung’s TVs to offer consumers truly immersive viewing experiences.

Using the analogy of a master chef sharing a prized recipe, Kim explained the technology’s potential to change the way consumers experience content. “Imagine a chef’s culinary masterpiece, turned into a recipe for the ordinary household kitchen,” said Kim. “Imagine that the recipe is so precise that anyone can use it to create a near-perfect dish. Now, imagine a tool that writes this recipe automatically – instead of the chef – and for all types of cuisines. Finally, imagine that, once they buy the ingredients, the recipe becomes available to anyone.

“Samsung has not only created the standard for writing the ‘recipe,’ but the tool as well,” Kim continued. “But in order for this to happen, we need the ‘chefs’ (the studios), the ‘groceries’ (content providers) and the ‘cooks’ at home (device and chip manufacturers) to all work together.”

An Expanding Ecosystem

Since its official launch last year, HDR10+ has seen rapid expansion, spurred by Samsung and its partners’ decisions to (1) make the technology available to chip and TV manufacturers royalty-free, and (2) make the HDR10+ platform and metadata freely available to content companies, as well as UHD Blu-ray player and set-top box manufacturers.

As a result, we’re witnessing the establishment of a strong ecosystem of HDR10+ offerings, with the power to revolutionize home entertainment. In order to deliver immersive, lifelike visuals to more consumers’ living rooms, Samsung has been hard at work forging HDR10+ partnerships – spanning the worlds of cinema, software and device manufacturing – that are expediting the technology’s widespread adoption.

As Kim explained, the HDR10+ platform was designed to support seamless adoption without substantial economic or technological hurdles. “We have been collaborating with third-party software developers, including Colorfront and Blackmagic Design, among others, as well as encoding-system companies to embed HDR10+,” said Kim. “We’ve demonstrated the quality of HDR10+’s performance, and emphasized the economic aspects of implementation. Compared to HDR10 or other competitors, there are no additional costs associated with implementing HDR10+ for content creation, nor are there additional hardware costs for HDR10+ displays. The new platform’s contents are retroactively compatible with existing HDR10 devices.”

Samsung has established exciting partnerships with device, chip and projector manufacturers that will introduce more consumers to HDR10+’s true-to-life picture quality. Notable examples include V-Silicon (formerly Sigma Designs), and TP Vision. The company has also forged and expanded partnerships with leading film studios and content service providers including ivi, Russia’s largest online video service provider, Amazon Prime Video, and Warner Bros.

As noted by Kim, with more HDR10+ TVs, SoCs (System on Chip) and AVR and projector manufacturers set to join the fold soon, and more and more HDR10+ content coming down the pipeline, the official HDR10+ logo certification marks an important milestone, and represents the beginning of a new era for picture quality.

“The introduction of the HDR10+ certification logo represents the groundwork that we are setting for the ultra-high picture quality TV market,” said Kim. “Utilizing our leading technology and expertise, we will continue to extend our valuable partnerships while maintaining our commitment to providing consumers with the best HDR content possible.”

(From left to right) Back: Chenguang Liu, Dr. Yeong-Taeg Kim, Pradeep Nagesh, Seongnam Oh,  Front: Suzie Hyun, Li Tao

Flashy digital signages at the Time Square and scoreboards at baseball stadiums are things that often come to mind when you think about an ‘LED display.’ In line with the popular belief and real use cases, LED displays tend to belong in public venues and are used for advertisements. While LED displays can be found unfit for home installations, Samsung Electronics has changed the rules of the game with a “Samsung LED for Home – The Wall and IF Series MicroLED displays. Find out how Samsung is transforming the way consumers enjoy the top-of-the-line LED technology by bringing it to their homes.

Bringing Huge LED Displays to the Home

Samsung Electronics’ CEDIA 2018 booth introducing the Super Fine Pixel Pitch technology

In traditional LED displays, which was intended to present visuals from afar, the gap between LED pixels did not have to be as close. However, when these displays are used indoors at homes, hotels or penthouses, the story gets more interesting. Considering the close distance between the display and viewers, it is inevitable for the displays to have extra precision, with pixels as proximate to one another so that the gaps in between cannot be visible to the naked eye.

The perfectly clear image quality with immense details can be achieved with Samsung LED for Home displays. Samsung was able to do this by reducing the LED pixel spaces with MicroLED display’s ‘fine pixel pitch’ technology. As the name suggests, the LEDs arranged in the fine pixel pitch style are set about 1㎜ from each other. Even the closest look at a favorite movie scene in front of the display will have no flaws since the displays capture the tiniest details.

In addition to the splendid presentation features, Samsung LED for Home displays can be synced with high-end audio such as ‘JBL K2 S9900’ of Harman and ‘Model B’ of Steinway Lyngdorf in Denmark.

Samsung Electronics’ LED for Home display (right) in comparison to a conventional display

Not only that, Samsung LED for Home also performs to last with a lifespan that is two to three times longer than an average projector bulb, and remote monitoring options that offer quick and convenient prevention as well as troubleshooting of errors.

“As consumers always anticipate for the next big thing, we wanted to transform the way people watch video with our Samsung LED for Home displays,” said Seog-gi Kim, Executive Vice President and Head of Samsung’s Visual Display Enterprise Business Team. “Not only do these displays offer the best picture quality, but they ultimately deliver never-before-seen viewing experiences.”

146-inch The Wall and 219-inch IF Series Hit the Market

At the Consumer Electronic Show 2018 held this January, Samsung unveiled The Wall, the world’s first modular, 146-inch and 0.8㎜ pixel pitch with MicroLED display that delivers intense black and pure colors along with outstanding brightness and contrast. The Wall also provides intense expression of blacks for the ultimate contrast, and superior color purity for true-to-life imagery. Awarded ‘Best New Product’ in the AV/Home Theater category at the CEDIA 2018, The Wall offers HDR 10+ technology that enhances the peak brightness, colors and contrast in every scene.

“Through a rigorous manufacturing process that meticulously arranges 24 million individual pixels to craft a UHD display to an ultra-low reflection black surface technology, The Wall is packed with an array of specialized and advanced technologies that viewers can’t get from anywhere but Samsung,” explains TaeYoung Huh, Vice President and Head of Samsung’s Visual Display Product Strategy Team.

Another Samsung LED for Home option is the IF Series. The IF Series P1.2 provides excellent FHD (109-inch) and UHD (219-inch) resolution displays that are packed with advanced technologies for enhanced image clarity and performance bringing life-like viewing into the homes of consumers. The display boasts enhanced peak brightness, nearly two times higher than standard LED maximum brightness norms, and also supports HDR10+* and LED HDR to deliver clearly defined and near-perfect visuals with deep blacks and crisp colors.

The key advantage of Samsung LED for Home is its modular formation, which allows configuration in a variety of sizes and shapes beyond the standard 16:9 aspect ratio screen. Since these displays are unaffected by ambient light, they can readily be installed in various indoor locations within homes – a dark private media room or a bright living room.

Without restrictions in size or form, the Samsung LED for Home displays foster a truly original experience. To help create homes and indoor spaces where the displays are in perfect harmony with the surrounding environment and users’ unique styles, Samsung plans to expand the Samsung LED for Home product lineup and further develop technologies to integrate the displays into the daily lifestyles of consumers.

* The IF series will support HDR10+ from the fourth quarter of 2018.

Samsung Electronics today received the official HDR10+ logo certification for its 2018 Premium UHD and QLED TVs being HDR (High Dynamic Range) 10+ compatible. HDR10+, a next-generation core technology for ultra-high picture quality TV, provides users with a premium HDR viewing experience and delivers pristine images as originally intended by creators while contributing to the creative activities of film studios and directors.

With HDR10+ technology which helps HDR TVs to optimize brightness levels on a scene-by-scene by incorporating dynamic metadata, Samsung TVs can produce brighter highlights and darker darks for additional depth and sense of realism on-screen. The HDR10+ certification program creates a foundation that provides viewers with an enhanced viewing experience while also developing a range of plans to extend the HDR10+ ecosystem.

“The introduction of the HDR10+ certification logo represents the groundwork that we are setting for the ultra-high picture quality TV market,” said Doochan Eum, Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “By making use of our leading technology and expertise, we will continue to extend our valuable partnerships while maintaining our commitment to providing consumers with best HDR content possible.”

Among Samsung’s notable HDR10+ partnerships, TP Vision, which oversees Philips TV development, manufacturing and marketing, will introduce HDR10+ to its entire lineup of 4K TVs next year, and V-Silicon (formerly Sigma Designs) will show a demo of HDR10+ in its private booth at IFA 2018.

Film production company Warner Bros. will also start creating HDR10+-compatible contents, which will be available for home distribution later this year. In addition to that, Samsung partnered with Twentieth Century Fox Film Corporation to standardize the HDR10+ licensing process, in order to make it easier for content creators to realize its technology, get closer to filmmaker’s creative intent and improve the viewing experience for all audiences. Twentieth Century Fox is currently exploring several titles for release and plans to announce their availability in the coming weeks.

In Europe, a popular VoD provider, Rakuten TV, is seeking to partner with Samsung Electronics to provide HDR10+ premium entertainment to European consumers. “At Rakuten TV, we have the mission to deliver the best cinema experience at home,” said Sidharth Jayant, Global Product Director at Rakuten TV. “Samsung is our premium partner in this regard, and our upcoming collaboration on HDR10+ reinforces our commitment to be the VoD reference platform for Smart TVs. With dynamic metadata added to the HDR signal, combined with the widest 4K HDR catalog of new releases that we currently provide to European Smart TV owners, we are confident Rakuten TV will deliver an unforgettable cinema experience at home.”

For more information on HDR10+, please visit www.hdr10plus.org.

The world’s first modular TV for consumers, The Wall is a MicroLED display that features self-emitting technology as well as a bezel-less, modular-based structure that can be customized to fit into any home environment.

JH Han, President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics, hosted the event, and explained in his opening remarks that the introduction of the company’s breakthrough display and its features is a first step to bring to life Samsung’s vision to make screens “the center of everyday life.”

Nevertheless, as Dave Das, Senior Vice President at Samsung Electronics America, noted, The Wall and its enhancements in picture quality and design are only one example of how Samsung is working “to redefine the possibilities of television, and let you do what you couldn’t do before.” Other innovations include Samsung’s new artificial intelligence (AI) technology for 8K content and improved Smart TV features, which were also showcased at the event.

MicroLED Technology for an Unprecedented TV Experience

Made possible by Samsung’s advancements in semiconductor processing techniques and LED technology, the pixel LED modules of The Wall’s self-emitting technology are smaller than ever before, and each chip incorporates RGB color. As a result, The Wall’s self-emitting technology removes the need for color filters altogether and is able to deliver up to 2000 nits of peak brightness, brighter white hues, darker black shades and the truest natural colors.

Additionally, its bezel-less design enables the individual modules of The Wall to fit together seamlessly, removing limitations to screen size and making it difficult to tell where the screen ends and the wall begins.

Event attendees eagerly await the unveiling of Samsung’s breakthrough display, The Wall.

“Screens should not be limited by size or space. Instead, they should be able to blend into any home,” said Han, referring to Samsung’s vision for the future of displays.

The Wall is debuted on the First Look stage.

With its bezel-less modular design, consumers can build their TV to reach over 100 inches, extending the screen size to larger-than-life levels.

Because the pixels of Samsung’s MicroLED modules (right) are much smaller than those of conventional LED  displays (left), they’re able to provide a much more vivid and detailed picture.

A Smarter and More Advanced Technology for the Future Display

The Wall offers superlative picture quality and can be extended to just about any size or shape. But to complete the viewing experience, it also needs high-resolution content. That’s why Samsung’s 85-inch 2018 QLED TV is equipped with AI technology which transforms all pictures into 8K high-quality content by adjusting the algorithm in the display based on a user’s prior experiences.

At the event, participants were also able to experience the latest TV technologies such as Samsung’s HDR 10+ platform, the enhanced smart features and HDR gaming capabilities.

Samsung’s 8K QLED TVs feature image-upscaling AI technology that makes pictures appear more detailed and vibrant than they would on a 4K display.

Samsung’s new TV lineup enhances the gaming experience by offering optimum low input lag and incredibly fast frame rate conversions.

Now accessible on the Smart TV platform, Samsung SmartThings will enable users to automatically detect and connect their Samsung smart products and hundreds of other devices to create a truly integrated home experience.

The HDR10+ platform will soon be made available to content companies, ultra-high definition TVs, Blu-ray disc players/recorders and set-top box manufacturers, as well as SoC vendors, royalty-free with only a nominal administrative fee. Companies can view the new logo, learn about the license program including final specifications, adopter agreements and sign up to receive a notification when technical specifications for HDR10+ become available at http://www.hdr10plus.org. In addition, Ultra HD Blu-ray metadata generation tools have been developed with third parties and will soon be available for content creators enabling Ultra HD Blu-ray players to enter the market. Details on the content transfer and interface format for the content creation pipeline will also be released shortly.

HDR10+ will offer a genuinely premium HDR experience for viewers through a device certification program ensuring an accurate representation of the creative intent expressed in the content. Also, its workflow improvements for creators will encourage increased production of premium HDR content.

The HDR10+ license program will provide interested companies with the necessary technical and testing specifications to implement HDR10+ technology in a way that both maintains high picture quality and gives each manufacturer the ability to apply dynamic tone mapping innovatively. The accompanying certification program will ensure that HDR10+ compliant products meet good picture quality and deliver the creative intent of movie directors and cinematographers. A certified product will feature the HDR10+ logo, which signifies the product’s excellent picture quality.

Key aspects of the license program will include:

• Benefits for device manufacturers (e.g., TV, Ultra HD Blu-ray, OTT STB, etc.), content distribution services providers, SoC manufacturers, content publishers, and content creation tool providers.
• No per unit royalty.
• A nominal annual administration fee for device manufacturers, SoC manufacturers and content distribution service providers.
• Technical specification, test specification, HDR10+ logo/logo guide, patents from the three companies directly related to the technical specification and the test specification.
• Certification for devices will be performed by a third-party, authorized testing center.

Once the HDR10+ license program is open, the three founding companies will incorporate HDR10+ technologies in all future Ultra HD movie releases, selected TVs, Ultra HD Blu-ray player/recorders, and other products.

“It was important for us to create an open system that is flexible and offers a viewing experience much closer to the filmmaker’s creative intent for the film,” said Danny Kaye, Executive Vice President of 20^th Century Fox, and Managing Director of the Fox Innovation Lab. “Together with Samsung and Panasonic, we aim to standardize the licensing process making it easy for partners, including content creators, television and device manufacturers, to incorporate this technology and improve the viewing experience for all audiences.”

Support continues to grow for HDR10+ and companies are looking forward to applying the 3C specifications and certification program. More than 25 companies spanning many different industries have expressed strong interest in supporting the HDR10+ platform, further reinforcing its path to success.

Amazon Prime Video, the first streaming service provider to deliver HDR10+, has made the entire Prime Video HDR library available in HDR10+ globally. The Prime Video HDR10+ catalog includes hundreds of hours of content such as Prime Originals The Grand Tour, Golden Globe®-nominated The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Jean-Claude Van Johnson, The Tick and The Man in the High Castle plus hundreds of licensed titles.

Warner Bros. Home Entertainment will support HDR10+ to enable a dynamic metadata solution for Warner Bros. content to Samsung, Panasonic and other HDR10+ capable 4K HDR TVs. “Warner Bros. has always strived to provide the best next gen home entertainment experience to consumers,” said Jim Wuthrich, President of the Americas and Global Strategy, Warner Bros. Home Entertainment. “With HDR10+ dynamic metadata, WB can continue to more accurately bring the filmmakers’ vision of our 2018 releases and our vast catalog of over seventy-five 4K HDR titles to the home across a broad range of HDR10+ capable TV’s.”

The new HDR10+ technology optimizes picture quality for next generation displays by using dynamic tone mapping to reflect frame to frame or scene to scene variations in brightness, color saturation, and contrast, which makes for an enhanced viewing experience. HDR10+ technology optimizes the performance of many 4K ultra-high definition TVs, enabling playback on a wide range of next generation TVs bringing user experience much closer to the original creative intent for Hollywood films.

“By bringing together know-how and technology from the three founding companies, HDR10+ has the potential to deliver considerable picture quality benefits to both viewers and creators alike,” said Toshiharu Tsutsui, Director of Panasonic’s TV Business Division. “Accordingly, Panasonic anticipates wide support for HDR10+.”

“Samsung is committed to technological innovation across our TVs and HDR10+ represents an evolution in display quality for the best possible viewing experience,” said Jongsuk Chu, Senior Vice President of Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “We have also designed the HDR10+ platform to encourage future development in order to deliver further enhanced technology in the years to come.”

20^th Century Fox, Panasonic and Samsung will show technical demonstrations of HDR10+ technology at CES 2018. Accredited journalists or parties interested in the licensee program may email chris.bess@fox.com for more information. Accredited journalists can see Panasonic’s HDR10+ technical demo at its suite at the MGM Grand Conference Centre. A HDR10+ technology demo will be held at Samsung’s First Look event at Enclave Las Vegas on 7^th January.

To learn more about the HDR10+ license program, please contact the HDR10+ license administration office at info@hdr10plus.org.

About Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment

Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment, LLC (TCFHE) is the industry leading worldwide marketing, sales and distribution company for all Fox produced, acquired and third-party partner film and television programming. Each year TCFHE expands its award-winning global product portfolio with the introduction of new entertainment content through established and emerging formats including DVD, Blu-ray, Digital and VOD. Twentieth Century Fox Home Entertainment is a subsidiary of 20^th Century Fox, a 20^th Century Fox Company.

About Panasonic

Panasonic Corporation is a worldwide leader in the development of diverse electronics technologies and solutions for customers in the consumer electronics, housing, automotive, and B2B businesses. Celebrating its 100th anniversary in 2018, the company has expanded globally and now operates 495 subsidiaries and 91 associated companies worldwide, recording consolidated net sales of 7.343 trillion yen for the year ended March 31, 2017. Committed to pursuing new value through innovation across divisional lines, the company uses its technologies to create a better life and a better world for its customers. To learn more about Panasonic: http://www.panasonic.com/global.

“We are thrilled to announce HDR10+ content for consumers,” said Sang Yoon Kim, Vice President of Smart TV Business Development at Samsung Electronics America. “The launch marks the first opportunity for consumers and the industry to experience HDR10+ technology through a streaming service.”

The HDR10+ technology on Prime Video incorporates dynamic metadata that allows high dynamic range (HDR) TVs to adjust brightness levels on a scene-by-scene or even frame-by-frame basis. By applying individualized tone mapping to each scene, HDR10+ delivers an incredible viewing experience for next generation Samsung displays. The picture quality offers an enhanced visual experience with more detailed expressions, brighter shadow areas and more accurate color renderings that stay true to the creator’s original intent. Through the utilization of the precise “Bezier” based tone-mapping guides, Amazon is able to deliver the optimal viewing experience across a variety of TV models.

“We’re dedicated to offering Prime Video members the best possible viewing experience, and we are very excited for our members around the world to experience our content in HDR10+,” said Greg Hart, Vice President of Prime Video. “The viewing experience of HDR10+ combined with Prime Video’s award-winning content is ushering in a new era of entertainment for consumers on these devices.”

With the launch of HDR10+ on Prime Video along with the HDR10+ logo and certification partnership formed earlier this year by Samsung, 20^th Century Fox and Panasonic demonstrates the adoption and growth of HDR10+ as well as a growing commitment to delivering a premium HDR experience.

About Prime Video

Amazon Video is a premium on-demand entertainment service that offers customers the greatest choice in what to watch, and how to watch it. Prime Video offers thousands of movies and TV shows, including popular licensed content plus critically-acclaimed and award-winning Prime Originals and Amazon Original Movies from Amazon Studios like The Tick, the most-watched Prime Video series worldwide The Grand Tour from Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May, and award-winning series like The Man in the High Castle, Mozart in the Jungle and more available for unlimited streaming as part of an Amazon Prime membership. Prime Video is also now available to customers in more than 200 countries and territories around the globe at www.primevideo.com.

Samsung Newsroom sat down with the Vice President of Samsung Research America’s Digital Media Solutions Lab, Bill Mandel, to discuss the ins and outs of the open-source platform, as well as Samsung’s efforts to accelerate its adoption.

Q. In a nutshell, how does HDR10+ help Samsung’s QLED TVs create immersive viewing experiences?

HDR10+ processes images dynamically, allowing for scene by scene, and at times frame by frame picture enhancement. QLED TV’s advanced image technologies make the displays fully capable of portraying these optimized visuals.

This dynamic approach to image optimization results in rich, accurate colors and deeper contrasts. It means that when watching a show or film, characters’ expressions and the details of a scene appear crisp and nuanced, making the scene truly come to life.

Q. What sets HDR10+ apart from other video formats, such as HDR10?

HDR10+ is designed to reproduce images with utmost accuracy, even on displays which would otherwise have difficulty portraying HDR10 content. While HDR10 produces remarkable visuals on Ultra HD Premium^TM displays, HDR10+ allows consumers to enjoy HDR10’s image benefits on a wider variety of TVs.

Samsung UHD and QLED TVs’ HDR10+ integration allows them to fully utilize their native image technologies to provide the most lifelike visuals out there. Even premium TVs will benefit from the display-engine upgrades that come with HDR10+, as well as the incorporation of HDR10+ data in picture optimization.

Some competing platforms employ techniques with fewer control points, and are tuned on reference monitors rather than the consumers’ displays. It’s quite difficult for display manufacturers to take a reference monitor-defined process and adapt it to a range of products. HDR10+, on the other hand, was designed specifically for consumer sets, and engineered to reproduce content created with an HDR10 master in a manner that preserves the creators’ intent.

Q. What led Samsung to make HDR10+ open source and royalty-free?

Samsung strongly believes in making core technologies openly available to the industry to help build strong ecosystems. We’ve seen this before with platforms like Tizen.

It’s for this reason that Samsung made HDR10+ available to chip and TV manufacturers royalty-free. In January of 2018, we will begin licensing the HDR10+ platform and metadata for free to content companies, UHD Blu-ray player and set-top box manufacturers, as well as other vendors around the world. By making HDR10+ openly available, we provide a platform that will lead to the creation a variety of devices that depict video content in a manner that offers viewers the best possible expression of the creators’ intent.

Q. What are some of the actions that Samsung is taking to ensure a smooth transition to HDR10+?

Our goal is to see HDR10+ available to any manufacturer out there who would like to incorporate it into their displays. We’re offering engineering support to help these manufacturers achieve the best results, and we’re currently in discussions with various content creators and distributors as well.

Everyone we’ve met with at the industry level has been shown the platform’s benefits, as well as the simplicity with which it integrates into existing processes. We’re also working closely with vendors to make it easy for content creators and studios to generate HDR10+ content using existing HDR10 videos. We plan to announce further details on the platform’s adoption in the coming months.

Q. Could you elaborate on some of the advantages that HDR10+ offers our partners?

Through our partnership with 20^th Century Fox and Panasonic, we’ve introduced a logo and certification program that allows displays to be certified for quality HDR10+ implementation.

We are working to enable post production tool suppliers to incorporate HDR10+ so that content producers can integrate HDR10+ generation right in to their final post production. Additionally the function of these tools could be incorporated into transcoding operations so that even libraries could be upgraded to HDR10+ if so chosen by rights holders. We are aiming to provide the best ability available to generate and review HDR10+ data for their content.

Q. We’ve heard that HDR10+ was designed with the future in mind. Could you elaborate on this?

The SMPTE standard that we introduced at the end of 2015 was designed to be forward-thinking. It’s currently capable of blending in HDR10+ over parts of an image, but its versatility also makes it possible to incorporate support for new advancements in image optimization in the future without impacting performance.

Over the past year, we’ve been conducting demonstrations and working with HDR10+ in our labs to confirm with certainty the profile of HDR10+ that we are putting into practice.

Q. What can consumers expect to see next in terms of picture quality?

We’re currently witnessing intense development in this area across the industry. Now that we have a great image platform in HDR, as well as open delivery systems in HDR10 and HDR10+, there is a lot of room for innovation in content production, post-production, and displays – all of which will benefit the consumer. Over the coming years, this will lead to significant advancements in picture quality that empower creators and filmmakers to produce great content.

In addition, the proliferation of HDR10+ will allow cinematographers to create engaging three-dimensional content by taking depth and detail to entirely new levels.

The royalty-free HDR10+ standard promotes vibrant and vivid visuals that bring us closer than ever to true-to-life images. Samsung’s recent announcement of partnerships with Panasonic and 20^th Century Fox will expand the platform’s ecosystem of compatible technologies, eventually making such immersive visuals standard fare.

But how exactly does HDR10+ establish this new standard, and what will the technology’s advancement mean for content creators, device manufacturers, and the future of home entertainment? To answer those questions, let’s take a closer look at how Samsung optimized the platform to offer consumers a more advanced viewing experience.

HDR10+: The Next Step in HDR Technologies

It wasn’t too long ago that HDR represented the pinnacle of picture quality. HDR provided greater depth, brightness and color accuracy – whiter whites, blacker blacks, and a wider color gamut – than standard dynamic range (SDR) displays. Innovations such as Samsung’s Quantum dot technology further advanced picture quality by introducing more accurate color expression and higher brightness levels.

Since its introduction, the second major advancement in HDR technologies, HDR10, has been the standard throughout the industry. The technology is widely used and certified by the UHD Alliance – an association of Hollywood movie studios, content distributors, tech companies and device manufacturers that was formed to strengthen and grow the UHD ecosystem.

HDR10+, the latest and most advanced HDR technology, builds upon the strengths of previous HDR platforms to further enhance the viewing experience. HDR10+ better channels content’s intrinsic dynamic range (the ratio of light and darkness) to produce truer images that appear brighter and more colorful – and therefore more detailed and realistic than with conventional HDR on a wider array of displays. Whereas previous HDR10 iterations utilized static tone mapping, wherein color enhancement is uniform from scene to depicted scene, HDR10+ employs dynamic tone mapping to maximize each scene individually. The results are visuals that feature optimal colors, contrast and brightness, and create a viewing experience that allows you to see a show or film precisely as its producers intended.

Raising the Bar for UHD with an Open HDR10+ Ecosystem

Samsung’s decision to introduce HDR10+ as an open-source, royalty-free platform, which anyone may utilize to create compatible devices and content, underlines a larger commitment to raising the bar for UHD video.

The fact that HDR10+ is open and royalty-free makes the technology an attractive option for a variety of partners – from movie studios and filmmakers, to TV and device manufacturers – and will ultimately hasten its adoption as the new standard with which to create innovative digital devices and dynamic content.

In addition to incorporating support for HDR10+ in its complete range of 2017 UHD TVs, including its new QLED TV line, Samsung is also actively working with some of the world’s leading producers of premium content to make HDR10+ the filmmaking standard.

This past April, Amazon became Samsung’s first official HDR10+ content partner. Soon, the company will offer viewers around the world gripping HDR10+ content available to stream through its widely popular Prime Video service. Also, on September 1, the first day of IFA 2017, Samsung will host the QLED & HDR10+ Summit at Berlin’s Waldorf Astoria Hotel, where the company will lay out its plans to advance HDR10+ adoption throughout Europe.

By making HDR10+ technology widely available, and forging partnerships that will lead to more visually captivating content, Samsung hopes to make immersive, true-to-life home entertainment the new normal for consumers around the world.

The Q8F is the flat screen counterpart to the previously launched curved screen lineup Q8C. Samsung is expanding its QLED TV line-up in Europe as it seeks to solidify its leading position in the global premium TV market. The new 43-inch version of The Frame combines both technology and art to provide consumers with design value that enables them to personalize and elevate smaller living spaces.

“We are proud to introduce a flat version of the Q8 in response to demand from European consumers seeking premium, flat and mid-size TVs,” said Sang-ho Cho, Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “Our extended QLED TV lineup as well as 43-inch version of The Frame ushers in new possibilities for televisions with their innovative technology and beautiful design, reflecting consumer lifestyles.”

Fortifying its Leading Position in the Premium TV Market

With the addition of the Q8F models, Samsung’s 2017 QLED TV lineup in Europe has been expanded to 14 models. Samsung’s offering, with the Q9, Q8, and Q7 QLED TV models, represents the most comprehensive line-up of premium TVs ranging from 49 to 88-inches in size and includes eight flat and six curved screen sets. The Q8F models, in particular, are the first flat screen models in Samsung’s QLED TV Q8 line-up.

Using metal quantum dot technology, Samsung QLED TVs produce the most accurate colors regardless of scene brightness level. This unique characteristic was verified with a “100 percent Color Volume” by VDE (Verband Deutscher Elektrotechniker), the global standard certificate authority in Germany. The QLED TV’s Invisible Connection, a transparent optical cable that is only 1.8 mm in diameter, eliminates the tangled clutter of cables, and its No Gap Wall-mount allows the television to be mounted flush against a wall and fit seamlessly into various spaces.

The new 43-inch model of The Frame completes the lifestyle TV’s lineup, which currently consists of 55- and 65-inch models. Through its Art Mode function, The Frame, in addition to serving as a TV, doubles as a home décor element displaying both works of art as well as personal photographs. Through The Frame’s Art Store, users will soon be able to access about 1,000 prominent art pieces from world famous galleries and museums including the LUMAS, Saatchi Art, Sedition and Prado Museum.

The Q8F models will be immediately available following its introduction at IFA, and the 43-inch version of The Frame will be available in Europe starting in October, with the products to be introduced elsewhere on a phased basis. The new Q8F is available at a suggested retail price of EUR 2,599 (55-inch) and EUR 3,599 (65-inch), and the 43-inch The Frame at EUR 1,499.

Catching the Eyes of IFA Attendees with Enhanced HDR10+ Technologies

Samsung will demonstrate its QLED and HDR10+ TV technologies at the QLED and HDR10 Summit, which is being co-hosted by display market research publisher Insight Media. HDR10+ provides unprecedented picture quality for displays with brightness, color and contrast automatically optimized for each scene. The Summit will detail how with HDR10+ dynamic tone mapping, every scene is individually enhanced to bring-to-life vibrant visuals and colors that allow viewers to enjoy content just the way the filmmaker or director intended.

At the Summit, Samsung will also discuss its new partnership with 20th Century Fox and Panasonic Corporation to create an open, royalty-free dynamic metadata platform for HDR10+. The three companies will form a licensing entity in January 2018 and offer royalty-free metadata to content companies, UHD TV, Blu-ray players/recorders and set-top box manufacturers, as well as SoC (System on Chip) vendors.

“Our goal is always to provide consumers with the best possible viewing experience through the latest technology and innovation,” said Jongsuk Chu, Senior Vice President of the Visual Display Business at Samsung Electronics. “With our latest advanced HDR10+ technology and QLED TV, we hope to make enhanced picture quality with richer colors and deeper contrast easily accessible to users across a variety of content.”

The summit gave attendees insight into Samsung’s plans for quantum dot (QLED) displays and the latest advancements in HDR10/HDR10+, metrology and calibration for wide color gamut (WCG), and the industry’s ambitions to bring WCG and HDR to the big screen.

More than 100 participants, including industry experts, influencers and movie studio representatives attended the summit. Notable experts from world-renowned quantum dot material company Nanoco Technologies and SpectraCal, the No.1 display calibration software maker, were also present.

At the summit, Samsung shared the benefits of HDR10+, which is now available on QLED TVs. The technology is able to produce vibrant colors on a scene-by-scene basis and prevent certain pictures from looking darker than originally intended. Paired with the emissive WCG technique used to enhance color accuracy and reproduction, HDR10+ offers the best viewing experience with richer colors and deeper contrast on QLED TVs.

“Given the impact that HDR has had on enhancing ultra-high definition (UHD) picture quality and the viewing experience, HDR10+ and emissive WCG technique applied to QLED TVs will provide consumers with the best viewing experience,” said Kim Moon-soo, executive vice president of the Visual Display business at Samsung Electronics. “With our HDR10+ offering, we are bringing the next generation of HDR technology to the market and solidifying our status as the leading brand in the global ultra-premium TV market.”

Summit participants specifically noted the capability of QLED TVs to reproduce vivid and vibrant colors with 100 percent color volume and 1,500 to 2,000 nits of brightness, as well as excellent picture quality.

About Insight Media

Insight Media is a technology consultancy focused on emerging technology in the ProAV, cinema, broadcast, consumer electronics and display industries. The company authors white papers and articles on these topics, provide technology and market assessment services and hosts events to discuss key technology trends in these market segments.