Can You Tell the Difference Between 720p, 1080p, and 4K? This Diagram Can Tell You
When I rip my Blu-ray discs for home theater PCs , I always argue whether to rip in 720p or 1080p. Do I really see the difference?
It turns out that this discussion depends on much more than your eyesight. A few years ago I couldn’t tell the difference, but lately my 1080p rips have started to look noticeably better. But it wasn’t my vision that improved – it was a big new TV that I bought.
The larger your TV is (and the closer you sit to it), the more likely you are to actually distinguish between standard definition, 720p, 1080p, and even 4K. The chart above from Carlton Bale is a good guideline for determining whether 1080p or 4K really matters in your living room. (It’s based on 20/20 vision, so your experience may vary – see this blog post for more information on how these values were combined.)
We used to share calculators for this information, but they focused on setting up your home theater . But for most of us, the viewing distance depends on our living room, and the size of the TV depends on our budget. I love that this diagram takes the opposite approach: given your TV size and viewing distance, is it really worth copying in 1080p? This is the question I’ve always needed to answer.
And if you don’t have a truly giant TV, don’t worry about 4K.
Does 4K resolution matter? | CarltonBale.com via Reddit