Toshiba recently showcased the superior capabilities of its updated CEVO 4K video processing engine. CEVO 4K is Toshiba’s core technology for television which is capable of enhancing full HD up to four times its original resolution.
Yuji Motomura, head of Toshiba’s product planning division for TV, who currently leads a team of engineers in developing the CEVO 4K technology. “Cevo 4K is Toshiba’s technology for television which upgrades image quality and restores precision, enabling superior picture for contents like Blu-ray, HD TV and 4K video,” he explained. “It is an enhancement of the 4K video format first introduced by Toshiba in 2011. The resolution of 4K is four times the pixels of full HD.”
According to Motomura, Toshiba’s unique philosophy for television is to bring out the natural look and feel of life. “Televisions are being made to create a wow feeling, the bigger the screen, the more excitement,” he said. The problem with bigger screens that do not have an advanced video processing engine is that even images shot in full HD can look pixelized. “It is not enough that the TV screen is big – it also has to be equipped with the technology that maintains the high picture quality to enhance the viewing experience.”
Most content currently available for the general public, such as commercial TV broadcast by global media outfits and movies distributed internationally, are shot in full HD and 4K has begun to catch on. In the Philippines, local TV networks still broadcast in standard definition but are expected to go into full HD in the next couple of years. These developments signal a shift, if not a mass migration, to more advanced TV models that will give justice to the hi-tech formats that they are produced in. “If the programs you are watching are in Blu-ray or HD, the CEVO 4K technology improves the images and makes it possible to watch them in near 4K level picture quality. That’s the wonder of the technology,” Motomura said. “If you see very detailed pictures or images you somehow get excited. The ultimate excitement is delivered when the picture is so good and the screen is so wide.”
Motomura gave media guests a preview of the power of the CEVO 4K through Toshiba’s Ultra HD 84-inch LED. A movie clip from an animation film available in Blu-ray was shown. It was demonstrated how CEVO 4K gave a near 4K level picture quality to the movie. It can improve precision up to 90% of the original content, which provides a sense of reality that is unmatched in terms of viewing experience. It was also demonstrated how even the quality of youtube videos are enhanced, which would be an added treat to the growing number of people who love to watch and upload videos.
New in Toshiba’s CEVO 4k are: Fine Texture Restoration, an algorithm that extracts three components of an input image: texture, edge and flat portions; Brilliance Restoration that divides and restores brilliance by reproducing brightness that approximates real sight; Scene Adaptive Resolution that dynamically analyzes and determines the appropriate precision of each part of an image; Dynamic Gamma that automatically analyzes the image and corrects luminance and colors; Digital Noise Reduction that detects and reduces linking noises on a flat portion around edges, common in animated movies, and corrects them for cleaner images; Dejudder that addresses the juddering effect on active scenes, often found in Blu-ray content; and Clear Frame that enables a double speed circuit that generates up to 120 frames per second, reducing image lag and greatly improves the resolution in action scenes.
Toshiba is a world leader and innovator in pioneering high technology, a diversified manufacturer and marketer of advanced electronic and electrical products spanning digital consumer products; electronic devices and components; power systems, including nuclear energy; industrial and social infrastructure systems; and home appliances.
Toshiba was founded in 1875, and today operates a global network of more than 490 companies, with 203,000 employees worldwide and annual sales surpassing 6.3 trillion yen (US$77 billion).
Toshiba (Philippines) Inc., a subsidiary of the Digital Products & Service Company of Toshiba Corporation, invested by Toshiba Singapore Pte., Ltd., is involved in sales and marketing of LCD TV, DVD players, refrigerators, washing machines and semi-conductors. Toshiba (Philippines) Inc.was founded in 2011.
