Planar UR8450 Series 4K Displays with 1080p x4 Tiling Preview

When we try to explain to people that are unfamiliar with 4k technology is, we often say it is like taking four, 1080p panels and putting them in the same box. While that usually causes them to nod knowingly and walk away completely unenlightened, we hope that, eventually, they get what we are saying. Four 1080p panels, two up and two across, shrunk down into a much smaller box. That sort of pixel density means you can put your nose on the thing (practically) without seeing pixels. Who does this?

Well, we do. At trade shows. But we digress.

One thing that makes sense (to us and probably just about everyone else that has given it any thought) is that a 4k display can put up four, 1080p pictures without any loss of resolution (since 4k sources are very, very scarce right now - if you don't count upscaling...and we don't). Why would you want to do this? Other than "because you can," it makes sense for Picture in Picture functionality, for viewing multiple sources at the same time (checking out the nanny cam in your kid's room to make sure they are actually doing their homework) while watching the game, security cameras, video conferencing...the uses are endless.

Even up to present day, most 4k panels can't do 1080p picture in picture. They go though an upconversion process to take a single 1080p signal and fill the entire screen with it. Planar has rectified this with their new UR8450 line of 4k displays. The two main displays are the UR8450LX and UR8450MX with a third, 3D display, the UR8450-3D.

All the displays are 84" diagonal and have local dimming LED backlighting (this is a bit misleading as they actually use edge-lit LED technology, but some manufacturers questionably market local dimming technology on edge-lit designs). They feature a 3840 x 2160 resolution and a low-reflectance/matte front finish. While the press release says the UR8450 sets have a 60Hz refresh rate, the specification sheet says 120Hz. We're tempted to believe the latter. They do support 10-bit color, a 5ms response time, and have a 16:9 aspect ratio. The Planar UR8450 displays come with an energy-efficient design that utilizes LED technology and passive, fanless cooling. The displays can automatically switch to standby mode when no source is detected and consume less than 0.5 watt of standby power. The UR8450MX is slightly brighter than the UR8450LX and it can be oriented either portrait or landscape. This explains the slightly higher MSRP.

The UR8450-3D is the only one with 3D in the line. It is, essentially, the same as the UR8450LX but with 3D and an anti-reflectance/gloss screen rather than the matte of the other two. Planar has utilized the more desirable passive 3D rather than using the active glasses. That should save users a few dollars. But as you'd expect with 84" 4K displays, the Planar UR8450 series doesn't come cheap. The UR8450MX will run you just under $25k with the UR8450LX sending you back $22k. The pricing on the UR8450-3D has not been announced yet.

Conclusion

While the Planar UR8450 displays are mostly targeted at retail and professional installations, there is plenty of demand for such high resolution displays in home applications - especially those that work from home or need very big screens with very high resolution. Like us. We need it. We can't afford it, but we need it. The prices are certainly high but they are not the most expensive sets out there. With very few 4K displays on the market, the ability to provide four, 1080p images at the same time natively (something other displays need external hardware for) may be enough differentiation to influence buyers. As for us, we'll wait a few years until the prices come down to a more reasonable level.

For more information, please visit www.planar.com.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.