The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) has announced an update to the DisplayHDR standard, which is a set of specifications that monitor and display manufacturers follow to ensure a certain quality of high dynamic range (HDR) performance.
This update, DisplayHDR version 1.2, introduces stricter requirements and new tests aimed at improving HDR display quality. The new version tightens existing standards for luminance, color gamut, and bit depth. This means displays will need to be capable of more accurate color reproduction and higher brightness levels to meet these standards.
New Test Requirements:
- Color Accuracy: The updated specification includes a new comprehensive color accuracy test that evaluates how closely a display can reproduce 96 different colors across three luminance levels. The precision of color reproduction is measured by a metric called Delta-TP, with stricter allowable error margins set for higher tier displays.
- Contrast Ratio and Black Levels: New tests for static contrast ratio and black levels are introduced, which will push manufacturers to develop displays with deeper blacks and higher contrast. This is particularly important for HDR content, which relies on high contrast to enhance visual depth and detail.
- Local Dimming in Higher Tiers: Displays in the higher performance tiers (DisplayHDR 1000 and above) are now required to incorporate 2D local dimming technology, which allows different sections of the screen to be lit independently to improve contrast.
- Black Crush Test: This test checks how well a display can show details in darker parts of an image, ensuring that shades of black are distinct and detailed.
- Subtitle Luminance Flicker: A new test for how subtitles affect the lighting of scenes in movies, aiming to minimize flickering when subtitles appear and disappear, thus enhancing viewer comfort.
- Certification Timeline: VESA is allowing a transition period during which manufacturers can continue certifying products under the previous DisplayHDR 1.1 spec until May 2025 for monitors and May 2026 for laptops. This transition period helps manufacturers who have already been developing products under the older standard.
Several major companies, like LG and ASUS, have expressed their commitment to the new standard.
