By Dr. Mike Chang, MediaTek Corporate Vice President and General Manager of the Smart Home Business Group
1. AI-Super Resolution and More
Despite 4K TVs being the dominant resolution of new smart TVs, most media consumed globally, whether streaming, broadcast or disc is still FullHD resolution. This means upscaling is required for the source media to match the native resolution of the display, however not all upscaling engines are built the same – The MediaTek 4K TV SoC feature an in-chip AI processor (APU) that enables up to 10X faster processing compared to external AI-chip solutions, with considerably more power efficiency and a reliability that avoids dropped frames, ensuring a high quality viewing experience.
The MediaTek 4K TV SoC employs MediaTek’s unique AI-SR (super resolution), which works in conjunction with its AI-PQ (picture quality) & AI-AQ (audio quality) technologies to automatically upscale and improve image and audio quality in real-time. AI-SR and AI-PQ together optimize parameters such as sharpness and color based on content indicators, while also minimizing jaggy elements, performing noise reduction, and intelligent upscaling to the display’s native resolution.
2. Native 4K media decoding, including AV1.
If you are watching 4K native media, though, the MediaTek 4K TV SoC can decode 4K content natively. This even includes the latest AV1 encoded streamed from services such as YouTube and Netflix.
3. Advanced HDR displays
Cinematic audio-visual experiences continue with support for global HDR display standards, and brands can use MediaTek 4K TV SoC to create premium HDR displays with up to 2304 back light dimming zones, providing viewers best-in-class experiences for cinematic entertainment.
4. Voice Assistant integration
As industry leaders in voice assistant platforms, MediaTek AI voice technologies allow brands to integrate voice assistants directly into their smart TVs, enabling users to directly control their TV or allowing other home IoT integration.
A dedicated sub-processor within the MediaTek 4K TV SoC can utilize up to four, far field microphones to enable an always-ready voice assistant with whole room coverage, ultra-low power (0.5W) standby and ultra-fast, one second resume on trigger word.
5. Premium 4KTV’s with MEMC
The MediaTek 4K TV SoC allows brands to make 4K60 HDR Smart TVs with MEMC capability. Because most content watched is 24 or 30fps, this can sometimes appear blurry on a 60Hz display. MEMC, or motion estimation and motion compensation, compensates for motion blur and smooths the on-screen activity to match the native frequency of the display. The hardware-driven MEMC in the MediaTek 4K TV SoC enables it to add MediaTek’s advanced solution reliably and with high accuracy.
6. Powerful CPU and graphics for a highly responsive Smart TV
Under the wealth of advanced TV technologies, at its core, the MediaTek 4K TV SoC combines a multitude of processing engines including a high performance, multi-core CPU, modern GPU and a wide memory bus, in addition to the aforementioend integrated AI processor and dedicated island for an already-ready voice assisant. This broad range of dedicated processing hardware means brands can deliver powerful 4K smart TVs that are always highly responsive, allowing users to make the big screen the center of their smart home experience.