Netflix may have more 4K content than Amazon, but when it comes to HDR content, the online retailer is way ahead of the streaming firm. By offering HDR, Amazon becomes the first company to support this superior visual format.
Amazon first to offer HDR
Recently, Amazon announced that season one of its Mozart in the Jungle will stream in high dynamic range (HDR) on Samsung’s SUHD televisions. The pilot episode of another original show from Amazon Red Oaks will also be available in HDR, a company representative told CNET. The announcement from Amazon marks the first instance of any HDR movie or TV show becoming widely available.
To enjoy Amazon’s HDR stream, a user is required to have a Prime subscription, along with an Amazon Instant Video app in one of Samsung’s 2015 SUHD TVs, namely the JS9500, JS9000 or JS8500. Also, LG promised to make Amazon’s HDR streaming available on its LG OLED 4K ULTRA HD TVs, which is due in few weeks.
HDR video is seen as an improvement over 4K. Citing tests, a report from CNET says that 4k TVs and video are almost similar to high-definition TV, but HDR demos have been quite exciting. One disadvantage of HDR is, since the technology is yet to become mainstream, most users may not be able to enjoy the HDR quality. For HDR streaming, users need HDR-enabled TVs, which at present are limited to few vendors and are pretty expensive to own.
Netflix to start HDR streams later
Netflix will start its HDR streams later this year. However, no further details on the timing and the shows have been provided by the streaming firm to date. Samsung also confirmed that its upcoming “UHD Content Pack,” will include two HDR Hollywood movies, but the Korean firm also provided no details on the pricing, availability and the names of the movies that will be offered.
Apart from HDR and 4K, Netflix and Amazon are also in the race to acquire the rights to Hannibal, which was recently cancelled by NBC. Hannibal executive producer and creator Bryan Fuller confirmed that they are in talks to find the show a new home. Fuller told Variety that though nothing is confirmed, they have been holding talks with both Netflix and Amazon.
