LG, one of the global industry leaders in state-of-the-art high-definition TVs, has decided to step down from manufacturing 8K models. The company was one of the few with models in the market that readily had models available for purchase, which leaves Samsung as the winning solution (or at least unless it too decides to tip its hat with an exit).
8K is meant to be the next big stepup in resolution as the industry continues to press forward with new and exciting hardware. From 720 to 1080, to 4K, and then 8K, it was meant to be the spectacle of high-end home cinema. At least, for those who can afford it. The only issue is that there isn’t any content out there.
Without 8K content, these TVs are nothing more than bragging rights for your favorite 8K demo disc. Movies aren’t being shot in 8K (normally). Sports and TV are all the same. Sometimes, you’re lucky to find the content in 4K when it comes to cable/satellite TV (although that has improved greatly over the last few years).
Streaming solutions aren’t so much to blame as platforms like YouTube are 8K-ready and even have some 8K content shot by professionals and amateurs using the latest DSLR and video camera solutions. Cameras like the Nikon Z8 DSLR (a commonly available model for consumers and professionals alike), or the Sony Venice 2 (strictly for professional cinema), are available to bring 8K content into reality. It’s just that companies aren’t using them. Most everything is still shot using 4K as a standard format.
This doesn’t mean that companies aren’t slowly investing in 8K cameras. They are just using those 8K-capable cameras to shoot in 4K (or 5.6K), because there just isn’t enough demand for 8K. Not only that, but it takes a great deal of resources to edit, encode, and render 8K in comparison to 4K or less. So it takes a lot of investment for all related parties to make the jump to 8K. This leads us to the consumers.
Did you know that you could actually buy into an 8K TV right now? Most people answer no to that question. So unless all parties are on board and interested, the jump won’t happen.
8K (or better) will still make its way into the world someday when everyone is ready for it. But it will require more than just modern-day TVs to trigger this demand. Currently, with the typical TV sizes you find in homes, 4K nearly maxes out what the eye is seeing unless you are right up on the screen. As soon as you walk away to sit down, if you put a 4K and an 8K TV side-by-side (say, from 10-12ft away), you might not notice much of a difference (if at all). If 100″ or larger TVs become more of a norm, this could easily trigger interest in higher resolutions again. But it is highly unlikely that the average person would be willing to spend that kind of money, or have the space to hang it.
So, it will likely be a new interest in cinema technologies and experiences, mixed with whatever comes next for home theater experiences. It could be a future generation of AR/VR, since these headsets will absolutely benefit from 8K due to how close the display is to your eyes. Or maybe a completely new holographic, projection, or LED wall (wallpaper?) solution that will completely change the game.
But until then, 4K seems to have everyone satisfied and in a comfortable position. Especially, as companies press forward for better color, better brightness, better response times, and other technologies that help shape 4K into something even better. Like the new RGB Mini LED screens we saw at CES 2026 last month. Good things are coming this year.
