McIver Recording now offers video in 4K resolution.
In keeping with our quality first philosophy, McIver Recording has installed the necessary cameras, editing software and post-production equipment to produce 4K video.
Unlike Standard Definition (DVD) and High Definition (Blu-ray Disc) video, 4K does not have a corresponding disc/player format available to small videography companies and their clients. We are forced to provide 4K video as a set of files rather than a playable disc.
DVD and Blu-ray discs have extensive sets of parameters so the players are compatible with the program content. When you buy a disc, it will play on your player because the authoring program ensures only compatible content is on the disc and all discs are created within the specifications players are able recognize. There is no comparable 4K disc player. McIver Recording will supply 4K video on USB Memory Stick.
For 4K video, there are a few software programs that will play 4K video on a computer. As long as the computer can recognize the file format, and has the appropriate software, the computer/player can play the video.
More common is compatibilty with 4K Smart TVs. Most 4K Smart TVs that have USB Memory inputs will play video on USB sticks which have been file formatted FAT32.
Video Resolution
The advantage of supplying video on USB Memory rather than by downloads is the quality of the video. Downloading is quite limited by file size (which translates into the time needed to complete the download). USB Memory is available in sizes that easily accommodate large, less compressed, higher quality video files of all formats (SD, HD and UHD).
There are a number of video resolutions available - 480 (DVD), 525 (Beta tape), 1080 (Blu-ray Disc) and 2160 (UHD or 4K). There are also some new higher resolution formats (5.6K, 8K) that are not yet widespread. The higher the resolution, the better the video looks. Professional video recording formats have very high data rates (60 Mb/sec is typical for 4K) that create monstrous files. These files are edited and then transcoded into much smaller, highly compressed files that players can cope with. Other factors that impact how good the final video looks include the transcode rate and the noise (low light conditions) in the original recording. The source resolution will also impact the final view: a 1080 file transcoded from a 2160 source will "look" better than a 1080 file trancoded from a 1080 source even though the finished video is the same resolution.