4K refers to super-sharp display and video technology where the resolution is roughly 4,000 pixels wide. Detail is the whole point of 4K – most of the time, you won’t be able to see the pixels in a 4K display, so everything looks natural and sharp. It’s great for photos, videos and gaming for this reason, but actually it’s superior for just about everything – it’s nicer when text looks smoother on a computer, for example.
The vast majority of the time, 4K refers to a specific resolution of 3840 x 2160 (which is also known as ‘Ultra HD’) – this is the resolution of all 4K TVs and 4K video streams from the likes of Netflix or YouTube. Some cameras record in what’s often known as ‘Cinema 4K’, which is a resolution of 4096 x 2160. You may find that some computer monitors refer to themselves as 4K, and will have a horizontal resolution around 4,000 pixels, but have a different height to the resolutions mentioned above, such as ultra-wide monitors. The width is what makes something 4K or not.
You’ll mostly see 4K referred to in TVs of 40 inches and above, in computer and laptop monitors, on video streaming services, and in video recording on cameras or phones.
Latest about 4K
6 new 4K Blu-rays from January 2026 to add to your collection
January 2026 has been a booming month for 4K Blu-ray, and we're looking at 6 new discs that you could add to your collection.
LG stops making 8K TVs, and Samsung's quiet on them – is 8K winding down?
LG is reportedly exiting the 8K TV business unless market conditions improve. Is 8K dead?
130-inch TVs vs projectors: 2026 kicks off a new home theater battle
Choosing between a giant TV and a home theater projector is about to get a lot harder…
Samsung’s new cheap OLED TV for 2026 is set to get a big brightness boost
LG's OLED SE screen seems to the coming to Samsung's S85H – if that's confusing, allow me to explain…
Not sure what HDMI port to use? Here's our essential guide
HDMI is the main way you'll connect your external devices to your TV, so it's important to make sure you're connecting to the right ones.
RGB TVs are a huge danger to OLED TVs, and that's good news for OLED fans
OLED TVs have been uniquely good in mid-range price bracket for years without changing much, but now they'll have to really shift to combat the RGB TV threat, and we're the winners.
The weird free 4K TV, Telly, is off to both a very bad and very good start
Telly isn't doing the big numbers it promised, but thousands of US owners are still enjoying free 4K TVs
It might sound strange, but The Matrix is actually a happy movie — rewatch it to shake off the January blues
With action that's still scintillating today, and a good triumph over evil, The Matrix is actually a great 'feel-good' movie.
