Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Good 4K content to consume?

Z

Zelda Chestnut

macrumors member
Original poster
Dec 4, 2018
74
40
I recently am a very happy new owner of a 21.5" 4K iMac. Everything about it I love and am happy with (I am coming from using an iPad as my main computer for some time -- I decided I needed something more). One of the reasons I went for the 4K was so that it could double as a 4K display for the bedroom which doesn't have a TV. However I have now learned that Netflix doesn't offer 4K content on Mac. And when I Google it, I can't seem to find any 4K-supported content? This can't be, right? Aren't there any services out there for the Mac with 4K support?

Thanks in advance!

Edit: the title
 
  • Like
Reactions: testcard
You may be out of luck for mainstream, Hollywood-level content. 4K quality is pretty closely guarded and is why there's a specific HDCP version just to support it. On a computer, it wouldn't take much more than a cleverly engineered app to record the stream, so I can see why Netflix and the like wouldn't want playback on such devices. You'll probably have little trouble finding user generated 4k content on YouTube, Vimeo, etc. though. Or, you can watch 4k jellyfish all day at http://jell.yfish.us/
 
Interesting, I was unaware of that. When I visit the Prime Video website I can start playing 4K content without any warnings that it might not be 4K after all. I must have wrongfully assumed that it was.
 
Last edited:
Plan-B said:
You may be out of luck for mainstream, Hollywood-level content. 4K quality is pretty closely guarded and is why there's a specific HDCP version just to support it. On a computer, it wouldn't take much more than a cleverly engineered app to record the stream, so I can see why Netflix and the like wouldn't want playback on such devices. You'll probably have little trouble finding user generated 4k content on YouTube, Vimeo, etc. though. Or, you can watch 4k jellyfish all day at http://jell.yfish.us/
Click to expand...

Not sure what Jellyfish is, so I may have to check it out! Thanks.

mj_ said:
No idea. All I know is that I can select 4K content on Amazon Prime on my 2017 MacBook and it plays.
Click to expand...

Yeah, I saw that Prime has 4K videos, so I'll have to give it a whirl. Thanks.

Thanks all. It looks like my options are limited, but at least there's a couple. Hopefully more services open up 4K for the Mac over time.

Edit:
vertical smile said:
I didn't know that, but I do not have a 4K Mac.



What about YouTube?
Click to expand...

You're right, YouTube does! I just checked out this video of Costa Rica, lol, and it looked stunning. Thanks!
 
Last edited:
I had been thinking of upgrading to a 4k tv for a while....

...Until I realized there was next-to-no 4k content available, except for relatively few pay-per-view movies, etc. Stuff that I don't want to watch anyway.

Perhaps the only real "4k content" for users to watch are the videos they create themselves using 4k-capable cameras, camcorders, and phones. A little work, and how many times are you going to watch it?

When will "regular" tv content go 4k (by "regular", I mean cable/satellite, etc.)?
Is there an existing timeframe for broadcasters to upgrade to 4k, as they did so by "going digital" some years' back?

Until that time arrives, 4k is going to be a "niche" product that looks better on paper than it does onscreen (because there isn't enough of it to put onscreen). But that still will sell a lot of tv's!

And 8k?
Furgheddaboutit.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: Zelda Chestnut
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back