iTunes movie quality on iPhone X

[Applenoob34]

Im not the most tech savvy and have a few questions.

So I have my new iPhone X and I believe Apple says my phone will play the highest quality movie my device and internet will allow. Is there a way to know what resolution I’m streaming a movie in on my X? I know what the movies potential quality is because of the icons listed on each movies page, HD,4K,HDR, etc.

If I read Apples support page right, I don’t believe we can download a movie in 4K.
“You can download a local copy of an HD movie to your iPhone, iPad, iPod touch, Mac, or PC, and you might be able to download HDR and Dolby Vision versions to your iOS devices, but you can't download a 4K version.”

This is an issue for me since my internet speed is usually around 12mbps and is the reason I don’t think I could ever stream a 4K video, even with Apple TV.

Am I coming to the right conclusions here?

1. I can dl HD and HDR movies to my iPhone X, but not 4K.
2. I will probably only be able to stream HD since my internet is junk.

I dl’d “The Mummy” which offers 4K. How can I determine what version it dl’d?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[Gryzor]

iPhone X can't even display native 4K, so why are you concerned? Besides, even if it could display native 4K, you wouldn't be able to see the difference between it and a 2.5K down-sampled version on such a small screen. People assume resolution matters, when the reality is that there comes a point of severely diminishing returns (viewing distance in consideration of course). Contrast, colour and screen refresh are generally more important areas to focus on these days.

But, you are correct in your two conclusions.

 

[Applenoob34]

iPhone X can't even display native 4K, so why are you concerned? Besides, even if it could display native 4K, you wouldn't be able to see the difference between it and a 2.5K down-sampled version.

But, you are correct in your two conclusions.

Yea, but it should be able to display HDR right?

 

[mattopotamus]

The display is simply amazing. I have two OLED TVs in my house, and I actually am blown away by the quality of the screen on the X.

 

[Gryzor]

Yea, but it should be able to display HDR right?

Yes, that is correct, where it has been encoded as such.

 

[mattopotamus]

Yea, but it should be able to display HDR right?

While HDR and 4K are not mutually exclusive, the movie industry has made them this way. HD movies do not support HDR, it is tied to 4K.

 

[Gryzor]

The display is simply amazing. I have two OLED TVs in my house, and I actually am blown away by the quality of the screen on the X.

I've got three OLED TVs...haha, just kidding, I have two as well, an LG and a SONY. I use the LG for gaming and the SONY for movies, both in different rooms. I made it a deal that if we moved I had two man caves, one for gaming and one for movies, lol

 

[Applenoob34]

Yes, that is correct, where it has been encoded as such.

Gotcha. So my last question about the mummy movie....how do I know what version I downloaded? HDR or HD?

 

[Gryzor]

While HDR and 4K are not mutually exclusive, the movie industry has made them this way. HD movies do not support HDR, it is tied to 4K.

Yep, good point, which is why I ended with "where it has been encoded as such", because as you say it is generally tied to 4K but doesn't have to be.
[doublepost=1511976662][/doublepost]

Gotcha. So my last question about the mummy movie....how do I know what version I downloaded? HDR or HD?

If it's not 4K, chances are it's not HDR for reasons pointed out just now. I don't know of a way to tell other than playing it through my TV which has dedicated HDR modes, then it shows up as an icon before it plays.

Edit: You do understand the difference between HDR and HD don't you? HDR has nothing to do with resolution. It stands for High Dynamic Range and is to do with brightness, contrast and colour. It's just that industry has decided that for now, most HDR-enabled media also happens to be 4K resolution.

 

[Applenoob34]

Yep, good point, which is why I ended with "where it has been encoded as such", because as you say it is generally tied to 4K but doesn't have to be.
[doublepost=1511976662][/doublepost]
If it's not 4K, chances are it's not HDR for reasons pointed out just now. I don't know of a way to tell other than playing it through my TV which has dedicated HDR modes, then it shows up as an icon before it plays.

Edit: You do understand the difference between HDR and HD don't you? HDR has nothing to do with resolution. It stands for High Dynamic Range and is to do with brightness, contrast and colour. It's just that industry has decided that for now, most HDR-enabled media also happens to be 4K resolution.

I don’t think I did understand. I figured HDR was somewhere in between HD and 4K. I’m getting too old for this stuff lol.
[doublepost=1511977531][/doublepost]A little off topic of the thread, but this brings me to the conclusion that I will never get an Apple TV 4K until they allow downloading movies to the device itself. I live in the sticks and don’t see good internet speeds coming my way for awhile. That being said, no fast internet is worth it to me to have neighbors again lol.

 

[dstew201]

Re

I've got three OLED TVs...haha, just kidding, I have two as well, an LG and a SONY. I use the LG for gaming and the SONY for movies, both in different rooms. I made it a deal that if we moved I had two man caves, one for gaming and one for movies, lol

Really!? LOL, that's awesome!!

Not trying to hijack the thread, BUT... I'm on the fence regarding Sony (A1) and LG (C7), since I only have 1 true man cave, the basement would be nice, but too accessible for other people! What's your opinion on picture quality between the two? I will use it for both gaming (xbox one x) and movies.

 

[rugmankc]

I got my X yesterday and the movies are one step up over my 6s+.

Clear, crisp, accurate colors (IMHO) like my new Sony Bravia 900e.