science

HDR10

HDR10 is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand HDR10 rather than just read about it. In short: HDR10 Media Profile, more commonly known as HDR10, is an open high-dynamic-range video (HDR) standard announced on 27 August 2015 by the Consumer Electronics Association (renamed the Consumer Technology Association in 2016). It is the most widespread HDR format.

Key takeaways

HDR10 belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect HDR10 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of HDR10 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

HDR10 Media Profile, more commonly known as HDR10, is an open high-dynamic-range video (HDR) standard announced on 27 August 2015 by the Consumer Electronics Association (renamed the Consumer Technology Association in 2016). It is the most widespread HDR format. HDR10 is not backward compatible with SDR. It includes HDR static metadata but not dynamic metadata. PQ10 refers to an HDR10 format which does not include any metadata.

Technical details HDR10 is defined as:

EOTF: SMPTE ST 2084 (PQ) Bit depth: 10 bit Color primaries: ITU-R BT.2020 (identical to BT.2100 primaries) Static metadata: SMPTE ST 2086 (mastering display color volume), MaxFALL (maximum frame-average light level), and MaxCLL (maximum content light level) Color sub-sampling: 4:2:0 (for compressed video sources) PQ10 refers to an HDR format that uses perceptual quantizer, 10-bit and Rec. 2100 color primaries without having any metadata. HDR10 is technically limited to a maximum of 10,000 nits peak brightness, however common HDR10 contents are mastered with peak brightness from 1,000 to 4,000 nits. HDR10 is not backwards compatible with SDR displays. On HDR10 displays that have lower color volume than the HDR10 content (for example lower peak brightness capability), the HDR10 metadata gives information to help adjust the content. However, the metadata is static (remains the same for the entire video) and does not tell how the content should be adjusted. Thus, the decision is up to the display and the creative intents might not be preserved. Competing formats to HDR10 are Dolby Vision and HDR10+ (which do provide dynamic metadata, allowing to preserve the creative intents on each display and on a scene-by-scene or frame-by-frame basis), and also HLG (which provides some degree of backward compatibility with SDR).

Adoption

HDR10 is supported by a wide variety of companies, which include monitor and TV manufacturers such as Dell, LG, Samsung, Sharp, VU, Sony, and Vizio, as well as Sony Interactive Entertainment, Microsoft and Apple which support HDR10 on their PlayStation 4, Xbox One video game console and Apple TV platforms, respectively.

Hardware TV Audio-video interfaces Smartphones displays Smartphones camera Digital camera Mobile SoC Game consoles

Contents Ultra HD Blu-ray Streaming services

Software Media player Color grading

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with HDR10

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what HDR10 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to HDR10 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about HDR10 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of HDR10

In research: HDR10 appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses HDR10 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: HDR10 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics High dynamic range, Standards, Ultra-high-definition television, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for HDR10 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

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How to study HDR10 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what HDR10 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain HDR10 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is HDR10 in simple terms?

Why does HDR10 matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study HDR10?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on HDR10.