Screen stars: adjust your set to 4K

Technology Blue Planet II is almost here — and its stunning shots are best seen in high res. Ben Travis has a guide to the new boxes

PREPARE your eyes — David Attenborough is set to return to your screens with Blue Planet II. The latest trailer — soundtracked by a Radiohead and Hans Zimmer collaboration where they have reworked the band’s song Bloom, no less — suggests that it’s going to be just as stunning as last year’s Planet Earth II, with incredible footage shot in Ultra HD.

If you’ve been considering a TV upgrade to the much-vaunted 4K (that’s four times as many pixels than a standard 1,080p HD), there’s no better reason than slow-mo shots of blue whales leaping out of the ocean.

Whether you’re splashing out in a big way or merely dipping a toe into the next-gen 4K TV waters, here are a few choice upgrades.

1. The big screen on a budget

Logik’s 55in L55UE17 is a good entry-level unit to get you on the bandwagon with relatively few frills. A 55in is the screen size where you really start to see a noticeable difference in 4K over standard HD, and with a wi-fi connection you can access 4K content from Netflix on the L55UE17 without the need for a smart TV box. The 20W speakers are a bit reedy so consider a little extra budget for a soundbar if you want audio that matches the quality of your new display.

£449, currys.co.uk

2. The dynamic dynamo

Getting a better picture isn’t just about screen size — and for the same price as a 55in unit, you can pick up a slightly smaller TV that boasts the extra benefits of a High Dynamic Range display. The 40in Samsung UE40MU6100 isn’t the biggest TV going but it offers significant visual improvement because of HDR — a technology that’s just as important for future-proofing your next TV purchase as 4K. HDR pixels display a wider colour range to make the darks deeper and the brights brighter in your favourite shows, films and games. Watching Blue Planet II, expect extra clarity in the ocean depths and more beautiful shades of luminescence in those mindblowing underwater creatures on a 4K HDR screen.

£449, tesco.com

3. The eco-friendly extra

Don’t just take into account 4K and HDR — top-of-the-range TVs such as the LG B7 range feature an OLED screen. An improvement on LED technology, OLED televisions don’t need a backlight to illuminate their pixels. The result is super-slim screen designs, improved colour contrast and better clarity in darkly-lit scenes. They’re also more energy-efficient and eco-friendly. The LG OLED 55B7V has a huge, sleek display with a near edge-to-edge picture and highquality Dolby Atmos sound. With Blue Planet II taking viewers a thousand metres down into the freezing inky darkness of the Antarctic Ocean for the first time ever, you’ll get an even better sense of what’s down there on an OLED screen.

£1,799, johnlewis.com

4. The showstopper

If you’re willing to spend a lot on a TV, you might as well get a lot of TV for your money — enter the Sony Bravia A1, boasting a gigantic 4K screen with HDR and OLED display, innovative Acoustic Surface sound technology, and a minimalist “one slate” design. The 65in model is huge — but if you have the space to accommodate it, the easel-like frame and thin-bezel edge make it far more aesthetically pleasing than a traditional telly. The picture is breathtakingly good, and the sound system — integrated behind the entire screen — cuts out the need for a soundbar. The ultimate TV for enjoying Attenborough’s latest masterpiece.

£4,499, centresdirect.co.uk

@BenSTravis Blue Planet II is coming soon to

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