HDR on Fios TV One

[GUdoc]

Just had three new set-top boxes installed: a Fios TV One and 2 Fios TV One minis

HDR notification always appears when watching on the TV One minis.

The notification never appears when watching on the TV One, even when renting a 4K title on demand. Could this potentially have something to do with the HDMI cable? The HDMI cable that was provided was too short for my wall-mounted TCL 75R635, so I had my technician use a longer but older "High Speed HDMI cable" that I had. 

For what it's worth, I always receive "HDR" or "Dolby Vision" notification when streaming Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc., on this TCL 75R635.

[clem21 · Accepted solution]

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@GUdoc wrote:

Just had three new set-top boxes installed: a Fios TV One and 2 Fios TV One minis

HDR notification always appears when watching on the TV One minis.

The notification never appears when watching on the TV One, even when renting a 4K title on demand. Could this potentially have something to do with the HDMI cable? The HDMI cable that was provided was too short for my wall-mounted TCL 75R635, so I had my technician use a longer but older "High Speed HDMI cable" that I had. 

For what it's worth, I always receive "HDR" or "Dolby Vision" notification when streaming Netflix, Amazon Prime, etc., on this TCL 75R635.

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Unfortunately, the Fios One boxes do not have the ability to auto-detect HDR. There is a setting: menu>settings>audio and video settings>video settings> HDR setting, that you have to manually enable or disable depending on the content. On the minis, if you enable it, the HDR flag is sent for ALL programming regardless of the true format and will result in false color settings from the TV. I believe the main box does not have that problem and with HDR enabled it only sends the flag when the programming IS HDR.

[Shaggy26261]

I guess the main question is how do we know which programs offer HDR and which don’t

[clem21]

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@Shaggy2626 wrote:

I guess the main question is how do we know which programs offer HDR and which don’t

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Depends on the source. Netflix, Youtube, and some Fios programming on the 2 4K Fios channels are sometimes in HDR. Mostly streaming services, but usually you have to have premium subscriptions. Look for the HDR logo on programming.

[Shaggy26261]

I have 2 samsung q80t tvs. On my Fios one box my info bar from samsung shows UHD on top. im assuming anytime i access HDR content the signal will switch over to HDR?

As i read earlier today regarding the Fios mini box. The HDR stream is always on even if the channel is not outputting HDR. Im only watching regular channels, is it safe to say i should just disable HDR on the mini? Right now its showing HDR on the samsung info bar but if im not really getting the true picture then should i just disable?

[clem21]

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@Shaggy2626 wrote:

I have 2 samsung q80t tvs. On my Fios one box my info bar from samsung shows UHD on top. im assuming anytime i access HDR content the signal will switch over to HDR?

As i read earlier today regarding the Fios mini box. The HDR stream is always on even if the channel is not outputting HDR. Im only watching regular channels, is it safe to say i should just disable HDR on the mini? Right now its showing HDR on the samsung info bar but if im not really getting the true picture then should i just disable?

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Yes, with the mini, the choice is there for HDR or SDR, but you have to choose. The VMS box will decide automatically and choose HDR based on content. If you leave the mini in HDR mode, it may give incorrect color rendering depending on the TV it is connected to. Unfortunately you do have to choose HDR in the mini when watching HDR content and turn it off afterward or you might see a bad SDR image. This is most likely a result of a lower power processor in the mini.

[Shaggy26261]

Hi Clem,

Thank you for the response. I wanted to perform a true test on the VMS4100 so I played 4k HDR content on youtube and netflix through the fios channels. I checked the samsung info panel and it was still displaying UHD even though it was HDR content.

[clem21]

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@Shaggy2626 wrote:

Hi Clem,

Thank you for the response. I wanted to perform a true test on the VMS4100 so I played 4k HDR content on youtube and netflix through the fios channels. I checked the samsung info panel and it was still displaying UHD even though it was HDR content.

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In most cases it WOULD display UHD as that signifies 4K video, but not necessarily HDR. UHD refers to the RESOLUTION, HDR is the Dynamic Range of the programming. My Sony shows UHD as 2160x3840, but only shows the HDR flag when viewing HDR programming. You may be confused about this as the Fios boxes will default to UHD if the TV is capable, upscaling all programming to UHD(4K), but the mini needs to be manually switched on and off with HDR. The VMS 4100 auto switches HDR in and out. HDR is not always 4K (UHD) as you can have HD resolution as HDR too. Fox Sports used to do this on Thursday nights. They would stream 720P HDR with the the Fox Sports App. Also UHD is not always HDR either, it can get a bit confusing. You will need an HDR subscription for Netflix to see HDR programming, and even then you have to choose the HDR version of a program to get it. So, UHD refers ONLY to the resolution, HDR refers to the Dynamic Range of the programming. I don't know where to look in the Samsung settings to see where the HDR flag would be displayed, you'll have to look in the owners manual for that, also you have to have extended color or some other setting like that for the TV to display HDR. From the Samsung info:

1. Open the Settings on your Samsung TV.
2. Tap on the General Settings.
3. Open External Device Manager.
4. Select HDMI UHD Color.
5. Enable HDR for the HDMI input you want to use.
6. You should see HDR in the bottom right corner of the screen with an HDR source.