Archive notice: This article was originally published on December 23, 2008. Links and embedded videos are preserved as part of the historical record.
The European premiere of the digital version of the new James Bond film “Quantum of Solace” at Valencia’s opera house in November impressed audiences not only with exciting scenes but also with outstanding on-screen image quality thanks to Sony’s 4K projector. The film and all premiere coverage were shown with a Sony CineAlta SRX-R220 4K projector, which offers four times the resolution of Full HD and conventional 2K projectors. With a light output of 18,000 ANSI lumens, it produced a brilliant image on the screen.
Sony is currently the only manufacturer of 4K cinema projectors. They were designed to meet DCI specifications and are suitable for screens up to 20 meters wide. Playback quality is comparable to that of 70 mm film. Because digital-film playback involves no mechanical wear, however, the film retains the same quality as a first-generation print even after numerous screenings. The Digital Cinema Initiatives (DCI) organization was founded by the six major Hollywood studios in March 2002 to develop a unified proposal for future digital-cinema standards.
Numerous cinemas already use SXRD technology. In the United States, for example, the Muvico chain uses it, as do cinemas in Bergen and Trondheim and the Norwegian Film Institute in Norway. The high-resolution 4K digital technology, at 4096 x 2160 pixels, is also already in use in Germany, including at CINEPLEXX in Münster.
The SRX-R220 projector was developed in accordance with the DCI standard and comprises a complete digital-cinema projection system with all the required elements.
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