"P" vs. "K"

"P" vs. "K"

There are a lot of numbers being thrown around regarding resolution - 4k, 3k, 2k, 1080p, 720p, etc. They all seem to get lumped in together as HD but I want to draw the definite distinction between them. "K's" while being high in resolution are not HD at all, in fact they aren't even video. "P" denotes a digital video HDTV format - information that conforms to a SMPTE HD protocol - 292M, 274M, 296M and references Tri-Level Sync to maintain a frequency and cadence that can be broadcast. "K" means RAW data that must be converted into some sort of viable video format before it can broadcast. The "K's" do not utilize video sync and do not conform to any protocol or color space other then whatever has been arbitrarily assigned to them. So in other words - "P" is video and "K" is data. A VariCam or Sony F900 is a video camera. A RED is a data camera. A Phantom is either a video camera or a data camera depending on if you are shooting "P" or "K". Just because a camera is tapeless - HPX, HVX, EX1, etc. - it does not make it a data camera. The data that would be recorded to digital video tape is instead recorded to a Hard Disk but the information that is recorded is still in the form of digital video and NOT RAW data. For example, you can shoot 1080i DVCPro HD files to a P2 card, give those files to the satellite feed truck and they can be on the air almost instantaneously. Not the case for "K". Someday with some modifications, "K" or some from of it may be a viable broadcast format. At this moment however, we just don't have the bandwidth to accommodate it.

Here's the Wiki on HDTV >>>

and Digital Cinema >>>