It’s kinda hard to believe Dolby Vision has already been around for 10 years. At least to me. Probably because, in this day and age, what do you know that goes 10 years without a sequel? Besides, like, an Avatar movie.
Anyway, not long ago, Dolby announced Dolby Vision 2, an HDR format that promises to take our TV viewing experience to new heights, which is a lot to deliver on considering the current format still looks outstanding.
But the new version does promise a lot of really cool things.
Smarter HDR with Content Intelligence
The Content Intelligence features, with AI capabilities, should give viewers the best presentation of the content depending on the device and environment.
One of the features Dolby lists for Vision 2 is Precision Black, which aims to prevent images being “too dark.”
Think Game of Thrones. Precision Black will make the content clear enough to see without sacrificing artistic intent. So if the director wants a dark scene, it’ll still be dark, but you’ll be able to clearly see it. That will be interesting to see.
Light Sense and smarter picture adjustments
Light Sense will fine-tune picture quality by detecting ambient light and optimizing how the TV displays the content.
I’m curious to see how it differs and how much better it is than the ambient light sensors and automatic settings natively built into many current TVs.
Sports and gaming optimization
Sports and Gaming Optimization will introduce white point adjustments and enhance motion control designed specifically to address the unique needs of live sports and gaming.
So, I’m assuming that’s a unique way of making quick adjustments for the random movements and actions you get from sports and games. And in HDR, I’m sure it will be gorgeous to watch.
Dolby also mentions improvements to tone mapping that will take advantage of today’s TVs and how much brighter and more colorful they are.
Which TVs will get Dolby Vision 2?
After hearing all of that, the elephant in the room is which TVs are going to get these features, and when. We know Hisense is the first to start working on getting Dolby Vision 2 into its TVs, but should we expect more?
Fortunately, Dolby was kind enough to answer a few of my questions. So let me tell you what I was able to learn.
Will current TVs be updated?
The first question is the one that’s been on everyone’s mind since the announcement: are there any TVs currently out that are capable of receiving Dolby Vision 2 via firmware update? Or does it need to be integrated into the hardware when the TV is manufactured?
I ask this because a good bit of what’s being offered with Dolby Vision 2 is dependent on hardware. A feature like Light Sense, for example, will fine-tune picture quality by detecting ambient light and optimizing how the TV displays the content.
So, you need to have a light sensor, first of all, and I think most high-end TVs do to some extent, but I assume you also need it to work well enough to meet Dolby’s standard.
Dolby’s answer was that it’s no different than when Vision first launched. This is primarily a manufacturer decision to update TVs in the field. Next, it would depend on the capabilities of the TV and whether the TV would be able to enable Dolby Vision 2.
That answer says a lot, and it’s potentially great news. They referenced the original Dolby Vision launch because back then, in 2014, even though it was brand new, manufacturers were able to roll out firmware updates to compatible TVs. So it sounds like that will be the case once again. We just need to hope the manufacturers play ball and send out the update instead of making us buy a new TV for the new format.
At least we know there are some TVs out there that are capable of Dolby Vision 2.
What about streaming devices?
The next question was: will streaming devices be able to support Dolby Vision 2 or Dolby Vision 2 Max? Or does it need to be integrated into a TV due to the features we mentioned, like Light Sense and Precision Black, features that need to be aware of the viewing device and TV-watching environment?
The answer is all source devices with Dolby Vision will continue to provide excellent image quality to any TV with Dolby Vision, and even better image quality on Dolby Vision 2 TVs.
And this makes sense. On its frequently asked questions page, it mentions existing Dolby Vision content won’t need to be re-graded for Dolby Vision 2, and that there will be tools and encoders available to optimize that existing content for Dolby Vision 2 devices and add the new metadata to help those devices improve picture quality.
All that to say, if your TV is only capable of the regular Dolby Vision, that’s what you get. But if your TV does support Dolby Vision 2, then you’ll see the improvements on existing Dolby Vision content.
What’s next for Dolby Vision 2?
I promise I’m almost done because I don’t know how many more times I can say Dolby Vision.
The last question I asked was a bit of a Hail Mary that I assumed might not get answered. Basically, what other TV manufacturers, besides Hisense that we already know about, are working on bringing Dolby Vision 2 to their TVs? And when will we see the first TV that supports the new format from Hisense or anyone else?
The two words I got were: stay tuned. That’s fair. But I had to ask.
I imagine CES is when we may hear more about Dolby Vision 2, but still, I’m not really holding my breath on that. If history repeats itself, we may see the 2026 lineup from a few brands, and at least one of those brands, Samsung, doesn’t support Dolby Vision in their TVs at all.
Final thoughts
Features like Precision Black and Light Sense that we talked about, and some content-intelligent optimization to things like sports viewing and gaming, make it sound like Dolby’s thought of everything with the new format.
We’ll have Dolby Vision 2 Max for the best of the best TVs, and Dolby Vision 2 for the rest that support it.
My questions for another day will be: where will that cutoff be? We already go over spec sheets and details with a fine-tooth comb trying to find the minor differences between TV models. Now we’ll need to look even harder.
Also, how big of a difference will we see? Like I said earlier, on a lot of the best TVs we have available now, Dolby Vision already looks outstanding. So will it be worth upgrading TVs?
And is this what will finally push Samsung to include Dolby Vision in its HDR formats? It’s certainly not hurting for business and sells some great TVs, but not having Dolby Vision available seems to be a turnoff to a lot of you.
And if you’re battling for buyers, and a brand like Hisense is already pushing you in the Mini LED department, does Dolby Vision 2 now give it a definitive edge?
