Emirates Jumps on the 4K TV Bandwagon

Earlier this year, Qatar Airways announced 4K screens on it enhanced economy class. Now, Emirates has declared that 4K screens will be installed on its B777X fleet from 2020.

If you aren’t quite sure how 4K technology is different from HD, this is a useful primer.

To summarize, 4K has emerged as the Holy Grail of display technologies. The name 4K, or Ultra High Definition (UHD), signifies that there are roughly four thousand pixels on the horizontal side of the screen, giving the display four times as high a resolution as 1080p, referred to as “Full High definition”

4K technology has also been penetrating the market faster than HD. By 2020, approximately half of U.S. households are expected to have 4K-capable TVs.

Naturally, forward thinking airlines are trying to get ahead in the adoption curve.

Emirates 4K Screens – What We Know

Emirates has always considered entertainment at the core of its business. ICE (Information, Communication, Entertainment) has been widely regarded as one of the best out there. In fact, Emirates has won World’s Best Inflight Entertainment award for the 14th year in a row at the Skytrax World Airline Awards 2018.

We know that Emirates and Thales had signed a multi-million dollar agreement in 2016. This was to equip its Emirates’ 777X fleet with Thales AVANT inflight entertainment and connectivity system (IFEC). The timeline mentioned during that time was mid-2020 i.e. about 14 months from now.

At Aircraft Interiors Expo 2019, Thales announced two new sub-brands to complement AVANT – CORE and PRESTIGE. As per Thales,

PRESTIGE is designed to enable passengers to connect, engage and enjoy their flight with the latest consumer electronic devices and unique connected apps. The system will feature ultra HD (4K) displays bringing a new brilliance to the passenger experience. 

Richard Perrot, Vice President marketing and product policy at Thales, confirmed that Emirates will be the launch customer for PRESTIGE. The launch date remains mid-2020.

Patrick Brannelly, divisional Vice President at Emirates, has also confirmed that the screens will be 4K. While he did not mention the screen size, he used the world ‘larger’. The IFEC systems typically have size ranging from 9 inches and 32 inches. It is safe to guess that Emirates will be going for screens that are on the larger end of that spectrum.

For comparison’s sake, Qatar Airways has proposed a 13.3 inch screen.

Final Thoughts

Screens are an integral part of long-haul flying. Even more so, in economy.

If I had to choose between airlines, right now I look at these factors – price, duration, seat-pitch etc. I am certain that high-resolution screens will also become a key differentiator soon.

After all, would you prefer to watch (a rerun) of Avengers: Endgame on a 4K screen or HD?