Panasonic has developed the world's first Blu-ray Disc playback technology supporting the latest technologies such as 4K and High Dynamic Range, which are expected to be adopted in the next generation Blu-ray Disc standards (ULTRA HD BLU-RAY). A prototype player will be on display at the 2015 International CES January 6-9, 2015.

This prototype integrates Panasonic's video processing and optical disc drive technologies making it capable of reproducing 4K (3,840 x 2,160 pixel)/60p/10-bit high resolution video. Currently available Blu-ray Discs display the color signals (Y, Cb, Cr) in 8-bit gradation each (256 gradations). By expanding this to 10-bit gradation each (1,024 gradations), even minute signals can be faithfully reproduced to realize richly textured video.

The player also supports the latest technologies such as High Dynamic Range that marks a major leap in the brightness peak from the previous 100 nit to 1,000-10,000 nit to improve the power of expression. Bright light sources (e.g. lights or rays of the sun) and reflected light (from metal or water) that up to now were difficult to display can now be shown in rich textures.

The player is also compliant with the ITU-R BT.2020 wide color gamut signal formulated for 4K/8K broadcasting. It enables rich coloration not previously possible on Blu-ray discs (BT.709 standard).

High-efficiency video compression technology HEVC (H.265)/ Blu-ray Disc playback at a high bit rate of 100Mbps is also supported.

Since the announcement of the Blu-ray Disc standards in 2002, Panasonic has taken the lead in standardization. In 2004 it released the first 50GB Blu-ray Disc recorder capable of double-sided recording, and in 2006 the world's first recorder capable of playing BD-Video, as well as being the first in the world to develop the technology to play back full HD 3D image data recorded to the Blu-ray Disc in 2008.

Life+Screen 4K Ultra HD TVs Powered By Firefox OS

Panasonic's "Life+ Screen" Smart TVs are using Mozilla's Firefox OS to create a new, interactive User Interface. Panasonic's 2015 line includes the CX850 Series, CX800 Series, CX650 Series, and CX600 Series.

The new user interface is specifically designed to allow users to access preferred content, applications and content from connected devices easily. Users can combine access to channels, devices, and applications into one single gateway for quick access. They can also
customize it by using the 'Pin' function to bookmark their favorite apps, Web pages and even their paired connected devices for quick access.

As Firefox OS uses open Web technologies, you can send photos, videos or other content to your Firefox OS powered TV from any smartphone, tablet, or computer which has a Firefox browser or other compatible applications. Furthermore there is no need for any additional hardware to send content to your Firefox OS powered TV – you need to make sure that the device with your Firefox browser and your Panasonic Firefox OS powered TV are on the same Wi-Fi network.

Panasonic's 2015 Life+Screen TVs will also feature Voice Command functions. Voice Assistant Pro performs voice commands spoken directly to the TV without using a remote control. It is capable of performing various operations according to voice commands, such as changing channels and searching for content.

Panasonic's 2015 Life+Screen TVs will also include Xumo Guide, a built-in service that enables quick discovery of content from multiple sources. One of the key features of Xumo Guide is the ability to provide relevant content recommendations based on user's viewing history, in addition, users can search for specific titles across multiple apps or browse content by genre from various VOD services.