(Pocket-lint) - This has been one of the best World Cup tournaments we can remember - even with England's exit at the semi-final stage - and the BBC is offering the opportunity to watch the final in 4K. All the BBC's games have been available on certain, 4K HDR-supporting smart TVs via the BBC iPlayer app and the final is no exception. Here's why - and how you can get the stream. The FIFA World Cup is one of the "crown jewels" of sport - events that have to be available on free-to-air TV under UK law. The BBC and ITV share the coverage as usual and that means all the games are being shown live on BBC iPlayer or the ITV Hub as well as the highlights shows. In Brazil four years ago, only three games were filmed in 4K. You can experience the 2014 final in 4K UHD on YouTube, but this is the first tournament where every game will be filmed in 4K and will be available to the mass of World Cup broadcasters in that format. The BBC has been experimenting with 4K delivery on iPlayer for several months now. It also teamed up with Sky to show its Blue Planet II 4K footage through that platform, too. It then moved onto live 4K HDR streaming with a Rugby League game in April, followed by the FA Cup Final in May. These experiments were about proving the technology could handle high-bandwidth streams from an event such as the World Cup, where the demand is significant and the amount of coverage plentiful. There hasn't been a lot of live, on-the-fly encoding of 4K content as yet and that is a challenge for the BBC, but one it is clearly beginning to master. The BBC developed a live HDR workflow for the Royal Wedding too, which you can read more about if you're interested. The BBC's main aim there was to record the event in 4K HDR for posterity. As on that day, the BBC studio presentation at the World Cup is upscaled from Full HD - it's only the global match feed which is in native 4K. ITV isn't yet experimenting publicly with 4K so it's only the BBC games that are available in 4K HDR at present. And the BBC games won't be available in 4K HDR on your phone or tablet (that's HD depending on the quality of your stream) so you will need a television that's on the BBC list of compatible smart TVs. The Ultra HD stream will be available from the BBC iPlayer home screen as soon as programme coverage begins – it will be displayed until the trial is full for that match. The stream will only be available to a set number of users on a first-come, first-served basis – somewhere in the region of “tens of thousands” according to the BBC, although we haven't heard of anybody locked out as yet. There are some drawbacks. Note that you won’t be able to rewind or restart the stream as with other, standard, iPlayer streams. Because of the encoding time required currently, we've found the stream runs behind behind normal coverage by 30 seconds or even more - some have reported several minutes and others have mentioned commentary not being synchronised with the picture. A delay is OK if you're watching something you're not that fussed about, but if it's your team your phone will probably buzz with a goal before you've watched it. There were also numerous reports of buffering during the England vs Tunisia game which led to the stream being really delayed - probably because the trial was filling up (even though we didn't hear of people having problems accessing it). Note that whether you can get completely unadulterated 4K depends on your internet connection. For the full 3840 pixel Ultra HD, you'll need at least a 36Mbps connection. That means if your connection is below that, you’ll get a downgraded version - 2560 pixel Ultra HD or less. You will probably need a 20Mbps and above connection to get the trial. It may be possible with a slightly slower connection, but we just don't know. Here's what the BBC says you'll get depending on your internet speed - there are only four streams available of this content because of the increased bitrates required for live HEVC 4K encoding. The top stream quality is the same as Blue Planet II was presented in, but even if you could see that stream you may not be able to get this one because of the increased bitrates required for streaming live. 3840x2160p50 36Mbit/s 2560x1440p50 16Mbit/s 1920x1080p50 10Mbit/s 1280x720p50 7Mbit/s Part of what the BBC is trialling at the World Cup isn't actually its own capabilities, but the capability of the open UK internet to support live 4K streams. The BBC streams use the HLG version of HDR, while all footage will be shown at 50 frames per second and audio AAC-LC at 192 kbit/s. The BBC worked on HLG, known as Hybrid Log-Gamma with Japanese broadcaster NHK. NHK also worked with the BBC on the highly experimental 8K footage recorded of the 2012 Olympics. The World Cup's Host Broadcaster Services is not using HLG, so the BBC converts it. When it streamed Blue Planet II via the iPlayer, the BBC's Phil Layton said, "Due to the way HLG represents light, audiences get the most natural colours possible on their televisions at home... it [also] fits very well and reliably into existing live production workflows." The BBC claims that HLG "provides a great picture not only to HDR devices, but to standard dynamic range (SDR) devices that support the BT.2020 wide colour gamut as well". Obviously, there's an advantage there because the BBC doesn't have to use a separate stream for SDR TVs. The 4K UHD content so far witnessed has been of excellent quality, but it has been a disadvantage that you're unable to pause it or handle it like another BBC iPlayer stream. Also check out: You can watch the World Cup from your own private VR box Writing by Dan Grabham.<doc-sep>Online viewers of the FIFA World Cup have found themselves lagging behind people watching TV by some time. World cup viewers in the UK have noted that games being broadcast through BBC iPlayer or ITV's website are up to two minutes behind the actual coverage. This means online viewers often learn about goals or other major events in the game through social media first. World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Show all 18 1 /18 World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Swiss fans pose outside Kropotkin Bar with its simple World Cup message Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Where there's football in Kaliningrad, there's security, almost becoming part of the game itself Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad An England fan waits ahead of his side's World Cup group match against Belgium Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Kaliningrad gets ready to host Belgium and England, their flags not quite eclipsing the Russian doll Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Victory Square (Ploshchad Pobedy). The skull and bones of Kaliningrad's Legion 39 biker identity clashes with the cute Fifa mascot - the wolf Zabivaka - as it welcomes visitors to the city Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Richard Morgan is exploring Kaliningrad for the Independent during the World Cup in Russia. Follow more of Richard's photography on both Instagram and Facebook @richardmorganstreetphotography Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad A boy caught between the legendary Soviet goalkeeper Lev Yashin and a rubbish dump Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad England fans wait ahead of their side's World Cup group match against Belgium Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Sign reads "Danger! Keep Out!" Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad An ordinary day in the life of Kaliningrad bus conductors, framed by the extra-ordinary imagery of World Cup advertisement Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad A man decorated in Soviet military uniform and medals is presented to Leninsky Prospekt by the financial advert behind Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Prospect Leninsky. A babushka selling flowers is framed by football-themed sexual health promotion Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad England fans through a flag in the centre of Kaliningrad's city as they wait for their side's World Cup group match against Belgium Richard Morgan/The Independent World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Giant Fifa signs appear everywhere, adding new dimensions to the Kaliningrad skyline. A message to England to ‘Have a Great Game’ dominates this view, yet a slice of domestic, tower-block life remains visible underneath Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad Richard Morgan explores Kaliningrad for the Independent Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Evropa (Europe) hotel in Kaliningrad Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Exploring Kaliningrad A line-up of Russian security, uniformly glued to the football at the Kaliningrad Fifa Fan Zone Richard Morgan World Cup 2018: off the pitch in Kaliningrad Evropa (Europe) hotel in Kaliningrad Richard Morgan While it may be frustrating, this is true for all live online streaming compared to a live TV broadcast, and there is more latency in the process. This is because online streaming content has a longer way to travel than that of live television broadcasts. For example, a game playing on BBC iPlayer needs to come from the venue, to the broadcaster, then to the content delivery network and then to the home. TV broadcasts, on the other hand, skip the content delivery network part of the process and so it’s inherently faster. Content delivery networks are a system of distributed computer servers that deliver web pages and other online content to internet users. It is something that has been noted by online viewers before, such as during the PyeongChang 2018 Olympic Winter Games in South Korea earlier this year. The issue has even meant that some people have missed the countdown for New Year's day. All of the World Cup's 64 matches will be shown on either ITV or BBC, both of which will also stream them online. This year, the BBC will stream in 4K for the first time – though only to a select group of viewers. Fortunately, as a BBC spokesperson told The Independent, the issue may soon be a thing of the past. “Currently, live broadcast coverage is quicker to get to people’s homes than coverage streamed live over the internet," the spokesperson said. "There are many factors that affect this but, at the moment, live online video goes through a process that introduces greater latency when compared to the more direct TV broadcast. While this is normal today, innovation in online streaming technology is driving continuing improvements, including reducing the delay.”<doc-sep>
At the last World Cup, four years ago, you couldn’t watch the football (soccer) action in 4K live at home, and HDR TV standards weren’t even a thing. The biggest single sporting event in the world is usually used as a TV sales pitch every four years for manufacturers, and this time we’re finally getting the latest and greatest technology. It’s the perfect hat trick: 4K, HDR, and live in your living room. In the US there are a variety of ways to access 4K World Cup matches. Hisense is delivering 4K HDR streams of every World Cup game on its H6E, H8E, or Laser models, with the Fox Sports World Cup app (for cable subscribers). AT&T’s DirecTV network is broadcasting all games in 4K HDR, and Dish is showing 56 of the 64 games live in 4K HDR. Comcast Xfinity X1 customers will be able to watch on-demand a day later in 4K HDR, and Layer3 TV / Altice will also be broadcasting in 4K. Even us football-mad Brits will be able to get in on the action this time around, thanks to the BBC. The BBC is streaming a 4K HDR trial to compatible TV sets, but you’ll need to get in quickly as it’s limited to a first-come, first-served basis. Tens of thousands of people should be able to access BBC’s 4K coverage through iPlayer, and I was able to test it out for the first time today. I usually watch 4K Premier League games through Sky Q in the UK, so I’m used to the resolution bump but this is the first time I’ve watched a live football match in HDR. You’ll notice HDR more than the 4K resolution HDR is transformative in TV shows and movies, and documentaries like Blue Planet II are the best way to show off 4K and HDR at its very best. The BBC is using HLG, or Hybrid-Log Gamma, for its HDR broadcasts, a newer standard that it has developed alongside NHK broadcasting networks for live video. In the World Cup matches, its effects are immediately obvious. Jerseys look way more colorful, the pitch looks more like real grass rather than a bright green mush, and the shadows and highlights are impressive. The only issue I noticed in today’s broadcast was that, at times, the picture felt too dark in a bright room. I think that’s a combination of the color accuracy of HDR, the overcast weather at the stadium for the Egypt vs. Uruguay game, and my LG OLED TV emphasizing the black portions. I’m not used to seeing a football pitch look so good, and when I turned back to a non-HDR version of the game I immediately noticed the color differences. The other benefit of 4K HDR sports broadcasts is the improvement in frame rates. In the UK we use the PAL format at 50fps for 4K, while in the US it’s NTSC at 60fps. Regardless, the increased frame rates on 4K broadcasts look great for sports. I regularly watch the Formula One in 4K / 50fps, and the cars look way smoother racing around the track at 200mph. It’s harder to notice in football, as the frame rates only subtly improve the action when it’s more fast paced. Broadcasters still have a ways to go before 4K and HDR live sports are standard in households. Production costs and complexity alone make it challenging right now thanks to the amount of bandwidth required at each end. Broadcasters will also need to tackle the delay problems that streaming high-resolution 4K content introduces. The BBC’s stream was around a minute behind a regular 1080p broadcast through satellite or antenna, which presents problems in live sports when your neighbors are celebrating a goal loudly before you, or in the internet age when you’re looking at Twitter and seeing the goal before it appears on screen. Now that 4K HDR is finally becoming a reality for the World Cup, it’s inevitable that at the next competition in four years the standards will progress and we’ll be demanding even more out of our TV sets. For now, though, I’m going to enjoy the World Cup even if I can’t cheer on the United States national soccer team once England get knocked out in the early stages.