VESA announces DisplayHDR 1.2 specifications with tighter performance requirements

VESA has just announced a major update to its High-Performance Monitor and Display Compliance Test Specification (DisplayHDR), which launched the display industry's first fully open standard specifying high dynamic range (HDR) quality.

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The new updated spec, DisplayHDR version 1.2, includes significantly tighter performance requirements, including for luminance, color gamut, and bit depth. There are also multiple new test requirements for color accuracy, contrast ratio, black levels, and subtitle flicker, that VESA (the Video Electronics Standards Association) addresses for recent advanced in display technology.

VESA explained on their press release that companies can begin certifying products under the new DisplayHDR 1.2 spec today, while continuing to allow products to be certified under the previous DisplayHDR 1.2 spec through to the end of May 2025 for monitors, and May 2026 for laptops.

Roland Wooster, chairman of the VESA task group responsible for DisplayHDR, and the association's representative from Intel Corp. for front of screen display technology, said: "Since the previous update to the DisplayHDR standard nearly five years ago, the display industry has made dramatic improvements in quality while maintaining the same price points. As a result, VESA initiated a major undertaking to revise the standard to take full advantage of these improvements. We are thrilled to be releasing the newest version of our DisplayHDR standard―VESA's most successful front-of-screen performance standard to date―with important updates that will help accelerate the display industry's adoption of leading-edge display technology, which in turn will enable better-quality display products for consumers".

The consortium has improved and expanded several tests, with VESA adding multiple new performance tests to DisplayHDR v1.2, these include:

• New comprehensive color accuracy test that measures the average Delta-TP* of 96 different colors at each of three different luminance levels, testing the HDR color accuracy for a range of representative color tones. With this new test, the updated spec only permits a Delta-TP error of 8 on the 400, 500 and 600 tier levels, and an even tighter Delta-TP error of 6 on the 1000 tier level and above.
• New static contrast ratio tests that drive higher contrast ratio display hardware specification requirements at all levels, and additionally requiring 2D local dimming at DisplayHDR tiers 1000 and higher.
• New HDR vs SDR black-level test to help ensure premium black-level performance in HDR mode while reducing power consumption and improving battery life (e.g., in laptop displays)
• New black crush test to measure the accuracy of multiple black luminance levels to ensure displays have tremendous shadow detail for photo or video creation or consumption
• New subtitle luminance flicker test to help ensure ideal local dimming behavior when luminance levels adjust rapidly, such as when subtitles instantly appear and disappear on an otherwise dark movie scene.