What you need to know
- The MediaTek Pentonic 1000 is an all-in-one 4K TV chip, announced today at MediaTek's executive summit.
- The chip will support 4K 144Hz VRR and ALLM via four HDMI 2.1 ports and Wi-Fi 6E.
- The built-in APU uses AI to automatically enhance images and reconstruct details.
- You'll also get advanced picture-in-picture tech, capable of displaying up to 8 videos or multiple Dolby Vision streams simultaneously on one TV.
Most people don't pay attention to the silicon chips inside of their televisions, so you probably don't know that MediaTek sells 60% of smart TV chips worldwide, from budget TVs to premium Sony Bravia budget TVs. The new MediaTek Pentonic 1000 will power the next generation of 4K gaming TVs.
When it comes to picking the best TV for PS5 or Xbox Series X gaming, you want 4K 120Hz HDR support since both consoles let you prioritize both resolution and performance if your TV allows it. The Pentonic 1000 hits this standard, offering 48Gbps data transfer via HDMI 2.1 ports — though we're not sure if it can power all four HDMI ports at this level.
This MediaTek TV chip also supports Auto Low Latency Mode (ALLM) and Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), hitting up to 4K at 144Hz (rather than just 120Hz) with only 5ms input lag. It's unclear how many PS5 games or other console titles actually hit 4K/144Hz, but you can probably connect your PC to a Pentonic 1000 TV as well to take advantage of its power.
Thanks to its Wi-Fi 6E satellite, too, the Pentonic 1000 should work well for streaming cloud gaming content as well.
As for non-gaming viewing, the Pentonic 1000 can power Dolby Vision IQ with Precision Detail, which lets your TV detect the lighting in your room and automatically adjust the brightness — particularly to capture more details in dark scenes without oversaturating the footage. Any Game of Thrones or House of the Dragon scene shot at night, in other words.
Overall, the Pentonic 1000 beats the previous Pentonic 700 in CPU (1.4X better), GPU (4.6X), and APU (1.6X) performance.
In terms of new features to distinguish itself from past gaming TV tech, it features an exclusive tool called MediaTek Intelligent View, so you can turn larger TVs into a "display wall" and show up to 8 videos from different sources simultaneously on one display.
Imagine the picture-in-picture (PiP) tech you regularly use on your mobile phone but at a much greater size and scale on a 55-inch+ display. So if you wanted to stream YouTube or Twitch on your TV in the corner while playing a game, or show multiple camera feeds from a group call, that would be possible. And you'll get "full picture quality" for each feed, not just the main feed.
Lastly, MediaTek says that the chip offers "industry-leading AI image enhancement," with improved AI Super Resolution to upscale SD or HD content to your 4K TV's exact resolution, smoothing out rough edges and reconstructing lost details, contrast, and color.
The AI engine recognizes objects and scenes in real-time to enhance their look, emphasizing the foreground and deemphasizing the background so your eyes naturally capture the most important details. Plus, the Pentonic 1000 can support up to 10 thousand dimming zones.
As MediaTek said, this chip will be found specifically in "flagship" 4K TVs with the best possible picture quality and performance.
