I was experimenting with trying to put Windows 10 Technical Preview on a Windows 8 tablet and decided I would share the information I have learned on the process. But don't get too excited yet, there are many requirements and even then there is still a chance it won't work. Others may have no problem and experience the delight of Windows 10!
WARNING: I am not responsible for any damage or issues caused by using the following information.
Windows 10
Windows 10 is still being developed and tested. The newest build has just come out and it will soon be available as an ISO. Microsoft has also stated they are going to start making monthly updates, and that even pirates of Windows 7 will get a free upgrade!
Unlike Windows 8/8.1 on tablets, the Windows 10 OS is meant to be the same for a tablet or a PC. Phones seem to be getting a different version, but who knows how it will end up when finally released.
General Preparation
The first thing you will need to have is a tablet. I would recommend a tablet with at least 32GB built-in, but you might be able to get away with 16GB. Just as important is that the tablet will need to have an Intel CPU. I don't think there are any Intel CPU's in tablets that aren't capable of installing Windows 10.
In addition, ensure that you have a full-sized USB port, or a micro-USB port that supports OTG. In the case of the latter, ensure you have an OTG cable, or an OTG-capable USB flash drive. Speaking of which, you will need a USB flash drive; a drive of 8GB or higher is recommended.
Android users will probably require a keyboard, so be sure to have a keyboard that will work with an OTG cable, or that fits a micro-USB port. If you only have a micro-USB port, and the use of a keyboard is required, you will need an OTG cable splitter that can power items such as a USB flash drive. In this instance, it would be smarter to use a keyboard that is meant for a tablet so extra power is not required from the tablet. Some people may be fortunate enough to have both USB port types, which could make this process much easier.
You will then need to download a copy of Windows 10 for 32-bit. You are supposed to signup for the Windows Insider Program, but there are other ways... Once you have an ISO of Windows 10, use a program like Rufus to make a bootable USB of the Windows 10 ISO image. I believe you will want the GPT option. Choose for a BIOS or UEFI depending on what you have.
Restrictions
The main restriction is to not have a compressed OS. The trouble here is that there are really no documents or articles that will specify if you have a compressed OS or not.
I have read about many popular Windows 8 tablets having this problem, not all of them, but many. The only way I found this out was attempting to install Windows 10 via booting into the USB flash drive. I was not able to do it, so I tried to update through Windows and that's when I received a message stating that I had a compressed OS and could not continue.
I have not read about any Android devices coming across a compressed OS. On the flip side, it is usually argued that most Android devices are incapable of booting from a USB. This is more of a bootloader issue than anything, but if you have an Intel CPU, there is a chance you can still install Windows 10.
Routes
There are two ways to go about this: Upgrade from within Windows or boot from the USB flash drive and install. Obviously if you have an Android tablet, you will be limited to the latter.
Installing from Windows
This should be fairly easy. As long as your tablet recognized the USB, you should be able to open it up in My Computer and find a setup file to double-click on. You will then either go through the process of installing, or get a compressed OS message.
If you try the next method and cannot complete it despite having met all the requirements, chances are you have a compressed OS. Performing this upgrade from Windows should confirm that.
Installing on a Windows Tablet
This is a bit more detailed, but still a valid method. Ensure you have your USB ready and plugged in beforehand:
- Go to "PC Settings".
- Select "Update and recovery".
- Click "Recovery"
- Go to "Advanced startup".
- Choose "Restart now" for booting from a USB device.
If this does not work, see if you can boot directly into the UEFI, which can be accomplished from the PC Settings menu as well. You should then be able to determine which device has boot priority. However, I found that this did not work for my tablet.
If you boot into an installation screen, follow the steps and install Windows 10!
Installing from an Android Tablet
This is a bit tougher than a Windows tablet as you have no option in the OS to boot directly from a USB device.
Because of this, you will likely need to connect a keyboard while your USB is plugged in. It will then be a matter of if you can find a key (likely an F-key) that will allow you to get a priority boot menu to appear. If it does, then you can select to boot from a USB device and press enter. You should then boot into the Windows 10 installation screen and just need to follow any instructions to proceed.
There may be a way to access the boot priority menu without a keyboard, but I have not comes across any articles or posts detailing how if so.
Have Fun!
During installation you should be able to use touch to make choices, so a keyboard should only be necessary in the beginning, if at all. And for those who run into problems, ensure you have met all requirements first and are not limited by any restrictions. Not everyone is going to be able to do this (I would say most), and many tablets will be eliminated by just the first couple sections I wrote.
If I could take a guess, I would have to say Windows 8 tablet owners are more likely to be able to install Windows 10 as long as they don't have a compressed OS.
Wouldn't it be amazing to play videos and games in 4K? Of course it would, but how many of us can afford to do that right now? What if I told you playing 4K videos and games on a 1080p monitor or TV was possible? If you're intrigued you might be asking, "But why would you do that?" Or more importantly, "How would you do that?" Today I will explain not only why, but how; and for many of us this won't require more than a couple clicks of the mouse!
Upscale vs. Downscale
To begin I should explain upscaling and downscaling in terms of media content. Upscaling is a common practice of taking media and enlarging it to a bigger resolution size. Many Blu-ray players have this technology built-in so that DVD's can be upscaled from 480p to 1080p. Upscaling devices were a pretty common item in days of yore, now media devices like Blu-ray players and TV's try to incorporate these technologies. While upscaling can be done with any media, the technologies created for upscaling are normally meant to process those media streams at increased quality and detail so that the enlargement does not show aliasing or any type of blemishes that would ruin the viewing experience.
Just as common is downscaling. Devices normally do this for you. For instance, if you have a video that plays at 1080p on your PC and you put it on your 720p phone, the phone will not crop out the image to fit it, it will merely shrink it down to 720p. Most people who worry about a 1080p video storage size will use a converter to downscale their video to 720p beforehand.
DSR & VSR
DSR (Dynamic Super Resolution) and VSR (Virtual Super Resolution) are respectively NVIDIA and AMD's new technology features that allows a mixture of upscaling and downscaling for gaming and media content. Who would want to do that? Well, this type of downscaling is meant for people who are using 1080p or 1440p (2.5K) monitors. With these technologies enabled the game will be upscaled and processed at 4K but then downscaled to fit at 1080p or 1440p resolution.
This sounds like a waste of time, but it's something that could be quite useful. Think of a picture at a certain size. When you shrink that image down the quality just seems to be that much greater. This is the same concept for this technology. You get the 4K quality on a lesser screen, which should make it look better than if just played at 1080p or 1440p.
Media Streaming
Although graphic cards are really aimed more towards gamers, why shouldn't regular consumers have any fun? Even though these technologies are meant for the satisfaction of gamers, we can use DSR or VSR for streaming video too!
Enabling DSR or VSR is not something that's done in-game, it's done to the entire viewing experience of your operating system. Meaning, once one of the two technologies has been activated, your entire computer from your desktop to your folders will be resized to 4K. This can be useful for those who work with 4K media on a monitor that is 1080p or 1440p. And if you just happen to watch a lot of video at 2.5K resolutions or higher, this could be your savior.
I am not sure if much of anything is done when it comes to videos as games are a different beast. They need to be processed on the go depending on the user's inclination. A video is already processed, it has no variables to deal with; it simply needs to be played.
That being said, I did a quick test. I downloaded a 4K nature video and played it on both 1080p and 4K (DSR). With 1080p it did look phenomenal. I chalked this up to having automatically being forced to fit my 1080p screen. However, the 4K looked spectactular as well. I had to watch the video a few times to really see the difference, which is much harder to do when you are using fullscreen on the exact same monitor (or TV in my case). It was hard to tell, but after examining certain areas of specific shots, I could tell the detail seemed a bit higher in 1080p. This is perfect, as this is what you would expect when comparing 1080p footage scaled down from 4K. For me, this verifies that DSR does successfully work on media.
Who Do You Work For?
For AMD enthusiasts, this apparently only works for the R9 285, R9 290, R9 290X, or R9 295x2 - for the time being. AMD may have had to rush this feature to market since NVIDIA had already released DSR. I have read that NVIDIA actually stole the idea of DSR from AMD, which may shed some light as to why so few cards have been selected. Others have said they based their technology on the free GeDoSaTo patch [a mod for Dark Souls 2 that performs downscaling]. I have not found a credible source to back up either rumor.
Unlike VSR, DSR works on numerous graphic cards. It supposedly works on all series 400 through 900 models. In a NVIDIA article it first states 500-900, then immediately after states the 400 series works as well. In either case, Fermi, Kepler, and Maxwell cards should work without issue.
Drawbacks, Issues, Complaints?
Beyond the obvious VSR complaint of graphic cards support, there are a few on the NVIDIA side. Whether these are because DSR is still in its infancy, released too early in an attempt to beat their competitor, or just items within their margin of error, is beyond me.
The first I have come across is SLI support. Some have been lucky enough to get DSR working with SLI, while others have not. I read a thread where the GTX 970's were not allowing the cards to activate DSR while in SLI, but others had no problems whatsoever. This was from a few months ago so maybe the kinks have been ironed out...
As a followup to SLI, those who have gotten it to work have also run into the problem of getting the correct resolution to display from DSR, helping add insult to injury. If you happen to read this and have this same issue, you can check out this Geforce forum thread which should apply as a workaround. You can find the referred to Custom Resolution Utility here.
Another was the frame rates in comparison to VSR. I watched a video where DSR was battling it out with VSR. The card using VSR had a decent amount of frames over DSR, making DSR seem like it was just a slightly dumbed-down version of VSR. But the point of contention here is that VSR would be using a R9 285 or any from the R9 290 family, but there are numerous GTX models that could be used for DSR. For all we know it could have been a GTX 770 and a R9 290, where the R9 290 should have little issue pulling out a victory.
Adding one more to the AMD side of things, it seems that VSR gives you a couple extra resolution sizes for the R9 285. This is because the R9 285 is based on the newer Tonga architecture, while the R9 290 family is still part of the Hawaii family. This really puts a hurt on AMD because even though the R9 285 is newer, you would think that the R9 290 family - being the more powerful in performance of the two (for now) - would be the one to have more resolution options. Only having a few graphic cards able to utilize VSR is painful enough, but this additional "flaw" just makes it that much worse. One can only hope that this will be rectified soon (possibly when the 390X drops).
The Key to Magic is Misdirection
The pluses of DSR and VSR should outweigh any drawbacks that currently exist, especially since it should improve over time. But while the known issues are something to work on, what about what DSR and VSR lack?
The biggest gripe I have is clarity. I love the thought of having a larger resolution size running through my 1080p TV, but the actuality of it is that it's not great to keep as a permanent viewing experience. 4K makes everything far too small for my tastes, and even just a bump up from 1080p with 15% smoothing [on DSR] is still too straining to my eyes.
On top of that is the cursor offset when going "up" to 4K. I would have to go a bit below what I wanted to select in order for it to highlight, making it impossible to be a daily driver. The problem only lessened if the resolution was dropped to something lower.
There have been tests done comparing 1080p gameplay to downscaled 4K gameplay. There was around an 8 frame difference from what I could tell. For those who are about getting the highest frame rates possible, or are struggling just to keep 1080p or 1440p frame rates high, this could be an issue. For others who have maxed out their frame rates, or don't care, then it is likely not relevant.
Another concern is that while the upscaling/downscaling feature is great for monitors of lower resolution, it does nothing for those who have 4K and are trying to downscale to lower resolutions. Many complain that the normal downscale of most monitors just makes the image blurry. In the same sense, people who were using a 1080p or 2.5K monitor may want to downscale to 720p. These are excellent issues to address, however, it seems mainly a problem for those who do not have enough graphics power in the first place.
As a final coup de grâce, some have made the point that if downscaling isn't appropriately proportionate, issues of blurriness or aliasing become more apparent. For example, if you use a 1080p monitor, the appropriate downscale would be from 4K. Similarly, if you use a 720p monitor, the appropriate downscale would be from 2.5K.
How to Enable DSR
The procedure for NVIDIA is rather simple, and you won't have to do much to ensure DSR is an available option to you:
- Download the latest NVIDIA drivers (if you haven't already).
- Install the latest NVIDIA drivers.
- Go to the PC's desktop.
- Right-click on the desktop.
- Select "NVIDIA Control Panel".
- Choose "Manage 3D Settings" under "3D Settings".
- Click on the "Global Settings" tab.
- There will be two DSR options, select "Off" from "DSR - Factors".
- Check off "4.00x (native resolution)". Optionally, checking off other boxes can also be done for more resolution sizes.
- Click "OK".
- Click "Apply".
- Go to the PC's desktop.
- Right-click on the desktop.
- Select "Screen resolution" (or whatever your option for changing your screen resolution is).
- Next to "Resolution:" click the drop-down menu.
- There should now be a resolution of "3840 x 2160", drag the slider to that new resolution.
- Click "Apply".
- Click "Keep changes". (If you cannot click the option with your mouse, click the tab button of your keyboard and hit Enter.)
Note: Step 9 can be chosen for a lesser resolution as that is the 4K option. This may be good for those who are worried about less frames.
The other DSR option available can be changed. The higher the amount the smoother the playback should seem at a cost of working your graphics card harder. A lower amount will lighten the load for the GPU but may not seem as fluid during gameplay or be too sharp in general.
How to Enable VSR
VSR is a tad simpler to activate than DSR, which is the only legitimate edge I can see over DSR for the meantime.
- Download the lastest AMD Catalyst (Omega) Control Center drivers (if you haven't already).
- Install the lastest AMD Catalyst (Omega) Control Center drivers.
- Go to your PC's desktop.
- Right-click on the desktop.
- Select "AMD Catalyst Control Center".
- Click on "My Digital Flat-Panels".
- Select "Properties (Digital Flat-Panel)".
- Check off "Enable virtual super resolution".
- Click "Apply".
- Go to the PC's desktop.
- Right-click on the desktop.
- Select "Screen resolution" (or whatever your option for changing your screen resolution is).
- Next to "Resolution:" click the drop-down menu.
- There should now be a resolution of "3840 x 2160", drag the slider to that new resolution. The R9 285 should offer additional resolution sizes as well.
- Click "Apply".
- Click "Keep changes". (If you cannot click the option with your mouse, click the tab button of your keyboard and hit Enter.)
AMD keeps it straightforward and simple so that VSR is as intuitive as possible to enable. Even so, you'll have to be one of the lucky few in order to be able to use this technology. Again, the hope is that AMD is already in the midst of creating a Catalyst driver that will allow a plethora of their cards to work with VSR.
Dream a Little Dream
While DSR/VSR is great and has its uses, it still has a long way to go. No doubt people will see changes with new updates, and, if we're lucky, these technologies will become so good those of us unwilling or unable to move to 4K screens will have no need to.
If anything, this is just a stepping stone. As games are beginning to push 4K resolutions, many of us would've been left behind without such a great upscaling/downscaling feature. In 10 years, I'm sure it will be all but forgotten.
I've held off on this article as I did not feel the time was right, but it has become too evident that 4K is the next big thing for TV's and digital video recording. Many of us are lucky enough to own camcorders or cameras that output 1080p quality video, but now that 4K is becoming increasingly popular, should we toss those devices aside and purchase a 4K camera? I would like to argue that (for now) 1080p can suffice for 4K videos, and I would like to show you how and why...
Back in the Day
Just before I was about to be a sophomore, I switched high schools. I was late to the party so I only had a few choices for my electives. I opted for a video class that I thought would be easy; boy, was I wrong!
The former teacher was known to be very lax and the video class had been easy. But the current teacher wanted his students to really learn how to create video projects at a high standard. Before you were allowed to even touch a NLE (Non-Linear Editor), you had to learn how to edit with VHS. While not as hard as editing 8mm with a film splicer, it was still an arduous task. Once you had done one project on a VHS editing bay, you could then move onto a NLE.
When I first sat down in front of a computer (loaded with Adobe Premiere), I didn't know where to start. I could open the program, but that was about it. So I pulled over a classmate and asked them one question: Which button cut the video. From then on I educated myself on all the skills and technical aspects of production and post-production.
I was fortunate enough to get into digital video just before 24p became a huge revolutionary way to capture and output video. For the younger crowd, it was much like the jump from SD to HD (1080p). For newer crowds it will be akin to 1080p to 4K. I wouldn't say that things were simpler back then, but because there was less to contend with, it did give a sturdier background for digital video and all the new features that would start to arise.
Originally I wanted to do something in computers, but since that first class in high school, I have continued my studies and experimentation in digital video. I even went on to get a degree in film and media. That's not to say I forgot about computers altogether, otherwise this blog would not exist.
1080p vs. 4K
1080p is a video resolution of 1920 x 1080. 4K is a video resolution of 4096 x 2160. There are other 4K resolutions, but I won't get into that here (check "14 Things People Get Wrong..."). 4K is roughly 4 times larger than 1080p. You can check this by multiplying the numbers above then dividing the total for 4K by the total for 1080p. In pixels, the comparison is about 8 million to 2 million. This should help you understand why 4K is such better quality than 1080p, even without having a TV that will allow you to test that theory.
1080p vs. 2K
2K is a video resolution of 2048 x 1080. Again, there are some other resolutions, but I will not be getting into them. 2K is just barely taller than 1080p. 2K is the resolution used in most cinemas (there are some cinemas that do show movies in 4K).This may help understand why the need for cameras, camcorders, and TV's to have 2K never really came to fruition.
Be Forewarned
The best way to get 4K video is to obviously have a 4K camera or camcorder. A 4K smartphone may be cool, but it is not a good way to get 4K footage (even with hacked bitrates).
The only camera I know that can be hacked to become a 4K camera is the Sony F5, but the camera alone still costs thousands upon thousands of dollars. It would be better to get something like a Panasonic GH4, especially now since there are rumors that Panasonic may discontinue the line...
But if you can't afford those options, then follow along below.
Preparation for the Transformation
There are a few things you can and should do in order to make the best quality out of 1080p video footage.
The first is a pre-production step. If you own a Canon EOS, a Panasonic GH2, a GH1, or any other camera that can be hacked for higher bitrate, you should enable those settings. You will need to spend some ample research on how these are performed, how they can react, and how to reverse the process if needed. For an applicable Canon, you can use Magic Lantern, which will give you a setting to increase the bitrate. The process is easily reversible by just pulling out your battery. On a GH1 or GH2, the process is a little more in-depth as you need to actually replace the firmware and find a respective mod that will increase your bitrate (the Driftwood Moon or Cake is a good one for GH2 users). Of course, there are going to be a lot of cameras without any sort of hack, so you can skip this step if it does not apply. (Or pick up a cheap Canon that can use CHDK; camera list available here.)
For my tests I ended up using a hacked GH2 that got me about 80-100Mb/s for my 1080p footage. It came out superb and was a perfect candidate to try for a 4K upscale.
The second step is something anyone should be able to accomplish. After creating your video, but before throwing it into a NLE, download and install the free version of GoPro Studio. You can then increase your video footage's bit-depth from 8-bit to 10-bit. I won't go into the exact steps as I use NeoScene (which was a product that became discontinued when GoPro bought Cineform). They have the same capabilities, except that the GoPro Studio is an editing suite, and NeoScene includes the ability to convert AVCHD files (great for GH2 users like me!). If you want NeoScene for AVCHD footage, you may be able to find some valid serials sold on eBay. I have a posting here with the actual downloads that GoPro's site does not make available for discontinued users.
If you're asking why do the second preparation task, because you know that bit-depth is about color; it's because that this will likely help produce a better 4K version of your 1080p footage since it will have more color information when producing a top-notch 4K video. 8-bit deals with 256 colors, while 10-bit uses 1024 colors. And when doing the upscale process below, the computer is trying to produce non-existent details from details that do exist. Giving it more to work with is better than less in these circumstances.
How to Make 1080p into 2K
The easiest way to go about this is just to enlarge your video until the height is 2048 pixels high. Sure, some quality loss will occur, but not enough to be noticeable to the naked eye. To reiterate, there isn't much of a reason to do this unless you are specifically asked to do so (i.e. a client needs his digital video in 2K).
If this isn't satisfactory, you can use similar steps that will be discussed for 4K.
How to Make 1080p into 4K
Now, you could just scale 1080p footage to the dimensions of 4K, but unlike 2K, the quality will be substandard. Because we are enlarging the footage more than 4 times its original dimensions - where 2K is a slight pulling of the height - the quality will immediately take a hit and be noticeable by enthusiasts and the general public alike.
A simple way, which I do not recommend, is first scaling the 1080p footage to 4K, then use some post filter effects. You can throw on some Gaussian blur to smooth over the banding and artifacts that will undoubtedly arise, and use a bit of sharpen to get back a bit of that grain for realism's sake. This can be useful for quick jobs, but it doesn't give it the video footage quality it deserves.
Instead, you should use Adobe After Effects CC. If you don't have it, try out a trial version. If you use up the trial, either buy it or reinstall your OS and do the trial again (a bit extreme unless you have a spare computer you don't actively use).
Not long ago Adobe introduced a new "detail-preserving upscale" feature for Adobe After Effects CC. It is an effect and is fairly easy to use. The results are quite phenomenal, even moreso when compared to just a standard upscaling of the footage.
Now that you have the required tool to perform this trick, follow these steps to transform your 1080p footage into 4K:
- Open After Effects
- Select "New Composition".
- Change the values to 4096 x 2160.
- Name the composition whatever you like.
- Click "OK."
- Import the 1080p footage into your "Project" panel. (Drag-and-drop your footage on the Project panel, or right-click the "Project" panel and go to Import > File... to browse for your footage. File > Import > File... also works.)
- A "comp" will be created along with the footage import.
- Drag-and-drop the footage into your comp timeline.
- In the "Effects & Presets" panel, type in "Detail". The "Detail-Preserving Upscale" effect should appear. (If it does not, you are not on the latest version of Adobe After Effects CC.)
- Drag-and-drop the effect onto the footage in your comp timeline and it should automatically apply to your footage, and open the "Effects" panel.
- Ensure your timeline is at the beginning of your footage by dragging the time cursor to the start of the footage.
- Click the "Scale" stopwatch provided underneath the "detail-preserving upscale" effect in the "Effects" panel.
- Use the "Scale" option to increase the size of your footage until you fill the entire frame.
- Click the "Detail" stopwatch provided underneath the "detail-preserving upscale" effect in the "Effects" panel.
- Increase the amount of the "Detail" to 100%.
- Click the "Alpha" stopwatch provided underneath the "detail-preserving upscale" effect in the "Effects" panel. (This step and 17 are optional, however, it does seem to look slightly better if done.)
- Change the value from "Bicubic" to "Detail-preserving".
- Go to Edit > Add to Render Queue
- Click it.
- The render queue window should appear in place of the comp timeline. Adjust your settings as preferred.
- Click "Render".
Note: While 4096 x 2160 is true 4K, many "4K" TV's only support up to 3840 x 2160. So, you may want to check which value you should use depending on your monitor or TV that will be used for viewing.
Note II: The stopwatch is usually not needed unless you plan on changing that selected item's actions during playback. However, I found that not clicking on it for this effect made it ignore the filter altogether when outputted from the render queue. For my tests, it seemed to work if I just did the stopwatch for scaling, but to be safe you may want to do the stopwatch for all the effect properties.
There is no perfect upscaling solution, such as that, this is not a perfect solution. But this is by far the best method I have come across, as well as the least time-consuming. There will never be a perfect solution for upscaling because your are taking something smaller and making it bigger, which will always cause banding and artifacts.
Downscaling
If you don't know much about video and are thinking you should use the above steps to downscale video, don't. It's really just a waste of time. Problems in detail and quality only happen when going from small-to-big, not big-to-small. Decreasing the size of something will retain its detail and not create any of the issues noted above. You can simply scale down the footage in any NLE and be fine.
However, if you go from big-to-small, then attempt to go back by using small-to-big, the problems above will occur. It would be smarter to keep a backup of the full size as it will be perfect in comparison to trying to match the original with the solution I have presented.
4K You, 4K Me, 4K Everybody!
I have found other software to perform upscaling, but all have mediocre results and cannot come close to the quality retention Adobe After Effects provides. I should say that the larger the gap in dimensions, the less useful any of this becomes. If I try to upscale 480p to 4K, the results should look horrible regardless of what program is used. On the flip side, If trying to upscale from 4K to 6K, this method should still be valid. Because 8K is so massively large, this technique may or may not be valid when coming from a 4K source (certainly not 1080p).
If you need to test your footage, you can always upload it to YouTube where it should give you the option to use 4K when viewing. And if you need to keep the great quality of your 4K video, but need a more manageable file size for sending or uploading, check out "VP9 + Opus = WebM...", which will also have the 4K example I made.
Another thought to remember is that your footage is not 4K, just your outputted video is. For most of us, this method will suit us fine. Others may rather purchase a 4K camera for the real deal. But that doesn't mean to trade-in your 1080p camera, as you may need a dual-setup one day, and this technique can help produce a beautiful 4K video from that second camera that only offers 1080p...
