MediaTek's new Pentonic 800 chip for TVs supports 4K 165Hz, WiFi 7

MediaTek's chips are used in the majority of Smart TVs today, including Google TVs, and the next version features faster 'AI' processing, up to 165Hz VRR, WiFi 7, and more.

The first TVs with Pentonic 1000 and Pentonic 700 SoC launched in 2023. Some of these include Sony's A95L and 2024 TVs (Pentonic 1000), 2023-24 Philips Google TVs (Pentonic 1000) and 2023-24 TCL Google TVs (Pentonic 700). You can check which SoC is used in a given TV model in FlatpanelsHD's TV Database.

MediaTek has now unveiled the Pentonic 800 which will appear in future TV models.

- "The MediaTek Pentonic 800 delivers best-in-class video, audio, and cloud gaming experiences. The SoC is ideal for a variety of 4K displays, including smart TVs, smart monitors, commercial displays, and embedded large displays. Compared to the previous generation chip, MediaTek’s AI processor offers 50% faster AI processing," announced MediaTek.


Improved AI processing
It is not clear which "previous generation chip" MediaTek is comparing to, but the 50% faster performance will enable TV makers to do more in terms of picture enhancement.

MediaTek highlighted improved processes such as AI-Super Resolution 3.0, AI-Contrast 2.0, AI-Picture Quality Scene Recognition 2.0+, and AI-Picture Quality Object Recognition 2.5+.

If you disable picture enhancements in your TV, these improvements will have little to no effect.


4K gaming at 165Hz
MediaTek confirmed that Pentonic 800 supports 4K at up to 165Hz VRR. It is next step after 144Hz, which is currently making its way to both LCD and OLED TVs.

At this time, anything beyond 120Hz is only relevant for PC gaming.


 Source: MediaTek

Four HDMI 2.1 ports?
The existing Pentonic chips are limited to two HDMI 2.1 ports for use with game consoles such as PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X.

The Pentonic 800 will support HDMI 2.1a, which supports Quick Media Switching (QMS), although there is no mention specifically about QMS.

MediaTek says that Pentonic 800 "supports for up to 4 high-speed video/audio input interfaces" but it is again unclear exactly what the company means. Will it feature four HDMI 2.1 ports this time? We are chasing confirmation.


VVC and WiFi 7, but...
Pentonic 800 supports video codecs including HEVC, AV1, AVS3 High Profile, and the new VVC (H.266).

The previous Pentonic chips also support VVC (Versatile Video Codec) on paper, but none of the current Pentonic-based TVs are capable of decoding content encoded in VVC. This is because a companion hardware decoder chip is required.

Likewise, MediaTek says that Pentonic 800 supports the latest WiFi 7 specification for much faster wireless data transfer. This will also require a companion chip in TVs.

MediaTek did not provide a launch timeframe.

MediaTek Pentonic 800 – specifications
Processors
CPU Type
Arm Cortex-A73
CPU Cores
Quad (4)
Max CPU Frequency
1.8GHz
Memory
Up to 64-bit DDR4 @ 3200Mbps
GPU Type
Arm Mali-G57 MC1
Display
Max Display Resolution
3840 x 2160 (4K) @ 165Hz
ME/MC
3840 x 2160 (4K) @ 120Hz
HDR Standards
Dolby Vision IQ with Precision Detail 
HDR10/HLG
AHDR by Technicolor
HDR10+, HDR10+ Adaptive and HDR10+ Gaming
HDR Vivid
Video Decoding
HEVC (H.265)
VVC (H.266)
AV1
AVS3 High Profile
VP9
Demod
Embedded, Full-Region Demodulators
ATSC 
DVB-T/C/T2/S/S2/S2X
ISDB-T
DTMB
Audio
Hi-Res Audio Support
Yes
Audio Decoding
Dolby Atmos MS12 v2.x
DTS:X
MPEG-H 
Audio Sound effect
Dolby DAP with Atmos
Dolby Atmos FlexConnect
DTS: Virtual X
Microphone
Yes
AI
Integrated AI Processor
Yes
AI-Voice
Yes
AI-Display
AI-SR 3.0
AI-Contrast 2.0
AI-PQ Scene Recognition 2.0+ 
AI-PQ Object Recognition 2.5
Interfaces & Expansion
External Interfaces
HDMI 2.1a FRL 48Gbps
DP 1.4a
VB1 and eDP panel interface
USB 3.2 Gen-1 (5Gbps) 
USB 2.0 
Internal IO
USB 3.2 Gen-1 (5Gbps) 
eMMC 5.1
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