With the growing popularity of 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays, 4K streaming services, and 4K TVs, demand for 4K videos are steadily increasing, owing to the stunning video quality that 4K provides. Apart from viewing 4K videos online and purchasing 4K Ultra HD Blu-rays, there is another way to get more 4K media: using AI video upscaler to improve 1080p videos to 4K.

Best 5 1080p to 4K upscalers 2024

Actually, upscaling 1080p to 4K can be accomplished in two ways: hardware or software. We'll only go over this by software in-depth in this article. Because software 4K upscaling offers an advantage over built-in 4K TV upscaling by staying current with AI advancements, simplifying the upscaling process. AI-based video enhancement tools smartly utilize adjacent video frames to enhance the upscaling result.

UniFab Enlarger AI: Best Option

UniFab Enlarger AI is the best tool that can be used to know how to upscale video to 4K. The software is an AI-based program used to enhance video quality, clarity and enlarge resolution. It works on different AI models that are developed based on a neural network along with super-resolution technology. The tool upgrades movies or videos with poor low resolution and image quality automatically.

UniFab video enlarger ai

Features:

  • Restore your low-res videos into 720p/1080p/4k content
  • Enhance video clarity to a more realistic and vivid visual effect
  • Support video editing to meet your personalized demand
  • Get 50x faster speed with GPU acceleration

 

Step 1

Launch UniFab and choose the 'Enlarger' module.

Install the software on your device and open the interface

Step 2

Load the source and edit the output video

Choose the 'Enlarger' module. Click the Add Video button to select the video you want to upscale from 1080p to 4k quality.

how to Upscale 1080p to 4K

Step 3

Customize the restoring video file

Customize the quality and resolution as 4k, as well as codec, frame rate, etc, and then click 'OK' to start the procedure. 

how to Upscale 1080p to 4K

AVCLabs Video Enhancer AI

AVCLabs Video Enhancer AI is AI-based video upscaler that can upscale video from 480p to 1080p, 1080p to 4K, and up to 8K resolutions. AVCLabs Video Enhancer AI may be taught on low-resolution videos using a neural network-based deep learning model, predicting missing coefficients and recomposing the same frames with improved quality.

It automatically performs video restoration and quality upscaling tasks, including deblurring, super-resolution, denoising, deinterlacing, sharpening, color enhancement and correction, frame insertion, scratch removal, and more

Upscaling 1080p to 4k:AVCLabs Video Enhancer AI

Topaz Video AI

Topaz Video Enhance AI is one of the best 4k upscaler on the market developed by Topaz Labs. Machine learning is used to upscale footage in Video AI. Topaz Video AI can upscale films to 8K resolution and give genuine details and motion consistency by training on hundreds of videos and merging information from many input video frames.

Upscaling 1080p to 4k:Topaz Video Enhancer AI

Adobe Premiere Pro

Adobe Premiere Pro is a popularly 1080p to 4k upscaler tool for video production, post-processing, and upscaling. Users can upscale videos to 4K easily using this tool. It uses GPU acceleration technology to increase the speed of the conversion process. Hence, your video upscaling job will be quicker if you do that on a high-end device.  Learn how to sharpen video quality easily with advanced AI tools.

Follow the below steps to know how to upscale video in premiere pro using this tool:

Step 1: Download and install the Adobe Premiere Pro app on your device and create a new project.

Step 2: Add a name for the project and click OK in the lower right window

Step 3: Upload your source video file by dragging and dropping to create a sequence field.

Step 4: Next, select the application's Sequence menu in the top panel and click on the Sequence Settings option.

Step 5: Set these values on the Sequence Settings window: vertical frame size 2160, horizontal frame size 3840, check Maximum Render Quality, and Maximum Bit Depth.

how to upscale video:Adobe Premiere Pro to Upscale a Video

Step 6: Click OK to save the settings.

Step 7: Right-click in the timeline panel on the sequence and then choose Set to Frame Size on the menu that comes on screen.

Step 8: Select the whole sequence and then press Ctrl + M.

Step 9: The Export window will be displayed. Below the Video section, scroll down till you see Bitrate Encoding.

Step 10: Set both Maximum Bitrate and Target Bitrate to 50 Mbps.

Step 11: Lastly, tap on Export to begin the ai upscaling procedure. Once done, you will find the output video in 4K.

how to upscale video:Adobe Premiere Pro to Upscale a Video

VideoProc Converter AI

VideoProc Converter AI is the next tool in our list that allows you to upgrade videos to 4K. The tool, for faster processing, uses the onboard GPU. Its pixel scaling motion-adaptive algorithm is an AI feature that can assess sample 4K images to generate and position new interpolated pixels. The AI also tweaks the diffusion and sharpening of new pixels automatically.

Follow the below steps to know how to upscale 1080p to 4K using this tool:

Step 1: Download and install the VideoProc Converter AI on your device.

Step 2: Open it and navigate to the Super Resolution.

4k video upscaler

Step 3: Load your media files.

1080p upscaler

Step 4: Choose the video type you want to output from the right side channel.

4k video upscaler

Step 5: Click the Run button to start the upscale 1080p to 4K.

1080p to 4k upscaler videoproc

How to optimize your setting for 4K upscaling?

Upscaling 1080p to 4K is not an easy task, as it requires a lot of processing power and intelligent algorithms to interpolate the missing pixels. However, with the right software and settings, you can achieve amazing results that can rival native 4K content. Here are some tips to help you get the best results when upscaling:

tips to get the best 4k upscaled videos
  • 1. Use high-quality source material: If you upscale a low-quality video, you will end up with a blurry mess. It is better to use 1080p source video to get 4K upscaled videos.

  • 2. Adjust the setting carefully: Take advantages of settings like sharpness, noise reduction, and color correction.

  • 3. Use qualified hardware support: Upscaling is a resource-intensive process, and it can take a long time to complete, especially for long videos. A qualified hardware matters a lot. 

By following these tips, you can achieve excellent results when upscaling 1080p to 4K. Remember to use high-quality source material, choose the right upscaling algorithm, adjust the settings carefully, consider hardware acceleration, and don’t overdo it. With patience and experimentation, you can create stunning 4K content from 1080p footage.

For more info about the system requirement for the AI enlarger function, please check the UniFab Video Enlarger AI.

FAQs

Why do I need a 4K upscaling program when my 4K TV can already do it?

The short answer is that if your 4K TV already has a native 4K upscaling feature, you don't need a 4K upscaling program. Because manufacturers all have their own 4K upscaling algorithms, the output video quality of each 4K TV may vary significantly from one brand to the next. Some may give satisfactory results, while others may not. If you're not happy with the results, your only option is to use a software 4K upscaling solution; after all, changing to a new 4K TV isn't realistic.

Does 4K TV upscale 1080p videos to 4K?

Yes, most 4K TVs today from major manufacturers such as Samsung, Sony, LG, Panasonic, and others include this 4K upscaling option. 

Does upscaling 1080p to 4K really improve quality?

However, it is important to note that upscaling does not generate details that are not present in the original source. It will not be better than native 4K.

The original 1080p content had a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels, and when it is scaled up to 4K (3840x2160), what happens is that each pixel in the original content is represented by multiple pixels on a higher resolution display. The noticeable improvement in picture quality is due to a number of factors: advanced upscaling algorithms, viewing distance, screen quality, fill factor etc. And UniFab Enlarger AI acting as the best and cost-effective 4K upscaler, driven by AI technologies and powerful algorithms, can make the best of upscale 1080p to 4K ensuring true details are preserved.