1080p Data Rate Calculator

Uncompressed 1080p Data Rate Calculator

Calculate the bandwidth required for uncompressed RAW video streams.

8-bit 10-bit 12-bit 16-bit

4:4:4 (Full Color) 4:2:2 (Broadcast Std) 4:2:0 (Distribution)

Required Bandwidth:

0 Gbps (Gigabits/sec)

0 MB/s (Megabytes/sec)

function calculateDataRate() { var width = parseFloat(document.getElementById("resWidth").value); var height = parseFloat(document.getElementById("resHeight").value); var fps = parseFloat(document.getElementById("frameRate").value); var bitDepth = parseInt(document.getElementById("bitDepth").value); var subsamplingMultiplier = parseFloat(document.getElementById("chromaSubsampling").value); if (isNaN(width) || width <= 0 || isNaN(height) || height <= 0 || isNaN(fps) || fps <= 0) { alert("Please enter valid positive numbers for resolution and frame rate."); return; } // Calculate total pixels per frame var pixelsPerFrame = width * height; // Calculate bits per pixel based on subsampling multiplier // The multiplier represents the total data relative to a single monochrome channel. // 4:4:4 = 3 channels (Y+Cb+Cr) = multiplier 3 // 4:2:2 = 2 channels equivalent (Y + 0.5Cb + 0.5Cr) = multiplier 2 // 4:2:0 = 1.5 channels equivalent (Y + 0.25Cb + 0.25Cr) = multiplier 1.5 var bitsPerPixel = bitDepth * subsamplingMultiplier; // Calculate total bits per frame var bitsPerFrame = pixelsPerFrame * bitsPerPixel; // Calculate raw bits per second var bitsPerSecond = bitsPerFrame * fps; // Convert to Gigabits per second (Gbps) – using decimal Giga (10^9) var gbps = bitsPerSecond / 1000000000; // Convert to Megabytes per second (MB/s) – bits to bytes (/8), then to decimal Mega (/10^6) var mbs = (bitsPerSecond / 8) / 1000000; document.getElementById("resultGbps").innerHTML = gbps.toFixed(2); document.getElementById("resultMBs").innerHTML = mbs.toFixed(0); document.getElementById("calcResult").style.display = "block"; }

When dealing with video production, broadcast infrastructure, or high-speed storage systems, understanding the raw data rate of an uncompressed video signal is crucial. Unlike compressed formats like H.264 or HEVC used for streaming like YouTube or Netflix, uncompressed video streams contain every bit of information captured by the sensor without any loss.

The calculator above helps network engineers, video editors, and systems architects determine the exact bandwidth required to transmit or store RAW 1080p video signals in real-time. This is essential for sizing network switches, determining SSD speeds for capture, or planning SDI infrastructure.

Factors Influencing Video Data Rate

The math behind calculating uncompressed video bandwidth involves multiplying several key parameters defining the video signal:

• Resolution: The total number of pixels in each frame. For standard Full HD (1080p), this is 1920 horizontal pixels by 1080 vertical pixels, totaling over 2 million pixels per frame.
• Frame Rate (fps): The number of images displayed per second. Standard rates include 24fps (cinema), 30fps (broadcast), or 60fps (high motion). Higher frame rates linearly increase data requirements.
• Bit Depth: The color precision of each pixel channel.
  • 8-bit: Standard consumer video (256 shades per channel).
  • 10-bit: Professional standard, offering over a billion colors (1024 shades per channel) for better grading and less banding.
  • 12-bit+: High-end cinema workflows.
• Chroma Subsampling: A technique used to reduce bandwidth by encoding color information at lower resolutions than brightness (luma) information. The human eye is less sensitive to color detail than brightness detail.
  • 4:4:4: No subsampling. Every pixel has full color and brightness data. Used in high-end VFX and computer graphics.
  • 4:2:2: The industry standard for professional broadcast and acquisition. Color resolution is halved horizontally.
  • 4:2:0: Common for delivery formats like Blu-ray and web streaming. Color resolution is halved both horizontally and vertically.

Real-World 1080p Data Rate Examples

Let's look at how different settings affect the required bandwidth for a 1080p signal.

Example 1: Professional Broadcast Feed

A typical live broadcast feed used in a studio environment might use the following specifications:

• Resolution: 1920 x 1080
• Frame Rate: 60 fps (for smooth motion sports)
• Bit Depth: 10-bit (for high dynamic range readiness)
• Subsampling: 4:2:2 (SDI standard)

Using the calculator, this configuration requires approximately 2.49 Gbps. This explains why professional studios rely on 3G-SDI (which handles up to 3Gbps) or 10G fiber networks to move these signals uncompressed.

Example 2: Cinema Acquisition

A digital cinema camera shooting for a film might use these settings:

• Resolution: 1920 x 1080
• Frame Rate: 24 fps
• Bit Depth: 12-bit (maximum color grading flexibility)
• Subsampling: 4:4:4 (full RGB data)

Even with a lower frame rate, the increased bit depth and lack of subsampling result in a data rate of approximately 1.79 Gbps. Recording this requires very fast dedicated SSD media capable of sustaining roughly 224 MB/s continuously.