Looking for more 4K UHD content? Amazon and DirecTV now have UHD movies and shows

If the lack of native 4K content has been standing between you and a new UHD TV, you now have one less barrier to hold you back: Amazon Prime and DirecTV have joined Netflix in offering movies and TV shows in UHD's higher resolution.

Amazon's announcement is probably the more important one right now, since the content is available to a broader prospective audience, namely Amazon Prime subscribers who own a compatible UHD TV from LG, Samsung, or Sony. At the moment, DirecTV's 4K service is limited to its customers who have both the satellite company's Genie HD DVR system and a Samsung 4K TV with RVU technology.

These latest 4K announcements are part of a growing number of content options for UHD TVs. Sony recently announced that its FMPX10 UHD media player, which initially only worked with Sony sets, can now be used with other-brand UHD TVs, and the M-Go video-on-demand service has an exclusive deal—so far—with Samsung for 4K movies and TV shows. M-Go's selection of UHD content has been limited, but the company says it will have as many as 100 UHD titles by the end of the year.

UHD on Amazon Prime

Amazon's 4K offerings, available at no extra charge, include movies, TV shows, and Amazon original series. Movies include several titles from Sony Pictures Entertainment, including Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Funny Girl, Hitch, and Philadelphia. Also available is "Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga: Cheek to Cheek Live!" To see the titles, you use the Amazon Instant Video app on a compatible smart UHD TV.

If you're a collector, you can also purchase a number of Sony Pictures titles, including After Earth, American Hustle, Captain Phillips, Hancock, Moneyball, The Mask of Zorro, The Amazing Spider-Man, The Amazing Spider-Man 2, The Da Vinci Code, and This Is the End. Prices start at $20.

Find the best UHD TV for your needs and budget with our TV buying guide and Ratings.

Several of Amazon's current original series, including "Alpha House," "Transparent," and "Gortimer Gibbon's Life of Normal Street," as well as the BBC thriller "Orphan Black," are available in 4K UHD. Upcoming series include "Mozart in the Jungle," "Bosch," "Hand of God," "The After," and "Red Oaks. "

Amazon says its Amazon Prime UHD service will work on compatible models from LG, Samsung, and Sony this year, and it expects that more brands will be added in 2015. If you have a UHD TV and would like to try out the service, you can get a free Amazon Prime trial at amazon.com/prime.

UHD via satellite

DirecTV's 4K services require subscribers to have both a DirecTV Genie HD DVR system and an RVU-enabled Samsung TV. The Genie system uses one main whole-home DVR, plus small client boxes that attach to other TVs in the home. But an RVU-enabled TV doesn't require the small client box; instead, the TV itself gets set up by a DirecTV tech to act as the client, which allows the TV's built-in HEVC capability to decode the 4K video. The tech visits costs $50.

Once the TV is set up in the system, it will automatically detect that it can receive UHD video. If a customer has opted into Genie's recommendation feature, two or more UHD movies will instantly become available, provided there is space on the hard drive. Other titles can be scheduled to record in advance to watch later. DirecTV says that customer-initiated recordings (either HD or 4K) will always take precedence over pushed 4K content. DirecTV recently launched a new satellite, which it says will be used to deliver both more HD content as well as 4K movies and shows.

We're hoping to check out DirecTV's service in the coming weeks to see whether it is able to deliver a more consistent quality of service than what we've seen with streaming services, where picture quality can vary based on a variety of conditions that affect broadband speeds.

—James K. Willcox