One of the things we mentioned in our article looking at upgraded movies and series on Netflix was the occasion of mislabeling. There are times when the description of a title may not match exactly with what the video stream provides.
Case in point, the audio label on Netflix’s most popular original movie right now, Extraction, is wrong. (Read a review of Extraction) The movie actually offers Dolby Atmos audio but for some reason only displays a label for 5.1. We know this to be true because our Samsung audio system is clearly playing Atmos (as indicated by a blue light but also by incredible sound quality that surpasses 5.1), and the fact when Extraction premiered we listed it with Dolby Atmos in our guide to 4k on Netflix.
Extraction also streams in 4k Ultra HD with Dolby Vision, as shown by the Dolby Vision logo in the photo above. Dolby Vision increases color range and luminace on HDR TVs that support it. For the record, if a title streams in 4k Ultra HD with Dolby Vision Netflix won’t show the Ultra HD part of the description. This must have something to do with space allowed under the title. If a title does not have Dolby Vision you’ll typically see that Ultra HD label.
You should not assume, however, that because a title features Dolby Vision that it is 4k as well. There are mobile devices from Apple, Samsung, LG and other brands that can display HDR from Netflix but do not meet the requirements to be called 4k (3840 x 2160) resolution.
But back to the audio issue. Just because one Netflix app (in this case viewed on Apple TV 4k streaming to a Samsung 4k TV) doesn’t show Atmos for Extraction doesn’t mean all Netflix apps on different platforms will be missing the specification. It may just be a fluke, overlook, mistake, who knows? It would be interesting to go behind the scenes with the folks who design and develop the Netflix applications.
You should also know that Dolby Atmos is not available on most audio systems. There are only a few TVs that support Atmos and several surround sound audio systems, receivers, and sound bars. Without Atmos, the audio of any given movie or show will downsample to whatever the next best quality is, whether it be Dolby Digital 5.1 or 2.1 from a sound bar or built-in TV speakers.
For more on this, read How To Get Dolby Atmos on Netflix and see our list of 4k/Dolby Vision/Dolby Atmos on Netflix with everything you can watch in Ultra HD, Dolby Vision, and Dolby Atmos.
