Indianapolis (IN) – The world of graphics technologies continues changing at phenomenal rates. It is often difficult for the average consume to keep up with all of the advancements. Buzzwords like DVI, HDMI, UDI and DisplayPort are all the rage.  But, what is behind those phrases and how do they relate to one another? We have compiled the data into one comprehensive, easy to read overview.

If you have been following technology in recent months lately, then there is a good chance that you have been confronted with one of these display interface technologies – and there is a good chance that you have had no idea what these standards are about and how they compare with eachother. A recent announcement of a DisplayPort display by Samsung prompted us to compare formats and compare the standards feature by feature.

Let’s have a closer look.


Mechanical Basics

Each of these buzzwords we hear are connected back to physical pieces of hardware.  But it's not just about the hardware.  There are standards behind those acronyms which basically correlate to a "means to an end."  In this case that is:  how do we get a multimedia signals from point A to point B as fast as possible?

There are many mechanical qualities for interconnects which must be precisely defined in a standard.  Wrapper names like DVI, HDMI, UDI and DisplayPort all have internal qualities which make them unique and distinct.  The definitions of these specs are often hundreds of pages long.  They include some things most of us would probably never consider, like the following:

Contact Resistance – How hard do the pins inside the connector physically make contact?  How much electrical resistance is there in the connection?

Mating/Unmating force – How hard it is to insert/remove the interconnect?

Durability – After inserting and removing 100 times, how does it hold up?  Not just the interconnect, but also the “male and female” components of the pins.

Thermal shock – Suppose you pull your monitor out of your car where it's been sitting all night in the icy cold.  When you plug it in, will the interconnect work?

Cyclic Humidity – Over time as humidity levels rise/fall, what is the effect?

Vibration – If there is vibration from whatever source, will the interconnect disengage?

Mechanical Shock – Suppose the interconnect is dropped or dragged along the floor as the monitor was being carried from one room to another.  Can it take it?

Electrostatic discharge – Can the device take a powerful jolt?

Other components are more along the lines of what we think of when we consider video interconnect standards.  These are things like cables.  How long can they be?  How much bandwidth is supported?  And from the purely end-user point of view, what does the standard do for my multimedia experience?

Each of the standards mentioned so far comprise a family of abilities.  On the next page we'll look at some abilities which might be most important to you.  You should also be able to see the evolution of progress made over time.  DisplayPort, for example, is the newest technology.  Naturally, it should be the most comprehensive.  But is it?  Let's look at the side-by-side comparison on the next page.

Read on the next page:  Breakdown comparison chart of DVI, HDMI, UDI and DisplayPort