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Many of the show’s attendees made their way to the DVIGear booth, which exhibited the latest advancements in its growing range of digital connectivity product solutions. Four high-resolution Apple 20” Cinema Displays were used to run a continuous presentation of the company’s newest products and capabilities. A wide array of products was on display, including cutting edge products that pushed the limits of digital connectivity technology. Visitors to the booth could see examples of this new technology at work and how it could simplify their audio/visual system design.

One of the most exciting new products introduced at InfoComm was DVIGear’s next generation Super High Resolution™ (SHR™) DVI and HDMI cables. These cables have been engineered from the ground up for superior performance and exceptional signal fidelity especially for long cable runs up to 20 ft. and beyond. Using state-of-the-art 22AWG silver plated copper wire with exceptionally low insertion loss and skew, these cables deliver what competitive cables only can promise – completely transparent signal transport for HDTV sources having resolutions up to 1080p and PC sources with resolutions up to 1920x1200 /60Hz.

At InfoComm, these revolutionary new SHR™ DVI cables were put to the test by connecting a high-resolution Apple 20” Cinema Display with a native resolution of 1680x1050 /60Hz to a new Mac Mini computer. The DVI output from the Mac Mini was fed into a DVI 1x2 signal splitter. One splitter output drove an Apple 20” Cinema Display using a 6 ft. cable, the other output drove an identical Apple 20” Cinema Display using a 50 meter (164 ft.) SHR™ DVI cable and a signal correction device developed by DVIGear. The result was no detectable difference in signal quality – this was a first for any DVI copper cable.

One of the more aesthetic features within the booth was the full-line of wall plates and adapters on display. A wide range of wall plates were shown including DVI, HDMI and complemented with a variety of other audio and video connections. Thanks to their elegant style and simple design, these wall plates are the perfect solutions for home entertainment and professional installations that need a more visually attractive approach to connectivity management.

Besides their inherent good looks, DVIGear’s line of wall plates offers unparalleled flexibility thanks to over 60 different connector types and more than 15 different wall plate colors. Most attendees were excited to learn of DVIGear’s custom wall plate design service – where you can order virtually any type of wall plate conceivable. Because all these wall plates are manufactured in the USA, the delivery time is never a problem.

Also on display at InfoComm was DVIGear’s new line of M1 adapter cables. Today, many compact business projectors (including those by InFocus, HP, and Dell), utilize the M1 connector for its versatility and multiple connectivity options. The M1 connector supports sources with DVI and HDMI digital video outputs, as well as analog (VGA) outputs and component video. Another plus is that M1 connector also supports USB. This allows for additional control capabilities between a computer and the projector. DVIGear offers a complete range of M1 adapter cables for every possible connectivity application. These adapter cables allow users to realize the maximum flexibility that their projector’s M1 input has to offer.

DVIGear had several of its lead team members at the show, including: Steven Barlow (President), Chris Bingham (Director of Operations) and Alex Bingham (Applications Support) as well as other support staff. Customer reaction to the new products was very positive and the show was a resounding success. More importantly, numerous customers were able to receive helpful design consultation, which enabled them to realize more new projects on the short term.

1. DVI stands for Digital Visual Interface. What was the name of the committee that developed this standard?
Answer: The Digital Display Working Group (or DDWG)

2. Per the current DVI standard, what is the maximum pixel clock frequency that is supported by a single-link DVI signal?
Answer: 165 MHz

3. What is the pixel frequency for 720p and 1080i (60 Hz) HDTV formats?
Answer: The frequency is 74.25 MHz for both

4. True or False: DVI-I is a digital-only connector format.
Answer: False

5. True or False: HDMI use extra conductors to carry digital audio signals.
Answer: False

http://www.dvigear.com/news/index.html

DVIGear has a strong commitment to supporting its customers with the best technical support and educational resources in the industry. You’ll want to visit our Education Center webpage frequently to read about how digital technology is changing our industry and bring about new and improved applications.

http://www.dvigear.com/education/index.html

At the request of our customers, we’ve created a new webpage that summarizes all of DVIGear’s operational policies w.r.t. returns, warranties, shipping, etc. You can find this information at:

http://www2.dvigear.com/privacypolicy.html

DVIGear’s SHR™ cables are designed for fully transparent operation with single-link DVI and HDMI signals with digital bit rates up to 1.65 Gbit/sec. Unlike consumer grade cables that use 30AWG or 28AWG wire, DVIGear’s SHR™ cables use premium grade silver-plated 22AWG copper wire – the best in the industry – to transport digital signals longer distances with substantially lower losses. A specially developed manufacturing process virtually eliminates intra-pair skew, a common flaw of conventional DVI and HDMI cables that makes long cable runs impossible.

DVIGear’s SHR™ cables are available for immediate delivery and come in a wide range of pre-terminated lengths from 0.5 meters (1.6 ft.) to 20 meters (65.6 ft.). Three cables types are available: HDMI to HDMI, HDMI to DVI-D, DVI-D to DVI-D. All cables utilize single-link TMDS connections and Male to Male gold plated connectors. Based on their unique capabilities, DVIGear’s SHR™ cables set a new benchmark for performance, durability and value.

DVIGear’s SHR™ cables offer several unique features:

• Support HDTV resolutions up to 1080p
• Support PC resolutions up to 1920x1200/60 Hz
• Triple shielded for superior noise immunity
• Dual UL ratings (CL2 and SWM20276)
• RoHS compliant (“green friendly”)
• Gold-plated connectors
• Rugged, yet pliable construction
• Ultra-low insertion loss (attenuation)
• Ultra-low differential skew and crosstalk

All units are compatible with the full spectrum of single-link DVI signals with pixel rates up to 165 MHz (1.65 GBit/sec.). This enables them to work with DVI signals having HDTV resolutions up to 1080p and PC resolutions up to 1920x1200 / 60 Hz.

Full product descriptions and specifications are available on our website. Note: to ensure optimum performance, you should use DVIGear’s Super High Resolution™ cables with these products. Ordering and availability information is as follows:

All units are compatible with the full spectrum of HDMI signals with pixel rates up to 165 MHz (1.65 GBit/sec.). This enables them to work with HDMI signals having HDTV resolutions up to 1080p as well as PC resolutions up to 1920x1200 / 60 Hz.

Full product descriptions and specifications will be available on our website by November 1, 2005. Note: to ensure optimum performance, you should use DVIGear’s Super High Resolution™ cables with these products. Ordering and availability information is as follows:

In addition to providing the ultimate performance solution for long-length HDMI signal transmission, these cables may also be used for DVI applications. Each end of the HDMI cable accepts a Male HDMI (copper) cable. By using a short HDMI Male to DVI Male cable, this cable can also be used to support DVI applications. Thanks to its narrow outside diameter, this HDMI Fiber Optic Cable can navigate passages (conduit) that are too small for conventional DVI cables.

DVIGear’s HDMI Fiber Optic Cables will be available in December and will be offered in the following pre-terminated cable lengths: 10 meter, 15 meter, 20 meter, 25 meter, 30 meter, 50 meter, 75 meter and 100 meter. Custom cables lengths will be available on a special order basis.

HDTV Tomorrow
Just as HDTV begins to enter consumer electronics mainstream, it is poised for yet another evolution. The architects of today’s HDTV system, long ago, envisioned a day when advancing technology would enable what is now known as “full HD resolution.” For HDTV buffs this resolution is known simply as “1080p.”

While today’s HDTV standards actually embrace a multiplicity of different display standards, the most common HD resolutions are known as 720p (1280 x 720 pixels @ 60 Hz refresh) and 1080i (1920 x 1080 pixels @ 30 Hz refresh). Where the “p” denotes a progressive (a.k.a. non-interlaced) scanning system and the “i” denotes an interlaced scanning system. Without delving too deeply into video theory it is sufficient to say that a progressive scanning system is superior to an interlaced system if the resolutions of both are the same. This is because certain artifacts cause a loss of vertical resolution in interlaced scanning systems, particularly if there is vertical motion (e.g. movie credits that scroll up the screen). There is much debate between video enthusiasts as to which of these two formats is “better” -- 720p because of its inherently stable progressive scanning system or 1080i with its ostensibly higher resolution. While these two formats have fundamental differences, they have one surprising thing in common - they require the exact same amount of bandwidth. This is because both systems use a pixel clock frequency of 74.25 MHz in the analog domain. In the digital domain, DVI and HDMI signals based on these resolutions have a bit rate of 742.5 Mbit/sec. (see Figure 1).

1080p
The debate over 720p vs. 1080i continues, but one thing is clear - a system that offers the best of both would be ideal. In other words, combine the high resolution of the 1080i system with the stable progressive scanning of 720p. The result is 1080p (1920 x 1080 pixels @ 60 Hz refresh). A very important aspect of 1080p is that it requires double the bandwidth of its lesser HD siblings 720p and 1080i. The SMPTE 274M standard defines the pixel frequency for 1080p/60 as 148.5 MHz; the digital bit rate is 1.485 Gbit/sec.

From its earliest days in the primordial cosmos of HD, 1080p has been the “holy grail” of HDTV developers. However, the technology to create and display 1080p images has been astronomically expensive until just recently. There are now a few 1080p displays on the market such as Sharp’s PN-455, a breathtaking 45” LCD monitor. More 1080p capable displays are appearing and many more are in development.

Next-Generation DVDs
The real driver for widespread adoption of 1080p hinges not only on the availability of 1080p displays, but the accessibility of usable source material. There are relatively few 1080p sources that are within the grasp of most consumers. One good example is Microsoft’s Windows Media High Definition Video. Microsoft allows users to download 1080p video clips from Microsoft’s WMV HD Content Showcase and play them back using a current version of Microsoft Windows Media Player (version 9 or higher):

http://www.microsoft.com/windows/windowsmedia/content_provider/film/ContentShowcase.aspx

There are only a small handful of DVD titles available using Microsoft’s WMV-HD format, but as long as your PC and monitor are up to snuff, you can watch these 1080p flicks right now. For the rest of us, we’ll have to wait for the next-generation DVD players to hit the market. If the consumer electronics manufacturer’s have their way, that wait will be measured in months, not years.

Currently, two formats are competing for the next generation of high definition DVD players: the HD-DVD standard, developed by Toshiba and NEC, and Blu-Ray, developed by Sony. Each group has a backing of diverse constituents from the video and PC industries as well as Hollywood studios. So far, each group has not made any compromise that would allow a single, unified standard to emerge. The stakes are incredibly high, as today the home DVD player and recorder market is valued at $10 billion per year. The global value of all DVD non-hardware products is expected to grow at an average 18 percent a year to $77 billion by 2009, up from $33 billion in 2004, based on market research from In-Stat, a high-tech market research firm.

What is clear is that the companies that establish the next DVD standard will reap royalties on their technology for many years to come. It is also clear that these next-generation DVDs will accelerate adoption of full resolution HDTV (1080p) because other forms of delivery (cable, satellite, off-air) will probably take years to catch-up because of the huge amount of spectrum required to broadcast HDTV at 1080p resolution.

Many industry analysts agree that the rapidly accelerating move toward 1080p may eclipse today’s HDTV standards. In its February 2005 issue of Projection Monthly, Insight Media, a respected market research firm based in Norwalk, Connecticut had this to say about 1080p’s potential:

We believe that 1080p will emerge as the new HD standard for all consumers. This will be driven primarily by consumer preference in not wanting to be “burned” from buying into a technology too soon. No one wants to buy a product that eventually devolves into a “stop-gap” solution with “limited” display resolution. Never mind the present content void, or the fact that very few consumers can discern the difference between the formats - the 1080p display spec will become a check-box line item required to “future proof” their purchases. Imagine plopping down $4K, $6K, or even $8K for the hottest new display only to learn 9 to 12 months later that a 1080p broadcast or Blu-Ray HD DVD movie is “downrezed” to match your lower display resolution.

Future-Ready HDTV
Does this sound great, or just sound confusing? No matter how you look at it, technology marches inexorably onward. The big question is what to do about it? If you recently purchased an analog HDTV system, don’t open the window just yet. There’s a good chance that your system will be supported, albeit at lower resolutions, for years to come. However, if you are contemplating a new HDTV system, take a moment to consider these important questions:

1.) Do I want a system that will display 720p and 1080i only, or do I want a system that will show full HD resolution (1080p) either now or in the future?

2.) If my system only does 720p and 1080i, how important is it for me to have an upgrade path to 1080p? What system level infrastructure would be needed to support a future 1080p upgrade?

3.) How can I be sure that ALL my system components will work in a 1080p environment?

4.) I’m running DVI and/or HDMI cables inside my walls, how can I be sure they will work with 1080p sources when I upgrade my system down the road?

5.) How far away can my system components be from my display?

6.) Who can help me figure all of this out?

These are just a few of the important questions that the owners of HD systems must consider as 1080p emerges into preeminence as the HD format of choice in the new era of digital television. Fortunately, there are people to help you make this transition.

DVIGear has been at the forefront of the digital connectivity revolution since 1999 when the DVI standard was first introduced. DVIGear offers a wide range of digital connectivity solutions in four key areas: high resolution digital cables, adapters, wall plates and electronic distribution and conversion products.

DVIGear operates in three distinct disciplines: digital Education, Solutions and Products. These elements form the core of DVIGear’s d-ESP support program. Our belief is by engineering superior products and offering world-class technical support, we can deliver superior solutions that not only take the hassle out of dealing with changes in technology, but actually make it fun. Contact us to learn how we can put our digital expertise to work for you.

http://www.dvigear.com/education/DCarch.html