After just recently announcing the DisplayPort 1.3 standard, VESA has today announced yet another major step forward for the entire electronics industry.

VESA, the governing body behind DisplayPort Alt actually has been working with the USB 3.0 promoter group to integrate the new DisplayPort Alt protocols into the new USB Type C connector due to be implemented in future computers and mobile devices. The brilliance of this partnership and announcement is that it combines the simplicity of USB Type C with the interoperability of DisplayPort across various standards and connectors. Remember, USB Type C is the USB IF’s own third standard connector (in addition to A and B) which allows for a perfectly reversible connector that is not only significantly smaller than the current USB connectors, but also orientation agnostic and capable of delivering up to 100 watts of power.

USB Type C Pin Out Diagram – Notice how its symmetrical and reversible

In simple terms, that means that you can have a 4K video signal transmitted over the very same cable that also powers your device and sends it other data. You could theoretically connect a Dell (NASDAQ: DELL) 4K display that has USB 3.1 ports and power over a single USB Type C connector, which would mean that most devices would only require a single USB Type C connector for all purposes. This usage model works only when a USB Type C connector is connected to another USB Type C connector, however there is still quite a bit of interoperatbility between previous USB connectors and standards with USB Type C and DisplayPort Alt mode.

Example Configurations of USB Type C with DisplayPort Alt Mode

Watch out Thunderbolt

With an industry standard USB Type C connector on both ends consumers can expect that their device will have up to USB 3.1 Gen 1 (5 Gbps) bandwidth, combined with up to 100 watts of power and DisplayPort audio and video signaling capability. This presents a direct challenge to Apple’s own Thunderbolt connector which is capable of both data and video like USB 3.1, but lacks power capabilities as well as the ability to send data, power and video at the same time. In fact, there have been rumors that Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) is actually behind pushing USB Type C and DisplayPort Alt due to the fact that its Thunderbolt cables still require Intel’s (NASDAQ: INTC) proprietary technology and don’t actually help improve bandwidth much greater than what USB 3.1 Gen 2 offers. A USB Type C cable with USB 3.1 Gen 2 (10 Gbps) is essentially just as capable as Thunderbolt is, as both standards only support 10 Gbps per cable.

Also, with DisplayPort Alt, a laptop or mobile device manufacturer doesn’t have to worry about what display a consumer might want to use because DisplayPort effectively supports all legacy standards in addition to DisplayPort (HDMI, DVI, VGA).

It also removes the problem that DisplayPort has been having with manufacturers, which is battling for connector space on PCBs and fitting into manufacturers’ progressively thinner and thinner designs. Now, everyone will want to have a USB Type C connector in their devices purely because of the fact that it fully support DisplayPort Alt mode which means that you can get full DisplayPort functionality through a USB cable and don’t need an additional connector (like you would with HDMI or standard DisplayPort connector). DisplayPort Alt mode essentially means that mobile device manufacturers can toss standards like HDMI and MHL to the wind and adopt a single cable for everything while still supporting legacy standards at the same time.

VESA is working with the USB IF to create a standard set of testing procedures for cables to certify them for DisplayPort Alt mode which will be signified by a simple DisplayPort logo on the USB cable, letting the consumer know that the cable is capable of DisplayPort Alt mode and therefore all of the things that come with that, including video signaling capabilities. The goal is to make this certification and testing procedure to be part of the USB Type C certification process so that manufacturers can easily adhere to it without needing additional equipment or testing procedures.

With this announcement, device manufacturers can now focus on a single connector standard and unify around it on a global scale. It will satisfy governments’ demands to have a single power connector across all mobile devices and it may even entice Apple to move away from their own proprietary lightning connector in order to make consumers’ lives easier and manufacturing costs lower. No more apologizing for not having a lightning connector or worrying about whether or not a friend might have a spare charger. It also will reduce the amount of connectors and cables that consumers may have to deal with in general as the industry moves towards a single standard connector for virtually everything ‘cabled’.

USB Type C and DisplayPort Alt mode are a match made in heaven and are a really great example of when companies (and standards organizations) work together to create industry standards that make technology better for everyone.

The post One Cable to Rule Them All: USB Type C With DisplayPort Alt Mode appeared first on VR World.

VESA officially announced the DisplayPort 1.3 Standard Monday, something long-time readers of Bright Side of News* may have already been familiar with.

Many months ago, there was talk about DisplayPort 1.3 exclusively on BSN*, those rumors pointed to 8K and 4K 3D. In terms of bandwidth, the 8.1 Gbps per channel was spot on as VESA’s new DisplayPort 1.3 bandwidth clocks in at exactly 32.4 Gbits/second. This is more than enough to support 4K video (as DisplayPort 1.2 already does this with much less bandwidth). However, the increase to 32.4 Gbps appears to be more of a future-proofing of DisplayPort 1.3 as it already incorporates 4K support as well as adaptive sync from the DisplayPort 1.2a standard that preceded it.

DisplayPort Bandwidth

The new DisplayPort 1.3 standard also brings HDCP 2.2 and HDMI 2.0 compatibility, enabling you to take a DisplayPort connector and make it into an HDMI 2.0 connector at will via an adapter. Thanks to the added bandwidth of the DisplayPort 1.3 standard, there is also the possibility of supporting 4K displays at 60 Hz and up to 24-bit color, and as if that all weren’t enough there are additional data channels available for USB 3.0 connectivity with Dockport. This means that we could expect to see USB 3.0 connectors on some 4K monitors using only a single data cable and a separate cable for power.

VESA is currently only talking about 5K resolution support like for the recently announced Dell 5K monitor with DisplayPort 1.3, which very likely means that we won’t see 4K3D and 8K support until DisplayPort 1.3a when VESA adopts their compression standard as part of DisplayPort. While there isn’t necessarily an exact timeframe for such an update, there’s a very good chance that the industry could see it follow shortly after DisplayPort 1.3’s announcement today. It is a little disappointing that the compression standard didn’t make it into DisplayPort 1.3, but there could have been a timing issue that caused a delay that wouldn’t have enabled DisplayPort 1.3 to have the necessary compression to support 8K resolution.

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As we had already reported, a component of the AMD technology coined as FreeSync has finally been ratified and standardized by VESA as part of the DisplayPort 1.2a standard. As of today, however, the standard will be known as Adaptive-Sync. While it may not be as catchy for companies like AMD, which liked to brag about the fact that their version of adaptive refresh rate syncing was a ‘free’ upgrade the truth is the technology is best named Adaptive-Sync. This is a more open version of what Nvidia’s currently doing with their G-Sync technology, which is also an adaptive-sync technology, but requires Nvidia GPU and Nvidia monitor electronics both of which are not only cost prohibitive but fairly closed in terms of accessibility to others. As such, Nvidia must be applauded for having brought this technology to market and for having made the issue a topic of discussion and ultimately resulting in DisplayPort’s supporting of this new adaptive-sync technology.

How Adaptive-Sync works in different scenarios

Adaptive-Sync is a great technology because it will allow both gaming desktop and notebook manufacturers to not only smooth out the frame rates of gaming and graphics, but also to only refresh the monitor as many times as the GPU is capable of delivering frames. This means that with fewer refreshes we could see much better power consumption and battery life out of these displays, which ultimately results in better power bills for people that always have their monitors on and better battery life for mobile devices that connect to an external display. Adaptive-Sync has been a part of VESA’s embedded DisplayPort, eDP, spec since 2009 and as a result, a lot of adaptive-sync technology is already incorporated into a lot of the components for displays that rely on eDP for internal signaling.

Implementation of DisplayPort Adaptive-Sync technology is offered to VESA members free without any license fee, which means we will likely see big monitor manufacturers like Dell and Samsung adopting this standard fairly quickly. This announcement, as we had stated earlier would likely happen in May, and precede VESA’s DisplayPort 1.3 announcement. This announcement is expected to come around the late Q2, early Q3 timeframe and will include all of the DisplayPort 1.2a features including adaptive-sync. And thanks to the inclusion of adaptive-sync into DisplayPort 1.2, the DisplayPort 1.3 standard may have an easier time enabling things like 8K video since supporting 8K video at variable lower frame rates going to be less bandwidth intensive than 30 or 60p. While we don’t know what the exact final specifications of DisplayPort 1.3 will be, we do know it will likely include VESA’s new video compression standard called Display Stream Compression which is designed to support up to 8K video. As we’ve said before, the people at VESA would really like to be able to maintain the same cabling as DisplayPort 1.1 and 1.2, however it may not be possible in order to enable 8K and 4K 3D technologies. Until then, we’ll keep you updated and informed on the latest from VESA and all of the video standards.

Update 11:35 am: AMD has sent us a series of Q&A about the new DisplayPort Adaptive-sync technology addressing some people’s questions

Q:What is DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync?
A: DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync is a new addition to the DisplayPort™ 1.2a specification, ported from the embedded DisplayPort™ v1.0 specification. DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync provides an industry-standard mechanism that enables real-time adjustment of a monitor’s refresh rate of a display over a DisplayPort™ link.

Q: What is Project FreeSync?
A: Project FreeSync is an AMD effort to leverage industry standards, like DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync, to deliver dynamic refresh rates. Dynamic refresh rates synchronize the refresh rate of a compatible monitor to the framerate of a user’s AMD Radeon™ graphics to reduce or eliminate stuttering, juddering and/or tearing during gaming and video playback.

Q: How are DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync and Project FreeSync different?
A: DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync is an ingredient DisplayPort™ feature that enables real-time adjustment of monitor refresh rates required by technologies like Project FreeSync. Project FreeSync is a unique AMD hardware/software solution that utilizes DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync protocols to enable user-facing benefits: smooth, tearing-free and low-latency gameplay and video.

Q: Is DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync the industry-standard version of Project FreeSync?
A: The DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync specification was ported from the Embedded DisplayPort™ specification through a proposal to the VESA group by AMD. DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync is an ingredient feature of a DisplayPort™ link and an industry standard that enables technologies like Project FreeSync.

Q: What are the requirements to use FreeSync?
A: To take advantage of the benefits of Project FreeSync, users will require: a monitor compatible with DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync, a compatible AMD Radeon™ GPU with a DisplayPort™ connection, and a compatible AMD Catalyst™ graphics driver. AMD plans to release a compatible graphics driver to coincide with the introduction of the first DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync monitors.

Q: When can I buy a monitor compatible with Project FreeSync?
A: AMD has undertaken every necessary effort to enable Project FreeSync in the display ecosystem. Monitor vendors are now integrating the DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync specification and productizing compatible displays. AMD is working closely with these vendors to bring products to market, and we expect compatible monitors within 6-12 months.

Q: What AMD Radeon™ GPUs are compatible with Project FreeSync?
A: The first discrete GPUs compatible with Project FreeSync are the AMD Radeon™ R9 290X, R9 290, R7 260X and R7 260 graphics cards. Project FreeSync is also compatible with AMD APUs codenamed “Kabini,” “Temash,” “Beema,” and “Mullins.” All compatible products must be connected via DisplayPort™ to a display that supports DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync.

Q: How is Project Freesync different from NVIDIA G-Sync?
A: While both technologies have similar benefits, G-Sync uses expensive and proprietary hardware. In contrast, Project FreeSync utilizes the industry-standard DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync specification to promote wider adoption, lower cost of ownership, and a broad ecosystem of compatibility.

Q: Why should gamers purchase a system that utilizes Project FreeSync?
A: Project FreeSync’s ability to synchronize the refresh rate of a display to the framerate of a graphics card can eliminate visual artifacts that many gamers are especially sensitive to: screen tearing, input lag, and stuttering. Project FreeSync aims to accomplish this through an open ecosystem that does not require licensing fees from participants, which encourages broad adoption and low end-user costs.

Q: What is the supported range of refresh rates with FreeSync and DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync?
A: AMD Radeon™ graphics cards will support a wide variety of dynamic refresh ranges with Project FreeSync. Using DisplayPort™ Adaptive-Sync, the graphics card can detect and set an appropriate maximum and minimum refresh rate based on the capabilities reported by the display. Potential ranges include 36-240Hz, 21-144Hz, 17-120Hz and 9-60Hz.

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