HDMI 2.1 should make televisions, AV receivers and players fit for the coming years. HDMI has made a big technical leap with version 2.1.

(Image: Thorsten Hübner)

HDMI 2.1: technology and first practical experience Dynamic HDR formats Extended audio return channel Resolutions and refresh rates DSC compression method Variable refresh rate Conclusion Article in c’t 1 / 2021 read With the latest specification of the HDMI interface, one can really not speak of a snap shot: Although the beginning 2017, audio / video receivers and players – namely Microsoft’s Xbox Series – have only been available for a few months after televisions , Sony’s Playstation 5 and Nvidia’s RTX – 30 – graphics cards – available with HDMI 2.1. AMD’s Big-Navi series graphics cards have just started.

In defense of the HDMI forum behind the interface, it must be said that some of the innovations introduced with HDMI 2.1 compared to the last version 2.0b bring significantly more changes to the basic technical structure than the numbering suggests. On the other hand, HDMI 2.1 also includes functions that impatient system developers and manufacturers have already cleverly integrated into devices that use even older HDMI versions, some in a slimmed-down form.

Dynamic HDR formats These include the dynamic HDR formats Dolby Vision and HDR 10 +, where film studios create the desired image impression scene for Set scene and not only – as with the previously specified static HDR 10 – once for the entire film. Dolby and Samsung succeeded in converting the metadata from Dolby Vision and HDR 10 + as a workaround to “hide” in the video data stream, so that streaming clients and UHD Blu-ray players have been able to deliver HDR images in these formats to suitable TVs for years.

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