The HDMI cable which was adopted by the consumer electronics industry two years ago could soon get dropped by several major vendors in favour of a new cable that combines audio and video signals, USB, network and power into one single cable.
The new HDBaseT cable has been developed by a consortium of major consumer electronic and IT Companies including Sony, Samsung, LG and Valens.
The cable has been specifically designed according to Wikipedia for long-distance transmission of uncompressed high-definition video, audio, 100BaseT Ethernet, high-power over cable and various controls, via a 100m Cat5e/Cat6 cable with 8P8C RJ45 connectors of the type commonly known for telephone and Ethernet LAN connections.
Analysts are speculating that HDMI could be dead within 18 months of the new cable being launched with the only users of HDMI being consumers with an older flat screen TV.
Designed by the HDBaseT alliance which represents a culmination of efforts from several Companies the new cable is tipped to become the industry standard for entertainment and IT connectivity.
TV’s with an Ethernet port will be able to use the new cable however older TV’s without an Ethernet port which is the bulk of TV’s in the market today will have to rely on a HDMI cable.
The HDBaseT alliance insists that new cables won’t need to be purchased due to the technology working with current network wiring, Ethernet cables and an RJ-45 connector.
Connectivity for the new cable will be built into set-top boxes, DVD players, Blu-ray Disc players, personal computers (PCs), video game consoles and AV receivers.
The HDBaseT 1.0 specification was finalised last month.
Products embedded with HDBaseT technology are expected to ship in late 2010.
The Daily Telegraph in the UK said that current HDMI 1.4 cables allow stereoscopic 3D signals to be sent to a TV as well as normal and high definition content. The HDBaseT is capable of doing the same but also adds the ability to use a 100Mb/sec Ethernet connection and up to 100W of charging power.
The chairman of the HDBaseT Alliance, Ariel Sobelman hopes the cable will take over as the next generation TV standard.
“HDBaseT technology is poised to become the unrivalled next-generation home networking transport” he said.
