Graphics card manufacturer Sapphire has announced that it will be previewing a version of ATI's Radeon X1600 Pro with HDMI at CEBIT.
Before we cover the implications of this, does everybody know what HDMI is? We hear a few no's there... HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interface. You might consider it a successor of DVI, as it supports uncompressed high resolution video signals along with about a million (well, eight) audio channels. It is intended as a means of linking together multimedia devices such as high definition televisions, monitors and swanky sound systems.
The X1600 Pro, while not the fastest card in the pack, is a reasonable place to start, given its Avivo support and as such its HD video playback capabilities. Sapphire has said the card, which they claim is the first based on currently available GPUs, will be a low-profile PCIe part, which means that it should be easier to cram into a media-center style PC - one of the places where HDMI is likely to be taken on-board quickest.
The catch? Well, nothing on Sapphire's part, by the looks, but there might be some disagreeable 'features' of HDMI to contend with. A high definition HDMI display probably isn't going to display anything in full high-def from any other kind of video input. The reason for this is HDCP - High Definition Content Protection. HDMI supports this means of controlling what can be done which high-definition DRM'd content.
Couple HDMI hardware with Windows Vista and its generation of DRM'd material, and you can only output something over HDMI to a trusted device that isn't going to copy the content and harm any multi-million earning companies. No HDMI? Don't worry, you'll still be allowed to play back DRM'd content, but it won't be at full resolution, making sure you can't steal a full-quality copy of the content, you thief, you.
So, Sapphire is providing the means for us to take-up HDMI (and thus HDCP). The tech world is split on how big a deal this actually is, but ultimately it will be the system builders and consumers (that's Joe Public, not you tech-heads) that dictate the success of HDMI and its content protection brethren.
HEXUS.links
HEXUS.pr :: Sapphire's press release.
