The next generation of HDMI actually adds some welcomed features
By Ben Drawbaugh 
posted Jan 6th 2009 9:59PM
posted Jan 6th 2009 9:59PM
Every year we stop by and talk to HDMI and every year there's not much new. But finally we are happy to say there are some cool new things coming to the HDMI spec in 2009. Of course it will carry more pixels than the old version and then there is a new smaller connection -- no not that one -- but neither of those really get us excited. The real interesting additions once again fit into the "why wasn't that there before" category. This includes an actual real high speed data Ethernet connection, and we're happy to report that unlike the current data HDMI supports, this isn't in the blanking interval. But that isn't the most interesting feature -- although it might end up being the most, depending on how it's implemented -- the most welcome addition is the audio return channel. Any who's attempted to use their TV's internal tuner knows all too well that currently although you have an HDMI cable running from your AVR to your TV, you still need another Toslink cable running back from your TV to get the surround sound out of your TV. Thankfully this will be the thing of the past, well, that is after the spec is implemented in upcoming products and you replace all your HDMI cables. HDMI Founders Look Toward the Future as they Win Emmy for StandardNext-Generation HDMI Capabilities Will Add Networking, Higher Speeds and Address Emerging Auto Industry
LAS VEGAS, January 7, 2009 – HDMI Licensing, LLC, the agent responsible for licensing the High-Definition Multimedia Interface™ (HDMI™) specification, today announced an overview of the capabilities and features of the next version of the HDMI specification which will be launched in the first half of 2009.
"HDMI has reached an installed base of more than 600 million devices and now touches almost every consumer device that plays HD content. We want to give the industry a preview of where the HDMI specification is headed as we continue to innovate and meet the needs of this dynamic marketplace," said Steve Venuti, president of HDMI Licensing, LLC.
Our goal is to address 5 key industry trends in the coming spec:
• Networking
o Consolidation of HD video, HD audio and now high speed data with the addition of Ethernet in the HDMI cable.
• Audio Return Channel
o Elimination of a S/PDIF cable by allowing a TV to send audio streams upstream to an A/V receiver for processing and playback over the HDMI cable
• Performance
o 4kx2k and 3D are high performance features to be met by increasing the upper limit of the HDMI link
• HD in your Car
o New connector specification for the auto industry as worlds' largest auto makers move to digital HD video and audio for 21st century cars with HDMI
• Smaller connector
o New smaller 19-pin connector
As a testament to the success and proliferation of the HDMI standard over the past six years, the National Academy of Television Arts & Sciences (NATAS) has presented the HDMI founders with the Technology & Engineering Excellence Emmy® Award on January 7, 2009, for their contribution to the development and implementation of the HDMI technology standard.
The HDMI standard continues to grow in the marketplace with now over 850 adopters worldwide. The growing adoption of the HDMI specification by both CE and PC manufacturers further strengthens its position as the worldwide standard for high-definition digital connectivity. According to market research firm In-Stat, over 394 million HDMI-enabled devices are expected to ship in 2009, and by the end of 2009 100% of digital televisions will have at least one HDMI input. For more information on the HDMI standard please visit http://www.hdmi.org.
How will audio return on the HDMI port of the AVR if the port is output only? Wouldn't an update on the AVR be needed as well?
Or do they make AVRs with 2 way on the output HDMI port?
Yes, the AVR (and the TV) need to be fixed / upgraded to route the TV audio over the (erstwhile free copper) in the HDMI cable. Very likely no free lunch here ... if you happen to buy both a new TV and a new AVR, both of which correctly implement this feature, then you can save a cable (although you probably need to buy new ones). Knowing the (lack of) speed and compatibility of HDMI adoption, I wouldn't bother to drop a mail to Santa this year yet. Maybe for the 2010 X'mas..i.e, if the CE industry survives the recession.
I'm all for innovation, but I'm not upgrading all my gear to save 1 optical cable.
Agree, but 4 or 5 years from now maybe.
Does it add the feature of not being a pain in the ass and actually working?
Does anybody else find it noisome at best that we have a changing spec on a consumer standard? How on earth are regular people supposed to not feel ripped off, when I, a fairly experienced computer/audio person, can't even keep track of the different sub-specs of the current standard? I realize things improve all the time, and digital advances mean the need for change, and even that forward-thinking a spec raises the price, but come on. Somebody should have sat down and planned out the full details for hdtv line transmissions 6 years, with all these details included. Why didn't they, for example, just start with some good ol' fashioned infinite bandwidth fiber optic cable? (I know, fragility. But, still.)
I realize I'm being a curmudgeon here, but, I got a blu-ray player as a present for Christmas. Now I have to upgrade my stereo since God forbid we actually transmit surround sound over anything but HDMI. My tube HD does have HDMI- but who knows if it'll work. Now I hear about new specs, which mean new receivers, and new flat panels, which means spending much larger sums to be future-proofed.
I realize that all these newer faster electronics gives us more exciting possibilities. Leaving the market to be totally driven by the obsessives, however, hurts the industry overall by making everybody else feel like they're being ripped off as soon as they get home and discover all the caveats. And it makes us want NOT to buy the newest toys.
noisome...
I've never seen that word before. Awesome.