If you have ever needed to connect a gaming console to a TV, a PC to a monitor, or a laptop to a projector, you have probably used an HDMI connector. High Definition Multimedia Interface, or HDMI for short, is an interface used to transmit audio and video data in an uncompressed or compressed form. The HDMI standard was designed to be the digital replacement for previous analog standards. Before we had the HDMI interface, audio and video transmission was done via analog standards like DVI and VGA.
But not all HDMI connectors are created equal, and we have quite a few different versions of HDMI connectors floating around nowadays. Today, we’ll be looking at two of the more popular versions: the HDMI 1.4 standard and the HDMI 2.0 standard. This article will compare the performance and features of the two.
HDMI 1.4 was released in June of 2009 and was the first HDMI connector to support 4K resolutions. HDMI 1.4 added support for 4096 by 2160 at 24 Hz and for 3840 by 2160 at 24, 25, and 30 Hz. For 1440p resolutions, it supported only 60 Hz, and finally, for 1080p, it supported up to 120 Hz. It was also the first to support HDMI Ethernet Channel or HEC, which allowed users to connect an HDMI connector for an Ethernet connection for up to 100 megabits per second.
HDMI ARC was also game-changing for the HDMI 1.4 standard. ARC stands for Audio Return Channel, and it was basically a protocol that offered two communication channels between devices over a single channel. Before HDMI ARC, you would have needed to have different cables for audio input and output. HDMI 1.4 also introduced other novel features like supporting 3D movies over HDMI cables, which was big back in 2009. In terms of color performance, HDMI 1.4 added support for additional color spaces like sYCC601, Adobe RGB, and Adobe YCC601. Simply put, HDMI was able to transmit more color-accurate pictures than previous versions.
But HDMI 2.0, which came out in 2013, brought over a massive increase in bandwidth. HDMI 1.4 could only do 10.2 gigabits per second, but HDMI 2.0 almost doubled that with 18 gigabits per second. This allowed HDMI to support even higher resolutions and higher frame rates. HDMI 2.0 could do 4K at 60 Hz, 1440p at 120 Hz, and 1080p at 240 Hz, which was basically double of what anything that HDMI 1.4 could do.
In terms of pixel quality, HDMI 2.0 introduced support for 12-bit color, which meant support for 68 billion unique colors. HDMI 1.4, on the other hand, could only support 8-bit color system or 16.7 million unique colors. HDMI 2.0 also got an upgrade in the audio quality department. HDMI 1.4 supported a maximum of 8 channels at 768 kilohertz. HDMI 2.0, on the other hand, supported a maximum of 32 channels of 1536 kilohertz. This was a huge upgrade in the audio stream quality, but what made this update a huge hit amongst consumers was that 32 channel capability it brought Dolby Atmos standard to entertainment systems at home and allowed users to set up 5.1 and 7.2 speaker systems in their homes and truly enjoy 3D audio experiences in the comfort of their sofa.
However, it wasn’t until 2015 that HDMI got High Dynamic Range support. The HDMI 2.0 protocol added HDR support to the HDMI ecosystem. HDR had become a staple now for home entertainment systems, and nowadays, almost every blockbuster movie or AAA game on either PC or console comes with HDR support.
All of these versions can get a little bit confusing, but hopefully, this article has helped you understand the differences a little bit better so that when you’re buying your next device with an HDMI port, you know what to look out for and make sure that it suits your needs.