ATI Technologies, the world's biggest supplier of standalone graphics processing units (GPUs) said Thursday it expects first computers and monitors that support the new DisplayPort interfaces to emerge in early 2007. However, the company did not specify any timeframes concerning DisplayPort logic support by GPUs.
The standard, which will serve as a primary interconnection between monitors and personal computers (PCs), was ratified only recently, which means that the first graphics cards and, perhaps, displays will need a special chip that transmits signals according to DisplayPort standards.
ATI's Mazen Salloum said Thursday that several makers of transmitters are developing appropriate chips now and he expected to see the actual transmitter products later in 2006. It is highly likely, according to Mr. Salloum, that computer makers ?especially those, who specifically declared support for DisplayPort: Dell, HP and Lenovo ?will adopt DisplayPort interface early in 2007.
The spokesman for ATI did not specify when the company plans to integrate a DisplayPort transmitter into its GPUs, however, he said ?when it makes sense? The firm incorporated support for dual-link DVI interface into its Radeon X1000 lineup late last year, when only one or two monitors along with some specific applications used the standard.
The DisplayPort is designed to enable a common interface approach across both internal and external display connections. Internal connections include display interfaces within a notebook PC or within an LCD display. External display connections include the interface between a source device such as a desktop PC, set-top box, DVD player or game console, and a display device such as a direct view flat panel or projection display for viewing video and graphics. The DisplayPort standard will also include an optional digital audio capability allowing streaming of high definition digital audio-video content over the interface, and provides performance scalability to enable the next generation of displays featuring higher color depths, refresh rates, and display resolutions.
DisplayPort incorporates a Main Link, a high-bandwidth, low-latency, unidirectional connection supporting isochronous stream transport. One stream video with associated audio is supported in Version.1.0, but DisplayPort is seamlessly extensible, enabling support of multiple video streams. Version 1.0 also includes an Auxiliary Channel to provide consistent-bandwidth, low-latency, bi-directional connectivity with Main Link management, and device control based on VESA's E-DDC, E-EDID, DDC/CI and MCCS standards. The Link configuration enables true ?Plug-and-Play? The Main Link bandwidth enables data transfer at up to 10.8Gb/s using a total of four lanes.
The main backers of DisplayPort are ATI Technologies, Dell, Genesis Microchip, HP, Molex Incorporated, Nvidia, Royal Philips Electronics, Samsung Electronics, and Tyco Electronics.
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