I believe everyone is familiar with the Type-C interface,In the early years, because of the early adoption of LETV mobile phones and Huawei mobile phones,This is also known as"LETV port","Huawei port。 Nowadays, the vast majority of Android phones and tablets use the Type-C interface. The iPhone15 series launched by Apple last year has also been replaced with Type-C interfaces.
The Type-C interface is generally used for charging, data transmission, and video transmission. As a blind mate interface that does not need to distinguish between forward and reverse directions, the versatility of Type-C can be said to be very good.
Speaking of interfaces, HDMI and DP are the most commonly used interfaces in the field of TV and display, respectively, of which HDMI interface has been born for more than 20 years, and DP interface has been born for nearly 18 years. Having said that, HDMI and DP are both types of interfaces that do not support positive and negative blind plugging, and you need to judge the direction of the interface when using them.
The question is, can Type-C, as an interface that supports both positive and negative blind plugging and can meet the needs of video transmission, perfectly "replace" HDMI and DP interfaces?
1. Brief description of the Type-C interface
Type-C does not belong to the interface type, but refers to a physical interface form. Similar to USB-A, USB-B, Micro-USB, Mini USB, etc. The form of the interface does not determine the function of the interface, but the protocol that really determines the function of the interface.
The types of protocols are varied, covering data transmission protocols, video transmission protocols, charging protocols, and more. If a Type-C port uses the PD charging protocol, it will become a charging interface, and if the DP video protocol is used, it will be a video interface.
2. Can Type-C interface replace HDMI and DP?
From a technical point of view, it is completely feasible to replace HDMI and DP with Type-C. I believe that careful friends have also discovered that many laptop products have canceled the design of HDMI video interface, and only retain USB-A interface and Type-C interface.
The reason is that the USB interface can be used as a data transmission interface, but also as a charging interface, video interface, which can completely replace the HDMI interface, DP interface, DC power interface, etc., to provide video transmission and charging;
In terms of display devices, there are also cases where USB interfaces are used instead of traditional video interfaces. Take the Dell monitor as an example in the figure below, the body is equipped with a Type-C interface that supports video input, which means that you can use a C to C data cable to directly connect computers/mobile phones/tablets and other devices with Type-C interface to the display to achieve screen projection.
3. It is not easy for Type-C to become mainstream
However, it is not easy for the Type-C interface to completely replace HDMI and DP as the mainstream video interface.
First of all, there are two major organizations behind the HDMI interface and DP interface - HDMI Association and VESA. The HDMI Association created the HDMI interface and the HDMI protocol, and VESA stands for "Video Standards Electronics Association", which is the creator of the DP interface and the DP protocol.
The founding members of the HDMI Association are basically the major giants in the TV field, and VESA includes a number of display manufacturers behind it. And this can also explain why TVs mostly use HDMI interfaces, while monitors mostly use DP interfaces. The creator of the Type-C interface is USB-IF, which is the USB standardization organization, and its members include HP, Intel, Microsoft and other computer manufacturers.
Therefore, from a business point of view, HDMI and DP have established a very mature software and hardware ecosystem, and equipment manufacturers and related enterprises with HDMI and DP interfaces can obtain significant economic benefits from them, which determines that Type-C interfaces cannot replace HDMI and DP interfaces in the short term.
On the other hand, HDMI and DP interfaces have been around for 15+ years, and users have formed a certain dependence and habit on these two types of interfaces. The ease of use and reliability of these two types of interfaces will make users inclined to continue using them rather than looking for new alternatives.
From a technical point of view, although the Type-C interface is very bright in blind mating, it does not have many advantages in video transmission. At present, the HDMI 2.1 interface can meet the transmission of 4K/120Hz and 8K/60Hz images, and the latest DP 2.1 interface can even meet the transmission of 16K/60Hz images.
On the side of the Type-C interface, even if the Type-C interface of the latest Thunderbolt 4 protocol is adopted, it supports up to 8K/60Hz picture transmission, which is basically the same as HDMI and DP. The performance advantage is not obvious enough, which is also an important reason why terminal manufacturers do not consider using it to replace traditional video interfaces for the time being.
Fourth, the article summary
Overall, the Type-C interface replaces HDMI and DP interfaces, which is completely feasible at the technical level. However, based on the habits that users have developed and the interests of manufacturers, it will take time for Type-C to completely replace HDMI and DP interfaces.
What is the most commonly used video interface for you?