The display performance of this device is so important that it’s even in the name, so it’s no wonder that Google opted to make this a DisplayPort-only device for the external display connection. Some of you may be asking “where is the HDMI port?” By using DisplayPort, the HDMI output becomes obsolete since simple adaptors can be used for HDMI and VGA displays. The DisplayPort output also allows high-performance DisplayPort-enabled displays to be connected. DisplayPort has the ability to support very high display resolutions, color depths, and refresh rates when compared to the other display types. The end result is a better visual experience all through the one DisplayPort interface. Choosing to only include DisplayPort also helps to make this one of the lightest laptops we’ve seen.

Over the last twelve months, the number of certified DisplayPort products has increased by 80 percent, further establishing the DisplayPort ecosystem. With last year’s growth in DisplayPort products, VESA expects to see a continued influx in DisplayPort-only products coming to the market. In fact, in the first months of 2013, we have already seen DisplayPort-only products hit the market from Lenovo, Dell, Microsoft and now Google.

Want a closer look at the new Google Chromebook Pixel? Check out this video from Engadget for a virtual hands-on.

As mobile device OEMs offer larger, higher-resolution displays, the burden on the data compression interface is greater. Both MIPI Alliance and VESA’s member companies bring significant technical knowledge to the joint activity.

Since launching its Display Working Group in 2004, MIPI Alliance offers a broad portfolio of display interface specifications targeting communication between the mobile applications processors and the display peripherals. Focusing on mobile devices, the MIPI Display specifications are highly scalable from one to four lanes and supports up to 12-bit/color offering brilliant, realistic color rendering for the most demanding imagery and video scenes.

“We are very pleased to join VESA in this effort to improve display interface technology,” said Joel Huloux, chairman of the Board of MIPI Alliance. “Higher resolution, lower power and lower cost for mobile displays are key areas for mobile, personal computer and consumer electronics manufacturers. We believe our joint discussions will generate new approaches that enable a deterioration-free image quality.”

VESA has developed more than 50 display and display interface standards such as DisplayPort™, a high-bandwidth video interface. The VESA DisplayPort standard has evolved to include extensions of the standard such as Embedded DisplayPort (eDP) and Mobility DisplayPort (MyDP), accommodating new form factors including mobile devices. DisplayPort is being rapidly adopted by leading personal computer, display, and digital signage component manufacturers.

“Mobile devices are the new media hub for consumers wishing to experience their mobile content in diverse settings,” said Bill Lempesis, executive director, VESA. “Extensions to the DisplayPort standard such as eDP, have allowed DisplayPort to become a diverse standard adapting to new form factors. This joint venture with MIPI will allow for continued collaboration toward improving data compression schemes for mobile display applications.”

About MIPI Alliance

MIPI Alliance is a global, collaborative organization comprised of companies that span the mobile ecosystem and are committed to defining and promoting interface specifications for mobile devices. MIPI Specifications establish standards for hardware and software interfaces which drive new technology and enable faster deployment of new features and services.

About VESA

The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) is an international, non-profit standards association representing a global network of hardware, software, personal computer, display and component manufacturers committed to developing and promoting the electronics industry. VESA’s established track record of creating and supporting simple, universal and cross-product solutions for today’s video and electronics industry, such as DisplayPort, provides consumers with the confidence necessary to explore new technology standards such as multi-monitor streaming, direct drive capability and full HD 3D support without confusion or difficulty. For more information about VESA, visit www.vesa.org.

MIPI^® is a registered mark of MIPI Alliance, Inc.

VESA^® is a registered mark of Video Electronics Standards Association

Newark, Calif., January 31, 2013 – The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA®) today announced the latest release of the DisplayPort Dual-Mode Standard. This release supports the next generation of Dual-Mode DisplayPort enabled personal computers and Dual-Mode DisplayPort cable adaptors, expected to be available to consumers later this year.  Among several refinements to improve interoperability, the updated standard enables a higher data rate for DisplayPort-to-HDMI cable adaptors, providing support for HDMI 1.4 display resolutions such as 1080p 3D at 60Hz, and Ultra HD (4K x 2K) up to 30Hz frame rate, as well as 1080p with deep color.

“The first Ultra HD displays were introduced in 2012, but today’s Dual-Mode DisplayPort-to-HDMI cable adaptors limit display resolution to 1080p,” said Craig Wiley, senior director of marketing at Parade Technologies, and VESA Board of Directors chairman. “For a personal computer to fully support HDMI 1.4 or deep color, today a separate HDMI output is needed.  This updated DisplayPort Dual-Mode Standard version 1.1 enables full support of HDMI 1.4 video modes, and 1080p deep color, using a simple cable adaptor plugged into the system’s DisplayPort output.  This helps to reduce the number of interface ports needed on a Personal Computer, which is desirable as form factors shrink.”

Developed by VESA’s nearly 200 leading industry member companies, the DisplayPort Dual Mode Standard defines the requirements for Dual-Mode DisplayPort source devices and Dual-Mode DisplayPort cable adaptors.  DisplayPort was developed to provide a single video interface that both provides advanced features as well as interoperability with legacy displays including VGA and DVI, and HDMI.  The new Dual-Mode Standard is in line with this objective by enabling the support of the latest HDMI standard, HDMI 1.4.  In addition to releasing the DisplayPort Dual-Mode Standard Version 1.1, VESA is also releasing an updated DisplayPort Dual-Mode Cable Adaptor Compliance Test Specification, version 1.1.   Conformance to the updated Compliance Test Specification, or CTS, is required for using the DisplayPort logo with a Dual-Mode Cable Adaptor.

A Dual-Mode DisplayPort source is a device, such as personal computer, that can logically output either DisplayPort or TMDS (Transitional-Minimized Differential Signaling) from the DisplayPort output connector, enabling the support of DisplayPort, DVI, and HDMI monitors. An additional device, specifically a Dual-Mode DisplayPort cable adaptor, is required to convert the mechanical connector, as well as the electrical aspects of the signal, to output that is compatible with a DVI or HDMI cable and display.  A Dual-Mode DisplayPort source automatically detects the presence of a plugged-in Dual-Mode DisplayPort cable adaptor and provides the DVI or HDMI signal, as required, to support the connected DVI or HDMI monitor.

Prior to the updated Dual-Mode Standard release, Dual-Mode cable adaptors were limited to a TMDS clock rate of 165MHz providing support for display resolutions up to 1080p with 60Hz and 24 bits color.  In this latest specification, a new Dual-Mode cable adaptor configuration is defined that enables a TMDS clock rate of up to 300MHz.  While the DVI standard limits TMDS clock rates up to 165MHz, the HDMI 1.4 specification allows TMDS clock rates up to 297MHz, enabling the support of  1080p 3D at 60Hz, or Ultra HD (4K x 2K) up to 30Hz frame rate.

With the release of this new VESA specification, existing adaptors will now be referred to as “Type 1” adaptors, and the new adaptors as “Type 2.”  A Type 2 adaptor will be backward compatible with an existing Dual-Mode DisplayPort source device, but it will only support up to a 165MHz TMDS clock rate unless it is used with a “Type 2 enabled” Dual-Mode DisplayPort source device.  Some existing systems will be software updatable to support Type 2 adaptors.  A Type-2 enabled Dual-Mode DisplayPort Source devices, together with a Type 2 Dual-Mode DisplayPort-to-HDMI adaptor, will enable support for HDMI 1.4 display modes such 1080p 3D at 60Hz, or Ultra HD (4K x 2K) up to 30Hz frame rate, as well as 1080p with deep color. Type 2 adaptor prototypes are currently available from multiple suppliers.

For more information about the DisplayPort Dual-Mode Standard, please visit http://www.displayport.org. For more information about VESA, please visit http://www.vesa.org/ or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

 NEWARK, Calif., January 24, 2013 – The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA®) today announced the completion of requirements for the Display Stream Compression Standard, which is anticipated to be published in late 2013. The association first initiated efforts for a common industry-wide standard in September 2012 and since formed alliances with other standards bodies for contributions.

VESA’s objective for the Display Stream Compression Standard is to enable increased display resolutions over existing interfaces, while further optimizing power and hardware for portable systems. To ensure a broad scope of the more encompassing DSC standard, VESA established a liaison with Joint Photographic Experts Group (JPEG), through its parent committee under the joint organization of the International Organization for Standardization and the International Electrotechnical Commission, ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 29, and with the MIPI Alliance. The shared goal is to have a common standard that can be used by the various organizations for interface standards.

VESA’s Display Stream Compression task group completed the definition of requirements in late 2012 and announced a call for proposals in January 2013. The standard is expected to be published for use by the end of 2013. In contrast with other image or video compression standards, the proposed Display Stream Compression Standard targets a relatively low compression ratio and emphasizes visually-lossless performance, high data throughput, low latency, low complexity, and includes special considerations geared for future display architectures.

“Display manufacturers gain from display stream compression in many ways,” said Dale Stolitzka, VESA Display Compression Standard Task Group chairman and member of Samsung Display’s San Jose R&D Lab . “Display technology continues to improve resolution and color depth in small and large panel sizes. However, we are approaching the limit of how much data we can transfer over the existing display interfaces without increasing power, complexity and number of wires, which is the wrong direction for a mobile device that runs on battery power. The Display Stream Compression Standard will allow us to continue to enhance display resolution without compromising display quality and at the same time make devices smaller and lighter, with longer battery life.”

In current practice, virtually all digital display interfaces send uncompressed pixel data from the system graphics or video source to the display. As display resolutions continue to increase, the data rate across the video electrical interface has also increased. Higher display refresh rates and color depths push rates up even further. For example, a 4K display at 60 frames per second with a 30 bit color depth  requires a data rate of about 17.3 gigabits per second, which is the current limit of the DisplayPort specification. Higher interface data rates demand more power, can increase the interface wire count, and require more shielding to prevent interference with the device’s wireless services. These attributes increase system hardware complexity and weight and are undesirable for today’s sleek product designs.

Participation in the Display Stream Compression Standard development is available to all VESA member companies and through inter-organization liaison agreements. For more information on VESA, please visit http://www.vesa.org/. For more information about DisplayPort, please visit http://www.displayport.org or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

 INTERNATIONAL CES 2013, LAS VEGAS, January 8, 2013 – The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA®) today announced the rapid growth of certified DisplayPort™ products during 2012. Over the last twelve months, the number of certified DisplayPort products increased by 80 percent, further establishing the DisplayPort ecosystem as planned by the personal computer industry to increase display and system performance.

During 2012, DisplayPort certifications have increased across all device categories and have expanded into new categories. Certification in computer monitors has grown 95 percent, projectors 100 percent, and graphics cards 18 percent, and there was a 20 percent increase in cable products.  New categories experiencing certification growth include handheld devices, notebooks and adaptors.  With the introduction of MyDP (Mobility DisplayPort) the DisplayPort ecosystem has been further extended into the tablet and smartphone market.

“Within the past year, we have seen a shift in the perception regarding the value of DisplayPort by system manufacturers,” said Bill Lempesis, executive director, VESA. “The increasing adoption rate signals a vote of confidence in DisplayPort and the growing DisplayPort ecosystem.  As consumers become accustomed to the various benefits and superior visual experiences, this will increase DisplayPort demand.  We will see further grown of certified DisplayPort products and continued expansion into other categories, including in TVs, in the coming year.”

VESA’s DisplayPort standard is a high-bandwidth video interface designed to enable features not available with other electronic connections, delivering true digital imaging and audio through a single cable.  DisplayPort is the only video interface that supports multiple displays and Ultra HD at 60 frames per second from a single video output.  DisplayPort significantly enhances display performance by doubling the maximum data transfer rate enabling multiple displays and increasing display resolution, color depths, and refresh rates when compared to other display interfaces.

“While the adoption of DisplayPort has been drawn out over the past few years, the standard has been moving ahead steadily,” said Brian O’Rourke, senior principal analyst, display electronics, IHS iSuppli.  “With DisplayPort’s widespread adoption in PC chip solutions, the standard is poised to have a successful year in 2013.”

At the International CES, VESA will be demonstrating various DisplayPort functionalities such as Multi-Stream (MST), daisy-chained monitors, Mobility DisplayPort (MyDP), Embedded DisplayPort (eDP) and High Bit Rate (HBR2). VESA will also showcase its exclusive feature of delivering Ultra HD resolution at 60 frames per second, a feature no other display standard is capable of doing today.

The International CES 2013 will be held January 8-11, 2013 in Las Vegas, Nevada. VESA’s technology demonstrations will take place at the DisplayPort booth #21431 in South Hall 1 of the Las Vegas Convention Center (LVCC).

For more information about DisplayPort, please visit http://www.displayport.org. For more information about VESA, please visit http://www.vesa.org/ or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

SANTA CLARA, Calif.–The high-speed, wire-free dream is moving closer to reality today, with the announcement of a major new industry partnership between the Wireless Gigabit (WiGig) Alliance and the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA). WiGig and VESA have established a highly effective, joint working group to advance the WiGig DisplayPort video standard certification.

This new joint working group will address interoperability between the DisplayPort standard and WiGig’s own Display Extension Protocol Adaption Layer (PAL). When the group’s work is complete, DisplayPort certified WiGig devices will be able to seamlessly interconnect without the need for any wires, providing a DisplayPort interface without the use of a DisplayPort cable.

Ali Sadri, president and chairman of the WiGig Alliance, says WiGig DisplayPort technology would be a great leap forward for consumers looking for the truly natural wireless experience. “High-definition wireless display is a fundamental pillar of the WiGig Docking Station,” said Sadri. “We have taken a different approach to the untethered devices by providing an unprecedented cable equivalent display technology without compromising on the quality of service. DisplayPort is already one of the most widely established display connection technologies for PCs and it is imperative that future WiGig devices are compatible. Having a joint working group is a great step along the road to full interoperability.”

The WiGig Alliance is responsible for developing the most advanced 60GHz multigigabit wireless standards, capable of transmitting at speeds of up to 7Gbps. VESA created, owns and certifies DisplayPort, which according to analyst firm IDC will be featured in 89.5 percent of commercial desktops and 95 percent of commercial notebooks by 2014.

“VESA recognizes WiGig’s enormous potential to enhance the user experience for portable devices. Consumers and professionals are becoming increasingly aware of DisplayPort’s image quality and advanced capabilities, and adding a wireless extension to DisplayPort further diversifies the DisplayPort protocol,” said Bill Lempesis, executive director of VESA. “By working together we can maintain the high standards set by DisplayPort’s certification process whilst extending the reach through enabling wireless functionality. This could be a killer app for WiGig and one that we are really excited to be a part of.”

WiGig Alliance published its Display PAL, known as WiGig Display Extension (WDE), in 2011. The specification was developed to support PC peripherals, HDTVs, monitors, and projectors. The spec also supports the latest High-bandwidth Digital Content Protection (HDCP) encryption and is capable of the transmission of both compressed and uncompressed video.

This latest news follows WiGig’s second Plugfest earlier this year, a very successful Taipei Computex Executive Summit and its centre-stage billing at the Intel Developer Forum in September.

For further information about WiGig visit the website at www.wigig.org.

NEWARK, Calif., November 9, 2012 – The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA^®) today announced the adoption of its Mobility DisplayPort™ (MyDP) Standard into newly released products. Released earlier this year, MyDP is an extension of the DisplayPort display interface standard enabling mobile devices to share high-definition video, audio, and 3D content with the broad universe of larger external displays through widely adopted connectors.

This past week, VESA member company Google announced the Nexus 4 smartphone will feature MyDP compatibility, allowing consumers to experience mobile content in full, uncompressed 1080p Full HDTV video format.  Following the Nexus 4 announcement, VESA member company Analogix announced a new addition to its SlimPort family of products, the ANX7808 transmitter IC. Built on the DisplayPort standard and leveraging MyDP technology, the SlimPort brand of products comply with the VESA MyDP standard and are designed to enable MyDP functionality in mobile devices. The new ANX7808 transmitter provides mobile device system integrators and OEMs greater design flexibility in enabling MyDP support from a variety of application processors.

“The appearance of MyDP functionality in mobile devices confirms that VESA is delivering attractive technology to manufactures and value to their consumers,” said Bill Lempesis, executive director of VESA. “Given the large ecosystem that has developed around DisplayPort, adoption of the related MyDP standard by leading technology companies provides consumers the ability to connect to many compatible devices.”

Through the MyDP interface, high-quality audio, video, and 3D content can be shared from a mobile device to larger external displays including an HDTV, projector, or PC monitor.  MyDP repurposes the micro-USB connector found on most smartphones and tablets and connects through a cable or adaptor the display’s HDMI, DisplayPort, or VGA input.  Uncompressed video up to Full HD 1080P, 60Hz 24-bit color is supported using a MyDP cable (MyDP to DisplayPort) or a simple cable adaptor (MyDP to HDMI, DVI or VGA).  Like with DisplayPort, the MyDP interface includes a 1Mbps sideband channel to simultaneously support auxiliary functions such as multi-touch, keyboard, mouse, and remote display control.  When connected to a DisplayPort-enabled display, mobile device battery charging is supported through the MyDP cable.

Backed by VESA’s nearly 200 member companies, MyDP adoption is expected to accelerate in next-generation mobile devices including tablets, ultrabooks, and smartphones; additional MyDP-enabled devices are expected to appear in early 2013. MyDP’s simple plug-and-play functionality with new and existing displays benefits the mobile ecosystem through ease-of-use by the consumer and better display quality of mobile content.  Hardware manufactures benefit from MyDP’s increased integration capability and reduced interference with wireless services, and the enabling of more robust business and gaming features; software developers can create more mobile-centric office and 3D entertainment apps; and carriers can provide a variety of new value-added services to leverage data plans and sell accessories like cables, docking stations, and more.

For more information about MyDP, please visit http://www.displayport.org. For more information about VESA, please visit http://www.vesa.org/ or connect with us on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube.

This version of VESA’s embedded display interface includes new features that will further reduce system power consumption,   support multi-touch data over the display interface, and support a wider range of platform topologies including tablets, handheld devices, and notebook PCs.  These new features will position eDP as the universal embedded display interface for mobile devices and will lead to increased battery life, reduce system size and weight, as well as increase overall display capabilities.

eDP v1.4 addresses system power reduction through new features, including a new partial-frame update capability for Panel Self Refresh (PSR), lower interface voltage swings, additional link rate options, transport data compression, and regional backlight control. The auxiliary channel will now carry multi-touch data from the display to system processor.  eDP v1.4 electrical interface parameters have also been enhanced to accommodate a wider range of system form factors and transmission media.

“Since the introduction of eDP, system and chip set developers within the VESA membership have been discussing more ways to take advantage of eDP,” said Craig Wiley, VESA chairman. “The packetized, bi-directional capability of DisplayPort, upon which eDP is based, adds a lot of flexibility to the display interface, simplifying system architecture and enabling more feature rich designs for system engineers. The culmination of many new ideas, this version will propel universal adoption of eDP as device manufacturers look to take advantage of its unsurpassed power saving capabilities and design flexibility.”

First introduced in 2009 as an extension of the DisplayPort standard, eDP was developed to replace the aging LVDS (Low-Voltage Differential Signaling) embedded display interface standard. In 2010, VESA member companies AMD and Intel Corporation  announced that they would be phasing out LVDS support in next generation chip sets by 2013 in favor of eDP because of LVDS’ limited capabilities, higher voltage levels requirements, and excessive interference with system wireless communication functions. Currently undergoing final review by VESA members, eDP1.4 is anticipated to be released in October 2012, and utilized in commercial products as early as 2014.