Apple miniDisplay port can be licensed - Apples fantasy world
Apple has opened up the DRMed, stripped down propitiatory miniDisplay port that is to be found on all MacBooks for free licensing.
I beg the gods of hardware heaven to have Apple fail with this endeavor. For humans not intelligent enough to learn from past mistakes there is no place on earth.
This "idea" has failure written all over it. First its a display port standard from apple. Something they have tried at least two times already without any kind of success - just leaving a lot of customers in the dust with exotic connectors that you can not buy any adaptors for anymore (I still have a fully functioning G5 with three adaptors dangling on its back just to get to VGA because a ADC to VGA adaptor is hugely expensive and hard to come by (so its ADC to DVI to VGA) . Secondly - I would be all over this spec if they actually managed to improve upon a spec that is far more versatile and robustly designed to begin with - HDMI. They could be in heaven if they would have made display port not broken by design and integrating degrading DRM in it. You know make it the antithesis of HDMI. But but what they do is try to release a new spec just after they have been blasted with criticism all over the netosphere about their inclusion of DRM so this is a now a hostile market and they think anyone is picking in up? HDMI - while having the same DRM problems at least does not have a marketing problem at the same time. Oh and what about freaking audio? At least the novelty of the failed ADC adaptor was to reduce cable clutter. Now apples "mini" version of the "standard display port" is ommiting the audio spec so you still have to add an audio cable to your clinical clean apple desk? (nothing I mind personally I would like to add - cable clutter has its charme ;)
It will be an epic failure again and I am totally unsure why Apple is putting itself in the same hot waters again as they must have learned from ADC at least a tiny bit - and ADC had a LOT more going for it then the miniDisplayPort - no bad press, not broken by design, less cables.
Comments
While I agree with the dislike the addition of DRM which both HDMI and DisplayPort would have brought, I don't know your source for the statement of the missing audio. I think the complaint would rather be that the current MacBook line does not support putting out audio over the DisplayPort rather than wrongfully accusing mini DisplayPort to not support audio output as a standard.
And I would also suggest not to forget the positive side of DisplayPort: no licensing fees. So my point being: what are you arguing for? HDMI instead of DisplayPort? Really? More licensing fees, same DRM problem, worse form factor of the connector. If the chipset in the MacBooks does not support audio output that is a fail, as is the missing DisplayPort to HDMI adaptor with included audio. And of course the failure to deliver the dual-DVI adaptor in time. But I really don't think that the world would be a better place if they had hopped onto HDMI.
Posted by: Dominik Wagner | 2.12.08 22:23
I am not sure about "worse" form factor - I think the usb like formfactor is great. The real problem is that HDMI is pretty much standard for video IO nowadays with every professional and semi professional equipment going the HDMI route - yes same DRM crap but that was my point if they go the DRM route then go the route that just became an industry standard 2 years ago instead of making another format war. And I donīt remember the source for the audio missing - but I read it in more then one place that miniDisplay as used by Apple has no audio capabilitiy. Me as Video Producer I would have really liked to just carry a HDMI cable and be prepared for everything you know ;) And I am burned by ADC with having wasted 100 euros at least on adapters just for this failed attempt by apple to make a new standard - I do not see why they think they can succeed this time. And yes I would rather pay 5 euros more for the computer then getting 100 euro+ adaptors... there is for me nothing that goes in favor of display port - and while the connector is more like firewire 400 I do not agree that the USB like connector of HDMI is any worse - point in case I never had a USB connector fall out under stress but had my fair share of Firewire unplugs when at gigs.
Posted by: fALk
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12.12.08 15:22