DisplayPort adoption rates climbing fast

November 30, 2011 by Dave Haynes

The Video Electronics Standards Association, or VESA, is reporting a significant rise in the number of commercial panel makers and product that now have DisplayPort connections.

VESA says Hewlett-Packard, Mitsubishi, NEC, and Samsung have released more than 50 digital signage displays that use DisplayPort in the last 12 months.

“The momentum seen in digital signage for DisplayPort demonstrates that the industry views the standard as the best possible interface for delivering superior visual experiences in a variety of environments,” said Bill Lempesis, executive director at VESA. “With DisplayPort, digital signage vendors can enable marketers to deliver engaging in-store visual experiences, prompting greater sales. As adoption of digital signage increases in key markets, we anticipate momentum to intensify as vendors embrace DisplayPort’s features to transform the shopping experience.”

It’s a pretty big leap in logic to suggest a better display cable standard is going to move product and change the whole shopping experience. I don’t imagine the great unwashed out there are holding back buys or leaving stores empty-handed because the color saturation and refresh rates weren’t …. quite … there on the retailer’s screen network.

But … that’s not to say DisplayPort is an empty proposition. It replaces older, bulkier and lower performing VGA and DVI connectors, delivers better visuals and offers more flexibility and extensibility.

VESA’s DisplayPort standard is a high-bandwidth interface designed to enable features not available with other electronic connections, delivering true digital imaging and audio through a single cable. DisplayPort significantly enhances display performance by doubling of the maximum data transfer rate, increasing display resolution, color depths, and refresh rates.

In addition, DisplayPort enables technology manufacturers to integrate numerous advanced features, including: multiple monitor support through a single DisplayPort connector; support for high-speed, bi-directional data transfer; audio enhancements including Audio Copy Protection and support for High-Definition (HD) audio formats; and improved support for Full HD 3D stereoscopic displays.

“The digital signage OEMs are embracing DisplayPort for its enabling capabilities,” said Brian O’Rourke, research director at NPD In-Stat. “For example, the standard enables active cables to reach lengths of 50 meters or more, and provides the ability to daisy chain multiple displays. We expect to see almost one million DisplayPort-enabled Digital Signage displays next year, which is more than double from this year.”