Valve Responds To Steam Machine's HDMI 2.1 Display Support Controversy
hothardware.com
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Valve has set the record straight over the implementation of HDMI in the upcoming Steam Machine.
@[email protected]
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991d

HDMI requires a license cost, DisplayPort is free.

What advantage does HDMI hold over DisplayPort?

NickeeCoco
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1211d

No real technical advantage; it’s just owned by the same shitbags that dominate the TV market, so it’s the only way to connect to a lot of consumer living-room displays

@[email protected]
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391d

This is the problem. I would switch to DP instantly but my TV only has HDMI ports.

There are DisplayPort to HDMI converters available

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311d

Pretty sure DRMed content refuses to play on those.

🏴‍☠️ Well 🏴‍☠️ I 🏴‍☠️ don’t 🏴‍☠️ care 🏴‍☠️

@[email protected]
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215m

🏴‍☠️ Well 🏴‍☠️ I 🏴‍☠️ don’t 🏴‍☠️ care 🏴‍☠️

Random clips on the web are DRMed these days, like news articles with an embedded video. Many CMSes just DRM all clips. Totally BS but I’ve seen the video frame staying black on a bunch of sites now.

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-11
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1d

TBH you should be playing DRM content though smart TV/TV box apps anyway. Desktop Windows playback is more technically limited (for instance, no auto resolution/refresh rate switching) and aside from that you usually get a worse bitrate stream on a stuttery player.

I don’t even know about DRM playback on Linux.

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1021h

You should literally never use the apps built in to your TV. Unless you just really like letting the TV manufacturer know exactly what you are watching and when.

On Linux you check the box in Firefox that says Allow DRM Content and then yes, as far as I know, you need to be using laptop or a HDMI display.

paraphrand
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2
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20h

Fine. then use a Roku or Apple TV or whatever. He literally included those.

@[email protected]
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20h

Rokus have the same problem regardless of form factor. But this thread is about people who want to use the Steam Machine for streaming.

@[email protected]
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151d

People who connect TVs to the Internet only invite malware. They usually don’t receive big fixes after a few years and tend to spy on all watched content.

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21h

Then watch on a plug-in Android TV box. Or take to the high seas.

I’m just saying, if you’re going to stream from an internet service anyway, video/audio on every HTPC streaming app I’ve tried looks bad. Netflix is the best, and it’s still heavily compromised. And (at least on my Sony), the local Android apps tend to have the best system integration for rescaling, HDR, setting the correct refresh rate, per app IQ settings and so on.

But that obviously doesn’t apply if you’re hosting it locally though Kodi, Jellyfin, Plex or whatever.

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161d

Latency, desync, probably can’t do full 4k/120… just because something exists doesn’t mean it’s a viable solution.

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211d

Display port to HDMI cables are pretty good

@[email protected]
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81d

Active ones aren’t cheap, though.

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319h

Yes HDMI forum are shitbags, but there are definitely technical advantages to HDMI. Just that I can think of, DisplayPort doesn’t have ARC (audio return for sound systems), or CEC (device can turn on TV/display, TV remote can pause movie playing on console, etc) and the max length for a DisplayPort cable is no more than 3 meters before you have to go to expensive active cables. Most of these are easy to work around for most PC setups, but if Valve wants the gabecube to easily fit into living room/TV setups, it does present a challenge.

@[email protected]
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519h

All of these supposed advantages are solved by USB-C though. Even the length is higher (5m, I believe). I’d be fine if the DisplayPort connector is gone, but the actual standard is just better for most purposes.

@[email protected]
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16
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20h

HDMI has always sucked. I used DVI for the longest time, because HDMI couldn’t push enough pixels to a 1920x1200 display (topped out at 1080p for the longest time). Then jumped straight to display port when I finally got a 4k monitor.

HDMI was always 4-5 years behind other contemporary protocols, and for your trouble, you also got a stack of proprietary bullshit to go with it.

@[email protected]
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1420h

My understanding is it’s not even a licensing issue. The HDMI consortium won’t let you include features from 2.1 and 2.2 in an open source driver. it sounds like Valve would be willing to pay, but they’d have to include a closed source driver for the video card.

@[email protected]
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419h

That’s still a licensing issue: you’re not allowed to license from the HDMI consortium and then freely sublicense to all your users, which is what open source requires. Hopefully this eventually concludes in the end of relevance for HDMI and we can have a freer, and just better ecosystem in general.

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219h

I don’t see “relevance for HDMI” ending anytime soon. Tell me how easy it is to find a TV with DP inputs. Nearly 99% of consumer gear uses HDMI.

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101d

I’m not sure where I got this idea, but I thought it was because Display Port doesn’t carry audio, and a single-cable solution was more appealing.

But apparently Display Port also supports audio, just none of my devices seem to recognize it…?

Apparently the only advantage of HDMI is ARC (Audio Return Channel), allowing devices to send audio back to the video source, which might be useful in some home theater setups.

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41d

I ruined my audio ports on my computer and now run my speakers through my monitor using DP, it works great!

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221h

Wow I always assumed the same thing lol

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221h

Ohh TIL, thanks! I could count the times I needed the TV to send audio back to the home theater, like if I want to watch open channels or something.

I think we could live without it, just plug an audio cable or something, fuck hdmi.

@[email protected]
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81d

Omg is this seriously it??

@[email protected]
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151d

Yeah pretty much. Display port is just as good but there aren’t really a lot of TVs on the market with display port because the people who own the HDMI standard are in that industry.

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119h

HDCP?

Godort
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-51d

I don’t think you can send audio over DisplayPort

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81d

Funny, I have done it for years at home, I guess I am just confused

@[email protected]
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221h

Somebody replied to other comment, but it seems like hdmi allows audio to be sent back, like, if you wanted your screen to send audio to the computer… which would be weird in most PC scenarios, but not so much on TVs.

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