VESA Rolls Out Early Certification Program for Video Source and Display Products Using HBR3 High-Bandwidth Link Rate

Program speeds path to robust ecosystem of higher-performance displays using the new higher-speed HBR3 link rate of DisplayPort

SAN JOSE, Calif. – January 4, 2017 – The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA^®) today announced its early certification program for video source and display products using DisplayPort™ High Bit Rate 3 (HBR3), the highest data link rate supported by the DisplayPort standard version 1.4 published in March 2016. DisplayPort interfaces with HBR3, which are now available in consumer products, can drive 8K video resolution using a single connection, as well as multiple 4K displays. Key applications supported by HBR3 include high-performance gaming, augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR), and television broadcasting.

The new DisplayPort HBR3 Early Product Certification Program includes a comprehensive test plan that covers supported features and capabilities. Leading DisplayPort compliance test laboratories, including Allion Labs and Granite River Labs (GRL), now offer early product certification for VESA member companies as well as testing services for products in development. In early December, many of VESA’s 230-plus member companies also participated in a test event held in Taiwan to certify product interoperability in order to ensure good user experience.

Data bandwidth represents the maximum rate of digital information, typically expressed in gigabits per second (Gbps), that can be transmitted across an interface. DisplayPort’s new HBR3 data rate supports a total bandwidth of 32.4 Gbps when using all four lanes in the DisplayPort or USB Type-C connector, at 8.1 Gbps per lane. This provides a combined audio/video payload data rate of 25.92 Gbps from the video source to the display device, which represents a 50 percent increase in bandwidth compared to DisplayPort-enabled systems today that use the HBR2 data link rate introduced in DisplayPort version 1.2. By using the DisplayPort Multi-Stream feature, this bandwidth can also be shared among multiple monitors connected to a dock. HBR3 also enables the support of 4K at a 60Hz frame rate using only two lanes, which is important for DisplayPort Alt Mode application on the USB Type-C interface as it frees the other two high-speed lanes of the USB Type-C connector for SuperSpeed USB operation.

“VESA made HBR3 available to developers with the release of DisplayPort version 1.3 in September 2014, and then rolled it into DisplayPort 1.4, which we published last March,” said Jim Choate, compliance program manager for VESA. “Now that 8K and VR content is starting to become available, we determined that a program similar to our successful DisplayPort Alt Mode Certification effort would be key to encouraging HBR3 compliance and further ecosystem growth for these advanced video technologies.”

Early product developers who take advantage of the DisplayPort HBR3 Early Product Certification Program gain the ability to use the DP Certified logo on their products. While certification is currently in the early stages, VESA has already demonstrated compliance with 8K sources and sinks. As of this date, products from AMD, NVIDIA, RealTek and MSTAR have been certified, while many more products from VESA member companies are undergoing certification. Many VESA member companies are working on HBR3 capability, spurred in part by Japan’s stated commitment to broadcast 2020 Summer Olympics proceedings in 8K, which will make a robust HBR3 ecosystem a necessity.

In addition to including support for HBR3, DisplayPort 1.4 incorporates new capabilities that facilitate utilizing the USB Type-C connector. It is the first DisplayPort standard to take advantage of VESA’s Display Stream Compression (DSC) technology, which facilitates High Dynamic Range (HDR) and 8K video across the USB-C connector. Examples of increased display resolution with DP 1.4 include 8Kp60Hz HDR deep color and 4Kp120Hz HDR deep color.

VESA will be showcasing HBR3-enabled products at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, Nev., January 5-8, 2017 at the DisplayPort booth #20612 in the Las Vegas Convention Center, South Hall (S1). Demonstrations will include a gaming system driving a 4K at 120 Hz display, and two 4K at 60 Hz monitors driven by a single DisplayPort output.