CE Pro August 2021 - 30

Networking+Home Control
HDMI CORNER by DPL Labs
Stay Vigilant About Validating
48G Cable Verification
WORD ON THE STREET is
that most of the limitations
that the pandemic brought
have now been relaxed and
" business as usual " is back.
But is it back the same way
it was, or is it back benefiting
from some of the adapted
methods learned over the
past year?
Judging from some of
my conversations there are
definitely some pandemic
business practices that will
stay such as utilization of
computer time for research,
ordering, communication, and
the list goes on. Now with
these additional new practices,
your business should
actually become stronger.
Here at DPL Labs, for
example, our webinar activity
has quadrupled while presentations
and training to
far-east Asia have increased
by going virtual - providing
increased speed and
coverage than ever before.
The majority of people we
talk to are finding similar
productivity bumps by newly
adopted practices discovered
or developed during the
pandemic. But you do lose
the closeness and friendliness
of in-person socializing
we so much enjoy.
Are you ready to re-engage
with the industry now that
in-person events such as
tradeshows and conferences
are happening again? From
what DPL Labs has heard,
30 | CE Pro August 2021
there will be some substantial
activity in the HDMI
sector at CEDIA Expo in
Indianapolis. Just being there
on the show floor checking
out all the new goodies and
reacquainting yourself with
industry relationships again
will be uplifting.
In addition to the first
real tradeshow in some
time, we are walking into a
more mature 8K/10K 48G
may be some limitations on
what you will see with the
first run of electronics hitting
the marketplace. Things will
happen fast, and you may
need to leverage your newly
adapted business practices
stay updated.
It's a reminder of what
happened when 4K 60 with
18G data rates launched. The
first ones out were in fact 4K
60 but later discovered to be
" You now have
manufacturers investing
in necessary test
instrumentation that can verify
product performance channel by
channel on the assembly line, in
record-breaking time. Ask your
cable company ... to verify you are
getting the real deal. "
environment that really has
not taken off as expected
for all the same reasons we
experienced during COVID.
From what we are seeing on
the test and measurement
side, expect this to change.
Already electronics manufacturers
are delivering 8K/10K
products in an effort to be
the first out there, and wire
and cable companies are
pushing to get their products
tested and certified before
the Expo.
Although these cable
companies are looking for a
full 48G throughput, there
nothing more than scaleddown
4K with a reduction in
color space still operating under
the previous 10G 4K 30
rate. It wasn't until HDR was
introduced that the real 18G
4K 60 became real. That was
almost a year after the first
electronics were delivered.
Some industry sources
have reported that electronics
currently being delivered
do not support the entire
48G signal product and
are limiting it down to only
40G. Again, this is an area
of concern. Customers will
demand this level of video
and integrators need to be
aware of what limitations are
out there. The good thing is
we have not seen one cable
company even hint they are
interested in less than 48G of
throughput. This will allow for
the installation of the necessary
infrastructure capable
of handling the entire 48G
envelope if customers want
to future-proof their systems.
That being said, be careful
and do not be afraid to ask
tough questions of your suppliers
at CEDIA Expo. Some
companies are still producing
cable products and throwing
them over the fence, so to
speak, without verifying they
can achieve the necessary
48G throughput.
This new 8K/10K goaround
brings such a huge
dynamic to the cable industry.
First, you have some
companies that have little
clue what of their products'
true capabilities going on
claims from the OEM.
But you now have manufacturers
that are investing in
necessary test instrumentation
that can verify product
performance channel by
channel on the assembly
line, in record-breaking time.
These manufacturers are out
there. This is so important, I
cannot stress that enough.
Ask your cable company
about these 48G production
services to verify you are
getting the real deal.
cepro.com
http://www.cepro.com
CE Pro August 2021

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CE Pro August 2021
