Samsung: First LCD display to use DisplayPort Interface

So we’ve been waiting for this for a while now. In Digital Cinema applications display technology throughput has always been a problem. Pumping ~10Gb/s of data to a screen is an issue, be it a projector and/or monitor. There have been a number of “hacks” to get these types of setups working (Dual or Quad DVI/HDMI ports). The problem usually is the seam. It is very hard to sync four DVI output chips properly and even harder to display the pixel information back on the screen (inside the projector/monitor).

DisplayPort technology is one attempt to solve this problem:

The DisplayPort connector supports 1 to 4 data pairs in a Main Link that also carries audio and clock signals, each with a transfer rate of 1.62 or 2.7 gigabits per second (Gbit/s). The Video signal path supports 6 to 16 bit per color channel. A bi-directional auxiliary channel runs at a constant 1 megabit per second, and serves as Main Link management and device control using VESA EDID and VESA MCCS standards.”

As you can see from the Wikipedia Quote above, DisplayPort (in it’s quad configuration) can support upto 10.8 Gb/s of information….perfect for DCinema Applications. Samsung has just released a Press Release outlining their 30′ LCD monitor that uses DisplayPort technology:

“Seoul, Korea – July 25, 2007: Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., the world’s largest provider of thin-film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) panels, announced today that it has developed the world’s first LCD panel using the next-generation video interface – “DisplayPort.” Sanctioned by VESA (the Video Electronics Standards Association), DisplayPort will serve as a replacement for DVI, LVDS and eventually VGA.

For Samsung’s new 30-inch LCD, the DisplayPort interface transmits graphics data at a total data rate of 10.8Gbps. This speed enables 2560×1600 resolution without any color smear. By using a transmission speed more than double that of today’s interfaces, Samsung’s new LCD only requires a single DisplayPort interface, instead of the two DVI (Digital Visual Interface) ports now used.

In a joint undertaking with Genesis Microchip Inc. (Santa Clara, California), Samsung developed its 30” panel using a new four-lane, 2.7Gbps/lane interface chip. The interface technology processes 2560×1600 pixels of graphics data at up to 10 bits of color depth or 1.07 billion colors, a feat that would normally require at least three DVI or four LVDS interface chips.

“We are pleased to be the first LCD manufacturer in the world to create a panel with a DisplayPort interface,” said Brian Berkeley, vice president, Samsung LCD Business, who is leading the company’s DisplayPort development efforts. “We have received many inquiries from computer integrators interested in DisplayPort-based LCD panels, which prompted an acceleration of our R&D for this first DisplayPort LCD panel.” Samsung was the only LCD panel maker participating in the original DisplayPort working (standards) group formed in 2004.

Samsung’s new 30” LCD also offers the company’s proprietary Super Patterned Vertical Alignment (S-PVA) liquid crystal technology for 180° viewing angle, and 300nits brightness.

Mass production of the 30-inch panel is scheduled to begin in the second quarter of 2008.

Specifications:
Display size 30”
Resolution WQXGA (2,560 x 1,600 pixels)
Response time 6ms
Viewing angle 180°/180°
Contrast ratio 1000:1
Mode S-PVA
Brightness 300 nits
Colors 16,777,000
Color saturation 100%
Interface DisplayPort

It’s just too bad that we can’t buy this NOW :-)