Sunnyvale, Calif. – Silicon Image unveiled Monday a suite of IC chips based on the new MHL 3.0 spec, enabling new levels of sharing between handled devices and larger-screen displays.
The spec, which was first released in August, adds support for up to Ultra HD (4K) video 2160p/30Hz sharing; simultaneous high-speed data channel transfers with video; improved remote control protocol (RCP) supporting peripherals such as a touchscreen, keyboard and mouse; more power battery power charging up to 10 watts; backward compatibility with MHL 1 and MHL 2 specs; the latest HDCP 2.2 content-protection support; enhanced 7.1 surround sound with Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD; connector agnostic, with uses as few as five pins; and support for simultaneous multiple displays.
Using only five wires, MHL technology simultaneously delivers up to 4K uncompressed Ultra HD video, up to eight channels of digital audio, high-speed data transfers, and power to charge the mobile device battery.
Consumers can simply used a wired connection from their MHL-enabled devices to a big screen to watch HD videos, play video games or work on documents.
Consumers are also able to interact with MHL-enabled mobile devices using their existing DTV remote, keyboard, mouse or touchscreen.
Starting in the first quarter of 2014, SI will begin offering four chipsets to help bring the functionality to various mobile and CE devices.
These include the SiI8620 MHL 3.0 transmitter supporting up to 4K 2160p Ultra HD resolution, while the SiI9394 MHL 3.0-to-HDMI 2.0 bridge IC enables connecting to legacy HDMI 1.x and next-generation HDMI 2.0 displays and monitors. Together, they simultaneously transmit up to 4K 2160p Ultra HD resolution video and USB data through an enhanced version of Silicon Image’s Media Data Tunneling (MDT) technology.
MDT takes advantage of a high-speed data channel defined in the MHL 3.0 specification for simultaneous Ultra HD video and data transmission that includes support not only for USB, but also a touchscreen, keyboard and mouse.
The devices also implement the latest HDCP 2.2 encryption to protect premium content delivery and are backward compatible with legacy MHL 1.0, 2.0, and HDCP 1.x standards.
The SiI6031 MHL 3.0 multimedia switch IC is available for OEMs who choose to use a single 5-pin connector in their mobile devices for both USB and MHL connections. The SiI6031 is co-located with the SiI8620 MHL 3.0 transmitter IC and supports switching between an MHL 3.0 port and two USB ports.
