The HDMI 2.2 standard, with its indecent bit rate, is official
As planned for mid-DecemberCES 2025 has just been the opportunity this Monday, January 6 for the HDMI Forum to officially unveil the characteristics of the HDMI 2.2 standard. The least we can say is that future tech products that support it should receive or deliver solid visual performance.
A new standard to anticipate the future
Indeed, its first characteristic is a bandwidth twice as high as that of HDMI 2.1. With 96 gigabits per second (more than USB 4 at 80 Gbit/s), it will theoretically be possible to display video in 4K at 480 Hz, in 8K at 240 Hz, or even in 10K at 120 Hz Obviously, this will require screens and products capable of displaying or providing such quality to become widely available beforehand for HDMI 2.2 to be available. of real interest.
Today, only video games in 4K at 120 Hz and certain very specific uses could use it. The HDMI Forum cites in particular “virtual and immersive applications such as AR/VR/MR, spatial reality, holographic displays as well as commercial applications such as large billboards, medical imaging and machine vision.“
However, beyond pure performance, the HDMI 2.2 standard also adopts Latency Indication Protocol (LIP) technology. This simply improves the synchronization between sound and image in certain configurations, such as home cinemas or sound bars.
A new HDMI cable to identify
As anticipated, this new bandwidth and technology will require purchasing a new cable. This will be identified by an “Ultra96” logo. The presence of this logo will ensure the correct certification of a cable.
The HDMI Forum announced that this new specification will be available to all HDMI 2.x adopters in the first half of 2025. However, we will have to wait a few more months to see the first products really taking advantage of it. There is no doubt that, for example, the next home consoles from Sony and Microsoft will offer HDMI 2.2.
