It’s almost two years since the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) first published its DisplayPort 2.0 specifications, and promising support for 8K monitors, higher refresh rates and more. The first monitors with DisplayPort 2.0 were supposed to arrive at the end of 2020, but VESA now says it expects devices to ship later this year.
“Monitors that support DisplayPort 2.0 are currently under development, but none have been released yet,” a VESA spokesman explained in a statement. The edge. “DisplayPort 2.0 is now working on new system chips that should appear in products later in 2021.”
The delay is due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic. Hardware developers and engineers usually meet several times a year during a Flight Test event. These opportunities are where multiple businesses test systems and work out interoperability issues. “By 2020, VESA had no PlugTests, which delayed the implementation of DisplayPort 2.0,” a VESA spokesman explained. “VESA is now planning our next PlugTest for this spring in Taiwan, so we expect to get this process going again.”
DisplayPort 2.0 is not only important for 8K, but also for introducing improved refresh rates and HDR support at higher resolutions. The new standard technically supports up to 80Gbps maximum, almost three times what is currently available in the DisplayPort 1.4 specification. In fact, it allows game monitors with full 4K resolution with 144Hz or more, and HDR support without compression.
A number of game monitors are starting to bridge the gap with Display Stream Compression (DSC), which compresses UHD streams without noticeably lowering the visual quality. DisplayPort 2.0 also supports the following:
Single resolutions:
- One 16K (15360 x 8460) screen at 60Hz and 30 bpp 4: 4: 4 HDR (with DSC)
- One 10K (10240 x 4320) screen at 60Hz and 24 bpp 4: 4: 4 (no compression)
Dual-screen resolutions:
- Two 8K (7680 x 4320) screens at 120Hz and 30 bpp 4: 4: 4 HDR (with DSC)
- Two 4K (3840 x 2160) displays @ 144Hz and 24 bpp 4: 4: 4 (no compression)
Three resolutions:
- Three 10K (10240 x 4320) displays @ 60Hz and 30 bpp 4: 4: 4 HDR (with DSC)
- Three 4K (3840 x 2160) displays @ 90Hz and 30 bpp 4: 4: 4 HDR (no compression)
DisplayPort Alt Mode 2.0 also brings all of these features to USB Type-C connections, just as the industry is preparing for USB 4. While we wait for the arrival of DisplayPort 2.0, HDMI 2.1 monitors are starting to appear more frequently. A number of manufacturers introduced new displays at CES this week, but most chose not to price their HDMI 2.1 monitors.
Acer is the only exception, with a price tag of $ 899 for its Nitro XV28, a 28-inch 4K monitor with an IPS screen, HDMI 2.1 support and a refresh rate of 144Hz with FreeSync Premium. The HDMI 2.1 specification is also capable of delivering 8K video at 60Hz, along with support for 10K resolution video. However, 8K monitors are still incredibly scarce.