Are you confused about the latest HDMI 2.1 standard and what it means for you? Don't worry, you're not the only one, so we thought we'd summarize and explain what the differences between HDMI 2.0 and HDMI 2.1 are. Summary Of Differences Between HDMI 2.0 and HDMI 2.1 HDMI 2.1 HDMI 2.0 Bandwidth 48 Gbps 18 Gbps Maximum Frame Rate 120 fps 60 fps Maximum Refresh Rate 120 Hz 60 Hz Maximum Video Resolution 10K120 4K60 HDR Dynamic Static Game Mode Variable Refresh Rate Yes No The HDMI 2.1 standard was rolled out in 2018 but only really started becoming more commonly available in 2020. Helping to increase its adoption in 2020 and 2021 have been the release of the Sony PlayStation 5 and the Xbox Series X, both of which are able to produce display output that would benefit from the higher bandwidth capabilities of HDMI 2.1. The biggest difference between HDMI 2.0 and HDMI 2.1 is the bandwidth. Bandwidth can be thought of as the maximum rate of data transfer across a wire . So, the
The new PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X can support HDMI 2.1 but what exactly are the benefits of the new HDMI 2.1 standard? Is it worth updating your monitor or TV just so that you can unlock the advantage of newer and more powerful hardware? While HDMI 2.1 is available on the PS5 and Xbox Series X, you will need a TV that supports HDMI 2.1 in order to take advantage of it. Luckily, it is already available on many of the new 2020 and 2021 TVs from Sony, Samsung and LG. What is HDMI 2.1? HDMI 2.1 is the newest version of HDMI that brings a lot more bandwidth as well as some nifty features that we'll get into more later in the article. The table below provides a summary of HDMI 2.1 vs HDMI 2.0: HDMI 2.1 HDMI 2.0 Bandwidth 48 Gbps 18 Gbps Maximum Frame Rate 120 fps 60 fps Maximum Refresh Rate 120 Hz 60 Hz Maximum Video Resolution 10K120