CES: MHL Consortium Unveils superMHL Specification With Support for 8K Videos

One of the biggest highlights of the Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2015) came from the MHL Consortium on Tuesday.

The Mobile High-Definition Link (MHL) Consortium announced that the next-generation MHL specification, superMHL, will be able to carry future 8K (7680x4320 pixels) video at up to 120 frames per second.

SuperMHL is essentially a standard, rival to HDMI and DisplayPort, that can be used to transfer data at high speeds and power a mobile device connected to it at the same time.

The company says that the new reversible 32-pin superMHL connector can carry concurrent video, data and power charging all in a slim form factor, which is roughly the same size as the 19-pin HDMI Type-A cable. The reversible nature eliminates the need of plug orientation or inserting the cable in the correct direction.

The company also claims that with more than 750 million MHL devices already in the market, superMHL is backward-compatible with previous MHL 1, 2 and 3 standards and supports the latest HDCP 2.2 content protection.

Other specifications of the superMHL standard include deep colour support (up to 48-bit colour depths); High-Dynamic Range (HDR) support; immersive surround sound with support for object audio such as Dolby Atmos, DTS- UHD, 3D audio, and an audio-only mode; multiple MHL devices linking together (TV, AVR, Blu-ray player) and all controlled via one remote; power charging up to 40W; sending content on multiple displays when connected to a single device, and support for the MHL Alt Mode for the USB Type- C specification.

The superMHL specification will be available for download at the end of January 2015 from the MHL page. The MHL specification was developed in 2010 by a consortium featuring Nokia, Samsung Electronics, Toshiba, and chipmaker Silicon Image Inc. as a standard for mobile wired video/ audio connectivity.

"As the world's leading TV brand, Samsung continues to innovate as an MHL Promoter to create the first 8K interface and the release of a reversible, consumer-friendly superMHL connector," said John Ryu, Vice President of Visual Display, Samsung Electronics. "superMHL is designed for higher performance to deliver the best possible TV resolution so consumers can enjoy superior colour, incredible contrast and true-to-life picture."

"MHL enables consumers to share what they love - photos, videos, music and ideas - with the world around them. Our goal is to make content more meaningful and accessible," said Rob Tobias, President, MHL, LLC. "With the release of superMHL, consumers can experience content beyond resolution, focus on the picture instead of the pixels, and live in a world where TVs are truly windows into the future."