People use different kinds of monitors or TV for multipurpose these days. Mainly they do in these monitors or TVs is view videos. For this reason, these devices need cables. There are different kinds of cables in the market. To buy the best cable compatible for your device, you need to know about them and about their different functions. The two most popular cables nowadays are DVI and HDMI. Though coaxial cable is another popular cable connector in the market for connecting TVs or other devices. But DVI and HDMI are quite useful and good cables. We will discuss them which can help you to understand. Now, the question comes to mind that which one is better, right? To know about DVI vs HDMI, you have come to the right place.
Table of Contents
What is DVI?
DVI stands for Digital Video Interface. It is a kind of cable that can get you good quality video on your device. This DVI cable can be connected to any video source device or any projector. This can get you a high-quality bandwidth range. You can use this cable in different high-definition displays. There are various kinds of DVI connections available. They are DVI-A, DVI-D, DVI-I. Their types are described below.
- DVI-A: This connection is used for analog sources.
- DVI-D: This DVI is used for digital sources.
- DVI-I: This kind is used for both digital and analog sources.
To know more about DVI connectors, you can follow this.
What is HDMI?
The full form of HDMI is High Definition Multimedia Interface. This cable is popular among most people. Along with the high-definition video, it can also transmit high-definition audio. You can connect with all modern HD video sources such as smart TV, computer monitor, Play station, Xbox, etc. The range of bandwidth is very large in HDMI. Even USB to HDMI adapters are very common to use nowadays.
DVI VS HDMI
If we need to know which one is better between DVI and HDMI that means DVI vs HDMI, we have to discuss their differences in various fields. They can be size, compatibility, quality, etc. Let’s start the discussion.
Size
When we see any product, at first we look at the outlook of the product. HDMI and DVI look very different from each other. You can identify them by their footprints.
DVI is larger than HDMI. It has 24 pins in three rows. For this, it looks very bulk from the front view. It is a very large rectangle shape not like your cat5 or cat6 connectors. On the right, there is a matrix that has four pins. There are a huge number of screws in DVI. That’s why it looks very large. This is the most common layout DVI. It comes in different shapes. So you have to buy the correct size which is right for your device.
The size of HDMI is smaller than DVI. Although it has 19 pins surrounded, it looks small. There are fewer screws in HDMI than DVI. For this reason, the pins are so compact. The gaps between the pins are very thin.
You can get smaller versions of HDMI and DVI. But the micro version of DVI is only available on Apple devices. You can get wide ranges of smaller HDMI versions. So, DVI vs HDMI, which one do you think wins in this field.
Compatibility
You need to buy a cable which can go with your computer. If you buy a high-quality cable that port does not fit with the port with your PC, then it will become a waste. So it is safe to buy a product that is compatible with most of the products in the market.
DVI needs a very large port to fit in. So it does not fit in most of the products in the market. Generally digital TV, digital play station doesn’t have these kinds of ports. But some hardware such as some monitors and TV has DVI cable ports. Nowadays markets believe in design that saves space. But you have DVI from earlier you can use an adaptor to use DVI.
HDMI is more common in the market. It goes with most of the available devices. Because of its small design, most of the displays have the kind of port which can fit with HDMI.
As we can see that HDMI has more compatibility than DVI. So, in terms of DVI vs HDMI, HDMI wins we think. But you can always adapter for the earlier bought products.
Quality
Both products have good quality. Also both DVI and HDMI have limitation in such an extent.
HDMI is newer than DVI. So the specifications of HDMI are greater than DVI. The latest HDMI has a bandwidth range of 42.6 G bit/sec. In this range, it can easily provide HD quality videos. Also, it can provide us best quality audio. The refresh rate is also impressive. It has an ultra refresh rate. The rate ranges up to 4k with 144 Hz. Also, you can change the monitor’s refresh rate.
As DVI is an older cable. It has high quality but limited specification. It has a bandwidth range of 0.9 G bit/sec. It does not support HD quality videos and audio sources are not supported.
Function
The functions range of HDMI is better than DVI. The biggest difference is HDMI supports both audio and video in high quality. But DVI supports video. You need another cable for audio if you use DVI.
The HDMI can help us to provide high-definition video and audio where DVI is not capable of doing it. HDMI is very modern that you can buy HDMI 4K splitter which is very useful if you have multiple displays in your home or office. You can also connect cable box to tv without HDMI if your monitor or display has only an HDMI connection.
HDMI can support HDCP copy protection in standard quality. But DVI cannot provide it. This protection can prevent HD quality videos from playing on devices that are not authorized.
Price
Both HDMI and DVI cables have reasonable prices. You can find it online easily. As HDMI has greater specifications than DVI it has slightly more price than DVI. Also if you use DVI, you need an extra cable for audio. So you need almost the same money for both HDMI and DVI. You don’t have to think that DVI cable is unnecessary. You may want or have to use DVI cable.
Conclusion
From the discussion, we can see that HDMI is a lot better than DVI. HDMI has better functions, it has great compatibility and impressive refresh rates. All the modern monitors or displays like g sync supported display, high refresh rate display comes with HDMI cable. Also, the price of HDMI is not very high. But some older devices have DVI cable ports. If you have them, you should buy DVI. Also if you bought DVI earlier, you don’t need to change that. You can always use an adapter. After spending time in this article, now we hope, you know all about DVI vs HDMI and which one to choose for your TVs or monitors.
