We Live in an HDBaseT World UPGRADING RESIDENTIAL INSTALLATIONS WITH September 2020 HDBaseT Alliance 3855 SW 153rd Drive, Beaverton, OR 97006 Tel +1 (503) 619-3007 | Fax (503) 619-6708 [email protected] | www.hdbaset.org Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. TABLE OF CONTENTS ...............................................................................................................................................2 © Copyright by HDBaseT Alliance, 2020 All rights reserved | 2 Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT 2. INTRODUCTION It goes without saying that technology brings many benefits to our lives, whether at home, in the office, school, or even just walking or driving around. Technology allows us to reach out and connect to different people and platforms, optimizing our time, resources, and productivity. This is particularly relevant in the audio-video industry, where there is continuous progress with new devices, new platforms, new possibilities. The ability to enhance the distribution of high-quality, high-speed content leads to the ultimate AV experience in corporate, residential, medical or any other vertical. The evolution of AV technology is never-ending, and progresses according to the needs of the market and its end-users, whether is in terms of speed, quality, distance, etc. In this paper, we are going to look at the requirements of residential installations to deliver the best experience to customers. 3. THE NEEDS OF THE CONNECTED HOME Long gone are the days when families relied only on their plain TVs, their wired phones, and antennas. Broadcast, cable TV, VCR, DVD, from analog systems to digital, streaming and video-on-demand. Nowadays, the home display (aka, TV) is only part of what is expected in most residential installations. Home is not only where we put our feet up and enjoy some time off. In fact, our working and personal lives are more interconnected than ever, with an increased number of people working from home, many more students learning remotely, and the need to easily and conveniently connect with family members and friends who are far away. The new connected home requires the right infrastructure to enable the highest quality of in-home AV experience. The connected home must address the different needs of each family. Let's look at some of the most essential use cases. | 3 Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT 3.1. Entertainment Home entertainment involves a wide range of possibilities – from simple video streaming, to outdoor displays, home theaters, virtual parties, and more. As we evolve to 4K and even 8K displays, our home connectivity must be able to deliver the audio, video and data quality to ensure proper entertainment. While some content today is still limited to up to 1080p, streaming platforms (such as Netflix, Disney+, HBO, etc.) are investing mostly in 4K content. 4K resolution brings better sharpness, color, and more features than available in 1080p, but also demand more bandwidth, whether over wire or wireless. 4K displays are particularly helpful for outdoor displays, as they can better adjust with ultra-bright picture quality and optimized outdoor audio. In addition, as streaming becomes increasingly popular and widespread, the ability to upstream audio from the TV to speakers around the room is also a nice feature to have. | 4 Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT 3.2. Gaming Gaming is the main residential application that demands the highest quality, lowest latency video distribution platforms. Zero latency is critical to gaming, as latency heavily impairs the user experience. As game consoles are already supporting 4K, and soon will be supporting 8K, data distribution quality becomes even more important. 3.3. Working from home Working from home (WFH) brings benefits and drawbacks. On the one hand, no commuting, flexible working hours, and the possibility of spending more time with your family. On the other hand, you often have to handle distractions, and sometimes deal with connectivity issues. As it becomes clear that working from home is not a temporary situation, it is important that your home office is properly designed and equipped with the right technology. Make sure not only to have the right computer and displays, but also the right camera, microphone, and reliable connectivity. Setting up a cable clutter-free environment with the right infrastructure is the right way to boost your productivity. | 5 Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT 3.4. Remote learning Until recently, besides the few families who opted for homeschooling, remote learning was not widespread, with the exception of some courses here and there. In recent months, because of the COVID-19 pandemic, remote learning did not become an option, but a necessity, to help control the spread of the virus and guarantee safety to students, teachers and their families. While children are quite tech-savvy and are used to be in front of a screen, whether a display or their smartphones, remote learning has brought some new challenges that need to be addressed sooner rather than later. Even when COVID-19 will be behind us, it is likely that a hybrid remote/in-school learning set-up will survive to optimize the overall education system, and benefit those who are not able to attend everyday classes. Remote learning demands high-quality AV distribution, including camera and microphone accessibility, to empower the collaborative environment that is often experienced in the classroom. The ability of other students and the teacher to see and listen to each class participant optimizes and improves the quality of the learning experience. | 6 Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT Each family, each home, each person has different needs, but the one thing they all require is the right connectivity infrastructure to support these needs. That means enough bandwidth, no latency, and flexibility vis-à-vis distance and setup of the different devices, with the ability to address the different scenarios. The ideal connected home requires: • Standardized technology & interoperability: at home, we are connecting different devices in different rooms, and the ability to move from room-to-room while guaranteeing smooth, plug-and-play connectivity enhances the overall experience. • Clutter-free cabling: yes, wireless is also a possibility, but eventually, to guarantee high performance and low latency, a wired infrastructure is necessary. How can we guarantee that our house does not become a cable nightmare? A minimal cable installation can significantly improve the setup. • Future-proofing: our home infrastructure is not as replaceable as our computers, cell phones, or even our cars. As such, guaranteeing a future-proof installation (both backward and forward- compatible) is a must. • Simplicity: life is complicated enough. A plug-and-play solution is a must. • High-Definition & no latency: high-quality and image sharpness considerably improves not only how much we enjoy a movie or gaming, but also our productivity during online meetings or lectures. A low-resolution, poor-quality online classroom will negatively impact a student performance, for example. If we must work or learn from home, then it is necessary to invest not only on the right desk and chair, but also on the infrastructure to guarantee a comfortable visual and audio scenario. The high-quality screens and audio equipment of today require the right AV distribution system to guarantee their high-end features are properly utilized. The one technology that optimally addresses these items is HDBaseT, providing the most value for residential applications nowadays. | 7 Upgrading Residential Installations With HDBaseT 4. HDBASET IN THE HOME ENVIRONMENT There is no one-size-fits-all for any AV installations, whether corporate, medical, industrial, or even residential. It is important to take into consideration the different setups (size/area, number of rooms, number of people) and the different needs (entertainment only? WFH? Remote/hybrid education?) of each installation. The one central element addressing the different scenarios and optimizing the home environment is connectivity, and that’s where HDBaseT comes in. HDBaseT delivers an all-inclusive solution that is elegant, simple, and yet uncompromising in its high performance. From simple TV applications all the way to complete home networking solutions, the arsenal of HDBaseT’s comprehensive feature set provides a simple, aesthetic installation. HDBaseT is a genuine plug-and-play solution, delivering the best audio-video experience. HDBaseT is the ultimate standard for digital connectivity. It is the only technology available today for long-reach distribution of uncompressed HDMI 2.0, in addition to converging additional interfaces over a single, 100m/328ft Cat cable. HDBaseT’s rich feature set is unique as it brings unparalleled benefits to each installation simplifying the overall AV distribution infrastructure. HDBaseT enables the long-reach distribution of: Audio & Video HDBaseT enables the uncompressed distribution of HDMI2.0 (4K@60 4:4:4), with HDCP 2.3 support, in addition to HDR10, HDR10+ and DolbyVision. HDBaseT’s unique video coding scheme ensures the highest video quality at zero latency. HDBaseT Audio supports all standard formats, including Dolby Digital, S/PDIF, I2S-4, and more, enabling a full 7.1 surround system to be installed. Ethernet HDBaseT supports up to 1Gb Ethernet, enabling screens, televisions, Hi-Fi equipment,