Learn About TV Ports

TV ports quick guide

What is it?

There are many types of ports. They are used to connect computer parts and accessories together through cables for communication and/or power. All communication ports fundamentally do the exact same thing, transfer data. The main difference between them is how fast can they transfer data. Faster connections enable transferring large data types in a reasonable period of time. For example, to transfer HD video, the connection speed needs to be fast enough to send all the data at a minimum of 24 FPS (frames per second) for the video to not be uncomfortably stuttering. In this case, the faster the connection, the higher the quality and/or FPS of the video. Moreover, many types of data can be transferred simultaneously as long as there is enough bandwidth in the connection. Some faster ports can be compatible with other slower ports. In the case a faster port is compatible with another, it is very important to make sure the entire chain of devices (Sender - Cable - Receiver) all support the fastest connection to avoid bottlenecks. The following are the most used standard ports used in TVs with their capabilities:

How does it work?

Ports work by doing the following (over simplified) steps:

  1. Receive data from sender
  2. Send data to receiver