mydp
Latest
ASUS PadFone Infinity review: the convertible phone goes full HD and beyond
Almost exactly two years ago, Motorola's Android-in-Webtop-OS solution was kicked off the stage by ASUS' PadFone, the world's first phone that could fully power a tablet module from its own OS. The original concept took a while to materialize, but since then the company has kept up with a surprisingly rapid product cycle. It was only five months from the first PadFone to the PadFone 2; and now seven months later, ASUS is offering the PadFone Infinity: a non-surprising full HD update for both the phone and the tablet module. The phone itself also benefits from a newer 1.7GHz quad-core Snapdragon 600 SoC, as well as a new brushed-aluminum body. So, does this upgraded package have what it takes to kill the "glass is half empty" mentality? Or would consumers still rather have two separate devices? Read on to find out.%Gallery-188021%
VESA's Mobility DisplayPort standard links smartphones to PC displays, jabs MHL
If you own a modern Android smartphone, there's a reasonable chance you're familiar with MHL for video out to a TV. The format saves the trouble of adding an extra port, but it's really only intended for HDMI-based destinations and occasionally runs into compatibility issues. VESA is hoping to settle all that with its newly available Mobility DisplayPort standard, or MyDP. Existing micro-USB ports will still serve as the output, but you'll have the option of plugging into DVI or VGA displays with the right adapter, in addition to HDMI and full-size DisplayPort. Picture connecting to an older projector and you'll see why that might make sense. The new spec will charge up your device like with MHL, but it also has about 1Mbps of bandwidth for input, such as keyboards and trackpads in some future lapdock. Video still tops out at 1080p and 60Hz, so there's no hooking into a 4K display here. The real advantage, for many, is simply in having a broadly-adopted standard in the first place: VESA backing sees 180 companies tacitly endorsing the idea, producing a big improvement over the patchwork results that we've seen from MHL's much smaller alliance. The chief obstacle is the wait for the first smartphones, Ultrabooks and tablets with MyDP, which could be months or more away.
