HDMI 2.0 officially revealed, supports 4K video at 60fps

It’s barely been open a few hours and we’re already getting big news from IFA – the HDMI Forum has just announced the latest version of the HDMI specification, which supports 4K Ultra-high definition video at 60fps. HDMI 2.0 ups the available bandwidth to a massive 18Gbps and adds support for multiple audio channels.

This marks the first time that 4K video has been officially recognized by the HDMI Forum, with TVs such as Samsung’s S9, LG’s 84LM960V Sony’s X9 sets making do with HDMI 1.4 connections which can only manage 24p playback at Ultra HD resolutions.

With the new standard, 4K video at either 50 or 60p can be played on a compatible display, with up to 32 separate audio channels and CEC extensions, meaning Ethernet channels for internet-ready devices. Naturally 1080p content is still supported, although this remains at 60p despite the extra bandwidth available for higher frame rates.

The new standard re-uses the existing HDMI connector, meaning HDMI 2.0 cables will be backwards compatible with existing equipment. Existing High Speed HDMI cables can technically support the extra bandwidth too, meaning a new cable standard won’t be required by the HDMI Forum. This is great news for 4K fans, as it means no extra wait to get HDMI 2.0 out of the door.

Steve Venuti, president of HDMI Licensing, said “We are pleased to continue our work in supporting the HDMI Adopter base as well as the entire HDMI ecosystem.

“Adopters can now continue to develop new product functionality over the HDMI interface as well as look to HDMI Licensing, LLC as their single contact for all their licensing and administrative needs”.

We’re only a few hours away from Panasonic and Sony’s respective IFA press conferences, so expect to hear a lot more about HDMI 2.0 in the days to come.