DisplayPort

DisplayPort is a digital display interface developed by the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA). The interface is primarily used to connect a video source to a display device such as a computer monitor, though it can also be used to carry audio, USB, and other forms of data.

VESA designed it to replace VGA, DVI, and FPD-Link. DisplayPort is backward compatible with VGA, DVI and HDMI through the use of passive and/or active adapters.

Overview

DisplayPort is the first display interface to rely on packetized data transmission, a form of digital communication found in technologies including Ethernet, USB, and PCI Express. It allows both internal and external display connections and, unlike legacy standards where differential pairs are fixed to transmitting a clock signal with each output, the DisplayPort protocol is based on small data packets known as micro packets, which can embed the clock signal within the data stream, allowing higher resolutions with fewer pins. The use of data packets also allows DisplayPort to be extensible, meaning additional features can be added over time without significant changes to the physical interface itself.