HDMI CEC Is a Mixed Blessing; It Doesn’t Have to Be That Way
the HDMI interconnect - not only a demon of DRM, but also a positive force in control of componentry
Standards are a wonderful thing. The establishing of standards allows everyone to be on the same page. It allows cost reductions by streamlining the ways things work together. It would seem that all who manufacture in a market segment would be happy for standards, and adhere to them.
and you thought the wiring inside was simple!
In 2008, it still is not so. Only the standards with the most stringent control are followed. Each manufacturer somehow feels that they must get ‘a leg up’ on the competition. So it is with the HDMI CEC standard.
As most know, HDMI stands for High Definition Multimedia Interconnect, and now the CEC stands for Consumer Electronics Control. CEC is a feature of the HDMI 1.2 standard that should be implemented on every device with HDMI 1.3. Strange…you bet.
think about the connection mess that HDMI can save you from!
The CEC is designed (by a housewife masquerading as an engineer, no doubt, who detested any wires showing in her living room!) to allow things plugged together to work from one remote. Sounds great, and that’s how it was designed to be, eliminating extra remotes, IR blasters, and many other problems.
The problem is that not many people know about it, and the public needs to pressure all the manufacturers to standardize on a ‘cute’ name for it, and also allow full interoperability.
Right now, LG calls its version of CEC, SimpleLink. Toshiba calls its version CE-Link. Other manufacturers don’t bother with the cute names, allowing the prospective buyer to either dig for the specification, or remain ignorant. Ignorance can be a good thing, or so the folks at Sony think. You see, their CEC version only allows interaction and control of other Sony products. The unaware will probably think Sony has done them a huge favor, if only the customer will stay within the brand, not realizing that they are confining them in a way not necessary at all.
Remember, this is still an evolving standard, so it can change for the better.
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