USB-C solution brings HDMI alternate mode cable to market

Cypress Semiconductor has announced that its USB-C solution has enabled Taiwan-based cable company ELKA International Ltd. to deliver, what is claimed to be, the market’s first HDMI Alternate Mode (alt mode) cable. The cable allows next generation smartphones, digital cameras, set-top boxes and other HDMI-enabled sources with USB-C connectors to connect directly to displays with HDMI ports, including HD and 4K televisions. Elka selected the HDMI alt mode solution based on Cypress’ EZ-PD CCG3 USB-C controller, using its programmability to streamline firmware development and provide upgradeability. “People found the adapter cables required to connect their smart devices to HDMI displays very inconvenient, so we began to develop our HDMI alt mode for USB-C cable as soon as Cypress developed their solution,” said Roy Ting, executive vice president at Elka. “The programmability and integration of Cypress’ USB-C solutions made us confident we could optimize firmware quickly to design our cable to deliver the user experience consumers expected.” “Cypress has been leading the way in USB-C innovations, and we are pleased to help our lead customer in HDMI alt mode address their design challenges and get to market first,” said Ajay Srikrishna, vice president of the Wired Connectivity Business Unit at Cypress. “Elka’s HDMI alt mode cable makes connecting a smartphone or a digital camera to a 4K TV a true plug-and-play experience.”