HDBaseT™ has been top of mind for AV professionals since it was developed by Valens in 2010, but until recently professional projector manufacturers hadn’t yet taken advantage of the technology.

For those who don’t know about HDBaseT™, it’s an electronic connectivity technology for long-distance transmission of uncompressed full-HD, 3D  or 4K video, audio, 100BaseT Ethernet and various controls, through a single 100-meter CAT5e/LAN 6 cable with RJ45 connectors. In layman’s terms, using HDBaseT™ means that rather than needing multiple cables and wires to connect a projector to a variety of outputs (video, audio, Internet, control commands) you only need one cable, which simplifies projector installation, wiring and ongoing maintenance. For customers with a high number of installed projectors, such as in corporate and education markets, the efficiency and cabling cost savings can be significant.

At Panasonic, we strive to improve customers’ AV experience by helping eliminate common installation challenges they face. With rapid adoption of HDBaseT™ embedded products within a variety of markets, we saw a need to support this technology with our projectors. That’s why at InfoComm 2012 we announced the world’s first high brightness compact LCD projector with Digital Link based on HDBaseT™, the PT-VW431DU, and the world’s first 1080p lamp-free professional projectors with Digital Link technology, the PT-RZ470 and PT-RZ370 Series.

The PT-VW431DU is the world’s first high brightness compact LCD projector with HDBaseT technology

Based on Valens HDBaseT™ technology, Panasonic’s Digital Link provides all-in-one connectivity. With Digital Link embedded in the PT-VW431DU, PT-RZ470 and PT-RZ370 Series projectors, the need for an external receiver is eliminated when used together with Panasonic’s new ET-YFB100 switcher box or other switchers with HDBaseT™ chipset.  Additionally, we partnered with industry-leading manufacturers of HDBaseT™ solutions including Crestron, Extron, and AMX, to insure the interoperability with Crestron’s DigitalMedia 8G+™ compatible switchers, Extron’s XTP Systems and AMX’s Enova DVX and DGX Digital Media Switchers.

Bringing to market projectors with Digital Link allows us to lead the market into a new era of simple, yet dependable, connectivity. We hope our customers will appreciate the simplified installation, wiring and ongoing maintenance this technology provides. We would greatly appreciate hearing what you think of this technology so please share your thoughts in the comment section below.

This blog post is part one of a two part series of trends in projection. Part two discusses trends in hybrid projectors.