Dell Vostro HDMI port

Haydon · Apr 26, 2023

Browsing through the machine specs, I saw the following

clicking on the informational blue circle, there is the following notice

Wondering about the low resolution, I checked the HDMI 1.4b standard specifications which in my understanding supports 2560 x 1440 resolution at refresh rates of 30, 60, 75 frames/second

Is Dell under-implementing the standard?

bobkn · Apr 26, 2023

The spec shows that 1440p is supported in 8 bit color at 75Hz.

What Vostro model? Maybe it's an iGPU limitation.

MisterEd · Apr 26, 2023

The HDMI port on the Dell computer uses components that supports a certain specification that some Dell engineer required as a minimum. The HDMI standards are just a reference. Dell is not required to conform with every aspect of any particular HDMI specification. I suspect that HDMI 1.4b is just the closest to what their hardware tries to comply to. Dell specified 1920x1080@60Hz. Dell didn't promise anything more than that. If you want to use 1440p then you either need to upgrade your computer or buy a new computer that specifically states it supports 1440p.

Haydon · Apr 26, 2023

The under-implmentation issue of HDMI 1.4b is with all Dell Vostro models, with iGPU or NVIDIA.

IMHO, a more honest spec for the Dell Vostro would be HDMI 1.2a

bobkn · Apr 26, 2023

Maybe so. Do the Vostro models with HDMI 2.0 or later have similar limitations?

Haydon · Apr 26, 2023

All Dell Vostro models I see are advertised with HDMI 1.4b or 1.4 and upon closer look are specified more like HDMI 1.2a or lower.

Vostro - Desktop Computers

Vostro - Desktop Computers - Browse through desktops & all-in-ones. Shop Optiplex, Vostro, Precision & XPS PCs to support your productivity. Free shipping!

www.dell.com

bobkn · Apr 26, 2023

Dell Vostro 7620 laptop | Dell USA

Shop the Dell Vostro 7620 16-Inch Laptop featuring 16:10 aspect ratio, Intel Core™️ i7 Processors & ComfortView technology, or view all Vostro laptops at Dell.com.

www.dell.com

I dunno about "advertised", but this is a current model on Dell's pages.

I didn't attempt to check every current model.

Haydon · Apr 26, 2023

Ah, I was looking at Vostro desktop models, whereas you were looking at Vostro (gaming) laptop models.

In the meantime, I also found the same discrepancy in Dell Inspiron desktop models, i.e. the discrepancy between advertised (as shown in the model descriptions) and specified (as shown in the technical specifications)

In any case, if you are looking at Dell desktops:

> don't just look at the model descriptions

> do look carefully at the technical specifications

(The case in point is HDMI 1.4b in the model descriptions can turn out to be HDMI 1.2a in the technical specifications

)

MisterEd · Apr 26, 2023

Haydon said:
Ah, I was looking at Vostro desktop models, whereas you were looking at Vostro (gaming) laptop models.

In the meantime, I also found the same discrepancy in Dell Inspiron desktop models, i.e. the discrepancy between advertised (as shown in the model descriptions) and specified (as shown in the technical specifications)

In any case, if you are looking at Dell desktops:

> don't just look at the model descriptions

> do look carefully at the technical specifications

(The case in point is HDMI 1.4b in the model descriptions can turn out to be HDMI 1.2a in the technical specifications )

How do you know that your Dell HDMI port supports HDMI 1.2a or any other specification? You are only guessing. You really think Dell cares about meeting a particular standard? As long as it supported 1080p that is all that mattered. This saying applies here, "What difference does it make?"

Haydon · Apr 26, 2023

I am not guessing, the right-most column in post #1 is HDMI 1.4b, the right-most column in post #4 is HDMI 1.2a (or check your own sources for the HDMI standard)

And yeah, I sure hope that Dell and other vendors care about standards

Even the 1080p that you quoted is a standard

MisterEd · Apr 26, 2023

Haydon said:
I am not guessing, the right-most column in post #1 is HDMI 1.4b, the right-most column in post #4 is HDMI 1.2a (or check your own sources for the HDMI standard)

And yeah, I sure hope that Dell and other vendors care about standards

Even the 1080p that you quoted is a standard

Then what's your point? You just quoted a couple tables from Wikipedia. Do you think Dell engineers checked Wikipedia before they came up with the specs for their computers? If you think Dell lied about the specs then call them and complain. Or better yet sue them. Good luck explaining what your damages are.

Haydon · Apr 26, 2023

@MisterEd I wonder what YOUR point is? Product specifications are supposed to meet standards for interworking. For example, if Dell says its computer it meets HDMI 1.4b and Samsung says that its monitor meets HDMI 1.4b then the Dell computer ought to drive the Samsung monitor. That is not so in the cases mentioned in the above.

bobkn · Apr 26, 2023

Haydon said:
Ah, I was looking at Vostro desktop models, whereas you were looking at Vostro (gaming) laptop models.

In the meantime, I also found the same discrepancy in Dell Inspiron desktop models, i.e. the discrepancy between advertised (as shown in the model descriptions) and specified (as shown in the technical specifications)

In any case, if you are looking at Dell desktops:

> don't just look at the model descriptions

> do look carefully at the technical specifications

(The case in point is HDMI 1.4b in the model descriptions can turn out to be HDMI 1.2a in the technical specifications )

Desktop? OK.

On a low-end model (Vostro 3910), the HDMI 1.4 port is limited to full HD (1920 X 1080). The DP 1.4 port isn't spec'd, but I see claims that it supports 4k. (Even DP 1.2 can do 4k at 60Hz.) The iGPU (Intel UHD 730) supports up to 4096 X 2160 @ 60 Hz, and DP 7680 X 4320 @ 60Hz.

Why Dell would cripple the HDMI port, I can't guess. I didn't find an example of running the DP at 4k, but 1440p, yes. The same writer said that the HDMI port would not do 1440p.

There are other differences between HDMI 1.2 and 1.4. Maybe Dell supports those, even if they don't support the full bandwidth/resolution.

MisterEd · Apr 27, 2023

bobkn said:
Why Dell would cripple the HDMI port, I can't guess. I didn't find an example of running the DP at 4k, but 1440p, yes. The same writer said that the HDMI port would not do 1440p.

It is easy to guess. It is all about money. They probably used the cheapest part they could get to support 1080p. They might have saved only pennies to do that but over thousands of computers it adds up. Don't you understand that is probably how most manufacturers do it?

My ASUS TUF gaming A15 (2022) laptop's HDMI port spec says HDMI 2.0b. It makes no sense for me to look up the HDMI 2.0b spec and complain if my laptop couldn't drive a 4K 60Hz monitor even though the specs says it should.? Note that my laptop's display is only 1080p.

Haydon · Apr 27, 2023

The Dell Optiplex product line appears to be consistent between model descriptions and the respective model specifications. Proceed at your own risk, though, I have only been at it for a couple of hours.

bobkn · Apr 27, 2023

MisterEd said:
It is easy to guess. It is all about money. They probably used the cheapest part they could get to support 1080p. They might have saved only pennies to do that but over thousands of computers it adds up. Don't you understand that is probably how most manufacturers do it?

My ASUS TUF gaming A15 (2022) laptop's HDMI port spec says HDMI 2.0b. It makes no sense for me to look up the HDMI 2.0b spec and complain if my laptop couldn't drive a 4K 60Hz monitor even though the specs says it should.? Note that my laptop's display is only 1080p.

I have no idea how much Dell might save by limiting the available bandwidth of their HDMI ports. Can you supply any hard information about that?

Dell is famous for business practices to cut costs. My personal favorite was when they kept trailers (from tractor trailers) at their loading docks. Dell would remove parts from the trailers when needed, never putting the parts in inventory. I don't understand the tax laws well enough to know how much that saved Dell.

Dell also used to charge $99 to ship a PC anywhere in the continental US. The amount was calculated to give them a net profit.

They also got in trouble with the Feds. Intel claimed that they had the same prices for all customers, but they gave Dell kickbacks for remaining an Intel-only PC maker. Dell did something inappropriate as regards how they reported that income. Dell's Alienware subsidiary sells AMD machines, so I suppose that arrangement no longer holds.

MisterEd · Apr 27, 2023

bobkn said:
I have no idea how much Dell might save by limiting the available bandwidth of their HDMI ports. Can you supply any hard information about that?

It is not specifically about limiting anything. If Dell has a choice they will like any company buy the cheapest part that meets its specifications. If the specification says the port has to support 1080p then they will find the cheapest part that supports that.

Have you ever worked in manufacturing or the defense industry because I have? I was given specifications whether it was for an individual part or a whole computer system. It was my job to find out what was cheapest to buy and still met those specs. For example, one system had to support four computer monitors. I went by the required monitor resolutions and refresh rates. I cared nothing about any theoretical ivory tower standard.

Haydon · Apr 27, 2023

Costing is OK provided the specifications are met, which in the cases in point, was not met.

The specifications at issue are standards specifications, i.e. HDMI standards specifications as spelled out by Dell. Manufacturers often cite their product specifications in terms of standards specifications, they wrangle in international standards specification setting bodies to give their products an edge, etc.

bobkn · Apr 27, 2023

MisterEd said:
It is not specifically about limiting anything. If Dell has a choice they will like any company buy the cheapest part that meets its specifications. If the specification says the port has to support 1080p then they will find the cheapest part that supports that.

Have you ever worked in manufacturing or the defense industry because I have? I was given specifications whether it was for an individual part or a whole computer system. It was my job to find out what was cheapest to buy and still met those specs. For example, one system had to support four computer monitors. I went by the required monitor resolutions and refresh rates. I cared nothing about any theoretical ivory tower standard.

Manufacturing and defense, yes. The defense work was custom, rather than buying OTS components. No ability to cheap out.

I worked for a small company in the late 90s that used 133 MHz Dell Pentium PCs ($2k) to control their hardware (>$80k). I bought a similar PC for my home use. I made the mistake of mentioning to the owner/CEO that I was getting 10-20% better performance because I had spec'd better L3 cache (separate in those days) and RAM. Extra $50. I think he may have chewed out the engineers responsible for their PC purchasing. They never forgave me. That wasn't a case of meeting external specs. They were buying high-end PCs for performance.

My last employer used Dell. I always wondered why my employer didn't get large, high-resolution monitors for the designers (who used to be called draftsmen). I suspect it was ignorance on the part of the management, and timidity on the part of the designers. I admit that I was cowardly about asking for a high-res monitor for my own work. One would have increased my productivity at least a little.

MisterEd · Apr 27, 2023

Haydon said:
Costing is OK provided the specifications are met, which in the cases in point, was not met.

The specifications at issue are standards specifications, i.e. HDMI standards specifications as spelled out by Dell. Manufacturers often cite their product specifications in terms of standards specifications, they wrangle in international standards specification setting bodies to give their products an edge, etc.

You don't understand who is in charge. Engineers are not the ones making the decisions about cost. Bean counters in management are making that decision. Bean counters don't know or care about international specifications. They only care about the bottom line.

That HDMI 1.4b specification listed may not even been put there by an engineer. It may have been added by someone in marketing.

Dell Vostro HDMI port

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