WEBVTT

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these days plugging in a tv or monitor is pretty simple you're probably just

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using like a single HDMI or displayport cable for video as well as audio

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and in case you've got some older gear you're likely familiar with rca cables

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that enable composite or component connections as well as those blue vga

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connectors for the legacy monitors we've covered that in this previous episode

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but did you know there are lots of more obscure connectors out there some of

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which are still around let's start about talking about one of

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the better known lesser-known video connectors

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this thing is called scart which is a french acronym that translates to radio

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and tv receivers manufacturers association also known as peritel if the

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name sounds kind of old school that's because it is scart has been around

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since 1976. it was developed in an attempt to

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standardize connection types across televisions and although it originated

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in france it ended up spreading across europe for its time it was a pretty

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advanced connector in that it allowed bi-directional communication unlike the

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composite rca connectors so popular in north america so scar could could

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actually communicate more directly with a cable provider for features like

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pay-per-view and subtitles and although scott was an analog connection later

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revisions could carry high definition signals kind of like component video

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over rca but because of the rise of HDMI this configuration didn't see a whole

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lot of use however scart remains popular with gamers who

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enjoy retro titles as it can actually carry RGB signals on separate channels

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resulting in higher picture quality it's kind of like vga

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folks in north america have even been known to spend extra money on skype

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equipment to get the best possible experience out of their older consoles

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and i feel like i'm being called out by this script moving on

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let's talk about this funky looking guy it's called a 13w3 connector it doesn't

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exactly roll off the tongue it might remind you of a funnier looking

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vga connector and that's because it kind of is 13w3 was actually one of the

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predecessors of vga and was notably used on some apple monitors that were meant

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to be paired with early macs those three big circular looking parts carried the

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actual color signals red blue and green one color for each contact

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they could also be used for power but that's aside the rest of the pins were

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used for things like grounding and synchronization similar to more recent

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vga connectors however 13 w3 cables

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aren't universally interchangeable as that power thing might suggest you don't

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want to send voltage down your RGB lines back then when they were popular

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monitors didn't all sync the same way either so some cables actually came with

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physical dip switches that you had to fiddle with in order to get your picture

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looking right so it's not too surprising that simpler connections like vga

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quickly overtook 13 w3 in popularity forcing it into obsolescence for our

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third act let's talk about something a little more contemporary

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hd base t wait a second that that looks like an

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Ethernet connector it turns out that hdbaset does indeed use the same

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connector as Ethernet i mean the t stands for twisted pair the kind of

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cable used for a standard Ethernet and it actually does carry an Ethernet

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signal along with 4k video 5.1 audio usb

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signals and even up to 100 watts of power basically it's a do everything kind of

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connection and it works over one of the cheapest cables out there

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so why hasn't most of the public heard of it and why are we not using it for

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basically all of our electronic needs the big issue unsurprisingly is cost

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hdbaset isn't meant to completely replace HDMI or any other standard

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really instead it's meant for places that need to transmit signals over long

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distances without a mess of expensive cables as Ethernet cables are a lot

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cheaper per foot than HDMI but the problem is that hdbaset

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compatible equipment such as converters and receivers are quite expensive thanks

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to a more costly bill of materials and as such it's mostly a solution for

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larger organizations that have to deploy av gadgets over distance did we miss any

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of your favorite connectors let us know down in the comments

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you know i know it wasn't video but personally i missed those old

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1284 printer connectors

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