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Difficulty: MediumDisplay Cables and Connectors

An IT technician is organizing cable inventory for client workstation deployments. Match each display connector standard on the left with its defining physical or operational characteristic on the right.

  • DVI-I Dual-LinkCarries both digital and analog video signals using a 24-pin digital grid plus 4 additional analog pins surrounding a flat blade.
  • Mini DisplayPortShares the exact physical form factor with legacy Thunderbolt 1 and 2 ports to transmit native digital audio/video signals.
  • HDMI 2.1Utilizes Fixed Rate Link (FRL) technology to deliver up to 48 Gbps bandwidth for high refresh rates and 8K resolution.
  • DB-15 (VGA)Uses a 15-pin connector arranged in three rows to transmit legacy analog RGBHV video signals.

Answer

DVI-I Dual-Link matches the 24-pin grid plus 4-pin analog signal capability; Mini DisplayPort matches the physical form factor of Thunderbolt 1/2; HDMI 2.1 matches Fixed Rate Link (FRL) 48 Gbps bandwidth; DB-15 (VGA) matches the 15-pin analog RGBHV transmission.
Each display standard has unique physical pin designs and signaling limits: DVI-I integrates 4 analog pins for dual-mode operation; Mini DisplayPort shares the physical footprint of original Thunderbolt ports; HDMI 2.1 utilizes FRL for 48 Gbps bandwidth; and DB-15 (VGA) uses a 15-pin 3-row layout for analog video.

Step-by-Step Solution

1
Identify signal type and pin layout for DVI standards.
DVI-I contains integrated analog pins surrounding the flat ground blade in addition to the digital pin grid.
DVI-D carries digital only, while DVI-I carries both digital and analog signals.
2
Compare physical port backward-compatibility across compact display interfaces.
Mini DisplayPort connectors physically plug into and share pin assignments with Apple/Intel Thunderbolt 1 and 2 ports.
Thunderbolt 1/2 adopted the Mini DisplayPort mechanical spec.
3
Evaluate modern HDMI bandwidth specifications.
HDMI 2.1 replaces TMDS with FRL to achieve 48 Gbps throughput.
FRL is required to drive uncompressed 8K at 60Hz or 4K at 120Hz.
4
Identify legacy analog video interfaces.
DB-15 (HD-15/DE-15) is the classic 15-pin 3-row VGA connector transmitting analog signals.
VGA does not support digital video signals natively.

Key Concept

Physical pin layouts, signal modes (analog vs. digital), and bandwidth capacities of video cables.
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Topics

Display Cables and Connectors

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