AMD and Intel, two of the top graphics companies, joined PC makers Dell and Lenovo as well as display manufacturers Samsung and LG Display to announce that they would phase out support for the Low Voltage Differential Signaling (LVDS) display technology by around 2013, and the legacy VGA connection by about 2015. NVIDIA, the other top graphics company, did not join the others.
VGA, a holdover from the IBM PS/2 days, is over 20 years old, uses up more power, and supports lower resolutions and less colors than the digital alternatives.
Intel will stop supporting LVDS in 2013 in its PC client processors and chipsets. AMD will remove native LVDS output from most of its products in 2013 as well, along with starting to phase out VGA outputs. No new AMD products will carry VGA by 2015, and DVI-I support will be gone from the range at the same time.
Legacy interfaces such as VGA, DVI and LVDS have not kept pace, and newer standards such as DisplayPort and HDMI clearly provide the best connectivity options moving forward,” Eric Demers, AMD’s chief technology officer of its Graphics Division, said in a statement. “In our opinion, DisplayPort 1.2 is the future interface for PC monitors, along with HDMI 1.4a for TV connectivity.”
Most Windows PC builders have been clinging to VGA to support legacy displays, especially in corporate environments where companies have often been hesitant or unable to update to modern screens and projectors.
