Robert Burnett

There is no doubt that Microsoft will have an Xbox360 with HDMI the only question is when! A HD-DVD drive without HDMI is junk because the signal will be converted from digital to analog to use the component interface then converted back to digital to be processed by the TV. Every conversion degrades the signal. HDMI is the only way to go to get the best picture and audio over a single cable.

In the United States, the FCC Code of Federal Regulations, Section 15.123 has mandated that all HDTVs include either a DVI/HDCP or HDMI/HDCP interface. Most manufactures have opted for the smaller HDMI interface. This is a phased implementation the main difference between DVI and HDMI is that HDMI can carry both the digital video and audio over a single cable while DVI is video only.

After July 1, 2005 all HDTVs Greater Than 36” must have DVI or HDMI
After July 1, 2006 all HDTVs Greater Than 25” must have DVI or HDMI
After July 1, 2007 all HDTVs Greater than 13” must have DVI or HDMI