Today's Show:
Oppo HM-31 3X1 HDMI Switch (
Buy Now)
With more and more devices on the market supporting digital interfaces like HDMI and DVI it has become a necessity for TV manufacturers to build TVs with more than one HDMI input. That's great if you are buying a TV today. But what do you do if you have a relatively new TV with one HDMI input? You certainly are not going to trade it in. You have two choices, buy a new A/V receiver with HDMI switching capability or you can buy an HDMI Switch. Today we take a very quick look at a new product built by Oppo Digital that will take three HDMI inputs and switch them into one output.
Features:
- HDMI 1.3 specification with DDC and HPD switching
- Supports 1080p, Deep Color , and all HDTV resolutions
- EIA/CEA-861D, DVI 1.0, HDCP 1.1 compliant
- Long cable support with built-in equalizer
- Custom installation options – external IR input and RS-232C port
The HM-31 was a snap to setup. You plug the device into power and then connect your input devices and the output and your off. The input can be selected via the front panel or by remote. You can either cycle through the connected inputs or go directly to the one you want. The remote is very basic but that's a good thing. We tried to add the device to our Harmony Remote setup but the HM-31 did not show up in the database (at the time we tried). However, it only took a few minutes to learn the 4 commands that the remote has.
The device can be hidden in a closet or behind your equipment and controlled with IR if you add the External IR Remote Sensor (not included). If you have a home automation system the switch supports control via RS-232. You can use the device with a TV that has a DVI input by simply attaching a cable with DVI on one end and HDMI on the other. This does not work with Video that makes use of the HDMI 1.3 specification by the way. The switch is well built and backed by Oppo's one year warranty. If you plan on adding a second or third digital device to your television with one input, the Oppo HM-31 will make it a snap.
