Apple licenses Mini DisplayPort for free

Apple’s latest round of hardware updates brought not only a phenomenal line of notebooks but a new port, the Mini DisplayPort. Apple wants to build momentum for this connection by offering fee-free licensing to any developer interested in using the connection in a product.

The Mini DisplayPort is new in many ways for Apple, and for the industry as a whole. It fully supports the VESA DisplayPort protocol, which includes very high resolutions while maintaining a slender profile. It also is being incorporated in products across the board at Apple, unlike previous proprietary versions of VGA and DVI on older MacBooks. You can even expect new iMacs and probably new Mac Minis to have one of these minuscule ports hidden somewhere.

Currently, Apple has the 24 inch Cinema Display, which uses the Mini DisplayPort. Apple also sells converters from Mini DisplayPort to other standards such as VGA and DVI. But it seems that Mini DisplayPorts will be popping up in more places than previously thought. The best part is that everyone wins. Developers get to use a small but powerful display connection without having to worry about extra fees, and consumers get more products to choose from.

Read [Mini DisplayPort] Via [ArsTechnica]