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ACD HDCP Firmware Updates?

J

jamesaberry

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Jul 17, 2007
22
0
UK
Having just looked into the ability to play Blu-Ray discs on my 30" ACD, I discover that there is no current support for HDCP in the current line of displays. Most disappointing, but it seems that this is something just beginning to rear its head.

Is the opinion that current users will be expected to replace a perfectly good screen? I see a few options:

1. We are made to buy new screens
2. A firmware update is released and is chargeable - like the wireless n enabler.
3. The firmware update is free.
4. Another 3rd party peripheral.

What opinions do people hold? I'd like to think there will be a free firmware update!

Thanks,

Faugh-a-Ballagh

Jim
 
Eidorian said:
I think we have a winner. I made sure to get a display that supported HDCP before buying it.
Click to expand...

It must be nice to always be right. For the low price I wasn't worried. Just checked TV in house, and that is - so at least that'll play the movies.
 
I'm almost positive you can't have HDCP in a firmware update and that you'd have to buy a new screen regardless.

Please prove me wrong. Neither of my 24 inchers are HDCP compatible and I'd like to fix that eventually. :eek:
 
Tallest Skil said:
I'm almost positive you can't have HDCP in a firmware update and that you'd have to buy a new screen regardless.

Please prove me wrong. Neither of my 24 inchers are HDCP compatible and I'd like to fix that eventually. :eek:
Click to expand...
Hence my original post. Keep in mind OP that to the best of my knowledge you don't need HDCP to enjoy full resolution playback on standalone HD players, yet. It could be a different story for computer playback software.
 
Eidorian said:
Hence my original post. Keep in mind OP that to the best of my knowledge you don't need HDCP to enjoy full resolution playback on standalone HD players, yet. It could be a different story for computer playback software.
Click to expand...

OP?
 
1. We are made to buy new screens
2. A firmware update is released and is chargeable - like the wireless n enabler.
3. The firmware update is free.
4. Another 3rd party peripheral.
Click to expand...

If Apple were to ever adopt HDCP, #1 would be the only option. HDCP support requires a chip manufactured by our good "buddies" at Silicon Image. It generates a handshake to create an authorization key with an attached HDCP device. If this handshake doesn't happen, no HDCP protected signal will pass. This cannot be done in firmware, nor would would the DRM Nazis (or by extension, the manufacturers that look at this as an opportunity to sell you a new TV or monitor) want you to.

This is one of the many reasons I hate HDMI by principle. And it's not because I want to pirate intellectual property (I own over 300 commercial DVDs, yet those are easy to bootleg).

DRM in general, which would apply to both music and movies, is an inherently flawed practice. DRM doesn't deter piracy, it encourages it. There's always going to be a smart guy in the world somewhere that finds a way around encryption. Major music labels and film studios have never had a problem selling CDs and DVDs. Sales from legitimate buyers still far exceed the loses suffered from piracy. For example, major music labels hit record sales numbers despite the Napster fiasco from several years ago.

Pro-DRM camps already have things in mind for the future of content delivery. Ideally, they want to make it to where you purchase time-limited licenses to play and view content so that you can never really own content again. Blu-ray's Profile 2.0 specification (marketed as BD Live) aims to do this, eventually.
 
Thank You for Answers

Cheers for all the answers. It has been most educational. I hope that the HDCP goes down the pan as there will, no doubt, be a way of ripping a blu-ray disc just as there have been rippers for all other video formats.

I enquired as I was looking into the price of a blu-ray drive for the Mac Pro so I would be able to encode the movies I will buy in HD format.

I use the iTunes store ONLY for music videos as it is the most reliable place to find them. Movies and TV programmes I buy on DVD and then encode, as it is legal to do so here, for use on the iPhone and playing on all other devices. Also, the quality is far superior! They are NOT shared over any other software except Simplify Media - so I have an enormous iPhone library and can access all music at all times anywhere.

In the same way that having lots of music ripped to disc makes it easier to enjoy, the same goes for film.

I also like my place to be tidy! I can stick all the CDs in boxes in the attic along with the DVDs (so I fairly own them, and they are always there as a backup) and store the media digitally. It makes perfect sense to me. Lots of accessible media on a server I can view anywhere in the house - as can anyone else. All discs out of the way in the roof where they will not be scratched / lost / lent out.

Thanks.
 
CaptainChunk said:
If Apple were to ever adopt HDCP, #1 would be the only option. HDCP support requires a chip manufactured by our good "buddies" at Silicon Image. It generates a handshake to create an authorization key with an attached HDCP device. If this handshake doesn't happen, no HDCP protected signal will pass. This cannot be done in firmware, nor would would the DRM Nazis (or by extension, the manufacturers that look at this as an opportunity to sell you a new TV or monitor) want you to.
Click to expand...

There's already devices (repeaters) That can strip the HDCP part and pass it to the display, and echo back the HDCP hand shake.



CaptainChunk said:
Pro-DRM camps already have things in mind for the future of content delivery. Ideally, they want to make it to where you purchase time-limited licenses to play and view content so that you can never really own content again. Blu-ray's Profile 2.0 specification (marketed as BD Live) aims to do this, eventually.
Click to expand...

Will never happen, this would kill Blu-ray
 
what we need

what we need is for people to realize that HDMI is not the end all be all... my friend brought in his Xbox 360 and we realized that HDMI woudn't play at 1080P but that the VGA ports would.....
 
HDCP support requires (licensed) hardware. There is no way to retrofit it to a previous display.

They slipped an intrusive DRM by us, unfortunately :( (and by slipped by us, I mean we as consumers allowed it, purchased it, and are now slaves to it)
 
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