It's the cable that has different versions, most packaging doesn state which one you are buying, if you are lucky the pakcagin may state it is a 1.3 cable, or you can trust the merchant whose selling it to you, or you buy it and check the transfer rate whilst playing a dvd or other movie file
Originally posted by nixz: With the PS3, is there a huge difference in using 1.1 and 1.3 HDMI cables? Can you only tell if you are using a high end TV?
Most likely not. 1.3 is future proofing the design. Allowing for more when more is available.
Quote:Q. What?s new in the HDMI 1.3 Specification?
Higher speed: Although all previous versions of HDMI have had more than enough bandwidth to support all current HDTV formats, including full, uncompressed 1080p signals, HDMI 1.3 increases its single-link bandwidth to 340 MHz (10.2 Gbps) to support the demands of future HD display devices, such as higher resolutions, Deep Color and high frame rates. In addition, built into the HDMI 1.3 specification is the technical foundation that will let future versions of HDMI reach significantly higher speeds.
Deep Color: HDMI 1.3 supports 10-bit, 12-bit and 16-bit (RGB or YCbCr) color depths, up from the 8-bit depths in previous versions of the HDMI specification, for stunning rendering of over one billion colors in unprecedented detail.
Broader color space: HDMI 1.3 adds support for ?x.v.Color?? (which is the consumer name describing the IEC 61966-2-4 xvYCC color standard), which removes current color space limitations and enables the display of any color viewable by the human eye.
New mini connector: With small portable devices such as HD camcorders and still cameras demanding seamless connectivity to HDTVs, HDMI 1.3 offers a new, smaller form factor connector option.
Lip Sync: Because consumer electronics devices are using increasingly complex digital signal processing to enhance the clarity and detail of the content, synchronization of video and audio in user devices has become a greater challenge and could potentially require complex end-user adjustments. HDMI 1.3 incorporates automatic audio synching capabilities that allows devices to perform this synchronization automatically with total accuracy.
New HD lossless audio formats: In addition to HDMI?s current ability to support high-bandwidth uncompressed digital audio and all currently-available compressed formats (such as Dolby® Digital and DTS®), HDMI 1.3 adds additional support for new lossless compressed digital audio formats Dolby TrueHD and DTS-HD Master Audio?.
* Single-cable digital audio/video connection with a maximum bitrate of 4.9Gbps. Supports up to 165Mpixels/sec video (1080p60Hz or UXGA) and 8-channel/192kHz/24-bit audio.
There is a a large difference between hdmi 1.1, 1.2 and 1.3
1.1 and 1.2 only have transfer rates of 4.9GBps
1.3 has a transfer rate of 10.2GBps
So there you can have twice as much data sent across with a 1.3 cable.
So if you want properly 1080presolution then you need a tv and cable which support 1.3. As is states in emugamers's post:
Quote:Higher speed: Although all previous versions of HDMI have had more than enough bandwidth to support all current HDTV formats, including full, uncompressed 1080p signals.
Even if the picture quality might be the same with a 1.1, a 1.3 cable will allow better sound quality is you have 5.1/8.1 speakers etc. I'd rather that it on the safe side and make sure my cable is a 1.3.
nixz, from your question, I gathered that you were asking about video quality (since you specified use with a high end TV as opposed to a high end audio system). But I guess a high end TV may come with a nice speaker setup. I'm not an audio expert.
As bigo93 said, the difference in numbers (bandwidth, etc.) is large, but only for some. It's negligible for the average person. Depends on your setup. I'm not saying go out and try to find a cheaper 1.1 cable (can you even do that anymore?) As big093 said, either way, just buy a cable you know is 1.3. They are only a few bucks (see my above link). You may not have equipment that would allow you to experience the difference between both cables now, but you may in the future. If you want to be 100% sure that you are buying 1.3 cables, just compare with the above specs (bandwidth, etc...).