Valve's Steam Machine may support HDMI 2.1 after all

Valve could not originally include HDMI 2.1 in its Steam Machine game console, but work on open-source drivers may now allow it to fully support HDMI 2.1 after all.

We wrote about the HDMI 2.1 controversy back in December, when Valve explained that it could not support it due to the lack of open-source Linux drivers, as the HDMI Forum had blocked open-source implementations.

Without HDMI 2.1, a game console cannot support 4K120 with HDR, VRR (variable refresh rate) and other high-resolution and modern video features.


Solved?
Fresh reports from TechPowerUp and Videocardz, based on posts by AMD developers on the Phoronix forum, describe how the issue is resolved, with an AMD Linux developer saying that HDMI 2.1 is now working on AMDGPU under Linux.

Initially, the patch focused on Fixed Rate Link (FRL), which enables the higher 48Gbps bandwidth required for HDMI 2.1 to support 4K120 and beyond. They expect this patch to pass compliance testing soon.

The next step is a "full implementation" of HDMI 2.1, including VRR, DSC (Display Stream Compression), ALLM and other features, but no timeline was provided.


The Steam Machine angle
The development means that Valve's Steam Machine game console – which is delayed due to rising memory costs – could support HDMI 2.1 after all, as it uses these AMD/Linux drivers.

Last year, Valve confirmed to Ars Technica that the Steam Machine has hardware fully capable of HDMI 2.1. It also said it is involved in AMD's work "trying to unblock things there".

If Steam Machine gains HDMI 2.1 support, it would be a stronger competitor to Xbox and PlayStation, although some questions remain – for example, how well HDR will be supported.

- Source: TechPowerUp, VideoCards, Phoronix