If you plan to use HDMI to connect your desktop or laptop computer to a monitor, a good HDMI cable is essential. Pulling an old, forgotten HDMI cable out of a drawer isn’t a good idea, as you risk poor performance or no video output at all. Despite their almost identical physical appearance, not all HDMI cables are equal. Their capabilities and performance depend entirely on the HDMI generation at the time of manufacture.
Monitor brands often forget to include an HDMI cable to reduce electronic waste, or if the monitor and its features are better served by another output. For example, the Dell UltraSharp U2725QE, one of the best vertical monitors for PCs, comes with only DisplayPort and Thunderbolt 4 cables in the box, and no HDMI cables, although it does have a pretty capable HDMI 2.1 built in. Fortunately, once you understand a few basics, you can easily purchase the right cable without falling for HDMI cable myths.
Consider the capabilities of your computer and monitor
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If your monitor didn’t come with an HDMI cable or you want to replace your old HDMI cable, the first step is to check the hardware specifications to identify the exact capabilities of your computer’s HDMI ports. You can find this information in the documentation for your computer, motherboard, or GPU, or by asking the manufacturer. Next, look at your monitor’s maximum resolution and refresh rate. For example, maybe you’re using a 4K display at 120Hz or a 1440p gaming display that pushes up to 240Hz.
The goal here is to find a cable that matches or exceeds the maximum shared capacities of your setup. For example, if you have a 4K monitor with a 120Hz refresh rate and a GPU that can also stream 4K video, a cable that can’t support this due to its bandwidth restrictions will become a bottleneck.
While matching the specs of your current setup keeps you from overspending on something that would be too big for your setup, spending a few extra dollars to get a newer generation or higher tier cable future-proofs your setup. If you change monitors or GPUs later, a newer cable ensures you won’t have to upgrade.
What are your HDMI cable options?
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Once you’ve determined what you want your new HDMI cable to accomplish based on the needs of your computer and monitor, the next step is relatively simple. You mainly choose between two types of HDMI cables in the market: Ultra High Speed ​​HDMI Cables (paired with HDMI 2.1) and Premium High Speed ​​HDMI Cables (paired with HDMI 2.0). Older cables like High Speed ​​HDMI and Standard HDMI are too old for most modern hardware. There’s no real financial incentive to buy them, as the newer cables are backwards compatible and cost about the same.
The Ultra High Speed ​​(UHS) HDMI cable is the best option for most setups because it has a bandwidth of 48 Gbps and can handle video signals up to 8K at 60 Hz without any compression. However, if the monitor and GPU support Display Stream Compression (DSC), you can go even higher to 8K at 120 Hz or 4K at 240 Hz. It’s particularly suitable if you’re using a 4K monitor with a refresh rate above 60 Hz. It also makes sense if you want to push 1440p at higher refresh rates, like 144 Hz or 240 Hz, especially with an ultra-wide aspect ratio.
Premium High Speed ​​(PHS) HDMI cables offer 18Gbps bandwidth, but are more cost-effective for older setups with 1080p resolution and up to 240Hz refresh rate. They can also handle 1440p at 144Hz or 4K at 60Hz. For anything more demanding, it’s best to stick with a UHS HDMI cable. There’s also a newer tier of Ultra96 HDMI cables in town, but hardly any hardware needs or supports them at the moment. Finally, it’s always a good idea to stick to officially certified HDMI cables or reputable brands.
