VGA Cable
VGA Cable
Computers use various cables and connectors to work and complete tasks. One of the most important cables to be able to recognize is the VGA cable. A VGA cable is compatible with most computers sold today.
Function
A VGA cable is used to connect your computer to your computer monitor. It transfers the picture signal from the computer to the monitor so it can be displayed.
Features
A VGA cable usually has a screw on either side of the plug to mount it to the matching plug on the back of a computer system. The inside of the plug has pins that fit into the pattern of holes in the back of the computer.
Identification
VGA cables can be identified by looking at the inside of the plug. Most VGA cables have fourteen pins on the inside, with a fifteenth hole showing. Sometimes other pins are missing on the inside, depending on the system’s setup.
Benefits
VGA is supported by every PC sold today. With a VGA cable hooking your computer to your monitor graphics can display before any video drivers have been installed.
History
VGA was unveiled in 1987 as a new analog graphics array by IBM. After its introduction other manufacturers built upon it to increase features. It is now the most widely used in video and graphics.
Cost
Read More
To replace a VGA cable it can cost anywhere from five dollars and up. There are a variety of features available including VGA extender cords or gold-plated plugs.
VGA vs SVGA Cable
In traditional desktop computer setups, a cable connects a computer to a monitor. A video graphic array (VGA) cable carries analog signals and supports video resolutions up to and including 640 x 480. A super video graphic array (SVGA) cable carries analog signals and supports resolutions up to and including 800 x 600. SVGA is also known as enhanced or ultra VGA. Most SVGA cables support far higher display resolutions than the 800 x 600 standard.
Features
VGA and SVGA cables have plugs with pins arranged in three staggered rows: The first and last rows have 5 pins and the middle row, with only 4 pins, appears to have a missing pin. But no pin is missing. This 14-pin configuration is the standard configuration, and these cables plug into high-density, 3-row, 15-hole VGA ports, or sockets, on computer monitors, other display devices and adapters. It’s impossible to tell the difference between unlabeled VGA and SVA cables just by looking. If a SVGA cable is connected to a compatible display device and computer graphics card, a resolution of 800 x 600 or better should be available.
Size
Thicker, unlabeled cables that are more likely to be SVGA than are thinner ones. This is primarily because SVGA cables usually have much more shielding than do VGA variants. In addition, to help eliminate interference and signal degradation, SVGA cables usually have ferrite beads. Although not a guarantee, the diameter of a cable can often be a measure of quality. In most cases, the thicker the cable, the better the quality.
Significance
SVGA, which requires more video memory and computer graphics capabilities than VGA, supports up to16 million colors. With VGA and its maximum resolution of 640 x 480, only 16 colors are supported. VGA monitors are now obsolete. The Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA), a consortium of video adapter and monitor manufacturers, develops standards for SVGA. Many computers, monitors and even televisions still support SVGA connections. Nevertheless, the introduction of more advanced video standards such as DVI and HDMI have made SVGA technology virtually obsolete with all but legacy systems.
Cable Quality
Read More
High-resolution signals carried for long distances requires better cable than lower resolution signals carried over shorter distances. When transmitting high-resolution images over distances shorter than 5 feet, a low-cost, low-spec cable is likely to be adequate. Problems occurring with poor quality cables include double images, smeared images and, possibly, no images at all.
Warnings
Before buying a new cable of any kind, check the configuration of the ports, or sockets, to be used. If they are traditional female configurations (with holes), make sure both ends of the cable are male (with pins). Check that the number of rows and the number of pins in each row match as well. MDA, CGA, and EGA monitors will not work with VGA cables. Likewise, you cannot use VGA or SVGA monitors with newer DVI and HDMI cables.
Computer Monitor Connections
Monitors have different types of connections to hook it to a computer. Some connections are analog, while new technology lets a user attach a monitor digitally to get the best possible picture available as output.
VGA
The Video Graphics Array analog connection has been around since 1987, and it can be recognized by the 15-pin configuration. Most VGA ports on the computer are blue.
S-Video
One different type of connection for a monitor that gives better picture quality than VGA is S-Video. This is a 5-pin setup that typically has yellow or black ports.
DV-I
Since the mid-2000’s, the Digital Video Interface connection has become a common port on computers and monitors. There are 24 pins on this connection, and the port is usually white or off-white.
HDMI
For a true digital connection with precise color, definition and sound, use an HDMI cable. This is a port that resembles a USB port, but it is slightly tapered.
Considerations
To ensure a user receives the best possible picture, connect the monitor to the computer using the same ports; that way, no conversion — -which could degrade the video signal — -is needed.
Read More
RGB & a VGA Computer Monitor Port?
Red, green and blue (RGB) ports support colors and color signals that are displayed on a computer monitor. Though RGB ports are called video graphics array (VGA) ports, at least one RGB port exists with a structural difference.
Identification
Most VGA ports have five pins each in three rows, totaling 15 pins.
Features
VGA ports, also called DE 15 or HD 15 connectors, have three rows and 15 pins. These are found on some PC-video ports for some brands of 18-inch LCD monitors.
Function
The analog RGB connector on an LCD screen is used to connect the monitor to a computer — which is an RGB video input source. Likewise, the VGA port is an analog port connecting the the monitor to a computer.
