MHL, A Must See at CES 2013 In Vegas, Baby!

by Karin Vogel, Director of Consumer Marketing, MHL, LLC.

What Exactly Is MHL?  Does My Smartphone Or TV Have MHL?

I recently joined MHL because of their staggeringly cool technology.  MHL stands for Mobile High-Definition Link and it was created by some of the world’s leading mobile and CE companies – Nokia, Samsung, Sony, Silicon Image and Toshiba.  Think of it as a way of sending your pictures, video, and audio from your Android smartphone, tablet, or portable device to your high-definition television and other home entertainment products such as AVRs, Blu-ray Disc players and streaming media devices. But there’s a lot more to MHL than meets the eye: it can charge your phone, and supports full surround sound (7.1). You can even stream movies from Netflix or your Roku streaming stick in high-definition (1080p). Better yet, use your TV remote or game controller to control the content being sent from your smartphone to the TV.

To find out if your smartphone and/or TV is MHL enabled, click here.  If you have an MHL Smartphone, but your TV is not listed as MHL enabled, you can use an MHL-to-HDMI adapter, as illustrated below:

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Level Up While You Power Up

MHL adds a whole new dimension to video gaming. Imagine you are on the bus on the way home from school or work, playing your favorite game on your Android smartphone or tablet, and your phone battery is running low. When you get home, what if you could plug your smartphone into your television using an MHL cable or adapter, and have your phone battery charge? You then grab your favorite snack and wireless Bluetooth gaming controller, sit back on the couch, and continue playing the same game you were playing on the bus with no lag or interrupted game play; except now you are playing on a much larger screen, using a real gaming controller!

In this imaginary scenario, your smartphone IS the gaming console, but it still has all the other capabilities and apps of a phone.  Now imagine your phone becomes the controller, which you need for racing games to navigate runways, speedways, and waterways at thrilling speeds.  But guess what?  It’s not a dream.  With MHL technology, you can have it all, the ultimate mobile gaming experience.

Accelerate Your Automotive Infotainment System

Watching movies in automobiles is nothing new, and many people are already connecting their smartphone or MP3 player to their car’s sound system.  So what makes MHL different?  Because MHL is more than just audio and video, you can also use the dashboard display in your car or truck to access the automotive apps already on your phone (without getting a ticket from the police).  Just plug-in your MHL smartphone, and away you go!  Use Google Maps or other GPS navigation, and get real-time traffic updates. Cool, huh?

You can also lookup restaurants, stream TV shows, or order movie tickets all through your phone apps. Of course, MHL doesn’t propose doing any of these actions while you are actually driving, but you could safely park and, order a pizza, check your email, and then get directions to where you are going before you start driving again. Or have your co-pilot handle everything. With MHL technology you can charge your phone while you are driving. Just like at home, you can stream movies or live television using your phone, show video on backseat displays and hear the audio from the car’s sound system, or in full surround sound (if your car has a 5.1 or 7.1 speaker system). As your phone evolves, your experience will continue to grow, and most importantly, your content grows with you.

Where I Can I Find MHL At The 2013 International CES Show?

The MHL Consortium will have a booth in the Gaming Pavilion at the Las Vegas Convention Center, South Hall 2 – #25700. On one side of the booth there will be a gaming station; on the other side there will be a home theater station with a TV and Roku Streaming Stick. I will be there in the booth to answer any questions you may have. This year MHL will also be in Hyundai’s booth, where they’re sharing some pretty exciting news…that we’re itching to tell you, but can’t just yet.

Since MHL is a Consortium, our technology will also be featured in a number of other booths on the show floor. Look for MHL to be demonstrated in concept cars’ dashboards, in Blu-ray players, televisions, A/V receivers, and of course mobile smartphones and tablets. If you would like to schedule a press briefing or similar MHL meeting at CES 2103, please call Kristin Uchiyama at 408.313.0448 or email kristin@mhltech.org.

See you in Vegas, baby! – K.V.