# LG and Intel Collaboration Births New WiDi TV



## keithlock (Feb 5, 2013)

Thanks to LG and their recent collaboration with Intel Incorporated, TV lovers are going to have another simple solution for streaming Internet or network media, no 3rd piece of hardware required. The two companies joined forces to create and cross promote this pioneering technology that is said to be released in all of LG's 2014 3D Smart TV products and has already been launched on one of their 23.8" LCD Panels.

In December of 2011 people were excited to hear the news that LG and Intel would be collaborating and the suspense and anticipation is finally nearing an end.

The buzz over this is two fold. One, it's a great new product with awesome HD capabilities and two, it's a revolutionizing piece of TV Technology.

I know it's not the first technology to cut out the "middle gadget" but hey, it's still interesting stuff.

*What is WiDi and what makes it different from WiFi?*

For those of you wondering, WiDi is actually it's own sub-setting and is not a misspelling of the word "WiFi."

Here is the definition of WiDi according to Wikipedia:

"Wireless Display (WiDi) technology, developed by Intel, enables users to stream music, movies, photos, videos and apps wirelessly from a compatible computer to a compatible HDTV or through the use of an adapter with other HDTVs. Intel WiDi supports HD 1080p video quality, 5.1 surround sound, and low latency for interacting with applications that are sent to the TV from a PC.

Using the Intel WiDi Widget users can perform different functions simultaneously on their PC and TV such as checking email on the PC while streaming a movie to the TV from the same device."

I like to think of WiFi as a technology for connecting devices to a wired network wirelessly, and WiDi as a means for wirelessly sending signals between computing devices and TVs and leveraging each other's capabilities. Yeah, I know, a lot like WiFi, but they really are fundamentally different.

*How do computing devices connect with TVs in the WiDi world?*

The accomplishment was made by coming up with an LCD Panel that has a key chipset built directly into it. LG partnered with Intel who already had similar hardware created for other projects of theirs to come up with something that would fit right into the TV Monitor. A key chipset is essentially a chunk of circuits that are built together for one purpose. In this case, the goal being to put WiDi directly into the monitor.

The chipset interacts directly with your device to make sharing between the two seamless.

"LG says that the trick to getting Intel WiDi technology into the LCD display was integrating the new chipset directly into the LCD module," said Shane McGlaun of SlashGear

*The bonuses of WiDi technology directly in TV*

One great thing about using WiDi is that users are not required to have a wireless internet connection to get it to work. Sure, I know most homes have WiFi, but at least now there is no bandwidth stealing.

The other probably more obvious bonus is that you don't have to spend extra money on the equipment to connect your computer's content to your TV. Overall, this makes the process much more convenient and cost effective. 

*With this Intel and LG collaboration, is there more we can expect?*

Intel and LG connecting is great not just for this project, but great for future marketing and production of their combined innovations. With the broad spectrum of the two companies, their collaboration means more possibilities than imaginable in terms of entertainment electronics.

LG and Intel have made it clear that their partnership will be long term and they'll be working together to come up with and market many more exciting products in the future.

Between products like the LG 55LA7400, which has amazing high definition colors and sounds, and the Intel powerhouse of computing and networking products, our technological future with these two is looking expansive. Yeah?


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