The gaming industry is growing fast with new technologies, and the gaming appliance market is also booming as the gaming industry grows. For instance, the demand of high-quality displays has been soaring these days.
According to a report released by WitsView, Trendforce, the global unit shipments of gaming displays in 2017 was 2.5 million, with an annual growth of 80%. The shipments are expected to increase by 1 million by the end of 2018, with a total of 3.7 million units on the market.
The fast-growing gaming market surely has brought more opportunities for the peripheral appliance and display vendors. However, quality has also become customers’ prior concern and thus it is important that vendors put more emphasis on quality assurance and look out for potential risks.
Since the release of USB Type-C, we can see it being widely used in gaming devices, and we believe USB Type-C would eventually become the standard specification of gaming displays.
So what is good about USB Type-C? Type-C offers a solution featuring reversible architecture, power delivery (100W), and A/V transmission (Up to 10Gbit/s) via a single port. However, with such convenience, USB Type-C does suffer from some potential risks. According to a test report run by Allion, we found out that there are some USB Type-C issues that may damage users’ review on products.
Potential risks regarding displays
There are certain gaming displays on the market that do not function properly, and surprisingly those displays claimed to have been tested. Some common issues include black screens or a fail in plug and play. Just imagine when you turn on the screen to enjoy the next game, but your display goes wrong, and this awful experience could sabotage your faith in the products.
If you own a display with USB Type-C port, here are the things you should look out for:
1. Why is my screen black?
According to Allion’s big data analysis, black screen accounts for 20% of display problems, and we believe vendors should take this matter seriously. Screen errors like black screens could lead to customer dissatisfaction. Here are some common scenarios: (1) when users connect devices using USB type-c, the screen monitor is black, (2) when users try to wake their devices but only to find out that their devices are on but nothing is showing on the screen.
Eventually, customers would file complaints regarding black screens to the display vendors, and sometimes they might even ask for a refund. What we have noticed is that most vendors are baffled as well, and they are not aware that t such issue arises mostly due to a fail in interoperability with the other USB Type-C devices.
2. Does Plug and Play or Billboard issue happen?
Plug and play (commonly referred as PnP), allows users to activate devices without downloading any driver software. However, there are some issues regarding this particular function. One issue users often run into is that PnP fails to recognize the device when connecting, and sometimes leading to a distorted resolution. Another issue arises when users plug in the device and the Billboard of USB Type-C display does not offer correct options that users need.
When display vendors deal with these USB Type-C connection issues, they should always check on the interoperability of the device and display first.
3. Why can’t I adjust to the highest resolution
Theoretically, when your display is connected to your device, it should be automatically optimized to the highest resolution. However, plenty of monitors on the market fail to enable this function. For instance, resolution is not optimized to the highest level when you connect your devices to USB Dongle/Docking. Issues like this will leave users negative impressions on the products, and poor resolution will very likely reduce user’s willingness to keep playing the game.
Potential Issues regarding USB Type-C Power Delivery
USB Type-C is also known for its power delivery (PD) feature, but we should be extra careful when using such function. It is important that displays with USB Type-C get tested for safety purposes, since untested displays might cause charging or even burning issues.
Here we would like to share two frequently seen issues from our past testing cases.
1. The display can’t charge other devices via USB Type-C
As we mentioned earlier, USB Type-C devices can be used to charge other devices, such as mobile phones, earphones, and so on. While the display supplies power via USB Type-C, here are some circumstances when devices cannot be charged: such as (1) cables are connected but the devices cannot be charged, (2) when devices are in low battery mode, or (3) when displays are in sleeping mode or even in wake up mode. These issues could seriously damage vendors’ credibility.
2. Equipment / Display Damage
This issue often happens on legacy cables like USB Type-A to Type-C. The quality of USB Type-A to Type-C on the market varies greatly, and they usually have different resistors. If used wrongly, the cables will very likely cause an irreversible damage to your devices.
The abovementioned issues remind us once again the importance of having your products tested and certified. Getting a certification will largely reduce the potential risks, and most importantly, reassure your users that the products are safe to use.
Conclusion
As the gaming ecosystem grows, gamers are also taking their gaming experience to the next level, and the demand for high-quality displays has also been soaring. With rich testing experiences in the high-tech supply chain, Allion provides our clients professional consultancy regarding gaming displays and its peripheral appliances. From displays, monitors, to Docking, USB Dongle, or even KVM switch, Allion provides tailor-made testing services for each product. We make sure your products are functional, efficient, and of course, enjoyable.
If you have any inquiries regarding Allion’s service on USB Type-C testing, please contact us via service@allion.com.