Self powered HDMI splitter.
Saturday, August 25, 2012 at 12:51PM 
Just a quick post that's not worth its own video. Were you aware that you can now get a powered HDMI splitter that doesn't require a separate power supply? For those who don't know, a HDMI splitter duplicates a source and sends it to two outputs at once, and should not be confused with a switcher that routes multiple sources into one input, one at a time.
This splitter draws its power from the HDMI socket rather than a mains plug wall adaptor. This is a big deal to those people who have an area behind the TV cabinet that looks like a warning poster from the Fire Brigade. I've got over a dozen plugs behind my TV powering all my AV gear, but I needed to split (duplicate) the HDMI signal from my Sky HD box and I wanted to avoid taking up any more wall plugs.
This bus powered HDMI splitter seems new to the market, but I'm sure that now one company has figured out how to do this, others will follow.
All the device does, is duplicate the output from an HDMI socket, in full resolution with no impact on quality. Both HDMI destinations do the HDMI handshake with the splitter. If one device is turned off, the other one is unaffected. Build quality leaves a bit to be desires, but it works fine. Once plugged it, it can be tucked behind the TV with no need to press any buttons on it. If for some reason either device fails to connect properly, just press reset and it will attempt to handshake again.
Cost is approx £24 which is a lot cheaper than most traditional wall plug powered HDMI splitters. Purchased from CPC.
Reader Comments (1)
This is a really interesting HDMI splitter. I've used splitters before and they have all included a power supply. Do you know how much power something can draw from an HDMI port? I didn't think it was very much, but maybe just enough to get this done.
I think it would be pretty cool to have a self-powered splitter.