HDMI and DVI ports

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The computer industry used the DVI port for digital quality displays (Left side). The consumer industry (TV's etc) decided the DVI port was too big to fit in the sides of slimline TV's and therefore turned towards the HDMI port (Right side). The HDMI port incorporated the Audio whereas the DVI required a separate cable. Electrically the signals were compatible so it is possible to buy a DVI to HDMI cable and run a separate Audio cable for connecting a HDMI device to a DVI device. This is useful for connecting DVD / USB players to computers / monitors and vice versa.