This post is solely dedicated to discussing MHL and it’s uses, and at the same time, clearing your minds regarding the same.
1. What is MHL?
As per the official MHL website, First off, MHL stands for ‘Mobile High-Definition Link’. MHL has other bonuses — it charges your phone while it’s connected to the TV. And you can use the TV’s remote to control the content coming from your phone on the big screen. MHL is the Magic in the Middle In layman terms, MHL is a technology developed by major smartphone manufacturers, which lets you stream your device’s content to an HDMI compatible television. You can think of MHL as just another adapter that can take place of a full-sized HDMI port. However, the thing to note is that MHL is a technology standard and not just a proprietary technology. This means that, just like USB, every manufacturer that wishes to include MHL has to follow a set of guidelines so that the device functions well with any HDMI television/device.
2. How does MHL work?
It it actually quite simple to understand. Taking an example of the Samsung Galaxy S3, which is an MHL enabled phone. The device has only one micro USB port and no traditional HDMI-out port. However, a separate adapter, the MHL adapter can be bought using which you can connect the device to a traditional HDMI port-enabled TV. The MHL adapter converts the micro USB to a female HDMI port, which can then be connected to a standard HDMI cable.
However, Samsung have gone on to make their own proprietary adapters that work only with Samsung phones, known as ‘Samsung Micro-USB-to-HDMI adapter (eleven-pin)’ adapters. On the other hand, most other devices use a standard adapter, known as ‘Standard Micro-USB-to-HDMI adapter (five-pin)’
3. Does my phone support MHL?
As there is no separate port for MHL (it is integrated with the USB port), it can be quite confusing to know whether your phone supports MHL or not. However, it is easy to know if your phone does. All you need to do is simple visit the ‘Do I Have MHL?’ page on the official MHL website, and if your phone features on the list, congrats, your phone does support MHL!
