It appears that, with the shift to the DisplayPort, Apple has eliminated adapter accessories for S-Video and composite video output. We’ll need to properly confirm this, but of course, you will want a way of being able to do this for maximum flexibility on the road.
DIY solutions, anyone? DisplayPort does have the ability to pass through analog signals, so there’s no reason, in theory, this shouldn’t be possible, as far as I know. And you should be able to use an adapter that translates VGA to S-Video / composite. (Apple DOES offer a VGA output adapter for the new models.)
Tto be clear, as I understand it, what’s possibly happened is the elimination of adapters from Apple, not something that’s impossible to fix. That means, unless I’m missing something, we should have at the very least an opening for some third-party accessories.
I think it’s an arrogant decision on Apple’s part: no HDMI, no S-Video, and no composite means that, if this is true, they knowingly eliminated all of the primary ways people currently connect video output on their computers. And it certainly shouldn’t be technically impossible.
I’m happy to be corrected, of course. Solutions?
Updated: Here’s one way to go, theoretically — buy Apple’s VGA adapter, then buy something like this to get your S-Vid / composite video jack. And be sure not to forget either dongle. (Doh!)
Can anyone think of any problem with going that route?
Another update: DisplayPort, as an interconnect standard, specifies both the physical connector and the signal. Apple is not properly supporting DisplayPort, because they’re substituting a completely different physical connector. And, quite frankly, that means it’s unacceptable for Apple to crow about how this is an emerging standard, when they don’t actually support that standard. It also means the options for third-party accessories will be scant.