What Goes Away Next?

One thing that people don’t always expect with the long march of technology is that things go away. We’re nearing the end of USB-A, for instance, with virtually everything now coming only with USB-C due to European regulations. Frankly, the camera makers seem a bit behind the times. With my Insta360 and DJI devices, for example, they only have a USB-C port, but my current cameras have many. Too many. And badly placed ports, on top of that. So let’s start today’s discussion with one about what ports are likely (or should) go away. First up is HDMI. Be honest now: when was the last time you plugged something into your HDMI port? Before you say “but I plug in my Atomos Ninja all the time,” let me warn you, that’s not a good answer. HDMI was designed as a way to transfer video and audio simultaneously through a single cable (as opposed through the three cables it used to take in the RCA Jack era). The consortium that created HDMI had vested interests. One of those was copy protection of…