Review on 🔀 TESmart 16x1 HDMI Switch: 4K@30Hz, RS-232/LAN Control, IR Remote, Auto Switch - Black by Frank Dubey

TESmart 8 and 16 port HDMI switches are professional. They are many times more expensive than the cheap little 3-6 port switches that pollute Revain because they are better constructed and more reliable. This is an overview of an 8-port switch labeled 4k@30. Designed for the professional integrator market as it comes with rack mount hardware, IR extension and options to control the switch via IR, RS232 or Ethernet. It also works great in a non-professional home theater setup if you have the space. In the box, the switch is set to automatically switch inputs when it detects the source is on, so plug and play in that sense. However, you can change its behavior a bit. First, it makes an annoying loud beep when it changes sources. You need a Windows laptop and an Ethernet cable to set up the switch. They don't bother to tell you where the software is, but you should be able to find it if you go to http://www.tesla-smart.com/Downloads and look for a link that says " HSW0801AXX App for Windows XP/7/8/10". The switch uses the default IP address 192.168.1.10, so you need to connect an Ethernet cable to the front of the switch and laptop and set the IPv4 settings of the Ethernet -Set card to some other address on that subnet (e.g. 192.168.1.9) and subnet mask to Class C (255.255.255.0) then run the software Switch the software to "Ethernet" (it might " Network" - I don't have it right in front of me) and tell it to find the switch. From there you can turn off the beep, toggle auto-switching on or off, and set the prompt indicator to look for a short timeout main disadvantage of this switch is the extremely bright b lukewarm LED display. I consider the lack of controls for reducing the brightness to be a serious design flaw. If you're going to be using this switch anywhere in the eye line, I highly recommend investing in some dimmer stickers to reduce the sharpness of those LEDs. The switch is listed as supporting 4k@30 content, but in practice I was able to run 4k@60 content with no apparent issues. I am assuming that the chips used to control the switching are only designed for 4k@30 and are not artificially limited to it. I had no problem using advanced features like CEC through this switch. EDID works perfectly - even with failed devices. other switches. Each input has its own button on the front panel and of course each input has a corresponding button on the remote control. The remote control is minimal and not particularly necessary in my opinion. Most of the settings are based on automatic switching, which in my experience works perfectly. The only time you're likely to switch between different inputs on purpose is when using some sort of automation like the Harmony remote. (By the way, all TESmart switches are in the Harmony database). You should be aware that this switch does NOT support HDMI 2.1, but to my knowledge there are currently no such switches. If it weren't for that, I'd say it's probably the last HDMI switch you'll ever need to buy. Final Thoughts: This thing is pricey but worth every penny. I have a box of literally a dozen $10-$30 3-6 port HDMI switches that I've had to remove from my setups over the years because they failed, never worked properly with some features, and didn't have enough ports. etc. If I had just bought one like that, I would have really saved money. If you need more connections than your TV or AVR offers, this TESmart is a no-brainer. If you think you're going to surpass 8 inputs on this switch one day (e.g. if you have an extensive collection of gaming consoles) I highly recommend you upgrade to the 16x version of this switch - you won't regret . it.Pros: - Professional quality - Robust - Auto switching - Configurable - Supports HDCP 2.2 - Supports EDID - Supports CEC - Out of the box - More compatible than any other switch I've tested - Supports 4k (actually works with 4k@60, though it's not designed for it) Cons: - Requires laptop and software to set up (although software is freely available) - Piercingly bright LCD - By default emits an annoying loud beep when switching sources