Posted on September 28, 2021, 2:19 PM
"HDMI-CEC", short for HDMI Consumer Electronics Control, is an HDMI feature found in many televisions and peripherals. This feature helps your devices work better together, but it's often turned off by default.
To make matters even more confusing, manufacturers often don't call this feature "HDMI-CEC". As in the case of Miracast each manufacturer wants to call it by its own brand name, even though it is an interoperable standard.
Why you want HDMI-CEC
HDMI-CEC allows devices connected to your TV via the HDMI ports to communicate back and forth with your TV. Devices can have some control over the TV, and the TV can have some control over the devices. This means that you can control your Blu-ray player using your TV remote, for example. Devices can also automatically switch your TV input when they need to do something.
For example, let's say you have a… Chromecast connected to your TV, but you're not using the Chromecast at the moment. You watch TV or play Xbox instead. Using HDMI-CEC technology, you can cast to your Chromecast from another device, and the Chromecast will send a signal to the TV, causing the TV to switch to the Chromecast's input. You won't have to fumble with the TV remote to switch to the correct input yourself.
HDMI-CEC also has advantages with game consoles. For example, with a PlayStation 4 you can press the button on the controller or the game console itself to bring the game console out of rest mode. When you do, the PlayStation 4 can automatically switch the TV to the correct HDMI input, saving you any trouble. Or, if you switch the TV to the PlayStation 4 input while the PlayStation 4 is in rest mode, the PlayStation will understand that you want to use it and will turn on automatically. Unfortunately, neither Xbox One nor Wii U currently supports HDMI-CEC.
Related to this article: How to Enable and Disable iMessage Receipts?Devices can also label their inputs, so your Chromecast will automatically appear as "Chromecast" instead of "HDMI 2". Yes, you can usually enter your own label, but the device can do it for you when using HDMI-CEC.
HDMI-CEC Trade Names
Often you won't see "HDMI-CEC" printed on a specs list. Instead, you'll see a branded "trade name." These names all refer to HDMI-CEC, so they only exist to confuse customers. If your TV has one of these features, it supports the HDMI-CEC standard. You need to know the name used by your TV manufacturer in order to find and enable the disguised HDMI-CEC option on your TV.
How to enable HDMI-CEC on your TV
This option can be found in your TV's menu, options or settings. Use the TV remote to select the settings menu and find the option. You can also check your TV instruction manual or search the web with your TV model and “Enable HDMI-CEC”.
On a Vizio TV we recently installed, the option was under Menu > System > CEC. This option was at least easy to find and well explained, although it was disabled by default for some reason.
How to enable HDMI-CEC technology on your devices?
Some individual devices also don't have HDMI-CEC enabled by default, so you can check the settings for each device. For example, HDMI-CEC is automatically enabled on the Chromecast, which means it will work if HDMI-CEC is enabled on your TV.
On the PlayStation 4, it's also disabled by default for some reason. We had to go to Settings > System and activate the “HDMI Device Link” option. You may need to look in a similar place on your device, or simply search the web with your device name and "HDMI-CEC" to find out if the device supports HDMI-CEC and how to do so. enable if not by default.
Related to this article: Living in the UK: A Complete Guide to Buying a House in EnglandHDMI-CEC is very useful, although you need to know it and activate it yourself. Be sure to do this on any new TVs and devices you set up to save yourself time and hassle, at least when switching between inputs.
More advanced features, such as controlling connected devices with your TV remote, may or may not work depending on how the TV and device manufacturers have implemented HDMI-CEC. Anyway, just for input switching, HDMI-CEC is worth enabling.
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