What makes for the best HDMI cables?
Well, the truth is that it doesnò€™t really matter what HDMI cable youò€™re using. If it works, it works, and no matter what a sales clerk looking for a big commission might tell you, picture quality isnò€™t really affected at all by using one brand or another, or by grabbing the expensive gold plated cable, or, really, by much at all.All that matters is that you get a cable that works. Thatò€™s it. As long as youò€™re not buying an HDMI cable thatò€™s been patched back together with electrical tape, then you can probably rely on it to give you as good a picture quality as any other. No matter what you might hear from some so-called experts, that really is the truth of the matter.
Thatò€™s not to say that you can invariably grab just any old cable, but if you are shopping around for a specific cable, then it should be for reasons beyond the myth of ò€œbetter picture qualityò€.
For example, some of the more expensive cables do have a thicker gauge. Again, this has absolutely no effect whatsoever on picture quality, but it can help in other regards.
Say youò€™re running your HDMI cable through a wall so as not to have to worry about a big tangle of cables and wires surrounding your beautiful new HDTV. A thicker cable will, of course, be more durable, and therefore less likely to bend, break and fray. This can save you a lot of hassle regarding the inconvenience of having to replace less durable cables every time they get damaged.
But on the other hand, letò€™s be entirely honest: How often do you really expect an HDMI cable safely installed into a wall or ceiling to suffer enough damage to necessitate replacement? Maybe if you have a problem with rats, sure, but if thatò€™s the case, it may actually be wiser to take the extra cash you were going to spend on a fancy HDMI cable and split it between a less expensive cable and some rat traps.
Now, again, when youò€™re buying HDMI cables in an electronics store, youò€™re probably going to meet a sales clerk from time to time trying to push you towards the more expensive products. In most electronic stores, the sales clerks work for commission rather than strictly on hourly wages, so of course, theyò€™re hoping youò€™ll by the big gauge gold plated HDMI. Donò€™t buy into that. The idea that this or that cable will affect picture quality really is a myth. As long as all the pins are connected, as long as the cable itself is intact, youò€™re going to get the best picture quality available no matter the brand name printed on your HDMI cable.
To be entirely frank, the only situation where you might absolutely, positively need a more expensive, more durable HDMI cable is if you keep your TV set or HDMI source outdoors. Perhaps, for example, if youò€™re in charge of the audio-visual aspect of a live event. For the home user, though, we advise you just make sure the HDMI cable youò€™re buying is long enough to reach from your source to your TV. Beyond that, you donò€™t have anything to worry about.