SCART

SCART (also known as Péritel or Péritélévision, especially in France, 21-pin EuroSCART in marketing by Sharp in Asia, Euroconector in Spain, EuroAV or EXT, or EIA Multiport in the United States, as an EIA interface) is a French-originated standard and associated 21-pin connector for connecting audio-visual (AV) equipment. The name SCART comes from Syndicat des Constructeurs d'Appareils Radiorécepteurs et Téléviseurs, "Radio and Television Receiver Manufacturers' Association", the French organisation that created the connector in the mid-1970s. The related European standard EN 50049 has then been refined and published in 1978 by CENELEC, calling it péritelevision, but it is commonly called by the abbreviation péritel in French. The signals carried by SCART include both composite and RGB (with composite synchronisation) video, stereo audio input/output and digital signalling. SCART is also capable of carrying S-Video signals, using the red pins for chroma. A TV can be woken from standby mode and automatically switch to the appropriate AV channel when the SCART attached device is switched on. SCART was also used for high definition signals such as 720p, 1080i, 1080p with YPbPr connection by some manufacturers, but this usage is scarce due to the advent of HDMI . In Europe, SCART was the most common method of connecting AV equipment and was a standard connector for such devices; it was far less common elsewhere. The official standard for SCART is CENELEC document number EN 50049–1. SCART is sometimes referred to as the IEC 933-1 standard. Before SCART was introduced, TVs did not offer a standardised way of inputting signals other than RF antenna connectors, and these differed between countries. Assuming other connectors even existed, devices made by various companies could have different and incompatible standards. For example, a domestic VCR could output a composite video signal through a German-originated DIN-style connector, an American-originated RCA connector, an SO239 connector or a BNC connector.