Smart TVs are packed with more ports than you know what to do with. HDMI outnumbers them all, and that’s because most of your devices use that format these days. If you don’t have modern equipment, you might still get some use out of some of these older ports.
Quite a few of these ports will be dormant for most people, and that even applies to the ones that still have value. Your USB port, for example, can do a lot of things. Despite the things you can plug into it, I don’t think you’ll get a lot of long-term use out of the USB port. I’m not saying it’s totally useless, but there are other ports that can get you a lot more mileage.
For example, our digital audio out port can be far more useful if you have a sound system to hook up. Depending on the age of your receiver or soundbar, this might be your only option. However, newer soundbars and receivers connect via your TV’s HDMI eARC or ARC port. If that’s an option for you, then you should absolutely take that route. There’s no point in using that glowing red port on the back of your TV if you don’t have to.
That is one outdated port
A relic of a past time
Back in the day when this was the only reliable way to get your audio system hooked up, I understand wanting to use it. However, the rise of HDMI has essentially made the port obsolete, and even though it’s still included on your TVs, I don’t see why you’d want to use it.
The port isn’t capable of producing enough bandwidth for Dolby Atmos, so I’d disqualify it from contention for anybody looking to get the most out of their sound system. As somebody who has a sound system with the purpose of listening to Dolby Atmos-level quality, I can’t in good faith recommend anybody using the red port on your TV if you care about that.
Back in the day, this was an important port, and now its only purpose is if you have no other way to hook up your audio equipment. It’s been far surpassed by HDMI, and ARC blows it out of the water. In 2026, it’s time to leave ports like that in the past, and I’m sort of baffled by how it’s managed to stick around to this day. With all that said, it’s still a port that will upgrade your audio over what your TV can offer. If it’s your only way of getting surround sound, then by all means, go for it. However, I would recommend upgrading your equipment to something more modern if that’s the only port that works for you.
Some other reasons to make an upgrade
No HDMI-CEC here
While HDMI is praised for bringing better picture and audio quality, there’s also another thing it brings to the table that I think a lot of people sleep on or even take for granted. For a long time, before I got a universal remote, I used my Apple TV 4K to control everything in my setup, and that’s thanks to HDMI-CEC. What this does is create a system where one remote controls everything, and that means I could control my TV volume using the Apple TV remote. If you have your sound system plugged in through the digital audio port, then you don’t have this ability.
It’s not a perfect system, and I feel like I have to turn everything off and on again more than I’d like, but I’m very happy with how it works when it does. I can’t imagine having to go back to using multiple remotes again because it’s just so much nicer to have only one. My ottoman is actually used for my legs again instead of being filled up with remotes.
I love seeing advances like this with technology. Yes, it’s nice to see the additional bandwidth offered by HDMI, but it’s cool to see some extra things offered on top of that. HDMI-CEC isn’t exactly a new thing, but as I’ve started to replace some of my old devices, it’s started to create a more seamless connection in my home. I hope there continues to be improvements in the format over the years. I know a lot of people run into handshake issues where something isn’t working properly, so it’d be nice to snuff that out completely.
At the end of the day, it’s improvements like this that make upgrades feel really worth it. Yes, having Dolby Atmos sound is nice, but if you only have a 5.1 surround sound system, that’s not something that is really all that appealing. For those people, the digital audio out port might feel like it’s good enough. It’s when you bring things like the improved audio and HDMI-CEC into the mix that you really sweeten the pot.
