AVNation’s review of the ATEN KE8950 HDMI extender

The ATEN KE8950 is a simple point-to-point HDMI extender. Upon unboxing the devices it is clear these are not boxes to be hidden easily. HDMI inputs are only on the front of the transmitter. Ideally it would be great to see inputs on both the front and back.

We connected a standard Cat5 cable between the transmitter and receiver. Once power was applied to both devices the picture showed pretty quickly. In testing the latency and sync the system held up really well. Color reproduction on some spectrums of green and yellow were not ideal but within acceptable variances.

When testing detail images such as spreadsheets the system performed well. The ATEN KE8950 reproduced the fine lines separating the individual cells of the sheet.

Overall the video was pretty solid. There were no noticeable artifacts. This was a point-to-point review. The KE8950 is an extender not an AV over IP solution. The device does support single and multi-mode fiber but our review involved pre-made Cat5 cables.

Installation of the ATEN KE8950 would be relatively simple. The transmitter is not designed to be seen. The makeup of the box is a very basic black rectangular box. The receiver, on the other hand, could be placed within a credenza or other publicly facing space. The design of the receiver is asthetically pleasing with curved corner covers and fashionable front buttons for selecting on screen display overlays, power, and video.

The ATEN KE8950 is a solid HDMI extender. You can find the product for around $3,000 USD. If this was just an extender that would be a bit much. The receiver can also create video walls, scheduling, and has a built-in graphics overlay which was not tested or reviewed. With these additional functions the price point seems in-line with comparable products.

4 out of 5 stars. See the review below.