Super VGA
A broad standard extending VGA, commonly denoting 800×600 resolution.
Super VGA (SVGA), also called Extended VGA, is a catch-all term for various computer display standards that built upon IBM’s original VGA. When used to denote a specific resolution—similar to how VGA and XGA are used—SVGA means 800 × 600 pixels. The label emerged in the late 1980s, after IBM released VGA. Third-party manufacturers began producing graphics cards with extra features based on the VGA design. As these enhanced cards became widespread around 1988, people started calling them “Super VGA.” The term was never an official standard, just a convenient shorthand. The first cards marketed explicitly as SuperVGA and SuperVGA HiRes came from Genoa Systems in 1987. In November 1988, NEC Home Electronics announced the formation of the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA). VESA’s goal was to create and promote a Super VGA standard as a successor to IBM’s proprietary VGA. Super VGA could display resolutions up to 800 × 600 pixels, a 56% increase over VGA’s maximum of 640 × 480. These new cards broke compatibility with IBM’s VGA standard. Software developers had to write specific display drivers for each card their programs would support. This heavy burden initially slowed adoption of Super VGA cards. To solve the problem, VESA introduced the VESA BIOS Extensions (VBE) in 1989, providing a common software interface for any card that implemented the VBE specification. Eventually, Super VGA adapters supported countless display modes. The Super VGA standardized the following resolutions: 640 × 400 or 640 × 480 with 256 colors 800 × 600 with 256 colors 1024 × 768 with 256 colors 1280 × 1024 with 256 colors. SVGA uses the same DE-15 VGA connector as the original standard and operates over the same cabling and interfaces. Early manufacturers of Super VGA cards included Ahead Technologies, Amdek (using a Tseng Labs chipset), AST Research (rebranded Paradise), ATI Technologies (VIP and VGA Wonder), Chips and Technologies, Cirrus Logic, Compaq (Paradise chipset), Everex, Genoa Systems, Orchid Technology, Western Digital’s Paradise Inc., Sigma Designs, STB Systems, Video Seven, Willow Peripherals, and Trident Microsystems.
Quick Facts
- Created
- 1987-08-31
- Architecture
- Chips and Technologies 82c441, ET3000
- Predecessor
- Video Graphics Array
- Successor
- XGA
Facts from the source article.
Lore & Background
In the late 1980s, after the release of IBM's VGA, third-party manufacturers began making graphics cards based on its specifications with extended capabilities. As these cards grew in popularity, they began to be referred to as 'Super VGA'. This term was not an official standard, but a shorthand for enhanced VGA cards which had become common by 1988. The first cards that explicitly used the term were Genoa Systems's SuperVGA and SuperVGA HiRes in 1987. In November 1988, NEC Home Electronics announced its creation of the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) to develop and promote a Super VGA computer display standard as a successor to IBM's proprietary VGA display standard. Super VGA enabled graphics display resolutions up to 800×600 pixels, compared to VGA's maximum resolution of 640×480 pixels—a 56% increase. Super VGA cards broke compatibility with the IBM VGA standard, requiring software developers to provide specific display drivers and implementations for each card their software could operate on. Initially, the heavy restrictions this placed on software developers slowed the uptake of Super VGA cards, which motivated VESA to produce a unifying standard, the VESA BIOS Extensions (VBE), first introduced in 1989, to provide a common software interface to all cards implementing the VBE specification. Eventually, Super VGA graphics adapters supported innumerable modes.
Reader's Guide
Super VGA's significance lies in its role as a de facto industry response to IBM's proprietary VGA standard. By enabling resolutions up to 800×600 pixels—a 56% increase over VGA's 640×480—it pushed graphical capabilities forward for personal computers. However, its initial fragmentation, where each manufacturer's card required custom software drivers, created a barrier for software developers. This problem directly led to the formation of the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) by NEC Home Electronics in November 1988, and the subsequent introduction of the VESA BIOS Extensions (VBE) in 1989. The VBE provided a common software interface, allowing any VBE-compliant card to work with software without per-card drivers, which was crucial for widespread adoption. The legacy of Super VGA includes the standardization of several resolutions—640×400, 640×480, 800×600, 1024×768, and 1280×1024—all with 256 colors, and its use of the same DE-15 VGA connector ensured backward compatibility with existing cabling and interfaces. The term itself remains in use as a shorthand for the 800×600 resolution.
Did You Know?
- The first cards explicitly using the term 'Super VGA' were Genoa Systems's SuperVGA and SuperVGA HiRes in 1987.
- NEC Home Electronics created the Video Electronics Standards Association (VESA) in November 1988 to develop a Super VGA standard.
- Super VGA cards broke compatibility with IBM's VGA, requiring specific display drivers for each card.
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