Do cheap HDMI switches add lag?

[Lostdotfish]

Does anyone know if simple switches like this introduce any appreciable lag to things like DCHDMI, WiiDual, Ultra64, Anlogue FPGA console?

[BuckoA51]

They have no frame buffer so can't possibly add any lag.

[evil_ash_xero]

I've read that switches don't add any lag, but splitters do. Why is that?

[orange808]

I've never owned a splitter/distribution amp that added latency.

[RGB0b]

Anything that says it scales will probably add lag. Anything that's just a switch, splitter or audio extractor should be totally lagless.

[xeos]

lag requires more hardware - a buffer to hold the data. so generally I'd not expect any lag. But it can't hurt to test it, and lag testers can be useful for other thing (i'm biased though). These days cheap scalers only cost $10-15, so I'd not put it past a switch in that range to have some kind of buffer to reduce sync time (flicker due to loss of sync) as you switch inputs. I've never purchased a switch that did add lag though.

[Unseen]

There are a few switches on the market that advertise "seamless" switching between sources - these ones are highly likely to add lag.

[xeos]

There are a few switches on the market that advertise "seamless" switching between sources - these ones are highly likely to add lag.

Indeed. Ironically these will be more expensive, too. So the concern about cheap switches adding lag is backwards.