Acer announces a decently priced SFF PC with lots of HTPC potential

Acer has announced the Aspire X1200 series of small form factor desktop PC's.

All three models feature:

• dual core AMD processors
• Nvidia GeForce 8200 on-board graphics
• HDMI output
• VGA output
• a PCIe 2.0 x16 expansion slot
• a PCIe 2.0 x1 expansion slot
• five USB 2.0 ports on the front
• four USB 2.0 ports on the back
• PS/2 keyboard and mouse ports
• Ethernet
• Modem
• multi-card reader
• firewire
• audio jacks on the front and back
• 16x DVD+R/RW DL drive
• 4GB RAM
• 10.6" x 4.0" x 14.4"
• Windows Vista Premium SP1

The three specific models announced today are:

X1200-U1520A

• $449.99
• AMD Athlon X2 4850e
• 320GB SATAII hard drive

X1200-U1510A

• $459.99
• AMD Athlon X2 5000+
• 320GB SATAII hard drive

X1200-B1581A

• $699.99
• AMD Athlon X2 4850e
• 500GB SATAII hard drive
• 22" wide screen LCD display

The TV Wonder brand is resurrected!

The new ATI TV Wonder HD combines a very capable TV tuner with a lower end Radeon GPU to bring a one slot solution to home theatre PC's.

The TV tuner portion is quite capable:

• Analog TV (off the air or cable)
• ATSC off the air digital SD/HD input
• ClearQAM unencrypted cable QAM SD/HD input

The TV output portion is quite nice too:

• enhanced DVD upscaling
• HD decoding
• HDMI with Dolby 5.1
• accessory kit with additional I/O jacks available

The GPU portion is not meant for heavy gamers, but is sufficient for casual lower resolution gaming

• 120 stream processors
• DX 10.1 support
• 128 bit memory interface

The board has a PCIe 2.0 x16 interface, and comes with more software than you can shake a stick at.

The only thing that it really lacks, which would have made it a killer card, is the ability to record HD content from a component video input - which is conspicously absent from the device.

RIAA/MPAA is going to flip over this one... and users everywhere will rejoice.

Finally something I've been wanting is going to become available - Hauppage will be bringing out a component video input digitizer with real-time H.264 encoding from 1080i (and presumably 720p) video.

FINALLY we will be able to make fair use of our HDTV signals... I will be able to time shift Stargate!!!

The MPAA can be expected to cry havoc, but guess what, Beta/VHS did not kill the movie industry, recording HD won't either.

This bit of tech goodness will supposedly set us back about $250.

Latest SlySoft AnyDVD (HD) strips BD+ from discs

Seems that the wheels keep turning for HD burning companies, with the format war settled and AACS cracked there was only one real thing left to tackle in the market, that of course being BD+

The latest version of AnyDVD (6.4.0.0) manages to not really crack the VM system but instead to just remove the security as a whole from the disc so that people can have DRM free HD discs to run on any system or to pull off for personal use on storage devices. It's certainly a workable approach, if the system is said to not really be crackable for at least 10 years then why bother with it and instead why not just tell it to stay behind when pulling the data off.

The full detail list of 6.4.0.0 comes down to this:

6.4.0.0 2008 03 19
- New (Blu-ray): Removes the BD+ protection from Blu-ray discs!
(for increased compatibility with titles released by Twentieth
Century Fox :-) )
- New (Blu-ray): Added option to enable / disable BD+ removal
- New (DVD): AnyDVD ripper no longer uses the Windows filesystem, it
has now its own UDF parser / reader.
Discs which cannot be read by Windows can now be copied with the
AnyDVD ripper.
- Fix (Blu-ray): Black display with some BD discs, e.g., "Layer Cake",
second release, "The Fugitive", "Wild Things" (all Region B)
- Fix (DVD): Small bugfix in "repairing defective disc structure"
function of AnyDVD ripper
- Fix (DVD): Problems with some Arccos protected titles, e.g.
"The Grudge", R1, US
- Some minor fixes and improvements
- Updated languages

Seems like the consumers are getting that leash around their neck loosened by the community at large, nice to see that the investments made on DRM paid off for the media companies.

Asus is making more EEE style PC's

Asus is apparently entering new markets with additional low priced Linux based computers.

• E-DT: desktop PC's, bundled with a monitor, are to be introduced at CeBIT and will likely be available in April or May of this year. Initial E-DT's will apparently ship with Intel Celeron processors. Cost: between $200-$300

• E-Monitor: 19"-21" LCD monitor with built-in PC (think iMac) but adds a TV tuner, expected September of this year for around $500.

• E-TV: 42" LCD TV with built-in Linux PC with EEE PC style software, also expected in September, and it is to cost at most $200 more than just a 42" LCD TV.

If the EEE PC is any indication, these new products will sell like the proverbial hotcakes.

Asus apparently sold 10,000 Eee PC's in its first week, and expects a lot of competition in the latter half of 2008 - Acer, HP, MSI and Gigabyte are the likeliest competitors in the inexpensive sub-notebook space.

Jerry Shen, president of Asustek noted that the small screen size, low battery life and long recharging of the Eee PC are issues that they must and will address.

In other news, Asus has given up on adding touch screens to the EEE PC for now, citing lack of customer interest.

Worth a look.

Kenbushi Pro V7.2 was released yesterday, and it now includes almost two hundred internet tv channels with a regularly updated program guide.

Here are some of its features, straight from their web site:

• 180+ channels of free high-quality content
• Plays all types of movies (avi, divx, H264, etc.)
• Plays all music, including purchased iTunes songs
• Auto media player selection (VLC, Quicktime)
• Store media across any number of hard disks
• View slideshows wirelessly on PSP, DS or PPC
• Control media playback wirelessly with your PDA
• Remotely synchronize folders via LAN or Internet

Could be interesting. Bonus: It's free for personal use.

New features for AMD 690G based motherboards...

A new BIOS from AMD adds a plethora of new features to motherboards based on its 690G chipset: with IGP

• 720p video playback support
• 1080p video playback
• voltage adjustments
• memory timing settings
• multiplier settings for CPU clock
• multiplier settings for HyperTransport clock
• IGP GPU overclocking

You might want to improve the stock chipset cooler if you overclock the chipset a lot :-)

It sounds like with the new BIOS, the 690G will make a neat little HTPC platform!

New technology will prevent TV veiwers from fast-forwarding through commercials. But, we can still skip American Idol if we want.

PVR's are great! Record, playback, rewind, fast-forward through all of you favorite television shows. Unfortunately, and with obvious reason, advertisers and networks don't particularly like it when we, the humble viewer, skip the same commercial we've seen a thousand times before. That's advertising revenue their loosing by not being able to coax people into buying their products.

It was only a matter of time, but someone can come up with a system that will prevent viewers from zipping through commercials. Cox Communications has inked a deal with the likes of ABC and ESPN to offer a video on demand service. Subscribers can order television shows such as Desperate Housewives (never seen it) and Grey's Anatomy (never seen it) for instant, on demand viewing. There will also be some select sporting events added to the on demand line up. Unfortunately, and my heart goes out to the viewers, the fast-foreword feature in their PVR will be disabled during on demand broadcasts.

Broadcasters have been crying foul ever since the dawn of Tivo, crying over lost revenue from skipped ads. In this case, ABC, ESPN, and their parent company Walt Disney, stipulated certain rules for Cox Communications if they were to start this video on demand service, and some form of anti-fast fore-warding technology was probably at the top of the list. It seems Cox is only too happy to abide by these network wishes, seemingly so when they said "We are excited about collaborating with Disney and using their great ABC and ESPN content to provide our customers with 'anywhere, anytime' access to content they value," said Cox president Pat Esser. It was also added "This project is another example of how our digital strategy integrates into our overall business strategy," said Disney co-chair Anne Sweeney. "It provides consumers with more access to our hit programming while showcasing our continued dedication to working with our distribution and advertising partners to develop and grow viable multiplatform business opportunities."

There's still a few details to hammer out, such as how long a commercial will run before viewers can skip it, and whether or not viewers can change the channel when a commercial pops up. Phillips Electronics had some time ago developed a simple embedded technology that would prevent viewers from skipping commercials all together. Needless to say, people got pretty ticked off. So, with the wisdom that only a multi-billion dollar corporation could have, Phillips released a statement saying that users could turn the anti-skip feature off all together if they so wanted. The old adage of beating a dead horse comes to mind for that one.

There has to be a better solution to all of this. Tivo, the PVR pioneer, has actually launched their own television commercial advertising division in the hopes of determining what ads are being watched, which are being skipped, and why. Google is launching their TV ad service that will allow advertisers to better target the viewing audience with more local ads. It may even help advertising companies make better ads. Microsoft is pushing their own solution, where ad content would be stored locally on a viewers PVR rather than broadcast through the air waves of cable system. Again, in the hopes of better developing and tracking target audiences.

Or perhaps the simplest solution of all, something I've been doing for a couple years. I don't watch TV anymore, say except for the evening news.

OCZ rolls out some killer fast and wicked cool memory, with heat pipes!

Who doesn't use heat pipes nowadays? They're in CPU coolers, video card coolers, and motherboard chipset coolers. It now seems that OCZ had added 1 and 1 together to get this.

Pretty cool! This is the first time I've ever seen a heat pipe cooled slice of memory. Called the OCZ DDR2 PC-8500 Reaper HPC Edition memory, they do come with some fairly decent specs. 

• 1066MHz DDR2
• EPP 5-5-5-15 timings
• Available in 2GB (2x1024MB)
• Unbuffered
• OCZ Lifetime Warranty
• 2.1 Volts
• 240 Pin DIMM

With the added features of . . .

• Reaper HPC Heat sink
• EPP-Ready
• 2.4V EVP

I like these so far! The Reaper HPC Heat sink is way cool, both figuratively and literally. And even though the HPC does stand for Heat Pipe Conduit, it could also stand for Home Theater PC (HTPC). Memory like that would guarantee an incredibly quite HTPC viewing experience. The EPP (Enhanced Performance Profiles) guarantees that these modules will boot to their rated spec on the latest Nvidia SLI chipset mother boards. That's right, no BIOS CL timing tweaking needed here. But if you really want to, you can over volt these modules up to 2.4V without burning your lifetime warranty. Only extreme tweakers need apply.

Hmmm, maybe I should see about getting a couple of these sticks in for review?

arnezami gives single finger salute to DRM

DRM is a pain in the posterior, does not deter pirates, and basically just penalizes consumers.

It is also essentially useless - as was once again demonstrated by arnezami, who found the "processing key" that was used for every existing HD-DVD and Blu-Ray movie. Allowing any of them to be decrypted.

Before anyone says "but the studio's need it to stop piracy" they should remember that commercial pirates will copy the whole disk, bitwise, which copies the DRM'd disk as a whole, totally bypassing the DRM.

EVD and HD-FVD to join HD-DVD and Blu-Ray in increasing market fragmentation and consumer confusion.

The good news is that both EVD and HD-FVD should be much cheaper than HD-DVD or Blu-Ray

The bad news is that both of them also have DRM.Basically, China and Taiwan both want to have their own HD DVD formats; and in both cases they went with cheaper red lasers.

HD-FVD stores 5.4/11/15GB (single/dual/triple layer) on one disk - not that much more than a standard DVD until you get to the three layer version. The picture quality is said to be excellent.

These new red laser based standards are likely to mean trouble for both HD-DVD and Blu-Ray as we are likely to be flooded with cheap EVD/HD-FVD (and probably combo players supporting both standards).

Apple may try to develop a console gaming system, or maybe just games for the iPod.

It's a simple fact that console gaming systems are perhaps more ubiquitous than PCs. Nearly every living room has either a Sony, Microsoft or Nintendo system plugged into their TV. Some even have a Sega system in the form of a DreamCast or Genesis. But now Apple may be looking to steal a slice of the console pie from its competitors.

Apple has been hiring game developers for some time now, and has recruited a small army of game programmers. Some have speculated that Apple may simply be trying to write more games for their iPod music players. But honestly, the iPod hardware doesn't allow for much in they way of next-gen graphics. Anyone with an SDK could conceivably program a few iPod games. But for Apple to enter the console wars, that's a whole other avenue of digital entertainment for Apple.

In the past, both Microsoft and Sony, with Nintendo to some lesser degree, have used console gaming to introduce new technology to the living rooms of consumers. Case in point being Blu-ray. Seeing it in console form first means we'll be seeing it move to the PC front very soon. And if Apple were to develop a console system, they would defiantly have the ability to provide a top notch on-line gaming experience for their subscribers. So far, only Microsoft has been able to dominate the on-line console world with their Xbox Live service.

But perhaps this a method for Apple to help people make the 'switch'. As has been seen with both the Xbox 360 and the PS3, a robust OS helps to give users more than just fancy games. I wouldn't be at all surprised if some console vendors started to retail office and paint programs for their console systems. If Apple were to build a strong gaming platform that doubles as a computer, then they could conceivably steal away a great portion of the market share from its competitors.

Apple will have to do their home work though. Back in 1995, 1996 Apple joined forces with Bandi to build the Apple Pippin. It was a console system, and it was a horrible failure. But if Apple does try to build a next-gen console, they could incorporate such features as a digital video recorder, streaming audio, on-line services, you name it.

Microsoft will be releasing an external HD DVD drive in Japan for under $200.

On November 17th, in Japan Microsoft will be releasing their HD DVD external drive for the Xbox 360. Under their current model, as opposed to Sony's, Microsoft says the only want consumers to buy what they need. At launch the HD DVD drive will most likely be used as next gen movie player but with Microsoft's coinciding announcement of 1080p move and game support, there is the possibility game developers integrating their content with the HD DVD drive (no more disk swapping). However the drive will be limited to the Xbox 360 connectivity which excludes HDMI output.

So owners of Xbox 360s will have access to an affordable HD DVD player while non-Microsoft console user can choose between the Toshiba Standalone HD-DVD Recorder (RD-A1) or the slightly more conservative Toshiba HD-A1 HD DVD. This seems to be a good move by Microsoft in the land where HD TVs are bountiful (Japan that is), where they really need to get more Xbox 360s into Japanese households. Microsoft's Japanese marketshare has been dismal to say the least and if getting people there to buy the Xbox 360 solely for the cheap HD DVD drive, Microsoft can capitalize then by trying to sell them their games. Also, did I forget to mention that the player will only cost Japanese folks ¥20,790 ($180 USD). That said the HD DVD drive will probably make its way to the North America around the $200 mark.

The $1000 player has been delayed before and was expected to ship on June 20th, after its previously announced date of May 23rd. Samsung appears to be on track for the launch of its player on June 25th, though Pioneer have stated that their player has been delayed along with the Sony, so we'll have to see what Samsung decides to do.

The first Blu-ray movies are still scheduled to ship on June 25th regardless of the hardware delays.

Edit: Apparently this delay was announced all the way back in April, but I somehow managed to figure it into two seperate delays. Apologies for the mix up.

I thought these days were over

So it turns out that the Intel "Viiv" platform's "instant-on" feature isn't quite the real thing. Put a different way, it's extremely easy to do "instant-on" if the machine was never turned off in the first place. Are you still a little confused?

If you look at the Viiv pages here, it lists 'instant On/Off' as a feature, but it does no such thing. The instant on/off feature simply mutes the sound and blanks the video, everything else carries on as usual. Don't believe me? Read this. Note the bolded warning, it says straight out that it does not power down the computer in any way. Several manufacturers have confirmed this to me also.

So what you have is Intel claiming that it shuts down the computer, but it does not, will not, and was never planned to. If you hit that instant off feature, the machine sits there spinning away at full tilt, or nearly so, sucking down electricity 24 hours by seven. It should be ashamed of itself, needlessly wasting resources and covering it up.

Shame, Intel. Shame, shame, shame. I thought the days of tactless gimmicks and cheating were over, but this takes the cake in my opinion. I suggest that Intel's Viiv marketers actually whip out a dictionary and look up the definition of "off". Deep sleep is "off". Hibernation is "off". Blaring fans with muted audio and blanked video is not "off".

The desktop case form factor makes a comeback

In the back of my mind, I always knew that the desktop case form factor -- the ugly, boxy, and completely useless form factor that was popular in the early 90s, where the case would sit on your desk, with the monitor sitting on it -- would make a comeback.

Fortunately, it's Shuttle that is responsible for making it come back, and that relieves my tension. Shuttle has been creative with their designs, and I have yet to find myself disliking them. Their next-generation small-form-factor design has the footprint of an A4 sheet of paper, and is just over 5 centimeters tall. There's no word on pricing yet, but I would assume it will be on the higher end, considering the punch it packs:

The XPC X100 is pitched at a new era of home entertainment computers based on Windows XP Media Center Edition. A typical spec, said Shuttle, is a 1.83GHz Core Duo T2400 processor; 512MB of dual-channel DDR 2 SDRAM; ATI Mobility Radeon X1600 graphics on an MXM module so it's upgradeable; 250GB Serial ATA II hard drive; HD Audio; Gigabit Ethernet; 802.11a/b/g Wi-Fi; four-in-one memory card reader; one front- and three rear-mounted USB 2.0 ports; DVI, TV-out and S/P DIF ports; and a six-pin Firewire connector.

Yes! Upgradeability! Thank you, Shuttle! However, now is the time for the obligatory "I still prefer my Mac Mini". It's true, I do -- but there's no use denying it, the XPC X100 is definitely a Goliath to my David, and it has the upgradeability factor to boot.

I can easily see this thing being put in an HTPC-like environment. It is just the perfect length and height, though not as wide as the typical VCR/DVD player. The less-appealing ATX chassis sitting behind my TV is crying now.

'The world's first remote graphics unit'

Matrox announced today their newest product, the Matrox Extio F1400. This new unit will allow the use of keyboard, mouse, monitor and audio equipment to be used remotely.

The new unit will allow a maximum distance of 820 feet from the host computer system, and will be a great solution for silent computing. The Extio F1400 will allow the simultaneously use of 4 monitors along with the standard outboard pc components.

Key features

• User devices can be separated from computer by up to 250 meters (820 feet) of fiber-optic cable
• Support for up to 4 digital or analog monitors at a time (in "independent" or "stretched" mode)
• Passive cooling (heat sink with no fan) for silent operation and extra reliability
• 6 USB 2.0 ports (downward compatible with USB 1.x) for keyboard, mouse, and other USB peripherals (4 in front and 2 in back)
• Integrated audio hardware
• Multi-function audio-output connector for an optical-S/PDIF signal or analog-stereo signal
• Standard stereo-audio connectors (microphone, stereo-line-in, and stereo-line-out)
• PCI and PCIe (PCI Express) fiber-optic interface cards (sold separately)
• 1600 x 1200 maximum resolution per display
• Matrox UltraSharp Display Output Technology
• Unified display drivers for Matrox Extio products and QID graphics cards
• Easy-to-use Matrox PowerDesk display driver interface
• Matrox Clone to view a copy of one display on the other displays
• Global sales and technical support
• 2-year warranty

For more information on this, visit the official page.

Microsoft's plan for controlling your living room.

Along with Intel, Microsoft is a major supporter of HD DVD - one of the few remaining proponents not straddling the fence. Here is where the story starts to sound more like a traditional consumer electronics industry evolution tale, and where that term "convergence" re-enters the picture. As Crotty pointed out, the company co-developed, and maintains a major investment in, the iHD interactive layer, which is the XML-based language that supports the underlying interactive functions. Microsoft is interested in iHD for more than just HD DVD; it will reportedly play a role in the company's upcoming PC operating system, Windows Vista, as well as in its "Live" online services, which have received considerably more attention of late. Meanwhile, the Blu-ray standard which Sony championed, and which it will reportedly include in its PS3, utilizes BD-J, a competing interactive standard based on Sun Microsystems' Java.

All of which is why the company must, and probably will, introduce an HD DVD version of Xbox 360, Crotty believes, either at or just before the point it just begins to break even on its costs for the current version. "The new interactive layers will have functionality that will connect to online options," he noted. "So if you're Microsoft, that idea is probably very enticing, because you're always trying to expand your connection to your existing online businesses as well. And if you are Microsoft, and you're maybe envisioning a future in which you're part of whatever Media Center there is in the future, I think you want to be involved with that interactive layer, especially if it has some connection to the Internet.

"The other part of Microsoft's grand plan," continued Crotty, "seems to be that they are making a lot of investment and development in IPTV and IP set-top boxes. So again, this is an opportunity where Microsoft is seeing a future in which they are a key participant in the sort of next-generation living room device, or devices, and that future involves connection between the hardware and the Internet as well. You can think of it as Microsoft coming at it from a few different angles, hoping that everything will meet in the middle."

Check out the full article here.

Microsoft definitely has a leg up on Sony as far as next (this?) generation consoles go, simply because of the unified online service that Sony is reportedly forgoing from the PS3. The Xbox 360 is indeed one of the slickest pieces of technology I've yet laid hands on (it's up there with OS X), but as Toms is reporting, over the next two years, the way in which our media is controlled will change drastically, and if Microsoft manages to unify how it is done, and incorporate full (or close to full) functionality into its exisitng platforms (namely the Xbox 360), then they will undoubtedly score a win.

Either way, Microsoft has a long road ahead of them if they plan on pushing the HD-DVD format and the standards that accompany it. Getting the drives into new 360's would be one thing, but ensuring a painless and hopefully free upgrade for existing owners would be the most difficult, and most important part of their plan.

What do you think? Drop us a comment!

Transfer television shows recorded through TiVo DVRs onto portable media players, starting next year

Struggling DVR (digital video recorder) service provider TiVo looks to be giving their "TiVoToGo" mobile download service a boost by allowing subscribers to transfer recorded television shows onto the Apple iPod and Sony PlayStation Portable handheld devices.  TiVoToGo already supports file transfer to PC and laptop, and if testing conducted using the TiVo Series2 boxes prove successful then support for Apple and Sony's handheld devices could come by the first quarter of 2006.

Recorded TV shows will be encoded into the necessary file formats, in this case H.264 for iPod Video and MPEG-4 for the PSP.  The catch is that the files will be digitally watermarked so that the service provider can trace files to TiVo accounts when needed.  Additionally, subscribers must purchase "low-cost software" on the side in order to get the transfers to happen in the first place, but it's not known whether this includes software that users with such portable devices might already have anyways.

Powercolor releases a PCIe 1x TV tuner/capture board with hardware mpeg-2 encoding.

It sure took a while... but other than x16 video cards, and the odd SATA RAID controller there have been hardly any PCIe cards on the market.

Powercolor is introducing its Theater 550 Pro - the first PCIe TV tuner card we've seen. It comes with a remote control, 12 bit video engine, FM tuner, and Windows MCE support.

They lost the 'Broadcast Flag' battle, now they want even more.

The media moguls in Hollywood now want to make it illegal for you to digitize and record anything from an analogue output. They never liked the Betamax decision (where the courts ruled people could record and time shift programs with VCR's) and now want another kick at the can.

This time, they want to make it illegal to manufacture or sell any device that would let you digitize analogue signals unless the device is licensed by them and has proprietary (open source need not apply) technology to ensure you do not digitize any video they don't want you to... so no more timeshifting.

Hopefully they will lose this round too.

Microsoft "invents" play once DVD's

You know sometimes I just have to wonder.

Some of you may remember the DiVX players marketed by Zenith a few years ago. They were supposed to play cheap "play once" DVD's, something that studio's wanted and video rental places hated. The idea is that you buy self-destructing movies at your grocery store, play it when you want to watch it, then toss it away. Granted, for some titled you could upgrade them to "Platinum Edition" and play them forever - on that player. Or at least until the system was cancelled. Wait a second... it did get cancelled!

The problem with this?

Not very ecologically friendly, and requires purchasing special players.

Microsoft appears to be poised to ressurect this idea, and for a measily $5-$6 you will be able to "buy" a movie, view it once, and toss the useless disk away. Ofcourse you can only do this once you buy a new special player.

Don't know about you, but I sure won't be supporting this tech.

New marketing fluff to feast upon

ATI has announced today a new product line dubbed "Avivo". Avivo will be available in all of ATI's upcoming products so it's fairly obvious that this will be ATI's video implementation in its Crossfire and R520 video cards.

MARKHAM, ONTARIO--(CCNMatthews - Sept. 20, 2005) - You'll never look atyour PC the same way again, once you've seen a computer with Avivo(TM) fromATI Technologies Inc. (TSX:ATY)(NASDAQ:ATYT). Avivo includes hardware andsoftware technologies that refine video capture and playback, and greatlyimprove display quality. Computers with Avivo provide much more accuratecolor reproduction than other PCs - they can display 64 times as manycolors - and so are essential for anyone editing photos or viewing video.In addition, Avivo makes PC games look stunning on any current display andthe superb image quality gives Avivo users the gaming edge.

All digital photo and video files are processed through a series of stepsbefore being displayed on PC monitors. A flaw in any one of these stepswill produce a less accurate video or image. ATI's Avivo refines all of thesteps to ensure the best photo and video experience:

- Using today's current computer architecture, Avivo delivers flawlessvideo playback by supporting hardware MPEG-2 compression, hardware assisteddecode of MPEG-2, H.264 and VC-1 video codecs, and advanced displayupscaling

- 64 times the number of colors currently available in current PCs foramazingly vibrant images that are more accurate with higher color fidelitywith unprecedented 10-bit processing throughout Avivo's display engine

Extreme resolutions, such as 2560 by 1600 or higher, on the latest digitaldisplays using dual-link DVI, as well as high color depth support over DVI

- Industry-first advanced up or down resolution scaling for high qualityviewing on any flat panel display using ATI's unique solutions never beforeimplemented on the PC

- Accurate video capture with features like 3D comb filtering (a featurepreviously limited to high-end televisions), front-end video scaling, andhardware MPEG video compression

- True-to-life image reproduction for TV programs with hardware noisereduction and 12-bit analog-to-digital conversion for high-quality videocapture

- Universal connectivity to support standard TV, HDTV, video input and allPC displays via digital (DVI, HDMI(TM)) and analog (VGA, Component,S-Video, composite) ports

"ATI's Avivo will revolutionize the PC in the same way that high-definitionrevolutionized television," said Rick Bergman, Senior Vice President, PCBusiness Unit, ATI Technologies. "As the world's leading supplier ofreception and display solutions for high end digital televisions, ATI isdelivering the world's leading video and display technologies to the PC.ATI's Avivo benefits anyone who edits digital photos, enjoys a home theaterPC, or plays PC games."

...

"ATI's Avivo enhances the fully integrated digital entertainmentexperiences Windows XP Media Center Edition 2005 offers with rich video anddisplay features," said Dave Mendlen, director of Windows XP products atMicrosoft Corp. "The unique features that Avivo brings to the home theaterenable users to connect more display devices with ease while watching thehighest quality video programming."

Avivo will be an integral component in all of ATI's upcoming desktop,mobile, chipset, workstation, and software products. For more informationabout Avivo, please visit http://www.ati.com/avivo

We won't know how much of this ends up actually translating into better video quality until we recieve a sample, but this will at least provide some of the more advanced video technology ATI has offered in its Theater 550 Pro chips to anyone with an ATI card.

Looking good so far

Microsofts vision for control of your living room is beginning to materialize with their announcement of availability of their IPTV set top boxes.

At the International Broadcasters Convention (IBC) in Amsterdam, the U.S. software company announced on Friday the availability of the first set-top systems supporting Microsoft TV IPTV Edition. The IPM11xx products, jointly developed by Thomson and Intel, are now shipping to customers, Microsoft says. The products support a range of video codecs, including MPEG-2, Windows Media Video 9, and MPEG-4 AVC, and are equipped with a 1.4-GHz Intel 854 processor.

...

Another key announcement made by Microsoft at IBC is the availability of a new system-on-chip component, which enables the production of low-cost devices optimized for Microsoft TV IPTV Edition. The SMP8634 media processor, supplied by Sigma Designs, can be embedded in a range of consumer electronic devices, such as TV sets, PCs, and game consoles, according to Microsoft.

"This is an important product development for a couple of reasons," Gracyzk says. "First of all, the chip will help manufacturers reduce costs by integrating various functions into one chip and eliminating the need for various components. And second, the chips can be embedded into many different kinds of consumer electronic products, such as DVD players, thus eliminating the need for a separate IPTV receiver."

With IPTV set-top box products now trickling in, the next question is: When will service be available? "Our software platform is in the final stage and will be available before the end of the year," Gracyzk says.

Most of the operators that have agreed to use Microsoft's IPTV technology plan to roll out service in the course of next year. A few, such as Swisscom, which had planned service earlier, were forced to delay their commercial launches largely because of technical difficulties with the Microsoft software.

The list of operators signed up by Microsoft includes BT Group, Telecom Italia, and Deutsche Telekom in Europe, as well as BellSouth, SBC Communications, and Verizon Communications in North America.

It will be interesting to see precisely what role the Xbox 360 plays in all of this. With Microsoft seemingly cutting down on some of its functionality out of the box, time will tell whether it actually will tie everything together.

Fill the slots please...

Apparently soon we will see more goodies for those PCIx slots in our motherboards. This is good news; personally I want to have more than one TV tuner in my HTPC, and don't want to be limited to AGP/PCI mATX boards.

The grayscale security video grabbers don't interest me right now; but it's only a matter of time before Hauppage or others start shipping PCIx 1x hardware MPEG encoders.

Just think... if there was a PCIx 1x two tuner hardware mpeg encoder, two slots would let us capture four streams at once... yes, I know, overkill - personally I can't see using more than three at once :-)