Business News Holding

Category: hdtv

  • Sprintcam V3 HD Demos Slow-Motion Capabilities


    I-Movix’s new SprintCam V3 HD produces slow-motion output equivalent to 20 to 40 times slower than normal speed.

    That sounds great – and the showreel below by David Coiffer proves just how great it looks as well.

    Made for NAB 2009 exhibition, the short video is mostly 1000FPS shots, made during a recent rugby competition in the Stade de France, Paris.

    The camera is the first broadcast-integrated, native HD, ultra-slow-motion solution offering frame rates of 500 to 1,000 fps with instant replay.

  • HD Videoconferencing – A "Compelling" Option For Business


    High definition video has "raised the game" for videoconferencing and telepresence systems.

    That’s the opinion of Rick Snyder, president of Tandberg Americas, who says HD videoconferencing offers a "really compelling visual experience".

    He says this – and the fact the current economic climate has required business travel budgets to be cut – means more and more companies are looking seriously at HD videoconferencing.

    "We think that in the next few years, HD will become the norm," he said

    Speaking at the recent VoiceCon 2009, Snyder suggests that today’s HD videoconferencing systems offer a very compelling ROI – in some cases their cost is equivalent to a couple of international business trips.

    So as well as increasing productivity he says they can have a positive impact on a company’s bottom-line – and on the environment.

    Below is a video interview with Rick Snyder (his comments on HD start at 4.12mins) from VoiceCon.

  • LG and DivX Announce First HDTVs With DivX HD 1080p Playback


    LG Electronics’ new range of HDTVs will be capable of playing full DivX HD 1080p videos.

    The company says the upcoming models will be the first device series capable of doing this – enabling consumers to play DivX HD videos from a PC or the Internet through a USB slot.

    With the DivX 7 software package, users can compress a full HD movie onto a USB stick or SD card, or several on a standard DVD.

    While HD video requires a plenty considerable of storage space, LG says the DivX technology allows approximately two hours of high-quality DivX HD video on an 8GB media card.

    Simon Kang, chief executive officer and president of LG Home Entertainment TVs Company, said that as people expand their DivX HD video collections they are looking for more convenient ways to watch them on their TVs.

    "We’ve given them the ultimate convenience by building support for DivX HD playback into our digital TVs," he said.

    More than 200 models of LG digital TVs have been DivX Certified, including the LH50, LH70, LH85, PS70 and PS80 series.

    In addition, a wider variety of innovative LG TVs are now DivX Certified for playback of full DivX HD.

    LG says its new line of TVs will be available in late May in the United States, and within the next eight days in Europe.

  • Warner Offers Blu-Ray For HD DVD Trade-in


    More than a year after the high-def format war ended Warner Bros has launched a new HD DVD trade-in program in the US that allows its HD DVD titles to be exchanged for the same film on Blu-ray for a small fee.

    Called Red2Blu, it allows consumers to get the Blu-ray titles for USD $4.9 (USD $9.95 for boxsets), without needing to trade in the actual HD DVD discs, just the cover art (with UPC code) from the red HD DVD cases.

    Shipping costs a flat rate – and hefty – USD $6.95 and the offer extends to a maximum of 25 films per household.

    Warner has all 128 titles available for "upgrade" and return delivery time is between 4-5 weeks.

    Warner is also launching its first Blu-ray Disc customer loyalty program.

    The WarnerBlu Get 5 Get 1 Free scheme enables consumers to receive a free Blu-ray movie for every five featured titles they buy up until 6 April, 2010.

    Among the first eligible titles counting towards the five purchases are Yes, Man, which was released this month, He’s Just Not That Into You and Gran Torino.

    The selection of free Blu-ray movies includes We Are Marshall, Rush Hour 3 and Pan’s Labyrinth.

  • Adobe Announces Plans For Flash on HDTVs


    Adobe has designed a new version of its Flash animation technology that will enable HDTVs, Blu-ray player and other electronics device to stream content directly.

    The development means that webcasters, such as Hulu, will be able to compete more evenly with traditional broadcasters.

    Flash video services are normally only accessible on a TV through game consoles, or by directly attaching a Flash-capable computer.

    And while YouTube can already be seen on a TV using services such as TiVo, Apple TV and Sony’s Bravia Internet TV Link, this is not the full site offering.

    Instead viewers get videos that have been made adapted for each of these products.

    With Flash supported directly in the device, viewers will be able to access the full YouTube selection.

    It will allow consumers to access their favorite Flash technology-based videos, applications, services and other rich Web content across screens.

    Called the Flash Platform for the Digital Home, Adobe’s technology is now being licensed to OEMs and should ship in products scheduled for the second half of 2009.

    Companies which have agreed to support the platform include Broadcom, Comcast, Disney, Intel, Netflix, Atlantic Records and the New York Times.

    No hardware details were released – although it’s understood that manufacturers are planning on holding their announcements when Flash-enabled product lineups are market ready.

    Adobe estimates that Flash is already installed on 98 per cent of all desktop computers and a host of mobile devices.

    David Wadhwani, general manager and vice president, Platform Business Unit at Adobe, said the new version would dramatically change the way content was viewed on televisions.

    Adobe has been running a preview of its Flash technology for digital home devices this week at its booth at the NAB Show 2009 in Las Vegas.

    It drew large crowds to its mock living room demo, complete with an easy chair to demonstrate the ground-breaking technology, which could finally bring IPTV into the mainstream.

  • Apple Consolidated AV Cable Signals iPhone HD?


    Apple is reported to be preparing to replace its Composite AV Cable and Component AV Cable with a single cable called the Apple AV Cable, according to PhoneNews.

    Aside from getting rid of the need for two separate cables – both of which had unpopular encryption chips – the move is being linked to an iPhone HD.

    The consolidated cable will support both component and composite output, allowing users to plug in to both HDTV and SDTV displays.

    If used with a high def handset it would support 720p or 1080i out – on an HDTV, not on the device.

    PhoneNews also speculates that an HD-out iPhone or iPod Touch will replace the Apple TV.

  • Sony Raises Blu-Ray Stakes With Feature-packed Entry-level Player


    Sony has unveiled its latest Blu-ray player – the BDP-S360 – which comes with full 7.1 surround sound via a compatible AV receiver.

    This is achieved thanks to newly incorporated DTS-HD and Dolby TrueHD decoding capabilities – the first time these have been made available on an entry level Blu-ray player from Sony.

    Throw in the interactivity of BD-Live, Precision Cinema HD Upscale technology (converts SD DVDs to 1080p) and Sony’s Precision Drive technology, the BDP-S360 presents a fairly impressive home entertainment package.

    To complement the Blu-ray player’s pristine 1080p picture, Sony is also launching three new BRAVIA Theatre systems, the HT-FS3, HT-SS360 and HT-SF360, which provide exceptional high definition sound.

  • Panasonic's Dash-mountable Devices Offer In-car Blu-ray


    Blu-Ray may still be absent from most people’s living rooms – but Panasonic is offering a pair of dash-mountable devices for those who need their high-def fix in the car.

    The CN-HX3000D Windows-powered device, with a 7-inch, 1280 x 720 display offering GPS, Bluetooth, a 40GB hard drive, and iPod/iPhone compatibility.

    Use in conjunction with the CY-BB1000D in-car Blu-ray player and the results are no doubt impressive.

    At what cost, though, Panasonic has still to release, though the pair are expected to hit stores by the end of the summer.

  • Belkin Flywire Delayed, Price Rises


    The launch of Belkin’s FlyWire has once again been delayed – this time until August.

    First announced at CES 2008, the initially promising-sounding wireless device streams 1080p HD content from multiple HDMI inputs to HDTV televisions using the 5GHz band.

    So the Flywire hub can be used to wirelessly connect devices such as Blu-ray players, receivers, video-game consoles, and set-top boxes to HDTVs and projectors.

    The company claims its device offers whole-home range that penetrates walls or windows. An IR backchannel allows users to control AV devices hidden behind cabinet doors or in other rooms.

    Automatic frequency hopping is designed to reduce conflicts with Wi-Fi or other signals.

    Originally due for release in the US in January, this has now shifted back to the end of the summer.

    Along with the release changes, Belkin has raised the price of the FlyWire from USD $1,000 to $1,500.

  • Enciris Launches Low-cost HD Compression Solution


    Enciris Technologies has unveiled HD video compression technology aimed at solving problems with reducing bandwidth and storage requirements.

    The LT-100 is a Windows Media Video/ VC-1 HD video acquisition and compression board.

    France-based Enciris says it has been designed to meet the needs of demanding real time true HD acquisition and compression.

    A company statement said that the proliferation of HD video in all market segments has created a significant need for this type of compression technology.

    It adds that specialized, high performance dedicated hardware for real time compression is the only solution due to the massive computational requirements.

    "The low cost of the LT-100 now allows high quality HD compression to be used in product/ projects that previously would have been prohibitive," said the statement.

    "It is a perfect solution for the demanding needs of medical, surveillance, internet, broadcasting, videoconferencing, and video gaming applications."

    Enciris said the LT-100 captures video from both analog and digital HD and SD video sources including DVI, RGB, component, S-video and composite.

    An HD/SD-SDI option is also available.

    Additionally, the LT-100 can function as a HD compression coprocessor for video supplied by the host via PCI or USB.

    The LT-100 will compress HD Windows Media Video (WMV/ VC-1) up to advanced profile level 3 with resolutions from 176×144 to 2048×2048 pixels.

    The maximum compression frame rate is 240 frames per second at lower resolutions. At 1080p the LT-100 can compress 30 frames per second.

    All standard HDTV resolution are supported including the acquisition of 1080p60. The LT-100 can simultaneously acquire uncompressed video for preview purposes or occasional snapshots.

    Designed for low latency applications, the LT-100 outputs compressed video within only a few milliseconds of acquisition.

    Drivers for WindowsXP/Vista and Linux are included. Under Windows, DirectShow is fully supported.

    A cross platform SDK is also available for Windows and Linux application development.

    Mac OS X support will be available soon. Available as a combination PCI/USB board, the LT-100-VC1 can be either placed in a PCI slot or be connected via USB 2.0.

    It is ideally suited for OEMs and system integrators. The LT-100-SDI is an optional HD/SD-SDI daughter card. A USB only module, the LT-100-VC1U, is also available which includes a 140x100x40mm enclosure.

    The LT-100-VC1US is the USB module with the HD/SD-SDI option. A hardware decompression feature will be offered Q3/2009 free of charge via firmware upgrade.