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Tag: blu-ray

  • Bose's Latest and Greatest HDTV Offering is the VideoWave II

    Bose is known internationally for their audio systems, but the VideoWave II, the next generation of their popular original home theater offering, gives users a 55-inch HDTV and all that is needed for a full home theater.

    As does the 46-inch in the first VideoWave, the larger HDTV now includes LED backlighting, a significant upgrade over their initial product line. And the 55-inch set features a slimmer profile, for better wall placement.

    The HDTV set has also been given a facelift, with an aluminum-finish bezel and matching click pad remote. The set handles full 1080p resolution and a solid 120 Hz front panel. The magic of Bose takes over in the rear, with their patented waveguide technology running six woofers. Add that to the PhaseGuide sound radiator and you’ve got the power and impact of seven distinct speakers.

    The software is just as smart as the hardware in the VideoWave II. Bose’s ADAPTIQ audio technology customizes the sound settings for maximum quality in the room. It actually bounces sound off the ceiling and the opposite wall, recreating a seamless surround sound experience. It’s a stunning effect, and removes all the clutter of speakers from your space.

    The HDTV set ships with a console unit that accepts inputs from a wide range of devices, including most cable and satellite boxes, Blu-Ray machines, mobile devices and game consoles. The remote has junked infrared reading in favor of radio frequencies, so anything you plug in can be safely stowed away without a connection loss. Add on a dedicated iPod dock, and you’ve truly got all you need for home entertainment.

    The price may be the best part, as purchase delivery and installation is only $5,999. It’s easily mounted on the wall, but also comes with a stand for your entertainment center.

  • Blu-ray Player Shipments to Exceed 62.5 Million in 2011

    Worldwide Blu-ray player shipments are expected to more than double between 2009 and the end of 2010, and the numbers from ABI Research forecast continued growth next year, for a total of more than 62.5 million shipments in 2011.

    In North America standalone Blu-ray players are expected to reach almost 18% penetration among TV-owning households, up from just over 7% in 2009.

    As interesting as this estimate is, it is just part of a larger picture. According to industry analyst Mike Inouye, “The solid growth in Blu-ray player shipments highlights a trend within the wider consumer electronics market. Larger, fixed-location devices such as Blu-ray players and flat panel TVs are enjoying rapid adoption relative to many classes of small, portable devices. Specifically, portable gaming devices are leveling out, while we are seeing actual declines in shipments of portable audio players. Digital picture frames are showing only mild growth, and compact digital camera shipments are declining in North America and Japan, though they continue modest growth elsewhere.”

    What is behind these shifts? “In addition to price declines, the greater growth potential of TV-centric devices may be due to some of the recent exciting innovations in TV technologies: larger, flatter panels, Internet connectivity, and 3D,” says Inouye. “Aside from the economic/job environment it could be that dedicated portable device markets are simply maturing, or it could be due to the greater competition they face from smartphones and other multi-function portable devices.”

    ABI Research believes that CE device vendors can improve their chances of success in this very competitive marketplace by, on one hand, continuing efforts to educate consumers about what they can do with the latest devices, and on the other by striving to keep the user-experience as seamless and painless as possible.

  • Broadcom First to Ship True Single Chip Blu-ray Solution

    Broadcom today announced that it is the first silicon provider to ship a true single die Blu-ray Disc chip.

    According to the company, the BCM7630 offers an “unprecedented level of integration” combining optical front-end and back-end video decoding and display technologies in a single die solution.

    In addition it supports internet streaming applications including Netflix 2.0, Pandora Internet Radio, BD-Live, Vudu, CinemaNow movie services and others.

    Also announced today is the BCM7632, which supplements the capabilities of the BCM7630 by adding support for the playback of 3D Blu-ray movies. It also provides additional support for 3D Blu-ray Disc players in stereoscopic full 1080p resolution

    Broadcom says internet streaming over Wi-Fi is fast becoming a mainstream requirement. The BCM7630 and BCM7632 support Broadcom’s market-leading Wi-Fi and Bluetooth solutions providing manufacturers with a system solution that features integrated wireless support, as the company claims.

    The Wi-Fi and Bluetooth solutions can also be used for remote controls.

    "Blu-ray Disc players are poised for continued growth in the coming year, and our next generation Blu-ray solutions will help bring to market a new line of players for 2010 that meet consumer demand for connected applications such as Netflix 2.0, Pandora Internet Radio, Vudu and CinemaNow," said Dan Eiref, Vice President & General Manager of Broadcom.

  • ZiiLABS Introduces 1080p Blu-ray Quality Handheld Media Processor

    ZiiLABS announced the ZMS-08, its 3rd generation media-rich applications processor that brings 1080p Blu-ray quality H.264 decode to low-power devices.

    ZMS-08 delivers the low-power, high performance processing required of next-generation connected devices such as web tablets, netbooks, connected TVs, video conferencing systems and home media hubs.

    ZiiLABS says the ZMS-08’s proven StemCell Computing array provides the media processing capabilities to deliver full HD 1080p high-profile H.264 video decode, simultaneous H.264 encode and decode at 720p, 1080p 24fps encode, accelerated OpenGL ES 2.0 3D graphics at up to 1 Gpixels/sec, 2D processing, compositing, image processing and advanced Xtreme Fidelity X-Fi Audio effects.

    With the low-power ARM Cortex processor running at up to 1GHz, the ZMS-08 is aimed at small form factor devices that enable content currently accessed via the PC to spread to mobile and low-energy devices.

    "Combining advanced ARM technology with their own media processing IP has enabled ZiiLABS to deliver the high performance and low-power consumption required to enable the next leap in the mobile internet revolution" said Ian Drew, EVP marketing at ARM.

    Full HD video playback at 1080p supporting H.264 High Profile at up to 40Mbps means users can experience Blu-ray quality video playback direct to their 1080p TV utilizing the integrated HDMI controller.

    Block Diagram

    Support for OpenGL ES 2.0 3D graphics and 1 Gpixels/sec fill rate enable a new class of user experiences including enhanced user interfaces, PC-like 3D gaming and Adobe Flash 10.

    The tightly coupled 1 GHz ARM Cortex-A8 provides a secure, high performance main CPU that features a 256K L2 cache, NEON, TrustZone security technology and 1 GByte addressable RAM.

    According to the company, dual USB 2.0 OTG controllers with PHY and ULPI interfaces provide direct connection to USB hosts, peripherals and high-speed modems. Four HD video processing units support camera and display input and output processing with the integrated HDMI and Analog video encoders supporting HD-TV 1080p output at 60fps.

    The secure Boot ROM, three SDIO/MMC ports, UARTs, SPI, GPIO and 64-bit and 32-bit memory controller supporting mDDR and DDR2 at up to 333MHz provide the interfaces and memory bandwidth required for today’s media rich connected devices.

    The ZMS-08 is sampling to certain customers now and is scheduled for volume shipment in the 1st quarter of 2010. The chip is housed in a 13x13mm, 424-pin FBGA package.

  • Apple Updates Apple TV with 3.0 Software: More HD Content to Be Sold

    After months of speculations whether Apple will release completely new Apple TV device making it a high-end media center for our living rooms or rather leave it, more or less, as it is (means without all the latest true HD capibilities, IP streaming, Blu-ray, live TV ability, HD recorder, 1080p support, etc.)… we still don’t know the answer.

    The company introduced new Apple TV 3.0 software witch gives us not more than a redesigned main menu – that is said to give a faster access to the content, possibility to watch iTunes Extras and enjoy iTunes LP in fullscreen and listen to the internet radio (including stations in high-quality HE-ACC formats).

    Adding only cosmetic changes to a device with such a huge potential doesn’t mean Apple gave up developing Apple TV and converting it to a set’top box with all the capabilities offered by the HD market, but it gives a next signal that the company will do nothing that would pull people away from iTunes.

    On-demand HD movie rentals and purchases, HD TV shows, music and podcasts from the iTunes Store give Apple millions. According to the company, Apple TV gives direct access to a catalog of over 8,000 films on iTunes including over 2,000 in HD video available for rent or purchase. Users can also choose from a selection of 11 million songs, 10,000 music videos and over 50,000 TV episodes. Renting a movie in iTuens runs from $3 to $5, buying would costs us $14,99. And there are 65 million users of iTunes out there.

    “HD movies and HD TV shows from iTunes have been a huge hit with Apple TV,” confirmed Eddy Cue, Apple’s vice president of Internet Services.

    Adding anything that would take Apple from iTunes revenue (like additional drive – Blu-ray or, at least DVD, IP streaming or live TV) wouldn’t have any sense from the economical point of view. The only thing can happen is that Apple will add to the Apple TV an access to App Store to maximize revenues from the application market.

    Piper Jaffray analyst Gene Munster predicts that Apple will sell 6.6 million AppleTV units this year.

    ***
    The new Apple TV software is available immediately free of charge to existing Apple TV owners. Apple TV with 160GB capacity is available for $229.

    Apple TV requires an 802.11b/g/n wireless network or 10/100 Base-T Ethernet networking, a broadband Internet connection and a high definition widescreen TV.

    Apple has also released iTunes 9.0.2, adding support for Apple TV 3.0.

  • Netflix Coming to PlayStation3

    Sony and Netflix – the two of the fastest growing home entertainment brands in the U.S. – are joining forces to make movies and TV episodes from Netflix available to be streamed instantly to TVs via the PlayStation3.

    The streaming via the PS3 system will begin next month at no additional cost to Netflix members in the United States who have a PS3 system.

    Initially, watching movies instantly streamed from Netflix via the PS3 system will be enabled by a free, instant streaming Blu-ray disc that is being made available to all Netflix members.

    The free instant streaming disc leverages Blu-ray’s BD-Live technology to access the Internet and activate the Netflix user interface on the PS3 system, which must be online via Wi-Fi or Ethernet.

    The disc will be required for streaming at least until a PS3 software update sometime in late 2010.

    Netflix members slide the disc into their PS3 systems to reveal movies and TV episodes that can be watched instantly. They can use the Netflix Web site or navigate directly on their PS3 systems to add movies and TV shows to their Queues.

    PS3 system enables consumers to play high-definition games, watch Blu-ray movies, listen to music, view photos, browse the internet, and download content from PlayStation Network.

    Netflix, one of the world’s largest online movie rental services, enables to stream movies and TV episodes to a TVs and computers via Netflix ready devices (such as the PS3) and delivers DVDs to homes.

    According to the companies, the PS3 system’s installed base has reached close to 9 million units in the United States, and Netflix recently reported 11.1 million U.S. subscribers as of September 30.

  • Phillips Launches Wireless HDTV Box in the U.S.

    Philips confirmed U.S. retail availability for its much-anticipated Wireless HDTV Link, introduced in September at IFA 2009 in Berlin.

    The device is currently available for purchase at amazon.com and dell.com with a manufacturer’s suggested retail price of $799, and will be sold at other online stores beginning November 2009.

    HDTV Link uses innovative technology to wirelessly deliver high-definition TV picture quality (up to 1080p) without ruining the aesthetics of the home.

    It transmits HD signal up to 75 feet away from the TV without signal loss or degradation, making it possible e.g. to stream devices like a Blu-ray player to a TV from the other side of the room.

    The Link allows to connect four AV devices to a TV. It also has two digital HDMI connections and two component connections, allowing to switch between devices (TVs, DVDs, games consoles) without having to change cables and plugs in between uses.

    The receiver has been specially designed to fit behind standard TV wall mounts so that it is out of sight.

    In July Belkin said it will not be releasing its FlyWire wireless HDMI accessory because of the current state of the economy.

  • IFA 2009: Hybrid Blu-Ray/HD Media Player


    VIDEO INTERVIEW. “After watching Blu-ray video or other HD content, you will never go back to Standard Definition,” assured Konstantin Dyshlevoy, Chairmain of HDI Dune, interviewed by Biz-news.com at IFA 2009.

    During this year’s Berlin exhibition HDI Dune was showing its new versions of hybrid Blu-ray/HD media players that have been recognized as “IFA 2009 INNOVATION”.

    Don’t miss the part of the video in which Konstantin gives his own explanation on why the world economic crisis has positively affected the HD market.

    HDI Dune was the first to presente hybrid Blu-ray/HD media player solution nearly one year ago, at IFA 2008. New 3.0 players come with all the features of hybrid devices developed and polished during this year on Prime/Base 1.0/2.0 products on 8634 chip, including full support of Blu-ray and DVD ISO images and directory structures (inc. menu, subtitles, sound tracks, BD-J, BD-Live features, etc), auto frame-rate feature, full support of MKV (inc. high bit-rate) and SMB/UPnP resources browser.

    The BD Prime model includes Blu-ray drive and is capable of playing Blu-ray and DVD discs as long as nearly any files from a diversity of storage types which can be connected via USB, eSATA or Ethernet/Wi-Fi. The HD Base model doesn’t contain Blu-ray drive but has a compartment for easy changeable 3.5" DATA HDD.

  • Panasonic Develops 50-inch Full HD 3D PDP

    Aiming to bring Full HD 3D TVs to the market in 2010, Panasonic steps up its efforts in developing the related technology. The company has just developed a 50-inch Full HD 3D compatible plasma display panel (PDP) and high-precision active shutter glasses that enable the viewing of theater-quality, true-to-life 3D images in the living rooms.

    The new PDP and glasses evolved from Panasonic’s Full HD 3D Plasma Home Theater System that was developed in 2008 and comprised of a 103-inch PDP and a Blu-ray Disc player. The prototype PDP has a 50-inch screen, which is expected to become the most popular size for home theaters.

    This 50-inch PDP uses Panasonic’s newly-developed high-speed 3D drive technology that enables rapid illumination of pixels while maintaining brightness. The panel also incorporates a crosstalk reduction technology allowing for minimizing double-image (ghosting) that occurs when left- and right-eye images are alternately displayed.

    As PDPs are self-illuminating device with full motion-picture resolution, they offer fast response time and are suitable to display fast-moving images. The high-speed 3D drive technology involves the development of new panel materials and LSIs that accelerate the pixel illumination while maintaining brightness.

    Panasonic also developed the crosstalk reduction technology using phosphors with short luminescence decay time and illumination control technology to reduce double-images that occur when left- and right-eye image are alternated on the panel. This technology contributes to achieving high-quality clear pictures with high-contrast and accurate color reproduction. As the new technologies can also be applied to improve the quality of 2D images, they have expanded PDP’s potentials for further evolution.

    To reproduce 3D images, Panasonic uses the Full HD x 2 frame sequential method that displays time sequential images, alternately reproducing discrete 1920 x 1080 pixel images for the left and right eyes on the display frame by frame. The frame sequential method is widely used in showing Hollywood 3D movies in theaters.

    The active shutter glasses employ Panasonic’s technology that controls the timing of opening and closing the shutter in synchronization with the left- and right-eye images alternately shown on the PDP. According to the company, this technology enables significant reduction of crosstalk that degrades the image resolution in 3D display. The glasses are designed to fit for a wide range of users from children to the elderly.

    Panasonic has been working to develop its original Full HD 3D technology to create synergy between PDPs, which excel in moving picture resolution and color reproduction, and Blu-ray Disc players, which are able to faithfully reproduce high quality Hollywood 3D movies.

    The company continues to work on developing 3D products, targeting to launch the products in Japan, Europe, and the U.S. in 2010.

    Prototype Full HD 3D TV and glasses will be displayed at CEATEC JAPAN 2009 to be held from October 6 to 10 in Chiba City, east of Tokyo.

  • Blu-ray Won’t Replace DVD as the Primary Drive for PCs

    Despite a rapid rise in the sales of consumer Blu-ray players, a fall in their prices and an increase in the number of high-definition movie titles, Blu-ray drives in PC systems have been left singing the blues, according to iSuppli.

    iSuppli’s recent report says that by 2013, Blu-ray drives will be found in only 16.3 percent of PCs shipped, up from 3.6 percent in 2009.

    “BDs won’t be replacing DVDs as the primary optical drive in PC systems through at least the year 2013,” said Michael Yang, senior analyst for storage and mobile memory at iSuppli.

    “They eventually will find success, but during the next five years, that success will be limited in the PC segment.

    According to Yang, the two main reasons hampering the adoption of Blu-ray drives in PCs include costs as well as the lack of a library of movies that justifies the need for consumers to move to a different drive in their PCs.

    Cost, Yang said, is the primary impediment. Given the high price of the product, consumers are unwilling to pay the extra money in order to obtain a high-definition drive. “The cost issue is amplified by the fact that the library of content is so small that there really isn’t a reason for users to switch at the moment,” Yang added.

    And while this is changing and studios are rolling out more Blu-ray content every week, there remains a long way to go.

    A tertiary factor worth mentioning is the difficulty of supplanting an incumbent storage medium in PCs—a distinction currently held by the DVD-RW drive.

    “From a historical perspective, each of the successful storage media in PCs has gained popularity only when content became available and when consumers actually understood that what they were getting was easy to use and worth the cost,” the report says.

    For instance, the once-ubiquitous 3.5-inch floppy drive had a lifespan of 15-plus years, surviving well past its prime. Eventually, it was replaced by CD-ROMs—which, in turn, gave way to DVD drives.

    A changeover occurred and the floppy disk finally supplanted when it became apparent that CD-ROMs not only offered a distinct advantage but were also the medium being adopted by everything from music to games to movies.

    Such a pivotal moment, Yang said, has not yet arrived for the Blu-ray drive. “It’s undeniable that Blu-ray delivers a higher-definition picture, better sound quality and larger storage space for home entertainment,” he remarked.

    “However, these benefits may have little or no value when viewing the content on a smaller desktop or laptop PC screen and using poor speakers.”

    Until BD costs decline and user knowledge increases, the technology will continue to struggle – the report concludes.