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NEC chips to include DivX Plus HD support

by Richard Lawler posted Aug 21st 2009 at 8:19PM

Expect even higher quality DivX playback from Blu-ray players, HDTVs and other devices, now that NEC has signed a deal to implement DivX Plus HD (aka h.264 in an MKV container with AAC audio) support in its EMMA chipset family. The company has already signed up chipmakers Sigma and Trident, anything rocking the appropriate logo should be able to handle content at resolutions up to 1080p, or older DivX encoded files, so feel free to plug those USB sticks and network cables into home theater equipment anywhere.

CANAL+ KEY provides pay-TV reception of French networks

by Darren Murph posted Dec 9th 2008 at 4:25PM

Forget those OTA tuners that only pick up what's widely distributed for free; the CANAL+ KEY can handle that and more. Developed in conjunction with DiBom, the device -- hailed as the planet's first USB key-sized DTT HD decoder -- enables the reception of French pay-TV programs (SD and HD), 18 free DTT channels and even the premium channel CANAL+ HD. The key is equipped with two small antennas and can provide viewing enjoyment to any USB-equipped PC. Regrettably, there's no price / availability date mentioned, but yet again, we're amazed at how quickly France is becoming Europe's beacon of HD light.

[Via TechDigest]

On2 Technologies reveals 1080p hardware video decoder for handsets

by Darren Murph posted Feb 11th 2008 at 1:29PM


On the same day that Texas Instruments chose to showcase a new chip that would enable HD recording capabilities on cellphones, On2 Technologies is taking a moment from its hectic day in Barcelona to trumpet an all new 1080p hardware RTL video decoder. The Hantro 8190 reportedly supports Adobe Flash along with H.263, H.264, MPEG-2, MPEG-4, VC-1, Sorenson Spark and VP6 video formats, and it can even handle JPEG images up to 16-megapixels. According to On2, the device was created to be easily integrated with ARM, MIPS and "other embedded CPU and DSP cores," and can supposedly decode 1080p H.264 video at 30 frames-per-second using a clock frequency of just 165MHz. As it stands, the Hantro 8190 is currently available for licensing, but only time will tell who's going to bite.

Broadcom launches new dedicated HD decoding hardware for media PCs

by Richard Lawler posted Jun 4th 2007 at 11:59AM

Getting Blu-ray or HD DVD playback on that new laptop PC might have just gotten a little easier & cheaper, as Broadcom just announced its new media PC solutions. There's no question that h.264 and VC-1 decoding can require a lot of processor power, but Broadcom will also be competing with integrated GPU solutions like ATI's Avivo technology and NVIDIA's PureVideo. These new chips will be available to OEM's as add-in cards or motherboard chipsets, bringing the same technology already used in standalone Blu-ray and HD DVD players straight to PCs. With the same tech at heart, we can expect to see HD-enabled laptop prices slide to match recent standalones, coming in as low as the $1,000 mark.




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