Intel highlight its living room ambitions at TV Connect 2013-- revealing the Intel Media Server Reference Design (MSRD), a hardware and software design kit for Intel-based media servers and STBs.

Aimed at OEMs and system builders, the MSRD uses the dual-core Atom CE5300 system-on-chip (with integrated power management, 3D/2D graphics engine and H.264 B-picture hardware encoder) and pre-integrated components including media engine, broadcast stacks, virtualisation and motion control technology. Continue reading...

BitTorrent launches the open beta version of BitTorrent Live-- a peer-to-peer video streaming service harnessing the power of torrenting while reducing the infrastructure requirements of video streaming.

A 3-year development, BitTorrent Live works the same way torrents do. It removes the middleman in favour of a direct connection between broadcaster and viewer, turning each user into a "miniature broadcaster." As a result the technology is not only easier to use (since it does not demand centralised Continue reading...

Mobile World Congress (MWC) 2013 hosted more than just mobile devices-- Samsung revealed the HomeSync Media Hub, the company's answer to STBs of the Apple TV variety at the Barcelona show.

An Android-powered (Jelly Bean, specifically) yet non-Google TV device, the HomeSync carries a 1.7GHz dual-core processor, 1TB of storage and allows one stream content a variety of sources via HDMI, USB, ethernet, wifi and Bluetooth to HDTVs.

Galaxy device owners can also use the STB to view stored media on Continue reading...

Sony fires the starting pistol for the next generation games console race as it unveils the (un)imaginatively named Playstation 4 at the Hammerstein Ballroom, New York.

As a successor to the 7-year old Playstation 3, the console tries hard to impress both consumers and developers-- Sony drops the esoteric "Cell" architecture in favour of a PC-style 8-core x86 processor, an enhanced GPU and 8GB of GDDR5 RAM, a combination producing up to 1.84 Teraflops of processing power.

Interestingly the PS4 will ship with a redesigned version of the Kinect-style Eye camera peripheral. It carries dual camera lenses and x4 microphones, which Sony says will handle log in procedures via face recognition.

The familiar Dual Shock controller also gets a slight redesign through the addition of a touchpad, stereo cameras (to work in tandem with the Eye), headphone jack and a "share" button allowing users to instantly record and share game footage.

The next Xbox Live package will offer customers more than just games and apps of the Netflix variety-- it will also include interactive TV content, thanks to an in-house Microsoft production studio.

Speaking at the D: Dive Into Media conference, Microsoft head of interactive entertainment Yusuf Mehdi claims “all I’ll say about our current and future investment is [that it is] about doing things that are big and premium. Other people will try some lower-end things; what we will do is things that are big and beautiful.”

Set for launch later in 2013, the Microsoft TV service will add " another level of interactivity," with Kinect feature integration and second-screen options via SmartGlass.

Intel confirms ambitions to enter the online TV market-- at the AllThingsD Dive Into Media conference Intel corporate VP of media Erik Huggers claims the company will provide a "superior experience" to what is currently available.

The development comes from Intel's newly formed media division formed by former Apple, Jawbone, BBC and Microsoft employees.

Apparently already in testing, the Intel take on STBs delivers live TV via the internet (with smaller channel bundles than what cable companies offer) and a "Catch Up TV" video-on-demand service.

In other words, the company is gunning for both cable and video-on-demand business through an Intel-powered "an all in one solution" providing "not a value play but a quality play.”

Automation vendor Control4 makes an audio debut at ISE 2013-- the Wireless Music Bridge, a device allowing customers to wirelessly connect and stream music on PCs or mobile devices on Control4 systems.

With Bluetooth, DLNA, Airplay, wifi and ethernet support, the Wireless Music Bridge streams audio from most, if not all, devices. It supports full metadata (including cover art) and allows access to connected content and devices through all Control4 interfaces, including TVs.

In addition, Control4 Continue reading...

Hauppauge launches a pair of follow-ups to the HD PVR, its first consumer-priced HD capture device-- the HD PVR 2 model 1512 and the HD PVR 2 GE Plus.

The HD PVR 2 model 1512 is designed for home media enthusiasts. It carries a built-in HD video recorder, an IR blaster and connects to STBs (via component or HDMI) and PC HDDs. Included Hauppauge WinTV v7.2 software handles recordings at preset times.

The recorder is also compatible with Windows 7 and 8 versions of Windows Media Centre.

Meanwhile Continue reading...