Kaleidescape claims new 1080p upscaling DVD players "rival Blu-ray"
By Darren Murph 
posted June 18th 2008 9:00AM
posted June 18th 2008 9:00AM
New Kaleidescape Movie Players Produce Stunning Video Quality from Ordinary DVDs, Provide Viewing Experience That Rivals Blu-ray
1080p Player and 1080p Mini Player Expand Kaleidescape's Reach in Home Entertainment
SUNNYVALE, CA, June 18, 2008 - Kaleidescape, Inc., the market leader in entertainment servers, today introduced the 1080p Player and 1080p Mini Player – two Movie Players that produce stunning video quality from ordinary DVDs, providing a viewing experience that rivals Blu-ray. The new family of Players makes it possible to enjoy the Kaleidescape Experience even with DVDs and CDs that have not been imported into a Kaleidescape System, and a new form factor makes it possible to place a 1080p Mini Player anywhere in the home.
The 1080p Player is designed as a 1U rack mount device, and includes a DVD/CD-ROM drive for import and direct playback of DVDs and CDs. The 1080p Mini Player offers the video and audio performance of the 1080p Player, in a smaller package with a lower price. It is ideal for inconspicuous installation in viewing rooms where owners desire that A/V equipment be hidden.
"These new Players have achieved our goal of producing beautiful high definition video from the DVDs that we've all been collecting for years," said Michael Malcolm, Kaleidescape founder, chairman and CEO. "The new 1080p Players leverage Kaleidescape's extensive Movie Guide database to make the viewing experience even more entertaining. Our patent-pending video bookmarking changes the way rental movies are enjoyed – no more annoying trailers, advertisements and DVD menus. And the compact 1080p Mini Player saves valuable space so customers can enjoy their movies and music in more locations throughout the home."
"The new Kaleidescape Movie Player produces the best quality video I have ever seen from any source device," said David Raife, owner of Paragon Technology Group with offices in Aspen, Vail and Steamboat Springs, Colorado. "It makes DVDs look absolutely beautiful."
Features and Benefits of the New 1080p Players
1080p Video Output – The 1080p Movie Player upscales ordinary DVD content to beautiful high definition video, matching the highest resolution of today's display devices without the added cost and complexity of an external scaler. Crystal clear video and amazingly accurate colors provide a viewing experience rivaling that of Blu-ray.
Content-Aware Video Processing – The 1080p Movie Player adapts its video processing to the type of content being viewed to achieve results that are impossible for an external scaler. For example, the onscreen display (OSD) with its sharp edges and high contrast is processed differently than movies, which contain motion and natural colors. Information in Kaleidescape's extensive Movie Guide database is also used to tailor the viewing experience, for example, to automatically detect and expand movies to fill a 16:9 display without any user intervention.
Advanced DVD and CD Playback Features – The Kaleidescape Experience is now available for DVDs and CDs that have not been imported. The user may insert a disc into a 1080p Player and enjoy detailed information about the movie or album, including cover art, movie synopsis, album review, and track names. Selecting "Play Movie" on the OSD starts the movie instantly, without trailers or advertisements – even for rental movies! These features combine to make the 1080p Player the ultimate DVD/CD player.
Full Import Control – The 1080p Player prevents accidental imports of DVDs and CDs for less worrisome enjoyment of borrowed or rented movies. The import process is only initiated with a press of the Import button on the front panel, or by selecting "Import DVD" or "Import CD" on the OSD.
Small Size and Near-Silent Operation – The 1080p Mini Player's small size and near-silent operation make it an ideal free-standing device sitting on a shelf in the viewing room, hidden behind a plasma display, concealed in a cabinet, or mounted recessed in a wall or behind a piece of furniture. Installed in the viewing room and connected to a Kaleidescape Server via Ethernet, the 1080p Mini Player allows for 1080p video quality in more locations throughout the home.
Myriad Installation Options – The 1080p Mini Player includes a mounting bracket, making it quick to attach to any surface. Its mounting options allow for inconspicuous installation in a viewing room where the ability to import or play directly from DVDs and CDs is unnecessary. An optional rack-mount kit secures two 1080p Mini Players in a 1U shelf, doubling the rack density of the 1080p Player.
Availability
The 1080p Player is available now, and the 1080p Mini Player will be available in the second half of July, 2008. For more information, contact Kaleidescape at (888) 352-5343 or (650) 625-6150, email sales@kaleidescape.com, or visit www.kaleidescape.com.
About Kaleidescape
The Kaleidescape System redefines home entertainment by transforming the way movies and music are collected, managed and enjoyed throughout the home or yacht. The Kaleidescape System combines a compelling interface, outstanding industrial design, and services that set new standards in the consumer electronics industry. Kaleidescape, Inc. was founded in 2001 and is privately held. The company is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California with research and development conducted by Kaleidescape Canada, Inc., based in Waterloo, Ontario. Kaleidescape products are available through a worldwide network of custom-installation dealers and distributors. For more information, contact Kaleidescape at (888) 352-5343 or (650) 625-6150, email us at sales@kaleidescape.com, or visit www.kaleidescape.com.
Wait..........
there are 6,000 Blu-ray Titles already!?!?!?
where are they getting that from???
Kaleidescape is not avoiding Blu-Ray support. This is really just a stop-gap measure until their own blu-ray players hit the market.
http://www.kaleidescape.com/company/pr/20080206-CEO-Blu-ray-Message.php?zoom_highlight=blu-ray
Kaleidescape, while expensive, is still the best option for a whole-home DVD video distribution system. Paired with an automation system from AMX or Crestron, you have access to your DVD library from any touchscreen & tv in the house.
If you are trying to compare Kaleidescape and a Blu-Ray player for your media room in your house, than the choice is obvious - go with Blu-Ray. However, if you are trying to design a system for a 8,000 square foot home with 15 plasma/LCD televisions and need a central distribution system, than you probably are not concerned with the entry price of a Kaleidescape system.
Looks like B&O for the trailer park.
Seriously, the picture you get from an upscaled DVD is not much worse than a Blu-Ray. The majority of films still aren't even being shot in true HD. Indiana Jones is a great example. Spielberg purposefully shot on older technology because he liked the way it looked.
For the quality of the picture of the film, BD is only upconverting for you and putting it on the disc. For the next couple years, the only superior thing about BD will be the extras being on the same disc and the way faster menu interaction.
Of course by no means am I saying to go buy this $5000 waste of money, just go buy a regular one.
"The majority of films still aren't even being shot in true HD. Indiana Jones is a great example. Spielberg purposefully shot on older technology because he liked the way it looked."
Errrr, Indy 4 was shot on film and 35mm film is usually scanned into a computer at 4096 x 3072 resolution and then downconverted to 2,048 x 1,556 for editing. Older tech yes, but still HD content.
Movies are generally not shot in "true HD". They are filmed onto well --film. Film does not have 'pixels' so it has no resolution to speak of HD or not. It is the act of transferring the film to digital format that creates the resolution. All movies shot on film can be transferred digitally from the original film to resolutions *FAR* higher than any TV that exists today.
Shooting the film digitally in "true HD" as you say creates a limit on the resolution that movie can ever truly be. Shooting onto film does not create a limit, rather it leaves it up to the transfer to digital process which can evolve -- hence Blu-Ray.
"Movies are generally not shot in "true HD". They are filmed onto well --film. Film does not have 'pixels' so it has no resolution to speak of HD or not. It is the act of transferring the film to digital format that creates the resolution. All movies shot on film can be transferred digitally from the original film to resolutions *FAR* higher than any TV that exists today."
Absolute BS. Where did you pull this line of tripe from, your ass?
Standard film has a theoretical maximum resolution of approximately 4000 lines, which is why current digital mastering of archived film is scanned at - you guessed it, 4K.
Do some research before making blatantly false statements, please.
Wow, you are really stupid if you think film has a max resolution of ~4,000 lines. Film has no lines, pixels, and therefore no resolution in this sense -- Resolution being defined as the number of pixels. Film is currently SCANNED at 4K because that is our standard. Film could just as easily be scanned with 40 lines or 40,000 lines.
Scanning is turning amorphous blobs into pixels. Imagine scanning a sheet of paper. If you scan it with 500 lines you could easily read the text once that image was displayed digitally. If you scanned it with 500,000 you would get WAY too much detail from the texture of the paper. The same is true of film -- scanning with too many lines would result in too much detail from the grain of the film, but that in no way means the film itself has a property of any sort of maximum resolution. 4000 lines is just the best compromise between attempting to gather all the visual data on the film without the texture.
My statement above is still entirely true, and as an added bonus you look like a moron.
Thanks
...overpriced and much mcuh cheaper to fork over the approx. 300 bucks for BD Player...only rich need apply....
Blu-ray is amazing.
This is not.
So I don't get it.....why would anyone pay upwards of $15,000 for an upscaling DVD system when you can pay $300-$400 and get blu ray which offers true 1080p resolution....this is as homosexual as it is stupid!
I could buy Blu and replace a good percentage of my DVD's with BRD versions for the price of this unit and have the real thing.
You could buy around 10x BD players for 1 of these... and it only promises to rival 1 BD player... Mark for the fail!
No matter what they do to the video it will NEVER be the same as Bluray and no matter how nice the video will look there's no way they would be able to do the same with the audio. You can cant turn compressed 5.1 surround into UN-compressed 7.1.
1080p is 1080p. not 1080p is not, and won't ever be, no matter how well a piece of software interprets the existing info and stretches it, reinterprets the pixels and maps it on the screen. anyone who says it looks fantastic may be right, but in no way is 480p being mangled to such a high degree anywhere close to full HD. it's just math... do not believe the hype, people!
As a home theatre JUNKIE, I'd love one. I can't and won't be able to afford one, but I'd still love one. Anyone saying that you can just get a windows media center and do the same thing has never played with one of these. The software is amazing, the menu screens make Apple look like Windows 98, and the quality and features are beyond the scope of any sub-$1000 piece of crap DVD player.
I don't work for Kaleidescape, but I understand quality when I see a demo. If you have the $$, and you don't have the patience to set up some Linux box to get about 1/8 of the features, this is for you. If you're worried about the extra $10 to upgrade to a Blu-Ray disk, it's not.
As a home theatre JUNKIE, I'd love one. I can't and won't be able to afford one, but I'd still love one. Anyone saying that you can just get a windows media center and do the same thing has never played with one of these. The software is amazing, the menu screens make Apple look like Windows 98, and the quality and features are beyond the scope of any sub-$1000 piece of crap DVD player.
I don't work for Kaleidescape, but I understand quality when I see a demo. If you have the $$, and you don't have the patience to set up some Linux box to get about 1/8 of the features, this is for you. If you're worried about the extra $10 to upgrade to a Blu-Ray disk, it's not.
...undescernable from Blu-ray? Maybe on a 20" screen. They ask why upgrade to the latest technology? Because their technology doesn't work, and Blu-ray is cheaper. What a marketting and production failure: let's make fun of a new technology for being expensive, and then come up witha MORE expensive "solution" that actually doesn't do what is advertised.
Everyone is missing the boat here. These players are the front end for Kaleidescape's DVD servers. They access the ripped DVD's through gigabit LAN and display them on whatever local display they are connected to. These players are intended to be much better than kaleidescape's current players. They are not expecting anyone to drop 4k+ on a standalone super upconverting dvd player, it is all part of "the kaleidescape system" which if you ever get a chance to use you will understand why it's so expensive.
So, lemme see if I got this straight. I'm going to pay 5x as much as a blu-ray player for a picture that's almost a good? Eventually, all newer movies will be ported to Blu-ray, and older media (especially TV shows) never will be. You're gonna have to do better than that. I bought an upsampling DVD player for $30 last month.
lol PS3 can upscale DVD's to 1080p and you can rip them on a comp, put on a media server and you'll get the same FUCKING THING! So all you need to get the cheapest thing that is superior to this shyt setup is a fucking PS, AND A COMPUTER WITH A MEDIA SERVER!!!!!!!!!!!
I meant to say "PS3" in last sentence... :P
"Standard film has a theoretical maximum resolution of approximately 4000 lines, which is why current digital mastering of archived film is scanned at - you guessed it, 4K.
Do some research before making blatantly false statements, please."
Wow, you are really stupid if you think film has a max resolution of ~4,000 lines. Film has no lines, pixels, and therefore no resolution in this sense -- Resolution being defined as the number of pixels. Film is currently SCANNED at 4K because that is our standard. Film could just as easily be scanned with 40 lines or 40,000 lines.
Scanning is turning amorphous blobs into pixels. Imagine scanning a sheet of paper. If you scan it with 500 lines you could easily read the text once that image was displayed digitally. If you scanned it with 500,000 you would get WAY too much detail from the texture of the paper. The same is true of film -- scanning with too many lines would result in too much detail from the grain of the film, but that in no way means the film itself has a property of any sort of maximum resolution. 4000 lines is just the best compromise between attempting to gather all the visual data on the film without the texture.
My statement above is still entirely true, and as an added bonus you look like a moron.
Thanks