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New DLNA guidelines, same old promises about tru2way and streaming from the cable box
The latest set of Interoperability Guidelines from the Digital Living Network Alliance have been released and the group claims the new standard has been developed with the blessing of global cable, satellite and telecom TV services and will let people stream content more easily around the home. Ideally, this means we'll see cable boxes that pop up just like any other DLNA server on the network, and can stream to the numerous other devices that support the standard and DTCP-IP protected content. We've already seen demonstrations of tru2way boxes with DLNA servers built in, and this press release trots out execs from CableLabs, Comcast, Time Warner, and Cox to talk about how awesome it is (again, just like they did at the 2010 CES) and how it will make their services better. Of course, the last six months have shown some progress in the areas of video sharing at home and abroad, but we'll need to see some real implementations and not just teasers before we're sure it's really coming home this time.
FCC waives 1394 requirement in lieu of an IP interface
On Thursday July 1st it'll have been five years since the FCC mandate went into affect requiring all cable set-top boxes to have a 1394 port. Well, anyone who's ever tried to obtain and use said port knows it is neither convenient or terribly useful. The problem is that even when the port is functional, most of the content is locked down with DRM. Third party 1394 based DVRs have never been any good, and companies like Microsoft and TiVo aren't interested in supporting the interface. We can't say we blame them, in fact 1394 is on its way out and even Apple doesn't support it on the iOS line of products anymore and while 1394 used to be the de facto standard for digital camcorders, most new ones don't use 'em. So it isn't a shocker in the least bit that the FCC has granted a waiver on the mandate and now while operators are still required to make boxes with functional 1394 ports available to those who request it, the rest of the boxes can just support an IP interface instead. Of course this doesn't mean you'll actually be able to use this IP interface, but there's no reason to believe that the DRM used to lock down the content will ever be supported by anything that you'd actually want to consume content on.
Niveus shows how it can help cable and satellite providers get HD on your PC
It's just a tech preview, but our favorite high end Media Center maker, Niveus, is showing off Project Snowbird at NAB this week. Niveus hopes its PC client will help cable and satellite providers bring more premium HD content to the PC. This version was copying and streaming content from a Dish Network DVR and works with Sling's protocol, DLNA and DTCP-IP -- you remember it right, the CableLabs certified DRM for IP transport? Also baked in is Microsoft's PlayReady so envisioning playing the content on a Zune HD or in Media Center aren't too unfounded either. Dish Network was involved to show its commitment to working towards this type of solution in the home, but Niveus hopes to get all the providers on board and is anxious to fill in the PC client no matter what protocol the provider wants to use. We're told that these goals are inline with those of the IP Gateway we've been talking about, so it'll be interesting to see how this all shakes out. But at this point there aren't any product announcements and so this might just be yet another tech preview that never makes it to our homes. More shots of what it might look like after the break.
Fujitsu's MB88395 HD-over-Firewire controller hits the road
HD video is headed for your auto, and just like your home, you need to be able to soak up those pixels from more than one seat. To keep manufacturers from having to pull HDMI cables through the door panels and running boards, Fujitsu has the MB88395 controller (catchy name, right?) for streaming your entertainment around the cabin over a DTCP-protected 1394 network. At the heart of Fujitsu's silicon is the SmartCODEC, which can take a decompressed 1280x720 pixel video stream at 885Mbps and compress it down to 249Mbps with only a couple of milliseconds of delay. Never mind that Blu-ray only spits out a maximum data rate of 54Mbps, the analog hole comes through again -- just like in the home. Don't you just love copy protection?
BBC breaks down the new DRM rules for Blu-ray recorders
The reason Blu-ray recorders have migrated from Japan to the UK recently -- and why you'll likely never see them in the U.S. -- is all about the copyright holders. Danielle Nagler, head of BBC HD, hit the blogs to break down the wheres and hows of the DRM changes associated with bringing FreeSat disc HD DVRs like the Panasonic DMR-BS850 and Humax FOXSAT-HDR to market, basically meaning users are allowed one HD copy of a show, which can be played back on protected devices and connections only (transfer to portable players is planned to the future.) Follow the flow chart for the details, and figure out if it'd be worth it to make your own BD-R DVR backups so easily.[Via Pocket-Lint]
Say Hellui to NEC's Lui family of media streamers
See those people? As much as NEC would like to think so, that's not you. If it were you'd be ass-deep in nag about your inattentive dismissal of "quality time" while suffering dire warnings about barefoot-borne diseases. Or maybe that's just us. Regardless, NEC hopes that the launch of its 4-component Lui (Life with Ubiquitous Integration) system -- ¥379,890/$3,705 Blu-ray packing PC server (Lui SX), ¥89,880/$877 10.6-inch laptop (Lui RN), ¥49,980/$487 4.1-inch handheld (Lui RP), and ¥300,000/$2,926 Desktop (Valuestar R Lui) -- will somehow create harmony in your household. Besides the marketing hype, we're really just talking about Windows Home Premium SP1 here and a bunch of DTCP-IP DRM and DLNA compliant devices. In fact, the so called "laptop" and handheld units lack any traditional OS at all -- they can only be used to receive streaming content off your home server. Even then, some streaming is restricted inside and outside the home thanks to the DRM lockdown. Do we really need one or even two more devices in the home just for media? Update: Regardless of what you may have read elsewhere, there is no WiMAX here. That's not even a standard available in Japan.%Gallery-20581%[Via Impress]
IO Data unveils DiXiM HVL4-G2.0 NAS for Regza HDTVs
IO Data took the wraps off of a new HDD unit made specifically to attach to those new Regza ZH500s, the DiXim HVL4-G2.0 is compliant with the latest DLNA / DTCP-IP standards to easily record TV shows via the network. It's got space for four drives up to a maximum capacity of 2 TB in a RAID 5 array, limiting recording space to a max of 1.5 TB. Because of copy protection, it only records from Toshiba's TVs right now, and can be controlled completely via remote. Doubt we'll be seeing this here anytime soon, but it'll be on store shelves in Japan later this month for 111,615 ($1,090 US).[Via AV Watch]
Toshiba's 10 new REGZA LCDs: 3x Ethernet, built-in DVR, and much much more
In Japan, the hand can be used as a knife. And you can't swing a Yume Neko Smile cat without defacing a 1080p TV with built-in Ethernet and a hard disk drive recorder. Case in point, Toshiba's latest batch of REGZA LCDs, ten in all. The top of the line ZH500 series measures in at 52- (52ZH500) and 46-inches (46ZH500) with 120Hz VA panels, 4x HDMI (1080/60p, 24p) inputs, 3x Ethernet (with DLNA support), 2x USB, Bluetooth, Firewire, SD slot, and a DVR to record your shows to the built-in 300GB disk. These lack the eSATA jack found in the 42-, 37-, and 32-inch RH500 series, but you can add more disk over Ethernet via an I-O Data REGZA drive wrapped in DTCP-IP DRM to keep your HD recordings off the global torrents. Rounding things out are the 42- and 37-inch ZV500 series of 120HZ IPS panel LCDs and the relatively low-end, 42-, 37-, and 32-inch CV500 series of diskless TVs. Prices will range from ¥160,000 ($1,560) on up to about $5,850 when products start hitting shelves between April and July. Pics of the in/outs on the ZH500s after the break.Read - ZH500 and ZV500 series Read -- RH500 and CV500 series
Meet the new boss, Cable Labs' DTCP-IP
CableLabs' latest DRM scheme, DTCP-IP (Digital Transmission Copy Protection), got approval from a number of movie studios last week. This new streaming protocol is an extension of the DTCP protection on FireWire links, and is supposed to allow secured sharing of digital content within a home network. How secure? According to the CableLabs CEO, the new protocol allows for the "same level of protection, functionality, and treatment of content" as with AACS. Ahem. If that's true, count on a crack before the standard ever sees the light of day. Still, we're hoping that this will open up possibilities for TiVO functionality that has gone missing, like To-Go and Multi-Room Viewing. We also wonder what the real definition of a "home network" means to CableLabs -- could this spell trouble for place-shifting devices like the Slingbox?
Toshiba's Qosmio G40 and F40 play extra nice with your REGZA TV
Toshiba just launched a pair of updated Qosmio media laptops in Japan. A new G40/97D configuration sports a 17-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1200) display; 2GHz, T7300 Core 2 Duo proc; 256MB of NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT graphics, 2GB (up to 4GB supported) memory, 320GB of disk (2x 160GB); Gigabit Ethernet; HDMI out; a 2 megapixel webcam; and an HD DVD-R drive. It also brings plenty of expansion with 5x USB, Firewire, multiple memory card support, and a PCMCIA and ExpressCard/54 slot. Pretty much what we've seen before. Now, however, we're looking at a pair of digital tuners so that you can record and watch that sweet, sweet TeeVee at the same time. It's also pre-loaded with CyberLink SoftDMA allowing it to pull your HD recordings off your VARDIA series of recorders wrapped in a DRM-ladden, DTCP-IP hard candy shell. Want more Tosh integration? Great, 'cause it also supports HDMI-CEC allowing the G40 to control your new HDMI connected REGZA series of TVs. All that for ¥400,000 or about $3,470. Too much? Then check the new Qosmio F40 which does much the same only on a 15.4-inch screen for about $850 less.[Via Impress]
Acer's AT3705 becomes first LCD TV to receive Viiv certification
While we're still firm believers that nobody is exactly certain what all this Viiv fuss is about, Acer has been labeled the first producer of a Viiv-certified LCD TV, which "tests for compatibility of networked media devices with Intel Viiv technology-based PCs while sharing content over a home network." The 37-inch, HD-ready AT3705 is marketed as "the first LCD TV that integrates digital TV with media gateway functionality," and reportedly plays back content such as recorded digital TV broadcasts and "protected media" purchased at content service providers thanks to its support for DTCP-IP (Digital Transmission Content Protection over IP). Essentially, the set allows seamless playback of protected content stored on Viiv-enabled HTPCs, presumably providing one more headache when trying to watch last week's OTA HD broadcast of The Office. Regardless, we're sure the content guardians are lovin' it, and Acer will gladly take any sort of praise it can get, but we're not so sure this (yet-to-be-priced) set is as spectacular (or useful) as the firm would lead you to believe.[Via CEPro]
Sony's RDZ-D97A, RDZ-77A, and RDZ-87 HDD/DVD recorders record directly to PSP
Sony just announced three new HDD/DVD recorder additions to their RDZ series. The new RDZ-D97A (pictured) and 77A bring 400GB and 250GB of storage respectively, to the show with one digital Hi-Vision (1080i HDTV in Japan) tuner and apparently two-analog tuners allowing you to record not one, not two, but three teeveelicious broadcasts simultaneously. They also feature the ability to record directly to your PSP to take your recordings on the go. And in what appears to be an industry first for HDD / DVD recorders, these two also feature DTCP-IP (Digital Transmission Content Protection over IP) to legally stream Hi-Vision recordings to other designated, media kickin' boxes on your home network. Rounding out the lot is the RDZ-87 which packs in a 500GB disk like the D97A but lacks direct PSP recording and DTCP-IP support. Expect these to drop for an as of yet unannounced price on May 19 in Japan.[Via Akihabara News]
