1080pVideoOutput
Latest
Confirmed: Apple TV can play 1080p content from iTunes, but still only outputs 720p
The header says it all folks. We just ran some tests on the AppleTV's playback limits by streaming 1080p movie trailers in iTunes and managed to verify murmurs saying the device can accept 1080p content. Unfortunately, output is a different story, since it downscales the image back to 720p on your display. Yes it's a little frustrating -- especially since it's predecessor was up to the challenge -- but it should at least comfort those with a massive library of 1080p videos who were worried about reconverting for their new black box. Considering the hardware gems discovered in the AppleTV teardown however, we're still holding out for the jailbreak community to let us play our 1080p files, and display them too. Oh, and if they could get to work on Super-Hi Vision support at some point, well, that'd be just dandy.
X10 MID does 1080p video output on the cheap
A $179, Windows CE 6.0-based MID / tablet may not sound like the most exciting proposition at first, but this so-called X10 MID from a manufacturer that apparently prefers to remain nameless might just pack enough features to at least pique your interest. Chief among those is support for full 1080p video output via the MID's HDMI port, not to mention support for just about every video file format you could ask for to go along with it. Otherwise, you'll get a 7-inch 800 x 480 display (resistive, judging from the stylus), along with a 720 MHz Telechips 8901 ARM 11 processor, 256MB of RAM, 2GB of on-board storage, a microSD card slot for expansion, and built-in WiFi and GPS. Willing to take a chance on it? Then hit up the source hint below to get your order in. Update: Our pals from Engadget Chinese recently managed to get some hands-on time with device, which is made by a company called Kinstone. Head on past the break for a video, and check out a few more pics in their gallery right here.
