Devices

New devices to consumer digital media

New PlayStation3 Cell Processor to be Revealed
The details of the Cell processor chip designed to power Sony’s PlayStation 3 console will be released in San Francisco today.
The result of a devilish melding of the minds of industry giants, Sony, IBM and Toshiba, the chip has taken three years to develop and is reported to be up to 10 times faster than current processors.
Triumphantly billed as a “supercomputer on a chip”, advance reports suggest that this beast of a processor is significantly more powerful and versatile than the next generation of micro-processors announced by their competitors, Intel and AMD.
Utilising several different processing cores that work on tasks together, the chip has been fine-tuned to be able to handle the detailed graphics common in games and the data-chewing demands of films and broadband media.
The Cell’s architecture is described as scalable from “small consumer devices to massive supercomputers” and when installed inside powerful computer servers, is expected to be capable of handling a breathtaking 16 trillion floating point operations, or calculations, every second. Phew!
IBM will start producing the chip in early 2005 at manufacturing plants in the US, with computer workstations and servers being the first machines off the line sporting the Cell processor.
A working version of the PS3 is expected to be previewed in May 2005 but the full launch of the next generation console is not expected to start until 2006.
High-definition TVs from Sony and Toshiba, a Sony home server for broadband content and the PlayStation 3 all featuring Cell are also due to appear in 2006.
“This is probably going to be one of the biggest industry announcements in many years,” boasts Richard Doherty, president of the Envisioneering research firm. “It’s going to breathe new life into the industry and trigger fresh competition.”
But it’s not all pat-on-the-back stuff with rivals publicly questioning whether Cell’s potential can be realised – while they hastily get to work on alternative multi-tasking methods.
IBM, Sony, Toshiba to reveal ‘superbrain chip’ (ft.com)
PS3 Portal News
PS3Land.com
PlayStation 3: The next generation (CNet)
PlayStation 3 chip to be unveiled (BBCt)
7 February, 2005
TiVo SDK: looking to influential new pals, new ideas, anything!
Squeezed on both sides by ever-competitive satellite and cable providers, TiVo is trying to woo third party developers into creating compelling new add-on services for their product.
The company has rolled out a Software Development Kit (SDK) in the hope that it will create a vibrant market in application for the TiVo. The SDK has been released on to SourceForge, a home for open-source software.
To stimulate the market, they’ve got the ball rolling with three initial add-ons: a weather information plug in, an RSS reader and a game, with users needing a Series 2 TiVo, a home network and broadband connection to take full advantage of the applications.
The move is part of a larger strategy, code-named Tahiti, which lets DVRs download information and content from the Internet. Howard Look, who regales under the magnificent title of ‘vice president of application and user experience’ at TiVo was heard excitedly exclaiming, “All the great ideas don’t have to come just from us.”
Some users may feel that there haven’t been enough great ideas coming from anywhere recently.
Although TiVo boxes are well regarded for their easy-peasy interface and excellent aesthetics, many feel that it’s being left behind by newer technologies. Sales haven’t matched expectations (only 2 million boxes so far) with the company racking up truly eye-wateringly large net losses (half a billion according to Om Malik).
Clearly something hugely impressive has to be pulled out of the bag to turn the company around, but posters on Slashdot weren’t exactly overwhelmed by TiVo’s announcement, but then Slashdotters are rarely overwhelmed.
If they’re represeantative, it seems that what many users really want – instant commercial skip, sharing recorded programs with other devices and free channel guide services – isn’t on TiVo’s horizon and barely anyone seemed excited by the somewhat less enticing prospect of bolt-on weather forecasts and an RSS reader.
TiVo does have a very enthusastic base of owners, many of whom are capable of developing software, so this could be a very wise move for TiVo. We wait with bated breath to see how many applications arrive.
The Developer Toolkit
Slashdot discussion: TiVo to offer SDK
1 February, 2005
$100 PC Touted by Negroponte for Developing World
A $100 (€76, £53) laptop computer for the developing world has been touted at the World Economic Forum in Davos by Nicholas Negroponte, founding chairman of MIT’s Media Lab.
The computer will have a 14-inch color screen and will run the Linux operating system. According to Red Herring magazine, Negroponte is looking for support from companies such as chip giant AMD, Google, Motorola, Samsung, and News Corporation.
The first units could be ready in about 18 months, Red Herring said.
The developing world is increasingly a target of technology companies – Microsoft has built a slimmed-down version of Windows XP for the Indian, Malaysian, Indonesian and Russian markets, as part of its Windows XP Starter Edition pilot programme. In part this reflects its desire to fight off Linux, which is becoming increasingly popular in these new markets.
Another source of PCs for the developing world is recycling. Every year in the UK 3 million PCs taken out of service, but many are still in good working order. In contrast most schoolchildren in the developing world graduate from high school not having seen a computer in the classroom, and there are a number of charities which take these PCs and reuse them in the developing world.
In related news, MIT has announced that Media Lab Europe, launched in 2000 by the Irish government and MIT will close on February 1 due to a shortfall in financing.
MIT
Red Herring
31 January, 2005
Wireless Headphones Possible with Aura’s NFC LibertyLink LL888
Aura Communications has announced the first samples of its LibertyLink LL888 system-on-chip, for enabling high-quality wireless voice and stereo audio. The chip provides wireless stereo headphone capability for MP3 players, portable DVD players and audio-capable mobile phones – or indeed virtually any portable product where digital audio performance must be coupled with long battery life and low cost. The technology was previewed in ‘real life’ earlier his year by Creative Technology, whose wireless-enabled Zen Micro MP3 player is based on the LibertyLink LL888 chip.
The most interesting feature of the LibertyLink LL888 is that it uses a patented form of Near Field Communication (NFC) rather than conventional radio frequency technology (such as Bluetooth) to enable digital audio wireless performance. NFC is a short-range wireless connectivity standard that uses magnetic field induction to enable communication between devices when they’re touched together, or brought within a few centimetres of each other.
Jointly developed by Philips and Sony, the standard specifies a way for the devices to establish a peer-to-peer (P2P) network to exchange data. After the P2P network has been configured, another wireless communication technology, such as Bluetooth or Wi-Fi, can be used for longer range communication or for transferring larger amounts of data.
Unlike Bluetooth, which radiates in the crowded frequency band at 2.4GHz, Aura’s technology is more private and secure as it operates at 13.5MHz – it completely avoids the interference of the 2.4GHz band. Aura Communications claims that the chip’s magnetic signals creates a ‘secure communication bubble that surrounds the user and is uniquely owned by each user for reliable and private communications.
The chip is currently scheduled for production quantity availability by the second quarter of 2005, with pricing set on an individual customer basis, but expected to be under $5 (US) in OEM quantities.
Aura Communications
26 January, 2005
China Develops its First Digital TV Chip
Shanghai-based Fudan University has developed the country’s first home-made digital TV chip. Not only that, but the chip has passed appraisals by experts from the Chinese Academy of Sciences and Chinese Academy of Engineering, and it’s outperformed European and US standards in terms of sensitivity and anti-jamming capacities – at lower costs.
The ‘Zhongshi No.1’ chip, which is based on China’s DMB-T standard and is made by Grace Semiconductor Manufacturing and Semiconductor Manufacturing International, integrates more than 70 storages, 2 million logic gates and 20 million transistors. It’s expected that the mass production of the cost-effective chip will help to boost China’s digital TV industry as it will pave the way to a new generation of high-definition televisions (HDTV).
Apparently, dozens of electronics makers have integrated the new chip technology into their products, including Changhong, TCL, Skyworth and Haier. China’s Henan Province has applied the new technology to launch mobile TV programs, and other localities have reported success in trial operations. US-based Time Warner has also announced that it plans to offer subscription-based digital TV programs to China.
According to official statistics, China has more than 370 million TV sets and an average 40 million sets are being sold each year. China plans to broadcast the 2008 Beijing Olympics on digital TV and hopes to roll out the service nationwide by 2015.
25 January, 2005
TI Announce Single-Chip Mobile Phones
Texas Instruments (TI) has announced they will bring a integrated single-chip solution for mobile phones.
Based on TI’s Digital RF Processor (DRP), it integrates two basic chips, one that controls sending and receiving radio frequencies, and one that controls basic computing functions.
It will bring the advantages of lowering the cost, size and power requirements, while raising performance. All of these are vital in producing high-volume, entry-level cellular phones, particularly when selling into high-growth regions such as India and China.
Currently half of TI wireless business is not that it’s news to them. Back in 2002 TI announced its intention to integrate the bulk of handset electronics on a single chip, for delivery in 2004. It squeezed in to 2004 by providing samples in December 2004.
The NY Times is reporting that Qualcomm announced (reg. reqd) it had developed integrated technology back in November, but it is unlikely to reach the mass market before TI’s. Clearly TI is excited about it, Bill Krenik, manager of wireless advanced architectures for Texas Instruments said to the NY Times, “This isn’t an incremental step, it’s a big leap forward.”
Juha Pinomaa, Vice President, Entry Business Line, Nokia is equally sprightly. “By incorporating TI’s DRP technology into a single chip, future Nokia mobile phones will provide the ideal mix of cool features and cost-effectiveness, making them more attractive to the mass marketplace.”
Not resting on its laurels, TI’s integrated wireless technology roadmap also includes a single chip solution for digital TV for mobile phones, as well as future single chip solutions for GPS, wireless LAN and UMTS.
TI Nokia

Image source – The Hong Kong University of Science & Technology

24 January, 2005
Telewest Announce PVR for the UK
Following the release of their Video On Demand (VOD) service earlier this week, UK cable company, Telewest, has announced that they are to offer a PVR later in the year.
The signing of the deal with Scientific-Atlanta will provide them with a PVR featuring three tuners, enabling the recording of two channels while watching a third. Coming with a 160Gb hard disk, Telewest are quoting a recording capacity of 80 hours.
When we spoke to Telewest on a more exact release date, they said it would be second half of 2005. Pressing a little harder, they said they hoped it to be the third quarter.
Given the date of the release isn’t firm, neither were Telewest’s answers to our more detailed questions, but here’s what we got. If subscribers take the service, the PVR will be a replacement for their current STB.
It will be a Personal VR rather than a Digital VR, as customers will be able to link the recording of series, as possibility more – at this time undecided.
The existing Telewest service offers a 24-hour Electronic Programming Guide (EPG). They’re currently saying that they don’t know if this is to be extended or not. To us it would be pretty bizarre if it didn’t go to at least a 7-day service – filling up your 80-hour hard drive in a single 24-hours would take some doing.
The price of the box remains undecided. Internally they haven’t decided if there will be a one off fee or if they will continue with the current arrangement for their Set Top Boxes (STB), rental.
The PVR will feature as standard high-definition TV (HDTV) support, not that Telewest has HD at the moment but they say it’s coming “in the future”. While we assume everyone will eventually be delivering HD, we would have thought that if they’re paying for a HD capable box, they’re likely to be supporting it soon.
Eric Tveter president and chief operating officer at Telewest Broadband said “Telewest Broadband’s unique combination of personal video recorder and television-on-demand services will mean our customers have the best of both worlds — freedom from the TV schedule with PVR control, and on-demand access to a wider selection of movies and TV content. It’s not about offering people more TV, but giving them the freedom to watch exactly what they want, when they want.”
Right on Eric.
Telewest
21 January, 2005
TiVo effect, TV still doesn’t know what to do
In a long line of articles where TV execs try to ponder how to stop losing sleep and preserve their once comfortable lives, Meg James in the LA Times covers the impact of PVR’s, in particular TiVo, and how the TV industry is still trying to adjust to its impact.
It’s warming to see that there are still articles coming out, with quotes from TiVo users such as, “Once you’ve used one, you can’t imagine life without TiVo,” as Charlie Flint of Marina del Rey, California did. It’s somewhat reassuring that the impact is still as great for new users as it was when TiVo was first introduced.
One thing that doesn’t get mentioned in connection with this, and this is something that TV people should have sympathy with, is that ad breaks, do exactly that, break up the programme. Interrupting its flow.
This has been more than amply proven in the UK where The Simpsons have moved from commercial-free BBC2 to the advertiser-supported Channel 4.
Previously used to watching the show from beginning to end, without interruption. When watching the show, on TiVo of course, the story is interrupted by having to skip through the adverts.
Interestingly the exact opposite of the programmes sponsor desired intention is achieved. I have now come to resent the Pizza chain, as they are associated with interrupting my viewing pleasure.
One of the reasons that articles like this continue to make press is that estimated figures coming out of research houses and banks make worrying reading for the TV, and therefore the entertainment world.
By 2010, half the US households with TV sets are expected also to have digital recorders, according to a recent Smith Barney report. The tipping point could come as early as 2007, the report said, when the television industry may lose as much as $7.6 billion — or about 10% of its annual ad revenue — as advertisers seek other ways of reaching consumers.
A number of alternatives are suggested including pay-per-play, product placement in shows.
In one, viewers would pay $1 to see an episode of a show On Demand, “much as music fans do when they download a song from Apple Computer Inc.’s iTunes music store,” appearing to forget that the iTunes users don’t pay another $1 when they listen to the song the following week, as would be that case with a VOD show.
It’s gratifying that Meg James ends the article with a wise quote from her interviewee, one that the TV industry should be listening to, “I’m now trying stuff that I never would have watched before. I’ll give it a shot and set the TiVo, then watch the show later … when nothing else is on,” TiVo-user Flint said. “I’m watching probably 50% more TV than I used to.
LA Times – Looking for New Ways to Make Viewers Pay
TiVo
21 January, 2005
Creative’s Zen Micro – iPod Fight Back Plans Emerge
The word has been going around that Creative Labs intends 2005 to be the year that they unseat Apple as the major supplier of music players. They reported selling 2 million in the last two months and certainly, with the growth of digital music, the prize for success would be large.
Some of the details of Creative’s marketing plans are now starting to surface by way of UK sales house Emap advertising.
They’re putting a considerable amount of money behind the campaign, with £3m being muted by Brand Republic (reg. req.). Not only will it run over 13 channels, but Emap’s in-house creative team is making a 70-sec video that has three different endings, targeted at the pop, rock, and urban audiences. The channels are owned by three different operators (Emap, Sky, and Chart Show) and representing 60% of the music channels available to UK Sky satellite viewers.
By attaching themselves to TV music channels that their 16- to 34-year-old target audience watch, they’re hoping for ‘cool’ association, as well as being permanently in front of them.
The campaign will focus on the 5/6Gb Zen micro player which, in our view, has the looks to become an object of desire.
Buy the Zen Micro from Amazon (UK, US)
20 January, 2005
Centrino Chips Get Updated by Intel
Today Intel release information about their new Centrino range of chips, aimed at notebook computers.
The release of the code-named “Sonoma” chip has been delayed for several months as Intel ironed out some problems they had been having with the chips. Intel hopes it will further bolster their current 85% dominance of notebook chips.
Such is the keenness of the laptop manufacturers to bring the machines to market that Sony have already released their FS range and Toshiba the less than catch-ly named Dynabook VX 470LS notebook. It is understood that 80 laptops with the new chippery will be available from today, with that number growing to 150 by the end of the year.
Intel have been very crafty with the Centrino range, which includes microprocessor; wireless; and supporting chips providing sound and graphics, as the Centrino brand cannot be used unless the entire bundle of chips is bought from Intel.
As is always the case with the introduction with a new range of chips, the new models will come in at about the same price of the previous high end chips and the current offering will slide down in price. Expect some bargains.
Intel
19 January, 2005