Datavideo Leverages Stream Machine’s Codec Technology For Affordable Prosumer VideoDisc Recorder
San Jose, Calif., December 4, 2000 - Stream Machine, a provider of innovative video and audio semiconductor solutions, today announced that a Prosumer, stand-alone digital videodisk recorder (VDR), enabled by its SymphonyTM manufacturing kit, is being introduced by Datavideo Technologies, a major Taiwanese manufacturer of video post-production equipment. The unit is now in full production.
Datavideo’s VDR-1000 is a standalone unit that records digital or analog video and audio onto a CD (CD-R or CD-RW), in MPEG2-format with near-DVD quality - in real-time without connection to a PC. Up to 98 tracks (scenes or photos) can be recorded in one CD Disc. Tracks can be played in any sequence and can contain video, audio or still images, making this unit perfect for digital media distribution of corporate messaging. CDs can be played back on the VDR-1000 and most VCD and DVD players, as well as PCs, ensuring that the recorded material can be used interchangeably on commonly available consumer products. The VDR-1000 features Composite, S-Video and stereo audio inputs & outputs with optional IEEE1394 / i-Link DV input for DV Camcorder, PC / IEEE1394-DV and Power Mac or iMac / DV direct interface video recording, providing the videography professional with a multitude of options for acquiring, editing, and producing digital content.
The foundation for the enabling Symphony manufacturing kit is Stream Machine’s SM2210 MPEG-2 video encoder/decoder. The Digital Video Recorder exploits SM2210’s unique combination of high image-quality at low bit-rates to provide near-DVD-quality video on cost-effective and proven CD-RW drives and media. The SM2210’s high integration and Symphony’s low parts count make these products affordable, enabling fast adoption by quality-conscious professionals in video production and distribution.
These new digital video recorders are enabled by Stream Machine’s single chip MPEG-2 video codec IC, the SM2210. SM2210 supports real-time video encoding and decoding using a single-pass variable bit rate MPEG-2 encoding technique — providing higher video quality than traditional constant bit rate MPEG-2 encoding. This technology, along with the SM2210’s other proprietary image enhancement processing, enables VDRs based on the SM2210 to have record and playback quality that is visually equivalent to that of DVDs.
Because the single chip SM2210 is a true codec, performing both encode and decode functions, the total system cost is reduced compared to chip sets with separate MPEG-2 encoders and decoders. The SM2210 further reduces parts count and system cost by combining a high-degree of system integration with ease of design. For example, SM2210 eliminates costly glue logic by directly interfacing with popular NTSC/PAL video decoders, NTSC/PAL video encoders, microcontrollers for embedded applications and PCI interface chips for PC applications. The SM2210 also cuts costs by requiring only 4 MBytes of SDRAM for full resolution NTSC 30 frames-per-second MPEG-2 encoding.
The Symphony manufacturing kit is a complete audio/video record and playback platform for developing digital video recorders as well as recordable DVDs. The architecture of the Symphony manufacturing kit is flexible and can operate with various storage technologies, including CD-RW, hard disk drives, DVD-RAM or removable storage. This modular architecture reduces development risk and enables fast time to volume for derivative products. The Symphony manufacturing kit comes complete with software, firmware, schematics, a bill of materials (BOM), Gerber files, and technical documentation.
Symphony Manufacturing Kit and SM2210 CODEC: The SM2210 single chip MPEG-2 video CODEC is in full production and is available. The Symphony manufacturing kit is available and costs $25,000.