RCA LYRA Lineup Adds Portable Video
Reprinted from a Thomson press release:
LAS VEGAS, January 8, 2003 Thomson (Euronext Paris: 18453) (NYSE:
TMS), the worldwide provider of video technologies, products and
services, today unveiled its new line of 2003 RCA home entertainment
products at the International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas
designed to simplify digital technology and bring it into people’s
lives.
Expanding its strategy of enabling consumers to enjoy digital
entertainment whether hooked to a PC or on the go, a new line of RCA
LYRA digital audio and video products emphasizes portability, popular
playback formats, and affordable price points. The six new models in
the 2003 RCA LYRA lineup include LYRA Wireless, which allows music from
the PC to be digitally transmitted to a home stereo system anywhere in
the house, and the RCA LYRA Audio/Video Jukebox, a unique portable hard
drive player that can play both video and audio files. The tiny, 1.5GB
RCA LYRA Micro Jukebox, redesigned 20GB RCA LYRA mp3 Jukebox, and two
new pocket mp3 players are other new additions to the RCA mp3 product
line.
Targeted at consumers who want to enjoy the vast collection of digital
audio files stored on their PC on a home stereo system, the RCA LYRA
Wireless system (Model RD900W, suggested retail price $99) uses
Thomson’s proprietary Digital Sound Mix technology to transmit 900mhz
signals at near CD-quality up to a range of 100 feet. Using a
transmitter that connects to the PC via a USB connection and a receiver
that plugs into the home stereo system via a standard RCA audio jack,
the RD900W plays PC-based music through a stereo system or bookshelf
audio system.
The first RCA LYRA portable to incorporate video playback, the
palm-sized 20GB RD2780 RCA LYRA Audio/Video Jukebox delivers a complete
digital entertainment experience in the palm of the hand. About the
size of a small picture frame with a 3.5-inch Thin Film Transistor (TFT)
LCD screen, the RCA LYRA Audio Video Jukebox also acts as a computer
storage device, compatible with multiple audio and video codecs, and can
be easily connected to most standard television sets. Measuring a
compact 5.2 x 3.14 x 0.98 inches, the versatile RD2780 can play mp3,
mp3PRO and Windows Media Audio files.
Consumers can watch up to 80 hours of pre-recorded television shows,
feature films, or home videos directly on the RD2780. It easily
connects to a television set via its composite video output and includes
both audio and video recording mode. Since the device is essentially a
computer peripheral with a hard drive, the display screen can also be
used to organize digital audio song files or other types of stored data,
including computer files such as word processing documents and
presentations. The RCA LYRA Audio/Video Jukebox is also a portable
photo album, since JPEG images can be viewed on the RD2780, by either
transferring them directly from the PC using a USB 2.0 high-speed
connection or by inserting a Compact Flash memory card. The vast hard
drive in the RCA LYRA Audio/Video Jukebox can accommodate up to 100,000
JPEG images.