Smart Home Blog

Iomega presented its new media product ScreenPlay HD. That multimedia drive is equiped with cost effective 500Gb HDD, HDMI port and component / composite connections and Coaxial S/PDIF output and USB 2.0 interface. ScreenPlay HD can handle most formats from MPEG-1 to MPEG-2 (AVI/VOB) and MPEG-4 (DivX3-5/XviD). Thanks to HDMI interface SD video will be upscaled to 720p or 1080i digitally. To comfort work with the ScreenPlay HD it comes with slim remote control.

The ScreenPlay HD is available on the Iomega site at $218.45.

[via Everything USB]

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David Coleman, director of CE for Honeywell International, shared his knowledge about HDMI installation and testing CE Pro. I found his recommendations very interesting. Especially a basic HDTV pre-wire. He recommended one HDMI cable, one component video cable and three Cat 5 wires run in a 2-inch pipe. That configuration will allow enough flexibility to ensure you have your bases covered.

If you need more detailed explanation of HDMI wiring you can register on CEPro to get The Installer’s Guide to HDMI - a free Advantage Series from CE Pro.

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Swedish Valei Computer produced a new media player ZC-HV0105. It features a DVI interface (can handle 1080i, 720p, 480p resolutions), 10/100Mbps LAN-connection and portable NDAS, 1.2-inch backlit LCD display on the front (128 x 64 pixels), USB 2.0 port, S-Video and component outputs, optical and coaxial audio outs. The new HD media player supports a big number of media content: WMV9, DivX, Xvid (also with Quarter Pixel), MPEG1/2/4, MP3, WMA, ASF, Ogg vorbis (with latest Sigma-chip), DAT (VideoCD), VOB MPEG-2 (DVD structure), MPG, MPA, M1V, M2V, AC3, DTS, JPEG (JPG). It can also show subtitles in SMI, SRT and SUB formats.

Regardless of that list of the ZC-HV0105’s advantages it doesn’t look good for the living room I think. Its design seems to be more appropriate for DSL modem or router then for device which should be placed near TV. Plus, player doesn’t have built-in IR receiver. To use remote control the external one should be added.

The ZC-HV0105 is expected to be available in March but the price is not tagged yet.

[via Re@dle Gadgets]

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Recently Gefen introduced two new devices: HDMI 1.3 1:5 Splitter and 1:10 Distribution Amp. The 1:5 HDMI 1.3 Splitter is a distribution hub that sends the same HDMI signals to up to five HDTV digital displays. The 1:10 HDMI Distribution Amplifier allows to send HD signal to up 10 displays. Those two devices can be a perfect solution for bars, pubs, coffees and other places where one signal should be distributed to the many displays.

The splitter and distribution amp are HDCP-compliant and rack mountable. Both products are available for pre-order on Gefen’s Web site at $499.00 and $749.00 respectively.

[via CePro]

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Recently Mvix lunched a new version of its media player MV780. Unlike the previous model - MV760, the MV780 sports a native HDMI output. As result it can deliver full 1080i HD to your plasma or LCD without losing signal quality.

Unlike other network media players MV780 doesn’t need any additional software. When it’s added in your home LAN using Ethernet or WiFi the media player is detected as external storage. So, you can copy there any media content easily (additionally MV760 offers a synchronization between PCs in the local network or with popular filesharing programs, i.e. eMule, KaZaa, BitTorrent). Disadvantage of that approach is impossibility to stream movies or music directly from the source PC without storing locally.

The MV760 supports a huge number media formats. So, you shouldn’t have a situation when the movie cannot be played or image isn’t displayed. The new Mvix player seems very good but personally I don’t like its design. It looks like DSL model or WiFi router for me. Moreover, the MV760 cannot be placed horizontally under TV and it will stand out against a background of your A/V equipment.

No more words about the availability of the Mvix MV760 or its price. But taking into account the cost of the previous model we expect that the MV760 will be tagged not less then €250.

[via eHomeUpgrade]

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