Edutain Distribution/Alien Technologies, a leading provider of solutions that open the Digital World, today announced the release of the REALmagic Xcard from Sigma Designs. The MPEG-4 client player add-in card for the PC provides TV playback of top entertainment content from DivX Networks, DVD or VdeoCD discs, and new Internet Streaming Media Alliance (ISMA) compliant video streams.
The REALmagic Xcard, a first in MPEG-4 offerings, is a PCI plug-in card for the PC that supports full hardware decoding of MPEG-4 and MPEG-1 or 2 files, as well as high quality audio/video output to your TV and surround sound receiver.
Providing home theatre quality output, the REALmagic Xcard enables users to enjoy their content in standard, wide-screen, high-definition, or progressive formats with high-quality component video and Dolby Digital surround sound.
Included with the REALmagic Xcard is a TV-like remote control that mimics the convenience of a DVD player. With plug-n-play set-up under Windows 98SE, Me, or XP, the REALmagic Xcard is expected to be in demand for users that are creating their own PC-based entertainment libraries.
"We are extremely proud to be able to offer a product of this calibre from a pioneer in the emerging MPEG-4 industry, and enable PC users to enjoy high-quality playback of their content collection on TV," says Voula Philippides, MD of Edutain/Alien. "Moving from a small PC monitor with low-end speakers to a full-screen quality TV with surround sound is a dramatic shift in sensation."
Sigma is quickly becoming the dominant provider of IP video streaming solutions, based on its new EM8470 series of MPEG-4 decoder chips, the technology behind the REALmagic Xcard. The new EM8470 series, based on the company`s award-winning REALmagic Video Streaming Technology, is the industry`s first, and so far only MPEG-4 chip to support full-resolution (720x576) and streaming video based on ISMA specification 1.0. The EM8470 series provides highly integrated solutions for decoding of MPEG-4, as well as DVD, MPEG-2 and MPEG-1 formats.
MPEG-4 is the next-generation digital video standard, enabling content developers to create sophisticated content containing audio, video, text, graphics and interactivity. The object-oriented environment of MPEG-4 provides for complex scene manipulation at low bit rates, making it ideal for streaming content over today`s 300-1500bps broadband connections and more than doubling the capacity of existing MPEG-2 services.
Adds Philippides: "The proliferation of consumer MPEG-4 content across the Internet is a milestone in the expansion of demand for streaming video, and we are excited to see Sigma Designs take a leadership role in support of the ISMA specification with their new products."
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Edutain Distribution/Alien Technologies, local distributors of video technologies and streaming video peripherals, offer a wide range of extremely affordable, innovative, sought-after products of the highest international calibre and quality in terms of graphics and multimedia presentation to the reseller channel. For more information, please visit www.edutain.co.za.
Sigma Designs, Inc
Sigma Designs specialises in silicon-based MPEG decoding for streaming video, progressive DVD playback and advanced digital set-top boxes. The company`s award-winning REALmagic Video Streaming Technology is used in both commercial and consumer applications providing highly integrated solutions for high-quality decoding of MPEG-1, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4. Headquartered in Milpitas, California, the company also has sales offices in China, Europe, Hong Kong, Japan, Korea and Taiwan.
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