IP STB runs Linux on TI Davinci

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Sep. 08, 2006

IP STB (internet protocol set-top box) specialist Softier is demonstrating a new Linux-based model at the IBC tradeshow this week in Amsterdam. The Wave-400 runs Linux on a Texas Instruments (TI) Davinci RISC/DSP chip, and can be customized using Javascript and other web technologies, Softier says.

Softier says its Wave-400 can be used to deliver such IPTV services as video-on-demand (VOD), personal video recording (PVR), placeshifting, two-way TV video communications, and PC media access, and that the device's versatility could enable operators to standardize on a single hardware platform for a range of services.

The Wave-400 is based on an unspecified chip in TI's "Davinci" line of dual-core RISC/DSP chips, the first of which shipped last December. Another IP STB based on Linux/Davinci, Visioneering's Sonata, shipped in June.

Wave-400 ports
(Click to enlarge)

The Wave-400 design is intended to be customized by IPTV network operators and walled-garden service providers, using Softier's "Javascript for IP STB" (JSTB) API. The API is described as "well-defined," "feature-rich," and "hardware-independent," and is backwards-compatible with that used in the Wave-300, Softier says.

The Wave-400 comes standard with an ANT fresco browser (other browsers optionally available), and supports user interface implementations in DHTML, Flash, or Java, Softier says.

Other touted features include:

MPEG-2 MP@ML resolution up to 1080i
Windows Media / VC1 support up to 720p
AAC (MP4), MP1 layer 1&2, WMA audio and AC3 (optional)
IGMP support for multicast services, RTSP for interactive video on demand services
Softier's JSTB (Java Script for IP STB) and embedded browser for easy integration with leading middleware packages
Optional Macromedia FLASH 6.0 support
Composite and S-Video out, PAL and NTSC, 4:3 and 16:9 formats support
Stereo Audio & Digital Audio via coaxial S/P-DIF
USB 2.0 x 2 ports
Remote boot and upgrade capability
Embedded Web and TV-based user configuration tools
Support for Internal 2.5'' HDD (80/ 120GB) for downloadable media and PVR
Built-in support for WiFi add-in module based on TI's 802.11g technology

Haim Bechor, VP of marketing, stated, "The WAVE-400 is unique in its ability to support new services such as two-way video communications, time-shifting, and place-shifting."

Softier's second-generation Wave-400 appears to have a more conventional design than the company's first-generation Wave-300. The Wave-300 also runs Linux, but does so on a standalone, single-core TI DSP processor.

Availability

Availability details were not supplied. Softier is demonstrating the Wave-400 at IBC this week.

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