Product category: Microprocessors, Microcontrollers and DSPs
News Release from: Broadcom Corp | Subject: BCM7043
Edited by the Electronicstalk Editorial Team on 4 December 2007
Single-chip transcoder for consumer devices
Device enables consumer electronics device manufacturers to add more features, provide portability and offer more flexible product offerings to their service provider customers
Broadcom has released a device it reckons is the industry's most advanced 65nm real-time high definition (HD) encoder/transcoder. The new single-chip transcoder enables a wide range of consumer devices, with varying video and audio formats, to share a wide variety of video and audio content while maintaining a high degree of digital rights management and security.
This article was originally published on Electronicstalk on 4 December 2007 at 8.00am (UK)
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The new chip is the foundation for capturing audio and video content and for reconciling disparate video and audio content in cable, satellite and IPTV set-top boxes, home media centres, portable media players, cellphones and a wide range of entertainment devices for the connected home.
Industry research indicates that there is a strong desire by consumers to easily connect their entertainment devices within a home network.
A part of this simple portability challenge is the wide proliferation of disparate video/audio playback devices and a wide variety of incompatible sources of content.
As a result, the need has emerged for a fast, efficient, high quality, yet flexible transcoding solution that can change the format, the bit rate and the resolution of audio/video content in real time.
The single-chip Broadcom BCM7043 solves the industry problem of being able to share noncompatible video and audio content by transcoding (or matching) it to the proper format being used by a particular playback device.
Further reading
Reference design supports universal DVD players
The BCM7440 continues to be the industry's only single-chip solution that fully supports the demanding requirements of both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD standards
Single-chip switch spreads GbE connectivity
As a result, home networks will need to transition from FE to GbE connectivity to create the wired infrastructure necessary to support increased network speeds
DVD solution chosen for dual-format player
By combining full support for both Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD formats in a single SoC, Broadcom enables leading consumer electronics manufacturers to build universal high-definition players
It provides the most up-to-date foundational technology for encoding and transcoding content in cable, satellite, IPTV and terrestrial set-top boxes, portable media players, cellphones, home media centres, personal video recorders, digital video recorders, HD DVD, Blu-ray Disc and universal DVD players/recorders, and personal computers.
The new BCM7043 also provides the encoding and transcoding foundation for future devices that support H.264/AVC, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4SP video compression.
Its security features (which are particularly important to content owners), and its real-time high definition media encoding and transcoding capabilities make it ideally suited for home entertainment and network applications.
In addition to performing real-time high-definition H.264/AVC, MPEG-2 and MPEG-4SP encoding and transcoding, the BCM7043 is also capable of real-time simultaneous quad-channel standard definition (SD) encoding and transcoding.
Alternatively, the BCM7043 is capable of transcoding SD content to lower resolutions at up to six times faster than real time.
Designed in a 65nm CMOS process, the BCM7043 enables consumer electronics device manufacturers to add more features, provide portability and offer more flexible product offerings to their service provider customers.
As a result, service providers now have a solution that allows them to provide current and future subscribers with advanced services that include more hours of stored programs, as well as the ability to transfer noncompatible video and audio content to various playback devices.
Broadcom's 65nm process provides lower power consumption, smaller footprint size and higher levels of integration and functionality than other CMOS processes.
'The new BCM7043 provides our customers with the industry's most advanced, highest performing video and audio transcoder solution for set-top box, home media centre and digital TV applications', says Dan Marotta, Senior Vice President and General Manager of Broadcom's Broadband Communications Group.
'With BCM7043 transcoder technology, Broadcom will enable a new generation of product and service offerings that incorporate the 'seamless mobility' vision to enable consumers to share and view video and audio content, when and where they want to'.
The BCM7043 incorporates a new and advanced encoding engine that leverages Broadcom's market leading experience in encoding.
Additionally, the BCM7043 uses a broad range of in-production capabilities currently found in Broadcom's set-top box and digital TV SoCs, including an advanced video decoder that supports high definition AVC, MPEG-2, VC-1, MPEG-4 and DVD playback; a security processor; an advanced video preprocessor; and audio codecs that enable the highest performing platform for robust, high quality encoding and transcoding of connected home devices.
Incorporating a host of video and audio encoder and decoder engines, the BCM7043 is able to share noncompatible video and audio content by transcoding them to the proper format required for each device.
The BCM7043 real-time encoder/transcoder chip is sampling to early access customers.
Pricing is available on request for manufactures of cable, satellite and IPTV set-top boxes.
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