Brooktree multimedia chips bring theater-quality video, crisp graphics to mainstream, Pentium-based consumer entertainment PCs.SAN DIEGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 12, 1996--The Brooktree division of Rockwell Semiconductor Systems on Tuesday announced the first in a planned family of low-cost, high-performance multimedia chips for mainstream consumer entertainment PCs. Brooktree's Bt2164 video/graphics controller brings high-resolution 2D graphics, game-quality 3D content and theater-quality analog and digital video to Pentium and Pentium MMX-based multimedia PCs running Microsoft's Windows 95 operating system operating system (OS) Software that controls the operation of a computer, directs the input and output of data, keeps track of files, and controls the processing of computer programs. . Brooktree will be demonstrating the Bt2164 during COMDEX The former, premier computer trade show in the U.S. Although it grew into an end user event, it was originally created for dealers and distributors (it was the COMputer Dealers EXposition). , Nov. 18 through 22, in Booth No. M432 at the Sands Convention and Expo Center, Las Vegas Las Vegas (läs vā`gəs), city (1990 pop. 258,295), seat of Clark co., S Nev.; inc. 1911. It is the largest city in Nevada and the center of one of the fastest-growing urban areas in the United States. . The EDO-DRAM-based Bt2164 controller packs best-of-class 2D graphics performance, Windows 95 Direct3D acceleration and superior video display quality into a single chip. A key feature of the Bt2164 is Brooktree's TrueView video display technology, which builds on the patented MediaPacket mixed-media architecture that Brooktree pioneered in its high-end media controllers. MediaPacket technology ensures a seamless blending of video and graphics data in the rich Windows 95 environment, while TrueView technology adds video-manipulation techniques to optimize the display fidelity of TV-style interlaced video See interlace. sources on the noninterlaced screens of high-resolution computer displays. The Bt2164 is also one of the first multimedia chips capable of handling the full-size, full-quality MPEG (Moving Pictures Experts Group) An ISO/ITU standard for compressing digital video. Pronounced "em-peg," it is the universal standard for digital terrestrial, cable and satellite TV, DVDs and digital video recorders (DVRs). II frames of advanced digital video sources like DVD DVD: see digital versatile disc. DVD in full digital video disc or digital versatile disc Type of optical disc. The DVD represents the second generation of compact-disc (CD) technology. and satellite-delivered digital video. "One of the big challenges posed by today's new consumer entertainment PCs is how to make an increasingly diverse range of video and graphics content look as good on the computer screen as TV broadcasts do on a TV screen," said Brian Davis Brian Davis may refer to:
"The problem is that computer monitors use different technology than TV sets, and today's video content comes from diverse sources ranging from actual TV signals to CDs, camcorders, DVD and satellite delivered video broadcasts," Davis added. "Consumers who pay several thousand dollars for today's entertainment PCs expect only one thing -- video fidelity that's as good as their TV set. So we've designed our multimedia accelerators to deliver a video source to a large-screen monitor so that it looks just like it does on the TV in your living room." Supporting the Wave of New PC Video Sources, Including MPEG II When paired with Brooktree's Bt829 NTSC/PAL video decoder chip, the Bt2164 chip turns Pentium PCs into ideal platforms for TV-in-a-window, Intercast, videoconferencing and still-image or video-capture editing. The Bt2164 includes a flexible multimedia I/O bus Same as peripheral bus. and all necessary software for easy connection to the Bt829 VideoStream decoder. Connection to MPEG II decoders is also accommodated for applications such as DVD, digital CATV (Community Antenna TV) The original name for cable TV. It used a single antenna at the highest location in the community in order to deliver a quality signal to homes in areas with hilly terrain or other interference. and direct broadcast satellite (DBS (Direct Broadcast Satellite) A one-way TV broadcast service from a communications satellite to a small round or oval dish antenna no larger than 20" in diameter. ). The Bt2164 is also the first multimedia accelerator capable of passing an entire MPEG II video frame from the input port all the way to the computer monitor. The Bt2164's MediaPacket architecture implements a powerful, single-buffer mixed-media data-handling approach that eliminates the need to decimate dec·i·mate tr.v. dec·i·mat·ed, dec·i·mat·ing, dec·i·mates 1. To destroy or kill a large part of (a group). 2. Usage Problem a. the video and rebuild it prior to sending it to the display. This approach preserves video bandwidth The transmission capacity required to display video, measured in MHz, and calculated by horizontal x vertical resolution x frames/sec. For example, an 800x600 resolution at 60 fps yields a 28.8 MHz video bandwidth. NTSC video uses a 4.2 MHz video bandwidth. See NTSC. all the way to the computer monitor, resulting in sharper, crisper crisp·er n. One that crisps, especially a compartment in a refrigerator used for storing vegetables and keeping them fresh. video. "Other controllers can't accept MPEG II YCrCb 4:2:2 video at 720-pixel line lengths, so they have to drop pixels in the digital domain and reduce the line length to a typical 320 pixels per line," Davis explained. "This reduces the information content and blurs the edges of the objects and shapes in the video. Brooktree's solution retains the full fidelity of the video contained in the original source MPEG II content, resulting in much higher-quality video." Brooktree believes MPEG II content will become as popular during 1997 as 3D content was during 1996. Meanwhile, the Bt2164 also offers Direct3D-compatible support for game-quality 3D. The company plans to add full 3D rendering capability in future additions to the Brooktree family. The Bt2164 currently uses video display surfaces and specialized bit-block-transfer operations to speed 3D rendering under Windows 95 by nearly as much as some of today's 3D accelerator chips can. "Microsoft's Direct3D API already provides game-style image quality at up to 400k triangles per second," Davis said. "3D silicon technology can't achieve this same level of performance at a consumer price point yet. Brooktree believes this will be possible by early 1997 using some new development approaches, and the company will have a powerful new product for 3D gamers at that time. "Meanwhile, the Bt2164 closely follows Microsoft's recommendations for substantially improving multimedia interactivity through such methods as upscaling of rendered surfaces, full PCI bus mastering and Z/Pixel data unsorting hardware." TrueView Technology Bridges Gap Between TVs, PCs Brooktree's first-generation TrueView technology is currently being used in some of the market's leading PC/TV systems to enable interlaced video to be displayed on noninterlaced computer monitors. Brooktree has applied more than 10 years of experience in video encoder and decoder IC technology to achieve a video-source manipulation technology that dramatically improves video fidelity. The company is now introducing its second-generation TrueView technology in the Bt2164 chip. TrueView technology handles all necessary de-interlacing and genlocking without dropping fields and without introducing such motion artifacts artifacts see specimen artifacts. as feathering The appearance of jagged edges on moving objects in an interlaced display. Also known as "combing," this artifact is created because the image moves from one video field (odd lines displayed) to the next video field (even lines filled in while odd lines still present). and tearing, which are caused by improper handling of the odd/even fields in the interlaced Refers to a display system or image that uses interlacing and does not render contiguous lines one after the other. See interlace and interlaced GIF. source video. Brooktree's proprietary TrueView technology works by manipulating the source video in both temporal and spatial domains to optimize its fidelity when displayed on noninterlaced high-resolution displays. The video can originate from traditional composite-video and broadcast TV sources or newer MPEG II sources like DVD or Direct Broadcast Satellite (DBS) sources. Brooktree's TrueView technology boosts video quality beyond that of component S-video sources and optimizes the sharpness and legibility of overlayed graphics, such as a horizontally scrolling stock ticker Stock ticker A letter designation assigned to securities and mutual funds that trade on US financial exchanges. . Highly Integrated Solution Provides Full Windows 95 DirectX and ActiveX API Support Brooktree's Bt2164 video-graphics controller includes an integrated 135 MHz (MegaHertZ) One million cycles per second. It is used to measure the transmission speed of electronic devices, including channels, buses and the computer's internal clock. A one-megahertz clock (1 MHz) means some number of bits (16, 32, 64, etc. RAMDAC (Random Access Memory Digital to Analog Converter) The VGA controller chip that maintains the color palette and converts data from memory into analog signals for the monitor. RAMDAC - Random Access Memory Digital-to-Analog Converter , supports a full range of graphics display resolutions up to 1280 x 1024 at 4 or 8 bits/pixel and up to 85 Hz refresh rates, and is fully VGA-compatible. A graphics subsystem can be constructed from as little as two EDO DRAMs and one Bt2164 controller. A full-fidelity, 30-frames-per-second (fps) accelerated video window can be supported at full-screen resolution even in a one-megabyte configuration. The total solution also includes a full suite of DirectX drivers, enabling a graphics and video subsystem that is optimized for acceleration of Microsoft's DirectX and ActiveX APIs, including DirectDraw, DirectVideo, Direct3D, ActiveMovie and ActiveVRML. Not only does the Bt2164 accelerate key tasks that optimize the performance of each individual API; it also performs tasks that help the APIs work together more effectively in complex, highly interactive multimedia environments. "Brooktree's multimedia accelerators closely support the full suite of DirectX and ActiveX APIs, and they also support the close and intricate interactions between those APIs," Davis said. "The result is a level of multimedia complexity and interactivity on a P75 for which one might otherwise need a P90 or P133 if they were using a multimedia solution that could not accelerate all DirectX APIs, both individually and collectively." The Bt2164 video/graphics controller is sampling now and is packaged in a 208-pin PQFP (Plastic Quad Flat Package) Refers to many varieties of QFP chip packages, which are molded in plastic. See QFP. package that allows glueless attachment to the 32-bit PCI bus. It is priced at $15 per unit in OEM (Original Equipment Manufacturer) The rebranding of equipment and selling it. The term initially referred to the company that made the products (the "original" manufacturer), but eventually became widely used to refer to the organization that buys the products and quantities of 10,000, and Brooktree expects to begin volume shipments in December. Rockwell Semiconductor Systems is the fastest growing business segment of Rockwell. Based in Newport Beach, Calif., it comprises the Multimedia Communications Division, the Wireless Communications Division and the newly acquired Brooktree Division. The Multimedia Communications Division is the world leader in facsimile and PC modem devices for personal communications electronics. The Wireless Communications Division offers total system solutions for advanced cordless telephony and global positioning systems (GPS) receiver engines and is developing products and technologies to address the Personal Communications Services See PCS. (PCS) and wireless packet data markets. The Brooktree Division is a leading producer of high-performance digital and mixed-signal integrated circuits for multimedia, graphics, communications and imaging applications. Rockwell's industrial automation, semiconductor systems, avionics and communications systems and automotive component systems businesses are leading providers of technology solutions to customers worldwide. The company has annual revenues in excess of $10 billion and employs more than 56,000 people. CONTACT: Rockwell Semiconductor Systems Eileen Algaze, 714/221-6849 E-mail: eileen.algaze@nb.rockwell.com or The Benjamin Group Carolyn Fromm or Kirsten Bollen, 714/753-0755 E-mail: cfromm or kbollen@oc.tbgi.com |
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