Hi Def Wireless Streaming

[JayList]

Posted elsewhere but modified slightly.

This is my dream. A wireless media household. UWD (Ultra Wide Band) technology coming soon, can make this a reality.

TV talking to PC to DVD all wireless and HI-Def capable.

A few years ago, the future of high-capacity discs would have been guaranteed nonetheless, thanks to high-definition television. Digitizing hi-def video, after all, produces a ton of data, which is tough to move around on networks. That's where compression and bandwidth come in. Both Apple and Microsoft are developing new codecs, compression-decompression algorithms that squeeze hi-def video and then unpack it for viewing. Apple's newest will be the core of the MPEG-4 compression standard and should be released by mid-2005, with the next version of OS X. And Microsoft's Windows Media 9 technology already crammed a hi-def version of Terminator 2 onto a DVD and should continue to improve with new generations of Media Player. A third contender, a codec called DivX, can compress a 20-Gbyte hi-def feature down to as little as 2 gigs, less than half the size of a standard DVD.

If you wanted to stream a compressed hi-def movie from the Internet to your TV with these codecs, you'd still need pipes fatter than today's broadband. But in January, Comcast cable announced that it will double the speed of its Internet service, depending on how much you're willing to pay. Video compression will further increase home Net speed. As broadcasters upgrade to the streamlined MPEG-4 codec, each channel will need less pipe to offer a better picture. That in turn frees up bandwidth in existing coaxial cable lines.

This isn't the only improvement on the horizon. Over the next year, Intel plans to roll out WiMax - a wide-area wireless technology that can theoretically handle 70 Mbps. At this year's Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah, filmmaker David LaChapelle screened his new hi-def movie, Rize, by streaming it from Oregon and then transmitting it through a WiMax station in Salt Lake City. It worked flawlessly - soon even theaters won't have to rely on physical media anymore.

UWB allows speeds of 100 mbps and higher, making it a far more effective way to transmit, for example, a video signal from a digital video recorder to a flat-screen monitor or a laptop without wires.

That means a UWB signal has enough bandwidth to handle a high-definition television program, which can require 22 mbps of bandwidth for real-time streaming and viewing, plus a few other tasks at the same time.

Scalable in performance from 100Mbps to over 2Gbps, certain Ultra-Wideband systems will deliver secure wireless connections between high-quality multimedia products that aren’t susceptible to interference and breaks in performance.

Applications

Ultra-Wideband allows consumers the hope of eliminating the maze of wires connecting electronic products in their home, including large screen displays, set-top boxes, speakers, televisions, digital video recorders, PCs/laptops, digital cameras, smartphones and more. Products that include Ultra-Wideband are expected to:

* Build a home theater environment without cables
* Share live multimedia content between televisions
* Instantaneously transfer the images from a digital camera to another product
* Quickly synchronize ultra high capacity digital audio players
* Share wireless video between a computer and a separate monitor

Intel expects to see standards-based UWB products in late 2005 or early 2006, said spokeswoman Kari Skoog. "While there will be proprietary UWB implementations now and in the near future, it will take a few more months for all of the work to be completed to provide customers with a simple, effective and standards-based solution," Skoog added. "We believe that pre-standard products introduced now will generally be restricted to niche applications."


Besides its blazing speed, UWB offers some other benefits worth considering. Because UWB transceivers use low power short burst radio waves, they do not take as much planning to build. This makes them extremely easy and cheap to build compared to typical spread spectrum transceivers.

UWB systems also consume very little power, around one ten-thousandth of that of cell phones. This makes UWB practical for use in smaller devices, such as cell phones and PDAs, that users carry at all times.

And it's cheaper and less power!

Because UWB operates at such low power, it has very little interference impact on other systems. UWB causes less interference than conventional radio-network solutions. In addition, the relatively wide spectrum that UWB utilizes significantly minimizes the impact of interference from other systems as well. In fact, a recent demo of the Trinity UWB chipset, a single UWB transceiver provided screaming performance while simultaneously operating within close proximity to an 802.11b network, a microwave oven, a cellular/PCS phone and a cordless phone.

http://www.uwbforum.org/index.php?o...id=20&Itemid=48

And these devices (pre-standard) were debued at the Consumer Electronics show in Las Vegas.

Sony are looking at embedding UMB in flat panel displays to give wire free displays.

It could be coming to BRITAIN SOON!

http://www.ofcom.org.uk/static/arch...umer-market.pdf

 

[zag2me]

Great news, The current wireless technology simply isnt good enough to stream HD video.

 

[JayList]

Great news, The current wireless technology simply isnt good enough to stream HD video.

I agree. My av rack is a nest of cables. And trying to set up multiple displays etc a real pain.

For my benefit it will be as simple as having an LCD monitor on the desk, connected to my HTPC in the AV rack.

As well as connecting the HTPC to the DLP.

I suspect that Hard Drive video jukeboxes will become much more attractive.
Chuck a bunch of disks in the garage and stream HD from them.

 

[Chris Muriel]

I would moderate your optimism with caution.
UWB physical layer standards are still being ironed out and there are many arguments or heated discussions going on. Lots of variations in stated requirements exist from different parties (including differences between various countries' telecomms regulators).

It does, however, bode well for the future.

Chris Muriel, Manchester

 

[JayList]

I would moderate your optimism with caution.
UWB physical layer standards are still being ironed out and there are many arguments or heated discussions going on. Lots of variations in stated requirements exist from different parties (including differences between various countries' telecomms regulators).

It does, however, bode well for the future.

Chris Muriel, Manchester

The great thing about standards, theres so many of them! It's the same old IT mess. Hopefully though there'll be an IEE standard soon that everyone can agree on.

Not a moment too soon in my opinion. I am ready to buy UWB as soon as it appears. Hopefully Q1 next year. My av racks going to be a mess by May next year.

 

[Quickbeam]

Are we talking about wireless streaming of uncompressed high-def video and audio to a display?

If the vid/audio is compressed then surely every display would need to have H.264/VC-1 decoders on board, which would increase manufacturing costs?

 

[Chris Muriel]

Are we talking about wireless streaming of uncompressed high-def video and audio to a display?

If the vid/audio is compressed then surely every display would need to have H.264/VC-1 decoders on board, which would increase manufacturing costs?

No we're simply talking about the transmission medium (wireless physical layer) ; the video could be encoded as MPEG2 , MPEG4 , SD or HD etc. etc.
UWB is video standard/codec agnostic.

Chris Muriel, Manchester.

 

[Oh Contrary!]

Hello there!

I am not sure if you can help me but I am trying to avoid opening a thread and this topic seems relevant!

Is there any means of transmitting a signal from a digital source to a digital receiver ie from a PC to a Plasma Screen?

I notice Maplin sell transmitters allowing tv to be watched elsewhere in the house but I am unclear if they transmit digital signals (I have emailed them but no response so far).

If you can help - many thanks!

Chris.

 

[TheDoctor]

I use the Pre-N standard to stream HD from other PCs to my HTPC (connected to plasma). With my set-up I get flawless streaming of 1080i and 1080p, which I was initially suprised with, but it works wonderfully.

 

[Oh Contrary!]

What does HTPC stand for! If its a computer then thats what I am trying to avoid (having two!). Nontheless if I have understood you, you are using a wireless network to transmit Hd which is pretty impressive.

Having trawled through the internet all day I cant see a way of wirelessly transmitting tv/dvd/etc from a computer in one room to the plasma tv in another.

Thanks for your input Doc - as always appreciated! Chris.

 

[tscotsman]

you need a wireless router for your pc and then a device to stream the information. im buying the showcentre 200. obviously hoping eventually the xbox360 will be hacked and we can stream everything through that.

 

[Oh Contrary!]

Thanks for the input Tscotsman. I have a wireless router at least! although thats not much to shout about!

I have picked up bits and pieces (on here) about how the xbox may help stream hi def but I am not sure of the principle or why.

Having trawled all day on the internet I am begginning to think its not possible to do what I wanted at the present time. The only way to improve picture quality would seem to have a pc in the lounge as well and hooked up to the Plasma.

C.

 

[TheDoctor]

Hi Chris

The video-senders that you refer to (Maplins), can send video and audio wirelessly.

Video-senders usually stream video from a scart enabled device (e.g. sky, dvd), connected to one tv, to a another tv.

PC-senders will stream video from a PC to a tv.

It will not be a digital signal and works on the same frequency as Wifi and is prone to alot of interference.

As you already have a wireless network in your home, I would not recommend such devices. Unless you are prepared to switch off the wireless network when streaming video. I had the this problem a few years ago and ended up dumping the wireless video sender.

Doc

 

[Oh Contrary!]

Hi Doc - thanks for that very clear!

Just in case your still checking this thread I note you have a P505xde which is what I have just purchased. If I go to the lengths of buying a Pc to connect to this screen can it connected directly to the socket at the back of the tv, or does it have to be connected via the hdmi socket on the media centre?

Currently I am watching freewiew and dvd via scart, and the picture is serviceable/watchable, indeed very good other than a slight shimmering effect. In your opinion would using a PC (mid range athlon 3000/nvidia 6600) improve matters?

There are of course other benefits (fewer boxes/wires and wireless connectivity) but I'd like to think the picture would improve also!

If you could give me your thoughts I'd be grateful,

Chris.

"if everyone stopped wanting more wouldn't there be more for everyone"

 

[TheDoctor]

Hi Chris

I only use the PC to watch HD, and not SD. (You will realise what this TV was made for!!!!!!, HD is superb). I have 2 permanent connections from the PC to the XDE:

1. VGA - for browsing, documents etc
2. Component - for video playback

NOTE: The VGA input is on the FRONT of the media box and can not accept 50Hz signals.

Regarding TV through the PC, alot of people use the Sweetspot card, but I have no experience of it (there are lots of posts in the forum regarding Sweetspot).

Regarding DVD, I would highly recommend the Oppo OPDV971H. I have this DVD player and it works superbly with the 505XDE. It is simply plug & play, uses the HDMI input on the XDE, up-converts and produces brilliant results. This will bring all your DVDs back to life. Also you can pick one up for around £170.00 (new). It will make a significant difference to your viewing experience, as I found when I switched from scart to HDMI. You can play back your DVDs at 720p and 1080i. When it comes to DVDs, I prefer to open the tray, insert the DVD and sit back to enjoy the movie.

A PC will require you to tweak settings, which can lead to serious tweakytitis which I am still slowly recovering from.

Doc

 

[Tarbat]

Having trawled all day on the internet I am begginning to think its not possible to do what I wanted at the present time. The only way to improve picture quality would seem to have a pc in the lounge as well and hooked up to the Plasma.

You could get yourself a Hi-Def Media Streaming Device like the Pinnacle ShowCenter 200, that will let you play Hi-Def video that's on your PC on your plasma TV over a wireless network. That's what I use to play HiDef WMVs and XVIDs on my HiDef DLP TV, it works great, and avoids the need for a PC next to the TV.

 

[Oh Contrary!]

Thank you Doc for yet more useful and clear advice. I have been spending quite a bit of time searching through this site today trying to get a feel for the pros and cons for using a PC and a plasma. It seems the latter is somewhat fraught with difficulty (surprisingly), and ultimately it does seem a lot of expense and trouble when you can buy a dvd player such as the one mentioned and away you go!

I will take a look at the sweetspot card though as I have never heard of it.

The problem I have is all the av equipment littering the room (amp/dvd recorder/media box/digibox and possibly now a Oppo OPDV971H!), and subsequent controllers - switching the amp over in particular is very tiresome (it has a composite switching facility only).

Incidently while spending some hours today on the site I notice your input past and present all over the site, and with that in mind thanks very much for attending to my whims!

Chris.

PS should you feel like responding again (!) does the picture/video vary much between component pc and dvd hdmi?

 

[Oh Contrary!]

Hi cjgpers,

Our postings crossed on the network!

But how does the tv pick up the transmission? Actually before you answer that I had better check the links you have provided! Thanks C.

 

[Tarbat]

But how does the tv pick up the transmission? Actually before you answer that I had better check the links you have provided! Thanks C.

Plug the Showcenter 200 into your TV, it uses component connections.

 

[Oh Contrary!]

Hello again cjgpers - I have now read the two threads you suggested and very resourceful they were - thank you. Much of it is way over my head but I understand the basics I think. The SC (showcentre) is plugged into the TV as you say and receives files (video) over a Wi Fi network from a cumputer stationed elsewhere.

Presumerably the SC can operate independantly with stored files or does it have no hard drive? I can check that. Anyway the SC can take a varied amount of formatted material and convert it into Hi Definition pictures for a plasma.

One aspect I wasnt quite sure about was does it provide a digital 5.1 sound output for connection to an amp?

I will read the thread again once I have been on the web to read more about the SC but can you confirm I have a basic grasp of the situation?

Thanks in advance. C

 

[TheDoctor]

Hi Chris

With the Oppo, I would definately use the HDMI port, as it up-converts very well through it's digital output and the player usually comes with a DVI-DVI/HDMI cable (you also eliminate the digital to analogue conversion step).

But the component input on the XDE does produce excellent results.

Digital is not always better than analogue, especially if you adventure into the world of scalers/processors. Current digital connections on plasmas can be a hindrance regarding flexibility of resolutions and refresh rates (but that's another story).

Regarding HD media streamers, the next generation should hit our shores early next year which will have a significant advantage over current products available. A dealer "in the know" has told me to save my money and wait, but he did not provide any further details because he was not allowed to, for reasons that I understand.

Doc

 

[Oh Contrary!]

I think I will wait on the streamer front, moreso following your comment, besides I am trying to learn much at the moment (and all at the same time of course!), and will take a serious look at the suggested DVD player. If I record off this Dvd player with my existing DVD recorder will it do so in hd quality?

Ta Doc - C.

If everyone stopped wanting more wouldn't there be more for everyone else!

 

[TheDoctor]

Hi Chris

The Oppo is a SD dvd player (as all currently are), but it will play standard definition at HD resolutions (ie it up-converts). So this is not true HD, but looks great.

True HD dvd players/recorders are not yet available.

Remember the improvement in quality is not from the dvd, but the way TV displays the up-converted signal. The data on the disc remains the same (ie it is SD), no matter which dvd player or recorder you use. I hope this makes sense.

In the US, they capture HD films & TV shows from their HD satellite boxes to a PC, using firewire cables (like when capturing from a digital camcorder to a PC). Sadly there is no news of such technology being available here (even when Sky HD is launched).

Doc