Video Capture Cards using M-JPEG or MVP's MPEG..............
newmedia.com
The Buzz on Digital Video
By Becky
Waring
Several years after Apple first tried to popularize digital video editing with AV Macs, and a year after the introduction of Avid Cinema, the market finally seems to be catching up. The proliferation of video cameras, videoconferencing software and streaming Internet video is creating a pent-up demand for easy video capture and editing solutions, and new low-cost compression chips are enabling board vendors to meet that demand.
ÿÿÿÿÿThe first wave of solutions arrived in spring 1997 from companies like AVerMedia, IXmicro, ATI and Matrox. AVerMedia and IXmicro make PCI bus master cards using the Brooktree 848 chip that act as combination TV tuners and video/still capture devices. They let you capture TV programs, scan closed-caption information, preview multiple channels at once and schedule viewing. The IXmicro TurboTV board ($129) is available for both Mac and Windows, and the Windows-only AVerMedia TV-Phone ($149) includes a remote control, videoconferencing software and TV output capabilities. However, maximum capture quality with these cards is typically 320 by 240 at 30fps, depending on the speed of your CPU. Stills can be captured at 640 by 480. ATI's All-In-Wonder ($300) is a 2D/3D graphics card with similar video capture and TV tuning capabilities, and ATI-TV ($129) is an ISA board that works with ATI graphics cards to provide tuning, capture and conferencing. Matrox also makes TV tuning and capture add-ons for its popular Mystique and Millennium graphics cards.
ÿÿÿÿÿA second wave of devices, called MVPs and set to appear in summer 1997, is based on C-Cube's VideoRISC processor. Initially available from AVerMedia, LA Vision and Videonics for $350 to $400, MVPs take a different approach to popularizing digital video. First, they are external devices that connect to the parallel port, allowing them to work with portables and older PCs from 486s on up, but not Macs. This also makes them easier to install. Second, video capture is via MPEG, rather than M-JPEG. MPEG video is not easily edited but is more compact than M-JPEG and is ready for streaming on the Web. Maximum resolution is 352 by 240 at 1Mbps to 3Mbps. Stills can be captured at 704 by 480. So far, MVPs do not have videoconferencing, TV tuning or video output capabilities.
ÿÿÿÿÿIf you need 640-by-480, 30fps capture, Iomega's Buz Multimedia Producer ($199 for Mac and PC) offers breakthrough price/performance using Zoran's M-JPEG chipset. This PCI bus master card, set to ship in late 1997, is also an Ultra SCSI controller and has an excellent 4:1 minimum compression ratio. It has a handy feature that determines your system's maximum throughput and adjusts compression ratios accordingly. Both versions feature a breakout box (illustrated) with stereo audio and composite/S-video input and output that makes it easy to connect camcorders and VCRs without fumbling around the back of the computer. Video, photo and audio editing software is included.
ÿÿÿÿÿWith Buz, Iomega hopes to do for digital video what the Zip and Jaz drives did for removable storage, so look for more "I Can" buttons and trade show blitzes. Given Iomega's track record and Buz's outstanding capabilities, it should give mass-market digital video a huge boost, lifting sales for all products in the category.
ÿAll-In-Wonder, ATI Technologies (905) 882-2600
ÿATI-TV, ATI Technologies (905) 882-2600
ÿAVerMedia (510) 770-9899
ÿIXmicro (888) 467-8282
ÿIomega(801) 778-1000
The Buzz on Digital Video ÿ August 4, 1997 Contents |
