STB Announces DesktopVCR MPEG 2 Encoder/Decoder at Fall
Comdex '98; STB's DesktopVCR Works like a Digital VCR for the PC
It walks like a CUBE, looks like a CUBE, and smells like a CUBE win...
COMDEX Fall 98
Comdex Meeting Room No. N102
LAS VEGAS--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Nov. 16, 1998--STB Systems Inc. (Nasdaq:STBI), a leading supplier of
multimedia and convergence products, Monday announced DesktopVCR, an MPEG 1 and MPEG 2 video capture
board that gives computer users unprecedented control over PC-based digital video recording and editing, and acts as a
hardware DVD decoder.
The DesktopVCR combines an onboard TV tuner and DVD player with the ability to support external video and audio
sources, and ties them together with STB's VisualReality software package.
"If the PC is truly going to become the entertainment center for the home in the future, hardware and software
manufacturers must give the consumer the functionality they are used to, and make it easy to use," explained Kirk Leitch,
multimedia product manager for STB. "The DesktopVCR is essentially a digital VCR, but its features are more advanced
and easier to use."
While current digital video editing systems cost thousands of dollars and are difficult to integrate and to use, the
DesktopVCR puts the ability to edit DVD-quality video in a cost-effective, easy-to-use format. Consumers can edit
video files they have downloaded to their hard disk, or display and capture footage from the onboard TV Tuner.
Signals from external video sources can be imported for editing via the DesktopVCR's composite or S video ports.
Footage can be saved to a computer's hard drive or a DVD RAM drive for editing or playback. DesktopVCR gives
users the ability to add movie studio-quality special effects to their own videos.
Transition effects like wipes, fades, and dissolves or visual effects like fade-to-black and fade-to-white can be added to
any video imported into the PC with professional quality results. The DesktopVCR has the ability to decode two
simultaneous MPEG 2 streams, adding to the number of special effects that can be applied to the footage.
Two videos can be tiled and viewed simultaneously or one can be layered over the other for movie quality transitions.
After the effects are applied, the new video footage can be saved as a single stream and played back using the
DesktopVCR's MPEG 2 decoder. [Sounds like CUBE....]
STB's VisualReality Software
The DesktopVCR ships with STB's revolutionary new VisualReality software application that provides today's most
active and convenient control for displaying a television signal on the PC screen. VisualReality lets the user adjust all
major television controls -- from channel and volume control to a broad selection of special features -- using familiar
on-screen-virtual remote controls.
VisualReality features include the ability to scale the TV viewing area up to full-screen size, the ability to magnify a section
of the TV screen, a convenient on-screen TV active channel selection menu, full closed captioning, channel-blocking for
parental controls, and easy adjustments for on-screen brightness, tint, color and contrast.
VisualReality's "skin" architecture allows the end-user to alter the appearance of the TV virtual remote control to their
liking with little effort by using one of the more than 30 included remote control styles or by downloading instructions on
making their own skin.
DesktopVCR features Rockwell Semiconductor Systems' Digital Infotainment technology found in the Fusion family of
video and broadcast audio decoders. Integrating video and broadcast audio capture into a single chip, the Rockwell
Bt878 provides complete consumer entertainment solutions with support for TV and FM radio decoding in stereo to
STB's DesktopVCR.
"We're beginning to see leading vendors of TV receiver products add new functionality to traditional solutions based on
our Fusion family of PCI video decoders," said John Graham, director of marketing, Digital Infotainment Division at
Rockwell, which is scheduled to be spun off as Conextant Systems Inc. on Dec. 31.
"STB's new DesktopVCR is a perfect example of how Fusion provides the hub or access mechanism into the PC not
only for traditional TV viewing but also for the complex capture and storage of both traditional and MPEG programming
information, VBI data and Internet content. We are pleased to be working with STB and see them leverage their success
in the retail TV receiver card market with their new DesktopVCR offering," Graham added.
Bundled software
DesktopVCR ships with Intel Intercast software, Asymetrix Digital Video Producer from Asymetrix and Wavetop from
Wavephore. With the Intel Intercast viewer, software users are able to receive broadcast Web pages and data with a
spectrum of current entertainment, educational and informational television programming.
Digital Video Producer allows users to easily assemble and edit audio and video clips right on the desktop computer.
WaveTop allows PC users to access, at no charge, a vast selection of the most popular content on the World Wide Web
without tying up a telephone line or encountering bottlenecks on the Internet.
WaveTop's PC data broadcast service uses embedding data streams into the unseen portion of existing broadcast
television signals using the Vertical Blanking Interval (VBI).
The DesktopVCR is expected to be available in the first quarter of 1999 and sell for around $200.
Simply The Best!
STB Systems, based in Richardson, Texas, designs and manufactures award-winning 3-D multimedia accelerators,
convergence products, professional-class 3-D graphics adapters, and multi-port display solutions for use in consumer
and business desktop computers. Since its founding in 1981, STB has been a pioneering force in the field of new
graphics technologies for personal computers.
Extensive manufacturing resources, engineering expertise, and consistent quality have established STB as a leading
supplier to top-tier PC manufacturers including Compaq, Dell, Gateway, IBM and others. STB has multiple facilities in
North America, as well as offices in London; Belfast, Northern Ireland; and Paris.
For additional information, visit STB's home page at stb.com on the World Wide Web.
CONTACT: STB Systems Inc.
Brian Burke, 972/234-8750, ext. 2113
bburke@stb.com
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