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Technology Stocks : C-Cube -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: VidiVici who wrote (45688)	10/2/1999 5:00:00 PM
From: VidiVici	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50808

... which shouldn't keep the stock from zooming, natch. Message 11427498

To: VidiVici who wrote (45688)	10/2/1999 9:00:00 PM
From: John Rieman	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 50808

C-Cube base SVCD/MP3 player, and another CD-VCR........ globalsources.com Cover story: Video CD players SVCD displaces VCD in mainland China Video CD has progressed quickly in the last four years, moving through versions 1.0, 1.1 and 2.0 to today's 3.0. This latest version usually supports CD-DA, CD-I and karaoke CD, in addition to being backward-compatible with all earlier versions. The pace of progress and the intensity of competition mean that the mainland has already largely moved on from VCD to Super VCD, however. SVCD uses MPEG-2 video coding and decoding, and supports a software read speed twice that of VCD. Picture resolution is 350 TV lines, versus the 250 lines of VCD. Although intended as an interim technology between VCD and DVD, SVCD has been taken up here with such rapidity that it now holds an estimated 65 percent of the market against the 35 percent share of VCD. With the price gap between the two formats narrowing, that ratio is expected to become even more lopsided. SVCD players are now typically priced at $65 to $85, compared with the $40 to $60 price of a VCD player. Mainland makers are clearly locked in a constant battle to upgrade their products to stay ahead of the game. Nine-picture display, high-definition images, full-screen OSD and picture-in-picture are common. Karaoke functions now include digital echo, bass and tone control and surround sound effects in addition to one-track vocal fade and dual microphone input. Almost all VCD players come with a full-function remote control. The prevalence of low-quality pirated software has also made error correction a must-have. At Xiamen Solid Electronics, the latest players use ESS decoder ICs and Sony drivers for superior error correction, sales representative Zhang Qing said. Other features include single-frame play and a zoom-and-move image function. Imported components In many sectors of the A/V business, chipsets and ICs can be a key differentiator. Most of the main components in mainland China's VCD and SVCD players come from Sony or Philips, however, and as prices fall there are few signs of local component suppliers emerging to compete. If anything, it appears that the dominance of these two major suppliers may be increasing, with Sony making new inroads with its long-life anti-dust movements, for example. In addition to Sony drivers and ESS decoders, Xiamen Solid Electronics also uses a high-end anti-noise filter to enhance quality control. Other firms are similarly upgrading. The latest VCD player from Guangdong Jinzheng Electronics Science Co. Ltd, for example, has six-level error correction design, with auto follow, auto keep-up and stereo pitch control. Guangdong Jinzheng has also adapted DVD decoding technology to its SVCD production, enabling a variety of surround effects, export manager Tang Chaohui said. Shenzhen GVG Digital Technology uses C-Cube decoding chips and full-system circuitry to similarly support 3D surround audio. The firm's latest player supports VCD 3.0, SVCD, MP3 and OKO software. A multimedia version of the player comes with modem to support Internet use and game play; dual video output enables the user to view VCDs and play games simultaneously. Shenzhen Super Industrial also makes a multimedia-capable SVCD player and SVCD/MP3 player. The firm's next product will be a CD-VCR with MPEG-2 digital video processing, general manager David Tian said. The unit will use a CD-R or CD-RW drive to enable recording, he said. Batch production is scheduled to begin before yearend.