Intel to Market PCs as Home Entertainment Hubs 164
wantobe writes "Yahoo! News is reporting that Intel is developing their own "new technology" to convert home computers into entertainment hubs. Does anyone even really want this?" From the article: "Analysts say the chip bundle and software will transform the PC into an all-purpose multimedia device designed to function as a CD and DVD player, digital video recorder, game console, as well as a machine for traditional data processing and Internet."
Following Centrino (Score:2, Funny)
Centrino was just the start. (Score:2, Interesting)
For example:
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/2005/0117updat-int . ht ml
http://www.intel.com/employee/retiree/circuit/ plat formreorg.htm
http://msnbc.msn.com/id/6835731/
You can find some other stuff on www.intel.com or www.google.com by searching for "platform strategy."
LEGAL DISCLAIMER:
I am an employee of Intel but am speaking as myself, not speaking for the corporation, not speaking for any executives, and not revealing any classified information.
Use? (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Use? (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Use? (Score:3, Interesting)
Dual-core would naturally make it easier to get real-time performance/harder for sloppy coding to show up as hickups in playing, for example. Except for that, I don't think much is needed on the PC side. What's needed is cheaper/smarter peripherals that handle 1394/USB2 and 802.11*, preferably with open interfaces.
I have four devices capable of playing music and video in one form or
Re:Use? (Score:3, Insightful)
You pretty much nailed it. This is about packaging and marketing. Now what would be nice would be if they packaged some nice open source software, polished it up, and gave it back to the community. More likely they'll go with Redmond, though.
Here's my setup... (Score:3, Interesting)
I leave the screen down, and use other PCs to remote control it (you can use XP's Remote Desktop, VNC, PC Anywhere, etc.).
That way, when I click play in the remote window, it plays out the stereo.
I use it with Andromeda [turnstyle.com] (PHP/ASP software I coded) as well as Internet radio and Rhapsody [listen.com] (the music service).
Re:Here's my setup... (Score:2)
I'd say that the large majority of people who purchase Andromeda are well aware of "free (as in beer)" alternatives -- we all use Google, right? ;)
They still choose Andromeda because they just like it better, because it's so easy to set up and maintain, and for good support and documentation, and so on.
fwiw, Andromeda has also been around since about 1999.
Re:Use? (Score:4, Informative)
Is your computer as easy to operate as a TV or VCR/DVD? What is the bootup time of your media center? Keep in mind the average user gets confused setting up a VCR.
Gateway [gateway.com] circa 1997 or so released their own media center Destination series in the $5000 price bracket. It included a huge VGA TV 27 to 35 inch [gateway.com] and Harmon Karmon sound system. The TV wasn't worth writing home about as its dotpitch was too low for 640*480, even models sold later didn't include and the system was too slow to record video in real time. But the major complaint was the fact that people had to wait for windows to bootup to watch TV (no one could figure out you could jack the cable directly into the TV). Channel surfing was slowed down made the whole experence of watching TV more complex requring a huge keyboard sized remote.
Re:Use? (Score:2)
Who knows? But they get points for attempting to develop multi-purpose hardware that will change its fuction when you loadup new software/firmware.
Re:Use? (Score:1)
Precisely, the general public is harder to target. I think the main dificulty is display.
Re:Use? (Score:2)
Yeah. There's a good reason for that. The general public can't figure out how to set a VCR timer. The general public has to call their cable company to have a channel unblocked because they can't remember their code. You honestly expect ANY idiot-friendly interface to make up for this? This will fail spectacularly, not because nobody wants it, but because the only people who will be able to use it are those that already are, in the form of their PC's. If it in
Re:Use? (Score:2)
Here's what I tell them: Wait until the first stroke of midnight and plug it in - your VCR clock will be set perfectly.
They're too stupid to be able to set the clock themselves, they're certainly too stupid to realize that they can do it at noon ...
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Re:Use? (Score:2)
Correct me if I'm wrong, but won't it still just blink "12:00"? (How many Slashdot readers DOES it take to program a VCR...)
Re:Use? (Score:2)
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Re:Use? (Score:2, Interesting)
Just tried it. Got a DVD from the shelf, put it in the drive. Started xine. Clicked "DVD"; it started playing, but no sound. Configured xine to use alsa, through its GUI, and restarted it as instructed. Voila, home entertainment PC (except no video recording, since I didn't buy the DVD recorder or TV tuner, both of which are available).
This shows 2 things.
Yes, people wants that (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:Yes, people wants that (Score:2, Insightful)
I've heard of something like that... I think it's called an 'X-Box.'
It probably won't catch on, though. Surely not.
Old Marketing (Score:1, Interesting)
Re:Old Marketing (Score:5, Insightful)
Wow! (Score:5, Funny)
Wish my computer could play cd/dvd's, record video, play games, do word processing and access the Internet! Man the future is gonna be cool!
Re:Wow! (Score:1, Funny)
I am so psyched I am going to go camp out in front of intel's building until they release these technological break throughs.
Re:Wow! (Score:2)
They're basically grasping at straws in the PC market. Though they still pwn in other markets [flash memory and sadly servers anyone?]
My client's shop is all-intel and it makes me cry. They're all slow as hell P3 and Xeon boxes. My AMD *laptop* smokes them all. Their excuse is "we buy from Dell only"
And it takes all of 30 mins to build a PC including th
MythTV (Score:3, Informative)
Re:MythTV (Score:1)
Re:MythTV (Score:5, Insightful)
form factor (Score:2)
Jerry
http://www.syslog.org/ [syslog.org]
Re:form factor (Score:2)
There is better alternative (Score:1)
Re:There is better alternative (Score:2, Insightful)
Uhmm, yeah... (Score:1, Redundant)
So what exactly is it Intel is offering?
Re:Uhmm, yeah... (Score:1)
And perhaps ease of setup.
So that people who don't read slashdot can do it too.
Re:Uhmm, yeah... (Score:1)
I have used my pc (Score:1)
for these same activities for some time now. Is this another marketing story on Slashdot?
The new Intel PC (Score:1, Funny)
Re:The new Intel PC (Score:1)
Re:The new Intel PC (Score:2)
Re:The new Intel PC (Score:2)
It's an image linked from the first page if you're interested.
And if Intel (Score:3, Insightful)
Re: Does anyone even really want this? (Score:1)
I wonder.. (Score:5, Interesting)
No. (Score:2)
Intel is just planning on re-targeting their chipsets with builtin video as some kind of media platform like Centrino was for laptops. (Centrino just meant a Pentium M and a Intel-branded wireless mini-pci card pre-installed)
You forgot... (Score:1, Funny)
With those dual cores these things are going to sell like gangbusters. Hell. Sell it at home depot as the first space heater that just happens to play dvds, record video, and plays doom III at acceptable framerates.
eShmoo (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:eShmoo (Score:3, Interesting)
I agree. And, all the technology already exists today but I guess a little something has always been missing. Perhaps, the way you bundle it and package it and leverage existing technology without requiring a consumer to have an e
Re:eShmoo (Score:1, Troll)
Re:eShmoo (Score:2)
What's completely lacking, is a workable interface.
Programs from MPlayer, to Avidemux, to Mozilla, all use vastly different key combinations, with vastly different interface methods.
All the Windows multimedia systems have a simple limitation... They only do one or two things, and the rest is left in the air. You might be able to do the Tivo thing, recording shows and dele
Re:eShmoo (Score:1, Troll)
no, not really... (Score:1, Insightful)
i can see it now......the simpsons error 404.
or rebooting my tv/dvd/cd player every 10 minutes because the buggy DRM software that microsoft wrote.....
Intel is slacking off (Score:1)
Why not? (Score:3, Funny)
The PSX does most of (Score:5, Insightful)
I'll just take everything seperate thank you very much
Re:The PSX does most of (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:The PSX does most of (Score:1)
In that case it does get more complicated, but it can be done with terminals. They could look like a stereo front, a TV remote control (and base) or keyboard and monitor. The change is inside
Re:The PSX does most of (Score:3, Insightful)
That's why several interconnected devices of more or less similar types (some will have large screens, some will have small ones, some would have none at all, some systems will be portable), possibly based on different "use niches" that are already existing (from this point of vi
Re:The PSX does most of (Score:2)
Maybe if we had some fancy tech that converged everything and would last 5-10 years I coudl see it, but with problems with just about anything electronic these days I'd rather keep them all seperate... That way if my PVR breaks I'll still have CD/DVD, etc functional in the mean t
We already have this (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:We already have this (Score:2)
Yes, but for this you need an operating system and a multi-media center. I cannot see how you would do this with a chipset, unless you would want to do all this in hardware? The hardware is allready there. It's called a motherboard (maybe with integrated graphics, sound, ethernet etc) and a CPU. And a harddrive for storage, an
Re:We already have this (Score:3, Insightful)
This is more a packaging problem than a hardware problem at this stage. We just need a company like Apple to make a nice looking box, that's all.
Title Correction (Score:2, Interesting)
Xbox Media Centre (Score:3, Informative)
hd makes it possible. (Score:5, Insightful)
I could barely read webpages at 800x600.
With HD tv's coming more popular, i think the idea is going to catch on more.
Re:hd makes it possible. (Score:1)
Re:hd makes it possible. (Score:2)
I think the difference here is that TVs haven't advanced much, and most people seem only accustomed to needing a new TV every 20 years. Some of those people are eager to pay a lot more money to replace their cars every three years, even though the actual improvement between cars is far less vs. switching from a 480i set to an HD se
Re:hd makes it possible. (Score:2)
The font sizes, DPI settings, etc., all default to PC specs, and it's up to you to change it appropriately. I have no problem reading webpages on my 27" TV connected to my computer.
Most Computers Already Do This (Score:1)
Yawn. Forced "convergence" again. (Score:1)
If people wanted, en masse, to plug their PeeCees into their TeeVees, they would have bought such systems in the past. When sweeping new nationwide/worldwide computing crazes happen, they do so without half a dozen attempts by major companies to start them.
How many times did a big company have to make a grandiose public promise before Napster (the origina
probably flame-bait, but... (Score:2)
"Analysts say the chip bundle and software will transform the PC into an all-purpose multimedia device designed to function as a CD and DVD player, digital video recorder, game console, as well as a machine for traditional data processing and Internet."
"Oh, they're going to turn it into a Macintosh?" (referring to the iLife software bundle, currently in its second year of shipping)
the perfact name (Score:1)
Is it me? (Score:5, Interesting)
More on topic, I don't know how many people really want a PC for this, though. I know that I abandoned my PC-based router because I could go buy a Linksys for $59 and had no moving parts to deal with. I think people are more into buying a TiVo or DVD player than setting up a PC next to their TV. Couple that with all the DRM and software and licenses they may have to deal with to do it and it may become another headache for users and PC makers alike.
Re:Is it me? (Score:1)
it is some people to get their broadband to work
and all differnt kind software & hardware
there is sold. Even I have many times, and
I'm sort of nerd.
Now imagine that those people will concentrate
all their tv watching, recording etc. to one
computer....why would people go to
look for more trouble?
I just can't see all non-nerds rushing to store
buying this idea. Heck, even I don't like and
I use linux and do programming.
And what about the rest of family if you don't
li
Re:Is it me? (Score:2)
Which is exactly why nobody will buy it.
Maybe they're selling (Score:2)
Myth TV (Score:2)
Intel's new business strategy (Score:2)
Re:Intel's new business strategy (Score:2)
Re:Intel's new business strategy (Score:2)
It does seem to me that the Mac mini has a lot of potential as a platform for PVR / Music / Photo use at home, but if you want to use an Intel chipset that require fans moving 5 tons of air a minute a
This is not new idea (Score:1)
Noise Factor (Score:3, Insightful)
But how much noise does that box make? When you go shopping for silent components, the price moves up rapidly. Or you have to compromise on performance like with Via C3.
Still, nothing new here. Where is the news?
Mini-mac, I say. Apple threatens to offer a viable solution to the above dilemma and intel blows some marketing dust in the public eyes to the tune of "me too!".
Re:Noise Factor (Score:2)
Nah. Just buy any old Pentium 3 (or celeron equivalent), and you get very good performance, at about the same power as Via's C3 processors (sometimes lower!).
Or, you can go much cheaper, an AMD system with a Mobile AMD processor, and motherboard that can be undervolted to the required level. Not significantly more expensive than the egg-frying versions, though the mobile proc
Hello? MacMini is the iPod for the livingroom... (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:Hello? MacMini is the iPod for the livingroom.. (Score:2)
DEC tried using notebook components in desktop systems years ago with their "Multia" system, and it's widely recognized as a very unreliable system.
So, in addition to your $500 MacMini, you also need to throw-in a couple hundred dollars for a much larger desktop drive, and Firewire case.
I built my own 2GHz multimedia PC for about $300. It's not as compact, but any old desktop case fits perfectly abo
Re:Hello? MacMini is the iPod for the livingroom.. (Score:2)
Some of us don't give a damn about the color of a case, but you can always either get a black destop case that will effectively hide amongst your other components, or you can always effectively just hide the case (also dampens the noise).
Re:Hello? MacMini is the iPod for the livingroom.. (Score:2)
Yes, they are dead because they failed to realize just how much they needed marketing, and not just technically great products. And above all, they always made technically great products. The particular system I mentioned was the exception. The hardware was fine for it's intended purpose, but not for the heavy-duty use many customers put them through. Exactly like the case with the MacMini to me. A year down the road, you'll start hearing from a large number of unhappy user
Of course this is possible (Score:1)
Deal is, Intel has the money to get all of that on the shelf and then the most important thing *market it* with TV ads and whatnot, a lot of whatnot.
Say what ya want, I have yet to see....
"Joe's do it all absolutely no hassle turbomedia linux distro deluxe complete with new shiny kikbooty ultraXteme rad bitchin' computar! Get yours today, and r
If they run it on Windows, (Score:3, Funny)
More seriously, there are a lot of people who are putting together media control systems, and -- for the most part -- it's not eating most of the CPU power of your average 2Gz CPU, so why not set up people to dual-use their home PC? It's just another way for them to maintain their hold on their market share.
Don't they already make this? (Score:1)
Oh yeah! It's called a Pentium with Winamp!
It all depends on how they implement it... (Score:2, Insightful)
But the point is, while one can put together a very nice HTPC setup using a Mini-ATX (think: Shuttle) using MythTV or Sage, one still has to battle with the enclosed space, which could lead to cooling problems. The VIA C3 is very popular because it's based on the small Mini-ITX formn factor and it's nice and cool. But it still isn't very powerful.
If Intel
this could be useful (Score:1)
It's like Deja Vu all over again... (Score:2)
1,2,3 JUMP!
I don't like Mac's. I don't own a Mac. I can count on one hand the number of times I have used a Mac.
Yet I can't shake the feeling that Apple is the only company who stands a chance in hell of actually doing this right.
I find it funny, that consumers are just starting to get into the idea of using PC's as media centers just at the same time that **AA has taken away all our rights to do that.
Computer industry lawyers vs **AA lawyers
(Now thats an episode of Survivor that'
To PC or not to PC (Score:1)
I see value in this new chipset/box as a standalone unit. Not to replace my existing PC, but instead, to function exlusively as a Multimedia Center: IOW, a replacement for my VCR and DVD players. I could use it to record TV programs, edit them, and then burn them to DVD,
I would want this for the following reasons (Score:2)
* Access to online radio stations.
* Access to online contnet.
* The ability to surf from the computer to get some quick information, instead of having to go to the computer area, boot it up, wait, then surf.
* Be able to see if that email you've been waiting for comes in right from the TV. No I will not et my speakers on high on my computer to tell me I got mail.
There
What a conversion! (Score:1)
In other words, no change whatsoever! Whoo-hoo!
Intel is NOT irrelevant! (Score:1)
I suspect that we will see more hyperbole coming from Intel to try to shake off the suspicion that they have reached the plateau of their game. Cell may not be anything near what the hype is saying it is, but if this is Intel's response, you've got to know that they THINK it is.
I'm intersted, depends on the details (Score:2)
I'm interested. How much will it cost? When on standby how much power will it suck from the wall? Will it turn on (nearly instantly)? Will it run my BSD (linux is acceptable but I'm a BSD guy) with complete driver support? Will it be cheap enough? Will it be small? Will it be silent?
I bought one of those wifi audio players a few months ago, and returned it the next day because it wasn't compatible with my systems. (I cannot accept any license agreement to not reverse engineer it, as a hacker re
MP3beamer demo (Score:2)
Lots of people want this ... (Score:2)
Go to most people's places and they have to wrestle with the remotes for the DVD player / VCR / TV / Radio / etc ... WTF? This is just crying out for a simple unifying device. Its bleeding obvious to anyone once they discover they have to use more than one remote. What they want is a simple remote, perhaps with visual assist of some kind ... so think a PC sitting there picking up the IR commands displaying somehow (LCD or whatever) the mode, and list of commands.
Want? Gee, I wonder. (Score:2)
Well, isn't convergance of media devices almost exactly what numerous OSS projects are trying to accomplish? Between loading Linux and custom software on Xboxes to make them into PVR and webservers (Dreamix or Xebian, for example) to programs that make your average PC into a PVR with the help of software (MythTV or Freevo) and some hardware (WinTV PVR-250 or 350), it would seem that yes, people want this. They want to play their video games, st
The missing piece (Score:2)
Re:I'm sorry... (Score:2)