DVD player hooks up to PC

[bongme]

hi

Thursday, 16 January, 2003

A DVD player that allows you to watch films or listen to music stored on a computer's hard drive has been developed by a US company.

SonicBlue's new DVD player, the Go Video D2730, can access content on PCs, such as photos, music and videos, via a network connection.

The player is part of a growing trend by manufacturers to combine technologies from the consumer electronics and computer industries.

SonicBlue demonstrated the player at last week's Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, where the talk was of a digital lifestyle where TVs, computers, mobiles and other gadgets would all work together.

The device won a prestigious innovation award at the show.

Remote access

"We were looking at ways of improving the DVD experience for the viewer," SonicBlue's Chuck Kraft told BBC News Online, "so we thought of adding network connectivity."

"The user has a lot of content on the PC and wants to access it remotely."

The Go Video player is linked to a computer network via an Ethernet connection at the back.

It can also be hooked up to a computer using wi-fi technology that allows you to connect devices without any messy cables.

SonicBlue believes the player will be popular with people who want to show off their home movies on the TV set in the living room.

One-way traffic

DVD players are one of the fastest selling products in the history of consumer electronics.

Analysts say that manufacturers are capitalising on the popularity of DVD players by adding new technology into a product that people understand.

The player's software allows you to view content on a computer's hard drive on a TV set, using a remote control for navigation.

You can stream audio or video files on the DVD player, but you cannot record a DVD onto a computer.

Hollywood studios worried about digital piracy will be reassured you cannot copy a DVD from the player to the computer.

"The only thing we are doing is streaming music or video, we're not ripping it from a DVD or CD," said Mr Kraft.

Year-long endeavour

Getting the networking technology to work without interfering with the DVD playback was "quite a challenge," he said.

"It is extraordinarily difficult to control video that is on a computer, maybe three rooms away," he said.

SonicBlue worked with a New Jersey technology company for a year before they cracked the problem.

The Go Video DVD player will only work with a computer running Windows and is due to go on sale in the US in late March or April, priced $250.

Bongme