New Hardware To Support?

[Omegadsl]

http://www.nvidia.com/view.asp?IO=IO_20030714_7792

NVIDIA Introduces Most Comprehensive Product Suite for Windows XP Media Center PCs




New TV Tuner Cards with MPEG2 Encoding and Tightly Integrated Software Solutions Complete NVIDIA Suite of Windows XP Media Center Edition-Ready Products

For further information, contact:

Carrie Cowan
NVIDIA Corporation
(408) 486-7330
ccowan@nvidia.com

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:

SANTA CLARA, CA—JULY 15, 2003—NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA), the worldwide leader in visual processing solutions, today announced the availability of key new products designed for PCs running Microsoft® Windows® XP Media Center Edition. The Company has added TV tuner cards with built-in MPEG2 encoding to enable higher-quality TV playback, as well as a feature-rich software suite with DVD decoder drivers for Windows XP Media Center Edition. With these new products, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) and PC system builders now have access to the most compatible, reliable and complete suite of products for unleashing a new generation of desktop and notebook Media Center PCs.

“NVIDIA is taking a comprehensive approach to its Windows XP Media Center Edition solutions,” said Kevin Eagan, general manager of the Windows eHome Division at Microsoft Corp. “By focusing on key components such as form factors, reducing system noise and expanding end-user control, NVIDIA is developing solid hardware solutions for Media Center that will enhance the consumer experience.”

The NVIDIA Media Center product suite includes:

PCI TV Tuner card with hardware MPEG2 encoding – an NVIDIA-designed low cost, low profile solution that guarantees the highest quality TV viewing experience for new small form-factor PCs.
Media Center-ready software – NVIDIA decoder drivers power crisp DVD playback, while integrated menu extensions give users full control of display and audio settings from the Windows XP Media Center Edition interface. NVIDIA Karaoke adds additional functionality to the Windows XP Media Center Edition experience.
NVIDIA nForce2 platform processors  the ultimate foundation for Media Center PCs feature NVIDIA SoundStorm™ technology with Dolby® Digital surround sound, and integrated USB and Firewire ports for connecting today’s digital media devices
GeForce FX GPUs ─ top-to-bottom Microsoft DirectX® 9.0 class hardware to power the next generation of 3D games, including support for fan-less solutions to reduce system noise, and high-quality video playback with Microsoft Direct X Video Acceleration.
“PCs running Windows XP Media Center Edition are the most exciting Windows-based computers available today,” said Dan Vivoli, vice president of marketing at NVIDIA. “As a company we strive to advance the usability and feature sets in Media Center to deliver the best consumer experience. It is this focus that has secured NVIDIA’s role as the technology of choice for the majority of Media Center PCs shipping in the market today.”

“NVIDIA’s offerings help make ViewSonic’s M Series Digital Media Centers the ideal multimedia home theater system to combine all of their digital entertainment options,” said Donna Ogilvie, director of business development, Visual Systems Group, ViewSonic Corp. “Its Media Center-ready software and GeForce FX GPU with DVD decoders allow us to provide the high-quality video output customers expect from the leader in visual technology.”

[justme]

Looks promising since we could be fairly sure of great driver support. One of the areas where the current solutions are a little lacking IMO. My worry is the constant mention of XPMCE. If they lock the drivers to XPMCE this would be a major bummer. I hope they are smarter than to do something like that. The fact that they have strived for a universal driver set for their video cards gives hope they will support non MCE PCs.