IDF Trails: Oplus In Detail

Xbox 360 Development Kit: Insider's Look

IDF Trails: FB-DIMM Promoted For The Future

Infrared Data Association Introduces IrSimple Protocol

IDF Trails: Oplus In Detail

Though IDF already ended in San Francisco last week, there are still news to post. This time it's about Intel's solution for HDTV, plasma panels and personal multimedia players - Oplus MN301 system-on-a-chip - a "digital display processor".

According to Don MacDonald, who introduced the novelty at IDF, this processor provides high contrast and better colors (better than existing solutions, I guess). The image actually looks good, judging by the photos we have. At that, the same chip is able to scale image for both large and small images (and displays).

At IDF they showcased a reference design of a dual-channel HDTV receiver:

So what exactly can Oplus solutions offer, that Intel even acquired its developer for about $100 million in April this year?

Besides a variety of applicaions, Oplus Image Perfecting Engine offers the following:

• Patented algorithms of improving image contrast and detail
• 3D noise reduction
• Adaptive de-interlacing
• Saturation and brightness control for each color component
• Improved skin colors
• Adaptive contrast adjustment
• Pixel mode detection algorithm; reversible pixel-level video conversion to 3:2 (NTSC) or 2:2 (PAL)
• Image orientation detection and adjustment
• Linear and non-linear scaling
• Keystone correction algorithms for projectors
• Different window modes of video and TV output

Sources: Intel, Oplus, iXBT.

Xbox 360 Development Kit: Insider's Look

Guys from Team Smartxx disassembled an XeDKs (Xbox 360 Development Kit) that, according to anonymous sources, was made on August 18. Let's join them and look inside the box.

This sample features fans (retail boxes are expected to feature liquid cooling instead), Toshiba-Samsung DVD-ROM TS-H943. The first photo pictures the general view at the motherboard without heatsinks. You can see an IBM PowerPC CPU, ATI Xenos EDRAM-based GPU and two Samsung memory chips; on the second photo is SiS south bridge.

Below is a rear view:

This is a power socket:

This sample utilized an external PSU. But, perhaps, commercial products will have it inside nevertheless.

It's interesting that inside there's also a daughterboard hosting a wireless adapter.

Source: X-Box Scene

IDF Trails: FB-DIMM Promoted For The Future

At IDF San Francisco they actively promoted the DDR2 FB-DIMM standard (Fully Buffered Dual In-Line Memory Modules). On the photo you can see 240-pin buffered FB-DIMM modules.

And this is Intel's dual-way motherboard with eight memory sockets. A closer view is below:

You can clearly see there are Elpida's modules (introduced by the vendor earlier).

In essence, FB-DIMM memory differs from usual DIMM by buffering, increased max. capacity of up to 32GB, increased throughput, smaller size (6.7mm thickness vs. usual 9.8mm), and a high-speed serial point-to-point connection between controller and memory chips.

Besides Elpida, such modules are also produced by Micron and Samsung.

Source: Our reporter at IDF

Infrared Data Association Introduces IrSimple Protocol

The Infrared Data Association (IrDA) announced the availability of the IrSimplea Protocol and Profile Specifications. IrSimple enables mobile devices like Camera Phones to instantly connect and wirelessly transmit digital images to similarly enabled Televisions, Monitors, Projectors, etc. Coordinated by NTT DoCoMo, Sharp, ITX E-globaledge and Waseda University, the IrDA Special Interesting Group (SIG) developed IrSimple for fast wireless communication between mobile devices and digital home appliances. Data rates up to 16 Mbit/s (VFIR) are currently available with 100 Mbit/s (UFIR) under development.

The IrSimple Protocol and Profile Specifications are available to IrDA Members today. General public access will be available shortly. In addition, the SIG has developed certification tests that are performed by IrDA Authorized Test Houses to ensure products meet interoperability requirements.

Source: Infrared Data Association

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