Liberating PC sound and video

By PETER GRIFFIN

Don't go dragging the PC into the lounge or start running cables from your beige box to the home theatre.

The liberation of the digital content sitting on your computer hard drive is only about six months (and $1000) away.

At least one consumer electronics giant is set to release interface technology allowing music and video files to be sent to the TV and stereo over a distance of up to 30m - or direct from the web via your PC.

The technology behind the change is high-speed wireless networking.

Early next year, Dutch consumer electronics giant Philips plans to introduce a range of wireless multimedia receivers.

The so-called "Streamium" range includes two models (SL300i and SL400i) of wi-fi 802.11g enabled multimedia receivers that are designed to slot in with the rest of your home theatre components - DVD player, VCR, amplifier and satellite set-top box among them.

By plugging the TV and stereo system into the receiver, those devices become equipped to receive digital content wirelessly.

In another room (or even on another floor of the house), the PC acts as an entertainment hub, serving files wirelessly via a wi-fi base station to the home theatre devices connected to the Streamium box in the lounge.

The big advantage is that audio can be fed through a high-quality stereo system without the PC having to be in close proximity.

Importantly, the PC is not tied up, but is free to be used by those not listening to mp3s or watching mpeg movies.

The move by Philips is a sign of the convergence between the PC and home theatre, with the use of the 802.11g wireless standard finally allowing sufficient data throughput to allow smooth video streaming.

Gottfried Dutine, chief executive of the Philips consumer electronics division, told the Herald, that the company's strategy is now to borrow the best ideas from the IT industry and apply them to consumer electronics.

Philips is bundling a wireless USB hub with the €499 ($960) SL400i model, which plugs into the user's computer and talks directly to the wireless receiver.

The SL300i, which comes without an LCD display and the USB wireless hub goes on sale in January in Europe for €349 ($670).

The devices are likely to hit New Zealand later in the year and pricing is yet to be confirmed.

The multimedia receivers can also be connected via wired ethernet, but that defeats the purpose unless you live in a house that has been lined with fibre optic cables.

Use of the PC's content is controlled through a menu that pops up on the TV screen. Philips Media Manager software can also be used to organise content on the PC, in the same way software such as Windows Media Player or Real Player does.

But open standards reign supreme. Any old 802.11g wi-fi base station will talk to Philips' devices.

Other functions of the wireless receivers open up a new world for web surfers. Those equipped with a broadband internet connection - Philips recommends a 256kbps connection as minimum - will be able to stream audio and video content direct from the web to their TV and stereo via the Streamium box.

This is likely to be a hit and miss affair as the quality of web streaming is influenced by factors beyond the control of the end user, from the number of people accessing the web feed to the quality of the provider's connection.

In theory however, Streamium users can listen to their favourite online radio station through their stereo or watch music videos or full-length movies downloaded from websites in real time.

Philips expects Streamium-type products to drive sales of LCD flat panel screens and widescreen TVs, which allow better viewing of digital content than cathode ray tube TVs.

Streamium hype will peak next year as Philips releases products which will integrate Streamium devices with the company's portable media players and mobile phones.

Dutine said wi-fi networks, which are increasingly being installed in public areas such as cafes, airports and hotels, would become hubs for accessing content while on the move.

"Doing it over mobiles would be expensive, but wi-fi hotspots are already a reality.

"A lot of connections won't go via mobile networks.""

Early next year Philips will also release a complete home theatre set-up.

The MX6000i which will build the wireless connectivity into a stereo system boasting a DVD+RW drive for writing content to high-capacity DVD disks.

* Peter Griffin attended IFA 2003 as a guest of Philips.