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Hardware H264 decoder

Quote:

BCM7411D
AVC/MPEG High-Definition Decoder

The BCM7411 introduces the advantages of the H.264 video compression algorithm to today's advanced consumer and broadcast applications. The BCM7411 is a dual-channel AVC/MPEG-2 decoder chip capable of full HD realtime decoding.

Broadcom's H.264 Compression Advantage™ architecture provides three times the compression power of MPEG-2. Systems incorporating the BCM7411 have superior image quality, improved system performance, and larger storage capacity with the reduced bit rates of H.264 - also known as MPEG-4 Advanced Video Coding (AVC). The BCM7411 fully supports the MPEG-2 standard, so that compatibility with existing media can be maintained.

http://www.broadcom.com/products/Cab...Chips/BCM7411D

How long before to have a SAP with this ? :)

Re: Hardware H264 decoder

Quote:

Originally Posted by Dialhot

How long before to have a SAP with this ? :)

Not so long, I hope. :wink:

I wish there was a "Ogg Theora" SAP :cool:
The other day, I downloaded a video (A tutorial) made with theora, and it was ~330MB.
The same video, with the same visual quality made with H264 CODEC, was ~500MB ;)

-kwag

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwag

I wish there was a "Ogg Theora" SAP :cool:

Karl, do you think industry is interested in Ogg Theora, and will develop SAPs with this codec?. I see several software companies working on H264 (Mainconcept, Elecard, Apple, Nero,...), I don't know if it's the same with Ogg :( .

Well, we can always make use of Media Centers to play the files on TV :D .

It's a matter of time :D
Already, there are several portable players supporting Ogg Vorbis, so I guess in time, some manufacturers will open their eyes and suppport Ogg Theora :)
Any smart manufacturer will do it, specially because the license of Ogg Theora is free (without any strings attached!), because it's a BSD based license.
From their FAQ :arrow:

Code:

Q. What is the license for Theora?

Theora (and all associated technologies released by the Xiph.org Foundation) is released to the public via a BSD-style license. It is completely free for commercial or noncommercial use. That means that commercial developers may independently write Theora software which is compatible with the specification for no charge and without restrictions of any kind.

H.264 is NOT free :!:
It carries patents :arrow:

Code:

The patent licensing accord is the result of discussions over many months to assure both the practicality and applicability of the license terms to Japanese broadcast conditions.  Under the accord broadcasters will have the option of paying a one-time fee of US $2,500 for each encoder using in transmitting the AVC/H.264 video.  The one-time fees will be offered as an alternative to annual fees.  They will cover the use of AVC/H.264 video for free cable and free satellite as well as free terrestrial broadcast television.

http://www.mpegla.com/news/n_04-03-24_avc.html

So that will make a huge impact on manufacturers :)

-kwag

Quote:

Originally Posted by kwag

So that will make a huge impact on manufacturers :)

But your quoted text seems to refer to a fee to be paid by broadcasters... do you mean that manufacturers of SAP will have to play later?.
And this is related to H264. Is it the same with x264?.

[OT]
I'm browsing KVCD.net from SuSE 10.0 LiveDVD. Je, je.
[/OT]

Licensing usually falls on the encoder side, so it means that anyone producing an H.264 encoder must pay royalties to MPEGLA. Just like MPEG-2/MPEG-4 encoders.
Anyone who wishes to implement a Theora encoder/Decoder, doesn't need to pay a dime, no matter for what it's used for :)
There are exceptions :!:
For example, Motorola. You can't make an encoder OR a decoder for their FLEX/REFLEX/GOLAY, etc. paging protocols, unless you pay royalties.
This applies to any encoder or decoder. Those are not video related, but it's an example of the patents that apply to different protocols.

-kwag