Gizmodo: dvb

Video Demo of PlayTV, the PlayStation 3 DVR

Jason Chen — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 16:00:58 EST

Even though the PlayTV PVR for the PS3 was announced for Europe in the middle of '07, they still haven't managed to release it yet (target date was early 2008). The BBC managed to get a hands-on video look at the device over at Sony's UK offices and it actually looks pretty great.

You can rewind and pause TV, record two shows at once (but none while you're actually playing games on it), and stream live TV to your PSP, all from the little box that receives digital terrestrial signals. It's true that this can record a HD signal, but most of us in the States watch our HDTV via our cable or satellite, which this doesn't work with. We'll see what Sony plans to do to address that before they bring PlayTV here. [BBC]

Nokia N96 Hands-On: Basically a Video Oriented N95

Brian Lam — Tue, 12 Feb 2008 06:35:41 EST

The N95 smartphone just does fine with its video playback. But the N96's 16GB of internal memory, slightly bigger 2.8-inch screen, DVB TV tuner, special video browsing UI and kickstand make it better than its pappy.

Note: The back of the phone has a new designer texture that we like a lot more than the now generic velvechron grip coating you see on a lot of handsets. We didn't get to play N-Gage on this phone to test out the gaming-specific button backlights (another upgrade from the N95) but we'll have some video of that next. I would not recommend it as an upgrade for existing N95 owners, but those interested should be reminded that the DVB and the non-US frequency 3G won't help you much.

Sony Announces Digital TV for PSP

Mark Wilson — Tue, 17 Jul 2007 08:20:17 EDT

In an announcement that teases the US for our lack of our 1seg terrestrial digital broadcast, Japanese buyers of the new PSP will be able to receive DVB on their PSP. The PSP-S310 is a digital television receiver add-on for the new PSP that will run $58 and snap on the top of the unit much like their portable EyeToy. It interfaces via USB and will require a Memory Stick to function, despite a lack of DVR. Bonus pic...

The S310's release is set to coincide with the new PSP's launch on September 20th. I for one would love to watch TV on my PSP without the need for Wi-Fi and the entire LocationFree setup. Too bad the US is stuck in the Stone Age, projecting moving shadows on rocks through the use of fire. [kotaku]

Grundig Tharus 3D: TV in All Its Dimensions, Someday

Charlie White — Thu, 21 Sep 2006 13:26:59 EDT

Here's yet another iteration of 3D TV, and this Grundig Tharus 3D flat panel lets you watch that 3D without special glasses. Made for the DVB system (the European and Asian broadcasting counterpart of the ATSC high-definition standard here in America), Tharus 3D uses a system where the footage is first acquired by a stereo HD camera. Its two pictures are transmitted to a special 3D converter set-top box that turns those two angles into eight perspective views, displaying them on this flat panel.

This we gotta see. After all the attempts at 3D content for broadcast and movies—most of them ultimately unsatisfying—could this be the one? Probably not. Nice-looking TV, though. Pricing and release date were not announced. After all, this fanciful broadcast system has to be built first. – Charlie White

GRUNDIG Tharus 3D [AVing, via BornRich]

Trek's ThmbDrive Tuner Combines USB Drive and DVB-TV Tuner

Gizloco — Thu, 20 Jul 2006 14:12:53 EDT

If DVB-TV broadcasts ever catch on the U.S., Trek has a small-sized solution that could make tuning in far more simple than it ought to be. By combining a USB 2.0 flash drive with the DVB-TV tuner, Trek has eliminated the need for extra software discs that end up getting lost more often than not. The drive can have up to 4GB of storage, but you're more likely to find the more common 512MB and 1GB versions on the street.

The current version of the ThumbDrive uses MPEG2 to compress recorded video, but an MPEG4 HD version is scheduled to debut in September. That way, you can record all that great DVB programming and save it on the spacious flash memory. Or you can just be normal and watch TV at home like everybody else, I suppose. – Nicholas Deleon

Product Page [Trek via Everything USB]