We look to our TV provider and companies like TiVo and Moxi to bring us DVRs, but the one thing just about every DVR has in common is a Broadcom chip makes them tick. So while the rest of the box varies by a lot, if the System on a Chip (SoC) doesn't support it, then it probably isn't there -- assuming another chip isn't added for a specific task. So you can understand why we got so excited when we saw the specs on the latest SoC, the BCM7125, announced by Broadcom at the Cable-Tec Expo. It of course supports tru2way and CableCARD, but more interestingly; MoCA 1.1, DLNA, Flash (as in video streaming), DOCSIS 3.0, and a 3D graphics engine. This means that little little guy could be the key to a multi-room DVR without running wires, that will play Hulu directly from the internet as well as stream content from PlayOn, all via a great looking user interface. So yeah, it has potential. The sad news is that there's no way to know how long we'll have to wait before a DVR is released that'll actually take advantage it.

One of our dreams is to have a true whole home DVR that allows us to watch any show we want, on any TV we want; but so far the perfect solution has eluded us. TiVo was really the first to try with its Multi-Room Viewing, but missed the mark by not giving us a single Now Playing list for the whole house or even any automatic conflict resolution between units. The FiOS HD DVR was the next disappointment because it limits us to two tuners and 160GB for the whole house -- seriously is that enough for anyone? Currently Windows Media Center offers the best solution, but it's expensive after you pay $300 a pop for a CableCARD tuner, not to mention it requires more maintenance because it is based on a PC. Needless to say we continue to look for the perfect solution, and we think that the RVU (R-vue) alliance might be just what we ordered. In addition to DirecTV, Cisco and Samsung, the chip maker Broadcom is also one of the founding members of the alliance, but it is their goals that get us excited. So excited, that we'd actually be shocked if they were actually achieved, but you'll have to click through to learn why.

Yes folks, we're back to the drawing board. Again. With a litany of wireless technologies floundering about and struggling to find real traction in the market, a cadre of market powerhouses have joined up to take wireless streaming to the next level -- or so they say, anyway. The newly formed WiGig Alliance aims to use unlicensed 60GHz waves in order to stream just about anything you can think of: HD video, images, phone contacts, instant messages, audio, etc. This "unified" approach differs from most other alternatives, which generally pick one niche (1080p video, for instance) and stick to it. If the more than 15 technology firms have their collective druthers, the WiGig specification will find its way into everything from set-top-boxes to telephones to home stereos, ready and willing to stream to other WiGig-enabled devices at a moment's notice.

The group consists of household names such as Microsoft, LG, Dell, Samsung, Marvell, Nokia, NEC, Intel and Broadcom (just to name a few), and when we spoke to executives about the announcement, they told us that plans were to have the specification available to member organizations in Q4 of this year. The sad part is that this likely means we won't see shipping products with the WiGig logo for another year after that -- if we're lucky. We can't argue that some stability would be nice in this volatile sector; after all, we've been waiting for promising products like Belkin's FlyWire to ship for well over a year. The execs we spoke with couldn't speak on behalf of the partner firms in terms of what WiGig products were looming on the horizon, but as we alluded to earlier, the playing field is wide open. Honestly, we'd love for this to take off and finally give high-bandwidth wireless applications the support it needs to flourish, but as we've seen over the past few years, the road ahead ain't an easy one to walk. The full release is after the break.

The plan is to get Flash from every computer to every television screen, and Adobe's ready to take the next step this week at the National Association of Broadcasters show in Las Vegas. Broadcom, Comcast, STMicroelectronics, NXP Semiconductors, and Sigma Designs join Intel as set-top box makers with chipsets ready to stream widgets and HD video to connected televisions, while content is on the way from Netflix, New York Times, Disney and Atlantic Records. Of course, Yahoo's widgets and Microsoft Silverlight aim to turn up the interactivity and streaming video to TVs and handhelds as well, though Adobe seems content to share with Yahoo! if need be -- Vizio's Connected HDTV demo and Intel's CE 3100 support both -- expect the blades to come out when Flash enabled hardware comes to market in the second half of this year.

[Via Venture Beat]

If you thought Chumby would stop at digital photo frames, you were wrong. Dead wrong. Today, the widget-loving company has announced a tie-up with Broadcom that will integrate its rich media internet platform onto system-on-a-chip (SoC) solutions that will eventually find their way into HDTVs, set-top-boxes and Blu-ray players. Essentially, Chumby is making sure it doesn't miss out on the quickly filling insert-your-connected-device-here bandwagon, and quite frankly, we'll be shocked if any of those other guys can rival what Chumby's bringing. After all, widgets are this company's forte, and we're downright giddy at the thought of having over 1,000 internet-connected snippets of information at our fingertips while intently watching future episodes of Lie To Me. Hey, TV / STB makers -- jump on this. Now. Video demonstration is after the break.

Ready to sling recorded content around your home via the coaxial wiring in your home? Broadcom is. The outfit has just introduced the industry's first MoCA-integrated SoC solution for use in high-def set-top-boxes and gateway applications, which would theoretically "transform a subscriber's existing coax cable infrastructure into a whole-home media distribution network." If you still can't piece together the potential here, we're talking whole-home digital media distribution over one's existing coax network, and DLNA support is thrown in too. Who knows when your cable company will decide to adopt an STB with this within, but tomorrow would be good.

Not stopping with Blu-ray hardware, Broadcom's got a even more display related tech to show off in Las Vegas next month. First up is its entry into the super resolution upconversion arena, promising to upscale standard definition or Internet streaming (a bit less relevant now that YouTube, Facebook and everyone else is going HD) to 1080p high definition resolutions. We'll be waiting to put it to the test against the best from Toshiba, Hitachi, and who ever else wants a piece. Also on deck is a DLNA connected home demo, showing what could happen when your cell, HDTV, set-top box and PC all talk to each other and shift media seamlessly between platforms (but probably won't.) Slightly less exciting is the promise of a 120Hz digital TV platform with integrated CableCARD and Internet support based on technology aquired from AMD earlier this year.

Read - Broadcom to Demonstrate Super Resolution Technology at CES 2009, Enabling High Quality Viewing of Low Resolution Media Content
Read - Broadcom to Showcase a DLNA®-Enabled Connected Home at CES 2009
Read - Broadcom Integrates Technologies and Resources from Its AMD Digital Television Business Acquisition

Samsung and Broadcom have apparently come to the same conclusion as everyone else, deciding it is finally time to move on from the Broadcom 7440 chipset that powered Blu-ray players going back to the BD-UP5000. Expect the still-unnamed 2009 Blu-ray player line to continue to feature Netflix streaming plus enhanced video and audio features courtesy of the new 65nm BCM7601 decoder. Confirmed enhancements include full HDMI 1.3 support, motion adaptive de-interlacing to 1080p60 and a full 12-bit video pipeline all on one chip. Whether or not that's enough to make you hold off on a BD-P2500/BD-P2550, expect more info on Samsung's cheaper, faster, more powerful Blu-ray players at CES in January.

As of now, it's still rare to find an HDTV with media streaming / playback capabilities built right in, but in preparation for the possible explosion of media-friendly sets, Broadcom has went and got a trio of its digital television (DTV) system-on-a-chip solutions certified for DivX. Yep, the BCM3548, BCM3549 and BCM3556 are all stamped with a DivX seal of approval, giving whatever HDTVs they land in the ability to natively play back streamed or local DivX / DivX HD files. Now, if only we knew which sets these chips were headed to (and when)...

If a Panasonic prototype plasma and new copy protection spec weren't convincing enough, we'll let the Wireless HD group argue why it's ready to compete with WHDI and all the rest. This summer's big get is Broadcom, ready to promote Wireless HD as a necessary feature in the army of HDTVs and set-top boxes it already powers. The next step to exiting vaporware status? How about the addition of Denon, Onkyo, Pioneer, Sharp and others ready to adopt the technology. Punch the read link for more reasons to believe, but we'll wait for shipping hardware to decide who makes it past first cut.

AMD wasn't kidding around about trimming and down and driving hard after profitability. The company just struck up a deal with Broadcom to swap its TV-chip unit for $192.8 million in cash to help fight debt and seek out profitability. Broadcom is getting 530 AMD employees out of the deal and AMD's considerable experience in the digital TV chipset game, which will become the "core" of Broadcom's line in that market. The deal should close by the end of the year, and is unrelated to AMD's efforts to spin off its foundry biz.

[Thanks, Keith L]

With its latest EMMA3P Blu-ray SoC just launched, NEC is already looking to the future with its next generation EMMA3PF chip, that takes all the features of its most recent hardware, and adds the hardware to control the Blu-ray drive itself into a single processor (as pictured above). These chips will start sample shipments in September, and are expected to continue to drive Blu-ray player prices down. Staying a step ahead of the competition like Panasonic, Broadcom and Sigma is key since the company hopes to double its sales of Blu-ray hardware in the next two years, owning 40% of the market by March 2009, and half in March 2011. Cheaper players with full functionality? Sign us up.

Read - Impress
Read - Reuters

There's no other way to say it, DivX is on a roll in 2008 (that small Stage6 stumble is already a fading memory). If support from Blu-ray players and videogame consoles wasn't enough, DivX Certification has snaked its long arm directly into HDTVs, with "over 80 models" from HP and LG slapping on a sticker indicating users can simply plug a USB drive in and play their entirely-legitimately-owned content. Expect that number to grow, since DivX is also working with AMD, Chips and Media, Broadcom and Trident to include support in other chipsets powering digital TVs near you. Now how about we see some of that content?

As the 2008 Beijing Olympics draw near, we're seeing quite a bit of high-def progress being made in the Far East. Not only is flat-panel demand on the rise, but broadcasters are stepping up their games in order to dole out more HD content. Now, Broadcom and Coship have teamed up to deliver China's first commercial HD set-top-box solution. As it stands, the latter firm is already building N8603 and N8606 STBs that integrate Broadcom's SoC solution, and when rolled out, they will enable Chinese viewers to take advantage of HD content and PVR capabilities. No word on when the two boxes will leave the lab, but we have all ideas they'll be hitting homes well before the famed Opening Ceremonies begin.

[Via Digital Edge]

Though the clear winner and loser in the format war was Sony and Toshiba, respectively, quite a few behind the scenes supporters are now facing similar celebrations / dilemmas in dealing with the fallout. A new report takes an in-depth look at how chip makers are faring, and while not surprising, we are told that both NEC and Broadcom are reeling after HD DVD went under, and will have to "absorb software R&D costs that can't be recouped." On the flip side, parties such as Sigma Designs and IBM have their lucky stars to thank, as the former even attempted to ally with Toshiba but were spurned in favor of Broadcom. Interestingly, the article also notes that many fencesitters are now looking to jump in, which could hopefully lead to increased competition and lower overall prices for those anxious to snap up a Blu-ray player in short order.

[Thanks, Daniel H.]