Uplink Activity Report - 01/24/2007 - 274 changes
- Thread starter digiblur
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Just some info. 
http://www.ddj.com/dept/embedded/196802802
As the transition from analog to digital content continues in the AV (audio-visual) world, the number of new consumer devices supporting digital audio and video processing, including TV-sets, and DVD players, continues its rapid climb. As a result, it became one of the most widely adopted compression standard in the consumer space. H.264 is now poised to replace MPEG-2 as the new compression technology with better quality at lower transmission bitrate and storage requirements.
A New Video Compression Standard and its Paradigm
As the transition from analog to digital content continues in the AV (audio-visual) world, the number of new consumer devices supporting digital audio and video processing, including TV-sets, DVD players, Digital Still Image Cameras (DSCs), and Digital Video Camcorders (DVCs), continues its rapid climb. Every portable personal device these days seems to include audio-visual features, including mobile phone, portables media players and PDA. In addition, the PC, networking and the broadband technologies are also doing their part to fuel this transition by facilitating the creation, streaming and sharing of content.
The desire to create and share AV content in digital format was one of the key factors contributing to the creation of international compression standards. The MPEG (moving picture expert group) and JPEG (joint photographic expert group) committees created the original standards that allowed the transition from analog AV to digital AV formats, allowing the sharing and transfer of multimedia content via networks or portable storage media (e.g. DVD-disc, SD-card, etc.). However, with the major paradigm shift in the consumer space from content consumption to content creation, there is an increasing need for higher quality content creation, larger volume of content storage, and easier content transmission/sharing.
In typical AV products, the video content consumes most of the processing power, storage space and communication channel bandwidth. MPEG-2 video compression technology was instrumental in the transition from analog to digital video processing. As a result, it became one of the most widely adopted compression standard in the consumer space. H.264 is now poised to replace MPEG-2 as the new compression technology with better quality at lower transmission bitrate and storage requirements. These improvements are critical in cost-sensitive consumer products and especially in portable consumer devices.
The H.264 (also known as MPEG-4-AVC ) standard was completed at the end of 2005 by a joint effort of the ITU-T and the MPEG organizations. This standard greatly improves the MPEG-2 compression ratio in a wide range of applications from small size (mobile AV) to HD (high definition) video. Many applications of H.264 technology have already been launched, including Blu-Ray Disc, HD-DVD, AVCHD-Camcorders (HD-CAM), iTune-video, 1-seg DTV (mobile digital TV in Japan), DVB-H for European handheld DTV, among others. There are two key factors behind the wide adoption of H.264:
H.264 offers between 2-to-1 and 3-to-1 improvement over MPEG-2 in compression ratio, resulting in significant savings in video storage capacity and network bandwidth.
H.264 provides efficient implementation of Internet based application because of its well considered scheme to harmonize with network protocols. Networks are proliferating at home, office and anywhere in between! The bandwidth and quality of service of wired and wireless networks is increasing, and video streaming over these networks is already commonly seen in cable, satellite, IPTV and other applications. The combination of H.264 video compression technology and this ubiquitous broadband network connectivity is fueling an era of mobile digital life style.
http://www.ddj.com/dept/embedded/196802802
As the transition from analog to digital content continues in the AV (audio-visual) world, the number of new consumer devices supporting digital audio and video processing, including TV-sets, and DVD players, continues its rapid climb. As a result, it became one of the most widely adopted compression standard in the consumer space. H.264 is now poised to replace MPEG-2 as the new compression technology with better quality at lower transmission bitrate and storage requirements.
A New Video Compression Standard and its Paradigm
As the transition from analog to digital content continues in the AV (audio-visual) world, the number of new consumer devices supporting digital audio and video processing, including TV-sets, DVD players, Digital Still Image Cameras (DSCs), and Digital Video Camcorders (DVCs), continues its rapid climb. Every portable personal device these days seems to include audio-visual features, including mobile phone, portables media players and PDA. In addition, the PC, networking and the broadband technologies are also doing their part to fuel this transition by facilitating the creation, streaming and sharing of content.
The desire to create and share AV content in digital format was one of the key factors contributing to the creation of international compression standards. The MPEG (moving picture expert group) and JPEG (joint photographic expert group) committees created the original standards that allowed the transition from analog AV to digital AV formats, allowing the sharing and transfer of multimedia content via networks or portable storage media (e.g. DVD-disc, SD-card, etc.). However, with the major paradigm shift in the consumer space from content consumption to content creation, there is an increasing need for higher quality content creation, larger volume of content storage, and easier content transmission/sharing.
In typical AV products, the video content consumes most of the processing power, storage space and communication channel bandwidth. MPEG-2 video compression technology was instrumental in the transition from analog to digital video processing. As a result, it became one of the most widely adopted compression standard in the consumer space. H.264 is now poised to replace MPEG-2 as the new compression technology with better quality at lower transmission bitrate and storage requirements. These improvements are critical in cost-sensitive consumer products and especially in portable consumer devices.
The H.264 (also known as MPEG-4-AVC ) standard was completed at the end of 2005 by a joint effort of the ITU-T and the MPEG organizations. This standard greatly improves the MPEG-2 compression ratio in a wide range of applications from small size (mobile AV) to HD (high definition) video. Many applications of H.264 technology have already been launched, including Blu-Ray Disc, HD-DVD, AVCHD-Camcorders (HD-CAM), iTune-video, 1-seg DTV (mobile digital TV in Japan), DVB-H for European handheld DTV, among others. There are two key factors behind the wide adoption of H.264:
H.264 offers between 2-to-1 and 3-to-1 improvement over MPEG-2 in compression ratio, resulting in significant savings in video storage capacity and network bandwidth.
H.264 provides efficient implementation of Internet based application because of its well considered scheme to harmonize with network protocols. Networks are proliferating at home, office and anywhere in between! The bandwidth and quality of service of wired and wireless networks is increasing, and video streaming over these networks is already commonly seen in cable, satellite, IPTV and other applications. The combination of H.264 video compression technology and this ubiquitous broadband network connectivity is fueling an era of mobile digital life style.
Really Really Really dumb queston. These "resolution numbers" are they an actual measurment or just something that is encoded in the signal stream (like a header on a IP packet)?
Ok folks I posted a question to HD fans as many do not read the uplink threads. I am trying to guage how the PQ is now with 6 HD channels on one transponder.
Since you know the secret, please do not reply to that thread. I want to see the feedback.
Thanks!
Since you know the secret, please do not reply to that thread. I want to see the feedback.
Thanks!
Use of MPEG-2, 4 or the 2008 super smasher compression algorithm are determined by the national committees- in our case, ATSC- independently of COFDM (yes, it is spelled both ways) or 8PSK modulation. 8PSK allows for more data since there is less redundancy. The multi-path concerns have been mostly addressed by the newer tuners. Mobile TV is not a goal in the U.S., per the ATSC, but the latest tuners have made strides on that point as well. We made the right choice.
Poke- Nice site. Thanks. But now I've got even more to read, via those links!
Yeah that MPEG site seems to be their main site with info on what companies are doing what with MPEG4 or H.264. Well I was hoping that there would be some information on there would explain somethings. Glad I could help and it seems there is allot of information on there. For example thought this was interesting what this company was doing.
http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Ar...HDTV+gets+H264+compression+chip+this+year.htm
HDTV gets H.264 compression chip this year
Qpixel, the compression specialist, is within 90 days of taping out the first high definition H.264 codec chip for compressing HD signals.
"We're targeting mid-2007 for engineering samples. We already have engagements", said Kourosh Amiri, vice president of marketing at Qpixel, adding, "in Q3, early customers will be getting it, and we'll be in general sampling in Q4."
Qpixel has been moving fast since it was founded in October 2003 with $26m of venture capital.
It had first silicon of its first chip in July 2005, a main profile H.264 encoder/decoder for consumer applications.
In Q4 the company moved into mass production on its second generation product which cut down the power consumption from over 300mW to 200mW.
Qpixel's target customers are the manufacturers of digital cameras, and digital video cameras, set top box and TV companies, the makers of PVR/DVR and IP video communications devices, and companies making portable media players.
The H.264 compression standard has been adopted by many broadcasters, content providers and consumer electronics manufacturers and could replace MPEG2 as the most widely used compression standard.
http://www.qpixeltech.com/
Anyway the MPEG4 Site most of time going to have allot of good information on it.
http://www.m4if.org/
http://www.electronicsweekly.com/Ar...HDTV+gets+H264+compression+chip+this+year.htm
HDTV gets H.264 compression chip this year
Qpixel, the compression specialist, is within 90 days of taping out the first high definition H.264 codec chip for compressing HD signals.
"We're targeting mid-2007 for engineering samples. We already have engagements", said Kourosh Amiri, vice president of marketing at Qpixel, adding, "in Q3, early customers will be getting it, and we'll be in general sampling in Q4."
Qpixel has been moving fast since it was founded in October 2003 with $26m of venture capital.
It had first silicon of its first chip in July 2005, a main profile H.264 encoder/decoder for consumer applications.
In Q4 the company moved into mass production on its second generation product which cut down the power consumption from over 300mW to 200mW.
Qpixel's target customers are the manufacturers of digital cameras, and digital video cameras, set top box and TV companies, the makers of PVR/DVR and IP video communications devices, and companies making portable media players.
The H.264 compression standard has been adopted by many broadcasters, content providers and consumer electronics manufacturers and could replace MPEG2 as the most widely used compression standard.
http://www.qpixeltech.com/
Anyway the MPEG4 Site most of time going to have allot of good information on it.
http://www.m4if.org/
6 HD channels on 1 TP is really critical for Dish to accomplish. If you look at their satellite capacity vs DIRECTV's coming capacity you see the need for them to squeeze more out of what they got. I bet as soon as they get the 6/TP encoders all debugged and working smoothly they will go back and put more HD LiL in to place. They need to be able to add PBS and CW to remain competitive.
Just checked on StarzHD for a couple of minutes and the picture quality looks better than before but that's just a quick check.
See no problems with any of these six (viewing off of 129, now). They are at least as good as before--perhaps better.
It's nice to see people commenting that the PQ on these channels looks fine. Too often, knowing that they've packed (6) channels on a transponder and worse, a chart like Scott posted showing bitrate numbers, people would IMAGINE poor picture quality. They'd simply go by the numbers and think "the PQ has to be bad".
Wait 'til the crowd at AVS gets wind of this.....
Wait 'til the crowd at AVS gets wind of this.....
Just a quick check, but if I hadn't read this thread I don't know that I'd be thinking I saw any difference. It might actually look better.
Well, it depends on what your used to and whether you have an eye for artifacts. Ever since I've gotten my Blu-ray and HD-DVD players I don't even find full-bandwidth OTA CBS all that impressive.
That's not a fair comparison..... I used to think DVDs looked spectacular 'til I got HD service. Now I think DVDs are "blah" looking.
At least for the current time, HD-DVD and Blu-Ray are so uncommon it won't be a concern for a while.
Why did they drop the resolution to 1440 x 1080i!!!!!
I know they have been doing this on the locals, but this is the first drop on these new mpeg4's (Food, HG, NFL). Their compression better be darn good for me to like this. So far I'm not impressed, but hopefully I'll see a difference soon.
Can they not do mpeg 4 in 1920 x 1080i, or are they just trying to be marginally better for folks out there who don't have full HD resolution sets???
My RP CRT can display 1920 x 1080i, and I want it to display that!
I know they have been doing this on the locals, but this is the first drop on these new mpeg4's (Food, HG, NFL). Their compression better be darn good for me to like this. So far I'm not impressed, but hopefully I'll see a difference soon.
Can they not do mpeg 4 in 1920 x 1080i, or are they just trying to be marginally better for folks out there who don't have full HD resolution sets???
My RP CRT can display 1920 x 1080i, and I want it to display that!
The cameras might only have recorded it in 1440x1080. Those cameras are in common use. But Dish makes tradeoffs for quantity vs quality. But we can't assume the larger numbers will be better simply because they are larger.
