Amino Develops IPTV Set-Top Box, Based on Intel's New Atom CE4100 Processor

Cambridge, UK-based IPTV set-top box vendor, Amino Communications, said Monday that it has demo'd an IPTV set-top box powered by the new Intel Atom CE4100 processor. Intel bills the CE4100 (formerly codenamed "Sodaville"), which was unveiled at the recent Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco, as the first 45nm-manufactured consumer electronics SoC based on Intel architecture, as supporting Internet and broadcast applications on one chip, and as having the processing power and audio/video components needed to run rich media applications, such as advanced 3D graphics, HD video, and home theater-quality audio. According to Amino, it will enable IPTV set-top boxes to deliver a "full open Internet experience," creating new opportunities for network operators and service providers to provide enhanced and interactive entertainment experiences to their customers.

Amino says that the next generation of its products will address growing consumer demand for TV-based entertainment from any source, including broadcast, VOD and open-Internet over-the-top (OTT) services; and that the Intel Atom CE4100 will enable it to develop new types of hybrid/OTT devices with a range of advanced functionality. Following what it calls "strong and positive feedback" from product demonstrations, Amino says it is now working with a number of customers to introduce a new hybrid broadcast/OTT set-top box. "The CE4100 is a powerful media processor that is designed specifically for home entertainment and enables a greatly enhanced consumer experience," Amino CTO, Dominique Le Foll, said in a prepared statement. "As one of the first IPTV solutions providers to demonstrate its capabilities, we are very encouraged by the response from customers and partners--particularly to its OTT capabilities. This builds on our relationship with Intel and we are delighted to have worked closely with them to showcase the benefits that CE4100 can bring to the performance of STB's in the IPTV world. We look forward to delivering a powerful new STB that harnesses the strengths of the CE4100 to deliver top-notch performance, improved functionality and reliability at a compelling price point." Added Keith Wehmeyer, general manager for IPTV at Intel's Digital Home Group: "With new Internet-based services and applications coming to TV, there is a need for a new generation of set-top boxes. Amino recognizes the requirements for processor performance and high-quality video and graphics, and is designing a set-top box based on Intel's CE4100 media processor to provide a premium entertainment experience to consumers."

According to Intel (whose relationship with Amino began with the latter's selection of the Intel CE2110 media processor back in 2006), the CE4100 is designed for use in Internet-connected CE products such as advanced set-top boxes and digital TV's, and is based on the same low-power core as Intel's other Atom processors. The company bills it as a highly integrated solution that combines an Intel Atom processor core with multi-stream video decoding and processing hardware, and that also features support for two channels of 800MHz DDR2 or 1333MHz DDR3, dedicated multi-channel dual audio DSP's, a 3D graphics engine for advanced UI's and EPG's, and support for a range of peripherals, including USB 2.0. (Note: for more detail on the CE4100 and its capabilities, see the article published on itvt.com, September 27th.)