Ocean Blue Software, based in the UK and Hong Kong, has developed “talking” digital TV technology in conjunction with The Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB). The technology is developed for set top boxes and televisions, and the developers say millions of people worldwide could gain from an improved experience of TV.
On-screen text such as TV programme guides, digital displays and menus will be brought to life with the power of speech because of the new technology. It is hoped it will be adapted across the consumer technology market, offering real benefits to millions of people with sight problems and different forms of impairment around the world.
The technology is now an IABM Design Awards Candidate for 2009. “We are absolutely thrilled to have been shortlisted for the prestigious award,” commented Ocean Blue Software CEO Ken Helps. “Ocean Blue constantly strives to develop innovative solutions for the digital TV industry, so we are very pleased with the nomination and look forward to the awards ceremony next month at IBC Amsterdam.”
It is compatible with consumer products, such as televisions, that have screen-based menu systems and converts on-screen text into speech output. “We are really excited by this development as it has the potential to significantly improve the lives of nearly 8 million people in the UK alone. These include the blind, visually impaired, deaf, severely dyslexic and the elderly, who can all benefit from this advance in technology,” said Steve Tyler, the RNIB’s Head of Innovation and Disability Access Services.
Result for: digital tv
Sharp has introduced the 20-inch AQUOS DX LCD this week, the first HDTV at that size to include a built-in Blu-ray burner.
The TV also has a built-in digital TV tuner that allows users to record episodes and burn them to BD-R/R DL and BD-RE/RE DL discs. The company says up to 30 hours of HD video can be recorded to BD-50 discs, and the data can be burnt at up 7x speed.
Users can also play media stored on DVD-R, including MPEG-4 and AVC high definition video files.
The TV itself, is 720p resolution and has a 1,500:1 contrast ratio with 450cd/m2 brightness. For inputs, there are two HDMI ports, a VGA, a D4, and S-video and RCA. There is also an Ethernet port for Internet connectivity.
The TV will hit Japan on June 20th, and will cost $1590 USD.
Result for: digital tv
DivX, Inc. and LG Electronics, Inc. jointly announced today that LG’s new line of digital TVs is the world’s first device series capable of playing back full DivX HD 1080p videos. The digital TVs will enable consumers to easily playback DivX HD videos from the PC or the Internet through the USB slot. Using DivX technology, users can fit approximately two hours of high-quality DivX HD video on an 8GB media card.
“Being first to market with digital TVs capable of playing back DivX HD 1080p video is a big win for LG as well as our customers,” said Simon Kang, Chief Executive Officer and President of LG Home Entertainment TVs Company. “As people expand their DivX HD video collections they are looking for more convenient ways to watch them on their TVs. We’ve given them the ultimate convenience by building support for DivX HD playback into our digital TVs. This is another feature we’ve integrated beautifully inside of our TVs and we look forward to working with DivX in the future to offer even more innovative solutions that effortlessly bring HD video into people’s living rooms.”
“DivX video technology has long been capable of producing great HD video with remarkably efficient compression,” said Kevin Hell, Chief Executive Officer, DivX, Inc. “Now consumers will be able to easily enjoy those DivX HD files directly on their televisions. The LG digital TVs provide a comprehensive, cutting-edge digital media experience that clearly represents the future of consumer electronics devices.”
