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In this particular implementation the Q-based customer chip is
coupled with a TV decoder which takes the demodulated
signal from the TV tuner and generates the uncompressed
signal for the TV display. The uncompressed signal
is supplied to the TV as HDMI and/or analogue (with
HDCP protection where applicable).
The storage for this solution is supplied by NAND
Flash memory (or SSD). Memory card and USB flash
drives could also be used as removable alternatives.
High-quality transcoding
to increase storage
In the scenario depicted above, Aspex
Q transcodes the video to best suit the chosen storage
device. In most current TV sets, pause functionality
is provided by storing the MPEG transport stream
to disc and decoding it again on the way out. Q
support for MPEG-2 to H.264 transcoding means that
the same stream can be stored at a much lower bitrate,
while preserving the full quality of the input signal.
For example, 8GB of internal flash storage would
give the TV set the ability to store ~4 hrs of HD
material or ~20 hrs of SD material.
Sideloading to portable
devices
Moreover, the customer can integrate support external SD/MMC or USB keys
for placeshifting and sideloading. This means that
independently of the program you are watching Q
can transcode the input stream of any other channel
from MPEG-2 to H.264 and save it on-the-fly to the
portable medium for loading on portable media players
(PMPs) such as iPod, Zune, PSP, Mobile phones, etc.
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