Silicon Image InstaPrevue HDMI Technology Preview

Silicon Image took some time at CEDIA, through manufacturing partner DVDO and others, to show off its latest innovation: InstaPrevue. This technology will be featured in Silicon Image digital TV (DTV) and audio/video receiver (AVR) port processors and provides a real-time picture-in-picture preview of what is happening on every HDMI input connected to a television or A/V receiver. That means that rather than cycling through inputs or scrolling through an ambiguous numbered list of inputs, users can now see what's actually connected to their TVs in real-time. Using this "live preview" they can select the correct input desired, be it a Blu-ray Disc player, set-top box, game console, media player or any other device connected via HDMI.

Speaking from experience, even in my own home it's sometimes difficult to remember exactly what is on each input. This solution is a really big coup for Silicon Image and should result in a very compelling reason to use their chips in forthcoming AV receivers, processors and televisions. This is pretty much the visual version of their InstaPort technology in that it provides the same fast switching, but also adds the element of knowing what you're going to get before you select it. In a sense, it's a natural progression as InstaPort had to lock onto each source to maintain the EDID information regardless. It was a small leap to realize that extra video processing horsepower could be applied to render a preview of the entire HDMI channel content.

InstaPrevue technology also has some built-in customization features. For example, you can change the location, size, and translucency of the preview windows, and manufacturers can use this to better integrate the feature with their existing software, or even provide this customizable option to consumers to really tweak it as needed. Here is a preview of DVDO's matrix switcher in action with just some of the options available for customization:

DVDO was at CEDIA demoing its first product to include InstaPrevue - the new 6x2 Full Matrix HDMI Switch. This has the fast (<1 second) InstaPrevue switching embedded, picture-in-picture, wireless HDMI and audio options and a wireless universal remote control option as well.

For more information about Silicon Image's CE product portfolio, please visit: www.siliconimage.com.

Unless otherwise indicated, this is a preview article for the featured product. A formal review may or may not follow in the future.