Pinnacle Introduces ShowCenter 250HD

Pinnacle Systems introduced the ShowCenter 250HD, a plug-and-play network media adapter for connecting home-entertainment systems to PCs and network-attached storage. Integrated wired Ethernet and wireless networking allowed the unit to stream HD video to an HDTV, display photographs in HD and play music through a home-cinema system.

A remote control provided access to PC-based media, USB storage devices and digital cameras. The unit also handled Windows Media DRM-protected files previously purchased and downloaded to a PC.

Network and operating-system support

ShowCenter 250HD worked with common UPnP AV media-server applications and streamed files stored on UPnP AV-compatible network storage. It supported Windows Vista, Windows XP and Mac OS, generally without additional software installation.

Formats and connections

Video playback covered Windows Media Video 9, WMV-DRM, MPEG-1, MPEG-2, MPEG-4 AVI, DivX and XviD. HD playback supported Windows Media Video 9, DivX HD and MPEG-4 at resolutions up to 1080i. Audio formats included MP3, WMA, WMA Pro, WMA Lossless, WMA-DRM and uncompressed PCM WAV.

Connections included a 21-pin SCART port for composite, Y/C, RGB and stereo audio; component YPrPb on three RCA connectors; composite video on RCA; S-Video on Mini-DIN; two stereo analogue outputs on four RCA connectors; and coaxial plus optical S/PDIF outputs. Networking comprised 100BASE-T Ethernet and integrated 802.11g Wi-Fi with a removable antenna. A front-mounted USB 2.0 port, infrared receiver and 100–230 V power input completed the interface set.

Availability

The ShowCenter 250HD was scheduled for mid-November at a recommended price of €199. The package included power, Ethernet and SCART cables, a remote control with batteries and a quick-start guide.