Replacing cables with radio waves

Aug 30, 2007 11:42 GMT  ·  By

AMIMON announced the launch of its Wireless High-definition Interface, WHDI for short, a chipset that enables display and device manufacturers develop home entertainment products which do not use cables but rather connect wirelessly. The chipset comes in two models, AMN2110 and AMN2210 and it can be embedded into all kinds of devices like LCD screens, plasma displays and HDTV boxes, film projectors, A/V receivers, DVD players (HD-DVD and Blu-ray), set-top boxes (STBs), game consoles, PCs and HD video accessories, allowing the wireless streaming of high definition video and audio content.

According to the AMIMON press release concerning the launch of the two wireless enabled WHDI chipsets, it is possible to build a network of devices that integrate the chipsets in order to have a wireless whole-home HD video connectivity net which would allow users to share multimedia content on a large surface and even through walls while providing excellent quality transmission comparable to the wire based one and more importantly no latency.

The wireless HDTV capabilities of the AMIMON built chipsets were already employed by the electronics manufacturers Loewe and Funai in products that will be available at the IFA Consumer Electronics tradeshow in Berlin, between August 31and September 5, 2007. "Home entertainment enthusiasts are asking for wireless HDTVs that can be hung on the wall without having to run cumbersome and unaesthetic audio/video wires," said Roland Bohl, Loewe's director of R&D. "AMIMON's WHDI technology fulfills this demand while maintaining the high quality of HDTVs." The WHDI wireless chipsets are more than just a wire replacement technology as it enables users to create a "a connectivity matrix of multipoint-to-multipoint connections, allowing consumers to eliminate all the A/V wires and cables in the entire home". The WHDI is based on a unique video modem technology that can deliver a high quality fully compliant HD signal of 1080p at an equivalent of video rates of up to 3Gbps.

The transmission systems support several definitions like 720p, 1080i and 1080p 24/30p which can be all delivered through the 20MHz wireless medium, while maintaining a maximum range of up and beyond 30 meters with average latency times less than 1ms. "With WHDI chipsets in hand, CE manufacturers will now be able to offer consumers wireless HDTVs and other HD wireless video devices based on the WHDI standard," said Noam Geri, vice president of marketing and business development at AMIMON. "Consumers should see initial WHDI-based products at the end of this year, with a wide variety of WHDI-based CE products available in 2008."