Intel outlines mobile media vision

OUT HERE in San Francisco, Intel has been talking to the assembled masses about its vision for mobile entertainment - how to deliver multimedia and gaming content to a range of mobile devices effectively. Nokia tried it with NGage, but Intel are determined to perfect it.

Intel differentiate between four market segments. Feature phones are akin to the mobiles of today, featuring messaging, music, limited java gaming and video and pictures. The premium phone model allows for broadcast TV and wireless connection to a home PC, as well as high res pictures. On the media device front, the personal media player allows for high-quality media on the go, digital rights management, and better media processing. The handheld gaming model allows for wireless online gaming, downloading applications, calendar/contacts and wireless synching with the PC.

The most interesting segment, purely because of the outrageous spec of the device, is the Personal Media Player. Creative Labs are in the market space already, with their model based on the current Windows standard. Intel expect such players in the future to be using MPEG 2/4, WMV and h.264 high quality video, with multi-channel sound. A built-in 5Mpixel camera, with local processing, provides the image capabilities, and Intel expect it to have 3D gaming at speeds of 2M triangles a second. The expected software platform is Microsoft Portable Media Centre Software.

Of course, Intel expect all these devices to be based on the Intel XScale processor, and have worked in a few new features to that mobile platform. These include their well-known Speedstep technology, Trusted Platform technology for validating software content, and MMX technology.

Intel expects devices on the platform to be coming to market in 2005/2006. µ