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MPEG-4 Hardware Decoder For $99

Posted by timothy on from the remote-control-included dept.

secondsun writes: "Tom's Hardware has the story. Apparently sigma designs has made a PCI card that decodes DiVX movies in reltime with little processor overhead." Under a hundred bucks, too.

4 of 286 comments (clear)

  1. DivX codec changes by cfish · · Score: 5, Interesting

    DivX codec changes so frequently, what are you gona do, flash your card every month?

  2. Why this is important for free software users... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Interesting

    Free software implementations of the MPEG standard (2,4) legally cannot be done because the MPEG standard is full of patents, usually requiring payment of licensing fees.. If hardware vendors implement MPEG on hardware, and open the specifications for it's hardware, it is possible to have 100% legal playback of these media on 100% free software systems.

  3. Real-time DivX decoder for $37 by Patrick · · Score: 5, Interesting
    A 1GHz Duron can do real-time DivX decoding for barely 1/3 the price, without chewing up a PCI slot. Why should I buy an add-in card? Lest you say, as the Tom's review does, that it breathes new life into old PCs, a 1 GHz Duron kit costs just a little bit more than this $99 add-in board, and is a hell of a lot more useful.

    Not trolling. Just pointing out that not all that glitters is worth $99.

  4. Not So Interesting by littleRedFriend · · Score: 5, Interesting

    I would rather have a DIVX hardware ENcoder. Something that allows you to rip^H^H^H make safety copies of you DVD collection in less time.

    --
    IANAL, but imagine a beowulf cluster of in Soviet Russia all your belong are base to us welcoming the new SCO overlords.