Chip integrates reference design kit from Comcast

STMicroelectronics has announced that its Orly STiH416 SoC with integrated reference design kit (RDK) from Comcast allows developers of high-end set-top boxes and video gateways to time to market for its products that offer multi-screen viewing. According to ST, the STiH416 is the industry's highest performing set-top box IC, and has the unique ability to support gateway, server and client applications.

The RDK from Comcast is a pre-integrated software bundle that creates a common framework for powering tru2way, IP or hybrid set-top boxes and gateway devices and accelerates the development and deployment of next-generation video services. Comcast licenses the RDK to OEMs, system integrators, SoC and software vendors as well as Multichannel Video Programming Distributors to create a community of innovators focused on bringing rich, multi-screen TV home entertainment experiences to consumers faster.

ST's STiH416 claims to be the first device of its type to feature the advanced dual-core ARM Cortex-A9 MPCore application processor. Combined with the ARM Mali 3D graphics processor, a dedicated transport processor and a transcoder for adaptive video streaming, this creates a high-performance multimedia processing sub-system capable of decoding multi-view coding 3DTV, H.264/MPEG2/4 and Internet video standards such as DivX, VC1 and Google Webm/VP8, all with outstanding Faroudja video image quality, boasted the company.

In addition, the SoC flaunts seamless distribution of HD content from any source to multiple screens in the home, such as TV, PC, mobile or tablet; support for rich on-screen graphics such as advanced user guides and games; management of software environments such as Android, Qt, HTML5, Adobe Flash Player and Adobe AIR to support next-generation IPTV, OTT services and apps; and H.264 video encoder up to 1080p60 HD resolution to enable any client devices in the home.

There is also a dedicated security engine meeting the latest conditional access (CA) and digital rights management (DRM) standards. Moreover, with multiple power-management modes and advanced process technology, the STiH416 is optimised for very low power consumption—less than 30mW in standby mode, noted ST.