Satellite TV is a fine thing. Hundreds of German-language programs, currently 56 high-definition stations – nowhere is there a larger offer, not in the cable and certainly not by antenna. However, satellite television requires a complex antenna cabling: every reception box or TV must be connected directly to the satellite dish or the multi-switch. Stripping is the order of the day.
Sat to IP: An open standard
Is it perhaps more comfortable? One thing is obvious: the modern home is equipped with a network. How would it be to distribute the satellite programs like internet television? That would be a charming solution.
Sat-to-IP server
The powerline specialist devolo has already developed a tuner and a set-top box about two years ago, which carry satellite programs via powerline to the TV. The current version dLAN TV Sat 2400-CI + costs 400 Euro in a package with Powerline adapters. But the dLAN Sat TV only works with devolo products. There are also insellations, which broadcast live TV from, for example, Smart TV on smartphones - but they do not usually work across the entire vendor.
Connected to the router
The Luxembourg satellite operator SES, whose American subsidiary is ASTRA Deutschland GmbH, has obviously followed the development very closely. The possibility to use smartphones and tablet PCs all over the house as a TV receiver would significantly increase the attractiveness of satellite TV, according to the Luxembourgish thought. It would therefore be ideal if satellite TV could be distributed with network products from different manufacturers.
Sat-to-IP Player
Practice: 10 Tips for the Networked Home
So an open standard had to be created: The idea for "Sat to IP" or "Sat> IP" was born. At the same time, SES relied on the developments of the Danish TV specialist Craftworks and the British pay-TV sender BSkyB. Both experimented with the satellite distribution over the network protocol IP (Internet Protocol).
SES took the lead role and applied for standardization to the organization CENELEC for Sat to IP. In addition, the satellite operator can also certify satellite-to-IP products on request. This gives manufacturers the certainty that their products interact with those of other companies.
The heart of the Sat-to-IP technology are so-called servers, which convert satellite TV programs to network-compatible. The servers work like satellite receivers, but they do not deliver the programs to a TV, but output them over the network.
The first server models will be equipped with four tuners. You can therefore supply four players with different TV programs. For this purpose, the server modules must be connected to a satellite antenna (Quattro or Quad-LNB) or a multi- switch via four antenna cables.
Practice: These apps control the home network
The servers can be installed directly into a satellite antenna (IP-LNB). First IP-LNBs are to appear next year. In addition, so-called master-boxes can serve as servers: satellite receivers, which simultaneously function as TV receivers and network servers. Media gateways are also conceived: they are supposed to supply the network with satellite TV and Internet.
The sat-to-IP servers forward the program packets to the Internet router in the house. For this purpose, they must be connected to the router via a network cable (LAN) or via a power supply (powerline). Powerline is about a solution if the server is on the attic at the antenna, the Internet router but in the living room. The router then distributes the TV signals to the players - via cable (LAN), wireless (WLAN) or via a power supply via Powerline adapter
Sat to IP: Questions and Answers
Grundig GSS Box
However, the respective bandwidth limits the number of programs available at the same time: up to eight HDTV transmitters can be transported by network cable at 100 megabits per second. Wireless networks often do not reach this speed because the distance to the access point and the overlays slow the WLAN.
Sat to IP leveraged home networking standards such as UPnP AV (Universal Plug and Play) and DLNA (Digital Living Network Alliance). As a result, almost all network players using UPnP AV or DLNA can act as sat-to-IP players. Internet-enabled Smart TVs can also play the TV programs transmitted via the network.
Inverto SP-IDL 400 Multibox
However, without digital TV comfort: Simple DLNA players access the Sat-to-IP server, such as the media files of a network hard drive. Floppy zapping with the Shift key does not succeed. In addition, conventional DLNA players can not display digital TV additional data such as the electronic program guide (EPG). So a Sat-to-IP client is worth it - at least as long as there are no suitable apps for the TVs.
Notebooks bring the TV programs to the screen with free software such as the VLC player. Smartphones and tablets, the TV stations play with the Elgato app EyeTV (price: 3.99 euros).
Grundig is launching the GSS Box server box for 249 euros in autumn. It is equipped with four tuners, which supply four subscribers independently. It conveys TV channels in a conventional and high-resolution quality. Two USB sockets on the back of the GSS box are used to connect external memory. This is how you can watch TV programs or watch them with time when these functions can be controlled on the player (client).
Telestar Digibit R1
Schwaiger MS 41IP
Devolo TV Sat Multituner
Pay TV with Sat to IP
View
Inverto, a Luxembourg-based satellite receiver, would like to sell its server in autumn. The SP-IDL 400 Multibox is to cost with 249 euros just as much as the Grundig box. The multibox is also equipped with four tuners and offers two USB sockets for connecting external hard disks. It can thus be used as a digital video recorder, whereby recording and time-shifting television (Timeshift) can also be controlled on the player.
A multibox-connected hard drive also serves as a network storage (NAS): all players, computers or smartphones can access their contents, or even store files on them.
Practice: Connect the living room wirelessly
The Luxembourg satellite specialists have a lot in mind: Next year they want to bring out a server with eight tuners. He is then to provide small multi-family homes. They also plan to integrate the server directly into the receiving unit (LNB) at the satellite antenna. They also develop an HDMI dongle: a satellite-to-IP receiver that is plugged into a socket on the TV.
The Luxemburger still have a clever idea: Their next satellite receiver, Volksbox 2, is also to function as a satellite-to-IP client. Inverto is currently investigating whether the current Volksbox IDL 6650N can be upgraded to the client via a firmware update.
The Telestar Digibit R1 satellite-to-IP server is very similar to the two Grundig and Inverto models. As with the products of the other manufacturers, the price is around 250 euros. The equipment is the same: four tuner and two connectors for USB memory. In conjunction with an external hard drive, the Digibit R1 records TV stations and plays back the recorded programs.
Telestar has announced its player Digibit B1 for the autumn. The inconspicuous black box (price: about 140 euros) is standard LAN cable access to the home network. For a surcharge, a USB dongle is available that provides a wireless connection. The client box supplies TVs via HDMI. An optical audio output provides AV receiver models without HDMI input with digital home sound.
The Bavarian satellite TV company Schwaiger has announced that it will bring its MS 41IP satellite-to-IP server into the market at the end of November. The model is supposed to cost 299 euros.
The MS 41IP is well prepared with aluminum die-cast housings and cooling ribs for installation on the roof. In addition, installers should be able to access the server remotely. It is equipped with four tuners.
The Bavarians also offer a client box: the DSR 41IP is also to be finished at the end of November and cost 149 euros. The model provides two USB 2.0 ports for external storage. The Android operating system runs on the client.
Devolo, a pioneer in the transport of satellite TV via home network, is time: The manufacturer known by its Powerline products will launch its own satellite-to-IP server by the end of the year
Unlike the devices of the competitors, the dLAN TV Sat Multituner has only two tuners. But it can be extended with a second multituner on four satellite tuners. For this purpose, two multitunners are connected with a short Ethernet cable, and a power supply is then sufficient for both products. The price has not yet been determined. A company spokesman expects about 200 euros.
But what about the current dLAN TV Sat products from devolo, which already send satellite TV via the network? They work with a technology developed by devolo, so they do not meet the Sat-to-IP standard. Devolo wants to offer a firmware update, which allows the receivers to be retrofitted, so the devolo set-top boxes work with the multituner or the servers of other manufacturers. The dLAN TV Sat CI-2400+ is equipped with a CI module which allows the reception of encrypted channels so far.
This should remain synonymous after the firmware update on Sat to IP. This would offer devolo the first pay-TV-capable satellite-to-IP solution. After all, all the other announced products are exclusively free-to-air programs. Neither the HDTV HDTV programs nor the Sky payer are in the process - bad luck for football fans.
In addition to devolo's solution to equip the receivers with CI-Plus, there is another path in the discussion: the server could already provide encrypted transmitters with digital rights management (DRM). Then, for example, smartphones could also receive pay-TV - as with today's Sky Go.
Sat to IP is the step in the networked media era for satellite TV. Sooner or later, the home network could do the transport of TV stations.
What Is Sat To IP? Sat to IP distributes satellite TV over the home network. It replaces or supplements a house distribution by satellite antenna cable, what do I need for it? In addition to a satellite antenna, a server module is necessary. The satellite antenna must supply the server with four antenna cables. What does it cost? The Sat-to-IP-Servers cost 250 euros. Clients are not necessarily required for internet-enabled TVs, but more comfortable. How many people can use Sat to IP at the same time? The first server modules have four tuners. This allows four people to watch TV independently. For next year, eight-tuned products are announced for eight users. How many TV channels can be distributed across the network? That depends on the bandwidth: the network cable (LAN) transmits with 100 MBit / s up to eight HDTV programs and up to 30 SDTV stations. How good is the quality? Sat to IP works completely "transparent": The video and the audio quality are retained. The data are only transported by network.
No comments:
Post a Comment