The only major problem is the apparent lack of availability of documentation for the hardware used, for a lot of it appears to be under NDA. The PCB layout files aren't available, but it's a small board so there should be no difficulty in matching the schematics to the actual board. Not only that, but the board itself is open source. But for the rest of it, it is a modified ARM port of Debian Linux with applications designed to provide features (i.e. I believe the DSP itself is covered under some sort of Non-Disclosure Agreement, and NDAs don't mix well with open source. These are provided as static chunks of code, and are primarily the video codecs used on the DSP. There are parts of the OSD which cannot be open source. The OSD is extremely special, not so much because of its capabilities which are evermore commonplace, but because of what the OSD in the name actually stands for - Open Source Design. So for a lot of it, you'll be relying on, well. There is a quick start guide, and a reference to a user guide, but since the firmware has changed a lot, the user guide was removed. The only problem is there is no user guide. No, it is actual white letters on black, as shown on the left. Not tiny letters, weird symbols, or raised-plastic. I especially like the printing on the unit. But note that you MUST "Eject" a device before removing it from the OSD. I can report that using the OSDng firmware, recording works well to a USB flash device (4Gb) and also to a 4Gb SDHC card. There is a CompactFlash interface, but this is best ignored for reasons that'll be apparent. There is a low-powered USB port (it'll run a Flash memory device, but probably not a USB-powered harddisc). The unit is designed with the input/output connectors on the back - audio/video in/out, S-video (input only), power, ethernet. While it offers only a single status LED (green (on/play), red (recording), or orange), we must not forget that all the information is available on your TV. The unit itself is stylish and well presented.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |