Netgear announces new NeoTV 550

Posted on 10 Sep 2010 at 15:23, by Gareth Halfacree

Netgear is eschewing Google's solution for Internet-connected TVs and rolling its own in partnership with Zixi - and the companies promise top-quality HD streaming.

The move will see Zixi's Video Operating System used as the basis for a new version of Netgear's NeoTV 550 set-top box - the first time the company's software has made it into a product aimed at the living room.

It is claimed that the HD-ready NeoTV 550 will use the ZVOS platform to stream full high-definition video streams over the Internet, for both video on demand and live streaming services. Unlike previous systems, Zixi claims that its ZVOS allows users to "receive streaming HD Internet content with perfect quality, no buffering, no stuttering and no pausing."

Israel Drori, Zixi's founder, claims that the ZVOS platform in Netgear's latest media streamer means that buyers receive "a reliable, easy-to-use device and platform to experience full, real-time HD streaming over the Internet.

Vivek Pathela, vice president of Netgear's home division, was equally confident of the NeoTV 550's success, claiming that prior to Zixi's ZVOS development "the problem of streaming videos consistently in HD quality over-the-top to the HD TV has remained unsolved," but that the day has finally dawned when such things are possible.

Sadly, both companies are more hesitant when it comes to suggesting when users might be able to get their hands on the technology, beyond affirming that the ZVOS-enabled NeoTV 550 will be available "at retail and ecommerce shops worldwide" towards the end of the year at an expected RRP of around £160.

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