Broadcom Corp has launched a new graphics chip for set-top boxes it hopes will earn it a slice of the television and internet convergence market. The BCM7014 chip – a 2D/3D graphics accelerator – also includes an NTSC analog decoder and NTSC/PAL video encoder, and converts the aspect ratio of computer-based square pixel images to the ITU-standard rectangular pixel aspect ratio of standard televisions without loss of picture quality. The chip is Broadcom’s first entry into the graphics set-top box chip market, although it claims to be the market leader in high-speed transmission technology for set-tops. Its longer-term plan is to integrate all the major functions of an interactive, digital set-top boxes onto a single chip. It is available now in sample quantities, priced at $21 in volumes of 100,000. Earlier this year, Broadcom adopted the MIPS architecture to use for cable modems and digital set-top boxes, and the new 0.31 micron chip is based on an R3000 core and manufactured by Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co Ltd.
