SP-1600 – First In Series Of New “Professional Class” Display Interface Controllers

Morgan Hill, CA, May 22, 2006 – The new SP-1600 controller from Digital View, the leading supplier of advanced interface solutions for flat panel display systems, ushers in a new level of performance and support for multi-input, general purpose and custom monitor applications.

The first in Digital View’s new Professional Class series, the SP-1600 is a fully buffered, multi-sync interface controller that provides direct analog and digital connection – PC, DVI and Video interface – to a wide range of TFT LCD panels up to UXGA resolution (1600 x 1200 pixels).

No other controller offers the SP-1600’s feature set and support, which forms the Controller Development Suite at the basis of the Professional Class concept:

Panel Development Kit –This allows users to customize the output timing of the controller board to match a particular LCD, enabling advanced monitor manufacturers to quickly adapt to support the newest LCD panel releases.

Serial Port Utility – Permits control of all monitor functions via the controller serial port. Using a proprietary protocol, remote adjustments of basic monitor functions such as contrast, brightness, switching video inputs or adjust gamma control can be performed. “The utility also provides commands to control internal parameters not available through the OSD menu such as scaler functions, an internal run-time-counter and an inverter brightness control”, according to Neil Wood, Digital View’s Vice President of Engineering and Design.

User-Defined DDC (Display Data Channel) Kit – Enables OEM users to configure the controller’s DDC data to identify the monitor’s characteristics to the display adapter. The DDC is used to pass Extended Display Identification Data (EDID), which is stored in the controller and describes its capabilities in terms of maximum resolution, refresh frequency etc. “This feature allows the OEM to ensure that the response being sent by the controller will correctly match the resolution of the LCD panel being used”, said Dusty Perryman, Director of Sales and Marketing.

Embedded Branding Kit – This allows the OEM customer to brand their product by loading a bitmap logo into the controller that is displayed during initialization screen and repeated throughout the on-screen menu displays.

The SP-1600 provides full connectivity to TFT LCDs with resolutions from VGA through UXGA inclusive of 4:3 16:9 and 16:10 aspect ratio panels. Features include up to 8-bit-per-color (16.7 million colors), OSD menu, function controls, image scaling, image control and Auto picture setup, color gain and power.

The board measures 179mm x 120.4mm (7” x 4.74”) with DV standard form factor and mounting holes. It offers an MTBF in excess of 100,000 hours, and is backed by a 3-year warranty. The SP-1600 is priced at $200 in 1,000-unit quantities. Delivery is off-the-shelf.

Established in 1995, Digital View is the leading supplier of advanced interface solutions for flat panel display systems. Digital View flat panel controllers provide connectivity solutions for a wide range of applications from avionics to X-rays, with more than 250,000 controllers deployed around the world. The company offers an extensive range of flat panel controller boards, on-screen display (OSD) boards, LCD interface cards, interconnection cabling and everything else users of flat panel displays need to get their panels up and running.