Why Xilleon™ 220 is revolutionary

Xilleon™ 220 is a highly integrated system-on-a-chip that features a fast MIPS® CPU, graphics, a high-definition video decoder, audio decoder, conditional access, and numerous other features. Xilleon™ 220 is the first chip capable of addressing such a broad range of markets requiring digital video; including set-top boxes, digital TVs, home media gateways, and TVpads. The advanced technology of Xilleon™ 220 also breaks new ground in other ways.

Level of integration

ATI - 1 chip                  Competitors - 2 to 4 chips
In order to match the capabilities of Xilleon™ 220, traditional solutions might require two to four chips for CPU, video decode, and I/O. Xilleon™ 220 does it all in one chip - saving space, power and cost.

CPU speed

ATI - 300 MHz               Competitors - 50 to 150 MHz

Unlike PCs, traditional consumer electronic devices have been hampered by slow CPU speed. The set-top box in a typical home probably only has a 50MHz-150MHz CPU. Xilleon™ 220 doubles or quadruples the CPU speed, leading to a much more responsive user interfaces and a much wider range of applications that can be supported.

For European applications, the Xilleon™ 220 has the necessary computational power to support all levels of DVB-MHP (Digital Video Broadcast Multimedia Home Platform). MHP is Europe’s Java-based open standard for the delivery of interactive content as part of a digital broadcast stream.

CPU Speed chart

Personal Video Recorder (PVR) support

ATI – multiple channels                  Competitors - One or no channels
Recently an exciting new consumer electronics device has become available called a Personal Video Recorder (PVR) that allows the user to control live TV broadcasts; including pausing live TV and using different playback speeds to catch up to the live broadcast.

With a big enough hard disk in the PVR, hundreds of hours of TV shows can be stored. ATI continues to be a leader in PVR technology. We introduced the first PVR solution for the PC market, TV-on-Demand™, in our All-in-Wonder® family of products.

A solution enabled by Xilleon™ 220 will allow you to simultaneously pause multiple TV channels (for picture-in-picture), simultaneously record multiple TV channels to the hard disk, or even enable PVR on two TVs.

Number of TVs supported

ATI – 2                  Competitors - 1
Xilleon™ 220 is capable of connecting to two TVs simultaneously and displaying different content on each TV. A consumer with Xilleon™ 220-enabled set-top box can install it in the living room and connect it to a TV there, and at the same time wire it up to a TV in the bedroom. Thus, consumer and network operators can save hundreds of dollars off the cost of bringing digital video into their home.

Advanced video decoder

ATI – 2 HD streams or multiple SD streams                  Competitors - 1 HD stream or 1 SD stream
Digital cable, satellite, and terrestrial movies are delivered in a digital (MPEG) format, and therefore require an MPEG decoder to display video on a television set. Xilleon™ 220 is the first high-definition (1920x1080) MPEG decoder with integrated high performance CPU and I/O support and one of the first chips capable of decoding two high-definition MPEG data streams.

Xilleon™ 220 also has the capability to decode multiple standard-definition MPEG streams leading to exciting capabilities like the simulcast of several camera angles during sporting events.

3D graphics

ATI – Advanced                  Competitors - None
Most set-top boxes do not offer 3D graphics, and those who do use a software solution that is inherently slow. Xilleon™ 220 integrates the fastest set-top 3D engine currently available, from one of the world leaders in 3D graphics acceleration.

The 3D engine can be used for gaming, e-commerce, fades/wipes, and enhanced electronic program guides (EPGs). Unlike other embedded 3D engines, it is compatible with all 3D application programming interfaces (APIs) including Direct3D™, OpenGL®, and BroadcastCL.

Number of graphics planes & color depth

ATI – Infinite planes & 24-bit color                  Competitors - 3 to 5 planes & 8 or 16-bit color
Most digital set-top boxes are limited to fewer than five graphics planes thus limiting user interface capabilities. The Xilleon™ 220 inherits ATI’s advanced PC graphics architecture, that supports an infinite number of graphics planes, thereby opening up a world of possibilities to user interface designers.

Xilleon™ 220 also supports “true color” (24 bit/pixel) graphics. This means that graphics and pictures can now look life-like. Many competitive chipsets only allow 8-bit or 16-bit graphics, which means that subtle changes in color (such as the tones of a person’s skin or the shades of blue in a blue lagoon) are lost, and artificial color bands are introduced.

Standards support

ATI – Worldwide                  Competitors - Regional Only
Xilleon™ 220 supports virtually all of the world’s major broadcast and conditional access formats. Whether intended for the marketplaces of Europe, Asia, Africa, or the Americas, consumer electronics manufacturers are now able to use a single chip across their worldwide product lines; this leads to lower development and support costs and faster time-to-market.

Memory bandwidth

ATI – 3 GigaBytes / second                  Competitors - 1 GigaByte / second
Many set-top systems have slow response times. This is often due to the low memory bandwidth which is not able to keep up with the demands of the application. Xilleon™ 220 has an advanced memory architecture. Memory bandwidth of up to 3 Gigabytes/second is available, three or more times the bandwidth of many competing solutions. The high memory bandwidth enables flawless decode and display of multiple video streams in conjunction with graphics, I/O, and advanced user applications.

Memory Bandwidth chart