according to the company.
The device includes a 2.2-inch, cellphone-style QVGA LCD, dubbed a "second screen," which can display TV listings and other content received via WiFi from the click365 network, without disrupting onscreen television viewing. Other capabilities may include allowing users to purchase products offered for sale on TV, by responding to TV commercials or other promotions. Additionally, tvCompass says the unit can receive new equipment device codes over the air to simplify home theater setup, and can backup all setup data on the company's servers.
Several views of the TVcompass WiFi Smart Remote
(Click image to enlarge)tvCompass
first revealed the Smart Remote at last June's Mobile and Embedded Developers Conference (MEDC) in Nice, France, in partnership with Intrinsyc Software, which did much of the development and integration work.
The unit is powered by a Samsung S3C2410A ARM9 SoC (system-on-chip) processor.
Regarding the device's use of Windows CE, tvCompass CEO Edward J. Zylka stated, "In the development of our Smart Remote device, we carefully considered product development efficiency, time-to-market speed, and design flexibility -- all advantages of the Microsoft Embedded Windows CE operating system. Our platform is designed to accelerate adoption for our OEM partners and we felt that Windows CE is ideally suited for this type of environment as a highly optimized and flexible platform."
tvCompass is an ODM (original design manufacturer) that licenses its hardware and software technology to partners, and generates revenues from the click365 network. The company says it offers an "attractive financial model through the generation of recurring revenue from content and service delivered to the Smart Remote."
The company also offers tvPDA, a software-only product described as capable of turning a Windows Mobile-based Pocket PC into a TV remote and hand-held EPG (electronic program guide).
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