You Might Need the DVDO iScan VP30 and Not Even Know It

Chances are, you need a video processor to achieve brilliant high-definition imagery on your TV set. DVDO, powered by Anchor Bay Technologies (ABT), announced the release of its next-generation high-definition video-scaling processor, the DVDO iScan VP30. This third-generation 1080p-capable video processor builds on the success of the iScan HD and iScan HD+ and is the first stand-alone HD video processor offered by DVDO with four HDMI inputs.

ABT’s Precision Video Scaling II technology, which incorporates 10-bit scaling, enhanced sharpness controls, and non-linear scaling, appears for the first time in the iScan VP30. Analog transcoding and analog HD processing allow connections to be “anything in, anything out,” thereby reducing the amount of cables necessary to connect all video sources, current and legacy, to an HD display. This affords the maximum connectivity options for consumers who want to incorporate legacy analog sources into a theater setup with new digital-based receivers and displays. The iScan VP30 offers the greatest flexibility of any processor currently available by allowing the user to precisely match a display’s native resolution to any resolution between 480p and 1080p, including 720p or 1080i, and has many preset output resolutions for plasmas, LCD, DLP, LCOS and CRT-based displays.

The iScan VP30 features 11 video inputs: four HDMI, two component, two S-video, two composite, and an RGBHV input along with an optional SD-SDI input. Each input has separate picture controls, allowing the user to set custom parameters for each input to achieve the best picture from every source. Standard and custom aspect ratios can also be set up and then “one button selected,” giving users many options for fitting and viewing an image on their display. It also provides complete pan-and-zoom capability to position or stretch your image on the screen with overscan, underscan, and border controls to eliminate “black bars” and fill the entire screen. The iScan VP30 also functions as an audio switcher and router, featuring four digital-audio inputs and one analog that can be assigned to any of the video inputs to permit one-button switching of audio and video together. Each one of the audio inputs on the iScan VP30 employs ABT’s Precision A/V Lipsync, which eliminates the annoying audio/video delay common on many displays. The four HDMI inputs accept both audio and video, allowing one simple connection for sources such as a DVD player, HD set top box, D-VHS, or the next-generation game consoles.

Serving as a complete A/V hub, the iScan VP30 provides simultaneous audio/video switching with “any rez in – any rez out” video up-conversion and one simple wire to the display.

An elegant front panel designed to complement the most sophisticated home theater systems will allow the iScan VP30 to blend seamlessly with other components. For home theater systems that utilize an equipment rack, an optional rack-mount kit is available.

The iScan VP30 costs $1999.