Cd-i Articles about
Cd-i
 

Information About

Cd-i




  manufacturer Royal Philips Electronics NV
  type Video Game Console <br> Media Player
  generation Fourth Generation Era
  lifespan 1991
  media CD-i , Audio CD , CD+G , Karaoke CD, VCD , CD Bridge
  unitssold 567,000


CD-i or ''' Compact Disc Interactive''' is the name of an interactive multimedia CD player developed and marketed by Royal Philips Electronics N.V. CD-i also refers to the multimedia Compact Disc standard utilized by the CD-i console, also known as Green Book , which was co-developed by Philips and Sony in 1986. The first Philips CD-i player, released in 1991 and initially priced around USD $400, was capable of playing interactive CD-i discs, Audio CD s, CD+G (CD+Graphics), Karaoke CDs, and Video CD s (VCDs), though the last required an optional "Digital Video Card" to provide MPEG-1 decoding.


CD-I SOFTWARE

Early software releases in the CD-i format focused heavily on educational and self-improvement titles, with only a handful of '' and '' Zelda's Adventure ''. Nintendo and Philips had secured an agreement to co-develop a CD-ROM enhancement for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System , and Philips was contractually allowed to continue using Nintendo characters after the deal fell through.

Although extensively marketed by Philips, consumer interest in CD-i titles remained low. By 1994 , sales of CD-i systems had begun to slow, and in 1998 the product line was dropped. With the home market exhausted, Philips tried with little success to position the technology as a tool for kiosks and industrial multimedia.


CD-I PLAYERS



Philips

In addition to consumer models, professional and development players were sold by Philips Interactive Media Systems and their VAR s. Philips marketed several CD-i player models.

  • The CD-i player 200 series, which included the 205, 210, and 220 models. Models in the 200 series were designed for general consumption, and were available at major home electronics outlets around the world. The Philips CD-i 910 was the American version of the CD-i 205, the most basic model in the series.


  • The CD-i player 300 series, which included the 310, 350, 360, and 370 models. The 300 series consisted of portable players designed for the professional market and not available to home consumers. A popular use was multimedia sales presentations such as those used by pharmaceutical companies to provide product information to physicians, as the devices could be easily transported by sales representatives.


  • The CD-i player 400 series, which included the 450, 470, 490 models. The 400 models were slimmed-down units aimed at console and educational markets. The CD-i 450 player, for instance, was a budget model designed to compete with game consoles. In this version an infared remote controller was not standard but optional.


  • The CD-i player 600 series, which included the 601, 602, 604, 605, 615, 660, and 670 models. The 600 series was designed for professional applications and software development. Units in this line generally included support for Floppy Disk drives and connected to Computer Keyboards and other computer peripherals. Some models could also be connected to an emulator and had software testing and debugging features.


There also exist a number of hard-to-categorize models, such as the FW380i, an integrated mini-stereo and CD-i player; the 21TCDi30, a television with a built-in CD-i device; and the CD-i 180/181/182 modular system, the first CD-i system produced.


TELECD-I

Recognizing the growing need among marketers for networked multimedia Philips partnered in 1992 with Amsterdam based CDMATICS to develop TeleCD-i (also TeleCD). In this concept the CD-i player is connected to a network (PSTN, Internet or other) enabling data-communication and rich media presentation. Dutch grocery chain Albert Heijn and mail-order giant Neckermann Shopping were early adopters and introduced award-winning TeleCD-i applications for their home-shopping and delivery services. CDMATICS also developed the special Philips TeleCD modem plus a set of software tools for the CD-i industry to develop and implement TeleCD-i's in a standardized manner. TeleCD-i was the world's first networked multimedia application at the time of its introduction. In 1996 Philips acquired the source codes from CDMATICS.


Other Manufacturers

Besides Philips, several other manufacturers produced CD-i players, including Magnavox , GoldStar / LG Electronics , Digital Video Systems, Memorex , Grundig , Kyocera , NBS , Highscreen, and Bang & Olufsen , who produced a television with a built-in CD-i device.


TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

CPU
  • 16-bit 68070 CISC Chip ( 68000 core)

  • Clock Speed of 15.5 MHz


Display
  • Resolution: 384x280 to 768x560

  • Colors: 16.7 million w/ 32,768 on screen

  • MPEG 1 Cartridge Plug-In for VideoCD and Digital Video


Operating System

Other
  • 1.5 MB of Main RAM

  • Single Speed CD-Rom Drive

  • Weight With DV Cart 1,460 Kg, Without DV 1,210 Kg

  • ADCPM Eight Channel Sound


CD-i Accessories
  • CD-i Mouse

  • Roller Controller

  • CD-i Trackball

  • I/O Port Splitter

  • Touchpad Controller

  • Gamepad Controller

  • IR Wireless Controller



REFERENCES



EXTERNAL LINKS

  • http://www.philipscdi.com/

  • http://dmoz.org/Games/Video_Games/Console_Platforms/CD-i/

  • http://www.cdinteractive.co.uk/

  • http://cd-i.eigenstart.nl

  • http://www.classicgaming.com/blackmoon

  • http://www.cdiemu.org/

  • http://www.theworldofcdi.com/

  • CDMATICS