QUANTEL PUSH 2K CAPABILITY AS IQ MAKES NAB DEBUT

QUANTEL focused on the powerful 2K capabilities of their new iQ image processing platform at the system’s NAB debut.
First unveiled at IBC, Quantel’s iQ, which already offers resolution co-existence, has been further developed to add 2K resolution to the platform. Quantel see this as crucial to their bid to position the platform as the core of one of the most powerful video processing workstation systems currently available. Coupled with dual bandwidth disk recorder emulation this already opens up new applications for iQ such as colour correction.
Nigel Turner, Quantel Marketing Director, (pictured) said: “Since its launch at IBC in September last year, iQ has been greeted with tremendous enthusiasm by the post production market. The range of applications for iQ is developing fast, and they are offering entirely new ways of working for customers. The ability to work interactively in 2K is incredibly exciting, as is the ability to use iQ to enhance colour correction workflow. We are still at the beginning of the iQ story, but reaction to-date convinces us that this is a very special product.”
Turner explained that iQ brings together the established performance and quality of Quantel hardware with the enormous flexibility of the software-rich PC world: “Quantel iQ integrates all-new Quantel processing hardware and advanced disk technology with the latest computer technology to produce an entirely open platform that offers unmatched levels of real-time, interactive performance, enormous workflow flexibility and total creative freedom.
“Quantel iQ is an open platform for all developers as it uses the Windows 2000 development environment, in conjunction with a Quantel developed Kernel and API. The Software Developers Kit and Sample Source Code are freely available so that developers can tap into full Quantel processing power - a real platform for partnership. It is powerful enough to allow separate applications to run simultaneously on the system, sharing screen space as well as video and image database information.”
Every system comes with ‘Qedit’ a powerful long-form multi-rez, timeline editing application, ‘Qpaint’, and ‘Qscribe’, all of which fully exploit iQ’s resolution co-existence. Turner added that the first third party applications and plug-ins are well into advanced development as are applications from Quantel.
Returning to the addition of 2K resolution support, Turner emphasised that it enables iQ to be used on high resolution projects not involving HD. Clearly, Quantel’s eyes firmly fixed on the developing HD market in the US, and Quantel are keen to play up iQ’s resolution co-existence which means that 2K will work alongside HD and SD on the same timeline, giving the user complete flexibility in the choice of original material.
Working with 2K resolution material involves handling 14 or more times the data used at 601 resolutions, and Quantel take pride that iQ has the capability to work with HD material with the same speed and interactivity expected at SD resolutions.
Quantel’s iQ will also benefit from an additional mid-range effects package, previewed at NAB, that is expected to be available Q4 of 2001. Future development of effects for iQ include a high-end compositing package, to be introduced in 2002. (SP)