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Intel unveiled plans at its Developer Conference on Monday to give new impetus to developing products for the digital home.

The Extended Wireless PC Initiative is a package of tool kits for developers to create voice and video digital media applications for the home. It also provides a reference design for a new PC peripheral dubbed a Digital Media Adapter. The Digital Media Adapter design supports Wi-Fi (802.11b) wireless capability, plus connectors for standard audio/visual cabling. The initiative proposes that the adapter be bundled with new PCs and also sold separately. The device would be used to send and receive MP3 files and WMA digital content, among other formats.

Down With UPnP

The adapter will also support NTSC/PAL/S-Video, TV connections, and AC-97 stereo connections. No mention was made of an interface with the various versions of FireWire (IEEE 1394), which both Apple and Sony have promoted as the standard connection for home entertainment electronic devices.

Instead, Intel planted both feet firmly in the Microsoft camp with its support for the tool kit for Universal Plug and Play. According to Intel officials, UPnP will accelerate development time for device manufacturers and application developers. The tool kits will include a Digital Media Adapter reference design that will use Wi-Fi, run on Intel XScale processors, and support JPEG, MP3, and WMA digital content.

Intel Inside Your Home

Not surprisingly, Intel hopes the PC becomes the "universal and indispensable tool for storing and editing digital media," said Louis Burns, vice president and co-general manager of Intel Desktop Platforms Group in Santa Clara, California.

In past interviews with InfoWorld, Intel CEO Craig Barrett has clearly indicated that all company efforts are focused on increasing sales of computer systems with Intel inside.

According to an Intel press release, Intel wants to "accelerate" the development and deployment of media adapters in order to extend the wireless PC as a platform for home entertainment by the second half of 2003.

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