Haier, Metalink add Super Fast WiFi to HDTVs

Katie Fehrenbacher | Monday, July 10, 2006 | 11:36 AM PT | 3 comments

I got a chance to check out Metalink’s wireless chip technology a few months ago, as the company played a crystal-clear high definition movie and ran it over three blazing-fast wirelessly-connected TV’s. If the demo was the norm, it was as easy and fast as wireless networking should be. Today Chinese consumer electronics-maker Haier said it tested its high-def TV’s that are using Metalink’s new WiFi chip set–N-compliant standard–for wireless networking.

But the technology won’t likely land in your living room for a good long while, if it makes it that far. Metalink is an Israeli fabless chip company, that has plans to work with other consumer electronics makers to embedded really fast WiFi in products like set-top boxes, DVRs and residential gateways. While the technology is the latest wireless breakthrough for the digital home, the company isn’t making any money off its innovation just yet. The company lost $4.1 million in the first quarter of this year, and competitors like Airgo, and Broadcom could very well have the upper hand.

1 trackback so far

July 9th, 2007
12:03 PM PT

[...] chip company Metalink has been wedging its way into China’s wireless digital home market for awhile now — looking to get its wireless chip into gear like wireless TVs, set-top boxes, DVRs and [...]

2 comments so far

July 10th, 2006
12:38 PM PT
Danny de Wit said:

This is the last step needed for Apple to get to the ‘big’ screen in the home.

Front Row is already completely prepared and now you can beam it to any screen you want.

Very cool!

Tobias Beruf said:

But you have to pay for it so i can use the time for you.

Editorial Masthead

Carolyn Pritchard
Managing Editor
Celeste LeCompte
Special Projects Editor
Om Malik
Senior Writer
Stacey Higginbotham
Staff Writer
Wagner James Au
Contributing Editor
Liz Gannes
Staff Writer
Chris Albrecht
Staff Writer
Katie Fehrenbacher
Staff Writer
Josie Garthwaite
Staff Writer
Close
E-mail It