Beginning in the 2002 holiday season, Microsoft and PC manufacturer partners, including HP, NEC and Samsung, will introduce a new class of media center PCs powered by Microsoft Windows XP Media Center Edition. These new PCs will attempt to bring together the best of computing and entertainment for the home user.
Media center PCs will be complete desktop PCs enhanced for home entertainment, and will come equipped with all the necessary hardware to deliver both powerful computing and an enjoyable home entertainment experience. Media center PCs will include mid- to high-end processors, more than enough memory for computing and entertainment needs, high capacity hard disks, and CD-ROM/DVD drives, and will have advanced graphics and audio capabilities as well as networking connectivity.
In addition, each media center PC will come with the following components for enhancing the entertainment experience:
-A Media Center compatible remote control that keeps all of the entertainment on your PC within easy reach. The Media Center compatible remote control complements the keyboard and mouse.
-A remote infrared (IR) sensor that allows the remote control to communicate with the PC, and also controls your cable or satellite set-top box.
-An advanced graphics card for displaying the best TV experience on your PC monitor.
-A TV tuner that captures your TV signal from a cable, satellite, or antenna source.
-A hardware encoder that enables you to record TV shows from cable, satellite, or antenna to your computer's hard disk.