Appear upgrades X Platform to support ultra-low latency HEVC encoding

Appear has announced that its X Platform supports ultra-low latency HEVC encoding. With this addition, the company is enabling customers to balance their bandwidth, video quality and latency requirements. X Platform encoder module supports up to 2x ultra-high-definition (UHD) or 8x high-definition (HD) channels in standard and low delay modes. Now, it also supports up to 2 x UHD or 4 x HD channels with ultra-low HEVC latency.

Broadcasters, telcos and production companies use Appear’s X Platform for live contribution and remote production. The platform offers the ability to blend encapsulation formats such as MPEG TS, ST2022-6, ST2110, Zixi and SRT with many codecs and video processing functions.

Also, through this upgrade, the platform now offers compatibility for the existing ECx110 and ECx210 encoder modules to increase service density when encoding in ultra-low HEVC delay mode. The density per module has been increased to support 4x SD / HD services, or 2x UHD services whilst retaining a sub 200ms encode / decode latency performance (“glass to glass” delay).

The X Platform also allows customers to run in hybrid UHD mode with 1x UHD and 2 further channels broadcasting in any quality “up to” full HD simultaneously on the same module. The encoding architecture delivers HDR support, as well as delivering high quality live video with low power consumption, at sub 85watts per module.

“We’re continuously looking to improve our products to ensure we carry on delivering the best-in class solutions that bring immersive viewing experiences to life,” said Thomas Lind, Product Director at Appear. “This latest update is significant for our customers because the capacity and functionality offered matches the growing trend to encode multiple services at the lowest delay point for VAR and remote production, whilst dramatically reducing the cost per channel prices. If required, the same module can be rapidly switched to other encoding modes, such as OTT encoding, or converted to become a decoder or transcoder.”