ReelBox

Logo of Reel Multimedia Vertriebs GmbH

Under ReelBox is the first originally understood set-top box the company Reel-Multimedia with the product PVR 1100 and later (with new housing) known as ReelBox Lite , later, from a family of products based on the VDR become.

The company Reel-Multimedia filed for bankruptcy on January 30, 2013.

The ReelBox Lite first appeared in April 2005 with not fully developed software; The production and sale of new devices was discontinued at the end of 2006. The successor was the ReelBox Avantgarde and from March 2009 the ReelBox Avantgarde II . These are largely based on known standard components (industrial mainboard, notebook processor, etc.), but also some in-house developments. The ReelBox Avantgarde has a Linux operating system with VDR . The originally planned ReelBox Vista , based on Microsoft Windows Vista and a special TV extension, was abandoned by Reel-Multimedia .

The ReelBox Lite was one of the first DVB TV receivers that could be converted to all common digital reception types ( DVB-T , DVB-S and DVB-C ). Mixed operation is also possible.

The manufacturer Reel Multimedia gained notoriety through a series of breakdowns when introducing the products. Until recently, important, originally promised functions of the ReelBox Lite were not implemented. With the last major software release in March 2009, the ReelBox Avantgarde has reached a level that almost completely covers the promised features.

Some functions of the ReelBox Lite

Reception, recording and time-shifted playback of DVB sources
Playing and burning DVDs. Only DVDs that are not copy-protected can be played, the player software still does not come close to the comfort of normal DVD players. A DVD burner is only pre-installed in certain configurations, but can be easily retrofitted.
Playing .mp3 and .ogg files (conversion of .mpeg and .vob is still pending)
Can be used as a home server
Streaming server for PCs in the network
HDTV modes: 480p, 720p and 1080i
WLAN can be retrofitted as a mini PCI card (excludes the operation of the above-mentioned HDTV upgrade module)

Connections of the ReelBox Lite

2 × SCART with the option for FBAS , S-Video , RGB or component signal
additional component output
HDMI (only with HDTV upgrade module)
FBAS, S-Video and stereo cinch input . Inoperative; this will not change any more, since no more codecs will be developed for the chip used.
Optical and coaxial digital input and output (in the current software version inputs are still completely without function, outputs are error-free)
Analog 5.1 RCA output, but only stereo operation possible
USB 1.0
2 × Common Interface slots (with multicam support)
Smartcard reader with internal Neotion CAM
100 Mbit network (file and FTP server)
FireWire

Some functions of the ReelBox Avantgarde

Reception, recording and time-shifted playback of DVB sources
NetCeiver technology with three tuner slots. With the exchangeable and freely combinable tuner cards for DVB-S2, DVB-S, DVB-C and DVB-T, programs from up to six transponders can be received and recorded in parallel; Reception according to DVB-S / S2 standard in MPEG-2 and MPEG-4 (h.264 / AVC).
HDTV modes: 480i, 480p, 576i, 576p, 720p and 1080i
2 × common interface slots for optional CI modules. Multiple decryption of pay TV possible via a suitable CI module.
Picture-in-picture function (PiP)
Electronic program guide (EPG) with VPS support
Dual-layer DVD burner for playing and burning DVDs. The manufacturer's software only plays DVDs that are not copy-protected.
Timeshift , also as permanent timeshift, for SD and HDTV
Recording on the internal hard drive and external drives (via USB, FireWire, eSATA or storage devices connected to the network, such as media servers or NAS)
Supported video codecs: mkv, xvid, divx (from version 4) and h.264 (AVC)
Playable music, video and image formats: mp3, m3u, ogg, mpeg, avi, divx, iso, mkv, mpeg, mpg, mp4, mov, pes, ts, vob, vcd, vdr and jpg. wmv and other codec support are in development and should be submitted as a free software update.
Internet radio (ShoutCast) with predefined and self-configurable stations
Use as a home server and as a streaming server for PCs in the network (via Windows and Apple / MAC network connection)
Network on SMB / CIFS or NFS shares possible
WLAN (optionally via USB WLAN dongle / stick or internal mini PCI Express WLAN card)
Fully integrated PC functionality ( Ubuntu 7.10 or newer)