Technicolor has launched Media Touch 2, the second generation of its Media Touch tablet, a 7-inch handheld, Wi-Fi capable device that is integrated into the digital home’s ecosystem. It’s not a tablet in the iPad tradition. It’s a stay-at-home, TV tablet with Wi-Fi that’s used to consume online and home audio and video, access the Web and applications and control and access other equipment in the home.
The Media Touch 2 tablet can be a remote control including searching TV listings. It can play back and display media content from a home gateway, said Benoit Joly, Technicolor VP of home networking and applications.
“It’s a companion product, to augment a subscriber’s media consumption,” Joly said. “It gives service providers real estate they can control, to offer new promotions or bundles.”
Many people mainly or even only use their iPad while they’re watching TV.
Media Touch can either stream video content from the network or access it from local storage on a home network.
Media Touch uses the Android OS and has a microphone and camera for online chat, VoIP and video communications, all integrated with users’ social networks.
Google would love it. It could serve ads that are synchronized with the TV or other content.
“With Media Touch, Technicolor has defined a new category of portable device in the home that helps network service providers monetize the promises of the digital home, “said Georges Laplanche, senior VP of Technicolor’s connect division.
Its open architecture lets it be used to control other CE gear in the home such as STBs. It can also function as a digital picture frame. It’s available only from certain broadband service providers.