Review: NewTek, of Video Toaster fame, builds a live video switching, capture, and editing system. Can NewTek really shoehorn a live switcher and capture system into a tiny cube PC form factor?
For years any fool with a guitar and a PC has been able to make a CD, and now that same fool can pick up a cheap video camera and produce an award-winning documentary for just a few thousand bucks. Until now, though, live TV production has remained the domain of professional studios.
No more. The new TriCaster from NewTek puts an entire live television control room into a customized PC for just $5,000. Add in the overpriced optional switching keyboard and a decent monitor, and the full package costs under $6,500—replacing hardware that can cost ten times as much.
The TriCaster itself is built into a customized Shuttle small-form-factor PC, which makes it portable as well as powerful. The TriCaster includes NewTek's VT4 video production card and a 250 gigabyte hard drive. NewTek has installed a customized front plate to the basic Shuttle box, with six video input ports (three composite, three S-Video), two 1/4-inch microphone jacks, and audio/composite/S-Video outputs.
Built on top of Windows XP, the TriCaster interface emulates the look of a studio control room, with eight video display windows showing what's available for pushing out live and one large live video window. The software makes it easy to switch between each of the eight video inputs, using one of many built-in effects, including fades, wipes, and more-complex transitions.
Read the full story on ExtremeTech: NewTek TriCaster: A TV Studio in a Box
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