[access-uk] Re: access-uk] Re: Portset Media Centre

  • From: "Ray's Home" <rays-home@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • To: <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
  • Date: Sun, 24 Jul 2005 00:52:15 +0100

Andrew.  If I understand your comment aright, and 'I'm tired and emotional' jus 
now.   then you are saying there's a CPU in there.  yes, There is.  And it runs 
under XP embedded OS, or so the programmer gy told me.  I guess he meus must be 
right!
Ray

Personal emails:  Email me at
mailto:ray-48@xxxxxxxx

----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Andrew Hodgson" <andrew@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
To: <access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
Sent: Saturday, July 23, 2005 3:41 PM
Subject: [access-uk] Re: access-uk] Re: Portset Media Centre


Hi,

I think one of the reasons why the unit is heavily priced is due to the specs 
inside the unit.  The boxes such as the Netgem boxes are just not up to the 
processor power required to do full text to speech (which the Portset model is) 
and also in getting the MHEG stream out and read in a timely fashion (it takes 
my Netgem quite a long time, for example, to get some MHEG streams running).  I 
wouldn't be surprised to find some sort of mini PC inside the Portset unit.

Andrew.

-----Original Message-----
From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of 
Ray's Home
Sent: 23 July 2005 11:07
To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Subject: [access-uk] Re: access-uk] Re: Portset Media Centre

I am not in the least surprised that owning a video recorder means you are not 
eligible for licence free 'viewing'.  It would naturally be assumed that, even 
if you are an exclusively blind person/people household, someone would be 
viewing the programmes you are recording sooner or later.

It doesn't always pay to assume things, but I'm confident Portset know, and are 
advised, about legalities in all aspects of their products, especially when it 
comes to VAT regulations.

Saying all of that though brings me to the conclusion that the £800-900 
projected price is high for an audio only unit.  No need to say more on that 
one.

The important point is that Portset's programmer/team have got to grips with 
accessing the electronic program information, and making much of the Freeview 
version of teletext talk.  Maybe we could see a unit very similar to the old 
portset teletext unit and TV receiver in one unit, which should bring the price 
down a lot.

Portset having cracked the digital teletext problem, or at least some of it, 
surely means that others could, including Netgem and the makers of the Nebula, 
to name two.  Whether the latter would see it as being worth while financially 
remains to be seen.  Let us hope that others will follow and make a unit for 
the majority of us who live with sighted folks and not in a Blind Republic 
where sight, and its needs are sometimes seen as an abomination.  Maybe Portset 
could do market research too around a similarly specified unit, but with TV 
connectivity.
Ray

Personal emails:  Email me at
mailto:ray-48@xxxxxxxx

----- Original Message -----
From: "George Bell" <george@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>


This is a complex issue.

Are you aware that even as a blind person, entitled to a
reduced cost TV license, you still have to pay that license
if you have just have a video recorder, and no means of
"SEEING" what you have recorded.  (As one of my customers
found out to his absolute horror!)

And I won't even go into the VAT issue of what is considered
"adaptive" and therefore zero rated, as opposed to what is
NOT.

Just those two issues alone could add £200+ to the price,
and then you'd all be yelling about how expensive it is.

Trust me, Portset will have looked at it from all legal
angles.

George. 

> -----Original Message-----
> From: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 
> [mailto:access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Ray's Home
> Sent: 22 July 2005 17:02
> To: access-uk@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
> Subject: [access-uk] Re: access-uk] Re: Portset Media
Centre
> 
> AS I say Andrew, it could be as much to do with VAT
exemption 
> if this product would escape VAT due to its sound only
status.
> 
> Guess if you couple that with no requirment for a licence,
it 
> chepens it for many.  For others, me included, I'd reallly

> like a voice prompted TV recorder with Freeview access
plus 
> DAISY playback, and internet and ordinary radio too,
although 
> the last is substantially available by Freeview channels.
> 
> Let us hope Portset either modify this box before it
reaches 
> market, or give those of us who are prepared to pay for an

> alternative have another box like this but with RF and
SCART 
> outputs provided.
> 
> Ray.
> mailto:ray-48@xxxxxxxx
> 


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