Online Media STB1

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Introduction

Online Media was established as a subsiduary of Acorn Computer group in August 1994 to develop products and services for the networked multimedia market. Online Media produced intelligent set top boxes for interactive TV applications. The STB1 was Online Media's first set top box.

The Cambridge Interactive TV trial began in September 1994 with 10 "tame" users and a couple of content providers using the existing Cambridge Cable network. The trial was later expanded to 100 real users and a number of schools. The Cambridge Cable network was upgraded to extend fiber optic cable to the streetside boxes and coaxial cable used in the local loop to individual premises. The upgraded network used ATM to provide full two way broad band capabilities at up to 2 Megabits per second. Content providers during the trial included the Post Office, Anglia TV, IPC Magazines, Tesco, NatWest bank and the BBC.

In 1996 Online Media launched the Set Top Box 2 (STB20) 

When Acorn was broken up in April 1999 the set top box business was sold to Pace Micro Technology for GBP200,000.

Documents

Here is the Acorn press release News from Online Media  which announces the Cambridge iTV trial..

Set Top Box STB1

The STB1 is basically a customised Risc PC, in an A7000 style case, with a handheld controller. The Acorn project name for the STB1 was "Spinner". The serial number on this STB1 is 100185, and I supect only 200-300 were produced for the trials. The STB1 configuration was:

• ARM610 CPU
• Risc PC Mark 1 circuitboard
• 4MB DRAM SIMM
• Risc OS 3.50
• Wild Vision ATM NIC
• Wild Vision Movie Magic MPEG card with SCART output
• Acorn AMD10 1 slot backplane (for A7000)
• Online Media infra red remote control 

Online Media STB1 box 

Online Media STB1 box label

Online Media STB1 box open 

This shows the STB1 in the protective padding with the remote control in the white box to the left. Also visible on the left are the power and SCART cables. No documentation was included.

 Online Media STB1 (front)

 Online Media STB1 (right)

Online Media STB1 (back) 

The back of the STB1 showing, from left to right:

• On the left the on/off switch with the serial number underneath it and the power connection below,
• The 2 x SCART outputs, the lower one is on the Wild Vision Movie Magic card,
• Along the bottom the Risc PC ports: the reset button, headphone, VGA video out, PS/2 keyboard, Acorn mouse, ATM socket, parallel port and serial port.
• At the top on the right are the white and red stereo sound output and two socket which I know nothing about.

Note that there are no symbols on the case to indicate what each port is for.

Online Media STB1 (bottom)

 The bottom of the STB1 showing the Model: STB10N, and Serial Number: 100185.

 Online Media STB1 with cover removed

This picture shows the inside of the STB1, from left to right:

• On the middle left, the horizontal 30MHz ARM610 "Spinner" CPU card
• In the middle to the front, the 1 slot backplane (part number 1202,310) with the Wild Vision Movie Magic card plugged into it
• On the right the power supply which is the same part number as the A7000 (1104,010)

 Online Media STB1 with Movie Magic removed

With the backplane and the Movie Magic card removed, this shows:

• The 4MB SIMM at the front right
• The Wild Vision ATM NIC in the middle back.

 Online Media STB1 motherboard 

With the ATM NIC and CPU card removed, this shows:

• In the top left the 2 x RISC OS3.50 ROMs
• In the top middle the Acorn Computers part number (0197,100) and the white label below it "1104,000(Mk1) Spinner Main"
• There are no disc drives.

Specification: