At this year’s National Association
of Broadcasters’ NAB, 14–17 April
2008, Barco builds on its estab-
lished reputation in color monitor-
ing with the introduction of its
RHDM-2301 Reference Monitor. Carl
Peeters, President of Barco’s Secu-
rity & Monitoring Division, talks
about the strategy behind the com-
pany’s re-entry into the Grade-1
reference monitor business.
Carl Peeters: “Although our last ‘official’
Barco-developed Grade-1 reference
monitor was launched some years ago
we have continued to develop the core
technologies needed to create market-
leading calibration solutions.”
The RHDM-2301 is the latest evidence of
this ‘red thread’ through Barco’s broad-
cast display and visualization solutions,
which started nearly 40 years ago when
the company created the world’s first
state-of-the-art reference monitor. This
true Grade-1 LCD reference monitor
helps complete Barco’s vision of end-to-
end calibrated solutions for broadcast
and audiovisual professionals.
The reference for broadcast
visualization
Barco has a long history of manufactur-
ing display technology for the broadcast
market. Barco developed specific driving
schemes delivering perfect gray and
color tracking for CRT displays in the late
seventies. This made Barco the recog-
nized brand for good skin tone reproduc-
tion. With the introduction of the first
self-calibrating broadcast monitor in the
eighties, broadcast professionals were
delighted to finally use a zero-mainte-
nance product. Barco elaborated on that
success with the introduction of a dedi-
cated color imaging display family.
Re-entering the reference
monitor market
Thanks to recent advances in LCD tech-
nology and Barco’s continuous R&D
efforts, Barco is now re-entering the ref-
erence monitor market, with the first
true Grade-1 LCD display for the profes-
sional broadcast market.
“A number of factors have affected the
timing of this new development,” says
Mr. Peeters. “The key one is technical.
Until now, CRT displays have been the
only serious choice for professional,
Grade-1 calibration duties. Now we can
capitalize on advances made in LCD
technology to match, or exceed, the
performance of Grade-1 CRT displays.
We believe the RHDM-2301 will set a
new standard in the professional broad-
cast market – drawing on our deep cali-
bration expertise in other fields, such as
healthcare and air traffic control.”
Another key factor is the market: the
industry is in rapid transition to digital
broadcast, high-definition TV with very
high resolution and wide aspect ratio.
New reference solutions are needed as
CRT monitors finally become obsolete.
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