Matrox ® Video Products Group today announced Matrox MXO2 Mini, a new version of the award-winning Matrox MXO2 I/O device. It can be used with Mac and PC laptop and desktop systems and popular applications including Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro and Photoshop, and many more. It provides capture and playback of high definition video via HDMI and analog component; or NTSC and PAL via analog component S-Video, and composite. Users can convert standard definition videos to high definition, or vice versa, while capturing or playing out, using Matrox MXO2 Mini's high-quality dedicated hardware scaler. Matrox MXO2 Mini turns an inexpensive HDMI screen into a professional-grade video monitor thanks to Matrox's unique color calibration tool. This product also makes it easy to edit AVCHD footage by capturing into an edit-friendly compressed or uncompressed format.
Matrox MXO2 Mini is also available with Matrox MAX technology for faster than realtime high definition H.264 file creation.

"Users won't settle for HDMI and analog I/O cards with messy cables once they see this sleek little device for Mac and PC that provides all the same features in a professional breakout box, with the added advantage of portability," said Alberto Cieri, Matrox senior sales and marketing director. "And they will really appreciate the addition of the Matrox MAX technology that will let them easily deliver H.264 files than ever before."

Matrox MXO2 Mini will be demonstrated at NAB 2009 in booth SL3814.

Key features of Matrox MXO2 Mini

* Works with Mac and PC, laptops and desktops
* Small, lightweight, external box that’s easily connected to cameras and monitors
* Capture and playback high definition video via HDMI and analog component; or NTSC and PAL via analog component, S-Video, and composite
* Turns an HDMI screen into a professional-grade video monitor with color calibration tools including blue-only
* High-quality 10-bit hardware scaling engine for realtime upscaling, downscaling, and cross conversion on capture and playback (See Specifications for scaling features supported on Mac and PC)
* Stereo RCA and up to 8 channels of HDMI audio input and output
* 5.1 and 7.1 surround sound monitoring on the HDMI output
* Easily edit AVCHD footage by capturing into an edit-friendly compressed or uncompressed format
* Works with leading applications including Final Cut Pro, Adobe Premiere Pro, Adobe Photoshop, and many more
* Also available with Matrox MAX for faster than realtime H.264 encoding
* Three-year hardware warranty and complimentary telephone support

About Matrox MAX
Matrox MAX is a unique technology that implements faster than realtime H.264 encoding for resolutions ranging from iPod to HD. It uses a dedicated hardware processor to accelerate the creation of H.264 files for Blu-ray, the web, and mobile devices. By using specialized hardware acceleration, jobs are finished with amazing speed and system resources are liberated for other tasks. Quality and flexibility are ensured through direct integration with professional applications such as Apple Compressor on the Mac and Adobe Media Encoder on the PC. As an added benefit, the Matrox MAX technology allows direct export to higher-quality H.264 Blu-ray compliant files from Compressor.

Price and availability
Matrox MXO2 Mini is priced at $449 US ( £338, €382) and Matrox MXO2 Mini with the MAX option is priced at $849 US ( £644, €758) not including local taxes. Each MXO2 Mini comes with the customer’s choice of either an ExpressCard /34 laptop adapter or a PCIe desktop adapter. Additional adapters may be purchased separately. The products will be available in May 2009 through a worldwide network of authorized dealers.