LiveStream Broadcaster: portable real-time video encoding for LiveStream

LiveStream has just released the LiveStream Broadcaster, a small box that is a self-contained, autonomous, H.264 real-time video encoder and uploader. The incoming video from a camera enters the box via an HDMI port (1080i max resolution), and is encoded on the fly to an H.264 video stream (AAC audio) at a maximum bitrate of 2.3Mbps. If you have a microphone, a 3.5mm jack audio input is also available.

The compressed video can then be streamed directly to LiveStream over wired Ethernet, WiFi, or a USB modem (3G, 4G – most US carriers supported). With a cost of $495, this box can in effect let pretty much anyone stream a high quality video feed from everywhere, and on a very small budget. This was just unthinkable just a couple of years ago (that said, I remember seeing a box just like that last year in Japan…).

In any case, this is a great offering that will most definitely give LiveStream an edge against the competition. Making things easier for your customer is in general a very good recipe for success… [LiveStream Broadcaster home page]. Update: if you’re using Ustream, check out Cerevo, it’s a similar system. I’ve seen Steve Nagata using it.