Pulse-Eight USB CEC Adapter Review

At CES, Pulse-Eight showed me a new product based on the USB CEC adapter. The board inside the adapter (which happens to have an Atmel microcontroller as the main component) was taken out and the connectors modified a bit to to interface with the HTPC header on the Intel DH61AG motherboard that we talked about earlier. The HTPC header with the CEC pin is also available in the Intel DN2800MT board.

One set of pins connects to the HTPC header, while the other set connects to an internal USB header. All the HDMI pin 13 routing is handled internally on the motherboard. This makes the system self-contained and the end-user doesn't need to deal with external adapters and the whole setup process we discussed earlier. The removal of the HDMI connectors, casing and cables is also bound to dramatically lower the cost of the adapter.

Of course, the above internal adapter can be used only if the motherboard has the appropriate HTPC header. Intel has already taken the initiative and I really don't see any reason why other HTPC friendly motherboard manufacturers like ASRock and Zotac shouldn't implement this. The cost of putting in a CEC header on-board should be pretty minimal (as it just involves rerouting some HDMI wires), and they can always leave it up to the end-user to decide whether they want the CEC functionality or not. If needed, the user can just purchase the internal CEC adapter from Pulse-Eight directly. In this way, the cost of the motherboard also doesn't increase. For pre-built HTPCs like the ASRock Core series or Vision 3D series / Zotac ZBox series, the manufacturers could get rid of the MCE remotes and integrate CEC functionality in the system (for control through the TV remote). In the higher end systems, they could optionally bundle in the Motorola Nyxboard Remote for full home theater control through the HTPC.

Support for the USB CEC adapter is currently available to the public only through XBMC Eden. However, Pulse-Eight indicated that Windows Media Center, Event Ghost and MediaPortal would also be able to take advantage of the USB CEC adapter by the end of February along with support for wake from standby through the adapter.

In summary, the USB CEC adapter works as advertised. Yes, there are certain quirks / issues as described earlier, but nothing which a HTPC enthusiast experimenting with new gadgets is not accustomed to. From a home theater perspective, the adapter is priced right for a standalone entertainment system, but, if the user does a lot of YouTube searches etc. in XBMC, it might be worthwhile investing in a RF / Bluetooth mini-keyboard / trackpad combo also (Most TV remotes aren't optimized for interactions of that sort). The bigger picture is the home automation and control scene. It is up to the software community to come up with interesting applications using the adapter, but there is nothing of note in the market right now in that area. There is a lot of scope in the CEC protocol and its potential lies untapped.  That said, things seem to be moving in the right direction for Pulse-Eight. Being a small and driven company, they seem to be ready to put in the extra effort to ensure the success of the CEC adapter. With regular updates in the pipeline in terms of supported programs and ease of setup, the USB CEC adapter is bound to become popular with HTPC enthusiasts.