Computex Nvidia has begun offering software to help notebook manufacturers bring their products into the iPod era. The new code, called nStant Media, allows mobile PCs based on Nvidia's chips to play music and movies without needing to boot up a full operating system first.

As we reported yesterday the Computex show in Taipei is playing host to a number of new notebooks that provide this kind of immediate playback functionality.

Nvidia has obviously sensed the mood among manufacturers to offer systems designed as mobile alternatives to the so-called 'living room PC'. nStant Media provides access to DVDs, photos, MP3 and other, unspecified music files at the push of a button - well, nine seconds afterwards, which is what it takes to power up the hardware and run whatever compact OS nStant Media is based upon.

Naturally enough, it requires the presence of an Nvidia graphics chip, which is why Nvidia is offering the software. It hopes more manufacturers will buy its mobile products and thus knock back arch-rival ATI's almost 70 per cent share of the mobile graphics chip market. That's why the software is only being made available to system manufacturers and their vendor customers. ®

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