Since the DM8000 is still in development, may I suggest a new feature which would enhance its appeal?

The Slingbox is proving very popular as it allows people to use their TV or satellite receiver while travelling or at the work, etc. As the Dreambox already has an Ethernet connection, it wouldn't take much effort to add this feature to the DM8000. You just need some extra hardware to handle MPEG-2 Transport Stream to MPEG-4 conversion with a variable bit rate to suit the Internet upload speed at the Dreambox end, plus some software. The Slingbox appears to use a Texas Instrument digital media DSP to do the conversion, so it wouldn't cost much to add this one chip to the Dreambox.

For the software, you would need the firmware to handle the conversion in the DSP, but after that you could probably rely on the Dreambox community to write suitable client software to run on the PC's at the receiving end.

You might say it is already possible to do something similar with a PC and VLC at the Dreambox end. But it is a waste of resources to use a PC when a dedicated video hardware chip can handle the conversion.

I think this is something which would be 100% in the spirit of the Dreambox as it would enhance the integration of digital TV and internet. It would also appeal to those Dreambox enthusiasts who like to pioneer new technology and the others who like to share their technology.