PC data is sent to the phone's base unit though a serial connection and then to the cordless phone. For home offices, Cendis will monitor all incoming phone lines and route traffic to the open line. All of these products, whether they are wireless or use existing power or phone lines, are so inexpensive. The service continuously transmits just the audio programs each individual user wants into the memory of a handheld receiver. Information sources such as local traffic, weather, news, business and sports reports are constantly updated and transmitted to the receivers that automatically store them.
Users can then listen to any program whenever they choose.
They can even select programs like BusinessWeek, Fortune and Time magazines. The service will debut in Denver and Phoenix by midyear, and a national rollout is expected to begin early next year. Instead of videotape, programs are recorded to its random-access digital storage, which lets users watch the beginning of a show while it's still being recorded. ReplayTV comes with a free channel guide service that's updated nightly through a phone-line connection. Tell it to record ER and it will do so each week until you tell it to stop.