Nuon (named NUON) is a technology created by VM Labs that adds new features to a DVD player. In addition to watching DVDs, users can play 3D video games and use improved tools to navigate DVDs, such as zooming in and smoothly scanning through content. Users can also play CDs while the Nuon graphics processor displays matching graphics on the screen. Future versions of Nuon-equipped DVD players were planned to include the ability to access the Internet.

History

Nuon was first introduced under the temporary name "Project X" and was planned to be released during the 1998 Christmas season. It was included in Electronic Gaming Monthly's 1999 Video Game Buyer's Guide. One of the main programmers for Nuon was Jeff Minter, who developed a version of Tempest called Tempest 3000 for the system, along with a built-in VLM-2 audio visualizer. Several companies made the hardware for Nuon.

The software development kit (SDK) for Nuon cost about one-third as much as the PlayStation SDK. After showing strong interest at the 1998 Consumer Electronics Show, VM Labs sent many SDKs to developers.

When Nuon was first announced, its creators hoped it would compete with upcoming video game consoles from major companies. However, Nuon was mainly promoted as an improved DVD format. Most Nuon players sold looked like regular DVD players, with the only difference being a Nuon logo. Nuon players had features not found on other DVD players when playing standard DVDs, such as smooth forward and reverse playback and the ability to zoom in and out of video sections. Nuon also provided a platform for DVD creators to add interactive features to their content.

In North America, Nuon was used in Samsung models like the DVD-N501 and DVD-N2000. Other models were released in different regions, including DVD-N504 and DVD-N505 in Europe, and DVD-N591 in Korea. Toshiba made the SD-2300 DVD player, and RCA produced the DRC300N and DRC480N models. Nuon was also used in Motorola's Streamaster 5000 "Digital DNA" set-top box.

Nuon was created by VM Labs, which sold its assets to Genesis Microchip in April 2002. By November 2004, no Nuon-enabled DVD players were being sold, and no new Nuon software was being developed or released.

Peripherals for Nuon-enhanced DVD players included the following:

Only four DVD releases used Nuon technology. All of them were made by 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment:

Only eight games were officially released for the Nuon:

Homebrew development

In late 2001, VM Labs released an SDK that let developers create apps and games for the Nuon system. Only the Samsung DVD-N501/ DVDN504/ DVDN505 and RCA DRC300N/ DRC480N can run homebrew games. Some homebrew titles have been made for or ported to Nuon. These titles are not sold in stores and require the user to burn the material to a Nuon-compatible CD-R.