Business News Holding

Tag: hardware-and-technology

  • NXP Chip Brings High-end HDTV Quality Into Mainstream


    NXP has launched a new global single-chip LCD TV platform that it claims will give mid-range TVs an HD viewing experience previously only available on higher end sets.

    Founded by Philips, the semiconductor company believes its new platform will allow manufacturers and content providers to bring a broad range of Internet and digital video content to a significantly wider audience.

    The new NXP TV550 platform combines the manufacturer’s digital TV processing and picture quality technology into one fully integrated single-chip.

    This enables it to deliver a production-ready reference design that speeds manufacturers’ development and dramatically reduces bill-of-materials, according to NXP.

    Christos Lagomichos, executive vice president and general manager of BU Home, NXP Semiconductors, said the new platform would enable manufacturers to offer a range of advanced high definition TV features only previously available in high-end sets.

    Key to this was NXP’s PNX85500 processor and proprietary Motion Accurate Picture Processing (MAPP2) technology.

    The TV550 platform will be available in engineering samples in Q1 2009.

    The NXP TV550 features:

    • DVB-T
    • MPEG4/H.264 decode
    • HDMI reception
    • Decoding of digital SD and HD content
    • advanced programming
    • ethernet
    • CI+ security features to ease the delivery of IP TV content.

  • Linux Successfully Ported To iPhone


    The open-source OS Linux has been ported to the iPhone and iPod for the first time.

    A member of the iPhone Dev Team – going by the screen name Planetbeing – has managed to load Linux 2.6’s kernel to the 2G and 3G iPhone, as well as the first generation iPod Touch.

    Although many drivers are missing, this first attempt offers support for the framebuffer driver, serial driver, and serial over USB driver.

    Certainly enough to announce that the iPhone is running an alternative OS.

    The dev team is still working on issues such as enabling write support for the NAND, Wireless networking, Touchscreen support, Sound, Accelerometer and Baseband support.

    It would appear there’s still much to be done, but it’s a big step forward for those desperate to have the iPhone able to boot an alternative OS such as Android.

  • INTERVIEW: Ten Criteria For Enterprise Business Continuity Software

    Jerome Wendt, president and lead analyst of DCIG Inc, an independent storage analyst and consulting firm, outlines 10 criteria for selecting the right enterprise business continuity software

    The pressures to implement business continuity software that can span the enterprise and recover application servers grow with each passing day.

    Disasters come in every form and shape from regional disasters (earthquakes, floods, lightning strikes) to terrorist attacks to brown-outs to someone accidently unplugging the wrong server.

    Adding to the complexity, the number of application servers and virtual machines are on the rise and IT headcounts are flat or shrinking.

    Despite these real-world situations, companies often still buy business continuity software that is based on centralized or stand-alone computing models that everyone started abandoning over a decade ago.

    Distributed computing is now almost universally used for hosting mission critical applications in all companies.

    However business continuity software that can easily recover and restore data in distributed environments is still based on 10 year old models.

    This puts businesses in a situation when they end up purchasing business continuity software that can only recover a subset of their application data.

    Organizations now need a new set of criteria that accounts for the complexities of distributed systems environments.

    Today’s business continuity software must be truly enterprise and distributed in its design.

    Here are 10 features that companies now need to identify when selecting business continuity software so it meets the needs of their enterprise distributed environment:

    • Heterogeneous server and storage support.
    • Accounts for differences in performance.
    • Manages replication over WAN links.
    • Multiple ways to replicate data.
    • Application integration.
    • Provides multiple recovery points.
    • Introduces little or no overhead on the host server.
    • Replicates data at different points in the network (host, network or storage system).
    • Centrally managed.
    • Scales to manage replication for tens, hundreds or even thousands of servers.

    The requirements for providing higher, faster and easier means of enterprise business continuity have escalated dramatically in the last decade while the criteria for selecting the software remains rooted in yesterday’s premises and assumptions.

    Today’s corporations not only need to re-evaluate what software they are using to perform these tasks but even what criteria on which they should base these decisions.

    The 10 criteria listed here should provide you with a solid starting point for picking backup continuity software that meets the requirements of today’s enterprise distributed environments while still providing companies the central control and enterprise wise recoverability that they need to recover their business.

    To read the full criteria please go to DCIG Inc.

  • Smartphones Help WeFi Pass One Million User Mark


    The growing number of WiFi enabled smartphones appears to be spurring WeFi Inc on to greater things.

    The community-based global Wi-Fi network says it has now amassed over one million users in 215 countries, with an increasing number coming from mobile devices.

    WeFi, which recently added Symbian and Windows Mobile platforms to its Wi-Fi-connection service, also reported that it now has 10 million discovered hotspots.

    A statement said this makes it the largest virtual global Wi-Fi network, and the largest worldwide map of Wi-Fi access points available today.

    WeFi offers free downloadable software that enables automatic connection to the best Wi-Fi hotspot available.

    As well as Symbian and Windows Mobile, it has versions available for PCs and Macs, and has gained in popularity as more mobile devices become Wi-Fi compatible.

    In addition to gaining access to hotspots, members of the WeFi community are invited to map and rank open hotspots in any given location around the world, forming an aggregate picture of all the available Wi-Fi connections.

    Zur Feldman, CEO of WeFi, said the one million users demonstrated the rapid growth in users, located all across the world.

    "WeFi has been successful in being able to give our users the ability to add hotspots themselves and to share them with others," he said.

  • Inventory Problems Cloud Storm's Launch


    Whether the long, cold waits – and, for many, ultimately empty-handed departures – were down to a security issue or general inventory problems is still not clear.

    What’s certain is that the Blackberry Storm’s US launch didn’t go as either exclusive operator Verizon or maker Research In Motion would have wished.

    Lines of people formed outside Verizon Wireless stores on Friday to buy the Storm, the first touch-screen phone from RIM that aims to compete with Apple’s iPhone.

    Today, Verizon has placed a notice on its online ordering page stating that: "Due to limited availability of the BlackBerry Storm 9530 smartphone, orders will ship by 12/15".

    While Verizon has declined to give specifics on inventory levels, the shipping delays are being attributed in some quarters to a last-minute security glitch.

    The Storm was to have launched with OS version 4.7.0.82, but because of the security issue every handset had to be downgraded to .65.

    This time-consuming task is the most likely reason why so many fewer handsets arrived in-store and online for release.

    Just to make matters worse, some of those who did manage to buy a Storm were met with activation issues as Verizon’s servers seemingly met the same fate as AT&T’s and Apple’s on iPhone 3G launch day.

  • Sensor Doubles Camera Phone Low-Light Performance


    Aptina has launched a new sensor for high-end 5-megapixel camera phones that promises to double performance in low-light situations.

    Called the MT9P013 5MP image sensor, it also promises to provide high quality video recording capabilities supporting up to 720p HD video at 60 frames per second and full 5-megapixel resolution video at 15fps.

    To achieve this, the new 1.75-micron pixel, 1/3.2 inch optical format sensor leverages the same light-capturing technology Aptina is integrating into its 1.4-micron image sensors.

    Aptina expects mass production of the MT9P013 to begin at the end of January 2009.

    Other MT9P013 Key Features:

    • high frame rate
    • data output options include a high throughput 2-lane MIPI serial interface capable of 1500 Mbps or greater and a parallel interface with throughput of 96Mb/sec x 12 bits.
    • The output options combined with the sensor’s input clock for the PLL enable users to consider a variety of ISP solutions, including the MT9S311, Aptina’s ISP solution designed specifically for manufacturers integrating Aptina 5MP sensors.

  • Lenovo Promises Desktop PC Breakthrough


    Lenovo has launched a desktop computing solution that can dramatically help businesses reduce IT costs and security risks by turning off hard drives and storing all data in a non-server remote location.

    Called Secure Managed Client (SMC), the company claims it is the first solution to do all this while still offering users the flexibility and performance of a traditional desktop PC.

    It consists of a client, a hard drive-less ThinkCentre desktop PC Intel vPro technology, a Lenovo co-developed software stack and a centralized Lenovo Storage Array, powered by Intel.

    Peter Schrady, vice president, general manager, software and peripherals Relevant Products/Services, Lenovo, said SMC was the rarest of gems – a breakthrough technology in desktop computing.

    "We’ve all seen the rapid-fire advances in mobile Relevant Products/Services computing such as batteries, connectivity, and the like, but this is the desktop PC’s turn to shine," he said.

    "SMC is an exceptionally engineered innovation designed for better manageability, better security, better performance and a better balance sheet."

    Shrady said SMC offers several significant benefits over current server-based computing options such as blade PCs, thin clients or desktop virtualization Relevant Products/Services.

    Most notably, these include:

    • Preserves PC fidelity — SMC gives the end user a full Windows experience
    • Avoids IT complexity — SMC works with and enhances current IT process and tools
    • Safe and flexible investment — An SMC ThinkCentre can easily be converted back to a traditional desktop PC by re-enabling the hard drives
    • Energy efficient — An SMC ThinkCentre uses less energy Relevant Products/Services than a traditional desktop PC
    • Security — Information from all desktops in an SMC fleet is stored in a safe, single location, significantly reducing the threat of on-site theft of data

    Lenovo said some of its large enterprise customers have already recorded significant results from SMC pilot deployments.

    The company estimates that using the SMC solution can potentially reduce the expense of fully managing a PC from USD $120 per month to as low as $70 per PC.

    This is based on expense estimates for large enterprise customers in North America that take into account such things as deskside IT visits, call center support Relevant Products/Services, and management costs.

    The SMC solution is currently being offered on the ThinkCentre M57p(1) desktop PC, and can also be offered on the ThinkCentre M58p(2 )in early 2009.

  • G-Technology Launches Mac-friendly External Hard Drives


    Storage firm G-Technology is to offer a range of Mac-friendly external hard drives cast from aircraft grade aluminium.

    The four HDD models in the fanless G-Drive range come pre-formatted with HFS Plus – the Mac’s native file format – and support Mac OS X’s Time Machine automatic back-up system.

    The 2.5in Mini Combo G-Drive is available in 160GB, 250GB and 320GB capacity options, with USB 2.0 and FireWire 400 support.

    A second 2.5in option is the Mini Triple, which comes as either a 250GB or 320GB drive with USB and FireWire 400/800 connection capability.

    G-Tech’s two 3.5in HDD options, the Combo and the Q, are both available as 500GB or 1TB capacity drives.

    The Combo supports USB and FireWire 400, while the Q supports FireWire 800 and eSATA connections.

    Prices are from USD $170 (€125).

  • Kingston USB Stick Reaches 64GB – And Climbing


    It wasn’t THAT long ago that anything over 1GB of Flash storage was considered impressive.

    Now Kingston Technology has launched its new DataTraveler 150, a 64GB USB Flash drive.

    This supercedes last month’s offering – a mere 32GB – as the largest in the outfit’s entire DataTraveler line.

    Jaja Lin, Kingston’s Flash business development manager, said the DataTraveler 150 takes transportable storage to the next level.

    "As file sizes increase with digital media content such as music and photos, the need for USB Flash drives with high capacities will continue to rise," said Lin.

    "The DT150 certainly addresses those needs today."

    The rising storage capacity of USB sticks comes at a time when the number of computers infected with viruses from USB flash memory drives is spreading.

    This has prompted calls for PC users to take precautions when sharing data with others via USB memory sticks.

    Measuring 77.9mm x 22mm x 12.05mm, the DataTraveler 150 comes with a 5-year warranty and works with any system with a spare USB slot, including Windows, OS X, Palm OS and Linux.

    The memory sticks come with a five-year warranty and are priced at USD $132 and $177.

  • Security tool for VoIP solutions released


    A new tool which allows enterprises to assess if their VoIP solutions are vulnerable to targeted eavesdropping has been released.

    UCSniff, from Sipera Systems’ VIPER Lab, is a free application which allows network managers find out how easy it is to imitate an enterprise VoIP phone, download a directory and then listen in on confidential calls.

    "UCSniff is an assessment tool that helps demonstrate vulnerabilities in VoIP design and implementation," said VIPER Lab director Jason Ostrom.

    "It was born from the concept of combining targeted attacks against VoIP users along with the corporate directory, intelligent VLAN support, and man-in-the-middle features."

    The results of a survey released last month revealed that security was one of the top-five concerns for respondents when investing in VoIP solutions.

    The security and regulatory compliance implications are significant for VoIP eavesdropping, especially given the ability for outside hackers to access corporate directories.

    Once done they can use that information to target and automatically record conversations between anyone from CEOs, CFOs, corporate counsel and outside law firms to accounts rReceivable dealing with customer credit card payments.

    The UCSniff tool is available now for SIP and SCCP signaling protocols. A future version will allow testing VoIP Video calls on the Windows OS.