Douglas L Ross: Convergence Devices

HP E-Book Reader

Tue, 26 Aug 2003 17:20:53 GMT

Here's another example of a networked appliance that also has a lot of local storage, the application being reading stuff.

Hi-tech tome takes on paperbacks. US researchers have developed a prototype e-book which can hold a whole library on a gadget no bigger than a paperback. [BBC News | Technology | UK Edition]

AOL Video Instant Messaging Ban Lifted By FCC

Fri, 22 Aug 2003 16:06:20 GMT

The NYT wrote another editorial in its news pages by focusing about 75% of the arguments in this article on the anti-monopoly viewpoint and backhanding the logic for why the FCC had no business interferring in an emerging technology in the first place.

F.C.C. Lifts Ban on Video for AOL Instant Messaging. The Federal Communications Commission has granted a request by AOL Time Warner to drop restrictions on adding video to its AOL instant messaging service. By David D. Kirkpatrick. [New York Times: Technology]

PC to TV Blackboxes

Fri, 22 Aug 2003 15:50:43 GMT

Hauppauge [HAUP; Nasdaq] and others are making these devices that the NYT's Mcmanus describe as "bridging the gap" between the PC and the TV enabling consumers to display "media content" that resides on PCs. Curiously, there is no word on the Hauppague website about the MediaMVP product that Mcmanus references in his article [From PC to TV Screen, a Stream of Multimedia. Your PC is brimming with great photos, MP3's and videos. But your family and friends are glued to the television. By Neil Mcmanus. New York Times: Technology] and no indication of its price or feature set.

Among other things, Hauppaauge makes a 350 Meg PC/DVR card that sells for $200.

Digital Technology

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 17:28:01 GMT

Digital (Fill in the Blank) Is on the Horizon. Despite a slump in some technology sectors, consumers are increasingly turning to all sorts of digital gadgets and services. By Steve Lohr. [New York Times: Technology]

SBC WiFi Deal With Wayport

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 16:52:00 GMT

Reacting to Verizon's previous wifi announcements, SBC is now getting into the act.

SBC, Wayport sign hot spot deal. The telecommunications giant becomes the latest major company to ink an agreement that will let its customers use Wayport's 650 Wi-Fi hot spots across the nation. [CNET News.com]

Motorola Carbon Nanotube Television Displays

Wed, 06 Aug 2003 15:22:55 GMT

Moto Labs apparently thinks it has discovered a viable commercial process for manufacturing television displays based on carbon nanotube technology, which would theoritically provide a CRT quality image at a cost that is significantly lower than current plasma and LCD displays.

"Motorola’s NED [nano emissive display ] approach to displays could enable low cost, flat panel wall-mounted television, greater than 50“ diagonal, and just one inch deep to become a reality in the not too distant future. The technology also could be used for much larger displays, such as those used in billboard advertising or sporting events."

Sony Plugs TV Into Notebooks

Tue, 10 Jun 2003 20:03:06 GMT

Sony plugs TV into Vaio notebooks. The Japanese company looks to boost its PC fortunes with a notebook that lets people pause and record live TV for future playback and another that packs Centrino wireless technology. [CNET News.com]

Disney's Moviebeam

Fri, 02 May 2003 15:32:23 GMT

Disney has announced a service called Moviebeam which will deliver "VOD" movies to consumer homes via analog broadcast tv signals using datacasting technologies. The service requires a side-car TV settop box that will apparently have enough [PVR-like] memory to store up to 100 movie titles [~150 to 200 GB]. Disney plans to test the service in Salt Lake City apparently via its ABC affiliate station there.

This brings up the interesting question again about whether or not cable operators are obligated to carry the "datacasting" information embedded in the ABC television signal and thus to enable the use of Cable's network to compete with their own VOD services without any compensation from a broadcaster like Disney?

Sony's Streaming IP TV Set

Fri, 04 Apr 2003 19:43:37 GMT

Sony TV would grab streams from the Net. The company is developing a plasma screen TV set that's intended to tune in streaming video from home networks and the Internet as easily as regular TV programs, sources say. [CNET News.com]

The Work Foundation iSociety Project Research

Fri, 04 Apr 2003 14:34:41 GMT

Cost 'barrier' to future phones. A study of how real people interact with their mobiles reveals that third generation phones might not take off as the operators hope. [BBC News | Technology | UK Edition]

VoIP Over WiFi

Thu, 03 Apr 2003 17:27:53 GMT

Two interesting players in the VoIP space [Calypso Wireless Inc. and VoiceTech Communications Corp. USA] announced a licensing agreement related to technology for delivering WiFi wireless VoIP services to cellular handsets. Calypso had also previously announced a large project in China ( http://www.nasdaq.com//asp/quotes_news.asp?pageName=Company%20News&;selected=CLYW&consumer=NDQ&StoryTargetFrame=_top&market=Other%20OTC&coname=CALYPSO%20WIRELESS%20INC&symbol=CLYW&cpath=20030206%5C200302060815CTXBIZ34330565.htm)

Sub $150 DVDs With MPEG-4-compatible Decoder Chips

Mon, 31 Mar 2003 15:12:51 GMT

EETimes reports that Cirrus Logic has licensed the DivX technology for its DVD processors. http://www.eet.com/sys/news/OEG20030326S0049 According to the article:

"By early 2004 Cirrus Logic said its chips would allow users to play DivX content from the web in real-time as well as access the Internet and play streaming audio content. The devices would also enable service providers to offer direct video-on- demand services. "

New Stuff At CeBIT

Fri, 21 Mar 2003 18:32:49 GMT

InforWorld article with an interesting list of the new stuff at CeBIT.

Gadgets galore at CeBIT 2003. Division between computing, consumer electronics continues to narrow [InfoWorld: Top News]

It includes a blurb on WiFi Video:

"At first glance, BenQ's WM1000 Wireless Media Adapter looked like a typical Wi-Fi access point. But looks can be deceiving. The device is designed to stream DVD-quality MPEG (Moving Picture Experts Group)4 video and MP3 music over an 802.11b wireless LAN connection, and can stream video from a PC to a television. In addition to receiving video streamed from a PC, the WM1000 can handle input from a DVD player or cable television, he said. The WM1000 will begin shipping next quarter, the company said, and pricing was not immediately available. The company, based in Taipei , will initially release the product in Asia before rolling it out to other regions. The company did not give a timeframe for worldwide rollout. "

Sonicblue to Sell Replay TV To Japanese Consumer Electronics Companies

Fri, 21 Mar 2003 18:07:09 GMT

Sonicblue seeks bankruptcy protection. The hardware maker files for Chapter 11 status, with the intent of selling its ReplayTV digital recorder and Rio MP3 player businesses. [CNET News.com]

According to announcements by Sonicblue in relationship a Chapter 11 filing, they hope to sell their ReplayTV and Rio subsidiaries for ~$40 million to Japanese consumer electronics companies D&M Holdings and Marantz Japan.

Convergence In The Home

Thu, 20 Mar 2003 15:42:23 GMT

Fortune's Peter Lewis takes another shot at the failure of "convergence" concluding basically that its a solution in search of a problem.

Media2Go From Microsoft

Tue, 18 Mar 2003 16:34:20 GMT

CNet reporting on Microsoft's launch of Media2Go software at CeBit.

Motorola's "Connected Home" Vision At CeBit

Fri, 07 Mar 2003 14:43:03 GMT

Here's Moto's press release on the "connected home" stuff they are showing at CeBit: http://www.motorola.com/mediacenter/news/detail/0,1958,2441_2000_23,00.html

Here's some press coverage of that: http://www.newsfactor.com/perl/story/20939.html

Sony Wants To Buy Palm O/S or Symbian

Wed, 05 Mar 2003 14:35:34 GMT

Tony Perkins (of Red Herring fame) intervied Sony's Idei at Davos and reported on that in a website called "Always On" which The Register picked up on and is now reporting in this story:

Sony keen to buy PalmSource. Or Symbian if Palm won't sell [The Register]

Tablet PCs

Tue, 04 Mar 2003 18:55:43 GMT

Planet PDA magazine says Tablet PCs will "revive the PC market?" http://www.planetpdamag.com/content/030403rt.htm

Arris To Acquire Atoga Systems

Mon, 03 Mar 2003 21:47:42 GMT

Arris announced that they will acquire Atoga Systems http://www.arrisi.com/press_room/press_detail.asp?press=143

Atoga makes Optical Application Router hardware and an Element Management System, components in a transport platform for carrying IP, Ethernet and TDM traffic over SONET or DWDM metro networks.

Sony's Vision of Convergence

Mon, 03 Mar 2003 14:29:53 GMT

Sony's "Value Network" vision presentation by Sony President Kunitake Ando http://news.sel.sony.com/pressrelease/3254