Maybe I’m just the kind of guy who demands to get my money’s worth, but my iPhone hasn’t left my side ever since I shelled out the full contract price of $500 for the 16 GB 3G version. In fact, I use the darn thing so much that it has paid for itself many times over if you equate time used to money – I probably owe the gizmo $20 at this point. What’s more, the variety of functions it can perform is downright amazing, most of which are made possible by the handset’s touchscreen.
Tag Archive: Technology
Griffin MyPhones Look to Protect Kids’ Hearing
Peripheral and accessory maker Griffin Technology is looking to score some points with parents this holiday season with its forthcoming MyPhones, a new pair of over-the-ear headphones designed for kids ages 3 to 12 with a special feature: a built-in limiter circuit caps thevolume of the headphones at 85 decibels, the level that safety agencies and audiologists recommend as the highest safe sustained noise level for children.
“Children are as interested in technology as adults these days,” said Griffin CEO Paul Griffin, in a statement. “MyPhones are the first headphones that kids can really call their own. And with MyPhones’ 85 decibel volume limit, parents can rest easy, knowing that their kids’ hearing is not being compromised.”
IBM Looks to DNA To Self-Assemble Future Chips
Technology giant IBM has always invested tremendous amounts of money and talent into technology research, and has one of the largest (perhaps the largest) patent portfolio in the world to show for its efforts. Today, IBM announced another technology breakthrough that, in a decade or so, may revolutionize the way computer CPUs and other microprocessors are made: the company has come up with a way to use organic DNA molecules as a scaffold on which nanotubes and nanowires can self-assemble in precise patterns compatible with today’s lithographic chip-making technology. The technology may enable chip features smaller than 22nm—IBM is currently pushing traditional chip techniques towards 28nm—and may ultimately help make chips smaller and more power efficient.
eBay Wrangles with Joltid Over Skype P2P Technology
Back in 2005, online auction site eBay bought VoIP powerhouse Skype amid glowing promises of synergy between the two companies…but this year, admitted that hadn’t really worked out and announced plans to spin Skype back off into its own company with an IPO. However, an unresolved technology licensing battle may derail the plans, because it turns out Skype’s founders managed to retain control of peer-to-peer technology underlying Skype; now they’re looking to kill the licensing agreement saying Skype is in breach of contract.
LG Shows Off New Edge-to-Edge HDTVs
LG Electronics has put on its annual Summer Show, parading new products that it hopes will light up consumers’ wallets come the end-of-year holiday buying season. In the mix this year are two new HDTV series, the SL80 and SL90 series, both featuring edge-to-edge glass panels and slim bezels—with invisible speaker systems and Energy Star 3.0 compliance. Plus, the SL80s sport 240Hz refresh, while the SL90s offer LED backlighting for improved dynamic contrast ratios.
TiVo and Best Buy Announce Broad (and Vague) DVR Partnership
DVR pioneer TiVo and consumer electronics retailer Best Buy have announced a broad partnership agreement that will see Best Buy promoting TiVo products heavily in its stores, while TiVo will look into rolling a special version of the TiVo platform just for Best Buy, along with working with Best Buy brands (like Insignia and Dynex) to integrate TiVo technology. The deal will also see Best Buy using TiVo technology to market Best Buy services and product offerings directly to customers, along with consumer education tips and insights.
LG To Pack Virtualization Technology into Monitors
South Korean electronics giant LG has announced it will produce a new series of SmartVine N-series LCD displays that integrate virtual desktop technology from NComputing, enabling up to 11 users to share the same computer. Designed mainly for emerging markets, education, and retail/commercial environments, the technology is designed to let organizations and business leverage the capabilities of their computing hardware and extend it further throughout an organization—saving not just money in up-front hardware costs, but yielding long-term savings in terms of reduced power consumption and e-waste.
Chinese Firm Stuffing Windows XP into a Phone
Microsoft is gearing up to launch Windows 7 in October, but it looks like Windows XP still isn’t going away. At the Computex trade show, Chinese firm In Technology demonstrated what it claims to be the world’s first mobile phone to be running Windows XP…although, as one might imaging, the phone’s specs more closely resemble a small computer than a phone. Dubbed the xpPhone, the unit sports a QWERTY keypad as a sizable 4.8-inch 800 by 480-pixel display; it also packs a 120 GB hard drive and a custom processor from AMD that In Technology has only referred to as the “AMD Super Mobile.”
PVI Buys Display Maker E Ink for $215 Million
Taiwanese display maker Prime View International (PVI) has announced a definitive agreement to acquire Kindle and Sony Reader display maker E Ink for about $215 million. E Ink makes displays that have a look similar to printed paper and, while slow, they are readable in direct sunlight, and thus ideal for devices like the Amazon Kindle and the Sony Reader. Once the acquisition is complete, PVI plans to continue developing E Ink’s display technology, including the development of color and flexible displays based on E Ink’s technology.
Wireless Gigabit Alliance Eyes Unlicensed 60 GHz
Short-range wideband wireless technologies have been a dream of both computing fans and entertainment aficionados for some time, and while technologies like UWB and WHDI have hit the marketplace, they tend to aim at niches (like high-definition video) rather than offering a comprehensive solution. To that end, the Wireless Gigabit Alliance (WiGig) has announced plans to develop a standardized short-range wideband technology using unlicensed spectrum in the 60 GHz range—that’s a high of a lot higher than the frequencies being used by things like cordless phones and current wireless streaming solutions. The WiGig doesn’t just have its eyes on video and home theaters: it sees the technology being used to hook together PCs, TVs, phones, mobile media players, and more.
