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NewsToshiba and Matsushita Ready to Mass Produce 2.5-Inch OLEDs

Posted 07/21/08 at 06:23:56 PM by Paul Lilly

For the all the benefits organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) have to offer, high costs have kept the technology from becoming commonplace. And when OLED devices do emerge, they tend to command a premium, putting them out of reach for mainstream consumption. But while the world waits for a breakthrough to bring low-cost OLEDs into the marketplace, Toshiba and Matsushita (Panasonic) might already be there.

According to a report from Japan's Nikkei BP, the two tech giants say they are poised to become the first Japanese companies to mass-produce OLED screens. Toshiba Matsushita Display Technology Co. (60 percent owned by Toshiba and 40 percent by Matsushita) appears ready to churn out 1 million 2.5-inch organic screens per month by fall of 2009, and will target mostly handheld devices like mobile phones and GPS navigators.

The 2.5-inch screen size remains the sweet spot for many portable devices, and if the two companies' claims turn out to be true, we could see a deluge of OLED devices rolled out in a very short time period starting in late '09

Comments: 2
TAGS: toshiba, technology, display, gadgets, hardware, consumer electronics, Matsushita, OLEDs

NewsWhat Will the Post-iPhone Cell Phone Be Like?

Posted 07/17/08 at 10:15:33 PM by Paul Lilly

Cell phone technology has come a long way since it was first introduced, and just as we can't help but snicker when catching a glimpse of the old beige bricks that started it all, it won't be long before today's mobile phones will be considered equally rudimentary. But even with the rapid pace of technology, it took Apple's iPhone to change the game, ushering in what's sure to be a new era of nifty must-have functionality. But what exactly will the post-iPhone cell phone be capable of?

Popular Science whips out its crystal ball so you don't have to, and what they've come up with are five different features that are all destined to come to future cell phones no later than 2009. More than just a wishlist, Popular Science explained the reasoning behind each category and which companies are at work on each technology. PC-grade computing and graphics by late 2009? Sign us up! The list looks sound, but one must-have feature noticeably absent is Sprint's crime deterrent system.

What features would you like to see in tomorrow's cell phones?

Comments: 8
TAGS: apple, phone, cell phone, iphone, gadgets, hardware, Cellular, consumer electronics

NewsSanDisk Launches SD Media with WORM (Write Once Read Many)

Posted 07/17/08 at 09:23:28 PM by Paul Lilly

Usually when a company releases a product containing with a worm, it's not a good thing. But when that WORM comes in all caps, the nomenclature takes a whole different meaning. In this case, SanDisk has developed a card that can be written to only one time, after which it becomes a read-only card. That's not something that will appeal to home users, but SanDisk's WORM (Write Once Read Many) media means police and courtrooms no longer need to reject SD cards as evidence for fear of tampering.

Potential uses for WORM cards include police witness and suspect interviews, cash registers, electronic voting, security cameras, in-flight 'black boxes,' medical devices containing patient information, and anything else where a permanent one-time write would be desirable. Once written to, SanDisk claims the new cards will retain the data for up to 100 years. "As digital media volume has grown and surpassed traditional analogue media such as film and audio cassettes in the consumer market, law enforcement agencies and other professionals are facing rising costs and lack of supply," said Christopher Moore, director of product marketing for OEM memory cards at SanDisk.

The SD cards currently come in 128MB versions, but beefier WORMs are expected later this year. Yummy.

Comments: 6
TAGS: media, Sandisk, gadgets, hardware, worm, consumer electronics, SD, write once read many, forensics, police

NewsKindle Lights up Amazon with 12% of Book Sales

Posted 07/11/08 at 07:38:50 PM by Pulkit Chandna

Amazon Kindle Sets Cash Registers on Fire

Amazon’s proprietary wireless reading device Kindle has been rather successful. It remained out of stock for months after being launched in November, 2007, despite being criticized heavily for its lack of WiFi, ugly design and limited PDF support. Now it is fast emerging as a popular electronic book reader, if a Time magazine report is to be believed.

A source inside Amazon told Time that Kindle accounts for 12% of sales of the roughly 130k titles that are both available physically and as Kindle downloads. Kindle’s share has doubled from May, when Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos had claimed it to be 6%. It is good to hear that digital distribution threatens to change the landscape of the books publishing industry as well. However, Kindle is far from perfect and its design and features need nothing less than an overhaul.

Comments: 1
TAGS: download, books, gadgets, pdf, hardware, amazon, ebook, amazon kindle, reading device

NewsGoogle Talk Comes to iPhone with Speech Impediment

Posted 07/03/08 at 12:07:08 PM by Paul Lilly

So here's the good news; Google has officially released its Google Talk application for the iPhone and iPod touch browsers. That means you can text away to all your gFamily and gFriends and look trendy doing it. And you needn't install anything, either. The application runs completely from within the Safari browser. Just head over to www.google.com/talk, sign in, and start mashing away while being careful not to spill your Starbucks Latte.

Ready for the bad news? Don't you dare try to do anything else while holding a conversation. As you might have already surmised, Google Talk "needs to be open in your Safari browser. When you navigate away to another browser window or application, you status will be changed to 'unavailable' and your Google Talk session will be restarted when you return." Giving your undivided attention would be considered good social etiquette in a face-to-face encounter, but must the same manners apply in a virtual environment?

Comments: 3
TAGS: Software, apple, Google, iphone, gadgets, consumer electronics

NewsSuper Talent Redefines Value, Bundles Ubuntu with SSDs

Posted 07/03/08 at 11:04:41 AM by Paul Lilly

Earlier this week OCZ announced a new lineup of low cost SSDs, trumping Super Talent's MasterDrive MX series in both price and performance. In an attempt to address the former, Super Talent has begun bundling Ubuntu with its SSDs and will continue to do so right through to September 30th.

"Bundling an excellent OS plus applications package like Ubuntu helps MasterDrive MS customers get up and running that much faster and easier. This is a great value add that doesn't increase the cost." - Joe James, Super Talen Marketing Director

And James is right, it doesn't increase the cost. Of course, it doesn't increase the value (or performance) of the MasterDrive MX line either. But it might increase the perceived value of Ubuntu, which if you head over to Ubuntu.com, you can download the Linux distro free of charge. Or if you'd prefer a hard copy without firing up Nero, you can put in a request for a free CD and they'll even throw in a handful of stickers. Sadly, neither option will cost you a cent, not even shipping, and who wants a free OS? Pshaw! Super Talent's bundle tackles this problem, and you'll have to fork over at minimum $299 (30GB). Or if you really want that copy of Ubuntu to come laced with uber value, you have the option of paying up to $649 (120GB). Now all you Windows owners with a predisposition to paying for your OS can finally get your Linux on without feeling like you cheated the system, something Amazon couldn't offer with its paltry $12.99 price tag.