Taiwan presents a computer chip almost invisible
It has 6 transistors in an area of 300 by 130 nanometers. Part will allow the manufacturing of notebook smaller and lighter.
Laboratory of Nanotechnology of Taiwan presented on Wednesday one of the world’s smallest microchip. It has six transistors in a space of 300 by 130 nanometers and will allow the manufacturing of notebook computers and cell phones even smaller in the future. For comparison, the average size of the human fingernail is 25 million nanometers.
News Suggested by: Daniel Almeida
From Globo.com
First iPhone, now Droid. Who needs Windows?
If the iPhone didn’t finish off Windows Mobile in the smartphone market, the Motorola Droid may.
Windows Mobile is losing the last vestiges of its mojo–if it really had any to begin with–as the Droid and other phones based on the Android 2.0 operating system push the buzz meter needle into the red zone. Many in the media–which can play a big role in steering users to one technology platform or another–sense that Windows Mobile has now been relegated resolutely to has-been status.
Let’s do a quick canvas of what some in the press are saying now that we’re at the start of the Droid era. A post on SFGate.com (the Web site of the San Francisco Chronicle) is, like other commentary out there, clearly dismissive of Windows Mobile. “Curiously, Microsoft is nowhere to be seen in this battle royal,” the author states, referring to the iPhone and Android.
And there’s this more damning comment from a blog at SeattlePI.com. “Rarely mentioned, however, is another player in the mobile OS market–Microsoft. Why not? Because not many people in the smartphone world seem to really give a hoot about Windows Mobile anymore.”
The litany of like articles is long. This post on PC World asks: “Has Microsoft Placed Its Last Mobile Bet?” The article cites research from Canalys showing Windows Mobile slipping from 13.9 percent of the worldwide smartphone market in 2002 to 9 percent in the second quarter of 2009.
The numbers are even less favorable in an accounting by ad service Admob, which compiles data on which operating systems are in use on mobile devices that access online ads. In August, according to AdMob, Windows Mobile had only a 4 percent share of the mobile OS market worldwide, down from 7 percent in February.
But getting back to my original premise of no mobile mojo for Windows. The fact is that consumers don’t care about Windows on smartphones. In other words, while Windows seems to be a prerequisite for many consumers when buying a PC, it just doesn’t come into play in a big way in a smartphone purchase.
This will have ramifications beyond Microsoft of course. Companies like Toshiba (and its attractive TG01 smartphone) will probably not be as successful on Windows Mobile as they would (will) be on Android 2.0. Or, at the very least, will not get the necessary buzz.
Then there’s the Intel factor. Intel also wants to be a player, eventually, in the smartphone space. If it is indeed able to beat back Texas Instruments (whose chip is used in the Droid), Samsung (iPhone), Qualcomm (BlackBerry), and Marvell, it probably won’t do it by sticking to the tried-and-true “WinTel” combination that’s been so outrageously successful in the PC space.
And Intel is chasing a fast-moving target. TI, and all the other ARM-based chip suppliers cited above, are slated to bring out dual-core designs that can hit speeds as high as 2GHz (think next-generation tablets and media pads). In other words, they’ll also be able claim the coveted speed mantle on phones, such as the Droid, where Windows Mobile is no where in sight.
So the Droid may not be the iPhone killer but rather the Windows Mobile slayer. Microsoft, of course, will always have the unassailable PC franchise. But, wait, isn’t Android coming to Netbooks next year? Maybe the real battle royal for Microsoft is yet to come.
From CNET.com
New HP Hardware Features Touchscreen Technology
Hewlett-Packard is building on the integrated touchscreen technology in Microsoft’s Windows 7 with new all-in-one TouchSmart PCs, a tx2 notebook, and the LD4200tm monitor. The TouchSmart 300, 600 and 9100 PCs feature touch-based applications. Analysts said touchscreens are growing and HP is making a commitment to the technology.
Hewlett-Packard Relevant Products/Services launched a variety of new PCs and computing Relevant Products/Services devices today, featuring market-leading touchscreen technology. The new offerings include three all-in-one PCs — the TouchSmart 300, TouchSmart 600, and the TouchSmart 9100 Business PC — plus the TouchSmart tx2 notebook; and, the LD4200tm 42-inch widescreen monitor.
The new PCs offer a long list of built-in touch-based applications, including a Hulu Desktop, a touch-enabled Netflix app, Twitter, the Rhapsody-based HP Relevant Products/Services Music Store, Pandora Internet radio, the TouchSmart Recipe Box, TouchSmart Live TV, and the TouchSmart Canvas and TouchSmart Link photo applications.
HP said the TouchSmart 9100 offers a Digital Visual Interface (DVI) for connecting to full HD format displays and projectors, 32- or 64-bit versions of Windows Relevant Products/Services 7, two NVIDIA graphics choices, FireWire and a variety of other options.
The tx2 is the first consumer notebook to enable two-finger navigation of entertainment applications, HP said. The notebook offers many of the same features as the desktops and adds touch-enabled games and a Corel art application.
The LD4200tm, which will not be available until December, is a black signage device designed to bring touchscreen functionality to kiosks, retail environments, malls, terminals and similar locations, according to the company.
Touchscreen Easier with Windows 7
Steve Baker, vice president of industry analysis for The NPD Group, said touchscreens are going to be a hot topic going forward. “I do think that touch is the wave of the future, especially in the last few months of this year and in 2010,” he said.
The key theme through the announcements is the idea that Windows 7 will make touchscreens more feasible. In the Windows XP or Vista environments, Baker said, touch functionality was “bolted” on by OEM or VARs. “The integration Relevant Products/Services into the OS saves the OEMs [and VARs] lots of money in terms of programming and makes it easier,” he said.
From TopTechNews.com
