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Protech announced a 3.5-inch SBC (single board computer) that offers an Intel Atom N450 processor, up to 2GB of DDR2 memory, and a CompactFlash slot. The EB-821LF also includes two gigabit Ethernet ports, four serial ports, and a PC/104 expansion connector, the company says.
Commell announced an embedded motherboard that uses the Mini-ITX form factor and supports Intel's Core i7, i5, and i3 processors. The LV-67F supports up to 8GB of DDR3 memory, features Mini PCI, PCI Express, and Mini PCI Express expansion, and offers six SATA ports, the company says.
Qnap Systems announced a new version of its NAS-like, 1080p-ready IP set-top box and media player. The NMP-1000P Network Multimedia Player features a faster, Sigma Designs system-on-chip (SoC) than the previous model, running the 667MHz SMP8643, and adds twice as much RAM (512MB), four times the flash memory (256MB), enhanced Wolfson audio, and a eSATA Host port.
Dell's recently tipped seven-inch Android tablet will ship in a few weeks, going head to head with the new RIM PlayBook and a rumored seven-inch version of the Apple iPad, says an industry report. Meanwhile, Dell is also readying a 10-inch Android tablet for release next year, says the story.
MP4nation has opened preorders for a seven-inch, Android 1.5 “Rocktab” tablet from Nationite that costs approximately $130, featuring a 600MHz Rockchip RK2808 and GB of memory. Meanwhile, the retailer is also preparing to ship another batch of the 800MHz “Nationite MIDnite” seven-inch tablet, selling for $209 with Android 2.2 and an ARM Cortex-A8 CPU.
Linutop released version 4.0 of a Ubuntu Linux-based distro optimized for kiosk applications on small, energy-efficient fanless PCs, including legacy 386-based PCs and the company's own mini-PCs. Linutop OS 4.0 is based on Ubuntu 10.04 (“Lucid Lynx”), has a 700MB footprint, is available in a bootable USB key, and offers a variety of display and security features, says the company.
Wind River announced the release of a version of its Wind River Platform for Android that supports Android 2.2 (“Froyo”) and Adobe Flash Player 10.1. The company also announced a design win with train manufacturer Bombardier for a computer system that will run on London Underground trains.
Lanner announced an Atom-based PC that supports up to six IP video cameras and is designed for vision control applications. Featuring a separate Ethernet controller for each port, the LEC-2026 runs fanlessly, supports either hard disk or CompactFlash storage, and has connectors for both a VGA monitor and a serial console, the company says.
Swiss university EPFL has demonstrated a swarm of Linux-based semi-autonomous “Flying Robots” designed for rescue communications. Each winged drone in the “SMAVNET” project is equipped with a Toradex Colibri PXA270 module, plus Wi-Fi, ZigBee, and GPS wireless communications, used to log location and trajectory and communicate with both ground communications and other craft.
Axiomtek is readying a rugged, fanless DIN-rail computer with redundant components and SNMP-based “AXView” remote management software. The rBOX100 is equipped with the extended-temperature Intel Atom Z510PT and Z520PT processors, and offers gigabit Ethernet, Ethernet, serial, USB 2.0, and DIO connectivity, says the company.
Portwell announced a Qseven module sporting the wide-temperature variants of Intel's recently announced Atom E6xx processors, with an operating range of -40 to 185 deg. F (-40 to 85 deg. C.). The PQ7-M105IT features an onboard 4GB or 8GB SSD (solid state disk) up to 8GB, eight USB 2.0 ports and four PCI Express x1 lanes, and is offered with an available 3.5-inch carrier board, the company says.
Android ad requests increased 39 percent month-over-month in August and 996 percent during 2010, says Millennial Media. Meanwhile, Sony Ericsson has dumped Symbian, Amazon.com may be developing an Android tablet, an IDC/Appcelerator survey claims 58.6 percent of developers believe Android's prospects are brighter than Apple's iOS, and a J.D. Power survey finds high consumer satisfaction for Android smartphones.
The Fedora project announced the Beta release of “Fedora 14 “Laughlin,” featuring faster JPEG downloads and the MeeGo 1.0 netbook environment. Other new features in the Fedora 14 Beta include improved debugging and IPMI server management, and the debut of the “Spice” virtualization desktop framework and “Systemd” management technology for faster start-ups.
Verizon Wireless will launch its Motorola Droid R2-D2 smartphone Sept. 30 for $250. This Star Wars-themed version of the Android 2.2- and QWERTY-enabled Droid 2 adds a Star Wars media dock and wired stereo headset, plus preloaded content such as R2-D2 notification sounds and ringtones, says Verizon.
Texas Instruments released two free Linux development tools to ease programming of the TMS320C6000 DSP (digital signal processor) included on some DaVinci and OMAP processors. The C6EZRun tool partitions code between the DSP and ARM cores, improving performance and streamlining ARM application ports, while C6EZAccel offers an ARM-side API library of over 130 optimized DSP kernels.