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HTC and Verizon Wireless today announced the Droid Incredible smartphone, which will be available for pre-order beginning on Apr. 19, with the official release on Apr. 29. The Android 2.1-based Droid Incredible offers a 1GHz Snapdragon processor, 8GB of internal memory, an eight-megapixel camera, and a 3.7-inch, 800 x 480 AMOLED display, say the companies.
The U.K. company Steatite Ltd. announced a rugged PC designed for in-vehicle installation. The fanless ICP-PES2041M includes an Intel Atom N270 processor, up to 2GB of RAM, hard disk and CompactFlash storage, plus 3.5 cellular connectivity and a GPS receiver, the company says.
Cinemo is touting a cross-platform software stack it says will provide full HD video playback and network streaming support on low-power embedded devices. The company announced “technical cooperation” with Imagination Technologies, whose widely used Powervr IP cores have been released with an SDK that has been updated to support Android.
Texas Instruments announced an updated version of its DM36x DaVinci video processor family that supports multi-format HD video, including 1080p H.264 encoding. The Linux-ready TMS320DM368 cranks up its ARM926EJ-S core to 432MHz, while offloading the video encode/decode functions to DSP-driven HD video accelerators, and is available with a new DVR reference design.
Intel announced a new Atom processor aimed at embedded devices and in-car infotainment platforms. The “Tunnel Creek” CPU offers an onboard graphics controller, memory controller, and audio, linking to a separate I/O controller via a standard PCI Express interface, according to the company.
Vivotech announced a Linux-based mobile payments device that incorporates Near Field Communication (NFC) wireless technology. The ARM9-based, PCI 2.1-certified “Vivopay 8100” offers a traditional pinpad and mag-stripe reader, but also supports contactless payments via NFC-enabled mobile phones, with features such as coupon redemption and discount vouchers.
E-con Systems announced a baseboard to accompany the eSOM300, a Marvell PXA300-based processor module it announced last month. The “Alioth” development board includes an Ethernet port, three USB ports, a VGA output, a RS232/RS485 port, microSD slot, plus the option of touchscreen displays and a GPRS/GPS module, the company says.
The Linux Foundation (LF) announced 27 partners in the MeeGo mobile Linux project, which is principally backed by Intel and Nokia. Companies that have pledged support for the MeeGo merger of the Linux-based Moblin and Maemo distributions include device vendors Acer and Asus, set-top maker Amino, automotive firm BMW Group, and a number of software firms based in China.
Intel has successfully run Android on an Intel Atom-based smartphone prototype, according to an IDG News Service story. Meanwhile, Android continues to establish a beachhead on the MIPS platform with a new big-endian version of Android for MIPS developed by Serbia-based RT-RK.
Arium announced a new JTAG debugger In-Target Probe (ITP) trace port analyzer device for debugging Linux-based devices. The LX-1000 stores events in on-board high-speed RAM, and initially targets Intel processor platforms.
Portwell announced a COM Express module that's available with a choice of “Pineview” Atom processors. The PCOM-B215VG includes up to 4GB of DDR2 RAM, up to 4GB of SSD (solid state disk storage), SATA and IDE interfaces, and provides support for CRT and LVDS displays, the company says.
Qualcomm's reflective, power-saving color display technology will enter volume production this year in a version suitable for tablet PCs and e-readers, says the Taiwanese publication DigiTimes. The 5.7-inch Mirasol displays will offer XGA (1024 x 768 pixel) resolution, video at up to 30 frames per second, and extremely low power consumption, says Qualcomm.
Marusys is shipping a Linux-based, PVR-ready satellite set-top box (STB) with a DVB-S/S2 tuner and HDMI output. The initial MS630S and MS850S versions of the DVB-S/S2 HD PVR receiver design are equipped with a Magnum Semiconductor DX6225 transcoder chip, and offer HD recording, as well as WiFi streaming to the Apple iPhone.
Google appears to be prepping an Android-based tablet device, says The New York Times. Meanwhile, a study by IMS Research predicts that at year's end, Apple's iPad will own 51 percent of the $3.6 billion tablet PC market, with Android taking 24 percent.
The Linux Foundation (LF) has announced it is now accepting registrations for a free, live video streaming program of its Collaboration Summit keynote sessions in San Francisco next Wednesday, April 14. Meanwhile, the non-profit Linux advocacy group has announced several new members, including Ricoh, Parallels, and Cubrid.