A UK firm called Bifferos is shipping a tiny x86 processor module and an accompanying I/O board. The Bifferboard incorporates a 150MHz RDC R8610 CPU, consumes one Watt, and offers 32MB of SDRAM and 1GB flash, pre-loaded with OpenWrt Linux 2.6.27.5, says the company. (more…)

Asus has announced a netbook that includes an integral optical disk drive. The Eee PC 1004DN (left) has an Intel Atom N280 processor, a 10-inch display, a 120GB hard disk drive, up to 2GB of RAM, and weighs 3.19 pounds with a six-cell battery, Asus says. (more…)

The Small Form Factor Special Interest Group (SFF-SIG) announced a rugged, form-factor-independent, COM (computer-on-module) interface standard called COMIT. The organization also announced an upgraded revision 1.3 of its SUMIT interface standard, adding more PCIe lanes, and announced the availability of its MiniBlade… (more…)

Dmailer announced an Android application that lets users synchronize information from Microsoft Exchange Server to an Android-based phone. Dmailer Mobile for Android (pictured) offers over-the-air (OTA) synchronization of Microsoft Outlook email, contact, and calendar information directly from Exchange… (more…)

Texas Instruments (TI) and its partners announced two video security reference designs that are based on TI's TMS320DM365 and ship with Linux SDKs. The IP camera design (pictured) from Appro Photoelectron offers HD/H.264 video, and the DVR design from UD Works provides multi-channel recording, says TI. (more…)

A vendor of multithreaded networking and media processors has announced the availability of a Linux-ready networked audio player reference design. Ubicom's multi-channel audio reference design includes an Ubicom Linux board support package (BSP), a media personality board, and a development board that incorporates the company's IP7500 multimedia processor. (more…)

Via Technologies has announced its first expansion module using a SUMIT (Stackable Unified Module Interconnect Technology) interface. Designed primarily for the company's Epia-P710 Pico-ITXe board, the “Epia-P710-HD” adds an S3 4300E embedded graphics processor, providing HD video playback capability and multiple… (more…)

Microsoft was the big winner as TomTom settled yesterday over a patent lawsuit regarding its Linux-based personal navigation devices (PNDs), says an eWEEK story. TomTom paid Microsoft to license its claimed patents, while Microsoft licensed four TomTom patents for free, says the eWEEK story. (more…)

C Data Solutions has developed a new motherboard for its customizable CompactFlash (CF)-based Compact Computer (CoCo). Designed for use in an upcoming data acquisitions system, the tiny motherboard offers a databus via the FPGA built into its uClinux- and 500MHz Blackfin-based CoCo processor module. (more…)

The eCos project released a final version 3.0 of its real-time operating system (RTOS) for embedded systems. The open-source eCos 3.0 is said to support ARM Cortex-M, Fujitsu's FR30, and Freescale's 68K/Coldfire, while improving framebuffer, flash memory, and FAT filesystem capabilities, and extending host compatibility to GTK 2.x on Linux. (more…)

Lantronix announced a Linux software development kit (SDK) for its “MatchPort AR” embedded device server for Ethernet networks. Developed by Lantronix partner Nissin Systems, the SDK includes a board support package (BSP) for the MatchPort AR SSL/SSH networking module, which offers serial and Ethernet interfaces. (more…)

Infonetics Research released a study that projects that the smartphone market will continue to grow despite an eight percent drop in mobile-phone sales this year. The report also predicts that “open-source platforms like Android” are leading the way in shaping the smartphone market. (more…)

Hark Technologies announced a 2.4 x 4-inch ARM9 single-board computer (SBC) that runs Angstrom Linux. The LE-9260 incorporates an Atmel AT91SAM9260 processor clocked to 200MHz, features a “fully accessible” 32-bit expansion bus, and ships with an optional baseboard, says the Summerville, South Carolina-based company. (more…)

Via Technologies announced the first board based on its new 170 x 120mm Em-ITX format. Based on Via's 1.0 or 1.3GHz Nano processor and VX800 media system processor, the fanless Via EITX-3000 targets ultra-thin, embedded systems that require extended temperature support, says the company. (more…)

Samsung has announced three new netbooks offering 10.2-inch displays and Intel Atom processors. The N110, N120 (left), and NC310 offer slightly different form factors, but all have improved keyboards, six-cell batteries, and 160GB hard drives, according to third-party reports. (more…)