Half-a-dozen Asian mobile phone vendors, carriers, and chipmakers will jointly develop an HSDPA-capable 2G/3.5G mobile phone hardware/software reference design. NTT DoCoMo, Renesas, Fujitsu, Mitsubishi Electric, Sharp, and Sony Ericsson say collaborating on a common, basic phone platform will help them invest more time and resources in developing distinctive handset features. (more…)

[Updated Feb. 8] — Concurrent Computer is accepting orders for its first VME/VXS system available with Linux. The “iHawk VME” system runs Concurrent's Red Hat-based RedHawk operating system for multi-processor x86 chips, and enables userspace software to respond to external events in under 30… (more…)

Sysgo says its “industrial grade” Linux distribution now supports a family of x86-based XTX “computer-on-module” (COM) boards from Congatec. Congatec's XTX processor module family comprises five modules based on Intel and AMD embedded processors, and compatible with ETX and XTX standards. (more…)

TimeSys has added support for Intel's Pentium (i586) processor to its online service offering for embedded Linux developers who build and maintain their own distributions. The company says its Pentium “LinuxLink” service will help customers create embedded devices with Pentium-equivalent Via and Geode processors. (more…)

United Electronics Industries (UEI) is shipping a rugged Linux-based programmable automation controller based on a PowerPC processor. The UEIPAC Cube is available with extensive I/O options, and targets unmanned vehicles, environmental control, and test stand applications such as hardware-in-the-loop… (more…)

Embedded database specialist McObject has released a product that aims to combine the best features of both on-disk and in-memory database management within a single system. eXtremeDB Fusion lets developers make optimal tradeoffs among factors such as speed, persistence, physical space requirements, and cost, the company claims. (more…)

Intel reportedly will ship a super-high-integration IA32 SoC (system-on-chip) in late 2007, with a development board available in Q2. The “Tolapai” design integrates a Pentium M core, northbridge, and southbridge into a single 37.5mm-square chip clocked from 600MHz to 1.2GHz, according to presentation slides posted at Chinese technology website HKEPC. (more…)

This detailed, hands-on review examines Nokia's Linux-based N800 web tablet first as a consumer electronics device, and then as a platform for open source software development. Reviewer Jerry Epplin infuses the review with crotchety humor and deeply technical insights. (more…)

Opera Software has “pre-ported” the SDK (software development kit) for its device-oriented Opera 9 browser to Freescale Semiconductor's i.MX family of multimedia applications processors. The Opera 9 SDK for Devices brings the company's sophisticated website rendering and navigation technologies to devices running embedded Linux, Opera… (more…)

Trolltech and VirtualLogix have partnered with the aim of helping handset manufacturers deploy Linux on low-cost, mass-market feature phones powered by single-core processors. The companies are planning a single-core Linux phone demonstration at the 3GSM World Congresss next week in Barcelona. (more…)

VirtualLogix (formerly Jaluna) is prepping an evaluation version of its platform virtualization software for mobile handsets. VLX-MX (“Mobile Experimentation”) will be freely available this quarter, and will help qualified prospective customers explore, benchmark, and otherwise evaluate the company's virtualization technology for mobile handsets, it says. (more…)

Foreword: This detailed, hands-on review examines Nokia's Linux-based N800 Internet Tablet first as a consumer electronics device, and then as a platform for open source software development. (more…)

An open source project has launched with the goal of building a completely open source software stack for mobile phones. The GPE Phone Edition (GPE2) project aims for compliance with standards defined by the LiPS (Linux Phone Standards) Forum, and has already published an early implementation. (more…)

The rapidly-growing market for “computer-on-module” (COM) embedded boards increasingly is dominated by several “major” open standard formats, Venture Development Corp (VDC) reports. Open, standardized architectures such as ETX and COM Express are perceived as offering greater flexibility and capability than the proprietary formats that launched the COM market, VDC says. (more…)

Fabless semiconductor startup P.A. Semi is sampling a power-efficient, dual-core, 64-bit PowerPC processor targeting networking, storage, mil/aero, and wireless infrastructure. The Linux-friendly, 2GHz PWRficient PA6t-1682M consumes 3-4 times less power than other equally appointed 65nm processors — about 25 Watts,… (more…)