The first Linux-based mobile phone for the US market is now available through Dobson/Cellular One, according to Wildseed Ltd. Wildseed's Linux-based fashion phone is available now to Dobson/Cellular One's GSM/GPRS subscribers, Wildseed says, along with 23 “SmartSkins” that bring unique, interchangeable… (more…)

Sun Microsystems will support Carrier Grade Linux (CGL) on a forthcoming family of servers that will comply with the ATCA (advanced telecom computing architecture) standard, it says. Sun's adoption of CGL and ATCA affirms that the telecommunications industry is evolving from proprietary systems toward open industry standards. (more…)

Softier has introduced a software reference design for IP-STBs (Internet protocol set-top boxes) that run Linux on a DSP (digital signal processor). The design is said to save money versus dual-chip RISC/DSP IP-STB designs, since it uses a single inexpensive DSP chip. It targets high-volume IP-STB manufacturers. (more…)

Engadget is reporting that Samsung's Linux-based SCH-i519 smartphone is currently available to mobile customers in China. The device is based on an Intel PXA255 clocked at 400MHz, and includes a 240×320 color TFT touchscreen. (more…)

i3 has licensed a new Web browser for its latest Linux set-top box (STB) for IPTV (Internet protocol television). The Mood3 will use Espial's Escape browser, which adapts Web and Flash content for TV viewing. The combined solution targets telcos offering IPTV. (more…)

Worldwide mobile phone sales exceeded 156.4 million units in the second quarter of 2004, a 35 percent increase over the second quarter of 2003, according to a report released this week by Gartner Inc. The market research firm says all regions experienced “healthy sales” of mobile phones in the second quarter, and that more than 300 million mobile phones shipped in the first half of 2004. (more…)

IBM has published the following technical articles, tutorials, and downloads on its developerWorks Website. They cover a range of interesting (though not necessarily embedded) technical topics. Some require free registration. Enjoy . (more…)

DSP Design has released a Linux development kit for its Alchemy-based credit-card-sized SBC (single board computer). The Linux LaunchPad for the Aurora1100 SBC bundles the board pre-installed with Linux, a host environment, tutorials, and sample applications. (more…)

The SSV IGW/100 is a small, rugged industrial security gateway designed to protect automation networks from viruses, worms, and unauthorized access. It runs a free, open-source Linux distribution that supports real-time extensions and was designed especially for industrial security applications. (more…)

The SSV IGW/100 is a small, rugged industrial security gateway designed to protect automation networks from viruses, worms, and unauthorized access. It runs a free, open-source Linux distribution that supports real-time extensions and was designed especially for industrial security applications. (more…)

DesktopLinux has published a brief story about a German keyboard company that has partnered with SuSE on a Linux-specific business keyboard with programmable hotkeys. The company has also produced a wireless keyboard/mouse combo powered by a solar panel on the keyboard. (more…)

SciTech has released a software product designed to enable PowerPC based systems to use standard x86 graphics hardware. Snap Boot IES for PowerPC is a BIOS emulator that can initialize x86 graphics hardware for use with SciTech's Snap Graphics drivers in PowerPC systems, including embedded systems that lack BIOSes. (more…)

Adlink has released a hardware/software embedded Linux development kit (ELDK) for its line of ETX single board computers (SBCs) based on Via processors. The ELDK includes Linux and uClinux “demo” distributions, drivers, host development tools, and a 600MHz ETX-EV133 board with carrier board and… (more…)

[Updated Sep. 2, 2004] — The latest embedded market research data from Venture Development Corp. shows that Linux is now firmly in first place as the operating system of choice for smart gadgets and embedded systems. VDC's latest data indicates that Linux now accounts for 15.5 percent of embedded projects, beating out Microsoft's WinCE/WinCE.Net (2.7 + 3.3 = 6 percent) and XPe (5 percent), and… (more…)

DVI (digital visual interface) is gaining popularity in the PC market, but the newer HDMI (high-definition multimedia interface) standard will find even greater success in the consumer electronics (CE) market, according to In-Stat/MDR. (more…)