Trolltech has updated Qtopia, its application stack for mobile phones and PDAs. Qtopia 4 features better multi-threading and text rendering, the company says, along with features inherited from last month's release of Qtopia Core, an embedded version of the Qt 4 graphics framework and cross-platform development environment released last summer.

Trolltech originally marketed Qtopia as an application stack for PDAs. However, in May of 2004, the company released Qtopia Phone Edition. Since then, it has lavished most of its attention on that product. It began offering Qtopia PDA Edition under the GPL in December of 2004.

Qtopia comprises vertical application stacks for PDAs or phones written on top of Qtopia Core, an embedded-specific version of the Qt graphics framework and cross-platform development environment. Qtopia Core was formerly known as Qt Embedded, but was relaunched as Qtopia Core last month. It targets single-purpose embedded Linux devices such as medical equipment, the company says.

Trolltech says Qtopia 4 features inherited via Qtopia Core from Qt 4 include “high-quality rendering engine, model/view architecture, template container classes, and action-based main window architecture,” according to the company.

Additionally, Qtopia 4 features better text rendering, and better multi-threading. The stack comes with an integrated windowing system, and supports a range of input methods, SVG (scalable vector graphics, SQL databases, and right-to-left text and other internationalization features, the company says.

CEO Haavard Nord stated, “As devices become more personalized, we expect to see a surge in interest around open-source software.”

Jason Sun, CEO of Cellon International, a phone design house that spun off from Philips in 1999, stated, “We benefit from being able to make unique user interfaces for all of our clients — strengthening their brands and our market position.”

Trolltech garnered statements of support for Qtopia 4 from a variety of mobile phone ecosystem partners, including Texas Instruments, Agere, Audistry, Opera, and Certicom. Trolltech said last month that its embedded customer base grew from 40 to 90 last year.

Availability

Qtopia 4 is available now. No products based on Qtopia 4 have yet reached market, however, the company says.

 
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