SINGAPORE: Most people in North America or Western Europe, if asked how many media tablets had been commercially launched so far, would say “just one or two.” But the reality is very different: in fact more than 60 distinct media tablet models from nearly 50 different manufacturers are already available in at least one country or region.
Media tablets are among several product types documented regularly by ABI Research.
“Many of these media tablets do not bear household brand names like Apple or Samsung,” says ABI Research industry analyst Celia Bo. “China is definitely a market leader, but it is a ‘white box’ market in which brand is relatively unimportant, prices are relatively affordable (though still higher than those of netbooks), and devices are aimed at domestic consumers.”
Principal analyst Jeff Orr adds, “While these are not (yet) global brands, the very presence of such a thriving white box market in Asia is a good indicator of a growing market that is expected to see robust adoption rates in years to come.”
Most of these tablets feature 7-inch displays, and run on the Android operating system. The majority of media tablets released commercially in 2010 use application processors from Freescale Semiconductor.
Most are Wi-Fi enabled, giving them web browser access to much of the content the Internet offers. In addition, because many of these tablets run the Android OS, they also have access to Android Market for OS-specific applications, as well as to vendor-proprietary or regional online stores that are offering content in local languages. Mobile operators are also adding their own storefronts.
ABI Research practice director Kevin Burden concludes: “Most of these products started shipping in the last 75 days. They are still building their market presence. The products released so far do not show any great degree of technological innovation, but we expect to see a new set of vendors in the first quarter of 2011, offering devices with more ambitious capabilities.”
Thursday, December 16, 2010
Wednesday, December 15, 2010
Tablets become epicenter for convergence
EL SEGUNDO, USA: After decades of discussion, the convergence of consumer, computer and communications is finally becoming a reality with the arrival of Apple Inc.’s iPad and competing tablets, a development that will have massive implications for the technology world, spurring competition not only among varying types of products—but among entire industries, according to the market research firm iSuppli, now part of IHS Inc.
“The definition of convergence has changed over time, with the latest version describing it as voice, video and data services being delivered to the home vis-à-vis broadband networks and the new services that would result from this confluence,” said William Kidd, director and principal analyst, financial services for iSuppli.
“While that trend still exists, the convergence of consumer electronics devices and industries are now coming together at a fast pace, with the tablet form factor serving a tangible representation of that convergence, since it is part smart phone and part notebook.”
However, the implications of the convergence in consumer electronics span well beyond tablets.
The rise of the tablet parallels the growing importance of the mobile operating system (OS) in a large number of consumer electronics devices where previously there was no OS—or the OS wasn't a factor, Kidd added. Because of this, it's a time of great risk and opportunity for all the players across the electronics value chain.
This is why so many technology firms seem to be rushing to deliver—or to become a key supplier to—a next generation tablet, smart phone or both, like the iPad/iPhone. At the same time, these companies also are attempting to keep their design options somewhat open, because it is still so early in this product's life cycle.
“Companies in the electronics value chain increasingly must face the reality that the rise of the mobile OS means distinct product categories now are blurring together,” Kidd said.
“For example, note the similarity both in external functionality and internal electronics between Apple's tablet, smart phone, MP3 player and set top box product lines. Not only do they run the same OS, but all these Apple devices are internally similar, plus or minus a screen and touch interface. Industries likely to face the impact of convergence through the proliferation of mobile OSes include televisions, cell phones and notebook PCs.”
Going mobile
Mobile OSes will proliferate because of their range of benefits to technology providers and users.
These OSes provide a framework for consumers to cheaply and effortlessly create custom use cases for devices by using apps that greatly exceed the utility of an Internet browser alone. For developers, mobile OSes allow the creation and monetization of apps. Using mobile OSes, content providers to distribute their wares and adds another convenient option for consumers to access content. Finally, mobile OSes enable interconnectivity between connected devices, and thus generate even more new use cases.
iSuppli believes televisions likely represents the next important catalyst in this evolution toward a broader and more unifying consumers platform that encompasses significantly more devices. Despite challenges and past failures in this area, iSuppli expects mobile operating system providers will get the formula right and transition televisions into a new paradigm.
Over the long term, tablets are likely to reshape the computer market as well.
Consumption versus creation
iSuppli’s current outlook for tablet shipments foresees that these devices will remain content consumption devices, similar to the iPad. However, growth in the tablet segment starting in 2012 could be much higher than now anticipated as these devices take on the kind content creation capabilities now offered by notebook and netbook PCs.
The transformation of tablets into media creation devices would require the development of OSes that are more evolved that Apple’s iOS is today. Even with Microsoft’s stumbles to date in tablets, iSuppli believes that Microsoft will figure out how to design a functional tablet operating system.
Apple is also likely to determine how to evolve iOS and an iPad into a creation platform that is 100 percent compatible with the Widows-dominated PC universe. Obviously, Apple could combine iOS and Mac OS at some point, which iSuppli believes is logical as well.
Source: iSuppli, USA.
“The definition of convergence has changed over time, with the latest version describing it as voice, video and data services being delivered to the home vis-à-vis broadband networks and the new services that would result from this confluence,” said William Kidd, director and principal analyst, financial services for iSuppli.
“While that trend still exists, the convergence of consumer electronics devices and industries are now coming together at a fast pace, with the tablet form factor serving a tangible representation of that convergence, since it is part smart phone and part notebook.”
However, the implications of the convergence in consumer electronics span well beyond tablets.
The rise of the tablet parallels the growing importance of the mobile operating system (OS) in a large number of consumer electronics devices where previously there was no OS—or the OS wasn't a factor, Kidd added. Because of this, it's a time of great risk and opportunity for all the players across the electronics value chain.
This is why so many technology firms seem to be rushing to deliver—or to become a key supplier to—a next generation tablet, smart phone or both, like the iPad/iPhone. At the same time, these companies also are attempting to keep their design options somewhat open, because it is still so early in this product's life cycle.
“Companies in the electronics value chain increasingly must face the reality that the rise of the mobile OS means distinct product categories now are blurring together,” Kidd said.
“For example, note the similarity both in external functionality and internal electronics between Apple's tablet, smart phone, MP3 player and set top box product lines. Not only do they run the same OS, but all these Apple devices are internally similar, plus or minus a screen and touch interface. Industries likely to face the impact of convergence through the proliferation of mobile OSes include televisions, cell phones and notebook PCs.”
Going mobile
Mobile OSes will proliferate because of their range of benefits to technology providers and users.
These OSes provide a framework for consumers to cheaply and effortlessly create custom use cases for devices by using apps that greatly exceed the utility of an Internet browser alone. For developers, mobile OSes allow the creation and monetization of apps. Using mobile OSes, content providers to distribute their wares and adds another convenient option for consumers to access content. Finally, mobile OSes enable interconnectivity between connected devices, and thus generate even more new use cases.
iSuppli believes televisions likely represents the next important catalyst in this evolution toward a broader and more unifying consumers platform that encompasses significantly more devices. Despite challenges and past failures in this area, iSuppli expects mobile operating system providers will get the formula right and transition televisions into a new paradigm.
Over the long term, tablets are likely to reshape the computer market as well.
Consumption versus creation
iSuppli’s current outlook for tablet shipments foresees that these devices will remain content consumption devices, similar to the iPad. However, growth in the tablet segment starting in 2012 could be much higher than now anticipated as these devices take on the kind content creation capabilities now offered by notebook and netbook PCs.
The transformation of tablets into media creation devices would require the development of OSes that are more evolved that Apple’s iOS is today. Even with Microsoft’s stumbles to date in tablets, iSuppli believes that Microsoft will figure out how to design a functional tablet operating system.
Apple is also likely to determine how to evolve iOS and an iPad into a creation platform that is 100 percent compatible with the Widows-dominated PC universe. Obviously, Apple could combine iOS and Mac OS at some point, which iSuppli believes is logical as well.
Source: iSuppli, USA.
9th Annual Educators Day emphasizes need for research and consultancy
CHENNAI, INDIA: National Instruments (NI), a technology pioneer and leader in Graphical System Design, along with NICE (Nurturing Innovation and Creativity in Engineering) committee hosted the 9th Annual Educator’s Day 2010, India’s largest academic platform for science and engineering professors today in Chennai.
The two-day event was a compelling success with participation of over 1,500 professors, scholars and eminent academicians across the country. The event focused on the need of ‘Research and Consultancy’, to play a pivotal role in enabling students and teachers on the effective use of technology in education.
Dr. Poongothai, Minister for Information Technology, Govt. of Tamil Nadu, the Guest of Honour and M. Sivakumar, CEO – ICTACT (A Consortium of Govt. of India, Government of Tamil Nadu and CII) were present at the ceremony to felicitate the students and professors for their outstanding innovations in the field of science & engineering. NI and ICTACT also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to nurture innovation in Engineering & Science education in India.
For the first time, Educator’s Day 2010, witnessed participation of over 550 students from across the country. The highly acclaimed National level technical competitions - VI Mantra and NI Yantra staged its Grand Finale on the 13th of Dec. Demonstrations, video sessions and projects counseling were part of the whole day event. The winners of VI Mantra and NI Yantra were also announced on the closing day of the event with the award distribution by Dr. Poongothai.
‘Research and Consultancy’ – was the theme of the Annual Educator’s Day 2010. The daylong event on 14th Dec was presided over by NICE Committee members, followed by a key note session by Jayaram Pillai, Managing Director, IndRA (India, Russia and Arabia) NI on the importance of Research and Consultancy in the field of engineering education.
This year, the panel discussions by renowned professors from NIT-Thiruchirapalli, VJTI, PSG College of Technology, BMS College of Engineering gave rise to thoughts, insights and views on research and consultancy, opportunities and challenges in the field of technological advancement.
The discussions were focused around a wide range of next generation embedded technologies including design track, green engineering, teaching embedded systems, robotics & mechatronics, nanotechnology and more to emphasize the importance of graphical system designs for research and consultancy. Other colleges who were also part of this two-day event included NIT Rourkela, SRM University, Anna University, Pondicherry Engineering College.
Prof. Gopikrishna Rao, Chairman, NICE Committee said: “We aim for a tremendous growth in research and consultancy in the engineering education space and we have to develop this through different learning approach in the engineering colleges. NICE, along with NI is dedicated to make a difference to the engineering community by providing them with relevant exposure to a high level of technological proficiency.
“This platform will empower professors to better prepare students for today’s engineering and science challenges by providing hands-on learning of fundamentals and concepts using the latest industry standard technologies.”
Jayaram Pillai, MD, IndRA (India, Russia and Arabia), National Instruments said: "Engineers should have an inbuilt passion and zeal in research to develop their own capabilities and also to fuel the momentum in technological advancements. With this platform, we are bringing together today’s academicians and Industry experts to share their teaching methodologies and learn about innovative National Instruments technologies and products used in academia which would enable students to pursue their dreams to create start-up companies and evolve as job creators.”
He further added: “Through Educator’s Day, we want to bring about a sea change in the existing engineering education system in India for a more promising future through research and consultancy. This event in association with NICE, will be instrumental in helping members with the development of projects based on real world applications, access to industry events, educational workshops, training sessions, certification programmes and field visits.”
The Educator’s Day serves as a platform to bridge the gap between the industry and the academia -– from bringing new technologies to classrooms to idea exchange between industry experts and academicians. Every year, the engineering community of India looks forward to this largest academic platform aimed at fostering the spirit of innovation and creativity among the engineering professors and students in the state as well as across India.
The two-day event was a compelling success with participation of over 1,500 professors, scholars and eminent academicians across the country. The event focused on the need of ‘Research and Consultancy’, to play a pivotal role in enabling students and teachers on the effective use of technology in education.
Dr. Poongothai, Minister for Information Technology, Govt. of Tamil Nadu, the Guest of Honour and M. Sivakumar, CEO – ICTACT (A Consortium of Govt. of India, Government of Tamil Nadu and CII) were present at the ceremony to felicitate the students and professors for their outstanding innovations in the field of science & engineering. NI and ICTACT also entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to nurture innovation in Engineering & Science education in India.
For the first time, Educator’s Day 2010, witnessed participation of over 550 students from across the country. The highly acclaimed National level technical competitions - VI Mantra and NI Yantra staged its Grand Finale on the 13th of Dec. Demonstrations, video sessions and projects counseling were part of the whole day event. The winners of VI Mantra and NI Yantra were also announced on the closing day of the event with the award distribution by Dr. Poongothai.
‘Research and Consultancy’ – was the theme of the Annual Educator’s Day 2010. The daylong event on 14th Dec was presided over by NICE Committee members, followed by a key note session by Jayaram Pillai, Managing Director, IndRA (India, Russia and Arabia) NI on the importance of Research and Consultancy in the field of engineering education.
This year, the panel discussions by renowned professors from NIT-Thiruchirapalli, VJTI, PSG College of Technology, BMS College of Engineering gave rise to thoughts, insights and views on research and consultancy, opportunities and challenges in the field of technological advancement.
The discussions were focused around a wide range of next generation embedded technologies including design track, green engineering, teaching embedded systems, robotics & mechatronics, nanotechnology and more to emphasize the importance of graphical system designs for research and consultancy. Other colleges who were also part of this two-day event included NIT Rourkela, SRM University, Anna University, Pondicherry Engineering College.
Prof. Gopikrishna Rao, Chairman, NICE Committee said: “We aim for a tremendous growth in research and consultancy in the engineering education space and we have to develop this through different learning approach in the engineering colleges. NICE, along with NI is dedicated to make a difference to the engineering community by providing them with relevant exposure to a high level of technological proficiency.
“This platform will empower professors to better prepare students for today’s engineering and science challenges by providing hands-on learning of fundamentals and concepts using the latest industry standard technologies.”
Jayaram Pillai, MD, IndRA (India, Russia and Arabia), National Instruments said: "Engineers should have an inbuilt passion and zeal in research to develop their own capabilities and also to fuel the momentum in technological advancements. With this platform, we are bringing together today’s academicians and Industry experts to share their teaching methodologies and learn about innovative National Instruments technologies and products used in academia which would enable students to pursue their dreams to create start-up companies and evolve as job creators.”
He further added: “Through Educator’s Day, we want to bring about a sea change in the existing engineering education system in India for a more promising future through research and consultancy. This event in association with NICE, will be instrumental in helping members with the development of projects based on real world applications, access to industry events, educational workshops, training sessions, certification programmes and field visits.”
The Educator’s Day serves as a platform to bridge the gap between the industry and the academia -– from bringing new technologies to classrooms to idea exchange between industry experts and academicians. Every year, the engineering community of India looks forward to this largest academic platform aimed at fostering the spirit of innovation and creativity among the engineering professors and students in the state as well as across India.
Kingston appoints DIGICARE (DIGILINK) as its national after-sales service provider in India
MUMBAI, INDIA: Kingston Technology, the world leader in memory products, is pleased to announce a comprehensive product warranty and RMA support policy for its products in India.
DIGICARE, a service division of DIGILINK, which offers warranty outsourcing with over 57 service centers in India, has been appointed by Kingston Technology to manage the after-sales support and service programs for all consumers in India.
With the partnership with DIGICARE, Kingston Technology will be extending its legendary customer services to all consumers in India. All consumers from any corner of India can get their Kingston products replaced, including memory modules, USB drives, SSDs, memory cards, and card readers, by sending them to the DIGICARE Service Center.
DIGICARE, a service division of DIGILINK, which offers warranty outsourcing with over 57 service centers in India, has been appointed by Kingston Technology to manage the after-sales support and service programs for all consumers in India.
With the partnership with DIGICARE, Kingston Technology will be extending its legendary customer services to all consumers in India. All consumers from any corner of India can get their Kingston products replaced, including memory modules, USB drives, SSDs, memory cards, and card readers, by sending them to the DIGICARE Service Center.
Syndiant expands internationally into Hong Kong
DALLAS, USA: Syndiant, a leader in high resolution microdisplays for pico projectors, is expanding its global reach to include offices in the Hong Kong Science and Technology Park.
“Syndiant’s expansion into the Hong Kong and South China region reflects the explosive growth of our business. This region exhibits a dynamic business environment and a ‘can do’ attitude that meshes well with Syndiant’s culture. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Park is a world-class location for our company, and we believe it will enable many more opportunities for Syndiant,” said Mark Harward, CEO of Syndiant.
“We are proud that our office will be led by Dr. Dennis Cheng, who is well-respected and very knowledgeable on all aspects of how to deploy our products and technology.”
”Our Hong Kong office allows us to work closely on R&D with technology partners and prestigious universities in Hong Kong and South China. Additionally, the office is in close proximity to key customers in Hong Kong and Shenzhen so we can provide them with excellent support,” said Cheng.
Syndiant’s new office is located at Unit 315A, 3/F, Enterprise Place, No. 5 Science Park West Avenue, Hong Kong Science Park, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Park has 20 state-of-the-art buildings on a 22 hectare campus. Since its inception, the Park has become home to more than 300 technology companies.
“Syndiant’s expansion into the Hong Kong and South China region reflects the explosive growth of our business. This region exhibits a dynamic business environment and a ‘can do’ attitude that meshes well with Syndiant’s culture. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Park is a world-class location for our company, and we believe it will enable many more opportunities for Syndiant,” said Mark Harward, CEO of Syndiant.
“We are proud that our office will be led by Dr. Dennis Cheng, who is well-respected and very knowledgeable on all aspects of how to deploy our products and technology.”
”Our Hong Kong office allows us to work closely on R&D with technology partners and prestigious universities in Hong Kong and South China. Additionally, the office is in close proximity to key customers in Hong Kong and Shenzhen so we can provide them with excellent support,” said Cheng.
Syndiant’s new office is located at Unit 315A, 3/F, Enterprise Place, No. 5 Science Park West Avenue, Hong Kong Science Park, Shatin, New Territories, Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Science and Technology Park has 20 state-of-the-art buildings on a 22 hectare campus. Since its inception, the Park has become home to more than 300 technology companies.
Toshiba intros enterprise-class SSD family
IRVINE, USA: Extending its position in the enterprise storage market, Toshiba Storage Device Division announced its new family of enterprise-class solid state drives (SSDs).
Developed to meet the market’s demand for higher performance and lower power consumption, the new MKx001GRZB series combines Toshiba hard disk drive (HDD) expertise and its leadership as the inventor of NAND flash technology.
The 2.5-inch small form factor drives use the latest 32 nanometer (nm) enterprise grade single-level cell (eSLC) NAND flash memory from Toshiba and 6Gb/sec Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) interface. Samples will be available for customer qualification in the first quarter of 2011 and volume production will begin in the first half of 2011.
“Toshiba offers the industry’s most comprehensive range of storage technologies and the resulting synergies distinguish us as a world-class total storage provider”
“Toshiba offers the industry’s most comprehensive range of storage technologies and the resulting synergies distinguish us as a world-class total storage provider,” said Joel Hagberg, VP of enterprise marketing at Toshiba Storage Device Division.
“Toshiba stands alone in the market as the only SSD supplier that is vertically integrated for NAND flash and has deep enterprise HDD expertise. We possess one of the world’s largest and most advanced NAND flash fabs, our own controller and firmware design teams, critical interface technologies, and established relationships with every major enterprise server and storage OEM. As a result, Toshiba is uniquely positioned to engineer solid state drives that deliver the performance, endurance, and reliability required for business critical applications.”
Available in capacities of 100GB1, 200GB1, and 400GB1, the MKx001GRZB family of SSD drives is designed for ease of integration into new or existing tier-0 enterprise storage systems and designs, including servers, direct-attached storage, and network-attached storage.
The drives deliver performance that outpaces competing enterprise-class SSDs, with random sustained 90,000 read and 17,000 write IOPS2 and sequential sustained 510MB/sec read and 230MB/sec write throughput. Combined with a low power requirement of only 6.5 Watts at operation, the Toshiba SSD family also delivers an industry-leading power efficiency rating of 13,800 IOPS/Watt.
Developed to meet the market’s demand for higher performance and lower power consumption, the new MKx001GRZB series combines Toshiba hard disk drive (HDD) expertise and its leadership as the inventor of NAND flash technology.
The 2.5-inch small form factor drives use the latest 32 nanometer (nm) enterprise grade single-level cell (eSLC) NAND flash memory from Toshiba and 6Gb/sec Serial Attached SCSI (SAS) interface. Samples will be available for customer qualification in the first quarter of 2011 and volume production will begin in the first half of 2011.
“Toshiba offers the industry’s most comprehensive range of storage technologies and the resulting synergies distinguish us as a world-class total storage provider”
“Toshiba offers the industry’s most comprehensive range of storage technologies and the resulting synergies distinguish us as a world-class total storage provider,” said Joel Hagberg, VP of enterprise marketing at Toshiba Storage Device Division.
“Toshiba stands alone in the market as the only SSD supplier that is vertically integrated for NAND flash and has deep enterprise HDD expertise. We possess one of the world’s largest and most advanced NAND flash fabs, our own controller and firmware design teams, critical interface technologies, and established relationships with every major enterprise server and storage OEM. As a result, Toshiba is uniquely positioned to engineer solid state drives that deliver the performance, endurance, and reliability required for business critical applications.”
Available in capacities of 100GB1, 200GB1, and 400GB1, the MKx001GRZB family of SSD drives is designed for ease of integration into new or existing tier-0 enterprise storage systems and designs, including servers, direct-attached storage, and network-attached storage.
The drives deliver performance that outpaces competing enterprise-class SSDs, with random sustained 90,000 read and 17,000 write IOPS2 and sequential sustained 510MB/sec read and 230MB/sec write throughput. Combined with a low power requirement of only 6.5 Watts at operation, the Toshiba SSD family also delivers an industry-leading power efficiency rating of 13,800 IOPS/Watt.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
