USA: NI announced the industry’s widest bandwidth high-performance 26.5 GHz microwave vector signal analyzer (VSA) and a fast tuning 20 GHz continuous wave signal generator.
The two new instruments complement the extensive NI modular instruments offering and expand the measurement capabilities of the PXIplatform.
High-Performance vector signal analyzers deliver a combination of low noise floor, high linearity, and low phase noise. NI’s new 26.5 GHz VSA combines these attributes with up to 765 MHz of instantaneous bandwidth. With the VSA’s bandwidth, engineers can analyze some of the industry’s widest bandwidth signals in a single acquisition including radar pulses, LTE-Advanced transmissions and 802.11ac waveforms.
In addition, the VSA’s fast measurement speed helps engineers decrease time to market and ultimately lower their cost of test. Finally, engineers can program the VSA’s user-programmable FPGA with LabVIEW system design software to customize instrument behavior and address the most advanced RF test applications.
The new 20 GHz signal generator features an ideal combination of exceptional phase noise and fast tuning time (100 µs). This instrument addresses applications including blocking/interferer generation, high-performance intermodulation distortion test benches and various electronic warfare applications.
Monday, October 6, 2014
35 percent of shoppers make purchases on mobile devices
DENVER, USA: An ongoing shopper behavior study conducted by The Integer Group and M/A/R/C Research shows that in just two years, shoppers using mobile devices to make purchases has increased by 10 percent (from 25 percent in 2012).
Increased mobile purchasing by Hispanics (+11 percent YOY), Asian-Americans (+10 percent YOY), and the 15–34 and 35–49 age brackets (+10 percent and +12 percent YOY, respectively) were largely responsible for this increase.
"Shoppers of all ages and demographics are using their mobile phones in stores and to make purchases. Marketers should consider not whether their target uses mobile, but how their target uses mobile," said Craig Elston, SVP of Insight and Strategy at The Integer Group.
In addition to becoming more prevalent as a purchase channel, the use of mobile is expediting the shopping process. The study shows 15 percent of shoppers said that typically only a "couple of minutes" passed between discovering a product (on their mobile device) and purchase.
Males were more likely than females (17 percent and 13 percent, respectively) to make these quick-turn purchases, and mobile-savvy Hispanics reported the shortest time mobile shopping (47 percent of purchases were made within a few hours of product discovery).
This acceleration of purchase is indicative of what shoppers look for when using their mobile devices in store or for purchase: information and convenience. In-store shoppers use their mobile devices to compare prices (39 percent) and look up product reviews (25 percent). This mirrors their priorities for shopping on their smartphones: spending as little as possible (55 percent) and finding the best-quality items (49 percent).
Increased mobile purchasing by Hispanics (+11 percent YOY), Asian-Americans (+10 percent YOY), and the 15–34 and 35–49 age brackets (+10 percent and +12 percent YOY, respectively) were largely responsible for this increase.
"Shoppers of all ages and demographics are using their mobile phones in stores and to make purchases. Marketers should consider not whether their target uses mobile, but how their target uses mobile," said Craig Elston, SVP of Insight and Strategy at The Integer Group.
In addition to becoming more prevalent as a purchase channel, the use of mobile is expediting the shopping process. The study shows 15 percent of shoppers said that typically only a "couple of minutes" passed between discovering a product (on their mobile device) and purchase.
Males were more likely than females (17 percent and 13 percent, respectively) to make these quick-turn purchases, and mobile-savvy Hispanics reported the shortest time mobile shopping (47 percent of purchases were made within a few hours of product discovery).
This acceleration of purchase is indicative of what shoppers look for when using their mobile devices in store or for purchase: information and convenience. In-store shoppers use their mobile devices to compare prices (39 percent) and look up product reviews (25 percent). This mirrors their priorities for shopping on their smartphones: spending as little as possible (55 percent) and finding the best-quality items (49 percent).
Friday, October 3, 2014
PCI P2PE – implement now, or wait for something better, like Apple Pay?
UK: With the launch of Apple Pay for the iPhone 6 and Apple Watch, the payments industry could be witnessing the birth of the next big thing. Mobile payments have been on the cusp for some time now, but what about existing payment infrastructures.
Should merchants and retailers move to Payment Card Industry (PCI) point-to-point encryption as they are being urged or should they wait a bit longer to see which way the market moves.
Tim Holman, CEO of 2-Sec, one of Europe’s leading Quality Security Assessors (QSA) and Iain High, CEO of Anderson Zaks, an independent Payment Services Provider, debate the issues.
High said there is currently a lot of discussion about the benefits of point-to-point-encryption (P2PE), with many merchants being encouraged to adopt this latest standard from PCI. However, P2PE is not mandatory and nor is it likely to become so, so why would merchants even consider it. What is in it for them?
Holman added that if deployed correctly a P2PE solution will de-scope a merchant’s stores from PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and help to eliminate the risk of card data loss in store, though there is a cost associated and merchants need to think carefully about the actual benefits they will achieve.
Most retailers are already working in a relatively low risk environment having invested heavily in EMV (which stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, and is a global standard for inter-operation of payment cards) with card schemes such as Visa encouraging the Technology Innovation Program (TIP) approach.
For retailers starting from scratch, I would say that P2PE is worth considering, but to justify replacing an infrastructure (PIN Entry Devices should last between 5 and 10 years) that is reasonably secure and compliant, there needs to be a more compelling business reason. Indeed several high profile retailers are currently ripping out perfectly good solutions to install P2PE solutions for no real business benefit.
Should merchants and retailers move to Payment Card Industry (PCI) point-to-point encryption as they are being urged or should they wait a bit longer to see which way the market moves.
Tim Holman, CEO of 2-Sec, one of Europe’s leading Quality Security Assessors (QSA) and Iain High, CEO of Anderson Zaks, an independent Payment Services Provider, debate the issues.
High said there is currently a lot of discussion about the benefits of point-to-point-encryption (P2PE), with many merchants being encouraged to adopt this latest standard from PCI. However, P2PE is not mandatory and nor is it likely to become so, so why would merchants even consider it. What is in it for them?
Holman added that if deployed correctly a P2PE solution will de-scope a merchant’s stores from PCI Data Security Standard (PCI DSS) and help to eliminate the risk of card data loss in store, though there is a cost associated and merchants need to think carefully about the actual benefits they will achieve.
Most retailers are already working in a relatively low risk environment having invested heavily in EMV (which stands for Europay, MasterCard and Visa, and is a global standard for inter-operation of payment cards) with card schemes such as Visa encouraging the Technology Innovation Program (TIP) approach.
For retailers starting from scratch, I would say that P2PE is worth considering, but to justify replacing an infrastructure (PIN Entry Devices should last between 5 and 10 years) that is reasonably secure and compliant, there needs to be a more compelling business reason. Indeed several high profile retailers are currently ripping out perfectly good solutions to install P2PE solutions for no real business benefit.
Global connected TV device installed base hits half a billion units in Q2 2014
BOSTON, USA: Worldwide ownership of Connected TV Devices (including smart TVs, smart blu-ray players, IP-enabled game consoles and digital media streamers) grew 7 percent quarter-on-quarter in Q2 2014 and 34 percent versus the same period in 2013 to reach 500 million units.
The growing demand for devices that facilitate the streaming of online video to the large screen TV is creating a highly competitive environment with no fewer than 16 major technology brands accounting for 90 percent of devices in use according to Strategy Analytics' Connected Home Devices (CHD) service report, "Global Connected TV Device Tracker: Q2 2014".
Other key findings from the report include:
* One in four connected TV devices installed in homes around the world is a Sony branded product while the combined footprint of Sony, Samsung.
Nintendo and Microsoft accounts for 60 percent of all devices in use.
* Samsung enjoyed the highest unit increase to its installed base of connected TV devices during the quarter while Google's connected TV device footprint grew faster than any other brand from Q1 to Q2 2014.
* Apple remained the leading brand within the global digital media streamer market in Q2 2014 although its share dropped to under 30 percent for the first time in the face of competition from Google's Chromecast, Amazon's Fire TV and Roku.
The growing demand for devices that facilitate the streaming of online video to the large screen TV is creating a highly competitive environment with no fewer than 16 major technology brands accounting for 90 percent of devices in use according to Strategy Analytics' Connected Home Devices (CHD) service report, "Global Connected TV Device Tracker: Q2 2014".
Other key findings from the report include:
* One in four connected TV devices installed in homes around the world is a Sony branded product while the combined footprint of Sony, Samsung.
Nintendo and Microsoft accounts for 60 percent of all devices in use.
* Samsung enjoyed the highest unit increase to its installed base of connected TV devices during the quarter while Google's connected TV device footprint grew faster than any other brand from Q1 to Q2 2014.
* Apple remained the leading brand within the global digital media streamer market in Q2 2014 although its share dropped to under 30 percent for the first time in the face of competition from Google's Chromecast, Amazon's Fire TV and Roku.
First ultra HD 4K OLED TV available to US consumers
SANTA MONICA, USA: Ushering in the future of TV for American consumers, LG Electronics has begun selling 4K Ultra HD OLED TVs in the United States.
LG's new 65-inch class (64.5 inches measured diagonally) 4K OLED model 65EC9700 offers the ultimate in picture quality, the first to combine Ultra HD's intense detail and OLED's superior contrast and color accuracy.
LG Electronics USA chose Southern California as the consumer launch pad for the 65EC9700 4K OLED TV, teaming up with high-end retailer Video & Audio Center to introduce the Future of TV to U.S. consumers for the first time at a VIP in-store event tonight in Santa Monica. Available for sale here today at $9,999, the 65EC9700 will be available nationwide later this month.
LG's new 65-inch class (64.5 inches measured diagonally) 4K OLED model 65EC9700 offers the ultimate in picture quality, the first to combine Ultra HD's intense detail and OLED's superior contrast and color accuracy.
LG Electronics USA chose Southern California as the consumer launch pad for the 65EC9700 4K OLED TV, teaming up with high-end retailer Video & Audio Center to introduce the Future of TV to U.S. consumers for the first time at a VIP in-store event tonight in Santa Monica. Available for sale here today at $9,999, the 65EC9700 will be available nationwide later this month.
IEEE Photonics conference beckons
SAN DIEGO, USA: The world's foremost photonics scientists, engineers and researchers will gather in San Diego, CA for the IEEE Photonics Conference 2014 (IPC-2014), the photonics industry's premier fall conference.
The comprehensive technical program will include presentations that detail the latest breakthroughs in lasers, optoelectronics, optical fiber networks and lightwave technologies by leading researchers from industry, academia and government. Scheduled for 12 - 16 October, 2014 at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla in San Diego, CA, the conference was previously known as the IEEE LEOS Annual Meeting.
The conference is anticipated to include more than 500 technical papers, four invited plenary talks on leading-edge photonics areas, a panel discussion on metamaterials, as well as a series of three Special Symposia designed to explore emerging photonics topics, a short course and several tutorial sessions.
There will also be several social events, including an opening reception, a workshop featuring IEEE Photonics Society publication editors and a special reception for Women in Photonics, as well as a manufacturers' exhibition.
"This year's Photonics Conference is once again the IEEE Photonics Society's showcase event for the latest breakthrough developments in photonics technology, their novel applications and future directions," said Dr. Thomas Clark, IPC-2014 Program chair and supervisor of the Microwave Photonics Section at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
"The conference provides a unique combination of industry-leading research, in-depth educational and professional development opportunities, and the chance for attendees to interact with leading photonics professionals from around the world."
The comprehensive technical program will include presentations that detail the latest breakthroughs in lasers, optoelectronics, optical fiber networks and lightwave technologies by leading researchers from industry, academia and government. Scheduled for 12 - 16 October, 2014 at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla in San Diego, CA, the conference was previously known as the IEEE LEOS Annual Meeting.
The conference is anticipated to include more than 500 technical papers, four invited plenary talks on leading-edge photonics areas, a panel discussion on metamaterials, as well as a series of three Special Symposia designed to explore emerging photonics topics, a short course and several tutorial sessions.
There will also be several social events, including an opening reception, a workshop featuring IEEE Photonics Society publication editors and a special reception for Women in Photonics, as well as a manufacturers' exhibition.
"This year's Photonics Conference is once again the IEEE Photonics Society's showcase event for the latest breakthrough developments in photonics technology, their novel applications and future directions," said Dr. Thomas Clark, IPC-2014 Program chair and supervisor of the Microwave Photonics Section at The Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory.
"The conference provides a unique combination of industry-leading research, in-depth educational and professional development opportunities, and the chance for attendees to interact with leading photonics professionals from around the world."
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