Apple Computer now has a total of seven printed circuit board (PCB) suppliers in Taiwan for its iPod series, with Gold Circuit Electronics (GCE) being the latest addition to the supplier list, according to industry sources.
Viewsonic apparently will be making another step into the mobile PC market with two webpads nearing completion. The Viewsonic V212 and V212x are based on an Intel (Marvell) Xscale PXA270 processor with a 520 MHz Bulverde core. The system uses a 10.4" screen with a resolution of up to 1024x768.
Further attaching itself to the idea of watching user videos on mobile phones, Verizon today announced a deal with Revver, just a day after confirming a similar partnership with YouTube.
Denmark-based RTX Products will be releasing a dual-mode Skype phone that doesn't require a computer. The cordless Dualphone 3088 can plug into either a broadband Ethernet connection or a landline. RTX Products claims the phone has enough battery power to last 10 hours of talking or 140 hours on standby.
Bedminster (NJ) - Giving more steam to the runaway train known as YouTube, Verizon today officially announced its plan to incorporate the video sharing site with its V Cast multimedia service.
The new mobile YouTube platform is planned to be available in early December, with no additional cost to the $15 monthly V Cast service. As part of the partnership, Verizon will be the exclusive mobile provider of YouTube content for an undisclosed length of time.
Mobile phone users are getting a new Opera Mini browser that can publish pictures and grab RSS news feeds. Opera Mini 3.0 is Opera's latest version of the free browser and should work with most web-enabled phones. Among the browser's more notable features is the photo sharing capability within the browser and the RSS news feeds which can be sorted by date or source.
Samsung's Advanced Institute of Technology has developed a fuel cell that can charge a mobile phone in a few hours. The small 180g cell generates 2 watts of power from combining hydrogen, methanol and air. Researchers say test units have successfully charged phones 200 times in a row.
Following the widescreen trend, Lenovo today announced its second Thinkpad model that is now available with a 15.4" widescreen LCD: T60 widescreen models are selling for $1400 and up.
Sony said it has found defects in some of its popular Cyber-shot digital cameras, the latest quality problem to strike the Japanese company whose image was severely tarnished by a massive battery recall earlier this year.
Verizon Wireless today released the "Env", its latest V Cast phone, as the official successor to LG's "The V" phone. With a Sidekick-type design and interface, Verizon is calling it "the ultimate in coverged device."
Sunnyvale (CA) - Palm today launched the previously announced Treo 680, which currently complements the firm's smartphone portfolio, but is expected to succeed the aging 650 model. The 680 comes in flashy colors and Palm hopes that the new model, while not offering groundbreaking new features, can regain lost market share.
With reports circulating that an iPhone from Apple Computer is likely to debut in the first half of 2007, the introduction of an iPhone could have an adverse impact on sales of music handsets by other vendors should Apple's first order for an iPhone total 12 million units as reported earlier.
Foxconn International Holdings (FIH), the Hong Kong-listed handset subsidiary of Foxconn Electronics, is reportedly going to strengthen its cooperation with Nokia, with the company expected to manufacture smartphones for the Finnish handset vendor, according to sources at a local securities house.
Mercora has launched its 'M' mobile music service for Windows-based phones. The service starts as a downloadable application and gives access to over 100,000 channels of streaming radio. Users form social networks and can browse each others music. Libraries can be searched by artist, genre and style.
'M' channels are streamed over the air in compressed Ogg/Vorbis format and the company claims the sound is "CD-quality". The service integrates with Bluetooth and compatible phones can send the music to Bluetooth speakers or headphones.
A Taiwanese source has confirmed that an Apple iPhone is now in production and that more than 10 million will be available by January when Apple Apple Computer CEO Steve Jobs will formally launch the new iPhone at Macworld in January in San Francisco.
Wireless carrier Sprint Nextel said on Wednesday it will place Microsoft's search engine on its mobile phones, marking the software maker's most significant step to gain a U.S. foothold in the budding mobile Internet search market.
Sling Media has a modest, but noticeable presence at this year's EHX. On top of the list is the latest version of the Slingbox, the Pro model, which has three different source inputs to allow users to watch content from their TV, DVD player, video camera, and others, anywhere in the world. We also heard about some of the unconventional uses people have been experimenting with using their Slingbox devices.
Cingular and Samsung are partnering up to release a new phone that is cool enough to play music and video while being professional enough for the office. The BlackJack cameraphone comes with Bluetooth 2.0 and is powered by Windows Mobile 5.0. Data streaming is provided on Cingular's 3G BroadbandConnect high-speed service.
Redmond (WA) - Officially kicking into gear in the one product area where Apple has a dwarfing advantage over Microsoft, the software giant today prepared to cut the ribbon on its Zune portable media player, which will officially launch tomorrow. As a late entrant to a market with a high rate of product failure, Microsoft has a lot of work to do.
