Intel Unveils Centrino Atom Processor for Mobile Internet Devices

Intel introduced five new Intel Atom processors for Mobile Internet Devices (MIDs) and embedded computing solutions that it expects will begin shipping this summer.


The technology package includes the Inte Atom processor (formerly codenamed "Silverthorne") plus a single-chip with integrated graphics called the Intel System Controller Hub that enables PC-like capabilities. The Intel Atom processor, which is Intel's smallest and the world's fastest chip under 3 watts, has a thermal design power range1 of 0.65 to 2.4 watts* (versus 35 watts for today's typical laptop), average power range of 160-220 milliwatts (mW) and idle power range of 80-100mW.


"Today is a historic day for Intel and the high-tech industry as we deliver our first-ever Intel Atom processor and surround it with a great package of technology," said Anand Chandrasekher, Intel senior vice president and general manager of the Ultra Mobility Group.http://www.intel.com

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LSI Introduces Low Cost Content Inspection Chip

LSI introduced its Tarari T1000 series of silicon-based content inspection processors for networking OEMs. The T1000 series supports either completely RAM-less or single-memory chip operating modes and provides scalable throughput up to 2 Gbps. The chip is targeted at high-volume applications.


LSI said its T1000 is the first regular expression (regex) processor to function independently without any external memory for implementations operating at data rates of 250 Mbps and 500 Mbps. When configured for RAM-less mode operation, T1000 processors share host CPU system memory, resulting in lower cost and reduced power consumption. The simple addition of a single low-cost memory chip enables high-performance applications operating at 1 Gbps and 2 Gbps rates. This compares with competing solutions that require multiple, expensive and exotic memory types to achieve multi-gigabit data rates.
http://www.lsi.com

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AT&T Launches College Mobile Applications Developer Contest

AT&T is sponsoring a contest for full-time college students and staff to develop innovative and creative mobile applications that enhance academic performance, build campus community and help to improve campus security operations. Called the Big Mobile On Campus Challenge, the contest is open to all full-time students and full- or part-time staff at a four-year public or private accredited, nonprofit college or university in the continental United States.


The Big Mobile On Campus Challenge seeks applications in three categories: social networking, academics, and safety and security. AT&T will choose three finalists in the three categories and then pick the top three overall. The winner will receive a $10,000 scholarship. The two runners-up -- either as an individual or team -- will receive a $5,000 scholarship and device of choice for each entrant.http://www.att.com/higherEDcontest

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Microsoft Updates Windows Mobile Software, Announces Enterprise Mgt

Microsoft announced Windows Mobile 6.1, an update for its Windows Mobile software that includes new time-saving features, easier phone navigation and management, and increased security safeguards. Among the enhancements is the ability to easily view full-screen web pages and multimedia on the web with a smartphone.


Microsoft listed a number of carrier partners supporting the update, including Alltel Wireless, AT&T, ASUS, HP, HTC Corp, i-mate, Intermec Inc, Motorola, O2, Orange, Palm Inc, Pantech, Samsung, Sony Ericsson Mobile Communications, Sprint, T-Mobile USA Inc, T-Mobile International Inc, T-Mobile Germany, TELUS, Toshiba, Verizon Wireless and Vodafone.


Microsoft also announced the release of System Center Mobile Device Manager 2008 and plans for a Microsoft Mobile Services Plan (MMSP) to be available from mobile operators worldwide. These are designed to help midsize and large businesses to manage and help protect Windows Mobile phones. http://www.microsoft.com/windowsmobile/default.mspx

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NextWave Launches Second-Generation Mobile WiMAX Chipset

NextWave Wireless announced its NW2000 Wave 2-ready family of second-generation mobile WiMAX chipsets designed for high-volume, small form-factor wireless broadband subscriber stations, including CPE modems, PC card modems, laptops, multimode/smartphone handsets and mobile multimedia terminals. Specifically, the new mobile WiMAX chipsets include:

• NW2100: NextWave's NW2100 is a family of 802.16e-based mobile subscriber baseband System-On-a-Chip (SoC) solutions designed for Wave 2 WiMAX Forum compliance. Integrating an ARM9 processor and memory, the NW2100 provides a complete self-hosted modem, enabling designs with minimum processing load on the host processor. The chip uses 65-nanometer CMOS process and includes integrated 802.11b/g MAC/BB, SIM controller, multiple host interfaces, an embedded device security/firmware authentication engine, support for optimum data throughput, and advanced proprietary techniques that significantly reduce the overall system power consumption.



• NW2200: Designed to be used in conjunction with NextWave's NW2100 WiMAX SoC family, NextWave's NW2200 family of single-chip, highly integrated, multi-band Radio Frequency (RF) transceivers have dual independent receive chains optimized for mobile applications. The NW2200 provides a compact, ultra low-power, high-performance solution for manufacturers of wireless broadband mobile devices, and unlike competitor RF ICs it supports all major worldwide WiMAX bands and profiles. To further decrease total system cost and chip footprint, NextWave has deployed a direct-conversion architecture, integrated low-noise amplifiers, and integrated low-dropout voltage regulators for reduced external component count.

Sampling begins this month. NextWave's first generation chipsets were sampled in 2007.http://www.nextwave.com

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OKI Develops 160Gbps Optical 3R Regenerator for Ultra Long Haul

Oki Electric Industry Co. announced a significant milestone -- all optically regenerated transmission, which enables unlimited transmission of 160Gbps optical signals with single wavelength. To demonstrate the results of this project, OKI used an optical test-bed provided by the National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT)'s Japan Gigabit Network II (JGN II). The research that led to OKI's achievement was conducted as part of the "Research and Development on λ Utility Technology," under the auspices of NICT.


Specifically, OKI developed an all-optical 3R Regenerator using a specialized optical-repeater technology with functions for re-amplification, re-shaping to remove optical signal wave distortion, and re-timing to avoid timing jitter accumulation. The company said these advances, in theory, make it possible to achieve signal processing speeds of over 200Gbps.


OKI also developed a Polarization Mode Dispersion Compensator (PMDC) that adaptively mitigates the impact of the changes in transmission line characteristics that are unique to optical fiber. Polarization mode dispersion is a phenomenon whereby wave distortion increases in an oval-shaped fiber core. The dispersion value changes depending on the temperature or transmission environment. Because the faster the transmission speed, the more sensitive it is to such changes, a PMDC is indispensable for transmission systems operating at over 40 Gbps. OKI's newly developed PMDC adopts a design to fully leverage the optical 3R Regenerator.


OKI expects 160Gbps data transmission will be commercialized in 2010 or soon thereafter.http://www.oki.com/

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Nokia Demos Internet Tablet WiMAX Edition

At CTIA in Las Vegas, Nokia unveiled its N810 Internet Tablet - WiMAX Edition -- a pocket-sized device that is expected to be available in the U.S. during the summer of 2008 in areas where WiMAX connectivity is available.


The device offers a Mozilla web browser, GPS, 2GB of internal memory and expandability to 10 GB, a 4.13 inch touch screen and a slide-out QWERTY keyboard. A number of VoIP and Instant Messaging (IM) clients are available, including Skype, Google Talk, and Gizmo5. A client for the Rhapsody online music service is also available.


Also being introduced with the Nokia N810 WiMAX Edition is the newest Internet Tablet operating system. This new upgraded OS2008 introduces useful new features to the platform, including an enhanced e-mail client, support for Chinese character rendering in the browser and RSS feeds and Seamless Software Update functionality to eliminate manual software updates, making periodic updates of the operating system quick and easy.http://www.nokia.com

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Packeteer Board Rejects Elliott Offer

Packeteer's Board of Directors formally rejected the acquisition offer of Elliot Associates for $5.50 per share in cash, saying that if the Board decides to sell the company, it is "well-positioned to negotiate a transaction with a value greater than the Elliott tender offer."


The company also announced that its Board had adopted a stockholders rights plan with a one year duration. Under the Rights Plan, stockholders of record at the close of business on April 14, 2008 will receive one share purchase Right for each share of Packeteer, Inc. Common Stock held on that date. If any person or group acquires 15% or more of Packeteer, Inc.'s Common Stock without prior Board approval, there would be a triggering event causing significant dilution in the voting power of such person or group.http://www.packeteer.com

• On March 5, Elliott Associates. an international fund manager and long-term shareholder of Packeteer, make an unsolicited bid of $5.50 per share to acquire the company -- representing about a 42% premium over Packeteer's closing price the previous day.

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Qualcomm Improves CDMA2000 Network Capacity

Qualcomm announced an important advancement for its CDMA2000 technology -- operators will now be able to support more than double the current capacity of 35 simultaneous calls in 1.25 MHz of spectrum while delivering the same level of voice quality. The new levels of efficiency not only meet the growing demand for voice connectivity, but also enable the freed-up bandwidth to be used to expand 3G data services.


The capacity enhancements to CDMA2000 technology are featured in certain products from Qualcomm's new Cell Site Modem (CSM) CSM8xxx-series chipsets. The target schedule for the new CSM8xxx-series solutions supports complete interoperability testing and commercialization by 2010. Featuring reverse link interference cancellation and other advanced radio techniques, these products will enable existing CDMA2000 networks to deliver new voice capabilities through a simple channel card upgrade while leveraging most radio access network investments. In addition, the voice capacity enhancements can be combined with EV-DO Rev. B mobile broadband in the same base station.
http://www.qualcomm.com

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MobiTV to Offer Disney Channel to its Mobile Television Viewers

Disney-ABC Television Group and MobiTV, announced a content licensing agreement under which MobiTV will offer Disney Channel to MobiTV service subscribers. The same content and programming as seen on cable and satellite television is now available to MobiTV service subscribers on their enabled wireless handsets via MobiTV's carrier partners.http://www.mobitv.com/

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TrendChip Launches ADSL2+ Chipset with Integrated Fast Ethernet Transceiver

TrendChip Technologies, an xDSL IC developer based in Taiwan, introduced its next generation ADSL2+ chipset, composed of an ADSL2+ processor and an Analog Front End (AFE), for customer premise equipment (CPE). The chipset targets ADSL2+ Bridge and Router applications. It integrates a 10/100Base-TX Fast Ethernet MAC and Transceiver with an auto-negotiation function and provides the Quad-IO SPI flash which provides faster boot up time comparing with existing single-IO SPI flash. TrendChip said its design also provides high processing power, enhanced Impulse Noise Protection (INP) capability for IPTV, advanced routing throughput, and lower BOM (Bill of Material) cost.http://www.trendchip.com.tw

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Entel Selects Alcatel-Lucent to Deploy WiMAX Rev-e in Bolivia

Entel has selected Alcatel-Lucent a, to deploy the first commercial WiMAX Rev-e (802.16e-2005 standard) network in Bolivia.

The network will support VoIP, high-speed Internet access, video and other data services for both stationary and nomadic customers. Entel plans to launch commercial service of the network by the end of this quarter. Alcatel-Lucent will provide its end-to-end WiMAX solution, including base stations, wireless access controllers, software and application platforms. It also will provide design and planning for end-to-end network integration services, including radio network planning, installation and commissioning, project management and support services for Entel's network. ZyXEL will provide customer-premises equipment. Financial terms were not disclosed.http://www.alcatel-lucent.comhttp://www.entel.bo

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Alcatel-Lucent Introduces CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Rev B, Distributed Base Stations

Alcatel-Lucent plans to support CDMA2000 1xEV-DO Revision B (EVDO Rev B) capabilities for 3G CDMA networks. The Alcatel-Lucent EVDO Rev B solution is a software upgrade to existing EVDO base stations and allows EVDO radio carriers to be deployed in increments of 2.5 or 3.75 megahertz (MHz), as opposed to the 1.25 MHz increments supported today.


Alcatel-Lucent said that by deploying wider carriers, mobile operators could see a two- or three-fold improvement in the forward link peak data rates (6.2 Mbps for 2.5 MHz and 9.1 Mbps for 3.75 MHz). Peak data rates for the Reverse Link are improved proportionally (3.6 Mbps for 2.5 MHz and 5.4 Mbps for 3.75 MHz). Alcatel-Lucent's implementation results in higher individual user throughputs across the entire footprint of the cell, resulting in the perception by the end-user of a more uniform data rate as they move through different areas of coverage.


The new EVDO Rev B solution is a simple software upgrade into any of the Alcatel-Lucent 1xEVDO Rev A capable Base Stations (formerly known as the CDMA Modular Cell base stations). EVDO Rev B-equipped Base Stations will retain backwards compatibility and continue to support 1xEVDO Rev A and Rev 0 mobile devices that are already deployed.


In addition, Alcatel-Lucent introduced a new distributed base station that supports CDMA2000 1X and 1xEV-DO Revision A (Rev. A) services.
This "zero footprint" distributed base station seamlessly integrates into existing networks and can be deployed in a wide array of physical locations such as utility poles, the sides of the buildings and tower tops, without taking up any floor space at an existing site, or with minimal space at a new site, thus minimizing real estate costs, a key expense for operators. The platform effectively separates baseband and radio frequency components into a baseband unit and remote radio heads (RRH) allowing a wide variety of configurations, and enabling different elements of the base station to be separated by miles. This provides exceptional flexibility for operators facing physical site constraints and site acquisition challenges, allowing them to provide seamless coverage to their subscribers. Alcatel-Lucent's RRH products are fanless and offer a 50 percent improvement in power saving over earlier generation products.

Alcatel-Lucent also noted that it is the first company to adapt the Common Public Radio Interface (CPRI) specification to CDMA. It allows the company to better support customers by leveraging development across multiple wireless technologies (CDMA and W-CDMA), and support a smooth, and consistent evolution path to 4G. http://www.alcatel-lucent.com

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Cisco's Linksys Enables FMC with Wireless-G UMA Router

Cisco's Linksys division introduced a Wi-Fi router for mobile operators planning to offer fixed mobile convergence. The new Linksys by Cisco Wireless-G Router offers two phone ports and leverages Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) technology. It also features two internal SIM card slots for multiple phone lines and UMA client software. T-Mobile USA is offering the product with its @Home service, currently available in Seattle and Dallas test markets.


Additional features include:

• Unscheduled Automatic Power Save Delivery (UAPSD), which improves the mobile phone battery life when the phone is connected to the home network over Wi-Fi.



• Simplified Security -- The WRTU54G includes a pre-standard version of Wi-Fi Protected Setup (WPS) for improved ease-of-use via simplified pairing of handset to access point.



• GSM capability over IP -- uses technology from Kineto Wireless to enables analog phone traffic to be carried over IP back to the operator's network.

http://www.linksys.com

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