Archive for January, 2011

Notion Ink Starts Shipping its Tablet with Hybrid Screen

Notion-Ink-AdamNotion Ink 19 is to begin shipping its hybrid display ‘Adam’ tablet according to a report on the company’s official blog.

Customers from the USA and EU who have previously placed an order on the Notion Ink website will be the first to receive the device. As expected, they will get the device before the end of January. The first orders were placed in the middle of December.

The Adam tablet is based on the Android 2.2 and is equipped with a 10-inch diagonal screen. The Adam’s hybrid display is produced by the PixelQi company. .

The tablet’s users themselves will be able to disable the LED backlight. In this case, the image will be brought on the screen owing to a special light reflecting layer. The light reflecting display will be able to function in bright sunlight.

With a disabled backlight LED, the device can work offline in book reading mode for around 40 hours. With a disabled Wi-Fi module and in video mode the device will work for up to 15 hours. By comparison, the iPad’s battery life lasts for a maximum of 10 hours.

Notion Ink is selling 6 models of the Adam. Prices for the Adam start at 375 USD. For models with a hybrid screen prices start at 499 USD.

Posted in Uncategorized at 01:01

No Comments »

Release of Debian Squeeze Scheduled for Beginning of February

debianDebian project developers have published a report featuring details on the status of the Debian 6.0 (Squeeze) release. The number of errors holding back the release is now almost at zero; only 4 problems remain unsolved as of yet. The second Debian installer release candidate is planned to be launched at the end of the week. The final release is expected on February 5-6. The release may be postponed should critical problems be discovered or if the infrastructure supporting the project fails to properly function.

Posted in IT News at 01:01

No Comments »

Google Introduces Mobile Voice Translator

googleGoogle, the world’s leading company specializing in business application development has come up with a new app which could make the lives of many much easier, especially those trying to communicate abroad. The aforementioned app translates human speech in the real time and voices the translated version.

The Conversation Mode technology for Android 2.1 and higher is based on a combination of Google Voice and Google Translate.

15 languages are available for mobile devices in Google Voice and 53 in Google Translate.

Conversation Mode exists in the experimental version and supports only two languages: English and Spanish. After the user has said a phrase into a microphone, the app immediately retransmits in to different language. The words need to be pronounced clearly and accurately as the quality of translation is affected by accent, fast speech and background noise levels.

Google’s development is not entirely apt for business communication, yet it is invaluable for tourists when trying to communicate abroad who do not speak the language of a particular place or country. This is set to make the app a highly sought-after product.

Developers promise to actively enhance the technology. It was first showcased at the electronic product exhibition in Berlin in September last year.

At Softage Group, we specialize in business application development for a number of customers worldwide. Please visit our website at www.softage-group.com for more details.

Posted in IT News, Mobile platforms at 01:01

No Comments »

Google to Launch Rival for iTunes

google androidGoogle intends to launch a music service for Android-smartphones, writes Gizmo Fusion.

The aforementioned blog post features a screenshot of the Google Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) menu, which contains a music synchronization option. The option is supposed to allow the synchronization of a user’s music collections on a smartphone with a collection on a virtual server. To enable the feature, users will simply need to press Sync Music.

As of yet, Google hasn’t officially announced the launch of the server with a similar name. It is unclear if the synchronization feature will be available only when the device is connected to a computer, or if the music can be downloaded by means of Wi-Fi or through a mobile network connection.

At the same time, writes Droid Life, the synching option is available for all Android-smartphone users who have downloaded and installed the Music Player app. This app may be installed on Android smartphones and tablets. However, it is not yet fully available for all users.

Google has its own app store for Android-smartphones. Android Market is the equivalent of the Apple App Store. At the same time, Apple also has a separate iTunes client which allows buying and downloading music to the company’s portable devices. In addition, iTunes can be downloaded as a computer program. It is not certain yet if Google will release a program similar to iTunes.

Posted in IT News, Mobile platforms at 01:01

No Comments »

Apps Released under GPL License to be Deleted from Apple App Store

app storeThe widely held opinion that Apple won’t remove GPL made apps from its store due to the non-compliance of the GPL license with maintenance conditions was contradicted by the company’s recent actions: on January 7, a popular VLC player was removed from the App Store catalog.

Remi Denis-Courmont, developer of VLC, thinks that the license conflict was not resolved in the appropriate way and will serve as a precedent in the future. It was Mr. Denis-Courmont who first drew the public’s attention to the license conflict in October. Several developers from a non-commercial organization VideoLAN, which supervises the development of VLC, believe that such actions will only harm the project’s reputation.

FSF, represented by Brett Smith (responsible for license compliance in FSF), is seemingly in agreement with Mr. Denis-Courmont. Moreover, the 6th chapter of GPLv2 license claims that any receptor of the GPL-program has the right to copy, modify or distribute the received software without being able to impose any additional limitations on the granted rights. At the same time, Apple Store terms and conditions ban any commercial use, distribution or modification- the central reason for the current conflict.

Chapter 6 of the GPL has proved a decisive factor. Without the chapter users would be obligated to comply with extra terms and conditions in a separate legal agreement similar to the terms of a store or NDA. It is noteworthy that the problem lies not in the use of GPL software (i.e. users who installed VLC player, may continue to use it), but in the method of its distribution through the App Store catalog.

Apple is likely to keep to the same policy in future: it will remove apps from the catalog to avoid being accused of non-compliance to licensing agreement. Since Apple is unlikely to verify the programs in the catalog for compliance with the store’s terms, organizations like FSF and developers will be held accountable for adhering to the GPL license.

Posted in IT News at 12:01

No Comments »

Motorola Introduces iPad’s Rival

motorola mobilityAt the Las Vegas Exhibition, Motorola Mobility introduced a new tablet computer which is to be called Xoom, reports Bloomberg.

The device is based on a 2-nuclei processor and is equipped with a 10,1-inch diagonal screen. Xoom will be using Android 3.0 Honeycomb OS, developed by Google Inc. Significantly, in September 2010 Samsung alsoreleased its Galaxy Tab, also based on Android. At the same time, Motorola’s device will be run on the updated software version.

Xoom is likely to hit the consumer market in the first quarter of 2011. Developers haven’t yet clarified the cost of the device. Specialists estimate that the price is unlikely to be higher than 500 USD in order that the tablet be compatible with other similar devices on the market, for instance with Apple’s iPad.

On January 4, 2011 Motorola split into two companies – Motorola Mobility and Motorola Solutions. The former specializes in mobile devices and the latter deals with telecommunication equipment. It took the company 3 years to prepare for the demerger.

Posted in IT News, Mobile platforms at 12:01

1 Comment »

Foxconn Develops Line of System Plates for Intel Sandy Bridge Chips

Foxconn Develops Line of System Plates for Intel Sandy Bridge ChipsWithout waiting for Sandy Bridge’s announcement of 2nd generation Intel Core processors, Foxconn has introduced a line of motherboards for them.

The following models H67A-S, H67MP-S, H67S on Intel H67 chipset and P67A-S, using the logic set Intel P67 are included in the line. They all support operations with DDR3 2200 memory, whose maximum capacity is 8 or 16 Gbyte (depending on the number of available slots – two or four). Developers have overseen controllers Serial ATA 3.0, Gigabit Ethernet and 8-channel (7.1) sound codec.

Plates H67 A-S and P67 A-S are produced in ATX form factor, and are equipped with USB 3.0 controller supporting 2 ports (with carrying capacity up to 5 Gbit per sec.). H67MP – S has a form factor mATX and H67S has Mini-ITX factor.

Japanese made solid capacitors with a guaranteed 50 000 working hours have been applied to the innovations. Developers point out that they ensure stability, reliability and durability which are necessary for working with the most demanding processors.

H67MP-S and P67A-S models have two slots PCI Express x 16 allowing them to support configurations of SLI and CrossFire video subsystems.

Posted in IT News at 07:01

No Comments »

Client Skype 3.0 for iOS Devices is Available for Downloading

skypeSkype has released the 3rd version of the client app for Apple iOS devices prior to CES 2011 which is to be held in Las Vegas (Nevada, USA).

Skype’s primary innovation in 3.0 is the possibility of video calls through 3G mobile networks and wireless Wi-Fi networks. This functional will be available for the users of the iPhone 4, iPhone 3GS and iPod Touch (those supporting Wi-Fi). The gadget’s back panel has a camera, with the help of which people can transmit not only images of their faces but also those of things around them…

Previous models of the iPad and iPod Touch had no inbuilt digital camera but could receive video calls with the help of Skype 3.0. The new Skype app will allow users to make video calls to personal computers based on Mac OS X and Windows.

Posted in IT News at 06:01

No Comments »