General Wireless first with PC-to-mobile messaging
by Brian TurnerAs part of its ongoing development of PC-to-mobile messaging technology, General Wireless will be the first company in the world to offer SMS and MMS PC-Plugins for Microsoft Vista and Microsoft Outlook 2007.
The new technology, which is targeted at small and medium-sized enterprises, addresses an increasing demand for mobile connectivity.
The PC-Plugins, known as eSMS [...]
Lancaster University provides IPTV in £5m investment
by Jan HarrisLancaster University has invested £5m to upgrade its network in order to cope with increasing demand on bandwith and to provide IPTV and VoIP services.
The University plans to film lectures and broadcast them over the network directly to students’ PCs and laptops, significantly increasing traffic volumes.
Infrastructure improvements include the installation of Category 6 cabling, [...]
May 29, 2007
UK spectrum auction expected in 2008
by Jan HarrisAt the Wireless Event in London, Ofcom revealed that the auction of 192MHz of spectrum, situated around the frequency of 2.6GHz, could take place in the first quarter of next year.
The spectrum could be used for the wide-scale deployment of WiMax in the UK, or as an expansion for 3G and its descendant technologies [...]
Asia to have 33 million IPTV subscribers by 2012
by Brian TurnerNew research from In-Stat, “IPTV In Asia: Carriers Start The Battleâ€, indicates that although traditional cable/satellite pay TV and IPTV will continue to operate alongside each other, IPTV will gain ground over cable/satellite TV in Asia over the next few years.
IPTV services are set to help telcos in Asia fundamentally change their broadband video [...]
Home Information Packs (HIPs) Guide launched by HomeMove
by Brian TurnerHomeMove.co.uk has launched a buyer and sellers guide to Home Information Packs (HIPs), detailing what buyers and sellers should expect after the August 1st deadline.
The guide was published as market chaos followed the government’s changing position on HIPs, postponing them only eight days before their June 1st deadline, and pushing back the launch date to [...]
May 25, 2007
Cardiff’s wireless LAN will be UK’s largest
by Jan HarrisCardiff University is deploying a ‘Smartmobile’ wireless LAN, including a Wi-Fi management system from Trapeze Networks, creating the largest wireless LAN in the UK.
The university is expanding the existing wireless network for its Cathays Park campus and outlying peripheral sites as part of its Modern Working Environment project, which forms the core of its [...]
Dell Launches Ubuntu PCs
by Jan HarrisDell Inc has responded to demands from Linux enthusiasts with the US launch of three computer systems, including one notebook, with the Ubuntu Linux operating system pre-installed.
The systems will be released in the UK and Europe when Dell is satisfied that customer support is in place. It is currently preparing troubleshooting scripts in different [...]
May 24, 2007
Waltham Forest to become UK’s 13th wireless city
by Jan HarrisThe London borough of Waltham Forest has joined with BT in its Wireless Cities initiative.
Waltham Forest will test a public wireless network, paid for and constructed by BT, with several three months trials scheduled for this autumn.
Wireless transmitters will be fitted to lampposts and other street furniture to create a wireless network initially [...]
Symantec update brings down Chinese PCs
by Jan HarrisSymantec’s antivirus signature update for Norton Antivirus, Norton Internet Security 2007 and Norton 360, released by Symantec on May 17, contained a flaw that disabled millions of PCs in China last week.
According to the Chinese Internet Security Response Team (CISRT), the update mistakenly quarantined two critical system files in the Simplified Chinese version of [...]
May 23, 2007
Samsung introduces solid state laptop drive
by Jan HarrisSamsung has made its 32GB solid state laptop drive available in the UK through distributor Just Rams.
Solid state drives (SSDs) differ significantly from traditional hard drives because they contain no moving parts. This means that they are faster, more reliable and consume less power.
With no moving parts they run at a cooler temperature [...]
Yamgo and Tom Horn partner for IPTV service
by Brian TurnerOxford-based mobile entertainment company, Yamgo Ltd, has joined with software development company Tom Horn, to launch a mobile video sharing service and the world’s first free-to-view mobile TV network
The new social networking platform is available via www.yamgo.tv. It can be accessed on any video-enabled mobile device, on any mobile phone network with WAP access, from [...]
Panorama report raises Wi-Fi alarm
by Brian TurnerAn investigation by the BBC’s Panorama programme found that Wi-Fi networks in schools can give off a radiation signal three times stronger than that of a typical mobile phone mast.
Researchers for programme visited a comprehensive school in Norwich and measured the strength of a radiation signal from a classroom Wi-Fi laptop, then compared the [...]
BSkyB and Tiscali in IPTV talks?
by Brian TurnerDigital satellite broadcaster, BSkyB, which is 39.1 percent-owned by News Corporation, is believed to be in advanced talks with telecoms company Tiscali to place BSkyB channels on Tiscali’s UK IPTV platform.
The deal is expected to give Tiscali, the owner of the UK internet television company HomeChoice, non-exclusive carriage of Sky One, Sky Sports News [...]
First single-chip AVS IPTV set top box announced
by Brian TurnerTexas Instruments Incorporated (TI) and National Source Coding Audio & Video Technologies (Beijing) Co Ltd (NSCC) have announced the industry’s first
single-chip IPTV set-top box which allows dual decoding of AVS and H.264, HM2006.
The set-top box is based on Texas Instruments’ innovative DaVinci technology
The device is targeted on home audio and video entertainment applications [...]
Microsoft plans new document formats
by Brian TurnerMicrosoft is expected to announce its sponsorship of an open source project to create a converter between Ecma Open XML and a Chinese national standard called Unified Office Format (UOF).
Microsoft decided to support UOF through a translator because of interest from the Chinese government customers and institutions. The project is a collaborative effort with [...]
AMD prepares Puma platform to rival Centrino
by Jan HarrisChipmaker AMD is developing an energy-efficient laptop chip, code-named Griffin, and an associated platform called Puma, which will rival Intel’s Centrino.
AMD will start mass producing Griffin chips by the end of 2007 and Puma-based laptops featuring the chips should be available in mid-2008. Griffin is AMD’s first chip specifically for laptops.
Intel holds a larger [...]
Joint venture launches Megawhat.tv IPTV channel
by Brian TurnerUK gadget website, Pocket-lint.co.uk, has joined with Flawless Media, the branded content specialist, to launch a new gadget IPTV channel online called Megawhat.tv (http://www.megawhat.tv).
The channel, which has the strapline ‘gadget reviews straight from the box’, will feature 5 – 8 minute episodes providing information on newly released gadgets such as mobile phones and digital cameras, [...]
Google launches universal search
by Jan HarrisGoogle has launched a universal search facility, which will provide a more integrated way to search for information online and display search results from a variety of media together in one place.
Universal search is designed to make it easier to find relevant information from different sources. Instead of using separate search pages for photos, [...]
Wi-Fi Alliance plans early approval of 802.11n products
by Brian TurnerThe Wi-Fi Alliance has decided to start certifying products as ‘802.11n Draft 2.0 certified,’ even though the final version of the 802.11n standard will not be finalised until March 2009.
The Alliance, a trade group of companies involved in Wi-Fi technology and services which owns the trademark to Wi-Fi, will certify equipment according to a [...]
BT unveils IPTV advertising campaign
by Brian TurnerBT has launched its first national advertising campaign designed to promote BT Vision as Britain’s most flexible digital TV service
The multi-million pound campaign, which is led by AMV BBDO, includes national TV advertising supported by a nationwide BT Vision poster campaign, and adverts in newspapers in magazines.
There will also be a specially created [...]