Communications

Moving towards terabit per second communications

By Darren Quick

20:14 February 16, 2009 PST

Internet speeds of a terabit per second have come one step closer with scientists at the University of Sydney developing a photonic integrated circuit (PIC) that can not only increase internet speeds by 60 times, but can also act as traffic monitors to keep the speed high and error free. Read More

AeroVironment upgrades data system for Raven UAS

By Noel McKeegan

23:21 February 10, 2009 PST

AeroVironment, Inc. will produce 50 new Raven RQ-11B unmanned aircraft systems (UAS) equipped with enhanced communications following the announcement of a USD$16.8 Million order from the U.S. Army on January 22. The company's new Digital Data Link (DDL) replaces the original four-channel analog set-up, increasing communication channels by a factor of four and allowing more of the unmanned craft to be flown in one area simultaneously. Read More

ECLIPSE car entertainment unit features removeable standalone GPS navigation unit

By Loz Blain

01:11 January 7, 2009 PST

Fujitsu Ten Limited's latest all-in-one car entertainment system incorporates CD, DVD, MP3, WMA, iPod audio and video, Bluetooth phone integration and a fully-featured TomTom navigation system - all mounted in the dash so no part of the driver's line of sight to the road is obscured. The unit's touch-screen is removeable, and acts as a standalone GPS nav system when it's not attached to the main unit. Read More

20th Century Fox beams latest sci-fi flick into space

By Darren Quick

19:14 December 10, 2008 PST

Any aliens bored with anal probing and cattle mutilation will be able to kick back and enjoy The Day The Earth Stood Still tomorrow when 20th Century Fox makes history by beaming the first motion picture into space. The company is touting the transmission of the remake of the 1951 classic movie as the first ‘galactic release’ of a movie and hopes to get some favorable reviews from Alpha Centauri in eight years – accounting for the round trip communication. Read More

Autonomous unmanned helicopters designed for disaster relief

By Kyle Sherer

04:35 October 16, 2008 PDT

European researchers are developing a squadron of co-operating, unmanned helicopters for use in disaster management, civil security, and filmmaking. In addition to ferrying critical supplies, the helicopters can deploy sensor nodes to gather information and establish a communications network in places where the infrastructure is damaged or absent. Read More

Ego Cup FM in-car FM transmitter

By Darren Quick

23:27 September 8, 2008 PDT

Drivers just might have to find somewhere else to stow their tasty beverages with the Ego Cup FM from German wireless in-car communications company Funkwerk Dabendorf. The Ego Cup FM is a plug and play FM transmitter designed to slot into car cup holders that connects to a mobile phone via Bluetooth and, as well as transmitting MP3s stored on the phone to the radio, also allows calls to be taken over the integrated speaker or through the car speakers. Read More

BlueAnt releases portable Text-to-Speech speakerphone

By Darren Quick

16:18 June 18, 2008 PDT

Anticipating the changing of handsfree driving laws in the US, BlueAnt Wireless’ has released a new portable speakerphone device called the Supertooth 3 Bluetooth Handsfree, which incorporates advanced ‘Text-to-Speech’ technology with voice prompts providing guidance to help users pair the device and upload their mobile phone’s address book. The unit supports a selection of six different languages including American English, Spanish, French, Italian, German and British English, so that when a call is received, the Supertooth 3 announces the incoming caller’s name or Caller ID and the user can then verbally accept or reject the call. Read More

Unison comm system combines phone, email, voicemail and instant messaging

By Kyle Sherer

22:04 February 27, 2008 PST

February 28, 2008 Unison Technologies is launching a beta version of its fully-unified communications system at this years CeBIT. The Unison Server, combined with the Unison Desktop software, provides users with a simple, cost-effective system that integrates telephone calls, voicemail, email, instant messaging and collaboration. Read More

Kiddo proximity alarm system offers parents peace of mind

By Jude Garvey

19:13 February 18, 2008 PST

February 19, 2008 Smart Target has developed a wireless proximity alarm system designed to boost child safety by helping parents quickly locate wayward young ones and keep them within a pre-set "virtual fence". Read More

USB to synchronous cable gives tactical radios IP data capabilities

By Noel McKeegan

04:23 January 17, 2008 PST

January 17, 2008 Enhancing critical battlefield communications by building on equipment already in operation, the Sealevel Systems ACC-188 USB Synchronous Interface Adapter enables tactical radios currently used by the US Armed Forces to interface to PCs and transmit IP based data. Read More

Zipit adds SMS texting capability to Z2 wireless instant messaging device

By Darren Quick

15:27 December 20, 2007 PST

December 21, 2007 Zipit Wireless, Inc. has announced it will begin offering SMS text messaging to users of the Zipit Wireless Messenger 2 (Z2), providing the ability to communicate with mobile phones, other Zipit devices and PC's. Read More

Communications “Gizmo” to aid emergency response

By Jude Garvey

17:46 December 18, 2007 PST

December 19, 2007 It may look like just another remote-controlled toy truck, but this "Gizmo" has the potential to save lives in disaster response situations. Javier Rodriguez Molina, a 24 year old electrical engineering graduate student and programmer analyst at the UC San Diego's California Institute for Telecommunications and Information Technology (Calit2), is designing an advanced mobile, wireless communications machine that can venture into environments too dangerous for humans and collect and transmit critical information to emergency personnel. It is hoped that the design platform - which is will not be limited to its current toy-truck guise - can provide real-time assistance in emergency situations such as terrorist attacks, building collapses or hurricanes. Read More

Genius BT-03l Bluetooth headset

By Darren Quick

17:30 December 5, 2007 PST

December 6, 2007 The Genius BT-03l touch Bluetooth headset is the first headset in the world to feature a capacitance touch panel with slide control which allows the volume to be adjusted by simply sliding the bar using the touch sensor. Designed to compliment Bluetooth-enabled mobile phones and PDAs, the BT-30l supports A2DP hands free so users can take a call or listen to music which is automatically muted when receiving an incoming call. Read More

Konftel 300 high-tech conference phone

By Darren Quick

18:36 November 27, 2007 PST

November 28, 2007 Setting itself the lofty goal of producing the "world’s best conference phone", Konfitel has announced the Konftel 300 - a device that features multiple connectivity options, recording to SD memory card, the ability to store up to 20 groups for easy replication of conference calls and a 360 degree microphone optimized for large meeting rooms that automatically filters out background noise. Read More

LG Viewty mobile phone boasts 120 fps video capture

By Darren Quick

15:34 November 25, 2007 PST

November 26, 2007 With most camera phones able to capture video at either 15 or 30 frames per second (fps), LG Electronics has made a big leap forward with the unveiling its new LG Viewty (KU990) mobile phone- a handset that sports advanced digital camera features and the ability to record video at up to an impressive 120 fps. This allows users to seamlessly watch "DVD-like" content, even in slow motion. Like the recently announced Nokia N82 the LG Viewty also boasts a 5.0-megapixel camera and xenon flash, adding strength to the argument that camera phones are now a serious option for those looking to ditch their dedicated camera for the convenience of carrying only one device. Read More

New Nokia N82 optimized for navigation, photography and internet connectivity

By Darren Quick

20:16 November 15, 2007 PST

November 16, 2007 Nokia has announced another addition to it’s Nseries range of “multimedia computers” with the successor to the N95, the Nokia N82. Optimized for navigation, photography and internet connectivity featuring A-GPS, 5 megapixel camera with Xenon flash and Carl Zeiss optics, the Nokia N82 also incorporates all the multimedia computer features common to Nokia Nseries within a candy-bar design. Read More

Talking convergence: Nokia 6301 UMA phone

By Darren Quick

21:15 September 23, 2007 PDT

September 24, 2007 Nokia are looking to a not too distant future where home and office landline based phones are obsolete with the release of the 6301 UMA phone. The stainless steel 6301 enables voice and data mobility across GSM cellular and Wireless Local Area Networks (WLAN) networks via Unlicensed Mobile Access (UMA) technology. This allows the phone to integrate the benefits of landline and a mobile phone by providing seamless indoor coverage, sound quality and affordability. Read More

Sanyo SCP-7050 mobile phone meets military standards for toughness

By Shaun McKeegan

17:36 September 3, 2007 PDT

September 4, 2007 Sanyo has added the rugged SCP-7050 to its range of mobile phones. Adhering to military standards for dust, shock and vibration, the clam-shell type phone features a durable rubber non slip exterior designed for use in physically demanding environments, full Bluetooth functionality, high quality display and built-in GPS capabilities. Read More

World Record 304km Wi-Fi connection

By Shaun McKeegan

23:43 August 26, 2007 PDT

August 27, 2007 A new world record distance for a 5 GHz Wi-Fi link has been achieved by the Italian Center for Radio Activities (C.I.S.A.R), and Ubiquiti Networks, a leading innovator in outdoor wireless broadband solutions. The distance of 304km (188.89 miles) was established from Sardinia Island to Central Italy achieving data-rates of about 5Mbps, using Ubiquiti’s XtremeRange5 (XR5) High-Power Carrier Class mini-PCI radio module and 35dBi 5 GHz parabolic dish antennas. Read More

LANdroids - self-organizing, self-healing communications network for urban warfare

By Loz Blain

June 25, 2007 Modern warfare is increasingly urban - when you're fighting small groups of anonymous guerrilla insurgents there's no pitched battlefields and American forces are finding that their radio communications are suffering in these Non-Line-Of-Sight environments. The solution? Squadrons of smart communications robots, or LANdroids, each the size of a deck of cards, that can be scattered through an urban environment to create a self-organizing mesh radio network. Each unit constantly repositions itself for maximal signal strength, and if a LANdroid is destroyed, the rest of the units will reposition themselves to restore communications. Read More