Intel Archive

  • Why Mobile Innovation Is Blowing Away PCs

    Why Mobile Innovation Is Blowing Away PCs

    Editor's note: Guest author Steve Cheney is an entrepreneur and formerly an engineer & programmer specializing in web and mobile technologies. On the heels of the latest Android phone, the Sprint HTC EVO, and as we approach iPhone 4, it seems like mobile devices and platforms are innovating at about five times the pace of personal computers. Rapid advancement in mobile is often attributed to the natural disruption by which emerging industries innovate quickly, while established markets like PCs follow a slower, more sustained trajectory. But there are deeper fundamentals driving the breathtaking pace of smartphone advancement.

    Full Story

  • Aava Virta Android reference platform will be the first shipping Moorestown smartphone

    Aava Virta Android reference platform will be the first shipping Moorestown smartphone

    Sure, Intel might not be planning for Moorestown-based smartphones to hit the market for at least another six months, and the LG GW990 might have died a quiet death, but that's not stopping Aava from getting right in the game with its Virta Android, an Atom Z600-based reference smartphone designed for developer testing. Slated to ship in Q3, the Virta features a Moorestown processor, a 3.8-inch 864 x 480 capacitive touchscreen, quad-band EDGE radios with AT&T 3G support, WiFi, Bluetooth, a five megapixel video camera, and a microSD slot. We're assuming the shipping version will look a lot like the prototype Aava device we've been seeing for a while now, but Aava has some fancier renders up on its site, so we'll see what happens and how much this costs when this thing arrives.

    Continue reading Aava Virta Android reference platform will be the first shipping Moorestown smartphone

    Aava Virta Android reference platform will be the first shipping Moorestown smartphone originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 18:03:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Telefonica gets behind MeeGo, says ’smartphones, netbooks, tablets, and internet connected TVs’ are possibilities

    Telefonica gets behind MeeGo, says ’smartphones, netbooks, tablets, and internet connected TVs’ are possibilities

    Virtually all of the MeeGo buzz since Intel and Nokia's tie-up back in February has been focused on high-end smartphones, tablets, and netbooks, but Telefonica reminds us that there's another potential target for the platform, too -- connected TVs. The Spanish wireless, fixed internet, and cable operator has thrown its weight behind MeeGo this week (which is a pretty big deal considering that the company has global reach across 25 countries and about a quarter billion subscribers), hinting that "services could potentially include content and applications that can be accessed from devices such as smartphones, netbooks, tablets, and internet connected TVs for Telefonica's wireline and wireless operations." We've yet to see any set-top box announcements in the MeeGo space, but with Google trying to light fires under the connected TV market, we imagine some competitors are bound to emerge -- and it's probably a good sign that they've got the backing of a cable company.

    Telefonica gets behind MeeGo, says 'smartphones, netbooks, tablets, and internet connected TVs' are possibilities originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 16:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Intel demos Android 2.1 on Moorestown smartphone (video)

    Intel demos Android 2.1 on Moorestown smartphone (video)

    Intel's barking up all kinds of trees (ones planted by Qualcomm, NVIDIA and ARM) with its Moorestown Atom platform, and while it'll be quite some time before we see an Atom Inside sticker gracing the face of a smartphone, the company's making sure the world sees what it has ramped up so far with reference builds here in Taipei. Aava Mobile was kind enough to build a number of prototypes for Intel to showcase at Computex, and while the vast majority were running Moblin, a couple were humming along with Android 2.1 underneath. We were able to get our hands around one here at the show, and while performance seemed decent enough, it certainly didn't floor us any more than a 1GHz Snapdragon has in the past. Granted, we weren't able to seriously tax it due to having no internet connection and no pre-loaded HD multimedia, but casual users probably won't notice a significant boost in screen transitions. Don't take our word for it, though -- jump on past the break for a video of Intel doing Eclair.

    Continue reading Intel demos Android 2.1 on Moorestown smartphone (video)

    Intel demos Android 2.1 on Moorestown smartphone (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 02 Jun 2010 05:52:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Nokia will kick off MeeGo effort with ARM-based silicon, not x86

    Nokia will kick off MeeGo effort with ARM-based silicon, not x86

    We've heard a similar message from Nokia dating all the way back to MeeGo's introduction at MWC back in February, so it comes as little surprise that Espoo is apparently trumpeting the virtues of ARM for its first MeeGo-powered device that's still targeted for the tail end of 2010. What might make this particularly interesting is the fact that MeeGo 1.0 is clearly further along for Atom devices than it is for the Cortex A8-based N900, not to mention that Nokia has already warmed up to Intel thanks to its Booklet 3G -- but regardless of the silicon, getting the platform solid enough for any sort of retail device by the end of 2010 still seems like a tricky proposition when you figure that the ARM build doesn't even have a proper user interface yet. Ultimately, it might come down to a question of size; Intel still hasn't proven that it can scale Atom down far enough to tackle the smartphone market head-on, so if Nokia wants to go small with its first MeeGo hardware, that alone could be impetus enough to go ARM.

    Nokia will kick off MeeGo effort with ARM-based silicon, not x86 originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 30 May 2010 21:58:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • MeeGo 1.0 for netbooks and N900 now available to download

    MeeGo 1.0 for netbooks and N900 now available to download

    You've seen it teased, and now it's time to shelve whatever you had planned for this evening (or morning, depending on your current coordinates) and slap the first bona fide 1.x MeeGo release onto whatever device you've got handy. As of right now, MeeGo v1.0 for Netbooks and v1.0 for Nokia N900 are available for download, with the former supporting Atom-based machines and the latter supporting... well, we'll let you take a stab there. The API that's being released includes Qt 4.6, and while the current SDK is tailored for netbooks, the next version -- slated to hit devs in June -- will support "touch-based devices, such as handsets and tablets." We're also told that v1.1 will be outed in October, with the development tree already being open. We're certainly digging the layout shown here at a glance, but why not give that source link a visit and find out how it suits you in real life? We heard Snooki totally digs it, too.

    [Thanks, Ernst]

    MeeGo 1.0 for netbooks and N900 now available to download originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 26 May 2010 18:33:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Intel to debut dedicated tablet “solution” at Computex

    Intel to debut dedicated tablet “solution” at Computex

    Intel is ready to take on the Apple A4 CPU and will show off its solution at the upcoming Computex conference. The chip maker is apparently almost ready to unveil a silicon meant specifically for tablets. Who knows if Intel PC Client Group VP actually had the green light to reveal the upcoming announcement, but that's exactly what he did.

    Full Story

  • New MacBook specs leak out of Vietnam

    New MacBook specs leak out of Vietnam

    Looks like we get a peek at an unannounced update to the MacBook a little bit early. The update (showing up on the label as MacBook7,1) has the same CPU and GPU as the entry level MacBook Pro, but assuming Apple keeps the pricing the same, it should be available for $999.

    Full Story

  • Cellbots get Nexus One upgrade, ad-hoc motion control (video)

    Cellbots get Nexus One upgrade, ad-hoc motion control (video)

    Sprint and Verizon may have shunned the Nexus One, but that doesn't mean the handsets can't be put to good use: these Android-controlled, Arduino-powered Cellbots now feature the one true Googlephone as the CPU. At Intel's 2010 International Engineering and Science Fair in San Jose, we got our hot little hands on the DIY truckbots for the first time, and found to our surprise they'd been imbued with accelerometer-based motion control. Grabbing a Nexus One off a nearby table, we simply tilted the handset forward, back, left and right to make the Cellbot wheel about accordingly, bumping playfully into neighbors and streaming live video the whole time. We were told the first handset wirelessly relayed instructions to the second using Google Chat, after which point a Python script determined the bot's compass facing and activated Arduino-rigged motors via Bluetooth, but the real takeaway here is that robots never fail to amuse. Watch our phone-skewing, bot-driving antics in a video after the break, and see what we mean.

    Continue reading Cellbots get Nexus One upgrade, ad-hoc motion control (video)

    Cellbots get Nexus One upgrade, ad-hoc motion control (video) originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 12 May 2010 17:39:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Intel’s Atom Z6xx series isn’t targeting Windows Phone 7, but ‘full Windows experience’ still an Atom priority

    Intel’s Atom Z6xx series isn’t targeting Windows Phone 7, but ‘full Windows experience’ still an Atom priority

    As many times as Intel has tried and failed to shoehorn its way into the phone arena, you'd think it'd want to pimp as many notable platforms as it possibly could -- but strangely, Windows Phone 7 is notably absent from Intel's fact sheet on the just-announced, smartphone-focused Z6xx series of Atom cores. Instead, the wording of the paperwork clearly spells out that Android and MeeGo / Moblin are the focal points right now, which is leading everyone to wonder whether Intel's looking to steer clear of Microsoft's mobile strategy altogether. Granted, Microsoft's focus is clearly on ARM right now with its Qualcomm partnership having been announced back in February, but we're sure it wouldn't take too much pressure from Intel to get an x86 build of Windows Phone out there if these guys really wanted to play ball. We reached out to Intel to get some clarification on the issue and got this in response:
    "Intel's goal is to ensure we offer our customers a choice of software that runs best on our processors. Yesterday's announcement was focused on Linux OSs, however our strategy is to also support a full Windows experience on Atom as we do with Menlow, Intel's first generation atom chip for mobile devices and Pinetrail, Intel's chip family for netbooks. Stay tuned."
    What's getting us here is Intel's seemingly careful phrasing: "full Windows experience on Atom." Does that mean that Intel wants to keep Atom up in the Windows 7 end of the horsepower spectrum and avoid Windows Phone for the foreseeable future? It seems like a tough sell to say that Android is playing in an entirely different ballpark than Windows Phone is, and we're not sure that Intel can effectively argue that distinction -- but hey, with the Z6xx series' iffy power consumption stats, maybe it's for the best.

    [Thanks, R2V2]

    Intel's Atom Z6xx series isn't targeting Windows Phone 7, but 'full Windows experience' still an Atom priority originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 14:31:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Intel reaches for the ’smartphone zone’ with Moorestown-based Atom Z6, comes up shorthanded

    Intel reaches for the ’smartphone zone’ with Moorestown-based Atom Z6, comes up shorthanded

    We've seen the future of Intel's mobile platform, and it isn't all roses and sunshine. Three years after the chipmaker told us Moorestown would reduce Atom's energy consumption by a factor of 20, company execs told us earlier today that they've more than reached that goal with the new Z6xx series. Problem is, in the smartphone realm Intel's competitors haven't been sitting idle; according to one of Chipzilla's cantaloupe-and-magenta bar charts, it seems the company has merely caught up in terms of battery life. That's not to say the chips aren't worlds better than previous Atoms -- Intel sees 1.5GHz smartphone processors that slay Snapdragons and up to 1.9GHz in a tablet PC variety -- but 5 hours of web browsing is most decidedly not the 24 hours of productivity Intel previously promised. Besides, who knows: Qualcomm also has a 1.5GHz SoC in the works, though it may not be available by the time Intel's chips ship in the second half of the year.

    None of this is to say that Intel won't continue to dominate in the netbook marketplace -- we shudder to think at the potential when combining a nice, chunky battery with Intel's nearly leakproof new chips, and perhaps a small serving of switchable graphics while we're at it. But without a single new MID or smartphone to show us this morning -- Aava Mobile and OpenPeak's offerings seemed unchanged from our previous encounters -- we're not sure if the company's other mobile ambitions have any sway. Not technical enough of a discussion for you? Peruse our gallery for the nitty-gritty.

    Intel reaches for the 'smartphone zone' with Moorestown-based Atom Z6, comes up shorthanded originally appeared on Engadget on Wed, 05 May 2010 02:44:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

    Permalink | Email this | Comments

    Full Story

  • Sony turning to Intel chips and Android to revitalize TV sales

    Sony turning to Intel chips and Android to revitalize TV sales

    Look out, Sony is actually trying something new and might announce Intel Atom-powered TVs next month at Google I/O 2010. A new Android released dubbed Dragonpoint is said to run on these TVs and will be just the beginning of Sony's venture into the so-called Smart TV market. The report comes from Bloomberg who sources two people familiar with the matter. The timing is certainly right. Sony hasn't been in the top TV spot for years, constantly losing marketshare to others like Samsung, LG, and even Vizio. Something needs to be done and so Sony is said to be testing a whole line of home entertainment devices that will bring the wonders of the Internet to TVs and Blu-ray players through Android. Logitech is even said to be in on the venture and will contribute a wireless keyboard that will work as a remote. But as sweet as an Android TV sounds, it might not be the right solution -- at least not for the North American market. This could either be a huge win or a fail whale.

    Full Story

  • Intel predicts Light Peak to replace USB 3.0

    Intel predicts Light Peak to replace USB 3.0

    Intel pundit Kevin Kahn predicted that Light Peak may overtake USB 3.0 before it even starts. The 10Gpbs standard is poised to become the mainstream technology as soon as 2011, beating the technology it's intended to replace to the mainstream.

    Full Story

  • USB 3.0 adoption could be slowed because of lack of demand

    USB 3.0 adoption could be slowed because of lack of demand

    Willing to spend $300+ on a fancy motherboard just so you can get USB 3.0 support? Yeah, that might not be such a good idea, if only because Intel is in no hurry to integrate the spec into its chipsets. That means companies have to go out of their way to offer USB 3.0 on their systems. The odds of seeing USB 3.0 on a cheap-o netbook, then, are pretty much non-existent.

    Full Story