Tuesday, December 11, 2012

Intel's Penwell mobile processor given a close inspection, stuffs a lot into a little space

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/11/intel-penwell-mobile-chip-given-a-close-inspection/

Intel's Penwell mobile chip given a close inspection, stuffs a lot into a little space

If you're one of those who took the leap into a first wave of Intel-based smartphones like the RAZR i, you're likely the sort to wonder exactly what makes them tick. SemiAccurate certainly does: it just posted some previously inaccessible diagrams that help reveal how Medfield's system-on-a-chip heart, Penwell, is mapped out. As a die shot shows, the Atom core is seemingly the least important part of the design -- the PowerVR SGX 540 graphics, camera processing and input-output interfaces dominate the crowded silicon. Between this dense, all-in-one design and stacking up to 2GB of RAM directly on top, Penwell occupies about 17 percent less space than its Moorestown ancestor and helps explain why we're looking at Atom-powered phones instead of another round of MIDs. We wouldn't get too comfortable with the current generation, though, as Intel is gradually warming up 22-nanometer chips that could make Penwell seem old hat.

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Source: SemiAccurate

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The Arduino Esplora Is the Perfect Beginner Arduino, No Electronics Experience Required

Source: http://lifehacker.com/5967141/the-arduino-esplora-is-an-open-source-controller-packed-with-inputs-for-all-your-arduino-projects

The Arduino Esplora Is the Perfect Beginner Arduino, No Electronics Experience RequiredOne of the most difficult parts of any Arduino project is coming up with a way to actually interact with your creations. The Arduino Esplora is a new device that remedies that, and works as an open source controller for all types of projects.

At a glance, the Esplora looks just like a game controller, but it can be used for a wide variety of means. It has a built-in joystick, four buttons, a light sensor, slider, microphone, temperature sensor, and an accelerometer. It also connects easily with a USB cable, and works essentially like a keyboard or mouse input on your computer. As you'd expect, the Esplora launches with a library of code to get you started. The Esplora certainly looks like a game controller, but since it's the only Arduino that comes with a bunch of different input options it's also a great way to get started with Arduino without worrying about soldering or breadboards.

Arduino Esplora ($58) | Arduino

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Intel's Atom S1200 lays claim to title of world's first 6-watt server-class processor

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/11/intel-atom-s1200-server-data-centers/

Intel's Atom S1200 lays claim to title of world's first 6watt serverclass processor

We often hear talk about the most powerful servers and supercomputers, but the most power-efficient are just as important. On that latter front, Intel has today announced what it claims is the world's first 6-watt server-class processor, the Atom S1200. That's a 64-bit system-on-a-chip designed for use in data centers, and it comes in three variants ranging from 1.6GHz to 2.0GHz, each of which support up to 8GB of DDR3 memory, eight lanes of PCI Express 2.0, and all the basic features an x86-based data center requires. Not surprisingly, going the Atom route also entails a relatively low up-front cost, with the processors starting at just $54 in quantities of 1,000. And Intel is naturally promising even bigger advances in energy efficieny for the future, including a "leap further ahead" in 2014 when it moves to 14nm manufacturing for low-power Xeon processors, and Atoms after that.

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Source: Intel

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Mozilla launches Firefox OS Simulator 1.0 into the wild, alongside per-window private browsing for nightlies

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/11/mozilla-firefox-os-simulator-download-private-browsing/

Mozilla launches Firefox OS Simulator 10 into the wild let the testing begin

We knew it was en route, and now developers anxious to try out potential apps for Firefox OS can finally get to cracking without the need to source any additional hardware. The 1.0 build of the Firefox OS Simulator enables devs to test their programs for the outfit's new mobile OS without having to find a compatible phone. Mozilla's calling this a "preview" for now -- given that Firefox OS itself is still in development -- but it's still an exciting launch for those who've been waiting patiently to get their code dirty. Moreover, the company is bringing per-window private browsing to Firefox, though it's being reserved for the experimental Nightly versions of Firefox until it's stable enough to hit the release channels. Head on over to the source links for more, or pop past the break for a video demonstration.

Continue reading Mozilla launches Firefox OS Simulator 1.0 into the wild, alongside per-window private browsing for nightlies

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Via: TechCrunch

Source: Mozilla (1), (2)

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Allwinner throws A20 dual-core and A31-quad-core processors into ARM fray

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/11/Allwinner-A20-A31-ARM-cortex-a7-processors/

Allwinner throws A20 dualcore and A31quadcore processors into ARM fray

Whimsically monikered Chinese chip-maker Allwinner has added a pair of ARM Cortex-A7 processors to its lineup supporting Android 4.2 or higher systems. The A20 is a dual-core design with 512KB L2 cache, dual-core Mali 400 graphics and 2160p HD video playback support, while the quad-core A31 packs a 1MB cache, PowerVR SGX 544 graphics and UHDTV (4k) video decoding talents. The A20 is pin compatible with its Linux-hobbyist favorite sibling, the A10 -- meaning devices such as the MK802 mini-PC using that chip could likely be upgraded by manufacturers on the cheap. However, the more powerful A31 seems destined for higher-end Android or Windows RT devices only, considering its beefier PowerVR graphics. On top of the extra zip, licensor Imagination Technologies keeps its source code cards close to the chest -- likely ruling out Linux for that chip.

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Via: TG Daily

Source: Allwinner (translated)

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Toshiba goes perpendicular to solve MRAM's power issues, rethink cache memory

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/10/toshiba-goes-perpendicular-to-solve-mram-power-issues/

Toshiba goes perpendicular to solve MRAM's power issues, rethink mobile memory

As much of a breakthrough as magnetoresistive RAM might be for its ability to retain data while powered off, its susceptibility to leak currents while turned on has made it impractical as a replacement for cache-oriented memory like SRAM. Toshiba's new approach could almost literally turn the situation on its head. By magnetizing spin torque MRAM (ST-MRAM) in a direction perpendicular to the magnetic layer, Toshiba cuts off the avenues for leaks without sacrificing speed. The switch away from in-plane magnetization is an upside for the memory as a whole -- it shrinks normally large elements to below 30 nanometers and cuts the overall power draw of MRAM by about 90 percent. While there's no timetable for when we'll see such cache in a shipping product, Toshiba expects it to reach mobile processors, where even slight power savings can make a big difference. If our next smartphone or tablet survives that much longer on battery through memory we can't even see, we'll know who to thank.

Continue reading Toshiba goes perpendicular to solve MRAM's power issues, rethink cache memory

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Via: MRAM-Info

Source: Toshiba

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Intel talks up work on 22nm SoCs with Tri-Gate tech geared for mobile devices

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/10/intel-working-on-22nm-socs-tri-gate/

Intel talks up work on 22nm SoCs with Tri-Gate tech geared for mobile devices

Now that Ivy Bridge processors with Tri-Gate tech are in the wild humming away inside PCs, Intel's used the 2012 International Electron Devices Meeting to discuss its work on SoCs that also use the 22-nanometer 3D transistor tech. The processor giant didn't rattle off much in the way of specs or name the product lines that'll make use of the mobile-centric silicon, but it expects the hardware to handily outperform its 32-nanometer SoCs by 20 percent to 65 percent. Ballpark estimates on price are also MIA, so it's still unclear how the folks in Santa Clara will fare against ARM-based solutions with the new chips under their belts. In any case, Intel anticipates the fresh components will find their way into smartphones and tablets once they're ready to roll.

[Image credit: huangjiahui, Flickr]

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Via: CNET

Source: The Wall Street Journal

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Monday, December 10, 2012

How To Tell When Gmail Is Back Online For Good (GOOG)

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-tell-when-gmail-is-back-online-for-good-2012-12

Google acknowledged today that several services, most notably Gmail, experienced outages.

So far, it looks like Gmail is coming back for a lot of people, but some are still having trouble using the chat feature and other basic functions. 

Google has a very handy chart that shows what services are currently operational. You can get the latest updates using the official Apps Status Dashboard. Green means you're good to go. Gmail is still listed as "orange" as of this writing.

Here's what it looks like:

google apps status dashboard

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This Custom Datacenter Rack Has 160 Mac Minis Crammed Inside of It

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5967189/this-custom-datacenter-rack-has-160-mac-minis-crammed-inside-of-it

This Custom Datacenter Rack Has 160 Mac Minis Crammed Inside of It If you're hankering for an Xserve, you've been out of luck since 2011. But there's always an alternative. You can make your own by squeezing a whole 160 Mac Minis into a custom rack, for instance. That's what a fellow named Steve did, and the results are staggering.

Working with a vendor to get some custom shelving, Steve got his hands on 40 special 1U shelves that hold 4 Minis each. Of course, that wasn't the only challenge. Each Mini had to be fit with a special plastic insert to insure it wasn't drawing intake air from the 159 other Minis' exhaust ports, and the door of the rack was fitted with four car radiator fans, all hooked up to a 40A DC motor controller.

The result is this impressive—if crowded—tower of power, packing some 640 cores, double the amount of the 40 Xserve setup it's replacing. While Steve's reluctant to say who he works for, he's stated on his blog that the monster is part of a huge server farm, building and testing software 24/7. How's that for a Mac hack? [Steve's Blog via Hackaday via 9to5Mac]

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Researchers devise contact lens with built-in LCD (video)

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/10/researchers-contact-lens-lcd-display/

Researchers devise contact lens with built-in LCD (video)

Another day, another step towards technologically tricked out contact lenses. The latest development comes from researchers at the Centre of Microsystems Technology at Ghent University, who've developed a prototype lens with an embedded, spherical curved LCD that isn't limited to a paltry amount of pixels. As opposed to LED-based solutions which could only muster a few pixels, the newly-developed screen can pack enough to display graphics that cover a contact. In its current form, the display can show simple patterns, and demonstrates the technology with a simple dollar sign. What appears on the lens wouldn't be visible to folks who wear it, however, since eyes can't focus at such a close range. Despite the limitation, researchers are tying to tackle the focusing issue and are assessing the feasibility of a version that would effectively act as a heads-up display. In the future, the tech could be leveraged for medical purposes, such as controlling light transmission to the retina when the iris is damaged, cosmetic uses and -- you guessed it -- HUDs. With the technol! ogy's fo undation established, it's expected that real-world applications are potentially a few of years away. Hit the jump to catch a video of the tech in action.

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Via: Liliputing

Source: Imec

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Arduino Esplora helps you learn microcontrollers without the pesky breadboard

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/10/arduino-esplora-learn-microcontrollers-without-the-breadboard/

Arduino Esplora helps you learn microcontrollers without the pesky breadboard

Arduino is the go to board for most folks looking for an introduction to microcontrollers. That's largely thanks to its sizable community, ease of use and surprising versatility. But, there is one small stumbling block for those just looking to dip their toes in the ATmega-powered waters: you'll need to provide your own sensors, components and breadboard. (At least you will unless you're satisfied just making the built-in LED blink.) The Esplora bakes some of those essential bits and pieces right on to the board. It's crafted around the same core as the Leonardo, but adds an accelerometer, microphone, analog joystick, four buttons, a light sensor, temperature sensor, linear potentiometer and a buzzer to the mix. While the gamepad-like layout means you wont be able to connect to any of the dozens of Arduino shields out there, it does have a pair of TinkerKit inputs and outputs for expanding the Esplora's capabilities. There's also a place to connect an upcoming LCD module. The Esplora is available now direct from Arduino for €41.90.

Continue reading Arduino Esplora helps you learn microcontroller! s withou t the pesky breadboard

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Source: Arduino

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Silicon Image reveals Ultragig 6400 wireless HDMI output for next-gen phones and tablets

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/10/silicon-image-ultragig-6400-wirelesshd/

Silicon Image reveals Ultragig 6400 wireless HDMI output for nextgen phones and tablets

Up 'til now, the WirelessHD standard has been best suited to large, thirsty devices like laptops, AV adapters and projectors. If we wanted video output from a battery-powered weakling of a mobile device, then we'd either be looking at a WiFi-based option, which can sacrifice bandwidth and latency, or at a wired connection like MHL, which effectively means tethering ourselves to the TV. However, Silicon Image claims it's come up with a new WirelessHD transmitter, the Ultragig 6400, which allows for gaming and full 1080p60 video and yet is easily light-footed enough to fit into a smartphone or tablet.

The company's optimistic photoshop above shows off the compactness of the module relative to the type of flagship phone it'd one day like to be part of: the silicon itself is 10mm x 7mm in area, or a fifth the size of the older WirelessHD Gen3. Just as importantly, the 60GHz transmitter consumes less power than a smartphone's own local display (around 500mW, with a 30-foot line-of-sight range), has a mere 5ms latency to allow for interactivity, and shouldn't add more than $10 to the cost of manufacture. Of course, we'd have to add a little more to th! at sum i n order to purchase the mains-connected HDMI receiver box -- but in return we'd get to enjoy all our mobile vices at something much closer to life-size.

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IBM manufactures light-based 'nanophotonic' chips to let the terabytes flow

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/10/ibm-manufactures-light-based-nanophotonic-chips/

IBM manufactures lightbased 'nanophotonic' chips to let the terrabytes flow

IBM's taken a large step toward computer chips that use photons instead of electrons by manufacturing the first 90nm silicon-based optical processing modules. It did so using the CMOS nanophotonics technology we first saw back in 2010, creating tranceivers capable of 25Gbps transfer speeds. By multiplexing a large number of those streams to a single fibre, "terrabytes of data" per second could flow between distant computer systems," according to IBM. The 90 nanometer light circuits should allow data-hungry servers or supercomputers to scale up rapidly in speed "for the next decade, and at the desired low cost," according to the researchers. It's now primed for commercial development, meaning we could see an end to bottlenecks in systems "a few centimeters or a few kilometers" apart from each other. Check the PR for the detailed technical skinny.

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Sunday, December 09, 2012

Google Now Is Coming Soon To A Desktop Near You

Source: http://gizmodo.com/5966819/google-now-is-coming-soon-to-a-desktop-near-you

Google Now Is Coming Soon To A Desktop Near You Since its introduction earlier this year, Google Now has quickly become one of the stand-out features of having a (current version) Android phone or tablet. It looks like Google Now-age won't be exclusive to mobile for long, however; Google Now is coming to Chrome.

While the transition hasn't been officially announced, the addition of several items to the Chromium project code site with titles like "Show Google Now notifications in Chrome" and "Creating a skeleton for Google Now for Chrome implementation" confirm it's in the works. Spotted by François Beaufort, the code site additions herald a big move for the service, one that could serve to rope non-mobile users in.

While you can't argue with Google Now being more widely available, you kind of have to wonder how useful it can actually be on a desktop. Still, it'll serve as another vector for users to cram data into Google and get some functionality back for it. Get ready, the cards are coming. [François Beaufort via Engadget]

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Netflix 1080p streams no longer called X-High, company credits improved encodes

Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/12/08/netflix-1080p-streams-no-longer-called-x-high-company-credits-i/

Netflix 1080p streams no longer called XHigh, company credits improved encodes

While Netflix Watch Instantly movie streams are mostly useful for casual viewing, if you're interested in the actual quality of the video provided you may have noticed a few changes recently. Chronicled in a thread on AVS Forum and reported to us by several tipsters, more than a few users have noticed their streams on 1080p-capable hardware (PlayStation 3, WDTV Live) no longer rock the "X-High" notification (on PS3, hit select to view more information bout your streaming details) that had previously let them know they were getting the highest quality possible. We checked with Netflix, and according to the company, it's rolling out better encoding that improves picture quality despite using a lower bitrate. That means 1080p works even for people with slower connections, and increases detail on "textures, shadows, skies, and particularly faces." As a result, what was previously called "X-High HD" is now being labeled a tier lower.

While it wasn't mentioned specifically, some are theorizing the move is tied into Netflix's use of eyeIO's video encoding tech, which it announced earlier this year, to shrink the size of streams. eyeIO claims it can chop bandwidth by more than half for a 720p stream, something we're sure a company that's pushing as much data as Netflix would appreciate. Still, some viewers in the thread are claiming a noticeably softer picture as a result. Check afte! r the br eak for the statement from Netflix, then take some time for "research" and let us know if you're noticing any changes in picture quality lately.

[Thanks to everyone who sent this in]

Continue reading Netflix 1080p streams no longer called X-High, company credits improved encodes

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Source: AVS Forum, Tech of the Hub

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