Wireless: November 2004 Archives
Kensingston have a WIFI Finder which I know my colleague Bernie Goldbach would love to get his hands on.
As the blurb from the kensington site points out
* No more booting up notebook to find a WiFi signal
* Detects most available WiFi networks with the press of a button
* Three lights indicate signal strength
* Compact and lightweight design fits in pocket
* Detects 802.11b and 802.11b/g signals up to 200 feet away
* Filters out other wireless signals
* No software or computer required
D-Link has released source code, under the GNU GPL license, for a MIPS-based ADSL router with a built-in four-port switch and wireless 802.11g/b radio. The DSL-G604T supports "all major ISPs," D-Link says, and has been marketed primarily in Australia, Great Britain, and Russia.
The Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) recently announced the adoption of Bluetooth Core Specification Version 2.0 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate). Increased data rates – up to three times current levels – and lower power consumption will improve the Bluetooth user experience when running multiple Bluetooth devices simultaneously and transferring large data files, as well as enabling longer battery life in mobile devices.
The main features of Bluetooth Core Specification Version 2.0 + EDR are:
• 3 times faster transmission speed (up to 10 times in certain cases)
• Lower power consumption through reduced duty cycle
• Simplification of multi-link scenarios due to more available bandwidth
• Backwards compatible to earlier versions
• Further improved BER (Bit Error Rate) performance
In what appeared to be the first arrangement of its kind, Twentieth Century Fox said Wednesday it would create a unique series of one-minute dramas based on its hit show "24" exclusively for a new high-speed wireless service being offered by Vodafone PLC, the world's biggest cell phone company.
Vodafone will begin offering the one-minute episodes in January in the United Kingdom, coinciding with the start of the fourth season of the show on a satellite TV service.
The "mobisodes," as they're being called, will be introduced later in 2005 in up to 23 more countries where Vodafone operates, mainly in Europe, as well as in the United States through the company's Verizon Wireless joint venture.
The wireless replacement for USB, ultra wide-band (UWB), will be ready by late December and without the formal approval of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, a leading group promoting the revolutionary technology has promised.
The spec will be formally launched tomorrow, a move which finally puts UWB standardization outside the IEEE's formal process, where it has been deadlocked for two years.
Japanese company Oji Paper announced November 8 that it has jointly developed technology to embed semiconductor chips in paper during papermaking processes. This invention was co-developed with two other companies FEC Group and Toppan Forms.
According to the JCN network, the embedded chip is 0.5x0.5mm and comes with a built-in antenna for wireless transmission at frequencies of between 13.56MHz to 2.45GHz. This breakthrough technology enables mass production of chip-embedded paper.
This will allow chips to be embedded into cheques, gift tokens etc.
The Irish ISP Irish Broadband are to collaborate with Intel Ireland to provide a WiMAX base station at the Intel Ireland site which will allow local businesses, households and schools to avail of high speed internet access using this technology.
This venture is the first installation in Ireland of WiMAX compatible equipment operating in the commercial 3.5GHz frequency spectrum. As part of this roll out, Intel and Irish Broadband are offering free high speed wireless internet connectivity over WiMAX technology for a three year period, to eight primary and post primary schools in Leixlip and the new Leixlip Library, which is currently under construction.
Irish Broadband holds 3.5 spectrum licences in 16 cities and towns in Ireland including Dublin, Galway, Cork, Limerick and Waterford. As the company expands services to these areas WiMAX will be an integral part of the network.
WiMAX is a standards-based wireless technology that provides high-throughput broadband connections over long distances. WiMAX can be used for a number of applications, including broadband internet connections, hotspot and cellular backhaul, and high-speed enterprise connectivity for businesses. Wireless broadband will revolutionize people's lives by enabling a high-speed connection directly to the information they need, whenever and wherever they need it. It is a fast, superior, always-on, unlimited usage broadband internet service and customers do not require a phone line to avail of this service so they can use the Internet and their phone at the same time.
IEEE standards press have just published a book titled
"Wireless Communication Standards"
The book includes
- Comprehensive overview of WLAN, WPAN, and WMAN (IEEE 802.11™, 802.15™, and 802.16™) standards
- Discusses deployment of WLAN networks
- Includes over 100 figures and diagrams
- Identifies research problems
- Explains current business trends
- Provides understanding of future standards development
I will be adding this to my essential reading list
