Archive for July, 2006
Is ZigBee really worth it ?
Everytime I tried to propose ZigBee I just faced a complete misunderstanding from my clients who were preferrin more usual solutions such as wiFi or Bluetooth for their communicating objects, and i started to think that ZigBee was no use… but yet I see some indicators that I might be missing something… Check this article from Wirelessweek :
In fact, a lot of large cellular handset OEMs are eyeing the technology. “I’m not saying you’re going to see ZigBee in the phone any time soon, but there’s definitely a lot of interest,” Black says.
Wide area wireless operators are getting into the act as well. Telecom Italia in Italy reportedly is looking at putting ZigBee in a SIM card, and it’s already working with Italy’s wine producers on a system that monitors environmental data using sensors dotted around a vineyard.
ZigBee is also getting into homes. Using ZigBee technology from Freescale, home solutions provider Hawking Technologies offers its HomeRemote system to monitor the status of doors and windows, control power outlets and lights and read room temperatures.
While interest in ZigBee technology ignites, the ZigBee Alliance will, no doubt, keep a watchful eye, and stay at hand to keep fanning the flame.
It sounds like the remote will use zigbee to talk to the PVR & TV, PVR will use UWB to talk to the TV, TV will user WiFi +WiMax to get video streams, and my mobile will use BlueTooth …. what a mess !!!!
Technorati Tags: bluetooth, convergence, uwb, wifi, wifi, wimax, wimax, zigbee
Is ZigBee really worth it ?
Everytime I tried to propose ZigBee I just faced a complete misunderstanding from my clients who were preferrin more usual solutions such as wiFi or Bluetooth for their communicating objects, and i started to think that ZigBee was no use… but yet I see some indicators that I might be missing something… Check this article from Wirelessweek :
In fact, a lot of large cellular handset OEMs are eyeing the technology. “I’m not saying you’re going to see ZigBee in the phone any time soon, but there’s definitely a lot of interest,” Black says.
Wide area wireless operators are getting into the act as well. Telecom Italia in Italy reportedly is looking at putting ZigBee in a SIM card, and it’s already working with Italy’s wine producers on a system that monitors environmental data using sensors dotted around a vineyard.
ZigBee is also getting into homes. Using ZigBee technology from Freescale, home solutions provider Hawking Technologies offers its HomeRemote system to monitor the status of doors and windows, control power outlets and lights and read room temperatures.
While interest in ZigBee technology ignites, the ZigBee Alliance will, no doubt, keep a watchful eye, and stay at hand to keep fanning the flame.
It sounds like the remote will use zigbee to talk to the PVR & TV, PVR will use UWB to talk to the TV, TV will user WiFi +WiMax to get video streams, and my mobile will use BlueTooth …. what a mess !!!!
Technorati Tags: bluetooth, convergence, uwb, wifi, wifi, wimax, wimax, zigbee
Looking for a free parking place ?
Servicesmobiles just pointed out a new service called SpotScout enabling users to find a parking place. The project is all-collaborative… but imagine what would happen if there were sensors in the city giving live the right information about place availability, wouldn’t that be great ?
Robots are getting amazing
Check out this video where a robot is just stretching easier than I am !
Technorati Tags: robotics
New LG concept phone
The new LG prototype codenamed “REGIS” is just looking great 
enjoy the pics!
Looking for a free parking place ?
Servicesmobiles just pointed out a new service called SpotScout enabling users to find a parking place. The project is all-collaborative… but imagine what would happen if there were sensors in the city giving live the right information about place availability, wouldn’t that be great ?
Robots are getting amazing
Check out this video where a robot is just stretching easier than I am !
Technorati Tags: robotics
Hotspots should be free
I just received a press release from free-hotspot.com & colombus café that has a few interesting figures inside :
Statistics showed that the FREE HotSpots attracted on average around 10 users per day during the week, and 7 users per day on the weekends. These figures rank at least two to three times higher than the connection rates reported by paid HotSpot providers.
With the yearly investment costs for the HotSpots based on a €25 per month charge for DSL for each of the 5 Columbus Café locations studied, and per-person sales estimated at €3 per visit, free-hotspot.com was able to calculate the return on investment to Columbus Café for installing Certified FREE HotSpots in their locations.
Results showed that the amount of extra sales revenue generated is 27 times more than the operating cost of the FREE HotSpot itself (i.e, the DSL subscription).The following observations were drawn from this study:
1. The FREE HotSpot is attracting new customers to the cafés: the HotSpots are currently attracting around 9-10 users per HotSpot per day during the working week.
2. Most HotSpot traffic occurred on weekdays: Workday traffic is 50% higher than the weekend usage - only 6 people per day used the HotSpot on Saturdays and Sundays. The weekend traffic brings the overall daily average to 7.4 users per day.
3. Almost all the HotSpot use occurred during normal business hours: over 97% of the HotSpot users used the HotSpot during the normal operating hours. This means that less then 3% of the users were using the Wi-Fi signal during the night-time hours (20:00 to 6:00).
4. The majority of users were active during the “down time” in the afternoon: Over 54% of users visited the HotSpot during the afternoon (13:00-18:00). Morning traffic, from 07:00 to 12:00, made up 35%.
5. The lunch hour was not a popular time for the HotSpot: Only 10% of users were using the HotSpot during the lunch hour (12:00-13:00) - this equals an average of less than one person per HotSpot per day using the Wi-Fi during the lunch rush.
6. No “squatting” - the average length of time a user stayed connected to the Wi-Fi was only 89 minutes.
WiMax market
Sequans says it’s now sampling its WiMAX mobile station chips. If you wonder if WiMax is becoming a reality, check on Sequans’ forecast of the market which is expected to reach 500 M$ by 2009 including baseband & RF chips.
Thanks Dailywireless for pointing out this.
Sony adopts Flash for PSP
I just read that in Adobe’s newsletter:
Flash is mobile, and device manufacturers are realizing its benefits and potential for more than just handsets. Following Eastman Kodak and iRiver, which have chosen Flash technology to power the Kodak EasyShare-one digital camera and the iRiver U10 personal media player, Sony is
the latest major consumer electronics manufacturer to adopt Flash technology for one of its most popular portable devices, the PlayStation®Portable (PSP).The latest edition of Sony’s best-selling portable media player uses Flash Player SDK, the Flash Player profile developed for consumer electronics devices, to deliver superior web-browsing experiences anytime and anywhere to millions of PSP users worldwide. Like the iRiver U10, the PSP also enables users to download Flash games and content, which, in turn, generates new opportunities for millions of Flash developers to create innovative and engaging games and content
for the latest consumer devices on the Flash Platform.
After Flash Lite for mobile Flash gets ATAWAD (Any Time Any Where Any Device) !
