The platform also supports 3D stereoscopic recording and has separate 2D and vertex acceleration engines that won’t slow the system down. The platform also has an optional e-paper display controller making it fit for dedicated reader applications as well. When the platform surfaced, it was pegged for sampling in late 2011. It looks like the platform is on track to start sampling this year.

The reference platform using a quad-core APU has turned up on video from FTF 2011. The board in the video is the first of the i.MX6 reference designs and the demonstration is pretty impressive. The platform is the industry’s first quad-core ARM Cortex A9 SoC combined with a 64-bit memory bus. Check on the videos below to see the platform in action.

[via Armdevices]

There’s also 1GB of internal storage – plenty for ebooks – along with a microSD card slot. Freescale is responsible for the chipset, with the new 503 taking pride of place in the Kindle rival.

Pricing is $129.99 when the Kobo Touch goes on pre-sale through Borders in the US, among other retailers, later today. It’s expected to begin shipping in June. Meanwhile, the existing non-touch model will remain on sale with a price-cut to $99.

[via The Digital Reader]

From the concept pictures and video the PS Squared would feature an ARM processor core and support an Android, Linux, or Windows Embedded CE OS. The screen looks like it can tilt with the keyboard sliding behind the device when not needed. It also looks like there is an SD Card slot as well as USB slot. With the device in portrait mode, the bottom bezel shows a Bluetooth, mail, Wi-Fi, volume, and battery symbols. There is also an additional docking station that performs induction charging rather than plugging something in because the traditional method “causes damage to the port in a long term.” The dock has touch sensitive buttons to control your media on the device, as well as a remote with the same buttons.

The dock would let you sync with your computer or TV to stream music, movies, or 3D games between the devices as well as transfer documents. The video shows that the PS Squared could also control your security alarm systems and act as a remote for many of your other devices. This device is aiming to integrate into a technology ecosystem that supports our daily priorities such as social networking, light gaming, entertainment, and work.

That single radio supports 2G, 3G and LTE, and can be tuned to suit everything from 400MHz to 4GHz. It’s connected to the rest of the system via a fiber optic broadband link, with power courtesy of a custom Freescale SoC, using new compression technology that reduces bandwidth requirements and allows everything to be crunched in an HP-powered cloud system of network controllers and gateways. Multiple cubes can be stacked to boost macro coverage.

In short, it’s more flexible than traditional base stations, can be deployed in a smaller space, is up to 50-percent more power efficient and can be 50-percent cheaper, all the while doubling capacity. The first active array antennas will be launched in 2012, with more hardware in 2014, and Alcatel-Lucent envisage future setups using off-grid power (like localized wind or solar generators) together with microwave links to create truly independent coverage spots. Orange, Verizon and France Telecom have all expressed an interest, and Alcatel-Lucent says it’s in planning with several carriers – including China Mobile – to roll out field trials.

[via Light Reading]

Press Release:

The Disappearing Mobile Masts and Towers

lightRadio™ – Solving Network Gridlock and Universal High-Speed Coverage

PARIS & LONDON, February 7, 2011 – The looming global gridlock in mobile communications promises to be averted following the launch today of pioneering technology which will remove the bottlenecks constraining mobile networks and help deliver universal broadband coverage.

Alcatel-Lucent (Euronext Paris and NYSE: ALU), the leading network technology group, has joined forces with industry partners to develop lightRadio™, a new system that signals the end of the mobile industry’s reliance on masts and base stations around the world.

Ben Verwaayen, Chief Executive Officer of Alcatel-Lucent, said: “Today’s and tomorrow’s demands for coverage and capacity require a breakthrough in mobile communications.”

He added: “lightRadio will signal the end of the basestation and the cell tower as we know it today.”

Governments and regulatory bodies are expected to welcome the technical development, which will help meet targets for universal broadband access by laying the foundation to address the so-called “digital divide.”

Other major benefits from lightRadio™ include:

• Shrinking the carbon footprint of mobile networks by over 50%

• Reducing the Total-Cost-of-Ownership of mobile operators by up to 50%

• Improving end user services by significantly increasing bandwidth per user thanks to the deployment of small antennas everywhere

Wim Sweldens, President of Alcatel-Lucent’s Wireless Division said: “lightRadio will help mobile operators evolve their networks to address the mobile broadband deluge.”

lightRadio represents a new approach where the base station, typically located at the base of each cell site tower, is broken into its components elements and then distributed into both the antenna and throughout a cloud-like network.

lightRadio also shrinks today’s clutter of antennas serving 2G, 3G, and LTE systems into a single powerful, Bell Labs-pioneered antenna that can be mounted on poles, sides of buildings or anywhere else there is power and a broadband connection.

The innovation coincides with growing demand for third-and-fourth generation mobile networks and devices, involving the mass adoption of wireless television services and other forms of broadband content. The total addressable market for the radio technology necessary to serve such networks and devices is expected to exceed €100bn1 over the next seven years.

Alcatel-Lucent announced the lightRadio™ technical specifications and launch timetable at an industry event in London today. Visit www.alcatel-lucent.com/lightradio for product press release and link to event replay (available at 2:30 GMT).

[1] This is the total addressable market for multi-technology radio solutions that consist of radio access base stations that simultaneously support 2G, 3G, and LTE, and multiple frequencies in the same platform

That’s good enough to support 1080p60 decode, 1080p30 encode and 3D video playback in HD, and twin cameras for 3D stereoscopic recording. Freescale has also used separate 2D and vertex acceleration engines, so that the UI is rendered independently and thus won’t slow down when the system is loaded. Connectivity support includes HDMI 1.4, USB 2.0, gigabit ethernet, and more.

An optional e-paper display controller make the i.MX 6 series suitable for ereader duties, and Freescale is targeting the new chips at smartphones, tablets and in-car systems. Sampling will begin later in 2011, which means it’s likely to be 2012 before we see commercial products using the i.MX 6 series.

Press Release:

Freescale delivers dramatic performance advances for tablet, smartphone, eReader, automotive infotainment and other hot consumer markets

Compatible i.MX 6 series scales from one to four cores and raises the bar with a new portfolio of high-performance, low-power multicore processors

AUSTIN, Texas – Jan. 3, 2011 – Freescale Semiconductor introduces the i.MX 6 series of quad-, dual- and single-core applications processors designed to deliver outstanding performance and scalability to manufacturers targeting the hottest selling smart mobile, automotive infotainment and embedded device categories.

Integrating one, two or four ARM® Cortex™-A9 cores running at up to 1.2 GHz each, the i.MX 6 series delivers up to five times the performance of Freescale’s current generation of applications processors. This performance provides additional headroom for unbounded user experiences in next-generation tablets, eReaders, smartphones, automotive infotainment systems and other exciting consumer and automotive products.

Potential applications include mobile devices featuring 3D video playback, desktop-quality gaming, augmented reality applications and content creation capabilities – all delivered in ultra-sleek form factors and with significant battery life advantages over many of today’s most popular mobile devices.

“Our i.MX 6 series offers consumers the novel and uncompromised online experiences they demand from next-generation connected consumer electronic products,” said Bernd Lienhard, vice president and general manager of Freescale’s Multimedia Applications Division. “Low power, cost efficiency, enormous processing headroom and unmatched compatibility are at the heart of the i.MX 6 series.”

The i.MX 6 series targets several of the fastest-growing application spaces in the consumer market. According to industry analyst firm In-Stat, standalone eReader shipments will grow from 11.5 million units by the end of 2010 to 35 million in 2014, while the firm’s forecast for mobile Internet tablets projects shipments to reach approximately 58 million in 2014, up from 13.7 million in 2010.

Scalability across single-, dual- and quad-core products is a hallmark of the i.MX 6 series. Common SoC IP building blocks enable series-wide software and development tool compatibility, while integrated power management capabilities, a broad range of integrated I/Os, and pin compatibility within package families reduce overall product complexity and development costs. Coupled with planned support for consumer, auto and industrial temperature requirements, the i.MX series offers OEMs fast time-to-value, enabling the rapid creation of complete end-product portfolios that can adjust and scale to meet evolving market demands and requirements.

“With the i.MX 6 series, Freescale offers the broadest and highest performance family of products based on ARM® Cortex™-A9 technology of any vendor in the mobile processor segment,” said Jim McGregor, chief technology strategist at In-Stat. “The i.MX 6 family provides OEMs with a power-efficient, scalable, and software-compatible solution that meets the demands of a wide range of consumer and embedded applications.”

Continuing to build on its advanced low-power design expertise, Freescale’s i.MX 6 series features industry-leading power consumption for demanding applications such as HD 1080p video playback. The i.MX 6 series can deliver up to 24 hours of HD video playback and 30-plus days of device standby time. Integrated power management capabilities reduce the need for external PMICs and help to ensure only those components required for a task are powered.

The i.MX 6 series is distinguished further by being one of the first applications processors to offer hardware support for the VP8 codec. “By incorporating VP8 compression technology into its advanced new i.MX 6 series of applications processors, Freescale is setting the pace for the consumer industry,” said Jani Huoponen, hardware product manager for the WebM Project. “This hardware-based VP8 implementation gives Freescale customers the benefits of fully accelerated WebM support and outstanding performance.”

The product series is comprised of the single-core i.MX 6Solo, dual-core i.MX 6Dual and quad-core i.MX 6Quad processors. Key technical features of the series include:

Industry-leading four-core design
Up to four ARM® Cortex™-A9 cores running at up to 1.2 GHz per core
Up to 1 MB system level 2 cache
ARMv7, Neon, VFPv3 and Trustzone support
Multistream-capable HD video engine delivering 1080p60 decode, 1080p30 encode and 3D video playback in HD
Exceptional 3D graphics performance with quad shaders for up to 200 MTPS
Separate 2D and vertex acceleration engines for uncompromised user interface experiences
Stereoscopic image sensor support for 3D imaging
Interconnect: HDMI v1.4 w/ integrated PHY, SD3.0, multiple USB 2.0 ports w/ integrated PHY, Gb Ethernet w/ integrated PHY, SATA-II w/ integrated PHY, PCI-e w/ integrated PHY, MIPI CSI, MIPI DSI, MIPI HSI, and FlexCAN for automotive applications
Support for the VP8 codec
Support for one of the broadest ranges of major operating system platforms in the industry
Optional integration of an ePaper display controller for eReader and similar applications
Availability
Freescale plans to begin sampling i.MX 6 series devices later this year. Easy-to-use solutions come with complete reference designs, software and turnkey development technologies that simplify design. For more information about the i.MX 6 series, please visit www.freescale.com/imx .

Video demos after the cut

Unfortunately Freescale didn’t go quite so far as to whip out their screwdrivers and come up with physical, working units, instead taking the easy way out and opting for renders.  Still, there’s plenty to like here, with a broad range of screen sizes and plenty of integration with desktop computers, home automation and security systems, and online services like social networking.

Best of all is Freescale’s insistence that there’s “no science fiction here” and that the technology they’ve used in each of the concepts is currently available and sampling.  Whether that means we’ll see commercial versions depends, of course, on OEM interest, but we’d certainly prefer a world with multiple options beyond just the iPad to one where Apple’s slate sweeps the board.

Video demo after the cut

Keeping things running is Freescale’s i.MX233 chipset, an ARM9 SoC that’s not exactly the latest in technology but is fine for running AllGo’s custom Android build, UI and other apps.  It’ll play YouTube video and is fine for streaming audio over its WiFi connection.

Of course, before a potential buyer might see such a device on the shelves, there’d need to be shipping and the various taxes involved, together with whatever margins the manufacturer and distributor wanted to slap on top.  Still, as Charbax from ARMDevices suggests, if Google decided they wanted to storm the market with low-cost Android slates they could use a low-power Freescale processor like the i.MX233 and bring the tablets in well under the iPad’s price.

Video demo after the cut

Since this is a reference design SurfaceInk are still tweaking the specs; right now there’s WiFi b/g, HDMI, Bluetooth 2.1 and USB 2.0, together with a single, front-facing camera, but they also have versions with dual cameras.  The display is a multi-mode touchscreen supporting capacitive multitouch finger-control and a stylus; meanwhile the company is working on an Android build, too.

As for smaller devices, SurfaceInk are working on a 7-inch version of the larger reference design, together with collaborating with Freescale on an 8.9-inch slate with edge-to-edge Gorilla Glass that they reckon could have a retail price of around $350.  Of course, that’s assuming a manufacturer jumps on board, but were that to happen SurfaceInk reckons they could see products on shelves in under eight months or so.

The new device uses the Freescale i.MX515 platform. The i.MX515 platform features an ARM Cortex A8 CPU at 800MHz featuring 32KB of L1 cache dedicated to instructions and data with 256KB of L2 cache. The platform also has a DDR2-400 memory controller.

One of the most interesting parts about the device is that the platform is so efficient Freescale says that it needs no fan and doesn’t even need a passive heat sink to stay cool. The fact that no fan or heat sink is needed makes the smartbook have a standby time comparable to mobile phones. Other features include a memory card reader, SIM card slot, and a pair of USB ports.

At the bottom end is the AMtek iTablet Ex-Lite II (AE04), a 10.1-inch (1024 x 600 or 1024 x 768) slate with multitouch display, 800MHz Freescale CPU, 512MB of RAM and 512MB of flash storage.  It has WiFi b/g/n, Bluetooth and a 2-megapixel camera, as well as optional 3G and GPS, and will run either Windows CE6, Android 2.0 or Linux.  The AMtek iTablet Speed-Lite (AE03) is similar, but swaps the CPU for NVIDIA’s 1GHz Tegra 2 and boosts RAM to 1GB.

Meanwhile the three Intel-based tablets are a little more serious.  The AMtek iTablet Lite (TZ10), T23A CULV Tablet PC and T23X CULV Tablet PC all get Windows 7 and up to 4GB of RAM.  The iTablet Lite has a 10.1-inch (1024 x 600 or 1024 x 768) multitouch touchscreen, 2-megapixel camera, 64GB SSD and the same connectivity options as the ARM-based models, plus an Atom Z530 1.6GHz CPU.

The AMtek T23A and T23X CULV Tablet PCs both get the 1.3GHz Intel Core 2 Duo CPU with Cantiga GS graphics, 12.1-inch XGA (1024 x 768) display, up to 320GB HDD and a 1.3-megapixel webcam.  The T23A has a standard active digitizer, while the T23X will be available with a digitizer, a touchscreen or a combo screen with both technologies.  No word on pricing for any of the slates, but we’re hoping AMtek will spill the beans next month.

[via jkkmobile]

If you’re looking to consume multimedia, such as with an HDTV or a HiFi system of some sort, the “Home Bar” could offer HDMI, VGA, composite and component connections, along with ethernet and USB.  Meanwhile, a “Pro Custom Audio Bar” might have XLR, MIDI and S/PDIF connectivity, for integrating the tablet with an existing synth, turntable or DJ system.

Since the connections are in the dock, not the tablet itself, they could be left connected and the slate simply snapped into place whenever you want to use the audio functionality.  Meanwhile a “simple” dock could be used merely to prop the tablet up in table-top or picture frame orientations.

The gaming device would have a 6-inch display, slide-out QWERTY keyboard and game controls, and an optional dock for recharging.  Meanwhile there’s a second gaming concept, this time focused on touchscreen play, which looks a lot more like the company’s previous smartbook tablet reference designs we’ve played with.

Right now, though, the most interesting is the tilt-screen design, with an interesting dual-pane UI and a virtual keyboard when in laptop mode.  The designers also reckon it would tap into a home energy monitoring system.  Freescale say they’ve been passing on the results of their research to hardware partners, and while they won’t confirm any designs that might actually reach the market, we’re hoping some of the OEMs are paying attention.

Power is courtesy of Freescale’s i.MX515 processor, as on the Z1, and there’s both WiFi b/g and Bluetooth together with 8GB of onboard storage and a microSD card slot.  OS is Ubuntu 9.04, and as well as the resistive touchscreen there’s an optical joystick.  Ports include audio in/out, USB and miniUSB, and there’s also a mono speaker.

Unfortunately battery life is only rated for up to 6hrs, which is on the low side for a daily companion device, and the price tag is likely to put many would-be buyers off too.  Sharp expect the NetWalker PC-T1 to be priced at around 47,000 yen ($512) when it lands in Japan come May, when it will be available in both black and white.

[via Engadget]

Tablets are an obvious choice – and I’ve made no bones about my love of the platform – with NVIDIA’s second-gen Tegra already picked for Notion Ink’s slate and various other companies showing off prototypes or shipping tablets built on their offerings. Their frugality also makes them equally at home in smartphones, and of course chipsets like Snapdragon have already found their place in smartbooks such as HP Compaq’s Airlife 100.

Drilling down, though, what’s possible now that we couldn’t necessarily do before? Dual-display devices are shipping in a limited way already – Barnes & Noble’s nook is on shelves, and Entourage’s eDGe should arrive with preorder customers imminently – but the breadth of their flexibility is pared down. Most if not all of the new chipsets discussed at MWC can support high-resolution output to at least two panels simultaneously; something like TI’s OMAP4 can drive dual on-device screens while pumping out 1080p HD via an HDMI in fact.

Texas Instruments OMAP4 demo:

So, how about two displays – let’s make them low-power, using a 10-inch Pixel Qi panel or a 5.6-inch mirasol one – in a clamshell, book-style form factor, similar to what MSI and others have mocked up in recent months. Those touchscreen netbook concepts have generally run Intel’s Atom platform, but with the latest ARM chipsets they could have better multimedia prowess, longer battery life and the same sort of internet flexibility as the x86 chip. They can also be smaller; I’m picturing something similar to a paperback novel, maybe with a hinge that opens wide enough to stand the device up in landscape orientation for hands-free video watching. Given the chipsets can crunch more megapixels than mobile-sized CMOS sensors have to offer, we’ll throw a high-resolution camera with 1080p HD recording in there too; something like the OMAP4 can simultaneously encode Full HD and a lower-resolution, 3G-friendly stream for livecasting.

Since ubiquitous connectivity – kicking off from WiFi and Bluetooth, and of course migrating up through 3G and 4G technologies like WiMAX and LTE – is a given, there’d be no question about making voice-calls (either traditionally or VoIP, and perhaps using a Bluetooth headset or speakerphone) or supporting push-email and real-time social networking updates from Facebook, Twitter and others. Where the true game changer would occur is in removing the battery worry; imagine not having to ration out your usage during the day, safe in the knowledge that you have hour after hour ahead of you. I’d take some sort of inductive charging cradle, perhaps with an HDMI output, for opportune top-ups, but every chipset firm is promising more HD video playback (from a standard smartphone battery) than you could feasibly watch during a single day.

An always-on device should play nicely with the other gadgets you have around you, and that means streamlining ad-hoc pairing and cleverly managing what information gets presented at what time. We’ve seen some companies – such as Motorola with MOTOBLUR – try to do the latter already, but smartphones lack the processing grunt to bring true intelligence to the issue. In my opinion a successful mobile device doesn’t just replicate the desktop experience, mainly because it’s intended to span different contexts; instead, it translates information to suit the user’s situation. Next-gen chipsets are powerful enough to take sensor input from the real world – look, say, at TI’s gesture recognition research, which uses a basic webcam to track hand-movements – and understand the context a user is in, filtering information accordingly. If I’m driving (something that could be worked out from GPS speed, tracking my hands on the wheel, or various other sensor inputs) then the device would know to prioritise only calls and messages from the core group of contacts its seen me communicate regularly with, perhaps making an exception for those people geographically nearby just in case I’m planning on visiting them.

Texas Instruments gesture recognition:

How about gaming? The iPhone 3GS has gained quite a reputation for itself as a decent mobile gaming platform, thanks in no small part to its PowerVR SGX graphics chipset, but our imaginary dual-display device could blow it out the water. Like the Nintendo DSi – only with bigger screens than even the new DSi XL – you could have dual displays for more complex gaming setups; or, since the next-gen chipsets are happy driving different content and running various high-performance apps simultaneously, play games on one screen while monitoring email, browser and other more typical smartphone tasks on the other. Alternatively, how does plugging in an HDTV via HDMI sound, putting your gaming on a big screen? We’re talking graphics capabilities potential on a par with an Xbox 360 or PS3.

We’re approaching a tipping-point where power management, connectivity, software and – most importantly – user imagination and expectations are promising to coalesce and kick the next generation of mobile devices up another level of functionality. Of course, not everybody wants the same degree of convergence I’ve described, but the key factor is that it’s possible and with less compromise than is necessary right now. You don’t have to be an avid gamer to recognise the potential of a chipset that can crunch polygons without breaking its stride, just like you don’t have to be a heavy-duty social network addict to appreciate a device that’s intelligent enough to tailor its alerts to what’s going on around it. The sort of smarts in that sort of device will be enough to make today’s so-called smartphones look dumb indeed.

Marvell ARMADA 618 demo:

Of course, tablets are not a new invention, and you could forgive those people who have been carrying the pen-computing banner since Windows XP Tablet Edition (and before) for harbouring a little resentment at all this late-to-the-party interest. When Steve Jobs produced the iPad-tailored version of iWork with a flourish, and declared the suite an “amazing”, “extraordinary”, “tremendous” new way to work on a mobile touchscreen device, it’s hard not to imagine the frustration over at Microsoft; after all, tablets running their OSes have had access not just to shaved-down demi-versions of Office, but to the full apps.

So, to see broad applause for something so basic in comparison must be galling for Redmond. Like other platforms Microsoft has attempted before, it seems that their attempt on the market may have come a few years too soon; today’s low-power silicon no longer has a gap in-between lacklustre ARM chips and decent (but power hungry) mainstream notebook CPUs. HD graphics and broad connectivity are both possible without sacrificing battery life. Ironic, then, that those devices culling most interest are pretty much web-slates rather than fully-functional Tablet PCs; if Microsoft had known that was where the interest lay, how much further would their tablet ambitions have progressed?

As I wrote before, in the aftermath of CES, it’s unlikely any one tablet will satisfy the whole market. The iPad launch, while certainly historic for the number of people who joined our live-blog, met with some degree of disappointment from the geek audience normally so enthused about Apple. Still, cleverer men than I reckon it’ll be a success among a greater – though quieter – majority, enthralled by the simplicity of the UI, consistency with the established iPhone/iPod touch paradigm and gloss of the Apple hardware.

The geeks, then, are forced to look elsewhere. Do I need Flash support in my tablet? Perhaps not; but I’m reluctant to sign up to a platform where what I can and can’t run is so tightly controlled. Apple’s iPod may have swept the floor with the PMP competition, and its iPhone arguably revolutionised the touchscreen smartphone segment, but I’ve a feeling the iPad will only open the door to mainstream awareness of larger-scale touchscreen computing, not necessarily dominate it. Speaking to an exec from Freescale in Barcelona this past week, he reported a dramatic upswing in interest in their own tablet reference design in the aftermath of the iPad announcement: rival companies are counting on Apple to pave the way in mind-share, but view it as an opportunity for their own growth.

It won’t be an instantaneous thing; Tegra 2 tablets won’t arrive for another few months (Notion Ink‘s Adam is suggested for Q3 this year) for instance, and the timescales for other chipset manufacturers seem similar. We’ll undoubtedly see more designs and hear more about launch intentions at CeBIT next month, but it’ll be a little longer before you can open your wallet. Apple’s iPad, meanwhile, should go on sale in late March; a premium device, certainly, and not one suited to the ambitions of every touchscreen-lusting geek, but definitely a weathervane about which we can judge whether the market intends to put its money where its mouth is. The “third screen” paradigm is a well-discussed one, but it remains to be seen whether users will really spend on intermediary devices that slot in-between smartphone and notebook.

The Prowave runs Freescale’s i.MX515 chipset, just like Freescale’s tablet prototype we played with at CES 2010 last month.  Connectivity includes WiFi and 3G, together with a USB port and an integrated webcam, and Mastone have customized the standard Android UI with a number of new apps and widgets; some of those were in Chinese language only, however, so we couldn’t really tell what they did.

Performance was fair and build quality was very high, with a brushed metal body and solid feeling buttons, and only the resistive touchscreen proved a mild disappointment (since we’d like to have seen a capacitive panel).  Still, we’re guessing that will help Mastone keep the Prowave price down; so far we don’t know what that price will be, though given Freescale have said that their reference design could come in at around $200 we’re hoping for a similar level for this tablet.

Like other MIDs we’ve seen this week, the Netwalker certainly isn’t a mass-market device.  The keyboard is very small, and like the Fujitsu UH900 we wouldn’t want to peck out much more than an email on its compact keys.  In fact the design of both – with a track-stick under the right thumb and mouse buttons under the left – are quite similar to the UH900; Sharp have sensibly stuck with a lower screen resolution of 1024 x 600, which we reckon will be more comfortable on the eyes than the Fujitsu’s higher 1280 x 800.

Of course, a lot of this is academic since right now the Sharp is only officially on sale in Japan.  The 800MHz processor manages to keep things moving reasonably briskly, thanks to the tweaked Ubuntu 9.04 OS; that non-Windows OS, like on other Smartbooks, may be the one significant hurdle to market penetration.

Sharp Netwalker PC-Z1 demo:

Video demo after the cut

By avoiding x86 processors and instead looking to ARM’s Cortex A8 technology, Freescale reckon they can get all-day runtimes out of the 1,900 mAh battery.  It also helps keep the price down, as does the 7-inch resistive touchscreen.  In practice, while we miss the zero-pressure tactility of a capacitive display, the resistive panel worked reasonably well; there were some pauses as media loaded, but once it got started a 720p HD clip played smoothly.

Freescale have also developed an optional docking station with keyboard (which would cost around $50), that turns the slate into a netbook of sorts.  There’s no screen angle adjustment, however, and you can’t fold it closed to protect the slate screen during transport, so this is really more the sort of thing you’d leave on a desk for use at home.  Still, there’s a USB port into which you could plug in a full-sized keyboard while on the move.

Wireless connectivity is WiFi b/g/n and Bluetooth as standard, with 3G an option (expect that to bump up the price a little), and you also get GPS, a 3-megapixel camera and between 4 and 64GB of storage (plus a microSD card slot); more specifications here.  As for availability, Freescale reckon commercial versions of the Smartbook could reach the market by Summer 2010, assuming OEMs get themselves in gear.

There’s also an optional docking station with QWERTY keyboard being discussed, shown below, which Freescale reckon could be as cheap as $50 more.  To be demonstrated at CES 2010 in both Android and Linux versions, Freescale expect the Smartbook Tablet to support web browsing, Flash playback, handwriting recognition and plug-ins for social networks such as Twitter, Facebook and Flickr.

Other tech specs include between 4 and 64GB of flash memory (plus a microSD card slot), 512MB of RAM, GPS, a 3-megapixel camera, 3-axis accelerometer, ambient light sensor and both USB and mini-USB ports (the latter also used for charging).  The i.MX515 chipset supports OpenVG and OpenGL/ES graphics, along with HD video decoding, while the 1,900mAh battery is said to offer “all day” battery life.

Freescale say that end-products based on their reference design could be on shelves by Summer 2010.  As long as they can keep to that price point, we’ll be waiting for them.

Press Release:

Freescale evolves second-generation smartbook form factors with new tablet design

Solution combines best attributes of smartphones and notebook PCs for the ideal blend of performance, portability and battery life

AUSTIN, Texas – Jan. 4, 2010 – Freescale Semiconductor has unveiled the future of the smartbook category with a tablet reference design featuring a 7-inch touch screen with up to four times the viewing area of a typical smartphone and based on a form factor that is approximately one-third the size and volume of today’s typical netbook.

The design is intended to enable a second generation of smartbook products with prices less than $200 and featuring form factors that fully leverage the power, performance and functionality advantages of advanced ARM® processor technology. It is designed to provide instant-on functionality, persistent connectivity and all-day battery life. The design will be demonstrated at the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show running both the Android and Linux® operating systems.

The solution is based on Freescale’s highly integrated 1GHz i.MX515 processor incorporating ARM Cortex™-A8 technology, and it also includes Freescale’s MC13892 power management IC, SGTL5000 audio codec and the MMA8450Q 3-axis accelerometer. The solution is designed to help OEMs jump-start creation of smartbook tablets. End products based on the design could hit retail shelves as soon as the summer of 2010.

“Freescale’s new tablet opens the door to an exciting new world of compelling form factors specifically designed and optimized to support common online activities including social media, high-quality audio/video playback and light gaming,” said Henri Richard, senior vice president of Sales and Marketing for Freescale. “We believe the tablet will emerge as a popular form factor for the next generation of smartbooks. By introducing this prototype reference design, Freescale intends to play a vital role in propelling the mainstream adoption of smartbooks.”

The design is the first platform in Freescale’s Smart Application Blueprint for Rapid Engineering (SABRE) series. The SABRE tablet platform for smartbooks incorporates feedback from of a recently completed end-user research study conducted in conjunction with Savannah College of Art and Design’s prestigious Industrial Design program.

“Semiconductor providers looking to differentiate in the nascent tablet market will need to offer solutions-focused system reference designs if they are to succeed with the world’s foremost consumer electronics OEMs,” said Jeff Orr, senior mobile devices analyst at ABI Research. “There is clearly strong end-user demand for tablet form-factors, and new reference designs look to play a major role in helping OEMs speed tablet smartbook products to market.”

The tablet includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth® wireless connectivity, and also features a 3D desktop framework with touch screen/QWERTY keyboard support. 3G modem and RF4CE protocol options are available. The tablet’s modular approach to 3G connectivity lets systems designers select carrier-specific air interfaces appropriate for different regions. Modules can be pre-certified by carriers and selected to match a range of features and performance ranges. This method makes it easy to migrate quickly to new modem technologies as they are introduced.

Example smartbook platform applications intended to run on the tablet include a web browser with Adobe® Flash® Player and multimedia plug-ins, a media center, PDF and image viewers, a mail client, an RSS reader, an office suite, handwriting utilities and various widgets for Twitter, Facebook, Flickr, Weather SMS and other applications.

Smartbook reference design features
· Size: small/thin form factor (200mm x 128mm x 14.9cm and weighing 376 grams); no need for fan or heat sink
· Processor: Freescale i.MX515 applications processor provides high performance and low power
- ARM Cortex-A8 1GHz
- OpenVG & OpenGL/ES graphics cores
- HD video decoder hardware
· Memory: 512 MB DDR2
· Display: 7-inch (1024 x 600) touch screen
· Storage: 4-64 GB internal storage; removable micro SD
· Connectivity: 3G modem (option) 802.11 b/g/n, Bluetooth 2.1, GPS, RF4CE (option)
· Ports: USB 2.0 and USB mini (also for charging), audio in/audio out, SIM card
· Audio: speaker, microphone
· Camera: 3 Mpixel (video recording up to VGA @ 30fps)
· Battery: 1900mAh, USB charging
· Sensors: the MMA8450Q 3-axis accelerometer and an ambient light sensor
· Power management IC

Partners
Freescale and its partners offer a range of support, including turnkey designs. Inventec Appliance Corporation (IAC) provides expertise in design and manufacturing services for handhelds and netbooks. Freescale has also partnered with Thundersoft for software integration customization and optimization. For companies wishing to manage their projects internally, Freescale offers design aids including block diagram, schematic, list of materials and a Linux board support package.

Availability
The smartbook reference design is expected to be available for evaluation beginning February 2010 through local Freescale sales representatives. Reference design details are available at www.freescale.com/smartbook.

About Freescale Semiconductor
Freescale Semiconductor is a global leader in the design and manufacture of embedded semiconductors for the automotive, consumer, industrial and networking markets. The privately held company is based in Austin, Texas, and has design, research and development, manufacturing or sales operations around the world. www.freescale.com.

It doesn’t end there, either.  There’s also a 10/100 ethernet controller, USB 2.0 OTG and Host, and interfaces including I2C, SPI, I2S, 1-Wire and PWM.  The i.MX515 has a PowerVR graphics engine supporting OpenGL ES 2.0 together with hardware 720p decoding for MPEG-4/H264, as well as a CMOS camera driver.

Direct Insight reckon the TRITON-TX51 will carve a niche for itself in video and DSP processing, as well as security, medical and industrial projects.  As you might expect, however, a 2.7 x 1.0 inch computer doesn’t come cheap; the TRITON-TX51 is expected to be priced at around €150 ($227) when it arrives in January 2010.

[via Linux For Devices]

The Cortex A8-based prototype first showed up back at Freescale’s stand during Computex in June, and Pegatron – a division of ASUS – were talking about up to 8hrs runtime and integrated 3G UMTS and GPS along with Bluetooth and WiFi.  According to Crave UK, though, things still aren’t looking so hot for an actual release.While

The hope, though, is that positive feedback from this pre-production unit will encourage ASUS to greenlight production of the netbook, likely as an Eee PC model.  By relying on a processor more usually associated with smartphones, the overall price could be kept low, making this a true companion device rather than a netbook compromise.

Conspicuously absent from the list of collaborators is Samsung, who are already working with Google as part of the Android-helming Open Handset Alliance, and who have a range of well-received netbooks on the market.  Dell and Sony are also missing from the list, though given the pattern of membership from the OHA – where a second round of sign-ups significantly boosted the ranks just a few months later – we wouldn’t be surprised to see one or more big names hop on board shortly.

Google also reiterated that Chrome OS will be a free, open-source project, although it is yet to specify when exactly in the second half of this year it will release the source code.  The first devices running Google Chrome OS are expected to arrive in the second half of 2010.

[via Android Community]

Video demos of Kinpo Android Tablet and GNB Android Netbook after the cut

The GNB netbook has a 7-inch resistive touchscreen display and runs on Freescale’s i.MX31 processor.  An ARM-based CPU, the i.MX31 is never going to blow away a Core 2 Duo but it’s enough to run Android reasonably well and cheap enough for a sub-$200 price tag to be talked about.

As for the Kinpo tablet, the company are calling it a thin client but it’s basically a touchscreen UMPC with a 7-inch WVGA display and Freescale i.MX51 processor.  More work is needed polishing it before it’ll be ready for release – video playback is an obvious issue, as you can see in the video below – but again they’re talking about low prices that might make a lot of sense for those wanting a straightforward web-browsing machine.

GNB Android Netbook:

Kinpo 7-inch Android Tablet:

Five more Freescale Smartbook concepts after the cut

The concepts are the work of industrial design specialists SCAD, and don’t appear to have reached hardware stage yet.  Instead, the renders suggest the different directions the Smartbook platform – which uses ARM-based processors and boast super-long battery life – might go in, to cater for different usage patterns.

In terms of working hardware, the prototypes are slightly less impressive.  Freescale have been demonstrating the Wistron N900z, a more traditional netbook-style design in which the most exciting aspect is perhaps its tipped sub-$200 price.

Press Release:

Freescale drives innovation around future netbook concepts and form factors

As the “smartbook” category takes shape, Freescale teams with prestigious industrial design program to demonstrate next-generation form factors

• A smartbook prototype that unfolds to provide keyboard and mouse functionality
• A sleek smartbook prototype featuring a touchscreen interface
• A modular smartbook concept that enables customization
• Smartbook prototype with sliding keypads
• Smartbook prototype featuring vertical display
• A smartbook prototype featuring leather-based casing

Smartbook devices based on ARM™ technology are rapidly emerging to fill the gap between smaller-screened smartphones and traditional, PC-like netbook or notebook products. To develop groundbreaking product concepts for this new device category, Freescale has teamed with a top North American industrial design program, resulting in an array of visionary smartbook prototypes on display this week at the Computex show in Taiwan.

Sporting larger screens than traditional smartphone devices, smartbooks are cloud-computing-centric and characterized by all-day battery life, instant-on functionality and persistent connectivity. They are commonly powered by processors based on ARM technology, such as Freescale’s i.MX515 device.

To demonstrate compelling new concepts that leverage these advantages, Freescale engaged with the Savannah College of Art and Design (SCAD) for a program to explore requirements related to ergonomic issues, user interfaces, alternative form factors and even accessories for next-generation smartbook devices.

“As the smartbook market emerges, new form factors and product categories will evolve to support and better align with user needs, and our engagement with SCAD demonstrates Freescale’s intention to lead this evolution,” said Glen Burchers, Consumer Segment marketing director for Freescale. “This initiative has given Freescale valuable insight into how end-users prefer to interact with smartbooks, and this knowledge will be fed back into our chip design processes, ultimately resulting in future i.MX processors that enable compelling consumer experiences and entirely new classes of consumer devices.”

Tasked with creating new models and paradigms that improve on the designs and user interfaces common to most first-generation netbook products, the participants developed a range of highly innovative, yet practical, designs optimal for leveraging the small, fanless dimensions and low-power operation of Freescale’s i.MX515 processor. Students whose designs are selected as truly exceptional will travel to Computex in Taipei to showcase their prototypes with Freescale. They will also participate in a special panel presentation on June 4.

SCAD: The University for Creative Careers
SCAD is a private, nonprofit, accredited institution that offers more degree programs and specializations than any other art and design university in the United States. Last year, SCAD’s industrial design program was ranked among the most prestigious in the nation by the Almanac of Architecture and Design. Industrial design students work with the form and function of everyday products – designing them to suit user needs while also considering the demands and limitations of production. Coursework is combined with professional practice involving actual clients on projects for industries including consumer electronics, communications, entertainment, housewares, interaction, marine, toys, lawn and garden, consumer products and transportation. www.scad.edu.

About Freescale Semiconductor
Freescale Semiconductor is a global leader in the design and manufacture of embedded semiconductors for the automotive, consumer, industrial and networking markets. The privately held company is based in Austin, Texas, and has design, research and development, manufacturing or sales operations around the world. www.freescale.com.

Video hands-on after the cut

In fact the bottom half of the Pegatron is just a little thicker than a standard VGA port, and it weighs roughly 800g maximum.  There are still USB 2.0 ports, audio in/out and a multiformat card reader, though, and an access panel underneath to get to the standard 4GB SSD; wireless connectivity includes WiFi, Bluetooth, 3G UMTS and GPS.

Build quality is reportedly very good, with a large keyboard with a decent layout and reasonable feedback; sadly the mouse button is only a single button.  There’ll apparently be a second OS choice, Movial, which is billed as an “easy-mode”.  No word on pricing or availability, but if they can match the Wistron N900z’s predicted sub-$200 tag then we’ll be very interested.

The design is relatively basic, with a rubberized keyboard (that LaptopMag compare to that of the OLPC XO-1, but we can’t avoid thinking about the Spectrum ZX) and “almost unusable” touchpad.  Inside, though, is the real draw: Freescale’s i.MX515 platform, with an 800MHz processor and 4GB SSD.

The N900z runs Ubuntu, and loaded OpenOffice Writer in around fifteen seconds; Firefox, even when opened simultaneously, didn’t present any performance issues, though attempting to then play a video clip resulted in sluggishness.  When the video was played on its own, though, it ran fine; Wistron expect the N900z to manage in excess of 10hrs runtime from a single charge, and be priced at under $200 when it eventually launches.

Update: Video demo after the cut

Chipset and graphics are courtesy of VIA’s VX875 Media System Processor and UniChrome Pro II IGP, respectively, and they’re paired with a healthy 1GB of RAM.  Connectivity includes Bluetooth 2.1 and a transflash card reader, plus there’s a 3.2-megapixel webcam and GPS.

According to iDOT, the CCI MID is dual-platform, running Windows XP and Android.  It’s unclear whether one single device would have both of those systems, or if they’re trying to cover all their bases: Android smartphone or full XP MID, depending on what resellers prefer.  No word on pricing or availability, but we hear there’s video coming up from at least one blogger attending the show.  Video below courtesy jkkmobile: