Apple forbids navigation apps on iPhone 3G (except its own)

The Internets are abuzz with the announcement of an all-new iPhone, and with features like 3G data connections, new applications and GPS navigation, we're excited too. If you've been making plans to produce your own navigation app for iPhone 2.0, however, you may not be all that thrilled. A closer look at the iPhone SDK agreement shows that creating software for "real-time route guidance" is forbidden. This may mean that the creative kids at Cupertino aren't going to let anyone compete with the the Google maps solution it's already settled on. If true, companies like Garmin and TomTom, the latter of which has already confirmed that it's created a navigation app, would be unable to create salable navigation software for the popular touch-screen phone. Then again, you also can't do automatic or autonomous control of vehicles, aircraft, or other mechanical devices; dispatch or fleet management software; or use the iPhone for emergency or life-saving purposes.

Our friends over at Engadget may be on to something, however, when they note that Apple may just be covering its rear-quarters in the event people start suing for bad directions. Lets hope it's just a liability thing, because competition is always a good thing when it comes to new technology, and we want some TomTom on our new iPhone.

Sanyo Xacti DMX-HD1010 digital movie camera

The light-weight Full HD Xacti digital movie camera DMX-HD1010 from Sanyo is packed with advanced and improved features for even more beautiful video and still recording, simple playback and storage with the ‘Xacti Library’ through intuitive menus and functions. The Sanyo Xacti DMX-HD1010 with 2.7 inch, Low-temperature polysilicon TFT color LCD display with 7 level brightness adjustments uses SD /SDHC Memory Card for recording (up to 32GB). Other features include-10x optical zoom, built in stereo microphone and mono speaker and built in neutral density filter. The Sanyo Xacti DMX-HD1010 is the camera of choice for anyone who enjoys taking high definition videos and high resolution stills with one unit, and will be on sale in Japan from June 20, 2008.The Sanyo Xacti DMX-HD1010 measures 90.0 x 112.6 x 54.5mm, weighs 311 g (with card and battery).

SMK prototype No Battery Remote Control!

SMK a leading remote control manufacturer, prototyped a TV remote control shaped like a water gun that eliminates the need for a battery. The channels, volume control and On/Off power switch is controlled by operating the trigger. The remote control incorporates an electromagnetic induction coil, high speed rotation gears, a power circuit, an infrared light emitting unit, etc. When the user pulls the trigger on the remote control, the coil rotates at a high speed by means of the built-in gears. The electromagnetic induction of the coil generates power to perform smoothing and other processing in the power circuit before turning on the LED. The coil momentarily generates a current of approximately 20-30mA, which can transmit signals between several meters via infrared light.

When the user pulls the trigger, the remote control changes the channel. Two consecutive pulls will turn the TV on or off. Volume control can be performed by pulling the trigger while pushing another button at the same time. Energy saving technologies are currently being highlighted in connection with global warming.

STMicroelectronics Image Signal Processor for mobile phones delivers exceptional quality images

STMicroelectronics has introduced a new high-performance, stand-alone Image Signal Processor with dual-camera support that brings DSC-like performance to mobile imaging applications. Capable of controlling the entire imaging subsystem in a mobile phone, ST’s newest digital image processor supports a wide range of camera modules including SMIA-compatible (Standard Mobile Imaging Architecture) sensors with up to 5-megapixel resolution. The advanced processing algorithms enable the STv0986 to deliver images of exceptional quality. The image signal processor supports special image-orientation effects such us mirroring, flip and rotation, as well as color features including sepia (brown-shade) and black & white.

In addition to mobile phones, the STv0986 is suitable for use in PDAs, mobile games, security cameras and video phones.The advanced autofocus (AF) control loop enables the STV0986 to provide still and video autofocus with a very fast lock time of 0.6 seconds. The STv0986 mobile imaging processor is in volume production now, with samples priced at $4.

Super Talent Launches Worlds fastest 1GB DDR3 for Next Generation Laptops

Super Talent today announced immediate availability of DDR3 SO-DIMMs. Super Talent’s new 1GB DDR3-1333 SO-DIMM supports transfer rates up to 10,664 MB/sec. That equates to 66% higher bandwidth than DDR2-800 SO-DIMMs, making this the world’s fastest production DDR3 SO-DIMM. In addition to the faster speed, DDR3 SO-DIMMs require only 1.5V, compared to 1.8V for DDR2, resulting in power savings of up to 20% and less heat output.

The 204-pin Supertalent1GB DDR3-1333 SO-DIMM is available now at street prices under $99.

LaCie 4X d2 Blu-ray Drive

LaCie has doubled burn speeds to 4X for it d2 Blu-ray Drive and has updated the aluminum alloy case and software suite. The drive records, rewrites and reads 25 gigabytes (GB) or 50GB BD-R (recordable) and BD-RE (rewritable), as well as DVD±RW DL and CD±RW. The LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drive come fully equipped with Roxio burning software and dual FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 interfaces.

Press release After The Jump

LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drives come with full-featured Roxio software including Easy Media Creator for Windows, and Toast Titanium for Mac. LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drives are available now and widely available via LaCie’s specialized dealer network at the suggested retail price of $649.99.

LaCie Doubles d2 Blu-ray Burn Times to 4x Speeds

May 27, 2008

Professional HD Video Recording Solution
Capacity up to 50GB per double-layer disc
Multi-format Blu-ray and DVD/CD writer in one
Durable d2 design; whisper-quite operation

LaCie announced today that is has doubled burn speeds to 4x for it d2 Blu-ray Drive and has updated the aluminum alloy case and software suite. The drive records, rewrites and reads 25 gigabytes (GB) or 50GB BD-R (recordable) and BD-RE (rewritable), as well as DVD±RW DL and CD±RW. The LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drive come fully equipped with Roxio burning software and dual FireWire 400 and USB 2.0 interfaces.

“In early 2007, LaCie was the first vendor to ship worldwide an external solution for professional Hi-Def video recording for both Mac and Windows. Since that time, Blu-ray technology has proven to be the dominant source for video recording and playback,” said Patrick Salin, LaCie Business Development Manager. “Burning up to 50GB of data can take a reasonable amount of time, so doubling burn speeds not only increases work performance, but provides a cost-effective, long-term archival process for storing data to sturdy scratch-resistant media.

LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drives come with full-featured Roxio software including Easy Media Creator® for Windows, and Toast® Titanium for Mac. Easy Media Creator and Toast Titanium products are easy-to-use burning applications that provide a timesaving solution for regularly backing up important files at an impressive data transfer rate.

Blu-ray 50GB discs offer 10x more capacity than a single layer DVD. This increased capacity gives professionals the freedom to choose much higher bit rate codecs when mastering content, ultimately improving picture quality. For increased audio quality, Blu-ray technology allows for up to eight channels of 192kHz/32 audio streams.

Availability
LaCie d2 Blu-ray Drives are available now and widely available via LaCie’s specialized dealer network at the suggested retail price of $649.99. For more product information, visit www.lacie.com

, motherboard with energy saving

In order to cater to users who require a high-performance motherboard
that still saves energy, Asus, worldwide leader in motherboard
production, has released the Asus P5N72-T Premium motherboard. Equipped
with the Asus exclusive EPU technology for astounding energy savings,
this high performance motherboard supports enhanced specifications of
the front side bus and memory – able to reach an FSB of 1600MHz (O.C.)
(originally 1333MHz) and 1200MHz(O.C.) for memory (originally 1066MHz).
Press Release After The Jump

Asus P5N72-T Premium motherboard also provide amazing graphical
performances with the NVIDIA 3-Way SLI support; and includes the ROG
SupremeFX II audio card for realistic and exceptional sound effects –
making playing games more engaging. What's more the well-known
Kaspersky anti-virus software package with 1-year license is included
in the giftbox – providing protection against malicious viruses.

Taipei, Taiwan, May 27, 2008 – In order to cater to users who
require a high-performance motherboard that still saves energy, ASUS,
worldwide leader in motherboard production, has released the ASUS
P5N72-T Premium motherboard. Equipped with the ASUS exclusive EPU
technology for astounding energy savings, this high performance
motherboard supports enhanced specifications of the front side bus and
memory – able to reach an FSB of 1600MHz (O.C.) (originally 1333MHz)
and 1200MHz(O.C.) for memory (originally 1066MHz). It is also able to
provide amazing graphical performances with the NVIDIA 3-Way SLI
support; and includes the ROG SupremeFX II audio card for realistic and
exceptional sound effects – making playing games more engaging. What's
more the well-known Kaspersky anti-virus software package with 1-year
license is included in the giftbox – providing protection against
malicious viruses.

ASUS EPU for Outstanding CPU Power Savings

The new ASUS exclusive EPU is the world's first intelligent on-demand
power saving microprocessor. This intelligent automatic energy saving
chip is more stable than software-driven solutions, and provides users
with superior performance while in energy-saving mode in comparison to
other solutions. By utilizing an innovative power technology, the EPU
is able to digitally monitor current CPU usage and automatically
fine-tune the CPU power supply with improved VRM efficiency to suit any
loading. The EPU is thus able to provide users with the ability to
moderate power for higher performance if required, or save CPU power
under low processing periods for the best possible performance with the
least amount of power – achieving industry-leading power savings.

Great Gaming Experiences with 3-Way SLI and HD Audio

The P5N72-T Premium allows enthusiast gamers to fully immerse
themselves into their gaming worlds with support for NVIDIA’s 3-Way SLI
technology in PCI-E 2.0 mode. With a 3-way SLI setup that consists of
three high-end video cards running with full x16 lanes to deliver
smoother, scalable 3D performances, higher 3DMark world records and
smoother gameplay with higher frame rates and better antialiasing will
result for a better gaming experience.

On the audio side, the ROG SupremeFX II audio card delivers an
excellent high definition audio experience to gamers. Featuring unique
virtual surround audio innovations that work with gamers' headphones –
this audio card allows gamers to easily spot enemies in 3D environments
during game play – allowing them to fully enjoy their gaming
environments. SupremeFX II also provides gamers a special tool to
emphasize human voices in games – helping make dialogues clearer and
more audible.