The Wibree specification will be merged with the Bluetooth SIG as an ultra low power Bluetooth technology. Wibree has a niche in the mobile phone and PC areas to provide wireless connectivity for smaller devices, such as watches and toys, as well as sports & wellness, healthcare and entertainment devices.

Wibree consumes only a fraction of the power of classic Bluetooth radios and it would be possible to operate these devices for more than a year without recharging.

"The development work for Wibree began when we discovered a series of interesting new use scenarios that no current local connectivity solution was addressing. Now we are happy to see Wibree become part of the open Bluetooth standard, opening new market opportunities and space to innovate for the industry," said Jarkko Sairanen, Vice President of Corporate Strategy for Nokia. "Including Wibree within an existing forum will ensure interoperability and its wide and fast adoption. The Bluetooth SIG is the optimal new home for Wibree."

Today Netgear announced the availability of its $79.99 Space-Saving
Powerline Network Extender (XEPS103), which extends secure 14 and 85 mbps network connections to any electrical outlet in the home.

It connects to any router’s Ethernet port and reduces clutter by using only one power outlet when used with many Netgear routers. One plug supplies both power and network extension. It does require use with NETGEAR XE102, XE103, XE104.

CSR is a global provider of personal wireless technology and its product portfolio covers Bluetooth, GPS, FM receivers and WiFi (IEEE802.11).

They announced today a new multi-microphone configuration for Bluetooth headsets which will improve performance. They are also looking to improve voice quality on vanilla Bluetooth headsets with VoiceField technology "uses two microphones to capture the speech of the headset user before it is lost amongst competing noise sources."

It’s good news, but can they make it look less Borg-like?

source: Home BusinessWire

Apple is in the news with rumors about a supposed video rental service due out this autumn. They already offer films for download and have distribution deals with Walt Disney and Paramount, but are in talks with major Hollywood studios at the moment.

One studio exec says that the service is looking to compete with the cable companies and anyone else offering VOD into the home.

The $2.99 downloads would be viewable for 30 days and playable on at least one other device like an iPod or iPhone, but their software would prevent copying.

VOD is a growing revenue stream for cable companies and satellite operators, such as Direct TV. Online services which offer this service include Xbox Live, Movie­link and Unbox, but none of these has a customer base as large as Apple.

source The Financial Times Limited 2007

The Nintendo DS is more than just a mobile game console. Now you have quick portable access to the web via the new DS browser, a $30 add-on packaged as a game cartridge. It features a dual screen to view sites in either Overview mode, which presents the complete web site on the lower screen with the highlighted area zoomed in on the upper screen, or with Opera’s Small-Screen Rendering, where the upper and lower screens are combined to act like a single display.

Since the DS already includes Wi-Fi, this browser add-on is capable of accessing the Web on a home wireless network, at one of the free Nintendo Wi-Fi Connection hotspots, or at public access hotspots.

Scott Hedrick, EVP Marketing, Opera Software says Nintendo is continuing to expand the usability of the platform. "DS Browser makes it easy to check news, popular user generated content sites or comparison shop while in a Wi-Fi hotspot," he added.

The browser is available for both the Nintendo DS and Nintendo DS Lite systems. Both can be found on Nintendo.com, while the browser for DS Lite is also available at locations where video games are sold.