Audi unveils in-car 4G LTE wireless broadband

Audi AG has unveiled the 2013 Audi A3 with 4GLTE wireless connectivity powered by the second generation Gobi multi-mode 3G/4G LTE chipset, the MDM9215, by Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Incorporated at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. With peak data rates approaching 100 megabits per second, the enhanced “Audi connect” services in the A3 are expected to transform the user experience and provide enhanced features such as an in-car Wi-Fi hotspot, Internet radio, Web services and an augmented navigation system that presents street level visual imagery streamed to the vehicle. “Audi was the first automaker to highlight the potential for LTE connectivity in vehicles at CES 2012 and now becomes the first automaker to announce a commercial model with embedded 4G LTE connectivity,” said Ricky Hudi, chief executive engineer of electrics/electronics, Audi AG.“As a highlight, we will soon be offering a fully integrated LTE link for our Audi connect services in the new Audi A3 in 2013.” The Gobi MDM9215 chipset will be implemented by Audi in the automotive module. The solution will power Audi connect with 4G LTE speeds and is designed to enable enhancements to real-time navigation, weather and travel information while providing ultra-fast Wi-Fi hotspot access for up to eight devices in the car. Qualcomm has been embedding its Gobi technology with leading automakers for more than a decade and is currently the largest supplier of 3G and 4G technologies and chipsets for passenger-car telematics and connected-car services, with tens of millions of connected vehicles in operation worldwide. “We hope to introduce to automobiles the same 4G LTE connectivity that Qualcomm brought to today’s leading smartphones and mobile computing devices,” said Kanwalinder Singh, senior vice president of business development, Qualcomm Technologies, Inc.“The capabilities ofthe MDM9215 chipset allows Audi to define a new in-car media experience, including viewing and interacting with content on the headunit as well as on passengers’ own Wi-Fi-connected smartphones and tablets, all at 4G LTE speeds.” Source:Internet

Read more...

A Blind can use Touch Screen Smart phone

Designed by blind spouses Roger and Margaret Wilson-Hinds, Georgie is a comprehensive smartphone app using a combination of voice recognition software, haptic capability and customized controls. The simple, tailored app lets blind users operate handsets with ease, essentially creating a platform to transform regular smartphones into mobile devices customized for the visually-impaired.

Qualcomm and Project RAY, which designs accessibility tools for blind and visually impaired people, today announced that they have developed the RAY mobile device, a smartphone that is synchronized with Israel’s Central Library for the Blind, Visually Impaired and Handicapped audio books content.

Today, the majority of blind and visually impaired people use simple 2G mobile phones for voice telephony only. In addition, they depend on an array of specialty devices which are prohibitively expensive.

Based on an off-the-shelf Android OS smartphone powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon processor, the Project RAY device integrates the capabilities of smartphone technology and the capabilities of these multiple specialty devices into a single handset and a UI designed for eye-free interaction.

A trial project is currently underway that is testing the new system with 100 participants throughout Israel.

The Clarity mobile phone concept by designer Mark DiLella has a host of features that aim to help the visually impaired make full use of the device. Its Braille interface is easy to use and able to display over 100 characters. The keyboard with six keys should be familiar to users of the Perkins Brailler, and two additional user-definable keys can provide access to apps, settings or contacts.

A second rear display shows any missed calls, new messages and voicemails the user has received. The phone’s main and secondary menus can be customized to allow frequently used apps to appear higher for fast access. Optional text-to-speech integration lets the user navigate and fully enjoy all the features of their mobile phone, and two large speakers on the bottom of the design provide clear playback.

Read more...

Wi-Fi latest Standards -802.11n

Wi-Fi Alliance logo (Photo credit: Wikipedia)802.11n:
IEEE released the first Wi-Fi standard in 1997 and has since adopted 802.11a, b, g, and n versions. 802.11n, approved in 2009, operates in the 2.4- and 5-GHz frequency bands and offers a theoretical maximum throughput of 150 Mbits per second per data stream.

Although IEEE 802.11n was released more than two years ago, Wi-Fi equipment has not advanced enough to use all of the approach’s capabilities.

Multiple data streams
802.11n is designed to work with multiple-input, multiple-output technology. MIMO increases throughput by using multiple antennas on both transmitters and receivers, enabling more than one data stream.
IEEE 802.11n allows up to four data streams at a time by enabling the use of four antennas on the transmitter and four on the receiver, a configuration known as 4 × 4. This would yield a theoretical maximum data rate of 600 Mbps per chip (150 Mbps per data stream), and increase the maximum transmission range.

Vendors such as Qualcomm have announced chips that enable 4 × 4 but haven’t shipped any products yet, noted Craig Mathias, founder of the Farpoint Group, a wireless communications advisory firm.

Numerous vendors, such as Hewlett-Packard, have released 3 × 3 systems already, though, for use in products such as APs. These chips let the APs either offer 50 percent more bandwidth or handle 50 percent
more clients at the same bandwidth than products offering just two data streams.

Beam forming
802.11n enables Wi-Fi to use beam forming to improve performance. With this technique, the Wi-Fi infrastructure sends out multiple signals and analyzes client feedback to determine the optimal path that signals should take to reach the client. It then shapes the signal beam appropriately.
Vendors are selling equipment for large corporations that use beam forming, said Mathias, but the approaches are typically proprietary.

Read more...

Telecoms get behind Firefox smartphone platform

A new operating system for mobile phones akin to the Mozilla Firefox Internet browser has gotten the backing of several major telecom companies, turning up the heat on Google and Apple in the smartphone market.

Mozilla said Monday that mobile network operators Deutsche Telekom, Sprint, Smart, Telecom Italia, Telenor and Etisalat are backing the Firefox platform.

The non-profit that evolved from Netscape after the browser wars 14 years ago, said phone makers ZTE and TCL communication Technology will roll out the first Firefox OS phones using Qualcomm's Snapdragon processors in early 2013.

Read more...