Consumer Electronics
Should Engineers Be Licensed: A Process Improvement Perspective
May 10, 2013 7:56 am | by Alan Nicol, Executive Member, AlanNicolSolutions | Articles | CommentsLicensed practice is commonplace or mandatory in other fields, particularly construction, medicine and law, so should those individuals handily responsible for most every article we use every day also be given greater accountability for the science they practice?
Engineering Newswire 37: Boeing Makes Hypersonic History
May 9, 2013 2:45 pm | Videos | CommentsToday on Engineering Newswire, brought to you by Pivot Point, the leading designer and manufacturer of non-threaded fastener solutions, we’re improving Artificial Intelligence with sensors, flying robotic bees, making hypersonic history, and getting ready to launch GOES-R.
Microsoft Touching Up Windows 8 To Address Gripes
May 7, 2013 7:43 am | by Michael Liedtke, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsThe tune up announced Tuesday won't be released to consumers and businesses until later this year. The changes, part of a software package given the codename "Blue," are a tacit acknowledgment of the shortcomings in Windows 8, a radical overhaul of Microsoft Corp.'s ubiquitous operating system.
EU: Motorola May Have Violated Antitrust Rules
May 6, 2013 12:27 pm | News | CommentsIt's a violation of EU antitrust rules for a patent-holder to deny use to technologically essential patents to companies willing to pay a fair and reasonable price. Motorola Mobility, now owned by Google, obtained an injunction preventing Apple from using certain patented technologies.
New Efforts To Curb Cellphone Theft
May 6, 2013 7:54 am | by Terry Collins, Associated Press | News | CommentsIn San Francisco, where half the robberies were phone-related last year, District Attorney George Gascon is calling on major companies in nearby Silicon Valley to create new technology such as a "kill switch" to permanently and quickly disable stolen smart phones, making them worthless to thieves.
Intel's CEO Pick Sticks To Tried-And-True Formula
May 3, 2013 2:21 pm | by Michael Liedtke, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsEver since Intel co-founders Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore ceded their roles as the first two CEOs, the company has always promoted the second-in-command to the helm. That started in 1987 with Andy Grove, who served as the top lieutenant under the co-founders.
App Lets Amputees Program Bionic Hands
May 3, 2013 1:34 pm | by Kathy Matheson, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe technology indicates how rapidly the field of prosthetics is changing, benefiting patients from injured military members to victims of the Boston Marathon bombing. Practitioners say increased government research in the wake of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan is driving some of the advances.
Pentagon Clears Use Of Samsung's Devices
May 3, 2013 7:55 am | News | CommentsThe South Korean company said Friday the Galaxy S4 smartphone has become the first Android device to meet the security requirements set out by the U.S. government, allowing government and military officials to access the Defense Department's networks with the S4.
Open Innovation Spurs Ultimate American Success
May 2, 2013 2:25 pm | by Louise Rainone, Vice President of Marketing, PCDworks | Articles | CommentsAfter attending the Marcus Evans Group’s 7th Annual OI Summit, I was delighted to see the evolution currently happening in the OI stratosphere. I was privy to a few surprises in the lineup from non-traditional players in the OI space, making this dynamic open innovations platform technologically enticing.
Engineering Newswire 36: Electric Car Charge Time Cut in Half
May 2, 2013 11:01 am | by Eric Sorensen, Coordinator of Multimedia Development | Videos | CommentsToday on Engineering Newswire, brought to you by Interpower, the premier supplier of power system components for worldwide markets, we’re bending cellphones, electrifying motorcycles, cutting electric vehicle charge time in half, and riding a screw-propelled snowboard.
Verizon Report: State-Affiliated Espionage Dominates Security Landscape
May 2, 2013 10:00 am | News | CommentsTaking the top spot for all breaches in the 2013 report is financially-motived cybercrime (75 percent), with state-affiliated espionage campaigns claiming the No. 2 spot (20 percent). Breaches in the No. 2 spot include cyberthreats aimed at stealing intellectual property — such as classified information, trade secrets and technical resources — to further national and economic interests.
IDC: Tablets With Windows RT See Slow Sales
May 1, 2013 5:11 pm | by Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsResearchers at IDC said manufacturers shipped 200,000 tablets running Windows RT, the special version of Windows for iPad-style tablets, in the January to March period. That's down from about 900,000 shipped in the fourth quarter. Microsoft Corp. launched Windows RT in October, along with the Surface tablet.
Sony Execs To Give Up Bonuses
May 1, 2013 8:11 am | News | CommentsAround 40 executives of Sony Corp. and its group companies in charge of the mainstay electronics business have decided to give up their bonuses for fiscal 2012 ending March, taking responsibility for poor business performance, company officials said Wednesday.
New BlackBerrys Face Many Challenges
April 30, 2013 8:38 am | by David Friend, The Canadian Press | News | CommentsThe BlackBerry Q10 marks a throwback to the company's more traditional smartphones, and raises questions about whether the company could deliver respectable sales numbers for a belated refresh of something that many consumers find so familiar.
Good Mechanics Know How The Parts Work
April 29, 2013 8:39 pm | by David Mantey, Executive Editor, PD&D | Articles | CommentsWe wanted to perfect the product design so we pushed the limits from all grounds, challenging the tolerance level, tooling through to the entire manufacturing process. The months that led up to the launch were extremely challenging, but it was a worthwhile experience.
Smartphone Shakes
April 29, 2013 2:33 pm | by Meaghan Ziemba, Editor, WDD | Blogs | CommentsI recently attended a concert in Madison, WI. I placed my phone in my back pocket to avoid carrying a purse and to have it easily accessible when I wanted to update my status and snap a few photos. Unfortunately, after a visit to the facilities and a horrifying plop, I knew that I was in trouble.
National Instruments Partnership With FIRST Puts Real-World Engineering In Student Hands
April 29, 2013 9:38 am | News | CommentsFIRST and National Instruments announced they are extending their partnership through 2019 with the shared goal of creating more scientists and engineers. This phase of the technology partnership centers around a next-generation embedded robotics control platform code-named “Athena.”
Smartphones Overtake 'Dumb' Phones Worldwide
April 29, 2013 8:02 am | by Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsManufacturers shipped 216 million smartphones worldwide in the first three months of this year, compared with 189 million regular cellphones, according to a study IDC released late Thursday. IDC said smartphones made up 51.6 percent of the 419 million mobile phones shipped.
Welcoming Grandma Into Our Virtual Future
April 24, 2013 9:57 am | by Joel Hans, Managing Editor, Manufacturing.net | Blogs | CommentsI feel that every generation experiences at least once technology that is a complete diversion from what existed before, one that fundamentally changes the way our society works. These revolutions challenge us to adapt and take on new ways of thinking. I think VR is on the verge of becoming one of those technologies.
RIM Expects Keyboard BlackBerry In U.S. In Late May
April 24, 2013 7:59 am | by Rob Gillies, Associated Press | News | CommentsThe maker of the BlackBerry expects a new version of the phone with a physical keyboard will be available in the U.S. by the end of May. Research In Motion Ltd. said Tuesday that all four major U.S. carriers will carry the Q10. It is available May 1 in Canada.
Apple To Dole Out $100B To Shareholders
April 24, 2013 7:56 am | by Peter Svensson, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsApple is opening the doors to its bank vault, saying it will distribute $100 billion in cash to its shareholders by the end of 2015. At the same time, the company said revenue for the current quarter could fall from the year before, which would be the first decline in many years.
Smartphone Film Fest Draws Unlikely Filmmakers
April 22, 2013 10:50 am | by Youkyung Lee, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsNo red carpet. No sleek limousines dropping off celebrities dressed to impress. It is the world's "least authoritative" film festival, according to one of its organizers, featuring works by unlikely filmmakers with little to no capital or experience and only smartphones as their camera equipment.
Former Google CEO Shares Vision In Tech Treatise
April 22, 2013 7:48 am | by Michael Liedtke, AP Technology Writer | News | CommentsIt's a technology treatise that Schmidt wrote with another ruminator, Jared Cohen, a former State Department adviser who now runs Google Ideas, the Internet company's version of a think tank. The book is an exercise in "brainstorming the future," as Schmidt put it in a recent post on Twitter — just one example of a cultural phenomenon that didn't exist a decade ago.
SAP Co-CEO: Cloud Computing Business Profitable
April 19, 2013 1:52 pm | by David McHugh, AP Business Writer | News | CommentsThe cloud business contributed about 28 million euros ($36.72 million) to first-quarter earnings. SAP AG, whose software helps companies manage personnel, sales and customer relations, said Friday its overall net profit rose 17 percent to 520 million euros in the quarter. Revenues grew 7 percent to 3.6 billion euros.
Blackstone Drops Out Of Race To Buy Dell
April 19, 2013 8:41 am | News | CommentsDell says buyout specialist Blackstone Group is ending a bid to buy the slumping computer maker, less than a month after pitching a plan to trump an offer from the company's CEO and founder. A letter from Blackstone and others involved in the bid says a steep slump in PC shipments and Dell's eroding financial profile prompted them to end their bid.
