Treo 700w gets smart with Windows

BROWSER/ Happenings from around the world

Palm has now chosen Microsoft to provide the operating system (OS) for its next generation of Treo smart phones. This was announced at CES 2006. It will continue, though, to offer Palm OS-based phones as well. The new Treo is bound to be compared with Treo 650, which runs on the Palm OS and has boosted the company's revenue in recent quarters.

Costing around $400 in the US, the Treo 700w is expected to cost around Rs 25,000 in India and should be available somewhere this March, say market sources. The new smart phone comes equipped with mobile versions of many of Microsoft's software staples, including Windows, Internet Explorer and Windows Media Player.

Other features include Bluetooth 1.2 for wireless connectivity and a 1.3-megapixel camera that shoots photos and video. "Customers have long been asking for a Palm Treo smart phone on the Windows platform," Ed Colligan, CEO of Palm, formerly known as PalmOne, said in a statement. "The Treo 700w smart phone is powerful, flexible and easy to use."

WiBro phone

Samsung M8000 is the first phone that will use the WiBro (Wireless Broadband) network. At CES 2006, Samsung demonstrated the futuristic service that Korea will have by the first half of the year. WiBro is based on the WiMAX technology.

The M8000 has a QWERTY keypad and Samsung says the WiBro services include broadcasting, home networking, video conferencing, video on demand, mobile navigations, and push-to-talk.

Charged backpack

University of Pennsylvania biology professor Larry Rome, who was developing submersible technology for the U S military, was given the challenge of overhauling the soldiers' backpacks.

American soldiers go out into the field, lugging food, medical supplies and portable electronics which weigh around 80 pounds. If they run out of batteries for their Global Positioning Systems (GPS) in a mountainous terrain, there are no shops in the vicinity to get a refill. They would be stranded.

Rome thought about this. His new design consists of a suspended-load backpack which incorporates springs and a metal frame to convert a walker's mechanical movements into enough electricity to replace the 20 pounds of batteries a soldier normally would carry, using a generator weighing only one pound.

Rome opines that the same technology could also benefit hikers or emergency workers who go out in uninhabited areas. Besides, people faced with disasters would benefit since they would be able to recharge their satellite phones with this new backpack design. His backpack weighs 15 pounds.

However, Rome hopes to reduce it to six or seven. The packs cost around $400 (approx. Rs 18,000).

Digital Video Eyewear

Imagine a home theatre experience that fits in your pocket. Icuiti's DV920 Video Eyewear, an upgraded version of an earlier display, is marketed as "a home theatre experience that fits in your pocket." Sleek and stylish, the DV920 is a sight for sore eyes in the personal entertainment industry. Capable of connecting to virtually any mobile or home video source, Video Eyewear makes video seeing a pleasurable experience.

You can use it with your DVD player, A / V cellphone, multi-media player, or game console. It costs around $549. Icuiti's device has two screens and the look of a pair of cool shades.

Camcorders get better

JVC is expanding its line-up of Everio hard disk- based camcorders. At CES, it announced four new models; a pair of 20 Gigabyte cams - the GZ-MG21 and GZ-MG27 and two 30 Gigabyte models - the GZ-MG37 and GZ-MG77.

What's unique is that all the camcorders can be teamed up with a DVD burner for direct footage transfer even if the owner does not have a PC. JVC has also increased the transfer speed too.

Compiled from the Net.