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Airlines Team to Buy Standardized Planes
By BRAD FOSS
AP Business Writer
In an effort to negotiate lower prices from aircraft manufacturers, airlines around the globe are teaming up to design and purchase identical planes. If these nascent efforts to standardize everything from in-flight entertainment to cockpit design succeed, industry officials said it could spark an industrywide trend.
With airlines mired in a persistent revenue slump, two groups of mostly European carriers are banding together in hopes of wielding the type of bargaining power formerly reserved for the industry's biggest players.
One possible joint purchase, which would involve as many as 100 regional jets, is being worked out by Air Canada, Austrian Airlines, Lufthansa and Scandinavian Airlines System. These carriers are considering planes made by Chicago-based Boeing and France's Airbus, airline and aircraft officials said Tuesday.
Air France and Alitalia are working on a separate deal for an unspecified number of planes and, according to one Air France official, have held preliminary talks with Montreal-based Bombardier and Brazil's Embraer.
In the past, carriers were reluctant to embrace fleet standardization, fearing it would dilute their brands. In the current financial environment, though, cost-cutting has become the industry's top priority.
Another benefit of standardization is that the resale value of their planes will go up, since other carriers will be using identical aircraft in their fleets.
Aircraft manufacturers said they welcomed the carriers' emerging strategy since it will lower production costs and potentially jump-start sales amid an industrywide slowdown. That said, executives emphasized that many issues still need to be worked out.
``If you asked 50 airline CEOs, they would all agree on the need for standardization,'' John Leahy, chief commercial officer at Airbus SAS, said from the company's headquarters in Toulouse, France. But there is little consensus on what those standards should be, he said.
The most crucial design specifications that need to be worked out include the layout of the cockpit, the location of kitchens and bathrooms and the amount and type of in-flight entertainment.
Another hurdle will be agreeing to financing terms that are acceptable to all participants. Unless one of the larger carriers in the negotiating pool is willing to co-sign for the rest, the smallest airlines will not receive equally favorable pay schedules and conditions, Leahy said.
Michael Lamberty, a Frankfurt-based spokesman for Lufthansa, said the German carrier and its three partners could have specifications for a standard design worked out by the end of the summer.
Within the standard design, Lamberty said there would also be ``plenty of room'' for carriers to vary the product, such as the color of seats and how they are arranged.
The trend toward standardization isn't entirely new. Many of these carriers have been buying equipment and supplies in bulk for years.
Both groups of carriers were already in partnerships in which they sold seats on each other's flights, honored members' frequent-flier programs and collectively purchased certain supplies.
Air Canada and its partners are in the 14-member Star Alliance, while Air France and Alitalia are part of the six-member SkyTeam.
AP-NY-05-20-03 1628EDT
Trade in old iPod
Small Dog Electronics Sniffs Out Another New Trail for iPod
WAITSFIELD, Vt., May 20 /PRNewswire/ -- "It's unheard of in our industry. It's like taking your Armani suit back for a trade-in," said Don Mayer, an entrepreneur known for taking his Vermont company, Small Dog Electronics, off the beaten trail.
Mayer was describing his new iPod trade-in program. Customers can trade in their original 5GB, 10GB, or 20GB Apple iPod when they purchase a new iPod digital music player from Small Dog Electronics. This way they get the latest, coolest technology in their hands without waiting for their current equipment to get to a decent old age. And they become part of smalldog.com's network of dog-loving, good-cause supporting controversy-fomenting Apple-users that keep making this company an industry one-of-a-kind.
The original iPod was introduced less than two years ago to rave reviews. The new super slim iPod offers huge 10GB, 15GB, or 30GB hard drives that offer enough space for over 7,500 songs. At 5.6 ounces, the new iPod weighs less than two compact discs, making it easy to slip into a pocket. It is designed for easy one-handed operation -- ideal to use while working out. A range of
accessories for car use lets travelers take all their favorite tunes along.
The new iPod is both Mac and Windows compatible. A simple dock connection at the bottom of the iPod allows for easy connection and fast transfer speeds that lets the user transfer an entire album in as little as 10 seconds or buy new music online. The new Apple iTunes Music Store makes getting music for an iPod easy-with over 200,000 titles that can be purchased and downloaded.
The Small Dog Electronics iPod Trade-in Program is flexible. Those who cannot bear to be without tunes for a moment can purchase a new iPod from Small Dog Electronics online at http://www.smalldog.com and then get an iPod trade-in
number and ship their iPod to Small Dog Electronics for credit against their purchase. To get the credit first, they can request an iPod trade-in number, ship the iPod in, and then purchase a new iPod.
Current (week of May 19) Trade-in Values: All 5GB iPods - $100, All 10GB iPods - $150, All 20GB iPods - $225. Small Dog Electronics will sell the traded iPods once they are tested and repackaged.
Small Dog Electronics, an e-commerce company that sells new and
refurbished Apple computers, software and peripherals, is based in Waitsfield, VT, and can be found online at http://www.smalldog.com. Although it's had an impressive rise in sales to become a $20 million company in its seven-year
history, (Small Dog Electronics is the #1 Apple Computer reseller in New England), the company prefers to be known for its social and workplace policies. Small Dog Electronics encourages customers to give to good causes with a matching donations program as part of the online transaction process.
Demand continues growing for all-in-one electronic equipment
By Jason Dooley, jdooley@bgdailynews.com -- 270-781-1700
Fewer gadgets with more functions is the mantra as manufacturers and retailers try to keep up with the ever-growing demand for personal electronic equipment.
The days of carrying around a digital camera, cellular telephone, personal digital assistant, MP3 player and other such gizmos may soon be over as more and more of the newer gadgets on the market combine those functions into one unit, said Chris Raines, a sales associate at Best Buy in Bowling Green.
“We’re not really selling as many of the MP3 players anymore because a lot of the new PDAs can play MP3s and do a lot of other things, also,” Raines said. “As the manufacturers bring out new models, a lot of the time they incorporate the features of two or three of the earlier models into one.”
PDAs still sell well, attracting customers from soccer moms looking to keep track of children’s schedules to businessmen looking to keep track of the stock market, he said.
Among serious business professionals, the Pocket PC line, including models such as the Compaq iPAQ, is the most popular, while more casual users tend to be attracted to Palm Pilots, which include models like the Palm Zire and Sony Clie, Raines said.
“They’re really trying to get the PDAs to the point where they can focus your whole life into one unit,” he said. “They’re not there yet, but they’re moving ever closer to that.”
Price and functionality are the overriding factors for most people in selecting PDAs, Raines said.
With prices ranging from about $90 for the Zire to more than $600 for top-of-the-line Pocket PC machines, the number of options can be overwhelming.
Jeptha Sumter, a network consultant for Western Kentucky University, said he uses a Compaq iPAQ to keep track of appointments and also to scan barcodes of new equipment for the college’s inventory.
Sumter wrote the database software he uses for the inventory process himself, he said.
“(The PDAs) were originally purchased for the barcode project and for the school’s wireless Internet project,” Sumter said. “But I have to schedule a lot more things now, so I’m using it more and more.”
While PDAs are assuming more and more entertainment functions, manufacturers of MP3 players – personal stereo sets that use computer files encoded in MP3 format to store music – are scrambling to offer more functions and compete, Raines said.
The most ambitious of the new-line MP3 machines is the Apple iPod, which can store as much as 40 megabytes of files.
The iPod is comparable in capacity to the hard drive of most personal computers, and many iPod users actually use the gadgets to back up their hard drives, Raines said.
The biggest drawback for most potential iPod customers is the price.
At $300 to $400, the iPod is about three to four times as expensive as most other MP3 players on the line, he said.
Meanwhile, makers of cellular phones are also moving toward making their gadgets into one-stop life organizers.
Phones with built-in PDAs or digital cameras are becoming increasingly popular, said Tina Peterson, a salesperson at the T-Mobile kiosk in Greenwood Mall.
“They’ve been really popular as they’ve started to get a little cheaper,” Peterson said. “Especially with younger people.”
Many of the newest cell phones offer wireless Internet with full-color LCD displays, and others can take and send digital photos via the Internet.
Not having to have a land-line Internet connection to check and send e-mail is a valuable asset for many cell phone users, Peterson said.
“It keeps you from having to be chained to your desktop PC,” she said. “You can just do everything over your phone."
Bantam BA1000 HDD
Thank you for your interest in Bantam Interactive and the BA1000. To update you about the BA1000 - we are planning to offer pre-orders in a couple of weeks. The BA1000 has not been released yet because the engineers are making improvements. They have updated the EQ and the battery, more life.
I have seen the BA1000 and it is very nice, attractive, and easy to use, sounds great! The engineers like the BA1000 but upon seeing it said things like "what if we added this, or how about if we change this to improve performance, speed, etc."
The delay, although frustrating for us and our customers is a good thing - the BA1000 will have more bang for the buck, so to speak, than the original concept that you have read about. I do know that it still has the 1.8 inch hard drive for its slim and sleek look.
We beg your patience and ask you to please occasionally visit the website for any updates.
Thank You for your email!
"they discovered it didn't work as advertised, so they removed it from the list".
What the H are you talking about? It is BS posts like that that make it hard to stay here.
CNET tested the O-1000, gave it a "very good" rating 8.0. That is why it was listed..it deserved it! BTW It is still listed as "recommended".
http://electronics.cnet.com/electronics/search/1,10126,0-6342420-1302-0,00.html?tag=dir-hd&pn=1&....
APED Pricing
Subj: APED Release / Pre Sale
Date: 5/20/2003 7:50:03 AM Pacific Daylight Time
From: nowevolution.com
To:
Sent from the Internet (Details)
APED model players are scheduled for national release on July 1st. As retailers are finalized they will be identified on our website. We will shortly have an online store set-up on our website. From this store you will be able to pre order these units.
APED 20 gig with cradle $279.99
APED 30 gig with cradle $299.99
Thanks for your interest.....Have a great week.
Update Evolution Technologies 20GB 30GB HDD player
New 'APED™' - Audio Personal Entertainment Device - Line from Evolution Technologies, Inc. Offers Dupont's OLED Display
http://nowevolution.com/products/APED.pdf
May 16, 2003 - Raleigh, NC: Thanks to the breakthrough display technology from Evolution Technologies, Inc.and Dupont, the two companies are announcing a new line of digital music players that are feature-rich, extremely easy to use and affordable.
The two APED Models, APED-20 GB and APED-30 GB are setting new standards for portable music players by including support for MP3 and WMA digital music formats. According to Vice President of Marketing Howard Blumberg, this line delivers a bright, vibrant OLED display, built-in direct record, FM radio and a PDA-like cradle that syncs, charges and even allows for easy connection to a home stereo system, and all the memory capacity you need.
"The Evolution Technologies, Inc. APED is the first portable music player to use Dupont's new OLED technology; offering the easiest to read screen ever seen in a handheld player," Blumberg offered. "On top of that, the player just flat looks great, and will take the market by storm."
"We're determined to offer the greatest value and feature-set to our customers." Blumberg said. "We love music at Evolution Technologies, Inc. and it gives us great satisfaction to offer unique, high-quality, affordable products." Blumberg continues by pointing out the greatest advantage of OLED displays are that they create their own illumination, which provides a vibrant, sharper, and more readable display than an LCD. The OLED technology allows the Evolution Technologies, Inc. APED to be a more compact product. In addition, the APED has a docking station, which creates 'permanent' connections with your computer or stereo. This docking station allows for simple, fast and easy file transfer, battery charging and stereo system playback.
About APED
APED is packed with additional features that make it the class of the hard-drive based portable music player field. APED supports the popular MP3 and WMA digital music formats and is compliant with the Secure Digital Music Initiative (SDMI) formats currently in development
http://nowevolution.com/products/APED.html
OT: Illegal Naked Short Selling in Microcap Stocks
The regulators are beginning to take a hard look at the practices of short sellers. After several years of high profile cases surrounding the excesses which caused stocks to go artificially high, the extended bear market has fostered a climate wherein the regulators are examining the practices of those who benefit by illegally forcing stocks artificially low.
On April 19th I published an edition entitled "Is the SEC Pendulum Swinging? - Regulators Go After Short Sellers". I covered the recent actions the SEC took against one fund manager who used short selling in a death spiral financing to illegally enhance his profits.
Today we're looking at the issues surrounding naked short selling in microcap stocks, and how the regulatory landscape may be changing to level the playing field for small public companies and their shareholders.
About 80 small public companies have signed up for the "OTC Rebellion". To learn more, read on:
The OTC Rebellion
The DTC, or Depository Trust Company, is responsible for the electronic transfer of billions of shares of stock in the US markets. The DTC electronically handles the delivery of stock from buyer to seller in the open market once a trade takes place. DTC handles billions of transactions annually and has a monopoly in the US markets despite being a private company.
There are about 80 microcap companies attempting to withdraw their shares from being handled by the Depository Trust Company. If successful, they go back to the old fashioned practice of having every transaction handled by the company's Transfer Agent. They believe short sellers are able to illegally create millions of shares of stock which don't exist, and are flooding the markets with these counterfeit shares. The practice only works because of flaws and loopholes in the DTC system.
In a legitimate short sale of stock, shares are borrowed by the seller against a future pledge to buy the stock back. If the shares drop in value, the short seller makes money when he closes his position with a buy transaction.
Naked short sellers flood the markets with millions of shares that simply don't exist and which have not been legitimately borrowed. Microcap companies are targeted because they don't have institutional shareholders with deep pocketswho have the conviction to take on the short sellers. Short sellers are able to bully this end of the marketplace. Furthermore, microcap companies have a much higher failure rate, giving the short sellers much greater odds of long term success.
Naked short sellers are able to sell shares which simply don't exist because the normal three day settlement rules are mostly ignored by the DTC System. As the buyer you purchase shares in the open market and pay for the purchase within the normal three day time frame. The shares show up in your account as a line item entry. However, most investors don't know that your shares might never be electronically delivered to your account in any reasonable time frame. These "open fail to delivers" can stay on the books of brokerage firms for months because the DTC system does not force them to be delivered.
This allows naked short sellers to flood the market with millions of shares which don't exits and where no shares have been pledged or loaned against the short trade.
There are two primary mechanisms short sellers use to execute these trades.
Market Makers- Market makers are allowed to go naked short stocks in which they make a market. This regulation is designed to encourage a "stable" market. Large pools of funds are pledged to market makers in the guise of trading capital which are really used to create huge excess supplies in microcap stocks, which acts to destabilizes the market.
Trading through Canada: You can execute trades with a Canadian brokerage firm simply by opening an account. The NASD regulates the actions of brokerage firms, but has no regulatory authority of Canadian brokerage firms, where huge short positions are often parked and moved or "kited" around to disguise their existence.
When a company successfully withdraws its shares from trading in the DTC system, naked short selling abuses are prevented. Once removed from DTC, every transaction is handled by the old fashioned way by the Transfer Agent. Every buyer is matched up with a seller who actually has real shares for sale. The transfer agent matches the two and short sellers cannot artificially create immense supplies of stock.
Genemax Corp (OTC BB: GMXX)- The Anti Naked Short Selling Poster Child
Pictured here is a chart of Genemax Corp, one of the few microcap companies which has been successful at having the ownership transfer of its shares removed from the DTC system.
The company was targeted by naked short sellers last year. At the end of last July, Genemax succeeded in having its shares removed from ownership transfer in the DTC system. Eventually, naked short sellers were forced to cover their open positions, and the stock traded from $4 in October to $20 in November as a short squeeze drove the price to absurdly high levels.
Genemax is a biotech company with less than $1 million in cash which has yet to begin clinical trials on any new drug. There are about 15 million shares issued and outstanding. At $20, the market value of the company was pegged at $300 million, which is absurd.
As you can see from the chart, the stock turned around and now trades in the more reasonable range of about $2.50. The company has filed civil law suits in both Canada and the US to stop what it describes as "illegal and manipulative" practices. Just last week the company filed a law suit against a Bermuda based brokerage firm for illegally lending shares of its unregistered stock to short sellers.
The success of the Genemax case has fostered an interest by like companies. About 80 small public companies are attempting to withdraw from the DTC system today. Several in addition to Genemax have succeeded.
Recent Developments
As a result of the Genemax case, the DTC (Depository Trust Company) became alarmed that it would have a customer rebellion, and has asked for a ruling from the SEC concerning this issue. DTC argues it should be up to the shareholder to remove himself from the DTC system, which can be accomplished by simply requesting the delivery of your certificate.
The SEC has decided to allow those companies already out of DTC to remain outside the system. The SEC has not ruled on whether companies have the option to remove themselves.
The NASD has been in favor of enforcing proper settlement and delivery times. The NASD has successfully ejected several offenders from its ranks for abuses in this area.
Many believe the SEC has dragged its feet in dealing with the problem, as the SEC views the naked short sellers as their unofficial "watchdogs" for preventing excesses to the upside in the market. One glance at the chart of Genemax shows why. If stocks trade like Genemax, individual investors could be naively purchasing shares at $20, which are one way tickets to losses.
Political Muscle Gets Involved
One company which is purported to have been a target of naked short sellers is Life Energy Technologies (OTC BB: LETH). Dr. Albert Reynolds is the Chairman of LETH, and the former Prime Minister of Ireland.
Dr. Reynolds has been lobbying ferociously on Capitol Hill for legislative change, along with former US Senator Vance Hartke who has taken up the cause. Here is a quote from Dr. Reynolds taken from a recent press release:
"From what I can observe, the trading system in America allows for abusive trading practices to over inflate share ownership in a U.S. Public Company. The 3-day settlement securities clearing system operated by the NSCC and DTC fails to operate correctly to ensure that a fair marketplace exists to trade U. S. Public securities. A few market markers and brokers are determining the value of a company and not the legitimate buyer of the securities. The U.S. has been faced this last year with much corporate misconduct, but have not faced the fact that the U.S. Trading System lacks integrity. If these practices are not fixed, it will destroy the next generation of business in the United States. Who is to say that the OTC-BB market is down over 75%; how much is the economy how much damaged has been caused by unscrupulous market makers and brokers. What happens when the World Markets realize that short sellers can sell you securities, never deliver them, and collect the money? You would have to ask yourself why anyone should invest in American Companies"
Conclusion
I could write 20 more pages on this issue, and still not begin to cover all the complexities. There will be more editions on this fascinating subject. Aggressive regulatory enforcement with the existing laws, or changes, could bode well for more favorable valuations in microcap stocks.
One thing is certain- the regulators need to level the playing field for everyone. We should all be able to go long if we think a stock is undervalued and has potential. We should all be able to go short if we think a company is overvalued. There is nothing wrong with short selling, and if it is going to be allowed everyone should be able to do it. Perhaps we should all be forced to borrow the stock and only short on a plus or zero plus tick in any security, not just those that are marginable.
Call your brokerage firm on Monday and try to execute a short transaction in a $2 stock on the Bulletin Board. You won't be able to do it. However, if you are a Cayman Island based trust with a brokerage account in Canada, you will be able to short all the stock you want without having to pledge anything buy money. The NASD won't be able to look at your Canadian broker's books and force you to cover, and the DTC system won't ever expect you to deliver the stock you don't own which you've sold to someone else.
These naked short sellers do help prevent excesses in the marketplace, but there is a cost to all investors. If you invest in a small company, and it moves forward, grows, and becomes profitable, you will generally make money on the investment. On the flip side, there have been hundreds of small companies who might have had a chance to execute their business plans if they could have gone to the capital markets to raise funding. Their stocks were decimated by massive counterfeiting of their shares, forcing their valuations to zero and inevitable failure.
Despite the word "illegal" being used by to describe this practice, it has not been fully established that these practices are indeed illegal. The NASD has successfully prosecuted brokerage firms for rules violations. The SEC has yet to take any agressive steps to curb these practices. Until a Judge in a civil or criminal court decides these massive counterfeiting schemes are illegal, it is misleading to say they are. Certainly, it would be fair to say certain unscrupulous investors are using loopholes in the system to bypass the rules which apply to normal short selling practices.
The Regulators need to fix the problem.
References
If you want to learn more about this whole issue, an excellent reference point can be found at www.nakedshortselling.com. This is the home page of the National Association Against Naked Short Selling.
If you want to read a more complete discussion of the issue, a treatment entitled the "Counterfeit Stock Scheme That Is Destroying US Companies" can be accessed in PDF form by clicking here.
This store down to 3 MPIO HD100 (from 27)
http://www.ihavetohave.it/acatalog/mpio_HD100.html
Song Takes to the Air; The World's Most Innovative Low-Fare Service Debuts Boston Service; First Flight Departs from Boston to West Palm Beach
BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--May 17, 2003--
Unique Amenities - Video on Demand, Live Satellite TV - Will Enrich Travel Experience and Fit Customers' Individual and Changing Needs
Branded Food and Beverage Offerings Available for Purchase
Schedule to Expand to over 144 Daily Flights, Primarily between
Northeast and Key Florida Leisure Destinations
Song(TM), Delta Air Lines' new service developed to change customer expectations for high-quality, low-fare air travel, begins service from Boston on Saturday, May 17 with its maiden voyage from Logan International Airport to Palm Beach International Airport.
The inaugural flight departs Boston at 8:10 a.m. and is scheduled to arrive in West Palm Beach at 11:16 a.m. Additionally, the first flight from West Palm Beach departs at 12:10 p.m. and is scheduled to arrive in Boston at 3:11 p.m. Song will initially be scheduled for two daily roundtrip flights between Boston and West Palm Beach, and plans to add service from Boston to Tampa, Orlando, Ft. Lauderdale and Ft. Myers.
"A new era in air travel has taken off," said John Selvaggio, president of Song. "We are reintroducing fun, excitement and, most importantly, choice into the travel experience; we are very excited to be introducing service to Boston."
"With low fares, roomy leather seats and frequent non-stop flights to Florida, Logan passengers are getting the latest in airline service," said Massport CEO, Craig P. Coy. "The Boston market continues to attract premier customer service and innovation from the world's airlines and we are proud to welcome Song to Logan International Airport."
Song, which will provide direct non-stop service initially between cites in the Northeast United States and key Florida leisure destinations, plus Atlanta, Las Vegas and San Juan, will offer over 144 daily non-stop flights by October. Additionally, Song will service all three New York metro area airports - JFK, LaGuardia and Newark - the only low-fare service to do so.
Song will meet air travelers' individual and ever-changing needs through a variety of innovations, several of which are industry firsts. These include:
-- Regular updates to amenities and services based on customer feedback. Customers have the ability to vote on products and services via the Song Web site: www.flysong.com.
-- Web site to allow passengers to find low fares across a range of dates. When searching for flights at flysong.com, customers can instantly view additional low fares by selecting a wider range of dates rather than starting the search process from the beginning, for an experience that offers more information and flexibility.
-- The most advanced in-flight entertainment technology available (October 2003). Song is partnering with Matsushita Avionics Systems and EchoStar Communications Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) and its DISH Network(TM) satellite TV service to provide a complement of on-board amenities, which will include:
-- Personal video monitors at every seat with "touch screen" technology and credit card "swipe" capability.
-- Live, all-digital satellite television programming from DISH Network.
-- Digitally-streamed MP3 audio programming, which will allow passengers to create a personal play list from an extensive library of audio files.
-- Pay-per-view programming available on demand, which will feature a wide-range of current offerings for all ages.
-- Multi-player interactive games that allow play between passengers.
-- Interactive iXplor moving map program with zoom capabilities and points of interest information.
-- Connecting gate information broadcast directly to personal in-seat video monitors.
-- Expandable in-flight entertainment technology which will facilitate the opportunity to integrate additional services in the future such as in-flight shopping and on-line product purchase capabilities.
-- Premium branded beverage and food choices available on-board for purchase, including:
-- Stolichnaya Bloody Mary cocktails and Kahlua White Russians
-- The "Song Sunrise," a cocktail created for Song containing a blend of Stolichnaya Vodka and fresh cranberry and orange juices and served in the first-ever in-flight martini glasses
-- Pizzeria Uno pizzas
-- Cinnabon Breakfast Coffee Cakes
-- Lender's bagels
-- Yoplait and Stonyfield Farms organic yogurts
-- Fresh, seasonal organic fruit
-- Complimentary Coca Cola(TM) products, including Dasani water.
-- A simple unrestricted low-fare pricing structure with most one-way fares expected to be no more than $299.* Song will provide customers simple, user-friendly pricing options, including 14-day, 7-day, 3-day, walk-up fares and sale fares. Fares will not require a Saturday-night stay.
-- 33 inches of seat pitch, or more legroom, throughout the entire aircraft. This is the most legroom available from any low-fare service's fleet and more than most major carriers.
-- Frequent flyer benefits through the Delta SkyMiles(R) program and other partner programs.
-- Simple, one-step connections with Delta's worldwide service, including interline with SkyTeam(TM) members and other partner airlines.
"Our customers will play a major role in the development of Song," said Selvaggio, a 30-year veteran of the airline industry. "They will be able to vote products and services onto the aircraft. They will be able to make each flight what they want it to be."
Selvaggio added, "We've put a great deal of thought into everything we will offer, understanding that each time a person flies, he or she has different expectations. They may be on business and want the ability to prepare for a meeting. They may be flying with children and need something to keep them entertained. Or they may be flying for pleasure and are looking for a way to relax on board. We will be able to serve each of those customers on Song, on every flight."
Assets Unique Among Low-Fare Segment
Technology: Unlike its competitors, Song has the advantage to leverage Delta's world-class technological infrastructure to create the world's first all-digital airline product, thereby offering customers a wide-range of conveniences, including:
-- Dedicated Web site - www.flysong.com. On the Web, Delta's
technology infrastructure will support flysong.com, a simple,
easy to use, information-rich site on which customers can
purchase tickets, find lower fares, check-in for flights and
print boarding cards from the convenience of their home or
office.
-- First-ever book to ticket automation. (Available in fall 2003)
Over the phone, customers will book and complete purchases
directly with Song through voice-recognition technology.
-- Self-service kiosks. At the airport, self-service kiosks will
continue to help customers avoid lines by electronically
executing high-demand transactions.
-- Efficient gate and boarding. At the gate, exclusive gate
information displays will ensure that customers remain
informed up-to-the-minute. Additionally, gate and boarding
technology will facilitate efficient, expedited boarding.
Cost savings through higher aircraft utilization: Delta has developed a process that facilitates Song's aircraft utilization rates to be among the highest in the industry - 12.7 hours per day, a 22 percent improvement over mainline Delta's average 757 aircraft.
"Song is an aggressive initiative to compete in the low-fare market," concluded Selvaggio. "We will not only offer low fares but lower operating costs, so we can be successful where previous attempts by other major airlines have failed."
Song is an innovative low-fare service, which will provide non-stop flights between the Northeast and key Florida leisure destinations, plus Atlanta, Las Vegas and San Juan, with over 144 daily flights on 36 Boeing 757 aircraft. All Song flights are operated by Delta Air Lines. Song tickets can be purchased by visiting flysong.com or by calling 1-800-FlySong.
(C) The Coca Cola Company. "Coca-Cola" is a registered trademark of The Coca-Cola Company.
--30--SS/ny*
CONTACT: For Song:
Dan Klores Communications
Sean Cassidy, 212/981-5233
OR
Public Relations
212/685-4300
KEYWORD: MASSACHUSETTS FLORIDA
INDUSTRY KEYWORD: TRAVEL TRANSPORTATION AIRLINES PRODUCT
SOURCE: Delta Air Lines
IBM Microdrive (used in most MXP-100) is "flash based" ? eom
Thank you for your e-mail, #$#@. Our branded MXP 100 and Odyssey 1000 are the only units to date featuring VoiceNav(tm) technology.
Best regards,
Robert Putnam
Senior Vice President
DABOSS same review as was posted a few days ago.
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,4149,1087484,00.asp
The latest on Samsung's iPod competitor
5/12/03: We mentioned Samsung's upcoming Yepp YP-900GT hard-drive-based MP3 player in our story on iPod killers coming soon. A Samsung spokesperson has just told us that the product, which has already been released in Asia, will ship in the United States at the end of the summer, after the company has made a few tweaks
From Hitachi PR yesterday
Later this year, the company will also begin to mass-manufacture 1.8-inch drives, similar in size to the drives inside Apple's iPod music player. Toshiba makes the drive in the iPod and so far is the largest manufacturer in that market.
"As the holiday season approaches, you will see a whole host of products that will use the 1.8-inch drive" from Hitachi, said Healy.
Daboss
I believe we used the Travelstar 2.5 in the Treo. I asked RP about the connection we had with IBM, now Hitachi (Travelstar and Microdrive). He said they were looking at all possibilities, but the Toshiba 1.8 was favored at this time. IMO that will change as Hitachi ramps up production and gets competitive.
Odyssey Takes on iPod
By Troy Dreier
May 14, 2003
(deBeer)
Product: e.Digital Odyssey 1000
List price: $349
Requires: Pentium 233 (or equivalent) or higher; 64MB RAM; 90MB hard drive space; USB port; CD-ROM drive; Windows 98 SE, 2000, or XP
Company Info: e.Digital Corp., 858-679-1504, www.edigital.com
When you're the fastest gun in town, everyone's gunning for you, which is why the Apple iPod may be looking over its shoulder at the e.Digital Odyssey1000 ($349 list). Until very recently, the Odyssey was in position to take on the 20GB Apple iPod. But that was before Apple's late-April announcement that new 10GB, 15GB, and 30GB models would replace existing models. Whether this will affect the 20GB Odyssey remains to be seen. Nevertheless, the Odyssey is sure to enlist fans with its eyebrow-raising features such as voice navigation and an FM tuner, and with its price—$50 less than the new 15GB iPod and $150 less than the 30GB model, reviewed here earlier.
The Odyssey is more similar to the iPod than different. It can play MP3 and WMA files, has 8 minutes of skip protection, and can function as an external hard drive. Its long-lasting rechargeable battery gives 11 to 12 hours of use.
The 4.4- by 2.9- by 1.0-inch (HWD) Odyssey is a bit bigger than the 4.0- by 2.4- by 0.7-inch 30GB iPod, and heavier at 8.2 ounces versus 6.2. The player's collapsible headphones don't produce sound as clear as the iPod's ear buds, and it has only six equalizer settings compared with the iPod's 22.
The Odyssey apes the iPod even down to its button layout, which is also circular. The iPod's design results from the unit's thumb-controlled scroll wheel. The Odyssey has no apparent justification for this design choice, which serves only to make the five buttons around the circle small and awkward to push.
The 12-preset FM tuner works well. The voice navigation, however, is abysmal. In theory, the Odyssey will open a folder or song automatically when you speak the name, but we never once got the feature to work correctly. We had better luck, however, with the basic voice navigation commands (Previous, Next, and Open).
The voice recorder for making notes performed as it should. Our only complaint is that the notes are time-stamped, and our unit had the date set wrong. The player is supposed to get the date automatically when synched with a PC, but ours didn't.
The Odyssey comes with MusicMatch software for ripping CDs and with Music Explorer, e.Digital's Windows Explorer–like software, for transferring files. Using the included USB 2.0 cable, we downloaded 614MB of MP3s in 1 minute 38 seconds over a USB 2.0 connection and in 13 minutes using USB 1.1. Transferring is easy, but not automated as with the iPod. On the plus side, the Odyssey—unlike the iPod—has no copyright protection, so you can easily share songs among PCs.
Although the Odyssey is a bargain, the iPod's position as the top MP3 player is safe, for now. Despite its interesting features, the Odyssey lags in performance.
SRS WOW and TRU Bass is used on the Windows Media Player. There are also a few PR's concerning the two companies working together.
OT: SRS Labs Reports Profitable First Quarter and Revenue Increase of 26% Over Same Quarter Last Year
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=SVBIZINK3.story&STORY=/www/story/05-13-2003/00...
Apple looks to iTunes Europe
http://media.guardian.co.uk/newmedia/story/0,7496,954544,00.html
OT: I/OMagic Expands Its Product Line-up and Retail Channel; The Company Launches Its New ``MediaStation Combo'' at Retail Giant Target Stores
http://www.businesswire.com/cgi-bin/cb_headline.cgi?&story_file=bw.051303/231335410&director...
Gear and Gadgets Transform Summer Roadtrips
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=SVBIZINK3.story&STORY=/www/story/05-13-2003/00...
Hard Drive, Easy Trip
Take a look at the latest and greatest hard drive car stereo head units.
By Doug Newcomb
://www.techtv.com/callforhelp/products/story/0,24330,3421184,00.html
Car stereos with hard drives
When you hit the road, you gotta bring your music along. As you'll see on today's show, the latest generation of car radios that incorporate hard drives let you leave those bulky CDs at home.
Alpine HDA-5460
The Alpine HDA-5460 features a 16GB hard drive for storing more then 3,000 MP3, WMA, or WAV music files. The removable hard drive sports a USB port, and you get Alpine's Mobile Multimedia Driver software to manage your file library. The HDA-5460 links to any Alpine radio that uses the company's Ai Net connection scheme, or it can be jacked into any other radio via an RCA connection. No price has been set for the HAD-5460, which will be available this summer.
Pioneer DEH-P90HDD
The Pioneer DEH-P90HDD CD receiver will rip music from a CD or live radio broadcast straight to a 10GB hard drive. The built-in Gracenote Music Recognition Service tags files with artist name, song title, and CD title. You can also update and share songs via a memory stick slot, which adds its own digital music options. The DEH-P90HDD is XM Satellite Radio-ready, and comes with a steering-wheel remote.
Suggested retail price: $2,100
Sony MEX-HD1
This CD receiver lets you record music from a CD onto a hard drive at 8X speed while you listen to it at the same time. Once downloaded from a CD to the MEX-HD-1's hard drive, songs can be labeled and categorized with the custom file memory and folder options. You can also download some of the MEX-HD1's 165 hours of music to a memory stick via the built-in slot for playback on compatible portable devices.
Suggested retail price: $1,500
ALPINE ANNOUNCES NEW HDA-5460 IN-DASH HARD DISK DRIVE PLAYER FOR NON-STOP ACCESS TO MP3/WMA MUSIC FILES
IN THE CAR
TORRANCE, Calif., January 9, 2003 -- Alpine Electronics of America, Inc., the industry-leading manufacturer of high performance mobile electronics, today unveiled a new in-dash 16GB hard disk drive system capable of storing more than 3,000 MP3, WMA or .WAV digital music files for playback in the car. The HDA-5460 features Alpine's new Quick Search™ functionality, allowing users to easily find the track they are looking for, and comes complete with the powerful Mobile Multimedia Driver desktop software for acquiring, organizing and managing their music collection. The system can be easily integrated with any Alpine Ai-Net head unit or can function as a stand-alone playback system using an RCA output.
"With roughly 61 million Americans regularly downloading music from the Internet, there is an emerging market for systems that let them easily enjoy those libraries in the vehicle," said Steve Witt, Alpine's vice president of Brand Marketing. "Alpine's HDA-5460 is a premium in-dash playback solution that defines itself with industry-leading features that address the particular challenges online music enthusiasts face, including the need to more intuitively navigate through large libraries to easily find the music they're looking for."
The HDA-5460 is designed for an in-dash installation, putting all the system controls in front of the user. The HDA-5460 features a three-line text display and Quick Search functionality for genre, artist, album, song or playlist search using a simple "paddle switch" on the front panel. The system's faceplate, which pulls off for security and accessing the removable hard disk drive, features Alpine's Biolite™ technology delivering brighter visuals to help punch through sun glare, as well as wider horizontal and vertical viewing angles for easier operation. The player also features a unique selectable DJ function that personalizes 10 genre selections with different DJ voices and sound effects and Alpine's Music Visualizer™, which provides accompanying graphics on the display.
The HDA-5460's removable hard disk drive features a USB port for easy connection to PCs for fast transfer of music files. The system comes complete with Alpine's Mobile Multimedia Driver software, providing powerful desktop tools for managing large libraries of MP3, WMA or .WAV files. The software allows people to easily create customized playlists for playback on the HDA-5460. An "auto-synch" function allows people to quickly update their hard disk drive with the latest music they've downloaded to their desktop.
The HDA-5460 is expected to be available through Alpine authorized dealers this summer.
More MPIO HD100 Euro mention
http://xenses.com/default.php?break=yes
http://www.hardware.no/nyheter/april03/mpio_hd100.html
http://www.mmport.nl/
http://www.faq-mac.com/mt/archives/002508.html
http://www.cprh.ch/produkte/mpio/neue%20Modelle/NEW_MODEL_LINE.htm
http://www.procell-media.com/html/product_html/portable_products/MPIO/Mpio%20HD100.htm
O-1000 Extended Warranty $29.95
The purchase price of your Odyssey includes an e.Digital Corporation Limited Warranty under which the product is warranted to be free from manufacturer defects for six months (180 days) from the date of purchase. This optional Extended Warranty extends the warranty period to twelve months (365 days) from the date of purchase.
Free Repair or Replacement
If the product fails or malfunctions due to a manufacturing defect during the warranty period, repair or replacement of the unit will be provided free of charge. If replacement is required, e.Digital reserves the right to replace the product with a manufacturer-refurbished unit of the same make and model or its current equivalent if a new unit is not available.
Warning: Changes or modifications to this product not expressly approved by e.Digital Corporation will void the Warranty.
Restrictions
This warranty is valid only in the United States, and only on Odyssey 1000 products purchased through e.Digital’s online store. Extended warranties must be purchased prior to the expiration of the standard 180-day manufacturer’s warranty.
Transferability
This Extended Warranty may be transferred with the product if the product is given away or sold within the United States during the Warranty period. Any Warranty claim must be made by contacting e.Digital and must include reference to the Extended Warranty’s certificate number. Details will be sent with your certificate.
Limitation of Liability
e.Digital is not liable for any damages caused by the product or by the failure of the product to perform, including lost profits, lost data, incidental damages, or consequential damages.
Not Covered
The following are not covered by this Extended Warranty:
Damage from misuse, abuse, or neglect.
Damage from use outside the product’s usage parameters.
Damage from modification or incorporation of other products.
Damage from repair or replacement of warranted parts by parties other than an e.Digital authorized service provider.
Damage to or loss of any programs or data.
Damage resulting from an Act of God.
13-830841EW $29.95
Digitalway gave e.Digital great terms, so we could make good profit. Good Guys wanted the unit, but wanted e.Digital brand, so e.Digital branded Digitalway MPIO FL-100 now on sale at Good Guys! (per Mr. Putnam)thanks deBeer
murrayhill hornets better connected than USB2.0 or Firewire! LOL eom
DABOSS...story in the Orlando paper today about how Song Air (Delta) will have digital music players in each seat by Oct to compete w/ Jet Blue...
In October, Song plans to introduce the world's most sophisticated in-flight entertainment system. Song is partnering with Matsushita Avionics Systems and EchoStar Communications Corporation (NASDAQ:DISH) and its DISH Network(TM) satellite TV service to provide a complement of on-board amenities, which when fully implemented will include: personal video monitors at every seat; all-digital, satellite broadcast programming; digitally-streamed MP3 programming; pay-per-view programming available on demand; multi-player interactive games that allow play between passengers; and interactive iXplor moving map program with zoom capabilities and points of interest information and connecting gate information broadcast directly to personal in-seat video monitors.
Link to e.Digital branded MPIO FL-100 at Good Guys
http://www.goodguys.com/adtemplate.asp?invky=172110&catky=162625
Cirrus Logic Develops Media Sharing Platform for PCs, TVs
Online staff -- Electronic News, 5/8/2003
Intel Corp.’s vision of a digital home framework, allowing PC-based media content to be accessed from televisions became a step closer today.
Cirrus Logic Inc., working with Oregan Networks Ltd. and Micro-Star International Co. Ltd. (MSI) has designed a digital media adapter platform for Intel’s OEM-customers. The platform is designed to lower the barriers for sharing digital files on home networks or on the Internet, and displaying them on electronic devices. It consists of a Cirrus CS7808 configurable processor combined with middleware and software from Oregan Networks.
“With the increasing rise of cost-effective wired and wireless home networks, consumer electronics platforms are evolving rapidly that tap into the wealth of rich media content available on internal home networks and the Internet,” said Jack Guedj, VP of marketing video products at Cirrus, in a statement.
The platform is capable of receiving digital audio/visual content in various formats such as MPEG-1, MPEG-2, JPEG and MP3. This can be done over wired or wireless connections. The content is decoded by the adapter and is able to be displayed on a television screen.
“Our platform is designed to work optimally with the UPnP standard for connectivity, which enables fully automatic discovery and presentation of content and services on any UPnP-enabled device within a home network,” said Reed Hinkel, VP of Business Development for Oregan Networks, in statement.
“Regardless of whether the content is stored on a UPnP-enabled PC, digital video recorder, MP3 player or other CE device, the technology permits remote access, presentation and control of that content from any other UPnP supporting device within the home.”
The platform is scheduled to go into production this summer by MSI, a Taiwanese ODM.
The Battle for the Digital Home
The idea of technology convergence has been bandied around for years; but now that the emphasis has shifted away from the red herring of an all-in-one wonder-device to a world where connected devices share data and information, the c-word has a new air of credibility. Data convergence is the new black; and whether it’s IT companies falling all over themselves to cash in on new consumer electronic markets, or CE blue chips looking to the world of computing for connectivity and user-friendly software solutions, the marketing mantra remains the same: we’re entering an exciting new world of connectivity and convergence, and the digital home is the catch-all term to define it.
So who’s behind the wheel of the digital home bandwagon? It goes without saying that the big guns on all sides of the traditional digital divide are driving data convergence technologies. From the computing side, Intel, Apple, and Microsoft are all at the table and looking to play "all in." Microsoft’s ambitions in the digital home are well documented and well underway, with Xbox, Smart Display, Media2Go, and Windows Media Centre already rolled out. Apple’s iPod steals a march on high-design, computing-based consumer electronics, while its Rendezvous technology is at the vanguard of networking solutions; and Intel is full steam ahead in its drive to embed Wi-Fi into CPUs.
Meanwhile, Sony, Panasonic, and Philips are all lining up to develop hard-disk-based home entertainment hubs that exploit the possibilities thrown up by the explosion in wireless and broadband technologies. Panasonic is all set to launch its AVC Server, featuring DVD-RAM, 120Gb hard disk, and Wi-Fi connectivity. Philips is launching a wireless version of its Streamium broadband radio; and its iPronto universal remote control is able to do everything from turning up the air-con to turning on a movie, taking in broadband along the way. Which just leaves Sony...aside from the inevitable firepower of the forthcoming PlayStation 3, there's also the company's CoCoon media server, which taps into broadband to retrieve electronic programme guides and uses an 80GB hard disk to record for up to 90 hours. Interestingly, all three firms are looking to Linux to provide the OS backbone for many of these devices.
Of course, Wi-Fi is only half of the connectivity story, and the telco giants are also determined to take centre stage in any new era of data convergence—not least of all to recoup the $100 billion they’ve already shelled out for 3G licences across Europe. Suffice it to say that Hutchison, Vodafone, and Orange are rolling out high-bandwidth networks across city centres in several European countries, bringing streaming video (and the ability to remotely access and control the digital home) to mobile phones.
It’s anybody’s guess whether any one of these key groups will dominate the digital home space. All three are hugely powerful—and all three are acutely aware of each other’s strengths and limitations. It’s a technological world in flux and, as such, all of the major players are competing and collaborating in equal measure to develop new technologies, ratify new standards, and generate new markets.
Dan Hutchinson is a Senior Editor at Digital Home Magazine, which premieres on May 29th.
Panting for an iPod! (O-1000 mention)
Panting for an iPod!
(deBeer)
With 30 gigabytes and a less shocking sticker price, the third-generation Apple music player puts the competition on ice.
By Shoshana Berger, May 07, 2003
I've written about my iPod envy before. What kept me from nabbing one upon launch was the exorbitant price for what seemed like a 'Walkman 2.0.' But now, having tested most other players, including e.Digital's Odyssey 1000 and the Nomad Zen from Creative Labs (which, like clockwork, just released a 60-gigabyte model for $100 less than Apple's (AAPL) 30GB iPod), I'm convinced that the iPod is worth the extra scratch. Why pay so much more? Because Apple's version is still the only one that works on both Macs and PCs, the only one that includes a date book and calendar, and the only one so attractive it could be part of the design collection at the Museum of Modern Art.
Before we even get to the player itself, some ink must be spilled about the packaging. When you unwrap your brand-new iPod, just as you notice how much thought must've gone into the way the case reveals the music player on one side and all the accessories in silver-lined packets on the other, you see the protective plastic sheeting. It reads -- from God's, er, Jobs's lips to our ears -- 'Don't steal music' and then repeats the message in three other languages. This message speaks to the recent launch of Apple's music-industry-friendly, 99-cents-per-song iTunes service. I gave the point-of-sale download a spin, and it worked handily, importing directly to an iTunes playlist.
The iPod is now available in 10GB, 15GB, and 30GB versions, all in black or white, and all more svelte than the original. With the 15GB and 30GB models, you also get a docking station with a connection for speakers, a stiff nylon carrying case, and a wired remote. One of the most noteworthy interface improvements over the last generation is the 'no moving parts' scroll wheel that's flush with the surface of the unit (a feat no competitor has yet managed to imitate).
I transferred almost 5 gigs' worth of songs in about five minutes, and with OS X's iSync, I can automatically upload all my contacts and appointments (even from Microsoft's (MSFT) Entourage software). It's a trifle annoying that iTunes opens and syncs all of your new songs every time you plug in -- making you wait until it's done to get your music on -- but switching into manual mode gives you more control.
Finally, the iPod's new backlight, with its glowing red buttons, makes for easier midnight music binges. My aural fixation just got worse.
Apple iPod: $299 for 10GB, $399 for 15GB, and $499 for 30GB. Available at www.apple.com.
TI and Partners Offer Consumers Access to Digital Media Content Anywhere In The House
Comprehensive DSP-Based Streaming Media Platform Enables Multiple Home Networking Products to Store, Display and Distribute a Wide Range of Media Formats
DALLAS, May 8 /PRNewswire/ -- Making digital media content more accessible and user-friendly for consumers, Texas Instruments Incorporated (NYSE: TXN (TI) today announced the availability of the industry's broadest digital signal processor (DSP) based platform of streaming media products and reference designs. TI's solutions enable a myriad of home networking products such as portable handheld devices, streaming media televisions, digital media centers, set-top boxes and residential gateways. Together, these appliances allow consumers to manage, store, display and distribute several media formats inside the digital home and beyond. (See http://www.ti.com/smlaunch .)
TI's solutions span applications ranging from high-performance video to low-cost audio and imaging. These DSP-based products support all media formats including:
H.263, M-JPEG, MPEG1, MPEG2, MPEG4, H.264, WMV, Quicktime, and DivX for video;
JPEG, GIFF, TIFF, and Bitmap for imaging;
AAC, ATRAC3, MP3, and WMA for audio; and AMR, G.723.1, G.726, G.711 for voice
TI's streaming media products decode locally, making the content format virtually invisible to the consumer and expanding the inherent functionality of the streaming media appliance. In addition, having a programmable core at the heart of the design enables original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) to upgrade to new or revised standards through a simple software download. All of these capabilities combine to provide OEMs flexibility to evolve their designs to keep up with ever-changing technology demands.
Consumer Demands Fuel Market Growth
According to Forrester Research, the prerequisites for making the digital home a mass-market reality are converging: consumers are upgrading their peripherals, service providers are offering more than just access and home networking appliances are beginning to connect everything seamlessly. Data from the Yankee Group indicates that approximately 17 million households in
the United States have a broadband connection and 4 million of those download full-length video content on a regular basis.
However, the primary desire of consumers within the digital home is better management of existing or new rich-media content. This desire provides a significant opportunity for service providers, consumer electronics and networking equipment manufacturers to deliver products that make such content easily accessible.
As an example of these new streaming media appliances, Hewlett Packard announced its Digital Media Receiver in January 2003, allowing consumers to browse through their favorite music and photographs stored on their PC. Using TI's DSP-based technology, the Digital Media Receiver allows consumers to
listen to digital music on their stereo and view digital photographs on their TV by accessing the content stored on their PC via a home network connection.
Enabling Digital Media Content Anywhere
Committed to fueling this emerging streaming media market, TI has collaborated with numerous development partners and embedded operating system platforms, empowering consumer electronics and networking OEMs to bring multi- format, multi-functional products to market quickly.
Companies using TI's DSP-based streaming media platform and offering production-ready reference designs include: emuzed, Escient, FedTec, iM Networks, Ingenient, Mediabolic, and Oregon Networks. The following embedded operating systems companies have ported their platforms to TI's streaming media solution:
Accelerated Technologies, Pigeon Point Systems and WindRiver. Companies including DivX, Microsoft, Quicktime and RealNetworks have allowed their media codecs to be ported to TI's streaming media products.
Leveraging TI's technology, and its partners' reference designs, consumer electronics OEMs and networking equipment manufacturers will be able to reduce their design and development time and bring products to market quickly.
"TI's digital media processors make it possible for consumer electronics companies to quickly and cost-effectively integrate Internet audio and network audio capabilities into their product lines," said Elliot Solomon, chief operating officer of iM Networks. "Adding 802.11b and Windows Media support to iM Networks' technology speeds time to market for digital home entertainment offerings and provides value-added features to consumers."
Additionally, subscription service providers including Listen.com and RioPort have endorsed TI's platform. These companies, which allow consumers to store entire music collections virtually, based their endorsement on both TI's robust streaming media solutions and its leading position in broadband. TI has a portfolio of broadband products that link to all of the major broadband technologies including cable, DSL, VoIP and WLAN.
"Streaming technologies supported on TI's targeted platforms makes it easier and more efficient for customers to access and download a vast library of on-demand music through their PC and make that content available anywhere in the home," said Sean Ryan, president and CEO of Listen.com.
Pricing and Availability
TI's streaming media products are available today through both its partners and EVM suppliers Tyrex Services and Spectrum Digital. For more information on these offerings, visit http://www.ti.com/streamingmedia .
We do not need to wait on Toshiba 1.8 HDD
Hitachi HDD targets automotive applications
Posted : 17 Jan 2003
Hitachi Global Storage Technologies has introduced the Travelstar A4K20 HDD, which is targeted specifically for automotive applications, including car navigation and car audio products.
The 2.5-inch HDD has a storage capacity of 20GB, 9.5mm profile, and is configured on a one-disk, two-head design. It is screened for operation over the -20°C to 85°C temperature range.
Other features include glass media and load/unload technology in addition to shock sensor technology, which cushions the drive in less than ideal shock or vibration conditions. The A4K20 also incorporates fluid dynamic bearings (FDB) in the spindle motor to offer the same quiet operation and improved shock characteristics as with PC models, but offers higher reliability for automotive environments.
The A4K20 has a non-operating shock tolerance of 800G at 1ms and an operating shock tolerance of 100G at 11ms.
The company has also introduced the C4K40 1.8-in HDD that is suited for a host of mobile applications such as laptops, tablet PCs, and handheld PCs.
A member of the company's Travelstar Compact Series of products, the C4K40 is available with 40GB and 20GB capacities and has connector compatibility with the current 2.5-inch form factor, making it easy for product developers and manufacturers to transfer from 2.5-inch designs to 1.8-inch designs.
The device has a rotational speed of 4,200rpm, areal density of 67 billion bits/in², and is claimed to exhibit low power consumption in both idle and read operations. The single platter design has a 7mm profile and weighs 47g, while the 2-platter model has a 9.5mm profile and weighs 62g. It can withstands 300G(2ms) of operating shock, exhibits a latency time of 7.1ms, and has a transfer rate
$35?
Not a problem it seems.......
At retail, one-third of the people buying portable music players have annual incomes of $100,000 or more, according to NPDTechworld. By contrast, 55 percent of people buying Apple's iPod have incomes in that bracket. The group also is more likely to embrace a music service and buy additional ancillary products or services than many other income brackets.
Apple's attractive demographic is more than just people with spending power. About 20 percent of people buying portable music players at retail are between the ages of 25 and 34, according to NPDTechworld. One-third of iPod buyers are in the same age bracket.
With those demographics as a starting point, Apple could use its small installed base to help direct record labels and Hollywood toward standards--a place they already seem inclined to go
IPOD EATER IN STOCK!
http://www.ihavetohave.it/