I’ve posted here before about Motorola’s innovative use of femtocells, but over on VentureBeat.com, Jared Newman has written a great post about how femtocells can defeat all that “dead space” even the best wireless coverage will sometimes have:
If you’ve used an iPhone, you’ll know how frustratingly spotty its wireless coverage can be.
Fact is, wireless carriers such as AT&T (which serves the iPhone) are desperately searching for ways to unload the huge amount of traffic that are hitting their networks from iPhone and other smartphone owners. These users are slurping up large amounts of bandwidth to do things like browse the Internet and watch videos.
Ubiquisys is getting ready to attack cell phone dead zones and overcrowded 3G networks around the world with its femtocell technology. Today it announced it has raised $11 million more from existing investors, which it will use to support the service as it moves from testing to soft launch.
Femtocells are small devices that let cell phones tap the Internet in places where wireless cellular service is weak or unavailable. Calls are routed by low-power antenna through an existing DSL or cable router, or through an all-in-one device (such as Netgear’s Femtocell Voice Gateway) that includes both the router and the femtocell.
Femtocells haven’t taken off in a big way yet, but wireless carriers are definitely interested in femtocells’ ability to take a load off cellular networks. Last September, Ubiquisys and Japanese mobile carrier Softbank launched the first commercial 3G femtocells, using “ZoneGate” technology that allows devices to communicate and determine the best radio frequency for routing to the Internet.
Swindon, U.K.-based Ubiquisys is looking for partnerships around the world with more carriers, who often charge a monthly fee for the service. In exchange, customers may get perks, such as unlimited calling when using the femtocell. The idea is that the consumer can save money by nixing a local phone line, because the cell phone is reliable enough to replace it, while the carrier gets to ease the stress on its network.
The company’s chief executive, Chris Gilbert, said there’s been a spike in femtocell interest over the last few months, either signaling a possible economic recovery or a need from carriers to start addressing their network issues. Even in the United States, where femtocell interest was once driven coverage dead zones, the explosion in smartphone use has put a strain on wireless carriers. The renewed interest around the world has helped Ubiquisys raise its most recent round of funding, which now totals $53 million since August 2006.
Ubiquisy has backing from Accel Partners, Advent Venture Partners, Atlas Venture, T-Mobile Venture Fund and, most notably, Google, which invested $25 million in the company two years ago.
Gilbert said Ubiquisys faces competition from Huawei and Alcatel-Lucent, among other smaller ventures, but those two companies don’t focus specifically on femtocell. As such, Gilbert said Ubiquisys is growing horizontally to a variety of companies and products, rather than vertically.
In addition to getting its technology into router-like devices, Gilbert wants Ubiquisys to work with TV and set-top box makers, allowing femtocell to cover more convenient areas of the home.
I definitely want one of these!!!!!
My refrigerator is the message center of my home, and this Audiovox Message Center would be PERFECTION!
Not only does it have an erasable white board for writing messages, it also has a built-in microphone so you and the family can leave a short audio message! The border is magnetic, too.
Best of all, the Audiovox Message Center is also a digital picture frame that stores up to 125 pictures!
The digital picture frame has a 7-inch color LCD screen, with a resolution of 480 x 234 and an aspect ratio of 16:9. It supports most camera memory cards and flash drives.
Besides all of the previously-mentioned delights, the Audiovox Message Center also has a digital calendar and clock. It’s the handiest gadget any kitchen could ever hope for! The only thing lacking is cooking and cleaning up, and with the Audiovox Message Center, you’d even know whose turn it was to do that!
The Audiovox Message Center is only $139.00 at most kitchen and electronics stores. Would someone please give me one for Christmas this year?
From CrunchGear comes the news that Westinghouse has announced a major partnership with Anne Geddes (world-famous photographer of babies and children) to “create a new family of digital photo frames that will highlight babies and children. Under the partnership, the new line of digital photo frames will feature Anne Geddes’ content and images along with the award-winning Westinghouse technology that consumers have come to love and trust. The Westinghouse Anne Geddes digital photo frames are scheduled to launch for the 2008 Holiday season.”
This is quite possibly the most perfect gift for new parents, or for a baby shower, that I’ve ever seen! Most parents love Anne Geddes photographs, and to mix her adorable and innovative pictures with their own pictures of their own children would be a dream come true for many parents.
So far, very few tech specs have been released about the Westinghouse Anne Geddes Digital Picture Frame other than that it has an LCD screen and will require special Westinghouse software to power it.
“Kel Geddes, direction of the Geddes Group, says that “We are very pleased to be associated with Westinghouse Digital. Its dedication to providing the highest quality content and to developing innovative delivery systems will enable individuals worldwide to enjoy and share Anne’s inspiring images in a new medium.”
Westinghouse Digital president Doug Woo states, “Westinghouse Digital is honored to enter into this partnership with Anne Geddes. As a leader in the digital photo frame market, we are looking to provide a large demographic of product purchasers withi a dedicated piece of artwork that reflects individual style. For mothers, grandmothers or anyone who loves children, this is an essential collector’s item – something that resonates and relates to their overall lifestyle interest.”
I predict that many nurseries will have an Anne Geddes digital picture frame on the dresser or wall this Christmas season.
PC Advisor lets us know that Linx has added some new digital picture frames to its rapidly-growing inventory.
The Linx Memoire frames accept four different types of memory card and have a 300:1 contrast ratio. The frames have a somewhat “modernistic” look with their black bevel surround, which incidentally looks gorgeous contrasted with the brightness and clarity of the pictures themselves.
The 7-inch Linx Memoir, with its screen resolution of 480×234, will give you a digital picture slideshow that is a thing of beauty, indeed.
The 10.2 Linx Memoir standard and mini USB ports as well as memory card slots. The rechargeable batteries enable you to put the cord away for up to two hours at a time, for parties, etc, and will also play your favorite MP3 music files. It, too, will give you a bright, clear digital jpeg slideshow/display. It has a resolution of 800 x 600, and comes with a full year’s warranty.
The wireless/digital picture frame has become a standard in many homes these days, and in my humble opinion, it is the very best gift for almost anyone on your list. Pre-load it with digital pictures, wrap it up, put a bow on it, and present it to the people on your list that you love best. It will be their favorite gift.
How do I know this? Because it was my favorite gift. Ever. Of all time.
