Tag Archives: ARM
Notion Ink Adam Tablet Shows Off Its Specs
Posted on 03. Aug, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 
2 Comments
We listed the Indian-designed Adam tablet by Notion Ink as an intriguing dark horse candidate in the future Chrome OS lineup, mainly because it was just different in terms of design and its unique Pixel Qi display. Now, Lilliputing has reported that the company’s website has been revamped; with it comes full-on specifications on this tablet, which is expected to be released later this year initially with Android.
Among some of the technical highlights, the Notion Ink will have a dual core ARM processor with NVIDIA graphics, either 16 or 32 GB of internal storage and wireless connectivity options that include 3G, WLAN and Bluetooth. Pixel Qi, which allows the backlight to be shut off to conserve battery as well as reduce glare, is optional. The tablet also has a 3.2 MP camera and all the standard ports that a PC has.
Here’s hoping that the Adam Ink enters the Chrome OS tablet race sooner rather than later, based on design alone.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 8/2/10
Posted on 02. Aug, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
The Chromium Blog has officially announced the emergence of the Canary version of Chrome browser.
Google’s strategy to thwart Bing is apparently to use its best features in its own search engine.
Digitimes is reporting that many PC manufacturers are looking to ARM-Android combinations for new devices.
TechCrunch’s Michael Arrington reports that Facebook has secured copies of Google’s social strategy documents.
The market share for Google’s Mobile Search is almost at an astounding 100% according to data collected from StatCounter.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 7/23/10
Posted on 23. Jul, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 1 Comments
A new version of Chrome will be coming every six weeks from here on out.
Our pal Charbax has the inside scoop on Microsoft’s new ARM license.
This will make your day I swear; it’s about the LAPD’s concern over moving to Google Apps.
Is Google really all that threatening? CNN says “they’re no product killer”.
One of the many Wired blogs seems to realize that Chrome version 6 is right around the corner.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 6/14/10
Posted on 14. Jun, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
Asus is working on an ARM tablet that will run either Android or Chrome OS and will be released by its AGAiT subsidiary.
A Google Executive has thrown in his opinion on the AT&T limits on data the company is imposing.
It appears that a Google Music service could be coming this fall, with some exciting features to compete with Apple.
Mobile devices that blur the line between smartphone and computer heat up the competition between Qualcomm and Intel.
Google sure does have a lot of money in its coffers to invest in or acquire companies with.
Marvell Talks Cloud Computing, Chrome OS
Posted on 13. Jun, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
At Computex, I had the opportunity to talk to Bou Chung Lin, VP & GM of Taiwan Operations for Marvell. While we were going though an overview of the company’s offerings, we got on the subject of cloud computing and Chrome OS. Here’s a quick clip of his response to my questions regarding this.
We know that Marvell has been working on an ARM-based Chromium OS build, as our pal Charbax over at ARMDevices.net showed us earlier this year when the company showed it off running on their Armada 510 processor at CES in Las Vegas.
It will be interesting to see what will happen to Chrome OS in terms of using an ARM based solution versus an x86 one. I’ve heard rumors that Intel is readying a rival to ARM-based solutions, or perhaps start making their own ARM licensed product.
There is no doubt they are going to need to do something after some of the things that I have seen coming from ARM processors comprised of multiple cores that divvy up the duties for a device to separately process system, video and audio functions for mobile devices.
Freescale Semiconductor Working on Chrome OS
Posted on 03. Jun, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 2 Comments
The folks at Freescale Semiconductor were kind enough to invite us to their offices yesterday in Taipei to show off the fact that they are actively working on Chrome OS for ARM processors.
I learned a lot during my time at Freescale, and I now better understand that it is taking a good deal of work to port Chromium over to the ARM architecture as opposed to x86. They had a version of Chromium running on their iMX515 processor that was from last year’s Google open source build.
I happened to have the latest spring release of Chromium on a USB drive in my bag while I was there. However, the build that I had was specifically for x86 and the reality is that a lot of work has to go into making Chromium compatible with ARM’s low power, mobile specific platform.
Here are some pictures that they allowed me to take, giving an indication that they are working closely with Google to ensure that Chrome OS will not just run on Intel processors. My time at the Freescale office in Taiwan yesterday gives me an indication that there will probably be ARM devices running Chrome OS in the first quarter of 2011.
More Chrome OS news will be coming in the closing days of Computex, keep checking our RSS feed or follow us on @thechromesource if you’re a Twitter addict like I am.
Google VP: Chrome OS Release in Q4
Posted on 01. Jun, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 26 Comments
Speaking today at the Computex Cloud Computing forum, Google VP of product management Sundar Pichai said that Chrome OS will be on the market in the fourth quarter of 2010. The Cloud Computing Forum is featuring executives from Google, ARM and Quanta Computers.
Computex has been mostly focused on Microsoft products that are on display.
When asked about the Chrome vs. Android debate, Mr. Pichai said that providing open source platforms will allow the market to make the best determination about what operating system will work best in the mass market. It’s pretty clear that Android has really taken off, it will be interesting to see how Chrome OS will develop.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 5/13/10
Posted on 13. May, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
The Chromium Blog has a sneak peak at how their Native Client software development kit will allow for development of Chrome applications.
ARMDevices speculates that the Native Client SDK will allow complex web applications to run on ARM processors.
ReadWriteWeb has an article out that is about Mozilla’s plug-in checker, which now works with all browsers.
It’s clear that Google Apps plans to offer more than just the document and spreadsheet package common with productivity suites.
Those behind the Linux-based Ubuntu OS are contemplating switching from Firefox as the default browser over to Chromium.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 5/8/10
Posted on 08. May, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
ARM has created a Motorola Droid robot using Lego’s Mindstorm that is able to solve a Rubik’s Cube in twenty-five seconds.
Web document company Scribd, which embeds PDF files on web pages to keep documents secure, is moving from Flash to HTML5.
Chromium’s O3D technology will be moving from a plug-in to a JavaScript library, mainly because of the recent speed improvements.
Google has invested in Invidi, a TV advertising platform startup company and they plan work together selling ads on DISH Network programming.
KMWorld has a good article talking about how Google’s community fiber project is a great step for them to get into the enterprise market.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 5/6/10
Posted on 06. May, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
More Google services will be integrated with a single sign on, according to the Google Enterprise Blog.
The highly anticipated Google I/O developer conference May 19-20 will have its keynote presentations streamed live on YouTube.
ARM marketing vice president Ian Drew says that the delay in optimizing Flash for mobile devices has stalled the market to some degree.
A new feature to Google Goggles now allows someone to capture text with their phone’s camera and have it translated.
Google is in an interesting battle with Blue Destiny Records over the legality of linking to copyrighted material.
thechromesource Daily: Links for 4/30/10
Posted on 30. Apr, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 0 Comments
The fact that ARM-based smartbooks and tablets will support Flash acceleration could be one of the key strengths of Android and Chrome OS.
Here is a post that outlines some technical details on how Google collects WiFi information from driving down streets.
Ghostery, a popular privacy extension for Firefox, is now available for Chrome with a limited feature set.
Did you know Chrome 5 Dev has geolocation? I wrote about how to turn this on, but CNET has done an article now that it’s on by default.
The Speed Dial Extension looks like a really great way to spice up your new tabs for those who like customizing their Chrome experience.
Is Google’s Battle Against Apple Turning Towards Hardware?
Posted on 25. Apr, 2010 by Daniel Cawrey. 1 Comments
I don’t think that many people expected a battle pitting Google versus Apple a year ago, much less a rivalry that is based on hardware.
In that span of time, many things have changed. No longer is Eric Schmidt on Apple’s board and it is anyone’s guess how much longer Google branded services will be promoted on Apple devices. Acquisitions have been heating up between the two companies, with both of them sporting no debt and having large cash reserves.
This past week has seen Google purchase Agnilux, which is a start-up semiconductor company that was founded by some people who once worked for P.A. Semi, bought by Apple in 2008 and reportedly featuring some of the technology that is inside the iPad. You following this? I know, perplexing. There seems to be a rush for semiconductors in the hardware market to push the market past what we’ve been using for years: netbooks and laptops.
Case in point: the rumor that is going around whereby Apple plans on purchasing ultra-mobile chip developer ARM. While I’m sure Apple covets ARM’s technology (since it is used in the iPad, iPhone and iPod touch) it doesn’t sound as if ARM wants to become a part of Apple. That’s probably because even though they are ARM’s biggest customer, ARM would likely lose most of their other competing customers such as Samsung, Qualcomm and Google (now via Android and soon Chrome OS).
“Nobody has to buy the company”, is the quote from ARM CEO Warren East when asked about Apple buyout rumors. That may be true, but when you see that Chromium’s newest releases are showing that the hardware is being steered toward using ARM solutions for processing, this probably makes Apple a bit nervous because they already have hold of a nice niche with great margins.
It makes sense in that light why when they recently purchased chip designer Intrinsity, they decided to keep it quiet. Also kept silent is the fact that Intrinsity likely had more to do with Apple’s A4 processor than anyone inside the company wants to be known.
While we’re on the subject of hardware, expect to see a different platform model as Chrome OS progresses, one that blends Apple’s model with an open source software environment. In order to offer the best user experience the hardware requirements for Chrome OS are going to be dictated by Google. At the same time, they will allow developers to continue to work on Chromium in an effort to make it the best cloud platform out there.
Expect to also see an integrated store for apps that cost money with Chrome OS, with Google acting as the intermediary for billing and marketing of the marketplace. All other apps will be readily available on the web if they are free, allowing developers to focus on their craft and tipping their hats to Google for paid offerings and the platform that allows interoperability with other developers’ apps.
It’s a somewhat reverse model from Microsoft, which has in the past allowed for hardware manufacturers to develop for their platform, but keeping the operating system and tools to create applications under lock and key. Many times I have heard from developers how the methods by which Microsoft dictates its architecture causes problems in terms of software development; however these gripes seem to be declining.
Hopefully, Google will take caution to make sure that they do not end up with the same problems, but in opposite order. Hardware manufacturers may become exasperated by strong technical requirements needed for Chrome OS hardware, causing material costs to rise and thus margins to be much lower than is accustomed. Of course, one can also put into account the fact that the licensing costs that are associated with Microsoft’s operating systems will not come into play since Chrome OS is free.
At the same time, a hodgepodge of applications that run on Chrome OS are going to need to have a strong, unifying Google-like theme that will save the operating system from looking like a MySpace-oriented user interface. Apple has done this successfully, but of course at the expense of allowing an open environment and allowing some web functionality (Flash) to work properly on their devices.
Bottom line: Google bought a secretive hardware company, which has to mean something worthwhile for either the cloud or for mobile devices. Clearly this is a strategic move to compete with Apple, albeit in a different way than the iDevices. We shall soon see which way that is.
