Consumer Electronics Daily News

SIRIUS To Offer Live TV in Cars

Not content to let XM have the only auto-related satellite radio provider news of the day, SIRIUS Satellite Radio Inc. CEO Mel Karmazin told Reuters today that the company expects to have live television service in cars by late 2007.

SIRIUS executives have discussed the possibility of providing video broadcasts to subscribers for several years, but have always said the service's debut has been dictated by automakers' wishes rather than the company's capability to provide the service.

Karmazin told Reuters that the company now has three content deals that are very close to being finalized, and while he's not sure if they'll be ready for announcement by CES, that's the target the company is shooting for.

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WiBree Market to Top $500M by 2011

Analysts at ABI Research say the market for Wibree could balloon to $513 million industry by 2011, as long as several key prerequisites are all met within the same time frame.

According to principal analyst Stuart Carlaw says, "While some industry observers are skeptical about the prospects for Wibree, we believe it is a unique technology that can leverage the very positive market position of Bluetooth in segments such as medical and sports equipment, where the total available market is extremely large and still relatively untouched."

The forecast suggests that upwards of 800 million enabled devices by 2011 is a reasonable goal so long as several key conditions are met:

• Nokia will force Wibree into handsets at the earliest opportunity.
• Silicon vendors will bring dual mode ICs to market at prices very close to those of Bluetooth.
• The ratio of dual mode to standalone devices will grow rapidly after a period of market seeding.

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Honda Adds XM to 650,000 2007 Models

American Honda Motor Co., Inc., plans to factory-install XM satellite radio receivers in up to 650,000 Honda and Acura brand cars and trucks in 2007, the satellite radio giant announced today.

Honda has been a partner of XM since the service launched and was the first car manufacturer to factory-install receivers in vehicles back in 2003. According to XM, Honda produced more than 200,000 vehicles with XM in 2004; over 400,000 in 2005; over 550,000 in 2006; and is projecting production of more than 650,000 factory-installed XM units for 2007 model vehicles.

Every Honda and Acura vehicle with factory-installed XM also comes standard with a three-month complimentary subscription to XM's audio service.

Ruckus to Debut 'Smart Wi-Fi' at CES

Ruckus Wireless has developed a revolutionary new Smart Wi-Fi system based on next-generation 802.11n technology that it plans to demonstrate at International CES in January.

According to the company, the Wi-Fi technology makes it possible to reliably transport many HDTV streams, digital voice, music and data throughout the home without cabling.

While current draft 802.11n devices permit the transfer of data at more than 70 Mbps, they've routinely run into problems sustaining such speeds at far distances and in noisy environments.

The Ruckus “Smart-N” technology, "rejects noise and delivers consistent throughput regardless of location and device placement," the company says in a statement.

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Strong Zune Sales Reported

The Zune is already the #2 portable audio player in the United States edging out a variety of also-ran players in it's debut week, though still trailing far behind the iPod juggernaut.

According to research firm NPD Group, Zunes accounted for nine percent of total MP3 player sales in the United States in the week ending Nov. 18. That's above previous second-place finisher SanDisk, but a pittance compared to Apple's 63 percent of unit sales during the same period for its iPod line.

While analysts say the Zune launch is a success and a good first step for Microsoft in its battle to chip away market share from the iPod, there may already be signs that the player's sales are stalling. The Zune has already slipped from the Top 10 MP3 players sold on Amazon.com (now at #17), and while the player was #2 according to NPD Group's sales analysis, its total sales were less than the sales of all PlaysForSure MP3 players

Key figures for the portable media player sales on the critical Black Friday shopping weekend have not yet been announced.

Altec Lansing Offers Up Zune Speakers

Altec Lansing is entering the Zune Marketplace with the Altec Lansing M604, a premiere speaker accessory that delivers 60 watts total RMS for powerful room-filling sound. Designed to outperform similar top performers in the MP3 speaker category, the M604 comes complete with composite video output that enables you to watch videos on TV, as well as a top-located control panel for easy access to the speaker's operations, including treble, bass, volume and power.

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Nokia: Internet Key to Mobile Phone Growth

Nokia CEO and President, Olli-Pekka Kallasvuo, delivered a keynote at the Nokia World 2006 conference today, outlining the company's vision for the future of the mobility industry and predicting 4 billion global subscriptions for mobile service through 2010.

According to Kallasvuo, Internet-based music, mobile TV and navigation services are driving this growth, "both in advanced and emerging markets where in the latter increasing numbers of people are accessing the Internet for the first time on their mobile rather than on a PC."

At the conference, Nokia also unveiled the 2626, its latest mobile phone for the emerging markets which features an FM radio, GPRS and email.

For more information, visit www.nokia.com.

PureDepth Selects SANYO for Manufacturing

PureDepth, Inc., a developer of next-generation display technologies and the pioneer of multi-layer display technology, has authorized SANYO Electric System Solutions Co., Ltd., to become a manufacturer of PureDepth technology for an array of products and form factors ranging from mobile devices to big-screen televisions.

PureDepth technology allows users to view two separate fields of data on a single monitor simultaneously through an LCD layered, multi-dimensional (using real depth between two or more LCD panels) viewing panel. According to the company, by overlaying two more separate image planes within a single monitor, PureDepth technology provides, "true depth of vision that significantly enhances the visual experience with faster response to time-critical data and better assimilation and comprehension of data of any kind."

"Extending our relationship with PureDepth into other industries and applications gives us a significant advantage as we strive to create revolutionary products in areas such as mobile phones, automotive systems, entertainment and other consumer electronics devices," says Tsutomu Fujita, Director of SANYO Electric System Solutions.

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Alereon Endorses Expanded UWB Plan

Alereon, Inc., the largest  developer of ultrawideband (UWB) mobile WiMedia and Wireless USB technologies, has thrown its weight behind the USB Implementers Forum's (USB-IF) plan to add support for ultrawideband (UWB) frequencies above 6 GHz in the Wireless USB specification in 2007.

According to Alereon, the extended specifications will expand the current options for manufacturers in specific geographic regions and better utilize the total available spectrum allocated for UWB.

"The USB-IF developed the Certified Wireless USB compliance and certification program because it is critical that consumer products are compliant to the specification and interoperate," says Jeff Ravencraft, Chairman and President of the USB-IF. "By creating specification extensions for applications requiring higher bands, we continue to work towards standardization and adoption of Wireless USB technology."

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Philips Marks 1M Ambilight FlatTV

Philips Consumer Electronics is celebrating the success of its Ambilight FlatTV line with an announcement today that 1 million of the TVs have been manufactured.

According to the company, the millionth Ambilight FlatTV, a 42-inch LCD High-Definition (HD) display with Philips’ unique Ambilight Full Surround feature, demonstrates that consumers are seeking an exceptional viewing experience which only Ambilight can provide.

“We’re very proud to announce this important milestone for Philips Consumer Electronics,” says Rudy Provoost, CEO of Philips Consumer Electronics. “This demonstrates that Ambilight has clearly become a hit with consumers - it not only enhances the overall viewing experience but it also makes watching TV easier on the eyes."

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