The new chip will reduce power consumption using patented D2D (Direct2Data) radio frequency transceiver technology. This technology uses D2D to power amplifiers that boost the RF signal.

ParkerVision demonstrated a complete digital home wireless system alongside a cordless phone with a two-mile open-field range at the International Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month. Parker expects the technology will also find a home in CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access), EvDO (Evolution Data Optimized), GSM (Global System for Mobile Communications), UMTS (Universal Mobile Telecommuncations System) and VOIP phones, as well as 802.11b/g/n, multimode and Bluetooth products.

ParkerVision |

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RFID me please. This is another great way to use RFID to speed things up.

With RFID technology, people or objects are identified automatically and swiftly. That allows vehicles outfitted with the technology to zip through toll plazas without stopping but won’t at the border. People and vehicles still will have to stop, but if their identifying data produce no red flags, they will get just a cursory check rather than lengthy questioning.

The chip with the identifying information would be placed in a document, such as the State Department-issued border crossing cards for those who regularly make short trips across the Mexican border.

The chip is attached to an antenna that transmits a signal to a handheld or stationary reader, which converts the radio waves from the RFID tag into a code that links to identifying biometrical information in a computer database read by border agents.

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I didn’t get to go to CES this year but I wish I had. Sounds like it was a great show.

Computer monitors with mechanical arms, wristwatches and binoculars that play music and phones disguised as cameras are just some of the technological innovations propelling the digital electronics revolution forward

This week’s Consumer Electronics Show, the biggest annual gadget showcase in the United States, featured scores of devices that ignore the classical distinctions separating consumer electronic from computer and communications products.

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Cube-Works brings you the all new Cube Robot Project CAM-08 walking robot. CAM-08 takes advantage of cutting-edge joint & rotary technology resulting in its eerily natural walking motion. Cam-08 is a simple and cute design robot with a small speaker at its tummy. Comes with wireless infrared 4 button remote (forward, backward, stop, sounds), so you can easily command him. Hands can be manually opened to carry small objects. Get your own little helper now.

Product Page

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Cattle Tracking Tested to Protect Food. Why not. People are putting tags in pets and Mexico is “tagging” people.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture is trying to create a national network that would track, within 48 hours, every contact an infected animal has had in its life. The USDA says such tracking is necessary because it took only a single Holstein infected with mad cow disease last year to lead more than 30 countries to close their borders to U.S. beef.

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The idea here is obvious. Epson developed technology that combines the infant technology of RFID and electronic paper. The paper has enough room for 8-bits of data (perfect for those expensive wines) and it communicates to POS systems via RFID. That basically means store owners can get rid of those pesky store clerks and price all of their goods on the fly in real time.

No word yet on when RFID will be under $.01 a chip or when electronic paper will be under $1000 an inch!

I bet Japanese people have funny looking keyboards

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The FDA said it was lifting restrictions on labeling that may have discouraged companies from testing out the little antennas, which can be used to trace drugs from factory to pharmacy. 

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VeriSign Inc., a provider of infrastructure services for the Internet and telecommunications networks, has teamed up with mobile phone maker Nokia Corp. to deliver mobile phones that can be used in conjunction with electronic product codes, and to develop applications that will extend RFID beyond the supply chain. 

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Keep in mind that this is a Nokia site. Regardless, it’s a site full of good information and worth a look.

www.thefeature.com

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Palm hopes to beef up its share of the smartphone software market, which currently lags at 6 percent.

Palmsource has introduced a new version of Cobalt, its software platform for smartphones. The new smartphone OS includes Wi-Fi and Bluetooth support and an enhanced Web browser. Palm hopes to beef up its share of the smartphone software market, which currently lags at 6 percent.

I personally like the Zire 72: picutred below (which is not a “smart phone”)

Full Story

Palm Site

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