Information appliances the next craze?

 

latest developments

Information appliances, small devices that perform much of the PC's activities, are shaping up to be the next frontier for firms looking to stake a piece of a growing market. "There's going to be a lot of experimentation and a lot of failures." - Kevin Hause, International Data Corp. analyst

Start-ups, stalwarts push info appliances Be Inc. and Kerbango are taking a run at Internet appliances, as they demonstrate at the Demo 2000 conference, an annual show devoted to unveiling new technologies. Lernout adds Linux, voice software to handheld Code-named Nuk, from Nukulu, the Hawaiian word for "echo, the prototype allows users to search the Web, compose emails and organize files, all through voice commands. Info appliance market set to take off The information appliance market is set to explode, according to a new survey, and it will be driven by the couch potato. Digital frame tries to make pictures come alive A new "digital picture frame" connected to Web sites and digital images proves again that the Internet is rapidly working its way into devices far from the traditional computer.