As a German company defends the "Smartbook" trademark, its actions underscore what happens when companies gratuitously heap new category monikers on top of existing--and perfectly adequate--naming schemes.
Smartbook's Heaven Puro is, in fact, a Netbook.
(Credit: Smartbook)Question: what do Netbooks and smartbooks have in common? Besides looking pretty much the same to consumers (small, lightweight clamshell laptops), both terms have been the object of legal wrangling by companies claiming trademark infringement.
First, the term Netbook came under attack from Psion Teklogix. That dispute with Intel was settled in June. Now Germany-based Smartbook is claiming that Qualcomm's use of the term smartbook infringes on the eponymous company's trademark. "Smartbook AG sets a high value on its protected trademarks, which are being used as company symbols and product marks for years," the company said in a statement sent to CNET.
The San Diego, Calif.-based cell phone chip giant had this to say in response: "Qualcomm is surprised by the claims being made by Smartbook AG...given that Qualcomm does not claim, and has never claimed, to own the term 'smartbook,' which it believes is a descriptive and generic term. The term is used by a number of companies, consumers, and industry commentators to describe a class of devices that combine attributes of smartphones and Netbooks that will be enabled by various technology companies, including Qualcomm."
Qualcomm has been promoting smartbooks for months on its Web site, and Freescale Semiconductor has been doing the same, though on a smaller scale. Both companies make, in effect, the silicon engines that power these devices.
And Qualcomm is now starting to crank up its promotion of the smartbook, as Lenovo prepares to roll out one of the first smartbooks at the Consumer Electronics Show in January.
So the question arises: why call them smartbooks at all? Qualcomm believes that the devices it is promoting are different enough--as described above--from Netbooks that the moniker is warranted. But the reality is that by the time smartbooks hit the market in force (if they indeed do), there will be little really to set them apart from Netbooks.
For proof, look no further than the local Verizon or AT&T store. Verizon now carries Windows-Intel-based Netbooks from Hewlett-Packard with 3G modems built in. The sales pitch: connect to the Internet anywhere at 3G speeds--similar to what Qualcomm is preaching for smartbooks. Yes, smartbooks will have a different operating system (Android/Linux), but to consumers, this won't mean that they are different. At a Verizon store, it's just another Netbook.
And the Smartbook case is a microcosm of this whole problem. The German company offers a line of laptops that, in the United States, are called Netbooks. The systems promoted on its Web site offer the usual fare of Intel Atom processors and Windows software--except that the company calls them Smartbooks.
Confused? Well, the confusion may go away on its own when everyone just keeps it simple, calling a spade a spade: a Netbook is a Netbook is a Netbook.
The "smartbook" aspires to put the smartphone into the laptop. Will it be able to elevate an Apple iPhone or Motorola Droid-like experience to a larger device, or is it just more marketing mumbo-jumbo?
Two companies are hoping that the smartbook will turn out to be more than just another quickly-forgotten device sales pitch. Qualcomm and Freescale, which are both supplying key silicon technology for the devices, are pushing to make smartbooks different enough from laptops--and Netbooks--that consumers will take notice.
Qualcomm CEO Paul Jacobs holds the Lenovo smartbook, which will appear at CES in January.
(Credit: Qualcomm)The first tangible evidence of smartbooks to come will be seen at the Consumer Electronics Show in January, where Lenovo, among others, is expected to show, if not roll out, smartbook designs.
One pesky question won't go away, however. Why go out of the way to call it a smartbook? Doesn't Netbook suffice? (And it can potentially be very confusing for consumers since both terms have "book" in them.) On one level, the nomenclature choice is simply to counter the Microsoft-Intel Netbook juggernaut: Another Netbook among dozens already on the market won't draw much attention.
But at a deeper level, the two companies are trying to make the smartbook substantively different from a Netbook. Qualcomm sees it, in essence, as a large smartphone, which leaves the outdated Windows desktop experience in the dust. "A Netbook in our view is just a cheap laptop that runs Windows. We see the smartbook cannibalizing the Netbook. ... Read more
An Eee PC Netbook based on a Qualcomm processor that runs Google's Android operating system looks promising as an alternative to the millions of Netbooks out there tethered to Intel Atom processors and Microsoft Windows.
An Asus Qualcomm-based smart-book is a promising alternative to Windows-Intel Netbooks
(Credit: Asus)Asus was showing a Netbook at the Computex conference in Taipei running the Android OS on top of Qualcomm's Snapdragon processor, according to this TweakTown video.
When Asus plans to ship a Netbook based on Qualcomm's Snapdragon processor isn't clear and Asus is not disclosing its plans (later this year?), but it becomes even less clear when you add Google's Android operating system to the mix. Michael Rayfield, an Nvidia executive, doesn't expect Android Netbooks to appear commercially until next year.
What is clear, however, is that these Netbooks are different from the Windows-Intel variety. Qualcomm is calling them "smartbooks" rather than Netbooks to draw attention to the fact that they will operate more like smartphones: standard 3G connectivity, always-on, and all-day battery life.
And what makes this Asus demonstration at Computex interesting is that all Asus Netbooks to date have run on Intel processors. Obviously, Asus thinks the Snapdragon technology is different enough to warrant a separate design.
Other specification for the Netbook include a 10-inch screen, a built-in Webcam, and a universal 3G radio that supports UMTS and CDMA networks on all frequencies used globally, according to an IDG News report.
(Credit:
CherryPal, Inc.)
The CherryPal PC is in a holding pattern. The $249, 10-ounce, 2-watt-drawing, cloud-computing PC we first spied in July is still at least a couple weeks away from materializing. The company tells TG Daily that problems with the graphics hardware has pushed back its ship date at least two weeks. This follows on the heels of the company delaying the original August release due to a software conflict with the system's solid-state storage.
The irony here is that hardware and software issues have delayed this tiny PC that has only the bare minimum of hardware and software. The CherryPal C100 desktop has no moving parts--the company claims it "uses 80 percent fewer components than a traditional PC." There's not even an operating system; you're meant to store your data in the cloud, which you access via Firefox--the system's main interface.
On the company's Web site, its shopping page simply states that the CherryPal is "on hold" (from August 6) and offers a refund for those who have pre-ordered the system.
A view of the new CherryPal from the back
(Credit: CherryPal)The CherryPal is a small, black, rectangular box with not much inside.
Besides a processor, some flash memory, and some connecting parts, it's definitely not the kind of computer you'd see heavyweights like Hewlett-Packard and Dell waving around. But Max Seybold, the creator and CEO of CherryPal says this barebones PC is the future.
Yes, we've been hearing for a while now that cloud computing and the browser are the next iteration of the desktop OS, but Seybold is betting big on it.
The CherryPal--so named because one early tester declared the device "sweeter than an Apple"--is a tiny desktop PC. It's about the size of a paperback book and weighs 10 ounces. Because of its lack of moving parts (there's only 256MB of memory and a 4GB flash drive inside; the rest of your data is meant to be kept in the cloud), it should be fairly durable.
The other major benefit of that is it sucks a very low amount of power, 2 watts max, Seybold says. It has a Freescale 5121E processor and integrated graphics, which helps out with lower power consumption.
But even more helpful is the lack of an operating system on the device. There is an embedded form of Debian Linux, but Seybold says the user isn't exposed to it. The main operating system is a Firefox browser window.
It comes with free cloud-based storage and free 24-hour tech support. Hardware-wise, there's not a lot to the CherryPal, but the price reflects that: it will be available starting Monday for $249 on the company's Web site, and in September via Amazon.com.
The Amazon availability reflects the company's ambition. Seybold says he sees his target market as students ages 14 to 25, who he says "are already used to putting their information in the cloud" via Facebook, MySpace, and similar kinds of sites.
Downplaying Linux is another way Seybold hopes to reach the mass market. There's a perception that Linux is hard to use and is somewhat of a drawback, he said. "And to some degree, the market is right."
The closest competition is the Eee Box from Asus, and other low-power Linux-based desktops, which have cleared the way for devices like the CherryPal.
"The great thing is you have Netboxes (and) Netbooks, so there's a lot of awareness in the market, and (it shows) there is a market for computers that aren't Windows or Apple," said Seybold. "The sales numbers for Asus are very, very, encouraging."
Is MRAM better than flash memory? That's a question a new venture business will try to answer.
Freescale MRAM chip
(Credit: Freescale Semiconductor)Former Motorola chip unit Freescale Semiconductor announced Monday that it has joined with several venture capital firms to form an independent company focused on MRAM (Magnetoresistive Random Access Memory).
The new company, EverSpin Technologies, will "expand its current portfolio of standalone MRAM and related magnetic-based products," the companies said in a statement.
MRAM uses magnetic materials combined with conventional silicon circuitry to deliver a high-performance permanent storage device.
But MRAM must compete with quickly evolving technologies like flash memory-based solid state drives. Flash memory is gaining ground because companies like Samsung, Toshiba, and Intel keep developing faster and higher-capacity devices.
(For more information on MRAM see MRAM-info. For an in-depth explanation of technologies used in MRAM see this explanation of electron spin and so-called spintronics.)
Freescale will transfer the MRAM technology, related intellectual property, and products to EverSpin Technologies and will retain an equity position in the new venture, the companies said. EverSpin is backed by venture firms New Venture Partners, Sigma Partners, Lux Capital, Draper Fisher Jurvetson, and Epic Ventures.
"The decision to form a new company is intended to accelerate the adoption of MRAM," Lisa Su, senior vice president and chief technology officer for Freescale Semiconductor, said in a statement.
"Current Freescale MRAM products have strong traction in the market," Steve Socolof, managing partner of New Venture Partners, said in a statement.
As part of the agreement, EverSpin Technologies will take ownership of the MRAM manufacturing assets and will be based in Chandler, Ariz.
EverSpin will continue to supply products to Freescale's existing standalone MRAM customers. In addition, EverSpin will be a supplier to Freescale of MRAM technology for use in Freescale's embedded products.
Chips in 2009 will run faster but not necessarily hotter. That's the gist of what IBM, along with its joint development partners such as Samsung Electronics and Toshiba, announced Monday.
IBM-fabricated 32nm SRAM chip
(Credit: IBM)The IBM alliance is using "high-k/metal gate" technology to achieve this, the same category of process technology that Intel currently uses in its 45-nanometer processors. The alliance says it is seeing performance improvements of up to 35 percent over 45nm technology at the same "operating voltage" or power levels.
This allows alliance chipmakers such as Samsung, Toshiba, and Freescale Semiconductor (formerly an arm of Motorola) to build more powerful chips that don't necessarily generate more heat. This is a necessary advancement for small devices such as cell phones, as well as data centers that use a large number of servers. The power reduction compared to 45nm technology can range as high as 30 percent to 50 percent, depending on the operating voltage, according to IBM.
The announcement serves as more of a progress update than a breakthrough achievement. At the beginning of last year, IBM announced technology to "speed the implementation of...high-k/metal gate in next-generation 32-nanometer computer chips."
A gate is a basic building block of a digital circuit, while high-k/metal is the material used. Intel, for example, used a high-k material called hafnium to replace the transistor's silicon dioxide gate dielectric for its 45nm processors. As transistors shrink, leakage current can increase. For chipmakers, it is crucial to minimize leakage. This is where high-k/metal gates come into play.
The technology will be available to alliance partners in the second half of 2009, though the design process for devices that use this technology can start now, IBM said. AMD was not included as part of the alliance because technically, it is a member only of a separate alliance, SOI (Silicon-On-Insulator).
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