LG Electronics has unveiled its latest flagship 5.2-inch smartphone LG G2, which places all the buttons on the rear of the device. LG said the rear key concept came from the realization when studying users that the larger the phone became, the more difficult it was to properly access the side keys.According to the vendor, long-pressing on the rear-mounted volume keys allows users to launch QuickMemo and the camera. And if the LG G2 is lying on a surface face up, there's no need to lift the phone to access the power button on the back. With KnockON, the LG G2 can be powered on simply by tapping twice on the display.The G2 features a 5.2-inch Full HD display and Dual Routing technology reduced the phone's bezel to 2.65mm on the side edge.The LG G2 employs graphic RAM (GRAM) technology. GRAM reduces the display's energy use by up to 26% on a still frame and increases overall usage time on the device by approximately 10%, LG said, adding it comes with a 3,000mAh battery.The LG G2's high-resolution camera comes equipped with optical image stabilizer (OIS) technology to prevent blurring, allowing for clearer, brighter and sharper images when in motion or shooting in dim environments. The G2 offers 13MP and OIS technology in a slim design without a protruding lens.Key specifications:- Processor: 2.26GHz Qualcomm® Snapdragon 800 featuring quad Krait CPU- Display: 5.2-inch Full HD IPS (1080 x 1920 pixels / 423 ppi)- Memory: 32GB / 16GB- RAM: 2GB LPDDR3 800MHz- Camera: Rear 13.0MP with OIS / Front 2.1MP- Battery: 3,000mAh- Operating System: Android Jelly Bean 4.2.2- Size: 138.5 x 70.9 x 8.9mm- Colors: Black / WhiteThe 5.2-inch LG G2 smartphone with rear buttonsPhoto: Company

Silicon Image, a leading provider of HD connectivity solutions, announced the availability of two new 60GHz WirelessHD GameChanger mobile reference designs for smartphone and tablet accessories. These new reference designs leverage the capabilities of Silicon Image's UltraGig 6400 mobile transmitter to provide a cable-like wireless connection between portable devices and large displays. The reference designs are optimized for latest-generation mobile platforms and are ideally suited for interactive HD video applications including gaming, productivity and entertainment."Smartphones and tablets are rapidly becoming the device of choice where consumers spend the majority of their connected life," said Philip Solis research director, at ABI Research. "As consumers expand the use of smartphones and tablets for interactive video applications, there is increased demand for connecting these powerful devices to larger displays for an enhanced entertainment experience. Consumers will benefit from solutions like WirelessHD, which addresses the demand for high-quality wireless video connectivity."The small plug-and-play reference designs convert MHL or HDMI video signals output from mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets to high-quality, low-latency WirelessHD video. Connections to displays and projectors are achieved via WirelessHD 1.1 receivers that are available from multiple ODMs worldwide. In addition, select latest-generation MHL-enabled smartphones and tablets provide power from the device battery to the UltraGig 6400-based GameChanger accessory, further simplifying and reducing the transmitter accessory cost."These new Silicon Image GameChanger mobile reference designs take advantage of the full capabilities of the UltraGig 6400 to allow the latest mobile devices in the market to easily connect to large HD screens with interference-free 60GHz technology," said Jim Chase, senior marketing director for wireless products at Silicon Image. "By utilizing these designs, manufacturers can quickly develop HDMI-to-WirelessHD or MHL-to-WirelessHD accessories that will allow consumers to wirelessly connect their current mobile devices to projectors and large displays."The Silicon Image GameChanger mobile reference designs include all hardware components, production ready firmware, detailed schematics and related documentation needed to develop a complete mobile HDMI-to-WirelessHD or MHL-to-WirelessHD accessory product. For more information about Silicon Image's technology solutions, visit: http://www.siliconimage.com/.

EverFocus is going to meet you at Secutech Vietnam 2013. With different surveillance solutions, award winning and high performance cameras, a rewarding trip is guaranteed to visitors.EverFocus is ready to demonstrate their complete product line with complete IP, HDcctv, Mobile and Analog Surveillance solutions at Secutech Vietnam. Award-winning IP cameras EAN3300 and numerous upgraded network cameras will be displayed along with enhanced third-party software compatibility. Installation based product line and mobile surveillance solutions will also be showcased. Numerous advanced products, such as the HDcctv EPHD04+ slim size DVR and 960H PARAGON960 DVR, are now available to take your surveillance experience to the next level.In addition to the complete IP, HDcctv, Mobile and Analog Surveillance solutions, EverFocus will also showcase the Secutech Camera Excellence Awards winner EAN3300 IP camera at Secutech HD Surveillance Live Display section. EverFocus EQH 5202 HD-SDI box camera for live shoot will also be demonstrated during the three-day exhibition. Both cameras have key features including megapixel resolution, true day/night and 3DNR. These devices will be the highlight on-site. What's more, EverFocus will present at GDSF seminar on "Enjoy Your Life with Surveillance Solution!" on August 9th.Positioned as a leading show of global security manufacturers, Secutech includes exhibitors in every segment of security, from key components, finished products to integrations and solutions. Therefore, August 8-10 will be regarded as the most important period for the security, fire & safety industries in Vietnam. EverFocus is looking forward to providing visitors more details about their products and solutions at Booth 211 in Secutech Vietnam.About EverFocus Electronics CorporationEverFocus Electronics Corporation (TWSE: 5484) is a leading integrated security solution manufacturer. Our lineup includes of CCTV cameras, DVRs, HDcctv, IP surveillance solutions, access control systems, as well as surveillance and access control peripherals. EverFocus has offices globally, located in the U.S.A, Germany, China, Japan, India, Taiwan and UK.EverFocus gears up Total Solutions for Secutech Vietnam

IBASE Technology, A leading manufacturer of SBCs and embedded systems, rolls out the IB965 PICMG 1.3 CPU card supporting the Intel Q77 Express Chipset and 3rd generation Intel Core processors. Supporting high performance, manageability and power efficiency, the IB965 is optimized for demanding applications in the medical field, industrial automation, transportation and gaming sectors."We developed the IB965 CPU card to support the 3rd Generation Intel Core processor family that provides amazing computing power and graphics quality, combining it with advanced I/O interfaces, as well as TPM 1.2 support and iSMART technology," said Wilson Lin, Product Manager at IBASE. "While TPM allows systems to run applications more securely, iSMART provides intelligent power-saving solution for better environmental performance on both board and system levels."The chipset built-in graphics IntelR HD Graphics 4000 allows IB965 to support different display interfaces including CRT VGA, DVI-D and 24-bit dual channel LVDS. It has dual Gigabit Ethernet, two DIMM sockets for up to 16Gbytes of dual DDR3 memory, and flexible SATA III and USB3.0 ports suited for high bandwidth applications. It also comes with a parallel port, Mini PCI-E expansion and four serial ports with one port jumperless selection for RS232/422/485 operation.About IBASE TechnologyFounded in 2000, IBASE Technology (TASDAQ: 8050) is an ISO 9001 and ISO 13485 certified company that specializes in the design and manufacturing of industrial PC products. IBASE provides OEM/ODM services tailoring products to customers' requirements. Current product offerings from IBASE include single board computers, Mini-ITX boards, Disk-Size SBC, COM Express CPU modules, embedded systems and network appliance for various applications in the automation, digital signage, gaming, entertainment, medical, military and networking markets. IBASE is committed to delivering innovative, practical and dependable solutions for an ever-evolving industrial computing landscape. For more information, please visit http://www.ibase.com.tw/.IB965

APLEX Technology Inc., a global industrial computer product solution provider, today extends its leading stainless steel panel PC portfolio with IP65 certificated, storage function enhancement, and integration Intel Atom technology that delivers low power consumption and meets strict hygiene regulations for food/chemical industry, medical, factory automation applications, storage management as well as information segment.The Expert for Stainless Steel Panel PCs & DisplaysAplex has been working on research and development of stainless steel products for industrial-grade applications for ages. The APC-3X84A series is Aplex's latest stainless steel panel PC with 5 sides IP 65 protection feature which prevents liquids from accumulated contamination in the machine and also takes the aesthetic into account as a great stainless steel workmanship allowing customers to accommodate outlook and functionalities.APC-3584A & APC-3784A & APC-3984AThe APC-3X84A series has advanced computing performance and lower power consumption due to well-equipped Intel Atom D2550 solution. The slim and fanless design are ideally suited for use in limited space and have no worries for working under temperature from 0 ~ 50 degrees C (with HDD)/-20~60 degrees C (with industrial SSD or SD). The default touch screen of APC-3X84A is 5 wires resistive. However, GFG type and capacitive touch screen are available for orders as well. Regarding the storage capability, APC-3X84A series provides 1 x 2.5" SATA HDD, 1 x internal SD Slot and 1x internal mini-PCIe, allowing customers easily to access/backup the data. APC-3X84A series is available with 15"/17" and 19" LCD size.APC-3X84A series supports various OS such as the latest WindowsR Embedded 8 Standard, WindowsR Embedded 8 Pro, and Windows Embedded Standard 7, Windows 7 Pro for Embedded and so on.About APLEXAPLEX Technology Inc. is one of the leading brands in industrial computer products. APLEX is dedicated to satisfying customer's needs by offering a comprehensive solutions and applications including industrial panel PCs, Human-machine interfaces (HMI), industrial display, embedded Box PCs. Besides standard products, APLEX also offers customized or OEM/ODM project service to meet special needs of clients. APLEX product applications range from factory automation, transportation, retail, hospitality, environmental monitoring, warehousing, medical, to health care. For more information, please go to http://www.aplex.com.tw/Aplex APC-3584A

Advantech, the leading embedded platform and integration services provider, announces the arrival of the new PC/104 CPU Board Computer, PCM-3356 , powered by AMDR G-Series processor T16R. PCM-3356 is fully ISA compatible and has similar power consumption and cost compared with AMD LX800 but with 3.16 times better performance. PCM-3356 is a fanless 96 x 115 mm, and is not only an ideal choice to replace the AMD LX800 platform but is also excellent for applications that require a combination of x86 compatibility and graphics.The Benefits of Migrating to G-series T16R from Geode LX800AMD G-series T16R provides:- Lower average power consumption: 2.3W vs. 2.45W- Unparalleled video processing with hardware video acceleration engine- Lower cost, faster, higher capacity DDR3 memory compared with DDR1 used by Geode LX series- Legacy I/O (ISA with DMA) still supportedDesigned for Rugged ApplicationsFor high reliability and endurance in extreme environments, Advantech's PCM-3356 is designed with a high-level, industrial-grade ESD COM port driver IC (15KV air protection/8KV contact protection). PCM-3356 alsouses Japanese polymer aluminum electrolytic capacitors with small ESR and better MTBF than electrolytic capacitors, and high Tg PCB (TG-150) that keeps the PCB more stable under high temperature operation. PCM-3356 passed a strict signal verification process during the development stage to ensure high quality circuit design. And the PC/104 stacking mechanical architecture makes it ideal for outdoor applications for the military or transportation fields, or any environment where vibration is an issue.Fully Legacy PC/104(ISA) & Mainstream I/O InterfacePCM-3356 supports full legacy PC/104 (ISA), and ISA DMA support, which will be attractive to customers with existing legacy carrier boards and PC/104 I/O modules. Besides supporting legacy I/O, PCM-3356 is also equipped with several more mainstream I/O interfaces than the LX800 platform. PCM-3356 has 1 SATA 2.0, 4 USB 2.0, 3 full COMs, dual GbE, dual display, plus two half-size Mini PCIe connectors, 1 for an mSATA device. PCM-3356 can adopt a Wi-Fi module via Mini PCIe and mSATA as an optional storage choice for network connecting and storage.Superior Graphics Performance & Dual Display Type SolutionPCM-3356 is powered by AMDR G-Series T16R CPU with A55E FCH, supporting up to 4 GB DDR3 memory. It supports an advanced graphics engine with DirectX 11, Open GL 4.0, 2D/3D acceleration, and hardware decoding (UVD3) for H.264, VC-1, and MPEG2. PCM-3356 features 18-bit LVDS display capability; the 18-bit LVDSsupports panels up to 1280 x 800 and VGA is also supported for embedded applications, as well as supporting dual display with LVDS and VGA.Remote Management: SUSIAccess & Embedded OSPCM-3356 supports SUSIAccess value-added software services. SUSIAccess provides easy remote management so users can easily monitor, configure, and control a large number of terminals to make maintenance and system recovery simpler. PCM-3356 supports Windows 7/WES7/XP/XPe, Windows CE 7.0/6.0, Ubuntu 12.04, and Fedora 16 operating systems. PCM-3356 is ideal for a multitude of applications such as: military, medical, factory automation, transportation, security and surveillance, etc. Support for AMD G-Series will continue through 2019 Q4 for extended longevity.Features & Specifications- AMDR G-Series processor T16R 615MHz- System Memory: Up to 4GB 204-pin SODIMM- L2 Cache: 512 KB- System Chipset: AMDR A55E- BIOS: AMI 32Mbit Flash ROM- Expansion Interface: PC/104 and 1 half-size Mini PCIe- Supports Dual GbE and Dual Display (LVDS + VGA)- Serial ATA: 1 Serial ATA II interface, up to 300MB/s - Serial port: 3 RS-232/422/485 ports with auto flow control- USB: 4 USB 2.0- Audio: RealtekALC892 codec- Storage: Supports 1 half-size mSATA - 5V input power, AT/ATX (power tolerance range: 5V +/-5%)- Power management: ACPI 4.0 supported- Watchdog timer: Output System Reset, Programmable counter from 1 ~ 255 minutes/seconds- Battery: Lithium 3V/210 mAHPCM-3356 launched in July, 2013. Please contact your Advantech sales rep for more information, or visit the website at http://www.advantech.com/.PCM-3356

A struggle over patent infringement between JUSUNG Engineering Co., Ltd., and Applied Materials, the two biggest panel equipment suppliers in the world, has been going on for nearly 10 years. In 2011, the Taiwan Hsinchu District Court issued a first-instance judgment confirming that JUSUNG did not infringe on Applied Materials' patent. In response to appeal by Applied Materials, the Intellectual Property Court (IP Court) July 31, 2013 issued a second-instance judgment in which JUSUNG still prevailed. This case can be appealed with the Supreme Court.Applied Materials occupied a large market share globally for sales of the asserted plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition system (PECVD). In view of the potential market in Taiwan for panel, JUSUNG tried to enter the market, and successfully sold its 5th generation of PECVD system to CHIMEI in 2003, which motivated other panel manufacturers to approach JUSUNG for its products. However, JUSUNG's success broke Applied Materials' long-standing dominance in the panel market, and represented a threatening signal to Applied Materials' market share. Consequently, Applied Materials asserted that JUSUNG's 5th generation of PECVD system infringed its patent and filed a petition for preliminary injunction order in 2003, preventing JUSUNG from selling its PECVD product to Taiwanese panel manufacturers, including CHIMEI. Applied Materials also filed a lawsuit in 2004 seeking NT$178,200,000 in compensation. The Hsinchu District Court dismissed Applied Materials' suit, and Applied Materials filed an appeal with the IP Court.Regarding the second-instance judgment just issued by the IP court July 31, 2013, JUSUNG expressed its opinion that it again proves that the PECVD asserted by Applied Materials was solely invented and developed by JUSUNG, that JUSUNG has confidence that its products do not involve in any infringement, and that JUSUNG will defend itself against any attack against its business from competitors.

The Mobile Device Innovation Platform Trend Discussion Forum invited a number of IT industry heavyweights and executives from major enterprises to discuss the innovation trends of mobile devices as well as the dynamics of Taiwan's IT industry. The forum sought to provide a direction for the development of Taiwan's IT industry.Affordable quality products from Taiwan's IT supply chainThe moderator for this forum was Colley Huang, president of Digitimes. In his introductory remarks, Huang noted that Taiwan has 800 listed IT companies with a total market value of US$510 billion. These companies procure US$300 billion worth of electronic components annually, forming a huge supply chain. Taiwan's manufacturers operate 12 hours a day in order to reduce costs and produce inexpensive and quality computers. Were it not or Taiwan, consumers might have to pay US$2,000 to US$3,000 for a computer.PC sales have been gradually declining due to the rise of smartphones and tablet devices. Digitimes Research estimates that PC sales will fall by 5-10% in 2013. The PC era has ended; the mobile era has dawned.Taiwan boasts a complete supply chain, which includes world-class manufacturers, such as Hon Hai (Foxconn), and brand vendors, such as Acer and Asus. Its tax rate is low (12.8% in Taiwan, 30% in the US, and 25% in China). Enhanced by such factors, Taiwan offers an excellent business environment, said Huang, who extended an invitation to manufacturers worldwide to work with Taiwan's supply chain to produce affordable mobile devices.Qualcomm's mobile computing innovationsThe first talk of the forum was delivered by Luis Pineda, senior vice president of Product Management for Qualcomm Technology. In his talk, "Technological Innovations from the Lab to Commercialization," Pineda noted that he has been to Taiwan over 50 times since 1993 and has a very good understanding of Taiwan's supply chain. He hopes Qualcomm's leadership in mobile technology can help Taiwan's manufacturers migrate from the CPU race of the old PC era towards the new mobile era where emphasis is on innovative consumer experience.Pineda indicated that it is a mobile world now, and mobile devices such as smartphones, tablets and notebooks can be found everywhere. Even computers are becoming "tabletized." In line with the trend of mobile devices going thinner and lighter, offering longer battery life and staying connected anytime, anywhere, Qualcomm provides total mobile solutions and is a key partner for Taiwan. Qualcomm has been working with Taiwan's manufacturers (such as TSMC), and has also been providing its clients with complete development kits, software, operating system support, and educational support.From R&D to commercialized servicesYan-Song Li, chairman of Chunghwa Telecom (CHT), indicated in his talk, "Chunghwa Telecom's R&D, Business, and Service Innovations," that the Taiwan-based telecom carrier established the Telecommunications Research Institute in 1969 to help promote services through innovations in technology and applications.Li highlighted some of the successful cases where CHT's technological innovations have created new services. For example, CHT's image recognition technology can enhance crime-fighting efforts: the company has launched a "police in the cloud" system, which integrates public surveillance camera networks with digital maps and police dispatch systems to track stolen vehicles. So far, this system has been adopted in Taiwan's New Taipei City, Yilan County, and Taoyuan County. This system can also work at ports to simplify and speed up the process of container customs clearance.CHT's "Visually-Impaired Support System" provides text messaging services to the visually impaired, allowing cell phones to "speak" out the messages when users touch a specific icon. Tamkang University has also adopted this technology to set up a call center that provides job opportunities for the visually impaired. The CHT system has also been incorporated into Taipei's citizen service hotline.CHT's "Business Maintenance and Operation" system is a new cloud OS platform, with which Taiwan-based manufacturers can turn their server products into mainframes or storage systems.These are some of the innovative services the CHT has launched to improve its business portfolio.X-on-siliconKenneth Tai, chairman of Jasper Display Corp (JDC), introduced his winning strategy for silicon technology. Taiwan's position in the IT industry is extremely important, and JDC is the global leader in X-on-silicon imager technology. JDC hopes manufacturers and experts worldwide can join Taiwan's silicon-based platform to pave the way for next-generation display technology.Innovations in optoelectronics technology have been driving the display industry under a "3S" framework: Size (smaller components footprint), Speed (higher frame rates), and reSolution (higher resolution). Displays have evolved from the early CRT to the currently popular FPD, such as TFT- LCD and PDP. By 2015, silicon-based microdisplay technology, such as LCoS and OLEDoS, will have become a major contender in the market.Since silicon-based microdisplay technology can be applied to both display and non-display fields – such as near-to-eye displays, computer-generated holograms, digital optics, medical applications, telecommunications and holographic storage – the database of programmable applications will be its "core technology." Coupled with value-added software, it can be applied to various optical applications.JDC is cooperating with the International Alliance of X on Silicon Application (IAoSA) to promote the technology among educational and industrial sectors.IAoSAProf Ching Piao Hu, president IAoSA, noted that Taiwan's economy had been strong for three decades until four to five years ago when it started to see stagnant growth. He pointed out a number of reasons behind Taiwan's economic woes. First, since China opened its doors 30 years ago, many Taiwanese companies have moved to China. Second, Taiwan has been well-known for its contract manufacturers. There is a Chinese saying: "Failure is the mother of success." But Hu noted that "success is often the mother of failure," because Taiwan's contract manufacturing may no longer be a great asset of its competitiveness.Hu said that for big, successful companies, innovations mainly mean ways to improve their operations, such as production processes and cost reductions, unlike those smaller firms who are more apt to explore the full possibilities of innovations. The big companies' complacency is the source of failure.In the present era of knowledge economy, "informationization of knowledge" facilitates the efficiency of businesses, and creates innovations and value. An example is Apple creating value for customers out of product functions. In addition, cloud computing has ushered in a post-PC era where Taiwan's manufacturing sector has little under its belt to boost its competitiveness. It is now difficult for Taiwan's industries to see a revival.Therefore, the greatest value of promoting an industry-academia alliance in Taiwan is to allow industry players to take full advantage of the academia's R&D resources to create a new industrial environment. Recruiting government resources is also one of the objectives for the industry-academia alliance.ConclusionThe Digitimes president, Huang, concluded the forum by remarking that "technological innovations can never transcend social innovations." Technological innovations must be in line with social changes in order to create new value. Therefore, the industry, the government, and the academia should join forces to work towards achieving the goal of creating innovations and value.The Mobile Device Innovation Platform Trend Discussion Forum is chaired by Digitimes president Colley Huang. Guest speakers are (from left to right): Qualcomm's Luis Pineda; CHT's Yan-Song Li; JDC's Kenneth Tai; and IAoSA's Ching Piao Hu.Luis Pineda, Qualcomm's senior vice president of Product ManagementYan-Song Li, chairman of Chunghwa TelecomKenneth Tai, chairman of Jasper Display CorpChing Piao Hu, president of the International Alliance of X on Silicon Application

In the evolution of computer input devices, the keyboard and mouse have been considered our good friend almost since the beginning, while the rise of portable devices such as PDAs, Pocket PCs, and Microsoft's Tablet PCs also brought about attempts to introduce a "stylus" as the basic input device. But after Apple's Steve Jobs introduced the iPhone in 2007, the "touch" method has shined as the primary input method for today's mobile devices. However, using fingers to input data, write, take notes, and draw have always lacked a certain accuracy and realism. Therefore, stylus manufacturers still have something to say.Touch is not bad, but a stylus is more intuitiveBen Lee, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for WALTOP International, indicated that input devices that come with general consumer computers are mostly based on keyboard and mouse. Only professionals or artists use a drawing board plus stylus for creative production purposes. The prevalence of portable devices and mobile networks have led to the popularity of the PDAs, Pocket PCs, and Microsoft's Tablet PCs that tried to bring the "stylus" back to the application scene.However, when Steve Jobs from Apple introduced the iPhone in 2007 and brought "touch" input method into our lives, followed by subsequent products such as the iPad, all mobile handsets and tablets from the Android camp, and even Windows 8; the "touch" input method has become the mainstream input/computer interaction method, overthrowing early pen input devices.However, using a finger to input data, write, take notes, and draw has always lacked a certain accuracy and realism. Therefore, the stylus has specific application value and market opportunities remain.With an extra 'pen,' sales for Samsung's mobile phones become unparalleled?During his speech, Lee paid tribute to Steve Jobs and thanked him for bringing the "touch" input method into all of today's mobile devices so we can use our hands for sliding control. However, Ben Lee feels that Steve Jobs may have spoken too soon when he said, "If you see a stylus, they blew it."Lee believes that maybe in the spelling cultures of Western languages, a keyboard has been historically sufficient for precision data entry for computers, while using hands and mouse for pointing and interactive controls. However, the facts prove that finger control for writing cannot completely replace writing with a pen because using fingers for writing, taking notes, drawing, and providing signatures is always not as natural and accurate as using a pen.Lee raised an example that Apple's main competitor today is Samsung. The Galaxy Note and its S2/S3/S4 series all include a stylus to bring the writing experiences to the consumers and use the stylus to stimulate the users' creative inspirations. This has allowed Samsung's mobile phones/tablets to become productivity tools. Statistics show that the Samsung mobile phones have the best sales performance worldwide. In addition, the Fonepad Note recently launched by Asus also included a stylus. This shows the importance and love of the Eastern writing culture from Asian IT manufacturers.Best handwriting input device is a pen and cannot be replaced by finger writingWhen the various input devices and methods are compared, the results show that the keyboard and mouse are not suitable for mobile use and virtual keyboards lack a realistic touch sensation. Although the touch method is suitable for inputting, it is not suitable for long-term writing. While the voice input is easy to use, its error rate is high. Therefore, the "pen writing" method is the most natural input method and can be used at fixed points (such as offices, conference rooms, or classrooms) or when traveling (in a car).In addition, pens have a difference in thickness and depth, and are divided into pencil, pen, brush, and other types. Pens can write (draw) relatively smaller words (pictures), the effort required would not be as arduous as that of using a finger, and will not leave fingerprints on the screen. Therefore, pens are more suitable for long-term memo, note taking, calligraphy, painting, and signature applications.Types of stylus and the advantages of electromagnetic pensToday's stylus technologies are primarily divided into the Passive EM Digitizer or the Passive Capacitive Stylus types. The advantages of the Passive EM Digitizer are that it has the hovering height of 10mm, can have buttons added to the pens, has an Z-axis sensing pressure level of up to 1,024 or 2,048 bands, has the pen tip width of 1mm, has a 4,000 LPI resolution, allow for a palm resting on the screen, has strong anti-noise interference capabilities, can be designed with exclusive applications (such as Samsung's AirView suspension preview function), and the pen tilt angle can also be detected (up to 50 degrees).WALTOP is the leader in the electromagnetic pen (EM Pen) technology. Its technology patents cover sensor layout, pen movement, IC chips, etc. Lee introduced the EM pen's product composition and operation principles. The battery-free EM Module covers the sensor board, the controller or control board, and the pen itself. Among these components, the sensor board (less than 0.25 mm in thickness) is placed between the cell phone backlight panel and the back cover, the controller can be integrated onto the PCB of the mobile phone, and the pen's movements or gestures are detected through the electromagnetic wave emission method.The battery-free EM Pen is used with the 5-inch or larger mobile phone/tablet/ touch notebook markets. Besides 9mm, 7.2mm, and 5.5mm, WALTOP has also launched a 4.5mm diameter EM Pen, the thinnest EM Pen in the world. This can help to reduce the size of the mobile units by 1mm to 2mm, allowing the thicknesses of cell phones and tablets to be less than 9.0mm and 7.8mm, respectively; as well as allow mobile devices with pens to become thinner and lighter, and is bound to drive the rise of the stylus market.Ben Lee, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for WALTOP

Supported by a number of different interfaces and standards, flash memory can be custom-designed for a variety of applications. Earlier designs mostly adopted the parallel bus architecture. However, demand for lighter and thinner mobile devices has been prompting the industry to simplify flash interfaces. Serial designs have enabled smaller-size flash memory with lower pin counts, and there are even mixed NOR-NAND designs. These have helped simplify the PCB layout, reducing costs for applications targeting the embedded market. The NAND flash manufacturing process may be approaching its limits, but Macronix has demonstrated its R&D strengths with new-generation memory technologies, such as PCM and ReRAM.Macronix and the evolution of flash memory technologyMemory for today's mobile devices and embedded systems are primarily flash-based, and there are two major types: NOR and NAND. NOR is primarily used to store firmware codes that are changed less often, and NAND is primarily used to store large volumes of data frequently accessed by users. Flash memory makers have been taking part in the making of new transmission standards that can be incorporated into next-generation SoC designs. This will accelerate the development of embedded products.Gabriel Chou, Project Manager at Macronix International, was invited to this forum to introduce his company's products. Chou indicated that Macronix is a leader in ROM and flash memory: It is number one in worldwide ROM shipments, number two in worldwide serial flash shipments, and number three in worldwide NOR flash shipments.The popularity of mobile devices, with many users owning more than one, is driving flash memory growth to over 17% annually, and storage capacities have been growing exponentially, Chou noted. He illustrated the trend with the development of non-volatile memory (NVM), a sector where Macronix is an expert. From the early EEPROM with capacities measured in KB to the later NOR with capacities measured in MB, these devices were primarily meant for storing codes. But SLC/MLC/TLC NAND/ROM (and the new-generation PCM and RRAM) devices are primarily meant for data storage and their capacities have expanded to the GB level. Future 3D NAND will have capacities approaching the TB level.Flash memory interfaces: Simplicity, high efficiency, and low power consumptionChou went on to explain the evolution of the flash interfaces. Parallel NOR and NAND used to be primary type. But as the parallel design required high pin counts, the serial (or SPI bus) type later became the more favored design in order to achieve lower pin counts. However, the industry has now adopted the designs of dual and four I/O buses, and it is also looking at eight I/O buses for future applications. For storage interfaces, there are SATA and eMMC, plus the future UFS specification.Chou indicated that Macronix has seen diminishing shipments for parallel (AD-MUX or page mode) NOR and parallel NAND, and gradually rising shipments for SPI-NOR and SPI-NAND. This clearly shows that the industry is shifting to simplified designs with reduced pin counts, as well as more I/O buses and higher efficiency. The standard eMMC/UFS is expected to be the mainstream soon for 3C products with large memory capacities. As for LPDDR, Chou stated that it remains to be seen whether this interface will become popular in the future.What is worth noting is that the evolution of eMMC is actually very similar to that of SPI. That is, after the number of I/O buses has increased to eight, SPIx8 can reach a transmission speed of 1.6Gbps; and after the DDR mechanism has been added to the eMMC v5.0, it can reach HS400x8 (3.2Gbps).The mixed-type flash memory interface designEach type of memory technology (EEPROM, PCM, ROM, NOR, and NAND) has its dedicated transmission interface and controller. Manufacturers have standardized them to simplify designs and accelerate product development.However, as the NAND flash production process moves towards 2Xnm or even 1Xnm nodes, it must be supported by better controllers to provide greater stability and higher-bit error checking and correction (ECC). This enables reliable data storage.Because there are different types of memory, the trend is to provide modules with interfaces standardized through the controller.HybridFlash launched by Macronix in 2012 is based on such a concept. It integrates XtraRom, serial flash, and the controller into a single multi-chip package (MCP), and uses the eMMC or SPI interface for transmission. MCP supports embedded systems' OS, various codes and transmission interfaces. It offers flexibility and reliability, as well as competitive pricing. Currently, it is available in capacities ranging from 2Gb to 8Gb.The direction of future memory developmentMacronix has spared no effort in R&D and innovation. In 2012, 19% of its investments went to R&D. Macronix has obtained more than 5,000 patents, making it the world's number 18 IT firm in terms of patent portfolios. In various memory-related technology forums, Macronix has also outnumbered its peers in terms of papers published on floating gate, charge trapping, and NVM technologies, as well as new-generation memories such as phase change memory (PCM, co-developed with IBM) and resistive random-access memory (ReRAM). This demonstrates Macronix' expertise in the NVM field.Macronix has also developed the world's smallest vertical gate (VG) 3D NAND memory. The present 37.5nm process can stack up to eight layers of memory chips. Within the next three years, Macronix will move towards 36nm and 2Xnm in order to meet the demand for smaller mobile devices with larger capacities.Gabriel Chou, Project Manager at Macronix International