Garmin International on March 15 announced the nuvi 200, nuvi 250 and nuvi 270. This new family of entry-level GPS devices offers budget savvy consumers the benefit of a premium in-dash system at a fraction of the cost, according to Garmin.The nuvi 200-series incorporates an internal GPS antenna that makes it thinner and even easier to mount in a car, claims the company. The intuitive "where to?" and "view map" welcome screen allows users to quickly find a specific street address or establishment's name, or search for a destination by category, stated Garmin.Those familiar with the "travel kit" feature available on premium nuvis will appreciate the nuvi 200-series' built-in picture viewer, calculator, currency converter, unit converter and world clock. For additional security, Garmin has included the Garmin Lock, a patent pending theft prevention system that disables the unit from performing any functions until the user types in a specific 4-digit PIN or takes the unit to a predetermined secure location.Garmin has also added the ability for customers to augment the preloaded maps with custom points of interest (POI's) from third parties such as school zones and safety cameras. The European versions of the nuvi 200-series come preloaded with speed camera information.About the size of a deck of cards, the nuvi's features a 3.5-inch (diagonal) touchscreen. The unit's only button is an on/off slider bar, which may be locked to avoid being turned on or off accidentally. The nuvi also has a convenient SD card slot for expandable memory, stated Garmin.The nuvi 200, nuvi 250 and nuvi 270 are expected to be available in April at an manufacturer's suggested retail price of US$399.99, US$499.99 and US$599.99, respectively. The nuvi 200 includes preloaded detailed mapping of the contiguous United States (lower 48), Hawaii and Puerto Rico. The nuvi 250 has preloaded detailed mapping of the entire United States (including Alaska and Hawaii), Canada and Puerto Rico. For the ultimate ease in traveling abroad, the nuvi 270 includes preloaded detailed maps of the United States, Canada, Puerto Rico, and over 30 countries in Europe. All map data is provided by Navteq and includes approximately six million POI's.Garmin will also offer nuvi 200-series products with regional specific coverage for Europe, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico and Brazil. The regional coverage for Europe includes UK/Ireland, Nordics, Belgium/Netherlands/Luxembourg, France, Italy/Greece, Spain/Portugal, and Germany/Switzerland/Austria/Czech Republic.The Garmin nuvi 200 GPS navigation devicePhoto: CompanyFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

Micro-Star International (MSI) has been keen to show off the motherboards it will be releasing in the coming months at the ongoing CeBIT 2007 IT trade show in Hannover, Germany.The P6N Diamond combines some of the big names in enthusiast hardware; the nForce 680i – the current flagship chipset from Nvidia, and Creative's X-Fi Extreme Audio. This integrated version of the X-Fi series may lack some of the features that the add-in cards deliver, but for many the opportunity to have X-Fi onboard means lower costs and better performance than other integrated audio solutions. MSI mentioned that it has been working closely with Creative for over two years and the co-operation is working well for both parties.MSI indicated that although the P6N Diamond marks the first appearance of X-Fi on its motherboards, the company has plans to feature X-Fi on future boards too, including ones based on Intel's recently unveiled Bearlake chipset family. Regarding the numerous reports that Creative is struggling to deliver X-Fi drivers for Windows Vista, MSI revealed that Creative has recently submitted both 32- and 64-bit drivers for WHQL testing, and it expects certified drivers to be available around the time the P6N Diamond launches.In addition to its above-average onboard audio, the P6N Diamond has a few other features that make it stand out from the crowd of 680i-based boards. As with boards from other manufactures, the P6N features three x16 PCIe Express (PCIe) slots, and then adds a fourth for good measure. The four slots are paired up electrically as two x16 and two x8 and allow the P6N to support SLI plus a couple of PCIe add-in cards now, but MSI also mentioned SLI Physics and Quad-SLI will also be possible in the near future. Additionally, MSI highlighted that the RAID controller on the P6N supports hardware RAID 0 and 1 as well as RAID 5 in software.The P6N Diamond is scheduled to launch in the second quarter and will be priced around US$280.The P6N diamond freatures integrated X-Fi audio and four x16 PCI Express slotsPhoto: CompanyThe second interesting motherboard that MSI has on show at CeBIT is the P956 Neo2. This Intel 965 Express based board has been customized to support ATI Crossfire which is implemented via a PCIe x16 slot and an open ended x4 slot. This means that performance is likely to be slightly lower than boards using high-end chipsets such as the Intel 975X, but the P965 Neo2's low price tag of around US$100 is likely to appeal to many consumers.Additionally, MSI is also is set to release the P6N SLI, an nForce 650i motherboard that will launch in the second quarter priced around US$170.Also spotted were boards based on the AMD 690 chipset and boards based on an Nvidia IGP – likely to be the upcoming MCP 73 for Intel and MCP 68 for AMD. MSI commented that it is impressed with the video quality that the AMD 690 offers, and hinted that it has plans to support high-end AMD chipsets later in the year.MSI's P965 Neo2 delivers Crossfire performance at a mainstream pricePhoto: CompanyFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

Pretec will demonstrate its i-Disk RFID USB flash drive at CeBIT 2007. The company claims that the device is the smallest of its kind in the world.Pretec i-Disk RFID combines a USB flash disk and RFID technology in a small, sturdy and waterproof construction, which can be conveniently incorporated with any system in need of both digital mass storage and easy identification. With the feature of being automatically identified and data remotely retrieved when i-Disk RFID passes within the proximity of a RFID reader, the Pretec i-Disk RFID can be widely applied to variety of markets and applications such as hospitals, airports, warehouses, POS systems for access control, asset or inventory management. Measuring 45.7×12.2×2.2mm, 25% smaller in volume than a US quarter coin, the i-Disk RFID is about 1/4 of the size of a typical USB flash drive.Paper-less and easy access environment for hospital patient care can be achieved by using the Pretec i-Disk RFID as a tag (or bracelet, or necklace) functioning as an electronic portable medical health record and easy and yet secure personal identification. Fabricated using a semiconductor MCP process, the Pretec i-Disk RFID is an ideal device for floppy disk replacement, personal identification tag or rugged industrial applications. With a capacity ranging from 128MB to 1GB, the Pretec i-Disk RFID is sampling now to select customers with mass production scheduled by the second quarter of this year.Pretec i-Disk RFIDPhoto: Business WireFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

Foxconn (Hon Hai Precision Industry) is exhibiting several own brand graphic cards, motherboards, system cases and heat sinks at CeBIT, highlighting the company's goal of boosting sales of the own brand products 2007, according to sources at Foxconn.Foxconn is showcasing Windows Vista compatible motherboards using chips from AMD, Silicon Integrated System (SiS), VIA and Nvidia in the IT trade show which runs until March 21 in Hannover, Germany. One featured product is a motherboard based on Intel’s P35 chipset, which supports DDR3 memory and a front side bus speed of up to 1333MHz. Another motherboard being spotlighted is based on Intel's 975X chipset and has three PCIe x16 slots, added the sources.Foxconn's own brand graphic cards based on Nvidia chips include the GeForce 8800 and GeForce 7 series and targets the high-end market, according to sources.For complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

Biostar Microtech International announced the launch of its TF7050 AM2 motherboard, based on the Nvidia GeForce7050PV and nForce630a chipset. The motherboard comes with integrated HDMI, on-chip HDCP and High Definition Audio(HDA), according to Biostar.The on board HDMI connector is designed to meet the output protection management HDCP and security specification of the Blu-ray Disc and HD DVD formats, which allows the playback of encrypted movie content on PCs when connected to HDCP-compliant displays, according to the company.High definition audio (HDA) brings consumer electronics quality sound to the PC and deliver 192kHz/32-bit quality from eight channels, supporting the latest audio formats. The motherboard offers both HDMI and TV-Out ports to support HDMI and HDA function, according to Biostar. TF7050 AM2 specifications Item Details CPU Supports AMD Athlon 64 X2/64/Sempron Processors Chipset Nvidia GeForce7050 PV / nForce630a Socket AM2 Memory 4xDDR2 DIMM, supports up to 8GB memory Supports dual channel DDR2 533/667/800 MHz PCI-Express x16 1 PCI-Express x1 1 PCI 2 LAN PCIE GbE LAN (Realtek RTL8111B) SATAII 4 USB 2.0 10 (Front 6, Rear 4) RAID 0,1,5,0+1 Integrated Video Nvidia GeForce7050PV Max. Share Memory 256MB Integrated Audio 8+2 Channel HD Audio (Realtek ALC888) HDMI 1 TV-Out 1 Source: Company, compiled by DigiTimes.com, March 2007The Biostar TF7050 AM2 motherboardPhoto: CompanyFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

Part 1 of this article on March 15 gave details of Intel's new P35 chipset for mainstream motherboards which launched at CeBIT 2007. Today, in Part 2, the other chipsets in the Bearlake family will be covered, including a high-end version which introduces support for PCI Express 2.0 and integrated graphics processor (IGP) designs.While the P35 can be found openly shown at booths around CeBIT, the G33 – a chip with similar features but which adds integrated graphics – can only be seen behind closed doors. As with the P35 the G33 supports DDR3 and/or DDR2 memory, front side bus speeds up to 1333MHz, and is designed to support Intel's upcoming Wolfdale and Yorkfield CPUs. The G33's IGP supports DirectX 9 and is scheduled to launch in the second quarter, according to sources.Intel will expand the Bearlake family in the third quarter starting at the high-end with the X38. The successor to the current 975X Express chipset, the X38 also supports FSB speeds of 1333MHz and upcoming Wolfdale and Yorkfield CPUs, but unlike the P35 and G33 will not include legacy support for DDR2. X38-based motherboards will only support DDR3, but in the high-end market this makes sense. The X38 will also feature support for PCI Express (PCIe) 2.0 which offers double the bit-rate of current PCIe for higher bandwidth – up to 5GT/s. X38-boards will support two x16 PCIe slots, but it is unknown whether Crossfire and/or SLI will be possible due to licensing issues.Also in the third quarter, Intel is scheduled to release the G35, a chipset similar to the G33 but which features a DirectX 10 based IGP. Finally, two chipsets aimed at business platforms, the Q35 and Q33, and a value segment chip – which will not sport DDR3 or the quad-core Yorkfield CPUs – will be also be introduced under the name G31.For complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

E-Ten is previewing its latest Pocket PC phone at CeBIT 2007. The Glofiish X800, supports 3G connectivity (HSDPA/WCDMA), Windows Mobile 6 and is the first from the company to include a VGA (640×480) display. According to E-Ten, HSDPA offers always-on connectivity and speeds that are comparable to fixed-line connections such as ADSL. This translates to faster surfing and downloads and opens the door to advanced mobile services such as VoIP, streaming video, and video calling. For the latter, E-Ten includes a VGA camera to the front of the X800, which comes in addition to a 2-megapixel auto-focus camera on the back. The X800 is the first Pocket PC phone from E-Ten to feature a VGA display, which offers up to four times the resolution of previous handsets. E-Ten pointed out that the larger screen-area can increase productivity by letting users display more of their documents, calendars, messages and spreadsheets on screen at one time, while also improving mobile multimedia by allowing pictures and video to be viewed in finer detail.The X800 measures in at 113.5×60.5×15.8mm and includes what E-Ten calls all-in-one connectivity, or GSM, Wi-Fi, GPS and Bluetooth support. The X800 is scheduled to launch in the second quarter.In other news, E-Ten has revealed that it is working on ROM updates for two of its previous Pocket PC phones, the Glofiish X500 and M700, which will allow owners to upgrade their handsets to Windows Mobile 6. E-Ten said that it is planning to supply updates in several languages but could not provide exact details. The updates are expected to become available starting in May and will be delivered via download from E-Ten's website. Whether the updates will be free or carry a charge is undecided as of yet.DigiTimes.com had the exclusive opportunity to give E-Ten a quick Q&A concerning its plans and views on the industry:Q: What are your thoughts on WM6? A: It's more user friendly with a better user interface. Users always pursue new technology, and we are happy to keep up with the latest technology to satisfy demand. Q: Does E-Ten have any plans for other platforms, Linux etc.? Why/why not? A: Not at the moment. Our company has limited resources and we have chosen to focus on the WM platform. We feel that WM is currently a better platform, it is standardized and has wider support for third party applications.Q: What are your thoughts on the Apple iPhone?A: The iPhone's target users are different. They are younger and and are heavy users of MP3 and multimedia, while Glofiish users are business professionals.Q: E-Ten has been using Samsung 400MHz CPUs for a while, any plans to move to higher speed CPUs?A: Yes, we are planning to move to a higher speed Samsung CPU in a future model. Q: HTC recently announced it has signed a bundling deal with Yahoo! does E-Ten have anything similar in the pipeline?A: Yes, we will be approaching Yahoo! for a possible bundling deal.Q: What are E-Ten's plans for entering the US market? A: We are currently actively seeking partners in the US and will enter the market as soon as we finalize agreements. Glofiish X800 specifications Item Description Operating system Windows Mobile 6 Professional Processor Samsung SC3 2442 400MHz Memory 128 MB Flash ROM, 64 MB SDRAM Display 2.8-inch, 640×480 (VGA), 65,536 colors, TFT-LCD Dimensions (L×W×H) 113.5×60.5×15.8mm Camera Rear: 2-megapixel Auto-Focus CMOS camera, up to 1600×1200 Front: 0.3-megapixel Fixed-Focus CMOS Communications HSDPA / UMTS: 2100 / 1900 / 850MHz Quad-band GSM: 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900MHz GPRS class 10 / EDGE class 10 Bluetooth v2.0 class 2 + EDR (Enhanced Data Rate) Wi-Fi IEEE802.11b/g Certified GPS Embedded SiRF Star III chipset, TMC function supported (subject to region) Expansion MicroSD card slot Source: Company, compiled by DigiTimes.com, March 2007E-Ten's Glofiish X800 is the first Pocket PC phone from the company to support HSDPA and features a VGA displayPhoto: CompanyFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

"Elixir" brand DRAM modules will be the exhibition theme for memory maker Nanya Technology at the ongoing CeBIT show at Hannover, Germany during March 15-21.Nanya will exhibit new products including the latest DDR3 technology, 4GB FB-DIMMs which will fulfill high-end server needs, high density stacking UDIMMs, SODIMMs, and will live demo Elixir DDR2-1066 at the show.With its solid ties with PC OEMs, Nanya is now also extending its presence to retail customers and has a proven sales record for its Elixir-brand DRAM modules in emerging markets, especially Eastern Europe. Starting from 2004, the company has targeted its DRAM modules for system makers and channel distributors. Sales volumes reached US$20 million in 2006, representing a 258% leap on year. In order to maintain a stable relationship with customers, Nanya spokesperson and vice president of global sales and marketing Pei-lin Pai noted that the expanded capacities from its joint venture (JV) with Infineon Technologies, Intoera Memories, as well as its own 12-inch fab, which is now under construction, enable the company to extend beyond its major OEM market."Elixir Boy", the icon of Nanya's DRAM modules.Photo: CompanyNanya's CeBIT 2007 boothPhoto: CompanyFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

Intel and its partners will kick of CeBIT 2007 with the launch of Intel's Bearlake family of chipsets for desktop PCs. The new series introduces support for DDR3 memory, front side bus speeds up to 1333MHz and are designed to support Intel's upcoming 45nm-process CPUs, the Core 2 Duo (Wolfdale) and Core 2 Quad (Yorkfield).The main chipset on show is known as the P35 and is to be positioned as the successor to Intel's current 965 Express series for mainstream desktops, according to sources. Motherboards based on the P35 will be able to support FSB speeds up to 1333MHz (up from the 1066MHz of the 965) which will be required for several of the CPUs Intel is planning to launch in the second half of the year. The P35 also introduces support for DDR3 memory which is currently specified to run at up to 1066MHz, versus DDR2's 800MHz, and so offers greater memory bandwidth. DDR3 also operates at just 1.5V compared to DRR2's 1.8V.Supplies of DDR3 are, however, currently low and prices relatively high, which does not match the mainstream position of the P35. For this reason Intel has also designed the P35 with optional legacy support for DDR2 which motherboard makers can choose to implement is several ways: cutting-edge boards that only support DDR3 but which increase system costs because new, expensive RAM needs to be bought; legacy boards that support DDR2, but not DDR3, allowing users to take advantage of the abundance of DDR2 now, but may be limited in the future when DDR3 becomes more common; and so-called "combo" or "hybrid" boards which support both DDR3 and DDR2, but not at the same time, meaning that consumers can save some money by using DDR2 now and upgrade to DDR3 later, but the system is limited to only two DIMMs at a time compared to the four that are available in the other implementations.Several Taiwan-based motherboard makers will be showing P35-based boards at CeBIT. Micro-Star International (MSI) will display a total of six boards, one pure DDR3, two hybrid-boards, which will target high- and mid-range markets, two pure DDR2 boards, again for the high- and mid-range segments, and finally an mATX-board. ECS will be showing a hybrid-board which will be released as the P35T-A. Also Gigabyte United, which has recently gained a reputation for having some of the most overclockable motherboards in the 965 range will be hoping to do it again with its P35 series.P35-based motherboards are expected to be available in April or May.Continue to Part 2 for details of other chipsets in the Bearlake range – not on show at CeBIT – which are set to launch in the second half of 2007.For complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.

During the ongoing CeBIT show in Hannover, Germany (March 15-21), Samsung Electronics is introducing a 30-inch LCD monitor that incorporates an LED as the backlight source. Featuring a 123% color production, the SyncMaster XL30 expresses Adobe RGB color range allows pictures taken with DSLR cameras to transmit emerald green, dark red and other natural colors onto the monitor in their true form. Other features include a 3,000:1 dynamic contrast ratio, a 2ms response time and a viewing angle of 170 degrees. The monitor will come equipped with "Eyeone Design & Eyeone Photo" and "Natural Color Expert" software. The "Natural Color Expert" program will allow users to enjoy custom-made features of gamma, color temperature and white balance. The settings can be set to Adobe RGB as well as sRGB so that users can operate on the color ranges of their choices. Various input terminals such as USB terminal, DVI-D are available and the 30-inch monitor also features HDCP (high bandwidth digital content protection) for viewing high-definition (HD) contents via DVI ports. At the show, Samsung is also launching a 19-inch LCD monitor (SyncMaster 940UX) that can be connected with monitors using only an USB port. The new concept monitor with SXGA (1,280x1,024) resolution makes multi-display significantly easier, as it can be expanded to six monitors using only an USB port without having to add graphic card. The monitor's built-in DVI, D-sub input ports and USB 2.0 hubs facilitate connectivity with other devices and enhances its functionality. Samsung launched a 20.1-inch LED backlight unit (BLU) in 2006. However, the adoption of the LED BLUs in LCD monitors was commercialized due to a lack of price competitiveness and technical limitations, said Samsung. Samsung 30-inch LED-based monitor Photo: Company Samsung 19-inch LCD monitorPhoto: Company Samsung showcases full range of new LCD montiors at CeBIT 2007Photo: CompanyFor complete DigiTimes coverage of CeBIT 2007 go here.