Sony slips out second generation TransferJet chip, partners begin to take notice
Bless its heart. Regardless of how loudly consumers yell, Sony can't seem to understand that creating proprietary formats that no other company has any interest in adopting isn't the brightest of ideas. The eventual fates of UMD, ATRAC, MiniDisc and countless others are proof of the outfit's ignorance, but somehow or another, it seem as if TransferJet has a modicum of a chance to gain some traction. Nearly a year after outing its first generation TransferJet chip, Sony is using CEATEC to spring its second generation one into action. From what we can tell, the primary addition to this chip is its native compatibility with USB 2.0 and PCI Express, with hardware and software improvements credited with an effective data transmission boost to somewhere north of 300Mbps. Potentially more interesting, however, is the lower power draw, which could lead to TransferJet embeds within smartphones, tablets, netbooks and other low-cost mobile computers. Across the pond(s) in Tokyo, Toshiba has been caught showing off a TransferJet SD card that could allow a potentially wider swath of devices to support Sony's wireless protocol, although the hardware typically has to be designed specifically to not interfere with the chip's ultra short-range transmissions, and software drivers have to be built as well -- not even all of Sony's new Cyber-shots support its existing TransferJet Memory Stick. We'll be digging for more details (ship date, price, etc.) just as soon as we can.
