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FireWire ships its two billionth port, still not as fast as USB 3.0
The 1394 Trade Association has announced that over two billion FireWire ports have shipped worldwide, which is most impressive for a largely forgotten interface. Going forward, the Association expects to see "steady, stable growth" in 2011 as more products with FireWire S1600 go to market, though a dearth of such devices at CES makes us think you can add the word 'slow' to that projection. Given that the standard's promised 1.6 Gb/s bandwidth is less than a third of the 5 Gb/s offered by USB 3.0 (even with USB's larger overhead, 3.0 still provides a bigger pipe), and the fact that Intel may finally get on board with Superspeed, it may be awhile before FireWire celebrates another such milestone. [Image source: ScratchWorx]
FujiFilm FinePix S2500HD, S1730, S1600, and JX530 leak out
We're guessing FujiFilm planned to get official with these at or slightly before PMA next month, but a new batch of its cameras have somehow managed to leak out well beforehand, including the FinePix S2500HD, S1730, S1600 (pictured above), and JX530. All of those fall into the mid-level or "bridge camera" range, with the S2500HD filling out the high-end of the spectrum with an 18x optical zoom, mechanical image stabilization and, of course, HD video recording (720p, to be specific). That's followed closely by the similar-looking S1730 and S1600, which each pack a 15x zoom and a 12-megapixel resolution, while the compact JX530 dials things all the way back to a 5x optical zoom and some considerably more basic point-and-shoot features. Still nothing the way of prices, availability or complete specs, but those should be leaking out (officially or otherwise) in the coming weeks.
FireWire 1600 and 3200 approved by IEEE
While FireWire 800 gear is still pretty rare and we've only seen one piece of FireWire 1600 kit, the IEEE is still pushing the standard forward -- it's just approved the 1394-2008 spec, which includes both FireWire 1600 and 3200. Interestingly, the spec is fully backwards compatible with both 400 and 800 ports, but it remains to be seen which connector gets used more prevalently. We'll find out in October, when the spec is made available to manufacturers -- looks like that controversial 2010 launch of USB 3.0 just got upstaged a little, huh?[Via CrunchGear]
FireWire: over a billion ports served
Alright, so we've harshed a little bit on FireWire recently, but we've got to stop and give the venerable interconnect some love: the 1394 Trade Association says that there are now over a billion FireWire ports out there. That's quite an accomplishment, even if we're not so sure that the group's claim that "every 1394-equipped device sold now has 1 billion opportunities to connect" is the most accurate or useful way of measuring the success of the technology. Even still, growth is always a good thing, and with an estimated 15 percent expansion rate in existing markets and some new applications like in-car networking showing potential, it looks like FireWire is set to hold its own against USB and eSATA for a while longer.
Symwave demoes FireWire 1600 gear
The 1394 Trade Association is already talking up FireWire S3200, but Symwave is taking baby steps, demonstrating a 1.6Gbps system known as S1600 (shocking) that's backwards-compatible with FireWire 800 and 400 this week at a conference in China. That's great and all -- transferring 1000 four megapixel images in five seconds sure sounds like a good time -- but speeds like that probably aren't going to cut it when FireWire 800 devices are already thin on the ground, everyone's looking forward to S3200, and the 4.8Gbps USB 3.0 spec is already making appearances on schedule for a launch in 2010. Not to mention that Wireless USB 1.1's target speed is 1.0Gbps -- you know we'll take a slight speed hit if we can ditch the cables.[Via PC World; Warning: PDF read link]
Kyocera shows off new CDMA, GSM handsets at CTIA
ZTE isn't the only handset maker showing off AWS-friendly mobiles at CTIA, as Kyocera is making a similar splash with three new CDMA devices. Kicking things off is the Neo E1100, which boasts a 2.2-inch QVGA display, Bluetooth 2.0, 1.3-megapixel camera and a hidden OLED for Caller ID. Moving on, we've got the low-end Mako S400 clamshell, which touts a 1.8-inch screen, VGA camera, BT and a "large, graduated keypad." Rounding out the CDMA line is the Adreno S2400, which rocks a clamshell design, 1.8-inch LCD and a few other forgettable inclusions. Over on the GSM side, we're lookin' at the multimedia-lovin' E4600 slider, E3500 clamshell, E2500 candybar and the el cheapo S1600. Be sure and scrutinize those read links for more details on the whole lot, but don't expect to find any pricing info just yet.Read - Kyocera Wireless Reveals Stylish CDMA Handsets at CTIA Wireless 2008Read - Kyocera Wireless Makes Strategic Jump Into GSM Handset Market
