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Intel says Light Peak coming next year, can and will coexist with USB 3.0
How do you sell a generation of hardware manufacturers on yet another standard? If you're Intel, you tell them that it'll transfer files at 10Gbps and is compatible with every major protocol that came before... and if that doesn't work, you simply fail to give your competitor hardware support. But PC World reports that while Intel is still dragging its feet regarding USB 3.0, it's planning to have Light Peak fiber optic devices in the market next year. Intel insists Light Peak isn't meant to replace USB, in so much as it can use the same ports and protocols (photographic evidence above), but at the same time it's not shying away from the possibility of obliterating its copper competition with beams of light. "In some sense we'd... like to build the last cable you'll ever need," said Intel's Kevin Kahn. Now, we're not going to rag on Light Peak, because we honestly love the idea of consolidated fiber optic connectivity. We just want to know now whether we should bother locking ourselves into a USB 3.0 ecosystem if better things are just around the corner.
DisplayPort 1.2 receives final VESA blessing, grows into a real standard
VESA might've been a bit tardy with finalizing it, but DisplayPort v1.2 is now all official and it comes with an impressive tally of numbers to get your attention. Doubling the data throughput of v1.1a (from 10.8Gbps to 21.6Gbps), the latest version will be able to support multiple monitors via only a single output cable, allowing you to daisy-chain up to four 1920 x 1200 monitors, for example. It can also perform bi-directional data transfer, which will permit USB hubs, webcams, and touchscreen panels integrated into displays to communicate over the same cable as the video signal. Backwards compatibility with older peripherals is assured, but you'll naturally need a v1.2-capable computer to exploit all this newfound goodness. You'll find the full PR after the break.
Magic: The Gathering Tactics to have PC/PS3 connectivity
Relations between Sony Online Entertainment's John Smedley and the guys from Penny Arcade have clearly improved since the Donut Debacle of 2006. Smedley recently took a moment to talk to Jerry "Tycho" Holkins about Magic: The Gathering Tactics, revealing a few savory tidbits about the title -- the most delightful of which being the fact that the PS3 and PC versions of the game will be interconnected, allowing a player to use his account (and all his meticulously crafted decks) on both platforms. Basically, if you've got a laptop, a PS3 and an unslakable hunger for thin, rectangular artifacts imbued with immeasurable power, then your social life and work ethic are about to be assaulted on all sides. Good luck with that!
NVIDIA confirms Intel chipsets won't support USB 3.0 until 2011
What was once an unverifiable rumor from an anonymous source has now, sadly, become a confirmed fact. Intel won't be integrating USB 3.0 support into its chipsets until at least 2011. Motherboard makers such as ASUS can still opt to add discrete 3.0 controllers at an extra cost, but Intel -- already accused of dragging its heels on the standard's development -- won't be. NVIDIA spokesman Brian Burke has expressed, in no uncertain terms, his company's disappointment with Intel, while also claiming that chipsets by NVIDIA are more feature-rich and just plain better than Intel's own efforts. We'll add this to our ever-growing collection of things NVIDIA doesn't like about Intel, but we also hope that the immature outburst doesn't obscure the real issue. NVIDIA is correct in noting that Intel needs competition in the chipset space, and the new interconnect's dependence on Intel's whims demonstrates the market-altering powers that reside in Santa Clara, CA. Unless another chipmaker gets serious about competing with Intel, we could face plenty more of these seemingly arbitrary delays in tech rollouts.
USB 3.0 held back by lack of Intel chipset support?
Ruh roh. A senior tech manager at a "top tier PC maker" has come out with some entirely unofficial and equally ominous thoughts on what he (or she) sees as the tough road to proliferation for SuperSpeed USB. Pointing out that the new interconnect "won't get real traction until it gets integrated in the chip sets," the source opines that Intel won't be offering motherboard integration before 2011 -- an assertion Intel has declined to comment on. AMD and NVIDIA have been vocal critics of what they see as purposeful delays by the Pentium maker, and if this latest scuttlebutt is accurate, their wild finger-pointing will have been at least somewhat vindicated. Although Intel did release the 3.0 controller spec eventually, this wouldn't be the first (or probably last) time when it has been seen to drag its feet where doing so is in its interest (eh hem, Light Peak). For our money, plenty of people who've been waiting for the new standard to show up in machines before pulling the trigger on an upgrade will be disappointed by such news, especially as 3.0 devices are just beginning to ship. [Thanks, Jacob]
Intel unveils Light Peak 10Gbps optical interconnect for mobile devices
USB 3.0 might be one of the big stories here at IDF, but Intel just showed off a glimpse of the future: Light Peak, an optical interconnect for mobile devices that can run as fast as 10Gbps. That's fast enough to do everything from storage to displays to networking, and it can maintain those speeds over 100-meter runs, which is pretty astounding. Intel says the idea is to drastically reduce the number of connectors on mobile devices, which should allow them to get even smaller -- but the demo was on a huge Frankenrig, so don't expect to see Light Peak devices shipping any time soon.Update: We just snapped a quick pic of the connector -- it's a connector, that's for sure. Check it after the break.
Gennum develops in-wire technology for 100-foot DisplayPort cables
Now that DisplayPort is becoming more of a household name (like it or not), we're thrilled to see someone making sure we can run an external monitor from more than a stone's throw away. Gennum has stepped in with its ActiveConnect DisplayPort solution, which embeds a small semiconductor within a DisplayPort cable to actively push signals up to 30-meters (around 100-feet) without the need for a costly, cumbersome extender box. There's no word yet on which interconnect companies have signed on to produce these sophisticated strands, but we'd expect to hear more by the time CES 2009 gets underway. Full release is after the break.
Ask Engadget HD: Which cable / interconnect brand should I rely on?
We've heard this question so many times that we've taken for granted the answer, but given the recent increase in competition in the cable market, we figured we'd pass along Josiah's question on the matter: "I'm not going to pay hundreds of dollars for those cables sold in Best Buy and Circuit City, but I want the best possible audio and video quality. I've got a pretty basic setup, and I just need a few HDMI cables, a set of component cables and a few optical audio cables. Where would I go to get the best for my money? Is there a particular brand I should look for? What has worked out for your readers?" Unload your experiences with cables -- however expensive (or cheap) -- below, and be sure to elaborate on which brand / store / etc. you found to be the best for the price. Oh, and make no mention of Furutech, we're trying to keep the cost-per-cable under a grand.Got a burning question that you'd love to toss out for Engadget HD (or its readers) to take a look at? Tired of Google's blank stares when you ask for real-world experiences? Hit us up at ask at engadgethd dawt com and keep an eye on this space -- your inquiry could be next.
Japan Communications launches new MVNO with hardware freedom
Japanese MVNOs aren't exactly novel concepts, but Japan Communications has an angle for its new virtual network that most don't: an interconnect agreement. The deal with provider NTT DoCoMo differentiates it with so-called wholesale MVNOs in that these guys will actually own some of their own infrastructure to hook into the network, which in turn gives them the freedom to offer whatever hardware they choose without NTT's explicit permission to do so. They're really playing up that angle, too, coming out of the gate swinging with a ZTE-sourced broadband dongle -- not exactly the stuff of handset dreams, but they're looking to offer a who's-who of smartphone wares in the future, culminating with a possibly Android offering down the road. Theoretically, that could end up making Japan Communications the first Japanese carrier with an Android set in its midst, but with NTT DoCoMo a charter member of the Open Handset Alliance, the odds are pretty slim.[Via IntoMobile, image via ITpro]
Honeywell offers Crystal series subwoofer cable
Okay, it's not "self-healing" or anything like that, but Honeywell has added subwoofer interconnects to its Crystal Series of HT cabling products. Subwoofer cables are pretty standard fare, but we've got to give credit to Honeywell for not over-inflating the marketing hype. With the low bandwidth requirements and run lengths that tend to be on the long side (and often next to power cords), shielding is probably the most important design consideration for subwoofer interconnects; and true to form, that's exactly what the press blurb emphasizes. The 100-percent foil shield combined with a 95-percent tinned copper braid should do a good job of keeping the hum out. The cables come complete with the requisite 24-karat gold plated RCA terminations in 5- and 10-meter lengths. No info on pricing -- hopefully the lack of marketing hype around the product nets some savings at the register.
