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The WAVE Report on Digital Media
3D --- Media Creation --- Shared Space ---Published by 4th Wave, Inc.--- Issue #0516------------------4/22/05 |
The WAVE Report is Searchable on
http://www.3dlinks.com
http://www.wave-report.com
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0516.2 Technology Employment
Quarterly Study by 4Jobs.com Breaks Down Top Jobs Per State and Sector
0516.3 Simulator Developments
0516.4 Technology Economics
Tech Prices Fall in February According to Latest NPD Consumer Electronics Price Watch Results
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0516.1 Story of the Issue
***CeBIT 2005
By John Latta
Hannover, Germany
March 10 – 12, 2005
Our first day of attendance was the 2nd day of CeBIT. It seemed muted. The weather was terrible and the crowds not nearly as large in the past. We did note some trends in our coverage of the pavement.
Companies from China are here like never before. They are challenging Taiwan in presence but still have a way to go here.
MP3 and Media players are everywhere. The impact of iPOD has created a 1,000 imitators.
Sightings Around CeBIT
We cannot help but wonder if CeBIT is getting old. Yes, there are the big exhibit halls full of big companies but the other halls are not as busy. One of the halls was half filled and the empty section blocked off. One exhibitor made comments on how dead it is. One year does not stop an event but the trend determines its future.
Last year we saw quite a bit of electronic pen activity. This year, it is like the pen died. We have only found two pens. The V 1 of the Anoto pen under glass in the Nokia booth and the Logitech IO2. Siemens had a pen demo last year and not a pen in sight this year. It may be early to pronounce the pen RIP but the trend line is certainly downward in terms of CeBIT activity.
If the pen is near death, the Bluetooth headset is just the opposite. We would not be surprised if there were 50 booths with Bluetooth headsets. We even saw a company from China selling them and this is a reflection of the increased activity of Chinese companies here at CeBIT.
Logitech Drives Innovation Message at CeBIT with Many New Products
One could only come away impressed with the steamroller that Logitech runs. This was reflected in its announcements.
Laser Mouse Bundle
The MX1000 Cordless Laser Mouse is now available with a cordless keyboard in Europe which is called the Logitech Cordless Desktop MX 3100. This is available now for £89.99.
Mouse for Gaming
Logitech announced the MX518 Gaming-Grade Optical Mouse which puts quick-shift controls at gamers’ fingertips. The mouse engine provides the ability to process 5.8 megapixels per second – achieving an acceleration of 15 g. However, in combat, higher resolution is not always better. With a click of a button, one can now shift to a lower-resolution setting that gives them more precision. This MX optical engine uses a 16-bit format to send data enabling the mouse to transmit 8,000 bits of information per second. Logitech SetPoint software allows one to program as many as five levels of resolution, ranging from 400 dpi to 1600 dpi. The mouse features a total of eight buttons, including left and right key plates, which can be set to represent different commands using the SetPoint software.
The Logitech MX518 mouse will be available at U.S. and European retailers and online from April. The suggested retail price for the product is £44.99.
MediaLife Changes the Role of Control Devices and the Display
Logitech is bundling MediaLife software with select desktop products.
MediaLife has the ability to hide the multi-step process of media control from the consumer, delivering instead a simple, intuitive way to experience digital music, videos and photos. MediaLife ties digital media control directly to buttons present on many Logitech keyboards and mice. And it removes steps involved in simple tasks, such as playing digital music or viewing images and video clips, by providing a unified interface that’s easy to understand and navigate.
Logitech MediaLife supports a large, full-screen interface which lets consumers sit back, relax, enjoy, and control their media, whether they are sitting at their desk or across the room.
The Logitech SetPoint software provides the ability to reassign the media controls on all mice and keyboards to an application other than MediaLife. The simple, intuitive interface allows users either to select from a list of specific supported applications (including MusicMatch, iTunes, Windows Media Player, and WinAmp) or to browse to select a different media application. Similar features throughout SetPoint provide complete flexibility to personalize the digital media experience according to individual tastes and needs.
The WAVE got a demo of Media Life. It supports DVD, Audio and images on the PC display. The menu screen was simple on the PC and this was all controlled by a mouse with media functionality. One might label this a low cost media PC which uses the existing PC capabilities including a mouse. It is just plain cute to see the mouse picked up and morph into a Media Life controller.
PC Headsets
Logitech announced 3 PC headsets: the Logitech Premium USB Headset 350, the Logitech Stereo USB Headset 250 and the Logitech Premium Stereo. These are designed to minimize outside noise by providing a sealed, comfortable fit to the ear. Each headset features 40 mm neodymium drivers to deliver clear audio. To optimize the microphone performance, the chamber was engineered to include directional filters, allowing sound to enter only from the mouth. This design minimizes background noises. The Logitech Stereo USB Headset 250 will be available online and on retail shelves in the U.S from April and in Europe from March at a suggested retail price of £39.99. The Logitech Premium USB Headset 350 will be available on retail shelves and online in the U.S. and Europe from April. Its suggested retail price in Europe is £49.99. Finally the Logitech Premium Stereo Headset will be available on retail shelves and online in the U.S. and Europe from April. Its suggested retail price in Europe is £19.99.
Harmony for HDTV
The Harmony 885 was announced in support of high-definition TVs and personal video recorders (PVRs). It is expected to be available beginning in April in North America and May in Europe. The suggested retail price is expected to be £179.99 in Europe.
Speakers for iPOD
Logitech announced mm22 portable speakers which will create high-quality sound for iPod users. The ID is excellent. Prices are to be announced.
Second Generation Cordless Controller without Bluetooth
Logitech showed the Cordless 2.4 GHz Presenter has a timer, displayed on a 1-by-1/2-inch LCD, is large enough to see with a quick glance – and it provides vibration feedback when there are five and two minutes left on the timer. The keys are claimed to allow control while still looking at the audience.
VideoCam Milestone
Logitech has sold more than 25 million webcams worldwide, more than any other company. It has shipped approximately 37 percent of the world’s supply of webcams since 1998.
Notebook Webcams
Two webcams were announced for the notebook: QuickCam for Notebooks Deluxe webcam and the QuickCam for Notebooks. Both webcams include VGA CMOS sensors. The Deluxe version will operate in low light conditions. The QuickCam for Notebooks Deluxe webcam will be available in the U.S. from April, and in Europe in May for a suggested retail price of £39.99. The QuickCam for Notebooks webcam will also be available in the U.S. in April, and in Europe in May for a suggested retail price of £29.99.
Video for the Business
Logitech ViewPort AV 100 focused on video communications to the workplace PC. This combines a Logitech video camera, an integrated microphone with acoustic echo cancellation, and a Bluetooth wireless headset into a single product. Polycom is a preferred provider of solutions for the ViewPort AV 100. Logitech is marketing the ViewPort AV 100 with Polycom’s PVX software video conferencing solution through select distributors and value added resellers to enterprise customers. Logitech is also working with RADVISION and VCON to deliver video conferencing solutions using ViewPort AV 100.
Creating a Game Wheel for a Specific PS2 Game
In support of Polyphony Digital’s Gran Turismo 4, Logitech will release Driving Force Pro wheel for the PlayStation2. This product has 900 Degrees of rotation, a simulation of rack and pinion steering system, and force feedback. It is available now for £99.99.
Products for the Sony PSP
The PSP products open the product line of PlayGear accessories. This includes PlayGear Pocket case to protect the PSP which uses a polycarbonate shell. The Logitech PlayGear Pocket case will be available online and on retail shelves in the U.S. from April and in Europe from May. Price to be confirmed. Another is PlayGear Stealth earphones. This will be available on retail shelves and online in the U.S. in April and in Europe in June. Price to be confirmed. PlayGear Amp portable speakers will be available in the U.S. from June and in Europe from July. Price to be confirmed. Finally PlayGear Share audio splitter which creates a pair of open 3.5 mm ports, allowing friends to use two sets of headphones or speakers simultaneously on one PSP device. This will be available on retail shelves and online in the U.S. from May and in Europe from June. Price to be confirmed.
Pen Upgraded with Bluetooth – No longer a consumer product
Logitech will offer business solution providers a Bluetooth wireless technology enabled version of the io2 Digital Pen, beginning in Summer 2005. Subsequently, it will be marketed as part of custom mobile workforce solutions through solution provider channels.
A4Tech Wireless Optical Mouse without Batteries
It looked strange – there was this big crowd in a mouse booth. This was the A4Tech that we have seen many times before. This time they had a simple game smashing an inflated battery mockup. The theme was an optical mouse which uses no battery. Impressive. It runs on a RFID mouse pad which is powered and the mouse lights up. They state that it uses RFID for induction to power the mouse. That is the only detail which was available. The box claims auto-execute in Word, Excel and ACDsee and more. Seems far fetched but it works. I bought one for 20 euros. This product deserves a close look.
HSDPA – What to do with all that Bandwidth?
Buried in the back of the Vodafone booth was a demonstration of High Speed Downlink Packet Access (HSDPA) on two notebooks. Booth conversation netted the following:
Initial network rollout in early 2006;
Very stable system;
Easy to upgrade from UMTS – software upgrade in the base stations;
The first service will be via a PC Card in notebooks.
WAVE Comment
Increasingly as the WAVE probes, the more solid HSDPA looks. Already Cingluar Wireless has completed a trial in Atlanta but here in Europe the talk is about deployments. Vodafone ran its trial in New Zealand.
The key to the development of this market is pricing. The operators have shown the inclination to price based on speed or bandwidth and at small chunks of “data.” HSDPA opens a whole new opportunity space and NO it is not the triple play as we heard at 3GSM. HSDPA provides any place any speed (or just about) networking. We have seen indications that the operators are ready to hop on the “always connected low cost notebook” opportunity as a means to lock in service plans and revenue stream. As we found at Vodafone there is a hint they are planning on such an offer. But more importantly the viability of this as a network connection option will be determined by what the operators charge for it. HSDPA could break the back of the WiFi hot spots if the pricing is modest – especially with fixed price plans.
First market entry will likely be automobiles in the form of moving networks. In this environment voice recognition and voice feedback could play a critical role to avoid safety issues. But the market could rapidly move to notebooks as a PC Card and then embedded. This could radically change the role of the PC and mobility in the same way that cell phones did for telephony. Note that WiFi, the notion of a hot spot with very limited coverage held hostage buy the venue owner and with NO mobility, is a failure in comparison. The keys to the potential success of HSDPA are seamless roaming and price. Let’s hope the carriers get it. Recall from our 3GSM report.
Marco de Benedetti, CEO of TIM (mobile of telecom Italia) said it well with the sound bite:
In our first 10 years we cut the wire to the phone
In our second 10 years we cut the wire to the PC
He is right on. The consequences could be huge.
Looking for HSDPA Terminals
If HSDPA is around the corner we should be able to find cell phones. At 3GSM we found a PC Card from Sierra Wireless and in the Vodafone booth here at CeBIT we found another one in notebooks as described in yesterdays report. Consistent with the comments at 3GSM that there is a shortage of terminals we found nothing for HSDPA. It could be too early but here is where we tapped.
Nokia
Nothing - too early
Samsung
Nothing
NEC
They had HSDPA cell station equipment in the booth but there were no terminals. A comment was made – NTT DoCoMo will be first in the race to deploy HSDPA and thus terminals will surface in Japan first.
Siemens
Siemens has the Gagaset product line. Basically this is leveraging broadband in the home including VoIP. They showed wireless routers, gateways and phones, Siemens had very well designed VoIP phones that looked similar to the cordless phones which have become common in homes. When I asked about where is HSDPA the response was a clear no. It was also stated that when HSDPA is out this changes everything in the home, i.e., WLL is a reality. This assessment is also consistent with the Novatel’s Wireless Ovation at 3GSM.
BMW Connected Drive
The booth was packed. BMW was showing its telematics solution that looks much like OnStar but it was deeper than that. The functionality included:
A BMWOnline e-mail account and the e-mails can be answered in the car.
Uploading of personal addresses to be integrated into the navigation system.
A monthly service to monitor the status of parking garages to know which ones have space while the driver is looking for a parking location.
LBS including an online Michelin guide access and the ability to transfer content to the car and cell phone in the car.
News information.
Stock and exchange prices.
Stolen vehicle tracking and reporting
This is getting there.
Smart Clothing/Wearables
All the signs are there. We saw it at the Wearable Computing conference and now this space is at the earliest stage. Consider the following examples.
Rosner|Touch|mp3 blue
A coat with mp3 built in. Includes microphone, mp3 module with 125MB of storage, Bluetooth and Sennheiser headset. Textile control panel for the player and phone control. Can be connected to a PC by a USB cable. Easily washable after removal of the mp3 module.
Adidas Intelligent Shoe
The Adidas 1 has adaptive damping which automatically adapts to each running situation. A magnetic sensor and microprocessor calculates the damping for each surface. There is a motor operated cable system to adjust the damping. The magnetic sensor is located in the heel and the magnet in the mid-sole. With each strike the shoe measures the compression of the heel. Software in the shoe compares the damping with a pre-set range of performance.
Navman
Sport.Tool X300 which is a small stylish unit that straps to the upper arm. It tells you at a glance how fast you’re moving and how far you’ve come, using (GPS) accuracy. Additional information is available which is collected by the unit. There are 5 models for use in sports such as skiing, running, rollerblading or cycling.
eleksen Exposes Clothing Business
Known for the Logitech foldable keyboard for the Palm, eleksen has been in the smart clothing business for some time. Yes, the Logitech product had a connector built in and thus forced its obsolesce when the Palm product went out of date. But the company confirmed that the smart clothing business is just now taking off. One product in the booth impressed us – a flexible Bluetooth Keyboard. This would allow anyone to type into a PDA or cell phone. One only has to pull the keyboard out, lay it down and begin typing – impressive. It has also done designs for audio/automotive controls in backpacks and bags, sports jackets and Rosner mp3blue jacket discussed yesterday. Another design is a control in the carrying case of an audio player. One only has to stroke the outside of the case and it plays and adjusts the volume. There is a flexible speaker in the lid of the carrying case also. The business model at eleksen is to sell designs with their clothing type. They have a facility in China making the clothing which can be implemented to suit.
FogScreen Display
This was discussed in a booth at IST but now we saw it at CeBIT. It is uncanny. A display, FogScreen Inia, which is embedded in a sheet of fog that falls to the floor. It is a display that one can walk through and even interact with. A new Swedish company was using it to promote their Bluetooth headset products – the problem was everyone was watching the display.
Product Abundance in the PCC category
The WAVE saw this trend at PMA and these Personal Content Centers (PCC), our name, were all over CeBIT. We estimate 25 -40 booths with these products. Here is a sample of what stood out.
OLED PCC – Striking
Neosol of Korea called it a PMP, Personal Media Player, the CP-2210 to be precise. It is loaded:
Build In TV
Video En/De – Coding – MPEG4, AVI, ASF, WMV9 SP
Audio En/De – Coding – ADPCM, MP#, G.72S, WMA9
Electronic Album JPG
Direct TV/AV recording
Voice Recorder
e-Book
HDD 5BG
Playlist
OLED Display from KodakFOB $300, Available Now.
Multimedia Player
Telefield of Hong Kong has the MP-I in the booth. It
was also full of features.MPEG-4 Out
MP3 Out
Photo Album
Audio recorder
Video recorder
USB hard disk – 20GB
USB 2.0
Media File Management$280 FOB Hong Kong.
iriver – Booth always packed
The model numbers are PMP140 and PMP120 for Portable Media Player of 20GB and 40GB size. The features include:
3.5’’ display with 260,000 colours
Audio formats supported: MP3, WMA, ASF and WAV
Video formats supported: AVI in MPEG4, DicX and Xvid
Ability to view video, e-books and photographs
USB 2.0 and USB on-the-go
External microphone to connect to the line-in
3.5 mm stereo minijack to minijack lead to connect to external audio sources or speakers
TV out lead: 3.5 mm minijack to cinch video and audio (L+R) stereo
USB lead for data transfer
USB adapter to connect to external devices such as digital camerasRetail pricing is PMP140, 40 GB: £449, PMP120, 20 GB:
£399.
Fraunhofer Shows 3D Technology
The Free2C 3D Kiosk is a good looking kiosk like form factor on a desk surface. There is a vertical display surface and keyboard. But buried in this are two technologies which make the 3D display one of the more natural autostereoscopic ones we have seen. At the top of the display are two cameras which track the eyes. This allows the 3D display, along the horizontal axis, to form the image to just fit within the position of the eyes. As one moves one’s head, the display follows the view space. Second, below the surface of the display is a camera which is on the surface of the table. This images one’s hands as they point to the display. Hand gestures can then be used to interact with the displayed object. The display is 21.3” and 1660 X 1200 and mounted vertically.
It is called a VR Object Display but the designer calls it an inverted VR Cave. The design is based on a walk around cylinder similar to a bill board which is common in Europe. One wears a set of glasses and the object remains fixed as one walks around the cylinder – about 5’ in diameter. The image quality is quite good. The technique used to create the 3D is based on color twining. That is, each of the primary colors have two components – 2 slightly displaced red and the same for blue and green. This is done at the projector with a filter and the inverse filter is used in the glasses. The color quality was excellent along with the textures applied to create the 3D object.
WAVE Comments
Many issues came to clarity at CeBIT. Now in the 5th year of coverage, we saw CeBIT in a different light.
World wide manufacturing was evident all over the floor. But specifically the Chinese companies were much more aggressive as they seek to displace the Taiwanese. Here at CeBIT we saw more Chinese companies that at any prior event. The process has been underway for many years but it was blatant. This makes possible the disaggregation of manufacturing from product design and development. Because of the gross oversupply of companies willing to do manufacturing there is intense competition and low margins in manufacturing. In the past investment in manufacturing was a competitive advantage in the electronics industry. Now it is a huge investment boat anchor.
The key to a chance to win in the market is velocity. That is, the speed with which products can get to market, changed by the market and exit the market when the profit value has expired. The manufacturing base has made this possible because companies are so aggressive in seeking business they have become able to rapidly turn designs and production. It is a self feed frenzy which has only increased the velocity.
The market is crying for solutions and most are ignored. At the WAVE, we have written about this many times. For example, finding innovative and viable uses for broadband is one. It was with great disappointment that we heard the cellular industry claim, at 3GSM, that the triple play was the next great opportunity for the cell phone industry. Absurd.
How to make life easier to live? No one addresses this. If one reads press releases and watched product flow the growth markets are about having more fun – it is music and games. But this is only a small part of life.
If there is one positive tick on the radar screen it is the robotic vacuum cleaner. Much more remains but this is a positive sign.
***Quarterly Study by 4Jobs.com Breaks Down Top Jobs Per State and Sector
PHILADELPHIA, PA
April 19, 2005
Jobs in IT, engineering/architecture, and accounting/finance represent nearly 50% of all employment postings—according to a study by the 4Jobs.com Career Network, an online network that powers over 6,000 employment sites.
IT jobs represent nearly 20% of the online job posting market, engineering/architecture positions constituting 17%, and accounting/finance job postings totaling 10%, according to statistics based upon traffic to the 4Jobs.com’s website during Q1 of 2005. Statistics are based upon information collected over a six month period, based on a quarterly breakdown.
Here are some more results from the 4Jobs.com Career Trends Q1 2005 Study*:
• IT is the dominant sector for both online employment postings and resume postings.
• As a percentage of healthcare and medical job postings continue to decline, the percentage of resume postings in those areas showed increased growth.
• Merchandising, purchasing and retail declined sharply in the first quarter of 2005.
• Washington D.C., Connecticut, Delaware, New Jersey and California have the largest percentage of online employment postings per capita over the last three quarters.
• Nevada ranked tops for healthcare and medical jobs, while Idaho ranked #1 in construction, social services, insurance and repair.
• Internet job searching peaked on Mondays between 1 – 2 p.m. EST, with Sunday peak activity occurred at 8 p.m. EST.
***InterSense receives new orders from Link Simulation and Training for additional Helmet Tracking Systems
BEDFORD, MA
April 19, 2005
InterSense, Inc., has received additional orders from Link Simulation and Training to deliver helmet tracking systems required by flight simulator programs for the U.S. Air Force, Air National Guard, U.S. Army, and Army National Guard. The new orders support Link's contracts for the U.S. Air Force and Air National Guard F-16s on the U.S. Air Force F-16 Aircrew Training Devices (ATD) Program; the U.S. Army Flight School XXI Simulation Services contract; and additional systems for the U.S. Army and Army National Guard AVCATT Program.
The F-16 ATD program uses Link's SimuSphere 360 degree display system with the InterSense IS-900 tracking system seamlessly integrated into the base of the SimuSphere display. InterSense's helmet tracking assures that the pilot maintains correct head position for viewing the F-16's Heads Up Display (HUD) during normal operations. The F-16 ATD program adds in nighttime flight training using tracked, simulated night vision goggles (NVGs). In the F-16 ATD program, precision helmet tracking enables Link's image generators to render realistic image information to the simulated NVG in synchronization with both the pilot's head and the aircraft flight motion. For F-16 ATD simulators, a standard InterSense MiniTrax Helmet Tracker is mounted to the pilot's helmet. These simulators are currently being installed at U.S. Air Force bases worldwide.
The Flight School XXI Simulation Services program trains U.S. Army active, reserve, and National Guard aircrews operating the Army's UH-60A/L Black Hawk, CH-47D Chinook, AH-64 Apache, AH-64D Apache Longbow, and OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter platforms. The training system utilizes InterSense's IS-900 technology with a custom helmet mounted tracker, initially developed to support the U.S. Army's AVCATT program. Initial installations for the Army Aviation Center at Fort Rucker, AL occurred in March, with additional installations continuing through September 2008.
Link also placed additional orders to support new deliveries for the U.S. Army and National Guard AVCATT Program. The AVCATT Program uses InterSense's IS-900 tracking system in all of its mobile, reconfigurable, rotary wing, simulator trailers. Delivery of the tracking systems to support Link's AVCATT system production will take place this year.
Introduced in 1999, InterSense's IS-900 motion tracking product family is an enabling technology used in flight simulation, mission training systems, oil & gas exploration, and other immersive display applications. With over 1000 systems deployed worldwide, the IS-900 product offers reliable & accurate motion tracking for the most demanding applications.
***Tech Prices Fall in February According to Latest NPD Consumer Electronics Price Watch Results
PORT WASHINGTON, N.Y.
April 19, 2005
Tech prices continued to see declines during the month of February as US retail prices for consumer electronics dropped 4 percent from January levels, according to the latest NPD Consumer Electronics Price Watch, a monthly pricing monitor from The NPD Group.
Unpredictable price change has returned to the US consumer technology markets after two straight months of firming sequential prices. While retail prices were down 4 percent off of January's slight downward tick, comparison prices fell less than one percent in February 2004 and 1.5 percent in February 2003, when comparing them with January levels. The 2005 sequential price decline was the sharpest since May 2003. As of February 2005, the NPD Price Watch basket of 27 consumer electronics goods stood at an aggregate total of $10,397, down 22 percent from February 2004, and 39 percent (over $6,500) from where the basket of goods was priced in January 2003.
Categories seeing the most significant price declines during the month of February included home theater systems (down 19 percent), three mega-pixel digital cameras (down eight percent), 20-inch LCD TVs and 17-inch LCD PC monitors, (both down seven percent) and 15-inch PC notebooks (down five percent).
Increases were seen in the flash and USB memory market, where pricing for 128MB memory modules stabilized in early 2005. The entry-level modules offered within the category, and some other PC peripheral markets such as keyboards and hard drives, where product mix shifts away from promotionally oriented merchandise, helped solidify pricing.
About the NPD Consumer Electronics Price Watch
The NPD Consumer Electronics Price Watch is based on 27 of the best-selling product categories in the consumer electronics space, which includes a cross-section of the products people buy and is made up of a "market basket" of the most frequently purchased electronic products, including televisions, PCs, cameras and media players.
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