Samsung plots ultra-wideband WLAN

Samsung has announced it will develop wireless connectivity products based on ultra-wideband (UWB) technology. The South Korean chipmaker will collaborate with US-based Staccato Communications for the UWB know-how. Samsung will contribute its semiconductor development expertise and facilities, as well as its consumer electronics and PC manufacturing clout, reports The Register.

The products will target high-speed applications, offering 480Mbps data rates - the same throughput as USB 2.0. The first UWB chipsets will support the IEEE 802.15.3a specification.

Songs downloaded as mobile phone ringtones could soon supplant the British pop music single, a driving force of youth culture for generations, reports AFP.

Sales of pop songs via ringtone tunes are expanding at a massive rate, a British industry body has said, raising the possibility that they could soon be worth more to record companies than the CD single.

In 2002, ringtone sales were worth lb44 million, said Kate Marriott, spokesperson for the MDA, an industry body for the British mobile data sector.

According to Future Image, traditional film cameras could end up as road kill in the US, as sales of camera phones are expected to soar.

Traditional film cameras, already taking a backseat to their digital cousins, could end up being left by the economic roadside as mobile phones with picture-taking functions continue grabbing the attention and wallets of consumers and businesspeople alike in the US. Sales of camera phones could, in fact, exceed combined sales of digital cameras and those using film.

Graphics chip leader Nvidia has rejoined a performance-rating programme after a hullabaloo over alleged cheating on performance tests, reports CNet.

Futuremark, a US company that supplies benchmarking applications, said in a statement that Nvidia has rejoined its worldwide development programme, which includes technology heavyweights such as Intel, Advanced Micro Devices, Microsoft and ATI Technologies.

Nvidia and Futuremark split ways earlier this year, after Futuremark accused Nvidia of publishing rigged benchmark testing results. Futuremark said Nvidia had altered the drivers for its new GeForce FX 5900 processor, to detect activity characteristic of a benchmark test and adjust performance accordingly.