Digital Lifescapes

Wireless technologies can have very different adoption cycles. As an example, wireless USB (WUSB) is currently hampered by the high price of the underlying UWB silicon, according to the latest market study by In-Stat. This is expected to limit its appeal until prices fall substantially, the high-tech market research firm says. Targeted at PCs, PC peripherals, consumer electronics (CE), and mobile phones, the first devices with WUSB technology shipped in 2007, including notebook PCs and hub and dongle solutions. "The beginnings of a new wireless ecosystem have launched, and should lead to increased shipments in the years ahead," says Brian O'Rourke, In-Stat analyst. "Ultimately, UWB and WUSB will succeed because they solve problems that no other technology can; the ability to transmit large amounts of data from one device to another with relative power efficiency." The In-Stat research covers the worldwide market for wireless USB. It tracks the market for WUSB in...

How people connect their computer to digital media recording and playing devices is evolving. The proliferation of digital interfaces on PCs in the past 10 years has led to specialization, as well as an increasing number of choices for consumers, according to the latest market study by In-Stat. USB has become a universal interface in the PC market, and 1394 or FireWire, DVI, and Bluetooth are all available in a large number of notebook and desktop PCs on the market today, the high-tech market research firm says. In order to gauge the popularity of these various interfaces, In-Stat conducted a survey of 2,200 technology early adopters about the interfaces they have on both their work and home PCs, and to what they connect with these interfaces. "Not surprisingly, USB is the most popular interface, and is connected to the greatest number of devices in both work and home environments," says Brian O'Rourke, In-Stat analyst. "1394 (FireWire) proved to be the next most pop...

With the promise of entirely wireless interconnections for personal computers (PCs) within the connected home, interface standards and technology battles are looming, according to the latest market study by In-Stat. Most digital home interconnects are first adopted in PCs and then by consumer electronics (CE) devices, the high-tech market research firm says. "Like USB vs. 1394, the outcome of the battle between ultra wide band (UWB) solutions will be determined by the PC platform" says Qasim Inam, In-Stat analyst. The In-Stat research report entitled "PC Wireless Interconnects 2007: Nirvana for PC or Chaos?" covers the worldwide market for PC wireless interconnections. This research provides PC and PC wireless interconnect forecasts through 2011, as well as an analysis of how the market is likely to develop and who will be the winners and losers in the UWB battle. Connecting device cables is a relatively intuitive process for most people. That said, I believe that t...

The Universal Serial Bus (USB) saw continued success in 2006, but 2007 is going to be a milestone as wireless USB (WUSB) products are expected to hit the market around mid-year, reports In-Stat. The initial WUSB products will be dongle and hub solutions that will allow PCs to wirelessly connect to PC peripherals and CE devices, the high-tech market research firm says. Integrated solutions with Certified WUSB capability inside the box will come in a few devices before the end of 2007, including PCs, printers, multi-function peripherals (MFPs) and digital still cameras. "Certified WUSB is designed to replace USB cables on the PC desktop, as well as to facilitate temporary connections between mobile and fixed devices, such as portable digital audio players and PCs, or digital still cameras and printers," says Brian O'Rourke, In-Stat analyst. I believe that some consumers will likely be puzzled by other solutions like broadband over powerline, in comparison to WUSB, and will ...