Cover Story
By 2010, 100GB of Flash Memory Will Be ¥10,000
Is NAND flash memory going to replace the hard disk drive? How is price per capacity unit going to fare? And along what lines would the two be allowed to coexist in the market?
The New Star
Flash for everything below 100GB—from iPods to notebook PCs
Future Technological Trends
Capacity to increase to 64 GB; reliability to be improved through the controller
Special Feature
Customs and Cartel Sanctions Create Two Shackles for European Subsidiaries
Unexpected snags are impeding Japanese electronics manufacturers operating in Europe. Customs duties are being slapped on previously untaxed products and companies are being ordered to pay whopping fines far larger than would reasonably be expected in Japan after being deemed party to a cartel by the authorities. Lobbying activity based on technological knowledge is an integral part of avoiding duties. To escape cartel accusations, on the other hand, every single engineer has to watch their own behavior so as to avoid catching the attention of the authorities.
Special Feature
PND Products Take the Car Navigation Device Market by Storm
In 2006, the number of personal navigation devices (PND) sold annually worldwide topped 10 million units, surpassing sales of stationary car navigation devices, which Japanese manufacturers have excelled in production. There is now a significant possibility that the car navigation market will split in two—low-priced PNDs and high-function HDD-based systems. The fast-growing PND market could also become a major source of revenue for other industry players such as component manufacturers. Growth in PND demand has led to more than 30 companies now selling the products. The PNDs are likely to go through rapid transformation as companies gear up to differentiate their products for those of their competitors.
Special Feature
US Media Strategies for Communications and Broadcast Convergence as Seen at NAB2007
The largest broadcasting-related exhibition in the US, NAB2007, held April 14-19, 2007 in Las Vegas, Nevada, made it clear just how willing American broadcasters are to fully utilize the Internet and other avenues of communication. US media is collaborating, and sometimes clashing, with technology firms like Google Inc. and Sling Media, Inc. as they seek to make major changes to the methods and business formats through which they deliver programs to viewers. Here we report on video distribution services for television and PCs and broadcasting services targeting portable devices.
Special Feature
Confocal Microscopes: Rapid Measurement of 3D Objects
Applications are expanding for the confocal microscope, which facilitates inspection and measurement of three-dimensional microscopic shapes. Used until now mainly in fields dealing with LSIs and thin displays, confocal microscopes will soon be used for optical films, solar cells and automobiles. Measurement with conventional technology was viewed as complicated in these areas, but technological innovation has solved that concern.
Documentary
Contactless IC Card FeliCa (Part 1): FeliCa Was Inspired by “Home Delivery Service”
Keyword
Widget
Key Person
Mach Technology Co., Ltd., Goubun Akatsuka: “Bringing Technology for Space to Veterinary Medicine”
NE Interview
Broadcom Corp., President, Chief Executive Officer, Scott A. McGregor: “Reducing Costs by Creating 1 Chip Products”
Academy
Tutorials of Embedded System (Part 10): Realtime OS (Part 4)
Tutorial
Introduction to Mobile Power Electronics (Part 1): Products Equipped with Mobility Are Composites of Many Technologies
In this 12-lesson tutorial, we delve into power electronics, technology often applied to electric vehicles, bipedal walking robots and other products with mobile capability. The first lesson introduces the characteristics and development frameworks of mobile equipment which carry a wide variety of systems from power units to heat dissipation devices and are required to be increasingly small and lightweight.
Tutorial
An Intellectual Property Course (Part 4): Utilize Exclusive Rights Even in Design
In this tutorial, we explain the intellectual property basics for engineers by solving problems at the level of an intellectual property exam (level 2) run by a private sector organization. In the fourth tutorial, we look at industrial designs and trademarks. Product design and naming have become vital influences over the success of an electronic appliance. Engineers therefore need to know about industrial designs and trademarks.
Tutorial
Understanding Color Space (Part 3): Various Color Spaces
The color display capacity of products such as flat panel TVs is improving and it is now possible to reproduce colors that appear in the natural world more how they really look. As a result, new functions relating to color space are appearing more and more in displays and cameras. This third installment introduces color spaces such as the CIELAB and YCC color spaces.
World Report
Korea: Extending the Time for Ending Analog Broadcasts Shakes the Domestic Market
News
- KOITO MANUFACTURING Develops the World’s First LED Headlamp for a New Lexus Model
- Breaking Down the “$100 Smartphone,” the Sidekick iD
- JEITA and Others Establish Guidelines Prohibiting Fast Recharging of Li-ion Batteries
