| Today's Top Stories | | #1 | Apple's smart home initiative is called HomeKit | | | By Sean Buckley, Engadget | | | We heard it was comingand here it is: Apple's smart home platform. Taking the stage in sunny San Francisco, Apple's Craig Federighi announced HomeKit: Cupertino's solution for the connected home. Don't expect to pick up a unified automation system at your local Apple Store, though -- the firm's foray into the field is a communication standard not a product. Federighi describes HomeKit as a "common network protocol with secure networking to ensure only your iPhone can open your garage door or unlock your door." More»
Why This Matters: Apple says they are working with "leaders" in home automation to make their new protocol. I wonder who those "leaders" may be? Harman? And significantly Apple's new "kit" approach to development means a partner ecosystem. Here's a list of some of the current smart home partners and a little more from GigaOM. –Cynthia Wisehart |
| | #2 | Kramer announces strategic investment in WOW Vision | | | Via SVC Online | | | Kramer Electronics, is pleased to announce it has acquired 50% of Singapore based WOW Vision. WOW Vision is a manufacturer of product solutions for corporate and hospitality meeting spaces and educational facilities. Their products enable convenient wireless connection to, and the sharing of, large screen displays from laptops and mobile devices and provide effective, efficient, productive two−way collaboration. More»
Why This Matters: The Clickshare/Brio space gets another option. And AV collaboration/BYOD gets another boost. The current WOW Vision distributor, Starin, views this as a very positive move. Starin president Bill Mullin says it validates WOW Vision's collaboration solution, Collab8, "by having a world-wide significant name in AV behind it" and says that it will facilitate growth. Starin and Kramer are already tight and they're already in talks on the go-to-market strategy according to Mullin. –Cynthia Wisehart |
| | #3 | The incredible shrinking "power brick" | | | By Rob Matheson, MIT Technology Review | | | While laptops continue to shrink in size and weight, the "power bricks" that charge them remain heavy and bulky. But now, MIT spinout FINsix has invented an adapter that's roughly one-quarter the size and one-sixth the weight of a conventional brick, and just as efficient. MORE More»
Why This Matters: While laptops continue to shrink in size and weight, the "power bricks" that charge them remain heavy and bulky. But now, MIT spinout FINsix has invented an adapter that's roughly one-quarter the size and one-sixth the weight of a conventional brick, and just as efficient. MOREA California startup FINsix has used novel MIT technology that executes power conversion at very high frequency — 30 to 300 megahertz — while maintaining efficiency. As a practical matter this has allowed them to shrink laptop adapters to a quarter the size—their first product is called Dart and expected in November. But it's also worth reading about how the technology works, also bearing in mind that it was originally conceived as a way to shrink power adapters for LEDs. -Cynthia Wisehart |
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