News Stories

T-Mobile Streaks with First Tablet

1.7.2011

T-Mobile is making a major 4G push, promising to “double” the performance of its network to peak download speeds of 21Mbps during the first half of 2011 and 42Mbps by the end of the year.

The company additionally announced 25 new devices, including its first tablet, the Dell Streak 7, scheduled to hit retail first quarter. The Streak 7 runs Android 2.2 on a dual core NVIDIA Tegra 2 processor with Adobe Flash support.

It has a 7-inch multi-touch screen, up to 32GB of internal storage, and a 1.3 megapixel front-facing camera for face-to-face communication via Qik or Skype.

LG Premieres its 4G Revolution Phone

1.6.2011

LG Electronics Thursday tossed its hat into the 4G arena, debuting its first 4G phone, the Revolution, which will be offered through Verizon. The Revolution supports the streaming, playing and recording of high definition video. The Android 2.2 device has a 4.3-inch touch screen and a 5 megapixel camera capable of 720p capture. The package also includes hotspot capability for up to eight Wi-Fi enabled devices. Verizon president Dan Mead said at a press conference that customers can expect download speeds of speeds of  5 to 12Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5Mbps in areas with 4G coverage.

At the LG booth, the company was also showing off its Windows 7 phone, the Quantum. Windows 7 phones hit the market in October, and there are only three models currently available, the LG Quantum being the only one with an actual keypad. Sold through AT&T, it’s a bargain at $99 (with contract, after rebate) and has numerous nifty features, like an always-on camera with a dedicated button.

LG also presented proof-of-concept technology for a mobile lenticular display that looked pretty great, and got a buzz going. But company reps said there was no timeline for product.

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Specification for Naming VFX Image Sequences Released

ETC’s VFX Working Group has published a specification for best practices naming image sequences such as plates and comps. File naming is an essential tool for organizing the multitude of frames that are inputs and outputs from the VFX process. Prior to the publication of this specification, each organization had its own naming scheme, requiring custom processes for each partner, which often resulted in confusion and miscommunication.

The new ETC@USC specification focuses primarily on sequences of individual images. The initial use case was VFX plates, typically delivered as OpenEXR or DPX files. However, the team soon realized that the same naming conventions can apply to virtually any image sequence. Consequently, the specification was written to handle a wide array of assets and use cases.

To ensure all requirements are represented, the working group included over 2 dozen participants representing studios, VFX houses, tool creators, creatives and others.  The ETC@USC also worked closely with MovieLabs to ensure that the specification could be integrated as part of their 2030 Vision.

A key design criteria for this specification is compatibility with existing practices.  Chair of the VFX working group, Horst Sarubin of Universal Pictures, said: “Our studio is committed to being at the forefront of designing best industry practices to modernize and simplify workflows, and we believe this white paper succeeded in building a new foundation for tools to transfer files in the most efficient manner.”

This specification is compatible with other initiatives such as the Visual Effects Society (VES) Transfer Specifications. “We wanted to make it as seamless as possible for everyone to adopt this specification,” said working group co-chair and ETC@USC’s Erik Weaver. “To ensure all perspectives were represented we created a team of industry experts familiar with the handling of these materials and collaborated with a number of industry groups.”

“Collaboration between MovieLabs and important industry groups like the ETC is critical to implementing the 2030 Vision,” said Craig Seidel, SVP of MovieLabs. “This specification is a key step in defining the foundations for better software-defined workflows. We look forward to continued partnership with the ETC on implementing other critical elements of the 2030 Vision.”

The specification is available online for anyone to use.

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