News Stories

Verizon Sets its Sights on 4G

1.6.2011

Verizon, which has arguably led the industry in terms of infrastructure but lagged in terms of debuting 4G phones, made a splashy announcement of new devices for the carrier’s 4G platform, called LTE. None of the new products have release dates beyond “sometime in 2011,” but the company did say it expects to end the year with high-speed mobile broadband in 175 markets.

Verizon vp networks Tony Melone said at a Thursday press conference that customers can “conservatively” expect download speeds of 5 to 12Mbps and upload speeds of 2 to 5Mbps from LTE (up to 10x faster than 3G).

The company didn’t ignore content, unwrapping a deal with Viacom’s Electronic Arts to bring the game “Rock Band” to its 4G mobile users. “It’s not just about apps, it’s about how deeply and seamlessly they’re integrated,” Verizon vp and chief operating officer Marni Walden said.

Verizon’s new phone offerings include the Android powered HTC Thunderbolt, one of the first phones to fully integrate Skype mobile with video calling (through one-touch calling). A 4.3-inch screen and 8 megapixel camera make the Thunderbolt multimedia-friendly. And as with the LG Revolution, also announced (see separate post), the Thunderbolt is an Android 2.2 device, capable of HD capture and playback, in this case 720p, and is DLNA-compatible.

The company also announced the first Samsung 4G LTE phone, which will take advantage of Samsung’s Media Hub content service, offering premium movies and TV shows. The Samsung Galaxy Tab was another new device on tap, with a 7-inch display and – a novelty among tablets – front and rear facing cameras for live video chat. Rounding out the Samsung offerings is a 4G mobile hotspot dongle.

Verizon also touted two notebook computers that will be able to take advantage of its 4G network: the HP Pavilion dm1-3010nr Notebook PC and the Compaq CQ10-688nr.

New From Motorola: Android Tablet & PC in a Phone

1.5.2011

Riffing on the fact that some consumers are using the phone as their primary digital screen, Motorola and AT&T on Wednesday unveiled the ATRIX 4G, which puts the power of a Netbook, and then some, in the palm of a user’s hand.

Billed as a gaming, music and video-on-the-go powerhouse, the Android 2.2 unit runs Firefox 2.3 and has Flash integration on a 4-inch screen. It can be juiced to a custom docking station complete with keyboard and an 11.6-inch screen, as well as HDMI output for TV connectivity (up to 720p HD on release, which Motorola plans to upgrade to 1020) and three USB ports for a mouse, speakers or gaming controller. As a bonus for business users, it has an integrated Citrix receiver for VPN access. The Atrix runs on a dual core (2GHz total) processor , with 1GB of RAM, and offers up to 48GB of memory – 16GB on board and an optional 32GB microSD card.

Motorola also introduced the XOOM tablet, for Verizon, which it billed as “the first tablet PC built to run on the Android 3.0 OS” (dubbed Honeycomb). The device, which features a 10.1-inch (16:9), 1280×800 display, will connect to the new Google Mobile Innovation service offering HD-optimized books, music and movies. It debuts in 3G in the first quarter, with an upgrade to 4G expected in the third quarter.

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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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