First camera modules from Toshiba for Project Ara are out

The first modular smartphone concept from Google  – the Project Ara is said to official at the MWC 2015 expo next month. The modular smartphone will have different independent modules for chipset, battery, display and other components. Japanese giant Toshiba is assigned the task for designing camera modules. The company has now arrived with the first break through in this!

Toshiba has recently showcased three camera parts for the Project Ara that includes two rear positioned cameras – a 5MP and other with 13MP resolution and a front facing selfie snapper of 2MP. The sensor for 2MP is of 1.4 um in size whereas for the other two it is 1.12 um in size.

These parts are now said to undergo mass production and are said to be widely available by next year based on Toshiba’s three year development plans. The Project Ara handsets that would be announced officially this year will also start expanding by next year. Hence Toshiba’s plans seem to be very much in line with that of Google.

Check out the video below that demonstrates a working camera module.

source: Image Sensors World

via: PhoneArena

First camera modules from Toshiba for Project Ara are out

New SDHC memory card with NFC Transmitter is announced by Toshiba

Toshiba, the Japanese electronics has announced a new generation memory card called SDHC (Secure Digital High Capacity) cars. Moreover, the memory cards will have a built-in NFC transmitter that will make sense too. However, the previous microSD cards also had the NFC but that did not make any sense at all

With the help of new generation memory cards, you can see more than 16 thumbnails stored photographs data containing different things like the capacity of Android app, what they contain and how much space they need to install.

In addition, this is very easily to know which data memory card is stored in its memory. For that reason, no more using PC to connect the memory card to check what you have inside the card. Instead, you can just put the memory card against your smartphone and you will get all information.

The new Toshiba SDHC memory cards will be available in 3 different variants including 8GB, 16GB and 32GB. However, the memory cards will be available in February in the market. The Memory Card Preview app is available now to download for any smartphone.

New SDHC memory card with NFC Transmitter is announced by Toshiba

Toshiba launches “Shared Board” TT301, a giant 24” Android Business Tablet

We generally think of Tablets as mobile devices. The 12-inch Microsoft Surface Pro 3, the 12.2-inch Samsung Galaxy Note Pro or the 13.3-inch Lenovo Yoga Tablet 2 Pro also seem quite big that way. However, Toshiba has recently launched a gigantic 24-inch tablet, the Shared Board TT301 meant for business users.

The new Toshiba TT301 tablet features a Full HD 24-inch diagonal LCD display that can also double as a monitor or a TV. It has a 1920 x 1080p resolution screen, 10 points multitouch support and a clean stylish design to match various scenarios such as hotels, offices, education places etc.

Other specs include a 1GHz dual-core processor, 1.5GB of DDR3 RAM and 16GB of internal storage. The tablet also has an infrared remote control that will make it easy to use for presentations in meetings or in classrooms. There is also HDMI and Miracast support so that users can hook it up to their Windows 8 laptop, desktop or even a TV. The device weighs 1.8kg and features two 2W integrated speakers, hence no external audio is needed. The Toshiba TT301 supports Bluetooth and Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n, and runs Android 4.2.1 Jelly Bean operating system.

You can have a look at the specs here:

The Toshiba TT301 has a “double window function” where two apps can be displayed simultaneously on one screen. The app must be compatible with double window split screen.  For instance, an image can be displayed on one half of the screen while a website can be opened in another as the following image shows:

The following image shows how the TT301 tablet can be utilized as a large screen monitor:

The TT301 tablet will hit the Japanese markets first but Toshiba has not revealed its pricing yet or whether it will be sold in international markets later. What do you think of Toshiba’s new tablet? Do you think the specs are ok for such a huge tablet?

Toshiba launches “Shared Board” TT301, a giant 24” Android Business Tablet

Toshiba Launched 20-MP CMOS Image Sensor for Smart Phones and Mobile Handset

Toshiba has launched its newest 1.12-micron CMOS Image sensor (CIS) in San Jose on September 15. It is targeted for high-end mobile handsets and smart phones with at least 20-MP resolution. Furthermore, the optical size of 1/2.4 inch, the T4KA7 sensor is suitable for smart camera phone of the height of 6mm or less. It will produce thinner and lighter mobile devices which are of consumer demands nowadays.

The T4KA7 employs high speed circuit technology with frame rate of 22 frames per second (fps) and it is at full-resolution of image capture. It comes with 8MP and 13MP and which will enable low-power-high performance image capture and video recording for mobile devices.

Based on the data from Yole Development, the CMOS image sensor will experience a compound annual growth (CAGR) of 10 percent between 2013 and 2018.  The industry will replace charge-coupled device (CCD) with CMOS for image sensors. This will happen not only for mobile technology but also for automotive, industrial and medical imaging applications as well as wearable electronics.

T4KA7 has the capability of zooming in without causing image deterioration even when the object is very close to the lens. Another feature is the mapped couplet correction by 16Kbit one-time programmable (OTP) memory, enabling strict integration of high-density permanent memory without increasing the real estate on the sensor chip.

Toshiba Launched 20-MP CMOS Image Sensor for Smart Phones and Mobile Handset

Google"s Project Ara devices will start at $50

Project Ara has been one of the most appealing ideas to come across the world in recent times. The preparation began at Motorola’s Advanced Technology Group, but has since altered to Google because that team was not a division of the awaiting sale of Motorola to Lenovo. The central theme is to produce modular smart-phones that can be easily upgraded and customized, and a new report has a surprising announcement about what manufacturer will be building processors for Ara devices.

According to Nikkei, the big names like NVIDIA, Qualcomm, Intel, Samsung, or even MediaTek producing the processors for Project Ara devices. But, Toshiba will be manufacturing semiconductors for the modular smart-phones, and the company was in support for this with Google since October. Toshiba will allegedly produce “three types of processors for the phone, to be used both in modules and the phone itself”. This looks like that not all Ara devices will have replaceable processing modules, but that is ambiguous.

Toshiba will have prototypes available by this fall, and will set in motion the mass production in starting of 2015. The concerned part of the report is that it suggests that Toshiba will be a “preferred” contractor at first, but will turn into “the sole chipmaker for the phone about a year after its rollout”. We need to notice that it is uncertain precisely what this seems to pretend. It seems to claim that Toshiba will have rivalry at first, but will eventually happen to be the only processor manufacturer for Ara, It will send a signal which will mean that other manufacturers with no reason to struggle in the first place. It could mean that Toshiba will be the sole manufacturer which functions with an official Google Ara gadget, but other devices in the Ara line from other manufacturers might be open to a variety of modules from diverse suppliers.

One thing which can’t be avoided is that the report also provides a bit of intelligence on the gadgets themselves. The report restates  the news that Project Ara gadgets may open in market for selling at as little as $50 unlocked at first. Devices will differ in size, and such size-difference will make them capable to hold anywhere from five to ten separate modules. It sounds as though each will have the same basic functionality that you would expect, but the room for more modules would be used to exchange in and out things like exercise-trackers and extra batteries.

 

Google"s Project Ara devices will start at $50