Here’s an interesting one. UK company Redux has written about Bulldog, its demonstration unit for showing off a first for fourth-generation haptics. The Cambridgeshire company writes: Our demonstration unit, called Bulldog, not only delivers true third generation haptics, allowing us to vary what effect you get depending on where you press. It also takes pressure into consideration, so a different effect ...

Plessey is sampling 350mW lighting LEDs, made in its 6in Plymouth fab using a GaN-on-silicon process. The firm as branded is process Magic: Manufactured on GaN I/C. “The Magic GaN line using standard semiconductor manufacturing processing provides yield entitlements of greater than 95% and fast processing times,” claimed the firm. “PLB010350 is our first, high current device operating at anywhere ...

Gadget Watch spots the Android-powered Sony Xperia Z Ultra, the device that is pushing the phablet envelope. Previously, the Samsung Galaxy Note was the holder of the title “biggest smartphone display”, but Sony has now taken the crown. The Galaxy Note’s 5.55-inch display has been surpassed by the Z Ultra’s massive 6.44-inch touchscreen. (The new Galaxy Note is imminent but ...

You wait ages for a phablet story and then two come along in one day (see also the Xperia Z Ultra story – Sony Xperia Z Ultra pushes the phablet envelope)… Phablets are Android territory because Apple has avowedly chosen not to occupy the ground (“tweeners” as Steve Jobs called them), and there’s an interesting post on the topic on ...

Another mighty planet hunter has bitten the dust, drawing to a close the first era of space-based planet spotting. The COROT mission, which counts among its haul the first known rocky exoplanet, has been officially terminated following an on-board computer failure. With the likely end of NASA’s Kepler mission in May, exoplanet searches will now be done solely by ground-based ...

Must cover this one. It’s big but it’s slim, it’s Full HD but it’s also waterproof… It’s the Android-powered Sony Xperia Z Ultra and it’s pushing the phablet envelope (a form factor criticised by Apple purists but one that is increasingly popular with the wider public). Really, it’s all about the display… The Samasung Galaxy Note was the previous holder ...

German foundry X-FAB Silicon Foundries has introduced a reference kit supporting advanced methodology for analogue/mixed-signal chip design. The kit, which is based on the mixed-signal flow from Cadence Design Systems, will be used for constraint-driven design, mixed-signal simulation, floorplanning, schematic-driven layout, automated routing, timing-driven digital block implementation and sign-off. The Kit includes an OpenAccess PDK to enable mixed-signal designs for ...

Sometimes you read stuff that you couldn’t make up – like 3D printing a house on the moon using moondust as the basic building material

A way to use your phone to pay for stuff without the need for an NFC chip or extra terminals at the merchant end of the transaction, has raised $25 million in seed capital.

If you’re going to the Continent next week, like me, it’s a 36% bonanza time as data roaming charges get capped at 45 eurocents per MByte, down from the current cap of 70c.