Along with the trend of smart portable devices, automobile electronics market is now taking a spot besides of smartphone and smart TV. Recently, the majority of people are getting familiar with the term “Smart Car”; user-friendly design that combines automobile with three fields: information, communication and entertainment. In-vehicle infotainment system is now the major trend in automobile electronics product development.
The last few months have been filled with exciting announcements in the wireless space. From Wireless DisplayPort, to Direct Connect, to the opening of the airwaves for a new Wi-Fi Spectrum, the wireless industry is seeing a wave of movements promising great opportunities for developers. Now, the Wi-Fi Alliance and the HomePlug Powerline Alliance are bringing us a new cause for celebration. The organizations have announced that they are partnering to create joint standards, allowing for interoperability among connected home applications. These standards will also allow developers to conduct interoperability testing for new products.
This new partnership aims to facilitate seamless interoperability between Wi-Fi and HomePlug devices in smart grid applications across home networks. These organizations, both members of the Smart Grid Interoperability Panel (SGIP), are looking to promote Smart Energy 2 Applications Profile (SEP 2.0) across a diverse range of wireless and wired networks. This initial standard will support energy management for wired and wireless home networks. The organizations are planning to jointly promote their wired and wireless technologies to homeowners.
"Working with the HomePlug Powerline Alliance will facilitate interoperability between Wi-Fi equipment and devices connected to power line home networks," said Edgar Figueroa, CEO of the Wi-Fi Alliance, in the recent release. "This collaboration will help bring about a great user experience with smart home technology."
[photo: UberGizmo]
For times when Internet hotspots aren’t available, the Wi-Fi Alliance is now offering certification for a new way to connect: Wi-Fi Direct™. First demonstrated at CES 2010, Wi-Fi Direct enables devices to connect directly without relying on a network access point. Furthermore, Wi-Fi Direct allows users to share data and sync at the same speeds as traditional Wi-Fi networks – as fast as 250Mbps – and at ranges of up to 200 meters. The new certification program is designed to verify interoperability, and certified products will be able to connect with older Wi-Fi products already in use.
The Wi-Fi Alliance’s video, above, shows the many ways devices can take advantage of Wi-Fi Direct.
With several industry leaders – including Intel, Cisco and Apple – backing the technology, Wi-Fi Direct is expected to be adopted across a wide range of products, including cameras, laptops, smart phones, tables, printers and even home applications such as digital picture frames.
Allion is excited to announce our new role as an authorized test lab for Wi-Fi Direct. We have a long history of providing standards compliance testing services for manufacturers working with IEEE 802.11 benchmarks, and we are excited to begin Wi-Fi logo testing for Wi-Fi Direct.
“Allion is capable of verifying all Wi-Fi standards such as Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n and the latest Wi-Fi Direct,” said James Ou, director of Allion’s engineering service division in a recent press release. “Our goal is make the program simple for our customers and to accelerate time to market.”
Learn More:
New Wi-Fi Spectrum Coming Soon
Solving the Challenges of Wireless Connectivity
Demand for Wi-Fi Enabled Gadgets Expected to Explode
Wi-Fi Certification Adding Value to Products, My WiFi
Recently we wrote about the growing market opportunity for wireless charging devices. These products will allow customers to charge mobile devices –such as cell phones, laptops, MP3 players and more – simply by having them touching or within proximity of a shared charging station. Such devices would eliminate the plethora of cords required to power today’s digital gadgets. Furthermore, such wireless chargers could be integrated seamlessly into furniture and cars.
Consumers are more than eager for these types of products to enter the market; in fact recent In-Stat research found that consumers are becoming impatient for this technology to mature. With 44 percent of survey respondents calling current charging solutions an “annoyance” and up to 40 percent willing to pay $50 dollars more for a wireless charging device, In-Stat projects that that this market will reach $4.3 billion in total market revenue by 2014.
However, technological barriers are preventing immediate market growth. The variety of digital devices and brands makes interoperability testing a problem. Furthermore, competing technologies could foster incompatibility. Needless to say, consumers will not want to buy multiple wireless chargers for different devices. Without standardization, it could be difficult to achieve widespread adoption of wireless charging technologies.
Despite these obstacles, the wireless charging market has such great potential and natural consumer demand that we expect it to move forward. Manufacturers will not want to miss this opportunity to provide consumers with cutting-edge charging technologies. Allion will continue to provide more information as it becomes available, and we look forward to testing and validating this new wave of devices.
Learn More:
Wireless Charging: A Whole New Market
Wireless Power: Charging your phone without plugging it in
[photo: Wildcharge]
Recently the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) passed a unanimous ruling that will open up vacant airwaves between TV channels for wireless applications. This is the first time in more than 20 years that the FCC has made a significant block of spectrum available for unlicensed use, and it creates exciting new opportunities for wireless devices.
The FCC’s ruling opens up the unused analog television bands – or “white spaces” – for practical use, creating an important new frequency for Wi-Fi operation. The white spaces spectrum uses a lower frequency than traditional Wi-Fi, allowing it to travel farther and faster than current signals. The new Wi-Fi signals, informally dubbed “Super Wi-Fi,” will be able to travel up to three times farther and better penetrate walls and other physical obstructions. This will have an enormous impact on outdoor networks, extended coverage networks in hospitals and homes and more.
The Wi-Fi Alliance is already making moves to develop a certification program for Wi-Fi devices operating in the TV white spaces. The program will draw on the emerging IEEE 802.11af standard and would help to guarantee interoperability and improve the user experience. We are very excited about this industry initiative, and will provide more information as it becomes available.
“Super Wi-Fi is what it sounds like: Wi-Fi, but with longer range, faster speeds, and more reliable connections,” said FCC Chairman Julius Genachowski in a recent statement. “We can also expect, as we’ve seen now with Wi-Fi, enhanced performance from the mobile devices using licensed spectrum that we’ve come to rely on so heavily.” As one of the world’s leading testing labs, Allion offers extensive Wi-Fi logo testings, and will offer Super Wi-Fi certification as it becomes available.
One year ago the Wi-Fi Alliance launched its Wi-Fi CERTIFIED n compliance program, creating a certification process and logo for the IEEE 802.11n standard. Within that time frame, more than 1,100 products – from cell phones to TVs to enterprise-grade infrastructure devices – have been certified, and consumers have drastically changed the way they interact with electronics.
As we celebrate the anniversary of the certification, here are a few of the landmarks Wi-Fi CERTIFIED n has made in the last year:
- 127 phones have passed certification testing, reportedly accounting for 20 percent of handsets certified in the last 12 months.
- 251 consumer electronics products have been certified, including digital audio systems, gaming devices and displays.
- 441 of these certified products are dual-band products – capable of operating in both 2.4GHz and 5GHz frequency bands – and 143 products can support 2.4 GHz and 5GHz operation concurrently.157 enterprise-grade infrastructure devices and 115 enterprise-grade access points have been certified as enterprise networking vendors respond to growing demand for networking solutions.
This increase in connectivity has made a huge impact on the industry in short period of time. As a recent In-Stat report stated, Wi-Fi has achieved “ubiquity, a term often used but seldom realized in technology market-speak.” At Allion, we’ve seen this growth take place first hand, with our Wi-Fi Logo Testing Program – which includes 802.11n testing – allowing us to support the Certified Wi-Fi rollout for both consumer and enterprise devices alike.
"It’s clear that Wi-Fi’s integration into virtually all areas of the consumer electronics spectrum continues to expand," said
Phil Solis, research director, ABI Research in a recent Wi-Fi Alliance release. "At the heart of this growth is Wi-Fi CERTIFIED n, which will continue to deliver the advanced performance these devices require, now and well into the future."
So happy birthday, Wi-Fi CERTIFIED n! We’re excited to see what the next 12 months may bring.
Learn More:
Solving the Challenges of Wireless Connectivity
Demand for Wi-Fi Enabled Gadgets Expected to Explode
Wi-Fi Certification Adding Value to Products, My WiFi
[top photo: Will Clayton]
The average consumer uses a variety of electronic devices daily – cell phones, laptops, MP3 players, headsets, etc. – all of which require different chargers for keeping gadgets at full battery. In a market driven by mobility and convenience, charging solutions have failed to evolve with the rest of the industry. Not surprisingly, consumers have become annoyed with all these different, often proprietary, cords and connectors. According to recent surveys by In-Stat, approximately 44 percent of respondents found that “current mobile charging solutions are an annoyance,” and “up to 40 percent are willing to pay $50 more for a wireless charging solution.”
This is creating a new market opportunity for wireless charging systems. According to a recent study by In-Stat, the market for wireless charging systems will reach $4.3 billion in total revenue by 2010. These products can charge mobile devices, from phones to PCs to handsets, simply by having the devices touching or within the proximity of a charging station. These charging solutions can often be hidden, or at least seamlessly integrated, into furniture or automobiles; more than two thirds of the integrated charging solutions are expected to be in cars.
"Despite the long history of the various technologies, we are really just now beginning to see the true market potential for wireless charging solutions," says Jim McGregor, In-Stat’s chief technology strategist. "Like many other technology markets, it will start with add-on and third-party solutions. Eventually solutions will be integrated into many mobile electronics as the costs decrease and the demand increases. While still a fraction of the overall mobile device segment, wireless charging is just beginning to hit its stride in the market."
As with all technologies designed to service a variety of devices from different vendors, interoperability will be a primary challenge for product designers. Wireless products also face the added difficulty of avoiding interference with other wireless devices. Allion Test Labs will continue to track this industry trend and provide insight for manufacturers.
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In today’s connected society, wireless connectivity is considered a given. From our cities to our state parks, wireless access has become ubiquitous. We can connect to the Internet via our laptops, our cell phones and even our televisions. Consumers expect that their electronics and devices will be wirelessly enabled. But what does that mean for developers?
Many designers do not anticipate the challenges of developing wireless-enabled devices. Whether in the product development, design validation or testing phase, complications with wireless implementation can have a serious impact on product development time. It is not uncommon to see 3-4 month delays. These delays result in increased development costs as engineers work to sort through the kinks in order to guarantee network interoperability. And with the number of wireless-enabled devices growing every day to meet the exploding demand for Wi-Fi enabled devices, more developers can expect to face the challenges of successful wireless implementation.
Fortunately, Allion Test Labs offers comprehensive product development, validation and testing services that can help manufacturers avoid these types of development mishaps. Allion has more than 20 years of validation service experience, offering our customers end-to-end support to ensure smooth product development. This result: faster development time, significant cost savings and, ultimately, a better product for consumers. By teaming with our engineers from the start, manufacturers can take advantage of this exploding market without risking development delays.
Learn More:
- Demand for Wi-Fi Enabled Gadgets Expected to Explode
- Wireless Sync and Share with My WiFi Technology
- Integrating WHDI and WI-FI
- Wi-Fi Certification Adding Value to Products, My WiFi
From laptops to cell phones to television sets, our desire to share information over broadband is making wireless connectivity a must-have feature for a range of devices. And, according to a recent In-Stat report, the demand for Wi-Fi enabled devices is expected to explode over the next four years as more consumer electronics incorporate Wi-Fi technology.
In-Stat projected that, over the next four years, annual shipments of Wi-Fi enabled appliances and devices will exceed 3.5 billion.
- Wi-Fi enabled “stationary devices,” such as TVs, Blu-ray players, photo frames and set top boxes, are expected to see the largest growth, shipping more than 200 million devices in 2014.
- Shipments of Wi-Fi digital televisions alone are projected to increase tenfold as the Wi-Fi attach rate (the percentage of products with embedded Wi-Fi) grows from just four percent in 2009 to 33 percent in 2014.
- Nearly 50 million tablet PCs, including the Apple iPad, and 265 million notebooks are projected to ship.
- Mobile handsets will remain the highest volume Wi-Fi enabled device, with 515 million handsets projected to ship in four years.
Reflecting on the rapid increase and expansion in our wireless use, , In-Stat’s Vice President of Research Frank Dickson said it is Wi-Fi’s “manifest destiny” to see ubiquitous adoption in consumer electronics.
For manufacturers looking to capitalize on this growing demand, Allion offers a WFA-accredited Wi-Fi Testing Lab and supports development, validation and testing throughout a product’s development life cycle. Allion offers manufacturers complete end-to-end test, validation and engineering services with 20 years of validation service excellence. By utilizing a third-party validation service, manufacturers are able to cost-effectively speed development time and deliver the highest quality product to their customers.
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Intel My WiFi Technology (Intel MWT) makes it possible for users to wirelessly sync music, pictures and videos, share files and games and print within the home or while on the go. The technology doesn’t require a wireless access point. Rather, users can set up a My WiFi personal area network (PAN) wherever they may be by using an Intel MWT enabled notebook computer. At the same time, users won’t have to give up their connection to the Internet because My WiFi technology maintains pass-through internet connectivity and shares this with additional Wi-Fi devices that are connected to the My WiFi PAN. The video below provides an overview of how My WiFi Technology works.
Check out this overview of the My WiFi Technology
Setup is designed with simplicity in mind with Wi-Fi Protected Setup. Up to eight Wi-Fi devices can be connected using My WiFi. Each device should be on the same channel with the same security type.
Look for new products and updates on My WiFi at the 2009 Intel Developer Forum, taking place September 22-24 (you can follow the latest news from My Wifi on twitter as well).
