Technabob » marvell

Bphone Flipscreen Smartphone Runs Linux, Java

Technabob — Wed, 24 Mar 2010 02:43:58 +0000

If you’re in the market for a smartphone, but want to run something besides Windows Mobile, Android or the iPhone OS, you might want to check out this little rarity from China that runs on a flavor of the Linux operating system.

With a ginormous 5-inch screen, the BPhone actually looks more like a UMPC than a smartphone. The 800×480 touchscreen display should look great playing back your video files, and is definitely big enough to display web pages with greater readability than smaller devices. It’s also got a unique 180-degree flip capability, so you can view content on the screen whether you’re using the keyboard or not.

Speaking of keyboards, the BPhone has a full QWERTY ‘board when you flip it open. It runs on a speedy Marvell PXA310 CPU, running at 624MHz, and has built-in WiFi, Bluetooth, and a GPS (although the included CARELAND GPS app only works in China). And since it’s a quad-band unlocked phone, you can use it pretty much anywhere on the globe, with any carrier you want.

While it’s definitely not as stylish or svelte as, say, an iPhone 3GS or Nexus One, the BPhone definitely looks powerful in terms of its hardware. If you’re thinking about getting your hands on one, head on over to Chinagrabber, where it retails for $569 (USD).

Marvell Plug Computer 3.0: the Latest in Plug-and-Play Computing

Range — Tue, 05 Jan 2010 15:53:46 +0000

We always heard ridiculous things about the future. In fact, I’m sure that I’ve heard that in the future, computers will be as small as a power plug. Well that’s actually partly true. Marvell has been producing plug-sized computers for a while. Their latest has just been announced.

Marvell just launched the newest version of its Plug computer, the Plug 3.0. It’s based on the Armada 300 processor, and draws less than 1/10th of the power that a typical PC uses. However, it still manages to run at a 2Ghz processor speed and has WiFi, Bluetooth and a built-in 1.8-inch hard drive. Not too shabby, eh?

The case is a lot nicer looking than the previous editions. It’s been rumored that a few big-name brands are working on upcoming releases on this platform. We’ll see how relevant the Plug Computer 3.0 really is later this year. Still, it looks pretty cute.

[via Ubergizmo]

Marvell Sheevaplug: Tiny Computer Fits in a Wall Plug

Technabob — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 03:23:38 +0000

This weensy little computer is so small that you might accidentally misplace it if you’re not careful.

The oddly-named Marvell Sheevaplug (I think I went to college with him) is about the size of your average gadget’s power adapter, but it actually contains a complete computer (sans video output). The device has a 1.2GHz CPU, 512MB of flash memory and 512MB of RAM, which should be plenty for running a web server or other Linux applications. It’s got a built-in Gigabit Ethernet port for network connectivity, and a USB port, so you might even be able to hook up a DisplayLink device without any video card.

The compact PC uses very little power (just 5 watts), and (of course) doesn’t require any sort of external power adapter. It looks like Marvell is going after larger distribution relationships at this point, but they are selling developer kits if you want to tinker with one for yourself. You can get your hands on a SheevaPlug developer kit (which looks a bit more clunky than the svelte production model above) over at Globalscale Technologies for just $99 (USD).

[via Boing Boing Gadgets]