This display sector was huge that is why I will
again dwell only on the most interesting things.
Let's start with the Asus's booth. First of all, it was very big; secondly,
the guys helped me much by providing the network access as it was impossible
to get it in the press center crowded with journalists. For usage of network
and organization of access for their employees the company arranged access
points based on the 802.11b technology. So, it was enough to connect a
PCMCIA 802.11b adapter from Intel or Asus to enter the network. The settings
are very simple. The speed is about 4 Mbit/s; it wasn't a problem to transfer
large files. The distance range of the wireless WLAN adapter was some 40-50
m in the hall, and the signal strength was really impressive; I think that
a greater range is also possible.
Having tried the 802.11b technology I must admit that it is really convenient.
By the way, lots of mobo makers say that in the near future they are going
to apply it in their products. But why not Bluetooth? The answers came
to the point that such solution would be more expensive for the manufacturers;
i.e. a board with a Bluetooth adapter will be dearer than the same board
with the 802.11b support. Well, it's quite strange; I thought it should
be vice versa. Anyway, in the next several years we will witness development
of both technologies, with their fields of application being different,
though both use close frequencies.
There are similar solutions from other companies, for example, Blue2Space
technology which we mentioned on Day 2. Besides, there are Bluetooth adapters
to be connected to a USB bus.
The Bluetooth USB Dongle produced by PQI is a very intriguing device
which has a MemoryStick slot in addition.
The Asus's stand showed off a PDA coming with the Pocket PC2002. A new
line of notebooks was quite attractive, and the displayed old models are
not big and can run up to 2-3 hours from a battery.
A lot of other products arrived as well, in particular, video solutions
and mainboards.
Take a look at the system demonstrating a Home Media Center based on
the Intel Brookdale-G chipset.
The most curious solution was the fastest computer clocked at 3 GHz.
The system is overclocked, and overheating is attacked by the VapoChill
technology. The 3Dmark test hardly ever showed less than 160 fps; the result
is impressive, like the final price.
[ Part 2
]
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