Archive for the 'General' Category

Semico’s Blog Has Moved!

Wednesday, May 15th, 2013

We’ve migrated over to our main website at Semico.com – Please join us there and check out our new website.

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Where Have All the IP Vendors Gone? Part 1

Wednesday, May 15th, 2013

Well, the title is a little facetious, but given all the recent acquisitions in the 3rd Party IP market, it may certainly feel like that to some people. You can relax, there are still plenty of IP vendors left in the market and that won’t change anytime soon.
So what is going on?
To read [...]

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Ring of Fire Poses Risk to Semiconductor Manufacturing

Tuesday, May 7th, 2013

There are hundreds of semiconductor fabs, spread all over the world.  The trend over the past several years has been one of consolidation into several main manufacturing centers in the Asia/Pacific region, the United States, and Europe.  Unfortunately for the industry, many of these fabs are located in areas prone to earthquakes.  Some locations are [...]

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MEMS: Room For Improvement

Tuesday, March 12th, 2013

Last week while traveling in the Bay Area, I forgot my GPS so I used my iPhone 4s to guide me around. My rental car came with a Microsoft SYNC USB connection, so I thought I’d have no problems using my phone with the car system. I plugged in my phone, input my [...]

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Stand Back, BigDog Gots This

Tuesday, March 12th, 2013

So have you seen what DARPA is up to lately?  They appear to be giving robots cinder blocks to throw around willynilly.

Take a look at how BigDog has evolved over time.  It can take some abuse.

Is the BigDog too much for you? How about the LittleDog. Cute, and isn’t throwing large boulders at [...]

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Intel Is On A Roll!

Tuesday, February 26th, 2013

On February 25th, 2012, Altera and Intel announced an agreement to build next-generation, high performance FPGAs on Intel’s 14nm Tri-Gate technology.   This is significant because Altera has used TSMC as their sole foundry for years.   Altera has never before been swayed by price or lured away by the promise of technology.  But, as the saying [...]

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Activision, Disney, Hasbro Ignite New NFC Market

Tuesday, February 26th, 2013

Hello, my name is Adrienne, and my son is a video game addict.  He’s only 8, but he loves games for iOS devices, the Wii, Xbox 360, and online Flash games.  But the game that has inspired the most “gotta-have-it” mania, and the most dollars leaving our pockets, has been Skylanders.  If you’re the parent [...]

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TransferJet and Wireless Charging Toshiba Style

Wednesday, January 23rd, 2013

At CES Toshiba announced the industry’s first microUSB Adaptor Module for the TransferJet standard.  Production will begin March 2013 and will be targeted for smart phones, tablets, and the PC peripheral market.
The astounding thing about TransferJet is that it can transfer a one-minute HD movie in about three seconds, and it takes about two minutes [...]

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See Me, Touch Me, Move Me at CES

Monday, January 21st, 2013

As expected, the recent Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, Nev., was dominated by gadgets. Touchscreens and inertial motion were key features for many devices and applications. Many of these gadgets, such as those for fitness and wellness, are intended to be used with smartphones, tablets, and PCs, usually connected wirelessly [...]

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Crushing on PNI Sensor Corp

Thursday, January 17th, 2013

I’d love to give an unbiased review of SpacePoint, PNI’s 9-axis motion tracker module for games, but I can’t.  At CES they were demoing their motion tracking module with a gun controller and a first person shooter custom game.  They put that controller in my hands, and as I leaned forward, my avatar moved forward.  [...]

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