In computing, firmware is software that provides low-level control of computing device hardware. For a relatively simple device, firmware may perform all control, monitoring and data manipulation functionality. For a more complex device, firmware may provide relatively low-level control as well as hardware abstraction services to higher-level software such as an operating system.
Secure Digital, officially abbreviated as SD, is a proprietary, non-volatile, flash memory card format the SD Association (SDA) developed for use in portable devices.
A flash drive is a data storage device that includes flash memory with an integrated USB interface. A typical USB drive is removable, rewritable, and smaller than an optical disc, and usually weighs less than 30 g (1 oz). Since first offered for sale in late 2000, the storage capacities of USB drives range from 8 to 256 gigabytes (GB), 512 GB and 1 terabyte (TB). As of 2023, 2 TB flash drives were the largest currently in production. Some allow up to 100,000 write/erase cycles, depending on the exact type of memory chip used, and are thought to physically last between 10 and 100 years under normal circumstances.
iRiver, stylized IRIVER and formerly as iriver, is a South Korean consumer electronics division owned by Dreamus which markets music and other accessories in its domestic market.
Archos is a French multinational electronics company that was established in 1988 by Henri Crohas. Archos manufactures tablets, smartphones, portable media players and portable data storage devices. The name is an anagram of Crohas' last name. Also, in Greek (-αρχος), it's a suffix used in nouns indicating a person with power. The company's slogan has been updated from "Think Smaller" to "On The Go", and the current "Entertainment your way".
USB On-The-Go is a specification first used in late 2001 that allows USB devices, such as tablets or smartphones, to also act as a host, allowing other USB devices, such as USB flash drives, digital cameras, mouse or keyboards, to be attached to them. Use of USB OTG allows devices to switch back and forth between the roles of host and device. For example, a smartphone may read from removable media as the host device, but present itself as a USB Mass Storage Device when connected to a host computer.
The 3Com Ergo Audrey is a discontinued internet appliance from 3Com. It was released to the public on October 17, 2000, for USD499 as the only device in the company's "Ergo" initiative to be sold. Once connected to an appropriate provider, users could access the internet, send and receive e-mail, play audio and video, and synchronize with up to two Palm OS-based devices.
Kingston Technology Corporation is an American multinational computer technology corporation that develops, manufactures, sells and supports flash memory products, other computer-related memory products, as well as the HyperX gaming division. Headquartered in Fountain Valley, California, United States, Kingston Technology employs more than 3,000 employees worldwide as of Q1 2016. The company has manufacturing and logistics facilities in the United States, United Kingdom, Ireland, Taiwan, and China.
This table provides summary of comparison of various flash memory cards, as of 2017.
M-Systems Ltd., was a Nasdaq-listed Israeli producer of flash memory storage products founded in 1989 by Dov Moran and Aryeh Mergi, based in Kfar Saba, Israel. They were best known for developing and patenting the first flash drive, marketed in 1995 as DiskOnChip, and the first USB flash drive, marketed in 2000 as DiskOnKey. They also created the patented True Flash Filing System (TrueFFS) which presented the flash memory as a disk drive to the computer. After 17 years of business, they were acquired by their prior competitor, SanDisk, in 2006. The DiskOnChip (DOC) was developed at the R&D Center established by M-Systems called EUROM. Rick Iorillo, Rony Levy and David Deitcher were the individuals that worked on the development and marketing of the first 2 MB DOC. This product went on to receive the Most Innovative Award from EDN in 1995 and later went on to become the Flash Drive and DiskOnKey.
The Nokia 6275i is a CDMA mobile phone. Basically, it is a "candybar" version of the Nokia 6265. It has a 2.0-megapixel camera with flash, and a portrait mirror. The phone itself has 21 MB of memory, but it can use microSD cards to expand the memory capacity to 2 GB. It uses the Nokia Series 40 OS, and can connect to other devices using infrared, USB, and Bluetooth technology. The screen has a resolution of 240x320.
Belkin International, Inc., is an American consumer electronics company headquartered in El Segundo, California. It produces mobile and computer connectivity devices and peripherals for consumer and commercial use. These include wireless chargers, power banks, charging cables, data cables, audio and video adapters, headphones, earbuds, screen protectors and cases, surge protectors, docking stations and data hubs, secure KVM switches and network cables.
Monsoon Multimedia was a company that manufactured, developed and sold video streaming and place-shifting devices that allowed consumers to view and control live television on PCs connected to a local (home) network or remotely from a broadband-connected PC or mobile phone. It was one of 5 major transformations initiated by Prabhat Jain, a Silicon Valley entrepreneur with 5 undergraduate and post graduate engineering degrees from Cal Berkeley and Univ of Vienna, Austria. On the even of Cisco acquiring Monsoon in 2017, EchoStar, the new parent of Sling sued Monsoon for patent infringement, having obtained confidential information about the date of the acquisition by Cisco from a Monsoon employee under murky circumstances. Monsoon settled the lawsuit by agreeing not to sell its products in the USA simply because it did not have the legal funds to fight mighty Echostar's legal maneuvers. EchoStar thus successfully removed its only competitor from the market place. This meant Monsoon's death knell.
Antec, Inc. is a Taiwanese manufacturer of personal computer (PC) components and consumer tech products. Antec's principal products are computer cases and power supplies. Antec also offers PC cooling products, notebook accessories, and previously offered a line of Antec Mobile Products (A.M.P.) which included Bluetooth speakers, headphones, portable batteries, and charging hubs. Originally founded in 1986 in Fremont, California, the company is now headquartered in Taipei City, with additional offices in Rotterdam, Beijing, and Fremont, California. Antec pioneered a number of innovations in the PC case industry, including the switch from beige to black exterior color, and first cases specifically designed for noise reduction with the Sonata and P180. In 2011, Antec was purchased by Ming-Jong Technologies Ltd. of Taiwan, and the combined company adopted the Antec name. Antec products are sold in over 40 countries through its online retail platform, Amazon, and distribution partners. The company is publicly traded on the Taipei stock exchange under ticker 6276.
Mobile accessories include any hardware that is not integral to the operation of a mobile smartphone as designed by the manufacturer. Its purpose is to protect the mobile from being damaged or to use for more convenient use of the mobile.
Elecom Co., Ltd. is a Japanese electronics company and founded by Junji Hada in Osaka, Japan in 1986. The company introduced an oval mouse in 1988 that became a global standard design. They manufacture office and other furniture for using with electronics, computer peripherals, gaming peripherals, computer memory and USB flash drives, keyboards, and many other related devices.
The Toshiba TG01 is a large touchscreen phone/Mobile Internet Device. It is based on the Windows Mobile operating system and uses Qualcomm Snapdragon chip architecture (QSD8250), rated at 1 GHz. Connectivity-wise, it is a quad-band GSM phone with support for 2100 MHz UMTS with HSDPA download speeds of up to 7.2 Mbit/s and HSUPA upload speeds of up to 2 Mbit/s. It is Wi-Fi capable, GPS-enabled with support for A-GPS, and comes with Bluetooth 2.0, microSD expandable memory and a micro USB connector.
A smartbook was a class of mobile device that combined certain features of both a smartphone and netbook computer, produced between 2009 and 2010. Smartbooks were advertised with features such as always on, all-day battery life, 3G, or Wi-Fi connectivity and GPS in a laptop or tablet-style body with a screen size of 5 to 10 inches and a physical or soft touchscreen keyboard.
Chroma Cutlery(also known as Chroma Cnife, and styled CHROMA) is a kitchen knife-maker based in Demorest, Georgia, US, founded in 1989. Chroma also produces spice grinders, knife sharpening stones, kitchen shears and other cooking accessories. The company also manufactures products for other brands.
G Data CyberDefense AG is a German software company that focuses on computer security. The company was founded in 1985 and is headquartered in Bochum. They are known for being the creators of the world's first antivirus software. G Data uses multiple scanning engines; one is developed in-house and the other is the Bitdefender engine. G Data provides several security products that are targeted at home and business markets. The company has a North American subsidiary located in Newark, Delaware.
