Brad at Liliputing has put up a first-look video of Meego 1.0 for netbooks. Clearly the UI is based on Meego as is still using clutter instead of Qt and there don’t seem to be many major changes apart from Chrome being used as the browser. Brad does report that it’s fast though
As I write, i’m installing to an MSI Wind and will do some testing. I’ll also test the image out on a Menlow device. I doubt it will work but let’s see!
In a press-release from Intel today they have announced more details on what we know as Moorestown; the low-power computing platform that should take Intel to the historical moment of enabling an X86 mobile phone. The two-component platform will implement the Z6XX processing unit (was Lincroft) containing Atom-based CPU, GPU, 1080p video decoders and 720p encoder, and the MP20 ‘Platform Control Hub’ (was Langwell) alongside a power control module that has previously been referred to as Briertown.
Moorestown. As seen at IDF 2009.
Our analysis of Moorestown can be found here.
Details in the press release highlight much of what we have gleaned before but there are two very interesting bits of additional info. First the summary…
Collectively these new chips deliver significantly lower power including >50x reduction in idle power, >20x reduction in audio power, and 2-3x reductions across browsing and video scenarios – all at the platform level when compared to Intel’s previous-generation product1. These power savings translate into >10 days of standby, up to 2 days of audio playback and 4-5 hours of browsing and video battery life. When combined with 1.5-3x higher compute performance, 2-4x richer graphics, >4x higher JavaScript performance, and support for full HD 1080p high-profile video decoding and 720p HD video recording, these low-power innovations bring a rich, PC-like visual experience to powerful handheld computers.
In effect you’ve got a platform that halves the power profile of the previous generation platform while introducing new features that enable lower power states and power control over individual CPU sub-modules know as power islands. That will bring the average platform utilization down to 1W levels (in-use) which, if you’ve done any MID-style activities on a smartphone lately, means it’s in the same ballpark as modern smartphones. Intel’s ‘4-5 hours’ browsing figure is based on using a 5.5wh battery (1500mah single-cell) with all the usual power-hungry components like screens and radios.It’s unlikely to beat the battery life on the best smartphones but there’s another twist here. Turbo!
These power management capabilities, when combined with Intel® Burst Performance Technology for high-performance on demand, and Intel’s Bus Turbo Mode for high-bandwidth on demand, help to deliver industry leading performance and power efficiency across a range of handheld devices.
So if you add the low-power idle features with the turbo modes you’ve got a platform that spans a wide range of uses. The smartphone version of the Z6 is going to be able burst to 1.5Ghz [We’ve heard that it nominally runs at 600Mhz] and there will be a higher-power version that will burst to 1.9Ghz and could make a sweet sweet MID, or ‘smart’ computing platform.
All this new technology is going to need a new operating system and that’s what Moblin was for. Intel built Moorestown and Moblin in parallel so that they would dovetail together. Don’t expect Windows to be running on these platforms.
Of course, Moblin is migrating into MeeGo (where it will support two competing architectures; X86 and ARM) but there’s another OS mentioned here. Android.
Why would Intel mention Android and not Windows? Probably because they are working with Google on a X86 version of Android that would slot in well here. Remember, Intel are members of the OHA, the organisation that brought you Android. There’s been no formal announcement on Android yet but Intel are not exactly trying to keep it a secret. How that will sit with MeeGo is anyone’s guess but it does give Intel an important second-string to their bow.
Update from the fact-sheet: “Intel has worked with Google over the past few years and is providing support for the Android platform at launch”
Fact-Sheet (PDF)
Here’s a video of Android running on a Moorestown smartphone from MWC in Feb.
Additional info: What Moorestown Means for Consumers.
One last thing to mention is that Intel are now happy to talk about tablets in their PR again. It seems that the old days of hopeless ‘tweener’ UMPCs are behind us now! Personally I think there’s more potential in social netbook-style devices than tablets but that’s another story.
We’re meeting Intel at Computex next month (as an Intel Insider I’ve been invited to Computex) where I’m sure we’ll hear about launch dates, devices and a whole lot more so stay tuned. The only problem is, does all this belong on UMPCPortal, the productivity-focused mobile devices website, or Carrypad, our sister website devoted to consumer internet devices? Moorestown has the potential of spanning both and that’s exactly the big story here.
Update: I’ve posted some more analysis of the Operating system options here.
Lots more Moorestown reading under our ‘Moorestown’ tag.
Source: Carrypad
While the MeeGo community moves forward towards its May 1st Release, Intel is is moving forward with the AppStore framework that will available for use in MeeGo. Today Intel announce that their AppUp Center, is now available for Moblin (which will migrate to MeeGo) and that it will begin accepting Euro and Pound payments opening it up to another 300+ million people.
We have this announcement from Intel:
Intel today introduced Intel AppUpSM Center Beta for Moblin v2.1-based netbooks in the U.S. and Canada. Intel AppUp Center offers a wide range of applications, spanning games, entertainment and social media apps that are optimized for the netbook’s mobility and screen size. Additionally, Intel announced the Intel AppUp center beta for Windows and Moblin v2.1 will become available in 27 European countries on March 31. The expansion into Europe gives application developers in the Intel® Atom™ Developer Program an opportunity to reach consumers in one of the top markets for netbooks worldwide and complete transactions in USD, Euros or GBP. Future updates to the Intel AppUp Center will support the MeeGo software platform and smartphones, consumer electronics and additional devices.
Clearly the target is netbooks here and although there aren’t many Moblin versions knocking around in the market yet, you can download and install V2.1 from a USB stick on almost any netbook. However, that’s not really the end-game here. The application framework used for the AppUp store now allows OEMs to build Linux-base netbooks with a full payment-enabled application store that adds value and opens possibilities for developers and as we look forward to handhelds and netbooks based on MeeGo, you start to get the bigger picture about why this is happening and what the potential is.
I’ll be taking a closer look at the AppUp center for Moblin as soon as it appears. We’re expecting an announcement on the AppUp store website.
I sat down with Pankaj Kedia today. Pankaj is responsible for ecosystem development for the ultra mobility group at Intel and plays an important role in interfacing with software developers and bringing their products into ultra mobile devices. I took ten minutes to ask him a number of questions about MeeGo. We talk about timescales, strategy, opportunities and I ask about a developer conference; a question I will definitely follow-up because having experienced the excellent Maemo Summit in 2009, it makes perfect sense to run a similar event or roadshow in 2010.
Summary of responses from Pankaj:
Intel and Nokia have a long history of collaboration and if you look back to the early days of kernel builds for Moblin 1.0 you’ll find Nokia engineers in the mix. It was never a big secret that the stacks, the association with the Linux Foundation and the focus towards ‘Mobile Computers’ meant that the two companies were working towards the same goal. Minor differences in Linux stack meant that a shift by Moblin over to the QT UI framework (revealed at DevMob 2010 this year) was the last bit of information that I needed to prompt me into sending out the following tweet.
“Here’s a wild thought -> Moblin for handhelds and Maemo 6 will merge under Linux Foundation late 2010. “
Clearly I was wrong about the timing but the rest was spot on. Now we have MeeGo.
With Intel’s 700-strong team of Moblin contributors and a huge number of Maemo contributors we’re instantly looking at one of (if not the) biggest Linux development efforts in the world. All that needs to be done now is to add the 3rd party applications and to get the OEMs on board. MeeGo is the sign that the marketing effort for app developers and customers has begun. Intel and Nokia want to be the serious alternative to Android across mobile computers.
Many new questions are raised here about the joint marketing effort that will start now. How will the two companies bring together their developer communities? Will they merge their app-store frameworks? Will we see joint efforts on the hardware? Is Intel contributing software to a killer ARM-based MeeGo device in 2011 or have they secured hardware deals for the future platforms? How will this balance-shift towards Europe affect the developer community and marketing teams? What will the roadmap look like now?
In terms of devices, nothing can change. The LG GW990 will launch in the second half of 2010 and Nokia have to move forward with their next MeeGo-based smartphone. Maybe nothing needs to change though. This is just a deal-seal and huge huge marketing message to Google. Intel and Nokia want to work together to make the best mobile computers in the world.
We should be gettting videos and commentary from the Intel team over the next few days so stay tuned.
Disclosure: My travel to MWC 2010 is sponsored by Intel
We were expecting (a beta release of) Moblin 2.1 for handhelds before end of 2009 but it didn’t turn up. In a search this morning, however, found this. It’s a month old but it’s a build of Moblin for the Poulsbo chipset. Specifically for the Congatec In-Vehicle Infotainment board based on the Z530/Poulsbo. This could be useful for those looking for a slim Linux build for Menlow-based devices.
Sure enough, on my Kohjinsha SK3 it booted but it ended up with a messed up screen resolution. I’m heading out of the door for DevMob 2010 now so don’t have time to test on other devices so if any of you out there have time, let us know how it goes for your Menlow-based device.
The article mentions a full release in early Q1. So right about NOW then!
Any Moblin team members out there care to update us on final release details?
For those of you with netbooks running Windows in the U.S. or Canada, you might be interested in testing out the Intel AppUp applications store. If you haven’t heard the news, it’s a full app store with a purchase system and an account that tracks your apps and allows you to re-download them if necessary. There isn’t much in the store right now (approx 100 apps) but I don’t think it will take long for developers to start modifying and submitting the applications they have already written for the Windows platform.
So far, I’m seeing a very interesting platform that when extended across smartphones, mids, netbooks and TV’s has huge potential in market segments that could total hundreds of millions of potential end-users. Already there are tens of millions of netbooks out there so if you’re a developer you need to be taking a close look at this.
Detailed blog article from Intel
Two items of news related to Linux support on the Menlow platorm have caught my attention in the last 24 hours. Both news items are related to the Ubuntu Linux distribution.
Menlow is the Intel platform that many MIDs, UMPCs and even netbooks and laptops have been built around in the last 12 months. It’s focused towards very low power consumption, video playback acceleration and 3D support in the smallest possible size.
Up until now, the only official operating systems that have supported the platform have been Moblin 1 (via Intel. Largely a static project now) and Windows XP, Vista and 7. Trying to use any of the latest popular Linux distributions on any of these devices results in problems.
Ubuntu, the Linux distribution run by Canonical, has always had a close relationship with UMPCs and MIDs. They did some work on Moblin 1 with the Ubuntu-MID distribution but that project is now static. Then there was Ubuntu-Mobile which turned into Ubuntu UMPC. Again, this project stopped. The Ubuntu Netbook Remix project also started and this is the one that has been focused on over the last 12 months. Unfortunately, it doesn’t have any support for the graphics/video part on Menlow known as ‘Poulsbo’. The same is true of Moblin 2. Intel dropped support for the MID platform.
The good news is that there are people out there working to fix the problem. The latest information is that one ‘lucazade’ has rolled up everything that is needed into a few scripts and has even set up a repository that can be used to pick up the correct drivers. Full information at the bottom of this post.
The second bit of good news is that Jolicloud, the Ubuntu-based distribution targeted at netbooks, is also checking out support for GMA500. This message went out yesterday:
team is testing internally the poulsbo (gma 500) support in the next jolicloud release, we will look soon for testers.
Naturally we’ve already been in contact with the Jolicloud team about this and plan to bring you some more information shortly.
Despite all this third-party activity and end-user requirement (about 30 Menlow-based devices exist in the market right now) Intel has never really talked about Menlow support. We’ve seen Moblin 2.1 for handhelds running on Menlow and seen the Linux Foundation demonstrating it but I can’t get any statement out of them on the subject.
Based on what we’ve seen and heard I would put money on being able to run the open source beta release of Moblin 2.1 for handhelds on Menlow (purely because there’s no other platform available for developers to test on) and that is supposed to be coming within the next month. I’m also convinced that Moorestown will use the GMA500 so there’s another reason to have drivers available.
Finally, check out some of the emails in the Moblin Developer mailing list. This is an interesting one for example. (from 15th Nov.)
If you know of other Linux distributions that either work with or are planning GMA500 support (I hear rumors that Mandriva supports GMA500?) let everyone know in the comments. Likewise, if you’re running Linux on a Menlow platform, let us know what you think.
Update: 18th Nov 2009. Jolicloud have announced out-of-the-box support for the GMA500.
Back at IDF in September we heard a lot about how Intel would be bringing an app store to Windows and Moblin-based netbooks. The Apps store is due to launch early in 2010 but if you want to get a head start on writing apps for a potential 30 Million plus customers (!) then today is your day. The software development kit has arrived.
The goal of the Intel® Atom™ Developer Program Software Development Kit (SDK) is to provide programming framework and libraries that enables the interaction with the Intel® Atom™ Developer Program processes and infrastructure.
The SDK (available here) allows you to program in either C (on Moblin) or C or C++ on Windows.
I’ve written a lot about the IADP on MIDMoves so check this article out (and this one) to find out the IADP and about how to win prizes that include an all-expenses-paid trip to CES!
Intel have set up a big range of resources that you can use too.
And don’t forget one of the most important aspects about Moblin – During 2010 you will see the platform extended to handhelds too. The potential market for Moblin is rather large!
No, this isn’t Moblin 2.1 for handhelds but it’s a step in the right direction along the roadmap shown below. As 2.1 for handhelds feeds in (due for a beta release before the end of the year) the two branches of 2.1 should merge to make way for a unified OS that can support MIDs (on Moorestown) UMPCS (with some tweaking of drivers to support Menlow) and the netbooks and nettops that this new release of Moblin is aimed at.
Moblin Roadmap
The new release was announced through a press release and on the Moblin website.
The Moblin™ project steering committee today announces the project release of Moblin v2.1 for Intel Atom* processor-based netbooks and nettops. This project release includes the broadest feature additions, customer requested improvements, and overall polish to date. With this community release you will see significant feature additions and improvements including enhanced browser functionality and plug-in support, UI enhancements, support for 3G data connections, Bluetooth* device management, input method support for localized languages, integrated application installer for the Moblin Garage, performance and stability improvements, and additional overall help and documentation.
Key features of the new build include a new browser, new Intel Linux graphics drivers (anyone able to see what GPUs are supported? PineTrail clues?) 3G support, new Bluetooth capability, the application installer and more.
I’m currently testing Linpus Lite with Moblin 2.0 but it looks like I might have to abort that now and catch up with what is happening in 2.1
Image via netbooknews.de who have already posted some details in German.
Moblin v2.1 project release for netbooks and nettops – it’s here | moblin.org.
P.S. Anyone notice the parallels between Maemo and Moblin. They look like two brands and builds of the same core OS. Any devs out ther care to comment on the similarities in the SDK?
Based on a projected addressable market of well over 400 million units (media phones) and a multi-million pre-existing netbook user base, it would be crazy for software developers to ignore the potential of Moblin, the Intel Atom Developer Program and App-store. Despite that, Intel want to give you even more reason to start early. They are giving away 100 netbooks for the first 100 applications that they accept into the app-store and a grand prize of an all expenses paid tip to CES. [Did someone just drop the hint that the app store will launch in Jan 2010?]
The Intel application developer program is currently free to enter (it will be $99 per year in the future) and you can develop native apps for either Moblin or Windows or use runtime environments like Air or Java.
I would love to hear feedback from anyone going through the Moblin application process so please, write in and tell us about your experiences. What coding skills do you have? How did you find the SDK and documentation? Tips for other developers? If you want to make a more detailed guest post about the IADP, I’ll be happy to send a $50 Amazon gift voucher your way (UK, Germany and US Amazon stores only. Only one article will be accepted for the gift voucher.)
I took MIDMoves to the Intel Developer Forum in San Francisco last week with a focus on the three M’s of MIDs, Moblin and Moorestown. IDF is the highlight of my mobile computing year and I was hoping to see Moorestown MIDs being demonstrated, the launch of Moblin 2.0 and a bunch of new products. As it happens, we got the expected Moblin 2.0 launch but didn’t see much in terms of hardware. We did get a few surprises though and as usual, in-depth information that helps us predict what is going to happen in 2010 and 2011. Here’s a summary of the Intel Developer Forum 2009 for a mobile computing perspective.
I’m just a few posts away from completing my Intel Developer Forum 2009 related work now and it’s time to round-up and summarize the news and to try and work out what it means for 2010 and 2011. Power-gating, Mobiln 2.1 and the App Store are just three very important elements but for the full overview, check out an article I’ve just posted at UMPCPortal which goes over everything I learned. I can not deny that it was disappointing not to see more Moorestown prototypes but the news is more than enough to keep my excitement going until the next big event. See you at CES 2010 in January.
Many thanks to Intel and the Intel Insider program for the sponsorship of my MIDMoves work at IDF.
You may have already seen the video from IDF where Moblin 2.1 for handhelds was announced and seen the demonstration of Moblin 2.0 on Moorestown but in addition to that we were give a sneak peek at Moblin 2.1 for handhelds running on a (Menlow demonstration) platform. Pankaj Kedia from the Ultra Mobility Group also answers questions about the platform.
Key points to note are:
Part 1. Q&A With Pankaj Kedia
Part 2. Demonstration
Xavier Lanier (GottaBeMobile), Sascha Pallenberg (Netbooknews.com) and I sat down in the final hours of the Intel Developer Forum to talk about what we’d seen in the mobile space. In this video we talk about Moblin and the Intel Application Developer Program, the Viliv S10, Archos 9 and say hello to a mystery man who decided to wander across the set with his dinner!
I wish I had had the chance to spend a few more hours with all the Moblin 2 distributors that were at IDF09 this year but I simply ran out of time and got kicked out of the showcase exhibition as it closed. Sigh!
One company I had the chance to spend quality time with was Linpus. They’ve got at least three versions of a Moblin 2.0-based distribution in progress and they look so much better than the Linux-based netbooks from just a year ago. Linpus have put out a press release (below) but it might be more interesting to watch the video. Linpus Moblin Enhanced is shown at the beginning of the video but there’s a slick looking version at the end too. Both of these should be available for download within two weeks.
Linpus Moblin™ Enhanced Version Now Available
Linpus Moblin™ Enhanced based on New Version of Moblin™ Technology Offers Robust Netbook Experiences
San Francisco, California, September 23, 2009 – Today, Linpus Technologies, Inc. released Linpus Moblin™ Enhanced, their 2nd consumer Linux product based on Moblin version 2 technology, an optimized open source Linux operating system project for rich Internet and media experiences on Intel® Atom™ processor based devices.
In the Linpus version the Moblin UI has been enhanced to improve the delivery of key online information. The right side of M-Zone is designed to send live new tweets, messages and photos from your favorite social networking sites such as Twitter, Flickr, Myspace and Last.FM. In Moblin, all this information flows through one tab. Linpus has redesigned this so that each social networking site has its own tab. Linpus has also added a module that that delivers the latest emails from different webmail accounts.
Linpus has also made a number of other improvements:
Additionally, Linpus Linux Lite has a number of applications to encourage adoption. If users want to dual boot with Windows, the PIM Sync and Folder Sync applications were created to help the sharing of key information between the two systems. In the case of PIM Sync, it copies a user’s email and calendar information from Outlook, and, in the case of Folder Sync users are able to copy important files, music and videos to Linpus Linux Lite.
“We are really excited by the rich technology provided by Moblin™ technology, specifically, fast-boot and Clutter,” said Rita Jing, vice-president of sales, Linpus Technologies, Inc. “With Moblin technology, we have been able to take the browsing, multimedia and social networking experience to a new level – As well as improving general overall usability.”
Moblin v2 technology, which is currently available for netbooks, is the latest from Moblin.org, an open source community that supports the creation and distribution of Linux-based operating system products for Intel Atom-based platforms, including netbooks, mobile Internet devices (MIDs), nettops, in-vehicle infotainment (IVI) and embedded systems. Intel launched Moblin in June 2007 and incubated the project until April 2009 when the Linux Foundation became the host of the community. Intel continues to contribute key technologies and work with the developer community to advance the effort.
“The release of Linpus Moblin™ V2 Enhanced is a success for the entire Moblin™ community and for users of Intel® Atom™ processor based netbooks,” said Doug Fisher, vice president of Intel’s Software and Services Group and general manager of the System Software Division. “The Moblin™ community’s efforts enabled Linpus to build a superb consumer Linux product that fully utilizes the latest features of the Intel Atom processor and incorporates the robust Internet and media capabilities that are inherent to Moblin v2 technology.”
Linpus is working with a number of OEMs and ODMs to deliver Linpus Linux Lite to a range of customers in multiple industry segments.
We’re finally getting a look at what the Moorestown MIDphones of the future should offer us. Chippy has a short demonstration of Wind River’s interface running on top of Mobilin. This is designed for MIDs as compared to the standard Moblin which has an interface based around more standard input devices (ie: mouse and keyboard on a netbook). The demo you are about to see below is running on the Inventec MediaPhone that jkk went hands on with at Computex 2009.
While some of the demo looks pretty good, such as the smooth application opening animation, it is also quite disheartening to see that they couldn’t even get the app pages to slide smoothly at this point. Hoping that it won’t end up shipping like this (it doubtfully will).
[MIDMoves]
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