Grbic and Stephen Forrest, a professor in the departments of Materials Science and Engineering and Physics, led the development of the hemisphere-shaped antennas, which can be manufactured with innovative imprint processing techniques that are rapid and low cost. The finished product is 1.8 times the fundamental antenna size limit established in 1948 by L.J. Chu. The dimensions of this limit vary based on an antenna's bandwidth.

"Ever since the Chu limit was established, people have been trying to reach it. Standard printed circuit board antennas don't come close. Some researchers have approached the limit with manually-built antennas, but those are complicated and there's no efficient way to manufacture them," Grbic said. "We've found a way to reduce the antenna's size while maximizing its bandwidth, using a process that's amenable to mass production."

The researchers' prototype operates at 1.5 gigahertz, in the frequency range of Wi-Fi devices as well as cordless and mobile phones. The antenna is 70 percent efficient and ten times smaller than conventional antennas, Grbic said. It has three times the conductivity of similar devices produced by 3-D ink-jet printing techniques, a process that serially writes the antenna geometry.

This new method is a very general process, said Carl Pfeiffer, a doctoral student in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. "It can be used to fabricate antennas that are of a wide variety of sizes, shapes, frequencies, and designs. Basically if you tell me the data rate that is required for a particular application, I can make an antenna that does this while at the same time being as small as possible."

Beyond consumer electronics, the work could have implications on wireless sensing and military communications. Wireless sensor networks could be used for environmental monitoring or surveillance, according to the College of Engineering's Lurie Nanofabrication Facility, were the prototype was produced.

A hemisphere-shaped antenna developed at the University of Michigan has the capacity to be mass produced and could lead to improvements in wireless consumer electronics. Photo: Carl Pfeiffer

"What makes HP TouchPad a compelling alternative to competing products is webOS," said Jon Rubinstein, senior vice president and general manager, Palm Global Business Unit, HP. "The platform's unmatched features and flexibility will continue to differentiate HP products from the rest of the market for both personal and professional use. This is only the beginning of what HP's scale can do with webOS."

The Linux based operating system provides a multitasking experience, access to the web, stereo audio playback, and the ability to find information on the device or in the cloud using the Just Type feature, integrated access to user information with HP Synergy, and HP's Touch to Share capability for sharing web addresses between a TouchPad and compatible webOS based phones. The new technology allows users to share URLs and text messages between the tablet and smartphones by tapping the phone on a designated area of the TouchPad.

Video chat between compatible webOS devices is available, and Skype video calling allows users to connect with any computer, phone, or media player that has the application installed. Contacts in social networking sites such as Facebook or Twitter can be searched and accessed from the main screen.

The tablet will be available with 16 GB or 32 GB of internal storage for $499.99 and $599.99 respectively. Preorders in North America and Europe will begin June 19. HP says that it will partner with AT&T to introduce a connected version of HP TouchPad later this summer.

The Linux-based Kindle allows users to browse, download, and read newspapers, magazines, e-books, and other digital content such as blogs. Now in its third generation, the Kindle e-book reader was first introduced on November 19, 2007. The Kindle 3 utilizes wireless connectivity to download content, which is displayed in 16 shades of grey. It includes an experimental browser based on the WebKit rendering engine.

"We're grateful to the millions of customers who have made the all-new Kindle the bestselling product in the history of Amazon, surpassing Harry Potter 7" CEO Jeff Bezos said in press release. "Customers report using their LCD tablets for games, movies, and web browsing and their Kindles for reading sessions. Kindle's $139 price point is a key factor - its low enough that people don't have to choose."

Amazon did never disclose actual sales figures for the Kindle devices. The e-reader competes against similar products like Barnes & Noble’s Nook and tablet PC’s, including Apple’s iPad.

The Kindle 3 is the best selling item on Amazon.com. It surpassed "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," and many other popular books. Photo: www.imagine-your-world.com

"Leveraging our 20-year display heritage, these new ViewPad solutions provide users with anytime anywhere connectivity," said Jeff Volpe, vice president and general manager for ViewSonic Americas. "With access to the universe of Android apps, our new ViewPads are perfectly suited for enjoying digital entertainment and social media. Office productivity is also a snap with robust web browsing functionality."

The ViewPad 10 will be a dual-boot Wi-Fi enabled device, running on the early Android version 1.6 or Windows 7 Home Premium.  It is powered by a 1.66 GHz Intel Atom processor, features 1 GB of integrated memory, a 16GB SSD hard drive and a micro SD slot. A 1.3-megapixel webcam with built-in microphone enables videoconferencing, and the 1024x600 LED backlit panel is touch-sensitive.

With its wireless 802.11 b/g and Bluetooth connectivity, the ViewPad 7 supports instant messaging and VoIP. It runs Android 2.2, features an 800x480 WVGA LCD screen, two cameras (3-megapixels in the rear and 0.3 megapixels in the front), and a USB port. 512 MB of integrated memory are complimented by up to 32GB of storage via a micro SD card slot. ViewSonic says that users can expect a battery life of up to 10 hours.

While the ViewPad 7 will be available late in 2010 with a suggested retail price of $479, the ViewPad 10 should arrive in stores in the first quarter of 2011 and carry a price tag of about $629.

ViewSonic is entering the tablet market with two new devices, the ViewPad 7 and the dual-boot capable ViewPad 10. Photo: ViewSonic

"Taking advantage of the 4G speeds on T-Mobile’s HSPA+ network, the new myTouch delivers a faster and more compelling experience than most competing smartphones on the market," said Andrew Sherrard, vice president, product management, T-Mobile USA. "Our continued focus to build innovative new features and personalized services truly makes myTouch unique."

The HTC designed device uses Android 2.2. A WebKit based browser and several HD games including Rock Band, Asphalt 5 and Monopoly come pre-installed. Other apps allow users to access additional Google services including Gmail, maps, search, talk and YouTube.

The smartphone offers two different sources of location information for applications such as Google Maps: a GPS receiver built-in to the chipset, and radio-tower location based on a database of mobile phone tower locations. In addition, the device includes a digital compass; it allows one to turn the phone showing the local map to orient it correctly.

T-Mobile says that the new smartphone will be available in time for the holidays.

Photo: T-Mobile