Computers & Peripherals: January 4, 1996

Board supplies PC104, PCMCIA, and ISA interfaces. A universal-interface board provides PC104, PCMCIA, and ISA bus connections on a single half-sized card. Called CardPresso, the ISA board is an extension of the Cardio line of credit-card-sized PC-compatible computer boards. The CardPresso has two PCMCIA 2.1 sockets, a standard PC104 connector, a VGA CRT port, and two RS-232C ports, as well as a Cardio socket. It costs $525 (100). S-MOS Systems Inc, San Jose, CA. (408) 922-0200.

ISA bus card employs SHARC DSP. Blacktip, a half-length ISA bus board, comes with an ADSP-21060 or ADSP-21062 Super Harvard Architecture Computer (SHARC) DSP running at 40 MHz (120 Mflops) or 33 MHz (100 Mflops). It also provides up to 3 Mbytes of zero-wait-state SRAM and a SHARC-optimized I/O mezzanine interface. The board costs $889 (100). BittWare Research Systems, Concord, NH. (603) 226-0404.

Board for CCD camera takes serial data at 330 Mbps. The PCI HotLink interface board receives digital serial data at 330 Mbps and stores it via DMA for processing by the host PC. Designed as a PC interface for Wintriss Engineering’s CCD cameras, the board uses the Cypress HotLink communications protocol, which provides a 33-MHz clock and byte-wide data stream. Wintriss Engineering Corp, San Diego, CA. (619) 550-7300.

Tower houses RAID storage devices. Wired radially, the Data Silo DS500 is a redundant-array-of-inexpensive-disks (RAID)-ready tower enclosure for up to seven half-height, storage devices and one full-height RAID controller. The unit can be used in a daisy-chain configuration for up to nine half-height SCSI devices. The tower has a 300W power supply and fan and fits under a 30-in. table, alongside a computer’s CPU or peripherals. Configurations start at $1185. Kingston Technology Corp, Fountain Valley, CA. (714) 435-2615.

Notebook computer stresses multimedia functions. The Tecra 700 series notebook computer is a portable multimedia package based on a 120-MHz Pentium processor. The notebook’s SelectBay slot lets you interchange a 3.5-in. floppy-disk drive with a CD-ROM module. It also offers integrated 16-bit sound and two built-in stereo speakers. With the optional Desk Station V docking station, the external PCI-expansion bus supports 32-bit PCI and 16-bit ISA cards, as well as PCMCIA Type III cards, plug and play, and hot-docking. Other features include 800×600-pixel color displays, 40 or 48 Mbytes of DRAM, and a 1.13-Gbyte hard-disk drive. Toshiba Computer Systems Division, Irvine, CA. (800) 334-3445.

CD recorders promise fast record and playback. Two CD recorders, the CDR102 and CDE102, record at 1X and 2X speeds and playback at 1X, 2X, and 4X speeds. The units handle all standard formats, including CD-ROM, CD-ROMXA, CD-1, and CD-DA (digital audio). The internal CDR-102 fits a standard 5.25-in. disk drive; the external CDE102 plugs into a PC or Macintosh via a standard SCSI II port. CD loading is by CD caddy. Prices for the CDE102 and CDR102 are $1450 and $1250, respectively. Yamaha Systems Technology Inc, San Jose, CA. (408) 467-2300.

2.5-in. disk drive holds 2.16 Gbytes. A 2.5-in. hard-disk drive offers a storage capacity of 2.16 Gbytes and a 13-msec seek time. Equipped with a fast ATA interface, the MK-2101MAN has a rotational speed of 4200 rpm and a 128-kbyte buffer, which contributes to a peak internal data rate of up to 55.6 Mbps. In programmed-input/output mode-4, the MK-2101MAN transfers data at 16.6 Mbytes/sec. The device uses partial-response maximum-likelihood predictive read-channel technology. The MK-2101MAX costs $1000. Toshiba America Information Systems Inc, Disk Products Division, Irvine, CA. (714) 457-0777.

DSP card with PCMCIA interface churns at 50 Mflops. BulletDSP is a portable Type III PCMCIA interface card for audio signal processing. Based on a TMS320C32 floating-point processor, the BulletDSP performs 50 Mflops. It also provides two CD-quality audio-input and -output channels, as well as up to 1 Mbyte of SRAM, 4 Mbytes of DRAM, and 512 kbytes of flash memory. Audio channels employ a 16-bit stereo multimedia codec with a programmable sampling rate of 5.51 to 48 kHz and input gain of 0 to 22.5 dB. Prices start at $895, including 256 kbytes of SRAM. Communication Automation & Control Inc, Allentown, PA. (610) 776-6669.

Pentium-based notebook includes Windows 95. The TravelMate 5200 notebook computer comes with Windows 95 and Windows for Workgroups preinstalled, and a 120-MHz Pentium processor. The system uses a 10.4-in. 800×600-pixel active-matrix, Super-VGA color display with 65,000 colors, and 2 Mbytes of video RAM. It also incorporates a 1.2-Gbyte hard-disk drive, 1.44-Mbyte floppy-disk drive, 8 to 32 Mbytes of RAM, a 16-bit sound card, and an internal speaker. It provides connectivity through an IR serial port, a PCMCIA Type III slot, and an external PCI-expansion bus. The system costs approximately $5199. Texas Instruments Inc, Temple, TX. (800) 848-3927.

Miniature joystick translates finger pressure. The Button Mouse, a miniature joystick, is small enough to fit between the keys of a keyboard or in a handheld remote control. Cursor movement requires a light touch. Button Mouse connects to a computer via a PS/2 or serial port and comes in a variety of heights, tip colors, and tail lengths. Based on an 8-bit microcontroller, the unit operates from a supply voltage of 3 to 5.5V. An evaluation sample, including the joystick and a circuit board, costs $100. InControl Solutions Inc, Lake Oswego, OR. (503) 699-7700.

Color monitor keeps contrast high. Compatible with both PCs and Macs, a 21-in. color monitor equipped with a SonicTron screen delivers crisp images and vivid color. The PT810 uses a 0.30-mm-aperture grill that produces vertical bars of color for bright, high-contrast images at the highest resolutions. The PT810 offers resolutions of up to 1600×1200 pixels at 73 Hz and 1280×1024 pixels at 85 Hz and has up to 20 control settings. $2495. ViewSonic Corp, Walnut, CA. (909) 869-7976.

Large-format ink-jet plotter draws in minutes. The DesignJet 750C color plotter makes a typical D-sized black-and-white CAD plot at a resolution of 600 dpi in 4 minutes. In draft mode, the same plot is produced at 300 dpi in 2 minutes. Typical color CAD drawings, which are done at 300 dpi, take from 4 to 9 minutes. The DesignJet 750C provides imaging modes to create smooth area fills, as well as renderings or presentations with no banding. A unit that produces D-sized (24-in.- wide) plots costs $6495; an E-sized (36-in.-wide) version costs $7495. Hewlett-Packard, Santa Clara, CA. (800) 851-1170.

Industrial computer has 30-day free trial. The Tactical Computer System, a 486DX2-based industrial computer operating at 66 MHz, comes with a 30-day trial offer. The standard configuration supplies 4 Mbytes of RAM, a 340-Mbyte hard-disk drive, a video card, a 14-in. Super VGA display, a NEMA 12/4 bezel, and a sealed-membrane keypad. You can upgrade the processor to 100 MHz or switch to a Pentium processor. Base price is $3995. Total Control Products, Melrose Park, IL. (708) 345-5500.