SAN FRANCISCO (02/02/2000) - Product Pipeline*IBM Multi-Port USB Hub: By the time you read this, IBM Corp. should be shipping a $149 hub that packs five USB connections--plus serial, parallel, keyboard, and mouse ports--into a device a little larger than a common stapler.
*A Better Home LAN: Proxim Inc. plans to ship the first 10M-bps HomeRF wireless LAN products in the second half of 2000. The technology is cheaper and more reliable than current 802.11b products, Proxim says.
*ELSA Modems: In March, ELSA AG will ship a new line of 56K-bps modems including internal ($59), external ($69), and USB ($99) models. Accept free Juno Net access for three months for a $30 rebate on $59 and $69 modems.
Tidbytes
64MB on a Postage Stamp: Secure Digital memory card, a technology well-suited for MP3 players, is gaining steam thanks to backing from Matsushita, Sandisk, and Toshiba. The card, about the size of a stamp, holds 32MB or 64MB of data.
Look for products as soon as April.
Who Wants to Be an iMac? HP's newest Pavilion home PCs come in such rare colors as "cobalt blue," "krypton green," and "xenon purple." Will purple PCs look as washed up as Ricky Martin in a few months? Your teen will no doubt have final say.