Future Horizons has predicted that robots will become mainstream consumer products within the next decade, providing a significant growth opportunity for the electronics sector.

Chip designers, computer makers, researchers and specialists are uniting to tackle one of the most urgent, but overlooked, for the global semiconductor industry: the soaring densities of heat on integrated circuits, particularly high-performance microprocessors.

Scientists have created a transistor architecture using molecular-scale nanowire memory cells. It promises unprecedently compact data storage.

In the future, powering up a latptop may require that it is unfolled first.

RS Components says its Internet Trading Channel (ITC) is now live in Australia and New Zealand.

Invensys Powerware has partnered with Lightning Protection International to distribute the latter's range of Guardian CAT (Controlled Area Triggering) series Air Terminals, LPI Surge and Transient protection products for data, communication and signal lines, and LPI grounding products throughout Australian and New Zealand.

Philips and IBM are jointly developing systems for radio frequency identification (RFID) and smart card applications. The companies will combine to address the growing need for high-security smart cards and RFID technology in day-to-day business processes, operations and consumer lifestyles.

In cooperation with the U.S. Consumer Protection Safety Commission, Fluke Corporation is voluntarily recalling the TL221, TL222 and TL224 modular test leads.

GenTek has announced signing an agreement to sell its Krone communications group to ADC Telecommunications.

Philips, Sony, and E Ink Corporation have announced what is claimed to be the first consumer application of an electronic paper display module.

Kingston Technology has announced a worldwide memory marketing agreement with computing systems developer, Silicon Graphics.

The end of the traditional navigating table on ships and their dependence on traditional paper charts is now in sight with the development in Britain of an electronic chart and navigation system.

Adelaide-based Tyronics and Tekelek have merged combining their design and manufacturing operations.

Researchers at the US Department of Energy's Brookhaven National Laboratory have discovered an interesting type of electronic behaviour in a recently discovered class of superconductors known as cobalt oxides, or cobaltates. These materials operate quite differently from other oxide superconductors, namely the copper oxides (or cuprates), which are commonly referred to as high-temperature superconductors.

As notebook computers become thinner and lighter, the bulky power adapters used for line current approach the weight of the notebooks, but smaller and lighter adapters may be on the way, thanks to piezoelectric technology, according to a Penn State electrical engineer.