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Java-in-hardware in aJile new PDA
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By Larry Garfield, Friday 26 July 2002  
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aJile Systems has announced a new 100% J2ME PDA that runs Java natively in hardware. It also has wireless connectivity, mp3 support, a thumb board, and other fun stuff.
aJile Systems is betting that people want their handheld Java faster. The company has just announced a new handheld device, the aJ-100WRP, that runs Java bytecode natively in hardware, which should provide the same performance as Java interpreted on a desktop system, or native binaries on other handhelds. aJile is also looking to license their system to other vendors interested in creating Java-in-hardware devices including PDAs, gaming devices, and mobile point-of-sale terminals.
 | It's a PDA, it's a phone, it's a gameboy, it's coffee! No, it's the aJile aJ-100WRP
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The new device sports an impressive array of features all on its own. The device is built around aJile's aJ-100 CPU, which executes Java bytecode natively for better speed. The device comes with 8 MB of Flash ROM and 8 MB of PSRAM, and sports an mp3 decoder and FM synthesizer for audio support. The large 240x320 QVGA touch screen supports full 16-bit color, with a thumb wheel also available. There is also a full QWERTY thumb board, and a 4 way directional control. The only expansion slot is, strangely, an MMC slot, though a Compact Flash slot or IrDA port are available separately. The device also supports cellular connectivity to act as a mobile phone, with either GSM/GPRS or CDMA 2000. The aJ-100WRP runs Sun's J2ME OS natively, and comes with the usual assortment of PIM applications, telephony tools, email, a web browser, and SMS support. There is also a USB port, presumably for connecting to a PC. It runs on an internal Lithium-Ion battery.
Java's key feature is its "write-once, run-anywhere" portability, which makes use of a "virtual machine." Normally, developers write programs in Java and then compile them to a special Java bytecode. Normal programs are compiled directly to binary instructions understood only by a single processor, such a the x86 family on PCs, Macintosh PowerPC chips, or ARM processors. Java's bytecode is compiled to an intermediary set of instructions instead. Then, a user runs the Java program on a computer with a Java Virtual Machine (JVM), which on the fly recompiles the optimized Java bytecode into whatever instructions the local processor uses. That makes the code very portable, but also slows it down since every instruction needs to be translated at runtime. Java-based CPUs such as aJile's skip the last step by simply using the Java bytecode as their native language, significantly reducing the overhead to run programs.
Interested users, however, will be disappointed. The aJ-100WRP is not a consumer device, but a "proof of concept" reference platform to showcase the technology to potential licensees. aJile is also seeking partners to license the design to build systems for markets such as web pads, point-of-sale terminals, and gaming devices. Meanwhile, there is a high-res picture hiding on the very next page.
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| Hands-on impressions, news, reviews, prices and release dates; now all-in-one-page: |
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| Hands-on impressions, news, reviews, prices and release dates; now all-in-one-page: |
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