PC expansion cards are about to get a major makeover (giving them, among
other things, interoperability with both desktop and mobile systems), and
for the first time three major industry work groups are pooling their
efforts to make it happen.
The Personal Computer Memory Card International Association (PCMCIA)
Wednesday announced the development of a new specification codenamed
NEWCARD. PCMCIA will collaborate with the USB Implementers Forum (USB-IF) and Peripheral Component Interconnect-Special
Interest Group (PCI-SIG) to develop the new specification, which aims
to deliver reduced size, increased speed, lower costs and support of
advanced serial I/O technologies like USB 2.0 and PCI Express to the PC
Card.
The specification also has the support of industry movers like Intel,
Microsoft, IBM, Dell, HP, Lexar Media, SCM Microsystems and Texas
Instruments. In addition, the PC Quality/Ease of Use Roundtable, which
focuses on reducing end-user issues, will add its guidance to the mix in an
effort to smooth human interaction with NEWCARD.
“Innovative applications and technologies continue to be developed at an
amazing rate, requiring PC clients to have the latest expansion
capabilities,” said Brad Saunders of Intel, chairman of the PCMCIA. “By
drawing upon USB 2.0 and PCI Express, the NEWCARD specification will bring
serial bus technology to a smaller form factor that offers more performance
and improved ease of use. This new specification will revolutionize how PC
developers and OEMs utilize the expansion slot for next-generation features
such as wireless networking, storage and card readers.”
PCMCIA said NEWCARD will be the first expansion card specification targeted
for both mobile and desktop system developers, as well as OEMs seeking
small form factors and sealed systems for smaller and thinner mobile system
designs. For consumers, the value proposition lies in the fact that the
same add-in cards will work on both their desktop and mobile systems.
“NEWCARD addresses the need for a next-generation, high-speed system bus
standard and goes far beyond,” said Robert Schneider, CEO of SCM
Microsystems. “The availability of both a high-speed, single- and
double-wide card enables development of critical new security applications
based on smart cards, which are expected to become a key component of
digital security. Long-term, NEWCARD form factors can be leveraged beyond
notebooks and handhelds onto open desktop systems.”
Other future expansion capabilities which may be enabled by NEWCARD include
wireless communications expansions, TV tuners, security card readers and
optical storage media.
PCMCIA said the specification is slated for release later in 2003, with
products supporting NEWCARD going to market in the second half of 2004.
