Motorola has quietly started shipping three new Linux-based "PDA" phones. Available now in China, and also approved by the FCC for use in the U.S., the MotoMing a1600 and a1800 are higher-end versions of the popular a1200, while the a810 adds a lower-end Ming model.

STMicroelectronics (STM) and NXP announced a management team for their joint venture (JV) targeting mobile processors. When it launches in the third quarter, ST-NXP Wireless will incorporate both firms' mobile and wireless businesses, which together generated $3 billion in 2007, say the companies.

IronKey Inc. has announced that its line of encrypted USB storage keys is now available for all major Linux operating systems (OSes). IronKey devices come in 1GB, 2GB, 4GB and 8GB models, offer military-grade hardware encryption, and do not require driver installation, says the company.

Calao Systems has started shipping half a dozen expansion modules for its tiny USB key-sized Linux computer. The company has also launched a new low-powered USB computer that runs FreeRTOS, and offers CAN and LIN (local interconnect network) bus expansion.

Recursion Software is beta testing a cross-platform development environment for Java and Microsoft .NET developers building messaging and communications applications. The Voyager platform helps developers write a single code-set for mobile devices natively in either Java or .NET for "playback" on any supported platform, says Recursion.

[Updated: Jun. 26, 2008] -- The Linux Phone Standards (LiPS) Forum announced that it will fold its standards-development activities and membership into the LiMo Foundation in July. The merge appears to bring British Telecom and Telecom Italia to LiMo, along with several key technology vendors.

CodeSourcery has started shipping a new, more optimized version of its GNU-based toolchain for the MIPS architecture, it says. Sourcery G++ for MIPS now supports all MIPS cores, as well as "non-position independent code," for a claimed performance boost under Linux.

Nokia's Symbian purchase and subsequent open source release will put pressure on Linux phone stack vendors and Microsoft alike, writes Andreas Constantinou in a thought-provoking guest editorial. An open source Symbian release, when and if it happens, could even offer a few things Android and LiMo won't, he suggests.

The Open Group has scheduled its annual Real-time and Embedded Systems (RTES) Forum for July 21-25 at the InterContinental Hotel in Chicago. The group has released a preliminary agenda, with session topics including security, MILS, and "dependability through assuredness."

Silex Technology announced a Linux-friendly 802.11a/b/g WiFi module offered in an SDIO card form factor. The SX-SDWAG is aimed at embedded OEM applications that require low power consumption, such as battery-operated devices in the medical, weights and measures, and transportation industries, says Silex.

[Updated Jun. 26] --Canonical Ltd. has quietly launched a full "developers release" of Ubuntu 8.04 ("Hardy Heron") for MIDs (mobile Internet devices). Desktop and embedded Linux developers can now begin porting applications to the platform, which will be pre-installed on MIDs by OEMs, Canonical hopes.

Openmoko has begun shipping its Linux-based, open source Neo Freerunner phone to five newly announced distributors, in Germany, France, and India, says the company. The Neo Freerunner features an open hardware design, and a Linux-based operating system that users are free to modify.

Lightweight graphics stack company Fluffy Spider Technologies (FST) has forged an alliance with a Taiwan-based company specializing in multilingual fonts. FST and Arphic Technology will work together to develop "intuitive multilingual interfaces" for a variety of Linux-compatible consumer electronics devices and smartphones, say the companies.

Win Enterprises is shipping a 1U, Core2 Duo-based network appliance with eight Ethernet ports. The Linux-compatible PL-60760 targets firewalls, VPN gateways, IDS/IPS (intrusion detection and prevention systems), NAC (network access control) systems, and UTM (unified threat management) applications based on Linux and other embedded OSes.

MSC Vertriebs has announced a COM (computer-on-module) targeting image processing or automation. The COM Express-format CXB-CD9455 module has Intel's Celeron M or Core Duo processors, five PCI Express x1 expansion lanes, an onboard TPM (trusted platform module), dual SATA ports, and eight USB ports, says MSC.

[Updated Jun. 25] -- Following today's news that Nokia will release Symbian as open source, LinuxDevices spoke with Ari Jaaksi, Nokia's director of open source. We asked Dr. Jaaksi how the move affects the company's Linux strategy, participation in Maemo.org, and its strategy regarding Trolltech tools.

[Updated 2:15PM] -- Nokia will buy the rest of Symbian, and release the smartphone OS under an open source license. The OS will be governed and owned by a Symbian Foundation formed by Nokia, Sony Ericsson, Ericcson, Panasonic, Siemens, AT&T, LG, Samsung, STMicroelectrics, TI, and Vodafone.

[Updated Jun. 26] -- Motorola and Kodak announced a cameraphone that combines Motorola's "ModeShift" interface with Kodak imaging technology. Available in China next month, and later this year elsewhere, Motorola's MotoZine ZN5 mashes up a 5-megapixel camera with a multimedia smartphone. The

Google now expects Linux-based Android phones to ship in the fourth quarter instead of the second half of this year, according to a report. Reasons for the delays reportedly include language glitches, last-minute changes from Google, and issues over carrier branding.

Marseilles, France-based Nexvision has announced a network IP (Internet protocol) video camera design that incorporates the Texas Instruments (TI) DaVinci TMS320DM6467 processor. The Linux-based CamHD hardware/software reference design is equipped with an Altera Cyclone III FPGA (field-programmable gate array), and boasts a claimed 1080P HD resolution.