Californian company, e.Digital, made its debut with its eVU

portable player, sold this year to Alitalia and Lufthansa for

premium-class cabins. The eVU handheld player can play 14

hours of continuous content in a single battery charge and carry

up to 200GB of content in a 7in or 8in high-resolution screen.

Mezzo also made a debut at the Expo, offering a demo of

the eVU player, which is part of its ‘Instant Plane Relief’ IFE

retail concept. Mezzo also promoted battery power with a

‘battery for life’ guarantee over the life of any Mezzo contract.

Meanwhile, Phantom Media exhibited its portable Bluebox

IFE solution, which is now flying on bmi; and digEcor exhibited

its latest portable player, the digEplayer XT. Turn to page 60 for

our feature on the latest from the mobile IFE market.

Inflight connectivity Starling Advanced Communication Ltd

presented its MIJET antenna, which it claims is the world’s fastest

low-profile, fuselage-mounted antenna for airliners. The

MIJET is an ultra-small (75cm-wide, 15cm-high), bidirectional

airborne Ku-band antenna, suitable for any wide- or narrowbody

airliner. The antenna delivers a transmission bit rate of up

to 1.25Mb/sec and a reception bit rate from 10-15Mb/sec.

MIJET requires only one cable connection into the aircraft, and

all electronic and RF units are housed inside the antenna for

optimal ease of installation and maintenance.

exporeview

Dream suite

B/E Aerospace exhibited a full-sized mock-up

of its Boeing 777 Door 3 Overhead Attendant

Rest (OHAR), which provides comfortable, quiet

sleeping quarters for up to eight flight attendants

with the added bonus of two seat positions. The

OHAR also maximises yield for airlines by optimising

the unused volume above the ceiling in the midsection

of the 777’s cabin, and recovering main

cabin seats formerly dedicated to the flight attendant

rest area. It also frees up the equivalent of one 96 x 125in

pallet in the lower lobe, and weighs less than two thirds

as much as the lower lobe crew-rest compartment it replaces. For a

typical fleet, B/E claims the OHAR can yield up to: 135 additional

pax tourist-class seats; 30 additional pax business-class seats;

9,500ft3 of belly freight; and an overall weight reduction of 700 lb. The

OHAR system was designed according to the findings of the NASA Sleep

Factor Survey, offering optimised comfort and privacy with spacious 80in

bunks, privacy curtains and individual air outlets.

The loss of Connexion By Boeing has prompted many

newcomers into the Ku band connectivity market. Panasonic

once again reiterated its commitment to provide its Ku band

service (mobile phone, internet and live television), delivered

courtesy of Starling’s MiJet antenna, which is currently going

through final certification. Panasonic confirmed it is currently

in discussions with threecarriers interested in its Ku band

connectivity solution.

A new service provider also made a visit to the Expo –

Row44 – promising a global broadband solution to deliver

internet, email, mobile phone and live television to passengers.

Its system is based on technology from satellite networks owner

Hughes. The Row44 service would operate over Ku band

delivering seriously high speeds of up to 81Mb/sec. Row44

is starting in-flight trials with a commercial airline in the

fourth quarter and expects to enter revenue service in the first

quarter of next year.

AeroMobile demonstrated its voice and data service, which is

to be launched on Emirates after clearing certification approvals.

Qantas has just launched an inflight evaluation of AeroMobile

via Inmarsat Swift64 (64kpbs), providing GPRS service such as

text messaging and emails to passengers’ own devices.

SITA subsidiary, OnAir, urged visitors to try its Internet

Product Suite, as well as updating visitors on the certification

5. IMS’ ‘semiembedded’

IFE solution included a

dedicated iPod

interface

The eVU handheld player can play 14

hours of continuous content in a

single battery charge