In effect, this could reduce the home gaming hardware layer to a dumb terminal, with limited processing and power requirements.

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By bringing virtualization up from the hardware layer, we see is companies can run 2, 3 4 or even 8 times more Java apps per server.

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The other thing is that hardware is the least innovative layer of the technology stack.

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Samsung KNOX is an end-to-end secure Android solution that provides security hardening from the hardware through to the application layer.

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And as Huberman contends, the key to the NAS market is in the software that you layer on top of the hardware.

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Cloud may be a workable approach, however, if only one of these elements (hardware, operating system, or application layer) are based on custom technology.

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It's difficult to see how this could be implemented in future home theater setups, especially considering all the extra hardware currently required, but it could potentially add another layer of immersion to those novelty 4D attractions we can't seem to avoid during visits to the amusement park.

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More important, HTML5 removes a layer of software from Android, said Mr. Sullivan, and thus drives down the cost of hardware needed to run it.

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