5-16: Microsoft is rumoured to sell feature phone business to Foxconn; European Commission reportedly expects to fine Google “in the region of” EUR3bln; By 2025 the overall market size of drone in China will reach around CNY75bln; etc.

Microsoft is rumored to sell feature phone business to Foxconn; European Commission reportedly expects to fine Google “in the region of” EUR3bln; BMW has confirmed plans to launch an electric, autonomous car by 2021, named the iNext; Audi is teaching its autonomous cars some thoroughly human road-manners; By 2025, the overall market size of drone in China will reach around CNY75bln; etc.

Display

Sweden’s KTH Royal Institute of Technology has developed a technique for transparent wood. The advantage of transparent wood over something like glass is that it has all the strength of opaque lumber—but still lets in light. (Engadget, Advanced Material, Fast Code Design, New York Times, Leikeji, GMW)

see-through-wood

Sensors

ROSS, ‘the world’s first artificially intelligent attorney’ powered by IBM Watson, recently landed a position at New York law firm Baker & Hostetler handling the firm’s bankruptcy practice. The machine is designed to understand language, provide answers to questions, formulate hypotheses and monitor developments in the legal system. (CN Beta, Daily Mail, Inquisitr)

ibm-ross

Smartphones

OnePlus new hires Juha Rytkönen and Kyle Kiang will strengthen their place in Europe. (Android Headlines, eWallStreeter)
Microsoft is rumoured to sell feature phone business to Foxconn, lay off 50% of Microsoft Mobile. (Phone Arena, MSPoweruser, VTech, CN Beta)
LG modular handset G5 has reached an impasse in the Chinese market, as its “vague” positioning strategy adds to an already gloomy picture for LG’s mobile business here. (CN Beta, Korea Times)
European Commission reportedly expects to fine Google “in the region of” EUR3 billion (USD3.4 billion), an all-time high for an EU antitrust payout. (Engadget, Reuters, The Telegraph, iFeng, Sina)
IUNI U4 is leaked – 5.2” FHD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 4/6GB RAM, 64/128GB storage,  IUNI OS 2.0, USB Type-C, fingerprint sensor at the side, priced from CNY1999. (CN Beta, Android Headlines)

iuni-u4

GREE 2 is official – 6” QHD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 processor, 16MP + 8MP cameras, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, Android 6.0, LTE, 4000mAh battery, CNY3300. (Android Headlines, TechWeb, Sina, Tencent)

gree-2

Wearables

Acer is joining forces with the game studio Starbreeze to develop a high-end virtual reality headset designed for arcades and theme parks. (The Verge, 163, HC360)

acer-starbreeze

Internet of Things

BMW has confirmed plans to launch an electric, autonomous car by 2021, named the iNext. (ZDNet, Reaad/Write, Information Week, eTekNix, Sina, Sohu)
Audi is teaching its autonomous cars some thoroughly human road-manners, acknowledging that safe self-driving is about more than just sticking to the Vehicle Code. (Digital Trends, Slash Gear, Tencent)
iResearch forecasts that by 2025, the market size of drone for aerial photography in China will reach around CNY30 billion, for agriculture will reach CNY20 billion, for security it will reach CNY15 billion, and overall market size will reach CNY75 billion. (iResearch report)

iresearch-china-drone-2025

Tencent, Intel and Haier jointly unveiled the Tencent Games Platform (TGP) BOX, called Blade BOX. It is equipped with TGP BOX mode and a Windows 10 operating system, with a sixth-generation Intel core i3 /i5 / i7 desktop processor. (CN Beta, Neowin, All China Tech)

tencent-tgp-box

 

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