7-13: Intel is ambitious in smart car industry; Xiaomi will meet up Samsung executives to discuss possible component partnership; Magic Leap to mass produce their first commercial product soon; etc.
Intel is ambitious in smart car industry; Xiaomi will meet up Samsung executives to discuss possible component partnership; BlackBerry claims they are not giving up on their own BB10; Smartphone vendors might see sales of their flagship models disappoint in 2H16 due to lack of upgrades; Magic Leap to mass produce their first commercial product soon; etc.
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Chipset |
| Intel CEO Brian Krzanich reiterated the company’s goal of getting into smart cars and connectivity, and acknowledged that it was too late for Intel to go after the already mature phone business. (CNET, CN Beta, Fortune) |
| Xiaomi founder and CEO Lei Jun is expected to visit Seoul this week to have a meeting with Samsung Electronics executives possibly on components (including processor, image sensor, etc.) partnership. (Korea Herald, CN Beta) |
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Camera |
| A patent filed by Samsung shows a new method for capturing more vivid colors inside digital cameras. It proposes splitting the light into two separate beams, so the sensor is no longer hit with almost every wavelength, to prevent that loss of light and help create more vivid colors. (Digital Trends, Free Patent Online, Tencent)
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| According to Isaiah Research, market size of dual-cameral-equipped smartphone in 2016 and 2017 are 60-70 million and 170-180 million units, respectively. In 2016, Huawei and Apple are the main vendors to adopt dual-camera, and in the near future, Samsung and some Chinese brands such as vivo and OPPO would gradually adopt dual-camera. (Isaiah Research report)
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| Mainland and Taiwan camera module vendors such as Lite-On, Primax, O-Film, and Sunny Optical are the main suppliers to Chinese smartphone vendors. However, Korean and Japanese vendors such as SEMCO, LG Innotek and Sharp are having tough time for localization, thus not easy to enter the Chinese smartphones supply chain. (Isaiah Research report)
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| According to Isaiah Research, regardless of the refined lens module (5P to 6P) and CIS (IMX247 to IMX303) of Apple iPhone 7 in rear camera, the overall camera BOM cost is still lower than iPhone 6s at USD18.3 as initial price. (Isaiah Research report)
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Memory |
| Seagate said that it would be cutting 6,500 jobs by the end of the next fiscal year, amounting to roughly 14% of its global workforce. (CN Beta, USA Today, TNW) |
| According to IHS, Samsung managed to earn USD2.6 billion in revenue for 1Q16 for NAND flash memory, which is a 3.1% increase from last quarter. Its market share in the NAND flash memory industry has increased by 0.6% from the previous quarter and currently stands at 42.6%. Toshiba, the second largest NAND flash manufacturer in the world, stands at 28%. (Android Headlines, Sam Mobile, Korea Herald, D1Net) |
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Battery |
| Researchers at the University of the West of England have revealed a new system which transforms urine into electricity using a microbial fuel cell. Just over half a litre of urine is enough for 6 hours of charge time, which can power a smartphone for 3 hours. (CN Beta, Daily Mail, Daily Express)
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| Somaltus, LLC has filed a complaint against Apple, ASUS, Lenovo, Samsung, Sony, and Toshiba over ‘fast-charge’ technology. (Phone Arena, Mac Rumors, 163) |
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Smartphones |
| Analyst Amit Daryanani of RBC Capital Markets estimates Apple have shipped 39.5 million iPhones in 2Q16, down from 47.5 million in 2Q15, marking the second-ever YoY decline in iPhone sales. (Apple Insider, CN Beta) |
| Apple is reportedly considering some form of central repair center in Russia, following a lawsuit from customer who found he could not get his iPhone screen fixed or replaced directly by the company. (Apple Insider, CN Beta, The Moscow Times) |
| Based on a survey of 400 US iPhone owners conducted by Piper Jaffray’s Gene Munster and Douglas Clinton, 14.8% currently plan to upgrade to the Apple iPhone 7 in the fall, while 29% may upgrade to the new device. 67.3% of iPhone owners in the US have an iPhone 6/6 Plus or older, meaning they would fall into the typical carrier upgrade window during the iPhone 7 cycle. (CN Beta, Barron’s, blog, 199IT)
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| BlackBerry COO Marty Beard indicates that they are not backing away from BB10, and claims that the company has never said it would not build another BB10 device. (CN Beta, Ubergizmo, Bloomberg) |
| According to Digitimes, smartphone vendors might see sales of their flagship models disappoint in 2H16 due to lack of upgrades. Smartphone demand particularly demand for high-end models is unlikely to enjoy dramatic growth until the transition to 5G. (Digitimes, press, CECB2B) |
| Google acquires Kifi, a startup that focuses on internet-based collaboration and sharing. Kifi will be joining Google Spaces team. (Engadget, 9to5Google, Medium, Lieyunwang) |
Samsung unveils Galaxy On5 Pro and On7 Pro in India: On5 Pro – 5” HD display, Samsung Exynos 3475 processor, 8MP + 5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 16GB ROM, Android 6.0, LTE, dual-SIM, 2600mAh battery, INR9190. On7 Pro – 5.5” HD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 16GB ROM, Android 6.0, LTE, dual-SIM, 3000mAh battery, INR11190. (Android Headlines, India Times, BGR)  |
| ASUS ZenFone 3 Deluxe is announced features Qualcomm Snapdragon 821 processor – 5.7” FHD Super AMOLED display, 23MP + 8MP cameras, 4 / 6GB RAM, 64 / 128 / 256GB ROM, Android 6.0, LTE, dual-SIM, 3000mAh battery, NTD24,990. (CN Beta, CNET, PC Mag, The Droid Guy, ASUS)
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| Lenovo Vibe C2 (2016 Moto E variant) is announced – 5” HD IPS LCD display, MediaTek MT6735P processor, 8MP + 5MP cameras, 1GB RAM, 8GB ROM, LTE, 2750mAh battery. (GSM Arena, Phone Arena, Android Geeks)
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Tablets |
| Microsoft announced “Surface as a Service”, which will allow businesses to lease Surface devices, alongside subscriptions to Office 365 and Windows 10. (Microsoft, TechCrunch, Sina, 163) |
| ASUS ZenPad 3S 10 is official – 9.7” 2048×1536 display, MediaTek MT8176 processor, 8MP + 5MP cameras, 4GB RAM, 32GB storage, Android 6.0, fingerprint sensor, USB Type-C, 5900mAh battery, NTD10,990. (CN Beta, Android Headlines)
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Wearables |
| Apple ranks highest among manufacturers of smartwatches, and Samsung ranks highest among manufacturers of fitness band devices, according to the J.D. Power. (CN Beta, Mac Observer, J.D.Power, press)
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| The CEO of Within, as rebranded from Vrse, Chris Milk claims that VR will be ‘the last medium’. (Digital Trends, Gamedog) |
| Magic Leap founder and CEO Rony Abovitz indicates that the company is preparing to enter the production phase for their first consumer product, which will have something to do with “mixed reality”. (Android Headlines, Reuters, Business Insider, Hexun, Sina)
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Internet of Things |
| Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said that chatbots will “fundamentally revolutionize how computing is experienced by everybody.” Nadella explained that for now, bots will augment apps, but in time, human language will be taught to all computers and become “the new interface.” (Venture Beat, CN Beta) |
| The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is looking into whether Tesla broke the law by failing to inform investors of the accident. (WSJ, Engadget, Fortune, 163, Hexun) |
