8-7: LeEco’s Jia Yueting aims to sell 100 million units of LeEco + Coolpad smartphones in 2 years; has suggested that making consumer-ready foldable phones is not exactly possible; etc.

Touch Display

Universal Display (UDC) signed a 5-year OLED Technology License Agreement and Supplemental Material Purchase Agreement with Tianma Micro-electronics. UDC grants Tianma non-exclusive license rights to manufacture and sell OLED display products based on its IPs. UDC also supplies phosphorescent OLED materials to Tianma. (OLED-Info, UDC, Sohu)
Universal Display (UDC) reported its financial results for 2Q16. UDC reported net income of USD21.8 million, on revenues of USD64.4 million. This quarter includes a USD33.7 million license payment from Samsung Display. (OLED-Info, Seeking Alpha, Business Wire, 10JQKA)

udc-2q16-financial

MagnaChip reported that 2Q16 AMOLED IC revenue jumped 73% from 2Q16 to 1Q16 – and over 3 fold compared to 2Q15. AMOLED IC now accounts for 65% of MagnaChip’s display solutions business. MagnaChip also shipped over 6 million OLED TV driver ICs. (OLED-Info, Seeking Alpha)
President of Samsung Mobile Koh Dong-jin has suggested that making consumer-ready foldable phones is not exactly possible “considering the current status of technology”. He also said the company will work to keep the large-screen smartphone in the mainstream. (Phone Arena, Korea Times, IT Home, ChinaZ, C114)

Camera

Amit Daryanani of RBC Capital thinks that thanks to growing demand for larger phablet screens, he predicts that Apple “iPhone 7 Plus” will account for 1/3 of production at launch. He believes the dual-lens camera will be the culprit in limiting availability at launch, with suppliers expected to struggle to keep up with demand at launch. (Apple Insider, Apple World, 25PP)

Battery

Iowa State University has developed a self destructing lithium-ion battery capable of delivering 2.5V that can dissolve or dissipate in 30 minutes when dropped in water. This marks a major step in the development of so-called transient electronics. (CN Beta, Science Daily, New Electronics, E&T)

transient-electronics

Sensory

Stanford are ­inventing materials for touch-sensitive prosthetics. It creates new chemical recipes for every electronic component, replacing rigid materials like silicon with flexible organic molecules, polymers, and nanomaterials. (CN Beta, MIT)

hand-sensors

Smartphones

According to Strategy Analytics, smartphone shipments grew 19% annually to reach 31 million units in India during 2Q16. Android maintained first position with a record 97% smartphone OS marketshare in India. Apple iOS fell 35% annually and shipped 0.8 million smartphones in India in 2Q16. (Strategy Analytics, press, CN Beta)

strategyanalytics-2q16-india

Coolpad has announced that Guo Deying has resigned. Following Deying’s resignation, LeEco’s Jia Yueting, currently an executive director at Coolpad, has been appointed as company chairman and chairman of the Nomination Committee. (CN Beta, Telecom Paper)

coolpad-leeco

After LeEco’s Jia Yueting is appointed the chairman of Coolpad, claiming that the company aims to sell 100 million units of LeEco + Coolpad smartphones in 2 years. (CN Beta, 163, Hexun)

leeco-jiayueting-coolpad

Accessory maker Incipio has announced that they will be acquiring Griffin, another accessory maker. (Ubergizmo, Incipio, 163)
Brazil phone manufacturer Rockcel new smartphone Quartzo using Spreadtrum chipset – 4” WVGA display, Spreadtrum SC7731G processor, 5MP + VGA cameras, 512MB RAM, 4GB storage, Android 5.1, 3G (WCDMA/HSPA+). (EE Trend, 4-Traders)

rockcel-quartzo-spreadtrum

Tablets

General manager of the Surface line at Microsoft Brian Hall tweeted, “I compete with Apple and respect them. but they ARE doing their customers a disservice at times with old tech…” (CN Beta, MS Power User, Learn Bonds, Softpedia)

surface-brian-hall-apple

Wearables

TheWaveVR raises USD2.5 million from KPCB Edge, Presence Capital, Rothenberg Ventures and others to bring the concert experience into VR. (TechCrunch, Venture Beat, Road to VR, 36Kr)

thewavevr-concert-experience-vr

Internet of Things

Meizu has launched a new small button remote control that can control up to 30 different devices at home. The small button shaped device measures only 4.06cm × 1.05cm. (GizChina, CN Beta)

meizu-remote-control

Working alongside Columbia University, and International Culinary Center (ICC), the food-based 3D printer is capable of not only extruding 3D-printed foods (printed from various frozen pureed base ingredients), but also cooking it directly afterward. Currently it is still just a proof-of-concept for a product which might ship around 2020. (CN Beta, Digital Trends, Indian Express, Science Daily, 3Ders)

3d-food-printer

Apple has reportedly purchased Turi, a small Seattle-based startup specializing in machine learning and artificial intelligence technology for a purchase price of around USD200 million. (Apple Insider, Geek Wire, Qudong, ChinaZ)

apple-turi

The new Vantan High School curriculum will reportedly cover drone piloting and maintenance, as well as system programming and an overview of aviation and radio laws. The course will be open to junior high school students, as well as existing Vantan learners and other high school students that want to transfer in. (Engadget, RocketNews24, CN Beta)

vantan-drone-courses

Google’s self-driving car project is losing Chris Urmson, who served as the unit’s CTO and lead technical resource after going the company from Carnegie Mellon. (Digital Trends, TechCrunch, Re/Code, Medium, IT Home, China Times)

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