08-11: Qualcomm has reached a settlement with Taiwan’s antitrust regulators that reverses most of a USD773M fine; BOE Technology is making preparations for trial production of micro-OLED panels for AR/VR applications; etc.
Chipsets
Canaan Creative unveiled what it claims is the world’s first 7nm mining chip. Canaan also announced that it will be releasing the world’s first mass producer miner featuring the 7nm chips, the Avalonminer A9. The company claims that the A9 is has a performance of between 60w and 70w per terahash and a hash rate of between 26.5 and 30 terahashes per second. (TechNews, CNYES, Laoyaoba, Bitcoin, Leiphone, Bitcoin Exchange Guide)
Qualcomm has reached a settlement with Taiwan’s antitrust regulators that reverses most of a USD773M fine. As part of an agreement announced Friday by the Fair Trade Commission, the company will invest USD700M over the next 5 years and boost research activities in Taiwan. (GSM Arena, Reuters, Apple Insider, Bloomberg, FT CN, ESM China)
Touch Display
Jerusalem-based Inpris has developed technology, SIGHTLESS TOUCH, they say will allow drivers to control music, phone calls, messaging, and navigation in their car without taking their eyes off the road. (CN Beta, Times of Israel)
BOE Technology is making preparations for trial production of micro-OLED panels for AR/VR applications. The trial production is to take place at Kunming BOE Display Technology, a joint venture set up by BOE and the provincial government of Kunming in China. With technology support from China’s Olighteck Optoelectronic and US-based Kopin, Kunming BOE Display aims to roll out 1M units of OLED panels a year with panel sizes ranging from 0.5”~0.8”. (Digitimes, press, Elecfans, OfWeek)
Storage
According to IC Insights, with forecast sales of USD101.6B, (39% growth) the DRAM market is expected to be the largest of all IC product categories in 2018, repeating the ranking it held in 2017. The DRAM market is forecast to account for 24% of IC sales in 2018. The NAND flash market is expected to achieve the second-largest revenue level with total sales of USD62.6B in 2017. Taken together, the two memory categories are forecast to account for 38% of the total USD428.0B IC market in 2018. (IC Insights, press, CN Beta)
Connectivity
ZTE has announced that it has successfully completed tests of indoor 3.5GHz and core 5G wireless network technology in China’s third-phase national testing of the communications matrix on 20 Jul 2018. The 5G tests are carried out collectively by a promotion group piloted by China’s industry and information technology ministry. (Gizmo China, Yi Cai Global, CN Beta)
Phone
OPPO’s 2nd super flagship store has begun operation in Shenzhen. OPPO reportedly aims to own more than 200K offline stores in China within 3~5 years. (CN Beta, CN Beta, Sina, My Drivers)
Samsung and Spotify have recently announced a partnership which would see Samsung integrate Spotify’s music streaming service across a variety of Samsung devices, including its recently announced Galaxy Home speaker. (CN Beta, Ubergizmo, The Verge, Spotify)
Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is announced – 6.4” 1440×2960 QHD+ Super AMOLED, Samsung Exynos 9810 / Qualcomm Snapdragon 845, rear dual 12MP-12MP + front 8MP, 6GB+128GB / 8GB+512GB, Android 8.1, iris scanner, rear fingerprint scanner, Bluetooth S-Pen, 4000mAh, from USD999. (GSM Arena, Sammy Hub, CN Beta)
Wearables
Samsung unveils Tizen-powered Galaxy Watch in 46mm and 42mm sizes – 1.3” / 1.2” 360×360 circle Super AMOLED Corning Gorilla Dx+, Samsung Exynos 9110, 1.5GB+4GB (LTE) / 768MB+4GB (Bluetooth), IP68 rated, 472mAh / 270mAh, from USD375. (CN Beta, Engadget, GSM Arena)
Augmented / Virtual Reality
L’Oréal and its recently acquired AR and AI entity, ModiFace, have announced a long-term collaboration with Facebook to create new AR experiences delivered through Facebook Camera products. ModiFace and Facebook will deliver AR powered make up try-on experiences from the world’s leading beauty brands, such as Maybelline, L’Oréal Paris, NYX Professional Makeup, Lancôme, Giorgio Armani, Yves Saint Laurent, Urban Decay, and Shu Uemura. (Laoyaoba, Sohu, Reuters, ZDNet, L’Oreal)
Automotive
Amazon is making it easy for automakers to integrate the company’s Alexa digital assistant into cars. While BMW, Ford, Toyota, and other carmakers are working with Amazon to integrate Alexa, the Alexa Auto SDK is being released. The SDK includes support for streaming media, smart home controls, weather reports, and Alexa’s many skills. (CN Beta, The Verge, TechCrunch, VentureBeat, Github)
Home
Samsung announces Galaxy Home smart speaker with Bixby smart assistant. The Galaxy Home has full-range speakers, onboard subwoofer, “sound steering” and audio tuning by AKG. It also has eight far-field microphones for use with the assistant. (Android Authority, CN Beta, News, Android Central, Telegraph, CNET, The Verge)
Wang Xianju, general manager of TCL’s white goods department said it will ramp up technology innovation related to its refrigerator and washing machine products, and make personalized intelligent products to meet consumers’ demands. Zhang Xiaoguang, GM of TCL’s brand management center, said TCL aims to become a global leader in intelligent products manufacturing and internet services. (China Daily, Gizmo China, 21CN, iFeng)
Payment
Loup Ventures analyst Gene Munster sees Apple Pay as an increasingly important part of Apple’s services category, which has enjoyed record-breaking growth over the past few quarters, estimating the payment solution now has 253M users worldwide. In reporting its F3Q18 earnings in July, Apple noted a record USD9.5B in services revenue, a 31% jump over the same time the year earlier and a number that beat estimates by a wide margin. (CN Beta, Apple Insider, Loup Ventures)
