04-23: Samsung Electronics has officially released a press statement indicating that the release of Galaxy Fold has been postponed indefinitely; Realme may be planning to enter the China smartphone market very soon; etc.
Chipsets
Tesla has unveiled all the details about its new Full Self-Driving (FSD) computer (previously known as Autopilot Hardware 3.0)—a 260mm2 piece of silicon, with 6B transistors, that the company claims offers 21 times the performance of the Nvidia chips it was using before. (The Verge, VentureBeat, Electrek, TechCrunch, Market Watch, Business Insider, Wallstreet CN, CN Beta)
Touch Display
Samsung Display is reportedly working on new foldable designs as follow-ups to the Samsung Galaxy Fold. Two different designs are being looked at – the so-called G and S-type devices. G-style devices would like the capital letter G have folding two sides folding in. S-style is meant to illustrate the shape. (GSM Arena, The Bell, MS Poweruser, My Drivers)
Display products highlighted at the recently concluded CITE (China Information Technology Expo) 2019 indicated that China’s flat panel players are keen on the development of flexible AMOLED and hole-punch panels, according to Digitimes Research. (Digitimes, press, Digitimes)
Samsung Electronics is allegedly retrieving all Galaxy Fold samples distributed to reviewers, as the firm smarts from the reputational blow of postponing the launch of its first foldable smartphone. (GSM Arena, Reuters, IT Home)
Samsung Electronics has now officially released a press statement indicating that the release of Galaxy Fold has been postponed indefinitely. (Gizmo China, Samsung, CN Beta, Engagdet, Reuters CN)
Biometrics
Apple and Qualcomm are rumored to join hands to introduce in-screen fingerprint sensor on the new iPhone, which features ultrasonic sensor. Ultrasonic in-screen sensors are considered to be faster, safer and work accurately even in wet conditions. As compared to optical sensors, it can unlock the device in 250ms and carries a 1% maximum rejection rate. (Gizmo China, CN Beta)
The popularity of OLED panels paired with in-display fingerprint sensors in the smartphone segment will continue to expand in 2019, driven by the reduction in sensor prices and the price gap between OLED and LTPS LCD panels, according to Digitimes. The price gap between rigid OLED and LTPS LCD panels has been reduced to within USD5 per unit recently. (Digitimes, press, CN Beta)
Phone
The Bluetooth SIG has cleared an HTC device with model number 2Q6U10000, which is believed to be HTC’s 5G phone. (Phone Arena, TAS, CN Beta)
TF Securities analyst Ming-Chi Kuo Kuo expects that the 5G modem addition will grow Apple iPhone sales from 188M~192M in 2019, to 195M~200M by 2020. Of those sales 70M~75M in 2020 are predicted to be in 2H20, following the iPhone 5G release. The company sold 211.8M, 216.8M, and 217.7M iPhones in fiscal years 2016, 2017, and 2018 respectively. (CN Beta, Apple Insider, TF Securities)
OPPO’s sub-brand Realme may be planning to enter the China smartphone market very soon. Competitive pricing and distinct design language of the brand’s products are probably two of the main reasons behind its massive growth in such a short span of time. (CN Beta, MySmartPrice)
Realme C2 is announced in India – 6.1” 720×1560 HD+ IPS, MediaTek Helio P22, rear dual 13MP-2MP + front 5MP, 2+16GB / 3+32GB, Android 9.0, 4000mAh, no fingerprint scanner, INR5,999 / INR7,999. (Android Central, India Today)
Realme 3 Pro is announced in India – 6.3” 1080×2340 FHD+ IPS, Qualcomm Snapdragon 710, rear dual 16MP-5MP + front 25MP, 4+64GB or 6+64/128GB, Android 9.0, rear fingerprint scanner, 4045mAh 20W VOOC 3.0, from INR13,999. (CN Beta, First Post, Realme)
OPPO A1K is announced in Russia – 6.1” 1560×720 HD+ IPS, MediaTek Helio P22, rear 8MP + front 5MP, 2+32GB, Android 9.0, no fingerprint scanner, no facial unlock, 4000mAh, RUB9,990 (USD156). (91Mobiles, GizChina)
OPPO A5s is launched in India – 6.2” 720×1520 HD+ IPS, MediaTek Helio P35 MT6765, rear dual 13MP-2MP + front 8MP, 2+32GB / 4+64GB, Android 8.1, rear fingerprint scanner, 4230mAh, from INR9,990. (Gizmo China, NDTV, India Times)
Lenovo Z6 Pro is announced in China – 6.39” 1080×2340 FHD+ AMOLED, Qualcomm Snapdragon 855, rear quad 48MP-16MP super wide-8MP tele-2MP super video OIS + front 32MP, 6/8/12+128/256/512GB, Android 9.0, 4000mAh 27W fast charging, from CNY2,899. (Gizmo China, CN Beta, GizChina)
Automotive
Tesla has unveiled its ‘Robotaxi’ plan for a self-driving ride-sharing network with its electric cars to be activated as soon as year 2020 with an over-the-air software update. (CN Beta, 36Kr, Electrek, TechCrunch)
