IF / News

Chipsets

LG’s investments into the Vehicle Component Solutions (VS) division this year is expected to reach about KRW900B (USD771M). LG’s VS division is in charge of developing and manufacturing in-vehicle infotainment systems, electric vehicle motors and parts for self-driving cars, among others. Investments in 2019 into the division increased by 27% from KRW709B in 2018. (Laoyaoba, Korea Times)

Qualcomm expects 450M 5G smartphones to be shipped in 2021. Then, Qualcomm anticipates 750M more 5G phones to ship in 2022. Qualcomm believes 5G adoption will be faster than 4G due to the timing of commercialization of the technology in China and availability of chipsets across different price tiers. (Android Central, Reuters, ZDNet)

Touch Display

LG’s patent indicates that the company is exploring the possibilities of a retractable display. In its most compact form, you have an extremely narrow smartphone at your disposal. By pulling out the device you get a screen that is almost twice as wide. (CN Beta, LetsGoDigital, GizChina)

According to IHS Markit, AMOLED shipments to the smartphone market would reach 486M units in 2019, up 17% from 2018. Thus, though the overall smartphone display shipments were decreased by 1%, the AMOLED shipments would continue to increase. However, a significant penetration of AMOLED display technology in the smartphones market is expected to happen in 2020. Powered by these market trends, total AMOLED shipments are forecasted to rise to 825M units in 2023. (EPT, GizChina)

Strategy Analytics has found that the perceived value of the foldable form does not outweigh the added cost. They that the idea of having a larger-displayed smartphone in a portable size is perceived as valuable to the vast majority but willingness to pay extra for a foldable device does not align with the desire to purchase one. (Strategy Analytics, Gizmo China)

Samsung has secured a new patent, which shows a smartphone with an extra-large display surface that covers almost the entire side of the device. Three of the four sides show a 90º angle. Only at the bottom is a slight bend applied, which, incidentally, extends just as far as the other three sides. In addition, it has additional controls on the rounded touch screen. (Android Headlines, GizChina, IT Home, Sina)

Zhang Xin, VP of TCL CSOT, has indicated that Mini LED TVs will be introduced to the market faster. Before OLED and QLED mature, in order to meet the growing demand for image quality, he has said that Mini LED TV will be introduced to the market faster. Year 2020 will be the first year of driving Mini LED TV development. (Laoyaoba, Sohu)

Huawei plans to manufacture a 60” smart TV with 5G communication capabilities. LG Display (LGD) will reportedly supply OLED panels to Huawei, the two companies are still negotiating supply. Huawei’s large-scale OLED smart TVs means expanding sales of OLED smart TV products, and LGD is expected to benefit from this. (Sina, Laoyaoba)

Camera

Samsung is allegedly using a 108MP primary camera sensor on the Galaxy S11. Additionally, Samsung is also adding 8K video recording capabilities to the phone. Samsung is also working on a new Director’s View mode for the camera app which will allow users to shoot from multiple cameras at the same time. There is also a dedicated Night Hyperlapse mode in development that will be optimized for taking time-lapse videos in the night. (Neowin, XDA-Developers)

Apple has partnered with 100cameras, a nonprofit organization that aims to teach photography to adolescents, providing participating students at DRW College Prep in Chicago with the new iPhone 11. 100cameras teaches the students how to use photography to tell their own stories about growing up in Chicago, using the ‌iPhone 11‌ to capture photos. (CN Beta, Apple, Mac Rumors)

Memory

According to TrendForce, Xi’an Unigroup Guoxin will showcase a full range of memory products from granules to modules, including DDR, DDR2, DDR3, DDR4, LPDDR4 DRAM particles, SO-DIMMs, U-DIMMs, R-DIMMs, NVDIMM module products, and the world’s first commercial embedded self-correcting DRAM, ECC DRAM products. (CN Beta, Sina)

According to TrendForce, demand-side inventory in 2H19 has returned to relatively healthy levels. Furthermore, some vendors pulled their quarterly product shipment forward in an effort to avoid potential negative impacts from Trump’s impending tariffs; this shift skyrocketed DRAM suppliers’ sales bits in 3Q19, driving total DRAM revenue up by 4% and ending the QoQ decline which lasted over three consecutive quarters. (TrendForce, TrendForce, press)

Battery

Xiaomi’s 100W Super Charge Turbo uses a series of double-cell design, adding two strings of battery technology, and adding a 98% ultra-efficient 2:1 charge pump, while using extremely low impedance, high cost materials. Xiaomi co-founder and president Lin Bin has  demonstrated the power of 100W super fast charge, which only requires 17 minutes to fully charge the 4000mAh battery. (My Drivers, IT Home, CNMO, GizChina, iGeekPhone)

Connectivity

South Korean mobile carrier LG Uplus will buy a majority stake in cable TV operator CJ Hello for KRW800B (USD711.9M). The company will expand its 5G-dedicated content, including augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR). (Laoyaoba, SP Global, Korea Joogang Daily)

Nokia and Spark have long-term relationships in various fields such as IP, fiber and wireless networks. Currently, the company is actively working with Spark on 5G deployments at five sites. They will be ready before the end of 2019. To date, Nokia has signed 50 5G commercial contracts worldwide, demonstrating strong growth momentum. (GizChina, IT Home)

Phone

Samsung Electronics reportedly plans to ship some 60M Galaxy M and A series phones made in China by so-called original design manufacturers (ODMs) next year out of a total of about 300M devices. Samsung signed an ODM contract with Wingtech in Sept 2018, and signed an ODM contract with Huaqin in Jul 2018. Wingtech and Huaqin are the largest ODM handset manufacturers in China. Wingtech’s customers include Huawei, Xiaomi and Lenovo. (Laoyaoba, Phone Arena, Reuters)

Realme S5 is announced in India – 6.5” 720×1600 HD+ IPS, Qualcomm Snapdragon 665, rear quad 48MP-8MP ultrawide-2MP macro-2MP depth + front 13MP , 4+64 / 4+128GB, Android 9.0, rear fingerprint scanner, 5000mAh 10W, INR9,999 (USD139) / INR10,999 (USD153).  (GSM Arena, India Today, First Post)

vivo S1 Pro is announced in Philippines – 6.38” 1080×2340 FHD+ Super AMOLED, Qualcomm Snapdragon 665, rear quad 48MP-8MP ultrawide-2MP macro-2MP depth + front 32MP, 8+128GB, Android 9.0, under display fingerprint, 4500mAh 18W, PHP16,000 (USD315). (GSM Arena, vivo)

Wearables

According to Counterpoint Research, the size of the global market for true wireless hearables reached 33M units (USD4.1B) in 3Q19, growing 22% QoQ. Geographically, the US accounted for 31% of the global market and exceeded 10M units for the first time in a single quarter. China has recently expanded remarkably and grew 44% QoQ in 3Q19. (CN Beta, Counterpoint Research)

Augmented / Virtual Reality

SK Telecom has announced the launch of the Virtual Social World service, saying it has joined hands with global ICT and content companies including Facebook, Kakao and Nexon to expand the VR ecosystem powered by 5G network technologies. (Laoyaoba, YNA, Korea Times)

Lenovo has unveiled a new concept for augmented reality (AR) glasses that connect to a PC and let users see up to three displays at once. The company says these concept augmented reality glasses let users simulate multiple monitors but in a private workspace meaning. (Pocket Lint, Next Reality, iKanchai)

Artificial Intelligence

Japan’s SoftBank plans to merge internet unit Yahoo Japan (name changed to Z Holdings) with messaging app operator Line, owned by South Korea’s Naver to create a USD30B tech giant. The collaboration will enable them to make more advances in artificial intelligence and other areas, including search, advertising and payment and financial services. (Laoyaoba, TechCrunch, WSJ, Japan Times, Hankyoreh)