IF / News

Chipsets

[CES2020] MediaTek has announced Dimensity 800 SoC, built on the 7nm process that will bring 5G connectivity to premium midrange smartphones. The first phones on the market will be available before the end of 1H20. It is designed to support both SA and NSA sub-6Ghz networks, multi-mode support from 2G to 5G and Dynamic Spectrum Sharing (DSS). (GSM Arena, MediaTek, CNET, XDA-Developers, CN Beta)

[CES2020] Qualcomm’s president Cristiano Amon has announced that the company believes 200M units 5G smartphones will be shipped in 2020, and by 2023 there will be 1B 5G connections. (Digital Trends, VentureBeat)

Touch Display

[CES2020] The Head of Global Communications at TCL, Jason Gerdon has revealed that the company has a roadmap they are building out with the “TCL 10” series and foldables. The TCL Foldable comes with a large 7.2” panel that can be folded into a smaller device. (Digital Trends, TechRadar, GizChina)

[CES2020] TCL has unveiled for the first time a next-generation display technology, Vidrian Mini-LED technology. It is claimed to be the world’s first TV backlight with the driving semi-conductor circuitry and thousands of micro-meter class mini-LEDs directly infused in a crystal-clear glass substrate. (Digital Trends, Technowize, Business Wire)

[CES2020] Samsung has set up a private booth to showcase its concept slideable display phone to potential customers. (Phone Arena, ET News)

[CES2020] Intel showcases its “Horseshoe Bend” concept tablet, which features a 17” foldable display that folds in half to take up the same amount of space as a 13.3” notebook. (Liliputing, The Verge, SlashGear, Engadget, IT Home)

Camera

OmniVision has unveiled OV48C, which is a 48MP image sensor with a large 1.2µ pixel size to enable high resolution and excellent low light performance for flagship smartphone cameras. The OmniVision OV48C features “half shield” phase detection autofocus and digital zoom with 12MP output. (GSM Arena, OmniVision, My Drivers)

Sensory

[CES2020] Sensel has integrated its Pressure Grid sensor array along the edges of a phone prototype, by collaborating with Visionox. Sensel’s patented touch technology offers two functions in a single, ultra-thin sensor: position reporting with high accuracy, and force sensing with the ability to measure force from <1g to 5kg independently for each contact point. (Engadget, PR Newswire, MSN)

Connectivity

Bluetooth Special Interest Group (SIG) has announced the upcoming release of LE Audio, the next generation of Bluetooth audio. Not only will LE Audio enhance Bluetooth audio performance, it will add support for hearing aids and enable Audio Sharing. Bluetooth audio will soon support two operation modes. LE Audio will operate on the Bluetooth Low Energy (LE) radio while Classic Audio operates on the Bluetooth Classic radio (BR/EDR). (Apple Insider, Bluetooth, Xueqiu, Sina)

Phone

[CES2020] SelfieType, which is developed by Samsung’s C-Lab program, uses AI and phone’s camera to track user’s hands as they type on an invisible keyboard right in front of the user. SelfieType acts as an AI camera-based concept solution that replaces a physical keyboard with a digital one. (Android Headlines, The Verge)

realme has announced that it ships more than 25M units smartphones in 2019. This is an annual increase of 500%+. Moreover, in the 3Q19, realme smartphone shipments ranked No. 7. realme has also set a small target for 2020: the global growth rate should exceed 100%. (GizChina, Yicai, Sohu)

realme X50 5G is announced in China – 6.57” 1080×2400 FHD+ IPS dual HiD, Qualcomm Snapdragon 765, rear quad 64MP-12MP telephoto-8MP ultrawide-2MP macro + front dual 16MP-8MP ultrawide, 8+128 / 6+256 / 12+256GB, Android 10.0, side fingerprint scanner, 4200mAh 30W, CNY2,499 (EUR320) / CNY2,699 (EUR350) / CNY2,999 (EUR390). (GSM Arena, GizChina)

[CES2020] Alcatel 3L, 1S, 1V and 1B are official with 3L, 1S and 1V features 6.22” 720×1520 HD+ IPS, and 1B features 5.5” 720×1440 HD+ IPS: 3L (2020) – MediaTek MT6762, rear tri 48MP-5MP ultrawide-2MP macro + front 8MP, 4+64GB, Android 10.0, rear fingerprint, 4000mAh, ~USD155. 1S (2020) –MediaTek MT6762D, rear tri 13MP-5MP ultrawide-2MP macro + front 5MP, 3+32GB, Android 10.0, rear fingerprint, 4000mAh, ~USD110. 1V (2020) – MediaTek MT6762D, rear dual 13MP-5MP ultrawide + front 5MP, 2+32GB, Android 10.0, rear fingerprint, 4000mAh, ~USD88. 1B (2020) – Qualcomm Snapdragon 215, rear 8MP + front 5MP, 2+16GB, Android 10.0 (Go Edition), no fingerprint scanner, 3000mAh, ~USD66. (GSM Arena, PR Newswire)

[CES2020] TCL 10 series is unveiled, with details to be unveiled in MWC2020: TCL 10 5G – HiD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 700 series (presumably 765G), quad cam with 64MP main camera, rear fingerprint scanner. TCL 10 Pro – Edge OLED u-notch display, quad cam with 64MP main camera, in-display fingerprint scanner, reflective holographic design. TCL 10L – HiD display, quad cam with 48MP main camera, diagonal reflective rear glass design. (GSM Arena, 9to5Google, The Verge)

realme C2s is launched in Thailand – 6.1” 720×1560 HD+ IPS, MediaTek Helio P22 MT6762, rear dual 13MP-2MP depth + front 5MP, 3+32GB, Android 9.0, no fingerprint scanner, 4000mAh, THB1,290 (USD43). (Gizmo China, GSM Arena, Facebook)

PC Tablets

[CES2020] Lenovo’s Project Limitless has made Yoga 5G, which is claimed as the “the first-ever PC powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8cx 5G Compute Platform”. It will be called Flex 5G in US, and priced at USD1,499. The Yoga 5G supports both mmWave full-band and sub-6GHz 5G networks. (Neowin, The Verge, CNET, AnandTech)

Augmented / Virtual Reality

[CES2020] Samsung showcases a system called Gait Enhancing & Motivating System (GEMS), which is an exercise analytics and training platform. It is a combination of an exoskeleton and an AR glasses. The wearer could pick a virtual-workout location and motivational trainer to guide them through some exercises. (Engadget, TechCrunch, Upload VR)

[CES2020] Panasonic has announced that it has developed the world’s first High Dynamic Range (HDR) capable ultra-high definition (UHD) virtual reality (VR) eyeglasses which boasts a comfortable fit that makes users feel as if they were wearing eyeglasses. (Android Headlines, Panasonic, PR Newswire)

Wearables

[CES2020] Panasonic has introduced a pair of new truly wireless earbuds, the RZ-S500W (USD180) and RZ-S300W (USD120) with noise cancellation technology. The higher-end RZ-S500W earbuds include Panasonic’s Dual Hybrid Noise Cancelling Technology, which offers FeedForward Noise Cancelling (FF-NC) and Feedback Noise Cancelling (FB-NC), in addition to digital and analog processing. (Android Central, TechRadar)

[CES2020] Harman Kardon has announced a series of new headphones Harmon Kardon FLY—FLY BT, (Bluetooth), FLY TWS (true wireless) and FLY ANC (active noise cancelling). The FLY TWS provides full-functioned touch control, avoiding twisted wires or needing to constantly reach for a phone to control music. (GSM Arena, Engadget, Harman Kardon)

Home

[CES2020] Sony has announced new Z8H 8K LED, A8H and MASTER Series A9S OLED, and X950H and X900H 4K LED televisions. The new TVs feature Sony’s X1 Picture Processor, and TRILUMINOS Display technology, as well as a new Ambient Optimization feature to customize and calibrate your sound based on the environment. (Android Central, Digital Trends)

[CES2020] D-Link has launched two new home security cameras with improved security features. Levering edge-based AI, these cameras can tell the difference between people and other objects and detect the sound of glass breaking in real-time. (Android Headlines, PR Newswire)

[CES2020] Royole has announced its second product that uses its flexible display technology, Royole Mirage Smart Speaker, which features 7.8” flexible AMOLED display with a resolution of 1,920×1,440. It has three 48mm full-range drivers with 30W RMS, along with a passive radiator. It will be launched in 2Q20 at USD899. (Android Central, Android Authority, Sohu, IT Home)

[CES2020] Samsung has announced that it will offer a new privacy app, Privacy Choices, on all its current smart TVs. The app will begin to be deployed throughout 2020. The app will show all the information it has collected about the user. (GizChina, Engadget, TechRadar)

[CES2020] Lenovo has unveiled Smart Frame, a digital photo frame featuring 21.9” 1920×1080 FHD+ display with 85º viewing angle. It will show recent memories, and can even create collages of photos stored on the Lenovo cloud. It is priced at USD399. (Engadget, Android Central)

[CES2020] Bic has announced The Next Bic Thing, a collaborative platform the company plans to use to foster innovation and creative products. One of these collaborative efforts is with Invoxia, a connected razor. The razor can capture information about the temperature of the water, humidity in the room, hair density, shaving speed, number of strokes, total shaving time, etc. (Digital Trends, Engadget)

Sonos has filed a lawsuit against Google. Sonos claims Google has stolen 5 of its patents, and have been using them in its Chromecast, Google Home and Pixel devices. (Android Headlines, Android Authority, NY Times)

Automotive

[CES2020] Sony unveils Vision-S concept electric car, which features 33 sensors inside and out, including CMOS image sensors and 3D Time of Flight sensors, radar and ultra sonic sensors and even solid state LiDAR. Sony calls this “Oval sensing”. (GSM Arena, Sony, CN Beta)

Robotics

[CES2020] Samsung showcases Ballie, a small, rolling home robot with a built-in camera, microphone, and speaker. It is designed to understand, support, and react to owners’ needs. (Android Authority, The Verge, VentureBeat, TechNode)

Artificial Intelligence

[CES2020] Samsung-backed company called Neon has unveiled the world’s first “artificial human”. Neon describes the new creation as a “computationally created virtual being”. The “artificial human” is claimed able to “converse and sympathize” like real people. (Android Authority, CNET, Live Mint, TechNews, Qianzhan)