IF / News

Samsung Foundry reportedly has obtained orders from Cisco Systems and Google for their next-generation semiconductor chips. Google has reportedly requested a semiconductor that will go into a sensor that can measure body movements rather than for processors that go into current IT devices and an unprecedented application processor (AP). (ET News, Android Authority, Sina)

Qualcomm’s 5nm products originally handed over to Samsung  foundry, yet due to Samsung’s development progress, Qualcomm has recently placed an urgent order with TSMC for the modem chip “X60” originally scheduled for production at Samsung, and the flagship processor chip “Snapdragon 875” returns to TSMC production in large numbers, and it is expected to start production in 2H21. (CN Beta, UDN, UDN, Gizmo China)

Syntiant, a startup developing AI edge hardware for voice and sensor solutions, has closed a USD35M round. The 3-year-old Syntiant, which is headquartered in Irvine, California, provides hardware that merges machine learning with semiconductor design for always-on voice applications. (CN Beta, VentureBeat, Globe Newswire)

T-Mobile says that it has officially switched on “the world’s first standalone 5G network,” allowing the company to maximize the use of its 600MHz 5G spectrum. Previously, that 600MHz footprint was directly tied to the carrier’s LTE coverage map and thus limited in reach. T-Mobile claims standalone 5G immediately increases its 5G footprint by 30%. (CN Beta, T-Mobile, The Verge)

Sony allegedly plans to bring back the Compact and Premium variants of its flagship in 2021. Additionally, the company plans to skip the small flagship form factor in 2020. (GSM Arena, Android Next, Sina)

Google solidifies its efforts to migrate Google Play Music users over to YouTube Music, which will eventually replace the former. Google has been updating YouTube Music with new features and has added the ability to migrate music, tastes, and playlists from Google Play Music. (CN Beta, GSM Arena, YouTube)

According to IDC, from the perspective of 5G phone design, in addition to SOC or 5G baseband chips, the corresponding antenna, radio frequency, heat dissipation, and larger-capacity battery components all need to occupy more space inside the phone and increase its weight. Starting in 2H19, the proportion of products with a body weight of more than 190g continued to increase, and once reached more than 60% by the end of 2019. As of June 2020, nearly 50% of 5G phones in China are thin and light smartphones below 190g.  (IDC, CN Beta)

Huawei has launched its official game service and distribution platform – Huawei GameCenter, in 13 countries and regions worldwide. Huawei users in the Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, and other regions can now enjoy new gaming experience by downloading and using Huawei GameCenter via AppGallery. (Gizmo China, Huawei Central, Huawei, Sohu)

OPPO K7 5G is announced in China – 6.4” 1080×2400 FHD+ AMOLED u-notch, Qualcomm Snapdragon 765G, rear quad 48MP-8MP ultrawide-2MP macro-2MP depth + front 32MP, 8+128 / 8+256GB, Android 10.0, fingerprint on display, 4025mAh 30W, CNY1,999 (USD285) / CNY2,299 (USD330). (GSM Arena, Sparrow News)

realme V5 5G is announced in China – 6.5” 1080×2400 FHD+ IPS 90Hz HiD, MediaTek Dimensity 720, rear quad 48MP-8MP ultrawide-2MP macro-2MP depth + front 16MP, 6+128 / 8+128GB, Android 10.0, side fingerprint scanner, 5000mAh 30W, CNY1,499 (USD215) / CNY1,899 (USD270). (GSM Arena, realme)

Google Pixel 4a is announced – 5.81” 1080×2340 FHD+ OLED HDR, Qualcomm Snapdragon 730G, rear single 12.2MP + front 8MP, 6+128GB, Android 10.0, rear fingerprint scanner, 3140mAh 18W, EUR339. (Liliputing, GSM Arena)

Nokia C3 is announced – 5.99” 720×1440 HD+ IPS, Unisoc SC9863A, rear single 8MP + front 5MP, 3+32GB, Android 10.0, rear fingerprint scanner, 3040mAh, CNY699 (USD100). (GSM Arena, Nokia)

Worldwide tablet shipments hit 37.5M units in 2Q20, a remarkable 26% year-on-year increase. Tablets, part of the PC market, had faltered in recent years, but demand in 2Q20 was boosted by consumers and businesses wanting affordable access to basic computing power and larger screens to facilitate remote work, learning and leisure. Vendors were able to ramp up production to meet this renewed demand. (Liliputing, GSM Arena, Canalys)

Sharp signed an equity transfer agreement with Toshiba in Jun 2018 to acquire an 80% stake in Toshiba Client Solutions (later renamed Dynabook), a PC division of Toshiba. Recently, Toshiba has announced that it had sold all the remaining equity in Dynabook to Sharp as a result of receiving a notice from Sharp to exercise the call option. (CN Beta, GDM, Money DJ)

Apple partners with UCLA for depression study using Apple Watch and iPhone with and end goal of revolutionizing the detection and treatment of depression. The study will take place over 3 years. The pilot phase will begin this week and involve 150 participants recruited from UCLA Health patients. The main phase will start in 2021 and run through 2023 and include 3,000 participants drawn from UCLA Health patients and the UCLA student body. (Apple Insider, CNBC, UCLA)

The EU has officially opened an in-depth investigation into Google’s planned USD2.1B acquisition of wearables company Fitbit. The investigation will center on whether Google’s acquisition of Fitbit will allow it to hoover up health data, which could in turn give Google an unfair advantage over competitors. (CN Beta, CNN, Business Insider)

 Google has invested USD450M for a 6.6% stake in security company ADT.  The partnership will combine Nest’s award-winning hardware and services, powered by Google’s machine learning technology, with ADT’s installation, service and professional monitoring network to create a more helpful smart home and integrated experience for customers across the United States. (CN Beta, The Verge, TechCrunch, Globe Newswire)

Google has announced it is partnering with half a dozen more banks to offer digital checking and savings accounts to Google Pay users in the U.S., starting sometime 2021. The new partners include Bank Mobile, BBVA USA, BMO Harris, Coastal Community Bank, First Independence Bank and SEFCU. They join Google’s existing partners Citi and SFCU, announced earlier, for a total of now 8 banks lined up for the project. (AL, CN Beta, Engadget, TechCrunch)

Grab has announced that its financial unit Grab Financial Group, which has previously focused mainly on services for entrepreneurs and small businesses, is launching a slew of consumer products, including micro-investments, loans, health insurance and a pay-later program. (TechCrunch, Grab)