06-06: China granted 5G licenses to the country’s 3 major telecom operators; Huawei has indicated that the company is willing to sign a “no-spy agreement” with the United States; etc.
Chipsets
TSMC Chairman, Liu Deyin, has revealed that TSMC will continue to ship to Huawei. He has also revealed that TSMC’s shipments for Huawei in 2H19 will be better than 2H18, mainly because the world’s most advanced new products require 7nm process chips. (CN Beta, GizChina, My Drivers)
Touch Display
According to IHS Market, BOE will surpass LG Display (LGD) and grow into the world’s number one FPD (flat-panel display) manufacturer. BOE’s Flat-Panel Display production capacity will reach 59Mm2 in 2019, accounting for 17.7% of the global total. This growth is mainly due to the increase in production capacity of BOE B9 Gen-10.5 (LCD) and B11 Gen-6 (AMOLED). (GizChina, My Drivers)
TCL has announced that its 6-Gen LTPS flexible AMOLED production line in Wuhan has commenced operation. The company already achieved some design wins with “top-class” phone makers and is expected to start shipping OLED displays to its customers in 4Q19. (ZOL, OfWeek, PJ Time, OLED-Info, Gizmo China)
Camera
Xiaomi provides more information about under-screen front camera technology – The display area covering the front camera is capable of turning transparent when the camera is activated, allowing for light to pass and hit the lens and sensor, but looks and works normally when the front shooter is not in use. (The Verge, DP Review, Twitter, Cool3C)
Memory
TrendForce points out that, as ripples from the US ban continue to spread, Huawei’s shipments of smartphone and server products are feared to face heavy obstacles for the next 2~3 quarters , impacting peak-season-demand for DRAM products 2H and the time of price precipitation. TrendForce officially adjusts its outlook for 3Q19 DRAM prices from its original prediction of a 10% decline to a widened 10%-15%. (TrendForce, TrendForce, press, data)
Connectivity
Dialog Semiconductor has introduced the FC9000, the company’s first Wi-Fi SoC since its acquisition of Silicon Motion’s mobile communications product line was recently completed. Dialog has indicated the FC9000 is targeted at battery-powered IoT devices, such as smart door locks, video monitoring systems, smart thermostats and wireless sensors enabling direct connectivity to Wi-Fi networks, while typically supporting a battery power lifetime greater than one year. (Digitimes, Dialog, Semi.org)
On 6 Jun 2019, China granted 5G licenses to the country’s 3 major telecom operators—China Mobile, China Unicom, China Telecom—and China Broadcasting Network Corp. (GizChina, My Drivers, GSM Arena, Reuters)
Huawei is reportedly launching two 5G products expected to be available within 2019, namely Huawei 5G CPE Win and Huawei 5G accompanying WiFi. Huawei 5G CPE Pro not only has all the functions of the home router but also supports the use of a 4G/5G card to access the internet. The actual download rate of 5G is far beyond the gigabit broadband, up to 1.6Gbps. (GizChina, CN Beta, My Drivers)
Phone
LG India is reportedly prepping the release of a budget-oriented smartphone that borrows multiple features from its flagship G and V series. This handset would feature a triple rear camera, a gradient colorway, and would only be available through online purchasing. (Android Authority, 91Mobiles, Tencent)
Tsinghua University has officially announced that the university has signed a framework agreement on science and technology cooperation with Huawei to promote cooperation between both sides to a new level. (My Drivers, CN Beta, 163)
Huawei chairman Liang Hua has indicated that the company is willing to sign a “no-spy agreement” with the United States to reassure U.S. leaders who say the company’s technology could be used for surveillance. (NPR, GizChina, Scientific American)
Wearables
Apple is launching watchOS 6 with a new digital clock, a California-style face, and a couple more. Apple is also bringing three new apps to watchOS 6 – Audiobooks, Voice Memos, and Calculator with Tips option. (GSM Arena, Apple, CN Beta)
Huami has plans to release more than 10 AMAZFIT smartwatches in the coming months. Huami says these smartwatches will fall between the range of CNY299 (~USD43) and CNY2000 (~USD289). Overseas markets have become the most important growth point for AMAZFIT. As of 31 Dec 2018, AMAZFIT products have entered more than 60 countries and regions around the world, including the United States, Germany, Japan, etc. (Gizmo China, EEO)
Home
According to Aowei Cloud Network (AVC), in Mar 2019, the monthly sales volume of Xiaomi’s Xiao Ai speakers is the first in the Chinese market. Xiaomi data statistics platform shows that as of 3 Jun 2019, the cumulative number of voice interactions of the Xiao Ai speaker series exceeded 10B times. The sales volume of China’s smart speaker market in 1Q19 was 7.19M units, an increase of 936% year-on-year; in Apr 2019, the sales volume of China’s smart speaker market reached 2.28M units. (GizChina, IT Home, ABI, My Drivers)
Automotive
Jaguar Land Rover and BMW will work together on new electric drive units to share costs and accelerate development of future models. The companies behind the I-Pace and i3 electric cars have elected to join forces on developing new Electric Drive Units (EDUs) – in effect, everything that takes electricity from batteries and gets it through to the wheels on the road. (CN Beta, TechCrunch, Forbes, Motor Trend, Telegraph)
Apple is allegedly in the process of acquiring a well-known but struggling self-driving shuttle firm, Drive.ai, for its engineering talent in order boost Apple’s own development of a self-driving vehicle system. (Apple Insider, The Information, Wallstreet CN, IT Home)
Robotics
Boston Dynamics has announced its first ever commercial product — a quadrupedal robot named Spot — is nearly ready to go on sale. Spot is currently being tested in a number of “proof-of-concept” environments. (CN Beta, The Verge)
Amazon has unveiled its latest Prime Air drone — a hybrid model that borrows from both helicopter and airplane designs. Amazon is hoping to use these devices to get customers items that weigh five pounds or less in about 30 minutes, helping it deliver products to shoppers much faster. (CN Beta, VentureBeat, CNET)
