6-10: Lenovo launches world’s first Google Tango phone; Lenovo showcasing 2 new concept products with flexible display; LG Innotek reportedly to be Apple’s sole supplier for dual-camera module; etc.
Lenovo launches world’s first Google Tango phone; Lenovo showcasing 2 new concept products with flexible display; LG Innotek reportedly to be Apple’s sole supplier for dual-camera module; In 2015 China “sharing economy” market size is about CNY1956 billion; LeEco is the latest vendor to approach the Indian government to seek an exemption to the mandatory local sourcing norms; Worldwide PC shipments are forecast to decline by 7.3% year over year in 2016; etc.
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Touch Display |
| Lenovo has unveiled fascinating working prototypes of concept devices with flexible display—Lenovo C+ (or C Plus), a smartphone / wearable hybrid that takes two very different forms; and Lenovo Folio, which morphs from a full tablet design into a useable smartphone. (Engadget, Tom’s Guide, Stuff, SlashGear, Lenovo, iMobile, China.com)
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| Small- to medium-size LCD panel maker Giantplus Technology will produce 25 models of automotive display panels in 2016 and expects revenues from the automotive segment to increase 30-40% on year, according to company president Pu Chia-chuan. (Digitimes, press) |
| Using OLED alone as a product differentiator has passed, noted Credit Suisse’s Keon Han. Plus, Samsung is so sure of its ability to continue innovating OLED products that it might as well make some money off the lower-end. Thus, Samsung is willing to supply OLED to Apple. (Barron’s, blog, Tom) |
| Apple has filed an application for a patent that could have ramifications for the future of the Apple Watch. The patent documents a “conformable electronic device” and methods of making it, including using the use of LED arrays, controller chips, and a silicon substrate with a thickness at or below 50µm. (Apple Insider, USPTO, Phone Arena, CN Beta)
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| LG Electronics has announced that the Dual-View Flat OLEDs will begin shipping in the US in July 2016. (OLED-Info, Yahoo, PR Newswire)
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Camera |
| LG Innotek reportedly will exclusively supply dual camera module to Apple’s iPhone 7 Plus, which will come out in Sept. 2016. Sony, which was mentioned for potential dual camera module supplier, along with LG Innotek, announced that it would get out of the high-end camera module business through its forecast report in May 2016. (Apple Insider, Business Korea, ZOL, IT Home) |
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Sensors |
| Google officially dropped “project” from the name and gave Tango a brand new logo. Both were announced by Johnny Lee, the head engineer of Tango. (The Verge, Phone Arena, CN Beta)
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| Valve is releasing a new tool to let designers create and share VR “Destinations” on Steam. (163, The Verge, Polygon, Steam)
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Smartphones |
| Drexel Hamilton’s Brian White forecasts that Apple iPhone sales in the fiscal quarter ended with June 2016 would be around 38.5 million units, an obvious drop from last year 47.5 million units. Yet, they expect the company will recover back to a normal YoY growth in 2017. (CN Beta, Barron’s, blog, Street Insider)
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| Survey conducted by The Reputation Institute looks at how shoppers react to hundreds of brands, identifying those shoppers not only recognize, but have strong positive feelings towards – and for Millennials, Samsung is right at the top of that list. (Phone Arena, report)
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| A new report shows that in 2015 China “sharing economy” market size is about CNY1956 billion. It estimates that the population that has or still is involved in “sharing economy” activities (e.g. reselling second-hand products online, etc.) is roughly 500 million in China. In the next 5 years, this market size will grow 40%, and till year 2020, this industry will occupy 10% of the GDP. In coming 10 years, 5-10 giant corporations will emerge from this industry. (CN Beta, ChinaSo, 163, article) |
| LeEco is the latest vendor to approach the Indian government to seek an exemption to the mandatory local sourcing norms. For a foreign entity to set up shop in India, the government dictates that at least 30% of the materials be sourced locally. (Android Central, India Today) |
| Lenovo CEO Yang Yuanqing indicates that the merging between Lenovo and Motorola should be faster, and because of the success with operators, Lenovo has stalled to advance. Now, the important task for Lenovo is to win a battle in China market. (CN Beta, Sohu, Forbes)
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| Lenovo announces 3 new smartphones, with PHAB 2 Pro being the first consumer phone to incorporate Tango, Google’s camera system that is able to detect physical objects in 3D: PHAB 2 – 6.4” HD IPS LCD display, MediaTek MT8735 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 32GB storage, Android 6.0, 4050mAh battery, USD199. PHAB 2 Plus – 6.4” HD IPS LCD display, MediaTek MT8783 processor, 13MP + 8MP cameras, 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, Android 6.0, 4050mAh battery, USD299. PHAB 2 Pro – 6.4” QHD IPS LCD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 652 processor, 16MP + 8MP cameras, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, Android 6.0, 4050mAh battery. (Android Authority, Engadget, GSM Arena, Android Central, Tech Node, CNET, Lenovo)
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| Lenovo announcing 2 new smartphones under Moto brand: Moto Z – 5.5” QHD AMOLED display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 MSM8996 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, Android 6.0, 2600mAh battery. Moto Z Force – 5.5” QHD AMOLED display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 820 MSM8996 processor, 21MP + 5MP cameras, 4GB RAM, 64GB storage, Android 6.0, 3500mAh battery. (GSM Arena, Android Headlines, Ubergizmo)
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| The Moto Z gets the MotoMods accessories. These accessories, including JBL Soundboost Music module, projector module, battery module, can connect to the phone using the 16 pin connector at the back. (Ubergizmo, 163, Linux IDC)
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| OPPO A59 is officially launched – 5.5” HD IPS LCD display, MediaTek MT6750 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 3GB RAM, 32GB storage, Android 5.1, 3075mAh battery, CNY1799. (GSM Arena, OPPO)
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Tablets |
| Worldwide PC shipments are forecast to decline by 7.3% year over year in 2016 according to an updated forecast from IDC. The outlook continues to call for progressively smaller declines through 2017 followed by stable volume in 2018. (IDC, press, CN Beta)
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Wearables |
| According to a survey by communications technology company Ericsson, 1/4 of new users of smartwatches and other wearables say their devices failed to meet their expectations. Also, about 10% of all users of wearables have abandoned their devices, 1/3 of them within 2 weeks of purchase. (EE Times, Yahoo, PC World, Ericsson, report, Read/Write)
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| Lenovo has brought out a smart running shoe made in collaboration with outsole maker Vibram. It runs on an Intel Curie wearable chip and performs most of your standard fitness tracker functions. No heart rate monitor. These shoes can be use to play video games. (The Verge, CN Beta, Vibram)
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| HTC has announced Vive Business Edition (“Vive BE”), which is intended for corporate and commercial use. HTC is asking USD1,200 for the Vive BE package and the privilege to use the hardware in a commercial setting. (Tom’s Hardware, PR Newswire, Android Headlines, Sohu, Toutiao)
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Internet of Things |
| Philips announced Philips Sonicare FlexCare Platinum Connected, which uses Bluetooth and sends data to the Philips Sonicare app to track brushing in real-time. This enables the app to reveal trouble spots to the user and guide them to a “complete, dentist-approved clean”. (Ubergizmo, CNET, Beta News, iFeng, IT Home)
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| Alphabet’s Eric Schmidt says it’s ‘very hard to know’ when self-driving cars will be ready, but will be in next few years, not tens of years. (CN Beta, The Verge)
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| These are the future tech products that Alphabet’s Eric Schmidt thinks will change the world: fake meat, 3D-printed buildings, virtual reality, smartphones in medical world, self-driving cars, and machine learning in education. (Android Headlines, Business Insider, iFeng, DoNews) |
