7-6: Samsung Display claims not spinning off OLED business; Huawei sues Samsung for patent infringement; Huawei sues T-Mobile for patent infringement; LeEco has changed their payment to suppliers time from 90 days to 180 days; etc.
Samsung Display claims not spinning off OLED business; Huawei sues Samsung for patent infringement; Huawei sues T-Mobile for patent infringement; LeEco has changed their payment to suppliers time from 90 days to 180 days, affecting MediaTek, Compal and Pegatron; Apple to add new assemblers and suppliers to maintain its high gross profit margin; Xiaomi to launch CNY4000+ smartphone in 2H16; etc.
| Touch Display |
| Samsung Display denies the report that saying it has spun off its OLED business and says that it plans to continue developing both LCD and OLED products. (CN Beta, Apple Insider) |
| Camera |
| Washington University has developed a single-shot compressed ultrafast photography (CUP) camera that can image at speeds of 100 billion frames per second in a single camera exposure. They have improved this technology enabling imaging of ultrafast processes involving neurons, combustion and stars. (CN Beta, Economic Times, AZO Optics)
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| Memory |
| TrendForce reports DRAM prices were on a decline from Oct 2014 to Jun 2016, with the average contract price of DDR3 4GB plunging 62% from UD32.75 to USD12.5. Suppliers reduce their PC DRAM output; tight NAND Flash supply coupled with power outage at Samsung’s Xian fab led to rising prices for both DRAM and NAND Flash. (TrendForce, press, TrendForce[cn], press)
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| Apple’s next-generation iPhone will reportedly ship with a minimum of 32GB of capacity for the entry-level model. (Apple Insider, WSJ, IT Home) |
| Biometrics |
| For 3 years, Professor John Chuang, co-director of the university’s BioSENSE Lab, and his graduate students have been working to identify people through their brainwaves. The result is called a passthought, and it could eventually become the ultimate personal ID protector. (CN Beta, Janus Network, CNET)
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| Connectivity |
| SK Telecom completed construction of the nationwide LoRaWAN (Long Range Wide Area Network) servicing 99% of South Korea by the end of June 2016. (CN Beta, India Times, PC World)
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| Huawei sues T-Mobile for patent infringment, alleging that T-Mobile would not make a deal to license several 4G patents from the Chinese telecom company, and is still using those technologies. (CN Beta, 163, Bizjournals, Geek Wire) |
| Smartphones |
| According to Counterpoint Research, major smartphone vendors have increased the selection of affordable handsets in their portfolios in order to meet a growing market demand for cheaper smartphones. (Business Korea, Phone Arena, CN Beta)
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| Supply chain market confirmed that recently LeEco has changed their payment to suppliers time from 90 days to 180 days. And, because of this, LeEco supply chain including MediaTek, Compal and Pegatron have been affected. Their stocks have dropped substantially, especially MediaTek and Pegatron with more than 2% drop. (TechNews, Tuicool) |
| Apple suppliers are reportedly facing pressure to reduce costs: Foxconn and Pegatron are seeing Apple adding Wistron for the production of its new iPhone. Largan is facing strong competition from Japan-based Kantatsu over camera module orders. Taiwan’s PCB players are also competing aggressively over Apple’s orders by cutting prices. (CN Beta, CN Beta, 9to5Mac, Mac Rumors, Forbes, Digitimes) |
| Citigroup cut its estimates for Apple due to the threat of lower demand from Brexit-related macro uncertainty, currency volatility, and lengthening replacement cycles for the iPhone. Analyst Jim Suva reduced his fiscal third quarter revenue forecast to USD41.2 billion on 40.3 million iPhone shipments, compared to consensus of USD42.2 billion. Suva also estimated that the average rate of replacement has increased to 30 to 36 months. (Financial Post, Yahoo, TechNews, CN Beta, WSJ) |
| Asustek Computer aims to grow its share of India’s smartphone (from 2.5% to 5%) and gaming laptop markets by focusing on mid-to-higher-priced handsets and opening exclusive gaming shops in the country, says Peter Chang, Asustek regional head and country manager. (Taipei News, Android Authority)
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| Xiaomi will launch a high-end smartphone 2H16 targeting the CNY4,000-5,000 (USD606-758) segment, according to the company’s co-founder Li Wangjiang. (DoNews, iFeng, Digitimes, 52RD, Hexun) |
| Alibaba Group acquires the Beijing-based Wandoujia, a major Android app store. (CN Beta, iFeng, Tencent, China Daily)
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| Taiwan’s Hon Hai Precision Industry, or Foxconn, filed for an initial public offering of its cable and connector unit “Foxconn Interconnect Technology” in Hong Kong. (CN Beta, WSJ, Telecom Paper) |
| Huawei sues Samsung for patent infringement on its patent numbered ZL201010104157.0, asking for CNY80 million compensation. (163, My Drivers, CN Beta) |
| Nintendo has major plans to focus on smart device development, including its own controller for mobile gaming, according to general manager of entertainment planning and development, Shinya Takahashi. (Android Central, Polygon, Apple Insider, YX Down) |
| At least 10 million Android devices have been infected by malware called HummingBad, according to cybersecurity software maker Check Point. HummingBad is reportedly the product of Chinese cyber criminals that is working alongside multimillion-dollar Beijing analytics company Yingmob. (iFeng, Hexun, CNET, Digital Trends, Check Point) |
| LG X5 and X Skin are official: X5 – 5.5” HD display, 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, Android 6.0, 2800mAh battery. X Skin – 5” HD display, 1.3GHz quad-core processor, 8MP + 5MP cameras, 1.5GB RAM, 16GB storage, Android 6.0, 2100mAh battery. (CN Beta, India Times, Slash Gear, Phones Review, LG)
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| BLU Energy XL is official – 6” FHD Super AMOLED display, MediaTek MT6753 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 3GB RAM, 64GB storage, Android 5.1, USB Type-C, 5000mAh battery, USD299. (Android Headlines, Android Central)
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| Samsung Galaxy Wide is unveiled – 5.5” HD display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 410 processor, 13MP + 5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, Android 6.0, 3000mAh battery. (Ubergizmo, GSM Arena)
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| Google announced Android One smartphone entering the Japan market, with Sharp launching 507SH – 5” HD IGZO LCD 2.5D curved glass display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 617 processor, 13MP+5MP cameras, 2GB RAM, 16GB storage, IP55/58 certified, 3010mAh battery. (TechNews, Phones Review, Android Headlines)
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| Wearables |
| HTC Vive is approaching the 100,000 sales mark, 3 months after launch, according to Steam data. (TechNews, Kit Guru, IT Pro, Road to VR)
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| HTC plans to set up more than 10,000 “experience sites” for VR in Mainland China by the end of 2016. (Hypergrid Business, China Daily, Android Headlines, PT Bus) |
| Nintendo’s Senior Managing Director, Shigeru Miyamoto, indicates that the company is also conducting research VR and into AR. (Tom’s Hardware, CN Beta) |
| The medical community is breathing new life into Google Glass, which serves as a tool for doctors in emergency situations. (UMASS Med, CNBC, CN Beta) |
| Internet of Things |
| Toshiba and Sharp are set to re-enter India. Foxconn, which just completed the acquisition of Sharp, will relaunch the brand in India with smartphones, televisions, air purifiers, air-conditioners and other appliances in the next two months. Skyworth Electronics, the Chinese owners of Toshiba, too is drafting its India entry strategy with televisions. (Economic Times, TechNews)
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| Russia’s Volgabus plant in the town of Volzhsky has produced the country’s first driverless bus, which is set to hit the roads by 2017. (CN Beta, Sputnik)
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| PwC’s “Technology Scorecard 2016 Q1” report shows that the technology sector revenue posted YoY decline of 2.1% and QoQ decline of 6.8% in 1Q16. The Consumer Electronics (CE) sector in 1Q16 witnessed a YoY decline of 6.3% and a QoQ decline of 17.1%. Despite the weak performance of the sector, the Consumer Technology Association (CTA) Index of Consumer Expectations (ICE), which measures US consumer sentiment about the broader economy, jumped 6.6 points to 178.7 in March. (CN Beta, PwC report)
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| Microsoft and US biotech company Monsanto have partnered to invest in agricultural technology startups in Brazil. Microsoft will manage a Brazilian investment fund with up BRL300 million (USD92 million) with both Monsanto and Qualcomm as investors. (WinBeta, Yahoo, TechNews) |
| More than 15 million Americans received some kind of medical care remotely in 2015, according to the American Telemedicine Association, a trade group, which expects those numbers to grow by 30% in 2016. (TechNews, WSJ, Yahoo, Fox News, MSN) |
