MWC 2018 | All-in-one wallet card to spell end of individual credit card?

A single card that allows shoppers to access various payment options from multiple accounts is being displayed at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona. Jim Drury reports.

source: interaksyon.com

After Note 7 report, Samsung may delay launch of new Galaxy S8

SEOUL — Samsung Electronics Co Ltd indicated on Monday that its latest flagship Galaxy S smartphone could be delayed as it pledged to enhance product safety following an investigation into the cause of fires in its premium Note 7 devices.

Wrapping up its months-long probe, the world’s top smartphone maker said faulty batteries from two suppliers were to blame for a product failure that wiped $5.3 billion (4.3 billion pounds) off its operating profit.

Samsung mobile chief Koh Dong-jin said procedures had been put in place to avoid a repeat of the fires as the South Korean firm prepares to launch the Galaxy S8, its first premium handset since the Note 7′s demise.

“The lessons of this incident are deeply reflected in our culture and process,” Koh told reporters at a press briefing. “Samsung Electronics will be working hard to regain consumer trust.”

Koh said the Galaxy S8 would not be unveiled at the Mobile World Congress trade show in Barcelona beginning Feb. 27, the traditional forum for Galaxy S series launches. He did not comment on when the company planned to launch the handset, though analysts expect it to start selling by April.

Investors have said Samsung needs to reassure consumers that it is on top of the Note 7 problem and can be trusted to fix it.

Samsung’s reputation took a hammering after it announced a recall of fire-prone Note 7s, only for reports to emerge that replacement devices also caught fire. Images of melted Samsung devices spread on social media and airlines banned travellers from carrying them on flights.

The handset, Samsung’s answer to Apple Inc’s iPhones, was withdrawn from sale in October less than two months after its launch, in one of the biggest failures in tech history.

Samsung said later on Monday it has not decided whether to reuse parts in the recovered Note 7s or resell any recalled phones. A person familiar with the matter told Reuters reselling some Note 7s as refurbished phones was an option.

The firm said it has recovered 96 percent of the 3.06 million Note 7s sold to consumers.

Short circuits

Investigations by internal and independent experts ruled out problems with the Note 7′s hardware and software. Instead, they said the batteries, which came from two suppliers, featured different manufacturing defects or design flaws that caused them to short-circuit.

“The odds that two different suppliers had issue with the same phone is an extremely low likelihood and may signal we have reached an inflection point in smartphone battery technology,” said Patrick Moorhead, president of technology analyst and advisory firm Moor Insights & Strategy.

Samsung did not name the suppliers on Monday but previously identified them as affiliate Samsung SDI Co Ltd and China’s Amperex Technology Ltd. SDI said separately it would invest 150 billion won (103.8 million pounds) to improve product safety and expected to continue supplying batteries for Samsung phones. ATL declined to comment.

Samsung said it accepted responsibility and would not take legal action against suppliers. The company touted longer battery life and fast charging as major improvements when it launched the Note 7.

“The current situation is not largely different from that of the first recall, when Samsung pointed the finger at battery defects,” said Park Chul-wan, a former director of the Center for Advanced Batteries at the Korea Electronics Technology Institute.

Battery checks

Among other measures to boost safety, Samsung said it had implemented an eight-point battery check system to avoid any such problems going unnoticed again.

While Samsung’s mobile division is widely expected to have bounced back from the Note 7 failure during the fourth quarter, experts remained cautious about the outlook for sales of future flagship devices.

“Consumers will accept the results (of the probe) only if there are no problems with the S8,” said Park.

Moorhead, however, said he thought Samsung had done enough to convince consumers that it can prevent future issues.

Samsung Electronics shares ended up 2.3 percent in a flat wider market. Analysts said the rise was mainly due to a healthy outlook for makers of tech components such as memory chips but also boosted by hopes the firm will be able to put the Note 7 fiasco behind it.

The firm expects fourth-quarter operating profit to hit a more than three-year high when it reports earnings on Tuesday, driven by booming chip sales.

source: interaksyon.com

Facebook founder Zuckerberg calls for universal access to Internet

BARCELONA -- Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said on Monday the "whole world deserves to have access to the Internet," to a packed crowd at the Mobile World Congress (MWC) in Barcelona.

Zuckerberg's appearance was one of the most eagerly expected event of the opening day of the congress, which began Monday and runs until Thursday.

"Everyone deserves access to the Internet and I don't understand how we can still be like this in 2016... if there are more and more people with Internet access, it is a business model which works," said Zuckerberg, who highlighted that more clients for Internet providers would then lead to "investment in infrastructure."

He also spoke about the move towards 5G, questioning why the industry was moving so quickly to this level of connectivity when the important thing is that all the world can afford an Internet connection, "not just those who have money to pay for expensive connections."

source: interaksyon.com

MWC 2016 | Here is Huawei’s 2-in-1 style laptop

BARCELONA, Spain — Chinese telecommunications giant Huawei launched a 2-in-1 product that combines the mobility of a smartphone and productivity of a laptop at the World Mobile Congress in Barcelona on Sunday, marking the firm’s latest step to expand its consumer business.

The device, called the Huawei MateBook, retails from 799 euros in the European market and 699 U.S. dollars in the U.S. market. It will be made available across international markets from April onwards through both retail and e-commerce channels.

The core device of the MateBook is a tablet with a detachable keyboard much like Apple’s iPad Pro, and runs Microsoft’s latest operating system Windows 10.

It weighs 640 grams, compared to 713 grams for Apple’s iPad Pro and the 766 grams of Microsoft’s Surface Pro 4, both of which are portable tablets known for their lightweight design. It has a 12-inch screen.

The Huawei MateBook has a high-density lithium battery, which lasts for 10 hours once fully charged. The product features a sixth generation Intel Core m-series processor aimed at handling the most rigorous business demands.

Built to operate on Windows 10, the MateBook also delivers tools and features offered by Microsoft Corp, including its latest browser, Microsoft Edge, and the Cortana digital personal assistant.

“We have decided to launch this product to answer the needs of business users. What makes our MateBook unique are are its compatibility and huge variety of functions,” said Glory Zhang, chief marketing officer of Huawei Consumer Business.

Although MateBook is being launched later than other comparable tablets, Zhang said it is no cause for concern because Huawei’s strategy is to bring to market products once the technology involved can best satisfy consumer needs.

“We are not so concerned about being the first in a market. For example, when we launched our smartphone, the market was already filled with many smartphone makers, but our high quality allowed us to win market share.”

“We have made good use of cutting edge technologies that we developed for our smartphone in our MateBook, which gives us a competitive strength,” Zhang says.

Huawei, founded in Shenzhen in 1987, has three core business areas. Its carrier business provides telecommunications services to operators like O2 and Telefonica, and it provides telecommunications services to corporate clients. Its third business area is consumer products.

In recent years its consumer business has picked up and has become a key factor in helping build the firm’s brand across international markets. Its core products include the Huawei smartphone and Huawei Watch.

Huawei is now the third-biggest player in the smartphone market after Apple and Samsung, and shipped 108 million smartphones in 2015, which represents a 44 percent increase in sales compared to 2014.

Now Huawei is looking to make a major play in the tablet sector. Globally, tablet shipments fell 13.7 percent year-on-year in the fourth quarter of 2015, while shipments for detachable tablets reached an all-time high of 8.1 million devices, more than double from the same period in 2014, according to the research firm International Data Corporation.

The Huawei MateBook is being launched alongside the MatePen, which is used to write and draw on the MateBook. It has high sensitivity, can support graphics and mathematic functions and can be used as a laser pointer for delivering presentations.

The MateBook also has a one-touch unlocking system, which Huawei says is the fastest fingerprint recognition technology in the industry. Its technology supports 360 degrees sensitive identification, which leads to fewer identification failures than competitor technology.

The keyboard that accompanies MateBook features 1.5 millimeter keystroke and a Chiclet keycap design, which allows for larger key surfaces to minimize typing errors. The built-in touchpad uses multi-touch technology that supports finger movement and effectively combines comfort with function.

source: interaksyon.com

Asian firms challenge Apple with snazzy new smartphones

BARCELONA, Spain — Several big Asian phone companies launched new high-end smartphones and other wireless gizmos on Sunday, hoping to challenge US giant Apple in a big year for wireless gadgets.

Samsung, fellow South Korean firm LG and hip Chinese maker HTC timed their smartphone launches to grab the attention on the eve of the Mobile World Congress, the world’s biggest telecoms trade fair, in Barcelona, Spain.

In a head-on challenge to Apple’s popular iPhone 6 which was released last year, Samsung came out fighting on Sunday with the Galaxy S6, a smartphone with a touchscreen that curves around the edges and has a wireless charger.

It also presented the larger S6 Edge, a “phablet” somewhere between a tablet and a phone in size.

LG unveiled a new top-line phone with a curved back to sit snugly in the palm, the LG Flex 2, as well as a range of four new mid-range smartphones and two new luxury internet-connected watches.

At a noisy stage presentation before a crowd of hundreds, HTC chief executive Peter Chou meanwhile presented the HTC One M9, with a grey metallic handset moulded from a single piece of aluminium.

HTC also revealed a new connected “fitness band” body-monitoring bracelet and a virtual reality headset that it said it hoped to sell commercially by the end of the year.

Apple as usual was staying away from the Barcelona show but was reported to be preparing a coup with the launch next month of its new Apple Watch, reflecting a major trend in wearable gadgets this year.

The chief executive of Samsung’s mobile division, J.K. Shin, said the company aimed to set “a new standard to drive the global mobile agenda”, claiming his phones had the fastest processers and most high-performance cameras on the market.

Samsung is the world’s biggest seller of smartphones but saw its world market share fall last year from 34 percent to 20 percent, according to a report by tech consultancy IDC.

“There’s a risk Samsung’s 2015 flagship devices are insufficient for the company to regain brand leadership among consumers and businesses looking for high-end smartphone experiences,” said Thomas Husson, an analyst at another consultancy, Forrester, in a note after Sunday’s launch.

“Samsung’s lack of software DNA will still prevent it from delivering truly differentiated service experiences like Apple does.”

Also present at the congress were two of the world’s other biggest-selling smartphone makers, Chinese companies Huawei and Xiaomi.

Joining in the rush for big launches on the eve of the trade fair, Huawei unveiled its first “smartwatch”, a round luxury design that, like LG’s, can display incoming call and message alerts.

The companies refused to cite consumer prices for the new products. Top-end smartphones typically cost several hundred dollars.

source: interaksyon.com

Many consumers developing taste for beefier smartphones

ASSOCIATED PRESS (AP) -- The cellphone is growing up -- literally.

After years of craving the slimmest, smallest, sleekest devices, many cellphone users now want their phones a bit beefier.

Since using a cellphone to talk to another person has almost become secondary, consumers are snapping up devices that have bigger screens -- to watch movies, read electronic books, surf the Web, and play games. And in their quest to find the perfect size, device-makers are designing gadgets that blur the line between tablets and pocket-sized phones.

The latest plus-size smartphone to hit the market is the Galaxy S4, which Samsung unveiled in New York City Thursday night. The S4 has a 5-inch screen, 25 percent larger than the display on the iPhone 5, and is Samsung's latest attempt to challenge Apple's dominant smartphone.

And it may be working. Apple is beginning to lose some customers who say bigger is simply better.

''Once you get used to the bigger screen, then you can't go back," said Andrew Yu, who runs a a mobile development start-up, Modo Labs Inc. in Cambridge, and swapped his iPhone for a Samsung Galaxy S3 last year.




He and other converts are gravitating toward larger screens because they can access high-quality video just about everywhere or play video games with graphics that rival console sets. Moreover, every new generation of smartphone is faster and has a sharper display than the previous.

''Looking at the larger new screens, I was like, "Boy, these machines are really getting sexy,'" said James Brooks, another recent Galaxy convert and a developer at HeyWire, a Kendall Square start-up.

Combining the computing and viewing prowess of a table with the convenience and functionality of a smartphone, the Galaxy seemed perfectly sized to Brooks: just big enough to cozy up to at night to read, but not too bulky.

''This is like holding a book in my hand," Brooks said. "With the iPhone, it's a little too small for comfort."

Brooks also owns an iPad. Remember them? They were a marvel of technology and design when they first debuted barely three years ago. "I've basically given it to my 6-year-old," he said.

The new Galaxy S4 is far from the biggest phone on the market. Whoppers include the Huawei Ascend Mate (6.1 inches), LG Optimus (5.5 inches), and the HTC Butterfly (5 inches) -- all with screens at least an inch larger than the iPhone 5 display.

But they do take some getting used to, especially for those with smaller hands.

''You can't reach the top left corner with your thumb," said Christian Montalvo, a Boston College senior who recently switched to the bigger Galaxy smartphone.

But don't expect cellphones to exponentially get larger, said Ramon Llamas, mobile phone research manager at International Data Corp. in Framingham. At some point, they would become just too big.

''You are going to tell me that you're going to carry an 8-inch phone in your pocket? Of course not," said Llamas.

Nonetheless, the S4 is but the latest example of how Samsung and other makers of Android-based devices continue to challenge Apple's top status. Collectively, Samsung's various models have outsold Apple in the worldwide market, shipping 205 million units last year, according the Gartner Inc., a research firm. Apple has the second largest market share, with 130 million iPhone sales.

Apple is not in jeopardy yet. It still outsells any one individual Android phone, a sign many consumers are not ready for a big phone just yet, said Michael Gartenberg, research director for Gartner.

''The fact that the iPhone remains the best-selling phone means that consumers are still buying into the perception that bigger isn't necessarily better," he said.

But as smartphones continue to get bigger -- and people are using them for much more than talking -- at what point are the even still phones, asked Gartenberg.

''I don't know what the term for them is," he said. "These things have as much to do with the rotary phone in my mom's house as my computer does with an IBM machine from the 1950s."

source: philstar.com

Asus Fonepad Is a 7-Inch Tablet That Can Make Calls

BARCELONA — Didn't we tell you that the lines between smartphones and tablets are blurred? Case in point: the Asus Fonepad, a 7-inch tablet that's also a phone.

Beware: the Fonepad is a completely different device than the PadFone Infinity. There's no smartphone-becomes-tablet witchery here; the Fonepad is a 7-inch tablet, powered by Android 4.1 and sporting a 3G chip. You can use it to make calls, although we don't think a 7-inch device is ideal for the task.

The Fonepad looks pretty much exactly like Google's Nexus 7, which is hardly surprising since Asus makes that device as well.

However, the Fonepad is very different from most other Android tablets in a one important way: it's powered by the new Intel Atom Z2420 processor (for comparison, the Nexus 7 is powered by ARM's Cortex-A9 CPU).

Intel vice president Hermann Eul claims the processor "delivers the power, performance and flexibility required to accommodate a range of devices and market needs." However, the actual CPU model in the Fonepad is a single-core Atom clocked to 1.2GHz, which doesn't inspire confidence. With our short time with the Fonepad, we've tested Eul's claim, and we can say that the Fonepad feels snappy, on par with other tablets of its size of the iOS and Android variety.

Other specs include a 1280x800 7-inch IPS screen, 8/16GB of storage (expandable via SD memory cards), and a 3-megapixel camera that can record 720p video. All of that is crammed into a case that weighs 340g and is 10.4mm thick.

The device will be available from March 2013, with prices starting at €219 ($286) for the 8GB version.

source: mashable.com

Samsung Galaxy S4 due out in February

(CNN) -- Days after the iPhone 5 was announced, Samsung is reportedly prepared to roll out a new version of its Samsung Galaxy S, the phone that has established itself as Apple's chief smartphone rival.

The Samsung Galaxy S4 will be introduced in February at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona, Spain, according to The Korea Times.

The report from the Times, the oldest English-language newspaper in South Korea, where Samsung is based, cites unnamed company officials and parts suppliers in the region.

Among the Galaxy S4's features will be a 5-inch screen, slightly larger than the display on the popular Galaxy S III and a full inch bigger than the iPhone 5, the report said.

It will have more powerful hardware and software and will "definitely use" 4G LTE networks, a parts supplier told the paper.

Phones running Google's Android operating system have been outselling the iPhone for some time. But that's a fragmented field that includes dozens of phones of varying quality. No single handset has established itself as a serious rival to Apple's phone.

The Galaxy S III has made perhaps the best claim. Last month, the company announced it had sold more than 20 million units in three months, making September the first month since the release of the iPhone 4S that it wasn't the world's top-selling smartphone.

Snap reviews of the iPhone 5 have been somewhat mixed, at least among the tech media. Many who got a hands-on demo at Apple's Wednesday announcement praised its slimmer, lighter design, bigger display and faster processor. Others said the device failed to produce groundbreaking advances at a moment when Apple, perhaps for the first time ever, finds itself needing to catch up with features available on other phones.

Customer response, however, has been overwhelming.

Pre-orders of the iPhone 5 "sold out" almost instantly (an admittedly arbitrary feat considering Apple controls the supply), with orders topping 2 million in the first 24 hours. That's double the 1 million for last year's iPhone 4S in the same time period.

The phone hits stores Friday in the United States, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the United Kingdom. It rolls out in 22 other countries on September 28.

The S4's release would mark Samsung's biggest salvo since a federal court in California ruled that Samsung violated multiple Apple patents in the release of its own products. After the ruling, Apple asked the court to add the Galaxy S III to the list of products that are in violation.

The case was just one of roughly 50 patent disputes in different countries. Some of the other courts have ruled in favor of Samsung.

According to the South Korean news report, Samsung is working with U.S. carriers on modified designs the company said will eliminate any questions about patents.

The report said Samsung plans to fire back in another way, too. Samsung is asking Apple to pay more for the processors it produces at an Austin, Texas, plant and is promoting itself as "the only firm that can guarantee on-time delivery, output commitment and better pricing for mobile application processors," one executive told The Korea Times.

source: CNN