-
In March 2012, The Verge, in a story titled “Apple the number one mobile phone vendor in Japan for Q4 2011”, reports a much improved market for the iPhone in Japan:
Research firm IDC Japan has revealed that the company had the largest share of all mobile phone shipments in the final quarter of 2011, accounting for 26.6 percent of the entire mobile market.
-
Smartphones now account for half of mobile phones in US and two-thirds of new purchases
http://www.theverge.com/2012/3/29/2910790/nielsen-smartphone-half-mobile-phone-market-US
-
The figures — via Tokyo Times –
estimate that the country will bring in 31.13 million devices in 2012,
with the iPhone 4S said to be a key driver of increased demand and
supply. Already the launch of the latest Apple smartphone has had an
impact in Japan, as it propelled the firm to the top of the country’s smartphone industry, though that is likely to be temporary.Shipments peaked for the launch of the iPhone 4S in October, and are
likely to settle down following the end of the initial rush period.
Irrespective of whether a rumored fifth-generation iPhone launchese, the
popularity of Apple devices is seeing it benefit from Japan’s growing
desire for smartphones.Last year was a breakthrough one which saw retailers increase their
smartphone offerings like never before, in anticipation that Japanese
consumers would swap Web-enabled feature phones for Western smartphones
in larger numbers. In lieu of that, smartphone shipments increased by
more than three fold in 2011, topping 20 million over the twelve month
period.Sustained but less spectacular growth is expected over the longer term, with shipments tipped to reach 37 million in 2016.
-
Samsung expected to hit record profit in Q1
Samsung Electronics is thought to have improved its
bottom line to record levels in the first quarter. This is due to strong
smartphone sales and a recovery in parts businesses such as memory
chips and flat screens.
The market consensus is that the firm’s operating profit will be around 6
trillion won during the first three months of this year, beating its
previous record of 5.2 trillion won in the fourth quarter of last year.
http://www.koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/tech/2012/03/133_107973.html
-
Stories about Google revenue from Android miss the point: How much it saves Google
“Android
generated less than $550m in revenues for Google between 2008 and the
end of 2011, if figures provided by the search giant as part of a
settlement offer with Oracle ahead of an expected patent and copyright infringement trial are an accurate guide.”Google became greedy and stupid during 3.1 and 4.0 introduction. It decided to lock everything and as a result the entire device introduction momentum crashed, leaving apple a 6 months wide open market. (Nexus barely moved, since Google doesn't bother to promote its own product and have zero retail presence. ) all this shows in version adoption rate. after 2.3 everything grinds to a halt.
1. tablet momentum crashed, everybody is holding back for 4.0, while amazon and B&N introduce low cost model , which further reduce vendor interest.
2. Then google is trapped in chicken-egg problem. Since noone is making tablet/not in great quantity, nobody is writing/adapting software for tablet. Android tablet app is fairly inferior.
3. Music/book/movie stores are not ready. poor design for tablet. No hot content.
4. Google itself shows no interest on creating good app for tablet. (almost none of their own apps are tablet adapted) with exception of map.
Basically, google makes no coordination, doesn't prepare apps, content, then sabotaging 3.1 - 4.0 with "let's lock and hide it" from public to make few bucks. Pure greed and taking smartphone position for granted
combined with bad economy, the entire tablet momentum crashed. ..at least amazon and B&N are keeping android tablet alive (otherwise the entire hardware supply chain would have imploded and android tablet would lost entire year)
Bottom line, that Rubin Android guy is an idiot. thinking he already wins tablet while everything is a total mess. They better make it right this Q2/Q3 or else they will have huge 40million device gap against iPad. It's hard momentum to break.
--------
1. stores are weak. .
2. google apps for tablets are weaks. Specially media players (book/music/movie). General HD apps are also lacking.
3. price is too expensive, devices has no accessories, no update, a lot of half baked feature (Xoom, specially)
This is classic chicken and egg problem. Google own making, and now they have to fix it during down economy.
-
Motorola Handset With 4.6-Inch 720p Display
Take this leaked Droid Fighter, for example. If information from the PhonesHK forums is correct, Motorola is improving on its already successful Razr
design language with an even bigger HD screen. While the original Razr
had a 4.3-inch 540×960 display, this new (officially) unnamed beast has a
massive 4.6-inch display, boasting a 720p resolution.
-
In the last 18 months of his life, Jobs, who died on Oct. 5 at age
56, was obsessed with crushing Android. He explained to his authorized
biographer, Walter Isaacson, that the litigation against device
manufacturers was meant to communicate an unmistakable message: “Google,
you f–king ripped off the iPhone, wholesale ripped us off. Grand
theft.” Jobs swore he would “spend my last dying breath” and “every
penny” in Apple’s coffers “to right this wrong. I’m going to destroy
Android, because it’s a stolen product. I’m willing to go to
thermonuclear war on this.”One problem with nuclear attacks, even those of the metaphoric
variety, is that the targets may retaliate with nukes of their own. That
is precisely what has happened. For every Apple allegation, a rival has
countered that Apple is not as uniquely innovative as Jobs liked to
boast. To the contrary, Samsung, Motorola, and others insist that some
of Apple’s most valuable patents—such as those protecting the minimalist
design of the iPhone and iPad—were never valid in the first place.
By pushing the launch button on his legal ICBMs, Jobs bequeathed a
significant risk to his successors. Apple may succeed in forcing
competitors to deactivate a few phone features, or maybe even yank an
entire model or two from a major market. But Apple has many rivals: If
one falters, others will step in. Samsung’s website lists no fewer than
134 phone models. Apple, by contrast, has only two core products at
issue in the patent war: the iPhone and iPad. Unlikely as it might seem,
if a competing manufacturer manages to persuade a judge or a trade
commission somewhere in the world that Apple has relied on a faulty
patent for something important, the Cupertino (Calif.)-based juggernaut
could suffer profound reputational damage and—more important to
stakeholders—market-share erosion.
http://www.businessweek.com/printer/articles/16106-apple-s-war-on-android
. exploding product.. come on.
-
Apple is seeking an unjust monopoly on rectangular smartphones and
tablets with a flat surface and rounded corners, Sullivan said. -
Renesas Mobile Introduces First Integrated LTE Triple-Mode Platform Optimised for Full-Featured, High Volume Smartphones
MP5232
Dual 1.5GHz core Communications Processor to Drive LTE Growth with
Best-in-Class User Experience for High Volume LTE Smartphones and
Tablets
TOKYO, Japan, February 15, 2012 — Renesas
Electronics Corporation (TSE: 6723) and its subsidiary, Renesas Mobile
Corporation, a leading supplier of advanced cellular semiconductor
solutions and platforms, today announced the availability of the MP5232,
the first single-chip, high-performance, scalable smartphone platform
optimised to address the US$150-300 range device market. The MP5232
platform is designed to enable OEMs to accelerate the creation and
delivery of high volume LTE/HSPA+ capable smartphones, tablets and
mobile Internet devices the industry requires to deliver the full
potential of LTE.The MP5232 platform sets a new
benchmark in terms of levels of integration and performance for fully
featured high-volume LTE devices. At its heart, the Renesas Mobile
modem, deployed in over two billion devices to date, delivers the
industry's highest throughput and low power multi-mode FDD and TDD-LTE
Category 4 capabilities. Combined with a state-of-the-art application
processor the platform delivers a no-compromise user experience with
multi-core computing power, industry-leading graphics, video and imaging
capabilities. The platform also includes advanced RF transceivers,
power management and audio solutions. This highly integrated smartphone
platform is delivered fully tested and certified to enable customers to
bring new generations of fully-featured LTE/HSPA+ smartphones to market
in as little as six to nine months. -
Fujitsu Introduces New LTE (TDD and FDD) Optimized Multiband Single IC to Join its Family of Transceivers
MB86L13A multiband 4G LTE transceiver designed for smartphone and other mobile applications--
-
900,000 Rockchip RK2918 7″ Tablets purchased by Thailand’s Government for Education
The price per tablet is $82 and to be delivered by Shenzhen Scope
Scientific Development. The Chinese Government had suggested four
suppliers be considered for the deal including also Huawei Technologies
Co, TCL Cooperation and Haier Information Technology (Shenzhen). -
RIM is over.
RIM executive lay-offs start today
RIM Aims to Avoid Fifth Sales Miss as CEO Seeks Rebound
-
Best Buy to shutter 50 stores as Apple's iPad strains margins
Best Buy's plans also call for the company to cut about 400 positions in
its corporate and support structure, allowing it to reach $250 million
in reductions this fiscal year, according to The Wall Street Journal. The company currently has about 1,100 full-fledged retail stores, but about 50 of those will close as part of the reductions.
The report noted that the popularity of Apple's iPad has contributed to
Best Buy's struggles, as the device carries "relatively low margins" for
the retailer. As a result, its mobile computing sales business has seen
"strained margins" of late.
Best Buy reported a loss of $1.7 billion for the quarter that concluded
on March 3. It plans to remodel some of its key stores in what it calls a
"Connected" format designed to sell smartphones and push video and
broadband services.
http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/12/03/29/best_buy_to_shutter_50_stores_as_apples_ipad_strains_margins.html
-
Apple Retakes Smartphone Lead in Q4; Samsung Grabs Top Spot for Full-Year 2011
After
losing market leadership in the third quarter, Apple Inc. returned to
the No. 1 rank in global smartphone shipments in the fourth quarter as
consumers flocked to buy the newly introduced iPhone 4S. Meanwhile,
based on strong sales of its broad line of smartphone products, Samsung
has become the world’s largest smartphone brand for the entire year of
2011, marking the first time the South Korean electronics giant has held
this distinction.The
table below presents the shipments of smartphone companies that have
reported results for the fourth quarter of 2011 to date. It doesn't
include the results of other major companies that haven't reported yet.
Apple
in the fourth quarter of 2011 shipped 37 million smartphones worldwide,
up 117 percent from 17 million in the second quarter. This represented
the strongest sequential quarterly growth among the Top 5 smartphone
brands. Apple’s strong performance allowed it to slightly exceed
Samsung’s total of 36 million.Apple
in the fourth quarter took the top spot in the market, displacing
Samsung, which dropped to second place. Previously in the third quarter,
Samsung had usurped Apple to take over the No. 1 rank, which Apple had
attained for the first time in the second quarter.“Apple’s
introduction of the 4S in the fourth quarter unleashed tremendous
pent-up demand for the iPhone as consumers awaited the arrival of the
latest model,” said Wayne Lam, senior analyst, wireless communications at IHS. “This
caused the company’s smartphone shipments to surge, allowing it to
retake market leadership by a slight margin. However, Apple and Samsung
continue to run neck and neck in global smartphone shipments, setting up
a tight battle for leadership that will continue throughout 2012.”Samsung for the entire year of 2011 shipped 95 million smartphones, up an explosive 278 percent from 25 million in 2010.
This industry-leading growth allowed it to pass both Apple and previous
market leader Nokia to take the No. 1 rank for the entire year of 2011.
-
Tablet powered by allwiner A10 is all the rage over the internet. It's criminally cheap. 7"/ICS goes for $110-130.
-
Amazon could be preparing to launch as many as four new tablets
this year, with the cheapest models running as little as $169. That’s
how much the company typically charges for a refurbished Kindle Fire,
but it’s also the price of a Barnes & Noble NOOK Color.
There’s little doubt at this point that Amazon is working on some sort of follow-up to the popular 7 inch Kindle Fire tablet. But we’re kind of drowning in rumors at the moment.
-
Allwinner A10 - ARM Cortex A8 SoC
The Allwinner A10 CPU has been developed in, and is sold in, the
People's Republic of China. Its mass-volume price is around $7, yet it
is a 400-pin highly feature-rich 1.2ghz ARM Cortex A8 with a MALI400
GPU. It has the distinction of having the highest bang-per-buck ratio of
any SoC available at the time of writing, by quite a margin. Its price
and features is causing massive disruption of the tablet market in China
(a minor recession was caused by widespread cancellation of prior
committments to other SoCs!), as every factory in Shenzen scrambles to
compete with hundreds of other factories for the same end-user market:
tablets and PVRs.For comparison: TI has brought out a new $5 ARM Cortex A8, but it is
limited to 500mhz and it is extra cost for the version with a PowerVR 3D
GPU. Ingenic's jz4770 is about $7 in mass-volume but it is a 1ghz MIPS
with a Vivante GC600 3D GPU. Details are harder to get hold of regarding
the jz4770, but its interfaces are known not as feature-rich as the
Allwinner (no HDMI output for example). AMLogic's Cortex A9 is $13 in
mass-volume, but is limited to 800mhz and a maximum of 512mb of RAM. -
Features of the Allwinner A10 include:
- 1.2ghz Cortex A8 ARM Core
- MALI400MP OpenGL ES 2.0 GPU
- DDR3 Controller 800MHz 1GB max
- 2160p Hardware-accelerated Video playback (4x the resolution of 1080p)
- a NAND Flash Controller that is capable of 8-way concurrent DMA (8 NAND ICs)
- 4 SDIO interfaces (SD 3.0, UHI class)
- USB 2.0 Host as well as a 2nd USB-OTG Interface (USB-OTG can be reconfigured as USB 2.0 Host, automatically)
- 24-pin RGB/TTL as well as simultaneous HDMI out
- SATA-II 3gb/sec
- 10/100 Ethernet (MII compatible)
- a 2nd 24-pin RGB/TTL interface that is multiplexed (shared) on the same pins for a standard IDE (PATA) interface.
- GPIO, I2C, PWM, Keyboard Matrix (8x8), built-in Resistive Touchscreen Controller, and much more.
Unsurprisingly, this CPU has been chosen as the first CPU for an
EOMA-68 CPU module. The critical decisive factor however was the
immediate support of Allwinner's Board of Directors for releasing full
GPL Source Code, to help the RHT Initiative to foster better relations
and closer ties with Free Software Developers. -
This is hilarious and so true..WHY CAN"T we PRINT???
http://www.brightsideofnews.com/news/2012/3/30/ipad-print-server-as-easy-as-o-p-p.aspx
-
Apple has the crappiest screen of all high end smartphone... it's the worst. amazing people still buys them at all. It won't sell if Apple were an android brand.
-
Special edition print or something.
-
The Apple iPad Review (2012)
I whipped up an image to help illustrate. Below is a representation,
to-scale, of Apple and NVIDIA SoCs, their die size, and time of first
product introduction:
If we look back to NVIDIA's Tegra 2, it wasn't a bad SoC—it was
basically identical in size to Apple's A4. The problem was that the
Tegra 2 made its debut a full year after Apple's A4 did. The more
appropriate comparison would be between the Tegra 2 and the A5, both of
which were in products in the first half of 2011. Apple's A5 was nearly
2.5x the size of NVIDIA's Tegra 2. A good hunk of that added die area
came from the A5's GPU. Tegra 3 took a step in the right direction but
once again, at 80mm^2 the A5 was still over 50% larger.
The A5X obviously dwarfs everything, at around twice the size of
NVIDIA's Tegra 3 and 33.6% larger than Apple's A5. With silicon, size
isn't everything, but when we're talking about similar architectures on
similar manufacturing processes, size does matter. Apple has been
consistently outspending NVIDIA when it comes to silicon area, resulting
in a raw horsepower advantage, which in turns results in better peak
GPU performance.
-
Speaking of the Companion Core,
Tegra 4 will almost certainly include an enhanced version of the
architecture. With Tegra 3, Nvidia chose to build an array of five
Cortex-A9 cores — in Tegra 4, the company could opt to adopt the sort of
hybrid strategy ARM introduced with big.LITTLE (Cortex-A15 cores for heavy lifting with a Cortex-A7 chip for low power) or use a hybrid A9/A15 arrangement.
http://www.extremetech.com/computing/124331-tegra-4-likely-to-include-kepler-dna-could-revolutionize-smartphone-capabilities/2
-
Nervous much? HTC takes legal action against HTC blog for unboxing video
As reported by HTC-Hub bloggers, when they have contacted HTC’s PR
agency in France (called Hopscotch), official representatives informed
them that review copies of the HTC One S will not be available until its
release date next week. Inpatient and well connected as they were, the
guys at HTC-Hub were able to get their hands on an HTC One S smartphone
without going through official channels, meaning they did not sign an
embargo agreement. Unfortunately for the people behind HTC-Hub, HTC
filed charges against the blog only a few days after they’ve published
an unboxing video (it wasn’t even a review video for that
matter).Obviously, this entire problem could have been avoided, if it
wasn’t for the communication problems that PR agency Hopscotch
showcased. Infringing videos can be taken off following a single email,
but as it turns out, that email never really came. Why take this matter
directly into court is a question nobody has the answer for, but it sure
seems like HTC and their PR agency seriously overreacted this time. Why
can’t we all just get along?Did HTC do the right thing by going
directly into court? Did they overreact? Let us know what you guys think
in the comment section below!
are you on crack HTC? The entire internet will boycott you in an instant. You should fire the idiot in france NOW.
-
More impressive numbers for Samsung: 10M Galaxy S3s pre-ordered, 1.75M Galaxy Ys shipped per month
On one hand, according to Eldar Murtazin,
a very well-known technology journalist and blogger, cited by the guys
at UnwiredView, the Galaxy S III, Sammy’s future flagship, has already
hit a whopping 10 million pre-ordered units.That may not seem an
awful lot, when Apple sold 1.7 million iPhone 4S devices in just three
days of availability, but you should keep in mind that the Galaxy S III
still doesn’t have one single spec or feature officially confirmed.We
also have no idea for the time being how will the handheld look, what
kind of screen it will sport, and how it will be priced, so for Samsung
to already receive 10 million pre-orders is pretty awesome. I mean, we
have had a bunch of rumors, speculations, leaked images and these kinds
of things lately, but, for Pete’s sake, we don’t even know for sure if
the S3 will run Ice Cream Sandwich out of the box.Sure, the
number has to be looked at with care, as it’s far from being an official
one, but I personally think that the information is at least partially
true and accurate. I mean, we might not be looking at exactly 10 million
S3s pre-ordered by now, but even four or five million would be
impressive enough in my view.The second piece of news comes from
Strategy Analytics, one of the most recognized global research and
consulting firm, who has told the guys at EE Times Korea that Samsung will most likely reach and even top 40 million smartphones shipped in Q1 2012 (which ends today).http://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-galaxy-s3-preorders-70028/
-
Finally, a smartphone that's actually smart enough to talk to other electronic device.
-
Samsung Galaxy S3 to have 4.6-inch display, report says
Anonymous manufacturing sources cited by Digitimes (who else) have
confirmed today something that previous rumors have suggested several
months ago. However, if Digitimes’ sources are to be trusted (the
Taiwanese site has a mixed record when it comes to stuff like this), the
rumor mill, while in the ballpark, was slightly off about the display
size of the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S3.Previous reports indicated that the Galaxy S3 will have a 4.8-inch screen,
although others pegged a 4.7-inch touchscreen. The new report,
supposedly coming from someone inside Samsung’s AMOLED panel supply
chain, claims that the Galaxy S3 will come with a 4.6-inch display. That
would be just 0.3 inch larger, (7.62 mm) larger than the Galaxy S2, if
you’re counting.Moreover, the same sources say that Galaxy S3
will use a Super AMOLED HD Plus panel, with a presumed pixel density of
319 ppi. That’s very close to the iPhone 4S’ 326ppi, albeit in a larger
size and different form factor. Nevertheless, a 4.6-inch Super AMOLED HD
Plus screen should provide sweet eye candy, no matter how you look at
it.Although, this latest report brings little new knowledge about
the Galaxy S3 (release date in Q2 or Q3 – gee, thanks for letting us
know), it’s always good to receive confirmation on rumors that are often
founded on nothing more than “anonymous sources”. But hey, this is an
anonymous report too, so we still don’t know anything for sure.Digitimes’
report also informs us that Samsung is planning to upgrade the displays
of its products across the board, with many models reaching an
impressive 285ppi. The Taiwanese outlet also predicts AMOLED device
sales to reach 90 million units this year, in spite of the relatively
hefty price of AMOLED panels. Talking about prices, the cost of AMOLED
displays is expected to drop in 2013-2014, as Chinese makers such as
Tianma (whose products we showed you yesterday) and Visionox ramp up
production.http://www.androidauthority.com/samsung-galaxy-s3-display-size-68983/
Hurry up already Samsung. jeeesh..
(ps. nobody else has amoled at such high resolution and quantity. so Apple will not have anything close until 2014. They will still use LCD for next model.)
-
iPad Mini: 6 Reasons Apple Must Do It
A 7.85-inch iPad Fits In More Bags
For men, fitting an iPad into one's bag--a backpack, messenger bag, or
briefcase--generally isn't a problem. Many women also carry bags large
enough to accommodate an iPad, though quite a few favor handbags that
are smaller. A scaled-down iPad would fit more comfortably into a larger
selection of bags, making it a more appealing form factor for use
outside the home.
A 7.85-inch iPad Would Cost Less
The new iPad starts at $499. That's about $400 from the ideal consumer
price point for truly mass-market consumer electronics. With the iPad 2
priced at $399, the iPad Mini might be offered for as little as $299--it
would have to be under $300 to woo customers away from Amazon's $199
Kindle Fire.
http://www.informationweek.com/news/hardware/handheld/232800453What a fantasy ..... Apple HAS NO technology to do it. amongst CPU makers, apple is the n00b. quadcore + LTE on 45nm? It'll be one inch thick pad to fit the battery and you can fry egg on it, fukushima level of heat radiation. The most advanced current CPUs are TI omap 4 and tegra 2, followed by qualcomm .
The next one is Tegra 3, nobody has anything close to tegra 3 in term of power/performance balance. You really expect Apple to put A5x in 7 inch device? ha haha hahaa... yeah sure.. It''ll be $400+ brick you turn on to bake pizza. By Q1 '13 Tegra 4 will start shipping. So apple has only 6 months window, assuming apple launch this June.
Apple doesn't have anything to ship with except A5x until tsmc fix 28nm. Which means Tegra 3 will be the champion, more advanced everything.
-
NVIDIA Tegra 4 processor specification sheet leaks
As you can see in the image above tegra 4 will have 4 different
models but only 3 of them will be based on ARM Cortex-A15 and one will
be based on Cortex-A9 .Core configuration for all four models will
remain same as Tegra 3 , 4-Plus-1 (four main cores plus a secondary
core) .First quarter of 2.013 will see A flagship model based on Cortex-A15
and will be clocked at 1.8GHz and in third quarter it will be upgraded
to 2.0Ghz for 10 inches tablets .http://gadgetstip.com/nvidia-tegra-4-processor-specification-sheet-leaks/
-
Atom Z2580 to be the first CPU manufactured on Intel’s new 14nm technology
We were fully aware about Intel has plans to release a
smartphone/tablet processor built on the 14nm manufacturing process at
some point before 2014. But when the official announcement was made
(back in February at the Mobile World Congress 2012 when Intel revealed their Smartphone Platform Roadmap)
there was no indication regarding the other CPUs Intel plans to
manufacture using the new technology. In this context, today I’m
reporting on a very interesting rumor that has recently surfaced at
SemiWiki, claiming that the LTE-enabled Intel Atom Z2580 will be the
first CPU Intel manufactured using the 14nm technology.http://www.androidauthority.com/atom-z2580-cpu-intel-14nm-72736/
yeah well intel...this is bad isn't it?
-
HTC One X shows NVIDIA’s Tegra 3 is a battery’s best friend
While we’ll be testing both platforms from NVIDIA and Qualcomm this
week, for now we have a screenshot or two from the quad-core Tegra
3-powered HTC One X using the power of NVIDIA’s 4-PLUS-1 processor
technology. Many were worried that a quad-core would get terrible
battery life, but it’s actually the opposite. NVIDIA added a fifth low
power core to handle simple tasks like email sync, text messages, and
everything else that isn’t processor intensive. Saving the battery for
when the four cores really needs it. The screenshot below shows a heavy
heavy day of use, and then a very calm day. Both showing exceptional
battery results for the circumstances.
While 12 hours as you see to the right isn’t super amazing. Being
used heavily for more than an entire 8 hour work day, from morning to
night under heavy usage is quite impressive. Then on the left side you
see that while not being used, or in a sleep state the NVIDIA Tegra 3′s
fifth companion core we mentioned above sucks hardly 15% after 8 hours
of limited use. Showing that you don’t have to suffer poor battery life
to get great performance.http://androidcommunity.com/htc-one-x-shows-nvidias-tegra-3-is-a-batteries-best-friend-20120402/
-
TSMC runs out of room for 28nm
We had known for quite some time that 28nm production at TSMC was
really kicking-off, with the firm itself reporting great uptake and more
customers than ever; however, a report from DIGITIMES suggests that the company has hit the roof of its 28nm production, with pleanty of requests for parts still in its inbox.It's reported that AMD, NVIDIA and Qualcomm have been hit the most by
this shortage, with Qualcomm even shifting some component orders over
to Microelectronics, however, ultimately falling short on supply against
large demand for its mobile processors.This report tends to line-up with suggestions we made last month,
with smartphone OEMs tending to favour NVIDIA's Tegra 3 stockpile as a
secondary choice outside of 4G regions. Likewise, AMD has been sending
over limited shipments of 28nm components, with the late release of
NVIDIA Kepler parts partly attributed to production levels.Thankfully, the shortage is expected ease by the end of the third
quarter and with any luck we'll start to see the products and stock that
manufacturers had always intended. TSMC is, of course, taking measures
to prevent capacity issues in the future and, with the upcoming launch
of its Fab 14 site, the firm expects to increase total capacity by 10
per cent over the year.http://hexus.net/business/news/channel/37541-tsmc-runs-room-28nm/
-
Samsung YOUM flexible AMOLED brand revealed
Mass production of the displays is tipped to be kicking off this quarter, with the first commercial applications later in 2012.
-
Wikipedia updates mobile apps, drops Google Maps for OpenStreetMap
What’s Next?
We are still hard at work, adding new features, fixing bugs and porting the application to new platforms (view our Roadmap).
We’re also moving to a much faster and leaner 2-week release cycle that
would let us fix problems and add features in a much faster way.If you are a web/mobile developer, come help us make the app better!
Our code is on GitHub, so start forking! We can be found on IRC in
#wikimedia-mobile on FreeNode, and the appropriate mailing list is mobile-l.http://blog.wikimedia.org/2012/04/05/new-wikipedia-app-for-ios-and-an-update-for-our-android-app/
-
The Verge is reporting that Google's bumping the tablet back to no earlier than a July release — two months past the initial expected May release date for its "Nexus" tablet. The tablet's going back to the shop, presumably to allow Google to somehow shave down the device's manufacturing costs so it can better compete against tablets like Amazon's $199 Kindle Fire.
It remains to be seen which features of Google's tablet might hit the chopping block. Currently, Google's tablet is expected to ship with a quad-core, Nvidia Tegra 3 processor and Wi-Fi-only connectivity. Dropping down to a dual-core chip would at least put the device on comparable footing, core-wise, against the Kindle Fire's 1 Ghz, dual-core TI OMAP 4 chip — which is similar in general performance to Nvidia's Tegra 2 chips (if not a little faster).
http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,2817,2402724,00.asp
Just get a basic tablet out already. Spec doesn't matter since there is no software that requires advance hardware for next 10-12 months. All these tablets are completely over built for current softwares. It's all angry bird - riptide - quake type of 90's game.
- $250 ish.
- Tegra 2/Omap4
- 8/16GB. 1GB RAM
- Wifi/BT
- 2MP front facing camera.
- SD, USB, accelerometer
- one day battery on medium use.
--------------------------------------
more expensive model:
-GPS, microphone, camera, hdmi (add ~$50 price) -
TSMC suffering extreme 28nm manufacturing shortage
The good news is production is expected to pick up in Q3 2012, at which
point we should see a dramatic increase is the volume of both AMD and
Nvidia products.http://www.neoseeker.com/news/18783-tsmc-suffering-extreme-28nm-manufacturing-shortage/
TSMC begins building next phase of Fab 14 gigafab
Leading foundry Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing
Co Ltd has held a groundbreaking ceremony for the fifth phase of its Fab 14
gigafab at the South Taiwan Science Park in Tainan, Taiwan.
The module is set to be TSMC's second 20-nm-capable fab
area, scheduled to begin volume production in early 2014. TSMC's phase 6 at Fab
12 in Hsinchu will be the first fab area to manufacture on 20-nm for TSMC,
coming on stream in 2013.
The Fab 14 Phase 5 facility will be combined with the
planned Fab 14 Phase 6 to offer a total cleanroom area of 87,000-square meters
-- equivalent to more than 11 soccer fields and four times larger than a
typical 300-mm fab, TSMC (Hsinchu, Taiwan) said.
TSMC did not indicate how much it is spending on Phase 5 of
Fab 14. The company has said it expects to spend $6 billion on capital
expenditure in 2012.
Fab 14 is TSMC second 300-mm wafer fab following Fab 12.
Phase 1 of Fab 14 began volume production in 2004. The first four phases of Fab
12 are now in operation and provided a production capacity of 550,000 wafers
starts per quarter, or 2.2 million wafers per year. The output is responsible
for estimated annual revenue of $6 billion making each wafer worth nearly
$3,000.http://www.edn.com/article/521429-TSMC_begins_building_next_phase_of_Fab_14_gigafab.php
By mid 2014, Intel is going to be in a lot of pain.
-
Facebook buying Instagram for $1 billion in cash and stock
huh? I don't understand what's the big deal about instagram. Aren't there dozens of photo effect app in store?
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About two weeks ago, upon releasing out latest refresh of Apple research (Apple Margin & Valuation Note)
to subscribers, I gave free readers an example of the evidence we
uncovered showing Apple already experiencing margin compression and a
loss of market share in one of its flagship products (Apple's iPad Is Losing Market Share And …).If
the biz class 101 rules ring true, this could very ugly very fast... The
Company had a slam bang quarter last, but much of that is essentially
unrepeatable in the near term, reference Anecdotal Observations On Apple's Recent Quarter.Seriously Zerohedge. What kind of lame ass analysis is THAT???
Of course everybody knows appl is a bubble, are you really trying to convince the world that this irrational exuberance is going to pop? Good luck. You'll look like an idiot. It'll be like somebody who tried to convince the world about impending housing pop in 2004/5. The mob is going to beat you up! And you'll be called crazy for whole 4 yrs until the actual collapse came.
Apple collapsing is a question of when...
If you are smart a) you ride the bubble. And milk the sheeplees. b) know exactly when to get off. Naturally this is near impossible to tell precisely. However it doesn't have to be precise, just close enough to get out before the whole thing crumble.
...and here is where things get interesting...
imo. the entire thing will implode when a) google launch credible tablet scheme, which is pretty unlikely considering how unimaginative and total bullock their moves so far. or b) somebody hacked and restructured android tablet ROM to achieve what google can't pull, namely not get greedy and stupid, be in bed with media cartel and locking everything. The advent of darknet napster for tablet or rewrite of display driver would be one. or C) a fucking brilliant chinese hardware hack coupled with b) arrive.
apple can't possible compete in that situation, a little like how they lost desktop war. Where underpowered wintel ate apple alive because the smart and poor kids can't afford expensive gear...then business picked it up. Even IBM can't beat the momentum then.
Apple 80's role will be played by Apple. IBM PC division will be played by Google. wintel probably played by current taiwanese outfits. Compaq/Dell and friends are probably some scrappy student run outfit in a college campus somewhere right now...
without that, it'll be pretty much current stalemate between google vs. apple. slogging forward...which in my opinion is very unlikely to continue because Android OS is fairly open. sooner or later somebody will start rewriting the whole thing and getting rid of all Google imposed locks and DRM.
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