Telecommunications
China's Huawei takes aim at Apple with first laptop line
Chinese telecoms giant Huawei said on Tuesday it planned a global expansion into computers, posing a fresh challenge to established PC players in a market that has suffered two years of falling sales volumes. At a news conference in Berlin, Huawei introduced its first line-up of three personal computer models, including a 15.6-inch screen notebook, a 2-in-1 tablet and notebook hybrid and an ultra slim, metallic 13-inch notebook. Initially, the new entrant is targeting the premium-priced consumer market, pitting it against Lenovo, HP and Dell, which collectively hold more than 50 percent of the PC market, and possibly even Apple's shrinking Mac computer business. China's Huawei launches its first laptop line and takes aim at Apple Lenovo, HP and Dell: The Matebook X is a fanless notebook with splash-proof screen and combined fingerprint sign-on and power button Huawei's Matebook X is a fanless notebook with splash-proof screen and combined fingerprint sign-on and power button, priced between $1,570-$1,900, although no Us pricing has yet been revealed. Its Matebook E 2-in-1 hybrid will run around $1099 while the Matebook D with 15.6-inch display is expected to be priced at around $899. Overall, PC market sales volumes dropped 8.3 percent in 2015 and a further 3.7 percent in 2016, according to research firm Gartner, which has predicted a flat outcome this year and increasing market consolidation through 2020.
Hackers reportedly bypass Samsung Galaxy S8's 'airtight' iris scanner
Hackers have once again proved there's no such thing as true security for your phone. Researchers at the Chaos Computer Club (via Motherboard) claim to have bypassed the iris scanner on Samsung's Galaxy S8 using a simple photo of a person's iris and an ordinary contact lens. SEE ALSO: Watch how far Samsung's Galaxy S8 has evolved from the original Galaxy S Samsung's "airtight" (the company's word, not mine) iris scanner is included on the Galaxy S8 as an alternative form of biometric security in addition to the built-in fingerprint sensor. Galaxy S8 users can choose to set up the iris scanner, which is more secure than the face recognition, to unlock the phone or authenticate Samsung Pay mobile payments. The biggest advantage to using an iris scanner compared to face recognition is that ordinary photos usually can't fool it.
SoftBank's Son chases boyhood dreams with $100 billion fund
When Masayoshi Son was a boy growing up in Kyushu, he kept a notebook to scribble down inventions he hoped to create one day. Today, the SoftBank founder has almost $100 billion to invest in making the next big thing a reality. Son's SoftBank Group Corp. closed the first round of a planned $100 billion investment fund, with money raised from Saudi Arabia, Abu Dhabi, as well as Apple Inc. and Qualcomm Inc. The Vision Fund gives the 59-year-old access to a pool of capital unparalleled in the worlds of private equity or venture capital -- the equivalent of four Silver Lakes or 15 Sequoia Capitals. He has said, without irony, that he has a 300-year plan for SoftBank and aims to build the world's most valuable company.
SoftBank-Saudi tech fund becomes world's biggest with $93bn of capital
The world's largest private equity fund, backed by Japan's SoftBank Group and Saudi Arabia's main sovereign wealth fund, said on Saturday it had raised over $93bn to invest in technology sectors such as artificial intelligence and robotics. "The next stage of the Information Revolution is under way, and building the businesses that will make this possible will require unprecedented large-scale, long-term investment," the SoftBank Vision Fund said in a statement. Japanese billionaire Masayoshi Son, chairman of SoftBank, a telecommunications and tech investment group, revealed plans for the fund last October and since then it has obtained commitments from some of the world's most deep-pocketed investors. The new fund made its announcement during the visit of President Donald Trump to Riyadh and the signing of tens of billions of dollars worth of business deals between US and Saudi companies. Son was also in Riyadh on Saturday.
Google's peek at a voice computing future
USA TODAY's Jefferson Graham says Google Home is improved but is still a work in progress with some gaping holes. LOS ANGELES -- Typing is so yesterday. Why write it when you can say it? This week we turned our attention to a different way of talking -- to our phones and home speakers. And if Google's any guide, that will be the story (digitally synthesized in a computer's best dulcet tones) for the next months and probably, years.
Ofcom proposes customers should be able to switch mobile providers by text
Mobile phone customers could soon be able to dump their network provider by text. Ofcom says people shouldn't need to make a potentially long and uncomfortable phone call to their operator in order to switch networks, as they currently have to. Research conducted by the regulator also shows that these calls can often be disrupted, causing further stress. The I.F.O. is fuelled by eight electric engines, which is able to push the flying object to an estimated top speed of about 120mph. The giant human-like robot bears a striking resemblance to the military robots starring in the movie'Avatar' and is claimed as a world first by its creators from a South Korean robotic company Waseda University's saxophonist robot WAS-5, developed by professor Atsuo Takanishi and Kaptain Rock playing one string light saber guitar perform jam session A man looks at an exhibit entitled'Mimus' a giant industrial robot which has been reprogrammed to interact with humans during a photocall at the new Design Museum in South Kensington, London Electrification Guru Dr. Wolfgang Ziebart talks about the electric Jaguar I-PACE concept SUV before it was unveiled before the Los Angeles Auto Show in Los Angeles, California, U.S The Jaguar I-PACE Concept car is the start of a new era for Jaguar.
A future for mobile operators: The keys to successful reinvention McKinsey & Company
What can companies do to alleviate the squeeze on margins and create more value? Major advances in data analytics, artificial intelligence, network equipment, and other technologies have rewritten the industry's winning formula. With the newest software and hardware, along with digital-age management practices, mobile operators can achieve breakthrough cost savings and capital intensity while maintaining or even increasing their scale. To capitalize on these opportunities, executives must take bold action to transform their businesses. Managing networks with next-generation technologies can cut the capital-spending and operating expenses of wireless operators.
Google I/O: Google Home will now let you make voice calls, catching up to Alexa
USA TODAY's Jefferson Graham says Google Home is improved but is still a work in progress with some gaping holes. LOS ANGELES -- Google announced new features for its Google Home personal assistant product Wednesday, with one key catch-up to rival Amazon -- free phone calls to the United States and Canada mobile and landline phones. Google Home, which is a distant No. 2 in the personal digital assistant speaker market to Amazon's Echo speaker line, announced many new tools for the Home that tap into the Google Assistant. The assistant is Google's answer to Apple's Siri, Microsoft's Cortana and Samsung's Bixby and looks to use voice computing for both search and daily tasks. In Google's vision of the utopian world, we would use Google Home to answer basic search questions.
T-Mobile to Exhibit at @CloudExpo #DevOps #IoT #AI #ML #DX #SmartCities
SYS-CON Events announced today that T-Mobile will exhibit at SYS-CON's 20th International Cloud Expo, which will take place on June 6-8, 2017, at the Javits Center in New York City, NY. As America's Un-carrier, T-Mobile US, Inc., is redefining the way consumers and businesses buy wireless services through leading product and service innovation. The Company's advanced nationwide 4G LTE network delivers outstanding wireless experiences to 67.4 million customers who are unwilling to compromise on quality and value. Based in Bellevue, Washington, T-Mobile US provides services through its subsidiaries and operates its flagship brands, T-Mobile and MetroPCS. Internet of @ThingsExpo, taking place June 6-8, 2017 at Javits Center, New York City, is co-located with 20th International @CloudExpo and will feature technical sessions from a rock star conference faculty and the leading industry players in the world.
Savari works to bring 5G to connected cars
In these early days of smart cities and connected cars, Savari has emerged as a V2X (that's vehicle-to-everything) innovator. Now it's joined the 5G Automotive Association to bring cellular communications to connected cars. This technology doesn't merely provide faster cell service on the morning commute. Cellular-V2X (C-V2X) is a communications system for connected cars to share data with each other and with the surrounding infrastructure -- no humans required. With 5G, cars can send and receive messages 10 times per second.