Apple Supplier Broadcom Reportedly Phasing Out Wi-Fi Chip Business

Communications chip maker and Apple supplier Broadcom is planning to phase out its Wi-Fi chip business in order to streamline its workforce and product line, according to industry sources in Taiwan (via DigiTimes).

The move follows the company’s recent acquisition by Avago Technologies and forms part of a larger strategy to allocate more resources for research and development in the fiber-optic and server sectors, according to the report.

The Wi-Fi chip business is said to yield relatively low gross margins for Broadcom compared to other product lines. Sources cited fierce price wars for mass-market applications such as notebooks, tablets, TVs and smartphones as the reason behind the decision to phase out the company’s involvement in the sector.

Broadcom has reportedly almost halved the workforce stationed at its plant in Taipei, while companies such as MediaTek, Realtek Semiconductor and RDA Microelectronics have already received a pull-in of short lead-time orders from Broadcom’s customers in the Wi-Fi chip sector.

It’s unclear whether the phase out, if confirmed, is a disruption for Apple as it gears up for annual product refreshes across its desktop and mobile devices. Apple currently uses Broadcom chips in its Apple Watch, iPhones and iPads, as well as its line of Macs that support 802.11ac, including the MacBook Air, Retina MacBook Pro, and iMac.

Two years ago, Apple hired two high-level baseband hardware engineers who left their longtime positions at Broadcom to join an engineering team at Cupertino. In 2013, Apple acquired low-power wireless chip provider Passif Semiconductor. The acquisitions were seen as part of a larger strategy by the company to better control the development and production of its core technologies.

Tag: digitimes.com
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Ford Launching 2017 Escape as its First CarPlay Vehicle in May

As promised, Ford has announced that its new 2017 Escape will be its first vehicle to support CarPlay and Android Auto through its SYNC 3 Connect platform.

The automaker’s best-selling SUV has entered production in Louisville, Kentucky, and sales will begin at U.S. and Canadian dealerships in May 2016.

Ford’s all-new 2017 Escape hits dealerships in May 2016 (Image: Ford)
CarPlay will bring Maps, Phone, Messages, Music, Podcasts, and a number of third-party apps, such as Spotify, to the 2017 Escape’s in-dash multimedia system.

The Apple software can be controlled with Siri and your vehicle’s built-in controls for convenient access to common iPhone features. iPhone 5 or later is required.

The new Escape also features available driver-assist technology that can “help keep drivers in their lane, maintain a set speed and distance on the highway, and even aid drivers in getting out of a tight parking spot.”

Ford announced in January that it would be adding CarPlay and Android Auto to all 2017 vehicles in North America equipped with BlackBerry’s QNX-based SYNC 3 platform, starting with the new Escape.

CarPlay and Android Auto will also be available in 2016 Ford vehicles with SYNC 3 as an upgrade later this year.

CarPlay is available in over 100 new 2016 and 2017 models worldwide from Acura, Audi, Buick, Cadillac, Chevrolet, Citroën, DS Automobiles, Ferrari, Ford, GMC, Honda, Hyundai, Mercedes-Benz, Mitsubishi, Opel, Porsche, Peugeot, Seat, Škoda, Suzuki, Volkswagen, Volvo, and other carmakers.

CarPlay and Android Auto will also available in select Chrysler, Dodge, and Jeep models beginning this year. Toyota, meanwhile, remains one of the largest automakers that has yet to adopt CarPlay, instead choosing SmartDeviceLink, despite being listed as a committed partner on Apple’s website since 2014.

Related Roundup: CarPlay
Tags: Android Auto, Ford, Ford SYNC
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Electrolux Masterpiece Blender ELJB74D9PS review – CNET

The Good The Electrolux Masterpiece Blender completed all of our performance tests competently, even turning whole almonds into almond butter. It also looks great and is easy to clean.

The Bad At $350, the Masterpiece Blender needed to be better than competent, and often, it wasn’t, missing chunks in thick smoothies, pesto and ice. Since you can’t remove the bottom or the blades, it’s tough to scrape out thick ingredients.

The Bottom Line Though a pretty good blender, the Electrolux Masterpiece isn’t worth the $350 price tag. You can find more well rounded options for less.

Visit manufacturer site for details.

Since it costs $350, I expected a lot from the Electrolux Masterpiece Blender. It’s not quite as pricey as the $530 Vitamix 7500 or the $450 Blendtec Wildside, but both of those back up their high end price with awesome performance. This Masterpiece Blender has the power to hold its own on the premium end with 1,200 watts. It has a sizable 74-ounce jar. It even sports an interesting design that looks great and supposedly lends itself to smoother blends.

It simply missed on too many tests for me to recommend it at its $350 price. It never missed badly. The Masterpiece Blender reached the finish line on all of our challenges, but it regularly left small chunks of unblended strawberry in our smoothies, and unmixed Parmesan along with pieces of walnut in the pesto. It made almond butter from whole almonds, but needed a long time and lots of help to do so. The Electrolux Masterpiece Blender is a fine machine, but for $350, it needs to be more than that.

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Smooth operator — testing the basics

You can purchase the $350 Electrolux Masterpiece Blender now from the company’s site. It’s not yet available in the UK, but Electrolux plans to begin selling it there in June. The US price converts to approximately £240. The Masterpiece Blender is available in Australia now for AU$430, also from the company’s site.

The design looks the part of the premium price, and the tilted bottom intrigued me.

Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The bottom of the Electrolux Masterpiece Blender’s 74-ounce blending jar is tilted. That’s intentional. The PowerTilt Technology is the top feature listed on Electrolux’s site for this machine. The site describes it as “a powerful new angle” that “intensifies taste by changing the way ingredients are blended — making it simple to create the smoothest, most velvety textures.”

As nonsensical as it is to suggest an angle, in and of itself, is powerful, I had reason enough to believe that the tilt might actually make a positive difference when blending smoothies. One of CNET’s technical editors, Steve Conaway, tilts every blender he uses when mixing a drink to help the blades reach ingredients closer to the top of the container.

On top of that, the blender’s six titanium-coated, copper-colored blades look well positioned to scoop the bottom and reach all the way to the sides. The blender also has a smoothie preset, in addition to ice crush, drink, and soup presets that go beyond simple speed settings. Similar to the Auto-IQ on the Nutri Ninja system, pressing the button runs a program of various speeds over the course of a minute or so.

The LED counts down the time remaining in your selected preset.

Tyler Lizenby/CNET

All told, I had plenty of reasons to expect, when I starting using the Electrolux Masterpiece Blender to make smoothies, that I’d get great results. But out of three batches, only one was perfect. We mix strawberries and OJ together for the sake of simplicity and repeatability on this test, and on two of the runs, I found a few chunks of strawberry leftover, even after using the machine’s smoothie preset.

Both mixtures were drinkable, just not up to the level of its high end competition. Most premium blenders, and even some cheaper Hamilton Beach models, produce better smoothies in 15 pulses or less.

The titanium coated blades look great, but don’t do anything special to help with the PowerTilt feature.

Tyler Lizenby/CNET

The PowerTilt feature looks cool in action — at different speeds the center of the vortex forms in slightly different places in the jar, so the mixture does look like it’s tilting. But the blades themselves don’t actively tilt or change direction, neither does the jar, and the feature didn’t produce the consistent results I was hoping for.

The ice test results were similar — competent but underwhelming. No blender we’ve tested has ever failed the smoothie test. Plenty fall short when trying to blend 2 cups of ice without any water to help. The Electrolux passed easily. After the 50-second ice preset, the two cups of cubes were almost entirely made into snow. Again, though, on all three runs of the ice test, I found a couple of stray clumps, keeping the Masterpiece Blender agonizingly short of perfection.

Upping the ante — pancake batter, whipped cream and cheese

Pancake batter illustrated why the blender fell short on the basics. That’s why we run the test — clumps of batter tend to stick in places where proper flow fails. I noticed a minor buildup on the ridge that protrudes into the jar near its handle, and batter stuck in the bottom corners. The ridge in particular might have been the culprit that trapped small pieces of strawberry or ice next to it and wouldn’t let them cycle to the blades.

Samsung has a new music app for Galaxy users to test

Have a new Galaxy S7 or other Samsung Galaxy device running Android Marshmallow? Then the electronics giant wants you to kick the tires on Samsung Music. I’d explain what it is, but its name does that for me. The music app plays MP3, WMA, AAC and FLAC files, however, it’s still in beta so it might not run without a hitch. But hey, your horoscope suggested opening yourself up to new things, so you might as well give it a shot.

Via: Phandroid

Source: Google Play

Qualcomm appoints inustry veteran Mary Gendron as top-level executive

Mary Gendron has been appointed by Qualcomm as both the chief information officer (CIO) at the company. The newly appointed executive brings with her years of experience in the technology industry, previously working at the likes of Motorola and Bell.

George Davis, executive vice president and chief financial officer at Qualcomm, commented on Gendron’s signing:

“We are very pleased to welcome Mary to Qualcomm. Her IT experience and leadership brings new opportunities to continue excelling in our IT organization. Mary has a proven track record of partnering with businesses to understand their needs while driving major projects to improve operational efficiency.”

Gendron’s tasks will include leading the chip manufacture’s global IT organization, while collaborating and engaging with senior leadership across the company. Her LinkedIn profile contains a few more pointers, including the responsibility to “assure best in class cyber security architecture and defenses given the Companies significant exposure to third party attacks.”

Apple iPhone SE looks like 5S but with 12MP, 4K camera

Apple is rumoured to unveil a new iPhone, dubbed SE, at its 21 March event. This is expected to be a 4-inch iPhone like older models and now it is reportedly also designed like the older 5S.

Despite rumours that the iPhone SE would like the iPhone 6 but smaller, sources of 9to5mac have claimed that it will actually look identical to the iPhone 5S. Since this was a fairly recent model and included TouchID, this seems reasonable.

There is also word that the front edges may be ever so slightly curved, but not noticeably so. What should change is the finish, with a matt edging which will be less prone to scratches than the shiny 5S edges.

When it comes to internals there should be a great change. The iPhone SE is expected, according to the sources, to get an A9 processor, NFC for Apple Pay, upgraded Wi-Fi and network connectivity plus the 12-megapixel camera from the iPhone 6S which is capable of 4K video recording.

The iPhone SE is expected to replace the 5S making it the most affordable Apple handset at £379. It should also come in 16GB and 64GB variants with all the 6S colour options, including Rose Gold.

Expect to see everything unveiled at the 21 March Apple event.

READ: Apple iPhone 5S review

Microsoft reveals gradient-hued ‘Shadow’ Xbox controllers

Special edition Xbox controllers aren’t exactly breaking news, but Microsoft unveiled a pair that are pretty unique. The shadow design models come in “Copper Shadow” and “Dusk Shadow” hues that fade to black toward the bottom. They also have a faux-metallic finish, judging by a pair of videos tweeted out by Major Nelson (below). Otherwise, they’re the same as regular controllers, but at $70 each, are $10 more expensive. In North and South America, you can get get both later this month at Microsoft’s Store, or find the Copper Shadow model at Gamestop and Dusk Shadow variant at Best Buy. It’ll hit the rest of the world in April.

A closer look at the new Xbox One Special Edition Dusk Shadow Wireless Controller https://t.co/ZlZK5t80pShttps://t.co/aJLu0EiUpP

— Larry Hryb (@majornelson) March 17, 2016

A closer look at the new Xbox One Special Edition Copper Shadow Wireless Controller https://t.co/ZlZK5t80pShttps://t.co/wo4gNK7zO1

— Larry Hryb (@majornelson) March 17, 2016

Source: Microsoft

Yahoo Mail upgrades link previews with playable video

Yahoo Mail just made its link previews on desktop richer and more informative. When you paste a URL into the body of your email, you’ll now get a preview card that contains not only a snapshot of the website, but also the author’s name, if applicable. In case the link points to a hotel website, you’ll see prices in the card. Even better, if it’s a link to a video or an audio clip on YouTube, SoundCloud, Tumblr or Vimeo (among other services), you can play it within the email itself. Not to mention, you can post the links to Tumblr, Facebook and Twitter through the new Share button at the top right corner of the image.

Those are all cool upgrades if you’re a fan of the feature, but if you think emails filled with large previews look obnoxious, Yahoo also has something for you. The Mail team is also giving you the power to choose the snapshots’ sizes and locations. So if you want to put the smallest possible previews at the bottom of your email just to appease your friends, that’s now perfectly possible.

Source: Tumblr

Here’s how you can play Facebook Messenger’s hidden basketball game

Just in time for March Madness, Facebook has rolled out an update to Messenger that lets you play a basketball mini-game with your friend directly from the conversation window. To get started, you need to select the basketball emoji, send it to a friend, and then tap on the emoji to load the game.

You’ll get a basketball located at different positions at the bottom of the screen, and you have to swipe up to put the ball in the hoop. The goal is to score consecutive baskets, which gets challenging after you hit 10 points, as that’s when the backboard starts moving.

This isn’t the first time Facebook built a game into the messaging platform. Late last year, it introduced a chess game that can be accessed by entering @FBChess in the conversation window.

What did you guys score?

Thanks Christopher!

Netflix will premiere ‘The Little Prince’ in the US

It looks like Netflix is now snapping up new foreign films for domestic distribution. The video-on-demand service will premiere the French-made animation The Little Prince in the US, according to The Hollywood Reporter. Paramount was supposed to release the newest adaptation of Antoine de Saint-Exupery’s novella in US theaters today, March 18th, but last week it suddenly dropped those plans. Why? Well, the movie studio never explained and even the movie’s director could only say that it would be released later this year.

Take note that the film isn’t only critically acclaimed, it also seemed to do well financially, grossing around $100 million outside the US. Plus, it features the voices of some well-known actors, including Jeff Bridges, Rachel McAdams, James Franco and Marion Cotillard. Whatever the reason is, Netflix is the chosen avenue of delivery for all viewers in the States who want to see the CGI/stop-motion offering. Too bad you won’t be able to watch it on a big screen — unless you have a gargantuan TV — and it won’t arrive on the streaming service until later this year. But at least one month of Netflix only costs $8.99, and you can play it again and again for the kids.

1/3 Many thanks to everyone for the outpouring of love and support in these strange times.

— Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016

2/3 – As it turns out, the much anticipated U.S. release of this special and unique film will have to be anticipated just a little bit more.

— Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016

3/3 – All I can say is #thelittleprince will in fact be released by another distributor later this year.

— Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016

4/4 – Until then, head to Canada! The film opens there in wide release this weekend!

— Mark Osborne (@happyproduct) March 12, 2016

Source: Hollywood Reporter