When will LG’s smartphone patience run out?
LG is happy to announce that, thanks to its home appliance and entertainment divisions, it’s made a record quarterly profit. But the company is less delighted to concede that its mobile division has suffered another weak quarter, ostensibly down to lukewarm sales of the LG G5. But LG’s problems run a lot deeper than just an underwhelming flagship: It hasn’t booked a profit since the second quarter of 2015. Even then, it was making a measly 1.2 cents in profit on every handset it sold, which wasn’t much to write home about.
Of course, LG’s mobile division has been written off before. Back in 2013, profits fell off a cliff, but the company was able to pull back from the brink the following year and make some cash once again. But there’s a substantial difference between what happened then and what’s going on now. Firstly, this drop is deeper and longer than the last one. More importantly, the smartphone market is radically different from how it was just a year or two ago.
IDC has published its latest research on the state of the smartphone industry and the results don’t bode well for companies like LG. Growth has effectively stalled, mirroring reports from earlier in the year claiming that the smartphone boom is effectively over. The issue is simple: Everyone who can afford a smartphone already owns one, and they aren’t worried about upgrading on a fixed, 24-month cycle. People are holding onto their devices for an average of 30 months, because most decent handsets don’t turn into hot garbage precisely 730 days after buying it.
Lg handset sales vs. operating income
Samsung, LG’s Korean rival, has been able to ride through the rough tides to see its quarterly shipment volumes increase. But for the most part, a lot of the handset business is now being subsumed by a handful of Chinese companies. As a result, once-hallowed brands like HTC, LG and Sony no longer make “top five handset makers” list, having been replaced by Huawei, Oppo and Vivo, the latter two of which have the same parent company, BBK Electronics.
Those three Chinese companies managed to ship 32.1, 22.6 and 16.4 million handsets in the last three months, a combined total of 71.1 million smartphones. LG, which is backed by an enormous manufacturing conglomerate and has significant brand recognition, managed just 13.9 million in the same period of time. These firms are even stealing Apple’s lunch, whose shipments dropped 15 percent since the same quarter in 2015.
iCharts
LG has said that it’s working on a new V-Series device, which is likely a follow-up to the V10 from last year. That phone earned some middling praise when it first came out, but even so, is one new handset likely to recapture LG’s fading glory? These days, almost all smartphones are good enough, and it’s not as if highly profitable flagship devices have a monopoly on exciting features anymore. If most people are satisfied with a OnePlus 3 that costs $399, then why spend another $50 or so on a G5?
Unlike HTC, LG is backed by an enormous manufacturing conglomerate, so it’s not likely it’ll need to ever pull out of the smartphone business. But there’s a question as to how long its leadership will tolerate triple-digit losses before taking action. Sure, Nokia, Blackberry and others all hung on for years of pain, hoping that things were about to turn around. But history has shown that it’s difficult to pull out of a death spiral once you’re already in one.
Perhaps it won’t be long before someone decides to scale back its mobile arm to Sony-esque proportions, releasing one or two devices each year to keep the factories working. What’s clear, however, is that a lot of these companies that were once considered pillars of the Android market have found themselves slow to adapt to a new world order.
Source: IDC, LG
Some wireless keyboards could put your personal info at risk
If you use a lower-tier wireless keyboard, you may be at risk for an attack called KeySniffer that’s able to nab a good deal of personal information from you.
According to cybersecurity company Bastille, KeySniffer is a huge vulnerability that affects several brands and models of wireless keyboards, including HP, Toshiba, Kensington, Insignia, Radio Shack, General Electric and more. KeySniffer allows third parties to remotely access the keystrokes from users from up to 250 feet away. The data is transmitted via clear text and can offer up passwords, credit card numbers and other types of sensitive data.
Bastille tested keyboards from 12 different manufacturers and found that eight of them were susceptible to the attack. Kensington has already made efforts to patch the vulnerability, adding AES to its wireless keyboards’ broadcast, but if you find yourself consistently using one of the brands tested it could be worth looking into a different model or at the very least opting for Bluetooth. There are enough breaches out there to have to worry about yet another one coming from an item you could be using every day.
Via: Wired UK
You can drive the Elio in 41 states without a motorcycle license
A year after successfully crowdfunding $25 million to build its 84 mpg closed-cabin tricycle, Elio Motors has done serious legwork to ensure that most folks can drive theirs off the lot without needing additional training. After New Jersey and Rhode Island updated its laws this summer, the company has secured exemptions or recategorizations in 41 states from requiring a motorcycle license to use their ultra-efficient vehicles.
When the company began urging lawmakers to ease requirements in 2012, only 11 states didn’t force tricycle drivers to get a motorcycle. Since then, Elio has been redefined as a new class of vehicle, the “autocycle,” not subject to the training needed to operate an open-air motorbike. It’s not difficult to believe: the enclosed trike has gas and brake pedals, a steering wheel, a seatbelt and airbags. While eight of these recategorizations are not fully in the books, they are currently “going through the legislative process.”
Source: Autoblog
Official ‘Dungeons and Dragons’ content now available on Roll20
Roll20’s online tabletop gaming system has been a haven for veterans of pen-and-paper RPGs for awhile now, but for fans of the original role-playing adventure game, it just got a lot better. Wizards of the Coast is now selling officially licensed Dungeons and Dragons modules on Roll20 — starting with the fifth edition starter set adventure, ‘The Lost Mine of Phandelver’.
Technically, players could already use Roll20 to play Dungeons and Dragons content, just not officially. The online gaming system is designed to work with any tabletop-style RPG game — giving players digital dice, VOIP and webcam chat systems and the ability to draw maps on a shared playspace. You can play anything on it — but that usually comes with the extra hurdle of distributing materials via email and having players open them outside of the platform. Native content purchased on the Roll20 marketplace, like the new D&D module, is just a lot easier to work with. All of the character sheets, manuals, documents and high resolution maps are right there, in the ROll20 interface.
The first D&D Roll20 module comes with five pre-generated characters, digital game tokens, maps and all the necessary documentation to take 4-6 players through the Lost Mine of Phandelver. At $20, it costs the same as the 5th edition Dungeons and Dragons starter pack. Additional modules will follow soon after, though they cost a little more: Storm King’s Thunder, the next officially licensed D&D Roll20 module, rings in at $50.
Source: Polygon, Twitter
Uber is making it easier for companies to offer free rides
Uber is making it simpler for businesses to offer transportation for their customers by offering UberCENTRAL, a new dashboard that allows businesses to request, manage and pay for Uber rides for their patrons.
UberCENTRAL will work across any tablet or browser and is available today. Businesses can make multiple requests for rides from one account, and trip details are sent via SMS rather than an app, so those without smartphones can still participate in the program. Using the app, business owners will be able to track rides and locations as well as billing from one centralized hub.
The app is free to use, and it sounds as though it’s going to make things a whole lot simpler for customers who don’t actually want to sign up for Uber and use the service (or share credit card details). Ordering a ride to an attraction from a hotel or setting up cars to cruise over to the store is a lot less complicated when the business is taking care of all the specifics, especially the price.
Source: Uber
Virgin America’s app has Spotify playlists based on your trip
Virgin America revealed a major overhaul to its website back in 2014, and now it finally has an app for Android and iOS. As you might expect, the retooled mobile software has a similar look and feel to the web portal, but you can use it to book flights, manage upgrades and access boarding passes on the go. There’s a lot more playful illustration than you’ve seen in other airline apps, consistent with the approach Virgin takes to air travel. What’s more, there’s Spotify integration as well, offering an easy way to play music during your trip.
In fact, Virgin America is calling the partnership a “first-of-its kind trip soundtrack mobile feature on an airline app.” How does it work? Well, once you check in, you can stream one of Spotify’s “Mood Lists” that are inspired by cities around the world. Users will be privy to a playlist that’s based on their destination, so in theory you’ll get a new mix of songs for each leg of your journey. If that sounds familiar, the streaming service recently revealed an Out of Office playlist tool that also compiles a collection of tracks inspired by where you’re traveling that can be used in those automatic email responses. The collaboration isn’t too surprising though, since flyers can already stream music from Spotify during Virgin flights.
While the new Virgin America app isn’t ready for the masses, select Elevate members and other frequent flyers will be privy to a beta test “in the coming weeks.” If you didn’t get an invite to the test phase, you can sign up here to try and get in. Don’t mind waiting a little longer? The airline says both the Android and iOS versions of the app are slated to launch “later this summer.”
Source: Virgin America
Ride-hailing apps like Uber will be legal in China soon
Considering how much business Uber does in China, it’s kind of hard to imagine that ride-hailing apps aren’t exactly legal in the country. Well, they weren’t, but they’re about to be. Chinese regulators have passed a new law that clears up the legal grey area companies like Uber and Didi Chuxing operate in. Starting on November 1st, ride-hailing apps will be legal, so long as they follow a few rules.
Specifically, the new regulations outline requirements for drivers — who must be licensed by local taxi regulators, have no criminal record and have at least three years experience behind the wheel. They also need to drive a car with fewer than 370,000 miles on the odometer. The ride-sharing companies themselves will have to acquire local taxi licenses to comply with the new laws, which still need to be adopted by local cities and provinces.
Despite this easing of regulations, there’s still some work to do: ride-sharing companies will need to acquire new licenses to comply with the new law, which itself needs to be adopted by local cities and provinces. That shouldn’t be too much trouble, though — Baidu is likely to go to the plate for Uber in negotiations with officials, and Didi is already appealing to local governments to adopt “market-driven approaches that encourage innovation.”
Despite some concerns on Didi’s part about the authority given to local taxi administrations, both companies seem optimistic about the new law. “We believe the Rules will usher in a new stage of growth for China’s online ride-booking ecosystem,” Didi said in a statement. Uber similarly endorsed the move. “This is a welcome step in a country that has consistently shown itself to be forward-thinking when it comes to innovation.”
Source: Engadget China, Ministry of Transport, Uber
iPad Continues to Outsell Samsung, Amazon, and Microsoft Tablets Combined
Apple released its fiscal third quarter earnings results earlier this week, confirming that it sold 9.95 million iPads from early March through late June. iPad shipments have now declined for ten consecutive quarters, but the lineup continues to outsell all Samsung, Amazon, and Microsoft tablets combined.
Taiwanese market research firm TrendForce has released new quarterly data that shows Samsung, Amazon, and Microsoft shipped an estimated 6 million, 2.2 million, and 700,000 units respectively for a combined total of 9.5 million, amounting to roughly 450,000 fewer tablets than the number of iPads sold.
Despite the shipment decline, reflective of a continued slowdown in the broader tablet market, Apple’s tablet revenue increased for the first time in ten quarters due to the iPad Pro’s higher average selling price. The 9.7-inch iPad Pro starts at $599, whereas the iPad Air 2 started at $499, while the 12.9-inch iPad Pro is priced from $799.
In terms of shipments, however, TrendForce says the iPad Air 2 was the key driver:
“The lack of changes in appearance and high prices work against the iPad Pro series. Consumers do not see these devices as a good bargain. The 12.9-inch iPad Pro maintained strong sales momentum for two quarters, while the 9.7-inch model lost its luster after just one quarter since its release. On the whole, the Pro series did not help expand iPad shipments in the second quarter as expected. The overall sales were instead sustained by iPad Air 2, which captured consumers’ interest with its reduced price tag.”
Worldwide tablet shipments in the June quarter totaled an estimated 33.54 million units, representing a quarterly drop of 4.8 percent and a year-on-year decline of 8.8 percent. Lenovo, Huawei, and ASUS were also among the top six vendors, with estimated shipments of 2.4 million, 2.2 million, and 800,000 tablets respectively.
With no new iPads models anticipated in the immediate future, TrendForce estimates Apple’s tablet sales will drop to 9.2 million sequentially.
Tag: TrendForce
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Apple Engineer to Discuss iOS Security at 2016 Black Hat Event
Apple engineer Ivan Krstic is scheduled to host a discussion at this year’s Black Hat Conference, offering a “Behind the Scenes” look at iOS security. Black Hat is an annual event designed for the global InfoSec community, giving security professionals a place to meet up and gain training on new techniques.
According to an overview of Krstic’s talk, three iOS security mechanisms will be discussed in “unprecedented technical detail,” including the first public discussion of Auto Unlock, a feature new to iOS 10.
HomeKit, Auto Unlock and iCloud Keychain are three Apple technologies that handle exceptionally sensitive user data – controlling devices (including locks) in the user’s home, the ability to unlock a user’s Mac from an Apple Watch, and the user’s passwords and credit card information, respectively. We will discuss the cryptographic design and implementation of our novel secure synchronization fabric which moves confidential data between devices without exposing it to Apple, while affording the user the ability to recover data in case of device loss.
Krstic will also cover the Secure Enclave Processor present in iOS devices that include the iPhone 5s and later, creating a discussion around how it enabled a new approach to Data Protection key derivation and brute force rate limiting within a small TCB, and he’ll cover browser-based vulnerabilities and new protective features in iOS 10 Safari.
The 2016 Black Hat Conference will take place from July 30 to August 4 at the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. Tickets are priced at $2,595.
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Bluetooth Headphone Revenue Overtakes Non-Bluetooth Ahead of iPhone 7 Launch
As the launch of the iPhone 7 approaches, Bluetooth headphone purchases are on the rise, according to new data shared by NPD Group. In June, Bluetooth headphone revenue overtook non-Bluetooth for the first time, accounting for 54 percent of headphone dollar sales and 17 percent of unit sales in the United States.
The overall headphone category saw seven percent year-over-year growth in pure dollar sales during the first half of 2016, but Bluetooth headphones saw double-digit growth during the same time period. A solid cost decrease helped spur Bluetooth headphone sales, with average selling prices down 5 percent. Nearly 30 percent of Bluetooth headphones sold during 1H 2016 were less than or equal to $50.
“Promotions and new product introductions have helped spur the growth we are seeing in Bluetooth headphones,” said Ben Arnold, executive director, industry analyst for The NPD Group. “Consumers are already embracing a wireless future and if, as rumored, the headphone jack is removed from the next iPhone, we expect this will continue to drive market share of the Bluetooth category.”
Apple’s Beats brand and LG dominated the Bluetooth headphone market during the first half of the year, accounting for approximately 65 percent of dollar sales. Bose, Jaybird, and Skullcandy were the other manufacturers to make it into the top five brands, in that order.
With the iPhone 7 and the iPhone 7 Plus, Apple plans to eliminate the headphone jack, requiring consumers to rely on Lightning adapters, Bluetooth-enabled wireless headphones, or headphones that include a Lightning connector. Apple’s decision will undoubtedly lead to even greater Bluetooth headphone sales as the headphone jack is gradually phased out across its product line and from competing products.
Tags: Bluetooth, headphone jack
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