LG would make more money if it wasn’t for smartphones
You know it’s bad when your mobile business gets trounced by the rival that sold a smartphone that actually blew up in its customers pockets. That’s the situation over at LG, whose mobile communications division contrived to lose $389.4 million across the last three months. In the company’s latest financials, it’s revealed that LG shipped 13.5 million devices and saw US sales increase by 14 percent quarter-on-quarter. But that’s pretty much the same thing the company achieved in every quarter since the start of 2014, and that plan stopped making a profit partway through 2015.
The cause of this mobile malaise isn’t exactly a surprise with problems inside and outside LG contributing to the problems. First up, the LG G5 was a flop and the V20, which previewed very well, is going to cost $120 more than the comparable Google Pixel. Then there’s the fact that the smartphone market ain’t what it used to be, and upstart Chinese brands that don’t need to worry about profit are undercutting everyone across the board. Earlier this year, we asked when LG’s smartphone patience would run out, and on this evidence, it won’t be long until some accountant asks what the value is in losing $300 – $400 million a quarter.
Ironically, while its mobile division flounders, the rest of LG’s actually doing pretty well, selling $11.8 billion worth of gear and coining a healthy $252.7 million profit. But that cash comes from areas where LG’s arguably much stronger, including home appliances, air conditioners and TVs. In fact, that latter division recorded a record profit, raking in $340.4 million to help offset those other losses. The firm’s nascent vehicle components arm is also growing, although it’s yet to turn a profit, but that’s been attributed to R&D spending and investing for the future.
Samsung profits dip 30 percent due to exploding Note 7s
The world’s largest smartphone maker’s profits plunged 30 percent due an exploding flagship model. Samsung’s operating profit for the third quarter was $4.6 billion, down from $6.4 million the quarter before, making it the lowest operating profit the company has made in two years. Samsung had already revised its financial estimates following the recall of millions of Galaxy Note 7s.
That said, its mobile arm still reported a profit of 100 billion won ($87 million). For Samsung, however, this is the lowest amount of profit the mobile side has made since the end of 2008 — pre-smartphone days. The botched recall of the Galaxy Note 7 will cost the company several billion dollars, and that’s without touching on the effects to the brand itself and stock woes.
Fortunately for the electronics giant, its component business continues to make bank, with memory chips and display panels found in both its own devices and rival smartphones. (Just don’t mention the batteries.)
In a statement, Samsung said it would continue “expanding sales of new flagship products… as well as regaining consumers’ confidence.” It’s got a revolt on its hands.
Source: Samsung
Google Pixel cameras are experiencing excessive lens flare
The new Google Pixel and Pixel XL have plenty of features that can stand up to the competition, but there’s one that Google apparently didn’t intend on including: excessive lens flare on that highly rated camera. Redditors and members of google’s own Pixel User Community have been reporting cases of “rather extreme lens flaring” in “the overwhelming majority” of handsets.
This Halo effect is weird on the Pixel. pic.twitter.com/kGlTwGaOsY
— Danny Winget (@superscientific) October 22, 2016
As many photographers and will tell you, lens flare can be caused by a variety of factors and can even be a cool and desirable artistic effect. But as Googler IsaacOnCamera notes on the Pixel forums, this “halo/arc flare” happens as a bright arc in the corners of the frame and is definitely unintended. The good news is: Google says there’s nothing wrong with the Pixel hardware and there’s no reason to replace your device if you find your bright, sunlit shots are suddenly dappled with unwanted halos. The company says a software update to the HDR+ mode will correct the problem in the next couple of weeks. Of course, that also means you’ll have to keep HDR+ enabled if you’re not a fan of the J.J. Abrams look.
Via: PetaPixel, 9to5Google
Source: Google Pixel User Community
Apple delays AirPod launch beyond October
We hope you weren’t dead set on getting a pair of AirPods in the immediate future. Apple tells our TechCrunch colleagues that it’s delaying the launch of its self-branded Bluetooth earbuds past their original late October launch window. The company needs a “little more time” to make them ready for your ears, according to a spokesperson. It’s not clear what prompted the last-minute move, but early reviewers have occasionally noticed bugs — it may just be a question of polish.
You don’t strictly need AirPods if you just want some of the benefits of Apple’s W1 chip. The company is already shipping Beats headphones that take advantage of the hardware’s fast pairing with iOS devices. However, you will miss out on the clever Siri integration, not to mention a charging box that gives you extra battery life without some of the usual hassles of external batteries. We’d rather that companies ship late than deliver buggy products, but that won’t make you feel any better if you were really hoping to give the AirPods a try.
Source: TechCrunch
T-Mobile leaks new Windows 10 phone ahead of announcement
T-Mobile accidentally leaked the newest Windows 10 phone, the Alcatel Idol 4S, ahead of the handset’s official announcement during Microsoft’s Surface event in New York City today. The handset was originally released in July as a low-cost competitor to the Galaxy VR, though, back then, the Idol was still running Android. T-Mobile is now offering the Idol 4S bundled with a VR headset as well as a 45-day trial subscription of Hulu, a 60-day trial subscription to Groove Music and a free copy of Halo Spartan. There’s no word yet on pricing or availability.
Microsoft announced a major push into VR at the event today. The company is partnering with Dell, Acer, HP, ASUS and Lenovo to bring a line of $300 headsets to market. It is also revamping the venerable MS Paint program to generate 3D doodles which can be viewed in both AR and VR.
Via: The Verge
Source: T-Mobile
AT&T reportedly spies on its customers for government cash
AT&T controls a big chunk of America’s cellular infrastructure, and it turns out that it’s been using that power for super-creepy purposes. The Daily Beast is reporting that the telco has essentially turned itself into a spy-for-hire in the pay of the government. According to the piece, the company’s Project Hemisphere is providing warrantless surveillance, thanks to some legal gray areas, that score it millions of dollars from taxpayers.
The existence of Project Hemisphere has been known since the New York Times reported on it way back in 2013. Back then, it was presented as a minor tool that was only employed in a handful of states for specialized anti-drug operations. If these new revelations are accurate, then Hemisphere’s being used for a wide variety of crimes all across the country ranging from murder all the way through to Medicaid fraud. AT&T’s information is good enough that it can tell investigators where someone was when they made a call, who they were speaking to and, as we know from the EFF, it’s easy to divine intention just from those two pieces of information.
AT&T owns a massive proportion of America’s landline switches and cell towers and stores phone metadata for years, possibly decades. Ordinarily, this bulk collection is mandated by law and the data should be made available upon request with a warrant. AT&T, however, has decided that there’s money in this particular banana stand, and is going above and beyond the call of duty to data mine our personal data, turn it into a product and sell it off.
The company has already responded to the allegations, telling the Beast that there is “no special database.” Which is odd, because the site sources leaked documents where AT&T specifically requests that its name isn’t used in judicial proceedings. After all, if it has nothing to hide and isn’t doing anything dodgy, then why would it need to make outsized requests to protect its privacy? A cynic would say that AT&T values nobody’s privacy but its own, but that’d just be the cynic talking.
Source: The Daily Beast
Alexa makes Amazon’s new Fire HD 8 tablet even more useful
With the Echo and Echo Dot, Amazon proved that its Alexa assistant — and voice commands in general — could actually be pretty helpful. But how will it fair on a device that isn’t listening to you all the time? That’s the question I had when Amazon unveiled the new Fire HD 8, its first tablet to include Alexa support (it’s also coming to the last-gen Fire tablets over the next few weeks). Instead of just shouting “Alexa” or “Amazon” aloud, you have to hold down the Fire HD 8’s home button to activate the assistant, similar to how you’d access it on the Fire TV. That means using Alexa is less seamless than on Echo devices, but it still ends up making the Fire HD 8 a more capable device.
Aside from needing to press a button, Alexa works just as you’d expect on the Fire HD 8. It accepts all of the voice commands as the Echo devices, and it supports most of the skills from third-party developers. (As Amazon tells it, some devs require specific devices for their skills, but there aren’t many of those around.) And yes, if you’ve connected smart home devices to another Alexa device, you’ll be able to control them from the tablet as well.
Because I can’t just shout for Alexa, though, I noticed that I use it differently on the Fire HD 8 compared to the Echo. It’s easy enough ask about the weather while you’re reading an ebook, or have it tune into your favorite radio station while you’re perusing your favorite site. But if your hands are full while cooking, you can’t easily reach over to change the episode of a podcast that you’re listening to. I learned pretty quickly that the hands-free aspect of Alexa on the Echo and Echo Dot is a big reason why I warmed up to it so quickly.
I can understand why Amazon isn’t letting you use your voice to access Alexa on the Fire HD 8, though. It’s just a $90 tablet, and while it’s a bit faster than the previous version, battery life remains a major concern. It’s simpler to just have people manually access Alexa, rather than to have a background service sipping battery life while it waits for your command. Heck, it took Apple years before it made Siri completely hands-free.
There is one change for the better when it comes to using Alexa on a tablet: It takes advantage of the screen to display some helpful cards based on what you request. If you ask for the weather today, you’ll also get a glimpse at what the temperature looks like for the rest of the week. There’s also an experimental feature for existing Echo owners called “voice cast,” which will display cards about requests to your Echo on your Fire HD. Unfortunately, it didn’t work on my Echo or Echo Dot, but I’ll give it a pass for now since it’s still in testing. Amazon says that feature should be available to owners of the New Echo Dot within the next few weeks.
Despite not being as useful as it is on Echo devices, it’s hard to complain about having Alexa on Amazon’s tablets. The company isn’t charging any extra for the feature, and it’s not stopping it from driving down the cost of its slates either. That being said, I can’t wait to see Alexa go completely hands-free on future Amazon tablets (and perhaps on the current devices when they’re plugged in and charging).
The Morning After: Wednesday October 26th 2016
While you weren’t checking email, or sleeping and all that, Apple said its services are making bank despite decreased hardware sales this quarter. Then, the company’s new Macbook leaked ahead of the big Apple event later today. Oh, and Silicon Valley held a ridiculous fashion show, as seen above. Today, Microsoft’s big Surface event starts 10 AM Eastern time, while Apple’s show starts at 1 PM ET. Best bookmark those links: it’s going to be a busy day.
So that’s the new MacBook.Apple announces slower profits, then its new device leaks early
The headline might sound disastrous, but Apple’s recent financial result follows years and years of tremendous growth and profit. CEO Tim Cook pointed to its services arm (iCloud, iTunes Music, etc.) to demonstrate recent successes, but the company sold fewer iPhones, iPads and Macs again this quarter. Then its new MacBook model appeared to leak ahead of its grand event tomorrow, replete with port swap-arounds, an OLED task strip and (gasp!) no escape button. There is no escape.
Making shooting things sound like it shouldMicrosoft’s research arm helped make Gears of War 4 sound incredible
For ‘Gears of War 4’, Microsoft-owned game makers the Coalition created a sound production tool called Triton … with some help from Microsoft Research. Triton creates realistic reverb sounds based on objects inside the game. In fact, the system takes in an entire video game level (spatially and material-wise) and calculates the reverb properties of every material. From there, it applies realistic echo/reflection effects to explosions, bullets and (hopefully) dying alien scum. It sounds pretty good. Literally.
Heads up.Upgrade your car’s dash with Navdy’s HUD
Heads-up displays are usually the domain of new cars. But after finding crowdfunding success, Navdy lets you add a HUD to any darn car you’d like. The $800 device pairs with Android and iOS devices to offer a floating substitute for your smartphone: turn-by-turn navigation, music controls and notifications for messages and calls are all available, but the peripheral’s behaviour with mapping apps still needs a bit of work. Roberto took one for a drive and explains more.
Engage.The occasionally dull sensation of helming a ‘Star Trek’ starship in VR
While Trekkies can’t wait for ‘Star Trek Bridge Crew’ to land on VR headsets, some may realize they weren’t cut out to be the captain of a starship. Devout fan (and Senior Editor) Dan Cooper led a crew of Engadget writers on the virtual rescue mission.
A $15 million ad campaign only does so much.Amazon’s fashion fight
Clothing is one of the online retailer’s fastest-growing categories, but the haute couture old guard aren’t cutting Amazon any slack. Many luxury brands say having full control of the retail experience is paramount. And then there’s those counterfeit concerns.
So hot right now.When Silicon Valley does a Fashion Week…
.. of course there’s drones.
But wait, there’s more…
- Ubisoft’s next ‘The Division’ update tries to keep players past the endgame
- AT&T’s online-only TV service will cost $35 a month for 100 channels
- Netflix CEO hammers final nail into the “Netflix and chill” coffin.
EE follows rivals by bundling broadband line rental prices
When the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) introduced new legislation requiring UK ISPs and providers to be clearer with their broadband pricing earlier this year, some heeded the advice faster than others. Vodafone and TalkTalk were the first to bundle line rental in their broadband packages, but today EE is joining the list. As of now, customers signing up to a new broadband and calls contract will receive a clear monthly price.
As ISP Review points out, EE’s simplified strategy does come at a (slight) cost. Before, customers signing up to the company’s 17Mbps broadband package would pay £18.50 per month — £1 for the first 18 months of service (rising to £10 per month afterwards) on top of the £17.50 monthly line rental. However, the updated packages now start at £19.50, which sees the bundled line rental charge rise by a pound. Customers will also be on the hook for a £7 router delivery.
“We’ve recently made changes to the way in which we present our home broadband pricing in line with the ASA’s recommendations,” says EE in a statement. “These changes complement updates made earlier this year to ensure our broadband pricing information is clear, simple and consistent for all customers, alongside providing great value for customers in the form of differentiated offers such as Data Boost and EE TV.”
Via: ISP Review
Source: EE
Samsung Pay adds new online payment options
Samsung Pay already works in a lot of places because of its canny MST magnetic tech, and the company is taking steps to make the service even more ubiquitous. Starting next year, it will work with Mastercard’s Masterpass, letting more users buy online from a computer or handheld device, skip the usual form-filling and authenticate with a fingerprint. (Mastercard also made Masterpass deals with Android Pay and Microsoft Wallet earlier this week.)
Samsung has expanded support for in-app payments in the US, and is now available as an option with Velocity, Hello Vino, Fancy and other retailers. There’s also a new Deals option that helps you find and redeem discounts instantly at nearby stores. And Samsung Pay now works with Capital One and USAA, bringing its bank partnership count to 500, or around 85 percent of the US debit and credit card market.
Finally, Samsung has expanded Pay to Russia, Malaysia and Thailand, so it now works in 10 countries.The service is a bright spot for the company, which desperately needs one after its Galaxy Note 7 debacle. As one of our commenters put it, the only problem with it is a lack of retailer awareness that it’ll work on a non-NFC terminal just by placing it next to the magnetic (card swipe) reader. “It’s cool to use it and get that awesome look from cashiers.”
Source: Samsung
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