I was planning to write some article on the mobile trends on this year based on news-feed from MWC 2020 mobile event, but MWC canceled because of Coronavirus COVID-19. And so some other events.
Here are some trends:
It seems that smart phones seem to have as much excitement when a new model is released. Usually there is no new feature that renders the latest model an absolute must-have. Apart from potential prestige, there’s usually very little difference to the user whether the phone cost $300 or $1200.
People still remember the failed promise of foldable phones and 5G. For those 2019 had been a year of failed promises.
Along with foldable displays, the fifth generation of networking technology was touted as being the next big thing in the mobile business. It seems that year 2020 will be a real test for 5G if it will really take on or fails to full-fill the big expectations. This year will be the real test for 5G devices as the 5G device mass market has not yet really started. Read more on that on my 5G trends 2020 post.
The smartphones market was valued at USD 714.96 billion in 2019. It was expected to reach USD 1351.8 billion by 2025, at a CAGR of 11.2%. But it seems that this year does not meet those expectations, as IDC expects Smartphone market to drop 2.3% in 2020 due to coronavirus. COVID-19 outbreak is expected to result into 10.6 percent drop in the first half of 2020 and China’s smartphone market will drop by nearly 40 percent year over year in the first quarter. The SMEs in the phone industry, especially retail channel partners, will see the biggest effect.
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Tomi Engdahl says:
IDC Expects Worldwide Smartphone Shipments to Plummet 11.9% in 2020 Fueled by Ongoing COVID-19 Challenges
https://www.idc.com/getdoc.jsp?containerId=prUS46466720
The worldwide smartphone market is forecast to decline 11.9% year over year in 2020 with shipments totaling 1.2 billion units, according to the International Data Corporation (IDC) Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker. The forecast follows the largest year-over-year decline in history in the first quarter of 2020 (1Q20). Smartphone shipments are now expected to decline 18.2% in the first half of the year as the macroeconomic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic continues to affect consumer spending. Global smartphone shipments are not expected to return to growth until the first quarter of 2021 (1Q21).
“What started as a supply-side crisis has evolved into a global demand-side problem. Nationwide lockdowns and rising unemployment have reduced consumer confidence and reprioritized spending towards essential goods, directly impacting the uptake of smartphones in the short term,” said Sangeetika Srivastava, senior research analyst with IDC’s Worldwide Mobile Device Trackers. “On the brighter side, 5G is expected to be a catalyst throughout the forecast period, which will play a vital role in worldwide smartphone market recovery in 2021.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Do you know if insurance companies switch to the automated app, then all the clients, employees, owners, and customers of the companies will be benefited? Find out how! #digitalinsurance http://ow.ly/WACl50zVVQp
How Automatic App Creation Helps Insurance Companies
https://www.openasapp.com/automatic-app-creation-helps-insurance-companies/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_term=&utm_content=post&utm_campaign=oaa-blog
The digital age that we’re living in has rapidly changed the way that all types of businesses operate. Novel software solutions are the backbone of innovation in numerous fields, and this certainly applies to the insurance industry.
Digital transformation reshapes the way that companies run their processes, making them more efficient and allowing them to reap the benefits of automatization.
Tomi Engdahl says:
A Screed on Buttonless Phones
https://www.electronicdesign.com/technologies/embedded-revolution/article/21133197/a-screed-on-buttonless-phones?utm_source=EG+ED+Analog+%26+Power+Source&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=CPS200602054&o_eid=7211D2691390C9R&rdx.ident%5Bpull%5D=omeda%7C7211D2691390C9R&oly_enc_id=7211D2691390C9R
As mechanical buttons become more archaic, designers continue to plot out new ways to eliminate them on nearly all devices. But as the shift toward sleek buttonless devices continues, creating a user experience on par with physical buttons is becoming more complicated than anticipated.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Chris O’Brien / VentureBeat:
Helsinki-based Swappie, an iPhone-only refurb marketplace with its own refurbishment factory, has raised $40M to expand across Europe
Swappie raises $40 million to expand its refurbished iPhone store internationally
https://venturebeat.com/2020/06/16/swappie-raises-40-million-expand-its-refurbished-iphone-store-internationally/
Swappie has raised $40 million in venture capital to expand its refurbished iPhone marketplace across Europe, where sales of used consumer electronics continue to surge. Investors in this round include TESI, Lifeline Ventures, Reaktor Ventures, and Inventure. The Helsinki-based company has now raised a total of $48 million since it was founded in 2016.
The company is part of a broader economic movement to reduce the massive environmental impact of the consumer electronics industry. While refurbished electronics account for less than 10% of all sales, Swappie’s founders hope to see that mix rise to the level of the used car market, which represents about 50% of sales.
“It is growing quickly, and it’s very good for the environment as well,” CEO and cofounder Sami Marttinen said. “What makes me so excited about the funding round is that it means we can continue to accelerate the international expansion and bring the circular smartphone economy across Europe.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techcrunch.com/2020/06/16/swappie-bags-40-6m-to-sell-more-secondhand-iphones-across-europe/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://cellularprivacy.github.io/Android-IMSI-Catcher-Detector/
AIMSICD is an Android app to detect IMSI-Catchers. These devices are false mobile towers (base stations) acting between the target mobile phone(s) and the real towers of service providers. As such they are considered a Man-In-The-Middle (MITM) attack. This surveillance technology is also known as “StingRay”, “Cellular Interception” and alike. Find out more in our Wiki on GitHub.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://techcrunch.com/2020/06/10/google-updates-its-android-developer-tools/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Steven Sinofsky / Learning By Shipping:
An analysis of the App Store debate through the lens of history surrounding Windows and why curated app stores on smartphones have been beneficial to users
The App Store Debate: A Story of Ecosystems
https://medium.learningbyshipping.com/the-app-store-debate-a-story-of-ecosystems-938424eeef74?gi=e7c7f6f321c7
Debate/discussion/rants about app stores (or perhaps The App Store) have rapidly polarized to the point where it seems difficult to have a rational discussion.
A key factor to understand in an ecosystem is that the platform is common and therein lies the problem. A common platform means no one has an advantage. The only advantage one vendor has over another is to exploit the platform “better” than the next company. While most observing think that the right way to compete is to build a better version of what you’re building it is not how companies think of competing in general. They look at competitors who all too often are doing very similar things and then think how could they get a leg up. Maybe it is in how they can hack more usage, get an edge on performance, integrate with some OS feature better, and so on. Today we think of these as “growth hacks.”
This competitive spirit among similar partners in the ecosystem leads to two observations. First, all the partners in a category will gravitate to the same sort of “game play” and that will happen quickly. No matter how high-minded or principled a company might be, if their competitor gets an edge by a certain behavior then they will follow. Before the Windows capability to set the default programs and search engine, we saw the OEMs go through any number of hoops to have their (paid for) browser, search engine, media player, etc. become the default.
Second, the reality of this behavior is not tied to the good actor/bad actor perspective. In the PC era the actors were the top 4 PC makers
So basically what happend was that the idea of replacing parts of Windows was all well and good, though contentious, until the browser was part of Windows. Not everyone agreed that the browser was part of Windows or that that part of Windows should not be replaced.
It is important to note that the idea of “what is part of something” is a never-ending debate in platforms/ecosystems.
When Smartphones came along with app stores it was abundantly clear to me (and many others) this was a solution to having a positive customer experience and better maintaining that experience over time. Stores curating apps to weed out exploitive use cases were a win.
ven better it solved an age old problem of how can customers even find software reliably (versus a search engine). In other words, the stores solved for quality and distribution at the same time. Distribution costs money, lots. Now the platform produced customer leads.
Here we are today though having perhaps recreated the OEM problem except instead of hardware makers there are many software developers who look at the rules, look at what they want to do, and decide they have a better way. Like OEMs though…
Tomi Engdahl says:
Horace Dediu / Asymco:
An estimated $519B+ of commerce facilitated by App Store, of which Apple captures ~4%, proves developers can find business models that work within Apple’s rules — In March 2016 Ben Bajarin and I put on an event called SUBSCRIBE where we asked, among other things, — How will the online services business models evolve?
http://www.asymco.com/2020/06/20/subscribe-again/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Writing Android Apps In C, No Java Required
https://hackaday.com/2020/05/13/writing-android-apps-in-c-no-java-required/
Older Android devices can be had for a song, and in many cases are still packing considerable computational power. With built in networking, a battery, and a big touch screen, they could easily take the place of a Raspberry Pi and external display in many applications. As it so happens, Google has made it very easy to develop your own Android software. There’s only one problem: you’ve got to do it in Java.
Looking to get away from all that bloat and overhead, [CNLohr] set out to see what it would take to get 100% C code running on an Android device. After collecting information and resources from the deepest and darkest corners of the Internet, he found out that the process actually wasn’t that bad. He’s crafted a makefile which can be used to get your own C program up and running in seconds.
Build android apps without any java, entirely in C and Make
https://github.com/cnlohr/rawdrawandroid
Tomi Engdahl says:
In smartwatches, Apple’s chip division is one of the few companies making a viable smartwatch chip. The S5 SoC in the Apple Watch Series 5 gives the watch great performance and battery life, and the only other company with an even slightly competitive watch is Samsung, thanks to its own chip division. All the other Android competitors are reliant on Qualcomm for the future direction of their smartwatches, and since Qualcomm has opted to not compete in the smartwatch market, that entire market segment is basically dead.
https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2020/06/this-is-apples-roadmap-for-moving-the-first-macs-away-from-intel/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Here’s everything Apple announced in the WWDC 2020 keynote today
https://tcrn.ch/2YY0Dia
Today marks the first day of Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference (or WWDC, as it’s known.) With the pandemic continuing to rage on throughout the world, this year’s WWDC is entirely virtual — including the company’s big annual keynote, where it shows off all of the updates coming to iOS, macOS, and all of the other software it builds in-house.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wearables Market Has Banner Year, and then Came COVID-19
https://www.designnews.com/medical/wearables-market-has-banner-year-and-then-came-covid-19/209906562863202?ADTRK=InformaMarkets&elq_mid=13553&elq_cid=876648
In 2019, the wearables market reported the largest single-year growth in revenue since 2015, when such high-profile devices as the Apple Watch were launched, according to IDTechEx. The sector grew 19% in 2019 to reach a total value of $70 billion, said the market research firm. The story for this year is still being written, but IDTechEx reports that it has updated its entire wearable technology market research portfolio in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected the sector in varying ways, and not always negatively. The organization recently shared some of its findings with the media.
The true wireless headphones product sector generated the most growth in 2019, producing more than $4 billion in new revenue compared with 2018. Smartwatches were a close second at just under $4 billion, but medical wearables also contributed to the market’s healthy performance.
Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices grew by $1.3 billion relative to 2018 values, said IDTechEx. There also has been significant growth in wearable devices for cardiovascular monitoring, and particularly around extended-wear Holter monitors and mobile cardiac telemetry devices
The wearables market has not been immune to the impact of COVID-19, with sales of some product categories plummeting 80% in Q2 2020 vs. Q2 2019 because of shelter-in-place rules and the closure of non-essential businesses. But the picture is more nuanced when it comes to medical wearables, which can play a vital role in a pandemic.
“Immediate positive impacts have been seen in certain products that can be used in active pandemic countermeasures, such as patches for remote patient monitoring,”
The reluctance of patients to go to doctor’s offices and clinics during the pandemic has helped telemedicine gain some traction (after many years of falling short of its potential), and that supports the business model of many medical wearables, noted Hayward. “The easier a device is to use and the more insight that can be gained from the data captured, the more likely it is that these remote monitoring systems are here to stay. Trends in telehealth, remote patient monitoring, and wearables all have significant overlap, and this is likely to help with progress in the short to medium term,” Hayward told PlasticsToday.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Vivo X50 Pro is the first smartphone with a gimbal camera system
https://mashable.com/article/vivo-x50-pro/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Do you fall for these key app monetization mistakes that top publishers avoid?
https://audioburst.com/blog/publishers/post/do-you-fall-for-these-key-app-monetization-mistakes-that-top-publishers-avoid
Monetization is the biggest pain of app publishers. We are sharing few key mistakes that top publishers learned to avoid, and our two cents about the right approaches
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.hackster.io/news/unihertz-introduces-its-next-micro-smartphone-jelly-2-e9834a0c2263
Tomi Engdahl says:
Suomalainen keksintö pelastaa sisällä pätkivät mobiiliyhteydet:
antennikuvio ikkunassa auttaa
https://www.tivi.fi/uutiset/tv/8282135b-e42e-426f-b223-d7a8ce1aa9ff
Ikkunoita valmistava Pihla on tuonut markkinoille lasiin integroidun
antennin, jonka tehtävänä on parantaa mobiiliverkon kuuluvuutta ja
datan siirtoa sisätiloissa.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Wearables Market Has Banner Year, and then Came COVID-19
https://www.designnews.com/electronics-test/wearables-market-has-banner-year-and-then-came-covid-19?ADTRK=InformaMarkets&elq_mid=13654&elq_cid=876648
In 2019, the wearables market reported the largest single-year growth in revenue since 2015, when such high-profile devices as the Apple Watch were launched, according to IDTechEx. Much of the market took a severe hit in the first quarter of 2020, but there are some bright spots.
In 2019, the wearables market reported the largest single-year growth in revenue since 2015, when such high-profile devices as the Apple Watch were launched, according to IDTechEx. The sector grew 19% in 2019 to reach a total value of $70 billion, said the market research firm. The story for this year is still being written, but IDTechEx reports that it has updated its entire wearable technology market research portfolio in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has affected the sector in varying ways, and not always negatively.
The true wireless headphones product sector generated the most growth in 2019, producing more than $4 billion in new revenue compared with 2018. Smartwatches were a close second at just under $4 billion, but medical wearables also contributed to the market’s healthy performance.
Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) devices grew by $1.3 billion relative to 2018 values, said IDTechEx. There also has been significant growth in wearable devices for cardiovascular monitoring, and particularly around extended-wear Holter monitors and mobile cardiac telemetry devices
The wearables market has not been immune to the impact of COVID-19, with sales of some product categories plummeting 80% in Q2 2020 vs. Q2 2019 because of shelter-in-place rules and the closure of non-essential businesses. But the picture is more nuanced when it comes to medical wearables, which can play a vital role in a pandemic.
“Immediate positive impacts have been seen in certain products that can be used in active pandemic countermeasures, such as patches for remote patient monitoring,” said Hayward. “This is generally spread across many relatively isolated case studies but there has been a significant overall increase in sales for these products. The most common have been just focusing on fever monitoring via a temperature sensor, but others include cardiac, respiratory, or motion metrics alongside temperature for a wider picture,” said Hayward.
The reluctance of patients to go to doctor’s offices and clinics during the pandemic has helped telemedicine gain some traction (after many years of falling short of its potential), and that supports the business model of many medical wearables
The rise of “potentially medical” products — consumer wearables that integrate sensing capabilities traditionally associated with medical devices — is a “significant trend that should not be ignored,”
The critical point here, stressed IDTechEx, is that these metrics are not exclusive to medical devices. In many cases, these features are added to standard consumer offerings. When this development is paired with intensive lobbying, as well as significant parallel development of the data infrastructure and supporting systems required for medical devices, it is clear that the longer-term strategy will move in this direction, according to IDTechEx.
In addition to performing usually two- or three-lead ECGs, the devices may monitor respiration, motion/orientation, and temperature. “All of this technology is available today, but the main challenges are in navigating the additional regulatory barriers: Single parametric devices have extensive historic approval but multi-parametric options often need de novo approval and must achieve system integration with other products and the wider healthcare system,” said Hayward. However, added IDTechEx, as digital health and artificial intelligence features increasingly are introduced, multi-parametric systems will become the norm.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://etn.fi/index.php/13-news/10925-oneplus-8-pro-valittiin-euroopan-parhaaksi
Tomi Engdahl says:
Developer Victor Diaz has released a locally-hosted scripting toolbox that aims to turn Android devices into a programming playground with access to everything from Bluetooth Low Energy to MIDI interfaces: PHONK.
PHONK Turns Android Devices Old and New Into Networked, Programmable Dev Platforms
https://www.hackster.io/news/phonk-turns-android-devices-old-and-new-into-networked-programmable-dev-platforms-e1dbdadae25a
Fully open source, PHONK offers local and remote browser-based coding with a wealth of APIs to unlock Android devices’ capabilities.
“PHONK is a self-contained creative scripting toolbox for new and old Android devices,” Diaz writes. “Create scripts rapidly from your phone or using the remote Web Editor on your computer. The API is simple and extensive: GUI, audio, graphics, Bluetooth BLE, Arduino, OSC, MIDI, and much more.”
The PHONK project, which is compatible with Android versions as old as Android 4.1, installs from a single APK package and creates a locally-hosted coding environment built around Android Studio, Java, and Vue.js. When installed, it creates a network server allowing any system with a browser to write code which runs on the phone or for programs to be written directly on the device — including offering full access to sensors and the underlying network.
https://www.phonk.app/
https://github.com/victordiaz/phonk
Tomi Engdahl says:
Hollantilaisella Bas van Abelilla on erikoinen ongelma – hän tekee puhelimia, joita pitäisi myydä mahdollisimman vähän
https://www.is.fi/digitoday/mobiili/art-2000006560783.html?ref=rss
Hollantilainen Bas van Abel on erikoisen ongelman edessä. Hän on perustanut yrityksen, jonka tarkoituksena on valmistaa puhelimia ja myydä niitä mahdollisimman vähän. Tai ei mahdollisimman vähän, mutta juuri ihmisten tarpeiden mukaisesti – ei yhtään sen enempää.
Tuo yritys on älypuhelinvalmistaja Fairphone, joka sai alkunsa vuonna 2013.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Your Apple iPhone is as a dirty as a toilet seat and is covered with ‘fecal matter’: disinfectant CEO
https://finance.yahoo.com/news/apple-i-phone-is-as-a-dirty-as-a-toilet-seat-covered-with-fecal-matter-disinfectant-161552753.html?guce_referrer=aHR0cHM6Ly93d3cucmVkZGl0LmNvbS8&guce_referrer_sig=AQAAADQi_aa8B5l8KwX-41tm8A1Zddzvfmvs5xP8INj4gjBZ9mefLczfPCNhLtTWG8c3KM_Jxth1bXW8aBodLg1yHqVXhpN2B16TpKXDvd5SrjhABfieA7vlGzd3WHuNfogtFzk8r6dS31ctGc38FC__WsjD2ba-2Ya5e9dsSEnNXOP5&guccounter=2
Time to hang up on your bestie and sanitize that toilet seat, err, Apple iPhone.
“You just got to understand how filthy and disgusting your iPhone is. I mean, your phones are really, really dirty. Like not just a bit dirtier than the toilet seat, but 10 to 20 times dirtier than a toilet seat. How many people really use their phones while they’re sitting in the bathroom and on the toilet, and that’s kind of part of the issue. Half of phones that were tested by a number of different studies tested positive for fecal matter on the phone. Phones are really, really dirty,
Out of 1,200 people VitalVio polled in a 2019 survey, 88% said they use their smartphone while in the bathroom. Tests of mobile devices revealed that phones may boast what’s referred to as bacteria such as E. coli, according to the survey. Alarmingly, nearly 25% of those surveyed said they have never wiped down or cleaned their phone. More than one in four men conceded they have never cleaned their phone, compared to one in five women.
Vioguard sells machines to businesses that have ultra-violet technology designed to blast away germs. The machines — which could cost as much as $2,000 — have a compartment for your various tech devices. You put them in, shut the door and so begins the disinfectant process. Barrow claims his products are more effective at killing bacteria than traditional disinfecting wipes.
He tells Yahoo Finance the business had been growing steadily by 25% to 30% annually amid strong demand at hospitals. Since the pandemic, Barrow says sales have surged 1,000% due to business within new sectors such as hotels and retailers.
“Hospitals have known for years that UVC technology works very effectively
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cost-of-mobile-data-worldwide/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://themobilequery.com/who-invented-the-smartphone-gadget-that-changed-human-life/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Samsung reportedly won’t include chargers with some phones starting next year
It could reduce costs but also help the environment
https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/8/21317304/samsung-smartphone-chargers-2021-cost-environment
Tomi Engdahl says:
Kerry Wong Tears Down a Cel-Fi Go X Cell Signal Booster As He Looks to Improve Cell Coverage
Looking to boost cellphone coverage in his house, Wong picked up a commercial booster — then, naturally, took it to bits.
https://www.hackster.io/news/kerry-wong-tears-down-a-cel-fi-go-x-cell-signal-booster-as-he-looks-to-improve-cell-coverage-a9137539018e
Tomi Engdahl says:
The hidden trackers in your phone, explained
How covert code enables your phone’s apps to spy on you.
https://www.vox.com/recode/2020/7/8/21311533/sdks-tracking-data-location
Tomi Engdahl says:
Gorilla Glass Victus can survive a two-meter drop and is set to arrive on a Samsung device soon
https://techcrunch.com/2020/07/23/gorilla-glass-victus-can-survive-a-two-meter-drop-and-is-set-to-arrive-on-a-to-samsung-device-soon/?tpcc=ECFB2020
Corning just announced the latest version of the glass — Victus. In drop tests, the glass has managed to survive drops of up to two meters onto hard, rough surfaces. It’s also 2x more scratch resistant than Gorilla Glass 6. All good news from the sound of it.
Tomi Engdahl says:
This Week in Apps: US tops China on downloads, EU regulates app stores, Instagram takes on TikTok
https://techcrunch.com/2020/07/18/this-week-in-apps-us-tops-china-on-downloads-eu-regulates-app-stores-instagram-takes-on-tiktok/
Tomi Engdahl says:
When will people stop falling for hardware based on walled garden cloud services? If I can’t support it with my own server, I don’t own the product!
Google offers refunds after smart glasses stop working
https://www.bbc.com/news/technology-53581762
Smart glasses company North has told customers that their $600 (£460) purchases will stop working in a few days’ time.
The Canadian company, recently purchased by Google, says its Focals glasses will cease functioning on Friday.
From then, owners will not be able to use “any features” of the glasses, or connect to the companion app.
But the company has also said it will automatically refund all customers.
It promised to send the purchase price back to the original payment method, and to contact those customers whose refunds it could not process.
At the end of June, North announced it was being acquired by Google, and would not release a planned second-generation device.
It also said it would “wind down” its first generation smart glasses, released last year.
Not-so-smart homes
There have been several examples of internet-enabled smart devices that are suddenly rendered “dumb”, losing many features or even becoming unusable when the company changes its business model.
And despite the short notice, Mr Wood says the offer of a full refund for North customers is “exceptionally generous”, and the best approach from a customer relations point of view.
“But not all people who invest in startups will be that lucky.”
Tomi Engdahl says:
Huawei overtakes Samsung as world’s biggest smartphone vendor, says report
Samsung’s COVID-19 slump sends Huawei to the top
https://www.theverge.com/2020/7/30/21347685/worlds-biggest-smartphone-company-huawei-overtakes-samsung-canalys
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://blog.taiste.fi/en/smart-glasses-whats-the-big-deal
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://blog.google/products/google-one/free-features/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.uusiteknologia.fi/2020/07/31/asuntomessuille-matkapuhelinsignaalin-lapaisevia-antenni-ikkunoita/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.openasapp.com/sql-to-app/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2600net/permalink/2791827374373703/
An educational history of the most iconic and important cell phones over the last 30 years. Starting with the origin of mobiles with the Motorola Dynatec we walk through through the evolution of mobiles in a easy to understand method by showing each major progression and how it was made, whilst also seeing slight adaptions throughout.
https://www.facebook.com/1042446452442226/posts/3264343193585863/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple Shares Slump After Evercore Warns Of “Surprisingly Negative” Chinese Smartphone Data
https://www.zerohedge.com/markets/apple-shares-slump-after-evercore-warns-surprisingly-negative-chinese-smartphone-data
investment bank Evercore hit the wires, warning about new smartphone data from China is “surprisingly negative.”
*CHINA SMARTPHONE DATA SHOWS BIG DECLINE IN QTR START: EVERCORE
*CHINA SMARTPHONE DATA IS `SIGNIFICANT DETERIORATION’: EVERCORE
Evercore is suggesting Chinese consumption in the back half of the year is slumping, shreds apart the narrative of a “V-shaped” recovery. China accounted for 15% of Apple’s total revenue during 2Q20, any slump in Chinese smartphone sales would materially impact Apple, or perhaps explains why folks are selling the stock and asking questions later.
Apple shares trade, at about a 41% premium to its 200 daily exponential moving average.
What this all means is that investors have misjudged the shape of the recovery
When, and that is if, the market wakes up from its Fed-induced twilight period, a readjustment to reality could start the next decline in stocks.
Tomi Engdahl says:
UWB – kuin NFC steroideilla
https://etn.fi/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=11015&via=n&datum=2020-08-12_15:41:33&mottagare=31202
Tomi Engdahl says:
With the PinePhone, you get access to six induvidual dip switches that control the modem, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, microphone, rear camera, front camera, and even the headphone jack.
https://www.androidpolice.com/2020/08/15/this-smartphone-has-physical-kill-switches-for-its-cameras-microphone-data-bluetooth-and-wi-fi/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Android 11 Is Taking Away the Camera Picker, Forcing People To Only Use the Built-In Camera
https://yro.slashdot.org/story/20/08/18/2156248/android-11-is-taking-away-the-camera-picker-forcing-people-to-only-use-the-built-in-camera?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Slashdot%2Fslashdot%2Fto+%28%28Title%29Slashdot+%28rdf%29%29
In the name of security and privacy, Google is taking away the ability for users to select third-party camera apps in Android 11, forcing users to rely on the built-in camera app. Android Police reports:
At the heart of this change is one of the defining traits of Android: the Intent system. Let’s say you need to take a picture of a novelty coffee mug to sell through an auction app. Since the auction app wasn’t built for photography, the developer chose to leave that up to a proper camera app. This where the Intent system comes into play. Developers simply create a request with a few criteria and Android will prompt users to pick from a list of installed apps to do the job.
However, things are going to change with Android 11 for apps that ask for photos or videos. Three specific intents will cease to work like they used to, including: VIDEO_CAPTURE, IMAGE_CAPTURE, and IMAGE_CAPTURE_SECURE. Android 11 will now automatically provide the pre-installed camera app to perform these actions without ever searching for other apps to fill the role.
https://www.androidpolice.com/2020/08/18/android-11-camera-apps-chooser/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Daily Crunch: Apple hits $2 trillion market cap
https://techcrunch.com/2020/08/19/daily-crunch-apple-market-cap/?tpcc=ECFB2020
Apple stock reaches a big milestone, Facebook Portal gets more work-friendly and Twitter reports progress against hate speech. This is your Daily Crunch for August 19, 2020.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple’s response to Epic threatens the future of VR, AR, TV, and films
https://venturebeat.com/2020/08/18/apples-response-to-epic-threatens-the-future-of-vr-ar-tv-and-films/
Epic’s lawsuit against Apple was already monumental when it solely focused on the iOS App Store, a walled garden that has grown to an intercontinental size with 1.5 billion supported devices. Yesterday, the battle between the Fortnite creator and platform holder leveled up after Apple explicitly threatened the future of Epic’s Mac and Unreal Engine businesses — a move with direct consequences for virtual reality, augmented reality, TV, and film developers beyond Epic and Apple themselves.
That threat was nestled in a letter from Apple, currently labeled Exhibit B in Epic’s request for a temporary restraining order to protect its business. On pages 52 and 53 of the 197-page filing, Apple says that it plans to terminate Epic’s developer license over the addition of an alternate payment mechanism to the iOS version of Fortnite, and spells out the consequences.
It’s impossible to overstate Unreal Engine’s importance to the next generation of immersive devices. Epic’s software is now being used to generate photorealistic content for holographic 3D displays, giant 3D windows, AR headsets, VR headsets, game consoles, films, serialized TV shows, and even Weather Channel broadcasts. The company’s latest real-time ray-tracing demos look practically indistinguishable from reality, setting the stage for home computers to deliver cinema-quality 3D visuals.
“millions of developers rely on the Unreal Engine to develop software, and hundreds of millions of consumers use that software.”
The threat is significant — perhaps greater than Apple’s App Store team realized when it sent that letter. Telling all of these Unreal Engine developers to walk away from the Mac means pushing them to adopt Windows PCs, where Epic’s tools and apps will continue to both work and grow in power.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.facebook.com/groups/2600net/permalink/2808444902711950/
https://www.businessinsider.com/iphones-with-fortnite-selling-on-ebay-for-thousands-2020-8
Last week, the wildly popular game “Fortnite” got an update on Apple and Android smartphones that allowed players to bypass the companies’ digital-payment systems. Payments went directly to the “Fortnite” studio, Epic Games, instead of Apple and Google.
In response, Apple and Google pulled “Fortnite” from their digital storefronts and cited the update as a terms-of-service violation. Epic Games sued both companies shortly thereafter for what it alleges is anticompetitive behavior.
If you already had “Fortnite” on your iPhone, Apple has no way of removing it — and some iPhone owners with “Fortnite” have taken to eBay with their phones, with listings as high as $10,000.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Apple defended its App Store policies in front of Congress. A lawsuit from Epic Games is now unraveling its claims in front of our eyes.
https://trib.al/5PhvmbL
Apple CEO Tim Cook appeared before Congress last month to address concerns about the company’s App Store policies.
That day, Apple and Google removed “Fortnite” from their app stores after Epic launched a way to purchase in-game currency directly – skirting Apple’s and Google’s payment systems to avoid the 30% cut.
Cook pointed out that most developers pay nothing to Apple to have their apps included in the App Store, and the company also backed a study showing that its commission rates are standard for the industry.
But Epic Games, the developer behind the hugely popular game “Fortnite,” recently spoke out against Apple and filed a lawsuit against the company for removing the game from the App Store.
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://fossbytes.com/13-nokia-1100-memes-that-will-leave-you-rolling-on-the-floor-laughing/
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.androidpolice.com/2020/08/22/this-smartphone-has-physical-kill-switches-for-its-cameras-microphone-data-bluetooth-and-wi-fi/3
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://spectrum.ieee.org/telecom/wireless/building-your-own-cellphone-network-can-be-empowering-and-problematic
Tomi Engdahl says:
https://www.gtricks.com/android/10-android-secret-codes-access-useful-hidden-menus/
Tomi Engdahl says:
Chinese-Made Smartphones Are Secretly Stealing Money From People Around The World
https://www.buzzfeednews.com/article/craigsilverman/cheap-chinese-smartphones-malware
Preinstalled malware on low-cost Chinese phones has stolen data and money from some of the world’s poorest people.
Tomi Engdahl says:
Xiaomi reports 3.1% revenue growth in Q2 despite restricted production in India
https://techcrunch.com/2020/08/26/xiaomi-reports-3-1-revenue-growth-in-q2-despite-restricted-production-in-india/?tpcc=ECFB2020