Tag: Smartphone

ZTE to unveil Axon 11 5G on March 23

ZTE will launch the ZTE Axon 11 5G smartphone in China on March 23. The company has given little away from its announcement press release other than the fact that the ZTE Axon 11 will be compatible with both SA (standalone) and NSA (non-standalone) modes.

Strong demand for 5G to drive APAC smartphone sale in 2020

5G is expected to boost smartphone sale, particularly in the Asia-Pacific region, in 2020. Greater China and emerging Asia-Pacific will retain the top two positions globally with respective sales of 432.3 million and 376.8 million smartphones this year, according to Gartner.

Huawei grows while smartphone market slumps in Q3

The Honor Pro has helped Huawei grow in Q3.Amid a 0.4 percent contraction in the global smartphone market in Q3 compared to the corresponding quarter last year, Huawei continued to stride ahead with 26 percent growth. It has narrowed the gap with Samsung at the top while pulling away from Apple in third spot.

Google Pixel 4 loses key edge

Google Pixel 4: Motion magic with Quick Gestures

By Edward Lim

The much awaited Google Pixel 4 and Google Pixel 4 XL smartphones were announced at Google 19 yesterday. Interestingly, Google chose to talk more about the software capabilities rather than the hardware specifications, avoiding direct comparison with other flagship smartphones.

China and Brazil buck trend as smartphone sales slump in Q2

Samsung Galaxy Note comes of age

By Edward Lim

When it was first introduced in 2011, the Samsung Galaxy Note received brickbats for its 5.3-inch screen size with critics wondering if this was a wrong move for the Korean smartphone maker. History has proven that Samsung had made the right bet as others followed suit with larger screen sizes as well.

Huawei bucks the trend as global smartphone shipment shrinks in Q1

The Huawei P30 series is helping the smartphone maker rise up the global ranking.
The Huawei P30 series is helping the smartphone maker rise up the global ranking.

While its competitors struggled, Huawei strode ahead and emerged the winner in the worldwide smartphone market in Q1. Though it’s still behind market leader Samsung, the China-based smartphone giant narrowed the gap with an astounding 50 percent growth in the quarter, according to IDC.

Hope for lost photos

Have you ever accidentally deleted a photo on your mobile phone and felt really lousy afterwards? A new photo recovery tool can help ease your frustration. The newly-launched Recoverit lets you find lost photos on Android-based mobile devices.

The day my Google Pixel died

By Edward Lim

When my trusty Google Pixel froze last week, I took it as a case of overuse and attempted a reboot.  It proved to be a series of fruitless attempts as the Android-based smartphone simply could not be revived. The furthest I got was to the opening screen (see above) but there was absolutely nothing I could do there — the screen just froze again before launching into another reboot.

OnePlus 6T: Impressive, nifty and fun

oneplus6ttripleBy CY Lim

The OnePlus 6T has been out in the market for a couple of months now and as one who received it as a gift within the first few days of its launch, I am definitely glad I made the switch from my sluggish Oppo A77. Setting up and transferring data was a breeze especially since it was an intra-Android migration. Within an hour or so, I was ready to go.

Apple misses Q1 revenue projection

A short queue forming before the opening of the Apple Store in Shanghai’s Nanjing East Road.

Apple has lowered its revenue guidance for Q1 to US$84 billion, down from the earlier projection of between US$89 billion and US$93 billion. 

Smartphone and feature phone neck-to-neck in India

The Realme 2 Pro helped Realme to break into the Top 5.

For the first time, the smartphone market is on par with the feature phone market in India, according to IDC. Overall, the India market reached 42.6 million units for a 9.1 percent year-on-year growth in Q3.

Global smartphone shipment slides 6% in Q3

Smartphone vendors shipped 355.2 million units in Q3, down six percent from the corresponding quarter last year, according to preliminary estimates by IDC. This is the fourth straight quarter of year-on-year decline.

Google Pixel 3 coming on October 9

The Google Pixel 2 is expected to welcome its new sibling soon.

The rumour mills are spinning at top speed as smartphone launch season gets ready to kick off. With Samsung having announced the Note 9, and Apple expected to respond with a new iPhone next month, Google looks to be getting into the act too with the Pixel 3 slated for an October 9 introduction, according to Bloomberg.

VLC blacklists recent Huawei smartphones

On the list: The Huawei P10.

VLC has taken the drastic measure of blacklisting recent Huawei smartphones, specifically the Huawei P8, P10, and P20, from installing its media player app. The move is in response to negative customer reviews for VLC as a result of Huawei blocking the installation of the media player.

Samsung and Xiaomi neck-to-neck in India in Q2

The Redmi 5A was Xiaomi's bestselling phone in India in Q2.
The Redmi 5A was Xiaomi’s bestselling phone in India in Q2.

Xiaomi and Samsung shipped 9.9 million smartphones each to India in Q2. Together they account for 60 percent of the total shipment that quarter, according to Canalys.

HTC to slice 1,500 from workforce

Even the Vive wasn't enough to keep HTC intact.
Even the Vive wasn’t enough to keep HTC intact.

Taiwan smartphone maker HTC is making a cut of the most painful kind — by slicing 20 percent of its workforce. The decision to swallow the bitter pill comes in the wake of heavy losses and strong competition.

India smartphone market posts strongest Q1 shipment

The popular Redmi 5A has helped Xiaomi retain its pole position in India.
The popular Redmi 5A has helped Xiaomi retain its pole position in India.

The India smartphone market shipped 30 million units in Q1, the strongest Q1 performance ever and an 11-percent growth year on year, according to IDC.

Xiaomi tops India smartphone market in Q1

Xiaomi shipped 3.5 million Redmi Note 5A smartphones in Q1.
Xiaomi shipped 3.5 million Redmi Note 5A smartphones in Q1.

Building on a momentum of 155 percent annual shipment growth in India last year, Xiaomi started Q1 at the top with a whopping nine million plus units to snag 31 percent market share, according to Canalys.

5 things to do when your social media platform is down

When WhatsApp was down for a few hours last Friday (November 3), Facebook timelines were filled with panic posts by people unable to communicate on WhatsApp. Snapchat is reported to be down at the point of writing and again, there is frenzy over the outage.

Sweet quarter for Apple in China

iPhone 8
The iPhone 8 helped spur Apple’s growth in Q3.

The launch of the iPhone 8 and drop of prices of older models have helped Apple turn in a sterling quarter in China, with shipment rising 40 percent to 11 million units this Q3.

Worldwide semiconductor market to grow 7.2% this year

GartnerA slew of demand for semiconductors is helping the industry to hit a targeted 7.2 percent growth to hit US$338 billion this year.

Apple and Samsung are among the many IT vendors that have unleashed new products in recent months, spurring the growth in the semiconductor market.

“Semiconductor revenue set an all-time record in the third quarter of 2014, fueled by a strong electronics build for the holiday season. Get ready for a flood of new product introductions, ranging from simple low-cost tablets to high-end ultramobiles and smartphones. Demand for the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus has been robust, but there is concern for other types of devices planned for the holidays,” said Jon Erensen, Research Director of Gartner.

Smart mobile devices boost audio accessories sales in HK

gfk_logoHigh ownership of smartphones, tablets and phablets in Hong Kong have been positively impacting sales of complementary products such as headphones and headsets, as well as mini-speakers, according to GfK.

The surge in audio accessories sales come at the back of consumers’ fixation with smart mobile devices, having spent more than US$4.2 billion on nearly 8.4 million units of such devices in the past 12 months.

The combined market of headphones, headsets and mini-speakers generated nearly US$77 million in the last one year, reflecting a 10 percent surge over a year ago. While sales revenue for headphones and headsets expanded by nine percent, mini-speakers sold 83 percent more in volume and raked in additional 32 percent in sales dollar.