By
Paula ParisiMay 23, 2024
Sonos, the company that helped launch the Wi-Fi speaker market is now branching into wireless over-ear headphones. The launch marks a much-anticipated and also inevitable move, considering the U.S. headset market was estimated to be almost $2.2 billion last year, nearly twice as large as the total for wireless speaker sales, according to market research firm Circana. Sonos Ace headphones have what is being called exceptional noise-cancellation and feature Bluetooth connectivity and a Wi-Fi chip so they can be used in conjunction with the Sonos soundbar for a personal home-theater experience. They ship June 5 for $449. Continue reading Sonos Rolls Out Its First Headphones, the $450 Bluetooth Ace
By
Paula ParisiMay 15, 2024
Masayoshi Son, CEO of Japan’s SoftBank, wants to transform the tech conglomerate’s Arm subsidiary into an AI powerhouse, and he is investing $64 billion (10 trillion yen) to implement the plan, which includes turning the UK-based unit into an AI chip supplier. Son announced that by spring 2025 Arm is expected to have its first prototype, followed by mass production by contract suppliers and commercial sales in the fall. Arm designs but does not manufacture circuitry, supplying what it calls “chip architecture” to customers including Nvidia and Qualcomm. Continue reading SoftBank’s Arm Plans to Supply AI Chips, Open Data Centers
Samsung Electronics grew net profit by more than 400 percent in Q1, to $4.91 billion, on revenue of about $52.3 billion, a nearly 13 percent increase year-over-year. The results were credited mainly to higher memory chip prices resulting from AI demand buoying the company’s semiconductor business. Solid performance in smartphones — with the launch of its Galaxy S24 series, the first to pack AI-optimized chips — supported the stellar performance. It was a dramatic rebound from 2023, when post-COVID economic fallout drove Samsung to a 15-year profit low and semiconductor losses of almost $11 billion. Continue reading Samsung Chip Rebound Sends Q1 Net Profit Up 400 Percent
Apple revealed its largest quarterly decline in iPhone sales since the July-September period in 2020 during the pandemic, placing additional pressure on the tech giant to step up its artificial intelligence efforts. Apple iPhone sales for January-March dropped 10 percent year-over-year, as its top product faced increased competition from Huawei in China, Apple’s third-largest market. Apple’s quarterly revenue decreased 4 percent from the same period last year to $90.8 billion, marking the fifth dip in the past six quarters for the company. Apple’s $23.64 billion profit for the quarter represents a 2 percent reduction from last year. Still, Apple shares rose in after-market trading. Continue reading Apple’s Revenue Is Impacted by Pressure from Chinese Rivals
Chinese telecommunications firm Huawei Technologies continues to bounce back after taking an initial hit from U.S. sanctions resulting from the company being declared a national security threat in 2019. Year-over-year, net profit surged 564 percent to $2.7 billion in Q1, with revenue up 37 percent to $24.65 billion. It was the company’s fourth consecutive quarterly profit gain. Although Huawei doesn’t breakout performance for individual sectors, analysts estimate the company’s smartphone sales rose 70 percent, leading to further speculation the global firm is taking market share from rivals, particularly Apple in China. Continue reading Huawei Continues Financial Rebound Despite U.S. Sanctions
By
ETCentric StaffApril 25, 2024
Microsoft, which has been developing small language models (SLMs) for some time, has announced its most-capable SLM family, Phi-3. SLMs can accomplish some of the same functions as LLMs, but are smaller and trained on less data. That smaller footprint makes them well suited to run in a local environment, which means they’re ideal for smartphones, where in theory they would not even need an Internet connection to run. Microsoft claims the Phi-3 open models can outperform “models of the same size and next size up across a variety of benchmarks that evaluate language, coding and math capabilities.” Continue reading Microsoft Small Language Models Are Ideal for Smartphones
By
ETCentric StaffApril 23, 2024
Google is implementing an internal reorganization that combines its Android and hardware teams. Google CEO Sundar Pichai announced a new Platforms & Devices team headed by Rick Osterloh, which includes Android, Chrome, ChromeOS, Photos and all Pixel products. Pichai says the move will help speed development. Osterloh’s mandate is full-stack platform development that smoothly incorporates AI across all Google platforms, including smartphones, TVs and anything with Android OS. Hiroshi Lockheimer, who previously ran ops for Android, Chrome and ChromeOS, moves on to other projects at Google and Alphabet. Continue reading Google Merges Android and Hardware Units for AI Efficiency
By
ETCentric StaffApril 23, 2024
Motorola has three new flagship Edge phones that sport AI features to improve photographic performance and overall usability. The top-of-the-line Edge 50 Ultra, mid-level Edge 50 Pro, and economy Edge 50 Fusion are being released in Europe with the line “expanding” to North America later this year. Thanks to “moto ai,” these phones will “elevate every interaction by empowering users to intuitively create content, personalize their device, obtain the information they seek, and accomplish more,” the Lenovo subsidiary said, promising the world’s first “Pantone-validated” smartphone camera and display, with Motorola’s “most advanced solutions for capturing motion.” Continue reading Motorola Begins Launch of AI-Packed Edge Series in Europe
By
ETCentric StaffApril 12, 2024
Beginning May 15, Google Photos users can start accessing a suite of free AI-powered Magic Editor tools like Magic Eraser and Portrait Light. The features will also be accessible on more devices, including Pixel tablets. Last year, Google launched Magic Editor on Pixel 8 and Pixel 8 Pro phones. In addition to making the features available on all Pixel devices, all Google Photos users on Android and iOS will get baseline access to 10 Magic Editor saves per month. Additionally, those with a Pixel device or Premium Google One plan of at least 2TB will have unlimited use. Continue reading Google Adding Free AI Photo Editing Tools to Google Photos
By
ETCentric StaffApril 1, 2024
Oregon has signed into law one of the strongest right to repair bills in the United States. With the new law, it will become the first state to ban “parts pairing,” which is when replacement parts are prevented from working unless the manufacturer’s software approves them. The pairing protections also forbid companies from limiting functionality for off-brand parts. Apple — which endorsed California’s right to repair law, passed in October — pushed back against the pairing provision. Only devices made after January 1, 2025, when the Oregon law goes into effect, are prevented from parts pairing. Continue reading Oregon’s Right to Repair Law Is the First to Ban Parts Pairing
By
ETCentric StaffMarch 26, 2024
Google is beginning to extend YouTube TV’s multiview functionality to mobile platforms, with iPhones and iPads added in time for March Madness and Android coming in the months ahead. During early access, some users will see an option to simultaneously watch up to four different, though pre-selected, streams in their “Top Picks for You” section. After selecting multiview, viewers will be able to toggle audio and captioning between streams and can jump in and out of a particular game’s full screen view. YouTube TV announced multiview last month “on all devices that support multiview.” Continue reading YouTube TV Begins Offering Multiview for iPhones and iPads
By
ETCentric StaffMarch 25, 2024
U.S. Attorney General Merrick Garland, joined by 16 other state and district attorneys, has filed a civil antitrust lawsuit against Apple for “monopolization or attempted monopolization” of the smartphone market. The move comes after years of regulatory scrutiny triggered by complaints from companies who compete against Apple or rely on it to do business and pay hefty fees for doing so. The charges center on the iPhone, which has an estimated 60 percent share of the U.S. smartphone market and is seen as an essential platform for anyone that wants to reach mobile consumers. Continue reading U.S. Targets Apple Smartphone Monopoly in Antitrust Lawsuit
By
ETCentric StaffMarch 6, 2024
CES 2024 attracted more than 135,000 attendees to Las Vegas where 4,300 companies filled 2.5 million square feet of exhibit space. Technology that empowers creators, a new generation of displays, and the promise and peril of artificial intelligence dominated the show. After several years of incremental advances, market development built on maturing technology, and over-hyped trends, this year felt different with an energy that suggests the beginning of a new era. Among the major themes were embedded AI, vehicle tech, digital health, screens and XR, and numerous policy and regulation topics. ETC@USC attended the conference for live reporting on products and services. Our post-show report features extensive coverage and perspectives related to key creative, business, and technology areas. Continue reading ETC’s CES 2024 Report: Creators, Displays, and AI Innovation
By
ETCentric StaffFebruary 29, 2024
Users appear to prefer Meta Platforms’ Threads to Elon Musk’s social platform X, based on the disparity between the number of downloads, which is widening. Globally, Meta’s Instagram spinoff — which has many of the same features as the app formerly known as Twitter — has recently been seeing three times as many daily downloads as X on iOS devices, and more than twice as many from the Google Play app store for Android. The analysis is from intelligence firm Appfigures, which this week lists Threads as No. 2 among all free app downloads, and X at No. 40. As Threads introduces new features, it is also testing a new in-app camera. Continue reading Threads Surpasses X in Downloads, Tests an In-App Camera
By
ETCentric StaffFebruary 28, 2024
Motorola and Lenovo have teamed up on Smart Connect, a Windows 11 app that aims to make moving between devices and sharing content across digital ecosystems a seamless experience. The software solution is designed to make workflows “uninterrupted,” a goal of busy multitaskers. “Smart Connect eliminates disruptions when transitioning between compatible devices by seamlessly connecting core devices like phones, tablets and PCs,” the companies said, explaining it will allow users to “easily amplify everything displayed on their phones onto a bigger screen.” For example, games, movies and TV shows can be moved from phones to TVs. Continue reading MWC: Motorola and Lenovo Demonstrate Smart Connect App