Business Articles

Apricorn’s Aegis Secure Key 3NXC is reportedly the world’s first USB Type-C pen drive featuring hardware encryption. With a number of laptops and Android smartphones now leveraging USB Type-C, the 3NXC is increasingly relevant. The 4GB based model cost just US$59, but users will have to pay more for higher storage variants.

We all know AMD is having a field day against Intel with its latest family of Zen 2 CPUs, but we didn't think it could get this bad.

A month ago, Xiaomi raised the regular retail price of the Redmi Note 8 by Rs 500 in India—the fifth such time this year alone. Well, that wasn't enough, apparently, and the Redmi Note 8 has now seen yet another price hike in that market; continuing the trend of anti-consumer behavior by Xiaomi.

The Analogue Pocket will be available to pre-order from next week for US$199.99. The luxury Game Boy supports original cartridges from consoles like the Game Boy, Game Boy Color and Game Boy Advance. The device has a 615 PPI display too and can be outputted to TVs or external monitors.

A new survey has revealed that 4/5 of people plan to purchase the PS5 over the Xbox Series X, with almost 2/5 hoping to purchase a next-generation console "at launch". Cyberpunk 2077 is the most-anticipated next-generation game too, despite its release on current-gen consoles.

Erstwhile GPU maker Matrox released a new 4K-capable graphics card for enterprise users called the Matrox D1450. The new Matrox card will be built by NVIDIA and is designed to power multiple high-resolution displays, supporting up to four 4K monitors via HDMI.

Qualcomm has announced that its third fiscal quarter of 2020 (3FQ2020, which ended on June 28 of this year) ended with a total of US$4.89 billion in revenue. It also reported $848 million in pre-tax profits, and paying $0.74 per share in dividends. However, it also already projects that, thanks to a new deal with Huawei, 4FQ2020 will turn out much better.

Huawei will be celebrating the news that it managed to overtake Samsung in the second quarter of 2020 to become the world’s largest smartphone company in terms of number of units shipped. China’s impressive recovery from the effects of COVID-19 and Huawei’s huge popularity in its domestic market have helped the P40 Pro maker hit the top spot.

The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) has announced that there will be a Consumer Electronics Show (CES) scheduled for January 2021. However, it will not be held in Las Vegas as usual: instead, an "all-digital" experience is planned to replace the usual physical event. However, the Association is still confident it will be worthwhile for exhibitors and e-attendees alike.

Intel is apparently seeking external assistance and it seems like a deal has already been struck with TSMC. With the latest leadership changes taking place at Intel, the chip giant is now looking to outsource part of its 10 nm and 7 nm chip production to TSMC in the next few years, but this will require some redesigning and node repurposing.

The PS5 game Marvel’s Spider-Man: Miles Morales might come with a remaster of the PS4 Spider-Man smash hit. Optimistic commentator offers up a price tag of US$299 for the Digital Edition console as Sony potentially takes big losses. At least 120 million PlayStation 5 units are expected to be shipped in a five-year life cycle.

A report states that Micromax is working on three new smartphones for the Indian market. The devices will be unveiled sometime in September and will come with MediaTek chips. Prices will range between INR 7,000 (US$93) and INR 15,000 (US$200).

Rumors surfaced a few days ago claiming Sony would release the much-anticipated God of War sequel for the PlayStation 5 in 2021. Those rumors have turned out to be completely false, though, after being soundly debunked by the man behind God of War himself, Cory Barlog.

Xiaomi is preparing another flash sale for the giant 98-inch Redmi Smart TV Max while also celebrating the news that the company shipped more TVs in China in the first half of 2020 than any other company. The Xiaomi Mi TV range is immensely popular, and with a price tag of 19,999 yuan (US$2,856), the Redmi Max 98 has also been selling well.

The Indian Government is looking at banning even more Chinese-origin apps. Over 200 apps are on the list, with the most prominent one being PUBG Mobile. Games like Call of Duty: Mobile, Clash of Clans, and Clash Royale are likely on the list as well, due to their deep-rooted affiliation with Tencent.

Xiaomi has now released two of its phones, the Redmi K30 Pro 5G and the Redmi 10X Pro 5G, in new, striking color options. The Redmi K30 Pro now comes in a stunning "Aqua Sky", while the Redmi 10X Pro is available in an even more eye-catching "Liquid Silver".

For some reason, Huawei has suddenly started selling its phones for cheaper in China. The company is currently discounting most of its current lineup—including the P40 Pro Plus—by up to US$150. This also means the P30 Pro can now be had for under US$500.

The optional 4K display for the ThinkPad X1 Carbon 2020 improves the picture quality, but it has massive problems with PWM flickering. The screen also reduces the battery runtime of the mobile business notebook.

The volume of sales completed in the US smartphone market fell by 25% year-on-year (YoY) in 2020's second quarter (2Q2020). This was attributed to the effect of Covid-19-related lockdowns, and on a tendency to buy phones through carriers in the country. All major OEMs in this space saw reductions in their sales, with Samsung seeing the least adversity in this respect.

Following an Intel earnings call where the CPU maker admitted that its 7nm process still wasn’t ready, competitor AMD saw a massive boost to its share value, with AMD shares having gained 16 percent on NASDAQ.

Some new PS5 price target predictions have been posted online, with the source positing that the Blu-ray version of the console could cost as little as US$399, although this could still be much more than the Xbox Series S. However, gamers shouldn’t expect backwards compatibility with the PS3 too soon nor an appearance of a PlayStation 5 Pro in the near future.

The LG V60 ThinQ has impressive hardware on paper, including a 6.8-inch OLED panel and a Snapdragon 865 SoC. However, its 64 MP primary camera sensor has been found wanting, with noisy images and a general lack of detail a theme of LG's US$800 smartphone.

UK based company Truly Exquisite has jumped on the PS5 bandwagon with claims that it plans to release 24K Gold, Platinum and 18K Rose Gold of Sony's next generation-console. Up to 100 versions of the console will be available, although the company is yet to reveal how much it will charge for the experience of owning a 24K or 18K PS5.

The 5th generation of the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga laptop series offers new Comet Lake U processors, Wi-Fi 6 and brighter displays. With a price tag of 2300 Euros, the convertible is no bargain, but offers a well-rounded packages.

Movano wants to revolutionise the way people measure their glucose levels. Instead of the invasive or expensive methods that diabetics currently use, Movano is developing a solution that could be embedded within a conventional smartwatch.

If Nvidia manages to buy ARM, this would immediately trigger regulatory scrutiny since ARM is licensing many of its IPs to an entire portfolio of companies that are considered competitors for team green.

Xiaomi has slashed the price of its Mi True Wireless Earphones 2 in India to counter the upcoming threat from the recently launched OnePlus Buds. The Xiaomi earphones are now priced at ₹3,999 (US$53), which should help the Mi True Wireless Earphones 2 take on the OnePlus Buds that have an advertised price of ₹4,990 (US$67).

Realme has been sharing some impressive statistics with its followers on social media. Not only has the Chinese company managed to hit a figure of 40 million smartphone users worldwide in just over two years of existence but the brand has also been celebrating sales of 150,000 Realme C11 smartphones in 120 seconds.

NVIDIA is planning to release its Ampere architecture GPUs in a matter of weeks, according to a new rumour. Previously thought to be arriving in September, Founders Edition cards may land sooner, with AIB custom versions arriving a month later.

Samsung is readying the Galaxy M31s, the successor to the Galaxy M31. The mid-range smartphone is launching before the end of the month and will feature Samsung's Infinity-O display.

Intel's newest Comet Lake-U processor seems to be good option for "bursty" workloads, but its mediocre Turbo Boost sustainability can make it significantly slower than even the Core i7-10710U based on our Dell sample.

The ThinkPad T15 Gen 1 did very well overall in our review, even in regard to CPU performance. However, given that Lenovo decided not to offer the T15 with a Ryzen 4000 option it remains slower than it otherwise could have been.

AOC has launched its latest monitor, the U32U1. A Red Dot Design Award winner, the 31.5-inch and 4K monitor has been designed in collaboration with Porsche Design.

The front of what may well be the GoPro Hero 9 has leaked, and it could point towards the company's first action camera with a built-in secondary display. The next GoPro will likely launch in early Q4 2020 at between US$399.99 and US$499.99.

AMD has formally launched its Ryzen 4000 line-up today. Of these, their PRO variants are naturally aimed at enterprise-grade desktops. The OEM asserts that these 7 nanometer (nm) solutions offer speeds that outstrip certain Intel competitors by up to 31%. By contrast, the new Athlon 3000 G-series is still based on the Zen+ architecture.

We have both the Intel version and the AMD version of the Lenovo ThinkPad X13 Gen 1 in house for testing right now. Like with the bigger ThinkPad T14s, the AMD Ryzen 4000 model clearly dominates.

TikTok posted an impressive 67 million official downloads onto iOS devices in the US in the first quarter of 2020 (1Q2020). However, in 2Q2020, this stat has been eclipsed by one of approximately 94 million by the collaboration app Zoom. This is a major factor in a trend favoring business-focused apps on the Cupertino company's platform.

Heart rate monitoring may seem to be a feature of many smartwatches and fitness trackers, but some OEMs have been including fakes in their budget fitness trackers. Instead of including photoelectric heart rate sensors that are found in many devices, these fitness trackers have two green LEDs.

The Samsung Galaxy Note 9 is undoubtedly an excellent phone but owners of the flagship appear to be going through some travails, two years after the phone was released. Going by multiple reports, the Note 9 is plagued by severe display issues, with owners essentially left with the option of a display replacement outside the warranty period.

Xiaomi launched the Redmi 9C globally a few days ago, and it appears the phone is set to make its way over to India. Surprisingly, however, it may not be released under the Redmi brand, with new information indicating a Poco rebadge.

The PS5 hype train has shown no signs of slowing down as the console and its accessories have taken up seven spots out of the top 15 for the Amazon Most Wished For chart (UK site). Incredibly for Sony, four more places are occupied by PS4 games. PlayStation 5 price predictions appear to be settling at US$499/£449/€499 for the Blu-ray edition.

The latest report on the market for mobile devices in India by Canalys has shown that its shipments totalled 17.3 million for the second quarter of 2020 (2Q2020). That sounds fine - until one compares it to the figure of 33 million from 2Q2019. This contraction was attributed to factors such as supply disruptions among the OEMs concerned.

A press release has revealed that Philips (TP Vision) and Bowers & Wilkins have decided to extend their partnership and continue to offer their respective expertise in future Philips OLED and LCD TVs. The duo previously collaborated on the well-received 65OLED+984 and OLED+934 models, and new televisions are expected to be released soon.

The brand equity researcher BrandZ has issued a report in regard to the top 50 Chinese global brand builders for 2020. While Huawei tops the list and Xiaomi manages a powerful fifth position, it’s the owner of TikTok, ByteDance, which has done especially well to power ahead of the well-established Mi brand.

Following a directive issued by the Indian Trade Ministry, Amazon has made it mandatory for all sellers to mention its 'country of origin' on every product listing. Sellers have until August 10 to comply. Other platforms, such as Flipkart, are expected to follow suit in the coming days.