Samsung unveils the Exynos 8 Octa 8890 mobile processor. Mass production late 2015. PR.

Samsung Electronics has developed a next-generation processor for smartphones that boosts performance by 30%, the company announced last Thursday.

The Exynos 8 Octa uses 10% less power and comes with an integrated modem, a feature that will reduce the number of components to make a smartphone.

Samsung Electronics may sell the new chip for other smartphone makers as well. The company saw plant utilization rate improve in 2015 amid rising deliveries for Apple smartphones, which contributed to higher earnings for the segment.

Press Release:

Samsung Unveils the Latest Application Processor, Exynos 8 Octa, Built on 14-Nanometer FinFET Process Technology

First premium chipset with Samsung custom-designed CPU and embedded LTE modem.

Samsung Electronics Co., Ltd., a world leader in advanced semiconductor technology, today announced the newest member of its Exynos family of application processors, the Exynos 8 Octa 8890. 

This chip is Samsung’s second premium application processor built on 14mm FinFET process technology. Unlike the previous Exynos 7 Octa 7420, the Exynos 8 Octa is an integrated one-chip solution that features the company’s first custom designed CPU based on 64-bit ARMv8 architecture and the latest LTE Rel.12 Cat.12/13 modem. This brings a new level of performance to Samsung’s Exynos processor premium line-up for mobile applications.

“The Exynos 8 Octa is a leading-edge application processor for next-generation mobile devices that incorporates Samsung’s mobile technology leadership in CPU, ISP, and modem as well as process technology,” said Dr. Kyushik Hong, Vice President of System LSI marketing, Samsung Electronics. “With our custom designed CPU core and the industry’s most advanced LTE modem, consumers using mobile devices with the Exynos 8 Octa will experience a new level of mobile computing.”

The Exynos 8 Octa is Samsung’s first application processor to include the company’s initial premium custom CPU cores based on 64-bit ARMv8 architecture providing over 30 percent improvement in performance and 10 percent in power efficiency compared to the Exynos 7 Octa. 

This chip also supports enhanced heterogeneous multiprocessing for efficient usage of the eight cores, four custom and four ARM® Cortex®-A53, to deliver the highest performance and power efficiency in its class.

The Exynos 8 Octa is Samsung’s first integrated one-chop solution in its premium line-up that combine the application processor and modern. Samsung has delivered one-chip Exynos solutions for mid to high-end smartphone in recent years. 

The Exynos 8 Octa integrated the most advanced LTE Rel.12 Cat.12/13 modem that enables maximum download speed of up to 600Mbps (Cat.12) and upload speed of up to 150Mbps (Cat.13) with carrier aggregation. With such a high data transfer rate, the Exynos 8 Octa will contribute to delivering an excellent mobile experience, allowing users to enjoy and share high resolution video content on the go with ease. Also the one-chip solution benefits OEMs with a reduced number of parts needed and overall space required for a device, allowing more flexible design options.

For a graphic-intensive user interface, highly immersive 3D gaming and life-like virtual reality experiences, the Exynos 8 Octa employs ARM®’s latest GPU, Mali™–T880.

Samsung plans to begin mass production of the Exynos 8 Octa in late 2015. 

Naver considering taking legal actions against Hewlett Packard over logo copy.

Naver logo

HP Enterprise logo

South Korea's top portal operator Naver Corp. said Tuesday it is considering taking legal actions against Hewlett Packard (HP) Co., claiming that one of the U.S. tech giant's affiliates has plagiarized its logo.

The row between two giants came as Naver alleged that the latest logo showcased by Hewlett Packard Enterprise, an IT arm of Hewlett Packard, copied its flagship green rectangular box that symbolizes its search box.

South Korea-based Hewlett Packard spokesperson declined to comment on the issue to Yonhap News Agency, citing its policy.

"The color we picked is no accident. I wanted us to stand apart. The other thing that stands out for me is its simplicity....that's what we're going to be about - easy to do business with and precise in our work, our engineering and our innovation," HP head Meg Whitman said in April through the company's website.

Naver said although that the HP affiliate had claimed that its logo does not infringe copyrights held by the South Korean portal operator as the two are engaged in different industry areas, the green-box should be recognized as Naver's intellectual property.

"The green box has been used by Naver's services since 2006. With the strong brand awareness, it still stands as a symbolic design for Naver," the South Korean portal operator said.

"As far as we know, HP has been operating in South Korea for a long time. It cannot be understood that the U.S. company was not aware of Naver," another Naver official said.

Ham Kee-ho, who heads the South Korean office of Hewlett Packard, reportedly said last month that its logo symbolized its efforts to become a window that connects the past, present and future. Ham was also not available for comment.

Samsung Galaxy J7 5.5inch Super Amoled Display Dual SIM (LTE + GSM) Octa Core Processor 13 MP | 5 MP Camera with Front Flash -Gold

Sony Xperia Z5 E6653 3GB/32GB 23MP 5.2-inch 4G LTE Factory Unlocked (GOLD) -

Japan: Hino developing emergency self-driving tech for buses and trucks.

Hino Motors, Ltd.

Japan

Market(Ticker):	TKS(7205)

Hino Motors is devising autonomous-driving technologies that can guide buses and trucks to change lanes and safely stop on the shoulder if the driver suddenly becomes incapacitated.

The company has started conducting studies using a tour bus on a test course.

When the driver loses consciousness, for instance, a camera positioned to read the driver's face would recognize that his or her eyes are shut, and activates the self-driving system. Sensors attached to four corners of the vehicle monitor traffic, and when on a straight road with clear visibility, the vehicle will turn on the blinker and changes lanes to stop on the shoulder.

Hino may combine the technology with an on-board communication system to notify the operating company, police and ambulance dispatcher of the vehicle's location.

So far, the test driving has been successful on a sunny day. Hino will continue to hone the technologies to accommodate rainy weather and nighttime driving.

With accidents involving commercial vehicles often resulting in major damage, Hino sees demand for this safety feature.

A similar system that monitors the driver, as well as as an automatic brake to mitigate a crash and a lane-departure warning system have already been applied to commercial vehicles. Daimler from Germany plans to market self-driving trucks by 2025, and is conducting public-road tests at home and in the U.S.

(Nikkei)

Samsung Galaxy J7 5.5inch Super Amoled Display Dual SIM (LTE + GSM) Octa Core Processor 13 MP | 5 MP Camera with Front Flash -Gold

Sony Xperia Z5 E6653 3GB/32GB 23MP 5.2-inch 4G LTE Factory Unlocked (GOLD) -

Jon Snow is coming back on April? HBO`s Game of Thrones new poster teases it.

We all know that Jon Snow (Kit Harington) was hit to death on the last Game of Thrones HBO season 5 by the member`s of the Night Watch.

He was left to bleed out in the snow.

Jon Snow died on 'Game of Thrones,' or maybe not?

HBO`s Game of Thrones above poster announcing the next season 6 to be released in April 2016 have been posted in New York`s Times Square and in Hollywood.

Is Jon Snow alive? 

ukbussinessinsider

Samsung shows a very creative Gear S2 ad: Turn the bezel.

Samsung on this video advertising is working with real human beings to turn the bezel as your were doing on the smartwatch Gear S2. See it for yourself:

Experience the revolutionary Circular UX of the new Samsung Gear S2 in this beautifully upbeat and colorful film. Watch how each turn of the bezel brings an app to life with epic, synchronized choreography.  Samsung Gear S2. Gets better with every turn.

LG Electronics introduced the world's smallest 1.8mm bezel signage IPS panel powered w/WebOS

LG Electronics is preceded by differentiated quality technology out after the initiative in commercial display market.

ON Signage (Model: VH7B) LG Electronics will apply the thinnest bezel to maximize the immersive world Although the border (bezel) has a thickness of 3.5mm or more existing signage This product is only half at 1.8mm. New signage was applied to the design of more unity to a uniform thickness of 0.9mm both sides.

LG Electronics   implemented intensive quality technology in the new signage for the best picture.

For signage and paste multiple screens that are used as a screen in accordance with the joint portion between the video display and this can cause separation or disconnected. LG Electronics has raised like a sense of security so that you can see the screen or break apart to minimize the number of the screen as if one used a proprietary picture quality algorithm.

LG Electronics has implemented a natural quality that unity more than the maximum increase of 20% compared to existing products, the uniformity of screen brightness. The signage uniformity of brightness is attached after the number of the screen as an indicator of how uniform brightness of the entire screen for showing a configuration in a screen of particular importance.

LG Electronics has a viewing angle minimizes color distortion due to the IPS display with a sharp image quality. It is important to vivid screen without changing the color from any angle with a view because many larger screen.

LG Electronics has increased durability and ease of use, consider the characteristics of a commercial display.

Coating a circuit board of a protective material signage to dust, moisture, was to minimize the influence from the environment. Also equipped with a fast, intuitive WebOS allows easy addition to implement a wide variety of content. WebOS is a standard web technologies HTML5, CSS3 (Cascading Style Sheet) support, etc. can be easily develop apps and content.

LG Electronics, South Korea Heojaecheol managing director in charge of HE marketing FD emphasized that, "added durability and ease of the world's leading image quality technology will continue to lead the commercial display market."

3Q2015: NAND Flash Makers market share: Samsung 31.5%, Toshiba 20.5%, SanDisk 15.4%

The latest report from DRAMeXchange, a division of TrendForce, finds that NAND flash prices fell rapidly in the third quarter, resulting in a mere 2.4% quarterly increase in the global NAND Flash revenue. 

Sean Yang, assistant vice president of DRAMeXchange, said demand was uncharacteristically weak in the third quarter and did not adhere to the seasonal pattern. NAND Flash end demand was below expectations due to macroeconomic factor. 

This resulted in oversupply and sharp price decline in the NAND Flash market, putting heavy pressures on NAND Flash suppliers’ revenue growth and margins. DRAMeXchange expects the suppliers’ revenue situation to remain difficult during the fourth quarter because of the persisting oversupply problem. 

Samsung

Both the OEM system product and the retail memory card markets saw a significant drop in their average selling prices due to weak demand. This had a negative impact on Samsung’s NAND Flash revenue in the third quarter. Compared with the second quarter, the supplier’s bit growth was up 15% but its revenue fell by 1% to US$2.68 billion. 

The supplier’s operating margin also suffered a quarterly decrease. In terms of product strategy, Samsung’s 3D-NAND Flash SSD and 16nm eMMC/eMCP product lines are ready. The supplier will be focusing on the promotion and sales of high-density SSD and eMMC/eMCP products to extend its lead over its competitors.

Toshiba

Toshiba’s NAND Flash revenue grew by 10% in the third quarter because of several factors. First, Toshiba’s 15nm output increased and exceeded 50% of its total NAND Flash production. At the same time, Toshiba’s strategic clients released their latest smartphones, and this in turn caused the shipments of the supplier’s 15nm TLC Mobile-NAND to pick up. Furthermore, server and PC vendors completed the sampling of Toshiba’s SSD products.

As for Toshiba’s technology and production plans, Fab 2 equipment is being moved in and tested. Fab 2 is scheduled to do small batch runs of 3D-NAND Flash in the first quarter of 2016. Fab 5, which mainly produces MLC and TLC chips, will also begin pilot production of 3D-NAND Flash on an upgraded process during next year’s first quarter.

SanDisk

SanDisk saw a massive 49% quarterly increase in NAND Flash sales bit growth in the third quarter, even though its average selling price dropped 22%. The growth in bit sales was attributed to stock up demand of embedded products following the market release of new smartphones. The averaging selling cost fell by 24%, pushing the supplier’s NAND Flash revenue up by 18% quarterly to US$1.31 billion. The declining average selling cost also helped lifted the supplier’s gross margin from 39% in the second quarter to 42% in the third. The increase gross margin came after three consecutive quarters of falling figures.

Almost 60% of SanDisk’s NAND Flash production came from the 15nm process in third quarter. The supplier’s bit output is expected to increase by 40~45% in 2015. However, SanDisk’s annual bit output growth for 2016 will be slightly lower than the industry average because the supplier’s 3D-NAND development schedule will interfere with the production. Moreover, SanDisk will not significantly increase its NAND Flash capacity next year.

SK Hynix

In the third quarter, the average selling price of NAND Flash from SK Hynix fell 15%. This quarterly slide was due to weak demand and a rapid increase in the share of TLC chips in the supplier’s total output. Consequently, SK Hynix NAND Flash revenue fell 4.7% to US$927 million, while its bit supply volume jumped by 15%.

Looking at the supplier’s product mix, SSD and embedded OEM products currently account for nearly 90% of total output. Demand has picked up since the supplier’s strategic clients released their new smartphones in the third quarter, and the supplier has also steadily expanded its shipments of TLC chips made on the 16nm process. TLC output is expected to account for 40% of the total production by the end of the year. SK Hynix has also managed to get a number of its TLC products verified by the module makers and will be ramping up TLC chip production for various applications (e.g. USB, SSD) in this fourth quarter.

Micron

Micron continued its product mix adjustment in its fiscal fourth quarter, which was from June to August. For that period, the supplier’s NAND Flash revenue totaled US$1.18 billion. The supplier’s bit supply volume and average selling price for NAND Flash fell by 6% and 1% respectively compared with the third fiscal quarter (from March to May). Micron’s storage business unit (SBU) also saw a slight quarterly decline in its operating margin.

In addition to developing more enterprise and client-SSD product lines, Micron has gotten its TLC products verified by strategic partners in the memory module industry. Mass production and shipments have started in this year’s calendar fourth quarter (from October to December).The share of TLC products in Micron’s total output is expected to reach 20% in the first half of next year as well. Looking at technology, Micron is advancing rapidly to 3D-NAND Flash manufacturing. The supplier is also on track in moving in equipment into its new fab in Singapore by next year. The share of 3D-NAND in Micron’s total production will expand quickly and may surpass 30% in the second half of 2016.

Intel

Intel’s third-quarter NAND Flash revenue totaled US$663 million, down 0.3% from the second the quarter. The slight decrease was attributed to strategic clients stocking up earlier in the second quarter and the rapidly declining average selling price. In terms of NAND Flash production strategy, Intel will strengthen its ties with its supply partner Micron and convert its chipset fab in Dalian, China, into a 3D-NAND fab. Intel, which sets its sights on future SSD opportunities in China, has therefore become the second NAND Flash supplier to invest in a wafer fab in the country.

trendforce

Japan: Musio AI robot touted as future English-learning tool for Japanese kids.

Japan has long been criticized for its low level of English, but children could soon become more proficient in the language just by chit-chatting with an artificially intelligent robot.

At least that’s the idea from AKA, a Korean startup based in the United States that is set to officially begin marketing educational robot “Musio” in Japan next spring.

“The way Musio communicates and its correct pronunciation will make users feel as if they were living in a different country,” said AKA executive Brian Lee during a preview demonstration to media in Tokyo this week.

According to the company, the goal is to provide a natural English-speaking environment for children in nonnative speaking countries.

AKA says the robot, which has short legs, pointed ears and droopy arms, will serve as a useful tool for Japanese learners as it requires users to pronounce English correctly.

The release of Musio, which has an Android-based “brain” that allows it to communicate, also comes as Japan tries to boost English competency ahead of the 2020 Olympic Games.

Using artificial intelligence with information from big data, Musio can communicate through speaking, text, facial expressions and gestures.

Unlike voice assistants such as Apple’s Siri, AKA says the interactive, chatty robot can think independently, remembers conversations and jokes, chats back and shares newly acquired knowledge.

When asked this week whether it knew Tokyo, Musio said, “Give me a second to think about it.”

After awhile, Musio described Tokyo as Japan’s capital and largest city.

According to the company, Musio learns through each interaction with the user by collecting data and verifying information on the Internet.

The robot, measuring about 20 cm tall and weighing just over 300 grams, will be available for ¥72,000 on pre-order.

Though it will be aimed mainly at children, with educational materials such as textbooks aimed to improve English skills, it can also be used by adults to check on scheduled appointments, for example.

The inventors are also considering expanding Musio’s capacity to help prepare for English ability tests such as TOEIC or TOEFL using existing materials.

Musio’s name is derived from Muse — the name of the system used in the robot, which is a reference to the Greek goddesses of inspiration in science, music and art.

The idea came from company CEO Raymond Jung’s interest as a child in Japanese manga comics and anime films, such as ‘Doraemon,’ which featured a relationship between a human and a robot.

The robot comes in three types depending on intelligence capacity and other upgraded features.

Meccano MeccaNoid G15 amazon store

LG Nexus 5x H790 - 4G LTE GSM Factory Unlocked Smartphone - 32GB Quartz (White) - US Warranty amazon store

USA: Texas Central Partners LLC and Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corp to partner in bullet train project

A Central Japan Railway Co. shinkansen passes through Odawara Station in Kanagawa Prefecture. A Japanese public-private fund is in the final stage of negotiations to invest around ¥4 billion in a high-speed rail project in Texas, in which the company's shinkansen technology is expected to be adopted. | BLOOMBERG.

A Japanese public-private fund is in the final stage of negotiations to invest about ¥4 billion in a high-speed rail project in Texas, sources said Friday.

The project, in which Central Japan Railway Co.’s shinkansen bullet train technology is expected to be used, faces the challenge of covering costs totaling $12 billion (¥1.5 trillion).

With the investment, the government is hoping to highlight its policy of assisting domestic firms in the export of infrastructure systems amid intensifying competition with China and other rivals.

The fund, known as the Japan Overseas Infrastructure Investment Corp. for Transport & Urban Development, will take a stake in the rail project’s managing firm, Texas Central Partners LLC.

The project calls for building a 400-km rail system connecting Dallas and Houston in about 90 minutes. The railway is planned to go into operation in 2021.

Samsung Galaxy J7 J700M, Dual SIM LTE, Factory Unlocked (White)

amazon store

Microsoft`s Lumia 950 XL 5.7 inch 20MP 3GB RAM 32GB 4G Smartphone is now available

Today Microsoft released its new high end smartphone  the Lumia 950 XL with 5.7 inch 

• 5.7 inches QUAD HD AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors 

20MP rear camera

• 4992 х 3744 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, optical image stabilization, autofocus, triple-LED RGB flash
• 
  
• HSDPA 850/900/1700(AWS)/1900/2100, LTE band 1(2100), 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 7(2600), 8(900), 12(700), 20(800), 28(700), 38(2600), 40(2300)

 3GB RAM 32GB 4G Windows 10

One Windows experience Windows 10 keeps your digital life in sync across all your devices. All your apps, games, and music are in one convenient place with the Windows Store. 

Plus, Office is easy to use on the 5.7-inch screen, and Outlook has the same rich editing tools as Microsoft Word. Superior performance Photos, videos, and games come to life on the gorgeous 5.7-inch Quad HD display.

Its cutting-edge octa-core processor runs multiple apps simultaneously without flinching. And with USB-C fast charging and an extra-large battery, you'll always have plenty of power no matter what. 

World-class imaging Capture every detail of your life with the 20MP camera that automatically reduces motion blur for a sharper shot every time. And poorly lit situations are no match for the built-in triple LED natural flash, and the automatic setting allows you to tweak images afterwards. 

More great features Upcoming software updates will introduce exciting new features that will change the way you use your Lumia 950 XL. 

There's Continuum which lets you use your phone like a PC on an external monitor seamlessly. And Windows Hello provides a secure and truly personal way to unlock your Lumia phone.

The Lumia 950 XL is available on amazon

Lumia 950 XL specifications:

BODY	Dimensions	151.9 x 78.4 x 8.1 mm (5.98 x 3.09 x 0.32 in)
	Weight	165 g (5.82 oz)
	SIM	Nano-SIM

DISPLAY	Type	AMOLED capacitive touchscreen, 16M colors
	Size	5.7 inches (~74.3% screen-to-body ratio)
	Resolution	1440 x 2560 pixels (~518 ppi pixel density)
	Multitouch	Yes
	Protection	Corning Gorilla Glass 4
		- ClearBlack display

PLATFORM	OS	Microsoft Windows 10
	Chipset	Qualcomm MSM8994 Snapdragon 810
	CPU	Quad-core 1.5 GHz Cortex-A53 & Quad-core 2 GHz Cortex-A57
	GPU	Adreno 430

MEMORY	Card slot	microSD, up to 200 GB
	Internal	32 GB, 3 GB RAM

CAMERA	Primary	20 MP, 4992 х 3744 pixels, Carl Zeiss optics, optical image stabilization, autofocus, triple-LED RGB flash
	Features	1/2.4' sensor size, 1.12 µm pixel size, PureView technology, geo-tagging, face detection, panorama, HDR
	Video	2160p@30fps, optical stabilization, stereo sound rec.
	Secondary	5 MP, 1080p

SOUND	Alert types	Vibration; MP3, WAV ringtones
	Loudspeaker	Yes
	3.5mm jack	Yes

COMMS	WLAN	Wi-Fi 802.11 a/b/g/n/ac, dual-band, hotspot
	Bluetooth	v4.1, A2DP
	GPS	Yes, with A-GPS, GLONASS, BDS
	NFC	Yes
	Radio	FM radio
	USB	v3.1, Type-C reversible connector

FEATURES	Sensors	Accelerometer, gyro, proximity, compass, barometer, sensor core
	Messaging	SMS (threaded view), MMS, Email, Push Email, IM
	Browser	HTML5
	Java	No
		- Microsoft Continuum support - Wireless charging (Qi-enabled) - market dependent - Fast charging - Active noise cancellation with dedicated mic - MP3/WAV/eAAC+ player - MP4/H.265 player - OneDrive (15 GB cloud storage) - Document viewer - Video/photo editor

BATTERY		Li-Ion 3340 mAh battery
	Stand-by	Up to 288 h (2G) / Up to 288 h (3G)
	Talk time	Up to 25 h (2G) / Up to 19 h (3G)
	Music play	Up to 75 h

MISC	Colors	Black, White
	Price group	9/10 The Lumia 950 XL is available on amazon