Indian smartphone market saw a lot of action last year. A lot of companies made India a priority market and launched their top flagships in the country. Indians now had a wider choice in smartphones than ever before. All these choices have also led to a major reshuffle in the points tally of top selling companies. Indian smartphone brand, Micromax seems to have kicked global market leader Samsung from the first position on the table.
The report comes from research firm Canalys. According to the report, Micromax accounted for 22 percent sales in the fourth quarter of the year between October and December. Samsung on the other hand managed to score 20 percent of device sales during that period.
The industry, in total, sold over 21.6 million smartphones during the period; a 90 percent increase over the previous year. It is estimated that the Micromax’s lead was fueled by increase in the purchase of devices with a lower price tag as the users actively shift from feature phones to smartphones in that segment.
This dip in standing should be a major concern for Samsung as it has already lost the first position in China to Xiaomi. The company has been on the receiving end of complaints about its lackluster devices with monotonous designs and lack of specs. Apart from some tiny tweaks the company hasn’t really offered anything substantial to the consumers. Samsung has to reconsider its smartphone strategy seriously as it is the company’s most visible product portfolio at the moment or else it wouldn’t be long before it follows in the steps of Blackberry and Nokia.
OnePlus along with its compatriot Xiaomi were the undoubted winners of the smartphone race in 2014. These two budding Chinese companies have created an immense fan base through their innovative devices. OnePlus has released its annual report for the year 2014, and as expected, it would be a cause for celebrations at the OnePlus offices.
According to the numbers, the company sold the maximum number of devices in East Asia followed by Europe and North America (39%, 32%, 22% respectively). The company arrived in India by the end of the year, but still managed to sell 7% of its stocks in the country. The company has also claimed to have garnered a revenue worth $300 Million.
The USP of the OnePlus devices was the Cyanogen OS that powered them. But after facing an unfavorable situation in India, the company proactively pushed for creating its own operating system based on Android 5.0 Lollipop known as Oxygen OS. OnePlus promises that this new OS too will be customizable, and free from bloat and unnecessary features.
The next big release from the company will be the OnePlus Two and India will be one of the first countries to get access to the new device. There will be a lot of expectations from the OnePlus Two and the Oxygen OS as they would have to fill the shoes amazing OnePlus One. The OnePlus Two will be in the top five of our most anticipated list of devices for 2015.
Gone are those days when Apple used to console itself seeing Samsung receiving for world’s largest manufacturer achievement. Samsung has long enjoyed the reputation of being the biggest smartphone vendor in the world. But this time, Apple has snatched the accolade from its lap and is happily showing off the award as the world’s largest smartphone vendor.
According to an analysis by a trusted company, Creative Strategies, Apple has set a benchmark by selling 74.5 million iPhones. It is the biggest quarterly profit by any company in the history of smartphone trade. However, Samsung says that it has sold as much as 95 million handsets in total, out of which 71 million – 75 million are smartphones. Well, the South Korean producer is just putting ahead big numbers to cover its defeat.
The picture above clearly speaks of Apple’s win over the other vendors. The analyst for Creative Strategies, Ben Bajarin crowns Apple as the winner this time. However, another analysis firm Strategy Analytics claims that both Apple and Samsung shipped the same number of phones in the fourth quarter last year – 74.5 million smartphones.
Few days back, Apple saw record-breaking fiscal Q1 2015 earnings of $74.6 billion, out of which $18 billion was the net profit. This net gain figure put Apple in the topmost spot in terms of revenue. The soaring sales of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus is the reason behind this success.
Though Apple has acquired the top position, Samsung will not sit back and let the Cupertino-based giant enjoy the prestige. It will surely work on a unique product to entice more customers. It would be exciting to see what Samsung comes up with next.
Apple is celebrating one of its biggest victory in its history. The Cupertino, California based iPhone maker has noted a $18 billion of net profit in last quarter, making it the most profitable quarter ever, not just for Apple, but for any company.
Now, new statistics have drawn in, putting both Apple and its arch-rival Samsung on the top slot in the last quarter of 2014. According to research firm Strategy Analytics, the iPhone maker’s global market share has grown to 20 percent, from 18 percent last year, while Samsung’s fortune headed the opposite direction dropping the firm to that same 20 percent figure from 30 percent in the year-ago period.
With Apple’s big screen iPhone, a bigger display is no longer a reason to buy Samsung’s devices
While Samsung still remains number one when it comes total shipments of the year 2014, Apple has matched Samsung’s fourth-quarter shipments of 74.5 million smartphones. The major reason of these interesting figures in Apple’s sixth generation iPhones which embraced larger screens and LTE trends to excite Asian consumers.
Samsung has been struggling to keep up with Apple in the high-end smartphone market and likes of Xiaomi and Micromax in the low-end market. With Apple’s big screen iPhone, a bigger display is no longer a reason to buy Samsung’s devices, and its smartphones can’t reach the low prices of those from Chinese and Indian vendors.
Apple took three year to comeback as a top dog in the tech industry, after Samsung replaced it in 2012. There has been a drastic shift in the global smartphone shipments which grew by 31 percent, to a record of 380.1 million units, in the fourth quarter of 2014. And it seems Apple is not having trouble holding a large chunk of the global market. Good Luck, Samsung.
Apple has released its fiscal Q1 2015 earnings and the result is pretty staggering. Well, the Cupertino, California-based iPhone maker has broken all the records with most profitable quarter ever not just in Apple history but in corporate history.
The company reported $74.6 billion in revenue, $18 billion in net profit representing $3.06 per share. The $18 billion net profit put it in the top spot. Russia’s Gazprom (the largest natural gas extractor in the world) previously held the record at $16.2 billion in a quarter.
Apple’s own guidance from its last earnings release predicted between $63.5 billion and $66.5 billion in revenue, with gross margin between 37.5 percent and 38.5 percent. Apple’s guidance has been accurate for the past year and a half, with the upper end of the forecast very close to what it actually reported. But this time, Apple was conservative and easily surpassed its own guidance.
Apple’s Q1 2015 International Revenue
Tim Cook talking to the press said that the iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Pus’s soaring sales are the main reason of this outstanding success. According to recent market analysis, this quarter saw largest number of consumers using iPhones and well as the largest number switches from Android to iOS.
This quarter also saw Apple becoming the biggest smartphone manufacturer in China in term of shipments with staggering $16.1 billion in revenue. The company didn’t reveal the detailed region specific numbers, however, the total international sales represented 65 percent of Apple’s revenue.
Apple’s soaring international revenue points towards very bright future of the company not just in terms of hardware but also it’s iOS ecosystem. Sixth generation iPhones have played a major role in this staggering success which embraced large screen and LTE to swell its sales exponentially in the global market.
We are all familiar with Apple’s soaring sales of iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus. Apple recently revealed its record Q1 sales, surpassing even the highest analyst iPhone sales expectations as it set new iPhone sale records and new company record, too.
Now, a Chinese data firm Canalys has released its latest report that the Cupertino based manufacturer has risen to the top spot in the highly competitive Chinese market for the first time. The report also mentioned that it is highly surprising considering the price of its devices is ‘nearly double those of its nearest competitors’.
While the home grown smartphone giants of China are aiming for global expansion, the iPhone maker has turned the table towards the domestic market. The report highlights that the major reason of the success is the that Apple is finally embracing the LTE and large screen trends which are the most vital parameters in Chinese market.
Apple captured a record 33 percent market share in South Korea in November 2014, according to Hong Kong-based market research company Counterpoint. Samsung, arch-rival of Apple has been shunned to the third place, tailing behind Apple is China’s Xiaomi.
Apple will be reporting it last quarter earning next Tuesday in detail.
The much-awaited consumer preview of Microsoft’s new operating system, Windows 10 is here. This is, of course, the best Windows OS yet and tries to repent for Microsoft’s follies in Windows 8. There are a lot of amazing features such as the return of the Start menu, Cortana, a new browser dubbed Spartan and much more. Windows 10 seems like it might also give a boost to Microsoft’s ailing smartphone business that it acquired from Nokia. But the gizmo that won everybody’s heart was the HoloLens, a one of a kind wearable that brings science fiction into reality. We look at this amazing innovation from Microsoft and see if the biggest tech company in the world finally found its winning formula.
HoloLens can make all our displays obsolete as it can conjure a display anywhere you want
A Seamless Interaction between Digital Life and Real Life
Microsoft hits the top podium stand with the HoloLens at least in terms of imagination and innovation. The HoloLens has no match if you consider the manner in which it is presented. There have been previous attempts at making augmented reality based holographic glasses like Meta 1, but they appeared rather rudimentary. Google’s HoloLens gets the power of Windows 10 that will give it a boost above the rest. Also, with this product, Microsoft finally gets to stand up to Apple, whose biggest innovative offering has been the Apple Watch, which suffers from an extreme battery draining problem.
HoloLens bring Holographs into your everyday life.
The demos of the HoloLens were definitely mind blowing. The virtual holographic objects appear as if they are a part of the real world. Interaction with this world also feels like a breeze. Microsoft has also unveiled the Holo Studio that lets you create 3D objects in a 3D environment and then using 3D printers, bring them into the real world. Unlike most of the product demo videos that exaggerate the possibilities of the technology, HoloLens seemed to perform exactly as it was presented. The creation process of the quad copter literally felt as if we were in Tony Stark’s workspace.
The Technology
The HoloLens is a self contained computer on its own and doesn’t require connection to Phone or a PC.
The HoloLens is a self-contained computer. It includes a CPU, a GPU, and a dedicated holographic processor unit (HPU). It neither has wire nor does it require a connection to a phone, PC or any other device. It has 120 by 120 field of view, which is even wider than the Kinect. The wide view lets it see what your hands are doing even while they’re completely outstretched. The device has to process a lot of information that might lead to a lot of heat, to solve the issue; there are air vents on the side that disperse the heat. On the right side of the device are the buttons that let you adjust the volume and contrast of the Holographs.
Applications
HoloLens doesn’t just present an amazing bunch of features it also makes several previous technology such as various displays almost obsolete. With the HoloLens, you can conjure a display anywhere and of any size you desire. It can be used as a teaching tool and would bring a whole new meaning to “learning by doing”. Students can be given lessons in an interactive format where they’ll get the option to manipulate the lessons to see what happens. For e.g.; a holographic globe can be used in the class learning Geography that shows the movement of ocean currents and the formation clouds caused by it. This would be a lot more interactive than a dull map with lines drawn on them.
Lessons get interactive and more engaging with HoloLens.
You can also bid goodbye to the game boards, and the gaming consoles as the entire world becomes a virtual gaming space. As the technology will progress, developers are bound to introduce virtual reality gaming that with the might of HoloLens, will be better than anything we’ve experienced till now.
Designing process gets real easy with real time 3D modelling coupled with 3D printing.
On the enterprise front, the HoloLens will allow for virtual interactions between the entire team even if they are sitting thousands of kilometres away. Industrial designing, when coupled with 3D printing, would make the design process a lot more interactive. A vehicle designer or an architect can have an all-round view of their project and can find deficiencies and solve it after which they can get a 3D model printed.
Mars, just a HoloLens away
Microsoft has partnered with Nasa to create OnSight that lets scientists walk on Mars surface.
The coolest aspect of the HoloLens is how it is useful for the scientists at NASA. Now the researchers can have an immersive view of the Martian surface. To aid the scientists, Nasa and Microsoft have created a software called OnSight. Using the data sent by the Curiosity Rover on Mars, the scientist can have access to the surroundings of the rover to almost the same degree as a geologist on earth. Nasa plans to proactively use the OnSight software for the research. They also plan to integrate the technology in future missions including the next Mars rover expected to launch in 2020.
Microsoft will be opening the platform for developers this spring. The developers will get access to all the information during Microsoft’s Build conference from April 29 to May 1, 2015. Microsoft has said that it will be priced for both enterprise as well as consumer users. With the HoloLens and the successful preview of the Windows 10, Microsoft has finally managed to win our hearts again. With the HoloLens, everybody gets to be Tony Stark. Microsoft has not just pushed boundaries of holography but has also set a technological standard for others to match.
Dear Apple, that Watch just doesn’t cut it anymore, show us something that really blows our minds.
Google is the front runner in the Internet search business and from the recent announcement, it is clear that it has plans to conquer space as well. The company has partnered with Elon Musk to connect the world through space-based internet. Now, recent reports have surfaced which say that Google will penetrate deep into the telecom sector by launching its own wireless service.
According to the report, Google plans to directly sell the mobile phone plans to the end customers. The company will be handling calls and mobile data. Google is in talks with Sprint and T-Mobile to buy wholesale access of these carriers. If sources are to be believed then users can see the Google network later this year.
Codenamed ‘Nova’, the project is led by the Executive of Google Nick Fox. The firm wants to offer creative plan pricing, says a leading publishing daily. By bringing out a carrier service, Google would be able to have a better control on the devices manufactured by them.
It’s still under wraps that where the company will launch its services, what will be the charges and what all manufacturers are involved. As the internet giant is dealing with Sprint and T-Mobile (available in the US), it will affect the US market and the carriers in the regions will be pressurised to cut down the price in order to sustain their user base.
Nokia has been missing in the manufacturing game lately because it has been in Microsoft’s shackles for some time. Nokia’s Devices and Services business were sold to Microsoft which was deemed as Noika’s end. But that wasn’t the case.
Nokia N1
Nokia surprised us with the announcement of its tablet last year, the Nokia N1. As per the Microsoft contract, the Finnish company is not allowed to manufacture smart devices until 2016. However, the company found a loop hole in the contract and hired Foxconn to manufacture. The Nokia N1 tablet was launched in China which has been successful till now with two batches of the devices already sold out.
The company sold out everything they had, twice in China; the third batch is set to arrive soon. The company is taking baby steps to get grip of their market, with China as their main market. Till now, we have seen only one device from the revived company but it is said that Nokia is working on other smart devices as well.
Nokia C1 had been major news in past with handful of leaks suggesting it to be real. Recently, another Nokia-branded product has been leaked via images. Even though there are no specifications and other hardware details leaked, the leak suggested this laptop will launch along side Nokia C1, sometime this year.
The leaked image shows the alleged Nokia Laptop along with Nokia C1 smartphone and N1 tablet. The Nokia N1 also saw some similar leaks before it was officially launched.
The much-awaited Yu Yureka went on sale but not without some issues. The folks at YU claimed to have sold 10,000 devices in 3 seconds, but some users reported that the company only sold around 3,000 devices. Then a technical glitch at Amazon led to some users getting a price of Rs.12,499 instead of the original price of Rs.8,999. Amazon said that it will compensate for the heightened prices. But the compensation, which was given in the form of Amazon gift certificates, has enraged the buyers.
A screenshot of an email received by an Facebook user from Amazon has been doing rounds on social media. It shows the company offering a gift certificate instead of a refund. The gift certificate is said to work across all Amazon services like Kindle eBooks and apps. It seems Amazon doesn’t realize yet that when Indians say they want their money back, they mean they need their ‘money back’. A gift certificate or store credit is just not an option.
Amazon shouldn’t have a lot of issue in refunding back the money. As the monetary transaction was done digitally it, would have been rather easy for the company to return it back to the original account.
It’s not sure as of yet as to how many customers were affected by the glitch and both Yu and Amazon have not commented on it. The phone itself has received some favorable reviews but the glitches in sale can hamper its prospects. A second sale for the Yu Yureka will take place tomorrow, the 22nd of January at 2PM. Hopefully, Amazon is ready to take on the task this time around.
Just a few days back, SpaceX chief, Elon Musk was in the news again when he talked about his audacious plan to connect the world through space-based internet. He said that this would not just benefit the internet users around the world; it will also help connect those last 3 Billion people who still don’t have access to the internet. The plan as anyone can expect would be expensive, but seems like Elon may now have a partner with one of the deepest pockets in the business; the search giant Google.
Elon has stated that the cost of setting up the constellation of satellites would be above $10 Billion. He claims that this system of providing internet would be speedier and more convenient to spread around. The satellites are expected to be connected through a laser based system as Elon doesn’t have rights to use radio waves.
Google will be investing $1Billion in Satellite Internet initiative of SpaceX
According to the Wall Street Journal, Google is interested in investing $1 Billion into the project to kick off the initial stages of the development of the constellation. This deal would be beneficial for Google too as the internet behemoth would find a massive new user base. Google has been known for investmenting in multiple areas to spread the reach of the internet around the world. Previously the company has invested in Project Loon that is an initiative to provide internet through giant helium balloons circling the globe that are equipped to beam Wi-Fi signals down below. Along with that the company was also planning a massive investment in undersea cables to bring 60 Tbps Internet connectivity for Asia.
The main competition to the SpaceX initiative is Greg Wyler’s OneWeb project backed by Qualcomm and Virgin .
Google was also working with Greg Wyler whose project is almost similar to SpaceX’s plan. Greg left Google last year to form his own satellite company called OneWeb. The company is now backed by Virgin founder Richard Branson and chip maker Qualcomm. Richard had earlier said that Elon doesn’t have the spectrum license, and there isn’t a space for a competing company, so SpaceX should join OneWeb’s initiative. But it seems now that with Google’s blessings on their side, SpaceX can make their plans, a reality. It will also be interesting to see how the company manages to provide the service without access to radio waves. Get ready for some big corporate fights on this issue.
For Google, the initiative, to bring the internet through satellites, will also be cheaper than laying those expensive submarine cables. And the rest of humanity will benefit from the access to the internet. This sounds like a win-win for all. The icing on the cake is Elon’s hopes of setting up a human station on Mars from the revenue of the satellite based internet.
Few days back, rumours about Samsung’s plans to acquire BlackBerry made the rounds. It was said that the South Korean company had offered close to $7.5 billion for the buyout. However, when the companies were approached for comment, both Samsung and BlackBerry denied the story. To reaffirm the same, the Co-Chief Executive of Samsung Electronics, J. K. Shin, made a statement that the company wants to work on an extended partnership but doesn’t aim to acquire BlackBerry at all.
[quote text_size=”small” author=”J.K. Shin”]
We want to work with BlackBerry and develop this partnership, not acquire the company.
[/quote]
Shin further added that they wish to extend the existing agreement, however, they are carefully keeping the details under wraps.
Late last year, Samsung closed a deal with BlackBerry which gave access to both the companies to sell mobile security technologies of the other company. Samsung also signed similar agreements with other companies such as Trix Systems Inc., Good Technology Inc., MobileIron Inc. and AirWatch.
The world’s largest maker of handsets respects its relationship with other companies and clarified that it is not eyeing the patent portfolio of BlackBerry, which carries the highest value in the technology world.
China is doing everything in its power to excite foreign investors to come invest their resources in their country. The government of China has now allowed foreign investors to hold 100% stake in e-commerce companies in Shanghai’s Free Trade Zone.
This new policy comes from China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. Previously the investors needed to partner with a Chinese company to conduct business. They were also only allowed to own 55 percent stake in the company. China aims to gather more access to retailers and consumers outside the country.
The Shanghai Free Trade Zone (SFTZ) was established in 2013. It is the first free trade zone in mainland China and spans across 29 square kilometers. The intention is for the SFTZ to expand gradually to cover the entire 1,210 square kilometres.
Chinese E-Commerce company Alibaba made history by offering a $25 Billion IPO.
At present, there are more than 12,000 companies operating in the SFTZ. This number also includes 1,677 foreign-funded firms. This decision today will help the foreign companies such as Amazon to infiltrate into the Chinese e-commerce space.
The Chinese e-commerce market is profitable and growing at a rapid rate. At present, there are about 330 million online shoppers in the country, which, for perspective, is more than the entire population of the United States. Chinese e-commerce company, Alibaba.com had also shown its might on the NYSE when if offered the biggest IPO in history worth US$ 25 Billion. Alibaba is planning to enter India and was in talks with Snapdeal in September 2014.
After gaining huge success in India and overseas through its impressive smartphone line-up, the Chinese electronics manufacturer Xiaomi has plans to expand further. Seems like the company is now eyeing the games and software market.
Xiaomi recently acquired 3% of Kingsoft’s share and the deal was finalised at approximately $68 million. The partially acquired company is a Chinese games and software giant, which started by developing PC games and is now a renowned name in security, entertainment and enterprise products. With this buyout, Xiaomi seems to be laying the ground for dedicated a gaming experience and improved services for its loyal customers.
Until now, Xiaomi was inking deals in hardware only – a whopping $203.7 million investment in home appliance maker Midea Group and a strategic funding in wearable start-up Misfit. The Chinese top smartphone manufacturer bought the shares of Kingsoft from the Chinese investment holding Tencent and the deal is likely to finish by January end.
Last week, Xiaomi amazed everyone with the launch of the 5.7-inch Mi Note. The company still has something in its bag and will unveil it on 20th January; it left its fans longing with an image that speaks of a mysterious new gaming hardware.
Recently, the news cropped up that the smartphone giant has plans to invest in Indian tech start-ups, as well as overseas media content. With Xiaomi investing in almost every business segment, there will be soon a day when this Chinese producer will beat the current top-listers and will dominate the tech industry.
A sustainable, high-speed internet is the demand of the digital era. The world has entered into the 4G zone, but the need for speed never dies. There’s still a need for improved, high-speed global Internet access which can be offered to people at cheap rates. Qualcomm, a semiconductor manufacturer, has moved ahead in this direction and is venturing with British multinational brand Virgin Group to build a structure that would offer global internet access at express speed.
The top giants are aiming to fly a constellation which will have a total of 648 satellites. Some of the satellites will be launched by the Virgin’s own spaceflight unit, Virgin Galactic. The company is presently developing a satellite delivery service called LauncherOne, along with some vehicles that will revolve in the sub-orbit of Earth. These vehicles have been named SpaceSpace Two.
The fleet of satellites will cost somewhat between $1.5 billion and $2 billion. The telecom brand is saying that these satellites will not only facilitate users with lightening speed Internet, but will also provide the world with an option of superior telephone services. Presently, the proposal is under review with OneWeb and the company will soon come up with its verdict. The OneWeb system will build a spacecraft that will be positioned in the orbit of Earth. Both companies, Virgin Mobiles and Qualcomm, plan to fund the project with an undisclosed amount.
OneWeb said that the forthcoming project will extend the networks of mobile operators globally through which they can reach around 3 billion people in far-flung areas.
Following year, Google started a research and development project called Project Loon, under which the internet search engine sent balloons 20 miles up in the air. Through these, users of the service could connect to the balloon network using a special Internet antenna attached. These signals travel from one balloon to another and then to the base stations and later circulate to the global Internet. Project Loon was well received, but at times, the balloons witnessed some crash incidents.
If OneWeb accepts the investment proposals of the producers, Qualcomm and Virgin will be the front runners in the race of top Internet providers. With the satellite-based internet, accessing broadband will be fast and hassle-free.
