Archive for the ‘Trends’ Category

Study: 45% of Singapore SMBs Want to go 100% Laptop Post COVID-19

Friday, March 12th, 2021

In an IDC survey commissioned by ASUS, SMBs are more inclined to equip their employees with laptops rather than desktop computers – compared to prior to COVID-19.

Hmm, still somewhat behind Japan I suppose. I recall, when attending a senior management & leadership course in Japan in the late 90’s, the staff at the college were already equipped 100% with laptops, while fellow-attendees of the year-long course were issued with a personal laptop. It was a cultural mindshift - coming from a work environment at home when it was still 100% desktop.

Hmm, still somewhat behind Japan I suppose. I recall, when attending a senior management & leadership course in Japan in the late 90’s, the staff at the college were already equipped 100% with laptops, while fellow-attendees of the year-long course were issued with a personal laptop. It was a cultural mindshift – coming from a work environment at home when it was still 100% desktop.

Presented during the IDC & ASUS Webcast 2021 Singapore – Digital Transformation for the Next Normal in Asia/Pacific, ASUS revealed that 45% of Singapore SMBs are likely to convert to a 100% laptop setup post COVID-19, underscoring the importance of mobility in a hybrid workplace model.

The finding is among other strategic insights to SMB technology use and how COVID-19 has affected related decisions.

Three suggestions from IDC that Singapore SMBs can implement with regard to technology implementation.

Three suggestions from IDC that Singapore SMBs can implement with regard to technology implementation.

Considering the survey findings, IDC advised that equipping employees with the latest devices that can support both a remote and hybrid work environment will have a significant impact not only on employee productivity and experience, but also will provide a competitive edge to organizations to attract and retain talent.

More details below from the press release.

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Posted in Asus, Brief, Business IT, events, Figures, Gadgets, gadgets, Infographic, Notebooks, notebooks, Online, Opinion, Press Release, Seminars, Study, Trends | No Comments »

Trends: Singaporeans Reading More in Surge during Pandemic

Sunday, November 15th, 2020

Singapore readers spent an equivalent of 28 years reading this year – 8 years more than 2019. The pandemic has seen a 270% increase in reading minutes, with nonfiction, romance and fiction topping the list for most popular genres of the year.

Reading a book on an e-book reader while enjoying a cup of tea.

Reading a book on an e-reader while enjoying a cup of tea.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, 2020 has been a tumultuous year full of change and uncertainties.

As the nation grapples with an ongoing pandemic, reading has been an escape from the present to disconnect from current worries.

As we near the end of 2020, data from Toronto-based digital reading company Rakuten Kobo provides a snapshot of what and how Kobo users in Singapore read.

According to Rakuten Kobo’s data, Singaporeans spent at least 10,409 days reading this year – which is the equivalent of 28 years.

This is an increase of 8 years more time spent reading compared to 2019.

Additionally, with readers spending more time at home, they also clocked 270% more reading minutes this year as compared to 2019.

While familiar genres like romance and nonfiction remain mainstays, books focused on kids are rising in popularity.

Despite being known as busy individuals (ranked 32 out of 40 for work-life balance in 2019), Singaporeans are still able to allocate time for reading first thing in the morning at 7.00am and before bed at 12:00am, the first and second most popular times of day for reading respectively.

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Posted in Accessories, e-readers, Education, Entertainment, Figures, Gadgets, Kobo, Press Release, Study, Trends | No Comments »

Trends: Phishing Against SMBs Increase in Singapore & Region

Wednesday, September 16th, 2020

In the first half of 2020, phishing attempts targeting SMBs in Singapore increased by 61%, mirroring similar increases across South East Asian countries.

Number of phishing attempts against SMBs blocked by Kaspersky Anti-Phishing System, year-on-year.

Number of phishing attempts against SMBs blocked by Kaspersky Anti-Phishing System, year-on-year.

With the COVID-19 pandemic accelerating Singapore’s digitalisation efforts, SMBs have become the focal point of discussion for many, as funding worries and the shift to telecommuting have left them in no man’s land.

“Despite the COVID-19 pandemic, Singapore continues to retain attraction as the region’s premier business hub, and speaks well of the local businesses’ ability to remain resilient despite headwinds from the global slowdown. However, almost half (41%) of businesses continue to express that the high costs of investment – lack of financing and funding – are major barriers holding them back from digitalisation. The implications of this statistic are significant, as it means cybersecurity may not be a key priority for businesses during this period of cost-cutting,” says Stephan Neumeier, Managing Director for Asia Pacific at Kaspersky.

While the Government has launched generous initiatives such as the new training and adult education industry digitalisation plan to augment SMBs’ competitiveness, malicious actors continue to find new ways to test businesses’ digital readiness.

According to Kaspersky’s latest statistics, the global cybersecurity company foiled 89,351 phishing attacks against SMBs in H1 2020, compared to 55,653 in the same period last year.

Although Singapore continues to fare better than their SMB counterparts in Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, Thailand and Vietnam to witness the lowest volume of phishing attacks in Southeast Asia, the 61% increase suggests that more can be done by Singapore’s SMBs to improve their cybersecurity.

More details below from the presentation and press release.

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Posted in Brief, Events, events, Figures, Infographic, Online, Press Release, Security, Seminars, Software, Study, Trends | 2 Comments »

Trends: COVID-19 Gives Impetus to Hybrid Working

Thursday, July 23rd, 2020

One of the impacts from the global COVID-19 pandemic is the rise of hybrid working, the new normal for businesses and organisations around the world.

* The slides in this article are extracted from Poly’s new report on how hybrid working will be the new collaborative imperative.

What to expect in the new normal of hybrid working.

What to expect in the new normal of hybrid working. Click on image to enlarge.

Working from home had always languished as the catch phrase for businesses aspiring to provide employees with a better work-life balance whilst maintaining a high level of performance.

Even though the requisite technology has been around and available for years now, the main stumbling block to greater adoption of working from home has been predominantly a cultural issue.

Four technology trends enabling hybrid working. Click on image to enlarge.

Four technology trends enabling hybrid working. Click on image to enlarge.

Companies are concerned that employees may not work as hard when left to their own devices at home, while employees worry that it is more difficult to get things done if they’re not physically working at the office.

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Posted in audioVisual, Brief, Business IT, Commentary, Enterprise IT, Events, events, Figures, Infographic, infographics, Opinion, Plantronics, Polycom, Study, Trends | 6 Comments »

Thematic Workplan (2H2020) for tech4tea.com: COVID-19

Wednesday, July 1st, 2020

Today is the beginning of the second half of 2020. Here’s the thematic workplan for tech4tea.com for the second half of the year.

Thematic Workplan 2H2020 - centred around the “aftermath” of COVID-19.

Thematic Workplan 2H2020 – centred around the “aftermath” of COVID-19.

The first half of 2020 has been ALL about something that began last year – COVID-19.

Unfortunately, the second half of 2020 looks set to be all about the pandemic as well.

The past six months saw countries all over the world reeling from the impact of a new disease – frantically learning about it and desperately trying to stem its spread.

The next six months will see countries continue their fight against the global epidemic- managing second wave outbreaks, racing to develop vaccines and cures, and emerging out of lockdowns to return to some form of normalcy.

Going forward, the “new normal” will be very different from the normal of pre-COVID days.

So the next half year will be all about living WITH COVID-19 – in all aspects of life.

For tech4tea.com, I’ve laid down a focal theme for each month in the second half of 2020.

Get in touch (johntan@tech4tea.com) if you have topics or products aligned with the above themes.

Here goes…

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Posted in Announce, Lists, Opinion, Trends | No Comments »