Posts Tagged ‘Samsung’
Monday, August 1st, 2011
Samsung has agreed not to sell its latest Galaxy Tab 10.1 tablet computer in Australia until Apple’s patent lawsuit against it in Australia is resolved.
Apple told the Federal Court in Sydney yesterday that the Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1 infringes ten Apple patents, including the “look and feel,” and touchscreen technology of the iPad.
The Cupertino, California-based company sought an Australian injunction to stop Samsung from selling the tablet in Australia because Samsung has had “announcements of an imminent launch of the Galaxy Tab 10.1 device ongoing since July 20,” Bloomberg quoted Apple’s lawyer, Steven Burley, as saying. It also wants to prevent Samsung from selling the tablet in other countries, although Burley did not name the countries.
Samsung has agreed to stop advertising the Galaxy Tab 10.1 in Australia and will not sell the device until it wins court approval or the lawsuit is resolved. The accord between lawyers from both companies were reached during a break in the hearing.
If Apple eventually loses its patent infringement lawsuit, it has agreed to pay Samsung unspecified damages.
Apple first sued Samsung in the U.S. claiming that the Galaxy tablets “slavishly” imitated the designs and technologies used for its iPad and iPhone. Samsung retaliated with lawsuits in South Korea, Japan, Germany and the U.S. The Suwon, South Korea based company supplies memory chips to Apple.
As part of the agreement submitted in court, Samsung will provide Apple three samples of the Australian version of the tablet computer at least seven days before any plans to launch it in Australia so Apple could review it, according to the agreement submitted in court. This was because Apple’s claim in Australia was based on a U.S. version of the Galaxy tablet, which is different, Neil Murray, the lawyer representing Samsung disclosed.
The Federal Court Justice Annabelle Bennett has scheduled a hearing for August 29 to review the status of the case and set a trial date if necessary.
Tags:Apple, Galaxy, iPad, patent, Samsung, suit, Tab, tablets
Posted in Apple, Gadgets, iPad, Samsung, Tablets, Tech news | No Comments »
Monday, May 30th, 2011
The 5-day annual trade show in Taipei will see more tablet models based on Google’s Android and a preview of Microsoft’s next Windows platform for tablets – one year after Apple’s game changing iPads grab the lion’s share of the tablet market.
COMPUTEX Taipei, or Taipei International Information Technology Show (台北國際電腦展), will be held from May 31 to June 4, 2011 in Taipei. Taiwan based Acer and Asustek had first showed off their low-cost but trend-setting netbooks at the Computex in 2007 and 2008.
Investors and analysts will be watching to see if new Android based tablets can challenge Apple’s iPad. Non-iPad tablet competitors are expected to halve Apple’s 100 percent dominance of the tablet market to 50 percent next year, iSuppli predicted on April 21. The iPad had cordoned off the entire tablet market when it was first launched in June last year because of the absence of competitors.
Computex Taipei 2011 from May 31 to June 4, 2011.
Both Google and Microsoft will send executives to the event to brief the media on their plans. Intel, the world’s largest chipmaker, and ARM, whose chip designs are licensed by Qualcomm and Nvidia to power tablets, will also be vying for tablet manufacturers to select their chips.
Global shipments of tablets will increase almost twelve times to 215 million units in 2015 from 17 million last year, Toni Sacconaghi, a New York-based analyst at Sanford C. Bernstein & Co., wrote in a May 26 report.
Computer sales growth will be reduced by 2 percent annually between 2010 and 2015, Sacconaghi wrote, because fifteen percent of all tablets will cannibalize the sale of consumer PCs.
Bloomberg reports that Microsoft will “preview its operating system designed for tablets this week, using hardware with ARM-based chips”. The current Windows 7 operating system from Microsoft is not compatible with the ARM chips used in tablets from manufacturers such as Samsung and Motorola.
Tags:Apple, ARM, Google, Intel, Microsoft, Motorola, Samsung
Posted in Android, Apple, ARM, Events, Gadgets, Google, Intel, iOS, iPad, Microsoft, Motorola, Samsung, Tablets, Tech news | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 11th, 2011
Google has unveiled today its first Chrome-based notebooks from Acer and Samsung at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco. They will be available for order online from June 15.
The Samsung Chromebook will cost $429 for the Wi-Fi only version and $499 for the 3G version, while Acer’s Wi-Fi only Chromebook will cost $349.
Samsung Series 5 Chromebook
The Samsung Series 5 Chromebook is a netbook running Google’s Chrome OS. It has a 12.1 inch display, 1.66 GHz dual-core Intel Atom N570 processor, 16 GB SSD drive and 2 GB RAM, with 8.5 hours battery life.
Looking similar to the CR-48 prototype, the Series 5 is available either in white or “Titan Silver”.
Chromebooks will be available online June 15 in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy and Spain. More countries will follow in the coming months. In the U.S., Chromebooks will be available from Amazon and Best Buy and internationally from leading retailers.
Here are the main specifications:
- A 12.1-inch (1280×800) SuperBright display at 300 nits, with a 16:10 aspect
- 1.66 GHz dual-core Intel Atom N570 processor
2GB RAM- 16GB SSD drive
- 8.5 hours battery life
- Stereo speakers
- Two USB 2.0 ports
- SD/SDHC/MMC/SDXC card slot
Mini-VGA port- 11.6 x 8.6 x 0.79 inches
- 3.26 lbs / 1.48 kg
- A full-size keyboard
- Multitouch touch pad
- Built-in dual-band Wi-Fi and World-mode 3G (optional)
- HD Webcam with noise cancelling microphone
- Instant-on from standby, and an 8-second boot time
Tags:Acer, Chrome, Chromebook, Google, netbooks, Samsung, Series 5
Posted in Acer, Chrome, Chrome OS, Events, Gadgets, Google, Launch, Notebooks, Operating Systems, Prices, Samsung, Specifications | 2 Comments »
Tuesday, May 10th, 2011
Google will reveal its first Chrome-based notebooks from Acer and Samsung at the Google I/O conference in San Francisco. They will be available for order online from June 15.
The Samsung Chromebook will cost $429 for the Wi-Fi only version and $499 for the 3G version, while Acer’s Wi-Fi only Chromebook will cost $349.
It’ll be interesting whether consumers will bite, considering that you can buy a decent Netbook or an iPad the $499 price-tag for the 3G Samsung Chromebook.
Acer Chromebook
Chromebooks will be available online June 15 in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy and Spain. More countries will follow in the coming months. In the U.S., Chromebooks will be available from Amazon and Best Buy and internationally from leading retailers.
Equipped with dual-core processors from Intel, the Chromebooks boast all-day battery life, and instant-on ability and built-in Net connectivity. Chromebooks will get updates and patches automatically every few weeks, like its browser cousin Chrome.
A special pricing is available for schools – Google will charge $20 a month for each Chromebook. The price will include hardware, administrative support, hardware upgrades, and warranty.
With this long awaited foray, Chromebooks will be taking on the tablet market dominated by Apple’s iPads, and the PC market dominated by both Microsoft and Apple.
Samsung Chromebook
The Chromebooks will run a new new bare-bones operating system that is basically a web browser that allows users to access applications like email, wordprocessors and spreadsheets directly on the web, instead of installing software such as Outlook or Office directly on the computer’s harddisks.
Users can also store their music and documents in the cloud for access from other computers as long as there is an Internet connection. Naturally, that means that a lot of the functionality may likely be unavailable or crippled offline.
Google has been touting Chrome as an alternative to Microsoft Windows for some two years now, but it has encountered delays producing computers designed to use the software.
Tags:Acer, Adobe, Chrome, Chromebook, Google, Microsoft, Samsung
Posted in Acer, Apple, Chrome, Events, Gadgets, Google, Launch, Microsoft, Notebooks, Operating Systems, Samsung, Tablets, Tech news, Technology | 2 Comments »
Saturday, April 30th, 2011
Compact digital cameras took up seven out of 40 categories evaluated by the 29-member magazines of the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) this year. Winners include Nikon, Canon, Olympus, Samsung, Fujifilm and Panasonic.
Compared to the four categories for DSLR cameras, there were seven categories for compact digital cameras.
Founded in 1991, the Technical Image Press Association (TIPA) comprises 29 independent photo & imaging magazines from nine European countries plus Australia, Canada, China, USA and South Africa.
This is the 21st installment of the annual awards.
The winners for the seven compact digital camera categories are tabulated below.
| Category / Winner |
TIPA citation |
| Best General Compact Camera
Nikon
COOLPIX P300 |
The Nikon COOLPIX P300 is a stylish compact camera with a remarkably powerful f/1.8 lens, starting at 24mm (35mm equivalent) with 4.2x optical zoom. High Refraction Index glass further ensures sharp images with high contrast. Combined with its powerful 12.2 Megapixel back-illuminated CMOS sensor, this camera gives excellent image quality even in dim lighting conditions. The P300 can film in Full HD (1080p), but also in slow motion with a recording speed of up to 120fps. |
| Best Expert Compact Camera
Olympus
XZ-1 |
The Olympus XZ-1 has one of the fastest zoom lenses in its class, the iZuiko f1.8-2.5 6.0-24mm (28-112mm equivalent angle of view in 35mm cameras.) Rather than succumb to the continuing Megapixel race, the light-reception area of each pixel of the 1/1.63-inch, 10 Megapixel CCD has been doubled. The XZ-1’s AF illuminator, Dual Image Stabilisation, Low-Light mode that automatically adjusts the ISO sensitivity up to ISO 3200 and the compact size all add up to an exciting “candid” camera that also offers advanced manual controls. |
| Best Premium Camera
Fujifilm
FinePix X100 |
Fujifilm’s FinePix X100 offers unrivalled image quality for a compact camera, thanks to its APS-C format CMOS sensor and Fujinon 23mm f/2.0 lens. The Hybrid Viewfinder uniquely combines the ‘bright frame’ window-type optical viewfinder found in high-end film cameras, and the electronic viewfinder system of fixed single lens or digital compact system cameras, offering the user ‘the best of both worlds’. Added to the package is a newly-developed EXR Processor, which combines all the latest Fujifilm image processing technology. |
Best Compact System Camera
Entry Level
Samsung
NX100 |
The Samsung NX100’s new body design drastically revises the ‘DSLR look-alike’ concept found in other compact interchangeable lens cameras, and is a bold step from the company’s previous NX10/11 designs. This brings it into direct competition with other Compact System Cameras. Impressive features include a vivid 3-inch AMOLED screen, an APS-C size sensor and a line of high-tech iFunction lenses. This promising new series of optics blazes new viewing and camera control paths by allowing the user to program numerous functions right from the lens. |
Best Compact System Camera
Expert
Panasonic
Lumix DMC-GH2 |
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-GH2 is a true ‘hybrid’ photo and video camera, where video is no longer just an additional function. The DMC-GH2 features full HD 1920×1080, 60i (NTSC) / 50i (PAL) smooth, high quality video recording with 60p (NTSC) / 50p (PAL) output in addition to the high quality photo, a world’s first for cameras in this category. The DMC-GH2 can be operated through an intuitive touch control screen. For example, just tapping a subject on the screen will make the camera focus with a speed that rivals the best DSLR’s on the market. |
| Best Superzoom Camera
Canon
PowerShot
SX230 HS |
The Canon PowerShot SX230 HS features a 12.1-Megapixel HS System with high-sensitivity CMOS sensor, and a 14x optical zoom (28-392mm equivalent) with optical image stabilisation. A 3-inch LCD screen, with 100% frame coverage, makes for easy viewing and menu control. TIPA members were impressed with features such as Full HD 1080p video with Dynamic Image Stabilizer, a new GPS function (including supplied Map Utility software) and a high-sensitivity CMOS sensor coupled with Canon’s DIGIC 4 processor that reduces noise levels even at the higher ranges (up to ISO 3200). |
| Best Rugged Compact Camera
Panasonic
Lumix DMC-FT3 / DMC-TS3 |
The Panasonic Lumix DMC-TS3/FT3 is waterproof to a depth of 12m and dust-proof equivalent to the IPX8 and IP6X standard. It has an integrated GPS function, ideal for photographers who want to shoot in the great outdoors and record their exact position during that shoot. The camera has a built-in compass, altimeter and barometer to show and record altitude, barometric pressure and orientation data. The barometer also works as indicator for depth underwater. Thanks to its location awareness, the internal clock of the camera is automatically adjusted to the local time. |
Tags:award, cameras, Canon, compact, Fujifilm, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Samsung, XZ-1
Posted in Cameras, Canon, Compact camera, Fujifilm, Gadgets, Nikon, Olympus, Panasonic, Samsung | 3 Comments »
Friday, April 22nd, 2011
First day sales of the newly launched BlackBerry PlayBook from RIM was said to reach 50,000 on April 19. RIM is expected to sell 500,000 of the 7 inch tablets in its first quarter ending in May.
The first day sales number of 50,000 includes pre-sales and was estimated by an analyst at RBC Capital Markets. This appears to surpass the equivalent first day sales for Motorola’s Xoom and the Samsung Galaxy Tab.
Analyst Mike Abramsky’s staff checked 70 retails stores and found 11% of the locations that stocked the device had sold out, according to Matt Hamblen from Computerworld.
This may come as a surprise to many observers in view of the negative reviews that have bombarded Research In Motion (RIM) over the launch of the tablet computer.
Punters feel the software for the PlayBook was not ready yet because native support for email, contact and calendar apps were not available. Such support may only be provided as an over the air update in summer.
In the meantime, only those who own a BlackBerry smartphone can enable the PlayBook to access these basic apps via a Bluetooth connection. The tablet is only available in WiFi configuration with 3G available only in summer.
It is still too early to tell whether the PlayBook will be able to grab any market share from a tablet market seeing an influx of competitors to Apple’s iPad.
Tags:BlackBerry, Galaxy, Motorola, Playbook, RIM, Samsung, Tab, Xoom
Posted in Figures, iPad, PlayBook, RIM, Tablets | No Comments »
Friday, February 25th, 2011
This is hardly surprising since the iPad has been the only tablet around for most of last year, until Samsung’s Galaxy Tab.
According to data from ABI Research, of the approximately 4.5 million tablets sold in the third quarter of 2010, about 93 percent were Apple iPads.
The original iPad went on sale on 3 April 2010. Reports anticipate the announcement of the iPad 2 next week on 2 Mar 2011.
Samsung’s well-received Android-based Galaxy Tab was launched late last year, while Motorola’s Xoom Android-based tablet became available yesterday. Research In Motion plans to release four versions of its Playbook this year.
Tags:Apple, Galaxy, iPad, Motorola, Samsung, Xoom
Posted in Apple, Figures, Motorola, Samsung, Tablets, Tech news | 1 Comment »
Thursday, February 24th, 2011
Have you received the invitation from Apple?
Apple emailed the invitation to a media event in San Francisco that showed a calendar page with the date 2 March and the top right corner of the page peeling back to reveal an iPad underneath. The peek-a-boo iPad suggests that Apple may unveil its new version of the iPad during the event.
Earlier reports from Taiwan-based Yuanta Securities had surmised that the iPad launch might be delayed to June this year because of production bottlenecks at the China production line of Hon Hai – Apple’s Taipei-based contract manufacturer.
Indulging in my own bit of speculation, both schools of thought may not be untrue. We might actuallly see an iPad announcement on March 2 followed by the taking of orders, with deliveries only materialising in June, probably staged out based on country.
What with the legion of Android tablets being unveiled by the day, with specs that trounce the year old iPad, any delay in unveiling the upgraded specs of iPad 2 could create a negative impression in people that the iPad is inferior to Android tablets.
The announcement of iPad2 with all the specs that has been rumoured to ship with it should maintain its aura of invincibility that over challengers.
Apple certainly won’t want to announce the iPad 2 in June only to have people yawn at its specs, since by then it may already have been featured on the Android tablets out there.
Samsung’s Android-based Galaxy Tab was launched last year and was well-received. Motorola’s Xoom Android-based tablet goes on sale today, while Research In Motion plans to release four versions of its Playbook this year.
The original iPad went on sale on April 3. Announcing the iPad 2 on March would mean that it will follow an annual cycle of updates like the iPhone and iPod.
Tags:Android, Apple, Galaxy, iPad, Motorola, Playbook, RIM, Samsung, tablets, Xoom
Posted in Apple, Events, Opinion, Tablets, Tech news, Technology | 2 Comments »
