Tag: smartphones

Google’s secret app offers a glimpse of how AI is best served on a phone | Digital Trends

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

The future of AI for smartphones is on-device. Or make as many AI processes local as possible. Why? Well, you don’t need an internet connection to get the job done. Whether it’s asking a chatbot to proofread and fix grammatical mistakes, doing a brief research, editing images, or explaining the world around you through the camera.

Second, none of your personal data has to leave the device and get processed on a remote server. And third, it’s going to be faster. The smaller a model gets, the faster it can produce results. It’s a bit of a give-and-take situation. A light AI model means its capabilities are limited.

A bigger AI model, like Gemini or ChatGPT, can understand text, image, audio, and even generate video. These are large models, and they require a heck of a ton of processing power on custom chips. In a nutshell, you need an internet connection to make that happen. But something pretty cool is brewing, and that something comes from Google.

Read More

Smartphones and computers are now exempt from Trump’s latest tariffs | CNN Business

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Electronics imported to the United States will be exempt from President Donald Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, according to a US Customs and Border Protection notice posted late Friday.

Smartphones, computer monitors and various electronic parts are among the exempted products. The exemption applies to products entering the United States or removed from warehouses as early as April 5, according to the notice. The exemption, which comes after the Trump administration on Wednesday imposed a minimum tariff rate of 145% on Chinese goods imported to the United States, does not include the 20% tariff on Chinese goods for the country’s role in the fentanyl trade. The tariff exemption would have a major impact on tech giants like Apple, which make iPhones and other products in China.

Read More

There’s a big problem with smartphone software updates | Digital Trends

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Software updates, the lifeblood of our phones, are a confusing mess — and we need to let manufacturers know there’s a problem. Those are bold words for a seemingly boring aspect of our phones, but it’s true.

We absolutely need updates regularly delivered to our phones, but we don’t need questionable features so they become “newsworthy” events, and updates need to be better presented to the people actually using the device itself.

Read More

Next Motorola Razr could get rid of the offbeat chin design | Digital Trends

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Motorola Razr devices have been known for their offbeat design language. The original Razr sold so well that Motorola retained the name for its first foldable smartphone lineup. Now, the company seems to be planning to get rid of the design that set the Razr apart from the plethora of smartphones on the market.

According to a new report by 91Mobiles, Motorola is all set to unveil the next-gen foldable Razr. It is said to be a big upgrade both in terms of design and internal hardware. Up until now, Motorola has stayed away from packing a flagship system on a chip in its foldable smartphone, but things are all set to change now. As per the report, the upcoming Motorola Razr will be offered in two variants: one powered by the Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 and the other by the yet-to-be-launched Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 Plus chipset.

Read More

Not even 5G could rescue smartphone sales in 2020 | TechCrunch

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

This was going to be the year of 5G. It was going to be the year the next-generation wireless technology helped reverse some troubling macro trends for the industry — or at the very least helped stem the bleeding some.

But the best laid plans, and all that. With about a week left in the year, I think it’s pretty safe to say that 2020 didn’t wind up the way the vast majority of us had hoped. It’s a list that certainly includes the lion’s share of smartphone makers. Look no further than a recent report published by Gartner to answer the question of just how bad 2020 was for smartphone sales.

Read More

Bluetooth Metal Detector | CoolBusinessIdeas.com

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Although smartphones can perform many tasks on their own, they’re also able to make devices such as drones, robots and cameras cheaper and/or more capable by acting as their “brains.” One of the latest gadgets to receive such a treatment is the humble – and potentially treasure-finding – metal detector.

Presently the subject of a Kickstarter campaign, the Ukrainian/American-designed Air Metal Detector features a 9.5-inch (241-mm) submersible electromagnetic coil that is reportedly able to detect small metallic objects located up to 12 inches (305 mm) beneath the ground, or larger objects as far down as four feet (1.2 m). When such an item is detected, the Air Metal transmits a Bluetooth signal to the user’s Apple or Android smartphone, which is mounted on the handle.

Read More

OMG Mom: The Tech Rules Kids Wish Their Parents Would Follow | Live Science

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Children really, really don’t like when their parents share personal details about them on Facebook. And, they wish parents would put down their smartphones and just look at their little darlings once in a while. Oh, and kids also wish their parents would trust them to use technology more independently.

Those are some of the findings from a recent survey of parents and children about their rules and expectations about technology use, and what makes those rules tricky to follow.

Read More

Samsung claws back dominance from Apple, yet still struggling | Mashable

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

Samsung has clawed back its crown from Apple as the world’s biggest smartphone seller by volume, but it still has a long way to go to reclaim its golden years.

While still on top of the industry, the Korea-based tech giant posted yet another profit decline on Wednesday, its fourth-consecutive quarter of declines. The $4.3 billion it made in the first quarter of 2015 is 39% lower than the same period in 2014.

Samsung has been hit by what Neil Mawston, executive director of Strategy Analytics, called a “pincer movement.” Competition on the high end of the market from Apple and the low end from Chinese upstarts like Huawei have pinched Samsung’s business.

“It’s taken several quarters for Samsung to react to [the competition] and to create products to slow down that attack,” Mawston said. “Samsung probably has another year or two of work to say they’ve recovered.”

To do this, Samsung is banking on its new high-end products — notably the Galaxy S6 and Galaxy S6 edge — to compete with Apple’s iPhone 6 and 6+ and help get the company back on track.

Read More.

Google shaking up search results on smartphones | LA Times

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

downloadGoogle is about to change the way its influential search engine recommends websites on smartphones in a shift that’s expected to sway where millions of people shop, eat and find information.

The revised formula, scheduled to be released Tuesday, will favor websites that Google defines as “mobile-friendly.” Websites that don’t fit the description will be demoted in Google’s search results on smartphones while those meeting the criteria will be more likely to appear at the top of the rankings — a prized position that can translate into more visitors and money.

Read More.

5 Benefits of Switching to a Paperless Office | BusinessTips.com

~ knjohn ~ Leave a comment

paperlessIf you’ve been to a thrift store recently, you might have noticed a surplus of briefcases. Lots of people are getting rid of briefcases because they’re relics of a time before laptops, iPads, and smartphones ruled the workplace.

Briefcases made sense in the era when you hauled dozens of papers to work each day, but that era is over. So why hasn’t your business made the shift away from paper? There are dozens of benefits of a paperless office. Here are five of the most important:

1. You’ll diminish your environmental impact. A single sheet of paper might seem innocuous, but its production requires an incredible amount of energy. The papermaking process is resource-intensive. After trees are harvested — usually by machine — they’re taken to a factory and transformed into paper through a process involving harmful chemicals. The resulting paper is then bundled and transported to the front door of your office. Then it ends up in a recycling bin after it jams your printer.

Read More.