Qualcomm added three "platforms" to address the “ongoing demand” for 4G, said the company Tuesday. The Snapdragon 720G, 662 and 460 enable fast connectivity, deliver key Wi-Fi 6 features and have Bluetooth 5.1 support. “While we see a fast adoption of 5G across geographies globally,” 4G “will continue to remain a focus area” in regions like India “where it will stay a key technology for connectivity,” it said. “Our goal is to enable our partners to continue creating solutions that offer seamless connectivity access and exceptional mobile experiences.”
Bose is closing its remaining 119 retail stores in North America, Japan and Australia over the next several months, a spokesperson emailed Thursday, citing the “dramatic shift to online shopping in specific markets.” It will continue to operate 130-plus stores elsewhere, she said. The audio industry shift to smartphones as source devices and headphones as personal speakers was a driving force behind the decision. “Originally, our retail stores gave people a way to experience, test, and talk to us about multi-component, CD and DVD-based home entertainment systems,” said Colette Burke, vice president-global sales. “At the time, it was a radical idea, but we focused on what our customers needed, and where they needed it -- and we’re doing the same thing now.” It said “as smartphones changed the industry, the company’s focus turned to mobile, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi solutions.” Its products are largely bought through e-commerce, including Bose.com.
The smart home market will account for over 13 percent of 815 million Bluetooth device shipments by 2024, up from 250 million last year, said ABI Research. Growth in smart lighting, voice-enabled front-end products, door locks, smart appliances and sensors was cited by the researcher, including in a Wednesday email. Bluetooth’s low power consumption, audio capabilities, widespread presence in mobile devices, and mesh networking support position it for many device types, said analyst Andrew Zignani: It will benefit from smart home growth along with Wi-Fi, 802.15.4 and Z-Wave.
Worldwide shipments of used smartphones rose 17.6 percent to 206.7 million last year, reported IDC this week. The growth reflects “considerable savings” over new devices, as OEMs "struggled to produce new models that strike a balance” between new features consumers want and reasonable prices, said the researcher. The used market “shows no signs of slowing down,” said analyst Anthony Scarsella, with the transition from 4G to 5G. “The ability for vendors to push more affordable refurbished devices in markets in which they normally would not have a presence is helping these players grow their brand as well as their ecosystem of apps, services, and accessories.” Used smartphones had 22.2 percent share in North America in 2018, expected to grow to 26.2 percent by 2023. Elsewhere, it was 77.8 percent in 2018, forecast to reach 73.8 percent share in three years.
Samsung agreed to buy TeleWorld Solutions, a network services provider of 4G and 5G network design, testing and optimization services to mobile service and cable operators. The acquisition will address the need for accelerated end-to-end support in delivering 5G network solutions, Samsung said. TWS will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary.
CTA, along with Heart Rhythm Society, released Thursday at CES a paper recommending best practices for using wearables to manage personal health, including detecting and monitoring cardiovascular biometrics. The paper includes an overview of the wearables landscape and advice on using devices. A FAQ section covers topics including data management, when to call a doctor, sharing data with a health provider, data privacy and security policies.
Smart speakers will account for more than half of global wireless speaker sales 2019-2023, Futuresource reported. The U.S. market had just under half of smart speaker shipments last year. Renewed interest in music consumption and tech advances are driving increased demand for consumer audio hardware, said Wednesday's report. The market for home audio hardware and headphones grew to $50.8 billion in 2019, up from $47.5 billion the prior year.
Swedish sound company Dirac, known for room correction tuning technology, announced at CES Tuesday a digital audio solution for mobile devices. It’s said to reveal subtle beats, tones and sounds typically lost in headphones and to bring the higher definition content “outside the listener’s head” with a more spacious listening experience. Customized app-based algorithms boost details in music to “unleash the full potential of the headphones,” regardless of the audio codec used, said the company. Dirac is in talks with smartphone and music streaming companies about embedding the digital audio tech in products and platforms with the first partnership expected to be announced this quarter, it said.
TCL made its first U.S. foray into smartphones before CES. The company is launching a trio of phones, with four cameras and NXTVision display technology, executives told reporters Monday in Las Vegas. The wireless phones will be priced under $500 -- including a 5G model -- said Stefan Streit, TCL Mobile general manager-global marketing. The company doesn’t believe 5G smartphones should be reserved only for wealthy consumers, he said. The first U.S. 8K TCL Roku TV will be ready for 8K content as next-generation game consoles and streaming services come to market, said Aaron Dew, TCL North America director-product development. TCL had voice-ready TVs previously but will up the game in 2020 with integrated mics that allow for direct far-field voice control via Roku, Amazon and Google without a smart speaker, he said.
OtterBox and Corning partnered on a smartphone screen protection line, Amplify, with antimicrobial technology that’s said to suppress growth of several common microbe stains and bacteria, they announced Monday at CES. The antimicrobial property of the screen protectors, based on ionic silver, is embedded into the glass so it can maintain damage resistance, optical clarity and touch sensitivity, they said. Amplify Glass’ antimicrobial technology is registered with the EPA, they said.