Latest News from ConsumerIT

Microsoft Doubles Down: The Two-Faced Surface Duo

Tue, 13 Oct 2020 20:11:24 GMT

Starting at $1399, Microsoft’s Surface Duo opens into the thinnest mobile device on the market and connects two PixelSense™ Fusion Displays to create one expansive 8.1-inch screen.

With Qualcomm Snapdragon 855 and dimensions of 145.2 mm (H) x 93.3 mm (W) x 9.9 mm (T at hinge), there’s room for an eSIM5 and one Nano SIM. It runs on Android 10.

But don’t call it a smartphone. Microsoft really, really wants to create a new category of mobile device-- that is, a popular new category.

“We designed Surface Duo for people who want to get more done with the device in their pocket. Our internal research shows that 3 out of 4 people report struggling to complete complex tasks while away from their computer. That’s because smartphones with a single screen aren’t designed for you to easily do multiple things at once,” says Panos Panay, Chief Product Officer for Windows + Devices,\.

“Think about it. You continually have to switch between apps to get even the most essential things done – breaking focus, breaking flow. Just like using two monitors at your desk, having two distinct screens lets you open up two apps side by side…”

He goes on “..as we look ahead to the next wave of mobile productivity and creativity, we see an opportunity to create something new with Surface Duo-- not to reinvent the phone, but to inspire people to rethink how they want to use the device in their pocket.”

Folded up, the Duo is 9.9 mm thick. Unfold and the Surface Duo’s 360-degree hinge allows you to use each screen individually or together, across a variety of modes. Most smartphones sport a tall, pocket-wide size but Microsoft went wider--for an aspect ratio more similar to a laptop or monitor. Like your old iPhone, Duo its slip showing with bezel above and below the screen.

MSI Offers B550 Motherboards

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:52:47 GMT

MSI announces a selection of motherboards based on the recently announced B550 chipset, with products available under the MPG Gaming, MAG Tomahawk, MAG Mortar, MAG Bazooka and Pro ranges.

All the motherboards support 3rd gen AMD Ryzen processors and include PCIe 4.0 technology, allowing for faster data transfer between graphics cards, storage devices and network devices. MSI says the motherboards also improve heat dissipation, with an additional choke thermal pad rated for 7W/mk and thickened copper in the PCB ensuring better heat transfer effects. The USB-C connector on the front is compatible with PC cases featuring such a design, while a Flash BIOS button allows users to easily flash the BIOS without need to connect a CPU, memory and graphics card. The ClearCMOS function is also enhanced to restore the BIOS to default settings quickly and without need for additional actions.

Lenovo Intros Detachable Tablet Duo

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:51:05 GMT

Lenovo announces not one, but two Windows 10 tablets with detachable keyboards-- the Yoga Duet 7i and the IdeaPad Duet 3i, both featuring a companion stylus accessory and LTE support.

The more premium offering of the two is the Yoga Duet 7i, the first Yoga device shipped with a detachable Bluetooth 5.0 keyboard. It features a 13.3-inch IPS 2K touchscreen and is powered by up to a 10th Gen i7 Intel Core CPU and an Intel Iris Plus GPU. Also included are up to 16GB DDR4 RAM, up to 1TB SSD storage, a battery promising 10.8 hours of use on a single charge, Dolby audio and Dolby Vision support.

Intel Buys Killer Wifi Card Maker

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:49:12 GMT

Intel announces the acquisition of Rivet Networks, the company behind the Killer-branded NICs (network interface cards) found in laptops from popular brands such as Dell, Alienware and HP.

The financial details of the deal are not available, but Intel plans to use the acquisition to "develop new solutions for broader PC connectivity enhancement." Key Rivet Networks products, including the Killer brand, will make part of the broader Chipzilla wifi portfolio, while the software will remain available for 3rd party licensing. In addition, Intel will fold the Rivet Networks team into the Intel Wireless Solution Group within the Client Computing Group.

Gartner: -14% Decline for Devices in 2020

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:47:27 GMT

According to Gartner, global device (PCs, tablets and mobile phones) shipments are set to reach 1.9 billion units in 2020, a decline by -13.6% brought about by the coronavirus (aka Covid-19) pandemic.

“The forecasted decline in the PC market in particular could have been much worse,” the analyst says. “However, government lockdowns due to Covid-19 forced businesses and schools to enable millions of people to work from home and increase spending on new notebooks, Chromebooks and tablets for those workers. Education and government establishments also increased spending on those devices to facilitate e-learning.”

Researchers Set Internet Speed Record

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:45:30 GMT

Australian researchers create an internet connection with speeds reaching up to 44.2 terabits pers second, a record achieved over 75km of glass fibre using a single optical chip.

Hailing from Monash, Swinburne and RMIT universities, the researchers managed to create such a connection using a "micro-comb." According to the paper detailing the experiment, the micro-comb “generates very sharp and equidistant frequency lines in a tiny microphotonic chip.” In a few words, the micro-comb loops light around a ring to produce 80 beams at various infrared wavelengths. Each beam carries a stream of data, and since all the wavelengths of light are all correlated, the data streams could be "packed" tightly together using nearly all the available light spectrum.

HTC Co-Founder Takes on VR With XRspace

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:43:57 GMT

The next project of former HTC CEO and co-founder Peter Chou involves virtual reality-- with the venture, dubbed XRSpace, planning to launch a standalone headset and virtual space for users to explore.

"Our mission is to bring people together through the power of 5G XR (mixed reality), surpassing the limited experience of smartphones today," Chou says. "The singular goal of XRSpace, is to take XR to the masses by redefining how people connect, socialise, and collaborate by simplifying the hardware and user experience. When XRspace started 3 years ago, we have been laser-focused at putting regular customers in everything we do. Today we are here to announce a new platform which will take human interaction to a new level through 5G XR."

Arm Powers Future Smartphones With Cortex-A78 CPU

Wed, 27 May 2020 15:41:29 GMT

Arm announces a next generation of smartphone chips-- the Cortex-A78 CPU and Mali-G78 GPU, both aimed to power the flagship smartphones of 2021 and beyond by building on the successes of previous chip designs from the company.

The Cortex-A78 CPU promise a 20% increase in performance over the previous Cortex-A77 while using the same 1W power budget. It also claims more efficient compute workload management, as well as greater on-device Machine Learning (ML) performance. The result, Arm says, is smartphones capable of pushing multi-day, immersive 5G experiences, as well as the hardware to run the foldable devices machines of the future.

300Hz Display for Razer Blade Pro 17

Tue, 26 May 2020 16:08:41 GMT

The 2020 refresh of the Razer Blade Pro 17 laptop offers a number of upgrade aimed primarily at gamers, including the choice of an either 4K 120Hz or HD 300Hz display, together with Intel- and Nvidia-powered internals.

The 300Hz display handles 1920 x 1080 resolution, covers 100% of SRGB space and is custom-calibrated for colour accuracy. It also includes a glare-reducing matte finish to ensure gamers are not bothered by reflection. As for the 4K display option, Razer claims is good enough for designers and other creative professionals. It is touch-capable, and custom-calibrated to cover 100% of the Adobe RGB space while running at 120Hz.

Audio Control Through Cable Presses?

Tue, 26 May 2020 16:08:01 GMT

Google looks into turning the headphone cable into a control interface through the experimental I/O smart braid, a fabric cord allowing users to control a connected smartphone through pinch, squeeze and swipe gestures.

A Google blogpost describes a "helical sensing matrix" (HSM) consisting of a series of capacitive and conductive yarns woven into the braid. The yarns can detect gestures from any angle or part of the cables, with an experimental setup involving single taps for play/pause, a double-top for skip track and a twist for volume adjustments. The fabric also includes fibre optic strings, providing useful visual feedback.