Prosecutors in South Korea have charged 11 people for illegally selling Samsung’s bendable screen technology to a Chinese rival company. According to Bloomberg, the CEO of Samsung supplier Toptec, and eight of his employees had received 15.5 billion won (approx $13.8 million) for conspiring and transferring information regarding organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays. Samsung uses OLED panels in its phones, televisions and monitors. The two others were from the Chinese company with whom they hatched the conspiracy. Bloomberg says that intellectual property theft is a national concern for South Korea and the country is spending billions for becoming self-sustaining in areas such as memory chips and displays, two fields where Samsung is the world leader. On the revelation, Samsung Display said it was “shocked at the results of the investigation by prosecutors, at a time when competitors are intensifying their technological rivalry.” Samsung said that it would keep a close eye on the trial. Citing prosecutors, the report noted that the South Korean supplier transferred “3D lamination” technology and other equipment to the Chinese screen maker between May and August, violating a non-disclosure agreement with Samsung. They were caught while loading additional pieces onto a ship headed for the mainland. Another report says that Samsung’s display technology is considered a “national core technology” under South Korean law, making the offense graver. What’s more, one of the accused was said to be using a fake company headed by his sister-in-law to cover up the espionage. Reportedly, Samsung spent about 150 billion won over a period of six years to develop the OLED technology. Meanwhile, Toptec has issued a statement denying the charges. “Our company has never provided Samsung Display’s industrial technology or business secrets to a Chinese client. Our company will fully cooperate with legal proceedings to find the truth in court,” the company was quoted as saying. This is not the first time that such an incident has occured in the technology world. Earlier this year, Anthony Levandowski, a former Google employee and the engineer behind the company's self-driving car programme was fired from Uber after he was accussed of stealing autonomous car technology from Waymo (a subsidiary of Google's parent Alphabet) before joining Uber. Levandowski reportedly downloaded around 14,000 files from his company-issued computer containing trade secrets related to Waymo's LIDAR technology, circuit board designs, and testing documentation.
from Latest Technology News https://ift.tt/2Rpv7Vk
Motorola generally releases three phones under its G series where the Play and Plus variants represent devices with less or more powerful hardware, while the one without any moniker bridges the gap between the two. This time, the smartphone manufacturer could be introducing a new model as the Motorola G7 Power, which might sit somewhere between the G7 and the G7 Plus variants. XDA Developers report that the Motorola G7 Power has now appeared on FCC. An image revealing the dimensions of the phone has also leaked out, along with some additional information like the device’s rear design and connectivity options. As per the report, the Motorola G7 Power sports the model number XT1955-4 and it might come equipped with a large 5000mAh battery. This doesn’t seem far-fetched since the company’s recently launched Motorola One Power also features a 5000mAh battery. In terms of dimensions, the device is said to measure 159 mm x 76 mm and 167 mm (6.5-inch) diagonally. While there are no more specifications listed on the FCC website, XDA Developers report that the Motorola G7 Power could be launched running on the Snapdragon 632 SoC, which recently debuted with the Realme U1. The Snapdragon 632 SoC is fabricated using a 14nm process. It features Kryo 250 semi-custom CPU cores with four Cortex-A73 performance cores and four Cortex-A53 efficiency cores. The smartphone is said to come with up to 4GB RAM, along with up to 64GB of internal storage models. In terms of optics, the handset could come equipped with a single 12MP camera on the rear with f/2.0 aperture and on the front, it is said to feature an 8MP front-facing sensor with f/2.2 aperture. The camera app on the phone might borrow the Cinemagraph mode from Moto Z3 Play, and additionally come with features like spot colouring, bokeh shots with the single rear camera and more. The handset could be launched running on Android 9 Pie, however, unlike the Motorola One Power, it’s not said to be an Android One device.
The Asus has announced its gaming smartphone “Asus Rog” back in July this year at Computex 2018. The phone has been finally launched in India this Thursday. The smartphone comes with an AMOLED display and a 90Hz refresh rate. On the other hand, the Huawei Mate 20 Pro, which has been released with a triple camera setup at the back is priced at Rs 69,990 in India. Let’s start with a quick specification comparison to know which flagship device packs a better hardware under its hood. The Asus Rog gaming smartphone sports a 6.0-inch display that offers a resolution of 1080 x 2160 pixels. On the other hand, the Huawei’s Mate 20 Pro, which comes with a bigger 6.39-inch display offers a resolution of 1440 x 3120 pixels. When it comes to the processor, the Asus Rog is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, while the Huawei’s Mate 20 Pro is backed by a Kirin 980 octa-core processor. As far as the cameras are concerned, the highlight of Huawei’s Mate 20 Pro is its cameras as it comes with a triple 40MP + 20MP + 8MP camera set up at the back along with a 24MP front shooter. On the other hand, the Asus Rog features a single 12MP unit at the back with an 8MP sensor on the front. The Asus Rog is a completely different device as it is specifically designed for gamers. The phone would be ideal for those who play a lot of games in their smartphone. On the other hand, if you’re looking for a device with a bigger display and a better camera then the Huawei Mate 20 Pro might fit the bill. The Huawei Mate 20 Pro is launched in India at a price of Rs 69,990, while you can get the latest Asus Rog for Rs 69,999
Instagram has introduced a new feature on the platform which will allow users to create a list of close friends and share their Stories only with the people on that list. The new feature can be seen as a push towards increasing personal interaction on the platform. Instagram also recently announced that it is testing a new profile layout that puts the focus on users instead of follower count, in an effort to make the platform more personal. “Starting today, you can make a close friends list on Stories and share with just the people you've added. Instagram Stories has become the place to express yourself and share everyday moments, but our community has grown — sometimes what you want to share isn't for everyone. With Close Friends, you have the flexibility to share more personal moments with a smaller group that you choose,” Instagram noted in a blogpost. The update is rolling out to both Android and iOS versions of the app and to get it, users need to ensure they have the latest version of Instagram on their phones. To add people to your list for personal Story sharing, go to your profile and tap on “Close Friends” in the side menu. Only you can see your close friends list and no one can request to be added. When you add a new Story, you will see an option to either share it with everyone or only with the people on your close friends list. If someone has added you to their list, you will see a green badge when you’re viewing their stories. You’ll also see a green ring around their profile photo in the Stories tray to signify that the story has only been shared with you and a few others.
The Asus Rog is the world’s first gaming smartphone that comes with a 3D vapor cooling chamber system. The smartphone features a 90Hz refresh rate and a 1ms response time. On the other hand, we have the Apple’s iPhone X, which was launched last year at a price tag of Rs 91,900 is now available on Amazon for Rs 79,999. So, let’s compare these two devices to know which one would be the best buy for you? The Asus Rog comes with a 6.0-inch display that offers a resolution of 1080 x 2160 pixels. On the other hand, we have the iPhone X, which sports a 5.8-inch display with a resolution of 2436 x 1125 pixels. When it comes to the performance, the Asus Rog is powered by a Qualcomm Snapdragon 845 processor, while the Apple iPhone X is equipped with an Apple A11 bionic chipset. The Asus Rog come in two variants 8GB/128GB and 8GB/512 GB, while the Apple iPhone X is available in 3GB/64GB and 3GB/256GB variant. As far as the cameras are concerned, the Asus has designed this smartphone strictly for gamers. So, if you’re looking for a smartphone with a dual camera setup then the Asus Rog might not be the device you will prefer. The phone is equipped with a 12MP sensor on the back with an 8MP unit on the front. On the other hand, the Apple iPhone X comes with a dual 12MP rear camera with a 7MP sensor on the front. The Asus Rog is available in India at a price of Rs 69,999, while the Apple iPhone X is available on Amazon for Rs 79,999.
Smartphone cameras today are capable of creating high quality images thanks to advancements in computational photography which have trickled down from premium smartphones to mid-range and budget devices. As a result, bokehs and portrait shots are taking over Instagram feeds and photos with filters and stickers are becoming increasingly popular. However, not all native smartphone camera apps give users the freedom they want to play with images. For that, there are a host of photo editing apps, both paid and free, available on Android and iOS smartphones. Here, we list the best photo editing apps that give you the freedom to enhance images to your liking; be it slapping on some cool text on photos, or adding lens blurs, or even removing unwanted objects from the frame, you can do it all with these apps. Snapseed If you are a mobile photography enthusiast, chances are you have already heard of Snapseed. Developed by Google, Snapseed is available on both Android and iOS. The app offers users a number of different tools ranging from simple ones such as cropping and rotating, to complex ones such as perspective and curves. Users can even add lens blur and text to their photographs, in addition to multiple other presets that are available on the app. Sharing images on social media is easy with the app’s inbuilt sharing options and for the pros, there are options to edit RAW images as well. You get a total of 29 photo editing tools and filters in Snapseed and you also get an option to save your personal looks to apply them to new photos later. Download Snapseed on Android and iOS VSCO VSCO is more like a community rather than just an app, but it does offer a bunch of filters and presets besides basic editing tools such as contrast, saturation and grain. Just like Instagram, the app lets you either take a picture directly from the camera app, or upload one from the gallery. You can also post edited images online for the community to see. You can choose to get a premium membership of the app and unlock 170+ presets or re-create vintage film looks by Kodak, Fuji, Adfa and others. Premium membership also gives you access to photography tips and tricks on VSCO. Download VSCO on Android and iOS. Adobe apps Adobe offers a range of editing apps for Android and iOS. Amongst the most popular are Adobe Photoshop Express and Lightroom. Photoshop Express lets users add filters, crop photos, add frames and more. The app suggests pre-made collages to save you time in creating and sharing. Photoshop express features all your basic editing tools such as contrast, exposure and white balance adjustment. You can also remove blemishes, spots, dirt and dust from your photos and choose from a bunch of filters to make images look better. The app supports RAW photos and Tiff files as well. If you are looking to add custom text or watermarks to your photos, the app will let you do the same. Users can even link up with their Creative Cloud accounts and store edited images in the cloud. Adobe Lightroom allows you to capture, edit and share photos. It comes with an HDR mode which is great for correcting overexposed or underexposed scenes. There are a bunch of presets that users can also take advantage of in the app and in case you don’t like your edit, you can always revert to your original photo. Like Photoshop Express, users can save images to the Creative Cloud using Lightroom if they have a subscription. Download Adobe Lightroom for Android and iOS. Download Adobe Photoshop Express for Android and iOS. Pixlr The Pixlr app is a version of the popular Pixlr desktop editing utility. Using the app, one can easily apply effects on photos and a slider helps in increasing or reducing the strength of the effects. Colours in images can be balanced out using the app’s Auto Fix feature. Apart from all the basic editing tools, the app allows users to style their images to look like pencil drawings, sketches, posters and more. Blemish and red-eye removal tools in the app work pretty well and one can favourite their most used effects to return to them easily when editing multiple images. Resizing photos is also pretty simple and the app allows for direct sharing on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or email. Download Pixlr for iOS and Android. Photable If you are an Instagrammer, chances are you already own Photable, one of the easiest apps to help create collages of all shapes. Using the app, you can edit photos, create collages, design posters, apply makeup to your face and more. The app offers a wide range of presets based on occasions, seasons, festivals and is a lot of fun to experiment with. Users can also unlock a wider range of poster and collage designs by subscribing for Photable Plus. Download Photable for iOS and Android. Google Photos Another Google app on the list is Google Photos. The app is one of the best out there when it comes to organising and sharing photos, but it also comes with a bunch of cool editing options. You can use Google Photos to automatically create collages, sort photos into albums and create animations. If you have two successive shots, you can use the animation effect to create cool GiFs. All the necessary filters are available in the app, but it won’t let you adjust contrast, brightness, etc in the iOS version of the app. You will get those features on Android though. Download Google Photos for iOS and Android Facetune2 The Facetune2 app lets you remove blemishes and and touch up your selfies before you post them on social media. Think of it as a makeup kit. You can reduce blemishes, whiten teeth, add blur, reshape, and much more. Download Facetune2 for iOS and Android Aviary Aviary offers a pretty comprehensive set off tools for users to work with. This includes, filters, stickers, overlays, adjustments and more. It also comes with an auto enhance feature that automatically adjust photos based on presets. So if you took a photo of your lunch, you can enhance it by selecting the Food preset in the auto adjustment option. Download Aviary for iOS and Android
