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Weekly Tech Recap - № 212 - Apple/Qualcomm, SpotMini, Xbox One S All-Digital, Surface Hub 2S and HP Chromebook 15

April 19, 2019.

Harnessing the SpotMini

SpotMini robots pull a box truck.

SpotMini robots pull a box truck. © Boston Dynamics.

How many SpotMini quadruped robots does it take to pull a 26,000-pound truck across a parking lot? Just 10, shows the video that Boston Dynamics released recently. The company announced that these Spot robots are coming off the production line and will soon be available for all kinds of applications. SpotMini will be its first commercially available product.

Engadget, “Boston Dynamics’ SpotMini robots are strong enough to haul a box truck.”

TechCrunch, “Boston Dynamics debuts the production version of SpotMini.”

 

Apple and Qualcomm strike a deal

Apple Park, Cupertino.

Apple Park, Cupertino. © iStock.

On the eve of a jury trial in San Diego, Qualcomm and Apple unexpectedly agreed to end their legal disputes over patent royalties. Apple had accused Qualcomm of extortion and in response, Qualcomm sued Apple for patent infringement in courts worldwide. The agreement puts an end to all litigation between the two companies, which also signed a six-year license agreement, including a two-year extension option, as well as a multi-year microchip procurement agreement. Shares of Qualcomm have soared by more than 23% following the news, while those of Apple have remained stable. According to Nikkei, Apple will equip its 2020 generation of phones with Qualcomm chips, including 5G modems that the Cupertino-based company was lacking.

The casualty in this development appears to be Intel: in the hours following the announcement, it said it was temporarily pulling out of the 5G modem market for smartphones. This was a market for which it was not yet ready to produce a chip, unlike Qualcomm. Apple’s underlying reason for the deal with Qualcomm seems to be Intel’s inability to provide it with 5G modems in the near future. And, to put an end to its reliance on a monopoly supplier, Apple has put together an in-house team of more than 1,000 engineers dedicated to producing on a modem chip, but this probably won’t materialize for several more years. Intel isn’t having much luck in the mobile market, considering that it abandoned SoCs Atom in 2016, leaving the field wide open to Qualcomm’s Snapdragon.

Ars Technica, “Apple and Qualcomm settle patent fight after one day in court.”

Nikkei Asian Review, “Apple and Qualcomm settle dispute, paving way for 5G iPhone.”

Axios, “Intel to quit 5G modem effort after Apple reaches deal with Qualcomm.”

 

Xbox One S All-Digital

Xbox One S All-Digital.

Xbox One S All-Digital. © Microsoft.

After the German site WinFuture picked up leaked marketing materials, it revealed that Microsoft is about to release All-Digital, a version of the Xbox One S without a Blu-ray player. The documents show that the console will go on sale May 7 in Germany for 229 EUR (345 CAD). The photos show that the console looks like the Xbox One S in all respects, but without a slot for a disk drive. After the leak, Microsoft confirmed the authenticity of the images and said that the console would also come out in North America: in the United States for 249 USD (333 CAD) and in Canada for 299 CAD. The new console comes with three games: Minecraft, Sea of Thieves and Forza Horizon 3. It also comes with a $1 Xbox Game Pass subscription offer for the first three months. It is already available for preorder. Will $50 off compared to the normal Xbox One S convince buyers to go without a Blu-ray player?

Xbox One S All-Digital.

Ars Technica, “Everything we know about the first discless Xbox One, coming May 7 for $249.”

 

Surface Hub 2S

Surface Hub 2S.

Surface Hub 2S. © Microsoft.

Surface Hub 2S is a Microsoft device that is intended for collaborative work in meetings. It combines several features, including a digital whiteboard and video conferencing, and comes with integrated Teams, Skype and OneNote software. The large 50-inch screen has a definition of 4K (3840 × 2560 pixels) and features a touch-sensitive surface that works with fingers or with a stylus. Under the hood, there's an 8th generation Core i5 processor, 8GB RAM and 128GB SSD storage. This may seem a little thin, but the Surface Hub 2 software is not designed to store data locally. To support video conferencing, it comes with a network of eight microphones, front speakers and a removable 4K camera. Surface Hub 2S will be available in the US starting in June for 9,000 USD (12,045 CAD). Later in the year, Microsoft will also start selling Surface Hub 2 with Windows 10 Pro or Enterprise, which will mean trading Surface Hub's special user-interface for any Win32 application.

Ars Technica, “50-inch Surface Hub 2S: $8,999, shipping in June; 85-inch version next year.”

 

15- inch HP Chromebook

15-inch HP Chromebook.

15-inch HP Chromebook. © HP.

The first ever 15-inch HP Chromebook comes with a full-sized keyboard and number pad, but also an IPS touchscreen and 64 GB of base flash storage. Other specs include 4 GB of onboard memory, an integrated Intel HD Graphics 610 GPU, and up to 13 hours of battery life. The device comes in either silver or blue finishes. That model starts at 450 USD (600 CAD), and you can pay extra for double the eMMC storage and a faster Intel Core i5 processor. That Chromebook offers good bang for the buck.

Circuit Breaker, “HP’s first 15-inch Chromebook features a full-size keyboard and IPS touchscreen for $449.”