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Category: Electronics

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Electronics news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • Will last night’s GPS date-based rollover ?

    Will last night’s GPS date-based rollover ?

    Most likely you won’t be affected, but due to the strange way that Global Positioning Systems (GPS) measure time, some devices were at risk of being reset yesterday at 7:59 pm EDT. GPS systems affected could be reset back to January 6th, 1980. This is a risk because devices using GPS measure time by counting weeks, but they only have enough storage to count 1,024 weeks (nearly 20 years).

    The last time GPS systems were in this position was back in August 1999. Most of the public had never even heard of GPS back then, and it wasn’t until apps like Google Maps brought GPS into consumers’ hands that the public became aware of it.

    We wouldn’t be too consumed with angst. The Department of Homeland Security’s Cyber and Infrastructure division says that as long as your device is less than ten years old, or if you have updated this device over the years, your GPS driven app should be safe to use. In other words, if you are using a 2008 T-Mobile G1 as your daily driver for some reason, and never installed any Google Maps updates, the app might not be of much help today. Mapping and navigation firm TomTom said on its website that those who frequently update their devices have nothing to worry about, but others could find it impossible to navigate using GPS.

    The DHS’ Cyber and Infrastructure unit notes that “A nanosecond error in GPS Time can equate to one foot of position (ranging) error.” In other words, if you are counting on a GPS driven device or app to get you from point “A” to point “B,” blindly following the directions on an affected device could land you at point “C.”

    Many industries depend on GPS these days, including some that weren’t around ten years ago like ride sharing (Uber, Lyft). Considering how much more important GPS is to the global economy these days, newer devices have been updated and can now count weeks using 13 bits of data instead of 10. This means that you shouldn’t have to worry about the GPS on your mobile device resetting until 2176.

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  • Samsung forecasts massive Q1 profit decline

    Samsung forecasts massive Q1 profit decline

    Samsung is not only the world’s top smartphone vendor, but also the number one chipmaker and the largest television manufacturer out there. Despite all these incredible accomplishments and supremacy over several branches of the tech industry, the company seems to be going through somewhat of a rough patch.

    While we’re obviously not talking about the kind of trouble LG or Sony’s mobile divisions have been facing for a number of years now, it’s certainly worrying when quarterly profits go down 60 percent over the course of 12 months. Samsung’s full Q1 2019 financial results are not in yet, but if today’s earnings guidance pans out (which usually appears to be the case), consolidated sales for this January – March timeframe will circle 52 trillion Korean won, with operating profit sitting at around 6.2 trillion won.

    Those figures roughly equate to $45.7 billion and $5.5 billion respectively today, comparing rather unfavorably to over 60 trillion won in revenue and nearly 16 trillion won in profits reported this time last year for 2018’s first calendar quarter. The estimated Q1 2019 sales and profit scores are also down 12 and 42 percent respectively from Q4 2018, which was hardly considered a good quarter for Samsung.

    Until the tech giant releases the final, detailed numbers for 2019’s first 90 days later this month, breaking down the results by individual business, we can make several educated guesses as to what went “wrong” this past quarter. For starters, the company’s global smartphone shipments have been declining for a few quarters, and the Galaxy S10 family was probably released a little too late to reverse that trend. Or perhaps the newest flagships are not significantly more popular than their predecessors after all.

    Meanwhile, it’s important to point out that Samsung’s semiconductor business proved by far the most profitable among the company’s different branches lately, losing quite a bit of steam as demand for memory chips continues to drop. Samsung basically sells its chips to every major smartphone vendor today, so the market slowdown has impacted the company in a number of ways. Last but not least, weak iPhone sales probably took a toll on Samsung’s financials from an OLED display supply standpoint as well. Of course, at the end of the day quarter, the Korea-based tech giant still earned $5.5 billion, which is certainly nothing to sneeze at.

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  • Apple poached one of Google’s best AI specialists recently

    Apple poached one of Google’s best AI specialists recently

    We all get to see changes in market share percentages, sales numbers and all sorts of data showing how competing companies on the mobile market exchange blows all over the world. In California’s Silicon Valley there is another, less covered fight going on between the tech giants that call it home: the war for talent. There are only a few people at the top of each field and if you want to be the best, you have to get them.

    It seems that Apple did just that last month, CNBC reports, as it managed to bring a very important specialist to Cupertino. His name is Ian Goodfellow and for the last two years, he was a Senior Staff Research Scientist with a focus on machine learning at Google. Since March, however, he’s the Director of Machine Learning in the Special Projects Group at Apple, according to his LinkedIn profile.

    Just by comparing the two titles, Senior Staff versus Director, you get an idea about why Ian might have taken the job at Apple. Of course, we have no doubt that the new position came with a significant salary bump as well. Which seems completely justified considering his expertise. According to his own summary, Goodfellow is “an industry leader in machine learning”, and while that might sound a bit cocky, it’s not wrong. Ian has co-authored tens of publications about machine learning, including the book Deep Learning. He’s also invented multiple machine-learning algorithms that we’re not even going to try to describe here.

    As you might have noticed if you’re following closely the mobile technology scene, AI and machine learning are already deeply integrated within smartphones and other gadgets. This makes it harder to guess what exactly is Ian going to work on as part of Apple’s Special Projects Group. Is he tasked with the development of a brand new product? Is the “special project” making Siri actually useful? Are we going to see even more AI in Apple’s upcoming smartphone cameras? With a company the size of Apple, the possibilities are endless.

    It will take months, if not years before we see the results of Mr. Goodfellow’s work at Apple, but one thing is certain, the move is a huge win for Apple and an equally huge loss for Google. It’s not like AI geniuses are dime a dozen. At least we shouldn’t see any regression in Google Assistant if that’s any consolation.

  • Apple ‘fixed’ thousands of fake iPhones

    Apple ‘fixed’ thousands of fake iPhones

    Counterfeit goods are a big problem for any established brand, but when Apple is involved, you know that there will be both demand and supply through the roof given the iPhone role as a status symbol, especially in Asia where most of the fake goods originate from.

    Two Chinese students in Oregon,  Yangyang Zhou, and Quan Jiang, have been running a fake iPhone repair scheme since 2017, it turns out, defrauding Apple of $895,800 in total, according to the company’s estimates. They had bulk shipments of counterfeit handsets shipped to them from China, and submitted those to Apple as “iPhone won’t power on” cases, both online and in stores. The replacement phones were then shipped back to the source in China who deposited money into Jiang mother’s account he had access to in the States.

    Apple “repaired” (most likely just swapped them for refurbished ones) and returned 1,493 of the more than three thousand fake iPhones that were sent to its service before it got an alert that something was amiss on a grand scale. When the situation was raised with Apple’s fraud department in the summer of 2017, they sent Jiang two cease-and-desist orders to stop the scheme but got no response, presumably since the notices were sent to Zhou’s listed address.

    It’s not clear if the fraud alert came within Apple, or the port authorities that have been investigating suspicious bulk iPhone shipments from China since the spring of 2017 but in any case, the scheme started falling apart for the two Chinese on an engineering student visa. Zhou’s lawyer claims that his client will be “vindicated” as he did not know that the iPhones sent to him from China were counterfeit, and thought he was simply taking a cut for a service.

    Ditto for Jiang, who has been accused of wire fraud, as well as trafficking in counterfeit devices, so we’ll see if Apple manages to retrieve anything from the scheme, considering that the repaired real iPhones have already been sent to the vast Chinese prairies.

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  • Android Q will bring an iconic Apple iPhone feature

    Android Q will bring an iconic Apple iPhone feature

    Introduced in 2015 with the Apple iPhone 6s and iPhone 6s Plus, 3D Touch allows iOS users to press the screen to see previews, details, and shortcuts. Some applications allow users to Peek and Pop. For example, you can get a preview of an address in the Maps app. That’s a “Peek.” Applying a little harder force will “Pop” you into the app. Note that for technical reasons related to the Liquid Retina display on the iPhone XR, that model does not feature 3D Touch.

    In Android 8 Oreo, Google added a long press gesture that allows Android users to see shortcuts related to certain apps. That feature was continued on Android 9 Pie. For example, press hard on the YouTube icon in either build, and you’ll see shortcut options that can take you to the app’s search feature, and a list of your YouTube subscriptions. Documentation for Android Q reveals that the next Android build will allow users to see the same information, only faster, with a “deep press.”

    Found inside documentation for MotionEvents is a statement that says a touch on the touchscreen can be classified as a “deep press” when a user presses harder on the screen intentionally. This will “accelerate the long press behavior.” In other words, a “deep press” will reveal the same information as a long press, only quicker. Unlike 3D Touch, it doesn’t appear that Android devices will be able to distinguish between a light press, a medium press, and a hard press.

    Google could turn to algorithms to determine whether a user is using enough force to count a touch as a “deep press.” Or, the new feature might require specialized hardware. Either way, we could hear more about this during Google I/O. The annual developer conference will run from May 7th through May 9th. During the conference, Google traditionally reveals new features that will be found on the upcoming Android build.

    Just the other day, Google disseminated the second beta preview for Android Q. This included a foldable device emulator to help developers see how their apps will look on one of the new foldable phones that will be released soon. That includes the Samsung Galaxy Fold, due out on April 26th, and the Huawei Mate X. That model will be launched sometime this summer. Another feature called Bubbles allows you to take the functionality of certain apps with you from screen to screen on Android Q.

    Google plans on releasing six beta versions of Android Q with the final version scheduled to drop during the third quarter. If you have a Pixel handset, you can quickly sign up to receive the Android Q beta versions OTA. Simply head to the Android Beta for Pixel website and click on the Devices tab. Scroll down to “Your Eligible Devices” and tap the Opt-in button. Expect to wait up to 24 hours before the update arrives. When you’re ready to return to the public version of Android, repeat the process and tap on the Opt-out button. Keep in mind that the beta versions of Android are unstable and many of the features that you might depend on could fail to work. As a result, you might want to think twice before signing up to receive the Android Q beta previews.

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  • Massive iPhone XR price cut in India

    Massive iPhone XR price cut in India

    While Apple continues to dominate the paramount US smartphone market in terms of both sales numbers and profits, the company’s trouble across two other key regions seems to be intensifying rather than ameliorating. Of course, the Cupertino-based tech giant is not sitting idly by as the likes of Huawei, Xiaomi, and even OnePlus are rendering its brand irrelevant in China and India, fighting back with long overdue price cuts.

    Following an unprecedented such move in the world’s largest smartphone market a few months back, Apple is reportedly discounting the iPhone XR in India right now by the equivalent of several hundred US dollars. Namely, a whopping $250 or so (17,000 rupees), which actually doesn’t make the company’s entry-level 2018 iPhone model quite as affordable as you might imagine.

    That’s because the iPhone XR was released in the region at a starting price of Rs. 76,900, equating to more than $1,100, which sounds ridiculous even by Apple’s standards. After the new discount is applied, the LCD-sporting 6.1-incher will cost Rs. 59,900 at authorized retail partners, which converts to $870 or so. That’s still more than what US buyers are typically charged, although the comparison is obviously not entirely fair.

    At the same time, it’s definitely worth pointing out that the Samsung Galaxy S10e starts at a lower recommended price of around 56,000 rupees ($810), no deals needed. As for the OnePlus 6T, which is one of the most popular “premium” handsets in India, it’s pretty obvious Apple has no intention to go as low as 38,000 rupees ($550) anytime soon.

    Still, this regional iPhone XR price cut could be the beginning of a beautiful global comeback for a company that must find ways to stop its recent sales decline. More iPhone discounts are likely to come to India in the near future as Apple ramps up local production of both lower-end and ultra-high-end models like the XS and XS Max. Speaking of, the iPhone XS Max continues to go for a preposterous $1,600 or so (Rs. 109,900) in a 64GB configuration. No wonder a measly 1.7 million iPhones were shipped in total in India last year.

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  • Important change for next-gen Apple Watch Screen

    Important change for next-gen Apple Watch Screen

    It’s a little premature to make anything more than educated guesses regarding the key selling points and major new features of an Apple Watch Series 5 expected out sometime in the fall. But it’s certainly not too early for the manufacturer of the world’s most popular smartwatch family to line up its component suppliers and lay out some general production plans.

    While these are obviously rarely made public, we can typically rely on inside sources to spill the beans for reputable news organizations like Reuters. These often rock-solid informants are claiming Apple has reached a deal with Japan Display that represents a major breakthrough for the financially struggling screen manufacturer. The company, which is a long-time Apple partner, should start supplying OLED panels for the Apple Watch lineup at some point “later this year.”

    Even though there’s absolutely nothing wrong with the Apple Watch Series 4 screen, supply chain competition is always good, generally driving progress and innovation forward at a much faster pace than when a company holds a monopoly on one or several essential components. Unless we’re talking about Samsung, which has managed to exclusively take care of the iPhone X, XS, and XS Max OLED panels while maintaining an impressively high standard of quality and performance.

    By the way, you might be surprised to hear Samsung doesn’t also handle the production of the small but sharp OLED display on the Apple Watch Series 4. That’s actually LG’s business, which is soon expected to be shared with Japan Display. If and when that happens, Apple’s bill of materials could go down, as increased competition among suppliers has a tendency of impacting component prices.

    In other words, LG is likely to charge less for its Apple Watch Series 5 screens than those of the next-gen wearable’s predecessor, as Japan Display finally joins the OLED supply game. This company, which was born as an LCD technology joint venture by Sony, Toshiba, and Hitachi, realized the full potential of OLED (organic light-emitting diode) panels a little too late, staying focused on liquid-crystal displays past their prime. While Japan Display’s financial troubles are far from over, any OLED partnership with Apple would provide a welcome boost to a fledgling business division.

    What it means for future iPhones

    In short, not much. After all, it’s taken LG a long time to start supplying a small number of OLED iPhone screens. Meanwhile, Apple’s two 2019 and three 2020 OLED iPhones are all expected to primarily use Samsung-made displays. That’s obviously because the world’s largest smartphone vendor makes the most sophisticated handset panels out there, lightyears ahead of LG or Japan Display’s alternatives.

    Therefore, as much as Apple would like to further diversify its iPhone supply chain and reduce the company’s reliance on its Korea-based arch-rival, quality trumps any discounts Samsung’s display-making rivals could offer. Basically, unless Apple plans to release a lower-quality, lower-cost OLED iPhone variant in the near future, Japan Display is facing quite an uphill battle here.

    The same goes for LG, although the backup supplier could earn a slightly larger share of 2019 and 2020 OLED iPhone orders, offsetting its Apple Watch losses caused by Japan Display’s newly reported “breakthrough.”

    In theory, all these possible changes and shifts of suppliers could yield lower retail prices for future Apple Watch and iPhone generations, but knowing how the Cupertino-based tech giant typically operates, we wouldn’t hold our breath. After all, the best way to make up for shrinking sales numbers is to jack up profit margins.

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  • WhatsApp is now rolling out a renewed privacy feature

    WhatsApp is now rolling out a renewed privacy feature

    Groups are a vital part of WhatsApp, although as the Facebook-owned messaging platform has grown in popularity so has the number of unwanted group chats. But today, after testing them for a while on iOS, WhatsApp is rolling out new privacy settings which should help control this.

    Until now, group admins could add any WhatsApp user to a group without needing their consent – the only requirement being that the user is a contact in the admin’s phone. As part of this latest rollout, though, WhatsApp users will now be able to choose which people can add them to groups.

    In order to access the new feature, users need to simply head over to the Settings menu within WhatsApp and tap Accounts. Then a quick tap on Privacy and later Groups will present users with the choice of three options: ‘Everyone,’ ‘My Contacts,’ or ‘Nobody.’ Each one is pretty self-explanatory with ‘Nobody’ meaning users will have to approve every single group with ‘Everyone’ allows users to leave their group invitations completely open, as they are today.

    WhatsApp’s latest privacy feature will begin rollout out today to a select number of users before expanding globally across the coming weeks.

  • Motorola’s preparing an insane looking quadruple-camera phone

    Motorola’s preparing an insane looking quadruple-camera phone

    Just two days after the design of Motorola’s first ever triple-camera smartphone was revealed, tipster Steve Hemmerstoffer is back with yet another Motorola-branded device. This time, though, it sports a whopping four rear cameras and presents a very unique design.

    Over the past couple of years, Motorola has developed two clear design languages – Moto smartphones boast circle-shaped camera modules on the rear while One-branded devices feature vertical camera setups in the corner. But this yet-to-be-named model doesn’t fit in anywhere.

    Rather than adopting Motorola’s usual camera setups, the smartphone boasts an array of sensors which are arranged into a square – some could argue that the device resembles Huawei’s Mate 20 Pro because of this. These cameras sit directly above a large Motorola logo and, together, are contained within a large rectangular bump.

    This huge camera module sits in the center of the phone’s rear panel, which itself may be carved out of brushed aluminum rather than glass. The cameras are accompanied by a dual-LED flash and ‘48MP’ branding which suggests the primary sensor will sport a 48-megapixel resolution, like the one expected on the Motorola One Vision.

    Details about the remaining cameras remain unclear at the moment, but Motorola could potentially fit the phone with a wide-angle camera and a telephoto alternative. The remaining fourth camera could then be one of three: a depth sensor, a monochrome sensor, or a Time-of-Flight sensor.

    Yes, there’s a headphone jack too

    Like the Motorola One Vision and One Vision Plus which have already leaked, this Motorola device sports a large 6.2-inch display. There are, however, some very important changes.

    At first glance, the most noticeable difference is the lack of a cutout in the top-left corner. On the One Vision devices, Motorola uses this to house the selfie camera but on this particular smartphone, the Lenovo-owned brand has reverted back to the trusty U-shaped notch. This is paired with thin side bezels, a slightly thicker one above the display, and a larger chin below which is home to the Motorola branding. Also present is an in-display fingerprint scanner.

    Another key difference that may not be as noticeable in the renders is the different aspect ratio. The upcoming Motorola One devices sport extra-tall 21:9 displays, but this smartphone appears to boast a much more traditional 19:9 panel. This results in a device which is slightly wider but much shorter.

    Elsewhere, users can expect a USB Type-C port and a 3.5mm headphone jack along the bottom. Up top sits a SIM card tray and a speaker, while along the right side of the frame is a volume rocker and a power button. The left side of the phone is bare.

    This could be an iPhone XR & Galaxy S10e competitor

    This unknown Motorola smartphone will presumably be announced sometime later this quarter alongside the brand’s other devices – it’s currently working on the two One Vision devices mentioned above in addition to the Moto Z4 and Moto Z4 Play.

    The internal specifications of this device currently remain a mystery, but the 48-megapixel resolution of the rear camera does give us an indication of how the phone will be positioned. After all, this sensor has become popular among mid-range devices lately and is even expected to make its way into the OnePlus 7.

    This factor, combined with everything else the smartphone has to offer suggests it could be positioned as a Galaxy S10e and iPhone XR competitor, or perhaps just below these models at a cost of around $600 to $650. A premium model designed to compete with the Galaxy S10+ and iPhone XS Max does seem unlikely, though, considering Motorola exited that segment last year.

  • Google will allow Pixel owners to customize the icons

    Google will allow Pixel owners to customize the icons

    It appears that Pixel users will soon get more customization options for their phones. XDA opened the product image for the Google Pixel 3 XL in the Android Q Beta 2 update revealing that a future app called Pixel Themes will eventually be listed in the Google Play Store. The themes will allow users to change the colors, icon shapes and fonts used on Pixel handsets.

    Right now, Pixel Themes is a “stub,” or an empty shell of an app already pre-installed in the Google Play Store. This is done so that when the time is right, the app can be instantly launched in the Play Store. There was some code found in the stub that contains previews of what each theme will look like. Three different themes were discovered:

    • Anthony: Rounded or Squircle shaped icons, Black accent, Rubik font.
    • Johanna: Filled icons, Green accent, Arvo and Lato font.
    • Reiko: Circular/Teardrop shaped icons, Purple accent, Arbutus font.

    These are the customization overlays that will be available from the Pixel Themes app

    When the app is ready to launch, you’ll find it in the Google Play Store right here. Until that day comes, clicking on this link will show you nothing more than an error message. And we would be remiss if we didn’t point out that Pixel Themes will use overlays to make the changes based on the theme selected. It also appears that Pixel users will get a small selection of new wallpapers to choose from once this app officially is released.

    With the app, users will be able to change icon shapes in additional locations related to the Settings, SystemUI, and Android framework. That can be seen from the image below.

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  • Call Screen support is officially coming to Motorola One

    Call Screen support is officially coming to Motorola One

    Motorola has today announced that Google’s Call Screen feature is coming to the Moto G7 family and the Motorola One lineup. Until today, the feature was exclusively available on Google’s Pixel smartphones.

    Call Screen basically lets you use the Google Assistant to screen incoming phone calls, with the idea being that it’ll help avoid any scammers or unwanted callers. If you choose to use the feature, the Google Assistant will first ask callers why they are calling and relay the ongoing conversation in real-time on the screen. If you wish to answer the call yourself, you can do so at any time. Alternatively, you can choose to hang up or select another response such as “Is it urgent?” or “Tell me more.”

    Motorola says that it already “began rolling out,” although it didn’t specify when or how long it will take. Nevertheless, these things typically take a couple of weeks before everyone receives the update so if you own a Moto G7, Moto G7 Power, Moto G7 Play, Motorola One, or Motorola One Power be sure to be on the lookout.

    This feature’s release was hinted at as recently as yesterday by an update to Google’s Phone app. It also contained references to support for Nokia smartphones, which means these devices will likely be the next ones to receive the feature. However, as things stand, nothing has been announced officially.

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  • Logitech unveils affordable Smart Keyboard alternatives for Apple iPad PROs

    Logitech unveils affordable Smart Keyboard alternatives for Apple iPad PROs

    Logitech makes some of the best third-party accessories for iPhones and iPads, a few of which can even be purchased directly from Apple at very competitive prices. Just think of the $69.95 Logitech Crayon, which substantially undercuts the $99 and up Apple Pencil. Or the $69.95 Logitech Powered wireless charging stand, or $130 and up Logitech Slim Combos with detachable keyboards for previous-generation iPad Pros

    Oddly enough, Logitech still doesn’t sell any keyboard accessories tailor-made for Apple’s newest iPad Pro models, but that’s finally set to change later this month. The Slim Folio Pro looks and sounds extremely similar to the first-party Smart Keyboard Folio, starting however at only $119.99. That’s a whopping 60 bucks cheaper than Apple’s own 11-inch option, while the Logitech Slim Folio Pro for 2018’s 12.9-inch iPad Pro will cost $129.99, compared to the $199 price tag of its Apple-made counterpart.

    Impressively enough, it doesn’t seem like Logitech has had to cut many corners or make any big compromises to go this low in terms of retail prices, as the Slim Folio Pro ticks all the essential boxes of a robust “all-in-one case”… and then some. You get both front and back protection against scuffs, scratches, and spills for your new 11 or 12.9-inch iPad Pro, an “edge-to-edge” backlit keyboard design aimed at stellar productivity, and even a special magnetic latch to safely store your Apple Pencil when not in use.

    Without a doubt, the best thing about this overall top-notch Smart Keyboard alternative is its battery life, rated at “up to three months” on a single charge. The Slim Folio Pro is also pretty versatile, enabling comfortable typing, sketching, and reading experiences by propping up your iPad Pro, sliding underneath it, or effortlessly folding back.

    The only possible drawback is the use of Bluetooth technology to wirelessly connect to Apple’s latest powerhouses rather than leveraging their magnetic Smart Connectors. But Bluetooth keyboards can be reliable too, so if you want to save a few bucks, you should definitely consider the Logitech Slim Folio Pro… when it actually goes on sale.

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  • OneDrive for iOS update brings deeper functionality

    OneDrive for iOS update brings deeper functionality

    In between bug squashing and adding new features, OneDrive benefits from a steady flow of updates meant to enhance user experience. The latest update brings support for specific features aimed at iPhone users like Siri Shortcuts. You can turn on shortcuts by heading to Settings / Siri & Search, which will allow you to use your voice for various tasks.

    For example, you can say “Hey Siri, scan a business card” and the app should do it for you. Of course, you can scan anything from a document or photo to a whiteboard if the need arises. But Siri Shortcuts is not the only new addition to this OneDrive build.

    The official changelog mentions that the VoiceOver experience in the Shared paged has been fine-tuned, which means it should now behave a little more human and more accessible. Also, a minor issue in the iMessage where the app’s icons were showing up pixelated has been addressed.

    The final change introduced in the update targets business users, but something rather minor. The name of the Sites view has been changed to Libraries, but that’s about all there is, the feature should work the same.

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  • Google’s mobile payment service expands to more banks

    Google’s mobile payment service expands to more banks

    If you’re anxious to use Google Pay, but can’t because your bank doesn’t yet support the mobile payment service, you’ll be happy to know that Google is working hard to bring the product to as many consumers as possible. At least in the United States.

    We’re back with the monthly list of banks and credit unions that are about to receive Google Pay support, and this time there are only 15 of them. If your bank is among them, but you still can’t use the service, then give a few days. Without further ado, here is the full list of banks and financial institutions that should now offer Google Pay support.

    American State Bank & Trust Company, Commercial Bank, Community First Bank of Indiana, First National Bank of Paragould, Generations Bank (AR), Generations Bank (NY), Greensboro Municipal Federal Credit Union, Harvard State Bank, Heartland State Bank, Minnesota National Bank, People’s Bank of Commerce, PrimeWay Federal Credit Union, Spring Bank, Tampa State Bank, Walden Savings Bank, and Zellco Federal Credit Union.

    To find out if your bank or card works for in-store purchases with Google Pay on your phone, you should check out the full list from the service’s support site.

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  • Gome Retail’s loss soars tenfold After Restructuring

    Gome Retail’s loss soars tenfold After Restructuring

    Gome Retail’s loss tenfold last year to RMB4.887 billion (US$728 million), compared with RMB450 million in the previous year.

    The loss – projected early last month in a profit warning – was largely due to massive write downs as the once brick-and-mortar based retailer continued its transformation into a New-Retail-era business, with its focus moving online. On a day-to-day trading basis, the company has almost broken even.

    During the reporting period, GMV (gross merchandise volume) from its ME Shop increased by 368 per cent, while GMV from new businesses such as home solution and integration of kitchen cabinets with electrical appliances increased by 116 per cent and from smart products by 89 per cent. Services GMV rose by 51 per cent.

    “The booming new business indicates that the group’s strategic transformation is progressing well,” the company said in an earnings statement.

    Overall sales revenue fell 10 per cent to RMB64.356 billion, and consolidated gross profit margin of 16.8 per cent was down on the 18.26 per cent of 2017.

    “Looking forward, Gome will continue to focus on major large-scale integrated flagship store projects in the first- and second-tier cities in an effort to provide one-stop comprehensive household solution, from home appliance to decoration, construction and household services,” the Hong Kong-listed company said.

    The group expects to open 16 large-scale integrated flagship stores and 200 home-decoration materials and home furnishing shops this year.

    “Gome will step up the output of its supply-chain service in the third- to sixth-tier cities to achieve swift development of store coverage in county-level cities, with an emphasis on franchising. It is expected that 500 franchise “new retail stores” and 200 self-operating county-level stores will be opened this year.”