We’re not ashamed to say it, we love Nokia’s MeeGo-running N9. We love its stillborn (but still awesome) OS, its liquid-looking display and gorgeous machined polycarbonate shell. Now, we can see how that glorious bit of Finnish hardware gets put together in the newly released video seen above. So sit back, relax and let the precision manufacturing wash over you.

Nokia shows off how it makes the N9, Americans watch with envy originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 24 Oct 2011 14:46:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony has just postponed the launch of its new NEX-7 mirrorless camera, due to widespread flooding in Thailand. According to the manufacturer, the flooding has impacted operations at two of its three factories within the country, thereby delaying production of both the NEX-7 and Alpha A65. Reuters is reporting that one camera plant has been completely flooded, while operations at a semiconductor factory have been suspended due to supply shortages. The NEX-7 was originally scheduled to hit the market next month, though Sony now says it has been delayed indefinitely. “It is difficult for us to say at this time when production will re-start in Thailand,” spokesman George Boyd told the BBC. “However, we are taking measures to move production to our third factory in Thailand which is operational and also to other sites.”

Thailand flooding forces Sony to postpone Alpha NEX-7 release, curb A65 production originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 20 Oct 2011 04:32:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Gather ’round, everyone, because a fresh batch of ComScore numbers has just arrived. According to the research firm, Android remains in firm control of the smartphone platform market, commanding 43.7 percent, followed by Apple (27.3 percent) and RIM (19.7 percent). In fact, Google extended its share by nearly two points over last month’s figures, while Apple’s iOS grew by just 0.3 points, but further distanced itself from RIM, which now sits 7.6 points behind. On the manufacturing side of the equation, Samsung remains top dog, accounting for 25.3 percent of all mobile subscribers (including both smartphone and feature phone users), followed by LG (21 percent) and Motorola (14 percent). Apple, meanwhile, sits a distant fourth, at 9.8 percent, followed by RIM, which rounds out the top five with 7.1 percent market share. Number crunchers can find more fodder in the full PR, after the break.

Continue reading ComScore: Android extends lead over Apple, holds 44 percent of smartphone market

ComScore: Android extends lead over Apple, holds 44 percent of smartphone market originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 06 Oct 2011 07:27:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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It appears that Apple is about to expand its manufacturing operations to Brazil, where a new Foxconn factory is already in place and ready to churn out iPads, according to a report from national media outlet UOL. Aolizio Mercadante, the country’s minister of science and technology, confirmed the news this week during a hearing held by the Commission of Economic Affairs. “At first many doubted, but it will be the first time that [Apple] will produce iPads outside Chinese territory,” Mercadente said. “We are taking a big step for digital inclusion in the country.” Located in Jundia

It was probably gonna happen sooner or later, but a new report from IDC confirms it: smartphones are now out-shipping feature phones in western Europe. According to the company’s statistics, only 20.4 million feature handsets were shipped to the Old World during the second quarter of this year, representing a 29 percent decrease from Q2 2010. Quarterly shipments of smartphones, on the other hand, increased by 49 percent to 21.8 million units, marking the first time that they’ve surpassed basic phone orders. Smartphones also comprised 52 percent of all mobile shipments, which shrunk by three percent, collectively — something IDC’s Francisco Jeronimo attributes, in part, to Europe’s brutal economic climate and Nokia’s steep decline (see chart). On the OS front, Android once again came out on top within the region, thanks to a whopping 352 percent year-to-year increase in shipments, while Samsung controlled the manufacturing side, with 33 percent of the European market. You can find more IDC math in the full PR, after the break.

[Thanks, Pauly]

Continue reading Smartphones out-ship feature phones in Europe, Samsung leads the way

Smartphones out-ship feature phones in Europe, Samsung leads the way originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 12 Sep 2011 06:30:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony, Toshiba and Hitachi confirm plans for government-backed LCD joint venture originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 01 Sep 2011 00:07:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We saw this coming when we met FRIDA, and now it’s apparently happening. According to Xinhuanet, Foxconn’s founder and chairman chose a workers’ party last Friday night to reveal plans for a surge in the company’s robot contingent. There’ll be 300,000 robots in operation by next year and a swarm-like 1,000,000 within three years — versus just 10,000 today. The bots will be required to spray, weld and not kill themselves. We can only imagine how this news went down at the party, but soon stuff like that will hardly matter.

Foxconn wants 1 million new workers, must be robotic originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 01 Aug 2011 05:15:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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We’ve heard that the next iteration of the iPad will be thinner, have a Retina Display, and will bring peace to the Middle East. Here’s a rumor that’s a little more mundane, and much more likely to be accurate though — Apple may be adding another manufacturer, alongside Foxconn, to produce its tablet. According to a DigiTimes source the explosion at the company’s Chengdu plant in May has created some serious supply issues. Additionally, tablet sales are expected to grow even higher this year, according to the IDC, and the Cupertino Crew already has trouble keeping up with demand. It seems there’s little choice but to bring on board the likes of Quanta Computers or Petagron Technology, the two front runners for the orders.

Apple may be looking to add another iPad manufacturer originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 11 Jul 2011 16:11:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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China’s control over the rare earths market hasn’t faced too many challenges over the past few years, but that may be changing, thanks to a major discovery in Japan. Geologists say they’ve uncovered expansive new deposits of rare earth minerals, buried within a seabed some 20,000 feet below the Pacific Ocean surface. Research leader Yasuhiro Kato estimates that the deposits contain anywhere from 80 to 100 billion metric tons of rare earths, which, if commercially viable, could pose a serious threat to China’s global hegemony. Supply shortages and aggressive Chinese export controls have combined to raise global prices in recent years, much to the chagrin of manufacturers who rely upon the metals to produce smartphones, tablets and a wide variety of other gadgets. But with analysts predicting a rare earth surplus within the next few years and Japan’s mining industry now poised for a potential resurgence, the outlook is certainly looking a lot brighter.

Japanese scientists discover massive rare earth deposits, China bristles originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 04 Jul 2011 21:01:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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ASUS has had a hard time meeting demand for its Eee Pad Transformer since the device’s launch earlier this year, but we clearly don’t have component shortages to blame. Jerry Shen, the Taiwanese company’s CEO, says that he expects to sell 300,000 of the tablets this month, following shipments totaling 400,000 in April and May. That figure puts the device in the number two spot for worldwide tablet shipments, just behind the prevailing iPad 2. At that rate, ASUS’s latest hybrid will bring in NT $2.5-3 billion (approximately $86.6-104 million), accounting for 10 percent of the company’s total revenue for June — a figure which could increase after sales pick up in Europe and mainland China in Q3. As for North America, it looks like e-tailers are finally able to maintain inventory of the $399 (16GB) flavor — it’s listed as in stock with major sites, including Amazon and Best Buy.

ASUS to ship 300,000 Eee Pad Transformers in June, surpass all non-iPad tablet sales originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 13 Jun 2011 11:54:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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