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Samsung teams with Sapphire to power smart homes in the US
Samsung is partnering with Sapphire to power smart homes through SmartThings in the US. The company officially announced its collaboration with Sapphire Connected Communities.
The collaboration with Samsung will allow Sapphire to offer apartment residents a familiar and feature-rich experience through the SmartThings app.
The upgraded platform will also ensure the delivery of an integrated management solution for property managers that improves operating efficiency across an entire portfolio of properties.
“Together, SmartThings and Sapphire will redefine the apartment living experience,” said Mark Benson, Head of SmartThings US.
Sapphire Connected Communities is an enterprise software company that has built the first multifamily smart apartment solution on the SmartThings Pro B2B development platform.
Sapphire is the first Multifamily Residential solution to leverage Samsung’s SmartThings Pro. It enables the platform to offer multifamily customers a standards-based, integrated solution.
The company vows to provide a platform that not only enhances the resident experience but is more cost-effective, providing users with a return on their investment in tech they will use daily.
“Our partnership with SmartThings represents a significant milestone in delivering a cost-effective, reliable smart apartment solution,” said Eric DeJesus, Director of Operations at Sapphire.
Samsung halted chip equipment delivery from ASML for the Texas USA factory Reuters reports. The company is struggling from a broader slowdown in its contract chip manufacturing, leading it to reconsider equipment deliveries.
The semiconductor production business is dominated by Taiwan’s TSMC. Samsung has postponed Texas chip equipment delivery from ASML due to a lack of major customers for the project. Delay in US CHIPS subsidy is also hurting Samsung’s project.
Samsung Foundry’s 3nm process seemingly failed to achieve a production-level yield rate. Other process nodes are also affected, with the Foundry division entering in crisis as no major production client is left for business expansion.
The report states that Samsung’s move to halt shipment covers advanced extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines. This is a crucial machinery in a semiconductor factory that is essential for producing cutting-edge chips.
Samsung has been facing multi-front challenges in its Texas plant. While subsidies are delayed, the construction rate continues to rise. The company has also faced a legal hurdle, with an employee injured during construction work.
The Korean tech giant planned to commence mass production this year. However, the new deadline to complete construction and kickstart production is pushed to 2026. The lack of major clients will further delay the mass production at Texas Fab.
Samsung Elec’s Future Business Planning Division is looking into how Japan’s Sony and Hitachi have successfully revived their growth in recent years after falling behind South Korean companies in the 1990s, Nikkei reports.
It is being reported that Samsung has not changed its business model centered on semiconductors, smartphones, home appliances, and displays for over a decade. As a result, all four sectors are losing competitiveness to Chinese companies.
The current crisis in Samsung’s mobile and semiconductor businesses has prompted it to revisit the management philosophy of its late chairman, Lee Kun-hee.
Project “Fall and Rise of Japan’s Electrical Industry”
Samsung Elec’s evaluation project includes in-depth research into how Sony shifted its core business from electronics to digital cameras and content, such as games, music, and movies.
Under the supervision of Chairman Lee, the company is also studying Hitachi, which has transformed itself from a manufacturer of machinery and railroad vehicles into a tech company.
- Both companies restructured their business models after facing crises in the 2000s.
Samsung is also analyzing the strategies of Japanese industrial conglomerates such as Mitsubishi. These companies thrived as trade brokers until the 1990s and successfully transitioned to resource development in the early 2000s.
“We are reviewing over 100 cases globally, not limited to Japan,” a Samsung representative said.
The research also includes Silicon Valley companies such as Google and Amazon, which have been continuously evolving in response to the rapidly changing business landscape in the era of artificial intelligence (AI).
News
OnePlus joins Android 15 race with OxygenOS 15 announcement; Samsung lagging due to delay in One UI 7
Samsung and OnePlus, two companies in the Android ecosystem, are taking different approaches with their Android 15 update rollout plans, and tech fans are talking about it.
OnePlus has officially confirmed, via an announcement on its social media account and its community forum, that the Android 15-based OxygenOS 15 beta program is coming on October 24th, 2024. The upcoming OxygenOS update will probably bring a refreshed design inspired by iOS, featuring fresh lock screen customization choices and an updated UI.
Devices like the OnePlus 12 and OnePlus Open will be first in line to get the OxygenOS 15 update by mid or late November, with other models following soon after.
With the OxygenOS 15 announcement, OnePlus now joins other leading manufacturers in rolling out Android 15. The smartphone companies like Google, Vivo, Motorola, Nothing, and ROG have already started the stable or beta rollout.
However, Samsung, a key contributor to the Android OS ecosystem, has delayed the One UI 7.0 beta program, causing it to lag in its update schedule. This delay has upset the Samsung Galaxy users waiting for Android 15, as Samsung is taking time to ensure the OS stability rather than rushing updates.
While Samsung hasn’t rushed to release a beta or full update like OnePlus, the company is expected to bring significant visual and functional changes.
As per official information, the Android 15-based One UI 7.0 stable update won’t be available until 2025. The company is going to bring the stable full-featured One UI 7 with the Galaxy S25 series next year.