Samsung mobile chief confident of Galaxy Note 8 success

Preorders for Samsung Electronics Co.'s latest high-end smartphone, the Galaxy Note 8, reached the highest-ever among its Note line, its chief of mobile communications said Tuesday, expressing confidence that the premium device will be very successful.Koh Dong-jin, president of Samsung Electronics, said the combined preorders for its Galaxy Note 8 in South Korea topped 650,000 units in just five days, far outpacing its predecessor.The figure dwarfed numbers for the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7, which

Sept. 12, 2017

[Newsmaker] Korea’s FTC head faces flak for calling Naver founder ‘visionless’

The chief of South Korea’s antitrust watchdog, who built his reputation as a “chaebol sniper,” is facing flak from local IT industry leaders after calling Naver founder Lee Hae-jin a figure who “lacks vision for the future,” unlike Apple founder Steve Jobs. 　　Fair Trade Commission Chairman Kim Sang-jo criticized the Naver founder, who he had recently met over the Korean internet giant’s listing on a new corporate watch list, in a recent interview with local newspaper Kookmin Ilbo. 　“A company of

Sept. 11, 2017

Samsung strengthens foundry with 11-nm, 7-nm

Samsung is moving to strengthen its foundry business by adding a new 11-nanometer FinFET process technology and developing the industry’s first 7-nm process tech, the company announced Monday. By adding the 11-nm FinFET process, Samsung now has wider range of options for their next-generation products in terms of cost effectiveness. Also known as the 11 Lower Power Plus (11LPP) process, the cutting-edge tech delivers up to 15 percent higher performance and 10 percent chip area reduction with the

Sept. 11, 2017

LG OLED TV wins positive responses in US, Europe

LG Electronics Inc.'s high-end organic light-emitting diode TV products have won positive responses from American and European consumer magazines, industry sources said Monday.The LG OLEDB7V model, a 65-inch OLED UHD TV, made by the South Korean home appliance giant has topped evaluations conducted by leading consumer magazines from nine European countries, including Italy-based Altroconsumo, Germany-based Stiftung Warentest, France-based Que Choisir and Spain-based OCU, they said. (Yonhap)The U

Sept. 11, 2017

Samsung Electronics' earnings may beat market expectations in Q3: observers

Samsung Electronics Co., the world's largest producer of memory chips and smartphones, may beat market expectations and post earnings growth in the third quarter despite earlier predictions of adjustments, market watchers said Sunday.Forecasts for a leveling off are centered on expectations that prices of both liquid-crystal displays and organic light-emitting diodes will fall due to current market conditions. Observers had said Samsung could experience almost no growth because its second quarte

Sept. 10, 2017

LG seeks edge in smartphone market with price competitiveness

LG has reportedly decided to take a different path with its latest smartphone in the hope of gaining an edge in price competitiveness, amid heated competition in the industry with Samsung and Apple unveiling their latest products. According to sources in the telecom industry, LG Electronics will offer its latest V30 smartphone for under 1 million won ($882.6). The 64-gigabyte model will cost 949,300 won, while the 128-GB model will be priced at 998,800 won. It had been expected that the V30 woul

Sept. 10, 2017

First US FDA approval of CAR-T therapy hikes expectations for Korean biotech ventures

The US Food and Drug Administration’s first approval of a CAR-T cell therapy is raising market expectations for South Korean biotech ventures that are currently working to develop similar cellular immunotherapy drugs for cancer.　On Aug. 30, the US drug regulator approved Novartis’ Kymriah, a CAR-T cell therapy that genetically alters a patient’s own immune cells into a “living drug” that is trained to recognize and attack cancer cells in the blood.It is the first CAR-T -- short for chimeric anti

Sept. 10, 2017

[Health-tech Korea] Keeping one's heartbeat on a finger

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles highlighting South Korea’s promising startups in the emerging sectors of digital health care and next-generation medical devices. This is the 12th installment. - Ed.One of the most common yet underdiagnosed diseases affecting older adults is atrial fibrillation -- an irregular heart rhythm that can cause blood clots, leading to potentially fatal complications including heart failure or a stroke.Some 150 million people worldwide are said to be s

Sept. 10, 2017

Samsung releases 5-door fridge with easier access to on-the-go items

Samsung Electronics Co. said Sunday it has introduced a five-door refrigerator that provides easy access to on-the-go items.The H9000 fridge, updated from the more conventional two-door refrigerator, allows users instant access to drinks and condiments while letting them store large and fresh food items in an inner space, Samsung said on its website.  (Yonhap)"Perfect for frequently used items, this refrigerator lets you easily organize your food by type or family member," it said.The new fridge

Sept. 10, 2017

Samsung says Galaxy Note 8 preorders setting new records in US

Samsung Electronics Co. said Sunday that preorders for its Galaxy Note 8 are setting new records in the United States.The world's largest manufacturer of smartphones said orders received since Aug. 24 are the highest tallied to date for its premium phablet Note line.The company did not disclose exact numbers citing policy but said it was buoyed by the consumer response after the debacle of the previous year's Note 7 that was taken off the shelves completely after some caught fire while being rec

Sept. 10, 2017

UberEATS finds big potential in Korea food delivery market

UberEATS, a food delivery service app run by ride-sharing pioneer Uber Technologies Inc., finds big growth potential in South Korea's food delivery market due to its advanced wireless networks and growing orders on mobile phones, a senior company executive said.The US-based business launched its UberEATS service in Seoul a month ago, bringing the service to 112 cities across 28 countries, where it has 60,000 restaurant partners.  "Seoul is a perfect place for UberEATS. We find South Korea's fast

Sept. 10, 2017

[Weekender] In search of youth

The term “babyface” has far wider connotations in the modern era than as a nickname for boxers and legendary bank robbers. Saying someone has a babyface may be the biggest compliment one can pay in a society that seems determined to stay forever young.Koreans enjoy a reputation for being well-groomed, with the country ranking No. 3 in the world in the number of cosmetic procedures done and No. 5 in the number of plastic surgeons, according to 2015 data by the International Society of Aesthetic P

Sept. 8, 2017

[Weekender] Secret to reversing aging? Think again

As people age, so do their looks. In the hopes of reversing the ravages of time, a growing number of people are willing to pay for the privilege: The anti-aging industry in South Korea is expected to gross more than 28.3 trillion won ($25.1 billion) by 2020. Yet aging is a natural process of life, and experts warn against manipulating the pace using therapies that have not yet been proven to have significant benefits. 123rfA growing number of beauty clinics across the nation are offering stem ce

Sept. 8, 2017

Galaxy Note 8 preorders hit nearly 400,000 on first day

Samsung Electronics Co. said Friday the combined preorders for its Galaxy Note 8 in South Korea reached nearly 400,000 units on the first day, far outpacing its predecessor.The South Korean tech giant said around 395,000 consumers applied to purchase the phablet Thursday. The figure eclipses numbers for the ill-fated Galaxy Note 7, which managed to draw in 380,000 preorders over a 13-day preorder period. The previous device was removed from the market altogether due to faulty batteries that caus

Sept. 8, 2017

New iPhone's price dependent on Korean parts

The consumer price of US tech giant Apple Inc.'s new iPhone to be unveiled this month will depend on how much is paid to South Korean parts manufacturers, industry watchers said Friday.The outlook came as many high-end features to be applied in the upcoming iPhone, including OLED panels, NAND flash memory chips and dual-camera modules, are provided by South Korean companies. (AFP-Yonhap)Industry watchers said the next generation iPhone, which is set to be revealed next week, will likely come wit

Sept. 8, 2017

[Exclusive] Harman to hold board meeting with Samsung in Seoul in October

Harman International, a subsidiary of Samsung Electronics, will hold its board meeting in Seoul next month as part of its efforts to accelerate cooperation with Samsung on the car infotainment business, according to the company’s chief executive officer. Harman CEO Dinesh Paliwal told The Korea Herald, “I will visit Seoul next month to attend a boardroom meeting,” at IFA 2017 in Berlin last Saturday. The directors of the Harman board include Paliwal himself, Young Sohn, chief strategy officer of

Sept. 7, 2017

Samsung kicks off preorders for Galaxy Note 8

Samsung Electronics Co. on Thursday kicked off preorders for its new flagship smartphone, the Galaxy Note 8, ahead of the official release slated for later this month.The South Korean giant plans to ship the new phablets to early adopters starting Sept. 15, ahead of the official released slated for Sept. 21.Samsung Electronics finalized the price tag of 64 gigabyte Galaxy Note 8 at 1.09 million won ($962), which is slightly higher than its predecessor, the Galaxy Note 7, which was priced at 989,

Sept. 7, 2017

SK holdings C&C launches Korean version of IBM’s AI platform Watson

SK holdings C&C, the internet technology solutions unit of South Korea’s SK Group, on Wednesday officially launched Aibril, the Korean language version of IBM’s artificially intelligent cognitive data computing platform Watson.Aibril, developed jointly by SK holdings C&C and IBM under an exclusive partnership, offers Watson’s AI computing capabilities in Korean. Models introduce a smart chatbot developed based on SK holdings C&C’s AI-based cognitive computing platform Aibril during a launch even

Sept. 6, 2017

Samsung sees share of China's cellphone market slip in Q2

Samsung Electronics Co. saw its share of China's cellphone market drop in the second quarter as more Chinese customers preferred cheaper local brands over its high-end devices, a report said Wednesday.According to the report by the Korea International Trade Association, Chinese customers owned 48 million Samsung cellphones as of end-June, making the company the sixth-largest player in the world's No. 2 economy. It was down two notches from its standing in the first quarter of last year.US rival

Sept. 6, 2017

Doosan Group taps collaborative robot market

Heavy machinery and power equipment conglomerate Doosan Group said Wednesday that it is planning to enter the so-called collaborative robot market soon with a plan to start selling such robots next year.Doosan set up a robot-developing unit in 2015, which recently showcased four collaborative robot models. (Yonhap)Rather than replacing human laborers, collaborative robots are commonly used to help people with their work.The company said it plans to produce such collaborative robots this year and

Sept. 6, 2017