After Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong decided not to appeal last week’s court ruling, his absence from the country’s top conglomerate was finalized. With Lee in jail, the conglomerate won’t be able to pull off new sizable investments, market observers said. According to lawyer Lee In-jae on Monday, the Samsung heir expressed his will to respect the court ruling that sentenced him to two and half years in prison in a retrial of the former president‘s brib

Technology Jan. 25, 2021

Under its fourth-generation leader, LG Group, South Korea’s fourth-biggest conglomerate, is undergoing a major transformation: From a manufacturer of fridges and washing machines to one of future cars, robots and artificial intelligence-based solutions. Since rising to the helm of the group in 2018, Chairman and CEO Koo Kwang-mo has put forward the “digital transformation” driver across all LG affiliates, and is spearheading a group-level restructuring of its business portfol

Technology Jan. 24, 2021

Samsung Electronics stands to benefit from US tech giant Intel’s chip outsourcing plan, industry sources said Friday. Intel’s incoming CEO Pat Gelsinger said during an earnings call Thursday that the company is likely to increase use of outside chip factories “for certain technologies and products.” The CEO’s remarks came after a news report that Samsung had bagged an order to produce Intel’s Southbridge chipset, one of two controlling chips in the core lo

Technology Jan. 22, 2021

LG Electronics may exit the smartphone business after losing about 5 trillion won ($4.5 billion) over the past five years. Its CEO Kwon Bong-seok on Wednesday sent out a message to staff that hinted there would be a major change in the operation of the smartphone segment. “Regardless of any change in the direction of the smartphone business operation, the employment will be maintained, so there is no need to worry,” he said. “Since the competition in the global market for

Technology Jan. 20, 2021

Samsung Electronics and its affiliates returned to an emergency posture on Tuesday, a day after an appellate court sentenced the conglomerate’s leader Lee Jae-yong to two years and six months in jail. Multiple sources at the country’s largest business group spoke of a somber mood, with many expressing regrets about the court’s decision and worries about the tech giant’s mid-term strategies. “Aside from day-to-day operations, the leader’s vacancy literally

Industry Jan. 19, 2021

Entry models are often a compromise for consumers, second-best to the fancy and expensive premium models. When it comes to Samsung Electronics’ latest smartphone lineup, however, that may not be the case. With its sleeker design and slashed price tag, the Galaxy S21, the entry model in the latest series, immediately caught my attention. Then after getting my hands on it and the premium Ultra model over the weekend, I came to favor the cheaper phone over the extra-premium one. The two

Technology Jan. 18, 2021

The debut of the Galaxy S21 series, the first smartphones to be released globally in 2021, drew the largest number of viewers to its hourlong virtual Unpacked show in the wee hours of Friday morning here. According to Samsung Electronics, as many as 57 million viewers around the world tuned in to the show streamed via YouTube and the company’s homepage to check out the newest mobile devices to become available this year. The number of viewers marked the largest for an online unveiling

Technology Jan. 15, 2021

Samsung Galaxy S21, unveiled Thursday at midnight, boasts a new, striking design and is equipped with the most powerful processor yet. Plus, it comes with a lowered price tag. Samsung streamed the Galaxy S21 Unpacked show through various online channels to introduce its flagship smartphones for 2021 -- Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+ and Galaxy S21 Ultra -- one month earlier than previous years. The Ultra model supports the S Pen stylus for the first time. Samsung also introduced Galaxy Buds Pro

Technology Jan. 15, 2021

Samsung Electronics, set to launch its first batch of mobile phones this year, is expected to take an aggressive pricing strategy to boost sales. The Galaxy S21 series will be unveiled Thursday at midnight, South Korean time, amid expectations that the new phones will be available at a wider range of prices than their predecessors. According to industry sources, Samsung will release three Galaxy S21 models -- the Galaxy S21, Galaxy S21+ and Galaxy S21 Ultra -- with prices ranging from 999,

Technology Jan. 14, 2021

A notable trend at this year’s CES is that the boundaries between different sectors of technology are not just being blurred, but crushed, as the pandemic accelerates the pace of innovation. With the all-digital CES 2021 heading into its third day, many viewers have been taken by surprise by unexpected presentations from major companies, such as conventional automaker General Motors, auto parts maker Bosch and camera company Canon. GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra proclaimed during her

Technology Jan. 13, 2021

Samsung Electronics on Tuesday unveiled its new mobile application processor Exynos 2100 through an online event ahead of the Samsung Galaxy S21 Unpacked event this week. The Exynos 2100, which is expected to power the upcoming Galaxy S21 series, is Samsung’s first mobile application processor integrated with a 5G modem. Manufactured on Samsung’s 5-nanometer extreme ultra-violet process node, the new processor comes with the most cutting-edge central processing unit and graphic

Technology Jan. 13, 2021

Artificial intelligence would take on a bigger role in people’s lives after the COVID-19 pandemic, according to forecasts by industry researchers at the Consumer Electronics Show 2021 Tuesday. During an online press conference held on the first day of the annual tech tradeshow, researchers at the event’s organizer US-based Consumer Technology Association, pinpointed AI being at the center of changes occurring across industries since the virus outbreak and will gain more growth mo

Technology Jan. 12, 2021

The first-ever all-digital Consumer Electronics Show kicked off Monday against the backdrop of the unrelenting COVID-19 pandemic, virtually gathering tech giants around the world to showcase new technologies and innovations. It is the first time that the world’s biggest tech trade show is being held online, since its inception in 1967. South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and LG Electronics, the biggest participants in CES 2021, kicked off the four-day event by holding online press co

Technology Jan. 11, 2021

South Korea would be the biggest participating country after the United States at this year’s CES, with more than 300 tech companies set to exhibit their latest products and technologies. The event’s organizer, Consumer Technology Association, said Sunday that as many as 340 firms from South Korea would be taking part in 2021 CES, which kicks off Monday, making Korea the second-biggest participating country after the host nation which will have 567 companies taking part. A total

Technology Jan. 10, 2021

LG Electronics on Sunday unveiled its full lineup of TVs for 2021, including the first 83-inch organic light-emitting diode TV model with advanced self-emissive lights, to cement its leadership in the growing OLED TV market. Dubbed “OLED evo,” the new model features an upgraded OLED panel that boasts better contrast ratios and picture quality due to improved lights. It marks the third advancement in LG’s OLED TV technology since its launch in 2013. LG announced 4K High Dyn

Technology Jan. 10, 2021