[Newsmaker] Apple on new road with iPhone 6, smartwatch

SAN FRANCISCO ― Apple moved to recapture its role as a tech trend setter on Tuesday with its highly anticipated first smartwatch and two large-screen versions of the iPhone.

With the debuts of Apple Watch and iPhone 6 models stretched to fit a hot “phablet” trend, the California company delivered what rumors had predicted leading up to the event.

The Apple Watch, a sleek wrist device that links to the iPhone, “will redefine what people expect from this category,” chief executive Tim Cook said at a carefully staged presentation in Apple’s hometown Cupertino, California.

Market tracker IHS saw Apple as aiming to reset the wearable computing market the way it transformed the world of smartphones with the release of the iPhone.

“But moving into a new category is a bold, expensive and risky effort,” IHS said in an initial analysis of the Apple announcements.

Despite an array of smartwatch releases, no one seems to have found the key to the market, according to analyst Roger Kay of Endpoint Technologies.

Syncing Apple Watch capabilities to iPhones also means that the overall cost of strapping one on could near $1,000, Kay noted.

“I’m not getting the impression that Apple has nailed the category,” Kay told AFP.

The latest Apple announcement failed to move Wall Street, with stock in the computer titan closing down by 0.4 percent and slipping a touch further in after-market trades.

The iPhone 6 models boost screen sizes in what some see as the company catching up to a “phablet” trend combining features of smartphones and tablets.

“Bigger screen. Better performance. Elegant design. Welcome to the party #iPhone 6,” Taiwan-based smartphone rival HTC said in a message fired Apple’s way on Twitter.

Apple’s main rival Samsung has long had a range of larger handsets and has tried to market a smartwatch of its own.

LG recently released a large-screen flagship G3 model with cameras tricked out to delight selfie-loving smartphone users.

The iPhone 6 will have a screen of 4.7 inches and the 6-Plus will be 5.5 inches, allowing Apple to adapt to consumers’ apparent preference for bigger displays.

The new iPhone 6 will start at the same price of existing iPhones at $199 for U.S. customers while the iPhone 6 Plus will be at $299 with a two-year contract.

Apple CEO Tim Cook introduces the new Apple Watch iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus during Apple`s launch event at the Flint Center for the Performing Arts in Cupertino, California, USA. (EPA-Yonhap)

Apple said the devices would be available in at least 115 countries by the end of the year and that it will begin taking orders for iPhone 6 models on Friday.

Apple also added a mobile wallet, which Cook said would replace an “antiquated payment process” with a new system that allows consumers to touch their phones to retail terminals to pay.

The new payment system will be built into the new iPhones and the upgraded Apple’s operating system called iOS 8.

Cook introduced Apple Watch with the “one more thing” introduction that was a trademark of iconic Apple co founder Steve Jobs.

“It is the next chapter in Apple’s story,” Cook said of the company’s first new product category since the death of Jobs in 2011.

“We invented intimate ways to connect and communicate directly from your wrist; it works seamlessly with iPhone and it is also a comprehensive health and fitness device.”

Apple watch will start at $349 when it is released early next year, according to Cook. The smartwatch will work with iPhone 5 and newer models.

But some analysts said the delayed rollout could be a problem for Apple.

With no Apple Watch on shelves for the Christmas shopping season, people hankering for a smartwatches may turn to those offered by Samsung, Motorola or other Apple rivals, reasoned analyst Rob Enderle of Enderle Group in Silicon Valley.

“Once Apple announces something, people want it; and there lies the danger,” Enderle said.

“People don’t leave IOUs under the tree for Christmas.”

Consumers typically have less cash to spend on accessories like Apple Watch after the holidays.

While Apple Watch has touch-screen capabilities, many controls were designed into a “digital crown” button so fingers do not block screens.

Sensors can detect a wearer’s pulse, and the device syncs with location-sensing features in iPhones to provide a “comprehensive picture of activity” and help work toward fitness goals.

Applications for the watch include map software that guides the wearer to destinations with gentle “taps” on the wrist.

Apple showed off programs for checking into American Airlines flights, unlocking Starwood hotel room doors, and even controlling home lighting or temperature.

Forrester analyst Frank Gillett believed Apple appeared poised to revitalize wearable computing but that it could take longer to catch on than the iPhone or the iPad.

“Because so many others have hit this so hard, it is not going to be the runaway like the iPhone or the iPad,” Gillett said. (AFP)

LG sets Guinness record with billboard

LG Electronics Inc., South Korea's No. 2 tech giant, said Friday it has successfully won a Guinness World Record title for its new billboard installed in Saudi Arabia, which boasts a size of two football fields using 1,800 tons of steel.

The 250-meter-wide, 12-meter-high sign, constructed near King Khaled International Airport next to Riyadh, is expected to be observed by 20 million users of the country's gateway per year and generate a wealth effect of around US$25 million annually for LG, the company said.

LG added that the billboard is strong enough to sustain the harsh climate of the Middle East. 

While the sign currently displays the G3 smartphone -- the company's flagship handset that has been recently making significant strides in the global market -- LG said it will also advertise the company's other key products such as home appliances and air conditioners.

The G3 has a 5.5-inch screen whose quality is four times that of standard high-definition resolution and features the world's first 2,560X1,440 Quad HD display. The market has been reacting positively to the device.

"The certification is going to become a cornerstone for LG to solidify its stance as a market leader in the Middle East, an area filled with opportunities," the company said in its release. (Yonhap)

[Asian Games] Korea grabs five golds on first day; China dominates shooting

Host South Korea captured five gold medals as part of its 13-medal first day of official competition at the ongoing Asian Games on Saturday, putting itself solidly on track to win the desired 90 gold medals at the multisport competition.

South Korea shot to the top of the medal standings, but China is right behind with 11 medals, including five golds. China has reigned supreme at the Asian Games for more than three decades, and it may just be a matter of time before China overtakes the host on the medal table.

North Korea, too, got on board on the first day, as weightlifter Om Yun-chol broke his own world record en route to the men's 56-kilogram title. Kim Sol-mi added a bronze in the women's judo.

For South Korea, the first gold medal came in wushu, with Lee Ha-sung winning the men's changquan with 9.71 points, 0.02 better than the gold medal favorite, Jia Rui of Macau.

This was South Korea's first wushu gold in an Asiad since 2002.

The other gold medals for the host came from equestrian, track cycling and fencing. Yet it was China that had the honor of taking the Asiad's first gold.

Its women's pistol shooting trio of Guo Wenjun, Zhang Mengyuan and Zhou Qingyuan combined for 1,146 points to win the women's 10ｍ air pistol team event.

The Chinese were on target at Ongnyeon International Shooting Range, picking up two more gold medals, in the men's 50m pistol and in the women's individual 10m air pistol. Zhang Mengyuan became the first double gold medalist of this Asiad.

The South Korean shooters settled for two silver medals in the morning, but the air of disappointment quickly gave way to the exhilaration of victories in the afternoon.

In equestrian, the men's dressage team captured the country's fifth straight Asiad title Saturday. Hwang Young-shik, Chung Yoo-yeon and Kim Dong-seon combined for an average of 71.746 points in Incheon, ahead of second-place Japan with 69.842 points on average.

Hwang, 23, was the best of the 32 riders with 74.342 points.

Then in cycling, South Korea struck its first-ever Asiad gold in the men's team sprint event, moments after the women's team got the silver in the team sprint race.

There were two all-Korean finals in fencing on Saturday. First, Lee Ra-jin stunned Kim Ji-yeon, the 2012 Olympic champ, in the women's sabre final by the score of 15-11.

Jung Jin-sun followed suit, beating Park Kyoung-doo in the men's epee final, 15-9.

While the South Koreans were picking up gold medals, the North Korean weightlifter Om broke a world record.

Om broke his own world mark with a lift of 170㎏ in the clean and jerk. He also hoisted 128㎏ in the snatch earlier for an Asian Games record total of 298㎏.

Om didn't just win the medal; he also won the hearts of many in the audience at the Moonlight Festival Garden Weightlifting Venue.

The crowd-pleaser pumped his fists with each successful lift, and jumped up and down on the stage after setting the world record.

After the medal ceremony, South Korean fans, holding up a sign that read, in Korean, "Om Yun-chol is the best," chanted his name and the phrase "We are one" to the lifter.

Before Om basked in adulation, Kim Sol-mi grabbed North Korea's first medal in the women's judo.

The North has 150 athletes in 14 sports here, with an aim of finishing in the top 10 in medals.

South Korea's other medals on Saturday came from judo, where its athletes bagged home three bronze medals.

Judo has been one of South Korea's biggest gold mines in international sporting events. The country clinched six golds out of 14 titles up for grabs at the Guangzhou Asiad. Getting shut out of gold medals from the get-go was disappointing, but the judo delegation will be at it again Sunday, led by 2012 Olympic champ Kim Jae-bum.

The first day had its share of adventures off the field. A preliminary round of the badminton competition was suspended for several minutes due to a power failure. Gyeyang Gymnasium, the venue for badminton, suffered a blackout at 9:45 a.m. as three matches of the first round of women's badminton team events were under way.

The matches between Taiwan and Hong Kong, India and Macau, and Maldives and Indonesia were suspended after most of the lights and screens went off at the gymnasium.

The reason for the power failure wasn't immediately known. (Yonhap)


[Photo Credit: Yonhap]

Sitting judge slams court ruling on ex-spy chief

SEOUL, Sept. 12 (Yonhap) -- A senior incumbent judge lambasted a local court Friday for acquitting a former spy chief of violating election law after he spearheaded an online smear campaign against opposition candidates ahead of the 2012 presidential election.

On Thursday, the Seoul Central District Court found Won Sei-hoon, the former head of the National Intelligence Service (NIS), guilty of ordering agents to post politically sensitive comments on major Internet bulletin boards and social media in violation of the law prohibiting officials from intervening in domestic politics.

But Won was acquitted of meddling in the election because of insufficient proof that he had such an intention, according to the court.

"Even toddlers know that the NIS intervened in the 2012 presidential election illegally, thus violating the election law," Kim Dong-jin, a senior judge in Suwon, just south of Seoul, said in a post on the bulletin board for court officials.

"The verdict is like pointing to a deer and calling it a horse," he argued, referring to a Chinese saying for deliberately distorting the facts for ulterior motives.

"How can one intervene in domestic politics without intervening in the election?"

It is highly unusual for a South Korean judge to publicly denounce a verdict delivered by a fellow judge.

The Supreme Court immediately deleted the post as it went viral online and garnered local media attention, citing defamation concerns and violation of the court's code of ethics.

The high-profile election meddling case has gripped South Korea for the past year as a guilty verdict against Won could have hurt the legitimacy of President Park Geun-hye, who was then the ruling party candidate.

Won, a close aide to former President Lee Myung-bak, headed the NIS for about four years until early 2013.

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