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Yashica Vashishtha

Yashica is a Software Engineer turned Content Writer, who loves to write on social causes and expertise in writing technical stuff. She loves to watch movies and explore new places. She believes that you need to live once before you die. So experimenting with her life and career choices, she is trying to live her life to the fullest.

Mi 11 Series

Xiaomi Launches Mi 11 Series 5G Smartphones, Ultra, Pro, Lite Along with a Mi Band 6.

Xiaomi just launched its new Mi 11 series 5G smartphones in China on Monday. The smartphones include the Mi 11 Ultra, Mi 11 Pro, and Mi 11 Lite. Xiaomi had launched the Mi 11 series recently in December 2020, and these three smartphones are an addition to the series. The Mi 11 series is known to be the first to incorporate the Qualcomm Snapdragon 888 processor into its smartphones.  Along with three smartphones, the company has come with its Mi Smart Band 6, a successor to the Xiaomi Smart Band 5.

Mi 11 Ultra

Mi 11 Ultra comes with a 120Hz refresh rate E4 AMOLED display (3,200× 1,440 pixels), featuring the quad-curved 6.81-inch 2K WQHD and 240Hz touch sampling rate. Along with the support for HDR10+ and Dolby Vision, it also includes the Corning Gorilla Glass Victus protection. Another addition to the new features of the Mi 11 Ultra smartphone is the 1.1-inch AMOLED (126×294 pixels) secondary display on the back for providing people with the facility for clicking pictures by looking into it. This display will also show notifications, battery level, and weather alerts, etc. It will also be able to mirror the front display.

Mi 11 Series
Image Source: blog.mi.com

Talking about the camera, the smartphone comes with a triple camera setup for the rear. The setup has opted for the 50MP Samsung GN2 primary wide-angle sensor with an f/1.95 aperture, LED, laser autofocus, and Optical Image Stabilisation (OIS), a 48MP Sony IMX586 ultra-wide-angle with a with OIS and f/2.2 lens as well as a 48MP tele-macro camera sensor with 5x optical zoom, 120x digital zoom and OIS. The camera is capable of recording 4K videos. The front camera of the smartphone is 20MP.

Dimension wise the Mi 11 Ultra is 164.3mm X 74.6mm X 8.8mm and weighs around 225 grams. It is also IP68 rated water and dust resistance. Mi 11 Ultra is packed with Adreno 660 GPU and supports up to 12GB LPDDR5 RAM as well as up to 512GB UFS 3.1 storage. It includes a 5,000mAh battery, a 67W wired C-port, along wireless charging support. It also offers support for 10W reverse wireless charging. The smartphone comes with an in-display fingerprint sensor.

Mi 11 Pro

Mi 11 Pro inherits almost every feature from the Mi 11 Ultra, except the latter has a better camera quality and a secondary display on the back. Mi 11 Pro has a similar 6.81-inch and a similar Corning Gorilla Glass Victus. From battery to charging system, as well as being water and dust resistant, all is the same as the Mi 11 Ultra.

Coming to the camera, Mi 11 Pro also has a triple setup on the rear. The three cameras include a similar 50MP Samsung GN2 primary sensor with an f/1.95 lens and OIS, a 13MP ultra-wide-angle secondary camera with an f/2.4 lens and a 123-degree FoV, and an 8MP tele-macro tertiary camera with an f/3.4 lens, OIS, supporting a 50x digital zoom as well as a 5x optical zoom. The smartphone has a similar 20MP front camera.

Mi 11 Lite

The Mi 11 Lite is has got a 6.55-inch HD+ AMOLED display with a 90Hz refresh rate and support for HDR10+ and Dolby Vision. This smartphone has a similar Corning Gorilla Glass 6 protection as the two other smartphones from the same series. Mi 11 Lite is packed with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 780G SoC and paired with Adreno 642 GPU. The smartphone boasts support for up to 8GB RAM and up to 256GB 2.2 storage which is expandable up to 512GB.

The Camera setup for the MI 11 Lite has also got three different cameras on the rear. It has a 64MP primary sensor, an 8MP ultra-wide-angle sensor, and a 5MP macro sensor. The front camera of the smartphone is also a 20MP camera.

The Mi 11 Lite comes with a Type-C port for charging and a 4,250mAh battery with support for 33W fast charging. As the name suggests, the Mi 11 Lite is the lightest smartphone in the series weighing 159 grams. with 160.53×75.72×6.81mm dimensions.

Mi Smart Band 6

Mi Band 6 is a wrist band with a 1.56-inch (152 x 486 pixels) AMOLED touchscreen display which is bigger than the Mi Band 5. It comes with a 125mAh battery that takes 2 hours to get fully charged and can provide up to 14 days standby time. The band comes with a sensor for supporting up to 30 sports models and can auto-identify activities like walking, running, indoor treadmills, and cycling. The band is capable of measuring the blood pressure, blood oxygen (SpO2), and heart-rate of the user. It can also track the sleep habits of the user.

Pricing and Availability

All three smartphones from Xiaomi Mi 11 series will come in different variants depending upon the RAM and storage size. The Mi 11 Ultra 8GB RAM + 256GB storage model is is priced at CNY 5,999 (around Rs. 66,400). The 12GB + 256GB storage variant CNY is for 6,499 (around Rs. 72,000) and the 12GB RAM + 512GB storage variant is available for CNY 6,999 (around Rs. 77,500). The top-line smartphone comes in Black and White color options, along with a White Ceramic Special Edition.

The Mi 11 Pro 8GB RAM + 128GB storage model price starts at CNY 4,999 (around Rs. 55,400). The 8GB RAM + 256GB storage variant costs around CNY 5,299 (around Rs. 58,700) and the 12GB RAM + 256GB storage model is priced at CNY 5,699 (around Rs. 63,100). There are three colour option for the same, i.e. Black, Green, and White.

The starting price for the Mi 11 Lite 5G is set to be CNY 2,299 (around Rs. 25,500) for the 8GB RAM + 128GB storage variant. Mi 11 Lite 8GB RAM + 256GB storage variant costs around CNY 2,599 (around Rs. 28,800). The phone comes in three colors, including Citrus Yellow, Mint Green, and Truffle Black.

Xiaomi has launched two variants of the Mi Band 6 and will be available in eight different colors. The Vanilla variant of the watch will cost CNY 229 (around Rs. 2,500), and the special edition with NFC will be available for around CNY 279 (around Rs 3,000).

The company has started the pre-sales for the Mi 11 Ultra and Mi 11 Pro from 10 pm CST on Monday, March 29 (7.30 pm IST). The company revealed that the Mi 11 Ultra and Mi 11 Pro will become available in China starting from 2 April. The Mi 11 Lite 5G will go on sale later this month.

Celestica International Inc.

Celestica International Inc.: Providers of End-to-end Product Life Cycle Solutions

Some companies are not the mainstream ones, but without them, other mainstream companies may fail. Celestica International is an example of such a company that has been enabling the world’s best brands. The company equips its clients with the simplest solutions to their most challenging problems. It is a Canadian electronics manufacturing services (EMS) company with a huge client base across the world. Celestica provides its clients full-fledged services from the ideation of the product to full-scale production and renders its support even after the launch of the product.

Celestica International Inc.

Celestica International is a Canada-based EMS company. The company came into being as the branch office of IBM in Canada, but later it became an independent company. The company headquarter is located in Toronto, Ontario. The services of Celestica include design and engineering, hardware platform solutions, after-market services, precision machining, manufacturing services, logistics and fulfillment, supply chain services, etc.

Celestica International Inc.
Image Source: tangentia.com

Celestica International serves clients from different categories, i.e., enterprise, communications, consumer, aerospace, defense, industrial, alternative energy as well as healthcare across the globe. As of 2018, the company’s annual revenue was US$ 6.6 billion, and 28000 employees are serving the company worldwide.

History of the Company

The history of Celestica differs from most of the technology companies a bit. In the beginning, the current office of Celestica was the Canada branch of IBM. IBM used to manufacture the metal boxes for their mainframe computers at its Canada branch. Later, in the mid-90s, IBM was transitioning from a hardware manufacturing company to a software development and service company. This led to a spin-off of the Canada branch of IBM, and Celestica was formed in 1994.

Though IBM was still owning Celestica, it was unable to focus on the company entirely. So in 1996, IBM decided to sell Celestica and started to look for potential buyers. IBM held an auction between five companies, and with a bid of $750 million for a 69% share of the company, Onex Corporation acquired Celestica International.

Going into the hands of Onex Corporation, Celestica expanded as an independent company. The company in the very next year of its acquisition, in 1997, acquired the manufacturing unit of International Computers Limited, the Design to Distribution. The same year it went to buy a major share in the manufacturing lines of Hewlett-Packard followed by the acquisition of Ascent Power Technology.

In 1998, the company had its first IPO in the EMS field, where it rose $414 million. The very IPO is known to be one of the largest technology IPOs in Canadian history. The IPO made the company turn a revenue of around $3.2 billion annually. In 2005, Celestica became the first EMS provider to win the prestigious Shingo Prize for Lean Manufacturing award.

Acquisitions and Partnerships

Celestica, starting with International Manufacturing Services (IMS), made around eight acquisitions in 1998. In the year 2000, the company partnered with Motorola for the manufacturing of wireless telecom products. The next year, Celestica had another agreement with Lucent worth up to US$10 billion as an EMS provider. The company also made its largest acquisition in Asia by acquiring the Singapore-based EMS provider Omni Industries Limited. Celestica also announced its Global Design Operation in the same year.

With the acquisition of Manufacturers’ Services Limited (MSL) in 2004, Celestica was able to reach an even more expanded customer base. In 2005, the company acquired the flat-panel display repair services provider Displaytronix, followed by the acquisition of CoreSim, a leader in advanced design analysis and redesign services. In 2008 Celestica partnered with Microsoft to develop the BEE3 platform prototypes. In 2010, the company went on to take over the AlliedPanels and Invec Solutions, followed by the acquisition of Brooks Automation in 2011 and D+H Manufacturing in 2012.

The CEO: Robert A. Mionis

Robert A. Mionis is the president and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) at Celestica. He was appointed as the CEO of the company in 2015. Before that, he was working as the President and CEO of StandardAero. Mionis started his career at General Electric (GE), followed by holding many powerful roles in companies like AlliedSignal, Axcelis Technologies, and Honeywell. Mionis has also been on the board of various companies working in different fields, including industrial, aerospace, healthcare, and automotive segments.

AutoDesk

AutoDesk: The Company that Rules the 3D Graphics Technology Industry

The computer started its journey as a calculator, and today, there are unlimited tasks that we can perform using this amazing device. Thanks to the various software development companies that have helped us with our major routine works. From keeping a journal online, people can do business online, everything is now possible with this software. One such software company that has been actively providing software solutions to its diverse client base is AutoDesk. AutoDesk is mainly known for its flagship product AutoCAD, but apart from that, AutoDesk has credited the development of software for multiple industries.

The Foundational Story of AutoDesk

AutoDesk was founded in 1982, and the first product that the company launched was AutoCAD. This revolutionary product was enough to help AutoDesk to grow as a leader in the 3D software development industry but other than that, AutoDesk has also launched various other software for different fields. AutoDesk has a long list of clients, and big names like Tesla and One World Trade Center are some of them. The company serves in the area of manufacturing, architecture, building, construction, media, and entertainment industries.  

AutoDesk
Image Source: worldkings.org

AutoDesk Products

The most famous product from AutoDesk is Computer-aided design (CAD), a software used in drafting technical and engineering drawings. Apart from CAD, the company has launched Autodesk Life Sciences, Autodesk Construction Cloud, Civil 3D, Fabrication CADmep, Maya, 3ds Max, Arnold, Autodesk ImageStudio, AutoDesk Revit, etc. It also has its Autodesk suites, subscription, and web services, including the Autodesk Cloud, Autodesk Labs, and Global Engineering.

AutoDesk deals in different categories, including Platform Solutions and Emerging Business (PSEB), Architecture, Engineering and Construction (AEC), genetic engineering, construction, and manufacturing, etc. Each category has its different products that are used in diverse fields. The company also offers certification and training programs in Autodesk Certified User and Advanced Certified Professional categories for students.

History of the Company

The history of AutoDesk dates back to 1982 when John Walker, along with twelve programmers, collected US$59,000 to start Autodesk. All the programmers started to work on different software, which they would launch for the designers, and the first product they came up with was InteractCAD (old name for AutoCAD). The software was developed to run on the microcomputers of that time. Michael Riddle wrote the code for InteractCAD, but later, John Walker bought the rights for the software from Riddle for a sum of US$10 million.

AutoCAD was a powerful product that changed the face of designing for all. Eventually, the company started to grow at a very fast pace. In just four years, the company grew from thirteen people to 255 employees. Along with employee strength, the annual profit had also risen to $40 million. In 1985, the company became public, and another version of CAD, the AutoCAD 2.1, came in 1986. The software was open for third-party developers as well, so they could add more functionalities to it. In 1989, the recorded annual revenue of the company was around $100,000,000.

In the 90s, the company started to focus on other industries like architecture, civil engineering, and manufacturing and started to make new software. AutoDesk acquired Softdesk in 1997. By this time, the company has discontinued the development of AutoCAD for DOS, Unix environment, and the Apple Macintosh platform, and the only platform that the company was focusing on was Microsoft Windows. During the same time, AutoDesk brought some non-AutoCAD software, including Revit (from Revit Technologies) and Inventor.

Since its inception, AutoDesk has made multiple acquisitions. Some of its acquired companies include Gentry Systems, Buzzsaw, Revit Technology Corporation, CAiCE Software Corporation, Linius Technologies, MechSoft, NavisWorks Limited, Robobat, BIMWorld, Illuminate Labs, Blue Ridge Numerics, Inc., Firehole Technologies, etc.

 The Founder

John Walker is a well-known programmer who founded AutoDesk, along with twelve other programmers, in 1982. People who worked with him call him one of the most brilliant programmers of all time. He served as the AutoDesk chairman and president for a period of four years. After that, he resigned from his post to work as a programmer in the same company. In 1994, Walker resigned from AutoDesk and moved to Switzerland.

Walker has written a book, The Autodesk File, published in 1989. He is also credited for writing one of the first computer viruses, ANIMAL software, in 1974-75. He also founded Marinchi, a hardware integration manufacturing company.

The Company Today

The Current CEO of AutoDesk is Andrew Anagnost. The company headquarters at San Rafael, California, United States. As of 2020, 10,300 employees are working for the company in its various branches across the globe. The total recorded revenue of the company as of 2020 was US$3.27 billion.

ASM International

ASM International: The Biggest contributors in the Growth of Semiconductor Technology

The semiconductor chips or we simply call them the ICs, have transformed the world of information technology. The founding of the ICs has opened doors for many who wanted to try their hands on a new career through innovation. ASM is one such name that came into being during the time when the semiconductor industry started to pave its way. And today, the names ASM and semiconductor technology go hand-in-hand. The company started as a sales agent in semiconductor fabrication technology, and now, ASM is known as the pioneer of new semiconductor technologies like Photolithography, Epitaxy, Ion implantation, and Atomic Layer Deposition (ALD).

ASM International

ASM has been functioning since 1968, the time when semiconductor technology was at its beginning too. The company has been working as a manufacturer of semiconductor wafer processing equipment for the fabrication of semiconductor devices.  The working of ASM includes designing, manufacturing, sales, and service of the semiconductor wafers. ASM International shines as one of the leaders in the industry and serves in various fields, including communications, entertainment, energy, transport, and medicine.

ASM International
Image Source: telegraaf.nl

The Origin of the Company

Arthur Del Prado founded AMS International as Advanced Semiconductor Materials in 1964 in Bilthoven, the Netherlands. He founded the company behind his house in a small shed, where he developed one of the first products of the company. In the very beginning, Advanced Semiconductor Materials was a sales office for semiconductor fabrication technology. In 1968, it registered as a private limited company.

In the next ten years, in 1970, ASM started its own designing and manufacturing unit for chemical vapor deposition equipment. With the hard work of Prado, ASM acquired a semiconductor molds manufacturing company Fico Toolings in 1974. The company also established its first international office in Hong Kong in 1975, which is known as ASM Pacific Technology today. In 1976, ASM had another office opened in Phoenix, Arizona.

In May 1981, ASM had its first IPO, and it was listed on Nasdaq. Del Prado believed in innovation and started to invest in new technologies like lithography, ion implantation, epitaxy, and wire bonding. This helped the company to grow at an even faster pace. The company then, in 1988, divested ASML Holding N.V. and ASM Ion Implant and ASM Fico to Berliner Electro Holding in 1993.

Different branches of ASM started to focus on diverse technologies to achieve faster results. The ASM Europe was working on the vertical low-pressure chemical vapor deposition furnaces, ASM Japan focused on plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition, and ASM America targetted the single wafer epitaxy.

At the beginning of the 2000s, the company was working on the 300-mm wafer technology and atomic layer deposition and introduced the latter in 2007. ASM was among the top ten global companies in the first Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) Spectrum study, 2006. The 45nm node and the Pulsar ALD tool from ASM became the first system to be used in the high-volume manufacturing of devices using a new hafnium-based high-k dielectric material. In 2009, the company headquarters was shifted from Bilthoven to Almere, the Netherlands. Currently, the company is working on device geometries of 10nm and below.

The Founder: Arthur del Prado

Arthur del Prado is the name of the legend who has a great contribution to the field of the semiconductor industry. He was born on 17 November 1931 in Dutch East Indies. During the Second World War, he got separated from his family and was locked in a Japanese camp as a teenager. But fortunately, he met his family again after the war was over.

ASM International Founder
Image Source: asm.com

Del Prado joined the University of Twente and studied chemistry, and later, went to the University of Amsterdam to pursue a degree in economics. He also went for further studies at Harvard Business School in 1954. He came back to the Netherlands in 1958, and in 1964, he founded ASM International. Del Prado served ASM as the Chief Executive Officer until 2008 and as the Chairman until 2016. He passed away in September 2016 at the age of 85.

ASM Today

ASM International is known to be the biggest contributor to the growth of the semiconductor industry. The company is currently having its various branches in 16 different countries, and over 2337 employees are working for it. ASM is the major producer of the products in the Atomic Layer Deposition, Epitaxy, Chemical Vapor Deposition categories. Benjamin Loh is the current CEO of ASM International.

OnePlus 9R 5G

OnePlus to Incorporate Gaming Triggers in its New 9R 5G to Better the Experience for the Gamers

OnePlus smartphones are known for their high definition camera quality, and with every new launch, it has something exciting to offer. The company is now all set to launch its flagship smartphone in India, which too, is going to incorporate the gaming triggers for its client base who love to play games on their smartphones. The company will launch its 5G smartphone, the OnePlus 9R, in India on 23rd March, and it has already revealed the first look of the product through a teaser on its official Twitter account.

OnePlus 9R 5G

A few days ago, OnePlus confirmed the launch date for its flagship smartphone, 9R 5G, in India, i.e. 23rd of March. The smartphone that claims to provide a “robust flagship experience” to its users, will share the launch date with two other smartphones from the OnePlus 9 series, i.e. OnePlus 9 and OnePlus 9 Pro phones.

OnePlus CEO, Pete Lau, revealed that the premium device is going to offer support for 5G and will provide “smooth scrolling, immersive gaming controls, and a superior viewing experience.” The company claimed that it wants to reach a wider range of customers, so the prices are going to be quite affordable. Though Lau did not give any numbers about the prices, he confirmed that the premium smartphones will be under a mid-price range.

“With the OnePlus 9R, we are looking to go even further to bring out a balanced handset with the latest technology and class-leading industrial design that can deliver a superior user experience overall and can also offer fast and smooth experiences for daily usage and heavy gameplay,” Lau said.

OnePlus 9R 5G Features

According to some of the reports, the new premium smartphone is mounted with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 690 processor. But believing some other sources, it will come with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 865 SoC. The OnePlus 9R 5G is going to have a 90Hz display and will offer a high refresh rate display. The smartphone is also going to boast an HD+ resolution screen. Like its other contemporaries, the teaser reveals multiple rear cameras, and the front camera will be a punch-hole design. Also, the OnePlus 9 series smartphones will have a 4,500mAh battery with 65W fast charging support.

OnePlus 9R 5G
Image Source: indianexpress.com

Good News for the Gamers

OnePlus has confirmed that the OnePlus 9R 5G will be a special phone. It will provide support for 5G technology, but at the same time, it will be enhancing the gaming experience for game lovers as the new phone is incorporated with gaming triggers. Though these triggers are not quite visible in the OnePlus teaser it has posted on its official Twitter account, a picture posted by @thebookisclosed has given more than a hint about the triggers. Some of the reports have also confirmed that the smartphone is going to have those gaming triggers.

From the picture, we have concluded that the triggers are detachable. But the picture doesn’t give any information on if the smartphone will come with some other gaming accessories, or the gaming triggers are the only accessories that the users will get. Also, there is no hint on whether the other two flagship mobiles, i.e. OnePlus 9 and 9 Pro, will also be able to run the gaming triggers, or these are only built exclusively for 9R.

The games like PUBG, Fornite, and FreeFire have given a boost to smartphone gameplay. The launch of a smartphone with gaming triggers can be good news for gamers. The speculations are that the new OnePlus 9R will enter into a competition with other gaming smartphones like ASUS ROG and Black Shark.

PS5 VR Controller

Sony Unveils its Next-Generation PlayStation VR Controller for PS5

Sony introduced its first VR Playstation about four years ago, and since then, there has been tremendous advancement in the game itself. Last month, Sony revealed its next generation of VR on PlayStation5, capable of almost fulfilling Sony’s mission of a stronger sense of presence and deeper immersion for the players. In the announcement, the company talked about the simplified setup and the improved ease-of-use of the PS5 VR. This time, the company has revealed the details on the PS5 VR controllers through a blog post on Sony PS’s official website.

The All-New PS5 VR

On February 23rd, Sony gave out some information on its upcoming launch, the VR for PS5. The company said that the new VR will have a simple setup, and a single cord is enough to connect the PS5 with the VR. The next-generation VR got some new and innovative changes made to it, like a better resolution to provide an even better visual experience, tracking, input, etc. Sony also talked about its new controllers, including some of the DualSense features.

PS5 VR Controllers

According to Sony, the new VR controllers are the main attraction of its next-generation VR for PlayStation. These controllers are the reflection of what Sony has been trying to deliver to its customer in the form of Virtual Reality. The controllers are incorporated with the features of DualSense and are going to change the feel and realistic experience of gaming for the PS5 VR players.

PS5
Image Source: blog.playstation.com
Image Credit: Sony Interactive Entertainment

The Innovative Design

The design of the controller is completely different from the traditional gaming remotes. It is of the shape of an ‘orb’ as described by Sony and is a two-piece set that goes into both left and right hands. The controllers are based on the concept of ergonomics, such that these are comfortable to hold for a longer time. The team behind the design of the controller made sure to test the controllers on different sets of hands to make them fit on every size of hands.

“SIE’s Product, Engineering, and Design teams have collaborated to build our new VR controller from the ground up to make a huge leap from current-gen VR gaming. Prototypes of our new VR controller will be in the hands of the development community soon, and we can’t wait to see what ideas they come up with and how the controller helps bring their imagination to life!” said Hideaki Nishino, the head of the platform planning and management at PlayStation.

New Features Introduced

The new controllers have inherited the adaptive trigger technology from the DualSense PS5 controller to add the palpable tension and make the gaming experience even more realistic. According to Sony, with the new controllers, there is no restriction for the players on how they should move their hands to play the games. The controllers come with haptic feedback and finger touch detection, and the controllers have a ring at the bottom of the controller. The headset of the VR set will track the controllers through this ring. The touch-sensitive areas included in the controllers are made to detect where the players place their thumb, index, and middle fingers.

Talking about the buttons on the left and the right controller, the left controller includes the usual triangle and square buttons, L1, L2, and a Create button as well as an analog stick. The right controller includes the other analog stick. It has similar cross and circle buttons, R1, R2 like the traditional controllers, and also the Options button. The L1 and R1 buttons on the controllers have been labeled as “grip”. This grip button is to pick up items in-game.

For now, Sony has only talked about the controllers, and there is no information on the PS5 VR headset as yet. Though the testing of the next-generation is currently going on, there is no news of if Sony will launch the PS5 VR any time sooner or in 2021. Since the information on the VR controllers is already out, we can expect the company to reveal the information on the VR headset in the coming months.