Each earbud weighs just 8.5 grammes meaning that you can wear them all day and never feel uncomfortable. And the WF-1000XM3 is designed to have long battery life so that you can enjoy the music for hours on end without disruption.

The WF-1000XM3 has effective noise-cancelling technology powered by the HD Noise-Cancelling Processor QN1e that works with dual microphones to negate noises so that you can immerse yourself in music without worrying about the noise around you.

Each earbud has a feed-forward microphone on the top and a feed-back microphone embedded by the ear tip. The microphones let the noise cancelling circuit sense outside noise and send an equal-but-opposite cancelling signal to the earphones.

And since the HD Noise-Cancelling Processor QN1e uses little power, the earbuds have long battery life. The QN1e is a multi-talented processor because it combines digital noise cancellation, 24-bit audio signal processing, and digital-to-analogue converter with headphone amplifier. This results in aquiet listening environment and good-quality music sound. The earbuds use a tiny-yet-powerful 0.24-inch driver unit that delivers rich and clear sounds.

The WF-1000XM3 has two modes: the Ambient Sound Mode and the Noise cancelling function. To switch between the two or turn them off to save battery life, imply use the touch button on the left earbud or use Sony’s Headphones Connect app.

When you switch to the Ambient Sound Mode, the processor automatically works with the app’s Adaptive Sound Control to determine which is the best environment then sets the sound to Transport, Walking, Staying or Running.

In the Staying mode, the Adaptive Sound Control adjusts the level of microphone and music playback to allow you to hear voices of the outside world while reducing other background noises. This will allow you hear important announcements.

In the Travel mode, the QN1e processor will block out all the noises so that you can enjoy music without disruption. And in the Walking mode, the app adjusts the ambient sound to level 12 out of 20 so that you can be aware of everything around you while listening to your favourite tunes. In the Running mode, the ambient sound level is adjusted to the 20 scale.

During the test, I found the WF-1000XM3 effectively negated the hum of the air-conditioner in my bedroom to allow me to enjoy music uninterrupted. When the earbuds were seated properly in my ear canals, they also reduced the loud sound of my TV set so I could continue to enjoy the music while the rest of the family stayed glued to their favourite programme.

The WF-1000XM3 uses dome type, CCAW voice coil neodymium drivers with frequency response of 20 Hz to 20,000 Hz and with 44.1 kHz sampling rate.

I found the sound quality of the earbuds was impressive with clear and amazingly deep bass for such tiny earphones. I enjoyed listening to the Metallica’s Black album with clear highs and mids and a very satisfactory bass.

It got even better when I used the DSEE HX digital sound enhancement engine to upscale compressed digital music files to the quality of high-resolution audio.

You can also use the Headphones Connect app to change the music tone. There are 11 options from which to choose plus one to option to turn it off. You use two custom options to adjust the equalizer bar to get the music tones you like.

The available preset tones include Bright, Excited, Mellow, Relaxed, Vocal, and Bass Boost. As a serious rock fan, I liked the Bass Boost the most.

Connecting the earbuds to your smartphone is a breeze as the WF-1000XM3 has a NFC (near-field communication) chip embedded in its charging case. I simply opened the charging case, removed the earbuds and tapped my Sony Xperia Z Premium’s back to the NFC mark on the charging case. The earbuds were Bluetooth-linked to the smartphone automatically.

The WF-1000XM3’s placement of Bluetooth antenna is opitimised to ensure wider coverage and keep the signal strong for uninterrupted streaming. And the earbuds use a new Bluetooth chip that transmits sound to the left and right ears simultaneously rather than relaying sound from one earbud to the other.

The WF-1000XZM3 is also designed for active users. They are ergonomically designed to make contact with three different points on your ear for a secure, comfortable fit. Each earbud has a high-friction rubber surface that keeps it snug and secure in your ear, so they won’t slip out unexpectedly during exercise.

Each earbud comes with a proximity sensor that can detect whether you’re wearing one or both, and adapts playback accordingly. Take out one earbud and the music automatically pauses on both sides. And when you put the earbud back in, the music automatically resumes.

You can the volume right down and let in ambient sound by placing your finger over the earbud so you can instantly chat with someone without taking your headphones off.

The WF-1000XZM3 has a good battery life. One full charge offers 6 hours of power, and the handy charging case provides a further three charges. With noise canceling off, it’s even longer – the earbuds provide 8 hours of music listening and up to 32 hours of play time with three more charges from the case.

The earbuds also support Google Assistant so that you can speak to the headset’s microphones to operate the smartphone or perform searches.

And of course, the earbuds can also be used as your smartphone’s headset. When there is an incoming call, you can tap the touch sensor on the left or right twice to receive the call. To hang up, again tap twice on either side.

And the right touch sensor button can also be used to control playback of music on the connected smartphone. Tap once to play or pause the music, twice to skip to the next track and three times quickly to return to the previous track.

Sony WF-1000XM3 has a suggested retail price of Bt8,990.

Key specs:

Headphone type: Closed, dynamic

Driver unit: 0.24 inch, dome type (CCAW Voice coil)

Magnet: Neodymium

Frequency response: 20 Hz–20,000 Hz (44.1 kHz Sampling)

Bluetooth: Bluetooth 5.0

Bluetooth profile: A2DP, AVRCP, HFP, HSP

Supported Codec: SBC, AAC

Weight: 8.5 g x 2

Battery: Max. 6 hrs (NC ON)/Max. 8 hrs (NC OFF)

Charging case: Battery: 3.5 hrs for providing three more charges for earbuds; Weight: 77g

These are the latest models in the evolution of the PRO TREK line and come packed with features that make them even easier to use for outdoor activities. The new watches are equipped with a quad sensor – three sensors that detect compass bearing, barometric pressure/altitude, and temperature, plus an accelerometer for counting steps. They also come with Smartphone Link functions, linking to the PRO TREK Connected app on a smartphone using Bluetooth to offer a host of functions that support outdoor activities. These include a location indicator that shows the direction and distance to a destination saved to the app, automatic time adjustment, tracking of calories burned, which is calculated based on step count and altitude data, and trekking logs.

For improved usability, the user can set the watch modes from the app, including turning modes on or off, and changing the sequence in which modes appear on the display. This allows the user to customise the watch display according to how the watch is used or choose to display only frequently used functions, such as timers and alarms, or even change the display sequence.

For optimum readability, the PRT-B50 and PRT-B50FE have a wide watch face that incorporates a large, rotating bezel and Arabic numeral indices. The new models have been designed for ease of use in a wide range of outdoor activities, with a urethane band that features a 3D texture throughout and a strap keeper that stays in place.

The new Casio PRO TREK Out Door Watches will be available in Japan from September 6.

The HD770G boasts distinct chamfered edges and two light-beam-shaped RGB strips in a perforated pattern that comes to life as the RGB lighting pulsates.

The HD770G is designed to be tough and can survive nasty falls from up to 1.22 meters, protecting everything you have stored inside from harm. AES 256-bit encryption keeps the data inside password-protected and away from prying eyes.

The company said it is showcasing a culture of mutual collaboration between entrepreneurs and corporations to “empower local SME’s and other innovation-driven enterprises to enhance business partnerships” with Bosch.

“Bosch has a proven track record in leveraging strategic collaboration with private and public stakeholders in commercialising connected solutions ranging from smart home indoor cameras, smart inventory management, smart environment monitoring systems, virtual reality, machine learning as well as AI-driven applications in self-driving cars,” the company said.

“Studies show that open innovation approaches boost efficiency in innovation processes by 60 to 90 per cent. That is why partnerships are the key success factor in the ongoing digital transformation as underlined in the recent BCG study ‘The most Innovative Companies 2018’.”

The sixth edition of Galaxy Tab features remote control functionality enabled by Samsung’s signature S Pen.

S Pen has built-in Bluetooth Low Energy remote control technology that allows users to take selfies and videos and control multimedia without actually touching the device. A 10-minute-long wireless charge lasts 10 hours.

Other features include converting handwritten notes with the S Pen into digital text and exporting them to formats like Microsoft Word with a click.

“Today’s inspiration comes at a short notice as creative professionals need a device that enables them to keep up with their insatiable imaginations while complementing their busy, on-the-go lifestyles,” said Samsung CEO Koh Dong-jin.

“Galaxy Tab S6 allows consumers to unlock their creativity, while delivering top-quality productivity features and advanced technology they have come to expect from Samsung tablets.”

The latest Samsung tablet PC also introduces new enhancements to its camera, including a dual camera with ultrawide shooting capability, within a 5.7mm-slim body.

The ultrawide camera allows a 123-degree field of view, mimicking the human eye.

Samsung has also incorporated its on-screen fingerprint scanner for the first time in the Galaxy Tab S6.

Starting from late September, the AI-based X-ray assessment will be brought to a public medical facility in the Eunpyeong district of Seoul. The system is expected to help doctors and patients receive accurate X-ray images within 20 seconds, LG CNS added.

According to the IT solutions unit of LG Group, the advanced image analysis system is to be combined with cloud-computing technology. Based on the Software as a Service platform, the service will be available at any public health center with X-ray equipment.

“This project’s ultimate goal is to provide advanced public health care services at minimum cost,” said LG CNS Vice President Jeong Woon-yeol, who heads a public project division at LG CNS.

LG CNS said it has been working with local startup Lunit, which provides technologies for deep learning and medical analysis. The companies aim to introduce the AI-based image analysis technology to 254 public health centers nationwide.

The service will be available from August 5 onward.

Yongsit Rojsrikul, the AIS chief enterprise business officer, said the internet service provider has been trusted by many leading organisations in both public and private sectors to bring IoT solutions to enhance their operational efficiency.

Thaivivat Insurance recently chose the AIS NB-IoT motor tracker for usage-based insurance (UBI) solution to enhance its existing On-Off motor insurance product.

The On-Off insurance is available on a pay-per-use basis, which allows users to turn on and off coverage through their smartphone application based on the concept of “no drive, no pay”.

The AIS solution will be able to send data in real time via the NB-IoT network when starting and shutting down the engine of a car with On-Off motor insurance coverage, and the insurance coverage will be On and Off automatically — letting the insurance company receive accurate, correct and sufficient information about their customers.

Jirapan Assawathanakul, president and chief executive officer of Thaivivat Insurance, said the company is delighted to receive cooperation from AIS in providing the NB-IoT UBI Tracker to enhance its motor insurance service.

The NB-IoT motor Tracker for UBI solution works by connecting to the vehicle tracking technology on the NB-IoT network.

When starting a car, the IoT device will send the “engine start rate” via AIS IoT to the Thaivivat server, including sending a notification to the Thaivivat Motor application to automatically open the insurance (On). Similarly, when the engine is shutting down, the IoT device will return the “engine stop rate” automatically to close the insurance (Off).

This will help Thaivivat customers avoid wasting the time needed to manually click the On-Off app switch.

In the event that the car is in a distant area, the device will collect the data and once connected to the NB-IoT signal immediately send the information to the system, to ensure high data accuracy and allow the customer to receive coverage and pay the insurance premiums for actual real-time use.

Customers who purchase the On-Off motor insurance service would instantly receive NB-IoT UBI Tracker equipment with internet for use during the insurance period. They would just plug the device into their car USB port for immediate use.

The AIS NB-IoT network covers all 77 provinces nationwide.

The South Korean IT giant’s sales slid 4 percent to 56.1 trillion won ($47.4 billion), but its operating profits plunged 55.6 percent on-year to 6.59 trillion won over lower memory chip prices and slowing sales of mobile phones.

The second-quarter earnings report is slightly higher than market expectations of 6 trillion won, but Samsung is likely to be caught in a fog of uncertainties in the second half due to external and internal risks.

Intensifying volatility in the memory chip market fueled by Japan’s trade restrictions on key materials for semiconductor fabrication and the possibility of Tokyo keeping its hostile stance indefinitely is the biggest threat facing Samsung.

During a conference call, officials said the company is facing the burden of the new approvals process due to Japan’s export curbs, but what concerns Samsung more is Japan’s expected decision to exclude South Korea from the whitelist of trusted export countries Friday. That could lead to Japan toughening export restrictions on more materials and equipment crucial for chip fabrications.

Samsung relies on Japanese companies for about 80-90 percent of its equipment for chip production. If the import of equipment is delayed, Samsung may have to put the brakes on operations of its new production lines planned in Hwaseong and Pyeongtaek in Gyeonggi Province as well as Xian, China.

With the world’s largest memory chip producer facing unprecedented crisis, its global competitors, namely TSMC and Intel, are reportedly planning massive investment to break Samsung’s dominance in the market. Samsung provides more than 40 percent of memory chips in the world.

Despite concerns, Samsung said it is not considering reducing wafer input, and that it would “flexibly” manage memory chip production accordingly to demand changes.

On concerns of possible delays in its new production line, the company said it expects to start operating tis EUV chip production line in Hwaseong in first half of 2020.

Meanwhile, Samsung Electronics Vice Chairman Lee Jae-yong is facing a final ruling from the Supreme Court on charges of bribing former President Park Geun-hye and her confidante Choi Sun-sil in exchange for clearing hurdles over his succession. The court is expected to deliver the final verdict on Lee in the third week of August. Lee has already served one year in prison.

Along with the Moon Jae-in government’s continued work on chaebol reform, the prosecution is adding more pressure on Samsung BioLogics on suspicions of accounting fraud in connection to Lee’s succession scenario. The prosecution is likely to resume its investigation on Samsung’s biosimilar production unit after forming a new team on August as well.

Faced with a series of negativities, Samsung is likely to report 226 trillion won of revenue with around 26 trillion won in operating profits this year. The operating profits estimate is less than half of last year, when the tech giant reaped record-high profits, according to local brokerage houses.

The ThinkPad X395 sent to me to test was powered by 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 3500 Mobile Processors with Radeon Vega Gfx graphics running at 2.10 GHz and even with this super-speedy AMD processor retails for below the Bt30,000 mark.

The ThinkPad X395 is just 16.9mm thin and weighs only 1.28 kilogrammes, making it perfect to carry around. Adding to its mobility is its 48Whr battery that is claimed to last up to 14.5 hours per one charge. And its 65W type-C adapter also supports RapidCharge technology, which enables you to charge your device from 0 to 80 per cent in just 60 minutes, thus avoiding costly downtime.

Like the other computers in the ThinkPad X series, the X395 can be opened 180 degrees so it lies flat on the desk.

The ThinkPad X395 has good performance as it is equipped with 8 gigabytes of working memory or DDR4 RAM and it comes with fast 512 GB SATA SSD storage.

It looks good too thanks to a beautiful IPS display with 1920×1080 pixel resolution and a brightness of 300 nits. I found during the test that the display was terrific for watching Full HD video clips and viewing high-resolution photos. AMD Radeon FreeSync technology allows you to view details with impressive clarity. And the laptop comes with Dolby Audio Premium, allowing the movie’s sounds to be reproduced with clarity.

The ThinkPad X395 runs on Microsoft Windows 10 Pro and ran most business applications fast and smoothly. Video clips played smoothly and browsing web pages was also fast. Some games, which are not graphics-extensive, also played without any glitches.

The keyboard is easy to type on and it comes with LED-backlighting function, which is useful in a dimmed room.

The laptop comes with a 720p HD camera complete with ThinkShutter, which is designed to prevent your laptop being taken over by a hacker who may remotely control the camera to take your video clips for photos. You simply slide the shutter at the top edge of the display to shut off the lens and disable the camera. The ThinkPad X395 also comes with the ThinkShield suite of security solutions, among them the dTPM 2.0 chip, ThinkPad PrivacyGuard and, ThinkPad Privacy Alert.

The Privacy Guard is aimed at shielding your screen content from unwanted side glances from prying onlookers. When activated, PrivacyGuard will dim the display and adjust reflection to make it hard to read the content on the screen from the sides or from the back.

The ThinkPad X395 also comes with fast Wi-Fi Intel WLAN 2×2 AC wireless connection for fast Internet connection and Bluetooth 5.0 for connecting to various devices. It has all necessary ports including the always-on- USB 3.1 (Gen 2) port on the right side that allows you to recharge your device from the port even when the notebook is turned off as long as it remains plugged in to the wall charge. It also has a smart card reader on the right side. Also available are a USB-C AC power port, a USB-C port, an Ethernet port, a USB 3.1 (Gen 1) port, an HDMI port, a headphone/mic combo port and a microSD card reader on the left side.

The ThinkPad X395 can be further expanded with a ThinkPad USB-C Dock, a Lenovo USB-C Hub or a ThinkPad USB 3.0 Secure HDD 1TB.

The USB-C Dock ensures a high-performance workstation experience while The USB-C Hub is a one-stop travel docking solution that enables you to easily connect to an external monitor, wired network, and USB devices via a single robust USB Type-C port. The USB 3.0 Secure HDD 1TB is optimised for safeguarding essential data while on the go and offers high-level, 256-bit Advanced Encryption Standard (AES) security within a slim, lightweight, self-powered, and easy-to-use design.

Lenovo ThinkPad X395 has a starting price of Bt26,090, depending on CPU, memory and hard drive configurations.

Key specs:

OS: Windows 10 Pro

CPU: 2nd Gen AMD Ryzen 5 PRO 3500 Mobile Processors

Memory: 8GB DDR4 RAM

Storage: 512 SATA SSD

Display: 13.3-inch FHD IPS (1920 x 1080, 300 nit)

Graphics: Radeon Vega Gfx graphics

Webcam: HD 720p with ThinkShutter privacy cover

Sound: Dolby Audio Premium, dual far-field noise cancelling microphones

Connectivity: WLAN: Intel 9260 Wireless-AC 2 x 2 AX, LAN: Available via dongle only, Bluetooth 5.0

Ports: USB 3.1 (Gen 1), USB 3.1 (Gen 2), 2 x USB-C (Gen 2), Native Ethernet port, MicroSD card reader, Smart card reader, Headphone / mic combo, HDMI 2.0

AC adapter: 65W (Rapid Charge supported)

Dimensions: 311.9 x 217.2 x 16.9mm

Weight: 1.28 kg

The ActiveScale also leverages its scale-out architecture to provide near-linear performance growth for data-intensive applications such as AI, machine learning and HPC workloads. The ActiveScale X100, coupled with OS 5.5, is projected to deliver data throughput of up to 75GB/second in scale out configurations, making it the ideal solution for large-scale data workflows.

“ActiveScale 5.5 further extends the unique value that only Western Digital can deliver in terms of performance, efficiency, scalability and superior economics for those putting data at the center of their business,” said Phil Bullinger, senior vice president and general manager of Western Digital’s Data Centre Systems business unit. “We’re developing solutions that enable our customers to make data infrastructure synonymous with a successful data business strategy.