Gezixuan reported on November 18 that Huawei Hongmeng today pushed the HarmonyOS NEXT version 5.0.0.107 to mobile phone devices.

With this update, the camera supports continuous shooting, screen-off snapshots, smiley face capture, and other functions, so that you can get a higher-quality call experience in call scenarios. At the same time, the functions of scenarios such as smart multi-window and super transfer station have also been upgraded with new experiences.

The specific updates of IT Home are as follows:

camera
In normal photo mode, press and hold the photo button and swipe left to shoot continuously, and swipe right to record, making the switch more flexible and capturing beautiful and faster

Added the screen-off snapshot function, when the screen is off or the screen is locked, you can quickly press the volume down button twice to quickly open the camera to take photos

Added the front selfie ring fill light effect, when you take photos or videos with the front camera, the ring fill light allows you to take more satisfactory selfies (opening method: in the front shooting interface > click the arrow below to open the camera treasure chest > fill light)

The new Panorama mode allows you to take photos with a wider angle of view by pressing the shutter and moving slowly in the direction of the arrow

Added the smiley face capture function, after turning on the switch in the camera settings, the smiley face will be automatically captured every time you take a photo

The night mode adds a front-facing selfie beautification effect, and you can also take beautiful selfies at night

Added beautification effects, video watermarks, and motion stabilization switches in the recording scene to help you shoot more textured videos

A new dynamic photo switch is added at the top of the normal photo mode, which can take dynamic photos, and press and hold the dynamic photo in the gallery to preview the animated image

Turn on the auto-watermark toggle in the settings, and the photos taken by the rear camera can automatically add the model logo and date

Phone
Added the Smart Dual SIM function, insert two SIM cards, and turn on "Allow Smart Use of SIM Card" on the SIM card management interface, which can automatically switch the SIM card according to the network quality and call status

Added support for voice broadcast of incoming calls, which will voice broadcast the incoming call information when receiving an incoming call

Added support for outgoing call voice control, saying "hang up the call" can stop the call

Added support for intelligent call noise cancellation, which reduces or blocks the surrounding ambient sound, so that your voice can be transmitted to the other party more clearly and prominently

The call process improves call quality and improves the call experience by allowing the use of Wi-Fi or mobile data (turned on: Phone > Settings > Advanced > improves call quality)

Connect
The camera can be turned off during a video call

You can send files via Connect Messages

Contact
Duplicate contacts can be intelligently identified and merged

Recorder
Added support for retrieving recently deleted recordings

Set up
Added support for holster mode, which will automatically unlock or lock the screen when opening and closing the holster, and support the information display and operation of the adaptive holster window

Added support for mask recognition, which enables authentication by recognizing the unique features of the eyes when wearing a mask for face recognition

Added features such as eye protection mode, color adjustment, and color temperature to the display and brightness

Smart multi-window
The sidebar supports editing functions, and you can easily add or delete application shortcut icons to the sidebar, which is convenient for opening smart windows (swipe from the side to the screen and pause to bring up the sidebar, click the bottom icon and then click the edit icon)

Smart Voice
Xiaoyi adds the knuckle circle selection function, the knuckle circle selects any screen element and asks Xiaoyi questions, Xiaoyi can not only actively understand the circle content, and provide multi-modal answers, but also make the next step according to your intentions, and quickly recommend high-frequency function services

Wake up Xiaoyi and give voice commands to let Xiaoyi help you make a smooth call

system
The Super Relay Station has a new preview function, which allows you to click on the content to preview it when you share it

Added the accessory collaborative update function, which allows you to update the firmware of connected accessories, such as headphones and glasses, on the software update page of the mobile phone

Added the smart watch auxiliary update function, which allows you to update the firmware of connected smart watch devices on the device interface of the Health app

Gezixuan News on November 15, password management tool 1Password issued a press release, announcing that it has joined the Microsoft Intelligent Security Alliance (IT Home Note: Microsoft Intelligent Security Association, MISA), and officially announced a series of enterprise security features.

It is reported that the Microsoft Intelligent Security Alliance claims to be built for the "security ecosystem", and Microsoft tries to provide cyber threat protection solutions for enterprise customers by integrating independent software vendors (ISVs) and security service providers (MSSPs).

As part of the Microsoft Intelligent Security Alliance, 1Password has added integrations with Microsoft Sentinel and Entra ID, with Microsoft Sentinel being a cloud-based security information and event management (SIEM) platform that claims to help organizations centrally manage threats, but 1Password doesn't specifically mention how it will be integrated.

When it comes to Microsoft Entra ID, 1Password announced that their Device Trust feature works with Entra ID to ensure that only "devices that meet security standards" can access confidential data, reducing the likelihood of employees having their personal devices compromised due to improper security measures.

Gezixuan reported on November 15 that Alibaba Group today released its financial report for the second quarter of fiscal year 2025 (July ~ September 2024).

Revenue was RMB236.503 billion (US$33.701 billion), up 5% year-on-year.

Operating profit was RMB35,246 million (US$5,023 million), up 5% year-over-year, primarily due to a decrease in non-cash equity incentive expense, partially offset by a decrease in Adjusted EBITA. Non-cash equity incentive expense is not included in non-GAAP financial measures. Adjusted EBITA, a non-GAAP financial measure, decreased 5% year-over-year to RMB40,561 million (US$5,780 million), primarily due to increased investment in e-commerce, partially offset by revenue growth and improved operational efficiency.

Net profit attributable to ordinary shareholders was RMB43,874 million (US$6,252 million). Net profit was RMB43,547 million (US$6,205 million), up 63% year-on-year, mainly due to mark-to-market changes in equity investments, reduced impairment of investments and higher operating profit. Non-GAAP net income for the quarter ended September 30, 2024 was RMB36,518 million (US$5,204 million), down 9% from RMB40,188 million for the same period in 2023.

Diluted earnings per ADS were RMB18.17 (US$2.59) and diluted earnings per share were RMB2.27 (US$0.32 or HK$2.52). Non-GAAP earnings per diluted ADS were RMB15.06 (US$2.15), down 4% year-on-year, and non-GAAP earnings per diluted share were RMB1.88 (US$0.27 or HK$2.08), down 4% year-on-year.

Net cash flow from operating activities was RMB31,438 million (US$4,480 million), down 36% from RMB49,231 million for the same period in 2023. Free cash flow, a non-GAAP financial liquidity measure, was RMB13,735 million (US$1,957 million), down 70% from RMB45,220 million for the same period in 2023. The decrease in free cash flow was primarily attributable to investments in Alibaba Cloud infrastructure, refunds to Tmall merchants after the removal of annual service fees, and other working capital changes due to factors such as the downsizing of certain direct operations.

Wu Yongming, CEO of Alibaba Group, said, "During the quarter, Taotian continued to invest in user experience and enrich its product offerings to better serve consumers. We have established long-term partnerships with our technology peers to expand our payment and logistics services on Taobao and Tmall platforms, which is expected to have a significant incremental effect on the platform as a whole. The cloud business accelerated its growth from previous quarters, with double-digit growth in revenue from public cloud products and triple-digit growth in revenue from AI-related products. We are more confident than ever in the outlook for our core business and will continue to invest to support long-term growth." The operating efficiency of other businesses continued to improve, and most of the businesses continued to improve profitability or reduce losses. ”

Gezixuan learned from the financial report that the number of Taotian Group's 88VIPs continued to grow by double digits year-on-year in the quarter, reaching 46 million.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, Alibaba Cloud Intelligence Group revenue was RMB29.610 billion (US$4.219 billion), up 7% year-over-year.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, Taobao and Tmall Group generated revenue of 98.994 billion yuan (about $14.107 billion), a year-on-year increase of 1%.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, Cainiao's revenue increased 8% year-over-year to RMB24,647 million (US$3,512 million), mainly driven by revenue growth from cross-border logistics fulfillment solutions.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, Local Living Group revenue increased 14% year-on-year to RMB17,725 million (US$2,526 million), driven by higher orders from AutoNavi and Ele.me, as well as higher revenue from marketing services.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, Dawen Entertainment Group's revenue was RMB5.694 billion (US$811 million), down 1% year-over-year. The loss of Dawen Entertainment Group narrowed year-on-year, and thanks to the increase in advertising revenue and the improvement of content investment efficiency, Youku's operating loss gradually decreased in the quarter.

For the quarter ended September 30, 2024, Alibaba repurchased a total of 414 million ordinary shares (equivalent to 52 million American Depositary Shares) for a total of US$4.1 billion (note from IT House: currently approximately RMB29.704 billion). As of September 30, 2024, Alibaba had 18,620 million ordinary shares outstanding (equivalent to 2,327 million American Depositary Shares), a decrease of 405 million ordinary shares, or a net decrease of 2.1%, from June 30, 2024 (after taking into account the shares issued under Alibaba's equity incentive plan). As of September 30, 2024, Alibaba has $22 billion remaining under its board-authorized share repurchase program, which is valid until March 2027.

Gezixuan reported on November 14 that, according to Inverse, hundreds of workers in four offices under ZeniMax, the parent company of Company B, held a one-day strike from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. local time on November 13 to oppose Microsoft's outsourcing and return-to-office policies.

These striking employees have worked on Fallout, The Elder Scrolls, and other B Club games. Currently, Microsoft requires these employees to work in the office at least two days a week. Employees had asked for more flexible work schedules, but this request had not yielded any results and were concerned that it could increase office hours in the future.

In addition, the number of quality testers outsourced by Microsoft is another concern for the union. Its members believe that if this trend continues, the company may take action and lay off the full-time employees currently employed at ZeniMax.

"Strikes aren't fun or ideal, but we can get satisfaction by taking concrete actions to fight for better working conditions," added Juniper Dowell, Senior Quality Assurance Tester at ZeniMax. "Hopefully we can convince them to stop procrastinating and meet with us at the negotiating table."

IT Home noted that Microsoft issued a statement today saying: "We respect the right of employees to express their views, just as they do today." We will continue to listen and address their concerns at the negotiating table. ”

Gezixuan reported on November 12 that Broadcom completed the acquisition of cloud computing company VMware for $69 billion (IT Home note: currently about 497.883 billion yuan) in November 2023.

On May 15 of this year, VMware Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro were announced to be free for individual users. Now, Broadcom has completely abolished paid licenses, meaning that VMware Workstation and Fusion are completely free for commercial, educational, and personal use.

(VMware Fusion and VMware Workstation can be downloaded by logging into your Broadcom account on this page)

Of course, Broadcom will no longer provide technical support for troubleshooting in the future, which is why VMware Workstation previously decided to move to open source KVM.

"Effective today, both VMware Fusion and VMware Workstation will no longer have a paid subscription model, which means you can now use these tools for free." Paid versions of these products — Workstation Pro and Fusion Pro — will no longer be available for purchase. ”

"If you are currently in a commercial contract, you can rest assured that your agreement will continue to be valid until the end of your term. You will continue to receive full service and enterprise-level support under your contract. ”

It is worth mentioning that Broadcom still plans to continue to invest in the development of new features, usability improvements, and other valuable enhancements, and its engineering team remains committed to maintaining a high standard of stability, timely updates, and reliable performance.

Gezixuan News on November 9th, the technology media Android Authority released a blog post today (November 9th), Google in the Android 15 system, to achieve a real sense of adaptive refresh rate (ARR) function, can make the screen refresh rate dynamically adjust according to the screen content, thereby effectively reducing power consumption and jamming.

status quo
Note: Most Android phones support refresh rates over 60Hz, but in most scenarios, for phones that do not support Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) technology, in most cases, you can only switch between a few fixed refresh rates such as 60Hz, 90Hz, or 120Hz.

Android 15
Android 15 is the first version of Android to support Adaptive Refresh Rate (ARR), which not only adapts to the content frame rate, but also changes the refresh rate within a display mode.

Google says that the adaptive refresh rate feature in Android 15 has two main benefits:

First, the feature lets the device run at a rate lower than its maximum refresh rate, transitioning to a higher rate only when it's critical to the user experience, reducing power consumption and minimizing unnecessary power consumption.

Second, the adaptive refresh rate improves performance by eliminating the need to change the display mode, which Google says is a known cause of stuttering. This feature will help improve the user experience when watching videos or playing games on their phones.

Although many phone manufacturers have long advertised Variable Refresh Rate (VRR), Android didn't really support this technology until then. Previous devices were equipped with LTPO displays, but their refresh rates still relied on discrete mode switching.

Android 15's ARR feature provides a unified way to adjust the refresh rate in the same display mode, improving energy efficiency.

Gezixuan News on November 9, eBay today cooperated with Ant International's Antom to add Alipay as a payment option on the platform, which means that buyers in Chinese mainland can use Alipay to pay when shopping on eBay.

With more than 2 billion online listings, eBay is one of the world's largest online marketplaces, and users can choose from a variety of payment methods, including credit and debit cards, digital wallets, and market-specific "buy now, pay later" (BNPL) services, Gezixuan has learned.

eBay's revenue in the second quarter of this year was US$2.572 billion (currently about 18.464 billion yuan), a year-on-year increase of 1%, and the net profit from continuing operations was US$226 million (currently about 1.622 billion yuan), a year-on-year increase of 31%. Total merchandise trading volume (GMV) for the quarter was US$18.418 billion (currently approximately RMB132.22 billion), up 1% year-on-year.

Gezixuan reported on November 5 that Schneider Electric, a French energy management and automation engineering giant, recently suffered a cyber attack, with hackers claiming to have successfully hacked into the company's JIRA system and stole 40GB of data.

The hacking group Greppy posted provocative remarks on social media and posted a small portion of the stolen data. Subsequently, the hackers further elaborated on the ransom demands on the dark web, demanding that Schneider Electric pay a ransom of $125,000 , but in a very special form - 400,000 baguettes.

The hackers threatened to publicly leak data, which included company projects, employee information, and user data, if the ransom demands were not met. Allegedly, the stolen data included "critical data such as projects, issues, and plugins, as well as more than 400,000 rows of user data."

To encourage Schneider Electric to admit to the attack as soon as possible, the hackers also offered an enticing offer: if Schneider Electric publicly admitted to being hacked within 48 hours, the ransom would be halved to $62,500, or 200,000 baguettes.

At the moment, it is unclear whether Schneider Electric has already met the requirements of the hackers. In a statement, the company acknowledged the cybersecurity incident, but did not explicitly confirm the scale of the stolen data. Schneider Electric said its global emergency response team is actively investigating the matter and stressed that the company's products and services are not affected.

At the same time, the hacker group Greppy also announced the formation of a new hacking group, the ICA. The group claims that the victim company will not demand a ransom if it admits to being hacked within 48 hours.

Gezixuan reported on November 4 that the source Leopeva64 posted on the X platform on November 3 that AI is now "ubiquitous", and the "enhanced protection" in the safe browsing mode of the Chrome browser will be driven by AI, and Google has updated the description of the mode in the Chrome Canary version.

Google has updated the description of this feature on the settings page. The description reads: "Real-time AI-powered protection, based on your browsing data being transmitted to Google, protects you from dangerous websites, downloads, and extensions." ”

MSPOWERUSER reported today that while this change may seem minor in the Chrome Canary version, such a text change may often indicate a larger feature change. When Enhanced Protection Mode is turned on, Chrome not only alerts you to dangerous websites you don't recognize, but also deeply scans for suspicious downloads while keeping your browsing speed intact.

However, unlike the standard protection mode, activating the enhanced protection mode may also send a sample of the website address and activity data to Google for a "security check".

Gezixuan reported on November 4 that today, Beijing time, Microsoft announced the launch of the generative AI accelerator program, which aims to nurture the UK's most outstanding AI startups and help them succeed in the future.

The program, in partnership with NVIDIA and GitHub, Microsoft's development platform, provides resources and opportunities for companies looking to build, promote, and scale generative AI products and services. It runs from January to early March 2025 and is officially tailored for UK AI startups that have received seed funding and are looking to grow further.

According to reports, Microsoft's launch of the program comes at a time when many UK start-ups are facing challenges in scaling and realizing their potential, and the "Generative AI Accelerator" will address this issue by providing comprehensive support, including technical guidance, market strategy advice, and access to a network of leading investors.

According to IT House, participants in the "Generative AI Accelerator" program will receive personalized support from Microsoft's AI "Black Belt" team. The experts on these teams are said to have extensive experience in AI and machine learning, and will be providing workshops and help from partners – NVIDIA and GitHub.