The International CES, one of the world’s largest consumer electronics shows, is set to run in Las Vegas this week, with celebrity attendees including rapper 50 Cent, rock legend Neil Young and US talk show host Dr Phil McGraw.
The Verge reports Samsung is set to demonstrate a large curved 4K television set, running apps powered by its Tizen operating system at the show, with the new device dubbed the S’UHD TV. The company says it also expects all its new smart TVs this year to use Tizen, rather than the rival Android TV platform from Google.
Meanwhile, Sony is set to go old school, with the company expected to unveil a new high-performance Walkman at the show.
Xiaomi reports 135% jump in profit
Chinese tech giant Xiaomi has reported a massive 135% jump in pre-tax sales to $US11.97 billion.
According to Reuters, chief executive Lei Jun has also stated the company shipped 61 million phones during 2014, a massive 227% jump from a year earlier.
The Chinese tech startup recently completed a $US1.1 billion funding round valuing the company at $US45 billion, with investors including All-Stars Investment, DST Global, Hopu Investment Management, and Yunfeng Capital.
The company made headlines last year after overtaking Samsung and Apple in smartphone sales in China last year. While its focus is currently on China, it is expected to branch out into more markets later this year.
Uber emails set to be made public in lawsuit setback
US Magistrate Judge Donna Ryu has ruled Uber has to reveal emails by chief executive Travis Kalanick in a lawsuit over the company’s tipping practices.
In the lawsuit, Uber is accused of failing to provide drivers in San Francisco with an automatic 20% tip, as it had claimed, with the company allegedly instead claiming a “substantial proportion” for itself.
Overnight
The Dow Jones Industrial Average closed up 0.06%, or 9.92 points, to 17833.0. The Australian dollar is down to US80.81 cents.
Andrew Sadauskas is a former journalist at SmartCompany and a former editor of TechCompany.
