Apple will allow the use of second-hand parts for repairs
On April 11, Apple announced improvements to its existing repair process. Starting this fall, some iPhone models will be available for customers and independent repairers using used Apple parts.
Apple says the new process will protect the privacy and security of iPhone users, while providing consumers with more choice, extending the life of products and parts, and minimizing the environmental impact of repairs.
Apple also said that in order to simplify the repair process, for repairs that do not involve replacing the logic board, users and service providers will no longer need to provide the serial number of the device when ordering parts at self-service repair shops. In the past, Apple restricted the use of third-party parts through serial numbers.
This adjustment can be seen as Apple's relaxation of restrictions on third-party maintenance parts. It will have a big impact on how Apple's iPhone is repaired. (Source: Fast Technology, IT House)
Meituan's external business unit made organizational adjustments
On April 10, Meituan issued an internal letter announcing the adjustment of its food delivery division, including the abolition of the direct sales business department and the establishment of the urban operation business department, as well as the establishment of the chain business department and the supply exploration department.
After the completion of this adjustment, the organizational structure of the food delivery division will become more flat. Before the adjustment, the structure of the food delivery division was roughly as follows - "food delivery business department - direct business department - related business group", but now the direct business department has been abolished, and the relevant business group closer to the front line has directly become the first-level department, which is conducive to the management team to capture the changes in the needs of users and merchants and quickly make business judgments.
The logic behind this change is to emphasize the refined operation of the city, and to achieve "one city, one policy" in the future, and fully give the decision-making flexibility and autonomy of the directly operated cities. (Source: 36 Kr)
Google will invest $1 billion to build a Pacific submarine fiber optic cable
Recently, Google announced an investment of $1 billion (about 7.25 billion yuan) to cooperate with Japanese technology giant NEC Corporation to jointly build two submarine fiber optic cables, Proa and Taihei, connecting Japan and the United States. At the same time, Google also plans to expand the Tabua submarine cable project and extend it to Hawaii.
According to the official announcement, both new cables will be built by Japan, with the Proa project connecting Japan, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI) and Guam, and the Taihei project directly connecting Hawaii and Japan. In addition, Google plans to build an interconnected fiber optic cable between Hawaii, the Northern Mariana Islands and Guam to improve the reliability of the transpacific route and reduce latency for users in the Pacific islands and around the world.
It's worth mentioning that Google has already spent $400 million on an investment in the Humboldt project, a submarine cable spanning 14,800 kilometers from Australia to Chile. These measures show that Google is actively expanding its network infrastructure layout to ensure the stability and reliability of the Internet while further strengthening its competitiveness in the international market. (Source: Zhongguancun Online)
Chairman of Chery: The Zhijie project is Chery's first priority strategic project
On April 11, Yin Tongyue, chairman of Chery Group, said at Huawei's spring press conference that Zhijie is Chery's first priority strategic project, and an independent brand business unit has been established, led by the head of R&D and manufacturing. At the same time, Zhijie brand has also established an exclusive intelligent manufacturing industrial park, as well as special resource investment guarantee.
Yin Tongyue also revealed that he and Yu Chengdong communicate online once a week and offline once a month. It said that Chery's new factory can achieve one car off the assembly line and one car delivered every minute to ensure the delivery of the Zhijie S7.
This is the second release of the Zhijie S7 in 5 months. From the configuration point of view, there are 3 model versions of the Zhijie S7, which have dropped by 20,000 yuan on the basis of the original. The entry-level model has an increased battery capacity from 60 kWh to 82 kWh, with an increased range of 155 km, and is equipped with Huawei's pure vision intelligent driving solution for the first time, while the new top-of-the-line all-wheel drive version is equipped with CATL's 100kWh battery, which has a range of 751 km and accelerates from zero to 100 in 3.3 seconds. Yu Chengdong said that models with a price of less than 300,000 yuan are sold at a loss. (Source: IT House, National Business Daily)
NIO and Midea signed a strategic cooperation agreement
On the morning of April 11, it was reported that NIO and Midea recently held a signing ceremony for a strategic cooperation agreement. The two parties will carry out extensive cooperation in the fields of new energy vehicle parts, automation, digital construction, low-carbon and sustainable parks, and smart logistics.
According to the agreement, the two parties will deepen cooperation in the field of auto parts and new technology research and development, and jointly explore new technologies that are leading and competitive in the scenario of smart electric vehicles, including but not limited to air conditioning compressors, electric drives, thermal management integration, on-board refrigerators and other products.
In addition, in the industrial field, the two parties will also cooperate in the fields of industrial robot ontology, automotive and general industrial automation solutions, motion control overall solutions, digital management systems, and smart logistics. (Source: Sina Technology)
More than a dozen companies oppose the US tech giant's proposal to access EU cloud data
In a joint letter to their authorities and senior officials of the European Commission, Deutsche Telekom, France telecom operator Orange, Airbus and 15 other companies opposed a proposal that would allow Amazon, Google and Microsoft to bid for EU cloud computing contracts, Reuters reported.
The proposed plan proposed by Belgium, which currently holds the rotating presidency of the European Union, scrapped a previous sovereignty requirement that US tech giants must form joint ventures or partnerships with EU companies to store and process customer data within the EU in order to obtain the highest level of EU cybersecurity certification. (Source: Jiemian News)
Apple will launch the M4 series of chips as soon as the end of 2024
In the latest issue of the Power On newsletter, Bloomberg's Mark Gurman believes that Apple is accelerating the development of the M4 series of Apple Silicon chips, which are expected to be installed in new Mac devices by the end of 2024, with a focus on improving performance for AI tasks.
According to Gurman, at least three main models are expected for the M4 series of processors. The low-end chip will be used in the entry-level MacBook Pro, MacBook Air models and low-end Mac mini, and the mid-range chip will be codenamed for the high-end MacBook Pro and high-end Mac mini; the high-end chip is designed for the Mac Pro. The M4 chip will be manufactured using the same 3nm process as the M3 chip, but Apple supplier TSMC will likely use an improved version of the 3nm process to improve performance and energy efficiency.
He also said that the M4 version of the Mac desktop can support up to 512GB of unified memory, which is a significant increase from the current limit of 192GB. (Source: IT House)
DJI released the Avata 2 drone, which is available from 2988 yuan
On the evening of April 11, DJI officially released a new generation of Avata 2 drones, providing bare metal and two battery packages, of which the single-aircraft version starts at 2988 yuan.
In terms of parameters, the DJI Avata 2 drone uses a 1/1.3-inch 48MP f / 2.8 CMOS (focal length 12.7mm, FOV 155 degrees), and supports 60-120 FPS video recording at 4K / 2.7K and 60-240FPS video recording at 1080P.
In addition, the drone is equipped with a Micro-OLED HD screen with support for RockSteady 3.0+ / HorizonSteady / HorizonBalancing technology, weighs about 458 grams, measures 180 x 216 x 82mm, has 46GB of memory on board, and has a 3400mAh battery for a range of about 23 minutes and 13 km. (Source: IT House)
The "World of Warcraft" national server returned, and the number of reservations exceeded 500,000
On April 10, Blizzard and NetEase announced that they had re-entered into cooperation, and a number of Blizzard Entertainment's games will return this summer. As of 12 o'clock on April 11, on the NetEase God platform, the number of reservations for the return of the national server of "World of Warcraft" exceeded 500,000. (Source: Securities Times)