Immediate Authority: The Next Four Years of Tech
In President Donald Trump’s four years in the United States, the world of technology has changed dramatically through direct and indirect action, as well as chaos and uncertainty. This is also not limited to the USA.
See also: Huawei Ban Explained – Complete Timeline and Everything You Need to Know
First a short story:
- In my hometown of Newcastle, Australia, Chinese businessman Martin Lee bought local soccer club Newcastle Jets for $ 4.3 million in 2016.
- Lee founded the Ledman Group LED lighting company in Shenzhen and was a billionaire at the time. The club and its fans were of course excited for an injection of money and a return to former glory.
- However, things haven’t been particularly good for the club over the past four years. Here is a report that explains why: “Trade tariffs between the US and China had a big impact on Lee’s fortune as his LED lighting company, Ledman Group, suffered from a sharp decline in profits.“
- Lee is now close to selling the jets for $ 5.8 million plus $ 2.2 million in underlying debt.
This is just a footnote from the US-China trade war and the technical downfall that extends to an Australian football club.
There are some bigger implications too. Maybe you noticed?
Briefly:
- China: ZTE and Huawei have done great damage to both their consumers and their 5G infrastructure businesses. While ZTE has been let off the hook and the absolute nature of the bans around Huawei seems to be easing, both Chinese companies have suffered.
- TikTok and WeChat have seen major upheavals. As I write, steps to largely dismantle TikTok in the US have been suspended following legal action, despite an appeal.
- As the founders of Amazon, Facebook and Microsoft became the three richest people in the world, control over antitrust law increased: Alphabet caught the eye of the Justice Department in a file that was only supported by Republican governors. However, it is assumed that Democratic governors will also act.
- Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act has been reviewed, including hearings in Congress with big tech executives. The Trump administration saw the bill as a shield for big tech from concerns that right-wing views had hidden. More of that EFF on the role of Section 230 in engineering.
The new government in Biden offers hope of relief for some, a positive turn for many, and new concerns for others.
What will change under Biden?::
- On the campaign path, Biden didn’t detail a technology policy platform like the Green New Deal platform.
- However, Biden made it clear that he wasn’t a fan of big tech. In a penetrating January 2020 interview with the New York Times Editors Biden said he wanted to revoke Section 230, calling Big Tech executives “little horrors” who displayed “overwhelming arrogance”.
- Biden’s reasons for repealing Section 230 are not a perceived bias against conservative views, but rather the poor job of monitoring misinformation. There is no suggestion of what would replace the law.
- Tech companies and hopeful people from around the world should benefit from the promised reform of the H1-B visa system, which has restricted a reliable method of hiring overseas engineers, developers and more from overseas.
- The FCC is more complicated. While Ajit Pai said goodbye to the FCC (Vice) is generally expected before Biden takes office, Trump is currently trying urge the current Senate to ratify its candidate (Axios). Interfering with the FCC would halt Democrats’ progress on issues such as net neutrality.
What must not change:
- Justice Department antitrust proceedings against Google may or may not continue. NPR reports that while this case can be dropped, another or even expanded lawsuit can be filed.
- The expectation is that China’s tech industry will continue to be scrutinized. “Biden will take a tough stance on China. And Biden will actually have a strategy. Trump had no process or strategy, ”said Darrell West, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution who studies technology policy NPR.
What you say:
- Very little: Huawei was contacted for comment on the expectations or expectations of a new Biden administration but declined to comment.
Popular news
We had all sensed something when Google announced that Google Photos was ending its unlimited free storage. Not everyone was upset, but there was widespread dismay that Google was deviating from its promised approach and searching a lot for alternatives. And the Galaxy S21’s leaked details are of great significance for a device two months or more away. Don’t miss this.
- 🤯 The massive new leak of the Samsung Galaxy S21 reveals hardware specifications, display sizes and functions of the battery camera and confirms three variants: S21, S21 Plus, S21 Ultra. Loading here, including battery sizes, on-screen details, Snapdragon 875 / Exynos 2100 processor, and more (Nov 14, 2020).
- 🤳 Google will end its free unlimited storage for Google Photos on June 1, 2021 after five years of unlimited free photo backups. After that date, there is now a hard 15 GB limit on all new photos, but existing photos and documents that were previously uploaded do not count towards the limit. Pixel phone users will still be able to upload an unlimited number of high-quality uploads after the cutoff (November 11th).
- 👉 This Might Be Useful: Best Google Photos Alternatives (November 14th).
- 💻 Apple’s new M1 chip, M1 MacBooks, and new Mac Mini broke and rated. It’s great to see arm-based progress in math. Apple, which charges full price for transition products, is less secure. We are waiting for reviews (November 11, 2020).
- 🤔 Huawei is expected to sell Honor. The deal calls for a Chinese consortium to buy the company valued at over $ 15 billion as Huawei seeks to streamline and Honor tries to escape U.S.-related Huawei-related bans. Will this version of Honor be separate enough for Google Mobile Services to return? (November 10, 2020).
- 📈 Samsung and Xiaomi dominated the top 10 smartphones worldwide in the third quarter of 2020. Samsung also sold Apple, although the average retail price varied widely, and the iPhone 11 was the top shipping smartphone of the third quarter of 2020. A good result nonetheless. (November 10, 2020)
- 🔫 It’s official: PUBG returns to India as PUBG Mobile India. When changes are made, such as the game being played in the simulation, the characters are dressed! (November 12, 2020).
- 🔭 This could be our first look at the OnePlus 9 design, which looks … flat? Treat this with cautious skepticism. (November 14, 2020).
reviews
The team went through a variety of devices this week. And yes, our team continues to review Apple devices to make sure you know what’s out there, where it fits in the Android world, and what it all means.
- OnePlus Nord N10 Review: Solid Enough, But Without Android 11 And Strangely No Branded Alarm Controls … And In A World Where Pixel 4a And Pixel 4a 5G Exist, It’s Very Hard To Recommend – By Eric Zeman.
- Apple iPhone 12 Review: The Vanilla Non-Pro / Non-Mini iPhone 12 is a great overall device, but it sits a bit awkward in Apple’s own range of devices for 2020 – by Dhruv Bhutani.
- Apple iPad Mini 5 Review: The best (and only) small tablet when you want something more powerful than the Fire HD line of tablets – by Nick Fernandez.
- Google Nest Thermostat Review: Like Google’s other 2020 devices, the new Nest Thermostat is responsive, good-looking, and cheaper than competing products. Not the best, but a top smart thermostat for the money – from Jimmy Westenberg.
- Jabra Elite 85t Review – Some of the best earbuds are getting upgraded from the Jabra Elite 75t and 65t before them. Now, with active noise cancellation, Jabra’s new flagship buds get a strong recommendation – from Lily Katz
Features & opinion
Apple’s new M1 Macs and Google Photos benefits dominate the discussion on Slack this week. The following was produced:
deals
If you’re looking for tech right now, check out these popular deals:
Tech tweet of the week
We can’t believe we have to say this, but please don’t blow steam into your Xbox Series X.
– Xbox (@Xbox) November 11, 2020
Technical calendar
Coming this week:
- Oppo Inno Day 2020 Event – November 17th. Expect VR glasses!
- Apple M1 MacBook / Mac Mini Reviews May Show Up?
- And I can confirm a surprise next week. Not a new phone, but something like a new phone. No further questions.
Give away
We’re giving away three prize packages this month! Take part in the November competition to take advantage of your chance to win.
That’s it guys! We’ll have more top Android stories for you next week. Stay up to date on all things Android Authority In the meantime, be sure to subscribe to our newsletter using the link below.