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Microsoft has just stopped the production of its two year old Microsoft Surface 2 tablet powered by the Windows RT operating system. The news doesn't come as a surprise since the Windows RT OS hasn't been very popular among buyers. Also, the new generation Microsoft Surface 3 tablet has been selling well for the company in recent quarters. In fact, in the recent earnings call, Microsoft revealed that it generated around $1.1 billion in revenue from the Surface lineup, with most of the credit going to the new Surface 3. According to the report, the company sold three times more Surface 3 tablets than the older Surface 2. Also, the company recently announced that it would not bring Windows 10 OS on the device as an update, which further hinted at the company's plans to shift its focus to the mainstream operating system. With the production stopped, Surface 2 stocks will eventually dry up for online and brick and mortar stores. It is already out of stock on the company's own website. However, a Microsoft spokesperson revealed recently that Microsoft will still support Windows RT for some time. The company aims to release an update which will bring some of the features of Windows 10 on to the platform.  

Chinese brands like Xiaomi and Meizu have gained international recognition lately. While Samsung and Apple are the top two smartphone makers worldwide, the third position is currently being battled over by Chinese manufacturers like Xiaomi, Huawei and Lenovo. Many consider them to be direct competitors in the industry. However, according to Huawei's Chief, Richard Yu, the company's real competitor is Samsung and not Xiaomi. According to him, the affordable smartphone maker Xiaomi has no chance against Huawei in the high-end segment. He claims that his company's flagship devices are much better than Xiaomi's offerings. This comment doesn't come as a surprise since he recently criticized both Xiaomi and Meizu for incorporating a Quad HD resolution display on their devices. Both the Xiaomi Mi Note Proand the Meizu MX4 feature quad HD ultra-high resolution displays. His recent comment indicates that Xiaomi's Mi Note flagship and Xiaomi Mi 4 doesn't offer the advantages of Huawei's devices like theHuawei Mate 7 and the Honor 6 Plus. The two Chinese companies are expected to unveil a number of devices later this year, including flagships like the Xiaomi Mi 5, Huawei P8 and even the next generation model of the popular Mate 7. So, it would be interesting to see which one actually comes out as the winner in 2015.

After numerous leaks and speculations, the Meizu M1 from the company’s Blue Charm range is finally official. At an official event yesterday, the company unveiled this ultra-affordable device which competes directly with the recently announced Xiaomi Redmi 2 budget smartphone. Like its larger brother, theMeizu M1 Note, this particular device takes its design inspiration from the Apple iPhone 5C. It also brings a lot of new color options like white, green, yellow, pink and two different shades of blue. Tech specs wise, the device comes with a 64-bit 1.5GHz quad-core Mediatek MT6732 processor with 1GB RAM and 8GB internal storage expandable up to 128GB. The front features a beautiful 5-inch display with 1280 x 768 pixel resolution with Gorilla Glass 3 protection. At the back, there is a 13MP camera with single LED flash and at the front, there is a 5MP shooter. This is much better than the Redmi 2's 8MP + 2MP cameras. The battery is also bigger on the new Meizu phone. It comes with a 2600 mAh battery as compared to the 2200 mAh found on Xiaomi model. Finally, Meizu has priced the new Meizu M1 at just 699 Yuan (RM406) which is the exact same price as the Xiaomi Redmi 2 but there are still no Malaysia release dates or pricing details just yet. Hopefully, Meizu Malaysia brings this one in soon.

Huawei Malaysia and Xiamen University recently signed a Memorandum of Understanding(MoU) with Xiamen University Malaysia campus to develope a future-oriented ICT enabled campus in Malaysia. While no exact Malaysia release dates were revealed, the MoU details collaboration between the two that will result in a high-quality campus network along with a joint lab on Xiamen University campus grounds featuring Huawei's latest ICT technologies. Xiamen University Campus Malaysia will be located in Bandar Kota Warisan, Selangor. Here's what Huawei Malaysia and Xiamen University had to say about it all:

“I’m very pleased to see Huawei embark on this exciting journey with Xiamen University, one of the most respected universities in the world. As a world ICT leader, Huawei is leading the way for education reform through technology. Smart campuses with reliable, high bandwidth networks are essential tools for today’s Digital Natives to feel engaged in University education and compete and win in the digital economy. This MoU is just the in line with our ongoing efforts in ICT education and skill development for Malaysian students. I am very excited by the potential of this partnership and look forward to working with the university over the future.” Abraham Liu, CEO of Huawei Malaysia

“We are excited to have taken the first step in what we hope will be a long-term collaboration with Huawei, a company which plays a major role in the global ICT industry. Today’s MoU with Huawei means the collaborations between Xiamen University and Huawei have reached a strategic level. This win-win collaboration will help Xiamen University expand its reputation in Malaysia and it also enables Huawei to enhance its brand among the education industry.” Zhu Chongshi, President of Xiamen University

Recent reports said that Huawei had a great 2014. Now, the company is all set to announce a number of devices in the first and second quarters of this year. A few days back, the upcoming Huawei flagship called the Huawei P8 was spotted on twitter. From the images, the device looked like a prototype model. The phone had a very thin profile with super slim bezels and overall, it looked quite well built. According to the source, the Huawei P8 will feature tech specs such as an octa-core Kirin 930 chipset with 3GB RAM. There will be a 5.2-inch display up front, with full HD 1080p resolution. Given the flagship status, the phone is said to come with a 13MP camera at the back with OIS (Optical Image Stabilization). The battery will be just average, around 2600 mAh which could be due to the phone's thin profile. Earlier, it was rumored that the phone could be announced at MWC 2015, however, latest reports indicate that Huawei will hold a special event in April to release its flagship. The rumored high-end Huawei D8 with 5.5-inch 2K display and Kirin 950 processor may also make an appearance at said event.  

ASUS may have solved the problem of low battery life on smartwatches. According to a report from Focus Taiwan, ASUS will incorporate a power efficient CPU unit inside the second generation ASUS ZenWatch 2 to improve the battery life drastically. Asus Chairman Jonney Shih said that the next ZenWatch will come with a simplified CPU and operating system which should extend its battery life up to one week on a single charge. If this turns out to be true, the ZenWatch 2 will become one of the best smartwatches in the market in terms of battery life. At present, modern smartwatches provide up to one to two days of battery at the most. The ZenWatch 2 will also reportedly come with a feature wherein it can make and receive calls without a companion smartphone. This would make it a standalone smartwatch, much like the Samsung Gear S that was recently announced. The Taiwanese giant plans to release this new watch by Q3 2015. At present, the company has the ZenWatch in most markets (just not Malaysia) which retails for around $199 (RM718). Reports suggest ASUS will also unveil two new smartbands in the coming months targeted at a lower price band (perhaps we'll get those). 

A few days back, Huawei announced that it would hold a press event on 1 March 2015, just a day before MWC 2015. The company didn't reveal any details of the possible launches that could be made at the event, but latest rumors indicate that Huawei may announce a compact version of its popular Huawei Ascend Mate 7 flagship. According to a Chinese blog, the new device, which could be called the Huawei Mate 7 Compact, will be a smaller version of the flagship smartphone. Moreover, the company may drop the Ascend name completely for its new launch. The Ascend Mate 7 is a large phone, thanks to its 6-inch display. On the other hand, the new Mate 7 Compact will reportedly feature a 5.5-inch display, which is quite the standard among flagship devices announced lately. The tech specs of the device have not been leaked yet, but rumors say that the phone will carry the full metal premium build found on the original Mate 7. A number of other handsets are also expected to be announced at the 1 March event, which may include the rumored Huawei P8 flagship. Expect more details in the coming few weeks.

Meizu is all set to announce another device in its Blue Charm range called the Meizu M1 Note Mini on 28 January 2015. Over the past few days, there have been many leaks about the device on the internet and this time, the images of the Note Mini was posted directly by Meizu's Vice President Li Nan on his official weibo page. The image confirms earlier rumors which said that the phone's design will be inspired from the Apple iPhone 5C. It will also come in a number of unique shades much like the Meizu M1 Note in the Blue Charm series. In the picture, interestingly there is a camera alongside the M1 Note mini in the same green shade. The company could be hinting at a new camera lineup, but that's highly unlikely. It may just be to highlight the color shades of the upcoming Meizu device. Several rumors have leaked the tech specs of the device. The phone will most likely feature a 4.7-inch display with a 1280 x 720p HD resolution. There should be a Mediatek MT6732 quad-core processor inside along with 1GB RAM. The M1 Note Mini will reportedly compete directly with the recently announced Xiaomi Redmi 2, so pricing should be around $112 (RM404) but no exact Malaysia release dates just yet.

If you are looking for a new laptop or tablet, Intel has a number of promotional offers which will help you save up to RM567. Under the new Intel PC Refresh Promotion, the company is giving away discount vouchers, JBL speakers, extended warranties and even subscription to antivirus software when you purchase an Intel powered device. To redeem the RM100 discount vouchers, interested customers will have to print out the voucher and go to the event that is held at Concourse Area, Low Yat Plaza. However, not everyone with a voucher will get RM100 off. Only the first 10 customers on weekdays and 20 on weekend will be able to redeem it. Also, the discount is applicable only on select Intel powered devices. Similarly, the RM300 JBL speakers are only available on select products like the Acer Switch 2 and the Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro. Finally, the 3-year warranty and anti-Virus subscription is exclusive to some Acer products. These include the Acer E5, Iconia Tab 8 and Acer Switch 11 and 12 models. This promotional offer started on January 26 and will continue till 1st February 2015. For the applicable devices and full details on the promotion, check out Intel's site.   

At a launch for their new ASUS Fonepad 7 FE171CG tablet and other devices, ASUS Malaysia have confirmed that the upcoming ASUS ZenFone 2 and ZenFone Zoom will be coming to Malaysia sometime in Q2. No exact Malaysia release dates or pricing details were offered but we should know more around March or April 2015. They have said that there will be no supply issues like the previous ASUS ZenFone range of smartphones and we hope that that will remain true when the actual relase date rolls about. They also revealed that the first-generation ASUS ZenWatch would not be coming to Malaysia but have not ruled out the likelihood of the ZenWatch 2 coming here instead. While they didn't reveal exact plans for 2015, they did reveal that their focus would be on achieving top rankings for their notebooks, desktops, Android tablets and smartphones.