Tech
UW System bans TikTok use on system devices
University of Wisconsin System officials said Tuesday that they will ban the use of TikTok on system devices.
System spokesman Mark Pitsch told The Associated Press about the move in email statements.
Nearly half of the states nationwide have blocked the popular social media app owned by a Chinese company. Earlier this month, Democratic Gov. Tony Evers banned the use of TikTok on Wisconsin state phones and other devices, citing potential risks to privacy, safety and security.
The order didn't apply to the UW System, which employs 40,000 faculty and staff, because it isn’t an executive branch agency. UW-Madison, the system's flagship school, has multiple TikTok accounts, including one for the women's volleyball team. Universities often use TikTok accounts as a recruiting tool to connect with high school students.
Read more: Making money on TikTok: 10 Best Ways
A number of other universities across the country have banned TikTok in recent weeks, including Auburn, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa and Texas.
TikTok is owned by ByteDance, a Chinese company that moved its headquarters to Singapore in 2020. It has been targeted by critics who say the Chinese government could access user data, such as browsing history and location. U.S. armed forces also have prohibited the app on military devices.
TikTok is consumed by two-thirds of American teens and has become the second-most popular domain in the world. But there has long been bipartisan concern in Washington that Beijing would use legal and regulatory power to seize American user data or try to push pro-China narratives or misinformation.
Read more: List of US states banning TikTok grows
Elon Musk defiantly defends himself in Tesla tweet trial
Elon Musk returned to federal court to defend himself against a class-action lawsuit that alleges he misled Tesla shareholders with a tweet about an aborted buyout that the billionaire defiantly insisted Tuesday he could have pulled off, had he wanted.
Musk spent roughly three more hours on the stand during his third day of testimony before being excused by U.S. District Judge Edward Chen. It’s unlikely Musk, 51, will be summoned back to the witness stand during a civil trial expected to be turned over to a nine-person jury in early February.
Musk, who also owns Twitter while continuing to run Tesla, spent much of Tuesday depicting himself, while being questioned by his own attorney, Alex Spiro, as an impeccably trustworthy business leader capable of raising as much money as he needs to pursue his visions. He testily sparred with a shareholder lawyer, Nicholas Porritt, who had raised his ire earlier in the trial.
Read more: Elon Musk rebuffed in bid to move Tesla tweet trial to Texas
At two separate junctures Tuesday under Spiro’s gentle prodding, Musk left no doubt about his contempt for Porritt with a remark expressing doubt that the lawyer was looking out for the best interests of Tesla shareholders. The remarks drew a quick rebuke from the judge and were stricken from the record. “It's inappropriate," Chen at one point admonished Musk.
When he was being challenged by Porritt, Musk purposefully diverted his gaze from the lawyer and delivered his explanations while looking directly at the jurors sitting a few feet to his right. In another instance, Musk asserted, without elaborating, that a question from Porritt wondering if he had ever caused investors to suffer losses contained “falsehoods."
On the flip side, Spiro at one point mistakenly addressed Musk as “your honor" while asking the billionaire how much money he had made for investors during his career. The slipup elicited a moment of levity in the San Francisco courtroom filled with media and other spectators in attendance to listen to Musk, who has become even more famous since completing his $44 billion purchase of Twitter in October.
The current trial hinges on whether a pair of tweets Musk posted on Aug. 7, 2018, damaged Tesla shareholders during a 10-day period leading up to his admission that the buyout he had envisioned wasn’t going to happen. The statements resulted in Musk and Tesla to reach the $40 million settlement without acknowledging any wrongdoing.
In the first of the 2018 tweets, Musk stated “funding secured” for what would have been a $72 billion — or $420 per share — buyout of Tesla at a time when the electric automaker was still grappling with production problems and was worth far less than it is now. Musk followed up a few hours later with another tweet suggesting a deal was imminent.
After those tweets, Musk declared Tesla would remain publicly a few weeks later. A month after that, Musk and Tesla reached a $40 million settlement with securities regulators who had alleged the tweets were misleading.
Read more: Musk says he can't get fair trial in California, wants Texas
Musk has previously contended he entered into the settlement under duress and maintained he never wavered in his belief that he had the money for a deal.
Musk spent most of Tuesday trying to persuade the jurors that there was nothing devious about the two tweets indicating he had lined up the money to take Tesla private as the electric automaker was struggling with production problems and was worth far less than it is now. The judge has already declared the jurors can consider those two tweets to be false, leaving them to decide whether Musk deliberately deceived investors and whether his statements saddled them with losses.
While being steered by Spiro, Musk told jurors he had stated only that he was “considering” a Tesla buyout but never promised a deal would get done. But, Musk said, he thought it important to get the word out to investors that Tesla might be poised to end its eight-year run as a publicly held company.
“I had no ill motive,” Musk said. “My intent was to do the right thing for all shareholders."
While being grilled the day before by Porritt, Musk at times was combative, indignant and exasperated. Through it all, Musk has insisted he locked up financial backing for what would have been a $72 billion buyout of Tesla during 2018 meetings with representatives from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, although no specific funding amount or price was discussed.
When presented with texts and email indicating that a representative for the Saudi fund had never pledged the money for a full buyout of Tesla, Musk contended it was nothing more than the words of someone trying to backpedal from a previous pledge made in private conversations.
Not long after Porritt resumed his questioning Tuesday, Musk once again scoffed at the notion that his belief that he had the Saudi funding's financial backing wasn't enough for him to tweet about a potential Tesla buyout.
“We are talking about the kingdom of Saudi Arabia," Musk testified. “They can buy Tesla several times over. This was not a large amount of money for them."
Musk also reiterated earlier testimony that he could finance a Tesla buyout by sharing some of his holdings in SpaceX, a privately held maker of rocket ships that he also started. That would be similar to what he did in the Twitter purchase, which led him to sell about $23 billion of his Tesla stock.
That's something that Musk said Tuesday that he didn't want to do, but that it showed he had the wherewithal to pull together purchases for expensive deals. Musk's ownership of Twitter also has proved unpopular with Tesla shareholders who worry about him being distracted as the automaker faces more competition. Tesla's stock has lost about one-third of its value since Musk took over Twitter.
Despite that downturn, the stock is still worth about seven times more than at the time of Musk's 2018 tweets, after adjusting for two splits that have since occurred. That opened the door for Musk to remind jurors Tuesday that any investor who held Tesla shares in August 2018 would have done “extremely well," had they just held on to the stock.
“It would have been the best investment in the stock market," Musk said.
China's Huawei looks to ports, factories to rebuild sales
As technicians in a distant control room watch on display screens, an automated crane at one of China’s busiest ports moves cargo containers from a Korean freighter to self-driving trucks in a scene tech giant Huawei sees as its future after American sanctions crushed its smartphone brand.
The backbone of the “smart terminal” at the Tianjin Port, east of Beijing, is a data network built by Huawei, which is reinventing itself as a supplier for self-driving cars, factories and other industries it hopes will be less vulnerable to Washington's worsening feud with Beijing over technology and security.
The ruling Communist Party is promoting automation in industries from manufacturing to taxis to keep China’s economy growing as the workforce ages and starts to shrink. Its managers say the “smart terminal,” part of Tianjin's 200-square-kilometer (77-square-mile) port, allows 200 employees to move as much cargo as 800 used to.
Read more: Huawei launches all-band 5G solution series
“We believe this solution in Tianjin is the world’s most advanced,” said Yue Kun, chief technology officer of Huawei’s business unit for ports. “We believe it can be applied to other ports.”
Huawei Technologies Ltd., which makes smartphones and is the biggest global supplier of network gear for phone carriers, struggled after then-President Donald Trump cut off access to American processor chips and other technology in 2019 in a feud with Beijing about security.
Washington says Huawei is a security risk that might use its access to foreign phone networks to facilitate Chinese spying, an accusation the company denies. The United States and allies including Japan and Australia have banned or restricted use of Huawei equipment by their phone carriers.
Smartphone sales outside China collapsed after Huawei lost music, maps and other services from Alphabet Inc.’s Google that handset buyers expect to see pre-loaded. Its low-end Honor brand was sold off in 2020 in hopes of reviving sales by separating it from the sanctions on its corporate parent.
Huawei, with a workforce of almost 200,000, has held onto its status as the leading maker of network gear based on sales in China and other markets where Washington has had less success at encouraging governments to shun the company.
“Huawei is already a key player” in data networks with a “wealth of knowledge,” said Paul Budde, an industry analyst.
The company has created 20 teams to focus on factories, mines, hospitals, ports, power plants and other industrial customers. It says the auto unit has 3,000 people working on autonomous driving and invested $2 billion in the technology in 2020-21. Huawei was an early developer of “smart city” networks for traffic control and police surveillance.
Read more: Huawei Bangladesh Academy launched in Dhaka
“The big, black cloud here, however, is geopolitics," said Budde. "This will hamper its participation in overseas markets,” he said. “The issues are not technology but are purely political.”
American pressure on Huawei spiraled into an international standoff in 2018 after its chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, daughter of its founder, was arrested in Canada on U.S. charges related to accusations of violating trade sanctions on Iran.
China arrested two Canadians on spying charges, trying to win Meng's release. They were freed in September 2021 after Meng was allowed to return to China under an agreement with American prosecutors in which she took responsibility for misrepresenting Huawei's dealings with Iran.
Huawei says its new focus already is helping to revive the company’s fortunes.
“In 2020, we successfully pulled ourselves out of crisis mode,” said Eric Xu, one of three Huawei executives who take turns as chairman, in a December letter to employees. “U.S. restrictions are now our new normal, and we’re back to business as usual.”
Last year’s revenue was forecast to be little-changed from 2021 at 636.9 billion yuan ($91.6 billion), Xu said. That was below Huawei’s double-digit growth of a decade earlier but an improvement over the 5.9% slide in the first half.
He gave no breakdown by business line, but Huawei reported 2021 sales to industrial customers of 102.4 billion yuan ($16.1 billion). Sales of smartphones and other devices fell 25.3% from a year earlier in the first half of 2022 to 101.3 billion yuan ($15 billion).
The auto unit, which supplies components and software for navigation, dashboard displays and managing vehicle systems, has played a role in five models released by three Chinese automakers.
The ruling party's urgency about rolling out automation has risen as the size of China’s working age population 16 to 59 declined after hitting a peak in 2011. That group has shrunk by about 5%. Its share of the population slid from 70% to 62%.
The Tianjin port managers told Huawei they already were having trouble finding and keeping truck drivers, according to Yue.
“This can help to address the aging population issue,” said Yue.
Yue said Huawei has talked with “people outside China” who might use its port technology, but he gave no details.
The annual market for port-related network technology is modest at $2 billion, but global sales of gear to link factory and medical equipment, cars and other devices total $600 billion a year, according to Budde. He said that has the potential to replace Huawei's lost smartphone and other telecom sales, so long as foreign buyers aren't put off by security concerns.
The Tianjin port's fleet of 88 battery-powered autonomous trucks are charged by wind turbines, according to a port spokesman, Peng Pai.
“It’s much safer, and it uses clean energy,” said Peng.
In a third-floor control room with floor-to-ceiling windows that look out over the port, a dozen operators sit in front of displays with as many as six screens showing video feeds of computer-controlled cranes lifting cargo boxes onto or off ships. Each can monitor as many as six cranes at once, unlike a traditional operator who serves only one ship.
“People had to work high up in cranes,” said Yang Jiemin, a vice president of Tianjin Port Group. “Now, our operators can sit in an office and monitor equipment remotely.”
Operators take control of a crane or truck if sensors indicate a problem, according to Huawei's Yue. He said the port’s goal is to cut that “takeover rate” to 0.1%, or one container in 1,000, while computers manage the handling of the others from start to finish.
The high-speed network allows a crane or truck to react to a command in 1/100th of a second, even though the ships are 500 meters (one-third of a mile) away from the control room, according to Liu Xiwang, manager of the port’s information department.
“You can’t feel the delay,” Liu said.
Yue, the Huawei executive, was reluctant to say whether it needs processor chips or other foreign inputs that might be disrupted by U.S. sanctions.
“I really don’t know the answer to your question,” Yue said after being asked twice about the sources of critical components. He compared it to buying a cup of coffee: “I don’t know who supplies the cup, the coffee beans and the water.”
Xiaomi launches PCBA manufacturing plant in Bangladesh
Global smartphone makers Xiaomi Sunday said it recently started manufacturing printed circuit board assembly (PCBA) locally in Bangladesh.
PCBA is one of the major parts of electrical, electronics and technology products. It connects various chips and electrical circuits to enable the overall functionality of a smartphone.
Xiaomi already established a surface mount technology (SMT) plant in its Gazipur factory. This initiative is financed through 100 percent foreign direct investment.
The company has collaborated with DBG Technology BD to manufacture its smartphones and PCBAs in Bangladesh.DBG, a global EMS company, has been operating in the manufacturing business around the world for several renowned brands of consumer electronics.
Ziauddin Chowdhury, Xiaomi country manager, said: "Redmi 10C is the first product of Xiaomi that is available in the market with PCBAs manufactured in Bangladesh. Within a short time, all the locally produced Xiaomi smartphones will be using locally manufactured PCBAs."
In the local plant, the SMT machines will mount around 2,500 surface mount device (SMD) components on the blank printed circuit board (PCB) to convert it into a completely functional smartphone motherboard/ PCBA and sub-PCBA."The SMT plant can produce 6,000 PCBAs daily. PCBA production will increase local value addition by around 10 percent," Xiaomi said.
In October 2021, Xiaomi set up a factory in Bangladesh to produce smartphones locally.
About 95 percent of the demand for Xiaomi smartphones in the country is met by the local factory. All entry-level and mid-range phones like Redmi 10A, Redmi 10C, and Redmi Note 11 are being made in Bangladesh.
Top features of Infinix Note 12 Pro
Chinese smartphone company Infinix brought Note 12 Pro to Bangladesh on January 12 with advanced processors, an AMOLED screen, and "top-notch photographic capabilities" for Tk26,499.
Note 12 Pro is powered by TSMC 6nm chip production process Helio G99 and equipped with a 108MP triple camera in the rear and 16MP in the front.
The device's Helio G99 is an octa-core CPU with two high-performance Arm Cortex-A76 processors clocking up to 2.2GHz and a highly capable Arm Mali G57-class GPU to handle graphics-intensive tasks, such as gaming and video editing.
"For photography, the triple camera setup of a 108MP ultra-clear camera with 10x zoom, and a 16MP selfie camera captures clear, bright, and more vivid photos effortlessly. With professional night scene photography mode, photography will be no issue at night," the company said.
Also, Note 12 Pro improves the ability to multitask from a mobile device while reducing lag and battery drain. It has a ROM of 256GB, which can be extended up to 2TB, and a RAM of 8 GB, which is also extended up to 13GB through memory fusion. The memory fusion technology helps to quicken the apps' start time from 802ms to 307ms, reducing lag by up to 61 percent.
The device has a 6.7-inch AMOLED FHD+ display and a refresh rate of 60Hz, a PPI density of 393, and a 7.8mm ultra-slim design. The screen-to-body ratio is 92 percent.
Note 12 Pro is packed with a 5000mAh battery and has a Type-C charger.
The device is available in three colours – Volcanic Grey, Tuscany Blue, and Alpine White.
Another two versions of the Note 12 series, Note 12 2023 128GB and 256GB ROM variants are also available in the market.
Apart from the camera and storage capacity, the other specifications of these smartphones are the same as Note 12 Pro. Their prices are Tk19,999 and Tk22,999, respectively.
realme 10 Pro Plus: Massive Return of the Classic
The youth-centric Smartphone brand realme has touched the ceiling of popularity with its affordable devices with advanced specifications. In this legacy, the phones of realme 10 series offer astounding features. The aesthetic looks and up-to-date specs of the phones have robbed attention of smartphone lovers. On November 2022, realme has brought another addition to the realme 10 series. Here is a detailed discussion on the specs, features, pros, cons, and price of the realme 10 Pro+.
Key Features of realme 10 Pro Plus
Design
Given its low cost, the phone's sleek and sophisticated appearance will surprise you. Beginning with the device's back panel, it has the realme logo in the bottom left corner, two inner camera islands in the top left corner, and a flash next to them.
One of the round islands comprises a single main sensor while the other includes two sensors. When exposed to an adequate quantity of light, the back panel of the handset has a glossy surface with a pleasing pattern-like reflection.
Read More: Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus Review: Camera King with 200 MP
The fact that the rear panel is fingerprinted and smudged serves as a deterrent. This necessitates the use of a protective cover to prevent smudges from appearing on the phone. With its curved display, realme outperforms all of its rivals in the same price range.
The device's very small bezels were one of its distinguishing features. Combining the ultra-symmetrical curvy front and back layout with side bezels as tiny as 1.41mm and a bottom bezel as small as 2.33mm produces a bezel-free viewing experience.
Dimensions of the realme 10 Pro plUs is about 161.5 by 73.9 by 7.8 mm or 8 mm. Weighing 175g the device appears comfortable to handle. The smartphone is available in three different color options: Dark Matter, Hyperspace Gold, and Nebula Blue.
Read More: Vivo Y16 Review: Redefining The Essentials with a New Design
Display
The realme 10 Pro+ offers a 6.7-inch FHD+ curved AMOLED display with a resolution of 1080 by 2412 and a pixel density of 394ppi. Due to its inherent 10-bit color depth, the new AMOLED boasts a faster refresh rate of 120Hz and can show over one billion colors. Gamers will like the 360Hz touch sensitivity, while the HDR10+ certification will facilitate video streaming.
In addition, 800 nits of peak brightness are offered, which significantly improves the viewing experience even in direct sunlight. The curved display makes multimedia consumption on the device more enjoyable.
The panel is very well-tuned since it displays beautiful colors with a wide dynamic range and excellent contrast. If you wish your colors to be amplified, the HyperVision option under settings includes both Video Color Boost and Video HDR Boost. The first one consumes more battery power as it attempts to expand the color spectrum of SDR content.
Read More: OPPO A77s Review: Is it worth buying?
It is available through a few mobile applications. The Video HDR Boost increases brightness and improves the HDR viewing experience while watching HDR videos. Obviously, it also increases power consumption.
Camera
The rear of the realme 10 Pro Plus has three cameras. The main rear camera of the realme 10 Pro+ is a 108MP (f/1.8) Samsung (S5K) HM6 1/1.67′′ sensor with 0.64m pixels and a Nona-Pixel color filter. While the number of megapixels has increased since the previous model, realme has eliminated Optical Image Stabilization, which affects handheld photos taken in low light.
The other two back cameras consist of a 2MP (f/2.4) macro lens manufactured by OmniVision and an 8MP (f/2.2) ultrawide camera with a Sony sensor.
Read More: 10 Top Budget Smartphones Released in 2022
The main back camera captures 12MP images that are adequate out of the box. The camera has captured acceptable levels of contrast, color, and detail. If you're curious about the dynamic range, it is neither poor nor exceptional.
Surprisingly, the 16MP (f/2.5) front sensor performs well in both low-light and bright-light environments. It captures well-exposed selfies with precise color reproduction. The information are rather vague, but still sufficient for social media sharing.
Performance
The realme 10 Pro Plus is powered by a MediaTek MT6877V Diminutive 1080 CPU 6nm with 8GB LPDDR4X RAM and 256GB UFS 2.2 storage. There were no delays or overheating difficulties when using the phone. The processor is combined with a Mali-G68 MC4 GPU.
Read More: January 2023 New Release: Top 10 Upcoming Smartphones in Bangladesh
Application switching seems silky smooth with a fast refresh rate and respectable effectiveness. However, increasing the parameters to high has a noticeable impact on the performance. In addition, the device boots the realme UI 4.0 operating system based on the Android 13 operating system. It is one of the few non-Google phones that launch Android 13 out of the box.
The software has several features, such as always-on-display, fingerprint, themes, scanning animations, media technology controls, and dynamic widgets. There are choices such as Dual Mode audio, Heart Rate, Sleep Capsule Measurement, etc. The prevalence of bloatware on the realme gadget is one of the biggest software downsides to be aware of, despite the fact that the device's feature set is flawless.
Battery
The realme 10 Pro+ is powered by a battery that has a capacity of 5000 mAh and allows rapid charging at 67 watts. The amount of power that it used from the battery was pretty optimal. The gadget lost between 8% and 10% of its battery life when viewing YouTube videos at the maximum quality setting for an hour. While running intense games, the usage increased to 14% per hour.
Read More: Tecno Phantom X2 Pro Review: Midrange Smartphone with Retractable Camera
Price of realme 10 Pro Plus
The 6GB RAM and 128GB storage edition of the realme 10 Pro Plus will be offered on the Indian market for Rs 24,999 which is equivalent to BDT 32,026. In contrast, the 8GB RAM model with 128GB of internal storage would cost Rs 25,999 (equivalent to BDT 33,307). The conversion rate is 1 INR = 1.28 BDT.
The device is not released in Bangladesh officially. However, the official price of realme 10 Pro Plus in Bangladesh may vary due to tax and other issues.
Conclusion
The realme 10 Pro+ defies expectations for a mid-range smartphone simply because of its appearance and display. The main camera on this phone is excellent, and it even has some buried low-light shooting prowess. The ultra-wide camera and bloatware-filled user interface hold it back, but the realme 10 Pro+ seems like a promising device.
Read More: Top 8 Flagship Smartphones Launched in 2022
Walton showcases advanced, sustainable IoT smart products at DITF 2023
Walton is showcasing eco-friendly, advanced and sustainable internet of things (IoT) smart products, including smart refrigerators, air conditioners, televisions, home and kitchen appliances, silent and durable robust compressors; laptops and mobile phones with the latest features, e-bikes, elevators and other artificial intelligence (AI)-based household products.
Walton's 'Inverna (Extreme Saver)' series AC, which received a 5.5-star energy rating from Bangladesh Standards and Testing Institution, is on display at the fair, the company said.
This AC has frost clean, air plasma, three-in-one converter technology, smart control and various advanced technologies.
At Walton Pavilion, visitors can see the electricity consumption of Walton Inverna ACs.
Walton AC Research and Innovation Department head Ariful Islam said: "The input power of the Inverna (Extreme Saver) series 1 ton AC is 690 watts. That means a maximum of 690 watts of electricity will be required to run this AC."
"If the user runs this AC in Eco mode for eight hours every day, it will consume only 106.8 units of electricity per month. According to the residential electricity rate, the bill will be Tk526 for the whole month and Tk2.19 per hour."
Read more: CES 2023: Driverless cars, smart homes, metaverse dominate the tech show
Fiber@Home partners with Cisco to enable 5G-ready network across Bangladesh
Fiber@Home, a nationwide transmission service provider in Bangladesh, has partnered with Cisco to accelerate the conversion of its network to 400G.
The partnership will help the service provider seamlessly deploy an automated transport 5G-ready network across Bangladesh and support increased bandwidth demand from businesses of all sizes.
Fiber@Home is using Cisco platforms for this expansion to enhance and optimise the overall customer experience, becoming the first customer in the country to adopt Cisco's Routed Optical Networking technology, said a media statement Thursday.
"This new 400G wavelength network will offer a fourfold increase in maximum data transfer speed compared to 100G, enabling us to provide stable critical connectivity to our customers," Moynul Haque Siddiqui, chairman of Fiber@Home, said.
Read more: '5G can change the face of industry in Bangladesh'
"The Cisco Routed Optical Networking solution streamlines and strengthens our network capacity, providing a superior customer experience while also optimising our capex and opex utilisation."
"Service providers like Fibre@Home recognise the value of a network that can be scaled in response to the dynamic needs of consumers and businesses. By converging their IP and optical networks, in addition to greater wavelength utilisation, Fiber@Home will be able to optimise their power consumption, resulting in a much lower carbon impact and streamlining of their hardware as well as leading to a reduction of 50 percent in operational costs," Anand Bhaskar, managing director (service provider business) Cisco India and South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation, said.
"This partnership is a step towards bringing fast, reliable and sustainable internet services to the people of Bangladesh."
Elon Musk depicted as liar, visionary in Tesla tweet trial
Elon Musk was depicted Wednesday as either a liar who callously jeopardized the savings of “regular people" or a well-intentioned visionary as attorneys delivered opening statements at a trial focused on a Tesla buyout that never happened.
Lawyers on opposing sides drew the starkly different portraits of Musk for a nine-person jury that will hear the three-week trial. The case is focused on two August 2018 tweets that the billionaire posted on Twitter, which he now owns.
The tweets indicated that Musk had lined up the financing to take Tesla private at a time when the automaker's stock was slumping amid production problems.
The prospect of a $72 billion buyout fueled a rally in the company’s stock price that abruptly ended a week later after it became apparent that he did not have the funding to pull off the deal after all. Tesla shareholders then sued him, saying that Tesla shares would not have swung so widely in value if he had not dangled the idea of buying the company for $420 per share.
Nicholas Porritt, a lawyer representing Glen Littleton and other Tesla shareholders in the class-action case, promptly vilified Musk as he addressed jurors.
“Why are we here?” Porritt asked. “We are here because Elon Musk, chairman and chief executive of Tesla, lied. His lies caused regular people like Glen Littleton to lose millions and millions of dollars." He also asserted that Musk's tweet also hurt pension funds and other organizations that owned Tesla stock at the time.
Musk's lawyer, Alex Spiro, countered that the run-up in Tesla's stock after the tweet mostly reflected investors' belief in Musk's ability to pull off stunning feats, including building the world's largest electric automaker while also running SpaceX, a maker of rocket ships.
“Mr. Musk tries to do things that have never been done before. Everyone knows that," Spiro told the jury.
Spiro added that Musk had been in advanced talks with representatives from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund to take Tesla private.
“He didn't plan to tweet this," Spiro said of Musk's Aug. 7, 2018, statement at the heart of the trial. “It was a split-second decision" aimed at being as transparent as possible about the discussions with the Saudi fund about a potential deal.
After saying “funding secured" for the buyout, Musk followed up with another tweet that suggested a deal was imminent.
Littleton, a 71-year-old investor from Kansas City, Missouri, was the first witness called to the stand. He said Musk's claim about the financing alarmed him because he had purchased Tesla investments designed to reward him for his belief that the automaker's stock would eventually be worth far more than the $420.
He said he sold most of his holdings to cut his losses but still saw the value of his Tesla portfolio plunge by 75%.
“The damage was done," Littleton lamented. “I was in a state of shock.”
Littleton's frustration escalated in October 2018, when he lashed out at Tesla for late deliveries on vehicles for some of his nieces and nephews. That led him to become a lead investor in the lawsuit.
“I still believe in Tesla to this day. I do,” Littleton said.
During cross-examination, a lawyer for Tesla's board of directors repeatedly questioned whether Littleton had legitimate reason to believe a buyout was inevitable, but the investor remained steadfast even while seeming confused at times.
“'Funding secured' was the only thing that mattered to me,” Littleton testified. “That was such a defining statement."
Musk's 2018 tweets attracted the attention of securities regulators, who concluded that they were improper and that he was lying. In a settlement, they forced him to pay $40 million and required him to step down as Tesla chairman.
U.S. District Judge Edward Chen, who is presiding over the trial, ruled that the shareholders' lawyers can't mention that settlement in the case.
But Chen has already ruled that Musk's tweet was false, a finding that can be alluded to during the trial without specifically mentioning the determination made by the judge. Pollitt seized on that opportunity during his opening statement, informing jurors that they are to assume Musk's tweet was false, as the judge allowed. Spiro shook his head as he listened.
The trial’s outcome may turn on the jury’s interpretation of Musk’s motive for the tweets. And Musk will have his chance to make his case to the jury.
After the trial adjourned Wednesday, Porritt told The Associated Press he hopes to call Musk to the stand when the proceedings resume Friday after two other witnesses testify. If the allotted time runs out Friday, Musk will likely testify Monday, Porritt said.
Musk’s leadership of Twitter — where he has gutted the staff and alienated users and advertisers — has proven unpopular among Tesla’s current stockholders, who are worried that he has been devoting less time to automaker at a time of intensifying competition.
Those concerns contributed to a 65% percent decline in Tesla’s stock last year that wiped out more than $700 billion in shareholder wealth — far more than the $14 billion swing that occurred between the company’s high and low stock prices from Aug. 7 to Aug. 17, 2018, the period covered in the lawsuit.
Tesla's stock has split twice since then, making the $420 price cited in his 2018 tweet worth $28 on adjusted basis now. The shares closed Wednesday at $128.78, down from the company's November 2021 split-adjusted peak of $414.50.
After Musk dropped the idea of a Tesla buyout, the company overcame a production problem, resulting in a rapid upturn in car sales that caused its stock to soar and made Musk the world’s richest person until he bought Twitter. Musk dropped from the top spot on the wealth list after a stock market backlash to his handling of Twitter.
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus Review: Camera King with 200 MP
Chinese electronics company Xiaomi’s sub-brand Redmi is reputed for mid-range Smartphones. Redmi Note series targets the mid-range smartphone market which was first introduced in March 2014. Since this line-up's latest inclusion Note 12 series is known for its excellent value-for-money features and great hardware at an affordable price range. The upper variant of this series, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ has been launched in China on November 1, 2022, and it started selling in India in the first week of January 2023. Let’s see what you can expect from Xiaomi’s Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus.
Key features of Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus
Design and Sounds
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G is a treat to hold, with its glass body providing a luxurious feel. Its rear panel curves gracefully into a flat plastic frame to make it comfortable to use for long periods of time, despite its 208g weight. The weight is distributed evenly, so it doesn’t feel too heavy in hand. Moreover, it has an IP53 rating, meaning it has basic protection against water splashes and dust.
The Redmi Note 12 Pro+ has a 3.5mm audio jack located at the top, accompanied by a dummy cutout for an additional speaker, a microphone cutout, and an IR emitter. It offers a Side fingerprint sensor.
Read More: OPPO A77s Review: Is it worth buying?
This phone has a dual-speaker system, with the earpiece acting as the secondary sound producer. Even though the sound output is loud, at maximum volume, a minor distortion can be heard. For a good balance between sound and quality, it is better to keep the speaker at 70 percent volume.
Display
The Redmi Note 12 Pro plus 5G provides an exceptional multimedia experience with its 6.67-inch AMOLED display. Its display features 394 PPI and its brightness ensures great visibility both indoors and outdoors. The display is built with the Corning®️ Gorilla®️ Glass 5. Its Normal brightness is 500 nits (typ) and HBM is 900 nits (typ).
The display is capable of displaying over a billion colors, providing deep blacks and vivid colors for a remarkable viewing experience. Additionally, the phone can support Dolby Vision HDR, WideVine L1, and HDR10 content on Netflix and other streaming services.
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Its curved-edge display with minimal bezels provides an incredibly immersive experience. However, if you prefer a flat display, the Redmi Note 12 Pro+ 5G won’t let you down, either. It refreshes dynamically between 30Hz, 60Hz, 90Hz, and 120Hz, depending on the content. it's Touch Sampling Rate reaches up to 240Hz.
Cameras
Boasting a powerful camera setup, the Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus is a must-have device. The primary camera is a 200-megapixel Samsung HPX sensor, complemented by an 8-megapixel ultra-wide-angle lens and a 2-megapixel macro sensor. This allows users to capture amazing shots with stunning detail.
This phone’s primary camera boasts excellent image quality with vibrant colors and a dynamic range. It holds a large 1/1.4-inch sensor yet still manages to take quick, instantaneous shots. Though, it has been noted that when a subject is backlit, there may be a slight occurrence of chromatic aberration.
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At night the main camera can produce excellent results, accurately exposing shadows without adding too much noise. Shots taken in Night mode may look a bit soft, likely due to a robust noise reduction algorithm. Highlights are also well-preserved, and the night sky looks as it should.
However, Xiaomi should work on improving the Portrait mode’s blur effect. As per some users, it is often too aggressive, resulting in an artificial look. Additionally, the processing of this mode is slightly too sharp.
The Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus boasts impressive video recording capabilities, making it a great choice for those who love to capture memories. Its primary sensor can capture videos in up to 4K resolution at 30 frames-per-second, while its ultra-wide-angle sensor can record at 1080p and 30fps.
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The macro lens can record in 720p resolution at 960fps, and the front camera can even record 1080p videos at 60fps. Additionally, this device offers a range of fun extra features, such as Vlogs and filters, to help you capture your memories in style.
Additionally, The Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus is more than just hardware - it offers a multitude of camera features for users to explore. These include Vlog Mode, Ultra HD mode (allowing for 50-megapixel and 200-megapixel images), Long exposure, and Pro mode.
It even has a special AI SkyScaping mode in MIUI, which allows for a variety of filters to be applied to just the sky without altering the whole image.
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Performance and Software
The Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus is designed to provide an optimal combination of performance and efficiency, thanks to its MediaTek Dimensity 1080 system-on-chip featuring a 6nm Manufacturing Process. CPU's clock speed can run up to 2.6 GHz. The graphic unit is equipped with the ARM Mali-G68 MC4 GPU featuring up to 950MHz speed.
It is capable of effortlessly handling everyday tasks, as well as more demanding tasks such as gaming and multimedia editing. With extended use, such as 4K video recording, the phone can become slightly warm; however, this does not make it uncomfortable to handle or operate. Thanks to its Vapor Chamber Cooling Technology that offers a 3000mm² Vapor Chamber.
Its LPDDR4X RAM sports UFS 2.2 data transfer technology. It comes in 256GB 8GB RAM and 256GB 12GB RAM variants. Here you get dual SIM support.
The Xiaomi Mi 11 Pro runs on the Android 12 operating system and features the MIUI 13 user interface. While the interface does come with certain pre-installed apps, many of these can be removed from the system.
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Notifications from certain system apps, such as Cleaner, GetApps, Themes, and Game Center, may be sent without the user’s permission. However, a setting is available in the system settings, which allows users to snooze or turn off such notifications.
Battery and Charging
This phone is the complete package, with a 5000 mAh battery that can last up to 24 hours on the 5G network with a 120Hz refresh rate. The 120W fast charger included with the phone can charge the battery to full capacity in a mere 19 minutes.
Price of Redmi Note 12 Pro+
The Note 12 Pro Plus is officially priced at 29,999 rupees or Tk. 39,268.95 (1 rupee = Tk. 1.31) for the 8 GB variant. The phone is yet to be launched in Bangladesh. The official price of 12 Pro+ may vary in Bangladesh due to tax and other issues.
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Verdict
Xiaomi Redmi Note 12 Pro Plus is an impressive device that offers a range of incredible features. Its 120Hz AMOLED display and 200MP primary camera make it stand out, while its 120W fast charging and long-lasting battery make it a great choice for busy people. Despite the 8MP ultrawide camera and 2MP macro sensor not living up to expectations, the Note 12 Pro Plus is still an excellent phone.