Top 10 Most Important Tech News of May 2023

Recently, Apple excited tech enthusiasts by announcing the launch of its online store in Vietnam with a brief yet impactful message: "Apple Online Store coming soon to Vietnam. 09:00 AM on May 18." Needless to say, both consumers and retail businesses were buzzing with excitement.

Deirdre O'Brien, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Retail, stated: "We’re honored to expand into Vietnam, and we’re thrilled to bring Apple’s customer service and support to our customers with the launch of our Online Store."

Vietnamese consumers are expected to benefit from the arrival of the Apple Online Store. Some of the advantages include faster access to new products, official warranties with genuine parts, and more transparent pricing. The online store will offer a full range of Apple products, including iPhones, iPads, iMacs, MacBooks, and more.

Recently, tech giant Google successfully held the Google I/O 2023 event, unveiling several significant updates.

Google introduced three new products: the Pixel Fold, Pixel Tablet, and Pixel 7A, all offering impressive specs at affordable prices. The Pixel Fold, a foldable phone, is priced at $1,799, with an exterior screen of 5.8 inches and 7.6 inches when unfolded, an OLED display, and a 120Hz refresh rate. The 11-inch Pixel Tablet, priced at just $499, comes with a magnetic charging dock that doubles as a speaker. Meanwhile, the Pixel 7A, featuring Google’s Tensor G2 chip, a 6.1-inch screen, 1080p resolution, and a 90Hz refresh rate, starts at $499.

Additionally, Google announced a new update for Google Search. With the new Search Generative Experience (SGE), users will receive AI-generated answers at the top of search results for certain queries, offering additional context for the search.

In the same event, Google revealed that their AI-powered chatbot is now available to everyone, whether they are on the waitlist or not. New features, such as visual search and a new dark mode, will also be added to the chatbot.

Google also introduced updates to Google Photos, including AI-powered editing tools that allow users to move objects and people or remove them from backgrounds.

Other notable announcements include Bard AI now being accessible to all, new updates for Wear OS 4, upcoming changes to Google Home apps, the new Google search feature 'Perspective', which provides answers from real people, and the introduction of Duet AI for Workspace.

BOE (Beijing Oriental Electronics Group) is one of China's leading technology giants, renowned for being one of the largest LCD and OLED display manufacturers in the world. Since 2021, it has also been a key partner of Apple.

Recently, BOE filed a lawsuit against Samsung, accusing the company of violating six patents related to display and semiconductor technology. The trial is set to take place in 2024. According to SCMP, BOE's lawsuit is partly in retaliation against Samsung's actions in 2022, where the South Korean electronics giant filed a complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC), alleging that 17 U.S. retailers illegally bought displays to repair iPhones and Samsung smartphones.

Samsung argued that these displays infringed on its intellectual property, particularly its "Diamond Pixel" technology. Although Samsung did not name any suppliers, the ITC subsequently opened an investigation into BOE. However, BOE countered, claiming that it launched a similar pixel arrangement technology called "Green Diamond" in August 2022.

Both BOE and Samsung are in fierce competition to secure the top position as Apple's main supplier of displays.

On May 8th, during a meeting of the National Assembly's Judicial Committee, Deputy Minister of Information and Communications Nguyen Thanh Lam announced that in the near future, all social media account holders, whether individuals or organizations, will be required to undergo identity verification, including for international platforms like Facebook, YouTube, TikTok, and more.

This regulation is set to be incorporated into the upcoming decree, which will replace previous regulations on the management and use of online information, and is expected to be enacted in 2023. The goal is to curb the misuse of technology for criminal activities in cyberspace.

The move has been widely supported by Facebook users. The requirement for account verification is expected to significantly reduce the use of fake accounts for harassment, offensive comments, and the spread of harmful content. It will also address the issue of scams perpetrated by individuals hiding behind fake profiles.

Although completely eradicating the problem of fake accounts may take time due to the ability of some individuals to use fraudulent documents or techniques for verification, the decision by the Ministry of Information and Communications signals a strong commitment to cleaning up the online information space and tackling the spread of misinformation.

Intel is a major technology corporation founded in 1968 in California, USA. The company specializes in producing products like computer processors, motherboards, flash memory, network cards, and more.

For many years, Intel Core processors have been a household name. Consumers often use the Core series as a key factor when choosing laptops. The term 'Core' refers to the CPU specifications, with Core i3 being an entry-level processor for mid-range computers, Core i5 offering more processing power for mid-range systems, Core i7 catering to high-performance computers and laptops in the upper mid-range, and Core i9 being a high-speed processor ideal for multi-tasking and demanding applications.

However, recently Intel announced that it will be phasing out the 'Core i' branding in favor of 'Core Ultra' starting with its 14th generation CPUs. This change comes after careful consideration by Intel, as abandoning a well-established brand name for a new, unfamiliar one could carry significant business risks.

The competition between tech giants is always fierce, and in the battle to launch new products, aside from Apple, other companies constantly innovate both in design and features. Every year, numerous new smartphone models are released to meet the evolving demands of the market.

OPPO recently announced the official launch of its new smartphone series, the OPPO Reno10 series, set for release on May 24th in China, featuring an updated camera module design. The series will include the OPPO Reno 10, OPPO Reno 10 Pro, and OPPO Reno 10 Pro+ models.

According to leaked information, the OPPO Reno 10 Pro+ will feature an oval-shaped camera setup with three rear cameras and an LED flash. Users will have the option to choose between two color variants: gold and pink. The 6.74-inch AMOLED display with a 1.5K resolution and 120Hz refresh rate promises an immersive visual experience, with some suggesting that it could even outperform the screen on the iPhone 14 Pro Max.

In addition to the Snapdragon 8 Gen 1 chip, the OPPO Reno 10 Pro+ will come with up to 512GB of storage and a 4700mAh battery that supports fast charging, ensuring long-lasting performance throughout the day.

As part of the Government's Project 06, aimed at "Developing applications for population data, identity verification, and digital authentication to support national digital transformation from 2022-2025, with a vision towards 2030", telecom companies have actively worked to eliminate unauthorized or inactive phone numbers.

Specifically, major carriers like Viettel, Vinaphone, and Mobiphone sent messages to subscribers with unverified information, requesting them to update their details to match the National Population Database. If the subscriber fails to comply within 15 days, their SIM will be restricted to outgoing calls only. After another 15 days, if no update is made, both incoming and outgoing calls will be blocked. If there is still no response a month later, the number will be permanently deactivated.

As of May 15, nearly one million phone numbers have been revoked due to failure to update the subscriber information. There are various reasons why many people have not complied with the data standardization process: some use secondary SIM cards and do not wish to update them, while others, having their SIMs blocked, simply purchase new ones.

Sharp, a renowned Japanese electronics manufacturer founded in 1912, is known for products such as TVs, refrigerators, rice cookers, air fryers, microwaves, and washing machines.

On May 18, 2023, Sharp officially unveiled its flagship Aquos XLED TV in Japan, featuring a cutting-edge Xtreme Mini LED (XLED) 4K display. XLED is Sharp's proprietary display technology, combining the excellent display capabilities of LED panels with exceptional image quality. According to the company, XLED merges the best features of both LCD and OLED panels, providing a display with high contrast, bright visuals, a wide color gamut, and stunning color accuracy, all while maintaining true-to-life realism.

The Aquos XLED TV offers a 4K resolution display for crisp, high-definition visuals. Available in 65-inch and 75-inch models, it features an ultra-thin bezel and runs on the latest Google Android TV 11 operating system. The ARSS+ speaker system is positioned both above and below the screen for enhanced audio. The Aquos XLED is expected to launch in Vietnam by July.

After Elon Musk acquired Twitter in 2022, the billionaire faced significant challenges in managing the social platform. When asked about his experience taking charge of the network, which has over 200 million users, Elon commented, "The level of pain was extremely high. It hasn’t been a fun ride."

On May 12, 2023, Elon Musk announced the appointment of Linda Yaccarino as Twitter's new CEO. Yaccarino, who was the global advertising head at NBCUniversal, officially resigned to take on the role of Twitter’s CEO. She is set to replace Elon Musk and will start her role in approximately six weeks.

The new CEO is enthusiastic and confident that she can transform the platform, steering it toward a brighter future. Linda emphasized the importance of customer feedback, noting that user input will play a key role in shaping Twitter 2.0.

On May 12, Facebook encountered a glitch that left users frustrated. Specifically, whenever someone visited another user's profile, Facebook would automatically send a friend request to that person.

This bizarre bug caused a stir, especially among those who like to "stalk" others on the platform. Many users reported receiving dozens of unsolicited friend requests in just a few hours, causing considerable inconvenience. Additionally, those who accidentally clicked on someone's profile found themselves sending multiple friend requests they didn’t intend to, or even becoming Facebook friends with strangers.

The glitch was not limited to accounts in Vietnam; reports came in from several countries around the world. However, Facebook acted swiftly, fixing the issue just hours after it arose.

Facebook has since apologized to users for the inconvenience, with a Meta spokesperson explaining that the error was caused by a recent update, describing the situation as a “comical mishap.”