Global smartwatch revenue up despite Covid-19 pandemic

Global revenue of smartwatches grew by a whole 20% in the first half of the year, despite the pandemic.

Analyst company Counterpoint Research says Apple, Garmin and Huawei contributed to around 69% of that total revenue.
However, shipments remained flat for that period, on a year-on-year basis.

“The smartwatch space remains a popular consumer device segment, compared to the downturn seen in smartphone demand and many other segments in the first six months of 2020 due to the devastation caused by COVID-19,” senior analyst Sujeong Lim said in a statement.

He says demand for wearables continues to grow, as consumers focus more on their health.

“Close to 42 million smartwatches were shipped in the first half of 2020 as wearables continue to see greater demand with consumers becoming more health conscious. India (+57% year-on-year), Europe (+9% year-on-year) and the US (+5% year-on-year), the most affected regions of COVID-19, saw healthy growth in smartwatch shipments which offset the decline in other markets,” he added.

“Apple continued to dominate the smartwatch market both in volume and value. Apple captured a record half of the market in terms of revenue due to strong demand for the Apple Watch S5 models.”

IBM doubles quantum computer performance

IBM has doubled the performance capabilities of its quantum computers.

After reaching a quantum volume of 32 in 2019, IBM has now reached a quantum volume of 64. The company’s plan is to double quantum volume annually.

While quantum computers are not yet practical, the leap in performance is a significant step for the company.

A number of tech companies, including Intel and Microsoft and a large number of startups, are also investing in programmes that explore quantum computing.

IBM has 22 quantum computers running right now, up from 18 in May.

YouTube removes 11 million videos using automation

YouTube has reportedly removed 11.4 million videos in three months, using automation.

The company has fewer human reviews, due to the coronavirus pandemic, so has turned to automation to remove videos that breach its policies.

Automation saw the company remove more than 11 million videos between April and June.

“The decision to over-enforce in these policy areas — out of an abundance of caution — led to a more than 3x increase in removals of content our systems suspected was tied to violent extremism or was potentially harmful to children,” YouTube explained in a blog post.

“This includes dares, challenges, or other innocently posted content that might endanger minors.”