Evernote Has 4 Million Users in China

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Evernote hit 1.1 million users just two months after its Chinese launch in July 2012. CEO Phil Libin revealed this week that his company now has 4 million users in China one year after its debut On Tuesday at the Global Mobile Internet Conference in Beijing, Evernote's team in China — which has grown to 17 people — flipped the switch on the Chinese version of its Evernote Business service Libin also discussed China's integral role in Evernote’s strategy of becoming a long-term startup that can survive up against the world’s top web giants. Libin said, within the next decade, more Chinese tech companies will go global Read more... More about China , Apps , Evernote , Tech , and Apps Software Read more »

China on Apple’s Apology: ‘Better Late Than Never’

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Apple CEO Tim Cook's apology to Chinese customers over the company's warranty policy has gotten a seal of approval from China's state-run media. Two of China's largest newspapers, the Communist party-run People's Daily and its sister tabloid, the Global Times , both offered words of praise for Cook's statement that posted on Apple's Chinese website April 1. However, they also admonished Apple for not being as forthcoming in the first place. "Tim Cook's apology to Chinese consumers is better late than never," a report in the People's Daily reads. "Although Apple fans were disappointed by the company's indifference before the CEO issued the apology, the belated letter finally demonstrates the crisis management skills that a first-class company needs." Read more... More about China , Apple , Tim Cook , Business , and Mobile Read more »

New U.S. Cyber-Security Law May Hinder Lenovo’s Sales Growth

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The funding bill President Barack Obama signed this week didn’t just prevent a government shutdown. It also included a provision requiring that U.S. government technology purchases first go through a cyber-espionage review process–a move that could potentially impact the sales of Chinese tech companies like Lenovo, which relies on sales to U.S. government agencies and schools as an important part of its North American growth strategy. The provision came to attention via a blog post by lawyer Stewart A. Baker, a former Assistant Secretary in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under George W. Bush. Read more »

New U.S. Cyber-Security Law May Hinder Lenovo’s Sales Growth

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The funding bill President Barack Obama signed this week didn’t just prevent a government shutdown. It also included a provision requiring that U.S. government technology purchases first go through a cyber-espionage review process–a move that could potentially impact the sales of Chinese tech companies like Lenovo, which relies on sales to U.S. government agencies and schools as an important part of its North American growth strategy. The provision came to attention via a blog post by lawyer Stewart A. Baker, a former Assistant Secretary in the U.S. Department of Homeland Security under George W. Bush. Read more »

The New York Times Was Attacked By Chinese Hackers Over Four Months

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The New York Times has revealed that over the last four months, it was repeatedly attacked by Chinese hackers using methods that have been linked to the Chinese military in the past. The timing of the attacks coincided with reporting for an investigative article published on October 24 that revealed Wen Jiabao, China’s prime minister, had tried to hide a massive family fortune. Mandiant, a computer security company hired by the New York Times, expelled the hackers after surreptitiously tracking their movements, and said that the methods used have been associated with the Chinese military in the past. The hackers tried to obscure the source of the attack by first routing through computers at U.S. universities, which Mandiant experts said matched methods used in other attacks that have been traced to China. Furthermore, the malware installed on by the hackers is a specific strain associated with computer attacks originating in China, and the attacks started from the same university computers used by the Chinese military to attack U.S. military contractors in the past. Hackers broke into the email accounts of the New York Times’ Shanghai bureau chief, David Barboza, who wrote the Wen Jiabao article, and Jim Yardley, the former Beijing bureau chief and current New York Times South Asia bureau chief in India Read more »

5 Chinese Tech Brands You’ll Be Hearing From in 2013

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As John F. Kennedy once noted, the Chinese word for "crisis" is composed of the characters for "danger" and "opportunity." So characteristically, amid the hand-wringing at CES about the show's decreased relevance , a handful of Chinese brands saw a big opportunity. In fact, the emergence of several Chinese brands as wannabe major players became one of the central narratives of the show. Typically at CES, Chinese tech brands are relegated to the International Pavilion rather than the show proper. This year, though, there were at least five brands from China -- Hisense, ZTE, TCL, Huawei and Haier -- that took the main stage or at least got treated seriously by the press. Next up: Co… Continue reading... More About: CES , CES 2013 , china , Haier , Hisense , Huawei , Marketing , zte Read more »

Sina’s 2013 Strategy Is “Mobile First,” CEO Charles Chao Says In Company-Wide Email

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China-based tech blog 36kr has published a company-wide email (link via Google Translate) from Sina CEO Charles Chao that previews the China-based Internet giant’s 2013 strategy, which revolves around a restructuring that will allow it focus on its mobile business. Chao wrote that Sina will reboot its strategy next year by splitting its business into two parts, with one focusing on its Web portal and the other on Sina Weibo, its massively popular microblogging service which boasts more than 400 million members. Sina’s COO Hong Du will focus on running the Web portal and report directly to Chao, who will take charge of its microblogging and mobile operations. Each side will take responsibility for their own products, technology and operations. Like other major Chinese Internet companies like Baidu and Tencent , Sina is in the midst of figuring out how to take advantage of the rapid shift in user habits from PCs to mobile devices. In the email, Chao said that despite Sina’s business accomplishments in 2012, it also dealt with “not a small number of regrets” in the way it runs both its mobile and Web portal businesses. Though Chao did not specify exactly what those regrets are, he said that he hoped the company’s reorganization will create more synergies between its PC and mobile businesses. Chao added that the development of Sina’s mobile business during 2012 had been “exceptionally quick,” and that Sina must stay ahead of the curve in terms of developing new products and services in order to remain competitive. Sina Weibo and other mobile services offer “an opportunity and a challenge” for Sina, Chao wrote, with the challenge being able to continually push out updated and innovative new products ahead of competitors. Sina’s strategic focus in 2013 will be “mobile first” as it works to better understand the habits of mobile users, Chao added. Read more »

Gift Guide: 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro

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Short Version You waited this long, you might as well go big: Apple’s smaller 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro is a very worthy sequel to the 15-inch variety released this past summer, and while it will still strain the average buyer’s budget, it definitely won’t inspire any buyer’s remorse. Long Version Features: 1,280 x 800 (best for Retina), 232 ppi display Dual Thunderbolt ports Just 3.57 lbs and 0.75 inches thick Info: Available: Now MSRP: Starts at $1,699 Product page The 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro is… … Apple’s second notebook with a HiDPI display that qualifies for its ‘Retina’ moniker, and the one that is the most portable with a smaller physical footprint than the 13-inch MacBook Air, and significant weight savings over the 15-inch Retina MBP. All of which it accomplishes while still boasting the same 7-hour battery life as the 13-inch non-Retina variant. Buy the 13-inch Retina MacBook Pro for… … yourself. This is a pricy machine at $1,699 (or $1,999 for the configuration with 256GB of flash storage, plus configurable options), so it’s unlikely that anyone else will be buying this for you, unless you’ve been very good this year. Also, since you’re reading this on or after Christmas Eve day, you could spring for this if you completely forgot or couldn’t get to someone on your list who’s incredibly important. They’ll forget how inconsiderate you were the first time the desktop swims into view on the Mac’s amazing display. Because… … you could go for the 15-inch model for only $600 more, which also introduces a dedicated graphics card into the mix, but you likely don’t need to. In practice, I’ve used both interchangeably and only very occasionally noticed the difference: when editing video and outputting to dual high-resolution displays, for instance. Read more »

Smartphone Maker Xiaomi Tech Hints That Its Next Stop Is Hong Kong As It Seeks To Become “China’s Apple”

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Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi , which has been referred to as “the Apple of China,” strongly  hinted at an expansion into Hong Kong on its official Twitter account. Though the tweet is cryptically worded, a graphic is attached to it that features the company’s latest model, the Xiaomi Mi2 , with specs listed in traditional Chinese characters (which is used in Hong Kong, but not mainland China), the Hong Kong floral emblem — the Bauhinia flower — and a silhouette of the Hong Kong islands and peninsulas. Xiaomi’s Twitter teaser comes just two days after the company announced that it will sell phones directly from Sina Weibo, China’s top microblogging platform, which boasts 400 million members. The novel marketing tactic has proven very successful: Xiaomi announced today (link via Google Translate) that it sold 50,000 smartphones in five seconds, with 1.3 million additional reservations. Xiaomi founder Lei Jun has already stated that he plans to expand into Taiwan and Hong Kong very soon. One of the most successful entrepreneurs in China, Lei is frequently referred to as China’s Steve Jobs . His resume includes Joyo.com, which was purchased by Amazon in 2004 for $75 million in 2004 and is now Amazon China Read more »