The world’s largest memory chip maker Samsung Electronics is expected to make the biggest investment in the global semiconductor market this year, a market research firm said on Tuesday. According to the US research firm IC Insights, Samsung Electronics’ capital expenditure on semiconductors this year is expected to be 14.5 trillion won ($12.5 billion), 11 percent higher than last year’s investment. The Korean tech giant is slated to complete the world’s largest chip complex in Pyeongtaek, with

A research and development center for rechargeable batteries opened at a state-run university in Ulsan on Tuesday.The Battery R&D Center at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology, located 414 kilometers southeast of Seoul, will focus on making future battery cells for smartphones, small information technology devices and automobiles. The Battery R&D Center opened at the Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology on March 7, 2017. (Ulsan National Institute of Science and T

Japan's Toshiba Corp. has informed SK hynix Inc. of its new plan to sell stakes in its memory chip business, the South Korean company said Monday.SK hynix submitted a non-binding bid last month to acquire a stake in Toshiba's chip business. The logo of SK hynix (Yonhap)In a regulatory filing, SK hynix said it will make an announcement when it decides to make a final bid. In January, Toshiba said it would sell a roughly 20 percent stake in its memory operations as it struggles with multibillion d

Samsung Electronics’ upcoming smartphone Galaxy S8 received a favorable response from its global partners after the company unveiled it to them during the Mobile World Congress last week, according to local news reports. During the four days from Feb. 27, the Korean tech giant reportedly disclosed its prototype Galaxy S8 to its partners including telecom operators around the world at Hotel Porta Fira, which is located near the Fira Gran Via where the Mobile World Congress took place. (Samsung El

SK Innovation Co., the country's top oil refiner, said Monday that its board of directors has approved a proposal to double the company's electric vehicle battery production capacity, in order to meet growing demand.The proposal calls for the construction of two EV battery production lines, which will churn out EV cells with a combined 2 GWh, larger than its current 1.9 GWh capacity.  SK Innovation's electric vehicle battery plant in Seosan, South Korea (Yonhap file photo)The construction of the

Korean smartphone maker LG Electronics said Saturday it will update its two smartphones G4 and V10 with the latest operating system.“We plan to offer the upgrade of the operating system with Android 7.0 for the V10 in the second half of this year and for the G4 in the third quarter,” the company said in its statement.  V10 smartphones in a photo provided by LG Electronics Co. (Yonhap)The schedule applies to phones sold in South Korea. Consumers in the global market will be informed later.The G4,

The Korea Herald is publishing a series of articles highlighting South Korea’s promising start-ups in the emerging sectors of digital health care and next-generation medical devices. This is the third installment. – Ed.DAEJEON — A medical device startup born from an applied physics lab at the Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology is out to introduce a next-generation 3-D microscope that uses light to observe living cells in real time.Founded in 2015, Tomocube has developed a new hol

LG Electronics Co. of South Korea said Saturday it will update two of its smartphone models -- the G4 and V10 -- with the latest operating system (OS), reversing its earlier decision.　It cited the “respect for consumers‘ rights to choose.”　LG plans to offer the upgrade of the OS with Android 7.0 for the V10 in the second half of this year and for the G4 in the third quarter. The schedule applies to phones sold in South Korea, with consumers abroad to be notified of a separate schedule later.　The

LG Electronics has unveiled a prototype of a new virtual reality headset, developed in partnership with US-based PC gaming giant Valve, at the ongoing Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. Valve announced earlier this week that LG Electronics will be showcasing a new head-mounted VR display device designed to deliver a “high fidelity, next generation VR experience” at Valve’s booth at the GDC 2017 which ends Friday.Though details remain limited, LG’s new VR headset is presumably a PC-base

More than 12 South Korean businesses across industries will gather to launch a consortium on autonomous driving later this month in order to expand collaboration for the fledgling industry. According to Hong Yun-seog, head of the Autonomous Vehicle Center under the Korea Transportation Safety Authority on Friday, 12 or so local companies have agreed to join the consortium that will offer each participant opportunities to exchange information on autonomous driving and cooperate on actual projects

LG Electronics’ latest flagship G6 smartphone seems headed for success, with many consumers queuing up to test the new Android phone. According to local mobile carriers Friday, a rising number of consumers are applying to test the newest LG smartphone at experimental zones set up by telecom shops since Thursday, when they began to accept reservations for the smartphone.  Consumers try the G6 smartphone by LG Electronics at an experimental zone in an LG Uplus shop in Seoul. (LG Uplus)Among the th

South Korean online game giant Nexon said Thursday that it has forged a strategic partnership with connected play company PlayFusion, which specializes in bringing games to life by merging them with toys.The partnership came in the form of Nexon investing in PlayFusion. Details of the investment deal were undisclosed.Together with PlayFusion, the Tokyo-based company plans to introduce a wider variety of character merchandise and accessories based on the virtual characters and worlds of its flags

BARCELONA -- The four day journey of this year’s biggest tech event, the World Mobile Congress, wrapped up on Thursday, attracting 110,000 visitors from around the world to see the latest technologies and solutions presented by 2,200 companies. This year’s MWC in Barcelona, Spain, showed how companies have moved forward from a year ago, and gave a clearer shape to 5G-enabled devices. While the MWC in 2016 focused on the speed of 5G, this week’s event showcased how new services can be realized ba

South Korean game company NCSoft on Thursday unveiled its first virtual reality game based on its hit online PC game “Blade & Soul,” at the ongoing Game Developers Conference in San Francisco. “Blade & Soul Table Arena” is a real-time strategy game featuring the characters from NCSoft’s original role-playing game “Blade & Soul.” “Blade & Soul Table Arena” (NCSoft)The Korean game maker introduced the new VR game as a partner to the US-based VR headset maker Oculus. It was included as one of 20 up

Line CEO introduces Clova, geared to rival AI voice assistants from Amazon, Google and Facebook