Our Picks for News of the Week [Sept. 14, 2012]
“We are time’s subjects, and time bids be gone.” So wrote the bard, and while I suspect he wasn’t trying to make reference to technology news several centuries in the future, it is true that time continues to tick. The news stories below are gone forever, now, but they live on in our archive, and in our hearts. Here’s what you missed this week, if you’re the sort of person who missed things this week.
Charlie’s pick: Oh, fine. Apple Launches iPhone 5
Despite the fact that I have complained about how there’s too much fuss about it, it’s hard to deny that the iPhone is what had everyone talking this week. The new model doesn’t pack much that’s special for Asia, but we expect it’ll sell like hotcakes here anyway. In fact, probably much better than hotcakes since I don’t even know what those are.
Steven’s pick: Google Weighs in on Acer China Phone Debacle, But is Google Being Anti-Competitive?
My favourite story of the week combines mystery, corporate in-fighting, and gadgets. You see, on Thursday, China’s biggest e-commerce company, Alibaba, was due to unveil a flagship phone running its own cloud-oriented Aliyun OS. It’s made by Acer. But the launch event was cancelled and the device seems to have been torpedoed. It wasn't until late Friday night (US time) that Google spoke.
Andrew’s pick: WeChat’s Simple Keys To Success: Hire Smart Folks, Work Bloody Hard
The story behind WeChat's success is simple and yet motivating. And it's very true that nothing can be accomplished without hard work. Don’t worry about the late nights and just focus on the product, that is probably the only way out. WeChat is much better compared to other messaging apps, and it will only probably get better.
Willis’ pick: WeChat Hits 200 Million Users
Tencent’s CEO and founder Pony Ma speech at the recent China Internet Conference at Beijing seems like just another speech until he dropped a bomb of WeChat having hit 200 million users. It’s a big number and achieved in six months since Ma last announced the 100 million user milestone through his weibo. All in all, WeChat has a shot to international fame. Folks who use both WeChat and Whatsapp know that the former is better and it’s an exciting period for Chinese internet history, I believe.
[UPDATED on September 16: Sorry, we forgot to delete the last template paragraph.]
