(TechNews) Google confirmed on May 4th that it has acquired Raxium, a start-up company with Micro LED display technology, which is expected to become key in Google’s mission to create a new generation of AR displays.

Google senior vice president of devices and services, Rick Osterloh, who leads the development of Google’s hardware products, stated that Raxium has spent five years creating a small, cost-effective, and energy-efficient high-resolution display that lays the foundation for future display technologies, adding, this company’s technology in this field could play a key role in Google’s hardware investments. Raxium, headquartered in Fremont, California, will be merged into Google’s devices and services group in the future but he did not disclose the purchase price or other details.

According to Raxium’s official website, the pixel pitch of s Super AMOLED screen on a mobile phone is approximately 50 microns but the company’s Micro LED technology can achieve approximately 3.5 microns and it claims to be able to create unprecedented display efficiency.

When foreign media, The Information, reported last month and first exposed Google’s plan to acquire Raxium, it pointed out that Micro LED technology can create AR displays that are more energy-efficient than other solutions while retaining vivid colors. In addition, Raxium is working on the monolithic integration of Micro LEDs, which is expected to significantly reduce costs.

This move makes Google’s plans for subsequent AR hardware products increasingly clear. Google acquired glasses startup North in 2020 and is reportedly recruiting engineers to develop an operating system for AR displays. It was revealed by foreign media in January this year that Google’s laboratory is developing a head-mounted AR device code-named “Project Iris” which is under the same management as “Project Starline” shown at the Google I/O 2021 developer conference last year.

(Source: https://technews.tw/2022/05/05/google-acquires-raxium/)

(TechNews) Following Apple’s inclusion of the iPhone 6 Plus on its list of obsolete products in February this year, the iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 2 have also recently been added officially, making it difficult to obtain official repair services for these products in the future.

The iPad Air 2, launched in October 2014, was  Apple’s first iPad Air with Touch ID recognition and utilized the A8X processor. As for the iPad mini 2, which was launched in November 2013, it utilized the same A7 processor as the iPhone 5s, along with the M7 motion-sensing co-processor.

Apple mostly considers products that are 5 to 7 years old as outdated. The iPad Air 2 and iPad mini 2 have already exceeded this lifespan and it is quite reasonable to deem these products obsolete.

However, the inclusion of a product on the obsolete list does not mean that the device cannot be used. If consumers have maintenance requirements, it will depend on whether the company has replacement parts in stock. If there are missing parts, Apple will not repair this product for users.

(Source: https://technews.tw/2022/05/05/bye-bye-ipad-air-2-ipad-mini-2/)