Western Digital Officially Acquires SanDisk

This October, the giant storage maker Western Digital officially acquires global flash storage maker Sandisk through acquisition of outstanding share of stocks from Sandisk. The combination is the next step in the transformation of Western Digital into a global storage solutions company that will offer wide range of storage device to different platform, for business or consumer.

The proposed combination creates significant value for both SanDisk and Western Digital shareholders. Western Digital brings a successful track record of M&A with a number of acquisitions over the last several years helping to fuel innovation, create value and strongly position the company to capture higher-growth opportunities. In addition, Western Digital's operational excellence, coupled with the recently announced decision by China's Ministry of Commerce (MOFCOM) allowing Western Digital to integrate substantial portions of its WD and HGST businesses, is expected to generate additional cost synergies.

Having that milestone, Western Digital — or WD in short — will bring next generation of storage that will be present on all of our electronic devices; from smartphone, cameras, and tablets; and a win to consumer.

About Western Digital

Founded in 1970, Western Digital Corp. (NASDAQ: WDC), Irvine, Calif., is an industry-leading developer and manufacturer of storage solutions that enable people to create, manage, experience and preserve digital content. It is a long-time innovator in the storage industry. Western Digital is responding to changing market needs by providing a full portfolio of compelling, high-quality storage products with effective technology deployment, high efficiency, flexibility and speed. Its products are marketed under the HGST and WD brands to OEMs, distributors, resellers, cloud infrastructure providers and consumers. Financial and investor information is available on the company's Investor Relations website at investor.wdc.com.

About SanDisk

SanDisk Corporation (NASDAQ: SNDK), a Fortune 500 and S&P 500 company, is a global leader in flash storage solutions. For more than 27 years, SanDisk has expanded the possibilities of storage, providing trusted and innovative products that have transformed the electronics industry. Today, SanDisk's quality, state-of-the-art solutions are at the heart of many of the world's largest data centers, and embedded in advanced smartphones, tablets and PCs. SanDisk's consumer products are available at hundreds of thousands of retail stores worldwide. For more information, visit www.sandisk.com.

Western Digital-HGST Official Merge

Western Digital® Corporation (NASDAQ: WDC) today announced a decision from China's Ministry of Commerce ("MOFCOM"), which enables the company to integrate substantial portions of its HGST and WD subsidiaries under Western Digital Corporation ("Western Digital"). As a unified entity, Western Digital's extensive technology capability, deepened patent and product portfolios, and talented global team will further drive its ability to innovate and lead in the changing data storage industry.

The agency's decision is the result of an ongoing dialogue regarding the "hold separate" restriction associated with Western Digital's acquisition of HGST in March 2012. As part of the agreement with MOFCOM, and in order to leverage the rich storage industry heritage of each long-standing brand, Western Digital will continue to offer both HGST and WD product brands in the market and maintain separate sales teams for two years from the date of the decision.

"The decision announced today positions us for continued growth and long-term value creation," said Steve Milligan, chief executive officer of Western Digital. "HGST and WD are an exceptional combination, and together, we will set the pace for innovation in this dynamic and evolving industry."

Integration activities will begin immediately and are expected to continue over the next 24 months. Western Digital expects the integration of corporate and other key functions, including research and development, heads and media operations, engineering and manufacturing, will result in significant opportunities for growth, synergies and cost savings consistent with the levels previously outlined by the company.

The company also announced today that Mike Cordano, formerly president of the HGST subsidiary, has been appointed president and chief operating officer of Western Digital by the company's board of directors. In his new role, Cordano will head a business leadership team with balanced representation of proven leaders from the company's two former subsidiaries.

Jim Murphy, who previously served as president of the WD subsidiary, will lead the Storage Devices business unit, which includes the company's HDD and SSD products. Jim Welsh and Dave Tang will lead the company's Content Solutions and Storage Solutions business units, respectively.

Steve Milligan will continue to serve as chief executive officer of Western Digital Corporation and oversee all business and corporate functions, including an Advanced Technology organization led by Steve Campbell, former chief technology officer for HGST. The appointments announced today are effective immediately.

With mobility and the cloud continuing to drive rapid data growth, businesses and consumers are increasingly looking for efficient and economical means to store, manage and access data. From businesses that leverage data to generate insights for key decision-making to consumers looking for a place to protect priceless memories, Western Digital helps customers unlock and harness the power of data.

Allphones Revolutionized Digital Lifestyle As They Introduced AllPhones Shopping Money

Introducing new payment scheme and option which consumer will have the capacity to maximize its credit to buy whether an accessories or another device is new to the Philippine market, Allphones introduced that model to the Philippine consumer.

I was fortunate to be invited by AllPhones to discuss and provide information on what is the business model works and how Filipino consumer and Cabatuenos will benefit with this scheme. The event was held at the Harvest Hotel in Cabanatuan, same time that AllPhones will open their 60th store at the SM Megatrade Center.


During the session, I find the business model is a combination of two options: enjoying a post-paid plan from Globe, and the flexibility of the credit to other options like accessories and other things that AllPhones can offers. To be honest, that kind of approach is what the Filipino consumer is looking for many years and AllPhones will offered it from all walks of life. The marketing department of both entity did their homework, an out-of-the-box approach, and its beneficial to everyone both consumer and the companies who are involved in this business model.

How this work?

The first step that you need to do is to apply and be approved by Globe for their Postpaid plan or opting in on the Smart Money by AllPhone. That option is if you have already an existing phone and you are eyeing for accessories and other merchandise sold by AllPhone branches. By the way, they processing in applying for their postpaid plan is also innovative that this kind of process is applied only in First-world countries; AllPhones introduces a paperless transaction.

Also, AllPhones introduces another innovation which if you don't have a credit card, you will be still be approved thru Home Credit. All you need to do is just present Two valid ID's, and supporting documents for verification. Once you are cleared, you will enjoy the benefits from AllPhones.

After the press-con, and a terrific lunch from Harvest Hotel, the management of the AllPhones went to SM Megatrade for the opening of their 60th branch.

A motorcade was held along the way for brand awareness.


A Ribbon cutting ceremony was held to formally open the Cabanatuan branch of AllPhones.


Other information about All Shopping Money offered by AllPhone for people in Cabanatuan: AllPhones SM Megacenter is offering a "Fast Lane" processing for those employees who are within the Top 8000 Corporations.

For more information, you can visit their website and their social media accounts:

Facebook : http://www.facebook.com/allphonesph
Instagram: http://www.instagram.com/allphonesph
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/allphonesph
Website: http://www.allphones.com.ph/

LG Vu II now on Jellybean, 4.1

LG Electronics released their latest smartphone LG Vu II running on Android 4.1 (Jellybean). The upgrade of the operating system will maximize Vu II capabilities in the future use.


So hurry, rush to your nearest electronic store or official LG Electronic store to avail the latest LG Vu II on Android Jelly-Beans.

Caterpillar/Cat B15 official release

Thought that the world's toughest smartphone will come from Panasonic? Think again, from the makers of bulldozers, construction vehicles, and tough-apparel Caterpillar (CAT) released their rugged smartphone, the Caterpillar B15.


This tough smartphone used an anodized procedure on the Aluminum and impact absorbing rubber which they have claim that this device will withstand a 5.9ft fall hitting on a concrete wall, 1meter depth which will be run for thirty-minutes, and operational on temperature of -4F to 122F. This device is perfect for engineers, surveyors, geophysicist, and other field of science which smarphones will not survive.

One thing though that this device have that share with other smart devices is that this one is equipped with the latest Android operation system —Android 4.1, Jellybean— running on 1GHz Cortex-A9 dual-core processor, 512MB of RAM and 5-megapixel camera which is suitable for those profession that I mentioned above.

Still waiting that this device will hit the Asian market.

LG HP-WebOs acquisition

This would one of the biggest news that I heard this year, Korean electronic maker LG Electronics will acquire HP's (Hewlett-Packard) software Web-os source code and other amenities which Web-Os has, however, the patent still remains with HP's hand.

The purpose of LG's acquisition is to enhanced the features of their smart-tv products which I am sure that the product will be profitable on the buyers end, rather than just a plain television sitting on a living room. My prediction will be it can be used as a digital display whether on commercial or small medium business.

Things are getting excited on the development of the smart-tv's especially for programmers, since HP WebOs is an open-source.

LG Optimus Pad LTE officially released

Korean makers Samsung and LG are very aggressive in launching their tablets in the global market. Battling for the supremacy who has the better tablet to offer the consumer and clients.

If you are looking for a new tablet and you are not opting for a Samsung Galaxy, LG released today their newest tablet that will compete in the tablet market; the LG Optimus Pad LTE, codename LG-LU8300.

Here are the specs of the tablet:

What I like about this tablet is that, it comes with a new Google Android 3.2 Honeycomb operating system — well, not bad compare to other tablet in the market, using a outdated Android 2.3 operating system; equipped with eight megapixel camera, 8.9" True HD LCD display, a dual-processor, and a memory of 32gb, plus an expandable 32gb micro-sd.

I would suggest that wait for this tablet to be released in your favorite gadget store.

Here are more images of the LG Optimus LTE

Samsung Series 3 Pink— 300V & 350U: Ladies Laptop

The last time that I remember a Pink Laptop hit the market was the pink Dell Inspiron 1440; that was the time when I was working at Dell; a strong demand but short in supply because the consumer who really want this laptop are ladies — encountered one time, this lady was very frustrated because I cannot assure when is the product to be available.


Last night, Samsung released their Pink colored laptop on their Series 3 models, a perfect timing especially for ladies who are planning to buy a brand new laptop this 2012. Consumers will have a selection from 350U and 300V variants, both have different specs and features.


Samsung Series 3 350U

This is the entry-level laptop by Samsung, perfect for those who are in a tight budget. You can choose from two processors; i3 and i5. Here is the specification of the laptop.

Processor: Intel ® Core ™ i3 or i5
System Memory: 4GB DDR3 System Memory at 1333MHz (4GB x 1)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows® 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Display LCD: 12.5" HD LED Display (1366 x 768), Anti-Reflective feature
Graphics chipset: Built-in Intel® HD Graphics 3000
Storage Devices: 500GB Hard-Drive (Solid State)
Dimensions (W x D x H):
298.9 x 197.8 x 26mm (11.7" x 7.7" x 1.02")
Weight: 1.4 Kg (3.08 lbs)


The i5 variant will come with keyboard protector for any incidents like water-spill and others compared to i3 option.

Samsung Series 3 300V

Now, if you have extra-cash to spare, I suggest this one. Besides that this one comes with an Intel i5 processor and the keyboard on this one is defintely pink. Here are the specification of the laptop.

Processor: Intel ® Core ™ i5 Processor 2450m (2.45 GHz, 3 MB L3 Cache)
System Memory: 4GB DDR3 System Memory at 1333MHz (4GBx1)
Operating System: Microsoft Windows® 7 Home Premium (64-bit)
Display LCD: 14.0" HD LED Display (1366 x 768), Anti-Reflective feature Graphics chipset: 1gb NVIDIA® GeForce® GT 520MX Graphics, Optimus™ technology
Storage Devices: 500GB Hard Drive (Solid-state)
Dimensions (W x D x H): 331.1 x 230 x 29.9 ~ 32.3mm (13.0" x 9.0" x 1.17" ~ 1.27")
Weight: 2.16 Kg (4.76 lbs)

Besides that this laptop is already an i5 and keyboard is already pink, the good thing is the video card or the graphic card is not built-in compared to the 350U series — meaning if any case that there will be a problem on the video, the video card would the problem.

So goodluck on buying a new laptop.

Samsung Galaxy Nexus SHW-M420S: The first smartphone using Android 4.0

Finally! One of the most advanced smartphone has already arrived in the market. This phone will definitely change your image when it comes to gadgets.

If you are geek or you are a tech-junkie, and you want to be the first to have an advanced operating system on your smartphone and to impressed your friends, or your colleague, then this phone is for you. Just released today in South Korea, the Samsung Galaxy Nexus SHW-M420S will definitely the one will prevail when it comes to smartphones, besides Apple's Iphone 4S. The reason why, is because this smartphone is the first in the market to be equipped with the latest Android 4.0 operating system or Android Ice-cream sandwich. Compared to other smartphone which has an Android operating system — latest in the market would be Android 2.3 or Android Froyo; Android 4.0 operating system offers advanced features which Android 2.3 doesn't have. Take note that, if you are updated in terms of tech-gadgets, Android 4.0 is only offered in selected high-end tablets — e.g. the latest ASUS Transformer.


Besides the Android 4.0 operating system, this smartphone is also equipped with High-definition Amoled screen, a 5 megapixel camera, and a sleek and slim design which is another plus on this phone.


So if you are planning to buy a new smartphone and you are into Android, I'll definitely wait for this one to be available on your favorite gadget stores.