A farmer harvest Sơn tra in Mù Căng Chải District.—Photo baotintuc.vn Viet Nam News Yên Bái – Residents of Mù Cang Chải District in the northern mountainous province of Yen Bai are enjoying better lives thanks to their special ethnic fruit called Sơn Tra. Sơn Tra or H’mông apple (scientifically named Docynia indica) is an indigenous tree species widely found at high elevations in northern Việt Nam. Its fruit is traditionally used as food and for making wine, providing a source of income for farmers. From growing wild in the forests, in recent years the trees have become a commodity helping residents escape poverty and even make money, the Tin Tuc (News) Newspaper reports. The biggest forest of sơn tra cultivation is in Lao Chải Commune. Lờ A Chư, a H’mông tribe member, told the newspaper that his family had earned about VND20million-30million (US$900-1,400) from this year’s crop. “This was my family’s sơn tra … [Read more...] about H’mông apple helps minority escape poverty
Honeycrisp dwarf apple tree size
Apple discontinues full-size HomePod, to focus on HomePod mini
Apple on Friday announced the discontinuation of the full-size HomePod , saying it plans to focus on production and development of the HomePod mini. Apple informed TechCrunch of the product's end of life in a statement today. HomePod mini has been a hit since its debut last fall, offering customers amazing sound, an intelligent assistant, and smart home control all for just $99. We are focusing our efforts on HomePod mini. We are discontinuing the original HomePod, it will continue to be available while supplies last through the Apple Online Store, Apple Retail Stores, and Apple Authorized Resellers. Apple will provide HomePod customers with software updates and service and support through Apple Care. The company plans to sell remaining HomePod units until stock is depleted, though Apple's online storefront is already sold out of Space Gray models. Support will also continue until the product is declared obsolete. Announced at WWDC 2017, HomePod was Apple's … [Read more...] about Apple discontinues full-size HomePod, to focus on HomePod mini
Everything you need to know about USB-C & Thunderbolt 3 on Apple’s new MacBook Pro
Feature AppleInsider is supported by its audience and may earn commission as an Amazon Associate and affiliate partner on qualifying purchases. These affiliate partnerships do not influence our editorial content. Apple has decisively transitioned its new MacBook Pros to use the slim, unidirectional new USB-C port first introduced on the Retina MacBook a year and a half ago. Its latest MacBook Pro machines not only supply more connectors, but also support the enhanced new USB 3.1 Gen 2 and Thunderbolt 3 protocols for blazing fast wired connectivity and high resolution displays. Flex your power Like the Retina MacBook, the new MacBook Pro models no longer use MagSafe, Apple's quick release magnetic plug for delivering power. Power is now delivered via USB-C, which fits snuggly enough to pull your laptop off the edge of a table if something inadvertently tugs the cable hard enough. While many are weeping over the death of their beloved MagSafe, I've … [Read more...] about Everything you need to know about USB-C & Thunderbolt 3 on Apple’s new MacBook Pro
Apple silicon Macs to support Thunderbolt despite shift to ARM
AppleInsider is supported by its audience and may earn commission as an Amazon Associate and affiliate partner on qualifying purchases. These affiliate partnerships do not influence our editorial content. Apple on Wednesday clarified its stance on future integration of Intel's Thunderbolt protocol, saying Macs powered by custom-designed Apple silicon ARM chips will continue to support the connectivity technology. The tech giant in a statement to AppleInsider said Apple silicon Macs will support Thunderbolt's latest specifications. Thunderbolt's future on Mac was in question as Apple is in the beginning stages of transitioning away from Intel's x86 architecture in favor of its own ARM designs. "Over a decade ago, Apple partnered with Intel to design and develop Thunderbolt, and today our customers enjoy the speed and flexibility it brings to every Mac," the company said. "We remain committed to the future of Thunderbolt and will support it in Macs with Apple … [Read more...] about Apple silicon Macs to support Thunderbolt despite shift to ARM
USB 3, USB 4, Thunderbolt, & USB-C — everything you need to know
Feature AppleInsider is supported by its audience and may earn commission as an Amazon Associate and affiliate partner on qualifying purchases. These affiliate partnerships do not influence our editorial content. With the varieties of USB and Thunderbolt terminology floating about, as well as new versions being adopted by Apple and other device producers, sorting out the mess can be a problem. Here's what you need to know about USB 3, USB 4, Thunderbolt 3, and Thunderbolt 4. For most users, there are two general families of multi-purpose connections: USB and Thunderbolt. Both have their benefits and their foibles, as well as sharing many characteristics, but the two technology trees are, largely, quite different. If you don't read any further, here's your main takeaway: The term "USB-C" by itself doesn't specify anything for data, charging, or video beyond the physicality of the connector. But, as you might expect, there are a lot of details behind USB … [Read more...] about USB 3, USB 4, Thunderbolt, & USB-C — everything you need to know
Residents in Tây Ninh earn income from wild herbs, veggies
The garden of Lê Văn Dĩ in Tây Ninh Province’s Trảng Bàng District. — Photo http://baotayninh.vn Viet Nam News TÂY NINH — Wild vegetables, herbs and leaves from trees planted on the banks of the Sài Gòn and Vàm Cỏ rivers in Tây Ninh Province’s Trảng Bàng District are known by their taste, smell and use in bánh tráng phơi sương (dew-soaked rice paper), boiled meat dishes, and fish sauce. However, because of industrialisation, including many new factories and industrial parks, wild vegetables and herbs are disappearing. Recognising the risk, six years ago, Lê Văn Dĩ, 54, of Gia Lộc Commune in the district took cuttings of many of the vegetables, herbs and trees growing along the two river banks to plant in his one-hectare garden. “I have 13 kinds of plants, including trâm ổi ( Lantana camara), trâm sắn (Syzygium cinereum) and others,” Dĩ said. Dĩ’s garden is the first to meet VietGap standards in the province. “I earn nearly VNĐ200 million … [Read more...] about Residents in Tây Ninh earn income from wild herbs, veggies
Review: AirPods Max don’t make it easy to justify the price
Review The new AirPods Max are turning heads with a high price tag and excellent audio quality. But is what you get worth the $549? AirPods Max design AirPods Max come in five different colors, sky blue, green, pink, silver, and space gray. Each color is two-toned, featuring a lighter color on the anodized earcups and a darker one for the headband. AirPods Max have one of the most bespoke designs ever created for a set of headphones. The top portion of the headphones is made of stainless steel before being coated with a premium soft-touch material akin to silicone. The canopy is made from a proprietary mesh that is designed to wrest just atop your head. AirPods Max Each arm of the AirPods Max extend to accommodate user's heads of different sizes. Anodized aluminum makes up the cups themselves, which is lighter than the steel and allows for the svelte anodization Apple is known for. Each of the cushions on the earcups are a similar mesh … [Read more...] about Review: AirPods Max don’t make it easy to justify the price
War journalists met up with soldiers to recall memories
The iconic photograph of a Vietnamese Army tank going through the gate of Sài Gòn’s - now known as Hồ Chí Minh City - Independence Palace on April 30, 1975, marking marking the end of a long and bloody war against US. The photo was taken by war journalist Trần Mai Hưởng former General Director of Vietnam News Agency and Editor-in-chief of Việt Nam News. — VNS File Photo HÀ NAM — A group of former war journalists, soldiers and tank drivers recently met in Hà Nam Province to recall their memories of Việt Nam’s war against the US prior to Reunification Day on April 30th. Among them were war journalist Trần Mai Hưởng (former General Director of Vietnam News Agency and Editor-in-chief of Việt Nam News) who took the iconic photograph of a Vietnamese Army tank going through the gate of Sài Gòn’s - now known as Hồ Chí Minh City - Independence Palace on April 30, 1975. The photo captured a historic moment in Vietnamese history, marking the end of a long and bloody war. “I met … [Read more...] about War journalists met up with soldiers to recall memories
Vietnam emerges as top electronics manufacturer: DBS Bank
Vietnam emerges as top electronics manufacturer: DBS Bank By Thanh Thom An elderly couple inspects television sets at a supermarket in HCMC – PHOTO: THANH HOA HCMC – Vietnam is poised to become a leading electronics powerhouse in the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, or ASEAN, in the coming years if it sustains its current pace of growth, according to a report from Singapore’s DBS Bank. The bank said in its May 28 report, called “Understanding Vietnam: The rising star,” that one key policy focus of the Vietnamese Government is to build capacity for longer term growth. This entails a deliberate effort to encourage investment and improve infrastructure. Vietnam is one of the top recipients of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the region. It received some US$14.1 billion worth of FDI in 2017 – equivalent to 6.3% of the nominal gross domestic product (GDP) – the third highest in the ASEAN. Key advantages offered by Vietnam include its highly integrated and … [Read more...] about Vietnam emerges as top electronics manufacturer: DBS Bank
Smart Home Diary: An update to our blinds revealing that Alexa is no smarter than Siri
I’ve played around a bit with Alexa, and even considered buying an Echo Dot or two before the launch of HomePod , but in the end decided to wait it out. However, while Hunter Douglas is still promising HomeKit support for our Luxaflex Duette blinds , and was expecting to get there by now, certification has been delayed until later in the year. In the meantime, it’s gone ahead with the launch of the new bridge which brings voice control to the blinds – but so far only for Alexa and Google Home … Rather than wait for HomeKit, we decided to get an Amazon Echo Dot as an interim solution – which also provided an opportunity to pit Siri against Alexa in a real-life smart speaker test. Note that I say ‘Siri versus Alexa,’ not HomePod versus Echo Dot. As speakers, the two devices aren’t even in the same league. HomePod is a $349 device which gets into what I think of as semi-HiFi territory. It doesn’t compete with traditional HiFi brands, but is definitely into Sonos territory … [Read more...] about Smart Home Diary: An update to our blinds revealing that Alexa is no smarter than Siri