On CE - For Dealers, Distributors and OEMs of Consumer Electronics throughout EMEA

Swiss watchmaker Alpina follows on the crowdfunded launch of the ApinerX hybrid smartwatch with an update featuring 4 different designs inspired by the backers on the Kickstarter community.

The choice of designs was boiled down from a group of over 11000 potential styles. The resulting 4 designs feature a class fibre case with a steel back, and come in a choice of leather or silicon straps. Meanwhile the watch carries an array of sensors, allowing it to track UV levels, temperature, altitude, pressure and north direction, as well as a heart rate monitor.

Apple unveils a sequel to the wireless earbuds known as the AirPods-- the 2nd generation AirPods, featuring a new Apple-designed H1 chip claiming improvements across both performance and connection.

The AirPods 2 design remains identical to the first generation, down to the choice of a sole white colour option. However Apple insists what is inside is what matters. It says the H1 chip features custom architecture allowing for up to 50% more talk time compared to the first generation, as well as faster connection times. Siri integration is another addition, allowing users to change songs, make calls, adjust volume or get direction by saying "Hey Siri."

Many a company has taken a stab at offering a game streaming service (with varying levels of success) but now the biggest name of them all has thrown its hat in the ring at the Games Developer Conference (GDC) 2019-- Google.

Dubbed Stadia, the Google game streaming services promises to be the most powerful of them all. It requires no dedicated hardware, since the idea is to allow on gameplay on any screen, be it a desktop PC, laptop, tablet, smartphone or TV (via Chromecast), so long it is able to decode video. Google already tested the idea earlier last year with "Project Stream," a means to play Assassin's Creed Odyssey on the Chrome browser, but the search giant now wants to all kinds of games, all running on Google datacentres.

The HP World Partner Forum sees the company reveal a refresh of the Envy laptop portfolio complete with 13-, 15- and 17-inch models featuring longer-life batteries and a choice of Intel or AMD processors.

The 2019 Envy selection features 4 models-- the Envy 13, Envy x360 13, Envy x360 15 and Envy 17. As the name might suggest, the Envy x360 13 and 15 feature a 360-degree hinge allowing users to flip the display around for use as a tablet, while the Envy 13 and 17 are regular notebooks.