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

The Ikea smart home device lineup is set for further additions, Swedish tech blog Teknikveckan reports-- the furniture maker might add a range of smart plugs to the Trådfri smart lighting line.

The smart plugs should allow customers to control any offline product via app or remote control. Teknikveckan reports Ikea has two such plugs in the works, a "control outlet kit" with an on/off remote and a "wireless control outlet." The remote has around 10m range, and can be magnetically attached to metal surfaces, while the plug is compatible with Apple HomeKit, Google Assistant and Alexa.

Twelve South updates a means to add more USB charging ports to the MacBook charger-- the PlugBug Duo, a device customers snap on the charger to add two more USB ports, allowing one to charge more devices using the same outlet.

The PlugBug Duo is a sequel to the 2011 Plugbug, which added 1 USB port to the charger. Like the first model, the PlugBug Duo replaces the removable charging prongs of the MacBook charger, before plugging into the wall and adding three means to charge devices. This makes it particularly useful for users of the new MacBook with older devices lacking a USB-C port.

Lenovo announces a range of budget Android tablets ideal for families wanting a device for each member-- the E series, consisting of the Tab E7, Tab E8 and Tab E10-- together with the more premium Tab M10 and Tab P10.

The Tab E7 is the entry-level model, being a 7-inch device running on Android Oreo Go. It features a 10.33mm thin frame, and promises to run for 5 hours on a single charge. The Tab E8 is a larger option, with an 8-inch display, Dolby Atmos audio and a battery powering up to 10 hours of local video playback. Finally, the Tab E10 is more powerful, with a 10-inch display, Qualcomm Snapdragon 210 processor and a pair of Dolby Atmos speakers.

The EMEA mobile phone market continues to drop, IDC records, with Q2 2018 smartphone shipments reching 44.9 million, "marginally lower" than the same quarter last year.

The core EU market sees the strongest declines, with most W. European countries seeing lower smartphone values than the same quarter of 2017. That said the picture is mixed, as France and Italy show an increase while C. Europe continues to trend towards more expensive models, leading to an increase in market value in every country. However, overall EU ASPs are down by over -10% Y-o-Y, reversing the recent trend towards more expensive models.

MEA also shows signs of price weakness, with flat smartphone volumes at 38.4m and an ASP of $212, "substantially" lower than the $242 of Q1 2018. The region sees a slowdown in the traditionally "very substantial" feature phone market, and currently the feature phone/smartphone market market split is at almost half and half.