Intel announces the sale of the "majority" of its smartphone modem business is now complete-- a deal Reuters reports was done at a "multi-billion dollar loss," despite a $1 billion pricetag.

First confirmed back in July 2019, the acquisition brings a slew of mobile modem technology to the Apple fold. As a result, the iPhone maker will be able to create such iDevice components in-house, rather than depend on the likes of Qualcomm. The deal only covers smartphone modems, and Intel is still able to make modems for PCs, IoT devices and autonomous vehicles.

But why did Intel offload the smartphone modem business? A brief filed with the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has a couple of clues. According to the filing, Intel was forced out of the smartphone modem market by... Qualcomm. Intel claims Qualcom "strangled competition" through possibly unfair patent licensing practices, leading to "artificial and insurmountable barriers" not even the biggest PC chipmaker in the world could, well, surmount.

Apple is working on a "range" of augmented and virtual reality devices, Bloomberg reports, with unnamed "people familiar with the plans" adding the iPhone maker is basing such hardware on a new 3D sensor system.

The first device using the 3D sensor system is the 2020 iPad Pro update-- one featuring a 2-camera module and a "small hole" housing the 3D system. It should allow users to create "3D reconstructions of rooms, object and people," and will eventually be available in the high end 5G-capable iPhones set for launch next year.

Google confirms an earlier Reuters report with the acquisition of Fitbit, a deal worth $2.1 billion bringing the activity tracker maker directly within the massive fold of the search giant itself.

"Fitbit has been a true pioneer in the industry and has created terrific products, experiences and a vibrant community of users," Google says. "We're looking forward to working with the incredible talent at Fitbit, and bringing together the best hardware, software and AI, to build wearables to help even more people around the world."

Samsung uses its 2019 developer concept to tease a foldable phone concept-- one using a flexible display to take on the flip phone, making a device users can fold in half.

“This brand-new form factor that we’re now exploring will not only easily fit in your pocket, but it also changes the way you use your phone,” head of framework R&D group Hyesoon Jeong says at the Samsung Developer Conference. He also says the concept sets to make foldable technology "more compact," as well as extend it to new form factors.