Office workers embarrassed
by lack of IT skills
One in five (20%) British office workers feels embarrassed by
their lack of basic IT skills, reveals a survey by memory and
storage experts Crucial. Almost half (47%) claim to have good
IT skills; 22% describe their knowledge as excellent.
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5% don’t know how to send emails
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13% don’t know how to scan for viruses or other infections
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21% don’t know how to update their software
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11% don’t know how to uninstall programmes
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11% don’t know how to open task manager
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44% don’t know how to upgrade memory
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42% don’t know how to upgrade their storage
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13% don’t know how to clear internet cookies and web cache
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29% don’t know how to defrag their drive
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7% don’t know how to use Microsoft Office
Innovation maintains photobook unit
sale levels
Sales of consumer photobooks in Western Europe are on course
to rise slightly to 25.6 million units this year, up from 25 million
units in 2016, according to the latest
Futuresource Western
European Photobook Market Report.
Futuresource attributes the rise to a combination of higher
quality products, direct online sales and innovation from new
market players, including Google, which recently entered the U.S.
market.
Jeremy Wills, Senior Market Analyst of Print & Imaging at
Futuresource Consulting, points out that smartphones are
starting to have an influence, due to the improving resolution
of smartphone cameras, which can now provide images of high
enough quality for photobooks, and to the emergence of additional
ordering options including apps.
In response to continued demand for personalised photo products,
including photobooks and brochures, Antalis has brought out a
new range of FSC-certified papers offering vivid, high definition print
quality. The E Photo range has four finishes: lustre, for the look and
feel of traditional photographic paper; metallic, for an added ‘wow’
factor; matt, for a tactile sensation; and a unique pyramid texture.
Dixons Carphone creates one-stop shop
for tech support
Dixons Carphone is
building a national
network of tech
support specialists in
more than a thousand
Currys PC World and
Carphone Warehouse
stores across the UK.
Bringing together
the Geek Squad and
Knowhow brands,
Team Knowhow comprises more than 7,000 trained experts, all
ready to deliver, install, support, upgrade and repair everything
from white goods to mobiles and laptops.
The network will enable customers to access 24/7 tech
support, irrespective of where they bought the goods.
Smart device owners
keen to automate
further
Almost one in three
consumers has installed at
least one smart home device,
according to a study of
4,000 consumers in France,
Germany, UK and USA by
Futuresource Consulting.
Analyst Filipe Oliveira points
out that once consumers have
installed one device they are
likely to want to automate
other areas of their home.
“Across all segments,
30% of consumers expect to
control more of their homes
wirelessly in the near future.
However, the number is
substantially higher among
those who already own at
least one smart home device,
with 89% of advanced users
expecting to control more of
their homes wirelessly in the
next 6 to 12 months,” he said.
Smart home security
products, smart lighting and
smart thermostats are among
the most popular smart home
devices.
Voice Personal Assistant
(VPA) speakers are another
important driver of smart
home adoption. The most
common application is
music streaming, though
a substantial number of
respondents use their VPA
speakers for home automation
purposes such as controlling
the heating or lighting.
Almost a third of
respondents received their
VPA speaker as a gift, in some
cases bundled with a smart
home device.
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AI fears misplaced
Fears that artificial
intelligence (AI) will cause
significant job losses in the
short-term are mis-placed,
according to a new report
from by Capgemini’s Digital
Transformation Institute,
Turning AI into concrete
value: the successful
implementers’ toolkit
.
The study of 1,000
large enterprises that are
implementing artificial
intelligence (AI) shows that AI
has generated new job roles
in 83% of cases worldwide
and in 75% of cases in the
UK.
Almost two thirds (63%)
of respondents from
organisations that have
implemented AI at scale
report no job losses as a
result, with 71% choosing to
up-skill/re-skill employees
following their AI investment.
Almost nine out of
10 UK senior executives
(87%) expect AI to increase
efficiency and effectiveness
within their organisations
by freeing staff from having
to spend time on repetitive
tasks; 68% said their
organisations had already
seen a 10% uplift in sales
as a direct result of their AI
investment.
The two areas benefitting
most from AI are customer
service, cited by 31% of
UK senior executives, and
finance, cited by 27%.
Almost three quarters
(73%) of respondents think
AI can increase customer
satisfaction scores; 65%
believe it could reduce
customer churn.
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