Taiwan shares end down as tech sector suffers profit taking

Technology

Taipei, Oct. 28 (CNA) Shares in Taiwan saw initial gains eroded and closed in negative territory, falling more than 150 points, Monday as the bellwether electronics sector encountered profit taking leading the broader market to move lower, dealers said.Ahead of the upcoming United States presidential election on Nov. 5, local investors appeared reluctant to chase prices for the moment despite gains in the early morning session with turnover staying low, dealers added.The Taiex, the weighted index on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE), ended down 150.38 points, or 0.64 percent, at 23,198.07, after moving between 23,164.42 and 23,547.12. Turnover totaled NT$328.3 billion (US$10.23 billion).The market opened up 0.46 percent and rose to the day’s high, rising almost 200 points in the early morning session, with buying in large cap electronics stocks sparked by a 0.56 percent increase on the tech-heavy Nasdaq index and a 1.07 percent rise on the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index on Friday, dealers said.However, after the Taiex breached 23,500 points, selling followed as investors rushed to lock in the gains built for tech heavyweights, in particular contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC), pushing the broader market below the technical support at 23,299 points, the 10-day moving average by the end of the session, dealers added.”The selling came as many local investors remain jittery about the U.S. presidential vote, which is too close to call,” equity market analyst Andy Hsu said. “So, when the Taiex moved higher, they tended to pocket their earlier gains.””While some investors rushed to lock in their earlier profits, more stayed on the sidelines and did nothing before the election, which kept turnover thin,” Hsu added.”Today, TSMC remained in focus amid the sell-off as investors fear that once Donald Trump wins the election, his administration could scrap a US$6.6 billion subsidy deal signed between the Biden government and the chipmaker,” Hsu said.Despite a 2.78 percent increase in its American depositary receipts (ADRs) on Friday, TSMC, the most heavily weighted stock on the local market, fell 1.41 percent to close at NT$1,050.00 after hitting a high of NT$1,075.00. TSMC’s losses contributed about 120 points to the Taiex’s decline, and sent the electronics index and the semiconductor sub-index down by 0.96 percent and 1.18 percent, respectively.Among other semiconductor stocks, United Microelectronics Corp., a smaller contract chipmaker, lost 1.10 percent to end at NT$49.25, and IC packaging and testing services provider ASE Technology Holding Co. also dropped 0.62 percent to close at NT$161.00.Bucking the downturn, smartphone IC designer MediaTek Inc. rose 1.52 percent to end at NT$1,335.00 as investors bet on the positive leads it will give an investor conference slated for Wednesday. A foreign brokerage even gave the stock a NT$1,650 target price on the stock.Artificial intelligence related stocks also came under pressure after earlier gains, adding selling to the broader market, dealers said.Second to TSMC in terms of market value, iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., which also rolls out AI servers, dropped 0.46 percent to close at NT$215.00, and Wistron Corp., another AI server maker, fell 1.30 percent to end at NT$113.50.In addition, Quanta Computer Inc., also producing AI servers, closed unchanged at NT$310.00, while AI graphics card vendor Giga-Byte Technology Co. shed 1.45 percent to end at NT$271.00.”At a time when TSMC traded in the doldrums, investors tried to seek bargains in select old economy stocks,” Hsu said, referring to petrochemical stocks which suffered heavy losses in recent sessions.In the petrochemical industry, which rose 0.78 percent, Formosa Plastics Corp. rose 3.63 percent to close at NT$48.55, and Formosa Chemicals & Fibre Corp. gained 2.99 percent to end at NT$39.65. In addition, Nan Ya Plastics Corp. grew 2.30 percent to close at NT$42.30, and Formosa Petrochemical Corp. ended up 1.03 percent at NT$49.15.The transportation industry rose 0.32 percent as the Shanghai Containerized Freight Index (SCFI) stopped an eight-week falling streak last week, Hsu said.Wan Hai Lines Ltd., one of the leading container cargo shippers in Taiwan, rose 1.96 percent to close at NT$88.60, and rival Yang Ming Marine Transport Corp. ended up 0.44 percent at NT$68.10, while Evergreen Marine Corp., the largest container cargo shipper in the country, fell 0.72 percent to close at NT$206.00.Elsewhere in the old economy sector, textile brand Far Eastern New Century Corp. lost 0.66 percent to close at NT$37.60, and Eclat Textile Co. ended down 0.73 percent at NT$543.00.Meanwhile, food supplier Uni-President Enterprises Corp. rose 1.01 percent to close at NT$89.80, while Taisun Enterprise Corp. lost 0.49 percent to end at NT$20.15.In the financial sector, which lost 0.12 percent, Fubon Financial Holding Co. lost 0.33 percent to close at NT$91.90, while Cathay Financial Holding Co. gained 0.43 percent to end at NT$69.30.”Before the U.S. vote, the local stock market is expected to continue to move in consolidation, but the Taiex could see its next technical support at the 20-day moving average at around 22,970 points,” Hsu said.”In addition, several megatech stocks on the U.S. markets are scheduled to report their earnings this week, so it deserves watching,” Hsu added, referring to companies such as Google, Meta and Apple.Despite the fall in the Taiex, foreign institutional investors bought a net NT$8.01 billion worth of shares on the main board Monday, according to the TWSE.
(By Jeffrey Wu and Frances Huang)
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Nepo baby with VERY famous parents walks the red carpet at his new movie’s premiere – but can you guess who it is?

Arts & Culture, Film & TV

A film director with very famous parents, an A-List stepdad and Emily in Paris star wife took to the red carpet recently.Attending the launch of his new movie in LA it was a famous family affair as they celebrated in style. 6Charlie McDowell is the son of Malcolm McDowell and Mary Steenburgen, who divorced in 19906The movie premiere was a true blended famous family affairThe blended family celebrated the launch of the director’s new movie that stars renowned actress Glenn Close and newcomer Emily Matthews.An adaptation of Tove Jansson’s novel about a grieving family on an islet in the Gulf of Finland, the director’s own family looked thrilled to celebrate with him.Charlie McDowell is the son of British actor Malcolm McDowell and American actress and comedian Mary Steenburgen, who divorced in 1990. Malcolm is known for his role as Alex in A Clockwork Orange, while his mother Mary is best known for roles in What’s Eating Gilbert Grape and Philadelphia.Read More Charlie McDowellHis stepfather is Cheers actor Ted Danson, who has been married to his mother since 1995. The award-winning American actor and comedian rose to fame playing Sam Malone in the NBC sitcom Cheers.The family looked in high spirits as they celebrated the filmmaker, posing happily for pictures at the at the TCL Chinese Theatre in Los Angeles where the premiere took place.Pictured smiling and laughing together, the director was clearly thrilled to have the support of his family. He also took part in a Q&A about the film with Hollywood legend and multi-award-winning actress Glenn Close. The Summer Book is a 2024 drama film directed by Charlie and written by Robert Jones.It follows the inspirational tale of a six-year-old girl (played by Emily) and her grandmother (played by Glenn) as they spend a summer on a small, uninhabited island after the girl’s mother passes away.The pair spend endless summer days on an island far out in the archipelago with the film set to release in Finland on 31 January 2025.Another famous family member, Charlie’s wife, Lily Collins, was unable to attend the US premiere.The Emily in Paris star had been with him at promotional events in London earlier in the month, including a special screening at the BFI Film Festival at The Curzon Mayfair, which she attended with her co-star Ashley Park.The couple had celebrated their third wedding anniversary last month, with the actress taking to her Instagram to say: “Happy anniversary to the man who makes me laugh harder than anyone.” “Three years held in your arms has been the greatest gift. Barefaced and in a basic tee, you make me feel like the most special human on the planet. I adore you @charliemcdowell. More than I know how to say.”Read more on the Scottish SunLily announced her engagement to Charlie in September 2020 with the couple marrying on 4 September 2021 at Dunton Hot Springs, Colorado.6Charlie was all smiles as he posed with Glenn Close at the movie premiere in Los Angeles6The film director’s mother Mary was pictured with A List husband (and Charlie’s stepdad) Ted Danson6Charlie pictured with his mum and stepfather at the red carpet event6Charlie is all smiles with his dad Malcolm

We quit our jobs to run UK’s remotest pub only accessed by BOAT – people travel across the world to drink at our boozer

Travel

A COUPLE who ditched their London life to run Britain’s most remote pub say their clients hail from around the globe.Rachel Devine, 46 and wife Jhennia Leipert, 44, took over The Puffer Bar from the previous owners who ran it for 10 years.8A study recently stated it is the most remote pub in the whole of the UKCredit: SWNS8Rachel Devine, 46 and wife Jhennia Leipert, 44, took over The Puffer Bar from the previous owners who ran it for 10 yearsCredit: SWNS8Jhennia Leipirt with her son Madáin pictured outside The Puffer in 2021Credit: SWNS8Rachel said they were “very worried” about how locals would respond to the redesign of their beloved pubCredit: SWNS8The quaint pub also has a restaurant that serves up a selection of fresh food and drinkCredit: SWNSThe pair decided to embark on this life-changing journey after lockdown.Due to the remoteness of the island Rachel said they need to transport everything over on a small boat and use wheel barrels to get around the island.She added: “It is a really kind and friendly community.”It is quite empty in the winter because of the boats – a lot of people don’t want to come over when the weather it is a bit rougher.Read more on News”We are kind of left to ourselves so it is a nice time to chill and for the locals and to use the pub – of course, during the summer it gets crazy busy with tourists.”Everybody does know each other quite well. The pub is a real meeting place and everybody feels a bit of ownership of the pub who does come in.”The pub is located on Easdale, the smallest permanently inhabited island of the Inner Hebrides in Scotland.The island is home to around 60 people and has no roads.A study recently stated it is the most remote pub in the whole of the UK.The quaint pub also has a restaurant that serves up a selection of fresh food and drink.Female-only remote paradise dubbed ‘Super She island’ with seven plush cabins goes on sale for as much as a London semiWhile the restaurant is currently closed, the pub is open from 6pm between Thursday and Saturday.Last year the boozer underwent a makeover carried out by interior designer Banjo Beale for the BBC series Designing The Hebrides.Rachel said they were “very worried” about how locals would respond to the redesign of their beloved pub, which had originally been styled like an old puffer boat.She said: “Banjo came in and we lightened it up – he kept the boat motif with the bar. It looks very different than it did a year ago but the islanders were great.”Some of them were a wee bit sad that we were doing it but I think most people have really taken to.”It brings a new life into the pub and it reset it for us as new owners.”Visitors travel from all over the globe every year to enjoy a pint or some food in the pub.You can catch a glimpse of this by looking up at the ceiling, which is covered in pinned bank notes from all over the world.Rachel said: “There is money from Thailand, America, Brazil, Nigeria, Australia.”I think for a lot of people is a really fun thing to do to visit us and being on a carless island that makes it feel remote because we are so used to vehicles all the time. “September is a particularly busy time of year for the pub because of the annual World Stone Skimming Championships – an event where entrants compete in skimming a stone as far as they can across a flooded quarry.Rachel said: “We are the only cafe and restaurant in the island and suddenly visitors go from 100 to 200 a day to 1500 to 2000 on a very busy stone skimming.”The pub gets packed and there’s people in every corner queuing for beer.”New Year’s eve can be even more chaotic with the last boat stopping at 7 o’clock in the evening and no other way to get off the island for two days.For the publicans though, this means they get to entertain hundreds of happy clients.”The pub just started come into life for Hogmanay and then everybody on new year’s day goes to play this massive game of football on the green side next to the pub.”Then they all go for a cold water dip into the sea and then the next stop is the pub for whisky just to get warm and to dry off after the dip,” said Rachel.Whilst running the joint has its massive highs, there have been a number of challenges along the way.This includes securing food and drink to the venue, which can be a mammoth task given how remote it is. Rachel said: “Sometimes we definitely say to each other ‘what on earth were we thinking’ but on the whole we have loved most every moment of it.Read more on the Scottish Sun”It is really hard – it is much more work then we realised and we thought it was going to be a lot of work. But it is remote in the sense of just even trying to get food and drink to do the pub and takes a lot of effort.”During Stone Skimming we had to drive 200 miles just to pick up some scallops and drive back again.”

Bulgarian Awards for Art, Science, Education, Culture Presented at New Office of Consulate General in LA

Science and Health

The 3rd edition of the Bulgarian Awards for Art, Science, Education and Culture took place at the new office of the Bulgarian Consulate General in Los Angeles, the diplomatic representation said. The ceremony brought together representatives of the Bulgarian community on the US West Coast to award those who have contributed to their compatriots.
Awards were presented in four categories: Art, Culture, Science, and Education. This year’s winners are as follows:
Art: Dimiter Marinov, who has participated in many Bulgarian and US cinema productions and represented Bulgaria at the Oscars ceremony;
Culture: PCHELA Bulgarian Education and Culture Society, which unites the Bulgarian community in Orange County and Los Angeles through a series of Bulgarian cultural events organized by the Society;
Science: Boris Minev for his research in the field of vaccines against oncological diseases;
Education: Khan Asparuh Bulgarian School, which has two branches in the Californian cities of Sunnyvale and Concord.
The General Consulate’s special award this year went to plastic surgeon Nicholas Nikolov, whose efforts to promote Bulgaria are relentless, the diplomatic representation said. His initiative to do surgeries free of charge to those in need of complex surgery in Bulgaria and to share his experience, deserve admiration.
The Bulgarian Awards are organized annually by the BgFACE nongovernmental organization on the occasion of November 1, National Awakeners’ Day. They mark the relentless efforts of the Bulgarian diaspora to elevate Bulgarian culture, science, education, and art to a world level.
BgFACE was established with the mission to unite Bulgarians from the various West Coasts states by showing and awarding contemporary awakeners.
/RY/

Vigilance Forensic Science Institute In Odisha Soon: CM Mohan Majhi

Science and Health

Bhubaneswar: Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi on Monday announced that a Vigilance Forensic Science Institute will be established in the state. The Chief Minister made the announcement while addressing the inaugural function of the Odisha Vigilance ‘Anti-Corruption Awareness Week’ celebrations at the Lok Seva Bhawan in Bhubaneswar.
Majhi further said that eight SPs, an identical number of Additional SPs, 24 DSPs and 16 Sis will be inducted into Odisha Vigilance to improve the efficiency of the department. In addition, 24 people, including cyber experts, chartered accountants and bank experts, will be appointed in Odisha Vigilance and 135 motor bikes and 160 desktops/laptops will be provided to the Vigilance personnel soon.
Koraput SP PK Dwivedi was honoured on the occasion as the best anti-corruption officer of the year 2023. Similarly, the Vigilance Unit of Bolangir has been honoured for his work. Dushmanth Nayak of Balasore Vigilance and DSP Shabitanchali Naik of Berhampur Vigilance Division were honoured as the Best IOs. The Chief Minister also honoured Hemant Kumar Swain, public prosecutor at the Vigilance Court, as the best public prosecutor.

5 things to know for Oct. 28: Presidential race, Middle East, McDonald’s, Washington Post, Toxic smog

Technology

(CNN) — When considering who is living paycheck to paycheck, households with an income of six-figures or more likely aren’t the first to come to mind. However, it turns out that about a fifth of US households that earn more than $150,000 a year are in that situation.Here’s what else you need to know to Get Up to Speed and On with Your Day.1. Presidential raceMost voters think former President Donald Trump will not concede if he loses the 2024 presidential election, according to a new CNN poll conducted by SSRS, with a sizable minority of his backers saying losing candidates have no obligation to do so. Overall, just 30% of registered voters think Trump will accept the results of the election and concede if he loses, while 73% say that Vice President Kamala Harris would accept an election loss. The poll comes a day after Trump held a rally at Madison Square Garden in New York, where he doubled down on his promise for a massive deportation program on Day 1 to reverse an “immigrant invasion.” “The United States is an occupied country,” Trump said, as Democrats projected messages on the exterior of the arena, reading “Trump is Unhinged” and “Trump praised Hitler.”2. Middle EastNegotiations for a ceasefire and to secure the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza are not expected to see “significant progress” until a winner is declared in the US presidential election, a source briefed on the talks told CNN. The latest round of talks, which began in Qatar on Sunday, did not focus on achieving a deal, but rather on jump-starting the process, the source added. The discussions also covered the war in Lebanon, as well as Iran and its regional influence. Meanwhile, Iran has vowed to respond to Israel’s strikes on the country Saturday, which Tehran says killed five people, but said it does not want a wider war. Israel said the strikes hit military targets and were in response to Iran’s attacks on Israel earlier this month.3. McDonald’sMcDonald’s will resume selling Quarter Pounders in all its restaurants this week after considering new data regarding an E. coli outbreak linked to the burgers, the company said Sunday. The CDC issued a food safety alert last Tuesday warning that dozens of people reported becoming sick after eating Quarter Pounders. The E. coli outbreak has led to 75 illnesses across 13 states, including 22 hospitalizations and one death, according to the latest information from the CDC. Most of the related illnesses occurred in Colorado. A specific ingredient has not been confirmed as the source of the outbreak, federal agencies said Friday, but the FDA previously said slivered onions or beef patties were the likely source of contamination.4. Washington PostDays after The Washington Post announced it would not endorse a presidential candidate, its billionaire owner remains silent. Jeff Bezos has so far declined to comment, even as his own paper’s journalists reported that he was the one who ultimately spiked the planned endorsement of Vice President Kamala Harris. Many current and former newspaper staffers feel the timing of the announcement was highly suspect and has led them to believe Bezos’s business interests influenced the decision. On Friday, Donald Trump met with executives from Blue Origin, the space exploration company owned by Bezos, hours after the Post announced its decision. The company has a $3.4 billion contract with the federal government to build a new spacecraft to transport astronauts to and from the moon’s surface.5. Toxic smogA thick, toxic smog has enveloped northern India and eastern Pakistan just days before the start of Diwali, a festival typically celebrated with fireworks that each year sends air quality plummeting. The air quality index in India’s capital Delhi earlier today was roughly 250, after days in the “very unhealthy” zone above 200, according to IQAir, which tracks global air quality. In the Pakistani city of Lahore, roughly 15 miles from the Indian border, air quality today surpassed a “hazardous” 500 — almost 65 times the World Health Organization’s guidelines for healthy air — making it the most polluted city in the world, according to IQAir. Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights, is set to begin Thursday. During the five-day celebration, people gather with their families, feast and set off firecrackers, further exacerbating air pollution.BREAKFAST BROWSESchool resumes in Asheville, NCA month after Helene pummeled western North Carolina as a tropical storm, students in the Asheville area have started returning to classrooms. The Asheville City Schools district will reopen on a modified schedule today , according to the district.Health alert for kidsChildren who have coughs that go on for weeks may have a type of walking pneumonia that’s been surging in the US this year — and they may need a different antibiotic regimen to treat it, infectious disease experts say.Shorter work week = thriving economyResearch shows Iceland’s economy is outperforming most other European countries after workers opted for less time in the office with no pay loss.Hidden in the wallsYou never know what renovating your old home might turn up: a Chicago-area resident once found a human skull in his walls. Decades later, DNA technology helped identified the remains.What all those sexy Halloween costumes are doing to kidsRather than helping them explore identities such as doctors or scientists, Halloween costumes often sexualize girls. Here’s how parents can combat this problem.TODAY’S NUMBER$20A North Carolina man knew it was his lucky day when he spotted a $20 bill in the parking lot of a convenience store. He had no idea how lucky until the scratch-off he bought with the money revealed his prize: $1 million.TODAY’S QUOTE“I will never excuse murder, and those were brutal, premeditated murders.”Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón, explaining his recommendation to resentence Lyle and Erik Menendez, who are currently serving life in prison without the possibility of parole for the 1989 murder of their parents.TODAY’S WEATHERCheck your local forecast here > > >AND FINALLY …Dramatic rescueA Medina County, Ohio firefighter’s bodycam captured the courageous rescue of a woman who was trapped in the basement of her burning house and had to be pulled from a small window.The-CNN-Wire™ & © 2024 Cable News Network, Inc., a Warner Bros. Discovery Company. All rights reserved.​THE-CNN-WIRE (TM) & © 2024 CABLE NEWS NETWORK, INC., A TIME WARNER COMPANY. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

UK’s new Minister for Science and Technology comes to US touting Britain’s AI benefits

Science and Health

Interview Peter Kyle, the UK’s new Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, has been in America this week promoting British expertise in AI and other areas. He took the time to sit down with journalists on Friday to explain his plans.
On Thursday, Kyle met with tech giants in Seattle and he has now brought his message down south. He’s also promoting the UK’s AI Safety Institute, which is opening an offshoot in San Francisco staffed by British and American techies later this year.
Reporters: Welcome back to the US. How has your reception here been?

Kyle: I was here in February when I was a shadow Secretary of State preparing a program for the government. I met many companies in Seattle and here, but that was on a listening exercise. Every company back then spoke about the instability they saw in the UK – economically and politically. There were lots of conversations about energy supply, the price of electricity, connection to the grid, regulatory challenges, and issues of planning.

Those are issues, which I then fed into our program of government. And now, three and a half months in, I’ve come back and said, “Look what we’ve done.” There is stability in our politics. There is stability in the way we’re managing the economy. We stood on a platform of a decade of national renewal, so we are signaling 10 years into the future on economic and social policy and the way that we’re managing the country.
A bill has been drafted. It will be introduced to Parliament soon, but already powers have been given to Secretaries of State to intervene and expedite investments into the UK’s infrastructure. Labs for life sciences and datacenters are now national planning priorities and will be expedited.

Reporters: What has the effect of Brexit been in terms of Americans’ perception of Britain?
Kyle: Brexit has only been mentioned once on this trip, and that was at a dinner yesterday by one of the people around the table.
So if you look at the Investment Summit we had last week, that raised £63 billion ($82 billion) worth of pledged investment into the UK, £24.3 billion of that was directly AI related. Add on another £10 billion which is life sciences related, and you see that more than half of the total is related to the economy of the future.

What was pledged last week is more than double what the previous government got in its last Investment Summit, and as much was pledged in AI investment this year than the previous Summit raised in total. And that shows that Britain is connected to the industries of the future and is open for business in the key areas that really matter in the global economy.
Reporters: California’s governor recently vetoed the state’s own AI bill. How do the UK and other governments view California as an influencer on AI policy?
Kyle: California does have an outsized influence. And California is a sizable economy in its own right, not just legislatively, but actually just the singularity of its powerful companies. The fact that I’m here for the second time this year, the fact that I’m going to be a regular visitor here, shows not just the power of these individual companies but the collective power of Seattle and Silicon Valley and San Francisco.

I don’t want to be a Secretary of State that sits in their office thinking, ‘I can control things by legislating and regulating from Westminster,’ because those days have gone when it comes to this area

It shows the respect that governments should be showing companies that innovate on the scale that some of these companies are. I don’t want to be a Secretary of State that sits in their office thinking, “I can control things by legislating and regulating from Westminster,” because those days have gone when it comes to this area. We need to have a far more relationship-based approach to engaging with big tech.
What I’m doing in Britain is putting the Safety Institute onto a statutory footing, but I’m enshrining the voluntary code that has already been agreed by all of the frontier AI companies. I have tasked every regulator in the UK to do an assessment about how AI will impact the sectors that they regulate, and they must come up with plans to show that they are adapting to the potential impact into the future.
Why am I doing this? I don’t want to disrupt the regulatory environment to stifle innovation. But secondly, I want to create an environment where fast evolving technologies can have a soft landing into societies.
We need to safely exploit all the potential of AI. We have to be very cognizant that this isn’t just Britain and America and Europe and some allied, like-minded, democratic Asian countries. If we don’t win this, if we don’t stay at the cutting edge of innovation, China will get there.

Reporters: Are you worried that regulation could jeopardize the relationships you have with the AI labs at present?
Kyle: I think that the relationship is getting deeper and more trusting. And I think the benefits of understanding safety at a very deep level, and for those companies to be able to adapt accordingly, are speaking for themselves. So it’s not disruptive to what we’re doing.
I think everybody understands this fundamental political challenge that we have and a fundamental sort of existential challenge that they have. If there is a model that makes its way into the public, and it leads to a widespread societal harm or damage to national security, someone’s gonna have to hold the can for that. I don’t think any government would survive the next election if harm emerged in society [from AI].
Reporters: We’re two weeks away from the presidential election. Do you have thoughts about how AI policy could differ between Kamala Harris and Donald Trump?
Kyle: As a government, we deeply respect the choices that the American people will make, and we’ll work with whatever administration emerges after the election. ®

Bose SoundLink Flex Is The Perfect Travel Speaker To Take Anywhere

Travel

Bose is one of those consumer brands that can divide a room full of nerds. Plenty of people swear by the audio brand and love its products. Some others say Bose products are pricey and the company doesn’t always show technical specifications. I tend to fall into the first camp because I’ve tested quite a few Bose products and I’ve always found them high quality even though they tend to be a bit more expensive than some other brands.

Following on from my recent review of the Bose SoundLink Max, this week I am looking at the Bose SoundLink Flex, a smaller Bluetooth speaker that was recently launched in its second iteration. The Second Generation SoundLink Flex is the same price as its predecessor but now incorporates some important changes that make it an even more compelling proposition.

The new Bose SoundLink Flex is now able to take advantage of the excellent Bose smartphone app which offers access to various customization options and other features. For example, there’s a graphic equalizer for tweaking the speaker’s tone or SimpleSync, an easy way for linking the Soundlink Flex with another compatible Bose product for a multi-speaker stereo setup that’s ideal for parties.

The Bose SoundLink Flex is shown here in Arctic Sage. BOSE
Another new feature is the Shortcut button which can be programmed using the Bose app as a SimpleSync button, for accessing a voice assistant or to trigger Spotify Connect. Along with the support for the Bose app, the new version of the speaker now supports AAC and aptX Bluetooth audio codecs and will even work with Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Sound Technology when used with a compatible Android device.

The Bose SoundLink Flex is about the size of a small clutch bag and sports a crisp and nuanced sound with a surprisingly big bass. It’s the perfect travel speaker that’s small enough to pack into your luggage but with a big enough sound to fill a hotel room.

The speaker can play standing up, on its back or even hanging upside down because PositionIQ Technology senses the speaker’s orientation and optimizes the audio to ensure there’s plenty of sound projected. There’s also a textile loop on the end of the speaker that can be fitted with a carabineer for hanging the speaker on a tent spar or something similar. I’d love to have seen a color-coordinated carabineer in the box.

On the top of the SoundLink Flex is a strip of waterproof touch controls for doing everything from … [+] turning the speaker on or off, to adjusting the volume levels.Bose
There is a strip of waterproof controls running along the top of the SoundLink Flex. The Buttons include a power switch, Bluetooth pairing, Shortcut button, plus a rtrio of transport controls and volume adjusters. One thing I like about the power button is it only needs a short press to turn on or off, unlike some Bluetooth speakers.
With an IP67 rating, the Bose SoundLink Flex is both waterproof and dust-resistant, ensuring it can be used anywhere. It will even float if it drops in the bath or is thrown in a swimming pool. And thanks to the silicone-wrapped body, the speaker is also resistant to scuffs and scratches so should stay looking good for years.
A full charge of the Bose SoundLink Flex’s rechargeable battery can provide up to 12 hours of playtime, plus it can double as a full-duplex speakerphone because there is a microphone built-in. So, if you do need to take an important business call while chilling at the pool, that won’t be a problem.Pack the Bose SoundLink Flex in the back of the bar or hitch it to your backpack. The speaker is … [+] rugged and has a long-lasting battery plus great sound.Bose
Verdict: As we’ve come to expect with Bose, there are few technical specifications listed for the Bose SoundLink Flex, so you’ll have to use your ears to judge the sound. What we do know is the speaker uses Bluetooth 5.3 and supports SBC, AAC, apt X and Snapdragon Sound. That’s about it. I can’t quote you the power output in Watts and neither can I tell you how big the drivers are. All I can say is this is a gorgeous speaker with high-quality construction, great sound, good looks and a speakerphone function. What more do you want? Highly Recommended.
Pricing & Availability: The Bose SoundLink Flex is available in Black, Blue Dusk, Sandstone and a very fetching Alpine Sage, which is a minty green shade. The price is $149 / £149.95 / €179.95.