Hard-disk drive storage provider Seagate on Monday lowered its revenue and margin guidance ahead of the release of its fourth quarter earnings report later this month.

Microsoft also announced the reduction of up to 7,800 positions, primarily in the phone business.

"S6 didn't sell as well as the market had hoped for, partly because of continued outperforming of iPhones combined with the supply constraint," said Greg Roh, a Seoul-based analyst at HMC Investment Securities Co. "Sales sharply missed the market expectation, which implies that overall technology industry demand for smartphones, TVs and PCs is weakening."

Apple distributors have slashed iPhone 4s to below Rs 13,000 (US$205.08), taking the battle right to the doors of domestic and Chinese smartphone players such as Micromax and Xiaomi in the popular mid-range smartphone market.

Doubts over the sales prospects of Samsung Electronics' new flagship smartphones are damping expectations of a rapid turnaround for the South Korean giant, even though profit likely continues to recover from last year's troughs.

Shares in Japan's Toshiba fell 5 percent in early Monday trade on fears that an ongoing third-party investigation into past accounting practices was finding more irregularities than previously expected.

On June 29, 2007, Apple released the original iPhone with a sleek form factor and revolutionary multi-touch screen and significantly disrupted an industry then dominated by companies such as Nokia, BlackBerry, Sony and Motorola.

Tesla Motors' second-quarter sales jumped 52%, higher than the company had forecast, giving the Silicon Valley auto maker important momentum ahead of the debut of its Model X sport-utility later this year.

Smartphone thieves suffered a setback Wednesday when new laws took effect requiring all smartphones sold in California to come with an opt-out "kill switch," which slashes the phone's value if stolen and resold on the black market.

Shares of chipmaker Advanced Micro Devices (AMD) are up 7 cents, or 3%, at $2.41, after PC and gaming gear enthusiast site KitGuru this afternoon said the company is attracting buyout interest from Microsoft.

Hedge fund Jana Partners said in April Qualcomm should spin off the chip business from its patent-licensing business to improve shareholder value, calling the chip business "essentially worthless".

Samsung Electronics recently signed a new SSD supply contract for its 256GB SSDs to be used in the laptops of major suppliers such as Apple and Microsoft.

Sources familiar with Nokia's plans claim the Finnish company will launch its first smartphones as early as 2016. They will be powered by Google's Android mobile platform and will be manufactured by Foxconn.

Microsoft is shutting down its Web display advertising business and handing operations over to AOL and AppNexus, a person with knowledge of the matter said.

Intel's Cannonlake, originally slated for 2016 and later 2017, is now on hold indefinitely. Instead, Intel's current processors - of the Skylake platform - will be succeeded by the less drastic Kaby Lake platform.

Samsung has been accused of disabling Microsoft's software in preference for its own, leaving computers insecure.

Micron Technology said it expects a further decline in prices of chips used in personal computers, and forecast revenue for the current quarter well below market estimates.

Toshiba's chief executive fought back against shareholder calls for his resignation, promising an overhaul of a corporate culture that had overlooked accounting malpractices for years until they were revealed by a whistleblower.

Pantech, which has been in court receivership since August last year, has signed a memorandum of understanding with the Seoul Central District Court's approval for a possible merger and acquisition with a consortium led by South Korean optical disc drive (ODD) manufacturer Optis on June 16.

In select countries, users can now sign up for Messenger with a mobile telephone number