Samsung set to launch A7 with 3 rear cameras, A9 with 4 rear camera system
New Delhi, Sep 19: Sending a strong signal to Chinese players who play on camera strength in the competitive Indian market, Samsung is all geared up to launch its first three rear-camera smartphone A7 this week and a massive four rear-camera device called A9 next month.
According to reliable industry sources, the disruptive "A7" smartphone will be a mid-price segment device (priced below Rs 30,000). The phone is all set to make an appearance this week.
Samsung is also set to launch its first smartphone with a four rear-camera system device A9 in Malaysia on October 11 that will be a premium device (above the Rs 30,000 price segment), the sources told IANS on Wednesday.
This puts to rest rumours that claimed the Galaxy S10 Plus may be Samsung's first triple-camera smartphone.
DJ Koh, President and CEO of IT and Mobile Communications Division, Samsung Electronics who was in India last month, had said the company is refreshing its mid-price segment smartphones with flagship premium features for the upcoming festive quarter.
According to Koh, the fourth quarter (October-December) in India, which is a key market for the company, will see some exciting launches that will completely alter the course of the mid-segment market -- a space that is currently flooded with Chinese variants.
"You will see devices coming from us in the mid-segment space with flagship features and functionalities that will delight our customers in India," Koh had announced on the sidelines of unveiling Samsung Galaxy Note 9 in Gurugram.
Samsung made a comeback to the top in the overall Indian smartphone market and surpassed Xiaomi with a 29 per cent share in the second quarter of 2018, said a recent Counterpoint Research report, adding that the refreshed Galaxy J series helped the South Korean giant achieve the leading position.
Samsung also dominated the premium smartphone segment in India in the first half of 2018, capturing almost half the market share.
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Texas halts H-1B visas at state universities, agencies; to affect Indians
Houston (US) (PTI): Texas Governor Greg Abbott has ordered state agencies and public universities to immediately halt new H-1B visa petitions, tightening hiring rules at taxpayer-funded institutions, a step likely to impact Indian professionals.
The freeze will remain in effect through May 2027.
The directive issued on Tuesday said that the state agencies and public universities must stop filing new petitions unless they receive written approval from the Texas Workforce Commission.
The governor's order, in a red state that is home to thousands of H-1B visa holders, comes as the Trump administration has initiated steps to reshape the visa programme.
“In light of recent reports of abuse in the federal H-1B visa programme, and amid the federal government’s ongoing review of that programme to ensure American jobs are going to American workers, I am directing all state agencies to immediately freeze new H-1B visa petitions as outlined in this letter,” Abbot said.
Institutions must also report on H-1B usage, including numbers, job roles, countries of origin, and visa expiry dates, the letter said.
US President Donald Trump on September 19 last year signed a proclamation ‘Restriction on entry of certain non-immigrant workers’ that restricted the entry into the US of those workers whose H-1B petitions are not accompanied or supplemented by a payment of USD 1,00,000.
The H1-B visa fee of USD 1,00,000 would be applicable only to new applicants, i.e. all new H-1B visa petitions submitted after September 21, including those for the FY2026 lottery.
Indians make up an estimated 71 per cent of all approved H-1B applications in recent years, according to US Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), with China in the second spot. The major fields include technology, engineering, medicine, and research.
Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) is the second-highest beneficiary with 5,505 approved H-1B visas in 2025, after Amazon (10,044 workers on H-1B visas), according to the USCIS. Other top beneficiaries include Microsoft (5,189), Meta (5,123), Apple (4,202), Google (4,181), Deloitte (2,353), Infosys (2,004), Wipro (1,523) and Tech Mahindra Americas (951).
Texas public universities employ hundreds of foreign faculty and researchers, many from India, across engineering, healthcare, and technology fields.
Date from Open Doors -- a comprehensive information resource on international students and scholars studying or teaching at higher education institutions in the US -- for 2022-2023 showed 2,70,000 students from India embarked on graduate and undergraduate degrees in US universities, accounting for 25 per cent of the international student population in the US and 1.5 per cent of the total student population.
Indian students infuse roughly USD 10 billion annually into universities and related businesses across the country through tuition and other expenses – while also creating around 93,000 jobs, according to the Open Doors data.
Analysts warn the freeze could slow recruitment of highly skilled professionals, affecting academic research and innovation.
Supporters say the directive protects local jobs, while critics caution it could weaken Texas’ competitiveness in higher education and research.
The order comes amid broader debate in the US over skilled immigration and state-level interventions in federal programmes.
H-1B visas allow US companies to hire technically-skilled professionals that are not easily available in America. Initially granted for three years, these can be extended for another three years.
In September 2025, Trump had also signed an executive order ‘The Gold Card’, aimed at setting up a new visa pathway for those committed to supporting the United States; with individuals who can pay USD 1 million to the US Treasury, or USD 2 million if a corporation is sponsoring them, to get access to expedited visa treatment and a path to a Green Card.
