‘Moneypenny’ is Facebook’s new digital assistant
Facebook is looking to get in the digital assistant game. You may have heard of Google Now, Siri and Cortana. Those are all digital assistants developed for their respective operating systems. Facebook, too, is reportedly working on integrating a new voice assistant, “Moneypenny”, into its messenger application.
Moneypenny will help users purchase goods as opposed to revealing the weather and setting calendar appointments. According to The Information, Facebook’s assistant would allow Messenger users to ask real people for aid in the research and purchasing of products and services. Although they left one detail out and that is to who these people would be.
Lots of questions remain about how this will all work, but Facebook’s budding interest in the category will draw attention from some of its rivals. Its still early to know all the details, and no release date has been mentioned.
Source: The Information
Via: Android Central
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Red Bull Alert, an alarm clock for Android, is now available on the Play Store
Red Bull Media House today launched Red Bull Alert, a sports-themed alarm clock app exclusively for Android. If you’ve ever experienced the frustration of hitting the snooze button a couple of times before getting out of bed, Red Bull Alert might be the solution to give you that extra boost.
Red Bull Alert aims to provide motivation through a competitive leaderboard and instant daily feedback. The leaderboard allows you to compete with friends, see detailed statistics, and even post your accomplishments to Facebook, Twitter, and Google+.
Additionally, the app has the ability to let the user change its theme with background images of various sports, such as snowboarding, surfing, aerial sports, and much more. Each theme is also equipped with its own orchestrated music, adding another element of motivation to this specialized alarm clock. The only downside to Red Bull Alert is that it probably won’t give you wings.
Click here to view the embedded video.
If you’re interested in taking Red Bull Alert for a spin, it’s available exclusively on Android and Android Wear. Be sure to scan the QR code or hit the download link below.
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Red Bull Alert: a social alarm clock app that motivates you to get up
Alarm clocks are useless for those of us who insist on pressing the snooze button over and over. Sometimes we just don’t know what’s more annoying: the sound of the alarm going off every 5 minutes or realizing our bad habit is making us late to everything. Red Bull Media House today launches Red Bull Alert, an app that aims to get you off bed without pressing that dreaded snooze button (or at least not as much).
Red Bull Alert uses sports themes to wake you up with a much more electrifying mood. The energy drink company accomplishes this by adding a competitive angle to its alarm clock application. The service provides daily feedback on your progress and keeps an updated leader board with your improvement (or its absence). Users can also share their detailed statistics with friends by connecting directly to Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus.
The app’s themes keep you inspired with active visuals and music for every taste and mood. You can choose from 9 themes based on extreme sports, including aerial sports, BMX, Formula 1, MTB, MX-FMX, rally, skateboarding, snowboarding and surfing.
Red Bull’s plan is to get you moving and solve an issue many of us face every single morning. The company claims the average American spends months of average lifetime sleeping after the alarm has gone off. Furthermore, it seems about 57% of us press the snooze button at least once before getting up (guilty!)
Are you part of these statistics? If so, you can download the Android app (which does support Android Wear) from the Google Play Store. I happen to work afternoons and really don’t have an issue getting up a little late, but if you need something more than that good ol’ alarm clock, this is about the most exciting alternative we can think of! How many of you were looking for something like this?
July 2015 – Over the course of a lifetime, the average American spends months dozing after pressing snooze, 57 percent “snoozers” the button at least once before getting up*. The majority annoyed by their bad habit. They just need some motivation – Red Bull Alert helps them change that.
Great news for the sleepyhead in all of us: Red Bull Media House today launched Red Bull Alert, a highly visual and uniquely competitive sports-themed alarm clock app for Android and Android Wear. The app provides inspiration with customizable sports themes and motivation to get out of bed faster with a competitive leaderboard and instant daily feedback.
Red Bull Alert includes nine different image-rich sports backgrounds to choose from, including surfing, skatingsnowboarding. Each theme is equipped with exclusively orchestrated music that fits the taste of each audience.
The leaderboard lets Red Bull Alert users see how they rank next to their friends, and detailed statistics show their improvement (or lack thereof) over time. It also integrates with Facebook, Twitter and Google+ so users can proudly share their accomplishments.
Red Bull Alert is available today exclusively for Android and Android Wear devices.
Key Features:
Instant Feedback: Innovative Snooze and Dismiss interaction, instant feedback on the lock screen, motivational background images
Detailed Stats: Set goals to motivate yourself, track your progress, detailed history data
Alarm Themes: Choose from different sports themes (Snowboarding, Skateboarding, Surfing, Aerial Sports, FMX, Rally, Formula 1, BMX, and Mountain Biking) with exclusive wake-up sounds and amazing imagery
Social Leaderboards: Compete with your friends, find out who wakes up first and fastest, and share through Facebook, Twitter and Google+
Localized in 6 languages: German, English, French, Brazilian Portuguese, Turkish and Russian
* http://www.entrepreneur.com/article/237965
About Red Bull Media House
A global media company, Red Bull Media House produces, publishes, distributes and licenses high-quality sport, entertainment and educational programming from the areas of Sport & Lifestyle, Nature & Science and Tradition & Inspiration. Its product portfolio includes sport and lifestyle programming, documentaries, feature films, music, games and mobile apps, as well as print and online magazines that fascinate and inspire audiences all over the world – through all media channels and on all types of devices. www.redbullmediahouse.com.
Smart lock screen app Locket acquired by ecommerce expert Wish
Locket, an app that aims to put news stories that are relevant to your interests right on your Android lockscreen, has been acquired by online shopping app Wish.
Locket, which our Joe Hindy reviewed last year as part of his Indie App of the Day series, tries to add smarts to the largely static lock screen of most Android devices. You can select the news categories you’re most interested in and have news pertaining to them displayed every time you pick up your phone. Locket employs simple swipe motions to unlock the device, read a full story, share or save it for later. If you like to keep yourself informed or entertained with minimal effort, Locket seems like a great idea.
Now Locket is being acquired by ecommerce platform Wish. Boasting 100 million users, Wish is one of the leading mobile commerce platforms, offering thousands of products at prices that are 50 to 80 percent cheaper than the equivalent products you would find in a mall. Founded in 2011 by former Google, Facebook, and Yahoo employees, Wish has secured almost $580 million in funding, with lead investors including Jerry Yang, Formation 8, GCV Capital and most recently DST Global. Some of that money will be used on Locket, though the value of the acquisition hasn’t been disclosed. As part of the deal, Locket founder Yunha Kim has joined Wish as Head of Growth.
So, where will Wish take Locket? We can speculate that the goal is to put Wish’s wares in front of even more potential buyers – in the future, Locket could display hot new Wish deals, in addition to the usual news stories.
Leading Mobile Commerce Platform, Wish, Acquires Locket
Locket CEO Yunha Kim Joins Wish as Head of Growth
SAN FRANCISCO, California, July 15, 2015 — Furthering its vision to create an engaging, native mobile experience, Wish, the leading mobile commerce platform, announced that it has acquired Locket, an intelligent personalization platform that brings breaking news and other content to smartphone lock screens.
Founded in 2013, Locket has reached more than one million users and raised $3.2 million from investors including Tyra Banks and Turner Broadcasting. Yunha Kim, Founder and CEO of Locket, will be joining the Wish executive team as Head of Growth to lead growth initiatives and communications for Wish and its family of mobile shopping apps, including Wish, Geek, Cute, and Mama.
“Wish is creating what Amazon could have been on mobile — a personalized shopping mall available in your pocket for anyone around the world,” said Kim. “I’m delighted to be joining the Wish team.”
Wish’s acquisition of Locket reflects the company’s continued investment and focus on content discovery for mobile users. “Our mission and Locket’s missions are highly aligned,” said Peter Szulczewski, CEO of Wish. “We hope to benefit from Locket’s expertise in engaging users with intelligent recommendations and creating a beautiful, native mobile experience.”
Founded in 2011 by Google and Yahoo alums Peter Szulczewski and Danny Zhang, Wish is the #1 mobile shopping platform in Europe and America. Today, more than 100 million users use Wish mobile apps to browse a worldwide selection of trending fashion, accessories and electronics directly at their fingertips.
—
About Wish
Wish is a San Francisco-based company that recreates the shopping mall experience on mobile devices. With more than 100 million users worldwide, Wish is the world’s leading mobile commerce platform. Wish was selected as one of the “Best Apps of 2014” by Google.
Wish on Google Play store: http://wish.com/lp/android
Wish on App store: http://wish.com/lp/ios
Wish website: http://wish.com/lp/web
Wish demo video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3BSkaLY762w
About Locket
Locket is a San Francisco-based company that reimagines the smartphone lock screen. Its flagship app, Locket, delivers relevant content to smartphone lock screens and was selected as one of the “Best Apps of 2014” by Google.
OPPO to discount its R5 and Find 7 handsets for Amazon’s Prime Day sales event on July 15th
By now you’ve probably heard about Prime Day on July 15th, Amazon’s 20th Anniversary sales event that is purely for Prime subscribers. One of the first deals to be publicised for UK dwellers is from OPPO, who tweeted that its R5 and Find 7 smartphones will be discounted as part of the celebration.
As you can see in the main image, the OPPO R5 will be reduced to £199.99 while the Find 7 will be discounted to £249. As an added bonus, OPPO is also running a promotion on Amazon, whereby if you order a selected smartphone you will also receive the OPPO VOOC Flash Charge power bank free of charge. To take advantage of that offer, you have to add the power bank to your basket at the same time of purchasing the handset. Both the R5 and Find 7 smartphones are eligible for the promotion. What do you think? If you were looking at buying the OPPO R5 or Find 7, will the discounted price tip you over the edge or are you more interested in the A51 that is being prepped for launch in China? Let us know in the comments.
Source: OPPO
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Samsung introduces the Galaxy A8 to China with thin, metal design
Today, Samsung announced the launch of a new device that will be sold in China, this one with mid-range specifications to really battle with the likes of Xiaomi, Huawei, and others. The Galaxy A8 features a large display with decent resolution, a proven processor, and two impressive cameras.
Samsung showcases exactly what the Galaxy A8 is all about in the image above. The phone is just 5.9mm thin and weighs 151g. This is indeed the thinnest phone that Samsung has ever produced. And the bezels are essentially nonexistent on the sides. Inside powering the device, Samsung went the Snapdragon 615 processor and 2GB of RAM. The internal storage is set at 16GB but there is a microSD card slot to bring in an additional 128GB. All of this is within a phone made of metal. The rear of the Galaxy A8 has a 16MP camera while the front-facing camera is 5MP. The large 5.7-inch display comes with Full HD (1920×1080) resolution.
The company did not specify whether or not the Galaxy A8 would launch in other markets. So, for now, it looks like you will have to be located in China to purchase the device for a currently unnamed price. Samsung is taking pre-orders for the Galaxy A8 and the color options are white, black, and gold.
Source: Samsung
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T-Mobile giving family plan customers 10GB of data for each line
Family plans can be very costly because carriers typically do not create any value for more lines. The trend right now is for carriers to offer a large pool of shared data so that overages are less likely to occur. This seems like a good idea until one or two people burn through the data and everyone else is left with little wiggle room. T-Mobile, which never serves customers with overages, is expanding upon its family plan by giving each line un-shared data. Actually, the carrier is giving each line a massive amount of un-shared data.
T-Mobile will give each line 10GB of data on its 4G LTE network; therefore, a family plan with four lines will cost only $120 per month. And the carrier’s new Mobile Without Borders expansion is included for each line as well.
T-Mobile CEO John Legere provided his take on the decision to give family plan lines so much data:
“It’s no surprise Verizon’s spent what looks to be over $100 million in just two months promoting an $80 data plan with 10GB everyone has to share. The catch is, it’s not actually an $80 plan. You can’t actually use any of that data until you pay additional ‘line access’ fees for data you’ve already bought. So, when they say $80, they actually charge a family of four at least $140. And that’s to share 10GB. Leave it to Verizon to push a plan that gives you a pile of data you can’t use unless you fork over more hidden fees.”
The nation’s Un-carrier, of course, did not waste the opportunity to bash a competitor:
From now through September 7, people can sign up or switch to T-Mobile and get the fourth line free.
T-Mobile Amps Up its Family Plan: Family Members Get 10GB Each – for Just $30 a Line
With T-Mobile’s latest move, each and every family member gets 10GB of 4G LTE data per person — no sharing required
Everyone on this new family plan gets “Mobile without Borders,” calling, texting and high-speed data throughout the U.S., Mexico & Canada at no extra cost
Bellevue, Washington — July 14, 2015 — In the latest in its series of Un-carrier Amped announcements, T-Mobile [NYSE: TMUS] again took direct aim at the carriers’ shared data schemes and punitive overages. Today, T-Mobile unveiled yet another industry-rocking move, serving up 10GB of 4G LTE for each and everydata-hungry family member at an unprecedented price.
With the new offer, two people can get up to 10 GB of 4G LTE data each – no sharing required – for just $100 a month. Then, each additional line is just $20 more per person – also with 10 GB of T-Mobile’s blazing-fast 4G LTE. As always every line includes unlimited data, talk and text as well as all the Un-carrier™ benefits like no annual service contracts, no overages, data and texting when traveling internationally in over 120 countries at no extra charge, Music Freedom, Wi-Fi calling and texting, Data Stash™, and − as of just last week − calling and coverage to and from the U.S., plus Mexico & Canada included at no extra cost.
And, as a promotion to celebrate this latest Un-carrier Amped move, customers can get the fourth lineabsolutely free, with no expiration date, when you sign up or switch to the plan from now through Labor Day. That means a family of four can get 10 GB of 4G LTE for each person for just $120 per month – no sharing, no games, no kidding. That’s only $30 per line – an absolutely unbeatable price.
“It’s no surprise Verizon’s spent what looks to be over $100 million in just two months promoting an $80 data plan with 10GB everyone has to share. The catch is, it’s not actually an $80 plan. You can’t actually use any of that data until you pay additional ‘line access’ fees for data you’ve already bought,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile. “So, when they say $80, they actually charge a family of four at least $140. And that’s to share 10GB. Leave it to Verizon to push a plan that gives you a pile of data you can’t use unless you fork over more in hidden fees.”
When you do the math on the real numbers for Verizon’s $80 shared data plan, it’s shocking. You’ll pay $80 a month for 10GB of data for everyone in the family to share. Then on top of that, the carrier will make you pay an additional $15 per line per month just to access the data you’ve already paid for. For a family of four, that comes to $140—and that’s before the shock overages you’ll end up paying unless you police your family’s data usage to keep it below the 10GB limit. Each GB beyond your limit will add another $15 to your monthly bill.
It doesn’t take a genius, right? Compared to Verizon, T-Mobile customers get an extra 30GB to use every month for a family of four. To get that same 40GB on Verizon would cost your family $360 per month – or three times what you would pay at T-Mobile. What would your family or small business do with those savings?
“Why share Verizon’s 10GB with everyone when you can have 10GB of America’s fastest 4G LTE all to yourself?” said Legere. “The way the big carriers offer shared data is just a scheme concocted to trick customers into over-paying or to slam them with overage fees. We’re bringing sanity to family plans and peace of mind to data-hungry families—because that’s what the Un-carrier does.”
Every current Simple Choice family can switch to the new 10GB family offer starting tomorrow, and with T-Mobile’s Un-contract, they can keep their plan as long as they stay on it.
For more information about the new family plan, check out
http://explore.t-mobile.com/simple-choice-family-plan-with-10gb-data.
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Pixelmator for iOS Updated With Dynamic Touch, Repair Tool Improvements
Pixelmator for the iPhone and iPad was today updated to version 2.0.2, adding the first major new features since the app expanded to the iPhone in May. The 2.0.2 update brings Dynamic Touch, a new feature for all of the app’s Retouch tools.
With Dynamic Touch, users can adjust the stroke size of Retouch tools without needing to open up the brush settings menu for faster image corrections. Dynamic Touch detects the surface area of the finger that’s in contact with the screen and changes the brush size accordingly. If you paint with just the tip of your finger, the brush will be thinner, while painting with a full finger on the screen will make the brush thicker.
Today’s update brings the Pixelmator for Mac repair tool algorithm to iOS, which makes removing unwanted images from a photograph or image quicker and more precise. According to the app’s release notes, the repair tool is up to five times faster.
“There are numerous ways to repair any area of an image, so we did a lot of testing on a Mac Pro to optimize the algorithm of our Repair tool,” said Simonas Bastys, the lead developer of the Pixelmator Team. “We analyzed millions of possible ways to repair areas of various complexity, and then compared the speed and quality ratio of each final result. After six months of testing, we derived a repairing algorithm that gives stunning quality with incredible speed every single time. Pixelmator for iOS now takes advantage of the same algorithm.”
In addition to the above mentioned features, Pixelmator is also gaining an improved Pixelmator Photo Editing extension for editing directly within Apple’s Photos app, and the Pixelmator team is also introducing both an iOS Guide Book and a selection of tutorials that will help iPhone users get the most out of the photo editing app.
Pixelmator for iOS can be downloaded from the App Store for $4.99. [Direct Link]
Apple Enlists Networks to Negotiate With Local Affiliates in Streaming TV Talks
Apple’s discussions with ABC, CBS, NBC and Fox for its much-rumored streaming TV service are gaining momentum, according to the New York Post. The report claims that Apple has enlisted networks to negotiate with local TV stations on their behalf, and the networks are said to be close to securing those rights with affiliate groups such as Tribune and Sinclair.
Networks are reportedly telling affiliates that they will be able to share in the revenue generated from Apple’s streaming TV service if they offer their feeds on the platform. The inclusion of local TV stations is important for the success of Apple’s cable-cutter service, expected to launch in the fall for devices including iPhone, iPad and Apple TV. The service is speculated to cost between $10 and $40 per month.
At CBS, executives are talking to affiliates about conducting Apple negotiations on their behalf, one TV source confirmed.
At Fox, the network “has the ability to negotiate with Apple [for affiliates], or it will have it very soon,” a second executive added.
Disney and CBS will likely be among the first networks to reach a deal with Apple for its à-la-carte streaming TV service, according to the report, although some sticking points remain in the negotiations. Cable channels such as Discovery and ESPN are also expected to be included in the subscription-based service, which is rumored to include a skinny bundle of around 25 channels.
New T-Mobile Family Plan Offers Four Lines With 10 GB of Data Each at $120
T-Mobile today announced an addition to its Un-carrier line of customer perks with a new family plan aimed at providing each member of the family with 10GB of 4G LTE data per person. The base plan includes the first two family members with 10GB each at $100, and additional members coming in at $20 per person, with every line getting the usual unlimited data, talk, text, and all the normal Un-carrier perks.
Users who are interested in signing up or switching before Labor Day can get the fourth member’s line free if they sign up before the holiday, on September 7. So a four-person family can each get 10GB of data for $120 — or $30 a person — while the promotion runs.
T-Mobile compares its plan to something similar offered by Verizon, which sees its base plan requiring families to share 10GB of data each month at a price of $140. To get something more along the lines of T-Mobile’s new plan, users would have to upgrade to about $360 per month on Verizon’s model.
“It’s no surprise Verizon’s spent what looks to be over $100 million in just two months promoting an $80 data plan with 10GB everyone has to share. The catch is, it’s not actually an $80 plan. You can’t actually use any of that data until you pay additional ‘line access’ fees for data you’ve already bought,” said John Legere, president and CEO of T-Mobile.
“So, when they say $80, they actually charge a family of four at least $140. And that’s to share 10GB. Leave it to Verizon to push a plan that gives you a pile of data you can’t use unless you fork over more in hidden fees.”
The new family plan will launch alongside the recent announcement that customers taking advantage of the Un-carrier’s “Simple Choice” plans can send and receive unlimited phone calls, text messages and use 4G LTE data in Canada and Mexico at no additional cost. T-Mobile notes that every family under the Simple Choice model can choose to switch to the Un-carrier’s new family plan beginning tomorrow, July 15.
AIVAnet 