Facebook Messenger updated with admin privileges and joinable links

New features to make group chats suck just a little less.

Facebook Messenger continues to be one of the most popular messaging apps around, and today it’s getting a couple of new features that aim to make group chats a lot better.

First and foremost, Messenger is finally getting admin privileges. With this, you’ll have the power to approve new members of group chats before they can join, remove people from the conversation, and give/revoke these privileges to other people in the chat if you so choose.

Admin privileges are turned off by default so they won’t get in the way of current chats if you don’t care about them, but they can quickly be turned on by enabling the new “Require Admin Approval” toggle in Messenger’s settings.

Facebook is also adding joinable links to Messenger. This allows you to create a custom link for your group chat, and anyone that clicks/taps on it will be able to automatically join the group. If you have a lot of people you need to invite to a group chat, this should be much easier compared to selecting every person individually.

Admin privileges and joinable links are rolling out to the Messenger app now.

Download: Messenger – Text and Video Chat for Free (free)

Best Clear Cases for Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+

Feels like your phone’s wearing nothing at all… nothing at all.. nothing at all!

We seem to say this every year, but the latest flagship devices from Samsung, the Galaxy S9 and S9+, are simply outstanding.

Samsung has been continually refining its smartphone design since the Galaxy S6 and that’s reflected in the smart touches implemented into the S9. This is a phone that you’ll want to show off, but since it’s essentially made of glass, you’re going to want to cover the breakable bits with a case.

These clear cases will keep your Galaxy S9 or S9+ protected while still letting you showcase which color phone you went with. Let’s dive in!

• VRS Design Transparent Crystal Thin Case
• Ringke Fusion Clear Case
• Lifeproof SLAM Clear Case
• Caseology Skyfall Series Clear Case
• Zizo ION Series Clear Case
• Spigen Ultra Hybrid Clear Case

VRS Design Transparent Crystal Thin case

This clear case from VRS Design essentially offers everything you need from a clear case, allowing you to show off the body of the Galaxy S9 in all its glory. Made entirely of flexible and shock-absorbing TPU, this case is designed to fit snugly onto your Galaxy S9 and offers great protection including a lip around the display so you can put your phone screen down on a table.

Better still, these cases are thin enough to be fully compatible with wireless charging and third-party screen protectors.

You can get this case for just $11 on Amazon.

Also available for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Amazon

Ringke Fusion Clear Case

The best way to protect your phone from drop damage is to not drop your phone. The latest Fusion clear case from Ringke includes a handy wrist strap built into the case.

Whether or not you want to use the wrist strap is up to you, but it’s a thoughtful addition to a consistently stellar case style. Available as a clear case or with an Orchid Purple or Smoky Black bumper accent, you can get this case for just $11 on Amazon.

Also available for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Amazon

Lifeproof SLAM case

When you’re dropping over $700 on a brand new phone, you want to protect it from everything life might throw at it, especially if you plan on spending a ton of time outside this summer.

Lifeproof cases typically offer protection from dirt and snow, but the SLAM case focuses exclusively on drop protection. Lifeproof says this case can survive drops from up to two meters (6.5 ft) thanks to the reinforced bumpers. It’s also got a rugged backplate that’s clear to show off the phone’s design and also compatible with wireless charging. While it’s not quite as Lifeproof as you’d expect, it’s also not as expensive as other Lifeproof cases at only $50. Plus, it looks pretty cool with the black and neon green, do you think? You can order it from Lifeproof today, or order it from Amazon and get it by March 26.

Looking for the classic FRE Lifeproof case? You can sign up to be notified about when it becomes available.

Also available for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Lifeproof

Caseology Skyfall Series Clear Case

If you love the sleek design of the Galaxy S9, you should get a case that accentuates those curves.

Caseology consistently hits it out of the park with its cases, but in particular, the Skyfall series always looks and feels great. Featuring an ultra clear cover to protect the back of your phone along with a protective bumper frame (available in colors to match your device), this is a slim and lightweight case will perfectly accent your phone and keep it protected without distracting from the phone itself.

Starting as low as $13 with some of the more colorful options fetching $16 on Amazon.

Also available for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Amazon

Zizo ION Series Clear Case

Zizo’s cases are overkill for those who need a rugged case, with the ION Series offering a clear case option that doesn’t skimp on the protection. You get a rugged polycarbonate bumper hugging a flexible TPU shell, and as always Zizo includes a complementary tempered glass screen protector with each case.

You can get this stylish and rugged clear case in your choice of four color options for just $14.

Also available for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Amazon

Spigen Ultra Hybrid S Clear Case

Typically, we’d recommend the Spigen Liquid Crystal case here, as it’s a perennial favorite around these parts. However, Spigen has added a bunch of floral designs and sparkles for the S9 cases which won’t match all tastes.

But you know what will? The Ultra Hybrid S Clear Case, which combines a flexible and shock-absorbing bumper with a crystal clear rigid backplate to offer the protection you need with the clear case style you want. With the S model, you also get a built-in kickstand that pops out with ease to let you watch YouTube or Netflix hands-free.

You can buy this case on Amazon for $17 and be one of the first to get it when it starts shipping at the beginning of April.

Also available for the Galaxy S9+.

See at Amazon

What are your favorite clear case options?

Eyeing any of the cases on our list? Got a favorite that didn’t make the cut? Let us know in the comments!

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+

• Galaxy S9 review: A great phone for the masses
• Galaxy S9 and S9+: Everything you need to know!
• Complete Galaxy S9 and S9+ specs
• Galaxy S9 vs. Google Pixel 2: Which should you buy?
• Galaxy S9 vs. Galaxy S8: Should you upgrade?
• Join our Galaxy S9 forums

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Let Anker’s $42 Roav dash cam record your driving excursions

Eyes on the road.

Don’t be caught wishing you had one. This dashcam has a super wide-angle lens that captures the entire road, and it has a ton of technology packed into its night vision as well. At just $42.39, this is the lowest price this camera has hit. It’s easy to manage your video using the built-in Wi-Fi along with the Roav DashCam app. It will even record when you’re away. The built-in gravity sensor detects sudden movements, like someone bumping into your car, and will automatically turn on to record activity.

You’ll get the camera, a car charger, a suction mount, a cable, a trim removal tool, and a manual. You may want to pick up an extra microSD card if you don’t have one lying around.

See at Amazon

Let your smartphone power new worlds with the $50 Google Daydream View VR headset

Put your new S9 to work.

The Google Daydream View virtual reality headsets are down to $49.50 at Best Buy. This sale is one of Best Buy’s daily deals. These headsets normally sell for $99 at Best Buy and other retailers like B&H. We’ve never seen them drop to this price before. You can get any of the three available colors at this price.

These headsets are an upgrade from an older model also called the Daydream View. These add better hardware, smoother visuals, and improved heat management. Read about Android Central’s hands-on experience with the new and improved version or check out VRHead’s extremely detailed guide on using them. The VRHead guide is a great way to find out about free apps and the best apps to use with your new VR headset.

This headset works with any Daydream-ready smartphone, including the Google Pixel 2, the Google Pixel, the Samsung Galaxy S9, S9+, Note 8, and Moto Z, among others.

See at Best Buy

Snapchat’s new Lens Studio tools make AR creation easier

Snap has teamed up with a handful of partners to create new Lenses and new tools for the Lens Studio, which can make designing AR effects a simpler process. One of its new partners is StudioMDHR, developer of popular run and gun indie video game Cuphead. The companies created a special Lens that pits you against Cuphead and Mugman (the game’s main characters drawn in 1930’s style cartoons) in your snaps — or, more accurately, they shoot you until it’s game over.

Snap has also created an interactive path template that gives evelopers an easy way to bring their characters to life. Game studio Klei Entertainment created the first Lens, featuring Chester from Don’t Starve as you can see above, that uses the new tool. When you use the Chester Lens, for instance, you can create a path for the critter to follow simply by dragging a finger along your device’s surface. Other developers will be able to give their Lenses the same effect, thanks to the new template.

In addition, Snap is integrating the Lens Studio with software company Allegorithmic’s 3D paint and texture program Substance Painter to make switching from one to the other much easier for developers. By launching all these new features, Snap is showing that it’s serious about ramping up its AR efforts. It wants more Lenses for its app, perhaps because they could lead to more users and longer time spent on the platform.

Mark Zuckerberg will address the Cambridge Analytica scandal soon

Thus far, Facebook leadership has been largely silent about the ongoing Cambridge Analytica scandal — a fact that’s disturbing to many of the service’s millions of users. Most troubling is the lack of a statement from CEO Mark Zuckerberg, but that could change soon. Axios and then NBC News have both reported that Zuckerberg will speak publicly about the incident for the first time in the next 24 hours or so, with a focus on “rebuilding trust.”

This public statement will come after days of controversy and public scrutiny into how data-mining firm Cambridge Analytica came into possession of information on some 50 million Facebook users. That data was allegedly provided to the Trump campaign to help it secure a place in the White House in 2016. Since the news broke late last Friday, Facebook has been under fire from Congress, the FTC, the Attorneys General of Massachusetts and New York, the UK’s Information Commissioner and — of course — the public.

We’ll have to wait and see whether his statements can slow Facebook’s declining stock price and reassure troubled users, but the cries of #DeleteFacebook appear to be louder than ever.

Source: NBC News, Axios

Google Maps for iOS now shows restaurant waiting times

Last month Google Maps for iOS got an update that brought users real-time transit and driving information. Today, a further update brings the app to version 4.47 and in line with the Android version, with additional transit details and a helpful restaurants feature that shows the average waiting times of over a million sit-down eateries around the world.

The app displays average waiting times hour-by-hour throughout the day, tells you how long the average wait is and also when a restaurant’s peak hours take place. So no more standing in line for hours to try the latest food craze (unless that’s your thing). The update also makes finding reviews for specific restaurants a more intuitive process.

The update also provides more information on public transit systems, indicating exactly which entrances you need to enter based on your travel criteria. This feature is available in New York, Hong Kong, Taipei, Paris, Los Angeles, Delhi, Moscow, Singapore, Madrid, Barcelona, Kiev, and Budapest, with more in the pipeline.

Via: 9to5Mac

Bumble ‘swipes left’ on Match Group’s lawsuit allegations

Match Group, which owns Tinder, Match.com and OKCupid, recently filed a lawsuit against Bumble, claiming that its rival violated two of its patents. Now Bumble has clapped back. In an open letter published on its website, Bumble says in no uncertain terms that it believes the lawsuit to be an extension of Match’s ongoing attempts to acquire it and calls the lawsuit “baseless.”

“We swipe left on you. We swipe left on your multiple attempts to buy us, copy us and, now, to intimidate us,” Bumble said in its letter. “We’ll never be yours. No matter the price tag, we’ll never compromise our values.” When reports of the lawsuit surfaced, many proposed that it was linked to Match’s buyout attempts and could just be a tactic to encourage Bumble to sell or scare off any other interested buyers. TechCrunch asked Bumble founder Whitney Wolfe Herd if the company had received any offers from other companies, to which she replied, “Bumble is very excited about other potential opportunities that are still very much in discussion, and none of the recent news has affected these conversations.”

Tinder recently incorporated a Bumble-like feature that gives women control over initiating a conversation — something that Bumble cites multiple times in its letter. “We’re more than a feature where women make the first move. Empowerment is in our DNA. You can’t copy that,” it said. “So when you announced recently, in another attempt to intimidate us, that you were going to try to replicate our core, women-first offering and plug it in to Tinder, we applauded you for the attempt to make that subsidiary safer.”

Bumble goes on to call Match Group a bully and emphasize that it won’t be intimidated by the litigation. “We as a company will always swipe right for empowered moves, and left on attempts to disempower us. We encourage every user to do the same. As one of our mottos goes, ‘bee kind or leave,’” writes Bumble. “We wish you the best, but consider yourselves blocked.”

Via: TechCrunch

Source: Bumble

New Report Looks Into Apple’s Growing Promotional Presence Within Popular TV Shows

Over the years, Apple has included its products in well-known television shows and movies as a way to spread awareness and promote recent launches of its iPhones, iPads, and more. Variety today reported that the company is appearing to increase the presence of these promotional campaigns, with some TV shows including direct connections to the Cupertino company in the closing credits.

Fox’s cop drama 9-1-1 includes multiple instances of Apple’s iPhone as the main smartphone for its characters, and each episode ends with a “promotional consideration sponsored by Apple” message. According to the report, Apple has recently moved from simple “surprising cameos” to taking directly credited roles in popular TV shows as it does in 9-1-1.

Image from 9-1-1 via YouTube
Ad agency the Omnicom Group — which buys ad time for Apple — denied having anything to do with purchasing the 9-1-1 appearances. Although Apple and Fox declined to officially comment, marketing professor P.K. Kannan noted that amid the growing prices of Apple products, placing iPhones and MacBooks in the hands of celebrities could garner more attention than a regular TV ad. It usually takes a little while before Apple’s latest phones appear regularly in TV shows, and 9-1-1 appears to still be using pre-iPhone X devices.

“They need to sell their increasingly more expensive smartphones to keep their revenues flowing in,” notes P.K. Kannan, a marketing professor at the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business. “Producers and marketers of hardware have a tough problem when they release new models – convincing the customers of their older models to upgrade to the new versions.”

Getting a new iPhone “in the hands of a cool celebrity in a movie or music video or TV program is more likely to garner attention and interest rather than a straight and persuasive TV advertisement,” says Kannan. “If done right, product placements can lead to more viral campaigns than other forms of ads. Apple is probably counting on this.”

As Variety pointed out, Apple’s promotional placements are also “substantially cheaper” than normal commercials.

The in-show placements aren’t necessarily free – supplying product costs something – but they are substantially cheaper than traditional TV commercials. And that frees Apple up to spend heavily in more obvious ways. Among 2016 and 2017 TV programs, Apple spent the most on NBC’s “Sunday Night Football,” according to Kantar Media, a tracker of ad spending. Last season, the average cost of a 30-second ad in that show was $728,434, according to Variety’s annual survey of primetime ad prices.

A few days before the original iPad launched in April 2010, an episode of ABC’s Modern Family revolved around lead character Phil Dunphy’s quest to find one of the new tablets on launch day. Five years later, the sitcom set an entire episode on the screen of Claire Dunphy’s MacBook and was shot using an iPhone 6 and iPad Air 2. Neither instance included the promotional disclosure message that has appeared on 9-1-1, and Apple “didn’t pay a cent” for its devices’ integral parts in each story.

Although one HBO spokesperson explained that “products in shows are creative decisions, not product placements,” Variety said that for many professionals in advertising and production circles, these decisions are still “aimed at selling tech.” In an interesting aside, a person close to the production of Showtime’s Homeland pointed out that the show tries to keep its main characters supplied with smartphones from Apple, Google, Blackberry, and Samsung, while preventing these same phones from appearing “in the hands of evil figures.”

Apple is also planning to launch its own slate of original TV programs, where users can likely expect to see characters using many of the company’s own products. Although the debut of the service is still uncertain, we’re now up to about 12 shows confirmed to eventually launch on the streaming platform. These include shows from M. Night Shyamalan, Damien Chazelle, Steven Spielberg, and more.

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Audible returns to Sonos speakers after two-year hiatus

It’s taken a while (over two years in fact), but Audible is now available on Sonos again. Following an incompatible update the service was removed in August 2015, much to the annoyance of bibliophiles everywhere, but today it makes its triumphant return — and support for Alexa is set to follow, too. Just add Audible as a service in the Sonos App, or play directly from the Audible app, to get started.