Microsoft Planning Low-Cost Surface Line to Compete With Apple’s $329 iPad

As Apple’s iPad and Microsoft’s Surface continue to compete in the tablet market, a new report out today by Bloomberg claims that Microsoft is planning its next tablet line to be lower-cost in an effort to attract people to Surface products who aren’t interested in the more expensive Surface Pro. The move is directly aimed at competing with Apple’s recently launched $329 iPad, and could see Microsoft debut the devices as soon as the second half of 2018.

According to people familiar with the company’s plans, the tablets will be priced at around $400, so they would still be more expensive than Apple’s cheapest options. They will be the first Surface devices to adopt USB-C and rounded edges “like an iPad,” instead of the square corners of the current devices. Storage tiers will include 64GB and 128GB, as well as LTE options, and the devices will feature 10-inch screens.

The Surface Pro
In an effort to make the tablets 20 percent lighter than the high-end $799 Surface Pro, Microsoft is believed to sacrifice battery life by as much as “four hours fewer” than the current generation (13.5 hours for Surface Pro). Not much is known about the insides of the upcoming tablets, but the people said that Intel will supply the main processor and graphics chips.

The devices will continue to have the kickstand for upright typing and video watching seen in current Surface models, and they will run Windows 10 Pro. Ultimately, the company is trying to enter the low-cost market again after previous attempts with the Surface RT in 2012 and the Surface 3 in 2015, which both started at $499 and performed poorly in comparison to the growing Surface Pro line.

Microsoft has struggled to find a high-volume hit with the Surface devices as well as to introduce a flow of new choices to keep growth steady. In the fiscal year that ended last June, Surface revenue declined 2 percent as the company faced lower volume sales owing to an aging Surface Pro line. Revenue rose 32 percent in the most recent quarter, indicating new interest in Microsoft’s hardware.

Apple sold about 44 million iPads that generated almost $20 billion in revenue during the past four quarters. Microsoft’s entire Surface hardware business produced $4.4 billion for the same period.

Microsoft is believed to be looking at Apple’s education-focused iPad launch from earlier in 2018, and the new Surface models “could likewise appeal to students and teachers,” as well as schools that look into buying cheap tablets in bulk. With the cheaper Surface, the company is planning low-cost updates to its keyboard cover, stylus, and mouse. Prices haven’t yet been pinpointed, but as a comparison the current keyboard cover runs for $160.

Apple’s low-cost iPad includes Apple Pencil support, an A10 Fusion chip with 64-bit desktop-class architecture, a Retina display, enhanced cameras, and advanced sensors with a gyroscope and accelerometer, which fuel powerful augmented reality apps through ARKit. Although the iPad is normally $329 for consumers when not on sale, Apple sells it at $299 to schools and says that the tablet was built for mobility and durability for students, sporting an aluminum unibody construction.

Related Roundup: iPadTags: Microsoft, Microsoft SurfaceBuyer’s Guide: iPad (Buy Now)
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Apple Has Fully Restored Inventory of Mid 2012 and Early 2013 MacBook Pro Batteries

Following over a year of shortages, Apple has fully replenished its supply of top case assemblies with glued-in batteries for Mid 2012 and Early 2013 models of the 15-inch MacBook Pro with Retina display.

Mid 2012 MacBook Pro and its top case with battery via iFixit
A top case is the aluminum enclosure that houses the keyboard, trackpad, and speaker grilles on a MacBook Pro. For the two aforementioned models, the battery is affixed to the underside of the top case with strong adhesive, meaning the entire assembly needs to be swapped out for a simple battery replacement.

Now that inventory of the top cases is widely available again, Apple is “no longer offering free, delayed repairs” to customers with new service orders, according to its internal memo distributed to Apple Stores and Apple Authorized Service Providers on Tuesday and obtained by MacRumors from a reliable source.

Instead, Apple has resumed charging its standard out-of-warranty fee for all 15-inch MacBook Pro battery replacements, which is $199 in the United States. The fee is waived if the notebook is covered by an AppleCare+ plan.

Apple first notified service technicians about the “severe constraint” of the top cases in March 2017, when it temporarily stopped facilitating battery replacements. Apple expected the shortage to be resolved by September 15, 2017, but it later extended the date to November 15, 2017, and it evidently took longer.

As a temporary solution, Apple permitted customers to delay service until inventory became available, in exchange for Apple covering the full cost of the battery replacement. If a customer was unwilling to wait, however, Apple permitted them to exchange the MacBook Pro for a functionally equivalent model.

This generous policy resulted in many customers being able to exchange a 2012 MacBook Pro for a much newer model, such as a maxed-out refurbished 2016 MacBook Pro with Touch Bar, for just the $199 cost of a battery replacement. The only requirement was that the battery failed Apple’s diagnostic test.

Apple stopped offering replacement units for repairs initiated after July 26, 2017, due to a temporary improvement in top case availability, but it began offering free, delayed battery replacements again for repairs initiated after August 25, 2017. That policy is what appears to be ending as of this week.

All in all, customers with a Mid 2012 or Early 2013 model 15-inch MacBook Pro who are in need of a new battery should be able to pay for the service without significant delays or other issues going forward. The process can be initiated from the Contact Apple Support page by selecting Mac → Mac Notebooks.

Related Roundup: MacBook ProBuyer’s Guide: MacBook Pro (Don’t Buy)
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Addicted to Instagram? The app may soon tell you about it

With Instagram well on its way to a billion monthly active users, there’s a whole lot of people spending a whole lot of time on the popular app.

Following in the footsteps of Google, which recently highlighted new tools to help smartphone addicts manage the time they spend using their devices, Instagram too could be about to offer its community a quick way to see just how long they’re spending on the app.

Code spotted in the Instagram app reveals an as-yet-unreleased “usage insights” feature that will allow Instagrammers to see the amount of “time spent” on the app.

As TechCrunch points out, at this stage it’s unclear how the stats will show the usage data, whether for a day, week, month, or all time. Of course, it’s possible it could display all of these.

Perhaps sensing a movement among some smartphone users to put-down-the-phone-and-go-do-something-more-useful-instead, Google and Facebook-owned Instagram may feel that time-management tools could ultimately work in their favor, equipping users with mechanisms to help them better manage their interactions with technology, thereby giving them enough control to make them feel comfortable about their usage.

Instagram’s time-management tool could also help to give parents a better idea on how long their kids are spending on the app when they’re not around.

It’s worth restating that at this point this is merely a piece of dormant app code so it’s possible the feature may never see the light of day. But the fact that it’s there, and considering the recent focus on tech-related time management, there’s a good chance that Instagram will activate the tool in an update in the near future.

At Google’s annual developer bash last week, CEO Sundar Pichai focused on the theme of responsibility in technology. Part of this involves a new Dashboard feature for Android users that will help you keep track of how much time you spend on various apps. Coming with Android P, users will also find an alerts feature allowing you to set timers that prompt you to take a break from each app.

Google-owned YouTube has just rolled out such a feature for both Android and iOS users. But it doesn’t block access to the video-streaming site, so you still have to use all your willpower to close the app (before immediately opening another one, quite likely).

Editors’ Recommendations

• Here’s how to track your kid’s digital footprint with Google Family Link
• Save data, save money: How to reduce your data usage on Android or iOS
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• How to choose a smartphone

How to set up a new Google account

Google Play, Chromebooks, Gmail … all these wonderful services start with (and require) a Google Account. And whether you’re setting up a professional account to help field headhunters and job offers, or finally offloading one of your tweens to their own account, setting up a Google account is simple and quick, but there are a few tricks to it.

Let’s open the door to the wonderful world of Google.

• How to set up a Google account on your phone or tablet
• How to set up a Google account on your laptop or desktop

How to set up your new account on your phone or tablet

If you’re already using an Android phone, Google account setup is conveniently baked right into the Settings menu — or even the initial setup for the phone itself if you just purchased the device. Here’s how to set it up.

Open Settings.
Scroll down to Accounts.

Tap Add Account, the plus icon in the top right corner of your screen.

Tap Google.
Tap Or create a new account.

Type in the name associated with the account. While you do not have to use your real name, if this is going to be your main account, using your real name is recommended.

Tap Next
Enter the birthdate associated with the account. Note: Google requires all account users to be at least 13 years old and some countries have even higher age requirement, but in order to have an account that can use Google Wallet (or use a credit card in Google Play), the account holder must be 18 years old.

Pick a gender. If you do not wish to be identified by your gender, you can decline to state. There is also a custom gender option for those who identify outside the cisgender binary.

Tap Next.
Type in your username. This username will become your Gmail address as well as how you log into Google.

Tap Next.

If your desired username is taken, you’ll be told to pick another and given suggestions. Either select one of the suggested usernames or type in a new one.
Tap Next.

Type in a new password for your account. The password has to be at least eight characters, but thankfully is not required to have a number or special character, if you want to stick to plain old letters.

Re-type your new password in the Confirm password box. You’ll be told how strong or weak the password you’ve selected is.
You’ll be prompted to Add a phone number. This phone number can be used to verify your identity, help log into your account and help people find you if they have your phone number. If you want to add a phone number, type it in.

Tap Next to verify your number or Skip to skip putting a number in.

Google will present their terms of use. After scrolling through and reading the sections that interest you, tap I agree.

Your core Google Account is now set up, and your username and the length of your password will be shown.

If the birthdate associated with your account is over 18, you can add a credit or debit card to your account to use for buying apps or paying for subscription services like YouTube Red, but you’re not required to set one up this moment.

How to set up your new account on your laptop or desktop

It may be easier to set up the new account on your desktop or laptop. You can go to this this link in any web browser to get started.

Enter the your first and last name.
Enter the username you’d like to use for the account. You may need to add numbers or use a different name if the one you’d like is already in use.
Enter and confirm the password you’ll use for the account.
Google will need to send you a text message for security reasons. Enter your phone number.

Enter the code you receive via text message.

Enter a backup email address if you have one. This can be used to help you recover your account if you are locked out.
Enter your birthday and preferred gender.
Read and accept the terms and conditions. You can also choose which data Google collects about you.

That’s it! Your new Google account is ready to go, meaning you can check emails, start documents and more!

Questions?

Let us know in the comments below.

Deal: Get 50% off lease price of Samsung Galaxy S9, S9+, S8, and S8 Active from Sprint

Sprint is currently offering 50% off the lease price on the latest Samsung Galaxy devices with $0 down via an 18-month lease. All you need to do is activate a new line and an 18-month lease, and you’ll save big on the Galaxy S9 / S9+ or Galaxy S8 / S8 Active.

Sprint’s Unlimited Freedom Plan

• If you’re looking to pair up your new phone with a plan, Sprint’s Unlimited Freedom is one of the cheapest on the market with 4 lines for $25/mo per line and 5th line free, with autopay. Plus Hulu is now included!
• Sprint Unlimited Freedom comes with:
• Unlimited talk, text, and data. Once you’ve reached 23GB of data, your speeds may temporarily slow down during times of high network congestion.
• HD video, 1080p
• 10GB of 4G mobile hotspot

The finer print:

• This deal requires a new line of service activation and an 18-month lease. Well-qualified customers are eligible.
• At the end of the 18-month lease, you have the option to buy your device. You’ll pay the balance between the full price and what you’ve paid so far.
• There are taxes on any device you go with and you’ll have to pay that up front regardless.
• If you cancel your service, the remaining device balance will become due.

Galaxy S9+ Galaxy S9 Galaxy S8 S8 Active

Instagram to Offer ‘Time Spent’ Usage Insights to Promote Healthy Online Habits

Instagram is developing a Usage Insights feature for its social media platform that will let users know how much time they’re spending in the app.

TechCrunch on Tuesday highlighted code buried in the Android version of Instagram that reveals the new time management controls headed for the app, and Instagram CEO Kevin Systrom has since confirmed the features are indeed in development for the platform as a whole.

“It’s true,” said Systrom, adding in a series of tweets: “We’re building tools that will help the IG community know more about the time they spend on Instagram – any time should be positive and intentional. Understanding how time online impacts people is important, and it’s the responsibility of all companies to be honest about this. We want to be part of the solution. I take that responsibility seriously.”

The upcoming feature reflects a recent trend by big tech companies to acknowledge the unhealthy habits that their products can promote, especially among younger users. Facebook-owned Instagram joins Google and Apple in a pool of companies that have recently confirmed they are developing methods to promote more meaningful engagement online and cut down on anti-social browsing.

Last week, Google announced several tools for users of its latest Android operating system that would help them better manage their screen time. These include a new do not disturb mode called “shush” that makes it easier for users to ignore notifications, and a “wind down” mode that gradually changes screen color to grayscale and lowers brightness as bedtime approaches.

Earlier this year, Apple responded to an open letter from two major investors asking the company to do more to reduce growing smartphone addiction among children. The letter cited several studies revealing the negative effects of smartphones and social media on children’s mental and physical health, and urged Apple to offer more tools and choices to help prevent harm.

In a statement provided to The Wall Street Journal, Apple said it “thinks deeply” about how its products are used and the impact they have on users and the people around them. “We take this responsibility very seriously and we are committed to meeting and exceeding our customers’ expectations, especially when it comes to protecting kids,” the company explained.

The fruits of Apple’s commitment could appear as soon as next month at the Worldwide Developers Conference, where users can expect a preview of iOS 12: Apple plans to offer updated parental controls in the upcoming version of its mobile OS, starting with a new Digital Health tool that will let parents know how much time their children have spent using iOS devices, which will allow parents to better monitor screen time.

Tags: Instagram, iOS 12
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Reasons you need Google Reviews

The thing which will take your business miles ahead is its reputation. Great reputation means returning customers and returning customers always mean great profits – the primary goal of a business. So, with word-of-mouth getting outdated day by day, what’s next? The answer is Google business reviews.

Google business reviews and reviews in general matter more than ever before. Consumers are going through them more often before purchasing items. They are also reviewing those businesses more than ever. The best way to ensure good reputation is good online reviews.

Top 5 reasons to focus on Google business reviews

To take businesses to next levels, online reviews should be taken seriously and be focused on. Here are the top 5 reasons to put your mind to Google business reviews:

1. Increased user base: 91% of consumers regularly or occasionally use online reviews to determine the credibility of a business. A vast majority of these consumers turn to Google and other online reviews before making purchasing decisions. Since most people trust these reviews so much, businesses should take them seriously. These do affect the reputation of a business drastically.
2. Ask for reviews: 7 out of 10 consumers leave a review for a business if they are asked to. Not asking for reviews while your competitors are, will leave you lagging behind. Ramping up the reviews can be done by calls-to-action asking for more Google reviews. Place reminders around your store, on your website, email and text them to leave a review of your service.
3. Max positive reviews, max return: Majority of customers read 10 or fewer reviews before trusting a business. A review system up to the mark is required to maximize the positive reviews. Because 90% of consumers read 10 or fewer reviews before trusting a business, quick dividends are possible. The amount of time taken by the consumers is minor. You just need to assure that those first ten reviews are positive.
4. Consistent reviews up, consumer trust up: 73% percent of consumers think that reviews that are more than three months old are irrelevant. The stats conclude that if more of your recent reviews are older than three months, consumers lose most of their trust in your business. The more recent your reviews are, more trust you gain from your consumers. As long as your reviews are positive, consistent amount of new reviews can be extremely beneficial. However, if your reviews are recent but negative, they can be detrimental.
5. High star rating, high trust rating: 58% percent of consumers find the star rating of business the most important and 87% percent consumers need a minimum 3-star rating to trust a business. It’s quick and simple to benchmark the quality of a business. If you are at 2-stars or below your goal should be to at least touch 3-stars. However, it is also about the quality of products and services you offer, so you need to have those on point as well.

A business which needs new consumers or wants their current consumers to be loyal to them, Google business reviews is a great tool. Helpful reviews are collected by offering excellent service, asking for reviews, engaging with consumers and making it simple for consumers to review. Based on this data, you know ramping up positive reviews is a smart move and YEAH! Local can help you in this. Turn to the best web developers in town and know how to revamp your Google business reviews.

Five Latest Technologies and Electric and Hybrid Automobile

Clean fuel automobiles and expertise, which causes them to be work, is one of the quickest developing areas of human advancement nowadays. While the big oil group is trying its toughest to keep refusal in existence, global warming and the hazards it presents to our future are clear. The demand for clean technological advancement is more powerful every year, and the innovations keep arriving.

In looking to the future, we have selected five innovations moving quickly into the popular as automobiles keep develop. While the combustion engine is not quite ready to stop working into museums and collectors’ carports, its days are clearly designated.

Electric Vehicles

In the case of pure electric automobiles significance those that do not have a combustion engine, we are seeing fast developments leading to both affordable prices and longer range. With the introduction of the 2017 Secure, General Motors envisions a completely electric automobile capable of traveling 200 kilometers between charges, in comparison with most automobiles, which travel less than a hundred kilometers for most plug-in vehicles nowadays.

Fuel cells

While fuel cell automobiles are not yet getting over roads, car manufacturers keep push the hydrogen fuel technological advancement toward pragmatism.

Honda revealed its latest fuel cell idea, a five-seat model that can refuel in three minutes when hydrogen is furnished at the pressure typical for still hard-to-find filling channels and can travel up to 300 kilometers, in comparison with about 240 kilometers for Honda’s previous fuel cell model. The company intends to begin promoting the car in Asia the coming year.

While there are reasons to doubt whether fuel cell automobiles will ever be truly practical, the innovations being designed are indeed amazing.

Aluminum Creates a Comeback

We are seeing innovations in designs and that includes using aluminum in key frame parts compared to aluminum. Within the best-selling Ford F-150, this advancement shaved off approximately 700 pounds and obtained 26 mpg for enhanced fuel consumption. While Ford says that aluminum will not be getting over the manufacturing line in the near future, the F-150 has been successful prizes and increasing eyebrows.

Tesla’s S model comes with a body and framework designed almost entirely of aluminum, based on bauxite ore. Due to its lightweight, this helps increase the range of battery further than other EV’s.

Faster! Faster!

There are a few surprising advantages more recent electric automobiles have over traditional combustion-powered vehicles. One of the biggest is extreme speeding. The Nikola tesla Design S can go from a standing stop to 60 mph in as little as 2.3 sec, beating out vehicles with badges reading Mercedes, McLaren, Lamborghini, and Mercedes.

Hybrid vehicle technology, fuel source could become even quicker, thanks to new developments in battery technological advancement such as those being manufactured by engineers at University of North Carolina State.

The research team set out to develop an assortment fuel that boosts the quantity of your is easily available at any given moment. Early battery technological innovation focused far more on the quantity of your an assortment fuel can store.

When this is in comparison with an assortment fuel that uses crystalline tungsten oxide without battery built, the water levels, does not charge quicker at short time but can also deliver its cost more rapidly.

While it’s anyone’s think when this will be seen being made automobiles, it’s a safe bet we will be seeing some form of technology in future automobiles.

Autonomous Vehicles and Features

While completely independent automobiles which promise the commitment of fewer injuries, less time lost to senseless congested zones and better fuel-efficiency are still a very extensive period away from legal mortgage approvals and popular accessibility, several of auto makers have started moving out semi-autonomous functions that foreshadow the arriving driverless vehicle trend.

In inclusion to the widely promoted AutoPilot function in Nikola tesla vehicles, Common Engines intends to integrate similar functions in future designs such as automated stopping and guiding to keep a car within a road.

Autos fold and unfold Camaro car covers have been also introduced now with high tech features. You can manage them with your android cellphones. These car covers and high-tech umbrellas are the best for your new models to protect the paint job of your car. These Coverking Car Covers

Automatic vehicle parking is another feature available already in many high end models that will become more widespread, certainly a relief for those among us whose similar vehicle parking skills are, shall we say… lacking.

So even while completely autonomous automobiles may still be a very extensive period away yet, we should keep see several of these kinds of repetitive functions in a range of forms in the future.

Galaxy S9 and S9+ get Sunrise Gold and Burgundy Red color options; ARCore support

The Galaxy S9 and S9+ are available in two gorgeous new color options.

Samsung rolled out a gorgeous Burgundy Red color option for the Galaxy S9 and S9+ in China last week, and the company is now detailing global availability for the variant and introducing a new Sunrise Gold model.

The Burgundy Red variant offers a deep red finish with matching accents for the camera module, and the rich hue makes it one of the best color options yet for the Galaxy S9 and S9+. As for the Sunrise Gold edition, Samsung says that it is the first color option to offer a “satin gloss finish” that envelops the phone in a “tranquil glow and glimmer:”

The new Sunrise Gold color creates a feeling of both vibrancy and calm. This sophisticated finish was developed to appeal to all users by bringing a stylistic touch of high fashion and urban interior design to a user’s mobile device.

The Burgundy Red Galaxy S9/S9+ will go on sale starting later this month in Korea and China, and the Sunrise Gold variant will be available from June in select markets including Australia, Chile, Germany, Hong Kong, Korea, Mexico, Russia, Spain, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates and Vietnam.

Samsung has also rolled out ARCore support for the Galaxy S9 and S9+, with Google’s ARCore devices page listing Samsung’s 2018 flagships. As noted by 9to5Google, Galaxy S9 and S9+ customers can download the ARCore app from the Play Store and get started with augmented reality applications.

The launch of the new variants means the Galaxy S9 and S9+ are now available in a total of six color options — Sunrise Gold, Burgundy Red, Midnight Black, Titanium Gray, Coral Blue, and Lilac Purple.

For now, it doesn’t look like either variant will make its way Stateside, but Samsung is likely to bring the color options to additional markets at a later date. India isn’t mentioned in the list, but Samsung is gearing up to bring the Sunrise Gold color option to the country in the coming months, so there’s a possibility that it will do the same in the U.S.

What do you make of Samsung’s latest color options?

Samsung Galaxy S9 and S9+

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

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Logitech Releases New Magnetic Mount for Logitech Circle 2 Camera

Logitech today announced the launch of a new accessory for the wired and wire-free versions of its Logitech Circle 2 camera, the Magnetic Mount.

With the Magnetic Mount, which attaches right to the bottom of a Logitech Circle 2 camera, you can stick the Logitech Circle 2 on any magnetic surface, like a refrigerator, a metal door frame, a light fixture, a rain gutter, or any other compatible metal.

We were able to test the Magnetic Mount ahead of its launch, and Logitech has made sure to equip it with a strong magnet that offers a solid attachment to any flat surface. We mounted the camera on a variety of magnetic surfaces, including a refrigerator and the metal frame of a mirror, and were pleased with the sturdy connection.

The Magnetic Mount increases the number of places and ways you can position a Logitech Circle 2 camera, allowing it to get into some areas where it previously would have been tough to mount.

You can use this with a wired or a wireless camera, but it’s going to work best with the wire-free options just because there’s no need for a plug and there’s no cord that gets in the way.

If you want to mount the Logitech Circle 2 in an area where there’s no magnetic surface, the Magnetic Mount is still worth checking out. Logitech ships the Magnetic Mount with an adhesive-backed metal plate that can be attached anywhere. You’ll want to be careful where you put this metal plate though, because Logitech says it’s one time use only and has the potential to damage delicate surfaces.

Logitech’s Magnetic Mount joins several other mounting options for the Logitech 2 cameras including the Window Mount and the Plug Mount.

You can purchase the new Magnetic Mount from the Logitech website for $19.99. The Circle 2 camera is priced at $139.99 for the wired version and $149.99 for the wire-free version.

Tag: Logitech
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