Download an app from Amazon’s Appstore to stand a chance to win a $25,000 shopping spree
If you’ve ever wished you could go on a big shopping spree at Amazon, there’s a chance your wish might actually come true. That’s right, Amazon is giving you the chance to win $25,000 in gift cards to spend on its site, all you have to do is download an app to your Android device via the Amazon Appstore. For our international readers, it should be noted that this is a US only competition, sorry!
If you don’t already have the Amazon Appstore installed on your smartphone or tablet, you can get started by clicking here or scanning the QR code below with your mobile device. Naturally, as with all competitions, there are terms and conditions. You must be a US resident and be aged 18 or above. The other main requirement is that you must be registered on Amazon. All you have to do to enter is download and install one app, either paid for or free, from the Amazon Appstore. Then just type in your name, email address and telephone number at the Amazon Shopping Spree link below. Good luck!
Source: Amazon Shopping Spree
Come comment on this article: Download an app from Amazon’s Appstore to stand a chance to win a $25,000 shopping spree
The Huawei Watch is michievously priced at €999/$1083 on Amazon.de pre-order page
A few days ago, we ran a story refuting the rumour that the Huawei Watch might be retailing for $1000. However, Amazon.de now has the Huawei Watch available to pre-order for €999 ($1083), which is an eye-watering amount to spend for an Android Wear smartwatch. As you can probably tell though, all is not as it seems.
Unsurprisingly, this (€999/$1083) pre-order price is just a placeholder, as alluded to by the Important Note from Amazon on the listing page:
“There is no suggested retail price of pages of the manufacturer. The Amazon selling price can therefore change.”
It’s something that Amazon often do with pre-order items, placing wildly unrealistic price tags on items with no official retail value so that the online retailer isn’t out of pocket when the actual price is revealed. It’s just a matter of waiting for Huawei to announce an official price for the smartwatch. Whatever the official price for the Huawei Watch turns out to be, it’s extremely doubtful that it will be priced anywhere near the $1000 figure. Even the gold variant with its 3 ounces of 24-karat gold will be much, much cheaper than that.
Source: Amazon.de
Come comment on this article: The Huawei Watch is michievously priced at €999/$1083 on Amazon.de pre-order page
Apple, Microsoft, Facebook, Google team up to support marriage equality
A total of 379 companies, including tech’s biggest names, are trying to convince the Supreme Court to rule in favor of nationwide marriage equality. These corporations, including Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft have filed an amici curiae or a friend-of-the-court brief prior to the high court’s April hearing that will decide the future of same-sex marriage in the US. The court is slated to discuss whether same-sex couples have the constitutional right to get married anywhere in the country. In case that doesn’t pan out, the court will also discuss whether same-sex marriages performed in states where it’s legal must be recognized even in states where it’s not. If you read the filing, you’ll see the companies emphasize repeatedly how marriage equality benefits American businesses.
They listed a number of ways how, such as that it will allow them to offer everyone the same benefits to entice top talent. It can also prevent employees from leaving and moving to states that recognize their marriage. Diversity in the workplace, brought in part by members of the LGBT community, is “crucial to innovation and marketplace success,” the companies’ wrote.
We’ve pasted parts of the filing below that explain their stance in greater detail (emphasis ours):
Some of the states in which amici (the 379 companies) do business make marriage equally available to all of our employees and colleagues; others prohibit marriages between couples of the same sex and refuse to recognize existing same-sex marriages. This dual regime burdens amici. It creates legal uncertainty and imposes unnecessary costs and administrative complexities on employers, and requires differential employer treatment of employees who are similarly situated save for the state where they reside.
State laws that prohibit or decline to recognize marriages between same-sex couples hamper employer efforts to recruit and retain the most talented workforce possible in those states. Our successes depend upon the welfare and morale of all employees, without distinction. The burden imposed by inconsistent and discriminatory state laws of having to administer complicated schemes to account for differential treatment of similarly situated employees breeds unnecessary confusion, tension, and diminished employee morale.
A diverse, inclusive workplace environment increases the total human energy available to the organization. People can bring far more of themselves to their jobs because they are required to suppress far less. Inclusive companies are more open to new ideas and opportunities, while less prone to overconfidence when approaching challenges. Companies that are diverse and inclusive obtain better profits and other outputs, thanks to improved team collaboration and commitment.
Aside from the Big Four, other tech companies in the list include Amazon, Comcast, Cisco, DocuSign, Dropbox, eBay, EA, GE, HP, Intel, Oracle, Qualcomm Incorporated, Symantec, Twitter, Verizon, Xerox and Zynga. There are multi-national corporations from other industries, as well, such as Coca-Cola, Pepsi, Walt Disney and United Airlines. You can see the full list in the amici curiae document, along with links to the studies the group used to back their arguments.
[Image credit: Shutterstock / govicinity]
Filed under: Misc, Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, Facebook
Via: The Verge
Source: Morgan Lewis
Europe rules e-books won’t get tax breaks like paper books
Isn’t it ironic that tiny nuances of tax law can often cause colossal results out in the real world? It’s one of those judgments that has rocked Europe after its highest court ruled that e-books aren’t actually goods at all. Currently, paper books sold in the EU are subjected to a smaller amount of sales tax, since having an educated, literate population is generally considered to be a good thing. France and Luxembourg, seeing no difference between books and e-books, have been offering similar discounts on the latter since 2012.
This got the European Commission all hot and bothered, prompting it to sue two of its member states for breaching value-added tax rules. According to the court, since you need another device, like a computer or e-reader, to actually read an electronic book, those titles are actually a service rather than a good. That means, that for readers in those two countries, the tax rates will go up from 5.5 (France) and 3 (Luxembourg) percent to 20 and 17 percent, respectively.
It’s likely that both France and Luxembourg will have to pick up the tab for the now illegal tax break, but the ramifications may not stop with a procedural slap on the wrist. After all, the judgment could now raise questions about the sale of digital movies and music, which are both similarly reliant on devices. Hell, you can’t even enjoy a CD without a player, so expect plenty of future judgments in the digital media space to debate the merits of this case for years to come.
Happy World Book Day, folks.
Filed under: Amazon
Via: Wall Street Journal
Source: Europa (.PDF)
Google Street View cameras zip through (and over) the Amazon
Google already has some odd ways of getting its Street View cameras into hard-to-reach places, but its latest effort might just take the cake. The search firm has posted panoramic imagery of the Amazon rainforest that, at some points, was taken by Trekker cameras ziplining through the canopy — yes, you’ll get a view that even locals won’t usually see. There are some down-to-Earth sights, too, including snapshots from rivers and remote villages. Between this and recent collaborative mapping projects, you may end up learning a surprising amount about the Amazon without setting foot in South America.
Via: BBC
Source: Google Maps
Amazon’s Echo wireless speaker will soon run custom apps
Amazon’s voice-savvy Echo speaker is only handy for a few tasks right now, but it’s about to become much more flexible. The online giant is now taking sign-ups for a beta developer kit that will let people create apps for the gadget. There aren’t many details as to what coders can do with the Echo, but it won’t be surprising if they’ll let you ask new questions, play games or take control of apps on your mobile devices. Just be patient if you aren’t a programmer — there’s no mention of when a regular developer kit will be available, and it’ll likely take a while after that before you’re using speaker-friendly software.
Filed under: Home Entertainment, Software, HD, Amazon
Source: Amazon
Amazon making Firefly available on all Fire HD tablets
Last year one of the most buzzworthy stories of the tech world was the release of the Amazon Fire smartphone, the giant retailer’s first foray into the mobile phone market. The device, despite all the attention it received, never seemed to generate sufficient sales interest as revealed by the $83 million in inventory Amazon was holding at the end of the third quarter. In what may be a sign of cannibalization of the Fire smartphone, Amazon is making the Firefly software that came on the device available for all Fire HD tablets.
Firefly is Amazon’s answer to an app like Google Goggles, the plethora of QR code scanners, and music identification programs like Shazam. Firefly combines all of these so users could use their device to scan objects, books, movies, posters, QR codes and other items to get more information about them. Amazon included 245,000 movie and television episode titles in the library, 160 live TV channels, and 35 million songs. Users of the app did note that it had an unsurprising tendency to direct users to Amazon for potential purchases whenever they scanned an item if it was available from the retailer.
The Firefly app update is being pushed out as an OTA update to all Fire HD tablets, although the Fire HDX 8.9 tablet already had access to it.
The other big piece of software that Amazon included on the Fire smartphone was called Dynamic Perspective and created the 3D effects on the phone. Amazon may eventually decide to push that out as well as a way to make their line of tablets more attractive to buyers in the tablet market.
Come comment on this article: Amazon making Firefly available on all Fire HD tablets
Unlocked Nexus 6 (32 GB) in both Cloud White and Midnight Blue now available at Amazon
The Nexus 6 might not be the most popular phone in the land, but it certainly is the toughest one to purchase. If you’ve been trying to get your hands on one, you can grab the 32 GB version at Amazon for $649.99, just $0.99 more than what you would pay Google through the Play Store. They have both Cloud White and Midnight Blue in stock, and it’s on Prime so you can save the shipping costs and receive it in 2 days, assuming you’re a Prime member.
Just hit the source link below and choose which color you want to get your order in.
source: Amazon
Come comment on this article: Unlocked Nexus 6 (32 GB) in both Cloud White and Midnight Blue now available at Amazon
Deal: select JLab headphones are up to 80% off today on Amazon
Amazon is discounting a few models of in-ear and over-ear JLab earphones by up to 80 percent today.
The deal sees headphones going for as little as $10 bucks a piece (for the lower end models), and while the discounted models will most likely not satisfy demanding ears, they might serve if you’re looking for a pair of cheap headphones. The headphones on sale today have average user reviews of around 4 out of 5 stars.
Those who prefer over-ear designs can choose between the white and black versions of the JLab Intro Premium model, which features a built-in mic, swiveling cups, and a comfy design.
- JLab INTRO Premium On-Ear Headphones, with Universal Mic (Black) for $14.99 (75%)
- JLab INTRO Premium On-Ear Headphones, with Universal Mic (White) for $14.99 (75%)
For fans of earbuds, the following models are on sale:
- JLab JBuds Diego in-Ear Earbud with Universal Mic (various color combinations) for $9.99 (75%)
- JLab J4 Heavy Bass Metal In-Ear Headphone (various color combinations) for $18.99 (79%)
- JLab J4M Heavy Bass Metal In-Ear Headphones (various color combinations) for $19.99 (80%)
Check out the full list here and let us know if you spot anything you like. As always, this deal is valid until tonight at midnight PT.
BlackBerry’s latest update brings Amazon Appstore to its phones
All BlackBerry 10 phones will soon get features previously available on the BB Classic only, thanks to the platform’s latest update. One of the most notable changes is the addition of Amazon’s Appstore, giving users access to a bevy of Android apps. The update also equips the phones with BlackBerry Blend, which consolidates emails, text messages, BBM, contacts and calendar, and keeps them all synced across devices and even across operating systems (it works on Mac, Windows, Android and iOS). There’s BlackBerry Assistant, as well: a virtual secretary like SIri and Cortana that responds silently if you type a question, speaks when you ask out loud and adds context to its answers if you’re using a Bluetooth headset and it thinks you don’t have access to the screen. These features, along with a bunch of other ones, are coming to all available BB 10 devices in Africa, Asia Pacific, Europe and the Middle East starting today, but it’s slated to make its way to North America in the future.
Filed under: Cellphones, Mobile, Amazon, Blackberry
Source: BlackBerry
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