Tech News Today for August 10, 2017
Tech News for Thursday August 10, 2017
Aint no amount of puppy dog face filters that can improve SNAP's quarterly earnings, released today. The company missed every one of Wall Street's expectations, delivering less revenue and fewer users than investors had hoped for. The only glimmer of hope was that animated hot dog, which was viewed 1.5 billion times and called, "the world's first augmented reality superstar" by SNAP CEO Evan Spiegel. Spiegel and his co-founder Bobby Murphy both say they believe in the success of the company and will not sell shares this year. Read more at axios.com.
Facebook has a new Watch tab for those of you thirsty for another avenue of original video content. Several dozen new shows are hitting a small group of users in the US via the new section, with original content including a number of reality shows, sports coverage and mini-documentaries. Facebook has had an increased focus on video on the network, and this will offer more opportunies for the company to keep users tuned into that lucrative content stream. Read more at techcrunch.com.
According to a Consumer Reports survey of 90,000 tablet and laptop owners, the Microsoft Surface has the worst failure rate in the industry. As a result, the magazine is pulling its “recommended” designation for all Surface products. Sick burn Consumer Reports. 25 percent of Surface owners say they've had problems within two years of buying one, a breakage record that is much higher than most other brands. CNET, a direct competitor of Consumer Reports, still gives Surface products high ratings. Read more at thurrott.com.
If you’ve ever thought it was strange to get a text message from that random Uber driver on your phone, you might like this news. It’s kind of strange to think that Uber hasn’t had in-app messaging until now, but better late than never I suppose. The new in-app feature allows riders to connect with the driver in chat. Those messages are then read aloud to the Uber driver so they can keep their eyes on the road. However, a simple thumbs up button will appear for them to tap once, telling the rider that they heard their message loud and clear. Read more at theverge.com.
Watch out Tesla, IKEA is getting into the home battery and solar panels market. And don't worry, you don't have to put them together and attach them to your roof yourself. Experts will assemble the panels for you. The batteries and solar panels are only availabe in the UK for now. If you're interested, you can get a free quote at their website. IKEA itself claims the company will be solar neutral by 2020. They've installed over 700,000 solar panels on their buildings across the globe. Read more at telegraph.co.uk.
Disney is coming under fire with a class action lawsuit that says the company is collecting and sharing information about the children using 42 of its apps with advertisers. The lawsuit says that Disney did not appropriately gain parental consent before collecting and selling that data for ad targeting purposes, something that the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA) was created to ensure. Disney, on its part, claims the lawsuit is a misunderstanding of basic COPPA principles and they say they look forward to their day in court. Read more at theverge.com.
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