Japanese instant-credit provider Paidy raises $143 million from investors including PayPal Ventures

Paidy, a Japanese financial tech startup that provides instant credit to consumers in Japan, announced today that it has raised a total of $143 million in new financing. This includes a $83 million Series C extension from investors including PayPal Ventures and debt financing of $60 million. The funding will be used to advance Paidy’s goals of signing large-scale merchants, offering new financial services and growing its user base to 11 million accounts by the end of 2020. https://ift.tt/334C97P from Yahoo Tech https://ift.tt/2JDKF5U via IFTT...

The Utah startup scene gets another boost with Album VC's new $75 million fund

Album VC, a Lehi, Utah-based early-stage venture firm that's been known until now as Peak Ventures, just gathered up $75 million in capital commitments for its third early-stage fund. The development shows investor confidence in Album's young team, which came together in 2014 after the founder of Zinch -- a site connecting colleges and students that sold to the ed-tech company Chegg in 2011 -- decided to try his hand at investing in other startups. As that founder, Sid Krommenhoek -- who stayed on with Chegg for several years, running its international efforts -- explains it, "I thought I'd do...

With Garmin Autoland, small planes can land themselves if the pilot becomes incapacitated

Now, however, planes outfitted with the Garmin G3000 flight deck, will have the option to include a system that will land the plane in an emergency with just the push of a button. Autoland combines all of the navigation and communications tech in the plane and combines that with a sophisticated autopilot. Once a passenger activates the autoland feature -- or the plane determines that the pilot is incapacitated -- the system will look at all the available information about weather, remaining fuel on board and the local terrain to plot a route to the nearest suitable airport. https://ift.tt/2ov66i6...

This Vitamix blender is at its lowest price ever ahead of Black Friday

TL;DR: Buy a versatile refurbished Vitamix 5300 blender for the low price of $249.95 at Amazon. While it's a renewed product, don't expect to find a brand new model for anywhere near the same price, even during Black Friday.  It's soup season, so crank up your space heater and get to work on the perfect bowl of butternut squash soup. With a quality blender, you won't need a stove top to get that creamy soup you need for your Hallmark Christmas movie binge. But some of the best blenders are certainly pricey, and your soup can't wait until Black Friday. So take the time to consider a refurbished...

This Hisense 4K Smart TV is on sale for under £250 on Amazon

TL;DR: The dramatic Hisense 43-inch 4K UHD HDR Smart TV is on sale for £249 on Amazon, saving you 38% on list price. The popularity of 4K TVs does not seem to be waning, and we're expecting an avalanche of deals over the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales.  You're likely to be able to make a big saving if you wait until the end of November to shop for a 4K TV, but we would be very surprised if you manage to get anything better than what's on offer right now on Amazon. SEE ALSO: Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2019: The best TV deals in the UK You can pick up a Hisense 43-inch 4K UHD HDR...

Get an extra 3 months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for free on Amazon

TL;DR: Purchase three months of Xbox Game Pass Ultimate for £32.92 on Amazon, and get another three months for free. Everything is better when it's free. There is something mysterious that happens at a cellular level within humans when things are procured without any money involved. Science cannot explain how free food tastes sweeter, free drinks are stronger, and free experiences are more fun. This strange phenomenon extends to the world of deals, because there is something special about getting something for nothing.  SEE ALSO: Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2019: When is it and what...

Costco Black Friday 2019: Save on TVs, Laptops, Apple Devices, More

Heads up, Costco members: The warehouse club's Black Friday 2019 ad just hit the web, tipping big savings on TVs, Apple devices, laptops, smartphones, smart home gadgets, gaming gear, and a lot more this holiday shopping season. Costco's holiday savings event will run from Nov. 7 through Dec. 2, according to the leaked ad, posted Wednesday by BestBlackFriday.com. "Several of the prices mimic the same kind of savings we saw last year, with many electronics and gadgets discounted by only a minor percentage," the site says. Costco stores will be closed on Thanksgiving Day, Nov. 28, but the company...

Facebook is testing encrypted video and audio calls

Facebook might offer encrypted video and audio chats to its users soon.  App researcher Jane Manchun Wong found evidence of the feature being tested as part of Facebook's Secret Conversation Messenger feature.  Secret Conversations was added to Messenger in 2016, offering users an end-to-end encrypted chat experience. To activate it, tap the "New message" icon in Messenger's top right corner and then tap "Secret."  Facebook Messenger is testing Video/Audio calls over Secret Conversation pic.twitter.com/aNgnvtzsBf — Jane Manchun Wong (@wongmjane) October 31, 2019 Right now,...

'The Social Network' writer Aaron Sorkin rips Mark Zuckerberg in open letter

Don't shed a single tear for him, but Mark Zuckerberg continues to be assailed for his very bad decisions about political speech on Facebook. This time, it's Aaron Sorkin, the man behind The Social Network, the movie about Facebook's controversial and convoluted beginnings that Zuckerberg really, really, really wished had never been made. Sorkin laid out his argument in the opinion pages of the New York Times. In the column, Sorkin unfolds a stinging rebuke of everything Zuckerberg has recently proclaimed about free speech on Facebook and his defense of that very stupid, very bad policy of allowing...

What not to buy on Black Friday 2019: Here's what we're passing on this year

Black Friday is Nov. 29 and it's going to be here before we know it. The holiday is literally centered around shopping, but sometimes the deals aren't as good as they may appear to be. There are some dos and don'ts of Black Friday, and you'll want to use discretion when buying stuff this season. While Black Friday is the shopping holiday of all shopping holidays, some items are better bought at other points in the year. For example, mattresses are hot ticket items during three-day weekend holiday sales, but don't see as many fantastic deals on Black Friday. Ultimately, if you see a great deal...

Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2019: The best VPN deals in the UK

We will be posting the best VPN deals from the Black Friday and Cyber Monday sales on this page, but if you are looking for something else, please visit the following pages:    Visit: Black Friday Guide (UK)  Visit: Black Friday Amazon Deals (UK)  Visit: Black Friday Argos Deals (UK)   Visit: Black Friday Currys PC World Deals (UK)   Visit: Black Friday Gaming Deals (UK) Visit: Black Friday Laptop Deals (UK) Visit: Black Friday TV Deals (UK)  You might think that Black Friday and Cyber Monday are all about...

9 creepy tech gadgets and features spookier than a Halloween movie

A mysterious voice coming from inside the house. A watchful eye you never knew was there. These scenarios may sound spooooooky, but they aren't paranormal. These days, the plots of horror flicks can sound a lot like modern technology. We don't have to look to ghost stories or scary movies for tales of shadowy characters or the past never really dying. Tech products and hackers are our modern day Freddy Kruegers. Minus the, ya know, murder.  In honor of Halloween (and cybersecurity knowledge!), here are the spookiest tech gadgets and features. 1iOS 13 'Attention Correction' for FaceTime The...

Work on the move with these lightweight laptops on sale

TL;DR: Multiple lightweight laptops are on sale at Amazon, saving you up to £450 on list price.  Laptops need to be a lot of things nowadays, and users demand good levels of power, storage, and battery. All of this is necessary but probably not as important as portability, because without this, you've just got yourself a desktop. There is a wide range of lightweight and portable laptops on the market right now from all the biggest brands. You can pick up exceptional devices from the likes of Apple, Microsoft, ASUS, Lenovo, and Razer. SEE ALSO: Black Friday and Cyber Monday 2019: When...

AirPods Pro review: Better in every way

AirPods Pro $249 View Product The Good Impressive noise cancellation for the size • Water resistance • Way more comfortable than other in-ear buds The Bad Silicone tips feel like they could wear out easily • Battery life is a little worse with noise cancellation The Bottom Line AirPods Pro deliver enough upgrades to make even the biggest skeptics true believers. ⚡ Mashable Score 4.5 😎 Cool Factor 5.0 📘Learning Curve 4.0 💪Performance 5.0 💵Bang for the Buck 4.0 It's been three years since Apple launched its first AirPods. In that time, the plastic wireless earbuds have...

Which Amazon devices will be on sale for Black Friday 2019? Here are our predictions.

Amazon wants you to do your holiday shopping on its site. The company is known for pulling out all the stops for Black Friday and seasonal shopping with perks like free shipping with no minimum, even for non-Prime members, and guaranteed on-time Christmas shipping as late as Dec. 19. This holiday season Amazon isn't alone in offering free one-day shipping — Target and Walmart are in on it now, too.  When it comes to Black Friday, Amazon doesn't really honor the "day" part. It treats the time around Thanksgiving as more of a deals marathon. Cyber Monday deals are almost identical to...

Fisker Ocean wants to be a sustainable, affordable electric SUV

Fisker's upcoming SUV first promised to be affordable enough. Now it's promising to be environmentally friendly. It all starts with the car name. The car brand from famous vehicle designer Henrik Fisker unveiled the name of its first upcoming all-electric SUV on Thursday: Ocean. The name is meant to encompass all the sustainability built into what's expected to be a roughly $40,000 vehicle, on par with pricing for Tesla's coming-soon compact SUV, the Model Y. The Ocean backside. Image: fisker A look at the electric SUV. Image: fisker The 80-kWh lithium-ion battery gets up...

Save over £200 on this Philips electric toothbrush and travel case bundle

TL;DR: The sensitive Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 5100 electric toothbrush is on sale for £74.99, saving you 73% on list price. We've said it many time before, but bundles are just the best. We're going to keep harping on about them until the message gets through. Bundles are great because you get everything you need all at once, and you almost always end up with a big saving, too. We don't know about you, but we think that sounds pretty great, and that's why we sound like a broken record when it comes to bundles. SEE ALSO: 8 of the best electric toothbrushes in the UK The latest bundle...

Xbox games, Ring security cameras, Sony headphones, Kenwood mixers, and more on sale for Oct. 31 in the UK

There's a real mix of products in this deals round up, which is great for the window shoppers amongst you. With everything from slow cookers to security cameras on offer, there might just be something for you. We have tracked down the best deals on speakers, headphones, kitchen appliances, and much more, with all the top brands included in this list. You can save on Microsoft, Sony, Ultimate Ears, Kenwood, Bosch, and other big names. These are the best deals from across the internet for Oct. 31. Best of the best Save on Xbox games, Ring security cameras, Oral-B electric toothbrushes, and more...