Review Vrtmr: October 2019

Thursday, 31 October 2019

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.

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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 another startup.

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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.

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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 model that can fit any budget. Read more...

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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.

You can pick up a Hisense 43-inch 4K UHD HDR Smart TV for just £249 on Amazon. This is discounted by a massive 38% on list price, saving you £150. This deal even includes a two-year manufacturer warranty, for extra peace of mind. Read more...

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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.

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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 will offer many deals online during the holiday, including the 13.3-inch Apple MacBook Pro for $999.99 ($250 off), HP Omen Gaming Desktop for $749.99 ($250 off), and Bose SoundSport Pulse wireless headphones for $99.99 ($30 off). Costco's in-store savings event kicks off at 9 a.m. on Black Friday, Nov. 29. Read more...

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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, it will probably look very similar to a regular Chat in Messenger, but the audio and video call icons (top corner) will be missing. In Wong's screenshot, though, they're there. Read more...

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'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 politicians to say whatever the hell they want on the platform. Read more...

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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 you can't live without, we won't dissuade you from going for it. But keep in mind that the following items are typically better to buy outside of Black Friday. Read more...

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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 massive deals on TVs, laptops, speakers, and games consoles, and whilst all of these items will be on offer, there is a new contender to the sales crown. Read more...

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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 least human-to-human thing about FaceTime is that when you video chat with someone, you're not really making eye contact. Apple decided to do something about that problem of human connection with... artificial intelligence. Read more...

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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.

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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 gone from widely derided (remember the memes?) to so popular that seemingly every other tech giant is trying to come up with its own version. Read more...

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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 those on Black Friday, with a little variation. Read more...

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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 80-kWh lithium-ion battery gets up to 300 miles on a single charge, which is the first step to lower carbon emissions. Read more...

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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.

The latest bundle deal to hit the online shelves is the Philips Sonicare ProtectiveClean 5100 electric toothbrush offering. This includes the brush, travel case, charger, and an additional brush head. So once your order arrives, you're ready to go. Read more...

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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.