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With gas prices still relatively high, more and more people are considering hybrid cars. But some readers are wondering how long the batteries in a hybrid vehicle will last.
I know that hybrid cars get more miles per gallon and pollute less. But these vehicles all have an expensive battery pack that powers them when the gasoline engine isn’t on. How long are these batteries going to last?
Bill H., Princeton, N.J.
The battery pack in a hybrid vehicle contains hundreds of cells. Unlike the lead-acid battery under the hood of a conventional gas-powered vehicle, these cells contain a chemical mixture called nickel metal hydride (NiMH).
These NiMH batteries generally come with a standard warranty of 8 years or 80,000 miles. In California, if a new hybrid qualifies as an Advanced Technology Partial Zero Emission Vehicle, the state requires the warranty on that battery pack to be 10 years or 150,000 miles.
“The number of failures has been really, really low,” says American Honda’s Juan Avilla. “We expect them to last the life of the vehicle.”
Toyota tells me that some of the original Prius models now have battery packs that have gone more than 300,000 miles.
BusinessWeek magazine reports that when the U.S. Department of Energy investigated hybrid batteries, it stopped its tests “when the capacity remained almost like new — after 160,000 miles.”
What will it cost to replace the batteries if they fail after the warranty expires? No one seems to know since that hasn’t been an issue yet. Manufacturers say they are trying to find a way to replace the defective cells without removing the entire battery pack. If they're successful, that would dramatically reduce the cost.
And will there be a pollution problem when the batteries come to the end of their useful life? Sooner or later — because they are defective, worn out, or the vehicle is in an accident — the battery pack in a hybrid vehicle will need to be removed or replaced.
Automakers say the batteries will be treated as hazardous waste, similar to any other car battery. That means they will be sent to a recycling plant for proper disposal. The chemicals in the cells will be neutralized and any materials that can be reused will be sorted out. Toyota has established a “bounty” program that pays dealers to send any NiMH batteries they remove to a recycler.
Looking down the road, work is already underway on the next-generation battery for hybrids. The goal is to find a technology that delivers plenty of power, lasts for the life of the vehicle, and is less expensive to make.
Debit, credit cards
Thanks to everyone who e-mailed last week about credit and debit cards. I never realized my first column would generate so many questions. I will answer one this week and hope to answer many more — specifically about service fees — next week.
I have several credit cards due to college expenses. Should I continue to pay more than the minimum on the smaller balance cards? Or should I pay the minimum on the smaller balances and put the most money toward the highest balance, which just so happens to have the worst interest rate? I graduated a few years ago and I really need to get a handle on this.
Kimberly A., Jacksonville, Fla.
Credit card debt can quickly get out of hand, so I’m glad to see you want to get things under control. According to a recent report from the College Board, the average student graduates with about $2,700 worth of credit card debt.
In general, the smart way to pay down what you owe is to make the minimum payments on the cards with the lowest interest rates and pay as much as you can afford on the cards with the higher rates.
Sit down with copies of your latest statements and see what the rates really are on those various accounts. You may be paying a higher rate than when you first got the card. This can happen if you missed a payment or were late on a payment on any of your credit cards.
Gerri Detweiler, author of The Ultimate Credit Handbook, suggests contacting the banks that issued your cards to see if you can negotiate a lower rate. “You’ll need to be persistent and keep asking,” she notes, but if you can get them to drop the rate even slightly, that’s money in your pocket. Remember, as you pay down your balances “you will free up available credit and your credit score should go up,” Detweiler notes.
Finally, don’t add to your credit card debt as you try to work it down. Go on a cash-only basis. If you don’t have the money to pay for it, don’t buy it.
Organic produce is high on my shopping list, but it sure is expensive. Is it okay to buy regular fruits and vegetables and use a produce wash? Will that fight some of the pesticide residue?
Kelly S., Bellevue, Wash.
You’re right. Organic produce can put a real dent in your shopping budget. Washing and peeling (when practical) can reduce your exposure to any pesticide residue present on the surface of non-organic produce. With leafy vegetables, such as lettuce and cabbage, removing the outer leaves can also help.
Washing fresh produce — whether organic or not — is a smart thing to do, because pesticide residue isn’t the only potential food safety problem. All fruits and vegetables, no matter how they’re grown, can be dirty or contaminated with harmful bacteria.
As you noted, there are produce washes you can buy at the store. “Most of those washes are made up of diluted vinegar or baking soda with a hefty price tag,” says Urvashi Rangan, a senior scientist with Consumer Reports.
But here’s the tricky part. “With many fruits, especially soft ones like peaches or berries,” Rangan tells me “washing can only get you so far, since the pesticide is actually on the inside part of the fruit as well.”
So what can you do to reduce your possible exposure to pesticides without breaking the bank? In its February issue, Consumer Reports suggests buying the organic versions of the fruits and vegetables that are most likely to contain the highest amount of pesticide residue.
Here is the magazine’s “buy organic as often as possible” list: apples, bell peppers, celery, cherries, imported grapes, nectarines, peaches, pears, potatoes, red raspberries, spinach and strawberries. For more information, check out the full Consumer Reports article "When It Pays to Buy Organic."


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Today we stumbled upon another patent from Samsung. The Korean company filed a patent with KIPRIS (Korean Intellectual Property Rights Information Service). We again see sketches of a foldable display screen, but this time it’s not a flip phone design it´s a foldable tablet.
Samsung Galaxy foldable tablet
This is not the first time we have seen a foldable tablet design. It was Samsung themselves who published an advertising video demonstrating a foldable tablet back in 2014. Two years earlier the company already showed a bendable AMOLED display prototype.
The patent was filed on November 6th and shows a foldable display of glass, to achieve an ultrathin design. The patent can be seen here.
Back in September Samsung Mobile CEO Donjin Koh confirmed their plans on releasing their first foldable smartphone in 2018. This phone is likely to be called Samsung Galaxy X. The CEO did not talk about a foldable Galaxy tablet, but it seems we may welcome both next year.
Another company that is expected to launch a foldable tablet and smartphone soon is Lenovo. The company already showed various concepts. 2018 will undoubtedly be the year for manufacturers to launch bendable consumer electronics.

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Swiss economy to expand by 2 percent in 201822 August 2018
Swiss economy is predicted to expand by 2 percent this year by cautions calculations made by the Swiss National Bank. This will mean its fastest progress in 4 years. Additionally, the surplus forecast for financial year 2018 is now projected at CHF 2 billion, better than previously estimated data.
Economy is on the growth
The Swiss economy is growing. The SNB predicts that it will this year by 2 percent, the fastest pace since 2014. It is mainly due to weaker Swiss Franc as well as a generally better economic situation on the whole continent. Also, this summer the weather was gracious for tourism – hot summer means more tourists and better profits in this sector, that remains an important part of the country’s economy. Unemployment rate, as seasonally adjusted, is at 2.6 percent – the lowest score in a decade. The SNB’s predictions of economic growth are cautions so far, but if this scenario will come to life, also the surplus forecast should be accurate. Based on the good economic growth predictions, the surplus forecast was adjusted to CHF 2 billion – a figure higher than earlier estimates. Based on current data, the Swiss government sees additional CHF 1.3 billion of revenue, due to more value added tax of CHF 200 million, federal taxes and withholding taxes – both of CHF 500 million. Better tax collection values are strictly connected to economic growth. At this moment, the Swiss GDP is predicted to be up by 3 percent – previously expectations were of 2.8 percent. Cost savings are expected to be at CHF 700 million, that shall also contribute to the budget surplus. Savings will be driven by decrease in social assistance paid to asylum seekers – CHF 79 million, as there were fewer claims this year so far. Also, there will a drop in operating expenses generated by federal asylum centers – due to lower number of their residents – of CHF 54 million.
Why so cautious?
Still all the above data are only cautions forecasts. The SNB and government is still uncertain on withholding tax collection result, as it could significantly vary. The claims are filed only in the second half of the year. Additionally, the economy in Switzerland highly rely on general situation in the world. As swiss currency is considered a safe haven, whenever there are issues concerning other currencies, investors rush to buy Swiss Francs. That leads to higher exchange rate and as a result stronger Swiss Franc is hurting the economy. Tourists don’t arrive due to high prices and export is suffering in vast manner.
Being the safest in the world – and one of the strongest – economy is a bittersweet feeling for Switzerland. On the one hand, its reputation is the country’s brand and something that allows huge inflow of foreign assets. On the other hand, the stronger currency means worse export and lower competitiveness of tourism. Also, the haven effect could lose its appeal anytime. When the “Frankenschock” happened in 2015, Switzerland lost a huge part of its prestige as the SNB cap the value of CHF versus EUR exchange rate. Back then, the interest rates were lowered to -0.75 percent, the level on which they have remained ever since. It is one of the lowest rates on the globe. The market interventions made SNBs balance sheet swollen to CHF 830 billion. Even though the economy is progressing, the SNB doesn’t see a need so far to hike rates. There is a strong belief that the central bank would have to make some bold move if crisis was to return – looking at a bit unsteady political situation in the Europe (Italy for instance), Brexit turmoil or US unpredictability, anything can happen.
Of course at ExchangeMarket.ch we have no influence on the exchange rate development. But we make sure that you can always exchange money with us at the best exchange rate. Buying cheap euro and selling francs at a good exchange rate is a breeze at ExchangeMarket.ch. Try our service by making a small transaction of 100 Euro. You carry no costs and no risk. With our currency converter you can quickly compare our exchange rates to see how much you can save by changing your money at ExchangeMarket.ch. Register now and benefit from the best EUR CHF exchange rate in Switzerland.


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This story has been updated to include addtiional information about the launch of Verizon’s new “Edge” device upgrade and financing program.
Verizon today confirmed that it will move to an early device upgrade and/or financing program similar to those recently launched by AT&T and T-Mobile. During a second-quarter earnings call Thursday morning, CFO Fran Shammo said the company has recognized the demand for such a program but offered little details on what he called “Verizon Edge.”
“I’ll let Verizon Wireless give you the details on that at a later time,” Shammo said.
The world didn’t have to wait long. Verizon Wireless released a press release following the earnings call that revealed detail of Edge. The program, which is similar to AT&T’s will be available to customers on August 25. Customers will be able to choose the phone they want and the full retail price of the phone will be divided over 24 months. Customers will pay the first month at the time of purchase. Like AT&T’s plan, if they want to upgrade after 6 months, they can then pay off 50 percent of the full retail price of the phone and then choose a new phone and start all over again.
Confirmation of the program came as Verizon posted strong second-quarter earnings that revealed the company added just less than one million postpaid retail wireless subscribers. Overall, Verizon recorded a profit of $2.25 billion, which was up from $1.83 billion in the same quarter last year. Total revenues rose 4.3 percent to just under $29.7 billion.
Verizon Wireless continued to see more customers jumping to the company’s LTE network and shared data plans. Fully 59 percent of all data traffic is now carried over LTE and 36 percent of retail postpaid accounts are now on a Share Everything Plan, which allows customers to share data among multiple devices. As of the end of the second quarter, Verizon Wireless had 35 million retail postpaid accounts, with an average of 2.7 connections per account.
The company said it expects quarterly sequential net additions for retail postpaid connections to continue in the second half of 2013.
Smartphone sales continued to rise, topping 7.5 million units, 72 percent of which were LTE capable. Of those smartphones sold, fully 3.9 million, or 52 percent were iPhones.
In the second quarter, Verizon announced its 500th LTE market, essentially completing its 4G rollout. Verizon’s LTE network is now available to more than 95 percent of the U.S. population and covers about 301 million people, including those in areas served by the company’s LTE in Rural America partners.
On the matter of expanding into Canada through acquistions of smaller carriers there, Shammo called the move “exploratory” nature, as it hinges largely on a unpredictable regulatory environment in Canada.
Total wireless revenues during the quarter reached $20 billion during the quarter, up 7.5 percent year over year. Retail postpaid Average Revenue Per Account (ARPA) increased 6.4 percent over second-quarter 2012, to $152.50 per month. Wireless operating income margin was 32.4 percent, compared with 30.8 percent in second-quarter
Shares of Verizon were down 2.6 percent to $49.40 in early trading Thursday.


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Roubaix, 21 January 2015
Steps towards a PCI DSS certified infrastructure
The French group OVH, cloud computing and web infrastructure specialist, has received the PCI DSS certification for its online payment system across all of its brands: OVH.com, So you Start, RunAbove, Kimsufi and hubiC. This certification represents a new token of trust for its customers, as it demonstrates OVH's commitment to the fight against credit and debit card fraud. This step is also part of OVH's global certification strategy to...


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"All entering PharmD students must have a iPod touch (or iPhone) and a computer meeting minimum UF and College of Pharmacy (COP) requirements," the university said on its College of Pharmacy website.
The school, which is ranked as one of the top 10 in the nation by US News and World Report, first began offering its Doctor of Pharmacy online degree program for licensed pharmacist back in 1994. Since then, the curriculum has "grown to be the largest and most sought after pharmacy program for employed pharmacists to earn the Doctor of Pharmacy degree," the school says.
The health care profession in general has been amongst the quickest to latch on to Apple's iPhone and App Store ecosystem ever since the company announced its iPhone Developer program last March.
Medical reference applications, blood glucose monitor accessories, and software that allows obstetricians to use their iPhones to remotely access virtual real-time and historical waveform data for their patients, are just some examples of the growing trend.
The University of Florida's announcement late last week arrives on the heels of a similar requirement set forth in May by the University of Missouri. It too said that beginning this fall, all of its journalism students will be required to own an iPhone or iPod touch.
The university later explained that it won't enforce the requirement, but listed it as such so that students could include the cost of their Apple handhelds in their financial needs estimates.


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Leica is the stuff of legends. Some of the greatest photographers of the past century - Cartier-Bresson, Capa, Salgado, Doisneau, Erwitt - have taken some of their most famous images with a Leica camera.
But legends have a way of ending badly. Analogue photography is being swept aside by the digital revolution - and celebrated names such as Leica, Kodak and AgfaPhoto are threatened or struggling. Now Leica and Agfa are saying they need cash just to survive the coming months.
They are under attack not just from the big Japanese camera makers - Canon, Olympus and Nikon - but from a host of hi-tech firms, many of them new entrants to the photography market. These include Sony, Hewlett- Packard (HP), Sanyo and Casio.
One of the first digital cameras sold to consumers was the Casio QV10, a very basic model retailing for around £800 in 1995. Nowadays, you can buy something much better for one 10th of the price. Mobiles and personal digital assistants (PDAs) can also take snaps, and many will soon provide good-quality pictures. The new Nokia N90 boasts a Carl Zeiss lens, a two-megapixel camera and can re- cord videos. It can also send what it records, almost instantly.
Camera sales are falling in Japan, where one in two households have dropped film in favour of digital. In Europe, only one in four households have gone digital, but prices are falling continually as the market approaches saturation.
"We expect a 10 per cent price decline in the UK this year," says Hiroyuki Matsushita at Sony UK. "We change our range every year to offer something new, something more."
Even the strongest brands are suffering. Olympus, the world's fourth-largest maker of digital cameras and a market leader in the UK, has just announced its first-ever loss and a 30 per cent reduction in production costs. Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, Olympus's president, says: "The cost cuts will have to stay ahead of the 15 to 20 per cent decline in [worldwide] digital camera prices this year."
Digital models are far easier to assemble than their analogue counterparts, although admittedly only Leica spends 11 hours assembling a camera in Germany (the M7 with 1,400 parts). Kodak's digital Easyshare is more typical of the industry: designed in Japan, assembled in China. Such production methods have helped non-traditional camera suppliers enter the market. But the Japanese makers, which supply four-fifths of the world market, intend not to license the next-generation technology to Chinese assemblers. In this way, they can reduce competition and improve margins.
This will not be easy. HP, Casio and, indeed, Sony never made film cameras but have seized the digital opportunity. Within a decade, Sony has become the number-one camera manufacturer in Asia, number two in the US and number four in the UK after Canon, Fuji and Olympus.
Earlier this month Leica, which created the first small film camera in 1913, finally took up the digital challenge with the official launch of the Digital-Modul-R. Like all Leica models, this single-lens reflex camera is almost entirely handmade in Germany. As ever, it aims to be the best of the best; its list price is €4,500 (£3,200).
For decades Leica has occupied an exclusive, high-priced niche in the photography market. Having virtually invented modern photography and photo-reportage, the company has insisted on not following new trends - such as single-lens reflex, auto-focus or digital - until they are so well established, they can't be overlooked.
But despite its undoubted cachet, Leica lacks a clear strategy - something noted by Hermès, the French luxury brand owner and 31 per cent Leica shareholder. It may not contribute to the €50m cash injection that the camera firm has requested of its shareholders.
Patrick Thomas, a director at Hermès, says: "We will only help Leica if its middle- and long-term strategy convinces us."
Leica has to unveil its thinking in the next few days. Without Hermès' support, it could disappear.
The receivers have already been called into AgfaPhoto, the German-based firm that produced the first colour film in 1936. A last-minute rescue package has been agreed thanks to a €50m cash injection from former owner Agfa-Gevaert, the Belgian group. This should see Agfa, the world's third-largest film manufacturer and processor, through the summer. But here too, the future strategy is unclear.
Kodak, the world's largest film maker, and Fuji Film have been much quicker to adapt. This year Kodak became market leader in US digital cameras, outselling Sony and Canon, and number three worldwide. In January, it announced it had stopped producing film cameras.
Daniel Carp, Kodak's recently departed chief executive, said last month: "We expect 2005 to be a crossover point in our 125-year history. For the first time, digital revenues will exceed traditional ones. The increase in digital earnings will be higher than the decrease in traditional earnings."
However, profits are under pressure in the darkroom at Kodak, whose first-quarter loss persuaded the equity and bond markets to downgrade its debt to junk status. A restructuring programme involving 15,000 job losses has been announced, but the company's high-margin, highly protected film market is disappearing fast.
Traditional film sales are still important to Kodak but they are plummeting - they are expected to drop by 30 per cent this year in the US. Investors fear profits will remain hard to achieve. Mr Carp has now handed the reins to Antonio Perez, hired from Hewlett-Packard for his digital know-how.
The darkroom is fast disappearing. All printer makers - such as HP, Canon, Epson and Dell - are highly active in the new digital market, as are retailers. In the US, Wal-Mart has pioneered the uploading of pictures to the internet so they can be picked up within an hour from a local store. This is a business traditionally controlled by Kodak, Fuji and Agfa, the first two of which have responded by creating easy-to-use "printer docking stations" that require no PC. But they face intense competition from Sony, Epson and several others.
"Consumers still want printed pictures," says Mr Matsushita at Sony UK. "Direct photo printers is a key area we are entering."
Unlike Olympus, Canon and Nikon remain profitable. They have succeeded by concentrating on the middle and top end of the camera market.
Kate Robinson of Nikon UK says: "Eighty per cent of professionals use digital cameras, but we have had the most amazing reviews and steady sales of the F6 film camera."
So there may still be some opportunities here for Leica, provided it is ready to seize them. Certainly, the premium market for digital SLR cameras, often costing more than £600, is expected to take off in Europe this year. This should bring significant growth to Canon and Nikon in an area where overall unit sales are still rising but overall value is falling. Cameras remain a buyers' market.
And some of the grand old names are not selling well.Reuse content


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New Volvo car features an external airbag for pedestrians
We’re constantly looking for innovative ways to improve the Springwise experience, and so we’re now introducing BeeLine Reader, a new technology that helps you read more quickly and efficiently. To learn more about BeeLine Reader, an award-winning startup funded by Intel Capital, see BeeLineReader.com.
Internal airbags have become commonplace as a safety feature for car drivers and passengers, but Swedish auto maker Volvo has just announced what it says is a first: an external airbag on the front of the car designed to help protect pedestrians in the event of a collision.
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JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon has reaffirmed his stance on bitcoin while acknowledging that his bank’s clients are interested in the cryptocurrency. “I don’t tell clients what to do,” he said while emphasizing that he does not care about bitcoin.
Jamie Dimon Has No Interest in Bitcoin but His Clients Do
Jamie Dimon talked about bitcoin during The Wall Street Journal CEO Council summit on Tuesday. Reaffirming his stance on the cryptocurrency, the JPMorgan boss elaborated:
I am not a bitcoin supporter. I don’t really care about bitcoin … I have no interest in it.
He noted that he expects his bitcoin comments to draw attention. “I know I’m going to get tons of emails after this,” he said. Back in September 2017, Dimon called bitcoin a fraud.
While the JPMorgan CEO may not support bitcoin, his bank is starting to provide some products that are related to cryptocurrencies. In March, JPMorgan launched a crypto investment product tracking public company stocks with bitcoin exposure. The bank is rumored to soon provide clients access to bitcoin investments.
Dimon admitted that JPMorgan’s clients are interested in bitcoin, stating:
On the other hand, clients are interested and I don’t tell clients what to do … They want to be able to put it on statements, they want to be able to buy and sell it.
“If we can help them do those things very, very safely with all the proper disclosures then, you know … it’s not my job to decide what they’re going to do with their money,” the JPMorgan CEO affirmed. A growing number of corporations are putting bitcoin on their balance sheets, such as Microstrategy, Tesla, and Square.
Daniel Pinto, JPMorgan’s co-president, explained in February that he is certain the demand for bitcoin “will be [there] at some point.” The executive added that “If over time an asset class develops that is going to be used by different asset managers and investors, we will have to be involved.”
Meanwhile, Dimon is pro-blockchain. “Blockchain is real. We use it,” the CEO shared. “But people have to remember that a currency is supported by the taxing authority of a country, the rule of law, a central bank.”
JPMorgan recently highlighted three reasons for investing in bitcoin after its analysts predicted that the price of the cryptocurrency could reach $146K as its competition with gold heats up. The firm subsequently lowered its bitcoin price estimate to $130K but said that clients can put 1% of their portfolios in BTC. In April, Dimon said that cryptocurrencies are emerging issues that need to be dealt with quickly.
What do you think about JPMorgan CEO Jamie Dimon’s comments about bitcoin? Let us know in the comments section below.


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Getting around the New York Safe Act
Shop owner Rich Sehlmeyer holds a legal AR-15 assault-style rifle pistol grip on Saturday, May 25, 2013, at The Gun Shop in Lake Luzerne, N.Y. (Cindy Schultz / Times Union)
You gotta check this article out, looks like an AR to me…
Click here to check out the article associated with the photo.
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Beth Kregor is the director of the Institute for Justice Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago Law School. She & the IJ Clinic have been organizing informational events and providing information and resources in order to help fight Chicago’s oppressive legislation. She gave this testimony at the 7/19/12 public hearing at Chicago city hall in regards to proposed amendments to the food truck legislation.
It was so compelling that, after she finished, she was asked by Chairman Mitts to send in her transcript. We asked her if we could share it with you as well.
Kregor mentioned that this is not 100% accurate as she ad-libbed a bit. We think it’s about 98% accurate.
Chairman Mitts and members of the Committee,
Thank you for allowing all of us to testify today.
My name is Beth Kregor. I am the Director of the IJ Clinic on Entrepreneurship at the University of Chicago Law School. I advocate for the little businesses that built Chicago, especially those who are trying to start a new business with a small budget.
I study the effects of regulation on entrepreneurship. I study how the laws that specify exactly how businesses should operate can freeze the business world in time and make it very difficult for the creative, innovative entrepreneurs to break in. And yet, the statistics show that the creative entrepreneurs who do something different, who draw consumers to a new business model, are the very people who create the most jobs in our economy. If you want Chicagoans to create jobs, you have to let them start new businesses that shake things up a bit.
I understand the temptation you face to preserve the status quo. It’s easy to focus on the established, traditional businesses like restaurants and think of them as constituents who need your protection. But remember that the restaurants are asking you to protect their financial interests, and the food trucks are asking you for freedom. In this country, freedom trumps protectionism every time.
Read more at Food Truck Freak


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Washington-based manufacturer eyes entry into COE truck market
Left holding a dual-steer street sweeper chassis design following the closure of a customer about 2 ½ years ago, Gary Jones and his team debated what to do.
“When the company went under, we said ‘what are we going to do?’” Jones told Fleet Owner. “So I said, ‘why not just build a truck? The more we got into it, the more we kind of liked it.”


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Sony has unveiled two very non-pricey, highly affordable point and shoot Cyber-shots with high end specs. The DSC-TX1 and DSC-WX1 are both new additions to Sony’s Cyber-shot range. Sony has blessed the TX1 and WX1 with a back-illuminated CMOS sensor, the Exmor R. If you’re wondering why the duo will have near DSLR specs, its mainly because of its sensor. Their sensors will be based on those found in Sony’s DSLRs, this promises to deliver optimal low-light performance without help from a flash or tripod – something that not many point and shoots are doing so well at the moment.
Both 10.2 megapixel TX1 and WX1 will be under the stunning budget price of $380. The $350 WX1 features the exact same G Lens, low-light optimized Exmor R CMOS sensor and Sweep Panaroma mode as seen in Sony’s $500 HX1 mega zoom camera.
Nintendo has announced that a new black version of its popular video game console Wii will be arriving in August. Those of you who have held up on buying the original white colour themed Wii for the past two years may now finally be tempted to a make purchase.
Though there won’t be any changes in terms of hardware, I must say that the black Wii as well as its black Wiimote pictured looks amazing.
While we know how pricey the Sony VAIO P Series may already be, we didn’t get to really try it out and get hands on with it recently. After having done that at the Gadget Show Live recently, we truly agree that if you had the desire and the money to spend on the new Sony portable beast then you should also drop your coin on this, Vaja’s leather made “ivolution suit”.
SlashGear appears to have received a demo unit of the new HTC Touch Diamond flagship – the Diamond2, which was announced back in the MWC this year. Just unboxing, it wasn’t very impressive at all, the box didn’t even say HTC and the accessories that were included were just standard. But the handset itself appears nice, larger screen compared to the first gen HTC Touch Diamond and its also gained a higher resolution camera five megapixel, still no flash though.
Check out the video below: Continue reading »
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Straight after the Easter long weekend, Nikon has now announced the recently much rumored D5000. With a 2.7-inch articulating display, the D5000 is equipped with a 12.3 megapixel DX-format sensor that maxes out at ISO 3200 with a 4fps burst rate, sports one-button Live View, and 720/24p movie mode. Other features include an 11-point AF system with 3D focus tracking and 19 scene modes. With a number of high end features, the price tag is pretty heavy as well, the D5000 will cost $849 with a 18-55 VR kit lens, or $729 for just the body – not surprisingly, this price tag is just under that of the Canon T1i.


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FDA Clears Echosens' Non-Invasive Liver Diagnostic System
6/5/2013 8:07:20 AM
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FDA clearance for Echosens’ FibroScan non-invasive liver diagnostic tool marks the last major market approval for the device. The 510k clearance for Echosense marks the last major market to approve the FibroScan device. The Paris, France-based medical device company first introduced the FebroScan in Europe in 2003, and it has since won approvals in 70 countries.
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74% of consumers say they will wait longer for deliveries for personalized products and experiences from smaller, more unique brands.
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. — July 20, 2021— Kenco Logistics, one of North America’s leading third-party logistics (3PL) providers, today released its 2021 eCommerce Consumer Survey, which identifies key consumer trends and preferences across eCommerce shopping habits, sustainability, delivery, and more.
Conducted in May, the survey analyzed responses from nearly 1,300 U.S. consumers representing a wide variety of ages, incomes, and geographic regions. The results reveal a consumer base that values convenience and sustainability and will reward brands that can deliver a mix of both with their business. While 81% of consumers still shop online most frequently with Amazon and big box retailers for their low prices and convenience, today’s eCommerce consumers are conflicted in aligning their principles with their purchases, creating new market opportunities.
Surging eCommerce adoption is here to stay
The pandemic has proven its profound impact on consumer shopping habits, with relentless online order volumes continuing to challenge logistics networks at every level. And this impact shows no sign of fading.
- 41% of consumers make online purchases once a week
- Nearly 20% of consumers make online purchases multiple times a week
- 84% of consumers expect their online purchases to increase or remain the same post-pandemic.
“The pandemic drove record volumes of consumers to online shopping channels for the products and services they need during the pandemic,” said Dan Coll, vice president, eCommerce Fulfillment at Kenco. “This commitment to eCommerce is paving the way for brands to capitalize on digital sales growth and with the data showing most consumers expect to maintain and increase these new levels post-pandemic, eCommerce adoption is here to stay.”
Amazon and Big box retailers take eCommerce lion’s share, but create consumer guilt
The undeniably growing preference for eCommerce only confirms Amazon and big box stores’ continued domination of the market, with 81% of consumers choosing to most frequently shop online with these goliath retailers. When asked to rank their reasons for most frequently shopping online with either Amazon or big box retailers, price, user-friendly experiences, and availability came out on top.
- 39% ranked price as their number one reason
- 24% ranked ease of use (website, mobile app, etc.) as their number one reason
- 21% ranked availability of products as their number one reason
However, shopping online with Amazon or big box retailers is creating widespread consumer unease about the ethics involved in purchasing from a large chain store.
- 36% of consumers associate shopping online with Amazon or big box retailers with feelings of guilt.
Of the consumers who feel guilty:
- 74% feel they’re taking away from small businesses
- 68% feel they’re contributing toward unsustainable practices involved in packaging, manufacturing, and labor
- 50% feel they’re not supporting more socially responsible companies (ethical, minority-owned, environmentally conscious, etc.)
The data reveals that these feelings of guilt associated with making Amazon or big box purchases increase as consumer age decreases, showing trends towards environmentally and/or socially conscious shopping will only continue to gain momentum.
Consumers will wait for personalized, eco-friendly experiences
This consumer guilt is seemingly driving more lenient customer experience expectations, particularly for smaller, more unique organizations, according to the survey results. While nearly half (49%) of consumers prefer two-day delivery, most are willing to wait longer for deliveries for more personalized and sustainable products and experiences.
- 74% of consumers are either highly likely or likely to wait longer for deliveries for more personalized products and experiences from smaller, more unique brands
- 69% of consumers are either highly likely or likely to forgo faster delivery options for more sustainable options such as delaying deliveries by grouping orders or combining orders with others on the same route.
“The expectations levied toward Amazon and big box retailers are being eased for smaller, unique, and sustainable brands that more closely align with consumer values,” said David Hauptman, chief commercial officer at Kenco. “While consumers demand low prices and fast delivery times from national and global chains, they’re more forgiving when they know their dollars are contributing to sustainable or socially conscious practices. Small business owners can worry less about providing instant gratification if they’re offering quality, unique, and sustainable products.”
Although sustainability is top of mind for consumers, it’s often not commercially realized. The brands that can merge these seemingly at odd consumer needs – ethics and convenience – have an opportunity to capture the market. Companies are doing this by streamlining their supply chains at every touchpoint to reduce costs and delivery times wherever they can, freeing up capital that can be redirected towards sustainable business practices.
To view the survey infographic, visit info.kencogroup.com/2021-ecommerce-consumer-survey .
Kenco provides integrated logistics solutions that include distribution and fulfillment, comprehensive transportation management, material handling services, real estate management, and information technology—all engineered for Operational Excellence. Woman-owned and financially strong, Kenco has built lasting customer relationships for 70 years. Kenco’s focus is on common sense solutions that drive uncommon value. Also, connect with Kenco on Facebook, and LinkedIn.


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FMR LLC, the parent company of Fidelity Investments, is backing a new venture-capital fund whose initial investments span spices, vegan vitamins and skincare.
(Bloomberg) — FMR LLC, the parent company of Fidelity Investments, is backing a new venture-capital fund whose initial investments span spices, vegan vitamins and skincare.
Unfold Ventures began marketing itself Monday, launching with $300 million from FMR, which counts the billionaire Johnson family as its biggest shareholder.
The fund spent about a year prior to the launch quietly investing in four startups in health, wellness and beauty. The majority of the fund’s assets have not yet been invested.
Unfold has three partners including Scott Norton, who co-founded a buzzy condiment company that was sold to Unilever for roughly $140 million in 2017, Bloomberg reported at the time. He said the new fund is seeking young companies that stand out and have a loyal following.
“It’s exactly in moments like now — when there’s a pullback — where there are compelling, timeless companies to find,” Norton said. “Sustainable businesses are being separated from unsustainable businesses.”
Unfold will invest on behalf of FMR’s deep-pocketed owners, which include the Johnson clan — one of the world’s wealthiest families. Abigail Johnson, the Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity, is worth $34.8 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. FMR’s other venture funds include F-Prime Capital, which oversees $4.5 billion and invests in health-care and technology companies.
Unfold is navigating a precarious environment for startups. Higher interest rates have quashed much venture funding activity and early-stage startups, which have a high rate of failure, are under the added pressure of tighter borrowing conditions. A wave of businesses, including in the consumer-products industry, have failed under the stress of steeper rates.
The companies that have received investments from Unfold so far include beauty and skincare brand Live Tinted; spice and seasonings company Kinder’s; vegan-vitamin purveyor MaryRuth Organics; and Beekeeper’s Naturals, which sells immune-support products derived from bees.
Unfold has a staff of five, including partners Shamez Kanji and Suzanne Agnello.
More stories like this are available on bloomberg.com
©2023 Bloomberg L.P.


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Opel has introduced the new Karl ecoFLEX. It features 1.0-liter thee-cylinder engine with a start/stop system.
Opel has introduced the new Karl ecoFLEX.
Looking virtually identical to the standard model, the Karl EcoFlex has a 1.0-liter Ecotec three-cylinder petrol engine that develops 75 PS (55 kW). However, the car is equipped with an engine start/stop system which enables it to return 4.1 L/100km (57.3 mpg US / 68.8 mpg UK) with CO2 emissions of 94 g/km.
The model is currently available to order and German pricing starts at €9,950.
Besides introducing the EcoFlex variant, Opel announced the Karl will be offered with OnStar and a new IntelliLink infotainment system starting this fall.


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Mega Man creator founds new studio
It appears that Kenji Inafune is enjoying his new found independence by founding his own studio.
According to Siliconera, Inafune has been handing out business cards for his new venture to others in the Japanese games industry.
The news was broken over Twitter by an excited analyst who had just met the former Capcom R and D boss for the first time in two years.
The Mega Man creator's new business venture is apparently called Comcept although there are no more details available on what the new company will be doing.
- Valve's Chet Faliszek has been confirmed as the first developer session for EGX Rezzed 2015
- One area from Zelda Wii U is as big as the entirety of Skyward Sword
- Telltale's new collaboration is with Mojang, on a Minecraft story game
- Franklin voice actor indicates GTA V story DLC is on the way
- Red Dead Redemption, LA Noire and Bully sequels will come when the time is right says Rockstar
- Telltale teases another collaboration with another game developer
- New Company Of Heroes 2: Ardennes Assault trailer recognizes the 70th anniversary of the Battle of the Bulge
- New Call Of Duty: Advanced Warfare trailer focuses on character customization
- Splash Damage's free-to-play shooter Dirty Bomb coming to Steam in the new year


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The celebrity weapons include Australians Kylie Minogue, Colette Dinnigan and Elle Macpherson, as well as top lingerie model Helena Christensen.
In December, British lingerie retailer Agent Provocateur unveiled a 90-second commercial featuring pop star Kylie Minogue in racy looking black lingerie straddling a mechanical bull and proclaiming the company’s products are “the world’s most erotic lingerie.”
It’s regarded as a calculated effort to generate maximum publicity for a company already known for risque marketing campaigns, such as X-rated playing cards, catalogs and phallic window displays. Interest in the London-based star is at a fever pitch in Europe, where her single “Can’t Get You Out of My Head,” has been number one in 13 countries.
“We knew we were going to get a big reaction, but we would have preferred it if the publicity had happened at the time the ad was released,” said Joe Corre, who launched the Agent Provocateur concept with Serena Rees with one store in London’s Soho in 1994 — 20 years after Corre’s parents, Vivienne Westwood and Malcolm McLaren, changed the name of their Kings Road boutique in London to “Sex” and began selling specialty rubber lingerie and fetishist clothing.
Initially planning to open an “erotic department store,” Corre and Lees ended up with lingerie, spotting a market gap between traditional department store brands and adult fare.
The duo has since opened two stores, in London and Los Angeles, and introduced a fragrance in 2000. Annual retail sales now exceed $5 million, said Corre, noting that mail-order and Web-site sales have increased 200 percent in the last 12 months.
Although Minogue said she did the Agent Provocateur ad as a favor, some might argue the move is clever preemptive marketing for Minogue’s own line called Love Kylie, which was launched here in April by Holeproof and is slated for a European rollout by 2003. Holeproof’s parent, Pacific Dunlop, claims a 35 percent share of Australia’s estimated $390 million intimate apparel market. (All figures are converted to the U.S. dollar at current exchange rates.)
On Nov. 30, Pacific Dunlop sold its Pacific Brands division — comprising Sara Lee’s Australian brands — to an investor consortium led by CVC Asia Pacific Ltd. and investment managers Pty Ltd. for $379 million.
The Love Kylie brand is already a top performer at the 73-unit Myer Grace Bros. department store chain here, according to store officials, and was a sellout within a fortnight of it’s mid-September delivery at the Brazin’s Bras ‘N Things chain.
“It’s pretty spectacular and very unusual for something to go that quickly in Australia,” said Brazin’s managing director, Ian Duffell.
But Kylie is not alone in London. In late November, Marks & Spencer introduced its second lingerie sub-brand: a 14-stockkeeping-unit range called Wild Hearts from Sydney’s Colette Dinnigan. Released initially into 12 of M&S’s 300 units, the launch is being supported by a print and point-of-sale campaign shot by Ellen von Unwerth and featuring Danish model Helena Christensen.
Rory Scott, business unit director for lingerie at M&S, said he expects the Wild Hearts line could generate retail sales of $7 million to $11 million its first year. In March, Scott will expand distribution to an additional 13 M&S stores and plans to reintroduce the Salon Rose lingerie brand, which was initially designed by Agent Provocateur.
Dinnigan designed and exported lingerie for two years before branching out into ready-to-wear in 1994. In the U.K., her primary lingerie line is stocked at Selfridges and Dinnigan’s freestanding Chelsea Green boutique.
Selfridges is also getting a piece of the lingerie action with top model Elle Macpherson. The Elle Macpherson Intimates (EMI) line bowed Sept. 30 and, according to the retailer, has quickly become its number-one-fitting brand. The launch was supported by a print and marketing campaign.
“EMI injected a certain newness into the fitting side of our business and is doing very well — certainly beating Triumph and Warner’s,” said Jane Yeo, Selfridges intimate apparel and swimwear buyer.
The line was initially launched in the Australasia region in 1990 by the Auckland, New Zealand-based Bendon Group. Bendon declined to give figures, but industry sources said EMI accounted for 40 percent of the firm’s $33 million volume in fiscal 2001.


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Dr Pepper Responds To Guns N’ Roses Debacle
DR PEPPER RESPONDS TO GUNS N’ ROSES DEBACLE:
December 2, 2008
Beverage company Dr Pepper Snapple Group responded to the Guns N’Roses controversy on Tuesday after singer Axl Rose blamed the beverage giant for botching a promotional effort that promised fans free beverage coupons if they managed to log onto Dr Pepper’s Web site and sign up for a free Dr Pepper coupon during a limited period in which the company was celebrating the belated release of Guns N’Roses’ Chinese Democracy album.
During the first stretch of the campaign, free Dr Pepper seekers flooded the Web site, which caused the site to crash, making it difficult for others to sign on.
Dr Pepper extended the campaign to accommodate beverage seekers who experienced the site crash.
According to an interview given to CNN, Guns N’ Roses lawyer Laurie Soriano said the campaign and its shortcomings were wrongfully associated with Axl Rose. In the interview with CNN, Rose’s attorney said her client wants the company to make good on the offer.
In a statement Tuesday, Plano-based Dr Pepper Snapple Group (NYSE: DPS) said, “We are disappointed that GNR’s lawyers are turning a fun giveaway into a legal dispute. We simply commented on the delayed release of Chinese Democracy and openly encouraged the band to release it before the end of the year. Axl even expressed support for our efforts earlier in the year.”
The Plano company added that the management team for Guns N’Roses approached them before the campaign launch and Dr Pepper Snapple Group openly shared their promotional plans with the team.
Dr Pepper Snapple Group added that it has already taken steps to compensate fans who tried to enter the Web site during the initial leg of the promotion. The company says it extended the deadline from 24 hours to 42 hours, added a toll-free hotline for customers who experienced difficulties logging on and activated a voice recorder that is interactive and able to record promotional coupon requests. The company also said a week after the campaign, Dr Pepper Snapple continued offering coupons to anyone who experienced problems during the initial launch.
“This was one of the largest responses we have ever received for a giveaway, and we’re happy we were able to satisfy the thirst of so many Dr Pepper fans,” Dr Pepper Snapple Group said. “We wish Guns N’Roses the best with their album.”
Courtesy of dallas.bizjournals.com


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The video features Krotos founder Orfeas Boteas, Matthew Collings, Steve Whetman, Andrew Dodds and more:
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DEARBORN, Michigan (AP) — Ford Motor Co. says its U.S. sales rose 15 percent in 2010 thanks to strong demand for its pickups and sedans.
The company sold 1.9 million cars and trucks and grabbed market share from rivals including General Motors and Toyota. Ford says 2010 was the second year in a row it gained U.S. market share, its first back-to-back increase since 1993.
The Ford F-150 pickup was the best-selling vehicle in the U.S. last year. The company also saw strong sales of its Fusion midsize sedan and Edge, which has the roominess of an SUV but handles like a car. Sales of Ford's luxury Lincoln brand rose only 4 percent for the year.
Without the Volvo brand, which Ford sold last fall, Ford's sales climbed 19 percent for the year.
© Copyright 2023 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.


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New Delhi: Bizongo, a B2B e-commerce and supply chain activation platform, today announced the acquisition of Hexa, a cloud platform for university internships, based in Bengaluru. This is the very first acquisition of the B2B SaaS platform, which is set to innovate and launch new products in the bespoke segment in the coming months.
Hexa Co-Founder Shubam Goyal, Product Manager, will join Bizongo as Senior Product Manager and Sushmita Chavan, Head of Business Operations at Hexa, will join as Product Intelligence Specialist along with six other members of the team.
Ankit Tomar, Co-Founder and CTO at Bizongo said, “Bizongo has experienced strong growth over the past year due to our staff and continuous product innovation. The Hexa team has demonstrated a unique ability to stay true to its core business: creating technological solutions that bring complete transformation to processes that have been manual and tedious until now. We are delighted to have Shubam, Sushmita and the team to drive Bizongo’s vision of championing digital transformation in the B2B personalized product segment. Their passion and entrepreneurial spirit perfectly match our team.
Ankit added: “We are happy to create opportunities for young founders and entrepreneurs that give them a chance to work with the teams they have formed and continue to work towards a common goal.”
Bizongo aims to add nearly 100 people to its product, engineering and sales team by December 2022. The tech company is actively considering the acquisition as a way to bolster its workforce.
Shubam Goyal, co-founder of Hexa, said: “We are very happy to be part of Bizongo, an industry leader in the B2B platform category. We’ve always believed in creating products that solve some critical human challenges, and with Hexa we’ve had enough success. We believe our team will add a lot of value to Bizongo. “
Launched in April 2020, Hexa is a cloud platform to increase college placement rate. The startup prepares students with industry-ready skills and allows colleges to connect with more companies for on-campus hiring.
“We are very happy to join the Bizongo team. Hexa has always believed in a cohesive group of innovators and the acquisition has given us the opportunity to continue working as a team, ”added Sushmita Chavan, co-founder of Hexa.
During their 10-month journey, Hexa partnered with over 25 colleges, over 10 partner companies, and onboarded 15,000 students on its platform.
Bizongo’s acquisition follows its $ 110 million fundraising in its Series D funding round led by New York-based Tiger Global Management. B2B SaaS highlighted strengthening its product and engineering team as one of the key areas for deploying new capital.


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Whole Foods Joins Monsanto Try to Kill GMO Labeling in America Learn
Some breaking reports point out that Whole Foods Market (WFM) has become a partner with Monsanto. Their idea is to kill the GMO label and to disguise this one with a new “GMO label compromise”. In fact, this is a fake label that requires no labeling of GMOs.
The Food Democracy Now alarmed that these sellout corporations have betrayed the health-conscious customers with a sellout arrangement which makes an illegal GMO labeling.
People were never more deceived on labeling of food than now. By this, Whole Foods sticks to the position of poison-distribution associate of Monsanto, one of the cruelest corporation which produces deadly and poisonous crops loaded with glyphosate and bt toxin, both a cancerous herbicide.
As a result of this betrayal, instead of Whole Foods, this company can be called Poison Foods, because this is what they stick to.
The Food Democracy Now announced that Whole Foods joins Monsanto in order to kill the GMO label in America.
In Washington D.C, the national grassroots organizations demonstrated their shock and rage towards a group of self-named organic companies that have arranged to kill the mandatory GMO label on food products and thus prevent the first state legislation of this kind that was about to happen on July 1st in Vermont, and require a labeling on genetically engineered food in laboratories.
Companies such as Organic Valley, Smucker’s and Whole Foods have spent a lot on advertising campaigns and public relations in order to promote themselves as organic brands. Nowadays, they are being criticized for selling out the GMO label which the environment and public health urge the public to fight back.
Dave Murphy, the executive director of Food Democracy Now stated that these self-described organic companies, Organic Valley, Smucker’s and Whole Foods joined the Monsanto group and sold out the parents’ ability to know what they are feeding their children.
He also added that the new fake labeling bill of Whole Foods and Monsanto will not only prevent Vermont’s bill for that week but all of the provisions are optional. The bill’s language is so poor and not only it does not include 85% of the current GMOs on the market. Such example is the Roundup Ready, Monsanto’s GMO product which the World Health Organization has declared as a carcinogenic product due to the glyphosate it contains.
The Organic Consumers Association and the Food Democracy Now are now leaders of the grassroots pressure campaign that urges the US Senate to block the legislative deal.
Ronnie Cummins, the international director of the Organic Consumers Association, states that the customers need to resist this attack on their right because this is an outrageous attack on their right to know what’s is in their food.
The votes regularly show that almost 90% of the Americans want to know whether they consume a genetically engineered food or not and the Vermont GMO labeling law forced many food companies to reveal GMO contamination in their products.
Cummins also points out that at the last minute, a group of self-described organic leaders such as the head of the Whole Foods Marker, Walter Robb, the CEO of Stonyfield Farm, Gary Hirshberg, the pro GMO labeling group, Just Label It run by the Environmental Working Group, lobbyists for the organic companies inside the Organic Trade Association, made a corrupt agreement with the Congress thus embracing the Dark Act compromise also known as Roberts bill/The Stabenow.
So, a coalition of independent consumers’ groups and family organic companies actively works to get Senators the real truth about this bill while the Organic Trade Association and its organic companies work behind the scenes in order to confuse Senators about the what in fact is in the bill. That’s why millions of people in America actually support GMO label and are not represented by their corrupt interest.
Take an Immediate Action or Be Forever Cheated by Monsanto and Whole Foods
So, call your senator and appeal they vote against this labeling compromise which is implied by Monsanto.
In 2016, July 7, the US Senate voted 63-30 in favor of legislation which requires that GMO products need to be labeled with pictures, words or barcode.
Some support this decision, pointing out that is a step in the right direction while other criticize the vagueness of the bill. What is important is to express your concerns to the government representatives and food industry corporations so that real changes keep on happening.


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The latest rumors of a new 12-inch MacBook Air model describe an ultra-thin laptop that drops nearly all of its physical ports for a single audio jack and USB 3.1 Type-C connector, features that were first revealed last April and further detailed in specifications documents released by Intel, with significant contributions by Apple, in September.
Though recent shortages of the iPod shuffle caused concern that Apple might discontinue its clip-on media player, a new report reveals that the issues are only temporary, as a result of a supplier change.
Before the Apple Watch hits the market early this year, a Chinese company was at this week's CES selling a knock-off version of the highly anticipated wearable for less than one-tenth of the price.
Mac owners who regularly make use of OS X's built-in Mail application and Spotlight search should take care when searching through e-mail messages, as Spotlight's preview functionality has been shown to ignore Mail's remote content settings and could inadvertently transmit unintended data to email senders.
Apple will reportedly turn to longtime supplier and sometimes-rival Samsung to fabricate the application processor for the forthcoming Apple Watch, while Taiwan's Advanced Semiconductor Engineering is said to have been chosen to package the new device's S1 processing module.
The annual Consumer Electronics Show is now in the books, and AppleInsider offers a summary of some of the best Apple-compatible accessories we spied on the show floor on the third and final day in Las Vegas, including Lightning-connected headphones, more home automation accessories, and even a smart plant sensor.
Consumers in the United States will no longer face a backlog when purchasing an iPhone 6 or 6 Plus from Apple's online store, as supplies of the popular smartphones appear to have reached parity with demand nearly four months after their release.
Apple's previously announced App Store price adjustments took effect on schedule on Friday, representing a slight increase in the minimum possible price for applications in the European Union, the U.K., Canada and Norway.
After unveiling its upcoming NuBryte cloud-connected smart home console last year, Lucis Technologies brought a working model to the showroom floor at CES, demoing the console's automated lighting and security features.
At its CES booth this year, Philips showed off its Fidelio M2L headphones, which hold the title as the world's first the world's first Lightning-connected headphones.
A California judge on Thursday dismissed a lawsuit claiming Apple sold MacBooks to customers knowing the laptops contained defective logic boards and would fail within two years.
Earlier this week, Elgato announced a new smart home product ecosystem called Eve. The company brought a few Eve modules, as well as other devices, set for imminent release to CES, offering AppleInsider a first-hand look.
Accessory maker parrot expanded its lineup of iOS-connected products at CES with the award-winning RNB6 CarPlay-enabled head unit and H2O standalone plant sensor/automated watering device.
Following a horrific attack on satirical French magazine Charlie Hebdo that left 12 dead, Apple on Thursday added to its official regional website a full-width black banner reading "Je suis Charlie."
After being pushed downward across the first week of 2015, Apple's stock surged $4.14 today to close at $111.89, adding over $24.27 billion to the company's market capitalization.
Apple is pushing harder to sell hardware to enterprise and government markets, and has bolstered those efforts with the hire of a longtime executive at PC maker Hewlett-Packard, it was revealed on Thursday.
Pella Windows and Doors is at CES this week, showing off its new Insynctive family of smart home products, bringing iOS connectivity to sensors for doors, shades, blinds, garages and more.
Six months after Apple first announced a program that would allow headphone manufacturers to connect their cans directly to an iOS device's Lightning port, the first models to take full advantage of the Lightning port's capabilities are being shown off at the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas.
An image circling the Web on Thursday purports to show a piece of production tooling for Apple's rumored "iPad Pro," though there is scant evidence to back up the assertions. In fact, the part depicted appears more likely to be designed for Apple's Smart Cover than a forthcoming iPad.
Apple on Thursday touted the success of its App Store, revealing that the digital storefront saw billings rise 50 percent last year, generating over $10 billion in revenue for developers.


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Something to consider before forking out $3.50 for your next latte.
A new study from Australian and Canadian researchers suggests that merely being exposed to mental ‘cues’ about coffee is enough to perk our brains up and make us more likely to concentrate on the task at hand.
The researchers ran four different experiments where they prompted participants to brainstorm slogans for a fake coffee manufacturer, and then measured their focus levels and heart rates.
Amazingly, exposing the participants to thoughts of coffee resulted in better concentration.
An interesting note: the study only found this to be the case for people from Western countries – because they’re more likely to mentally link coffee with ideas like alertness, ambition or productivity.
The research showed that coffee cues has almost no additional effect on people from cultures where tea-drinking is more common – such as Japan, China and Korea.
Time to wake up and think about that coffee.


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Go to Admin » Appearance » Widgets » and move Gabfire Widget: Social into that MastheadOverlay zone
BANGKOK, 29 November 2009 (NNT) – The government’s income guarantee scheme for agriculturalists can improve the prices of farm products, according to the Prime Minister.
Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva stated that he would preside over the money transfer ceremony for cassava growers under the farmers’ income guarantee program tomorrow at the Bank of Agriculture and Agricultural Cooperatives (BACC), the Marketing Organization for Farmers Branch in Bangkok after experiencing a successful target for rice and maize farmers. He urged all relevant authorities to speedily make contracts with qualified agricuturalists in an effort to fulfill the government’s objective.
The country has currently yielded benefits from rising rice price after several nations plagued by natural disasters, in particular the People’s Republic of China, have recently showed their interests in purchasing Thailand’s rice, said the Prime Minister, adding that the the National Rice Policy Committee was considering lowering their rice stockpile without affecting the trading price.


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Home / News & Polls /
Thursday, June 11, 2009
New York, NY – A new study conducted by Ipsos Marketing, Consumer Goods indicates that global consumers have readjusted their priorities regarding food products. Fresher ingredients. Increased health benefits. More environmentally friendly packaging. These are the top priorities global consumers are placing on food companies.
Please login to view the full story.
Copyright © 2016 Ipsos in North America.


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Plus, top picks with biggest discounts at Shopee and Lazada
The two powerhouse online shopping apps are at it again. And if there are sales competition between online stores that offer the best deals this September 9, there will be happy customers who get to save a lot on the products they’ve been ready to check out for quite some time now. Let’s get started
A star-studded affair starts with their Super Show VIP Night Special on September 8, 9:30pm. It’s a two-hour show featuring a lot of celebrities and personalities, giving shoppers a chance to win over P9 million worth of prizes and vouchers. Bonus vouchers will be given from August 31 to September 11, including P50 discount for every P500 spent.
Products are also discounted up to 90 percent off including Deerma products up to 70 percent off, Payless up to 75 percent off, with Puma, Tefal, and TOMS at up to 50 percent off.
A lot of credit and debit cards have also joined the big sale day, giving discounts with a minimum purchase so be sure to check those out.
Dyson V11 Fluffy+ Vacuum is discounted from P42,900 to P30,029; Nespresso Inissia Coffee Maker from P8,900 to P7,500; Levi’s engineered jeans from P6,000 to P,1999; OVICX Q2S Plus Treadmill from P43,995 to P29,500 — these are definitely great deals. And you can get more if you plan them well. Enjoy free shipping and 20 percent cash back. You can also get a chance to win free money until September 11 by using their ShopeePay wallet. Fifty percent off bills payment is also available on ShopeePay for a limited time only.
And if you want more of their latest endorser Jackie Chan, tune in one September 9 from 9:00-9:30 p.m. to watch the exclusive interview.
To add to the excitement, customers can also avail a 10 percent discount using J&T Express’ exclusive promo code SHPJT99 with a minimum spend of Php 500.00 and capped at Php 100.00 on September 9 only. “Filipinos are very generous, which is why when they buy, they don’t just buy for themselves. We are happy and excited to share the holiday spirit by offering discounted vouchers and promos with our e-commerce app partner to make gift-giving happier even during these tough times. We look forward to continuously supporting Shopee on their upcoming campaigns,” says vice president of J&T Express Philippines Zoe Chi.


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On September 9, 2015, the Federal Service for Supervision of Communications, Information Technology and Mass Communications (the “Roskomnadzor”) reported on its website that it blocked an extensive online database of more...more
There is no doubt cloud computing has delivered multiple benefits to the IT organization. However, without proper management and controls, these benefits could become a non-trivial expense to the organization. In a Wall...more
Cyber risk is now firmly at the top of the international agenda as high-profile breaches raise fears that hack attacks and other security failures could endanger the global economy.
The Global Risks 2015 report,...more
Strange as it sounds, maybe we’re getting closer to the day we have to seriously consider liability for computer conspiracies.
On April 6, David Topkins, a former executive of an e-commerce seller of posters, prints and...more
ECtHR rules that French dawn raids in Vinci/GTM case breached fundamental rights -
The European Court of Human Rights (the “ECtHR”) has ruled in the Vinci case that the circumstances surrounding the electronic removal of...more
Scott & Scott, LLP attorney, Christopher Barnett,, helps you answer whether hosting Microsoft products through third parties is a good option for your company....more
As previously reported, at midnight on April 12, 2014, the Executive Office for Immigration Review (EOIR) experienced a catastrophic hardware failure that rendered inaccessible many of its applications. As a result, many...more
In an astonishing display of chutzpah, the Department of Energy has proposed to regulate computer servers as “consumer products” (link). Only in a bureaucrat’s mind could a computer server be considered a consumer product...more
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MILAN, April 16 (Reuters) - Italian appliance maker De’ Longhi said Monday it bought perpetual rights to manufacture Braun branded products from Procter & Gamble in the small appliance segment, which has annual reveue of about 200 million euros.
Procter & Gamble will continue to own the Braun brand.
De’ Longhi will acquire “certain production assets” in Germany from Procter & Gamble, the Italian company said.
De’ Longhi will pay 50 million euros when the accord is finalized, and 90 million euros over the next 15 years.
It will also pay up to 74 million euros (at current value) on the basis of Braun sales over the first five years of the agreement.


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Ford India broke ground on Monday for second Indian manufacturing facility in Sanand, Gujarat, India’s Hindu newspaper reported.
Ford will invest around $1 billion to build new vehicle manufacturing and engine plants in Gujarat, the paper said.
The new facility is expected to create around 5,000 jobs. It will be able to initially produce 240,000 vehicles and 270,000 engines a year. The first vehicle and engine are scheduled to come off the line in 2014.
Currently, all vehicles sold by Ford in India are built at its $375 million factory in Maraimalai Nagar, 45 kms. from Chennai. That plant employs about 2,000 people and has a capacity of 100,000 vehicles a year.
Earlier this month, Peugeot became the third major automaker to choose Gujarat for its new manufacturing center, following Ford and Tata Motors — which wound up in Gujarat after political turmoil derailed the Nano project in West Bengal. The government of Tamil Nadu was reportedly “in dismay,” over losing the Peugeot deal, according to the Hindu.


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Softr, a no-code platform for building business apps on Airtable data, raises $13.5M
Missed a Future of Work Summit session? Head over to our Future of Work Summit on-demand library to stream.
The burgeoning no-code/low-code movement shows few signs of slowing down, with companies across all industry sectors looking for ways to increase productivity by enabling anyone to build software through visual dashboards by compared to traditional code-based programming.
One company looking to capitalize on this trend is Softer, a no-code web app building platform that launched a year ago and has attracted over 35,000 business customers and builders. The German company announced today that it has raised $13.5 million in a Series A funding round, as it sets out to build what it calls “the largest ecosystem in the world. world for building apps without code”.
Go without code
Unlike popular template-based web building platforms such as Wix or Squarespace, which are more focused on static websites, Softr is all about enabling feature-rich, interactive, and content-filled web applications. CRUD (create, read, update, delete) operations and access controls around authentication, roles and permissions in business and consumer applications.
With Softr, anyone can transform their business data and manual workflows into custom applications, spanning marketplaces, online communities, internal tools, customer portals, directories, and more. But to do so, they must be active users of air table, the popular business collaboration tool that sits somewhere between a spreadsheet and a database.
In truth, there are countless similar-sounding tools already out there, from heavily VC-backed Webflow to new entrants such as Stacker, Retool, Appian, Google Application sheet, from Amazon honey code …the list goes on.
So what is Softr’s heart purpose, in a field seemingly overflowing with options?
“Softr introduces a fundamentally different approach to building custom applications,” Mariam Hakobyan, CEO of Softr, told VentureBeat. “Its unique approach is the Lego-like building experience and out-of-the-box business logic – instead of building the apps pixel by pixel, it lets you build it like Lego.”
Indeed, Softr constitutes building blocks, each block representing a “logical piece” of the application. This includes frontend functionality, business logic, and backend tools including authentication, payments, charts, lists, calendars, and more. the Kanban block, as you’d expect, allows users to view Airtable data in a Kanban board layout.
With this approach, Hakobyan said Softr cracked up “the golden middle”, which eases the process of developing web applications without compromising functionality.
“Any business user can create customer portals, internal tools and dashboards in 30 minutes, with no learning curve, powered by their data,” she said. “This approach also makes all apps built with Softr automatically responsive and work perfectly on mobile and tablet, which is a problem on all other platforms without code and must be built from scratch.”
But what if a company doesn’t use Airtable? Well, for now that would be a hurdle, but Softr plans to become a “data source agnostic” platform, with support for additional sources like Google Sheets, relational databases, REST APIs, etc.
show me the money
Founded in Berlin in 2019, Softr previously raised a small seed round of $2.2 million, and for its Series A the company ushered in a slew of institutional and angel investors, including lead backer FirstMark Capital. , AtlanticLabs and co-founder of Wunderlist. Christian Reber. The company said that in addition to expanding its datasource support, it also plans to expand Softr beyond its own platform by creating a template marketplace that lets anyone build apps. in the form of a model and sell them. Additionally, Softr also plans to launch a component marketplace allowing anyone to find and reuse community-created third-party components.
At first glance, Softr and his ilk may seem better suited to smaller companies with fewer resources, but the truth is that a wider engineering shortage means that even the biggest companies must use their talent strategically, which which means allowing non-technical employees — from marketing to operations — to build their own apps.
“We are facing an engineering talent shortage, technology is changing faster than education and skills, and companies need to digitize their operations and processes to be on par with the competition, especially in the age of the COVID-19,” Hakobyan said. “Engineers’ valuable time is spent creating the company’s core product, and business teams such as sales, marketing, operations, customer success are left behind and have no way to create and use the tools they need to do their jobs internally or externally.”
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New Retail and Office Space Development Underway In Indio
Photo: Video by kmir6.com
INDIO - A lot of attention the past few months has focused on retail revitalization in Palm Springs with Measure J and the redevelopment of the Desert Fashion Plaza along Palm Canyon Drive. Many tax payers are now wondering what's being done, if anything, to boost retail development on the east end of the Coachella Valley.
KMIR6 met with officials from Indio where plans are already underway to build new office and retail space. Riverside County is also planning to increase its court and legal assistance presence in the valley. The county's plan includes opening a new detention center in downtown Indio.
According to Indio Mayor Pro Tem Michael Wilson, the city is working on developing new retail space to coincide with the COD and Riverside County's development projects. The COD expansion alone is a 40,000 square foot, $20 million development already taking shape along Indio's Oasis Street. Completion is expected in 2014, Wilson said.
The city says it is also working with a private investment company that is currently in escrow to purchase the old Fiesta Mall along Highway 111. The city owns the empty land directly behind the mall. Wilson says the city intends to work with the new owners of the mall to develop the surrounding land to create a new shopping and dining experience. Plans are preliminary, but Wilson said the city is discussing a possible outdoor mall and a movie theater.


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Aug 17 – The smartphone maker known as Xiaomi, the world’s third-largest smartphone builder, which trails just behind Apple and Samsung, reported that it has patched a high-severity flaw in its ‘trusted environment’ which is used to store payment data.
Last week, researchers at Check Point revealed that the Xiaomi smartphone flaw could have enabled attackers to hijack the mobile payment system on the phones. Alternatively, hackers could have disabled it, or created and signed their own forged transactions.
Given that 1 out of every 7 smartphones is manufactured by Xiaomi, the pool of potential victims was massive. “We discovered a set of vulnerabilities that could allow forging of payment packages or disabling the payment system directly, from an unprivileged Android application. We were able to hack into WeChat Pay and implemented a fully worked proof of concept,” wrote Slava Makkaveev, a Check Point security researcher.
According to Slava, the new research marks the first time during which Xiaomi’s trusted applications have been reviewed for security flaws.
The security flaw
WeChat Pay is a mobile payment transaction platform, also developed by Xiaomi.
The service is used by more than 300 million customers. Android users can make mobile payments and proceed with online payment transactions through the app.
The duration of time for which the vulnerability has existed or whether or not it has been exploited by attackers in the wild remains unclear. The bug, tracked as CVE-2020-14125, was patched by Xiaomi in June. It has a high CVSS severity rating.
Although details surrounding the bug’s impact were initially quite limited, researchers at Check Point have outlined the technical details and the full potential impact of the flaw, here.
Lastly, to receive more timely cyber security news, top-tier reports and cutting-edge analyses, please sign up for the cybertalk.org newsletter.


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BlackBerry has confirmed that BlackBerry Messenger (BBM) will be released for Android and iPhone this weekend. The firm will also launch a new smartphone next week, the Z30.
Announced last night, the BlackBerry Z30 is the latest smartphone from the once market-leading company, formerly known as Research In Motion (RIM). We had a brief hands-on with a preproduction version of the device in Auckland this morning.
Amid rumors of layoffs and a possible sale of the company, BlackBerry today announced some good news: its popular BBM messaging service will be available for Android and iPhone devices this weekend.
BlackBerry has just announced its biggest, most powerful phone yet, but despite that impressive-sounding blurb, the BlackBerry Z30 reeks of "too little, too late" and may just be the last handset ever released by the iconic company.
BlackBerry said it will continue to take steps to optimise its business, following a report that up to 40 per cent of its 12,700 employees will lose their jobs by year's end.
The U.S. National Security Agency is able to read messages sent via a corporate BlackBerry Enterprise Server (BES), according to a report by German news magazine Der Spiegel. The purpose of this spying is economic or political, and not to counter ter...
With the U.S. Labor Day holiday marking the unofficial end of summer on the markets, tech stocks got off to a fairly positive start in the new season as several major deals and the mobile phone market came under especially intense scrutiny.
Harvey Norman will be the first retailer in Australia to sell a white model of BlackBerry's Q10 smartphone from tomorrow, it has announced.
BlackBerry is taking steps to spin off its BlackBerry Messenger instant messaging software as a separate company, as it continues to explore a range of "strategic alternatives" after its new BlackBerry 10 smartphones have achieved only modest sales.
BlackBerry has launched the 9720 smartphone running the 7 OS in a bid to stay relevant in the growing low end of the smartphone market.
The BlackBerry 10 OS was supposed to save BlackBerry, but the company's phones have now has slipped into fourth place, according to IDC and others.
Blackberry's board of directors has formed a committee to explore strategic alternatives for the future of the company that could include joint ventures or a sale of the company, as it struggles to turn its new BlackBerry 10 operating system into a s...
Leaked photos show an upcoming BlackBerry smartphone/phablet with a 5in display that will launch with the name Z30 instead of the earlier-expected name A10.
Taking a look at IDC's smartphone numbers, one thing is clear--success currently comes to those making iPhones and Android devices. IDC's top five smartphone vendors included either Apple or smartphone makers focused on Android.
Blackberry is laying off 250 employees, or around 2 percent of its workforce, at its new product testing facility, the company said on Friday.
UE Boom 2 Bluetooth speaker
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PCW Evaluation Team
I’d happily recommend this touchscreen laptop and Windows 10 as a great way to get serious work done at a desk or on the road.
Ultimately, I think the Windows 10 environment is excellent for me as it caters for so many different uses. The inclusion of the Xbox app is also great for when you need some downtime too!
For me, the Xbox Play Anywhere is a great new feature as it allows you to play your current Xbox games with higher resolutions and better graphics without forking out extra cash for another copy. Although available titles are still scarce, but I’m sure it will grow in time.
First impression on unpacking the Q702 test unit was the solid feel and clean, minimalist styling.
For work use, Microsoft Word and Excel programs pre-installed on the device are adequate for preparing short documents.
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NEW YORK (AP) — Stock futures rose Thursday as the U.S. government reaffirmed that economic growth improved during the second quarter.
And the number of Americans seeking unemployment benefits bucked the projections of economists, and actually fell last week to a six-year low.
U.S. markets have sold off for five consecutive days, rattled by the prospect of a government shutdown. Treasury Secretary Jacob Lew told Congress this week that the Treasury's ability to borrow funds will be exhausted on Oct. 17.
Dow Jones industrial futures are up 30 points to 15,242. S&P futures have gained 3.9 points to 1,689.70. Nasdaq futures are up 15.5 points to 3,215.50.
The gains were limited, however, with many economists seeing headwinds for the U.S. economy.
J.C. Penney reversed the direction of its shares, which had been plunging for a third consecutive day, when it issued a statement saying that its turnaround campaign is working.
The struggling retailer said that it still expects revenue at stores open at least a year to be up as it exits the third quarter and it expects more of the same in fourth quarter.
There have been growing concerns about how fast the company has burned through cash.
The National Association of Realtors' pending home sales index for August will be released at 10 a.m. Eastern.


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The first significant GDPR fine is here: British Airways is facing a fine of $230 million (~1.5% of their 2017 global revenue) in connection to a data breach last year that affected hundreds of thousands of people’s personal data.
Under the new data protection rules enforced by GDPR, the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) can fine companies up to 4% of their global revenue if they’re found in violation of data privacy regulations.
Elizabeth Denham, Information Commissioner at the ICO stated that: “People’s personal data is just that – personal. When an organization fails to protect it from loss, damage or theft it is more than an inconvenience. That’s why the law is clear – when you are entrusted with personal data you must look after it. Those that don’t will face scrutiny from my office to check they have taken appropriate steps to protect fundamental privacy rights.”
Announced a little over a year since GDPR came into effect, this proposed fine underscores the importance of data privacy in the enterprise: any company that collects customer data needs to protect and manage that data – or run the risk of regulatory penalties.
• It’s the type of data compromised that’s key. In this instance, it’s not just PII – this breach compromised customer data from traveler names to credit card information to travel booking details. Personal information (PI) extends beyond credit card numbers and addresses, and can be any data related to an individual – including names, travel booking details, and log in information.
• Rapid response and due diligence is not enough to avoid penalties. British Airways notified customers within days of detecting the cyberattack, with ongoing follow-up and monitoring to recover from the attack. A prompt response to a cyberattack is commendable, but doesn’t necessarily clear organizations of penalties once consumer data has been compromised.
• A sign of things to come? This record-breaking fine shows the ICO’s commitment to transparency in how the agency will communicate personal data privacy violations. This degree of transparency could be a sign of things to come for how regulators act when making enforcement decisions so as to push enterprises to take serious efforts to protect consumer data.
Customer data privacy matters – now more than ever. What can organizations do to prepare for data privacy regulations?
2. Correlate to a set of identities: leverage machine learning and analytics to build disparate data points into personal profiles to better map, understand, and appropriately protect customer data.
3. Compare known compromised PI from recent data leaks against your inventory and datasets to proactively respond and notify customers of potential breaches.
BigID is positioned at the heart of the data privacy revolution that is changing the world, helping companies and consumers harness machine learning to protect personal information and meet global privacy mandates. Click here to set up a demo and see how BigID helps organizations transform their data privacy.


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Posts Tagged ‘S2’
The hotly anticipated Samsung Galaxy S3 was allegedly leaked in a blurry picture a few days back. Now, another leak shows a clearer picture.
An anonymous source has leaked the photo taken in higher quality to GSM Helpdesk Netherlands, which was spotted by GSM Arena. Although there’s no way to know for certain if this is another Photoshop job or the real deal, it does allow us to get a better look at the alleged S3.
Aside from the better photo, the anonymous source does confirm the S3’s specs, some of which have already been reported in the past. According to the source, the S3 will sport dimensions of 131 x 64 x 8 mm. It is said to weigh in at 125 g. This means that the S3 will be .5 mm slimmer compared to its predecessor, but will be 9 g heavier. It will sport a 4.7 inch 720p display, which will be a Super AMOLED Plus just like the S2. It will also rock a 12-megapixel snapper that can record videos at 1080p. NFC and a 1.5 GHz quad-core processor will also be on board, but this time the source claims the phone will sport 1 GB of RAM instead of the 2 GB rumoured in the past.
The source also reveals that the S3 is scheduled to land in the 22nd of May. However, according to a separate report, Samsung may release the S3 earlier in April.
Do you think the Samsung Galaxy S3 is the real deal, or do you still think it’s a fake? Give us your thoughts.
When Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) was first seen running on the Samsung Galaxy Nexus, many Android users wondered when the update would be rolling out to their smartphones. This includes owners of the highly popular Samsung Galaxy S2. If you own an S2 and signed a contract with O2, we have good news for you. An O2 executive confirmed that the update was rolling out to the S2 “before the end of March”.
In an interview with TechRadar, Andrew Cocks, media and communications executive at O2 said that the ICS update for the S2 would be rolling out “before the end of March, not mid-April”.
Recently, Samsung announced that the ICS update would be rolling out to S2s in the UK on the 19th of March. Since updates are subjects to testing from network operators, this is likely for unlocked handsets.
Despite Samsung’s announcement, network operators in the UK have not given specific information on when the ICS update would be rolling out to the S2. Although O2’s Cocks has said that it would arrive “before the end of March”, he failed to mention when exactly O2 plans to release the update to its S2 customers.
Do you own a Samsung Galaxy S2 with O2? Are you excited the Ice Cream Sandwich update is finally rolling out to your smartphone towards the end of the month? Give us your thoughts.
The Korean tech giant Samsung has just announced that the Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) update will be rolling out to units of the Galaxy S2 in the UK on the 19th of March. This means that S2 owners will finally get to enjoy the latest Android features, which were previously only available to the Galaxy Nexus (the first smartphone to run ICS).
Currently, the update is rolling out to units in a few countries. Samsung announced via Twitter, “ICS for Galaxy S2 will be available today in Europe, including Poland, Hungary, Sweden and Korea & gradually roll out to other markets.”
Speaking to TechRadar, Samsung said, “Samsung UK can confirm that the roll out of Android 4.0 (Ice Cream Sandwich) on Galaxy S II will be available from week commencing 19 March, however the availability of software upgrades in the UK will be dependent upon each network’s own software approvals process.”
This means that SIM-free handsets will get to enjoy Ice Cream Sandwich before units on a contract.
Speaking to TechRadar, a Three spokesperson said, “We are testing Ice Cream Sandwich on the Galaxy S2 and the update is on track.” However, they failed to mention when the update would be rolling out to their S2 customers.
Also speaking to TechRadar, Vodafone said, “The Android 4.0 upgrade for Galaxy S2 smartphones running on the Vodafone UK network is currently under test to make sure that we provide the highest level of final software. As soon as the tests are completed we will upload the software to the update servers as quickly as possible.”
Other networks are yet to announce if they are running tests on the update and when they plan to roll out ICS to the S2. We’ll keep you posted once we know more.