Month: March 2019

It might come down to price, not content, for Apple’s soon-to-be-released streaming service

CompuScoop Staff March 14, 2019 1

“In less than two weeks, Tim Cook and Eddy Cue will take the stage to finally unveil Apple’s new video streaming service,” Michael Simon writes for Macworld. “The thinly veiled ‘Show time’ event will focus on Apple’s new services push, and we’re all expecting to get out first look at Apple’s new Netflix-style streaming service.”

“There’s a ton of competition from the likes of Netflix, Hulu, and Amazon, and without a hit show to hang its hat on, Apple will basically relying on its users to sign up to get shows they can already watch elsewhere,” Simon writes. “That could be a tough sell.”

“Basically, the success of the new video service could come down to an area where Apple usually doesn’t compete: price,” Simon writes. “Even with a better interface, iPhone integration, and integrated Siri search, Apple is going to need to convince a whole bunch of people to cancel their existing subscriptions and sign on to a new one, and the best way to do that is by offering it at a lower price.”

Read more in the full article here.

Apple Music comes to Amazon Fire TV Streamers

CompuScoop Staff March 13, 2019 0

People with one of Amazon's Fire TV streamers can now listen to Apple Music, much as they can on Echo speakers.

Mid Wednesday, Amazon pushed an update to its Amazon Fire TV Streamers that allows one to add the Apple Music Service to the device.

Enabling support simply involves turning on the Apple Music skill in the Alexa app. In fact if that skill is already activated on an Echo, it should work on a Fire TV without extra effort.

Voice commands work identically as well, such as "Play songs by 'Current 93' on Apple Music." The catch of course is that users must specifically say "on Apple Music" unless they've changed that service to their default. Either way it should be possible to push tracks to other speakers or multi-room groups.

Apple Music arrived on Echo speakers Dec. 17, significantly expanding its reach, given that the HomePod has a 4.1 percent global share in smartspeakers versus Amazon's 35.5. Even China's Alibaba, Baidu, and Xiaomi remain ahead.

Amazon's Apple Music support is still limited to first-party devices in the U.S. On Wednesday, however, the company did say that a U.K. rollout will happen in the next few weeks.

Via: Appleinsider.com

Senator Elizabeth Warren’s Simple Solution about breaking up Apple won’t work

CompuScoop Staff March 13, 2019 0

“You get points in politics for pointing out a problem that we are concerned with, or especially one that we can be made to think is particularly bad. You then get more points for proposing a solution, because we would all like to think there are answers to problems,” William Gallagher and Andrew O’Hara write for AppleInsider. “And then if you, as a politician, can move the burden of doing something about the problem on to someone else, you win the jackpot.”

“Just for political expediency, the one big technology company that is championing user security would then get the same treatment as the firms that are repeatedly and intentionally profiting from breaking our privacy,” Gallagher and O’Hara write. “When your aim is to get votes, you can keep it simple. When you get the votes and you are in power, then you have to deal with the realities. Senator Warren wants to avoid talking about those now, unless pressed to do so, because reality is complicated.”

“Consequently she has made no comment — because no one’s really pressed her on it yet — about how Apple makes iOS and macOS, how it runs the myriad iCloud services, and how it locks users into all of those. Just as Google locks you into its own walled garden of services and apps,” Gallagher and O’Hara write. “Instead, and again only when pushed to say it, she gives up the App Store. Break Apple away from its App Store and apparently, everything is fine. That is, everything is fine except for the loss of security that users will get hit with as a result. Take Apple out of its own store, and you end up with the same kind of mess that the Google Play store is. ”

Read more in the full article here.

Avoid the scam of card skimmers

CompuScoop Staff March 13, 2019 0

By Nancy Werteen, WFMZ TV 69, Allentown, Pennsylvania

Thirty-seven million Americans refuel every day, and 29 million of them use a card to pay for that fuel. Until all pumps are converted to only accept EMV chip readers, which is estimated to happen by the year 2020, thieves and crooks will attempt to use these pumps as well as ATMs to skim and steal your card information.

James Alexander knows the feeling of having his credit card information stolen.

“I was in the line at the grocery store and I get to the front, paid with a card and declined. At first I went ‘hold up I know there’s money in there,’” Alexander said.

To avoid getting your card info skimmed, take a good look at the keyboard and card reader. Scammers will print 3D keyboards to put on top of the real ones.

Wiggle the reader to check if it’s loose. There may be security tape with a serial number across the dispenser door, use it to check if the seal has been broken.

You can also download the free app, Skimmer Scanner, on Android phones, which uses Bluetooth connections to search for skimmers that may be in range of you.

And always cover your pin as you enter it. Scammers may use nearby signage to cover pinhole cameras that record you entering your pin.

Finally, sign up for mobile card fraud alerts.

“Please look at your statements. I do it religiously now. That’s part of my routine every month, look at the statement and see what went out," Alexander said.

University of Florida students have now developed The Skim Reaper, a credit card-thin gadget that costs $50 to make, you can slide it into a card reader to detect if it has been compromised. More testing must be done, but investigators and police have started using the device with impressive early results.