Technology - Google News

Microsoft Planning Low-Cost Surface Line to Compete With Apple's $329 iPad
Amazon Prime members to get new discounts at Whole Foods
How to use Google Pay

Microsoft Planning Low-Cost Surface Line to Compete With Apple's $329 iPad

Posted: 16 May 2018 05:23 AM PDT

As Apple's iPad and Microsoft's Surface continue to compete in the tablet market, a new report out today by Bloomberg claims that Microsoft is planning its next tablet line to be lower-cost in an effort to attract people to Surface products who aren't interested in the more expensive Surface Pro. The move is directly aimed at competing with Apple's recently launched $329 iPad, and could see Microsoft debut the devices as soon as the second half of 2018.

According to people familiar with the company's plans, the tablets will be priced at around $400, so they would still be more expensive than Apple's cheapest options. They will be the first Surface devices to adopt USB-C and rounded edges "like an iPad," instead of the square corners of the current devices. Storage tiers will include 64GB and 128GB, as well as LTE options, and the devices will feature 10-inch screens.

The Surface Pro
In an effort to make the tablets 20 percent lighter than the high-end $799 Surface Pro, Microsoft is believed to sacrifice battery life by as much as "four hours fewer" than the current generation (13.5 hours for Surface Pro). Not much is known about the insides of the upcoming tablets, but the people said that Intel will supply the main processor and graphics chips.

The devices will continue to have the kickstand for upright typing and video watching seen in current Surface models, and they will run Windows 10 Pro. Ultimately, the company is trying to enter the low-cost market again after previous attempts with the Surface RT in 2012 and the Surface 3 in 2015, which both started at $499 and performed poorly in comparison to the growing Surface Pro line.

Microsoft has struggled to find a high-volume hit with the Surface devices as well as to introduce a flow of new choices to keep growth steady. In the fiscal year that ended last June, Surface revenue declined 2 percent as the company faced lower volume sales owing to an aging Surface Pro line. Revenue rose 32 percent in the most recent quarter, indicating new interest in Microsoft’s hardware.
Apple sold about 44 million iPads that generated almost $20 billion in revenue during the past four quarters. Microsoft’s entire Surface hardware business produced $4.4 billion for the same period.

Microsoft is believed to be looking at Apple's education-focused iPad launch from earlier in 2018, and the new Surface models "could likewise appeal to students and teachers," as well as schools that look into buying cheap tablets in bulk. With the cheaper Surface, the company is planning low-cost updates to its keyboard cover, stylus, and mouse. Prices haven't yet been pinpointed, but as a comparison the current keyboard cover runs for $160.

Apple's low-cost iPad includes Apple Pencil support, an A10 Fusion chip with 64-bit desktop-class architecture, a Retina display, enhanced cameras, and advanced sensors with a gyroscope and accelerometer, which fuel powerful augmented reality apps through ARKit. Although the iPad is normally $329 for consumers when not on sale, Apple sells it at $299 to schools and says that the tablet was built for mobility and durability for students, sporting an aluminum unibody construction.

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Amazon Prime members to get new discounts at Whole Foods

Posted: 16 May 2018 07:31 AM PDT

Amazon is dishing out more perks to Prime members who shop at Whole Foods. The company announced two new Prime benefits that shoppers can take advantage of in Whole Foods stores: an additional 10 percent off sale items and "deep discounts" on select bestselling items. The perks roll out across all Florida stores today and will reach all Whole Foods locations in the US this summer.

Those deep discounts will cover a variety of items, including meat and fish. Whole Foods highlighted some of the first items to get big discounts through the new program: organic strawberries, wild-caught halibut, Kind granola, and cold-brew coffee at Allegro coffee bars. According to a Wall Street Journal report, the additional 10 percent off sale items could apply to thousands of items in each store.

It appears the discounts apply to in-store purchases only (the sale items with the additional 10-percent discount will be marked with big yellow signs). Customers must download the Whole Foods mobile app, sign in with their Amazon account, and scan the Prime Code at checkout to receive the special Prime-member discounts.

The new savings come in the wake of Amazon raising the annual price of a Prime membership by 20 percent, from $99 to $119. While Amazon continuously adds perks to Prime to attract new customers, these grocery benefits are a nudge to Whole Foods customers who haven't bought into Prime yet. It's possible that the Prime price increase may deter some new customers from signing up, but Amazon is likely hoping that it can convince Whole Foods diehards by giving them another reason to go Prime.

Ever since Amazon bought Whole Foods last year for $13.7 billion, the company has been cutting some prices and adding benefits for grocery shoppers who have Prime. Some Whole Foods locations support one- and two-hour grocery delivery windows, many stores have newly installed Amazon lockers for easy package pickup and drop-off, and Amazon Prime Rewards Visa customers get 5 percent cash back on all Whole Foods purchases.

But the continuous flow of new Prime perks has its pros and cons. Undoubtedly, many of the current 100 million Prime members enjoy getting more from their membership whenever Amazon adds a new benefit to the program. However, Amazon cited its growing costs of delivering Prime benefits to customers as the reason for the most recent price hike. Over the years, Amazon has expanded Prime to include two-day shipping, same-day delivery with Prime Now, new in-car delivery, access to Prime Video shows and movies, ad-free Twitch access, and more.

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How to use Google Pay

Posted: 16 May 2018 06:54 AM PDT

Recently, Google has been busy updating the Google Pay app to support desktops, on top of its well-known mobile support. Nowadays, Google Pay is supported at most major markets, gas stations, and department stores. Google Pay is a digital wallet and online payment system, developed by Google for phones, watches, and desktops.

Despite all of its capabilities, setting up a Google Pay profile is rather straightforward.

What do I need to set up Google Pay?

Firstly, you need a debit / credit card / PayPal account, a supported Google Pay device (non-rooted Android phones using KitKat 4.4 and up, Wear OS watch, or a PC / Mac), an Internet connection, and finally, a Google account.

Unfortunately, Google Pay isn't supported on iOS devices for in-store payments. However, you can download and use G Pay Send, which allows you to send and receive payments using Google Pay, similar to apps like Square Cash and Venmo.

How do I add cards to Google Pay?

To start off on mobile, download the Google Pay app from the Play Store on Android. From there, sign in to the G Pay app and begin adding your preferred card(s). First tap on the "Cards" selection on the lower right, then tap on the blue plus sign — from there you can take a picture of your card and have Google add it for you, or manually enter it in.

If you want to use G Pay on the web, look for websites with a "Buy with G Pay" badge and control all your card information from the Google Pay account page.

Where can I use Google Pay?

In the real world, you can use Google Pay just about anywhere you see a credit card terminal with these symbols. From there, all you need to do is move your phone or watch up to the terminal's contact point, then wait for the blue check mark indicating your Google Pay account info has been received.

If I can't pay in-store with an iPhone, what can I do with G Pay?

There's only one current workaround to using G Pay with an iPhone and that requires a paired and supported Wear OS watch (with NFC chip). Otherwise, you can only send and receive payments between G Pay users.

Can I use boarding passes, event tickets, rewards cards, etc.?

Yes, you can. However, these have to be supported by whoever provided them. You can see a full list of supported services here.

Is Google Pay secure?

For those of you worrying about merchants having your credit card number when you tap to pay, here's how Google protects your info: a temporary, encrypted number is shared with merchants, never the actual number.

If you lose your phone altogether, the Android Device Manager can be accessed from any computer that you sign into with your Google account. From there, you can lock, locate, or remotely wipe your phone and all of its contents.

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