Dienstag, 3. Oktober 2017

More details in the self-driving car fight between Waymo and Uber | Engadget Today


The court trial is scheduled to begin in a week. http://ift.tt/2ww76Bn Last year when Uber was considering a purchase of newly founded self-driving truck company Otto, it commissioned a due diligence report that dove into the company, its assets, cofounders Anthony Levandowski, Lior Ron and Don Burnette and a few other employees that left Google for the startup. It became a hot item in the Waymo lawsuit against Uber and though Uber and Levandowski fought to keep the document out of Alphabet's hands, a judge ordered it to be turned over to Google's and Waymo's parent company by September 13th. Well that document has now been made publicly available, Recode reports, and some of its contents don't look great for Uber. Subscribe to Engadget on YouTube: http://engt.co/subscribe Get More Engadget: • Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZT • Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/engadget • Follow us on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZV • Add us on Snapchat: http://ift.tt/1UqS18a • Read more: http://www.engadget.com Engadget is the definitive guide to this connected life.
by Engadget via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Whole Foods Poaching New Customers From Trader Joe’s, Costco, Walmart

We know that more people visited upscale grocery chain Whole Foods in the weeks after it became part of Amazon’s growing online and offline retail empire, but where did those people come from? Customer data shows that new visitors to Whole Foods stores were likely to be the wealthiest customers from competitors like Walmart, Costco, and Trader Joe’s.

This information comes from a report by the Thasos Group [PDF], a research firm that uses mobile phone location data to track how people move through the real world.

By harvesting location data from around 30 million mobile phones that belong to people who have opted in to share their location data with apps that they use, Thasos could track which shoppers were visiting Whole Foods for the first time, and where they had shopped before.

The company’s analysis found that new Whole Foods visitors had around the same household income as people who were already Whole Foods customers, $77,000. Most of them were already customers of Walmart (24%), Kroger-owned stores (16%), or Costco (15%).

Competitors that saw the biggest proportion of their regular customers check out Whole Foods during the weeks after the Amazon acquisition closed included Trader Joe’s (10%), Sprouts (8%), and Target (3%).

The large number of customers wandering over from Walmart are important, one retail expert notes, since the retailer has been expanding its selection of organic products, yet could lose its upper-income customers to Whole Foods.

“The data is a striking indication of the latent demand that exists for quality organics,” Kirthi Kalyanam, the director of the Retail Management Institute at Santa Clara University, told Bloomberg News. “Walmart is no doubt preparing to work extremely hard to overcome deep-set perceptions that its organics are of a lower quality than those found at Whole Foods.”


by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Verizon Now Says That All Yahoo Accounts Were Probably Compromised By Massive Hack

Last year, Yahoo revealed that some 1.5 billion accounts — representing about 1 billion users — had been compromised by a data breach going back years. Now that Yahoo’s new parent company Verizon has had a chance to investigate it turns out that the number of accounts compromised by the hack was… well, every single one of them.

Verizon disclosed the results of its internal investigation into the breach, which began in Aug. 2013, this afternoon in a filing [PDF] with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

According to the filing, Verizon now has reason to believe that the number of compromised accounts was approximately three billion, meaning “all Yahoo user accounts were affected by the August 2013 theft.”

Yahoo, which still exists but is part of Verizon’s new “Oath” media division, says it will blast out new email notifications to every account that was not part of the earlier group of compromised accounts.

Verizon says the thieves in this case did not include unencrypted passwords, or any bank/payment card data.

“Verizon is committed to the highest standards of accountability and transparency, and we proactively work to ensure the safety and security of our users and networks in an evolving landscape of online threats,” said Chandra McMahon, Chief Information Security Officer, Verizon. “Our investment in Yahoo is allowing that team to continue to take significant steps to enhance their security, as well as benefit from Verizon’s experience and resources.”

When reached for comment by Consumerist, a rep for Oath referred us back to the statement included in the SEC filing.


by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Jeweler, Wife Face Criminal Charges Of Preying On Military Servicemembers

Among unethical retailers, there’s a certain subset of predators that target members of the armed forces and their family. The latest example: A California couple who pushed military personnel to finance their purchases with a related business, then allegedly made illegal threats when customers fell behind on their bills.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra announced today that his office had filed a 14-count complaint against Ramil Abalkhad and Melina Abalkhad accusing the couple of engaging in illegal financing and debt collection practices.

Pushing Jewelry

Ramil Abalkhad is the owner of Romano’s Jewelers, which has several locations in California, including some near military bases. His wife, Melina, is the owner of MBNB Financial, which provides customers with credit and works as a debt collection agency.

(MBNB is not to be confused with MBNA, which was the largest credit card issuer in the country before being acquired by Bank of America.)

According to the AG’s complaint [PDF], from Aug. 2009 until Oct. 2014, the couple used their companies to target young marines and sailors, encouraging them to purchase jewelry using MBNB Financial for credit.

During this process, the complaint alleges that the Abalkhads failed to provide many customers with legally required disclosures about monthly payments, interest rates, and other terms of their financing.

Debt Collection Woes

When a customer was unable to pay their bill, the couple would use MBNB’s debt collection arm to allegedly harass the borrower.

The complaint claims the collection attempts involved sending notices to customers that appeared to be from an attorney named Thomas Parker, threatening court martial and other military disciplinary actions. In reality, these letters were not from an attorney, the complaint states.

In order to give the appearance that the lawyer was real, the couple allegedly posted a sign at their building purporting to be Thomas Parker’s office.

Additionally, during some collection attempts, the couple would allegedly direct their employee, Ramiro Salinas, to act as Thomas Parker or use email accounts in that fictitious name in order to further facilitate the debt collection ruse.

In all, the AG’s complaint charges the couple with conspiracy to violate the Unruh Act, which protects consumers who buy goods or services on credit, and the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which protects Californians against unlawful debt collection practices.

Ramil Abalkhad was also charged with engaging in a check kiting scheme that involved Romano’s Jewelers bank accounts, resulting in a loss of $270,000 to First Bank.

Salinas was also charged with conspiracy to engage in unlawful debt collection.

If you are a servicemember who believes you may have been targeted by Romano’s Jewelers, please contact the California Department of Justice. For those located in California, please call: 1-800-952-5225. For those located outside of California, please call: 1-916-322-3360.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Ground Turkey That May Contain Metal Shards Recalled From Publix, Weis, And Aldi

You can add bread crumbs, eggs, and spices to a lump of ground turkey to make a tasty meatloaf or meatballs, but one thing that definitely doesn’t belong in the mixture is pieces of metal. Ground turkey sold under store brand labels at grocery chains Publix, Weis, and Aldi has been recalled because it may have “metal shavings” in it.

What to look for

All of the products are on white Styrofoam trays and covered with clear plastic wrap with a printed label stuck to the top. There will be a number printed on the side of the tray, with the first four digits of 7268 and 7269.

All of the products have the USDA establishment number P-22000.

Publix: Recalled products are labeled “Publix ground turkey breast with natural flavorings” or “Publix ground turkey with natural flavorings.” Both packages weigh 1.3 pounds, or 20.8 ounces.

Weis: Recalled products are labeled “Weis Markets Fresh Ground Turkey Breast” and comes ina package of one pound, or 16 ounces.

Aldi: Recalled products are labeled “Fit & Active Fresh Ground Turkey With Natural Flavoring,” and the package is 1.2 pounds, or 19.2 ounces.

What to do

If you have these products, return them to the store where they were purchased, or throw them out. If you have questions about the products or about the recall, contact Prestage Foods, the supplier, at 910-596-5833.


by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Samsung Odyssey: The premium mixed-reality headset


Designed for Microsoft's mixed-reality experience, this $500 headset has AMOLED screens and built-in headphones and microphones. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Download the new CNET app: http://ift.tt/2fmiQ6l Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm
by CNET via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Facebook Launching Messenger Lite In The U.S. — But Only For Android Users

If you don’t need a special selfie lens that puts a wagging animals ears and a pink cartoon tongue onto your face when you’re communicating with your friends — or just want to save on mobile data — Facebook is now launching its Messenger Lite Android app in U.S.

Messenger Lite is expanding to the U.S., Canada, Ireland, and the U.K, after initially only being available in mostly developing countries.

The idea behind Messenger Lite is to cut down on how much data you need to use it, whether you’re somewhere without a reliable network connection or you have a tight monthly data budget.

“Messenger Lite is a slimmed-down version of Messenger that offers the core features of the app, while giving everyone the opportunity to stay connected to their friends and family, regardless of device or quality of internet connectivity,” a Facebook spokesperson told TechCrunch.

So what’s the difference? Lite doesn’t include all the bells and whistles of traditional Messenger — read: data draining functions — so you won’t have any selfie lenses or be able to access Facebook’s “Messenger Day” feature.

Instead, it simply allows users to send and receive messages, photos, links, and stickers. So it’s a lot like texting — but within the confines of Facebook instead of via traditional SMS. And that’s exactly how Facebook wants it.

Again, the app is only available for Android users at this point, so iOS users will simply have to rely on one of the plethora of other messaging options available.


by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Acer|Acer Windows Mixed Reality Headset - The Choice of Developers' and You


http://ift.tt/2khnzrm The Acer Windows Mixed Reality Headset was the first to market and quickly became the choice of developers. Discover for yourself what makes it so much fun to choose as not only does it include Microsoft Apps, but, through an exclusive Acer app, also supports SteamVR.
by Acer via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Digital Health Across the Continuum of Care


This is a one-hour virtual event showcasing some of the very best examples of innovation in digital health today. From virtual care to location analytics to mobile experiences, you’ll hear real-life use cases and best practices from some of the nation’s most cutting-edge medical facilities – all in a panel interview format. Subscribe to Cisco's YouTube channel: http://cs.co/Subscribe.
by Cisco via Endless Supplies .De - Brands

Target Now Offering Curbside Pickup At Some Stores — Yes, Again

Three months after Target once again began testing curbside pickup with employees in the Minneapolis area, the perpetually-playing catchup retailer has expanded the program to actual customers. 

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports that Target launched “Drive Up” at 50 stores in the Twin Cities area this week.

As with similar pickup services at other retailers, customers place an order through Target’s app. The order will then be ready typically within two hours.

When the customer is ready to head to the store, they tap the “I’m on my way” button in the app. If the customer has their location services turned on, the retailer can follow their progress and meet them with their order as they arrive at the store.

“We think this is going to be a service that our guests will love, whether they’re going to a birthday party and need to grab a quick gift or whether they run out of diapers,” Jamie Bastian, a Target spokeswoman, tells the Star Tribune.

The company plans to learn from the Twin Cities-area tests and then roll out the program to other states. However, when that will happen isn’t clear.

Working Out The Kinks

One reason the retailer might be keeping mum on an eventual expansion of the program is that it’s still working on the logistics.

For instance, the company is currently using two different staging methods for customers picking up orders.

Some stores are utilizing parking spaces denoted with signs for Drive Up near the front of the entrance used for the program.

At least two other stores have actual, dedicated Drive Up areas similar to a drive thru or gas station, the Star Tribune reports.

Been There Done That

This, of course, isn’t the first time Target has offered a store pickup option.

Previously, Target worked with a startup company called Curbside (fitting, we know) to run a pilot program that eventually reached 121 stores in the San Francisco Bay Area, New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Los Angeles. That program ended in June 2016.

That version required customers to make purchases through the Curbside app, while Drive Up uses Target’s own app.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Wells Fargo CEO: We Can Block Customers From Filing Lawsuits Because We Promise To Not Screw Up Again

Imagine a teenager who has been repeatedly caught sneaking out with their friends to get drunk and pilfer garden gnomes from the neighborhood. The teen’s parents ask “Why should we trust you anymore?” and the best answer the adolescent nincompoop can provide is, “Because I started cleaning my room and I’m gonna pass that Geometry quiz, I think.” Now, replace that teen with Wells Fargo, and you’ll basically have the scene from this morning’s Senate Banking Committee hearing.

At the hearing, Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio asked Wells Fargo CEO Tim Sloan directly if the bank has plans to rein in its use of forced arbitration, which prevents customers from filing lawsuits against Wells, even over accounts they never opened in the first place. Instead, wronged customers must go through individual, closed-door arbitration — a process that many Americans don’t even know exists until they try to sue their bank.

“For years, your bank used forced arbitration to hide cases where customers alleged fake accounts had been opened in their names,” said Brown. “Not only did you use forced arbitration to keep the fraud hidden — that’s what it did — but your bank’s also taken the position that the fine print on a real account should apply to a fraudulent one.”

Sen. Brown asked Sloan if Wells Fargo was willing to commit to ending its use of this practice. Not shockingly, Sloan’s answer was “No.”

But rather than launch into the normal litany of half-truths that the banking industry often uses to justify this practice, Sloan instead made the risible argument that Wells Fargo had improved so much in the last year that customers wouldn’t need to sue.

“When I hear the word arbitration, what I hear is the word ‘failing,’ and when we have to resort to — and have to have a conversation with our customers about — arbitration, it means that we don’t have the right product, we haven’t provided it in the right way, we haven’t responded to their complaint, and we haven’t made it right to them,” explained Sloan, who then went into detail about how Wells is reviewing all its products, improving its training, and aiming to resolve disputes immediately.

The problem is, the fake account scandal wasn’t about bad products, poor customer service, or dispute resolution. It was about Wells Fargo employees trying to make sales quotas by opening multiple, bogus accounts in the names of existing customers. That is an allegation of fraud, not shoddy service.

Sloan’s response came across like a fast food CEO responding to a food borne illness outbreak by saying “We’ve sped up the drive-thru and added Crystal Pepsi to the soda fountain!”

Brown was more polite, thanking the CEO for his “long and detailed answer,” before he got back to the main point of his line of questioning:

“You’re still going to use those forced arbitration to take advantage of your customers,” said the senator. “Why should we believe you’re committed to changing your bank’s practices and being fair to customers when you continue to use that behind-closed-doors arbitration system that clearly doesn’t allow customers their day in court?”

This time, Sloan was more explicit in his because-we-promise-to-not-do-it-again reply, saying, “The reason is because I think we’ve made fundamental changes so it will limit the number of times–” before Brown interjected, “I appreciate that, but give them their day in court so that those who you are not able to help or that you’re not able to satisfy?”

That’s when Sloan finally started regurgitating bank industry talking points about the “efficiency” of arbitration, and how the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s own study agreed that arbitration can be an expeditious way of resolve a customer’s legal dispute.

But Brown pointed out that this is a very slanted reading of the CFPB study, as this cherry-picked conclusion is about customers who have unique legal disputes with banks; not about the best or most efficient way to hold a bank accountable for a systemic failure to protect its customers from employee fraud.

Though Wells Fargo is attempting to settle some of the lawsuits arising from the ongoing fake account fiasco scandal, the bank continues to argue in court that it should not have to even face these class actions because of arbitration clauses included in customer contracts.

Attorneys representing Wells customers counter that the arbitration agreement only involves disputes over legal issues that could reasonably arise from the normal operation of a financial institution, and that the clauses should not protect a bank from having to answer from deliberate fraud allegedly committed by thousands of employees; bad behavior that bank executives have admitted to knowing about for years.

Last summer the CFPB finalized a new rule that would prevent many banks and other financial services from using forced arbitration to stop class actions. Banks could still compel arbitration in individual disputes, but they would be barred from using that contract clause to prevent customers from joining similar complaints into a single class complaint.

Bank-backed members of Congress are currently attempting to pass a resolution that would undo that rule. That resolution glided through the House on a nearly party-line vote in July, but has been sitting untouched by the Senate since, with some news sources reporting that there aren’t enough votes to pass it in the Senate. That resolution must be signed by the President by early November or the CFPB rule goes into effect.

That’s why the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, and several other bank-backed lobbying groups, recently filed an eleventh-hour lawsuit seeking to overturn the CFPB rule.

Here’s the full interaction between Brown and Sloan (assuming the embedded C-Span video player works; it’s notoriously unreliable):


by Chris Morran via Consumerist

5 Things We’ve Learned About The Booming Essential Oils Business

If you’re on Facebook, there’s a good chance that — between friends trying to sell you LuLaRoe leggings and whatever it is that Rodan + Fields is — you’re also seeing regular posts about essential oils and their various purported uses, from making you or your home smell nice to somehow miraculously (but not actually) curing diseases. Regardless of the pitch, the underlying message is the same thing: Buy, buy, buy. And these smelly oils are now a big business..

For its current issue, The New Yorker took a deep dive into the world of essential oils sales and, specifically, the two biggest multi-level-marketing companies that convince your Facebook friends to sell them: Young Living and doTerra.

The full essay is worth taking the time to read, but here are a few highlights.

1. Yes, you really are hearing about essential oils more now than you used to.

Young Living was founded in 1994, by a man named Gary Young. (So the company name isn’t only an appeal to youth.)

Between 2007 and 2017, though, Young Living has seen tenfold growth, the New Yorker explains. And then there’s the competition: doTerra launched in 2008, when several former Young Living executives got together to form a new company.

By 2012, doTerra was about the same size as Young Living, with millions of distributors — largely women — signed up to sell each product. In 2015, doTerra claimed it had passed $1 billion in sales.

2. The founder has an… interesting history.

The New Yorker devotes several paragraphs to explaining Young’s backstory, and it’s quite a tale.

He attributes recovery from a severe spinal injury in his early 20s to a 253-day regimen of drinking “nothing but water and lemon juice.”

Following his recovery, he opened a health center in Washington state in 1982. That clinic included birthing services; one of the children he delivered there, his daughter, died after being submerged for an hour in a whirlpool bath.

The next year, Young claimed he could detect cancer with a blood test; he was then arrested for practicing medicine without a license and pled guilty to a misdemeanor charge.

He then opened another clinic, this time in Tijuana. A reporter sent in a blood sample taken from a cat, posing as a patient; representatives for the clinic told him “his” blood “showed signs of aggressive cancer and liver dysfunction” (the cat had neither) and recommended the clinic’s detox program — for a cool $2,000 per week.

From there, Young eventually became fascinated by oils and began planting fields full of peppermint, tansy, and lavender in Idaho. In 1994, he and his third wife launched Young Living.

In 2000, Young opened another clinic, this time in Utah, that administered “alternative therapies” to patients facing a whole host of medical issues, including heart disease and cancer. One of the doctors on staff there had recently had his medical license reinstated after pleading guilty to manslaughter for providing a fatal overdose of a drug to one of his patients — who never actually had the cancer she said she did — a decade earlier.

Young also had challenges reining in spending as the company grew, former employees told the New Yorker, building replicas of a Wild West town and a medieval castle, at which he suited up in armor and competed in jousting tournaments as “Sir Gary.”

The company’s former COO (one of the eventual doTerra founders) also told the New Yorker he was alarmed when he saw a video of Young, whose “only medical degree is a doctorate in naturopathy from an unaccredited school,” performing gallbladder surgery and administering essential oils by IV at his Ecuador clinic.

That COO was eventually fired; an email Young send him read, ““Satan exercised dominion over you to the point where you started thinking that you had knowledge and ability greater than anyone else, including me, the creator of the company.”

3. The folks at the bottom don’t make money.

There’s no denying the companies make money, but the thing about a multi-level-marketing business is that while generally, the people at the top of the pyramid do quite well, it’s pretty much only the folks at the top who do well.

One Young Living user and seller the New Yorker profiled said she encouraged herself by saying, among other things, “I went from making zero dollars a month to over zero dollars a month,” which is not exactly a ringing endorsement of riches.

The Distributor level, Young Living’s lowest rank, comprises about 94% of the company’s members. The Royal Crown Diamond tier — the level, bluntly, that makes bank — accounts for less than 0.1% of participants.

Distributors have to buy about $100 worth of merchandise per month in order to receive commissions on their Young Living sales, according ton the New Yorker, and 94% of the company’s two million active members made less than $1 each in all of 2016.

Related: John Oliver wants you to go tell five friends why multi-level marketing stinks

That makes quite a pyramid — but of course, pyramid schemes are illegal.

“You have the two legs of your pyramid,” a doTerra employee explained to the New Yorker’s reporter. “I mean, not a pyramid, but, you know, it has a triangular shape.”

4. It’s a massive global supply chain.

When the New Yorker reporter toured doTerra’s headquarters, she glimpsed an entire warehouse “full of fifty-gallon barrels” of oils from all over the world: Bulgaria, Oman, nations in the Horn of Africa.

As recently as last month, Young Living got busted for the Department of Justice for importing products from endangered plants that were harvested without permission.

The plea agreement said that the company and its contractors harvested 86 tons of rosewood in Peru over a four-year period, distilling it down to just under 1,900 liters of oil, which sold for between $3.5 and $9 million.

An expert told the New Yorker that if demand — specifically, for frankincense — keeps up and isn’t properly managed, “we risk causing an ecological crash of a rare and endangered ecosystem.”

5. It’s hard to police false or unsubstantiated claims.

The Food and Drug Administration is, of course, tasked with stopping companies from making completely unsubstantiated claims about their products. You can’t launch an ad saying, “Our pill cures cancer!” if you have not in fact run clinical studies proving that your pill cures cancer; the FDA goes after companies for that sort of thing all the time.

In traditional retail, it’s comparatively simple to train new employees how to toe the company line with customers. In multi-level, work-from-home, distributed networks like Young Living and doTerra, though, it’s a lot harder. The front-line salespeople are mostly just regular folks working their own social networks, online and off. And that means that one of them might perhaps tweet something like a listing for, “oils that could help prevent your contracting the Ebola virus,” as one vendor did.

The FDA showed up at doTerra’s headquarters over that one, the company’s chief medical officer told the New Yorker. In the wake of that, the company has put in a 50-person compliance team to scour social media for “noncompliant” language and has begin issuing educational materials to its “Wellness Advocates.” Which is great, except that there’s no requirement or guarantee that anyone will ever actually look at or use the materials.


by Kate Cox via Consumerist

Get Ready For More Sketchy Seasonal Stores As Retail Vacancies Rise

If you’re a fan of those stores that come out of nowhere to sell a lot of Halloween costumes and Christmas ornaments only to be gone without a trace once a holiday passes, we’ve got great news for you! A decade-high level of retail bankruptcies and store closures means there’s still plenty of spaces at your local shopping centers for all manner of seasonal pop-up stores.

According to Reuters, real estate research firm Reis Inc. reports that retail vacancies are up, with 8.3% of retail space now vacant. Neighborhood and community shopping centers (as compared to regional malls or outlet malls) are 10% vacant. That leaves a great opportunity for holiday-centric stores and other pop-ups to occupy those spaces temporarily while mall owners look for long-term tenants.

Major closings across the country during the second and third quarters of 2017 included Sears, Kmart, and JCPenney stores, and thousands of RadioShack and Payless ShoeSource stores closed across the country during that period as well.

New mall construction has also fallen accordingly, with a mere 1.63 million square feet of new retail space opening in the third quarter of 2017, or the months of July, August, and September.

More retail closures are inevitable. Toys ‘R’ Us, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in September, plans to keep all of its current stores open until after the end of the crucial holiday season, but is likely to close and consolidate some stores in 2018.

Other chains with plans to slim down their bricks-and-mortar store fleets include True Religion jeans, which has filed for bankruptcy, and Gap Inc., which plans to close some Gap and Banana Republic stores to focus on Old Navy, its brand that makes the most money. Starbucks plans to shut down its Teavana retail chain in the coming year.


by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Why Hurricane Harvey Was Good News For Car Companies

Hurricane Harvey wreaked havoc across swaths of Texas and Louisiana, damaging billions of dollar worth of property in its path. That includes cars, many of which needed to be replaced, resulting in a bittersweet sales boost for a number of automakers.

Major automakers are reporting record sales figures for September pretty much across the board: General Motors reported a 12% increase in year-over-year sales to 279,397 units; Toyota’s North American business was also bustling, with a 14.9% increase — compared to Sept. 2016 — to 226,632 cars last month; and Ford’s [PDF] sales were up by 8.7% over last year, with a total of 169,544 vehicles sold at retail.

Fiat Chrysler, however, had a 10% decrease in sales, even though its retail sales were up 0.3%. That’s because of a planned reduction in how many cars it sells to rental companies.

A lot of these increases can be attributed to post-storm purchases: Ford says it sold about 500,000 additional vehicles last month because of Harvey, Mark LaNeve, the company’s U.S. sales chief told reporters on a conference call today reported by Bloomberg.

“We expect to see some continued tailwind to our business and the industry over the next few months” from the hurricanes, LaNeve said. “But outside of the Harvey effect, business was strong for us and for the industry.”

Because people will still be looking to replace cars destroyed by the storm, analysts predict that the boom will continue: About 600,000 vehicles will need to be replaced in Texas and Florida, one economist tells The Wall Street Journal, with most of the post-storm sales spike happening in the first two months of recovery. There should be more sales boosts coming later this fall as car owners start to replace vehicles destroyed by Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

“When you have hundreds of thousands of people affected by an event of this magnitude, not everyone will hit the market at once,” an analyst tells Bloomberg.

It’s not just the storm that’s pushing higher sales: Many car companies have been offering discounts to encourage buyers and move inventory that’s been sitting on dealer lots since the spring.


by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Walmart Accidentally Posts Google’s New Mini Speaker, Takes Down Listing

Any hope that Google might have had for keeping the design of its newest web-connected speaker a secret was blown out of the water today by the good folks at Walmart who inadvertently posted the device on Walmart.com for all the world to see, a day in advance of Google’s press event.

Droid Life first spotted Walmart’s premature listing providing pre-orders for the Google mini speaker today.

While Walmart quickly removed the listing from its site, it wasn’t fast enough to prevent everyone from getting a good look at the products.

Mini Home

According to Walmart’s listing, Google’s new speaker is officially called Mini Home and will sell for $49.

The description of the device — which weighs less than a pound — notes that it has the same features as the original Home speaker but in a compact form.

The “powerful little helper” will answer users’ questions, control aspects of their smart home, share weather info, and plays music.

Walmart’s listing allowed customers to place pre-orders for the device, though those probably won’t stick, according to 9to5 Google.

Still, the pre-order option did give a clue to when customers might eventually receive their device, Oct. 19.

Consumerist has reached out to Walmart about the issue. We’ll update this post if we hear back. Google is expected to reveal the speaker, along with phones and other new hardware, tomorrow.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

US Supreme Court denies Kim Dotcom's appeal


The founder of Megaupload tries to stop the seizure of millions of dollars worth of assets by the US government, but the nation's highest court rejects his bid. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Download the new CNET app: http://ift.tt/2fmiQ6l Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm
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Are you excited for the new Google Pixel 2? (The 3:59, Ep. 293)


Starts @ 2:23 before the edit Google's hardware event is tomorrow with the Home Mini and Pixelbook on deck with VR news as well. Google Pixel 2: http://cnet.co/2ylzN8V Spoiled Google gadgets: http://cnet.co/2fb0GAy Pixel 2 XL: http://cnet.co/2hKUzre Google Home: http://cnet.co/2xXbywu WSJ: Apple v. Samsung: http://ift.tt/2kf7AKG Good morning from CNET NY Studios while we record the daily news-bite podcast: The 3:59. Hangout while we cover a multitude of stories from around the tech world and then Scott Stein and Ben Fox Rubin will take your questions and comments in the chat. Watch more episodes of 3:59 on Youtube: http://bit.ly/29LVP7F Livestream: http://ift.tt/2jPXbF8... Periscope: http://ift.tt/2qU1nTf Subscribe to the audio podcast: iTunes: http://apple.co/29T3fbf Google Play: http://bit.ly/2hkXp5P Feedburner: http://bit.ly/2tVTkqw Soundcloud: http://bit.ly/2hlanQK TuneIn: http://bit.ly/2uVg9vN Stitcher: http://bit.ly/2vfeHXE Cnet: http://bit.ly/2veEfEw Subscribe to CNET: http://bit.ly/17qqqCs Watch more CNET videos: http://bit.ly/1BQxrGw Follow CNET on Twitter: http://twitter.com/CNET Follow CNET on Facebook: http://ift.tt/UQQ9wc Follow CNET on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1YieDuO Subscribe to CNET: http://bit.ly/17qqqCs Watch more CNET videos: http://ift.tt/1Lg5Xzr Follow CNET on Twitter: http://twitter.com/CNET Follow CNET on Facebook: http://ift.tt/UQQ9wc Follow CNET on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1YieDuO Follow CNET on Snapchat: CNETsnap
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Neil deGrasse Tyson Answers Science Questions From Twitter | Tech Support | WIRED


Astrophysicist and 'StarTalk' host Neil deGrasse Tyson uses the power of Twitter to answer some common questions about our universe. What is a quark? Is there a limit to the expansion of the universe? 'StarTalk' airs Sundays at 11pm on Nat Geo. Still haven’t subscribed to WIRED on YouTube? ►► http://wrd.cm/15fP7B7 CONNECT WITH WIRED Web: http://wired.com Twitter: https://twitter.com/WIRED Facebook: http://ift.tt/1dBz3Oa Pinterest: http://ift.tt/1JeJD7O Google+: http://ift.tt/1Ch4gR7 Instagram: http://ift.tt/1lUgynY Tumblr: http://WIRED.tumblr.com Want even more? Subscribe to The Scene: http://bit.ly/subthescene ABOUT WIRED WIRED is where tomorrow is realized. Through thought-provoking stories and videos, WIRED explores the future of business, innovation, and culture. Neil deGrasse Tyson Answers Science Questions From Twitter | Tech Support | WIRED
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Brother International receives PC Mag Reader's Choice Award for 8th year!


Learn what PC Mag has to say about our Brother printers! For eight straight years, brother printers have been consistently voted the best in our annual survey. Brother’s overall satisfaction score of 8.5 out of 10 is the highest of all the printer makers in 2016. Brother scores even better when it comes to overall reliability and initial printer set-up. Brother is one of the most reader-recommended manufacturers in PCMag history. More readers recommend Brother than any other printer maker by a wide margin.
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Equifax Says 2.5M More Customers Affected By Breach; Ex-CEO Apologizes To Congress

When 143 million people have already been affected by a massive data breach at one of the three major credit reporting agencies, what’s a few million more? That’s apparently the reality for Equifax, which upped its estimate of how many consumers were affected in the hack just hours before company executives were scheduled to discuss the incident with lawmakers. 

Equifax announced Monday the revised figure, now a total 145.5 million customers, after cybersecurity firm Mandiant completed the forensic portion of its investigation of the breach.

Revising The Figure

The additional affected customers were found as Mandiant completed its “investigative tasks and quality assurance procedures” related to the company’s inquiry.

Equifax notes that Mandiant did not identify any evidence of additional or new attacker activity or any access to new databases or tables. Additionally, the company says that the review found there was no evidence that attackers accessed databases located outside the U.S.

As for the Canadian residents affected by the breach, Equifax says its previous estimates were inaccurate.

When the company revealed the data breach last month, it noted that up to 100,000 Canadian consumers may have had their personal information breached. Now, however, the company says Mandiant found just 8,000 affected customers in the country.

In the UK, the company says it has finished its forensic investigation, but that data is currently being analyzed in that country.

Equifax says it will mail written notices to the any newly identified hack victims.

“I’m So Sorry”

The revised estimate of affected customers came just hours before now-former Equifax CEO Richard Smith was scheduled to answer questions during the first of four Congressional hearings on the breach.

“To each and every person affected by this breach, I am deeply sorry that this occurred,” Smith said in prepared testimony [PDF]. “The company failed to prevent sensitive information from falling into the hands of wrongdoers.”

Smith then called for the government and private sector businesses to work together to ensure the safety of individuals’ private information.

“Giving consumers more control of their data is a start, but is not a full solution in a world where the threats are always evolving,” he said. “I am hopeful there will be careful consideration of this changing landscape by both policymakers and the credit reporting industry.”

A Timeline

While Smith noted during his testimony that the investigation into the breach is ongoing, he placed blame for the issue on both human error and technology failures. He also provided details of the breach and what led to it via a timeline:

• March 8 — The Department of Homeland Security’s Computer Emergency Readiness Team sent Equifax a notice of the need to patch a vulnerability in the Apache Struts software used in the company’s disputes portal.

• March 9 — The company passed the notification along to personnel responsible for Apache Struts installation, telling them to upgrade the software. Equifax required that the patch take place within 48 hours.

However, “we now know that the vulnerable version of Apache Struts within Equifax was not identified or patched in response to the internal March 9 notification,” Smith told lawmakers.

• March 15 — The company ran scans of its systems intending to identify vulnerabilities such as those in Apache Struts. The scans did not find the vulnerability, leaving it in the Equifax web application “much longer than it should have.”

“The company knows, however, that it was this unpatched vulnerability that allowed hackers to access personal identifying information,” Smith told lawmakers.

• May 13 to July 30 — Per Equifax’s preliminary investigation, May 13 is the first time in which hackers accessed sensitive information. Equifax was not aware of the breach at the time.

There is evidence that attackers continued to access the information via the Apache Struts vulnerability until July 30, according to Smith.

• July 29 — Equifax’s security department first observed suspicious network traffic associated with the company’s consumer dispute website.

The department investigated and immediately blocked the traffic, Smith said, adding that security personnel continued to monitor the network before taking it offline that day.

• July 31 — Smith was first informed of the breach.

• Aug. 2 — Equifax retained a cybersecurity group to guide the investigation and provide legal and regulatory advice. The company also began working with Mandiant to investigate the issue, and contacted the FBI.

• Aug. 11 — By this time the company determined that hackers may have accessed a large amount of consumers’ personal identifying information.

• Aug. 15 — Smith was informed that consumers’ personal information was breached.

• Aug. 17 — Smith hosted a senior leadership team meeting to discuss the investigation, which had by then found that “large volumes of consumer data had been compromised.”

• Aug. 22 — Smith informed Equifax’s Board leader of the breach.

• Sept. 1 — The first Equifax board meeting was held to discuss the breach and subsequent investigation.

• Sept. 4 — The investigation estimated that 143 million customers were affected by the breach. During this time, Smith contends that the company kept the FBI informed of the information.

• Sept. 7 — Equifax publicly revealed the breach. The release indicated that the breach impacted personal information relating to 143 million U.S. consumers, primarily including names, Social Security numbers, birth dates, addresses and, in some instances, driver’s license numbers.

Take Action

While Smith’s testimony provides additional details on Equifax’s breach, it’s not enough, according to consumer advocates.

Our colleagues at Consumers Union urged lawmakers in a letter [PDF] this week to take action to protect the sensitive information of Americans.

Lawmakers should make data security a national priority and pass legislation that would require companies to adopt reasonable practices to ensure the safety of consumer credit data, the group contends.

“For too long, inadequate federal laws have allowed companies to collect and profit from the use of consumers’ personal information, without consumers’ knowledge or control, and without the incentives to properly steward that information and protect it from criminals,” the letter states.

CU urged Congress to introduce and pass a law that would establish protections such as, strong data security and data breach notification requirements for companies; free security freezes, and better access to fraud alerts for consumers; and stronger controls over the sensitive data that credit bureaus collect and use

Without these protections, millions of Americans are left vulnerable to data breaches.

According to CU, more than 15 million U.S. residents fell victim to identity theft last year, costing them $16 billion.

“Given the unprecedented level of data collection in today’s marketplace, and emergence of new privacy threats every day, now is the time to ensure that all Americans have the data protections they deserve,” the letter states.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Smart Mattress Startup Eight Connects Its Tech To Amazon Alexa


Eight CEO Matteo Franceschetti shows off his startup's mattress tech and its new Alexa integration. Read more here: http://ift.tt/2wuFOex TechCrunch is a leading technology media property, dedicated to obsessively profiling startups, reviewing new Internet products, and breaking tech news. Subscribe to TechCrunch today: http://bit.ly/18J0X2e
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Menlo Park Fire District Dispatches Drones | Intel


First responders from the Menlo Park Fire District, based in the technology hotbed of Silicon Valley, is pioneering the use of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to better and more quickly access and fight fires and save lives. Since 2014, the department has developed expertise that could someday make drones an essential tool for every fire department. Here firemen are using a commercial-grade Intel Falcon 8+ drone, designed for rugged conditions, including high wind conditions, heavy dust, high or low temperatures, and close to cell towers or electrical lines without magnetic or radio frequency interference to the compass and other sensors onboard. About Intel: Intel, the world leader in silicon innovation, develops technologies, products and initiatives to continually advance how people work and live. Founded in 1968 to build semiconductor memory products, Intel introduced the world's first microprocessor in 1971. This decade, our mission is to create and extend computing technology to connect and enrich the lives of every person on earth. Connect with Intel: Visit Intel WEBSITE: http://intel.ly/1WXmVMe Like Intel on FACEBOOK: http://intel.ly/1wrbYGi Follow Intel on TWITTER: http://intel.ly/1wrbXC8 Follow Intel on INSTAGRAM: http://bit.ly/1OJuPTg Visit iQ: http://intel.ly/1wrbXCd Menlo Park Fire Dept. Dispatches Drones | Intel https://www.youtube.com/user/channelintel
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Garmin Women of Adventure: Jenny Kalmbach on Finding Balance


We celebrate Women of Adventure like pro stand-up paddler Jenny Kalmbach who inspire us to adapt, explore and keep moving. Through all ages and life stages. More stories at http://ift.tt/1RfCb0g
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Supreme Court Allows For Rare Win In Customers’ Lawsuit Against Samsung

The Supreme Court has a long history of ruling against consumers when it involves a company’s attempt to strip its customers of their right to a day in court, but this week the nation’s highest court decided to not hear an appeal in a lawsuit involving Samsung, marking a rare instance in which SCOTUS came down on the consumers’ side in this issue.

This case, Norcia v. Samsung, involves Samsung customers who allege the company misled them about the speed, performance, and memory capacity of the company’s Galaxy S4 phone.

Samsung, like just about every other tech company, includes a “forced arbitration” clause in its terms of service. This clause effectively says two things: First, customers can’t sue Samsung, regardless of the allegation against the company. Second, they certainly can’t join together with other, similarly wronged customers in a class action against Samsung.

Instead, each aggrieved customer must go through the process of individual, private arbitration; a process many American consumers don’t even know exist. Arbitration proceedings are done behind closed doors and the rulings are often confidential, taking away a very vital aspect of a lawsuit: Holding a company publicly accountable for its failings.

Many arbitration clauses — particularly for software and websites — are buried deep in one of those multi-thousand-word user agreements that you must click “yes, I read and agree” to, even when you haven’t. In other instances, companies will put an arbitration statement on the product’s box, or — in the case of the Stormtrooper Snuggie — on a slip of paper inside the box.

But in Norcia, Samsung put the language of the forced arbitration clause inside the warranty booklet that was included among the many other pieces of paper and plastic in the S4 box that all gets thrown away or recycled immediately. Samsung believes that putting the clause in the warranty booklet was sufficient to shunt Mr. Norcia’s lawsuit out of the legal system and into arbitration.

However, Norcia fought back, pointing out that he purchased his phone at a Verizon store, where an employee unboxed the device and set it up for him. He says that when he left the store, the phone was all he took with him. The packaging — including the warranty booklet — remained behind.

In Sept. 2014, a U.S. District Court judge in California agreed with Norcia, concluding that the “inconspicuous placement of the arbitration provisions in the warranty booklet, and Samsung’s failure to inform consumers in any way about the proposal to require arbitration,” meant that the tech giant could not force Norcia into arbitration.

Samsung appealed this ruling to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which heard arguments on the matter in Oct. 2016. It argued that, because Samsung is bound by the terms of the warranty, the customer must also be bound by the arbitration clause that Samsung inserted into the warranty information.

But once again, Samsung failed to convince the court. In a unanimous ruling, the three-judge panel noted that a warranty is not a two-way contract, as it “does not impose binding obligations on the buyer.”

Samsung also tried to argue that Norcia should be bound by the arbitration agreement because he did agree to one when he set up his phone with Verizon. This seemed to baffle the appeals court, which pointed out that Samsung has nothing to do with the Verizon customer agreement, and that Samsung provided no evidence to show that Verizon intended its agreement to cover both the wireless provider and the makers of the devices used on the Verizon network.

Not to be stopped, Samsung petitioned the Supreme Court, asking the justices to decide whether or not this lawsuit could be compelled into arbitration. Even though the court has repeatedly (though often by only a narrow margin) come down on the side of forced arbitration, SCOTUS decided on Monday to deny the Samsung petition.

The denial, made without comment, means that the Ninth Circuit ruling stands and that Samsung can not force Norcia into arbitration.

No courts have yet to make any rulings on the merits of Norcia’s allegations, but at least he’ll now have the chance to make those allegations in public in a court of law, rather than in the black hole of a closed-door arbitration hearing.


by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Out-Of-Network ATM Fees Are Up Because Fewer People Use ATMs

Between the rise of e-commerce, credit/debit card use, and mobile payment platforms, the days of “running to the ATM” for enough cash to get through the day are gone for many people. That’s one of the reasons why, according to a new survey of banks, out-of-network ATM fees and overdraft charges are hitting new highs.

Less cash, more fees

The good news for consumers from Bankrate’s report is that it’s becoming more expensive to access ATMs from other banks in part because it’s easier to avoid using them. You can quickly look up the location of an ATM from your own bank, or find one that’s part of the same network and fee-free from your bank’s mobile app.

Maybe you don’t need cash at all, though. Out-of-network ATM fees are increasing because fewer people are using the machines, and fewer people are using cash in general, favoring credit and debit cards.

“With fewer people making out-of-network ATM withdrawals, the cost of maintaining that network is being spread over fewer transactions,” Bankrate’s chief financial analyst explained to Bloomberg News.

There are two parts to an out-of-network ATM fee. The surcharge, the fee from the bank that owns the machine you used, reached an average of $2.97 this year. The fee that banks charge their own customers for using an outside ATM reached an average of $1.72. That makes the average total fee an average of $4.69.

While there will be a fee and and a required purchase, you may be better off using your debit card to get cash back at a store. Paying extra fees to banks doesn’t get you a pack of gum or a Hot Wheels car, does it?

Overdraft fees climbing, too

It’s not just ATM fees that are climbing, though. Overdraft fees also increased across the country. There’s no technological explanation for why they keep going up: Banks depend on fees to make money, and overdrafts are a reliable source of income because everyone believes that they’ll never overdraft again. The average overdraft fee across the banks that Bankrate studied rose to $33.38 this year.

You can avoid these fees by setting up your checking account so that overdrafts come from a line of credit or a savings account instead of incurring big fees every time you go over, or by setting up email or text message alerts when your account balance dips below a certain amount.

“Knowing where you can make free ATM withdrawals and monitoring your available balance to avoid overdrafts are as close as your smartphone,” Bankrate’s chief financial analyst, Greg McBride, points out. Both of these are usually options in your bank’s mobile app.

You also have the option to simply turn off overdraft protection for your account, which means that debit card transactions (not checks) will be declined when there isn’t enough money in your account.

Find the right bank for you

What ATM fees and overdraft fees have in common is that banks will often waive both, especially if it’s the first time you’ve incurred them and you call up and ask nicely. If you’re incurring fees often, set your accounts up differently, set up balance alerts, or look for a bank that has different policies.


by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

Prepare To Keep Waiting For Your Model 3: Tesla Is Way Behind On Production

If you’ve been waiting with bated breath for the arrival of the long-awaited, cheaper Tesla Model 3, well, you may have to cool your heels even longer than you thought. The company says a lot fewer vehicles have rolled off the line that it originally planned, due to “manufacturing bottlenecks.”

In a note to investors this week, Tesla says it’s fallen short of its goal of producing 1,500 vehicles between late July and the end of September, only producing 260 Model 3 cars and delivering 220 of them. The Model 3 has been positioned as the company’s most affordable car yet with a starting price of $36,000.

Tesla says this shortfall is totally not its fault.

“It is important to emphasize that there are no fundamental issues with the Model 3 production or supply chain,” the company said Monday. “We understand what needs to be fixed and we are confident of addressing the manufacturing bottleneck issues in the near-term.”

RELATED: Elon Musk Compares Model 3 To Hamburgers

Tesla notes on the Model 3 site that production will “slowly, grow exponentially,” because “we can only go as fast as our slowest supplier or production process.”

This means that if you reserve a Model 3 today, it likely won’t be delivered until mid 2018.

Here’s how the company envisions the production schedule:

This may not be a surprise as CEO Elon Musk warned back in July that the company was bracing for “production hell” as it tried to get enough Model 3s built in time to meet demand.

Shortly after announcing the Model 3 in the spring of 2016, Tesla boasted that it had received hundreds of thousands of pre-orders for the car. The company also began phasing out free, public use of its Supercharger charging stations, and planned to double the number of Superchargers, all in anticipation of a world where Model 3s are a common sight.

That world may still come, just not as quickly as Musk had hoped it would.


by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

Walmart Ramps Up Amazon Rivalry With Purchase Of Same-Day Delivery Company

Amazon is making bricks-and-mortar stores increasingly irrelevant in some markets by offering same-day delivery. So what’s a company like Walmart to do but try to beat Amazon at its own game.

Walmart announced today that it has acquired Parcel, a New York-based same-day delivery operation. The goal is to meet online shoppers’ demand for speed and flexibility.

The big box store says that with the purchase it will be able to continue testing fast delivery options, while also lowering its operating costs.

Parcel — which currently has partnerships to deliver for meal kit, grocery and e-commerce companies — offers deliveries 24 hours a day, seven days a week in New York City. The company receives packages at its Brooklyn warehouse and customers can choose from same-day, overnight, or a scheduled two-hour window delivery.

For now, Parcel will continue to serve its current customers, but will eventually be used in Walmart’s recent test of same-day delivery of Jet.com purchases in New York City.

“We can build upon that and plan to leverage Parcel for last-mile delivery to customers in New York City – including same-day delivery – for both general merchandise as well as fresh and frozen groceries from Walmart and Jet,” Nate Faust, senior vice president at Walmart, said in a statement.

Another Delivery Option

Walmart’s decision to wade further into the same-day delivery market comes as the company tries not only to provide customers with what they want — fast deliveries — but to compete with Amazon.

To that end, Walmart has tested or launched a plethora of delivery options for customers in recent months.

In September, the company said it wanted to deliver and put away groceries even when customers weren’t home. The retailer teamed up with August Home — a smart-lock and smart-home accessories company — to offer customers in Silicon Valley the option of having someone do their grocery shopping, deliver the products to their home, and then put them away — all while the customer isn’t home.

Over the summer, the company said it would test a system that allowed employees to deliver packages to customers’ homes on their way out for the night.

In January, Walmart ditched its $50/year ShippingPass program that was intended to compete directly with Amazon Prime in favor of offering free two-day shipping on millions of products with a lower minimum purchase price.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Roku's new devices, Google removing paywall rules


In today's tech news, Roku debuts five new devices, Google removes paywall demotions and Playstation VR gets a minor update. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Download the new CNET app: http://ift.tt/2fmiQ6l Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm
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Bowers & Wilkins' PX wireless noise-cancelling headphone looks great


The company's first noise-cancelling headphone is sleekly designed, feature-packed and sounds excellent. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Download the new CNET app: http://ift.tt/2fmiQ6l Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm
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Starbucks Shut Down Its Online Store In Effort To “Simplify” Things

Unless you’ve been surfing Starbucks.com recently, you may not have noticed that something is missing — its online store. The Seattle-based coffee chain shut down its virtual shop on Sunday, citing a desire to focus on the customer experience in physical stores.

The online store sold the company’s coffee as well as merchandise like travel mugs, espresso machines, and other brewing tools. Starbucks says some products all now be available in stores, but it cannot guarantee availability.

Starbucks says the move is part of an effort to “simplify” the company’s sales channels, while working on the in-store experience instead.

“We’re continuing to invest in amplifying Starbucks as a must-visit destination and are looking across our portfolio to make disciplined, thoughtful decisions,” a Starbucks spokesperson told The New York Times.

This might not be a surprise to customers who were paying attention, however: Starbucks posted a note online at the end of August telling customers that the end was nigh.

And if the plan to “simplify” sounds familiar, perhaps it’s because that’s the name of one of two hashtagged initiatives reportedly launched by Starbucks back in March, #Simplify and #20More. The former is meant to smooth operations behind the counter and get orders to customers faster, while the latter is a push to serve 20 more people daily.


by Mary Beth Quirk via Consumerist

A sleeping baby with the push of a button


The Snoo smart sleeper can put a baby to sleep in seconds so that mom and dad can stay in bed. Subscribe to CNET: http://cnet.co/2heRhep Check out our playlists: http://cnet.co/2g8kcf4 Download the new CNET app: http://ift.tt/2fmiQ6l Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1930vfU Follow us on Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/cnet Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2icCYYm
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Nearly 650,000 Jeep & Dodge SUVs Recalled Over Potentially Degraded Brakes

Fiat Chrysler recalled more than half a million SUVs this week because it can be dangerous when your brakes don’t work properly. 

FCA announced today the recall of 646,394 model year 2011 to 2014 Dodge Durango and Jeep Grand Cherokee vehicles after finding that the shield around the brake line could be compromised.

The carmaker says that the shields designed to protect the brake booster from water intrusion could be installed improperly. If this is the case, then water could get into the system, creating corrosion or freezing the brake line.

While a booster compromised by water will still provide brake function in compliance with U.S. federal safety standards, it could lead to degraded brake function, FCA notes.

The carmaker says it is aware of one crash related to the issue, but no injuries.

The shields in question were actually used as part of a 2014 recall involving the same set of vehicles. FCA noticed the new issue after reviewing warranty data and discovering shields on some vehicles had been installed improperly, leading to the recall.

FCA will notify owners of affected vehicles in early November. Dealers will replace the shields if needed.

Customers with questions or concerns may call the FCA US Recall Information Center at (800)-853-1403.


by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Power Efficient AMD Embedded Radeonâ„¢ E9170 GPUs


AMD Embedded Radeon E9170 GPUs Launched on October 3, 2017, expanding the Power Efficient portfolio. It is the first “Polaris” architecture-based ADM Embedded discrete GPU available in an MCM as well as MXM and PCIE formats. http://ift.tt/2fNLr4J *** Subscribe: http://bit.ly/Subscribe_to_AMD Like us on Facebook: http://bit.ly/AMD_on_Facebook Follow us on Twitter: http://bit.ly/AMD_On_Twitter Follow us on Twitch: http://Twitch.tv/AMD Follow us on G+: http://bit.ly/AMD_on_GooglePlus Follow us on Linkedin: http://bit.ly/AMD_on_Linkedin Follow us on Instagram: http://bit.ly/AMD_on_Instagram ©2017 Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. AMD, the AMD Arrow Logo, and combinations thereof are trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices, Inc. Other names are for informational purposes only and may be trademarks of their respective owners.
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QNAP Virtualization Station Solution Unveiled


Explore virtualization technology and QNAP Virtualization Station. Follow us for an in-depth review of virtual machine applications on QNAP NAS and system performance statistics. We will also cover flexible deployment and management of virtualization environments.
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LIAN LI PC-O12



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Beyond Powerful- VivoBook Pro| ASUS


The Experience is Everything Be ready to enjoy immersive experience powered by up to Intel® Core™ i7 processor, GTX 1050 gaming-grade graphics and audio co-developed by Harman Kardon plus a 4K display. Discover more: http://ift.tt/2rxo7MG
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联结城市 「集思创未来」 - 60 sec - 日立


人生中,有许多不能错过的时刻。 日立通过分析数据让城市的运行更加顺畅。 电梯到得刚刚好,列车准点到达, 出租车在预期中出现。 通过物联网平台,日立预测即将发生的事情, 帮助人们顺利地迎接自己的重要时刻。 集思创未来 这就是日立社会创新 http://ift.tt/2fED7QM
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联结城市 「集思创未来」 - 30 sec - 日立


日立通过物联网平台分析数据, 预测即将发生的事情, 让城市的运行更加顺畅, 帮助人们顺利地迎接自己的重要时刻。 集思创未来 这就是日立社会创新 http://ift.tt/2fED7QM
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BenQ Corporate IFP Product Video


BenQ's 4K Interactive Flat Panel creates collaborative meeting environment that improve productivity. To learn more: http://ift.tt/2fGfd7T
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Tip: BenQ 20 seconds tips-Set Monitors-by Adrian Weinbrecht |BenQ Inside Studio


In this episode of BenQ 20 seconds tips hosted by BenQ Ambassador Adrian Weinbrecht, Adrian explains the importance of having a hardware-calibrated monitor on set. Check this out. More interviews with BenQ Ambassadors, Visit! http://ift.tt/2feKEWl *Follow BenQ Inside Studio on: Facebook: http://ift.tt/2waDrNY Instagram: http://ift.tt/2ffjkHF Official Website: http://ift.tt/2feKEWl
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Ultrawide 49-inch Samsung gaming monitor hands-on


Subscribe to Engadget on YouTube: http://engt.co/subscribe Get More Engadget: • Like us on Facebook: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZT • Follow us on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/engadget • Follow us on Instagram: http://ift.tt/1k1iCZV • Add us on Snapchat: http://ift.tt/1UqS18a • Read more: http://www.engadget.com Engadget is the definitive guide to this connected life.
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Facebook Fixing Its Election Ads Problem | Crunch Report


GM is hoping to have 20 new electric vehicles by 2023, Uber is partnering with Westfield Malls to offer pick-up spots and lounges and Facebook is hiring 1,000 more people to help combat election ad interference. All this on Crunch Report.
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Kensington BlackBelt™ Rugged Case for iPad® 9.7” Install Video


The iPad® is a popular device in the classroom, conference room, out in the field and used by families and the mobile professional. The BlackBelt™ Rugged Case is built with military-grade protection and with an infinitely variable kick stand for convenience. Take your device into any environment and get the perfect angle for whatever you are doing. The textured rubber creates a non-slip grip for all surfaces. Integrating a hand strap reduces the chances of accidental drops and makes the iPad® convenient and easy to carry wherever you are.
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Kensington FP123 Privacy Screen for Surface Pro & Surface Pro 4


Trust Kensington, the choice of IT professionals, to help protect the sensitive information on your Surface® Pro and reduce the chances of wandering eyes viewing confidential data on your screen. This privacy screen is designed specifically for the Microsoft® Surface® Pro and is compatible with the touch screen. The FP Series Laptop Privacy Screens limit the field of vision to +/- 30 degrees so a person off to the side only sees a dark screen. They are easy to install, with the included double-sided tape. The reversible privacy screens also use an anti-reflective coating to reduce glare, and they filter out harmful blue light by up to 30 percent.
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Kensington Surface Pro Bundle Animation


Trust Kensington, the choice of IT professionals, to keep your vision, your sensitive proprietary information, and your Surface Pro safe and secure. The portability and flexibility of the Surface Pro make it the ideal tool to use on the go, or wherever a laptop or desktop wouldn’t be practical, and that means you may subject it to tougher work conditions and expose it to more high-risk environments. For ultimate protection, safety, and security, Kensington’s Blackbelt 2nd Degree Rugged Case, FP123 Privacy Screen and Cabled Locked ensure your Surface Pro is protected no matter where you do your work. With the fully integrated suite of products, you can protect your Surface Pro from drops and wandering eyes, and secure your Surface Pro after hours and when you need to step away from your workspace.
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Wells Fargo CEO “Deeply Sorry” About That Time His Employees Opened Millions Of Fake Accounts In Customers’ Names

Tuesday morning, Wells Fargo CEO Tim “Apology Machine” Sloan will appear before the Senate Banking Committee to take some public tongue lashings for his bank’s fake account fiasco, which saw Wells employee opening up millions of bogus accounts in customers’ names in order to game the bank’s sales quota system. Sloan’s prepared remarks for this televised tomato-throwing include all manner of statements about how badly the bank behaved and how it’s darn-tootin’ not gonna let that happen again, but also don’t discuss one issue that will certainly be a hot-button topic among some senators in the room.

“I am deeply sorry for letting down our customers and team members,” writes Sloan in remarks [PDF] that will be given at a hearing with the TV-movie title of Wells Fargo: One Year Later. “I apologize for the damage done to all the people who work and bank at this important American institution. When the challenges at Wells Fargo demanded decisive action, the bank’s leaders acted too slowly and too incrementally. That was unacceptable.”

Before you congratulate Sloan for donning his bespoke hairshirt, remember that he wasn’t the CEO when some Wells employees were allegedly running roughshod over every ethical and moral guideline in the banking book, opening and closing various types of accounts just so it looked they were really good at selling people on financial products. Rather, John “Yeah, I do look like Jimmy Johnson’s evil banker brother” Stumpf, was the one who had to first explain to Congress why he repeatedly ignored customer complaints and corporate whistleblowers.

In fact, at the 2016 hearings on this scandal, Ol’ Stumpfy admitted that he’d heard about this sort of bad behavior in 2013, but did nothing to change the underlying problem until after the bank had been sued, after the media had reported on potential widespread abuse, and after the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and others officially took action against Wells Fargo.

“When my predecessor testified here last year, we had not fully grappled with the damage the sales practices scandal had done to our customers, our team members, and their trust in the bank,” explains Sloan, dutifully tossing Stumpf to the wolves. “We came to Congress without a good plan and all of you were right to criticize us. But I heard you—and I heard our customers and our team members—loud and clear. You expect us to do better, and so do we.”

Of course, Sloan is not without blame. As individual reports of malfeasance began to percolate in the years leading up to the revelation of the fake account fiasco, the then-COO of Wells Fargo made statements denying claims of an “overbearing sales culture” at Wells Fargo.

The CEO’s remarks talk up, in incredibly dull detail, all the ways in which he claims that Wells Fargo is a “better bank today than it was a year ago. And next year, Wells Fargo will be a better bank than it is today.”

Or maybe you shouldn’t have been a horrible bank in the first place? Just a thought.

One thing that Sloan doesn’t address in his remarks, but which will surely be raised by Sen. Elizabeth Warren and possibly others is the issue of forced arbitration.

In spite of all his apologies and promises that Wells is now a better place to put your money than leaving it in a clear bag on a busy sidewalk, Sloan says nothing about his bank’s attempts to force customer lawsuits out of the court system and into individual, confidential arbitration.

When we pressed Wells Fargo on this issue last year, it continued to insist that arbitration is faster and more efficient than a lawsuit.

As we pointed out, that may be true when you’re talking about a single customer trying to resolve a very particular dispute (though we also know of individual arbitrations that have lagged on for years). Arbitration is far from the most effective way to figure out how to deal with a lawsuit where they may be more than 2 million plaintiffs. Surely it’s more efficient to hear one case instead of arbitrating 2 million individual cases?

There is also the question of whether or not Wells will get asked the questions that should be asked, as some members of the Senate Banking Committee have received not-insubstantial support from Wells in recent years.

For example, Sen. Pat Toomey (PA) received $42,400 from Wells Fargo during the 2016 election cycle. Committee Chair Sen. Mike Crapo (ID) received $27,000 from the bank in 2016. In all, Wells provided a total of nearly $125,600 in funding to nine GOP senators on the Banking Committee and a total of $9,141 to four Democratic members.

When Stumpf appeared before the heavily bank-backed House Financial Services Committee in 2016, lawmakers who had received large amounts of funding from Wells Fargo attempted to divert the conversation away from the bank’s failures and toward the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which these committee members attempted to blame for Wells Fargo’s systemic failure to get employees to comply with the law.


by Chris Morran via Consumerist