Sony's business stabilizes with strong PS4 game sales

Sony's latest earnings reveal a simple truth: former CEO Kaz Hirai left the company in a relatively good position. In the full year leading up to March 31st, 2018, the company raked in revenue of 8,544 billion yen (roughly $78.1 billion) and operating income, or profit, of 734.9 billion yen (roughly $6.7 billion). The latter figure is a huge improvement over the $2.6 billion it managed to pull in last time. The bump, however, was expected; in the last financial year, Sony's camera imaging business was rocked by the 2016 Kumamoto earthquakes. Now, that crucial division is back at full strength.

Sony's business stabilizes with strong PS4 game sales posted first on https://www.engadget.com

Amazon raising Prime membership price to $119

Heads up, Amazon Prime customers: the service is about to get more expensive.

Amazon has announced that it will increase the price of an annual Prime membership in the U.S. on May 11. On that date, the price of Amazon Prime will increase from $99 per year to $119 per year. 

This higher price will apply to current Amazon Prime customers starting with renewals starting on June 16.

The change is notable because it's the first time that Amazon has increased the price of its annual Prime membership in four years. You get a lot with a Prime membership, including access to Prime Video and Prime Music streaming, the ability to borrow ebooks through Prime Reading, two-day shipping, free same-day delivery and Prime Now two-hour delivery in eligible areas. Considering all of that, Amazon Prime will still be worth it for a lot of people, but there will probably be some customers upset about the price increase as well.

What do you think of this price increase? Are any of you current Prime members planning to cancel because of it?

Amazon

Amazon raising Prime membership price to $119 originally posted at http://phonedog.com

Amazon discounting SanDisk 200GB microSD card

If you're looking to add some storage to your smartphone or tablet, Amazon's got just the deal for you.

Amazon is running a discount on the SanDisk 200GB microSD card. It's in stock and ready to ship right now, and because it ships from and is sold by Amazon, it qualifies for Amazon Prime two-day shipping.

SanDisk's 200GB microSD card offers transfer speeds up to 100MB/s, is rated A1 for faster app performance, and is shockproof, temperature-proof, and waterproof. That makes it a nice way to add storage to your smartphone or tablet at an affordable price.

There's no telling how long this deal will be available, but offers like this usually don't stick around for a long time. So if you're thinking about springing for this discounted SanDisk microSD card, you may want to act soon.

Amazon

Amazon discounting SanDisk 200GB microSD card originally posted at http://phonedog.com

Pinterest now lets you filter search results by skin tone

Pinterest has rolled out new changes that let users filter hair and beauty search results by skin tone ranges, as a way to make it easier to find what you may be looking for. The changes come after the social media platform conducted a survey and found that 70 percent of people used the service to find and save everyday looks and styles.

A Medium post from Pinterest’s engineering account says the process of programming the search filters to detect skin tone in images was difficult, given how lighting, shadows, and other factors were all variables to consider.

To solve the issue, Pinterest used machine learning from a third-party beauty app ModiFace that already had a suitable facial data library for artificial intelligence use....

Continue reading…

Pinterest now lets you filter search results by skin tone appeared first on http://www.theverge.com

iTunes is now available in the Microsoft Store for Windows 10

Apple is finally bringing its iTunes app to Microsoft’s Windows 10 app store today. Microsoft first revealed nearly a year ago that iTunes would be coming to the Microsoft Store by the end of 2017, but that date came and went. Apple’s iTunes app is the same desktop version available online, but it will be updated and available through the Microsoft Store.

iTunes is one of the most searched for apps that wasn’t available in the Microsoft Store, and the addition will be a boost to Microsoft’s Windows 10 S Mode efforts. Windows 10 in S Mode only supports apps available in the Microsoft Store, and iTunes will provide Windows 10 users with a way to access Apple Music. iTunes is available immediately from the Microsoft Store.

Continue reading…

iTunes is now available in the Microsoft Store for Windows 10 appeared first on http://www.theverge.com

Sprint reportedly introducing Unlimited 55+ plan on May 18

Following T-Mobile's launch of an Unlimited 55+ rate plan last year, a new report claims that Sprint will launch a similar offering.

Sprint will launch a plan called Unlimited 55+ on May 18, according to Android Police. It'll reportedly include unlimited talk, text, and data, unlimited mobile hotspot, and Global Roaming service that'll let customers text and use data at 2G speeds in 185 countries.

There will allegedly be some restrictions with this plan, too, like video streams being limited to 480p, music streaming capping out at 500kbps, and game streaming being limited to 5Mbps. The unlimited mobile hotspot will be limited to 3G speeds, too, and international data usage will be limited to 100MB at 2G speeds. Finally, customers will have their data usage deprioritized during times of congestion if their usage crosses a certain threshold.

As for pricing, the Sprint Unlimited 55+ plan is expected to cost $50 for one line and $70 for two lines. To compare, T-Mobile's Unlimited 55+ plan is $50 per month for one line and $70 for two lines when you enroll in autopay.

Based on the details included in this leak, Sprint's Unlimited 55+ plan doesn't sound like something that'll get T-Mobile Unlimited 55+ customers to switch. T-Mo's international data usage is offered in around 45 fewer countries than Sprint's, but with T-Mo you get unlimited international data usage at 2G speeds rather than being limited to 100MB.

This Unlimited 55+ plan is a bit cheaper than Sprint's standard plan, especially if you sign up for two lines. The benefits aren't quite as nice as Sprint's Unlimited Freedom plan, but if you're aged 55 or older, the savings might be worth the trade-off. Stay tuned and we'll let you know when Sprint's Unlimited 55+ plan becomes official.

Sprint

Sprint reportedly introducing Unlimited 55+ plan on May 18 originally posted at http://phonedog.com

LG G7 ThinQ leaks again, this time in black

Days after we got our best look yet at the upcoming LG G7 ThinQ, some more images of upcoming Android flagship have leaked.

New renders that show the front and back of the LG G7 ThinQ in black have been leaked by Evan Blass. Just like the silver model that we saw earlier this week, this black LG G7 ThinQ has a black front bezel with display notch. What's different is that its backside is black, too.

...in black pic.twitter.com/PuaCYmeleo

— Evan Blass (@evleaks) April 26, 2018

There's not much new information contained in today's leak, but it does give us another good look at one of 2018's flagship smartphones. LG will officially unveil the G7 ThinQ on May 2, but it's dropped a few details about the device ahead of the event.

It's been confirmed that the LG G7 ThinQ will include a 6.1-inch 3120x1440 display with a 19.5:9 aspect ratio and 1,000 nits of brightness. And yes, there will be a notch, but LG will let you hide it with software by turning the status bar black. Rumors have suggested that the G7 ThinQ will include features like a Snapdragon 845 processor and a physical Google Assistant button, too.

LG

LG G7 ThinQ leaks again, this time in black originally posted at http://phonedog.com