April, 2020

• 7 April

  Uber helps drivers pivot to deliveries and other work

  

  Uber has a new tool for drivers who aren’t getting many ride requests due to lockdowns and shelter-in-place orders happening across the US amid the coronavirus outbreak. The ride-hailing company will make it easier for gig workers to jump from one of its businesses to another.  The Work Hub lets Uber drivers receive other work …

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• 7 April

  Working from home? Save $300 on 2

  

  Have you been forced to turn your old laptop that was previously used primarily for checking email and watching Netflix into an honest-to-goodness work computer? Is it straining to keep up with its new and expanded role as you work from home to help stop the spread of the coronavirus? If your laptop sounds like a jet engine when you …

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• 7 April

  Etsy encourages sellers to make face masks

  

  As the US struggles to fill a coronavirus-driven demand for more personal protective equipment, Etsy, the online seller of homemade goods, is encouraging its network of sellers to make face masks. The move comes after the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention issued an updated set of guidelines on wearing face coverings in public, including homemade face masks.  Etsy said in …

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• 7 April

  Work in silence with these TaoTronics noise

  

  There’s a real dearth of budget-priced noise-canceling headphones out there. When we recently wrote about the best noise-canceling headphones of 2020, most of the entries clocked in between $150 and $350 (like the superb Sony WH1000XM3), and only one sub-$100 headset even made the list, the Anker Soundcore Life 2.  But what if you want to spend less than $50? …

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• 7 April

  Add an LG Blu

  

  For a lot of people, Blu-ray’s day has come and gone. It’s not hard to see why — streaming services have made the concept of inserting a plastic disc in a machine to watch Birds of Prey seem as archaic as my old 400-disc audio CD carousel (and if you’re too young to remember such things, yes, they were real …

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• 7 April

  AT&T’s CNN buys privacy

  

  Canopy, a privacy-focused recommendations startup, has been acquired by CNN, a unit of wireless giant AT&T through its WarnerMedia devision. Financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.  Built by Spotify, Instagram, Google and New York Times alumni, the startup is trying to figure out how algorithm-powered recommendations, like the kinds that suggest videos on YouTube or items in your Facebook …

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• 7 April

  Intel pledges $50 million for coronavirus science, treatment, online schooling

  

  COVID-19, the respiratory illness caused by the novel coronavirus, has infected more than a million people around the world. In a new step to fight the coronavirus pandemic, Intel will spend $50 million on improving patient care, scientific research and online education. The chipmaker’s effort, unveiled Tuesday, is among several examples of companies going beyond their usual area of business …

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• 7 April

  Facebook launches Tuned, a messaging app for couples

  

  Facebook has released a new app for couples to share a private space online, “even when you’re apart.” Tuned allows couples to share photos, notes, cards, voice memos, music from Spotify and even their moods. There’s also a daily diary feature. Facebook calls it “a private space where you and your significant other can just be yourselves.” It’s a digital …

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• 7 April

  Spotting the International Space Station with the Galaxy S20 Ultra

  

  The Samsung Galaxy S20 Ultra‘s telephoto camera is capable of 100x zoom, a feature the company dubs “Space Zoom.” So I found out when and where the International Space Station was going to pass by my apartment and tried to find it — space, meet zoom. I also pitted Space Zoom against the iPhone 11 Pro‘s zoom to see how …

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• 7 April

  iPhone SE: Every spec, rumor and the expected launch date

  

  Update, April 22: Read our iPhone SE 2020 review. Original story follows. Apple has finally revealed a new iPhone SE for 2020. The phone starts at $399 and will be available for preorder starting April 24.  But keeping in mind that since the world is in the midst of a pandemic, the launch date and its rumored April 22 shipment date …

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