New, Updated Foursquare Is Always Watching You… Even When You Aren’t Running Foursquare

(me and the sysop)

If you launch Foursquare, you expect it to know where you are. The app is explicitly designed to record your location when you open it and so nobody’s shocked if it, well, records their location when they open it. But users who download the new Foursquare are in for a nasty surprise. The app is now tracking users’ locations at all times, whether they’ve opened it or not.

The always-on tracking feature is a change with the most recent version of the app, the Wall Street Journal reports. That app no longer offers the familiar options to check in at various locations and earn badges, but instead basically follows users around and encourages them to write Yelp-style tips and reviews about the places they go.

The tracking doesn’t just take place when mobile users open the app, though. It takes place literally any time their phones are powered on. Even if you’ve just booted up your phone and have forgotten that Foursquare was ever installed on there, it’s now watching where you go.

Although older versions of Foursquare did have the location-tracking feature built in, according to the WSJ, the big difference is that in the newest update to the software location-tracking is now enabled by default. Users can opt-out, but must first realize that they are being tracked at all times, then go into the app’s settings to disable the feature.

Foursquare boss Dennis Crowley told the WSJ that the invasion of privacy is all in the name of money — which the company is currently failing to make. “Tracking user whereabouts could arm Foursquare with more valuable data it can sell to partners and advertisers as it searches for new streams of revenue. The company hopes to analyze trends in where users go and what destinations are popular, and may sell that data to its partners,” the WSJ reports.

Crowley also told the WSJ that he thinks users will be fine with the change because it will improve the recommendations they get for nearby food and services. “It’s been our philosophy since we started that as long as we are recycling the data back to people, people will be interested in using the services,” he told the WSJ. “You can’t just collect a lot of information off people and not doing anything with it. It’s not a fair trade.”

In exchange for tracking your location and movements every time you leave the house and then selling that data to whomever they please, Foursquare might tell you if there’s a sushi joint nearby it thinks you might like, even if you “forgot” to open the app. Crowley’s exactly right: that doesn’t sound like a fair trade at all.

Foursquare Now Tracks Users Even When the App Is Closed [Wall Street Journal]

by Kate Cox via Consumerist

Using Your Phone As A GPS Is Awesome Until You Get A Distracted Driving Ticket

(frankieleon)

Smartphone GPS apps are extremely useful tools for people who want real-time traffic information and/or you don’t want to drag around a separate GPS unit. Yet motorists should be careful: even if they’re just choosing a different route or reporting a construction zone, they can get in serious trouble for simply holding a phone in their hands.

We all know that texting and e-mailing while driving are terrible ideas, but taking selfies and video selfies while driving are even worse ideas. Yet the phone features that aim to let us engage with our phones without typing or looking down aren’t police-proof. That’s because a cop who glimpses you fiddling with your phone doesn’t know whether you’re changing your destination in a map app or sending a long, detailed text message. Holding your phone while you shout instructions to it or have a virtual assistant transcribe your text? That’s also not always okay unless you don’t even have a hand on the phone.

According to an attorney specializing in traffic violations who our colleagues over at Consumer Reports consulted, here in New York state, location of Consumerist’s global headquarters, you can get in trouble just for not having both hands on the wheel if there’s a phone next to you. Even if they aren’t being that strict, holding your phone is enough to get a fine and points on your license. Even if you aren’t looking at it or talking into it.

Even using a standalone GPS won’t keep you out of trouble. There are 28 states where it’s actually illegal to mount your GPS (or phone) on your windshield. Mounting either to the dashboard is an alternate option, but one that doesn’t keep the device in your line of sight.

When driving with GPS is against the law [Consumer Reports]

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

T-Mobile, Where Second Place = “Undisputed” Champ

(Patrick)

Yesterday, T-Mobile sent out a press release claiming that it is now the industry leader in prepaid wireless (we’ll get to that later). The statement from the magenta mobile provider also included the boast that T-Mobile “has maintained the undisputed title of America’s fastest nationwide 4G LTE network” and links to a recent test as evidence. Problem is, the results of that test don’t seem to back up T-Mobile’s horn-tooting.

The T-Mo press release cites these comparative 4G LTE test results posted by CNET’s Lynn La earlier this week.

La put all four national carriers through the same tests to see how their LTE networks stacked up against each other.

I would think that anyone claiming they were the “undisputed” title holder for LTE speeds would have to have placed first in all the tests, but T-Mobile apparently thinks differently.

That’s not to say that T-Mobile didn’t do very well on the CNET tests.

Its download rate of 38.04 Mbps was only slightly behind AT&T’s 40.5 Mbps. Likewise, the two carriers had nearly identical upload rates, with AT&T’s 19.81 edging out T-Mobile with 19.36.

Those numbers are something for any wireless carrier to brag about and they’re many times faster than the current FCC standard for broadband.

Much like Verizon’s unnecessarily misleading customer satisfaction charts, there is a lot for T-Mobile to brag about in the CNET results.

The smaller carrier did beat out all the competition in the three media download tests. A 1.4GB movie downloaded in only 5 minutes, 28 seconds on T-Mo, more than a minute faster than AT&T.

It also performed respectably on the web-browsing tests, tying or being only a second behind the leader in load times.

For a the smallest of the four majors to be offering speeds that are competitive, if not better, is something for T-Mobile to brag about. Unfortunately, the company is apparently taking the position “Why be honest and say we’re doing a good job when we can fib and say we’re the greatest thing ever?”

Speaking of which, let’s get back to the initial reason that T-Mobile sent out the press release — its claim that it had passed Sprint to become the #1 prepaid wireless provider in the country.

That’s debatable. Let’s look at this graph from Jan Dawson of Jackdaw Research:

T-Mobile (the pink line) does indeed appear to have overtaken Sprint (the yellow line), but that’s that dark blue line that has about 10 million more subscribers? Oh, it’s Tracfone, owned by Mexico’s América Móvil.

Now, Tracfone’s U.S. service uses other carriers’ networks for its phone service. So in terms of companies that sell prepaid service that works on a network owned by the same company, T-Mobile may indeed be the leader.

Dear T-Mobile: There’s nothing wrong with admitting that you’re not always the fastest. Or at the very least, if you’re going to boast about being the fastest, make sure you link to research that backs up your claim.

And, after looking at those CNET results, just thank your luck stars you weren’t bought by Sprint.

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Cómo (no) lee la gente online #infografia #infographic

Hola:

Una infografía sobre Cómo (no) lee la gente online. Vía

Un saludos

Cómo (no) lee la gente online

Archivado en: Infografía, Sociedad de la información Tagged: Infografía, internet, tic



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FDA Warns Consumers, Tattoo Parlors To Be On The Lookout For Contaminated Ink

(Ashi Fachler)

Not all tattoo ink is created equal. Some brands come in a variety of colors, and apparently others come with loads of bacteria that can cause painful skin infections.

The Food and Drug Administration issued a warning to tattoo parlors, their customers and those buying at-home tattoo kits after testing found certain inks could contain a bacteria that causes skin infections, the Associated Press reports.

The warning comes a month after California-based White and Blue Lion Inc. recalled the ink used in its in-home tattoo kits after it was determined that a bacterial combination known to cause infections was present in unopened bottles.

So far, the FDA says, one skin infection has been linked to that specific brand. The agency is also aware of infections related to similarly packaged inks.

Officials with the agency say they are concerned that consumers and tattoo artists may be in possession of the contaminated ink, which may have more distributors than just While and Blue Lion.

Labels on some of the recalled ink bottles contain a Chinese dragon with black-and-white lettering. Other bottles may be missing manufacturer information.

The FDA recommends that anyone planning to get a tattoo examine the ink bottle to make sure there is a brand name and location of the manufacturer included.

Skin infections related to tattoos aren’t uncommon, as the ink has been found to carry bacteria through the bloodstream, the AP reports. In the past, most health issues related to tattoos were the result of unsanitary parlor conditions and dirty needles.

Symptoms of an infection, which can occur years after the ink has dried, include fever, shaking chills and sweats, or in less severe cases bumps on the skin, discharge, redness and swelling may be present. People with pre-existing heart or circulatory conditions are most at-risk for infections.

FDA warns that tattoo inks can cause infections [The Associated Press]

by Ashlee Kieler via Consumerist

Historia de la gastronomía #infografia #infographic #tourism

Hola:

Una infografía sobre la Historia de la gastronomía. Vía

Un saludo

Historia de la gastronomía

Archivado en: Infografía Tagged: Infografía, Turismo



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Study: Most Meals In America Are Now Eaten Solo

(Xavier J. Peg)

Did you eat breakfast on your own today? What about lunch — did you grab a bite with friends or eat something at your desk while pondering why it’s taken so long for your Netflix DVD to arrive? If so, then maybe you’ll be pleased to know that you’re part of the majority of Americans who consume those meals without a companion.

That’s according to researchers at NPD Group, who recently concluded that 57% of all “eating occasions” are done without a partner.

Not surprisingly, non-meal eating — the snacking we do between meals — is when we’re most likely to be chowing down on our own, with nearly 3-in-4 snacking occasions being solo events.

In terms of meals, breakfast is the loneliest meal, with 60% of people getting their first meal of the day by themselves. Which makes sense, considering the number of people who pick up a bagel, donut, banana, whatever, on their way into work in the morning.

We were a bit surprised that 55% of lunches are enjoyed without anyone else around to nitpick your peculiar eating habits. But then we thought of all the sandwiches, to-go boxes, soups and other mid-day meals we’ve consumed on our own.

There’s a huge dip when it gets down to dinner time, where only about 1-in-3 meals are a one-person affair, with families finally coalescing into some sort of unit if only for the few minutes it takes to scarf down a meal and insult each other in ways that sting only slightly at the time but which will develop into lifelong grudges… Or so we’ve been told.

NPD explains that the growing number of solo meals is likely due to the record-high number of people living alone. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 27% of all U.S. households consist of just a single person.

[via BurgerBusiness.com]

by Chris Morran via Consumerist

Coffee Rankings Are Personal, But In Wi-Fi Starbucks Beats McDonald’s And Panera Hands-Down

(Andrés Martín)

Heading out for some breakfast and a cup of coffee? Excellent. For quality food and drink, your choices are wide, wide open. But if what you really want is some sweet free Wi-Fi, you may want to skip that chocolate chip bagel from Panera and head across the street to Starbucks for a frappuccino instead.

Mashable points the way to a new report that takes a look at how good (or bad) free and public Wi-Fi in the U.S. is right now. The data comes from OpenSignal, an app company that crowdsources information about mobile data signals.

Starbucks’s shift to Google wi-fi, away from their old partnership with AT&T, has drastically improved internet connection speeds in the coffee shop chain, OpenSignal found. Starbucks locations using the Google connection average download speeds around 9 Mbps, where the old AT&T connections are closer to 5 Mbps.

That Google boost also puts Starbucks far ahead of the competition. Of the food joints OpenSignal users tested, McDonald’s had the next-highest network speeds at a little over 4 Mbps. Donut shops Tim Horton’s and Dunkin’ Donuts both lagged at less than 2 Mbps, and poor Panera barely hit 1 Mbps, making it the slowest network connection in the OpenSignal report.

Definitely-not-food-joints Best Buy, Target, and Lowe’s were also all on the list. All three performed less well than McDonald’s, but Best Buy at least came close. Target and Lowe’s languish down near the bottom of the rankings, on par with the donut shops.

Despite the huge disparity in public wi-fi hotspots, OpenSignal points out, the average wi-fi connection is still faster than the average 4G LTE connection.

The report also reminds us that “free” rarely is, with a look at hotel room wi-fi speed tests. They found a distinct correlation between price paid for the room and internet speed available. Surprise, surprise: the cheaper the room, the crappier the connection. Pay up for the nicer hotel, and you can probably get that Netflix stream important client file to work a lot better.

US Wi-Fi Report (July 2014) [OpenSignal via Mashable]

by Kate Cox via Consumerist

Uber And Lyft Now Open For Business In Houston

(Ben Schumin)

When Uber and Lyft opened for business in Houston, the same thing happened that has happened in many cities with existing livery industries: taxi companies freaked out and sought help from the city government. Now both ride-sharing services are open for business in the city, with some additional rules in place that are intended to help traditional taxi companies compete with them.

The difference isn’t a restriction on Uber and Lyft, but allowing traditional cab companies to charge higher fees during busier periods. Uber’s “surge” pricing is a controversial business model, which some people call “gouging.” Instead of banning the practice, Houston has given existing taxi services a piece of that action, allowing cabs hailed through apps to charge extra during busy periods. Taxis hailed on the street have to stick to their established metered rates.

“We’re going to compete, we just wanted to make sure the playing field was level, and that everybody was going to play by the same rules,” explained the CEO of Houston’s Yellow Cab, the city’s biggest taxi company.

Existing drivers are glad that they can now earn money legally: both companies simply started hiring drivers and accepting fares a few months ago without making sure they were cool with regulators.

HOUSTON CITY COUNCIL GIVES GREEN LIGHT TO UBER, LYFT [KTRK] (Thanks, Rachael!)

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist

How Leasing A Car Became A $4,779.37 Mistake

(J Phang – Yes, this is an A5, but it looks cool.)

Generally, any story that contains the phrase, “the salesperson talked me into…” is not going to end well. That was the case for personal finance blogger Michael Timmermann, who started out ready to buy a car in cash, ended up with a lease on a beautiful Audi A4. This wasn’t so bad until he moved to Washington, D.C., where he didn’t really need a car, but had to pay $300 per month to park his Audi.

There are completely legitimate websites where people can swap leases when their lives change or they just no longer like their cars. Unfortunately, Michael said that this isn’t wasn’t an option: Audi doesn’t remove the original lessee from the title, which would make him liable if the person who took it over stopped making payments.

Maybe he didn’t need an expensive car, after all. Michael notes that even before he moved to a major city, he only drove maybe ten miles a day. Sure, he was in a nice car for that period, but it wasn’t really worthwhile when there was nothing wrong with his old car in the first place.

The good news was that CarMax paid him $26,000 for the vehicle. The bad news was that with more than two years left on his lease, he had to pay CarMax $4,779.37 to take his car away.

Are leases a good idea in some situations? Sure. The problem is that often in life you don’t know when your situation is going to change. Cars depreciate,

My $4,779.37 Mistake: A Warning About Car Leasing [Save on (Almost) Everything] (via Rockstar Finance)

by Laura Northrup via Consumerist