news

Our new “Stories We Might Have Missed” segment includes stories that we’ve seen around the week that didn’t quite make it into our main posts this past week. At the end of each bullet there should be a source link for our information where you can go grab more details. Enjoy!

Amazon to Offer Prime Video Separately from Prime Membership

Amazon will now be offering Prime Video separately from the Prime annual membership. This is especially great for people who are interested in watching Prime Video but don’t want to pay for the annual membership (which currently costs $99). Prime Video will be available for $8.99, which is a sweet spot between Hulu+’s monthly membership ($7.99) and Netflix’s monthly membership (which, as of May, will be $9.99). According to reports, Amazon is also looking to offer the complete Prime Services package at $10.99 a month. Keep in mind that paying monthly costs you more over time. If you currently subscribe to Amazon Prime, your membership features will not change. Check out more information here.

Google Play Store Might Make its Way to Your Chromebook

If you own a Chromebook you may soon be able to use the Google Play Store on it. Chromebook users have been reporting that a notice pops up on their screen momentarily that says “Choose from over a million apps and games on Google Play to install and use on your Chromebook”. Rumors have been flying around stating that the Play Store might make an appearance on your Chromebook, but this seems to be some of the most definitive information we have gotten. Take a look at more information here.

Apple’s Revenue and Sales Fall

For the first time since 2003, Apple’s revenue and sales have fallen. It’s not time to panic, though. Apple is still making a ridiculous amount of money. For example, Apple’s profits were $10.5 billion. They made $50.6 billion in revenue. Their decline was calculated to be 22.5% in profits and 13% in revenue. Apple’s CEO, Tim Cook, states that the smartphone market “is currently not growing”. Apple makes a ton of money off of one of their most successful products- the iPhone. It’s no wonder that Apple would be affected by this stale market. Check out more of the numbers here.

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Simple Updates Make Viewing Your Money Simpler

Simple, the bank that challenges you to spend differently, has updated their app to provide some new and useful features. You’ll be notified via a helpful banner within the app when you spend more than your “Safe-to-Spend” balance. The Payments feature has also been updated so you can more accurately see what you have planned to spend. Another handy feature is that if your card has a chip in it, your card in the app will now reflect that. Simple has made some other smaller changes, as well. Be sure to update your app on iOS and Android.

Travel With Google

Rumor has it that Google is testing out a new travel app. Those enrolled in the Local Guides program are Google’s targeted testers. The Local Guides program allows people to share their world and discoveries using Google Maps. Apparently Google sent out an email to people who were enrolled in this program stating that they just might be eligible to test out an application dedicated to traveling. There is no current news on when we’ll see this app come to light, but it’s interesting to know the target audience for the tests.

Listen to Your Podcasts With Google Play Music

It’s official! Your podcasts are now available in Google Play Music. You can subscribe to your favorite podcasts within the app, and even discover new ones that you might not have known about. You’ll only be able to subscribe and listen to your podcasts on Android, currently. There is no word on when this feature is coming to iOS. If you have an Android device and use Google Play Music be sure to update your app here.

 

Kevin Nether