NBCUniversal And Charter Agree on Deal For Peacock Free Trial

NBCUniversal and Charter have agreed on a deal that includes a free trial of the Premium tier of the Peacock streaming service. Charter will also distribute the Peacock app via its Spectrum Guide platform, Deadline reported.

Networks that are part of the distribution deal include NBC, Telemundo, Bravo, CNBC, E!, MSNBC, The Olympic Channel, Oxygen, Syfy, USA Network, Universal Kids, Universo, The Golf Channel, CNBC World, New England Cable News (NECN), and NBC Sports Network, as well as five Regional Sports Networks — NBC Sports Bay Area, NBC Sports Washington, NBC Sports Northwest, NBC Sports Boston, and NBC Sports Chicago. They will be available to Charter’s Spectrum home and business subscribers in 41 states. “Charter is a valued partner with passionate NBCUniversal fans in millions of homes nationwide,” said Matt Bond, Chairman, Content Distribution, NBCUniversal. “We look forward to delivering our industry-leading network content portfolio, as well as the strong collection of original and library content in our Peacock Premium offering, to Charter’s subscribers everywhere.”

New Facial Recognition Tech Works Even When People Are Wearing Masks

Japan’s NEC has launched a facial recognition system that works even when people are wearing masks. Customers for the tool include Lufthansa and Swiss International Airlines, Shinya Takashima, assistant manager of the company’s digital platform division, told Reuters. (BBC News also reported that London’s Metropolitan Police uses the technology.)

The system determines when a person is wearing a mask and hones in on the parts that are not covered up, such as the eyes and surrounding areas, to verify the subject’s identity. Users register a photo of their face in advance. NEC says verification takes less than one second and claims an accuracy rate of more than 99.9%. The system can be used at security gates in office buildings and other facilities. NEC is also trialing the technology for automated payments at an unmanned convenience store in its Tokyo headquarters.

 

App Sale: ‘Book Track’ Library Manager on Sale for $2

Book Track is a library manager and is currently on sale for US$1.99, down from US$4.99. Book Track is the application built for iPhone, iPad and Mac to easily keep track of the books you have purchased and which you would like to read. Manage your personal collection and wish list, searching for books by name or author, doing a barcode scan or entering them manually. Digitizing your personal library has never been easier or faster.

KRAFTGUN Massage Gun: $369.99

We have a deal on the KRAFTGUN Massage Gun. This noise-free massage gun is equipped with a brushless 24V motor and a frequency that reaches up to 40Hz. It comes with three interchangeable attachments and 3.5 hours of work time. It’s $369.99 through our deal.

‘ElectroRAT’ is the First Mac Malware Spotted in 2021

We’re barely a week into 2021 and a piece of Mac malware has already been spotted. Dubbed “ElectroRAT” its primary goal is to steal personal information from cryptocurrency users.

These [malicous] applications were promoted in cryptocurrency and blockchain-related forums such as bitcointalk and SteemCoinPan. The promotional posts, published by fake users, tempted readers to browse the applications’ web pages, where they could download the application without knowing they were actually installing malware.

Why Apple Should Make a Foldable iPhone

There has been increased talk of Apple making a foldable iPhone in the near(ish) future. Writing for Inc. Jason Aten said that he doesn’t expect such a device anytime soon, but that it should happen.

In the case of a foldable device, Apple is actually uniquely suited to building something that both makes sense and actually works. Unlike Samsung or Microsoft or Android, Apple makes both the software and the hardware and is very good at both.  And, Apple has clearly been working on the hardware. The company was awarded patents as far back as 2017 for “electronic devices with flexible displays.” As far as software, Apple’s advantage is that it can tailor the experience to whatever device it decides to build. I actually think there’s room for a device that fits into your pocket, but still unfolds into something you can use for more than just scrolling through your Twitter or Instagram feed. Honestly, the Z Fold2 was a great device for reading, consuming content, dealing with emails, sending messages, and even video chat. The Duo was even more interesting, especially because of how well made it was, and how thin its overall form factor.