Comcast Will Raise Your Price Even if You Don’t Use NBC’s Peacock

Two things will go live on April 15: Early access for NBC’s Peacock streaming service, and a price hike from Comcast.

The extra costs will not be readily evident to new customers as the rate increases mostly appear as hidden fees…For some customers, these price hikes have already taken effect as the company began the gradual squeeze in December. All totaled, subscriptions should increase by about 3.6 percent for most subscribers, whether they use Peacock or not.

Enticing New 'Jobs at Apple' Page Live

Many people dream of a job at Apple. The company is trying to make that prospect even more enticing, with an updated ‘Jobs at Apple’ page.  The company is offering “an open invitation to open minds,” the page says. It also features a stunning video, along that same theme. The page also asks potential applicants to “introduce yourself,” and says the company will “get in touch if there‘s a role that seems like a good match.”

Relive 416+ Classic Arcade Games while Charging Your Phone: $29.99

We have a deal on the GAMECASE, a portable charger for your iPhone with a built-in classic gaming system. That includes a display and controls, with more than 416 classic games built into the device, including Super Contra, Super Mario Bros, Tetris, Pacman, F1 Race, and more. Plus, the battery has an 8,000mAh capacity. This device is $29.99 through our deal.

Apple Exec Meets Ukraine Foreign Minister After Crimea Maps Controversy

Senior Apple executive Lisa Jackson met with Ukraine’s foreign minister Vadym Prystaiko at Davos on Thursday, Business Insider reported. It followed the controversial labeling of the annexed region of Crimea as part of Russia in Apple Maps.

Prystaiko tweeted a photo of himself alongside Jackson, Apple’s vice president of environment, policy, and social initiatives. His tweet said the pair discussed Apple’s “next steps” in the Ukrainian market, with a follow-up tweet hinting that the Crimea issue was also discussed. He wrote: “[Ukraine has a] growing pool of loyal customers, creative IT class, improving business climate – all the ingredients for beneficial cooperation are in place.” In a follow-up he added: “2/2 Protection of IPR, ‘grey market sales’ and some outstanding issues of a political nature are being resolved, too.”

British Officials Considering Limited Huawei 5G Role

British officials have proposed that Huawei is given a limited role in Britain’s 5G network, Reuters reported. A decision is expected imminently.

The recommendation, made at a meeting of officials from senior government departments on Wednesday, comes ahead of a meeting of Britain’s National Security Council next week to decide how to deploy Huawei equipment, the sources said. The officials proposed barring Huawei from the sensitive, data-heavy “core” part of the network and restricted government systems, closely mirroring a provisional decision made last year under former Prime Minister Theresa May. “The technical and policy guidance hasn’t changed,” said one of the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private conversations. “Now it is down to a political calculation.

Apple Watch Diagnoses Another Case at Atrial Fibrillation

The Apple Watch has, for a good while now, been known for effectively recognizing cases of Atrial Fibrillation. AppleInsider reported on a new case in Kentucky, when a Christmas present helped a woman there with the heart condition.

As highlighted in a report by WHAS 11 on Wednesday, Rosemary Stiles, who received Apple Watch as a gift from her boyfriend in 2018, wanted the device to keep in touch with her children while on the go. While not explained in detail, it appears Stiles was looking to use tbe unspecified Apple Watch model in situations that would otherwise preclude full access to an iPhone, like driving. According to Kentucky law, people are allowed to operate a cellphone while driving if at least one hand is on the wheel, but that mandate is due to change in February when drivers will be required to rely on hands-free modes of communication.

Britain Wants Strict Privacy Rules for Kids

Today Britain rolled out strict privacy protections for kids, like requiring tech platforms to turn on protections by default.

The new rules are the most comprehensive protections to arise from heightened global concern that popular online services exploit children’s information, suggest inappropriate content to them and fail to protect them from sexual predators. The British children’s protections far outstrip narrower rules in the United States, which apply only to online services aimed at children under 13.

With One-Click Presets and HDR Styles, this HDR Software Bundle Makes Image Transformation Easy: $39

We have a deal called the Photomatix Pro Plus Bundle. It includes Photomatix Essentials, an easy-to-use program to create HDR photos and adjust them in the style you want, from realistic to creative, using one-click presets and streamlined settings. It also includes Photomatix Pro, 6 HDR Styles and a free plugin for Adobe Lightroom. The third element of this bundle is HDR Tone Mapping, a plugin for Photoshop. The whole kit and caboodle is $39 through our deal.

Motorola To Release Foldable Razr Smartphone on January 26

Motorola is finally going to release its foldable phone. The $1,500 Razr is going to be available for pre-order from Monday, Bloomberg News reported.

Online pre-orders for the foldable smartphone begin Jan. 26 and sales in stores start Feb. 6, Motorola said. The device will available on Motorola’s website, and through Walmart Inc. and Verizon Communications Inc. The handset was announced in November and the company originally targeted December for pre-orders. But the Lenovo Group Ltd. unit postponed that plan, saying that initial demand outstripped its supply predictions. Motorola did not blame technical issues for the delay.

Kids Are Swapping AirPods so They Can 'Talk' in Class

Gone are the days of having to sneak notes across the classroom in order to send a message to a friend. Kids are now using AirPods and push-to-talk tech to chat during school, according to iMore.

It turns out enterprising kids are sharing AirPods and then using text-to-speech to allow them to “talk” without being caught. The obvious use case here is keeping up with your crew during class. Because nobody pays attention when their teacher is talking, right? That’s reserved for squares like me! The theory is actually one that is ingenious if you think about it. You swap an AirPod with your friend and then use text-to-speech to communicate with them.