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Huawei at IFA 2018: AI Cube, Locator and Mate 20 Lite

Marty
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0
Huawei at IFA 2018: AI Cube, Locator and Mate 20 Lite

Huawei is relishing their spot in the tech world right now. They’ve ousted Apple as the second biggest smartphone manufacturer in terms of shipments but are showing no signs of slowing down. At their IFA 2018 keynote presentation, Richard Yu announced a plethora of new additions to the Huawei family.

Huawei AI Cube

There are two ways to enter the smart speaker market. The first way is to develop your own smart assistant then develop your own hardware, before marrying these together to create something very special. Google and Amazon have already achieved this through their respective Home and Echo devices. This is not an easy route to take and even Apple and Samsung have learned that having either inferior hardware or software can be a recipe for disaster with Apple’s Homepod being rather disappointing because of Siri and no one caring less what Samsung do because we all know it’ll just be another Bixby powered piece of…

Anyway.

The second way to enter the market is to leverage one half of the formula that’s already been extremely successful and then add your own flair to the situation. This is what Huawei is going for with their AI Cube.

Huawei AI Cube: Features

The Huawei AI Cube is designed to tackle a few modern home problems. The first is entertainment.

Audio

The AI Cube can produce great audio, perfect for your living room and will be able to flex muscles to scare both Amazon Echo and Google Home devices for space on your shelf. Huawei’s own audio software, Histen, also features in the speaker to provide additional sound settings and quality controls.

Amazon Alexa

With the P20 Pro came Huawei and Amazon’s first public display of affection. Using screen gestures, you can quickly search for products that you see on the screen, but only through Amazon. Now, with the AI Cube, Huawei is providing a new smart speaker for Alexa to live within.

It’s a bold but understandable move from Huawei given the global smart speaker base is set to swell to 225 million units in the next two years. Given lack of love Siri gets and the outright hatred Bixby gets, Huawei has done the smart thing and focused on the hardware. Speaking of which…

Connectivity

The AI Cube also doubles as a router. Pop a 4G sim card into the speaker and you’ll enjoy download speeds up to 300 Mbps. Now, I know most people will never use it, but wouldn’t it be lovely to bring something like that on holidays with you and pop a sim card into it? WiFi, sounds and a smart assistant all bundled into one.

While all of this is extremely exciting, Huawei wasn’t done yet.

Huawei Locator

I lose shit. I lose shit, a lot. This is why I have a Tile on my keyring. Even when things are lost now, they’re not really lost – they’re misplaced. Huawei feels my pain and also announced their Locator at IFA 2018.

It’s very simple. You attach the Huawei Locator to something you don’t want to lose and it’ll track it around the world. The Locator uses four different major global navigation systems including the well-known GPS system along with nano SIM and eSIM technology. Combined with global roaming and near-real-time location reporting, it’s unlikely you’ll ever lose anything connected to the Huawei Locator.

The examples given at IFA included attaching the Locator to your dog or suitcase, but I remember a friend of mine having a much more convoluted setup for a device which was attached to his motorbike following the theft of his previous bike.

The Locator will notify users when it more than 10 meters away from a paired smartphone or when it leaves a geofenced area. It’s IP68 too so don’t worry if your dog is a bit mad.

Huawei Mate 20 Lite and Mate 20 Series

I wanted to see a handset launch and while I had my fingers crossed for the Mate 20, I wasn’t left to disappointed. All in the same Berlin keynote, Huawei announced the Mate 20 Lite. The spec to price on this thing is insane. Going on sale in October for €429 sim free, the Mate 20 Lite has ridiculous front-facing dual cameras with 24MP and 2MP lenses capable of delivering the elusive front facing bokeh effect. That’s where you’re nice and crisp but the background is blurry.

The front-facing cameras are actually slightly more powerful than the read facing 20MP and 2MP lenses. Huawei really is bonkers when it comes to camera layouts, but after seeing how well their mad ideas worked for the P20 Pro, I say keep ‘em coming.

The Mate 20 Lite will pack a 3750 mAh battery and all of this will be housed behind a 6.3-inch screen.

I’ll reserve further opinions on this until I get a full hands-on look at it, but early suggestions are this slightly high to mid-range phone is going to be an absolute beast.

It’s funny. I’ve been writing about tech now for a few years and I can only assume that how I feel about Huawei is something like what a football manager feels when he brings a youth player through from the development squads. Huawei has gone from the entry level underdog to an absolute world beater. Samsung and Apple have had it pretty easy for a long time, but it looks like those days are well and truly finished.

I’m still waiting on confirmation for Irish pricing and launch dates for both the AI Cube and Locator but will update this article when I get them.

KBC Launches New Banking App: Features and Benefits

Marty
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0
KBC Launches New Banking App: Features and Benefits

KBC has just launched a brand new banking app and man, are they leaving the Irish competition in their wake.

Features of the New KBC Banking App

Right, well first off – it looks lovely and modern. This might seem like a fairly simple achievement, but customers of Bank of Ireland will tell you how frustrating a bank’s lack of digital ambition can be.

Beyond the looks, some killer new features peep out and as cool as they are, they are also suggesting a very interesting future lies ahead for KBC Customers

Card Details in App

I’ve found myself in this situation more than you might think. I need my card details but not my card. You know, you’re shopping online or trying to pay a bill over the phone or something and all you need is your card number and your CCV number. Maybe my wallets at home because I couldn’t find it and went to work with just Google Pay to keep me going (this happened twice last month). Now, you can still make online payments without reaching for your card.

This is great if you’ve forgotten your wallet (like me) or you’re too lazy to get up and grab your card from the kitchen table (also like me).

Instant Credit Cards

Another cool feature of the new KBC app is instant access to a credit card once you’ve been approved. I love the idea of this because I’ve been in that situation where you realise your wages just ain’t going to stretch. I think most people in Ireland are open to using more banking products like credit cards, but just don’t want to go through bank application processes. KBC has clearly spotted this and instant credit cards is the solution.

Once approved, your card appears in your app along with your number and CCV. You can then apply this to Google Pay or Apple Pay and away you go. This really is amazing stuff for the Irish banking market. Fingers crossed this works better than their onboarding did when I tried it out, but considering this is for existing customers, I can’t imagine there being too many complications.

Lost Cards

There’s an added benefit to this instant card functionality. If you lose your debit card, KBC can cancel that card, issue you a new one and have it appear in your KBC app. Again, you’ll have all the details you need to make online purchases but also be able to add your card to Google Pay and Apple Pay. Don’t forget, you can use these digital payment options up to your daily limit, not the €30 limit that your card has. You just might need to be stubborn with the people in the shop – trust me, I’ve lived it. One woman grabbed the card machine and refused to let me tap my phone for a €60 purchase.

The Future of Banking

The reason I think these improvements are exciting is because it’s paving the way for some really great innovation. Sure, these features are cool, but imagine being able to create a virtual card just for online shopping. No longer will you have to worry when a company loses all your data. Simply cancel that card and away you go.

Sure enough, Revolut is probably one of the few banks that can say they are ahead of KBC, but Revolut is failing the crucial litmus test – I wouldn’t put my wages into that account.

KBC is, once again, leaving the Irish banks in their wake. They’ve got a bit to go in order to catch up with Revolut, but at the same time, they are miles ahead in terms of trust. If you are looking for a new primary bank in Ireland and don’t want to go the whole hog with Revolut, KBC really has just reaffirmed its position as the best digital bank in Ireland.

 

IFA 2018: What to Expect from Europe’s Biggest Consumer Tech Show

Marty
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0
IFA 2018: What to Expect from Europe’s Biggest Consumer Tech Show

Strangely enough, I was out of the country for all of the Pope’s recent visit to Ireland. Before you ask, it wasn’t in part a protest to match my attempts to leave the church through GDPR. No, I was simply on holidays and happened to be flying out moments before he hit the tarmac in Dublin. It was interesting to see people from around the world make the trip to see Il Papa and got me thinking about making a pilgrimage myself. So I’m going to tech paradise and spending a few days in Berlin at IFA 2018. Here’s what you need to know about IFA 2018.

What Does IFA Stand For?

Well, first of all – mega bonus points if you already knew the answer to this one because I think it would even baffle native German speakers which I absolutely am not despite my years of learning. IFA stands for Internationale Funkausstellung which translates to International Radio Exhibition but is also commonly referred to as the Berlin Radio Show. Today, IFA houses the latest from all lines of technology and hosts over a quarter of a million visitors. Not bragging, but my pilgrimage will be bigger than Il Papa’s too.

What to Expect from IFA 2018

Don’t let the radio bit fool you but also don’t dismiss it. There are some radios on show along with the latest in audio, both personal and home. However, on top of that, you also have every other kind of tech imaginable from televisions to drones. Because I’ll actually be trying to work out where everything is, I’ve made a kind of IFA 2018 plan. Here’s what I’m most looking forward to.

Huawei

I’m not quite so sure if Huawei will have a handset launch at IFA but we’re ever so close to the launch of the Mate 20; their answer to Samsung’s Note series. Whatever Huawei has to release to the world, I’ll be front and centre waiting to hear about it on Friday at their scheduled press conference. Given the Chinese manufacturer has just been crowned the second biggest smartphone company in the world, ahead of Apple, I’m really excited to see what they have up their sleeve. Huawei has been mega aggressive in recent months with the P20 Pro arguably being the best smartphone to hit the market in years.

Watch. This. Space.

Sony

You can expect Sony to launch the XZ3 and XZ3 Compact at their 30 August press conference at IFA. The XZ2 was a fairly impressive smartphone even if Sony did sidestep some of the highlights from their range to date – yes I’m still going on about the fingerprint sensor placement.

The XZ3 will physically look just like the XZ2, keeping with Sony’s six-month launch tradition, but the software is still anyone’s guess.

Sony also loves a nice big telly launch so I’ll be checking out what they have to offer in that space too. You can also expect some neat audio launches from them too and I’ll be reviewing some of their existing audio offerings very soon. Lots of Google Assistant activated stuff in there too.

Google

Mach Mal, Google.

There’s a massive sign outside Messe Berlin with the words “Mach Mal, Google”. There’s a hugh bubblegum game machine where people can win Google Home devices. And around every corner of IFA 2018 is a Google Assistant-powered device. Seriously, they are putting it into everything!

Considering at this event I’ll likely be seeing the Siri-powered Apple Home and plenty of Amazon Alexa-powered speakers, including the latest range from Bose, few smart assistants are capturing the imagination quite like Google. Then again, smart assistants do still have this feeling that they’ll just never be completely mainstream but I’m rooting for the underdog here. I hope the hardware can help people see the future is voice controlled.

LG

Alas, one of those brands you’ll probably not see on our shores for another few years. LG tends to rock IFA every year and this year should be no different. Chances are we’ll see two new smartphones launching at the Berlin event along with at least one new Wear OS wearable. Just a shame that anything I see in Germany will unlikely see Ireland for a long time.

Samsung

Samsung doesn’t have anything else left to launch this year after the Note 9 launch last month. Samsung is, instead, going to be all about the TVs. I won’t lie, TVs aren’t really my bag. They’re grand like, but at the same time, they’re all a bit normal, right? Well, Samsung will be blowing that idea out of the water when they launch an 8K monster in Berlin.

Now, the funny thing about getting excited for an 8K TV is that the vast majority of homes have yet to adopt 4K TVs. I won’t be getting to excited about the TV side of IFA if I’m being totally honest, unless I see something really special for the everyday consumer.

Samsung may provide some more insight into the most underwhelming smart assistant of them all; Bixby. I recently gave up my beloved Note8 for the Huawei P20 Pro and I’ll admit that was tough. I love the Note8 and it’s now the second best phone I’ve ever owned or, in fact, used. However, it had Bixby, quite simply the worst smart assistant on the market. Yes, worse than Cortana. Samsung is bringing out a smart home speaker which will rival the Google Homepod for “most unpopular” status.

Everything Else

There’s going to be plenty more to enjoy at IFA 2018. I’m looking forward to some of the more edge-case tech manufacturers and what they have to offer. With Asian brands like Huawei growing in Ireland and Xiaomi finally popping their head in the door too, I’m interested to see what ZTE has to offer.

Audio is something I’ve spent a lot of time studying recently and I’m going to be writing up some earphone, headphone and wireless bud reviews in the coming weeks. Natrually, I’ll be keeping an eye out for the very latest audio experiences at IFA too, but I’ve got to be humble for a moment.

It’s my first year at IFA Berlin and as such, I don’t really know what to expect. I’ve been forewarned of bread maker black holes and to wear comfy shoes, but beyond that I’ve no idea what to expect. There’ll be a rake of tech on show, likely more than I can take in in a few short days. But I’ve been to big conferences and trade shows in the past so I also know that whatever about predicting what’s going to be on show, it’s all about letting the event show me the future.

Come Monday, I hope to be much wiser about the world of smartphones, TVs, drones, smart assistants and, unfortunately, bread makers. Be sure to follow Goosed.ie and myself on Twitter for the latest craic.

Speaking Puppy: Snapchat Filters For Your Dog

Marty
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0
Speaking Puppy: Snapchat Filters For Your Dog

One of my favourite tech things has to be augmented reality. My reason for loving augmented reality is simple; a lot of people are using it every day and have no idea. How is that? AR is the technology behind Snapchat filters and so is the reason you can morph your head into a puppy. As is often the case, tech has now come full circle as thanks to the Speaking Puppy app, you can now use Snapchat-like filters with your dog.

Speaking Puppy: The Animal Filter App

Speaking Puppy is the latest app from 2020CV, a company that makes some insane ideas possible. In the past, they’ve helped people turn rolls of paper into AR lightsabers so it’s pretty clear why they caught my attention. Tech and lightsabers, in the one place. Brilliant. Now they’ve only gone and added puppies into the mix.

Speaking Puppy lets you apply a Snapchat-like filter to your pupper. Going a step further, the app also animates your dog’s mouth so you can make it look like they are saying stuff.

Yup, this is the latest tech that I felt you needed to know about and I have no regrets about that at all.

Will we get a similar app to make Snapchat-like filters that work on birds? Can you look forward to a world where face-swapping with a cat is the highlight of your day? Look forward to the future people.

Download Speaking Puppy for iPhone now.

Eir’s Data Breach Explained and What You Need to Do to Protect Yourself

Neal
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0
Eir’s Data Breach Explained and What You Need to Do to Protect Yourself

Eir announced yesterday, 21st Aug that it had suffered a serious data breach when one of it Laptops was stolen outside the company office on the 12th August. Eir reported the breach to the Data Protection Commissioner and the Gardai. Eir say that there is no evidence at this time that the data concerned has been used by a third party. By the way for what it’s worth you can find out if any of your data has been leaked by any company with this handy tool.

Eir have begun sending letters to all customers affected by the data breach today. Why it took 10 days to inform customers is surprising.

Image result for eir building

How did it happen?

The Laptop was unencrypted and contained files of a PID nature (Personable Identifiable Data) i.e. customer names, email addresses and Eir customer numbers of 37,000 customers. The Laptop is still password protected to gain access, but this is not a difficult step to overcome for an even inexperienced cyber criminal.

Crucially no financial data was contained on the laptop. Eir say company policy is that all Laptops should be encrypted and password protected. However in this case the Laptop in question was at the time un-encrypted due a faulty security update the previous day de-encrypting the Laptop. Questions should be asked to the level of testing that was performed on the security updates prior to being rolled out.

Additionally, it should be asked why the files were stored on the Laptop itself and not left on a secure company network folder. Most companies have a policy stating that files containing sensitive data should not be downloaded and stored onto local drives.

What do I need to do to protect myself?

Even though no financial information was present on the stolen Laptop, criminals can still use the data to build up a full profile of you, filling gaps from other data breaches or sources.

So Firstly, you should change your online Eir account password. If the old password was used for other websites and apps, change those also. Good practise is to have different passwords for all your web sites and apps where you have registered. Remembering them all is practically impossible of course, so use a good password manager tool to store all your passwords e.g. 1Password.

Secondly, read closely the communication sent to you by EIR and act on its recommendations.

Thirdly, keep a close eye on your bank accounts for any suspicious activity over the coming weeks and months. Anything unusual inform your bank and Eir.

We will be keeping an eye on the story as it develops so watch this space.

Netflix Ads Might Become a Reality: Here’s How to Stop Them

Dean
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Netflix Ads Might Become a Reality: Here’s How to Stop Them

There has been uproar online over the past few days after Netflix ads started appearing for viewers as the streaming giant confirmed they’re testing a new feature on their platform. They will now start integrating ads between episodes of some series such as Rick and Marty and Bob’s Burgers for other shows on Netflix such as Better Call Saul. Now I don’t know about you but ads on Netflix just seems kind of wrong; isn’t this why we’re all chord-cutting in the first place?

Does This Mean My Netflix Binge Will Be Interrupted by Ads?

Related image

The short answer here is yes. This new feature has caused uproar because the main reason people love Netflix is the wide variety of content, full seasons becoming available at once, and, of course, no ads! See that’s important to us and Netflix just aren’t getting that now. Consumers pay a monthly subscription for these services and even at that some shows don’t even have full seasons uploaded at once anymore, such as the new season of Better Call Saul, Power or the short docuseries like Explained. Even their new BuzzFeed series, Follow This, will be released in three bursts.

In the near future we will be expected to watch ads during the loading period between episodes but like YouTube we should be able to skip them after a couple of seconds.

Is It a Recommendation or an Ad?

Image result for netflix recommendations

Netflix describes the ads as “recommendations” and explained that they were to help viewers choose what else to watch.

“We are testing whether surfacing recommendations between episodes helps members discover stories they will enjoy faster”.

As a result of this ‘helpful’ new feature, a lot of users are now threatening to unsubscribe from Netflix. We are a big fan of the if it ain’t broke don’t fix it method. However, Netflix has already stated they are not going to listen to feedback from their customers and will go by data collected from interactions with the feature. A user on Reddit even reported that when they rang Netflix customer care and questioned them about it, Netflix reportedly hung up on both occasions, so it seems they are point blank refusing to discuss this new feature with users.

How to Stop Netflix Ads Appearing

  1. Go to your account settings
  2. Select ‘Test participation’
  3. Toggle this option off

Luckily there is a way to block this feature if you are one of the select few that have been assigned to the testing pool. If you hit the drop-down menu and go to ‘Account’ there should be an option that says ‘Test Participation’. Simply go into this and toggle it off and you’re done. It’s possible if you are on the Netflix app it will bring you to Netflix in the internet browser, however, once it’s done, you shouldn’t be concerned about those pesky ads popping up anymore.

Unless this feature is fully rolled out then you will have no choice but to put up with these potentially annoying ads for your next Netflix recommendations. Personally, I’m not a fan. Netflix works because it allows us the freedom to watch what a full series like Afflicted in a single sitting the way we want when we want without being bothered by ads or breaks like standard TV. Sure, now it’s only Netflix recommendations but what’s next? Toothpaste ads while I’m 6 hours into a Netflix and food binge? Say it ain’t so!

Upcoming Games in 2018: Has the Best Yet to Come?

Neal
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0
Upcoming Games in 2018: Has the Best Yet to Come?

We’ve already seen some fantastic games this year as our precious gaming allotted hours fade away with Far Cry 5 and God of War topping that list. However, the second half of the year is expected to be blockbuster time, with major studios releasing long awaited games. All of this, of course, is assuming anyone can tear themselves away long enough from the gaming phenomenon’s that are Fortnite’s Battle Royale and PUBG. It will be worth it, so to help you plan ahead and choose where to spend your hard earned money, we have collated the top five games still to come this year.

Shadow of the Tomb Raider

The game publishers are calling this “the end of the beginning” as it’s the third instalment in a reboot trilogy, even though it’s the twelfth game in the tomb raider series.

Anyway, if you ignore the marketing blurb and load the game from the beginning not the end, expect the endless caves, forests and puzzles that we know and love from tomb raider games. Trailers for the game indicate the game has taken a darker turn and our protagonist Lara Croft will be tested in different ways this time around i.e. both physically and metaphysically. Either way, this should be up to the usual triple AAA standard with a cinematic style play through, so stock up on the popcorn and turn the lights way down.

Due September 14, 2018

Platform PC, PS4, Xbox One

Battlefield V

Battlefield FPS shooters are known for their cutting-edge graphics, varied weapon choice, satisfying headshots, building demolishing and most of all, general online multiplayer craziness. All of these ingredients means Battlefield games boast impressive daily gamer counts even years after initial release. The recent Battlefield 1, set in World War 1 is probably the finest to date. For the first time in the series, the developers introduced a single player campaign mode for those who don’t like getting shot within two seconds by some kid called Crazyhorse1996.

Battlefield V (or 5) will be set during World War Two and will also have a single player campaign mode. The online multiplayer mode will, of course, be the main draw for most gamers, offering plenty of maps, different player classes and game modes. New game modes this time include a Battle Royale and Grand Operations modes. Expect to be blown away, figuratively and literally with an immersion knob turned up to eleven.

Due October 11, 2018

Platform PC, PS4, Xbox One

Call of Duty Black Ops 4

Let’s be honest, the ongoing debate between Battlefield & Call of Duty fans over whose game is the best FPS, is frankly boring. All we know is that both games rock, in different ways, thus we gamers get to enjoy the benefits. This latest instalment downplays some of the gameplay features from previous games to a more “gritty, grounded, fluid” multiplayer style. There is no single player campaign this time around, so the developers have gone all in on the multiplayer online mode and added a new Battle Royale mode called Blackout. Trailers released so far look pretty good indeed, with positive YouTube gamer feedback on the first beta release. This game is released the day after Battlefield 5, so a tough choice will likely need to be made.

Due October 12, 2018

Platform PC, PS4, Xbox One

Red Dead Redemption 2

Rockstar Games follow up to the hugely popular original released in 2010 has hardcore fans of the game salivating at the incredible trailers released for the game so far. All the rest of us know this is going to be a brilliant game, period. Originally due to be released earlier this year but delayed to add presumably more spit n’ polish, this will, without doubt, be one of the stand out games of recent years. We get to dust off our cowboy hat, don our finest leather long chaps, and slip into comfy boots one more time as Arthur Morgan, joined by his fellow Van Der Linde gang members in lots of good, bad and very ugly missions in a sprawling wild west open world.

Due October 26, 2018

Platform PS4, Xbox One

Fallout 76

Bethesda do RPG games like no other and the Fallout series is one of their very best. Fallout 76 is a prequel to the previous game Fallout 4 and is set in post-nuclear apocalyptic West Virginia 2102. Along with the usual RPG elements of character progression and open world sandbox, this time the game is an online multiplayer environment. Fans of the series are a little nervous about this but expectations are that this add to the fun and for the first time allow you to team up and play with friends online.

No doubt some online players may not be so friendly, so you will need to get your base built and up to standard quickly. Oh and don’t forget the power armour. Avoiding deadly radiation exposure and death by mutant creatures/fellow players will be more fun than ever.

Due November 14, 2018

Platform PC, PS4, Xbox One

Follow This: The New BuzzFeed Netflix Series

Marty
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0
Follow This: The New BuzzFeed Netflix Series

Netflix has definitely spotted something. They’ve spotted that the people want documentaries. Typically, these come in two formats. The first is a feature-length documentary like The Bleeding Edge with the second being docu-series like Afflicted. Now a new format is set to emerge as news publisher BuzzFeed, team up with Netflix to create an original mini docu-series; Follow This.

What is BuzzFeed’s Follow This All About?

You may be familiar with BuzzFeed as being the modern take on news outlets. BuzzFeed rose to online infamy through quizzes, ‘listicles’ and that damn dress that no one could decide the colour of. While it all sounds fairly light-hearted, Follow This demonstrates BuzzFeed’s coming of age, or perhaps more accurately their audience’s coming of age.

Follow This goes further than simply bringing viewers behind the scenes of BuzzFeed’s biggest stories over the past few years. The docu-series dives deep into sexuality, race, science, internet subcultures, politics and cultural issues which affect society today. Some episodes, like the first on ASMR, lean towards the lighthearted while others like ‘Intersex’ are heavier hitting.

Rather than being big chunks of information to consume, Follow This is a collection of twenty 15-minute episodes. Perhaps Netflix is trying to target people with a short commute or attention span, but I really enjoyed these short episodes. With just a half an hour of watching, you’ll have plenty of fodder to chat about in work the next day and isn’t this why we watch documentaries?

Follow This: What to Expect

To give you a better idea of what to expect from BuzzFeed’s Follow This Netflix series, I’ve watched a few episodes.

The Internet Whisperers

I discovered ASMR myself earlier this year and it’s a weird phenomenon. It stands for autonomous sensory meridian response and simply put, it’s people on YouTube making weird noises or whispering to stimulate a response from the listener. That response is usually goosebumps and the hair standing up on the back of your neck. Check it out with this lady who appears in the docu-series:

BuzzFeed’s Scaachi Koul looks into this phenomenon in the first Follow This episode and even goes looking for an expert to discuss it. Interestingly, the expert points out that ASMR is one of the first times internet users discovered a phenomenon before scientists. Personally, after watching the episode I struggled to separate the sexual and sensual elements of ASMR but some of those in the episode describe how they find these videos therapeutic. You’ll have to watch it yourself to make up your own mind on it.

Men’s Rights

Another episode with Scaachi Koul, this time looks at the contentious issue of Men’s rights. These are groups of men and, unbelievably, women, who believe the feminist movement is out to destroy the lives of men. There’s an incredible moment where Koul meets a woman who supports men’s rights along who previously called her a see you next Tuesday.

Intersex

In one of the heavier hitting episodes of Follow This, Juliane Löffler from BuzzFeed Germany speaks with the intersex community. These are people born with two sets of reproductive organs but who have had surgery in their youth to make them a single gender. Löffler meets with people affected, doctors who performed these surgeries and those involved in changing the laws relating to intersex people.

Black Survivalist

I loved this episode. I’m a bit obsessed with prepper culture as it is but this provided a new insight into the prepper community far beyond the American redneck stereotype. The Black Survivalist episode is led by Bim Adewunmi and as the name suggests, it focuses on black people with an interest in prepping.

I found this episode enjoyable but also rather upsetting as members of the black community describe how they already feel like they are living in a world which needs them to prep for being alone thanks to a government that’s already forgotten them.

Follow This: The Verdict

Follow This gives you bite-sized chunks of knowledge which are genuinely interesting. This show will make leave you brimming with stuff to talk about next time you’re trying to think of something to chat about over lunch.

Follow This is streaming on Netflix from Thursday.

Follow This: Trailer

 

No More Waiting in Line at the Atm as Electric Picnic Announce Contactless Pay

Jon
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0
No More Waiting in Line at the Atm as Electric Picnic Announce Contactless Pay

Since taking over a field in Loais way back in 2004, Electric Picnic has grown into possibly the biggest music festival in Ireland. However, the main downside throughout the years has been obvious, the queue for the ATM is painful. These days are finally behind us as the festival has decided to enter the modern era by announcing contactless payment. This makes us very happy.

Image result for electric picnic

It’s not hard to picture the scene because we have all been there. You packed what you thought would be enough moola to get you through the weekend but after a drink too many you end up buying rounds for strangers, having a ball of a time and end up broke. The next step is generally waiting in the 100 people deep queue to use the ATM before you can rejoin the festivities. But no more!

Pics, Pints and Payments!

Image result for electric picnic atm line

The other day Electric Picnic announced that contactless payments will be available at this years festival so you can simply swipe or tap your card at pretty much any of the stalls, bars or food stands. Oh, and that also means that Google and Apple pay will also be supported so you if you’re like me and you have a Secrid wallet you don’t want to bring your phone is available to post all your festival pics and pay for pints.

Electric Picnic Festival’s Melvin Benn added: “We are delighted to be working with AIB and Visa to drive contactless payments across Electric Picnic for the first time.

“We constantly strive to improve the experience and convenience of our festival goers, and we think this is the perfect partnership to encompass that ethos.”

Basically all you need is your contactless card or mobile pay-enabled smartphone, and you can spend less time worrying about cash and more time enjoying the festival. Just be careful you don’t want to do a Dean and spend a months wages one weekend of madness.

AIB bringing the game to life

Image result for aib contactless

AIB are the bank behind the push and they will have a number of different bits and bobs going on in the run up to the event to promote the new era of festival spending. Their campaign #EPonTap campaign will be revealed on AIB’s social channels during the build up to the big weekend.

In the meantime we know that AIB will bring the contactless theme to life via interactive ticket giveaways pre-festival, and Contactless Dating – a unique experience that’ll make finding romance as quick and easy as making a contactless payment… yes find “romance” at a festival, whatever you say AIB.

Anyway, we will be keeping an eye out to see what else AIB and Electric Picnic have in the pipeline so watch this space.

How Real is the “Magic” in Magic for Humans?

Marty
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How Real is the “Magic” in Magic for Humans?

There are two ways to watch TV shows about street magic. You either switch your brain off and enjoy or sit there in a paranoid state trying to work out every single trick. I’m the latter because before I watched David Blaine and Dynamo, I watched Val Valentino revealing magician secrets on RTÉ 2.

So that’s why I watched the new Netflix magician reality show, Magic for Humans, with healthy scepticism.

What is Magic for Humans?

Magic for Humans is a light-hearted magician reality show hosted by Justin Willman, an American magician who was previously better known as the host of Cupcake Wars. Magic for Humans has the tagline ‘real people, real magic, no camera tricks’ and I think that might very well be true. Well, it’s as true as magic can be considered real I guess. What I mean is, I do believe the show has real people and technically uses no camera tricks per se.

How Real is Magic for Humans?

Spoiler alert: Magic isn’t real, so I immediately have a problem with the tagline. The show is built around some pretty impressive illusions and trickery. That means you shouldn’t trust anything.

The Trickery Behind Magic for Humans

I’ll give Justin the benefit of the doubt in that there are no camera tricks after he said “all the illusions in the show were accomplished without any camera tricks and all of the reactions are 100 per cent real”.

all the illusions in the show were accomplished without any camera tricks and all of the reactions are 100 per cent real

That last bit triggered all my suspicions – “all of the reactions are 100 per cent real”. I remember seeing a few years ago that magicians show people a trick which is pretty cool, record the reaction but then use that reaction for a completely different trick filmed separately. I feel like that happens a lot in Magic for Humans and, of course, this means Justin can say the reactions are real without lying.

And All Without Camera Tricks

So, what about there being no camera tricks? Well, like I showed there, the greatest trick of all in Magic for Humans is using the English language in a very clever way to tell the truth without giving the game away. At the end of episode one, Justin and the show editors push their luck just a little bit too much when he makes his wife “appear” from inside a gear bag.

Unfortunately, it’s quite clear, to me anyway, that her appearance has been achieved through CGI editing. There’s something about her face when she appears that just looks fake for a moment and it gives the trick away. Again, it’s not technically a camera trick, it’s an editing trick. See what I mean and language being the biggest trick in the show?

Magic for Humans Goes Too Far

No, he doesn’t kill a pigeon or accidentally slice a woman in half. What I mean by the show going too far is the tricks being too unrealistic. This might be harsh, but knowing where to stop with a trick is what gets people buying in. Just before making his wife appear in a poorly edited trick, I was genuinely impressed by him pulling a blender and coffee machine from a ‘magic bag’. But then he went a step further and that’s what triggered me going off and pulling some of his tricks apart. And he goes too far a few times.

In a tattoo parlour, he meets some body modifiers who have stretched their ear piercings to be 3-inch holes. He gets two of them to stand beside each other before looping their ears together. A neat looking trick, but a trick so insanely impossible that the only conclusion is that they’re stooges (actors). Well actors are real people too aren’t they?

Later in the series, he shows people a VR levitation experience but actually makes them float a couple of feet in the air. Again, it looks like a cool trick and I’ve no idea how it’s done unless the people in the shots are stooges. They also say convenient lines like “it would be better if I actually levitated” which makes me feel the show is going for entertainment above intelligent trickery.

Magic for Humans: The Verdict

It’s a real pity that Magic for Humans goes too far on so many occasions because Justin Willman does land some incredible illusions and tricks. In one episode he convinces two guys they are invisible in a genuinely impressive feat of trickery. Unfortunately, because I’ve seen to show crossover from trickery into deceit too often, it kind of ruins the bit as I’m left wondering if the guys are either actors or genuinely fooled members of the pity. And that’s why not going too far in these shows is really important.

If you’re able to switch off and just enjoy what you see at face value, Magic for Humans is pretty entertaining. If you’re the other kind of viewer, you’ll find the show infuriating.

Magic for Humans Trailer

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