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Here are five technology things that happened in the past week and how they’re impacting your business. Did you miss them?
1 —Apple turns your iPhone into a fintech service to handle PayPal, Affirm, and more.
Apple last week announced plans to add new features to the iPhone’s Wallet app. One of the biggest new features, called Apple Pay Later, is the ability to buy now and pay later, which competes directly with other fintech companies such as PayPal and Affirm. Apple will also roll out a new payment system in a few weeks that will allow users to pay someone simply by tapping iPhones together. (Source: CNBC†
Why this is important for your business:
Buy now, pay later (BNPL) has become extremely popular in the past year, thanks to the desire of younger consumers to buy and pay for items over time (3-6 months on average) without having to use their credit card. to use. Now Apple is trying to cash in on this trend. Many of my clients are now accepting BNPL services and you should consider doing the same.
2 — The NSA and FBI warn that hackers are using these flaws to attack VPNs and network devices.
The NSA, FBI and CISA recently identified 16 flaws most commonly used by hackers in China to manipulate networks in the US. The flaws are in network device software from well-known brands such as Citrix, Pulse Secure, MikroTik, Netgear, Fortinet, and Cisco. The warning points to attacks that affect small business routers, corporate VPNs, and network-attached storage devices. (Source: ZDNet†
Why this is important for your business:
Have your IT company read the ZDNet piece and make sure your devices are updated and secured.
3 —You can now pin three posts or roles to your Instagram profiles.
Instagram users now have the option to pin three roles or posts to the top of their profile. Like pinned posts on Twitter and TikTok, pins remain at the front of a user’s Instagram grid, regardless of when they were originally posted. Users just need to choose one of their existing roles or posts, select the three dots in the top right corner and pin to profile† (Source: The edge†
Why this is important for your business:
Many of you reading this column are freelancers, influencers, marketers, and other businesses who rely on Instagram to build their audiences and sell products. This new feature can expand your options to showcase your products, your strengths, or even your personality.
4 — Soon you’ll be able to use your iPhone as a next-gen webcam for Macs.
Mac users will soon be able to use their iPhones instead of traditional webcams thanks to a new macOS Venture feature. The new feature, called Continuity Camera, pulls video from the camera on the back of an iPhone and includes features that improve the quality of videos. These features include Center Stage, background blur, and portrait mode. This feature allows users to clip iPhones on their Mac and use them as wireless webcams. (Source: Tech Radar†
Why this is important for your business:
I’ve been doing a lot of video projects lately and learned something that most experts already know: a smartphone’s camera is usually even more powerful than a laptop’s webcam. Apple is going to increase the quality of their videos for its iPhone customers by better connecting these phones to devices.
5— The Dell Inspiron 15 Intel Core i7 laptop has hit a record price of $749.
Dell’s Inspiron 15 Intel Core i7 laptop is now available for the record price of $749. The laptop, which usually costs $979, has a 15.6-inch screen, 16GB RAM, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, 512GB SSD3, 4GHz Intel Core i7-11390H quad-core CPU and is considered one of the best laptops for business professionals and college students. (Source: Laptop Mag†
Why this is important for your business:
I am using an older model Inspiron and happen to be looking for a replacement this year. Looks like I want to take advantage of this deal. You?