Archive for February, 2012
Commercial Break: Like Shake & Vac, but it eradicates baldness
February 28th, 2012 • 4 CommentsLook! It’s Cheryl Baker! And not only did she win the Eurovision Song Contest more than 30 years ago, she’s also uncovered the secret to covering up bald patches on the shining domes of Gentlemen Of A Certain Age! What a woman – a modern-day Mother Teresa.
Okay, so the sun-roof masking is achieved by the not-so-subtle application of what looks like the sort of stuff that you might get on a cappuccino, but she’s in what might be a lab and wearing a white coat, and as we all know, science doesn’t lie.
Any ideas as to what might be in the mysterious powder? Your guess is as good as ours, but we’re happy to indulge your suggestions if you leave them in the box below.
Stay classy Morrisons…
February 28th, 2012 • 12 Comments
Massive news: Boots fails to open
February 27th, 2012 • 17 CommentsFrom the Mid Sussex Times…
We’re reproducing the story in full – hopefully we won’t get into trouble with the newspaper’s legal eagles…
Early shoppers at Boots in South Road, Haywards Heath, found the store closed this morning.
A sign on the door said: “Due to unforseen circumstances we do not have a pharmacist at present and so are unable to open this store.
“The store will open as soon as a locum pharmacist arrives, unfortunately we don’t yet know what time this will be.
“We apologise for any inconvenience caused and thank our customers for their patience.” The store later opened.
Vodafone unveil smartphone wallet
February 27th, 2012 • 2 Comments
Fans of Egyptian political uprisings, Vodafone, have unveiled their take on the technology that will see smartphones users using their phones instead of cash or cards at the checkout.
This isn’t going to be fraught with problems and scaremongering stories at all.
The mobile giant has teamed up with Visa and will allow users to pay for stuff with their mobile from Autumn. It’ll work in the same way you use an Oyster card if you are unlucky enough to live in London. If you’re from the North West, think of it as a posh Clipper Card.
The service uses a form of technology called Visa payWave mobile which is set to launch worldwide from early next year and will be based on a Visa prepaid account. You’ll be able to swipe your phone for small items, whereas goods over £15 will require a pin code.
Vodafone chief executive Vittorio Colao said this new method of payment represents “the next stage of the smartphone revolution” which offered customers “speed, simplicity and convenience”. Visa add that the service has “the potential to transform the way people pay and get paid the world over”.
Are Facebook reading Android user’s texts or not?
February 27th, 2012 • 13 Comments
Android phone owners may have been a little worried that Facebook are reading all their texts after The Sunday Times made a bunch of allegations about them. Allegations that Facebook are denying, for the record. Okay lawyers? Now go away.
What kicked the debate off is that, when you agree to download the FB app, there is an agreement in place that permits the company to “read SMS messages stored on your phone or SIM card”.
Zuckerberg’s company denies this, saying that app’s ability to access text messages is open and transparent and that they’re not looking at text messages at all.
“The Sunday Times has done some creative conspiracy theorising,” the rep said in a statement: “The suggestion that we’re secretly reading people texts is ridiculous. Instead, the permission is clearly disclosed on the app page in the Android marketplace and is in anticipation of new features that enable users to integrate Facebook features with their reading and sending of texts.”
Facebook concede that its app does have the permission to read, send and edit text messages in a user’s phone, but it isn’t something they want to do, saying that they’ve been using the feature to a “limited” extent to road-test a messaging service.
This comes on the back of more claims from The Sunday Times who noted that the YouTube app on Android was capable of remotely accessing and operating users’ smartphone cameras to take photographs or videos at any time. Sounds like Google have got some questions that need answering.
Mobile launches galore at Barcelona’s MWC fandango
February 27th, 2012 • 4 Comments
And so to Barcelona, where the Mobile World Congress is underway, and there are some new, smarter-than-ever smartphones on their way, from LG, Sony, HTC and Huawei,
LG’s top effort is the Optimus 4X HD and comes equipped with a four-core processor and an high-def display. LG are boasting that it can be used for intensive gaming (you know, when you game really hard, gritting your teeth as you’re doing it) and that it can go two days without needing to be recharged.
In the Sony corner are, erm, Sony and they’ve got two new Xperia phones to show off, the mid-range-priced P and U, with an improved attempt to integrate their music, video, game and movie content into one indispensible phone. We don’t know if they’ve pulled it off because we’re not in Barcelona. Again.
Over to HTC’s stand (metaphorically) and we see that their new One range offers nothing much in the way of mind-boggling developments (at least not from where we’re sitting) – they’re blah-blahing about improved photography and design as well as an improvement in its Dropbox tie-up. Meh.
Meanwhile, in what was possibly the most impressive announcement, Chinese mobile behemoths Huawei unveiled the Ascend D Quad (pictured), which they’re saying is The World’s Fastest Smartphone. Now THAT’S a claim. Are you listening, HTC?
Oh yeah, and Nokia have come up with a 41MP camera phone, but it runs Symbian, so sod that.
Deals Of The Day – Monday 27th February
February 27th, 2012 • 2 Comments
Dinosaurs – fictional beasts invented by God so that bible-bashers can tell us exactly how long the world has been in existence. Or something like that anyway. Oh, and they’re also movie stars.
Yes, we’re referring to the Jurassic Park trilogy of films. Who among us doesn’t love the human-slaying antics of the films’ stars Benji The Dinosaur, Wilf The Dinosaur, Keith The Dinosaur and Ethel The Dinosaur Grandma? Now you can have all three films housed together in the Ultimate Trilogy collection on Blu-ray (with digital copies thrown in too). All yours for a mere £14.95 – far far less than you would pay to get into Jurassic Park itself and with very little of the inherent danger.
WAIT! THERE’S MORE…!!!
* Sky+/Sky HD TV remote control – only £5.99.
* Asda Extra Special Lemon Tarte Au Citron – only 50p.
* Free 3-pack biker Oxford Neck Tube (worth £14.99) – just pay postage of £3.49.
* Midway Arcade, retro gaming for iPhone/iPad. – only 69p.
* Variety pack (12 items) of Durex condoms and lubricants – just £2.70.
* Durex Elite condoms (x36) – only £6.99.
* Dell XPS 15 Laptop (2nd Gen i7 2, 6gb RAM, 750gb HDD) – £674.09 delivered.
* Western Digital TV Live streaming media player – only £76.99.
* The Adventures Of Tintin (5 disc Blu-ray box set) – £14.95 delivered.
* Campervan hire – £69 for two nights.
* Ridge Racer (PS Vita) – only £14.95.
* The Sherlock Holmes Collection (two-film Blu-ray box set) - pre-order for £17.99.
* £5 off when you spend £40 @ Tesco.
All those and more can be found over at HotUKDeals…
Nothing unsettling here…
February 27th, 2012 • 2 Comments
Trainers we’re certain we’ll never want to wear…
February 27th, 2012 • 6 CommentsNumber one in what we hope will be a very short series – the Adidas JS Leopards.Yours for only £140.00 – a small price to pay for months of ‘attention’.
Bitterwallet’s ten of the best…
February 26th, 2012 • No Comments
Oh my OMG – transgender-spotting, a soup company in bother, Richard Branson’s porn plans and crushed limbs on Facebook. Just another typical round-up of the best stuff from the past few days here at Bitterwallet…
* Commercial Break: Keep calm and carry on
* Paddy Power wanders aimlessly into transgender horse-racing row
* Mobile providers losing mega money as fewer use SMS
* Government to keep details of every phone call, text message, email and internet search
* Soup company in hot water over competition
* Want to know about Facebook’s views on nudity and crushed limbs?
* Claire’s Accessories’ new necklaces are beautifully designed…
* Brace yourselves for richardbranson.xxx – an odyssey of adult entertainment
* 4G ready to roll, but could cause interference problems
* Channel 4’s ticket-reselling investigation nails Viagogo
Your Sunday newspaper offers…
February 26th, 2012 • 4 Comments
A gardening knee mat? A guide to the stars and galaxies? A PINT?? All that and more can be found in today’s Sunday newspapers, although there doesn’t seem to be any treats to be found in that new one that’s just come out. Thanks as ever to avid HotUKDeals member nicster08 for gathering together all the goodies again…
**SUNDAY EXPRESS £1.20**
FREE – Gardening knee mat – redeem at Martin, McColl, RSMcColl.
FREE – The Railway Children DVD – postage required.
**MAIL ON SUNDAY £1.50**
SAVE – £5 off when you spend £40 – redeem at Tesco – or online with code GRN4H7
FREE – Frozen Planet poster
**SUNDAY TELEGRAPH £2**
FREE – Guide to the stars and galaxies booklet.
**SUNDAY MIRROR 50p**
FREE – Ladybird books – FINAL 2 TOKENS.
**THE PEOPLE 50p**
FREE – Book – Full House by Maeve Binchy – redeem at Martins Stores
**STAR ON SUNDAY 50p**
FREE – OK! Extra Magazine – inside.
FREE – Pint Of [Carlsberg?]
**THE OBSERVER £2.20**
FREE – Summer flowering bulbs – postage required.
Health and safety wouldn’t stand for it these days…
February 25th, 2012 • 7 Comments
Your Saturday newspaper offers…
February 25th, 2012 • 2 Comments
Free chocolate! A free booklet about the solar system! A free poster! Amazing scenes all, and gathered together from within the pages of this morning’s newspapers for your delectation by avid HotUKDeals member nicster08…
**DAILY EXPRESS 80p**
FREE – Cadbury Twirl bar – redeem at Martin, McColl, RSMcColl.
FREE – Chance to win £100,000.
**DAILY TELEGRAPH £2.00**
FREE – A Guide to the Solar System booklet.
**DAILY MAIL 90p**
FREE – Frozen Planet poster (pictured).
**DAILY MIRROR 70p**
FREE – Ladybird books – 100 to choose from – token collect. More here.
**GUARDIAN £2.10**
FREE – 130 Summer flowering bulbs – £3.99 postage.
**THE TIMES £1.50**
FREE – Macchiato Coffee – redeem at Cafe Nero.
Warning: these Chinese iPhone stoves are FAKES
February 24th, 2012 • 11 CommentsIf you get offered one of these iPhone stoves down the pub this weekend, we think you should know that they are FAKES.
The Chinese authorities have confiscated 681 of them but we can’t be certain that hundreds of thousands of others haven’t already spread across the globe like, erm, stove-shaped erm, tentacles. If you’re worried that you might get caught out, we’d advise printing out this news story and carrying it around with you at all times. You’re welcome.
Google to add ‘Do Not Track’ button to Chrome
February 24th, 2012 • 4 Comments
Google are going to add a “Do Not Track” button to their Chrome browser after the internet giant was challenged over online privacy, which saw many other big players online creating the ‘Don’t Be Evil‘ campaign.
This new system will allow web-users to opt-out of having their viewing habits used to tailor advertising and such.
“We’re pleased to join a broad industry agreement to respect the ‘do-not-track’ header in a consistent and meaningful way that offers users choice and clearly explained browser controls” Google Senior Vice President of Advertising Susan Wojcicki said in a statement.
Until then, there are ways of limiting what you give to Google while you browse. First, sign into your account on Google’s homepage and use the dropdown menu under your name in the top right of the screen. Click on ‘account settings’.
Then, find ‘services’ and you’ll see ’view, enable, or disable web history’. Click on that. Then, remove your search details by clicking on ’Remove Web History’. This doesn’t prevent Google from entirely getting at all your lovely browsing habits, but it does mean that they will anonymise the data in 18 months.
