This Wireless Plan Could Save You Money
from the desk of Rich on Tech
Hello and Happy Weekend!
I started this week well rested after spending the weekend in Sedona, Arizona. I’ve never been. Went with my little brother on a hiking weekend trip and was super impressed with the entire city. There isn’t a whole lot to do except be outdoors, but that’s good enough for me! We took a great hike and went to see a vortex.
Biggest bummer: my Apple Watch battery died about 30 minutes into our hike, which is unusual. I’m suspecting an app crash caused the battery to run down fast.
Anyway, here’s a little highlight reel of the trip. Highly recommend a visit if you can!
I covered a lot this week so let’s get right to it.
Verizon’s Secret $40 Unlimited Plan Gets Even Better
Last year I did a story on Visible, the Verizon owned wireless carrier that’s offering a $40 unlimited plan. It was a great deal then but it’s an even better deal now that the company has lifted their speed cap for a limited time. Basically, you get unlimited talk, text, data and even hotspot for half of what you would pay the “real” Verizon for a line on the same network.
It’s an incredible deal and I talked to a viewer who emailed me to tell me he switched and has loved it so far - especially the fact that he’s saving nearly $500 a year.
https://ktla.com/2019/06/28/verizons-secret-40-unlimited-plan-gets-even-better-no-speed-caps/
AI Background Checks
An LA-area company named Fama is doing something interesting - they are scanning the public web to do background checks on employees. They’re not looking for “red solo cups” but clues that might indicate “problematic behavior” on the horizon.
It’s a fascinating story and one that reminds me that we truly live in the future - where your online persona can definitely have an effect on your real life.
https://ktla.com/2019/06/26/fama-social-media-screening-machine-learning-job-applicant-risk/
Google Lets You Order Food
If you’ve ordered food on Postmates, Doordash, Grubhub or others, you know how tricky it can be to compare offerings. You have to match up the restaurant you want food from with the app that delivers it.
Now, Google is stepping in to make life easier. They have indexed popular restaurant delivery services and now when you look up a type of food or restaurant on Google Maps, Search or Assistant, you will see a big “order online” button. Tap it to see various delivery options for a particular place.
The best part: you can order without a lengthy app download or signup process. Google handles the order and passes it along to the right service. You just have to setup Google Pay the first time you use it if you haven’t already done so.
https://ktla.com/2019/06/24/google-order-food-online-postmates-doordash/
Remember when milk and eggs were delivered to neighborhood homes? I’ve been loving a service called Milk & Eggs which is bringing back a bit of that magic. Milk & Eggs delivers what the name implies, but also a ton of other fresh food, including fruit, veggies, bread, proteins and various other items. The best part is that you can get local specialities from LA-area places. It’s super cool, delivery over $35 is free mornings between 5-7 am and the quality of the produce is unmatched. We are regularly impressed and have really started to look forward to our Saturday morning deliveries. Use my link for $20 off your first order. [REFERRAL]
Auto-Delete Your Google History
Google has new a new setting that can automatically delete your search history after a certain period of time. By default, the setting is manually delete, but now you can change that to automatic after 3 or 18 months.
Watch my video to see how to change the setting in a few seconds.
Website for Travel Geeks
I always wondered where you could fly direct from a particular airport (Burbank, I’m looking at you) and those answers can be tough to find. Not anymore!
I just discovered FlightsFrom.com and it’s really fun. Pop in the name of an airport and you get all kinds of info, like where you can fly direct, the biggest airlines there, most popular type of aircraft and more. Check it out!
My Interview with Leo Laporte
If you follow me at all, you know I have a lot of respect for Leo Laporte. He’s built a fantastic following and business as a broadcaster and tech personality. I also love the fact that he lets me fill in on his syndicated radio show.
Recently, I had the opportunity to interview Leo for a podcast called The News Director’s Office. This podcast is hosted by my KTLA boss Jason Ball, who talks to media folks about their rise in the business. Take a listen - I thought Leo shared a great story!
https://ktla.com/2019/06/27/the-news-directors-office-rich-demuro-takeover-with-leo-laporte/
The Rich on Tech Podcast
Hope you’re not all podcasted out and you still have some listening time for mine! Each week, I talk about the tech stuff I think you should know about and answer the questions you email me.
Here’s what we discussed this week:
How to set Google to auto-delete your search history; Prime Day details; Amazon turns Rite Aids into pickup centers; Visible's $40 Unlimited plan gets even better; a travel website for geeks; Ordering food with Google; an extra-strength Robocall blocking app; listeners ask about playing Harry Potter on older devices, getting a drone, deleting old accounts and whether to switch to iPhone to get an Apple Watch.
Take a listen using the link below and if you like what you hear, subscribe for free in Apple Podcasts or your favorite podcast app!
https://art19.com/shows/rich-on-tech/episodes/7033a943-936f-4aee-8e75-05d4ce3e86e7
Odds and Ends
You’ll soon be able to pick up your Amazon packages at a neighborhood Rite Aid
Firewall is the most extreme robocall blocker yet - it only lets in calls that are in your address book or whitelisted
Instagram swears it isn’t listening through your phone to deliver ads about what you talked about
Finally
Sometimes I post stuff that causes a ruckus. This calculator tip was one of them. Some people said it was such a no-brainer, others (including myself) were pleasantly surprised at the hack.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BzJNAAEFy_Y/
That’s All Folks!
Enjoy your weekend, thanks for reading. If you liked it, be sure to hit that heart below.
Rich