InSync dating app includes safety options

INSYNC Corp. has launched inSync, the first UK-based dating app for the iPhone and iPod Touch. The app uses an advanced match-making algorithm to help users find other people with compatible personalities. 

Users can connect to spark a romance or simply pursue a friendship with someone who has similar interests or hobbies. 

InSync also has a unique feature called SyncSafe that adds a new level of protection for people involved in online dating. When users agree to meet for the first time, the app will present a pop-up screen containing the latest health warnings and advice from government health sources. 

For added security, SyncSafe allows users to turn on a tracking option that will follow the user from the start until the end of the date.

InSync users can purchase a SyncBoost that will increase the visibility of their profile and give them access to a special page to find others who have also joined SyncBoost. Another option is the exclusive SyncClub that offers even more visibility as well as weekly SyncBoosts.

The inSync app is available as a free download in the Apple App Store. Membership plans can be purchased for as little as £1.99.

For more details, visit the INSYNC website.

By: Ric Manning On 8/02/2021

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Website tracks new online slots games

If you like to play the digital slot machines at online casinos, you probably have one or two favorites that you visit regularly. Or, maybe you like to be among the first players to take a new game for a spin.

If you're in that latter group, check out Online-Casinos, a website that keeps an eye out for new UK-based Internet casinos and new slots games.

Tabs at the top of the site's landing page will take you to a page that lists and ranks more than 20 new casinos released in the current month. The rankings provide an overall score for each one and a summary of the casino's bonuses and free play offerings.

Another click takes you to an equally long list of new slots games. Each entry has a description of the game along with the identity of the game's developer. Players who have had good luck with games created by Quickspin or Playtech, for example, can find the latest entries from those companies.

The site also offers its list of the best casinos for table games such as Blackjack, Craps, Keno or Baccarat. And if you're new to online casino gambling, the Banking page is worth a visit to learn the workings of payment systems such as Skrill, PayPal, Neteller and Entropay.

Look for the Vegas-style WELCOME sign at the Online-Casinos website.

By: Ric Manning On 2/05/2019

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Casino Expert focuses on UK online gaming

Casino gambling on the Internet is a global industry with hundreds of digital gaming site scattered around the world. Many opt those casinos, including some of the most popular, are based in the United Kingdom.

Why is the UK such a hot spot? A UK-based casino review site called Casino Expert breaks down some of the reasons.

One reason in longevity. According to Casino Expert, most of the bigger companies behind UK's online casinos have been in the gaming business since way before the Internet was born.

They were called bookmakers. And while most bookmakers in the US operate outside the law, bookies in the UK are licensed and regulated, just like the gaming houses in Las Vegas and Atlantic City.

That government oversight adds an element of trust to the UK online casinos that new players might not feel with online casinos based in less familiar nations.

One more reason why UK online casinos are popular: in their competitive environment, UK gaming sites are likely to offer more and bigger bonuses to new players.

Casino Expert aims to be an online guide to UK online casinos by highlighting ones that offer the most attractive bonuses such as free slot spins and a variety of bonuses.

To read their ratings and reviews, visit the Casino Expert website.

By: Ric Manning On 1/22/2019

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UK trader is buying used PS3 and PS4 consoles

The Windows desktop PC that sat under my desk for more than three years is a testament to bad timing. I had upgraded to a newer and faster computer but, for reasons I can’t explain now, I was reluctant to let the old one go.

By the time I finally sold the PC, the market price for older PCs like mine had dropped by more than half. The lesson I learned seems obvious now: sell your ole gear as soon as you stop using it.

That could be the credo for Console Trade In, a UK-based service that makes it as easy and possible to move a gaming deck out the door.

The service starts by offering an online quote for tech gear ranging from console and hand-held gaming devices to tablets, computers and even gaming chairs.

If you like the quote, the service will send a courier to your home to pick up the device. They promise to test the equipment within 24 hours and if it passes, send payment the same day through PayPal or a bank transfer.

Console Trade In is currently focusing on PlayStation 3 and 4 consoles and offering as much as
£620 for used gaming gear.

In addition to the Console Trade In website, you can keep up with the latest offers and promotions @consoletrade_in on Twitter and on Facebook.

By: Ric Manning On 6/04/2017

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UK service puts content on top blogs

There are more than 150 million blogs in the world, way more than any any business hoping to see its product mentioned online could possibly reach. Nor should it want to.

Savvy marketers would tell them that only blogs worth reaching are those with a shared topic interest and a high visibility ranking. And those are the blogs that iNet Ventures says it can target.

The UK-based digital marketing service specialized in influencer marketing. In other words, it helps businesses get their stories told on blogs that have the power to influence prospective clients and buyers.

The company says it targets blogs in the client’s niche area and uses “an organic approach which avoids unnatural SEO practices.” It gets links placed on blogs that, like this one, have a domain authority rating of 20 or higher.

Prices for one link placement start at £35. For more information and to see the full range of services, visit the iNet Ventures website.

By: Ric Manning On 2/14/2017

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Wild West Faro returns in an app

Wild Bill Hickok was said to be playing five-card stud poker - and holding black aces and eights, the “dead man’s hand” — when he was murdered in the town of Deadwood in 1876. But the gamblers at the other tables at Nuttal & Mann’s Saloon may well have been playing Faro, a card game that historians say was just as popular as poker in the American West.

Wikipedia cites an 1882 study that called Faro the most popular game in America. The game involves a designated dealer and a suit of cards laid out in numerical order. The players bet on which card will be turned over next from each player’s hand.

Gamblers loved the odds, which could produce a higher payoff than most other games of chance. But Faro was also easy to rig in favor off the dealer, which is probably why interest in the game declined during the 20th Century.

Now Faro is making a return in a mobile app called Wild West Faro. The game includes the betting options that were available in the cowboy casinos. Players can bet on a single card or multiple cards with other options such as betting on a high card.

And, like the classic version, there’s an option that allows players or dealers to cheat - with a penalty for getting caught.

Wild West Faro can be played on a handheld device, but it looks best on a tablet or other device with a larger screen. The game costs $1.49 at the Google Play Store, £0.99 (about $1.22) at the iTunes App Store or Amazon’s Appstore. The game has no ads or in-app purchase options.

For a closer look at the game, check out the video below and visit the Wild West Faro website.

By: Ric Manning On 1/01/2017

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VR app helps users learn English

As a native English speaker, I have a built-in advantage when I visit other countries. On the streets of Paris, Rome, and even Osaka, I could always find some who spoke enough English to give me directions.

That’s not the case for someone from Mexico, Germany or China who finds themselves on the streets of London or New York. Learning to be comfortable speaking English can be a difficult task, but now practicing in a virtual reality can help.

A new app called Language VR lets users practice their new language is real life situations using VR goggles like Google Cardboard.

Developed by the British company VirtualSpeech, Language VR will teach English to people who speak French, Spanish, Portuguese, German and Chinese. More languages are slated to be released in the future.

The app puts users in different environments such as a kitchen, bedroom or office and in locations around England, such as Cornwall London. They can role play situations such as booking a hotel or having a job interview with managers from Google and Goldman Sachs.

The app also includes audiobook chapters from English novels such as Treasure Island and a scoring system that tracks and rewards their progress.

Language VR for Android mobile phones is available for $1.99 in the Google Play Store. To see how the app works, watch the video below and for news and updates, follow @vrspeech on Twitter.

By: Ric Manning On 12/23/2016

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UK company builds websites and apps in a month

Building a new website or mobile app can look like a daunting challenge for any business. Where do you start? How long will it take? What should it look like?

And, that last but critical question: How much will it cost?

A London-based company called 10K Startup has boiled the process down to four steps, four weeks and a flat rate of $10,000.

10K Startup says its process will result in a top-quality website or app for any business, regardless of field of interest. The company matches its staff of coders and designers with the client’s staff to work through these four steps:

• Determine the client’s goal and vision and the core features of the digital presentation.
• Create wire-frame mockups that express the user experience and user interface.
• Build the software that will bring the mockup to life.
• Test, refine and fix the product to ensure that it’s ready for the real world.

To get more details and read the company FAQ, visit the 10K Startup website.

By: Ric Manning On 12/19/2016

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TrouDigital lets any video screen deliver targeted content

When I hook up a TV or video monitor to an Internet streaming device, I’m usually thinking about watching Netflix or ESPN sports.

But the people at TrouDigital have a much bigger idea. They see those screens as the delivery point for customized information and targeted advertising.

For example, a screen in the waiting room at a veterinarian’s office could display tips for preventing fleas and ticks. A screen in a restaurant could show today’s app and drink specials. A monitor in a real estate office could be cycling through a gallery of home listings.

TrouDigital says it’s digital signage solution works with any screen that has a HDMI port. It connects the screen to an inexpensive computer - typically an Android micro PC - that can pull data from a cloud-based server.

The UK-based company developed a drag-and-drop program that lets customers create dynamic displays that can include videos, RSS feeds, social media links and other content. Because the content is stored online, it can be updated and managed remotely.

The TrouDigital website offers more details and the option to try the service for free for a month. And there are profiles of ways the system is being used in different venues in the company blog and @TrouDigital on Twitter.

By: Ric Manning On 12/11/2016

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UK company delivers high-tech inks

Almost every time our daughter comes for a visit, she searches our pantry and refrigerator checking the expiration dates on our food items and their packages.

I also look at those date stamps, but my brain is wondering how they got here and who came up with an ink that can be safely applied directly to the skin of an apple or an orange?

It turns out that a lot of the ink used to mark food and food containers comes from Needham Ink, a British company that sells a wide range of specialty inks, including food-grade inks that can be applied to metal cans, glass bottles and flexible plastic bags.
 
Established more than 50 years ago, Needham sells inks to companies in more than 73 countries across Europe, the US and Asia. The company’s products include inks, markers and paints for all types of industrial applications, including all those dot-marked dates and numbers you see in the supermarket and in your kitchen.

For more details on their products and services, visit the Needham Ink website. 

By: Ric Manning On 11/30/2016

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GPS app tracks family members

Parents have a natural desire to want to keep track of their children, even when those children have turned into teenagers. And now mobile phones and GPS technology have made that possible.

The app stores have no shortage of tracking programs, but the Family Locator app may be the only one offered by a company that knows how to use GPS tracking for fleets of trucks.

GPSWOX has been tracking commercial vehicles in the UK, US and throughout Europe since 2014. Its system is currently following about 250,000 vehicles and objects. Now it wants to help individuals keep track of their children, spouses and parents.

The company’s smartphone app can plot the location of connected phones in real time and also trace the history of a user’s movements. It will send an alert when a child or adult leave home or work and let users know if someone is in a car that’s going faster than the local speed limit.

Users can also send an emergency alert to selected family members and schedule reminders. For example, it might remind a forgetful husband of a dinner date or tell a son when he’s expected to be at a school function.

The Family Locator app is available for Android devices in the Google Play Store. A version for Apple devices is scheduled to be released soon. The basic version of the app is free. Upgraded versions that include features such as geofencing and fuel price alerts start at $1.99 a month.

For more details, visit the GPSWOX website.

By: Ric Manning On 10/28/2016

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Aroko FX offers easy overseas payments

Several years ago we wanted to send some money to our son while he was traveling in South America. I asked my bank about wire transfers and discovered that their process was complicated, expensive and fraught with delays.

We decided to mail a check and hope for the best.

The last time we sent him some cash, we used an electronic transfer service and the money arrived in minutes.

Services like Aroko FX have figured out how to cut out all the bureaucracy and make money transfers easy for anybody to use. The UK-based service, which recently expanded to the US, lets consumers send funds through the Aroko FX website using a computer or a mobile device.

The Aroko FX service can be especially appealing to people who want to send money from Europe or the US to destinations in Africa or to other areas where many existing money transfer providers charge stiff fees.

According to Aroko FX, their fees can be up to 95% less than fees charged by many vendors. Here's how they say they can keep fees low:

Our rates remain the best as we do not have an intermediary broker to facilitate the foreign exchange for us, we do it in-house using our own infrastructures to deliver the best rate to our customers.

Aroko FX's customers include individuals and businesses that send international payments or settle invoices from overseas suppliers and students who pay tuition fees abroad.

More details are available at the Aroko FX website, on the company’s Facebook page and @arokofx on Twitter.

By: Ric Manning On 10/19/2016

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UK's Amazing Support offers a variety of IT services

At the newspaper publishing company where I once worked, we were always advertising to hire IT professionals. Staff turnover in the IT department was high and the people who left took with them their knowledge of our specialized software and production systems. New hires faced a steep learning curve that got steeper as we moved deeper into the digital world.

That’s not a unique situation and I think it’s why more companies are exploring the advantages of using a managed IT support service like Amazing Support. The service offers general IT support, cloud solutions, business continuity assistance and IT consulting  in the in London and Hertfordshire areas in the UK. It also works with international companies that want to get established in the UK.

Amazing Support offers a wide range of services targeted at both large and small companies. It can do an in-depth audit of a firm’s software and connected services as part of an asset management and create a disaster recovery program.

Other services include managed and monitored backups, network audits and email redundancy. And it will help a client explore cloud-based solutions and how they might help a company grow.

For more details about Amazing Support, check out the company’s website which includes a set of case studies for involving different clients and the services that were provided.

By: Ric Manning On 9/12/2016

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Drift's Ghost action camera gets new high-end features

Earlier this summer I told you about the Compass, a tiny wearable camera made by London’s Drift Innovation. The Compass is an inexpensive option for people who want to be ready to grab a video clip anytime and anywhere.
Today Drift announced an upgrade to its Ghost line of cameras for users who want to step up their action video game. The Ghost 4K is capable of shooting 4K Ultra High Definition at 30 fps or 1080p at 120 fps.

It also comes with electronic image stabilization and a gyroscope that automatically predicts movements for smooth stabilization.

Here’s what Drift CEO Sab Jhooti said about the Ghost 4K:

We wanted to go a step further with our Ghost design to add not only a creative spin but a major advancement to ensure that our Ghost fans are experiencing something truly special.We’re putting the power back into the hands of the user and offering them the freedom to film their lives the way that they want to.

Other premium features built into the Ghost 4K include:

• Dual front and rear microphones for amplified sound and wind noise reduction. When the camera is recording and in motion, it automatically switches from the front mic to the rear mic 
• Improved WiFi and bluetooth connections for live streaming
• A ‘Stitch’ mode that can be set to link a new clip to the last one 
• A side panel that can be removed to attach components such as a battery pack, an LCD viewfinder or a 4G unit.

The Ghost 4K will be introduced this week and at IFA 2016 in Berlin and will be available to purchase in October at the Drift Innovation website. You can follow Drift on Twitter @driftinnovation and see some cool user photos and videos on Instagram.

By: Ric Manning On 8/31/2016

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UK website stocks MacBook Pro refurbs

I try never to pay full price for a computer. For a while, I shopped for used gear on eBay or Craigslist. But after a few disappointing exchanges, I now focus on established companies that offer items that are refurbished - not just used - and come with a good guarantee and return policy.

The UK-based Tech Trade fits that profile and looks like a good source for anyone in that region who wants to buy a refurbished Macbook Pro.

The website lists nine different MacBook Pro models sorted by age, specs and price. When I checked, it offered a MacBook Pro with a 13.3-inch display, an i7 processor, 4 GB of RAM and a 500 GB hard drive for £649.

Tech Trade’s laptops come with a 12-month guarantee and the option to return any item for a full refund within 14 days after the sale. I don’t think I’ve seen terms that generous from any refurb source in the US.

The company also offers free 10-day shipping or next-day shipping for £10.

You can see the current inventory at the Tech Trade website where you can also create an account and a wish list to be notified when an item you want is available.

By: Ric Manning On 8/30/2016

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MacBack offers fast cash for Macs

My little MacBook Air has served me well for several years, but I am increasingly tempted to cut it loose and get one of the newer versions. If I lived in the UK, my first stop to sell my current Mac would be MacBack.

MacBack buys used MacBooks, both the Pro and Air versions, with a system that is as quick and easy as any I have encountered in the US.

Say you want to sell your MacBook Pro. When you click to the MacBack website, you can fill out a short questionnaire with details about your computer’s age, condition and specifications.

At the end of that process, MacBack will give you a price quote and, if you accept, it will dispatch a courier to pick up your laptop at a time that you specify.

That’s right, MacBack says it will come pick up your computer. The routine is the same it if you want to sell your MacBook Air.

Prices for used Macs range from up to £450 for a first generation MacBook Pro to £1800 for the third generation. MacBook Air prices go up to £235 for the early models to £510 for the modern versions.

By: Ric Manning On 8/29/2016

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The Posture Stand fights back pain

Just because they call a portable computer a laptop, that doesn’t mean your lap is the best place to use it.

In fact, it’s a pretty bad spot. If you’re anything like me, after a few minutes of typing you’ll be hunched over like Gollum from The Lord of the Rings.

The British company that makes the Posture Stand says it has a solution. The stand is an adjustable aluminum platform that holds a portable computer, tablet or ebook reader.

Approved by the London Spine Clinic, the stand is designed to help prevent postural strain by allowing you to securely raise the position of your device to your natural eye level.

The stand can be used while you’re sitting on a sofa or reclining in bed. It can also turn a conventional desk into a standing desk configured for any height. It’s strong enough to hold a 17-inch laptop computer and it can be collapsed to pack in your luggage.

For more details on the Posture Stand, watch the video below and check out the Back Pain Help website where the stand is available for £49.99. And this website explores how different mattresses can help fight back pain.

By: Ric Manning On 8/18/2016

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StackJobs posts free IT job openings in the UK

If you have computer programming skills, you probably know how to find a job in the US. But what if you would like to work in the UK?

A new website called StackJobs is loaded with listings for IT positions with both large firms and small startups.

Companies seeking employees can post an opening for free to appear on the site and in other IT recruiting channels. A typical listing includes a description of the position, employee benefits and a list of required skills. Some listing also include pay ranges.

The listings on StackJobs are tagged according to the skill sets sought by employers. Some of the top-trending skills include JavaScript, SQL ,HTML, .NET, C++ and Agile software development. Here's an example of job listings for Python coders.

The site is also free for job seekers to use. To check out the latest listings or to browse openings that match specific skills, visit the StackJobs website.

By: Ric Manning On 7/09/2016

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UK firm develops an underwater jet pack

While snorkeling at one of the underwater reef parks in the Bahamas, it was frustrating to see beautiful coral formations 15 or 20 feet below the surface but not have enough flipper power to get a closer look.

What I needed was a an underwater jet pack like the one developed by by S.C.P Marine Innovation in the UK. The x2 Sport is a wearable propulsion system that lets swimmers move faster and dive deeper than what they can do using simple muscle power.

The idea is to into a swimmer into Aquaman with a power pack strapped to your back and a pair of thrusters strapped to your wrists. Just point your arms in the direction you want to go and squeeze the trigger in a handheld throttle. The jet pack lets you cruise at speeds up to 6 mph with 60 minutes of power.

The x2 developers have launched an Indiegogo campaign hoping to raise $35,000 to get the product into full production. Donors who pledge $2,000 will be in line to first 20 jet packs when they ship next summer.

For more details, check out the video below and visit the Super Marine Innovation website.

By: Ric Manning On 9/26/2015

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Top5Hosting rates UK's best platforms

There are plenty of websites that list hosting services, but they can be short on details and descriptions.

Top5Hosting takes a deeper look at 10 hosting services operating in the UK. The site rates each service on level criteria including price, speed, support, uptime, features and innovation.

Each site also gets a thorough review that sets out the major elements of each service and explains them in plain English.

The home page at Top5Hosting includes a chart showing the ratings for 10 different services that offer shared hosting and could hosting. The list shows the disk space and bandwidth included in their base package and whether they offer a free domain.

The site also has discount offers for the services, beginner’s guides on how to buy a hosting, how to buy a domain name and what tools to use to test your current hosting provider. For a closer look, visit the Top5Hosting website.

By: Ric Manning On 7/06/2015

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