Two months after Google added phishing protections to the Android Gmail app, the company is taking its no-phishing attack approach further by introducing new warnings and a more complex verification system for new apps. [More]
downloads
Sony Ticks Off Hollywood By Distributing ‘Clean’ Edits Of Major Movies
By 6.14.17
Have you ever been watching a heavily edited, bleeped and blurred-out movie on broadcast TV (or maybe on a plane) and thought to yourself, “I really wish I could get that version to watch at home!”? Well, Sony has read your mind and created cleaned-up editions of several popular movies — all while annoying just about everyone in Hollywood in the process. [More]
Netflix Will Finally Let Users Download Some Content For Offline Viewing
By 11.30.16
It’s been whispered and buzzed about for a long time now, but it’s happening at last: Netflix says it will allow users to download select TV shows and movies to their mobile devices so they can watch them even when they’re not online. [More]
New Netflix App Tells You If Your Mobile Connection Is Fast Enough For Streaming
By 8.10.16
With more and more subscribers streaming video on their mobile devices, Netflix wants to ensure the content is coming through with the best quality possible by launching a mobile speed test app. [More]
Apple Increases iTunes Match, Apple Music iCloud Storage Limit To 100,000 Tracks
By 12.7.15
Music lovers, who also happen to be users of Apple products, can now store a lot more of their favorite tunes in the cloud: about 75,000 more songs to be exact. Apple confirmed over the weekend that iTunes Match and Apple Music iCloud libraries will now have the capacity to hold 100,000 songs. [More]
GameStop Ditches Digital Downloads In Console Bundles
By 9.18.15
With consumers abandoning their stacks of CDs, DVDs and video games in favor of digital downloads that can easily be viewer or played for any number of devices, GameStop’s latest attempt to keep its bread-and-butter — the sale of trade-ins — goes against the no-disc trend: only selling game console bundles that include physical discs. [More]
Movie Studios: Downloads Are Up, DVD Sales Are Down
By 1.6.15
An entertainment industry group says that Americans are spending slightly less on watching moving pictures in our living rooms overall, but part of that is a change in how we buy and consume media, and not necessarily that we’re watching fewer movies and TV programs. In news that will surprise no one, spending on DVDs and DVD rentals has declined significantly, and spending on downloads, streaming service subscriptions, and digital rentals has increased. [More]
Apple: Blame The TV Networks For Half-Seasons Sold At Full Price
By 8.13.13
What is a “season” of television? It’s all the episodes filmed and aired within the same production period, isn’t it? Only networks’ habit of splitting a “season” in half has made the definition of what a “season” is kind of fuzzy. Maybe it’s an artistic decision or a cash grab, but all fans know is that they’re kind of confused. [More]
I Have To Pay Another $23 Because 5th Season Of Breaking Bad Was Split In Half
By 8.12.13 — Updated: 9.9.13
Martin is really annoyed. Last year, he bought season 5 of “Breaking Bad” on iTunes, which means that the fresh episodes should show up on his Apple TV at the same time they air on cable. After all, the episodes on now are the second half of the fifth season, not the sixth season. [More]
Verizon Math Returns, Songs Shrink In Size When Uploaded – Or Do They?
By 4.16.13
Reader Rod noticed something interesting as he shopped around to compare Internet service providers. Verizon provided a helpful chart that explains to customers how long they could expect an upload or download to take for many mundane things: movies, songs, and photos. He points out that the problem is, the songs magically become half as large when they’re uploaded. Or do they? [More]
Apple, Amazon Looking To Sell Used Digital Content
By 3.8.13
When you purchase a digital download, do you actually own it? Some say yes, others say you’re just licensing its use from the copyright holder. This argument is only going to get more heated with news that both Apple and Amazon are looking into how to go about re-selling “used” digital content. [More]
Nook Website Says You Can Download The Movies You Rent To Watch Later? Too Bad
By 3.6.13 — Updated: 3.12.13
Scott was under the impression that he could rent movies for his Nook HD+, download them, and watch them on his device whenever he felt like it for the next thirty days. Where did he pick up such a wacky idea? I mean, other than Barnes & Noble’s own support site. And the downloading screen in the Nook store. Only none of it is true. Update: Barnes & Noble has contacted us, and they say that Scott’s experience isn’t what they intended, and Nook users really are supposed to be able to download movies. We’ll let you know when we find out what Scott’s problem was. Second update: The problem was with his MicroSD card. [More]
How Gamestop Lost My Business Over Twenty Bucks
By 4.30.12
The game Brett wanted for his computer is compatible with both Windows and MacOS, in theory. He went to GameStop to buy a physical copy, and learned that he had to buy it as a download instead. They sold him a download code and he went home to get his new game. That’s when he learned that GameStop’s Impulse download platform might sell Mac-compatible games, but the program itself is Windows-only. Brett wants to warn other gamers…and to vent. [More]
3 Free Apps For Your Kindle Fire
By 11.17.11
If you sprung for a Kindle Fire this week, you’re probably looking for apps to feed your e-reading, web-surfing, movie-watching tablet. But because the device is so new it’s not immediately clear which downloads you need. [More]
Thoughtful Xbox Buys Owner An Unusable Present That Microsoft Can't Refund
By 5.6.11
Christopher did something very, very stupid yesterday. Well, that, or one of his Xbox controllers did something very thoughtful and bought him a present on its own, even though it’s not Christmas or Bill Gates’ birthday or anything. Unfortunately, the gift was a copy of Call of Duty: Black Ops that there isn’t even room on his console to download, and the Xbox used his Live account. Some present. This is the reason why you shouldn’t leave anything on top of your controller that will keep hitting “accept.” [More]
Rappers Sue CBS Interactive, Alleging It Profited From Music Piracy
By 5.5.11
A lawsuit led by rap artists alleges CBS Interactive, the parent company of CNET, aided copyright infringement by promoting and profiting on downloads of file-sharing service LimeWire. [More]
Updated: DangerP's Sweet Excel Budget Spreadsheet (With Debt Snowball)
By 12.1.10
After I uploaded my quick n easy excel budget spreadsheet yesterday, Consumerist reader DangerP sent over his to share with everyone. His is pretty cool! In addition to the regular cash flow and recurring billing item tracking, it also has a built-in worksheet for doing a debt snowball, tracking long-term debts, and an overall budget dashboard. Update: new excel file replaced to fix formula issues some people where having. [More]
Lauren's Quick And Easy Excel Budgeter
By 9.24.10
It’s hard to beat an excel spreadsheet for quickly shifting between a granular and top-level view of your personal finance situation. Here’s reader Lauren’s account balance spreadsheet she made to keep track of her expenditures, past, present, and future, and itemize her budget. [More]
