Apple's embarrassing AI blunder

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Of surprises of surprises.

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Apple missed the entire AI revolution. Every iPhone owner knows using Siri is.

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An exercise in frustration.

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And so the world's most innovative company stumbled badly. Now here's their plan to save the day. I'm Kim Commando for NetSuite AI changed.

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The world and companies using it have the advantage.

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Download the free business guide demystifying AI right now@netsuite.com Kim not only was Apple's failure to develop its own AI an embarrassment, their solution is actually equally humiliating. Apple went hat in hand to the major AI players to strike some kind of deal to bring a working AI to all their products. They've selected Google in a multi year deal to use Google's Gemini on all Apple products.

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Multi year means that Apple is so.

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Far behind it has no hope of developing its own AI anytime soon. And the cost? Apple will pay Google a billion dollars a year for this screw up. Maybe they should have gotten my free newsletter. You can sign up right now@getkim.com and now it's time for your Saturday Steals. If you like tech that works hard and costs less, you're gonna love these. Now let's jump into some of my best finds from this week. And don't forget to visit my Amazon shop Where you can find all my deals and recommended tech on demand. Just head to Amazon.com shop kimcommando all right, let me give it to you again. Amazon.com shop kimcommando With a K of course. Have you seen those free phone on us Offers from the big wireless companies? I, I know they sound great. I mean, who wouldn't love a free iPhone or Android? But here's the truth. You know deep down those so called free phones are almost never free. Big carriers stretch the cost of the phone over time with tiny monthly credits. And those only apply if you stay locked into their plan. If you ever want to switch phones or get a new carrier, you're stuck paying off that balance. That free phone ends up costing you your freedom and more money. Consumer cellular, they don't play games. What you see is what you get. And it's amazing. Right now for a limited time, you get your second month of service totally and completely free. No hidden fees, no long term contracts. And if you're over 50, you get two lines with unlimited talk, text and data for only $30 for each line. Switch to consumer cellular and start saving with your second month free right now. Visit consumercellular.com Kim or use promo code Kim that's consumercerular.com Kim.

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The world moves fast. Your workday even faster. Pitching products, drafting reports, analyzing data. Microsoft 365 Copilot is your AI assistant for work built into Word, Excel, PowerPoint and other Microsoft 365 apps you use. Helping you quickly write, analyze, create and summarize so you can cut through clutter and and clear a path to your best work. Learn more@Microsoft.com M365 copilot I'm Kim Commando with Saturday steals.

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And first up, movie night. Got an upgrade. The godee smart projector. 63% off. This is a big deal. It's only $150, but it's $250 off. Google TVs built in Wi Fi. Bluetooth means fewer cords. 4K resolution, big screen energy, small screen price. Next dead zones be gone. This WI Fi extender is half off at $40. Cover 13,000 square feet and handles 150 devices set up super easy. And finally, a bright idea. Eight bucks. Dimmable nightlights that come in a two pack. 50% off right now they turn on at dusk, off at dawn, automatically. So you get three smart deals for one smart weekend. And get the links you need@wtop.com I'm fascinated.

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Five apps that are tracking your driving.

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Yeah, this is something that you probably never thought of. And it starts with Larry Johnson. He lives in Atlanta, and he installed Life 360 to keep tabs on his teenage kids. And he's a great parent, right? But then suddenly he got insane car insurance rates. And when he pushed back, he learned the truth, that Life360 was tracking the turns, every hard break, every mile. And then they sell all that information to insurance companies. But it's not just Live360, who, by the way, is selling your driving data to Aria, which is owned by Allstate Insurance. Right? Okay. Gasbuddy. Yeah, we love to get low gas prices, but that feature that's rating your fuel efficiency, it's powered by that other company I just mentioned, Aria, that's also owned by Allstate. Right. MyRadar. Little weather app, same tracking fuel rewards. There's also an app called Rootly that's marketed to people who drive for Uber and Lyft. And they are also selling the records to insurance companies. So these insurance companies are buying your driving scores based on your speed, braking routes. Now, you can shut down location services per app and you can get into your phone settings. Normally it's under Privacy and security location services. On Android, it's under App Positions. But what's also interesting is that you can request a driving report, just like you pull a credit report. It's absolutely free once a year. I requested mine two weeks ago. I still haven't gotten it. But LexisNexis is the big one. And that's the company that insurance companies use to check your history before they actually give you a quote. So the address to check it is really cumbersome. So I don't want to give it to you here on the air, but just go to WTOP and you'll find the link to the LexisNexis site where you can request a consumer disclosure report. Now, I will forewarn you that in order for you to get the report, you have to give them information like your name, your address, your driver's license number, your Social Security number. But don't worry about it, they have it all already. And if you don't want to do all this online, we'll also give you an 800 number where you can actually speak to a human.

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So, so much information. And they don't necessarily tell you, if you call Allstate for a quote, they're not going to tell you that they've accessed this information, right?

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Oh, no, not at all. And. And you should actually be looking at any free app that you have on your phone, look for location services because that means they are tracking whatever you're doing while the app is open and then selling that to not just insurance companies, but who knows who else. So, like for example, so many people have downloaded and I don't know why. The free flashlight app. Okay, well, number one, you don't need a free flashlight app because you already have a flashlight built into your phone. Okay? But if you download that app, it does ask for a lot of permissions, including location services. Ditto with some of these QR code apps, which, by the way, you don't need those either. So it's a good idea for you just to tap into it this weekend. Head to settings, privacy and security location services on your iPhone. And that's where you're going to find the offenders, change them to never or only while using the app, and then tap each one and toggle off precise location. And with Android, let me just give you another step here. It's settings, location, then app permissions. And that's where you can choose don't allow or allow only while using the app.

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Are there other apps besides these five that may be tracking you?

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There's a ton of them. Okay. There's just a whole bunch of them. Because remember, if the product is free, you are the product.

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Got it. And stuff laying around your house that you should be more aware of what's happening there?

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Oh, we all have these boxes of tech junk, right? Dead batteries, cables that don't work anymore, video games, maybe an ipod that you haven't touched for years now. Depending on the condition, it could be worth a lot of money. So let's start with old ipods. Apple killed it off in 2022 and now suddenly everybody wants one. Like it's 2016, which I don't understand. It was 10 years ago. It's a big trending thing online right now. But anyway, a first gen iPod classic, that was the clunky white brick from 2001 up to $1,000 in the box. Now a sealed first gen sold for $29,000 a few years ago. So if you have scratched one, it's probably worth maybe a hundred bucks. An iPod mini $200. A Nano, maybe $250. Now let's talk old iPhones. I mean, gosh, I'm kicking myself that I did not buy an iPhone that only worked with AT&T in 2007 and just kept it in a box on a shelf. Because a first gen iPhone sealed could be worth up to $200,000 if it's scratched, maybe $500. And then you have some vintage video games, sealed Pokemon games, and stadium events from NES, $35,000. You have Sony Walkmans up to $1,300. Yeah, it's just really crazy out there. There is a website, PriceCharting.com, where you can type in what you have as far as old tech and it'll give you some idea how much it's worth.

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Hey, if you love staying tech ahead, then you're going to love, love, love. I'm talking about my free newsletter called the Current. Join almost a million folks who get it every single day. It's quick, smart. It only takes five minutes a day. Yes. Sign up right now@getkim.com that's getkim.com.

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