Customize Your Facebook News Feed, Apple Watch Is a Flop

Written by Dave ParrackJuly 10, 2015

Facebook feeding frenzy, Apple Watch fails, Apple operating system betas, Flix Plus improves Netflix, Logitech dumps tech, and the best reaction to winning an Xbox One of all time.

Facebook Lets You Control Your Feed

Facebook is giving a modicum of control back to its users. The social network has previously sought to control what you see on your News Feed, determining what to show you and when based on an algorithm. However, this controlling nature annoyed many people, and Facebook has listened to the complaints… for a change.

A new set of tools hands back control of your News Feed, allowing you to decide which friends come first. Select a handful of friends (or Pages) and their updates will be the first thing you see at the top of your News Feed. It’s also now easier to decide who to unfollow so that you’re no longer bothered by idiotic updates.

To see the new options, click “More” in the bottom right-hand corner of your mobile Facebook app. “News Feed Preferences” should be located under Settings, and you can then update your personal preferences as often as you like. Unfortunately, this option is initially only available in iOS, with Facebook promising to add it to Android and the Web in the coming weeks.

Apple Watch Sales Sink Like a Stone

It looks as though the Apple Watch is a flop, with sales of the device falling precipitously in the three months since launch. This is at least according to Slice Intelligence (via MarketWatch), which gathers data based on the electronic receipts sent to millions of email addresses.

Its figures suggest Apple is selling fewer than 20,000 watches a day in the U.S. Which may sound like a lot, but is a paltry demand when compared to that of the iPhone and iPad. At launch, Apple was selling 200,000 watches every day, but sales soon leveled off, and are now falling despite the efforts of James Bond.

These aren’t official figures, which means they have to be taken with a liberal pinch of salt. However, as Apple often crows about its successes, the fact that the company has remained silent on the Apple Watch could be seen as further proof this particular device has flopped. Oops.

El Capitan & iOS 9 Arrive in Beta

Apple has released iOS 9 and Mac OS X El Capitan as public betas. This means anyone with a compatible Mac or iOS device can try out the new versions of Apple’s two operating systems months before they’re due to be officially launched.

To gain access, simply sign up to the Apple Beta Program, and you’ll be offered one or both of the respective betas. However, you need to be aware that as pre-release software, both iOS 9 and El Capitan are likely to contain bugs, so back everything up first, and proceed with caution.

Flix Plus Adds Value to Netflix

Netflix recently changed its user interface for people using the service on the Web. While this should be seen as a positive thing, unfortunately it broke most of the Netflix customization tools designed to work with the old UI. 

One of the tools affected was Flix Plus, which, amongst many other things, helps you hide spoilers and play random episodes. However, Lifehacker has now updated the Flix Plus Chrome extension so that it plays nicely with the new UI. Hoorah!

Logitech Changes Name to “Logi”

Logitech is changing its brand name to Logi. While the name of the company itself won’t change, the new Logi brand will be emblazoned on most new products being released. But not mice and keyboards, the products for which the company is most closely associated. Because reasons.

You’re not alone in thinking that’s confusing. The thinking behind the name change is confusing too, with Logitech Vice President of brand development Charlotte Johs explaining to Gizmodo, “Tech is everywhere. Tech is in the air you breathe … it’s in your clothes … in the future, ‘tech’ doesn’t say anything”. 

Ah, now it all makes perfect sense.

The Excitement of Winning an Xbox One

And finally, kids these days can be extremely hard to impress. Take the one in this video, for example, who won an Xbox One from Microsoft for his efforts at E3 2015. Is he pleased? In a word, No. He just wants to get out of there as soon as possible, leaving the presenter laughing awkwardly at his nonchalant attitude.

This is undoubtedly funny, but it’s also disappointing, There are a lot of children who would love a shiny new Xbox One, but who won’t ever be fortunate enough to own one. And yet this kid couldn’t care less about his prize. Perhaps he’s a PlayStation 4 fan instead. Or, even worse, a PC gamer. [H/T Reddit]               Source: www.makeuseof.com