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A&E network brings free full-length episodes and movies to the iPhone
Good news for Rick and Corey fans. A&E's brought its streaming app across from the iPad to the iPhone. Better still, it has all the full length content from favorites like Storage Wars and Pawn Stars. Both the History and Lifetime have followed suit, and there's even some extra A&E content found within the app, the kind that's typically found on the show's dedicated site -- expect plenty of behind-the-scenes antics. If you're also in possession of an Xfinity Comcast account, the app will open up access to previous seasons of the network's top shows. There's still no AirPlay support, although 9to5Mac reports that it's certainly in the works. Hopefully, that means dozing off in front of A&E content on your Apple TV shouldn't be far away. In Duck Dynasty's Si Robertson's immortal words: work hard, nap hard.
Amazon, A&E deal brings Pawn Stars, Storage Wars and Dance Moms to Prime Instant Video
Those in need of another reason to stare at their computer screen for long stretches of time will be pleased to learn that Amazon has struck a deal with A&E Networks that'll be bringing shows from its titular network, along with History, Bio and Lifetime to the online retailer's Prime Instant Video service. Amongst the arty entertainment offerings are Pawn Stars, Storage Wars and Dance Moms, which users will be able to consume en masse on a number of devices including the iPad, iPhone, Roku, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3 and Wii U.
Inside Secure announces NFC chips to help distinguish knockoffs from the real thing
If you can't tell if a Rolex or a knockoff Prada bag is fake, your NFC-enabled smartphone will be able to. Toking on a long-standing problem with counterfeiting, French company Inside Secure has released the Vault150 security module, a NFC-based chip that can be embedded into any product a retailer might wish to have authenticated by prospective buyers. This could become as easy as literally embedding the chip, as NFC chips require no power source, can collect RF energy from an NFC reader such as a smartphone and complete an authentication request for a potential buyer. For more intricate products where the chip might have to be buried deeper, Inside Secure has also offered several antenna options that allow the chip to be placed well within an item and still communicate with an NFC reader. In cases where a module needs to be embedded in items like a bottle of wine or pair of shoes, the chip can use a slew of voltage, frequency or temperature change sensors to sense if someone has tried to alter the chip's information and return a warning from there. Along with authentication purposes, the devices could also ping a shopper's handset (in addition to doing cool things like opening doors) when they came within a certain range of a product, informing them as to the savings they might be about to pass by. Final pricing and availability has yet to be announced and there's no guarantee that this will spot every fake, but it'll probably be better at the task than the current champ (yes, Chumlee).
