Uber Knows Exactly When You'll Pay Surge Pricing (yahoo.com) 211
An anonymous reader writes: Uber has figured out exactly when you are more likely to pay double or triple the cost of your ride: when your phone battery is low. Uber's head of economic research, Keith Chen, recently told NPR on an episode of The Hidden Brain podcast that people are willing to accept up to 9.9 times surge pricing if their phones are about to go dead. Data about user batteries is collected because the app uses that information to know when to switch into low-power mode. The idea being: If you really need to get where you're going, you'll pay just about anything (or at least 9.9 times anything) to ensure you're getting a ride home and won't be stranded. A person with a more fully charged device has time to wait and see if the surge pricing goes down.The company insists that it won't use this information against you.
Ah, what? (Score:2, Insightful)
The idea being: If you really need to get where you're going, you'll pay just about anything (or at least 9.9 times anything) to ensure you're getting a ride home and won't be stranded. A person with a more fully charged device has time to wait and see if the surge pricing goes down.
No, I'd bring up google, find the number to the local cab company, call them, and get a ride. D'uh!
Secondly, WTF is it with Uber? Just to go to the pool 3x a week would cost me about $450+/- per month - it runs about $20 each way. Add in other places i frequent and it'd be cheaper to buy a Tesla Model S - including insurance and taxes.
Re:Ah, what? (Score:4, Funny)
Secondly, WTF is it with Uber? Just to go to the pool 3x a week would cost me about $450+/- per month - it runs about $20 each way. Add in other places i frequent and it'd be cheaper to buy a Tesla Model S - including insurance and taxes.
Why is that an Uber problem? If you take a taxi to the pool 3x a week, is that going to be much cheaper? Why are you paying for rides to the pool 3x a week anyway?
This just in: if you use Uber to drive you 10 miles to and from work every day, it's going to cut into your budget.
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Secondly, WTF is it with Uber? Just to go to the pool 3x a week would cost me about $450+/- per month - it runs about $20 each way. Add in other places i frequent and it'd be cheaper to buy a Tesla Model S - including insurance and taxes.
Why is that an Uber problem? If you take a taxi to the pool 3x a week, is that going to be much cheaper? Why are you paying for rides to the pool 3x a week anyway?
This just in: if you use Uber to drive you 10 miles to and from work every day, it's going to cut into your budget.
Our Quebec Government is passing a law requiring Uber drivers to have criminal checks, CPR and an "operator driver" license. And then the cars themselves have to be safety inspected every six months. If all goes well, it will be in force by July 2016. Here is the dilemma. The government put a limit on the number of taxi permits allowed. Taxi owners bought the permits, and due to scarcity, their price rose to around $200,000. With Uber as competition, with "unsafe" cars as competition, these drivers wil
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That reminds me of the good old days when Uber claimed to be a "ridesharing" service, something you would use when you want to cut back on the costs of traveling alone.
I think this was real. The first time I remember hearing about Uber was in stories about commuters in places like San Francisco where they have big tolls to cross the bridge. I remember one story - NPR I think - where the driver picked up 3 separate riders on the way to work. They all met him at more central locations, not at their home. They specifically mentioned the toll to get across the bridge being split because they weren't taking 4 cars. I think they were pitching in like 5 bucks each for the
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Worth every penny for that....and also, when going to the French Quarter, don't have to worry about parking, etc.
I don't find it to be that expensive...most rides I take are in the $12-$14 range....
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I might not be the best example of an Uber user, but I've found it to be pretty nice. My use cases:
1. Needed to catch a bus, wouldn't make it if I wait for the train. Parking near the station is over $20/day. Taxi service couldn't tell me when exactly they would get here. Uber app showed me the closest driver and estimated the time and cost of the trip. Sold.
2. (The more common situation) Took the train into town. Missed last train. Take a couple of buses trough sketchy areas over an hour or taxi/Uber it in
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Unless you live somewhere with rain and/or snow....
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A bicycle is fairly cheap, and you can easily cycle past the traffic jams.
You have obviously never been run down by a soccer mom trying to get her devil spawn to school on time.
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Or, a police officer who decides to stop and ticket you â" the rules of the road apply to bicycles as well as motorcycles and cars.
Do you think soccer moms in SUVs give a damn about the rules of the road? I've seen soccer moms drive up on the sidewalk and/or landscaping to avoid being delayed by traffic at a red light Bicyclists are just another speed bump for them.
Very smart of them, if tru (Score:4, Insightful)
Good for Uber, if really true.
In a free market — and this aspect of it remains reasonably free in the US — the price of everything is the amount a buyer is willing to pay.
Keep your batteries charged.
Re:Very smart of them, if tru (Score:5, Insightful)
You are violating one of the most important principles of the free market - free exchange of information. Go read Wikipedia, it will explain how free exchange of information is essential to a free market.
What's going on here is that one side has all the information and the other side is blind, depending on Uber to be honest.
Uber has no business learning about the state of your phone battery. It doesn't need it and it's YOUR private, personal confidential information that poor software design let Uber steal. They don't tell you about the desperate need for cash by their drivers because their rent is due and they would accept ANY fair.
Uber is not being 'good', it knows that if they unethically use your private information they have unethically gathered, then it will piss us off enough to pass laws preventing them from gathering it.
The price of everything is the amount a buyer is willing to pay AND a seller is willing to sell when competition keeps prices fair and information is fairly and ethically exchanged.
When you ignore the rules that undermine capitalism, you aren't being capitalistic, you are being a thief. And people like you is why socialism has grown so popular - when you cheat the way you want to, it upsets people and they demand government intervention.
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It doesn't need it and it's YOUR private, personal confidential information that poor software design let Uber steal.
Battery state is now considered private, personal confidential information also? Hey, my battery is at 78% right now, what are you going to do with that information?
This has nothing to do with poor software design. Any application should be notified when the phone is entering a low power state, or a power saving state, so that the application can disable certain high-power features if the programmers decided to add that feature. Maybe Uber doesn't need a constant GPS feed until you're actually ordering,
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Battery state is now considered private, personal confidential information also? Hey, my battery is at 78% right now, what are you going to do with that information?
This has nothing to do with poor software design. Any application should be notified when the phone is entering a low power state, or a power saving state, so that the application can disable certain high-power features if the programmers decided to add that feature. Maybe Uber doesn't need a constant GPS feed until you're actually ordering, for example, but it's nice to have that position information if your battery is fine.
There is nothing wrong with checking the battery state but they don't need to send the data back to their servers to put the phone in low power mode.
Re:Very smart of them, if tru (Score:5, Interesting)
I would argue NO app needs to know the level of my battery.
this is meta data. should I have to explain that to a smart guy like you?
if I'm powered from battery or ac, that is meta data. it means other things. add it up.
yes, its private and yes, its WRONG to glean that because the os allows it. the os is a piece of shit anyway and that info should not be leaked to apps.
yes, we live in a world where we now need to think and rethink about every bit of info and how it can (and will) be used against us.
this is our info and its being used against us. how is that not a privacy issue, when they used priv'd info to gain an advantage over me?
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"I would argue NO app needs to know the level of my battery."
ok, mr smart guy, please do. explain to us dumb people why that is. make sure to dumb it down real good.
as stated, it's a good idea for apps to know battery levels so they can adjust accordingly how much power they consume via features.
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I would argue NO app needs to know the level of my battery.
this is meta data. should I have to explain that to a smart guy like you?
OK, so "power saving mode" should not be a feature on a "smart phone", according to you. A good programmer who respects your privacy will not have a function to listen to power save events, because they don't need to know that.
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And thus your privacy is well respected because you're incognito because your phone died due to lack of battery.
This protects your privacy in many ways, since all the other apps can no longer track you, and you don't have to worry about pesky phone calls - making or receiving them.
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the os is a piece of shit anyway and that info should not be leaked to apps.
The data isn't "leaked" it is requested via an API call which the user expressly allowed during install where it says the phone state (it mentions battery when you get more information) will be shared with the app.
this is our info and its being used against us. how is that not a privacy issue, when they used priv'd info to gain an advantage over me?
No it's just your info being used. Against you? This is a competitive market. Get a taxi. Or charge your phone. Or maybe plan your life in such a way that you're not so wholly damn reliant on a piece of electronics which can easily have a flat battery within the day. Get a grip on your own life.
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Wait til it drops to 10%, then charge you 10x more for a ride.
Seriously, if Uber is going to use that information to charge me more, and it's my data, then of course I want to keep the information confidential. I also don't carry my W-2 into a car dealership to show to the salesman before we start talking.
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What's going on here is that one side has all the information and the other side is blind, depending on Uber to be honest.
Given Uber's documented history of abusing the information available to them, anyone who expects them to "be honest" is an idiot.
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Uber has no business learning about the state of your phone battery. It doesn't need it and it's YOUR private, personal confidential information that poor software design let Uber steal.
I tend to agree.
I have no problem with the idea that Uber will use this information in their app. I think it's nice that an app might have a low-power mode that gets rid of some of the bells and whistles when your battery is low. But why does this information need to be sent to Uber's servers?
Yet another reason I won't be using Uber.
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If it is in low power mode and taking steps to conserve energy, then certain information might not be sent to Über's servers that might otherwise be sent.
Know how I stopped Uber? (Score:2)
After I signed up for their service, the Uber webpage asked me to install an Android app I've never seen the source code for. (actually, send me to a 'Play store' web page for a 'Play store' program I've never installed or seen the source code for.)
There was no clear way to use their service without this program. (No website, no phone# to call)
I went back to my web browser, se
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Uber has no business learning about the state of your phone battery. It doesn't need it and it's YOUR private, personal confidential information that poor software design let Uber steal. They don't tell you about the desperate need for cash by their drivers because their rent is due and they would accept ANY fair.
They don't? I'm pissed at my current phone because the thing is too dumb to throttle down on it's battery usage when the battery is getting low, so it ends up dead a lot of the time.
I'm actually happy that the Uber app apparently has a working low battery mode, which helps conserve battery life. That you'd prefer it run full throttle until your phone dies is your thing.
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So you're OK with apps driving your phone into a low battery condition, as long as they stop doing so once the battery gets low?
WTF is the Uber app doing that needs battery, anyway? If I'm not actively waiting for a ride (where it might want to be updating me on ETA), it shouldn't be doing anything.
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So you're OK with apps driving your phone into a low battery condition, as long as they stop doing so once the battery gets low?
No, but I'm willing to trade battery for increased functionality in some cases.
For example, I'd normally like to get my mail on an expedient basis. I'd like to be able to tell it to stop when the phone hits 50%, or even is in a low signal area(meaning that doing so would be more expensive.
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It's unethical because not only does it prey on you when you are at your weakest, it actively seeks to discover when that is. A barkeep is glad when depressed customers decide to come in on their own, because they'll buy more drinks. But an ethical barkeep will not pass out directions to his bar at a funeral parlor, charging those customers more. He also won't refuse to serve you if you don't tell him your mood 72 times a day. That's analogous to what Uber does. Can't use them if you don't install their app
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That's the thing — there is nothing unethical about their gathering of the information. Would their use of it be unethical — I'm not sure... Could you elaborate, why you think so?
I'll say it from my view, because if this is true, they are setting the price according to the potential buyer based on information from the buyer that is not normally available, not according to the local market conditions. Surge pricing is supposed to entice more drivers, not bilk the user. You could argue it is similar to selling groceries to blacks at a higher price than whites, which is illegal, although you could also argue it's like airline websites using your profile to price your tickets at a diff
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In a free market — and this aspect of it remains reasonably free in the US — the price of everything is the amount a buyer is willing to pay.
In a democracy, the "free market" can kiss my ass.
Democracy against Free Market? (Score:2)
Could you elaborate on what this means? Do you wish for companies to be controlled by voters rather than shareholders? Or something completely different?
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The US is not a Democracy, but a Republic. The rule of the majority in our country is limited by the Constitution. For example, a majority may some day decide, that hate-speech ought to be illegal [yougov.com]. But, as long as the First Amendment exists, no such law can be passed.
But, yes, we can continue doing it... Still waiting for period3 to elaborate on his "Insightful" proposal, though.
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Which is why buyers and sellers should limit the amount of information they share during a negotiation. Uber's ability to use the app to pull battery data from the phone essentially turns the user's phone into a spy funneling information to the other party in the negotiation.
The general principle here might be "Don't host your negotiating adversary's minions within the walls of your castle unless you can wall them off from everything except that which you wish to share."
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And this is good, why? It seems that you've confused "In a free market, X" with "X is good."
Also, it's factually not true. The price of everything is less than or equal to what a buyer will pay, if the thing is in fact traded. Which is a different statement.
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Yes! That's what free market is all about.
No need to petition the government. No need to raise awareness — just call a competitor and be on your way...
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No need to petition the government. No need to raise awareness — just call a competitor and be on your way...
Found the Libertarian.
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We are easy to find — just go, where truth is.
The X-Files called and want their truth back.
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We are easy to find — just go, where truth is.
The truth is that there has never been a "free market" and that there has never been a successful society based on libertarian principles. Go ahead, name one. I'll wait.
Libertarian are basically anarchists who want police protection from their slaves. It helps conservatives pass off a patently probusiness political agenda as a noble bid for human freedom.
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Indeed. Throw me into that briar patch farmer Brown!
Yes, Uber has been showing that all that regulation is rather useless compared to a free market solution that follows some reasonable rules/regulations.
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Nothing is ever perfectly level — quite level is sufficient.
You now have to demonstrate, how Uber is so advantaged over competition, that your lead shoes metaphor applies.
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"Yes! That's what free market is all about. "
Except that raising pricing based on battery level isn't exactly a free market. If I trade a security having information
not available to the public, I've broken the law and made an illegal. Pricing based on battery level is close to the same.
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"At some point, users will catch on to surge pricing and will opt for a taxi or lyft instead"
Or they'll just buy a power pack for a couple of bucks.
Uber and Lyft - hitchhiking for money! (Score:5, Insightful)
I can't wait until they start doing things like "Oh, you're in a bad part of town - you're going to pay even more!", "Oh, you're leaving an event of some kind - you're going to pay even more!", "Oh, you're a woman/ethnic minority/religious minority - . . ." . . .
Sorry to hear about you're driver taking you for a ride - that's what you paid for, right?
Re:Uber and Lyft - hitchhiking for money! (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:Uber and Lyft - hitchhiking for money! (Score:5, Insightful)
The problem is that the train, bus, taxi and your friend all need to obey the law, otherwise, they are in trouble.
Uber's strategy is to play fast and loose with the law, pretending that they are/aren't a taxi company and that their drivers are/aren't contractors or that the do/do not work for Uber at all and such crap, while they become too large to dislodge from wherever they landed. Notice that since Uber doesn't obey the law (because they keep redefining what they actually are) they don't need to deal with costs that other entities have to deal with. They have an unfair (as in, illegal) advantage.
In a functioning society, things aren't supposed to work like this. I'm glad that many places are pushing back and forcing Uber to play by the rules, or creating rules that allow everyone to play fairly.
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you're basically at the mercy of the guy with the car keys
Yup. Might as well call a friend at that point.
Sorry to hear about you're driver taking you for a ride - that's what you paid for, right?
Those corporate fat-cat taxi drivers, always trying to screw the little guy! Seriously, maybe I'm ok with it as long as the driver is getting the extra money. If the driver gets a small bonus and the rest goes to Uber, well, maybe a little less sympathy.
Re:Uber and Lyft - hitchhiking for money! (Score:4, Insightful)
That already happens, not because Uber consciously decides to charge more for customers in bad parts of town but because drivers refuse to go to those areas until the price goes high enough to make the risk worth the reward.
It's unfortunate how we've created and worsened bad parts of town by abusing zoning laws in order to segregate the rich from the poor. Middle- and upper-class members of the ethnic majority call it maintaining community "character" but that's just a euphemism for keeping the poor and minorities away. Meanwhile, the wealthy suburbs siphon money from the poor but tax-efficient (per acre) urban areas [strongtowns.org] in a legalized form of reverse welfare, and after discouraging productive uses of land in this way, we wonder why we can't afford to keep our bridges from falling down. Seriously, you just can't make this up!
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Middle- and upper-class members of the ethnic majority call it maintaining community "character" but that's just a euphemism for keeping the poor and minorities away.
i don't know about that. The last place I lived, I had a black family on one side of me and a mixed couple on the other. Both were of upstanding moral character, though neither were poor but, then, that's a factor of the cost of housing in that particular development. In fact, all of my neighbors were particularly "well-charactered" (to coin a term) with one exception, a somewhat wealthy (relative to the majority of that neighborhood) white divorcee who has no sense of respect for her neighbors and is const
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Thanks to zoning laws, in suburban neighborhoods, it's generally illegal to tear down a house and replace it with cheap apartments, or to convert a garage into a granny flat [usatoday.com]. People simply don't want those poorer than them living in their neighborhoods.
Another tragedy is that it's often illegal to build housing in industrial zones where land is cheap and close to jobs.
So with so much resistance to economic and racial integration codified in our laws, it can't be surprising when poor areas remain poor and pe
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Thanks to zoning laws, in suburban neighborhoods, it's generally illegal to tear down a house and replace it with cheap apartments
It's generally illegal to tear down a house (purely residential) and replace it with (commercial-residential) apartments, yes. Also, quite often, the reason it's illegal is less to do with zoning laws (commercial-residential is still residential, thus allowed in a residential zone) and more to do with maintaining property borders and right of way for utilities and infrastructure; the apartment building simply won't fit on the plot while allowing for this so, of course, it is not allowed.
or to convert a garage into a granny flat
I never understood t
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So it's illegal because it's impossible? Should the government prohibit anything that's impossible? That could lead to some very amusing laws!
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So it's illegal because it's impossible? Should the government prohibit anything that's impossible? That could lead to some very amusing laws!
Oh, no, it's very possible to build in a utility right of way, it just makes accessing the utility lines and pipes below the building impossible, which is why it's illegal to build in those rights-of-way.
So it's illegal because nobody would want to build a house there?
No, it's illegal because the dangers may not be completely obvious to the poor (both financially poor and deserving of sympathy for having been tricked into buying that house) people who buy it. Plenty of people would love to build houses in those areas, sell them for cheap, then reclaim the property when a
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That's not a zoning issue, that's a right-of-way issue. Anyway, why can't those utility lines and pipes be relocated at the developer's expense?
So instead of solving the problem by requiring disclosure, you prefer to solve the problem by prohibiting the sale. Whenever a market failure arises, is eli
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That's not a zoning issue, that's a right-of-way issue.
Right of way is codified into zoning laws in most places, if not everywhere that has a codified right of way. that makes it a zoning issue.
why can't those utility lines and pipes be relocated at the developer's expense?
Because that would mean turning off power, water, sewer, phone, and cable services to a large number of people pretty much on a daily basis so one developer can build a building and profit from its sale or rental. Also, because (much like underground parking) it would drive up the price of rent to where the people you are concerned about could not afford it. That's ignor
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Another tragedy is that it's often illegal to build housing in industrial zones where land is cheap and close to jobs.
While I'm with you on building cheap apartments or making a granny flat, I'd ask West, TX [wikipedia.org] about the benefits to building housing in/near industrial zones.
Accidents, explosions, spills, and just general pollution makes living in most industrial areas a poor choice.
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"I lived near a rich black person and I didn't hate them, therefore racism doesn't exist."
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It wasn't just me who didn't hate, or even have issues with, the black families in the community, we all got along. Before my wife and I lived there, my wife's filipino friend and her samoan husband lived there; my wife was actually living there with her friend when I met her (before her friend was married, of course) and nobody had any problems with them, either.
Also, I never cla
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Re:Uber and Lyft - hitchhiking for money! (Score:5, Informative)
No, they're cheap because they're burning through piles of cash from their investors and a (limited, but still large) pool of drivers willing to work a few months before they realize they got a bum deal. Both will run dry, at which point the TNC experiment will end.
For a really good discussion on the economics from the driver's side, check out any of the recent reddit threads in Austin discussing Uber and Lyft's decision to cut off 10k drivers and split town. Here's one to get you started: https://www.reddit.com/r/Austi... [reddit.com]
-Chris
Re:Uber and Lyft - hitchhiking for money! (Score:5, Interesting)
"And why do you think they're going through the effort to keep the prices low?"
To wipe out the competition and then raise prices when there's no more competition. Pretty much what every good capitalist wants to do.
The only competition Uber and Lyft they have at the low end of price spectrum is each other. Of course, they need each other in the same way Intel needs AMD - to demonstrate to regulators that they aren't a monopoly. The competition they need to wipe out is taxis and other TNCs (transportation network company) that pay fair wages and follow the laws. Wiping out taxis is pretty easy, since there have been structural issues with the taxi business for decades. Wiping out the other TNCs is going to be a little harder since the new services are demonstrating that you can run a TNC that follows the law and pays its drivers a reasonable wage.
As Austin will likely demonstrate, the race to the bottom in compliance and wages being run by Uber and Lyft is probably not the real race to provide alternatives to taxis. Business that respect their drivers, communities, and passengers will emerge as the winners here.
-Chris
Pfft. Okay... (Score:5, Interesting)
A company is promising they wont take advantage of a way to charge you 10x more for their service?
Is there a way to turn off the battery monitoring on their app by any chance?
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Is there a way to turn off the battery monitoring on their app by any chance?
If that sort of thing bothers you, don't use Android? It's unlikely Uber has access to that information on iOS.
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If that sort of thing bothers you, don't use Android? It's unlikely Uber has access to that information on iOS.
Unless the app's "low-power mode" is an Android exclusive I'm sure they do.
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Is there a way to turn off the battery monitoring on their app by any chance?
If that sort of thing bothers you, don't use Android? It's unlikely Uber has access to that information on iOS.
iOS apps have access to battery level and state: https://developer.apple.com/li... [apple.com]
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Is there a way to turn off the battery monitoring on their app by any chance?
No. Android, iOS and Windows all provide access to battery information to any app, and none gates access with any permission. I'm sure it never occurred to anyone that this was potentially-private information, and it is obviously very useful for apps to be able to adjust their operation based on battery level.
Comment removed (Score:5, Interesting)
Ahem (Score:5, Funny)
"The company insists that it won't use this information against you."
Heh! There goes another keyboard!
50 attourneys general would like a word with you (Score:4, Interesting)
Price gouging is a pejorative term referring to when a seller spikes the prices of goods, services or commodities to a level much higher than is considered reasonable or fair, and is considered exploitative, potentially to an unethical extent. [wikipedia.org]
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Except when the same thing happens in an eBay auction.
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If demand for a product exceeds supply, the market responds by increasing the price to encourage more production of supply. Uber raises the price, and suddenly 25 Uber drivers who were
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Just askin'.
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What does battery condition have to do with "supply and demand"?
as a courtesy raises your fare
I half took you seriously until that gem - Get your corporate master's dick out of your mouth before trying to talk again, 'kay?
That is how are spies recruited (Score:2)
If someone has financial difficulties and likes fancy lifestyle, that person will very likely become a spy.
Knowing about you, even if it is metadata, tells you a lot.
Analysis: (Score:2)
It's jealousy. Uber wants to compete! Microsoft is evil; only the Enterprise version of Windows 10 is sensible to use, and Microsoft won't sell that version to most people.
Google and Facebook are tracking everyone and selling the information, and taking more and more control. It's a competition to see who can be most evil.
Maybe Adobe is selling vulnerabilities to the U.S. government. If not, how can Adobe be so sloppy? Maybe TrueCrypt disa
Ha ha ha ha (Score:2)
"The company insists that it won't use this information against you."
Lol, that's a hoot! Oh gawd, tell me another one!
Nope. (Score:2)
Uber's surge pricing is the same as paying for a REAL towncar service. I'll pay for a towncar and ride in comfort and style.
Uber is banking on people being stupid and not know about alternatives.
Marketing got this figured out already... (Score:2)
data mining by large corporates (Score:2)
"Data about user batteries is collected because the app uses that information to know when to switch into low-power mode."
This is what really scars me. Every app collects lots of data on one or the other pretext and then they use this data for entirely different and highly invasive purpose. Google reads your chat and email. Next what, it will start showing diaper ads when it determines you are pregnant? Uber can start charging 10 times when your battery is low. Maybe google and uber can collaborate and dete
Promises, promises (Score:2)
The company insists that it won't use this information against you.
Ahahahahahahahahahaha! Ha!
Company says... (Score:2)
The company insists that it won't use this information against you.
Yep, sure. It won't be used *against* you. Not at all. It will be used for your convenience, to make it easier for you to find a ride at competitive price. Don't worry, we'll find a positive spin to put on it in the future. We don't want a publicity shitstorm, no siree! These are not the droids you are looking for.
in other news (Score:4, Funny)
Hooray for capitalism! (Score:2)
They know this how? (Score:2)
Then exactly how do they know that you will pay up 9.9 times more if they haven't used it? Or is it that they don't use it against you anymore? Or are they just lying?
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Data-mining a correlation is different from implementing the causation. That said, of course they're going to use it in the future. This announcement is the first step of normalizing the idea of charge-based-pricing. Step 10 or so is implementing it.
Federal Trade Commission.... (Score:2)
...Federal Trade Commission should not be accepting money from us because they don't provide meaningful benefit for the American people.
Will the app be in low power mode while charging? (Score:2)
Because if not, there is a trivial workaround...
Buy one of those portable USB charge extenders, plug your phone into that, and the phone will believe it is charging. Unplug it once you have established a set fare.
Laughing... (Score:2)
May I now laugh loudly, yet again, at all the people who claim they "have nothing to hide"?
I will say it over and over and over again- knowledge and data are POWER. You can't predict how or when it will be used against you, and thus the need for privacy is very IMPORTANT. People really need to wake up about this stuff. It is unacceptable how much data Google, Apple, Microsoft, web sites, phone vendors, employers, government agencies, etc, have about you.
And I will also remind everyone that just because a
Carry a spare battery (Score:2)
That only concerns Android users (Score:2)
Apple doesn't allow apps to see your battery status.
only one more reason (Score:2)
"Hi. I'm a Johnny Cab!" (Score:2)
Re: (Score:2)
Could I possibly get the ability to block the app from reading my battery state (which I'm perfectly capable of monitoring and maintaining myself)? Obviously, Uber went through some trouble putting this in so waiting for them to remove it is problematic at best.
Re: (Score:2)
I'm trying to think how much $ a ride must cost before I'm willing to deal with a normal taxi driver... That's a lot of $.
The main question is how far from home must I be that I rather take a taxi than just walk home...
Yeah, I really fucking hate taxis.