Uber customers have been asking for a simple, safe way to pay for family and friends’ rides for some time, and today, the brand responded with a new service called Family Profiles. Launching initially in Atlanta, Phoenix, and Dallas, Family Profiles lets up to 10 people share a single payment method, which will surely give parents peace of mind when they’re too busy to pick up their little angels in person.
Blood relation isn’t a requirement with Family Profiles though, because as Uber says, “We let you decide who is family. It’s a great way to help loved ones, friends, or coworkers get where they want to go while you foot the bill. Whether you’re a parent with kids away at college or a daughter wanting to help your parents maintain their independence, it’s never been easier to share some Uber love around to the people that matter most in your life.”
To set up Family Profiles, Uber customers simply go to the Settings menu on the app and scroll down to “Add a Family Profile.” Then, they can select which contacts they’d like to add, and wait for the Family Profile rider to accept their invitation via email. From there, users can request rides using the Family Profile option as their payment method.
Uber also introduced the highly-anticipated UberEats app this week, which allows customers to satisfy their culinary cravings from a number of eateries in Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Toronto. UberEats includes hundreds of local restaurants that can ferry sustenance to your home in 30 to 40 minutes, but if your need for munchies reaches an emergency level, there’s an Instant Delivery option that reduces transit time to about 10 minutes.
We only have one question — is there a Family Profile payment denial option?
Volkswagen’s newest EVs in China are making its American and European models look unusually conservative.
With Xpeng’s help, VW has introduced 800-volt charging and advanced urban driving assistance. The new VEGA technology package brings its locally developed vehicle platforms and CEA electronic architecture under one umbrella. Bloomberg reports that Volkswagen intends to update VEGA every three months. Western buyers can find pieces of that package, but not the whole thing in a Volkswagen.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?