The next subscription service you get may help you around New York City a bit easier. As part of its UberPlus program, Uber has slowly begun rolling out new subscription package — Uber Flat –where anyone in New York City can get a ride for a flat fare of under $6.
The new flat-fare packages set UberPool and Uber X rides at $3 and $6, respectively. You can choose from three packages that offer 10, 20, and 40 ride limits. Purchasing a package requires an upfront, one-time subscription payment ranging between $5 to $20. Each account can only buy one package.
The flat-fare price will be applied once you request an UberPool or Uber X ride and will be reflected in your purchase. These rides last for 30 days after the purchase of the package and cover the five boroughs.
Before you start zipping across the Bruckner Expressway into Manhattan every day, the flat fares have limits beyond just ride count. Subscribers will be charged the flat fare fee for rides up to $30 in value. You will be charged anything exceeding that $30 limit in addition to the flat fare. An Uber X from deep in the North Bronx to Williamsburg, Brooklyn during a weekday afternoon would be under $30 with the new flat fare, as opposed to more than $50.
Uber first brought flat-fare pricing to NYC in October when New Yorkers could get unlimited rides in Manhattan for $100. This current pricing plan is more in line with similar tests Uber did in other cities last year. San Francisco, Miami, San Diego, Boston, Seattle, and Washington, D.C., each had flat-fare programs last September. By comparison, the NYC offer is the most affordable as it offers the cheapest upfront price.
You can purchase one of the flat fare packages here.
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?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.