The CEO of Seatte-based travel startup Farecast Hugh Crean has briefly confirmed on the company’s blog that the company has been acquired by Microsoft. Farecast works to predict whether (and when) airfares on particular routes might rise or fall, helping travelers get a handle on when they might best purchase tickets.
A deal had been rumored for over a week, but the name of the buyer was not disclosed. Neither Microsoft nor Farecast have revealed the financial details of the transaction, but the Seattle P-I reports Microsoft is paying in the area of $115 million.
Farecast was apparently being pursued by multiple bidders, but Microsoft was apparently able to offer the best package and promised for how to move Farecast’s services forward. The two companies have previously partnered for services in Microsoft’s MSN Travel site.
The Farecast acquisition follows the merger of Kayak.com and SideStep, the latter of which is generally regarded as a leading company in so-called “next generation” travel meta-search services.
Few things ruin a quiet evening faster than a robot vacuum roaring through the living room. Most of us end up pausing the cleaning run, which defeats the whole purpose of owning one. Matic thinks it has the answer with its new Serene robot vacuum, and the big selling point is how little noise it makes.
The Matic Serene runs at 52 decibels even when cleaning at full power. To put that in perspective, Matic compares it to the hum of your refrigerator. It is available now for $1,695, which is $200 more than the original Matic’s current price.
Outdoor security cameras are not always practical if you live in an apartment or rental. Drilling into an exterior wall may be off-limits, while pointing a regular indoor camera through a window can create another problem once reflections start showing up after dark.
Baseus is trying to solve both issues with the new PrimeSentinel W1, a $69.99 security camera designed specifically to monitor the outdoors through glass. It mounts directly to a window without drilling and uses a 4K Starlight sensor with an F1.0 aperture for full-color monitoring during the day and at night.
This post is brought to you in paid partnership with Best Buy.
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