Smart celebrates Simplicity Day on July 12

Mobile services provider Smart Communications, Inc. is celebrating Simplicity Day on July 12 as it embraces its commitment to provide Filipinos with simple solutions and amazing experiences to enrich their life – a powerful message that it conveys in its “Simple, Smart Ako” campaign.

Simplicity Day is an annual celebration in honor of poet, philosopher and leading transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau, who championed simple living and created a legacy grounded on the importance of stepping back to recalibrate our lifestyle. This way, we get rid of unnecessary burdens that weigh us down, something timely and relevant these trying days.

Globe encourages parents and kids to be responsible digital citizens

With community quarantine guidelines in place, families are expected to use the internet more as they stay safe at home. This puts them at greater risk for bullying, threats, and crimes. To help minimize the risk and promote responsible digital citizenship, Globe held the first Kids & Tech: Parenting in the Digital Age, an exclusive webinar that teaches families to become savvy consumers of social media and technology. 

Unlock possibilities with Smart Bro Prepaid LTE Pocket WiFi for only P999

The new normal has shifted many of our activities online, and this has made mobile Internet ever more crucial for those working from home or on the go, taking online classes, or starting an online business.

As we adapt to the demands of the time, mobile services provider Smart Communications, Inc. (Smart) is making it simpler for Filipinos to connect online and unlock possibilities by slashing the price of the Smart Bro Prepaid LTE Pocket WiFi from P1,295 to only Php999.

Available at Smart Stores nationwide, Smart Online Store, and partner e-commerce sites like GrabMart and Lazada, the device also comes with FREE Surfmax data card worth P250, which customers can use right away to surf and connect online.

Save & shoot with Sony’s new normal shoot essentials promo

Don’t let the new normal stop you from getting things done. Sony announced today their New Normal Shoot Essentials promo offering a wide range of special discounts for their top-of-the-line cameras and lenses.

Ready, Set, Stream

Creating content through streaming is quickly becoming the new normal. Be livestream ready with - Sony’s A7III and get a whopping Php 10,000 discount when get you the whole kit with free 64GB SD and a Php 8,000 off when you purchase the body only. It can also be paid for 12mos with 0% interest and installment! You can now cope and stream with quality video output only from Sony. 

Gearing up for 5G: What’s real and What’s not

One of the next big things in technology is finally starting to be implemented around the world, but as the mobile tech scene gears up for 5G, it’s unavoidable for some conspiracy theories to surface -- from the simplest to the more peculiar ones. What’s the real deal about 5G? Globe will debunk  five myths that surround the latest wireless technology.

Myth 1: 5G is related to the spread of coronavirus disease 2019.

The global health pandemic, that is the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), and 5G are in no way related to each other. The theories that supported this were COVID-19 and 5G became a hot topic for the world almost at the same time and that both are related to China.  However, these aren’t enough to prove such claims that 5G can be a method to spread the disease.

Vivo revives Friday night, party night with Kat DJ on July 10

Miss partying? Dig up your favorite party clothes, shake up your favorite drinks, and ‘Revive your night’ at home with vivo’s live, online party this Friday, July 10, at 7pm.

The online rave, which will be streamed through vivo’s official Facebook page, will feature live beats from Kat DJ, one of Manila’s hottest DJs, and an exclusive look at the all new vivo V19 Neo—a party must-have if you want to capture unforgettable nights clearly.

Lucky virtual ravers will also get a chance to win 5 premium party kits from vivo, to be given away by Kat DJ during her live set.

With its high quality Quad Camera setup consisting of 48MP main, 8MP wide, 2MP Bokeh, and 2MP Macro lenses, and a 32MP selfie camera, all bundled with a super night mode that allows users to capture stunning images in low-light, the vivo V19 Neo is the perfect phone for millennials who explore their late night passions.

GMA Network unveils ‘GMA Affordabox’ on its 70th anniversary

Enabling millions of Filipinos to access high-quality, affordable digital TV experience:

For its 70th anniversary celebration, the country’s leading and largest broadcast firm GMA Network, Inc. wholeheartedly offers its own high-quality and affordable Digital Terrestrial Television (DTT) receiver ‘GMA Affordabox’.

As the Network aspires to enable every Filipino home to enjoy digital TV viewing experience, GMA Network Chairman and CEO Felipe L. Gozon proudly shared that GMA Affordabox was specifically developed to be made accessible to millions of Filipino households. 

“In celebration of this milestone of reaching seven colorful decades in the industry, we are more than grateful for the Filipinos’ continued trust in GMA Network as we reaffirm our commitment to deliver excellence in news and entertainment. Kaya naman, kasabay ng ika-70 anibersaryo ng inyong Kapuso Network, buong puso naming inihahandog sa inyo ang high-quality at abot-kayang digital TV receiver na Para Sa Pilipino—ang GMA Affordabox.”

Safety and Convenience drive 2x growth in Tax payments via GCash in H1

The volume and value of transactions of tax payments done through the GCash app doubled during the first six months of the year, buoyed by the growing demand for digital transactions amid the new normal.

GCash saw the value of transactions for payments to the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) surging by 117 percent to P574.89 million in the first half of 2020 from P265.19 million the year prior.

This growth is driven by the 90-percent increase in the volume of BIR transactions during the first semester of the year, ending at 225,222 transactions from 118,731 in the same period last year.

Grab, Navotas provides thousands of livelihood opportunities to help Navotenos recover from the pandemic

• Grab, through its GrabBayanihan program, has committed to help Navotenos recover from the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by aiming to provide livelihood opportunities to 500 tricycle drivers and displaced workers to be part of Grab’s delivery fleet. 
• The partnership will likewise provide market access to at least 500 small businesses in Navotas who are greatly affected by the pandemic. 
• Grab and the City of Navotas have shared several milestone initiatives in the past particularly in providing livelihood opportunities to the residents through the PCUP, and this initiative is additive to Grab’s agenda of working closely with the government amidst the effects of the pandemic.

Grab Philippines together with the City government of Navotas, has announced its partnership which aims to leverage on Grab’s platform and provide livelihood opportunities to Navotenos in helping them recover from the impacts of the pandemic.

(Clockwise) Grab Philippines President Brian Cu, Navotas City Mayor Toby Tiangco, House Rep. John Rey Tiangco, and City Councilor Jack Santiago

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, Grab has launched its GrabBayanihan program with the aim of helping Filipinos respond and recover from the pandemic. While GrabBayanihan has delivered protection and support to Filipinos during the early stages of the pandemic, Grab is again calling on the spirit of bayanihan – this time through local government partners across Metro Manila.  

Unlocked Is the World’s First Series about Gay Relationships under Quarantine

As many other places around the world, Manila has been under quarantine since March due to the global COVID-19 pandemic, and with it most film productions came to a complete halt. This did not stop director Adolfo Alix Jr. (Donsol, Adela, Manila, Death March) to conceptualize and help produce Unlocked, the world’s first series about gay relationships under lockdown

Unlocked is a 6-episode anthology series originally scheduled to be released on June, in order to commemorate Pride Month, but due to an extremely difficult production process postponed to July 9th.  Each episode focuses in a different kind of loving relationship put to test under lockdown, “I wanted to develop stories where the circumstances of the pandemic are a catalyst for a deeper examination of relationships. It acts as a purgation of sorts - be it the physical distance or the paranoia of the situation,” explained Adolfo. The six stories are as follow: a heartbroken man hires a prostitute to help him cope with loneliness, a long-term gay couple need to reevaluate their relationship after being forced to be together 24/7, a single mother is trying to connect with her lover who is a nurse in the US, an elder professor reflects on his life after his young neighbor knocks on the door, a teenage boy comes of age and realizes about his real self during lockdown, a man alone in his apartment experiences a breakdown.