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Technology & Innovations | More at TheBeaconNewspapers.com
J U N E 2 0 1 5 — WA S H I N G T O N B E A C O N
Auto safety technology is cool, but costly fuel-saving features, like solar roofs or active grille shutters, which open and close to improve aerodynamics. They also show little interest in wellness gadgets, like seats that measure your blood pressure, or sensors that let drivers use hand gestures to control the car’s functions. Navigation systems also weren’t popular.
Financial apps
Despite a surge in high-profile cyberattacks on banks and retailers in the past year, Mint said its app continues to see year-over-year growth in downloads.
Older drivers less keen As the age of the driver goes up, the
From page 3 ty,” said Holly Perez, a Mint spokeswoman.
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NIH Update 2015
Vision Matters Community Day Learn all you need to know about cataracts and how they impact one’s vision, plus hear from a leading retinologist. This event will includ de exhibits on vision support resources and techno ology. The Brady Lecture will feature
Keynote Speakers: Rachel Bishop, M.D., Ph.D. National E Eye yye IIn nstitute, NIH, Cataract Consulting Service Steven Pappas, Jr., M.D. Ophthalmoloogist and Retina Spe Specialist, Betthesda
WHEN: Tuesday, June 23
WHERE: Shady Grove Adventist Ho ospital Birch & Sycamore Rooms – FREE E PARKING 9901 Medical Center Drive, Rock kville, Md.
To register for for this free program and d reserve a light lunch, call Debbie at 301-348--3760. This event is sponsored in partnership with
POB Prevention of Blindness Society ® off Metropolitan M li W hi Washington
sive trim levels. To get blind spot detection and emergency automatic braking on the $94,000 Mercedes-Benz S Class, for example, buyers must first upgrade to a $4,500 premium package and then spend $2,800 for a separate safety package. A night vision system, which uses sensors and heat-seeking cameras to warn drivers of obstacles in the road, is an extra $2,260.
The app also continues to add features, most recently rolling out an option to receive free credit scores that requires users to divulge their full name and Social Security number. Mint is free, but you’ll have to get used to seeing ads mixed in with the information you actually want. Similar apps: Pocket Expense Personal Finance, Money Manager Expense & Budget Just interested in tracking your spending without linking your checking and credit card accounts? Try Spendee and One Touch Expenser. Both make it easy to quickly enter an expense on the go, among other features.
YNAB, but the app doesn’t automatically pull in spending data. Users have to enter each transaction manually. “That one is a little harder to maintain if you’re not in a heavy change-my-life budget mode,” said Katie Brewer, a certified financial planner. “It forces you to focus on it.” Similar budgeting apps: Goodbudget, Mvelopes
See AUTO SAFETY, page 5
Paying down debt You may be juggling multiple credit-card balances. Some apps can help you develop a strategy to minimize interest charges. Among them is Easy Debt Free, which lets users set up payment plans based on the avalanche method, that is, making debts with the highest interest rate the first priority, or the snowball approach, which involves paying off what you owe on the smallest accounts first. Similar apps: Debt Payoff Assistant, Debt Payoff Planner When sizing up financial apps, look for those that provide users plenty of options to customize spending categories. Seeing a detailed breakdown showing, say, just how much of one’s paycheck is going toward dining out can help add extra motivation to rein in spending, Brewer said. “I want people to be able to see what they have been spending money on, not as a guilt exercise,” said Brewer. “There’s always this big question mark: ‘I don’t really know where the money goes.’ That’s one thing a budgeting app can help with. You can look at the hard numbers.” — AP
Craft and stick with a budget Although Mint and similar apps have tools to track where your money goes, You Need A Budget (YNAB) puts more emphasis on crafting a budget and keeping tabs on how closely you’re sticking with it. YNAB uses a budgeting feature that mirrors the “envelope” system of money management. It involves assigning budget items like groceries or clothing an envelope with a set amount of money every month. If you overspend on groceries, for example, you can shift some of the funds in one of your other budget categories to cover the excess spending, keeping you within your overall budget limits. YNAB creates virtual envelopes you can track on your smartphone or PC. The app isn’t free and only works in conjunction with a $60 software you install on your personal computer. Users can link up their bank account to
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9:30 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Exhibitors 11 a.m. – 12:15 p.m. Speaker pr pe esentations 12:30 p.m. – 1:30 p.m. Lunch & Resource Round-up
budget for new technology goes down. Generation Y buyers, who are 38 and younger, say they would spend the most — an average of $3,703 — for new technology. Generation X buyers would spend $3,007, while Baby Boomers are willing to fork over $2,416. Pre-Boomers, or those born before 1946, would spend $2,067. That might not be enough to get them all the features they want. High-tech safety features are often packaged together, and may only be available on more expen-
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By Dee-Ann Durbin Drivers want more collision-prevention technology in their cars, but there is a limit to how much they will pay. Blind spot detection, night vision and collision avoidance systems — which automatically apply the brakes if the driver doesn’t react in time — are the top three technologies drivers want on their next cars, according to a study released recently by the consulting firm J.D. Power. Drivers are much less excited about
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