What Makes the Shazam App So Popular?

If someone would have told you three years ago that eventually there would be a music app that could recognize songs just by the lyrics, people would not have believed you.

Shazam is one of today’s most interesting music and entertainment apps. Its ability to identify music it hears helps you to catalogue and share your favourite music and TV.

Shazam helps users identify songs simply by picking them up on a device’s mic. The Pop-Up Shazam feature tracks songs playing externally — at a concert or over a grocery store PA for instance — and internally on your device. This is a feature that users have been craving for years, and the app has finally delivered.

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Apple iPhone SE is expected to arrive in Canada in the second week of May

The iPhone SE is already available for pre-order over at Apple's website. The more budget-friendly iPhone is expected to launch on April 24. But that doesn't mean it will ship then. The tech manufacturer projects that free deliveries are scheduled to arrive between May 7 and 11, while those who spent $13 more for the expedited shipping are expected to arrive between May 5 and 7. 

The delays aren't surprising, given how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected the ability for manufacturers to deliver on time. Plus, with major retailers closed, online orders are the only way to get devices like the iPhone. But people might be willing to wait given how much cheaper this iPhone is compared to the latest ones out there. The starting price of the 64GB model is $599.

Source: MobileSyrup

Microsoft's 'Planetary Computer' wants to help preserve biodiversity

Photo by Belle Co for Pexels

Microsoft has plans to be carbon negative by 2030, and now it hopes to lend a helping hand to other interested third parties who are working to improve the environment. The Planetary Computer project wants to take data and process it through artificial intelligence and machine learning to provide satellite imagery, environmental and biological data and more to partners and customers. The hope is the data can be used for decision-making about environmental issues, both in the public and private sectors. 

Planetary Computer is more than a single machine. It is an extension of Microsoft's AI for Earth, which puts AI tools in the hands of its partners working on the ocean, wildlife, forestry, and agricultural endeavours. The company plans to invest more in areas like land cover mapping, land usage information, and species identification. The aim is that it can use and build its digital resources with more data that third parties can use to preserve wildlife and the environment.  

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Spotify Premium users can now hide songs they don't like in playlists

Spotify is letting its Premium subscribers have more control over what they're listening to on the service. Both Android and iOS users can hide songs they don't want to hear in any playlist on Spotify. A new "hide song" option is available from the context menu of the specific tracks. The next time you listen to the playlist, it won't play the song you hid. You can choose to un-hide songs as well.

Source: MacRumors