How to Avoid Getting Ripped Off Using Online Tools

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Often, the best way to avoid a rip-off is to know what others are paying for things. What did the guy sitting next to me on the plane pay for his ticket? How much did the neighbor pay for his kid's wedding? That emergency dental procedure? The water pump replacement on her late-model foreign car? Retailers use big data to maximize revenue -- that is, to take as much of your money as they can. Why shouldn't you have the same power? Increasingly, websites and apps are giving consumers access to incredibly detailed aggregate price information, holding out the promise that the scales of bargaining power might tip back their way. There are now hundreds of online tools -- most of them unbiased and data driven -- that tell consumers the prices others have paid for everything from flowers to bathroom renovations. Enter a ZIP code, select a few criteria and faster than a shopkeeper can say, "High profit margin," you can say, "Not so fast!" The price calculators -- many are called "cost estimators" -- are fun to play with, but they pack a real punch. None of these tools will prevent a bait-and-switch estimate, or keep you from getting nickel-and-dimed. But they do something just as important: They give you a reference point (what economists call an anchor) so you always know you are in the right ballpark, if not sitting in the right seat, when paying for something. I'll divide the tools into three categories: Regret tools, bargaining tools and anxiety tools. Let me explain. Regret Tools Data are always backward looking, and as we all know, the past is no guarantee of future performance. So it is with prices others paid. This is most obvious in airline tickets, where knowing your friend got a good deal on a flight to Ireland last week is almost useless as a predictor of your price, other than the near certainty that you will pay more. Still, longer trends offer some insights, and that's what I love about FlightAware's beta product, "Insight for Airlines." FlightAware is known for giving passengers and their loved ones up-to-the-moment geographic and speed data on planes in the air. But click around, and you'll find the Insight product, which tells users the median price paid for tickets on that route, by airline, during a 12-month period. It also includes the maximum and minimum prices for that route. If you're on the plane, you'll either feel smart or stupid, based on what you paid. Flightaware's director of software development, Jeffrey Lawson, notes that the data tool comes with a long list of qualifiers. For starters, the data, which are acquired from the airline industry, is about two years old. Second, it's not fair to compare cost of a ticket purchased the day before a flight with a ticket purchased 11 months prior to the trip. It's not even fair to compare a February ticket to a May ticket. But, if you fly a route frequently -- say, Seattle to New York -- you get a good idea if you are overpaying regularly. Insight also makes it easy to compare airlines, which is particularly useful. For example, on a Seattle to Newark run, United carries the most passengers, but Alaska charges about 10 percent less. Scheduling concerns aside, it sure looks like some of those United passengers should consider Alaska. Lawson, by the way, says FlightAware is considering an update to the product, which would be a boon to travelers. But since you can't use the FlightAware's data to bargain for lower fares, it's mostly a "regret tool," as in, "Wow, I'm kind of a sucker for paying that much." I'd put wedding cost calculators into the same category. One of the best I found is at CostOfWedding.com. It allows lovebirds to enter all kinds of specifics, such as what kind of table gifts they expect to buy, and how fancy the reception food will be. Still, weddings involve so many details and decisions that wedding calculators are really only useful for after-the-fact comparisons. For example, CostOfWedding.com says a 75-person affair in suburban Washington should cost $21,700. That won't save you money if you are planning an event there, but it probably will make you feel good or bad if you've done so recently. Another regret tool is the "Location Affordability Portal," released in the past week by the U.S. Department of Transportation. It's supposed to help homebuyers more accurately predict the real costs of moving by adding in transportation costs -- in other words, that "drive until you qualify" home in the exurbs might not be as much of a bargain as it seems, once you add in the price of gas. The tool is very hard to use, however, and requires a lot of specialized inputs from users. At the moment, it's more useful to inspire "what might have been" daydreaming. Bargaining Tools Calculators that predict near-term costs are far more practical. Most of us have no idea what installation of a home electric circuit panel should cost, so plugging your ZIP code and your preferences into a tool before getting bids is incredibly useful. Use it to throw out a bidder who's asking for the moon. I like both HomeAdvisor and Homewyse.com. (In Columbia, Mo., upgrading a panel costs $866-$1,224, Homewyse says.) RedBeacon.com offers an even wider range of cost calculators for home services like landscaping or housecleaning. The most useful estimator I found unmasks the mystery of the costs of auto repairs, offered by RepairPal.com. Not only does RepairPal offer ZIP-code level pricing -- a water pump replacement should cost between $263 and $368 in north-suburban Seattle -- it also offers additional necessary information, like this: Water pump repairs often require belt replacement, particularly if fluid leaked on the belts. Getting a repair cost estimate takes only a moment, and it can save you hundreds at a repair shop. "We have had consumers tell us that, after they showed a RepairPal estimate, a shop lowered their price," said Bret Bodas, director of RepairPal's automotive professional group. Not surprisingly, auto mechanics weren't thrilled about the tool when it was first made public several years ago. But Bodas says fair pricing information helps honest mechanics, and the industry has slowly warmed to the idea of transparency. Napa Auto Parts actually licenses data from RepairPal for its own tool now. With both home and auto repairs, the data behind the calculator come mostly from cost estimation tools already used by contractors and repair shops. For example, automakers publish a list of labor times required for various repair jobs. Shops use those for estimates; RepairPal uses the same data, then adjusts for labor rates by ZIP codes, Bodas said. Naturally, consumers with broken-down cars aren't always in a great bargaining position. Still, RepairPal can make sure you aren't being taken for a ride, and it can even suggest you might be better off paying to have a vehicle towed to another shop for a second opinion, if the first shop's quote price is wildly off the mark. Sick consumers have even less bargaining power; for that reason, health care cost calculators like the helpful one you'll find at FairHealthConsumer.org almost qualify as regret tools. Still, it's worth knowing what medical procedures should cost before having those conversations with your insurance company and your doctor's office. And there are times when knowing you overpaid the dentist for your last crown gives you the power to pick a new dentist, so we'll call this a bargaining tool. And it's sometimes possible to negotiate price after the fact with providers; price comparison tools are useful in those discussions. By the same logic, the various taxi price calculators are also helpful in real time. No, you can't get a cab driver to negotiate a metered trip. But before visiting any new city, it's worth visiting a site like TaxiFareFinder.com and plugging in various trips you expect to take. You'll get a map of your route and an expected cost, so you'll know if your driver makes an unexpected wrong turn, and you can demand an adjustment. Anxiety Tools Predicting long-term future costs is fraught with peril; still, it's a good idea to know what you will be up against in 2020 so you can plan for the future. Before clicking on any of these sites, however, you might want to pour a nice cup of hot tea. They are likely to make your blood pressure rise. There's plenty of tools for calculating the cost of children, in the near and far future. Let's start small, like they do. Uncle Sam offers his own tool at USDA.gov, where the first-year cost of a kid in the Northeast is pegged at about $14,000. Look further into the future, and you may think twice about having a baby. Or at least about training that baby to be a scholarship athlete. BabyCenter.com thinks a child born in the Northeast today will cost $400,000 if she or he attends a private college. If you dial up cost of college calculators, you will conclude that the BabyCenter number is low. At CollegeSavings.org, you'll get an even starker splash of reality. Assume 5 percent tuition inflation -- and why not, that's how much colleges raise tuition each year at the moment -- at a four-year private school will cost $316,000 by the time today's babies graduate. (That's just tuition -- with room and board, the cost is $430,000!) Speaking of anxiety, you'll find hundreds of tools on investment sites offering to guesstimate how much money you will have, or will need, at retirement. Among the assumptions you'll see: average 12 percent market returns, spending levels remain at 80 percent after retirement, etc. You're already anxious enough.

Geithner takes private equity job

Tim Geithner, who stepped down as Treasury Secretary in January, will start in March as president and managing director of private equity firm Warburg Pincus.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) Former Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner, who has spent virtually his entire career working for the government, is taking a job in finance.

Warburg Pincus, a firm engaged in buying and selling companies, said Saturday that Geithner will start at the firm as president and managing director in March.

Geithner told the Wall Street Journal, which first reported the move, that he will play a "substantive role in helping ... manage the firm."

In a statement, Warburg Pincus said Geithner will "work closely" with its co-chief executives on strategy, management and investing.

A mainstay of President Obama's first-term cabinet, Geithner was an architect of the government's response to the financial crisis.

Geithner was widely associated with the TARP bank rescue, which was ushered through Congress by former Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson and then managed by Geithner after the Bush-Obama transition.

The controversial TARP was seen by some as a bailout of fat cat bankers. And some credited it with stabilizing the economy and helping avoid a deeper recession.

The day word leaked that Obama would name Geithner to lead Treasury, in the tumultuous period after the 2008 election, the Dow gained nearly 500 points.

When the crisis began, Geithner was president of the New York Federal Reserve, which helps oversee Wall Street. All told, he ran the New York Fed from 2003 until 2009.

Geithner, 52, left Washington in January 2013 and was succeeded by Jack Lew as Treasury chief. He first went to work at Treasury in 1988 and was later a top deputy to Treasury secretaries Robert Rubin and Larry Summers.

Reports surfaced after he left office that Geithner is writing a book about the financial crisis.

Warburg Pincus, established nearly 50 years ago, is a top player in private equity and manages $35 billion in assets.

In a deal this summer, Warburg sold eyecare specialist Bausch & Lomb to Valeant Pharmaceuticals for $8.7 billion. Years earlier, Warburg had led a private takeover of Bausch & Lomb.

Warburg did not disclose Geithner's compensation.

Fidelity Introduces New Mobile Check Deposit for Advisors

Fidelity Institutional has launched a mobile check deposit technology that RIAs, broker-dealers and family office professionals can use on the go, the financial services firm announced Tuesday.

Using Fidelity’s mobile check deposit technology, advisors can take a picture of a check using the camera on a smartphone or tablet and securely deposit the funds directly into their clients’ brokerage accounts.

The application’s launch comes as advisors increasingly use mobile devices outside of the office. Almost 77% of advisors use at least one mobile device for business purposes, according to research and consulting firm Kasina’s “e-Business Compass.” In addition, there have been more than 22,000 downloads of Fidelity Institutional’s mobile applications, representing 42% of users on Fidelity’s clearing and custody platforms.

The new app underscores Fidelity’s commitment to supporting the “anywhere advisor” with the right tools, according to Edward O’Brien, senior vice president and head of platform technology for Fidelity Institutional.

“Mobile check deposit, a wildly popular consumer app, was a given to adapt for our ‘anywhere advisors’ and family office professionals, allowing them to spend less time processing checks and more time engaging with their clients,” O’Brien said in a statement.

With the new app, Fidelity expects to see improved efficiencies and reduced expenses associated with the current process required to ship checks overnight. Mobile check deposit extends to financial advisors who custody with Fidelity Institutional Wealth Services; broker-dealers clearing with National Financial, a Fidelity Investments company; and family office clients of Fidelity Family Office Services. Home office review and approval is required for mobile deposits from National Financial clients.

Fidelity Investments’ early investment in mobile technologies helped Fidelity Institutional adapt the firm’s mobile check deposit for individual investors to the broker-dealer, advisor and family office audiences.  Fidelity individual investors have widely embraced mobile check deposit since it was first introduced in 2011, depositing nearly $2.5 million a day using the mobile app, according to company data.

Fidelity Institutional’s sign-up for the phased roll-out of mobile and remote check deposit includes a qualification and enrollment process.

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Read 10 Ways to Connect With Clients Using Your iPad from Pershing at ThinkAdvisor.

Handcuffs And Smoking Guns: The Criminal Elements Of Wall Street

Criminals are found throughout the corporate world and plenty of "white collar," or corporate, criminals are filling pretty posh minimum-security jail cells. With that in mind, let's look at the "criminal" lingo used in the dark alleys around Wall Street.

Perp Walk

The perp walk has become an increasingly common and popular media phenomenon. While wearing handcuffs, a suspect is arrested in full view of the news media and paraded about by the police. The media are often "tipped off" before the arrest, so they can set up their cameras and get the suspect with his or her jacket over the face, or sometimes proudly displaying handcuffs. Although the perp walk was once reserved for notoriously violent and inhumane crimes, it has been extended to CEOs and businessmen accused of crimes.

Golden Handcuffs

As many of us know from our cops and robbers days, handcuffs are used for restraining someone. In the corporate world, companies will offer valuable employees very favorable incentives to retain their loyalty. These incentives usually come as stock options in the company and can only be collected if the employee remains with the company for a specified time period (vesting). So, the incentives act like handcuffs for the employee, albeit golden handcuffs.

Godfather Offer

"I'm gonna make him an offer he can't refuse." -Don Corleone (Marlon Brando), the Godfather.

In the cinematic masterpiece "The Godfather," Michael Corleone (Al Pacino) explains his father's simple way of making offers: "Sign or lose you life." It's not exactly ethical business, but it is extremely effective. In the corporate realm, a godfather offer is an offer made by a bidding company that is so generous it cannot be refused. If the target company does refuse, shareholders may initiate a lawsuit against management for cutting them out of good profits (which is every bit as effective as the Godfather's threats).

Smoking Gun

The expression "smoking gun" comes from the early 1900s, when the legal system began to solidify into a standard model. The burden of proof was placed on prosecutors and police rather than the defendant (suspect), meaning that some of the previous strong-arm tactics by police had to go. Naturally, the police and prosecutors were quite displeased, lamenting that they'd "have to catch criminals with the smoking gun [as in just fired] still in their hands." Fortunately, the legal system withstood the strain of having to prove people were guilty of a crime. Since then, a smoking gun has grown to represent any irrefutable evidence of wrongdoing. In the corporate world, smoking guns can include everything from office memos with compromising statements to complex accounting paper trails. Corporate criminals aren't usually stupid enough to leave smoking guns lying around, but it does happen.

Forensic Accounting

With the growing interest in forensic investigation, it was only a matter of time until "investigative" accounting was renamed "forensic" accounting. Much like its gritty crime-scene cousin, forensic accounting tries to piece together a crime's circumstances by reviewing physical evidence. In the case of accounting, the physical evidence is found in the numbers. Forensic accountants search for the elusive smoking gun in the company's financial statements. Even manipulators of numbers leave a palpable "fingerprint" behind when they change things.

Loan Sharking

Pure and simple, loan sharking is the illegal practice whereby a lender charges a super high interest rate on a loan. The level of interest legally permitted to be charged may vary, and it generally does not exceed 60%, but loan sharks typically lend out money at rates higher than these limits. Where does this tie into the corporate world? The Consumer Federation of America calls some pay day loans legal loan sharking. The Federation states that through payday loan companies, cash-strapped consumers run the risk of becoming trapped in repeat borrowing due to triple-digit interest rates, unaffordable repayment terms, and coercive tactics made possible by check-holding. These places get away with it by disguising interest payments as fees. If these fees were counted as interest, the rates would be enormous.

Whistle-Blower

Before radio communication made it possible for police to call into a central dispatch, foot patrols prowled the streets armed with billy clubs and whistles. When these patrols came upon a crime or a disturbance they couldn't handle alone, they'd blow their whistle and any policemen within hearing distance would rush over to help. A whistle-blower in the corporate echelons works much the same way. Whistle-blowers are employees inside a corporation who know about the company's unscrupulous activities and then go to the public with that knowledge. This public admission brings on the media and usually legal repercussions for the company. Unfortunately, whistle-blowers also suffer, as they find it very hard to find jobs afterward despite being legally protected.

Corporate Espionage and Spies

Many of us have enjoyed watching Sean Connery shoot up bad guys with vaguely German accents, but espionage has changed a lot. The new spies are more likely to be wearing glasses and a "Star Wars Forever" T-shirt than a three-piece suit. At first glance, having your office memos read by an outsider seems harmless, but corporate spies sift through piles of junk for the one gem that can help their employer sink your company. This can be as simple as stealing R&D information, or it can get as dastardly as finding out job bids and undercutting them to the customer. Companies have to remain vigilant, because not all bad guys have steel jaws or pseudo-futuristic uniforms: most look just like you or me. Cyber-hacking and cyber spying are also a form of corporate espionage tactics. The problem of corporate espionage has become big enough for companies to employ counter-espionage agencies.

Conclusion

Well, that's all for our exciting trip down the thug-infested alleys of Wall Street. We hope you've found this informative and entertaining.

The World's Best Smartphone Camera -- From Sony?

A new Android phone coming from Sony (NYSE: SNE  ) is rumored to have a camera capable of capturing 4K Ultra HD video. If you think your HD television picture looks sharp, then hold on to your eyeballs. Ultra HD has four times the resolution of HD.

That's 3840 x 2160 pixels, compared with 1920 x 1080 pixels. Go ahead; do the math.

But if you don't have an Ultra HD TV -- and it's much more likely you would have a 3D-TV than a 4K TV, given much higher set prices and limited 4K content -- would a smartphone with a 4K video camera be incentive enough to make the switch to a Sony phone from a Samsung, Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) , or HTC handset?

Or is that putting the cart before the horse? Selling more smartphones might not be Sony's real agenda. Since Sony also makes Ultra HD TVs, one might think the rationale behind a super camera enabled smartphone could be to boost its 4K television sales.

If so, wouldn't Samsung be getting ready with its own 4K-camera phone to promote its line of Ultra HD TVs?

With the current high prices for these state-of-the-art Ultra HD televisions, Sony and Samsung would need all the promotional help they could get. The cheapest is Sony's 55-inch model, which goes for $5,000. And one could buy a Toyota Prius for the price of its 84" model: $25,000.

But don't get off the floor just yet: Samsung's 85-inch Ultra HD set retails for $40,000. No kidding.

There's one more very important reason for Sony -- and Samsung, too -- to try to get ahead of the Ultra HD curve with a 4K smartphone camera. The UHD standards are not yet set in stone, and the company that can garner the most UHD sales could influence the future definitive 4K standard.

That means getting as many consumers as possible hooked on a company's 4K standard as early as possible. When it comes to setting technical standards, it's often the most popular standard that wins out, not necessarily the one that is technically superior.

Remember, Betamax vs, VHS? Sony's Betamax format supposedly yielded a better picture, yet because of lower prices on VHS records and the ability to record longer programs, the VHS standard was triumphant.

With the success of such 3-D movies as Avatar, the TV makers could be excused for thinking 3-D TV would be the next big thing. That hasn't happened, and Samsung has admitted that 3-D TV sales in 2012 were a big disappointment.

Along with the higher cost for 3-D TVs came poorer picture quality and the necessity for special viewing glasses. The format may not just disappear, but it will remain only a novelty.

What has proved to be a winner for TV makers -- though not for cable TV providers -- are so-called "smart" TVs, those that can be connected to the Internet to stream video. And streaming will likely become the most viable delivery system for UHD programming.

Neil Hunt, Netflix's (NASDAQ: NFLX  ) chief product officer, told The Verge in an interview last March that Netflix will start streaming 4K content "within a year or two."

I think Hunt is very serious about this. Netflix shot its very first original production, House of Cards, in 4K, at a cost of over $100 million. The Netflix revival of Arrested Development was also shot in 4K.

Meanwhile, returning to Sony's 4K future: At the beginning of the year, it said it would have a U.S. launch of the first consumer oriented 4K video distribution service sometime in the summer.

But Sony and Netflix and all the other would be 4K distributors have to acknowledge the elephant in the room. The amount of information that Ultra HD requires to be pushed through Internet service providers' pipes may prove too much for them to handle, at least in the near term. How does a 100GB-plus download for a typical movie sound?

So, in the meantime, getting consumers to shoot their own 4K productions on a Sony 4K camera equipped smartphone may be the company's best -- if not only -- selling point for their Ultra HD TV sets. At least for now.

There is no question that the television landscape is changing quickly, and not just for the television set makers. Streaming content from entrants such as Netflix and Amazon.com have disrupted traditional networks and the cable operators. The Motley Fool's new free report "Who Will Own the Future of Television?" details the risks and opportunities in TV. Click here to read the full report!

Is Zynga Finally Becoming One of the Market’s Better Investment Opportunities?

For a long time, "gaming" usually meant either gambling or indulging in a first-person shooter video game. Only the nerdy few daring enough to try role-playing games such as Dungeons & Dragons thought differently.

Now the dynamic is changing, creating one of the market's more interesting investment opportunities. Consider Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) , which is enjoying a huge audience for its YouTube custom channels thanks to niche programming such as TableTop, a bi-weekly show about board and role-playing games hosted by Wil Wheaton. Overall sales of hobby store games rose 15% last year after a 20% rise the year prior, according to data from ICv2.

The shift comes as social video gaming is becoming more popular, says Tim Beyers of Motley Fool Rule Breakers and Motley Fool Supernova in the following video. More than 15 million play the popular 8-bit adventure game Minecraft. Yet no company stands to profit so much from the trend as Zynga (NASDAQ: ZNGA  ) , which serves some 34 million monthly users in its signature social game FarmVille 2.

CEO Mark Pincus will have to commission new titles to appeal to the tabletop crowd. Activision Blizzard still rules online group adventure gaming via World of Warcraft, after all. But imagine if he does. Zynga benefits from the reach of Facebook's global platform -- a huge advantage that, if leveraged correctly, could play very well for the beleaguered gamer, Tim says.

Do you agree? Please watch to get Tim's full take, and then let us know whether you believe Zynga is one of the market's top investment opportunities now and why.

It's your move
Too many wonder if it's already "game over" for Zynga. Yet this stock story isn't as simple as it seems. Learn everything you need to know about Zynga and whether it's a buy or a sell in our new premium research report. Don't even think about picking up shares before you read what our top analysts have to say. Click here to access your copy.

Why Immunomedics Shares Soared

Although we don't believe in timing the market or panicking over market movements, we do like to keep an eye on big changes -- just in case they're material to our investing thesis.

What: Shares of Immunomedics (NASDAQ: IMMU  ) , a biopharmaceutical company researching monoclonal, antibody-based products to treat cancer and other autoimmune disorders, jumped as much as 15% after providing a clinical update on its antibody-drug conjugate programs.

So what: Antibody-drug conjugates, or ADCs for short, attach a chemotherapy toxin to an antibody and essentially teach that antibody to recognize a protein expressed by the targeted cancer. When the antibody comes in contact with that specific protein, it releases the toxin, hopefully killing the cancer cell and leaving healthy cells alone.

Today, Immunomedics noted that two of its three ADCs -- IMMU-130 and IMMU-132 – delivered tumor shrinkage and some partial responses in early stage studies, especially in metastatic colorectal cancer and triple-negative breast cancer. IMMU-130 is being tested specifically on advanced colorectal cancer, while IMMU-132 is being tested on 13 different cancer types.

Now what: We're still in the top of the second inning of a nine-inning game here, but ADCs certainly appear to be the future of cancer therapy -- at least one path to treating it. Immunomedics still has a long road to climb as its two ADC peers are much further along in their development process. ImmunoGen (NASDAQ: IMGN  ) , for instance, already has an FDA-approved drug for late-stage HER2-positive breast cancer known as Kadcyla that utilizes the company's proprietary targeted-antibody payload technology (the same concept as ADCs with a different name) in combination with Roche's Herceptin. In trials, this combo extended median overall survival by 5.8 months over the placebo to 30.9 months. Something similar can be said for Seattle Genetics and its ADC pipeline.

The point is, I do see quite a lot of potential in Immunomedics, but you also need to keep your expectations in check.

Craving more input? Start by adding Immunomedics to your free and personalized Watchlist so you can keep up on the latest news surrounding the company.

While you can certainly make huge gains in biotechs like Immunomedics, the best investing approach is to choose great companies and stick with them for the long term. The Motley Fool's free report "3 Stocks That Will Help You Retire Rich" names stocks that could help you build long-term wealth and retire well, along with some winning wealth-building strategies that every investor should be aware of. Click here now to keep reading.

3 Things Apple Needs in iOS 7

With Apple's (NASDAQ: AAPL  ) Worldwide Developers Conference, or WWDC, just weeks away, investors should start pondering what the company has in store for the next version of iOS. This year may potentially mark a dramatic shift in Apple's mobile platform, as design chief Jony Ive will get a chance to make his mark.

Not only is iOS overdue for an aesthetic makeover, in favor of a cleaner and more modern look, but I also believe that Google (NASDAQ: GOOG  ) Android has surpassed iOS in numerous core interface elements.

You can't overstate the importance of iOS: Devices running iOS drive over 70% of Apple's revenue. Here are three things Apple needs in iOS 7.

1. Better notifications
Apple brought a notification center in iOS 5, originally released in 2011. Prior to that, Apple took much criticism for its annoying pop-up approach, which constantly disrupted workflow whenever a notification arrived. For what it's worth, Apple mostly replicated Android's approach in the notification center, which is pulled down from the top of the screen.

However, in the nearly two years since, Apple's notification system is unrefined and crude. Notifications are bundled by application, and users can only dismiss them all-or-nothing. Even dismissing them requires two manual steps, while in Android each notification can be individually swiped away intuitively. Android also offers quick access to settings in the notification center.

Android's notification center is nearly a perfect implementation, and Apple wouldn't be wrong to further replicate it.

2. Better lock screen
The lock screen is another area of potential improvement. Apple has patented its characteristic slide-to-unlock (even though this was invalidated in Germany), so it may be hesitant to discard the usage so readily. Apple has slowly added minor new features to the lock screen, such as quick access to the camera, over the years.

There are still some improvements that Apple could add here, though, such as displaying pertinent information or additional shortcuts.

3. More gestures
Apple has lagged Google in incorporating more intuitive gestures throughout the interface. Google now uses swipes and other interface paradigms extensively throughout Android, while Apple has played it relatively conservatively.

There has been so much touch-interface innovation over the past few years, from third-party developers and tech giants alike, yet Apple has tried to stick to its ways, presumably because it doesn't want to alienate existing users with dramatically new gestures. Even though iOS is hardly broke, it could still use some fixing when it comes to gesture support.

More where that came from
In my opinion, those are the three biggest areas where iOS can improve, and there are plenty of other smaller places where the iPhone maker could tweak its platform. Where do you think Apple could improve iOS? Share your thoughts in the comment box below.

Even though Android may be better than iOS with interface, iOS still trumps Android in platform loyalty and customer satisfaction.

There's no doubt that Apple is at the center of technology's largest revolution ever, and that longtime shareholders have been handsomely rewarded with over 1,000% gains. However, there is a debate raging as to whether Apple remains a buy. The Motley Fool's senior technology analyst and managing bureau chief, Eric Bleeker, is prepared to fill you in on both reasons to buy and reasons to sell Apple, and what opportunities are left for the company (and your portfolio) going forward. To get instant access to his latest thinking on Apple, simply click here now.

Nvidia's Innovation Is a Long-Term Catalyst for the Stock

Nvidia (NVDA) reported a solid set of numbers for the second quarter that was broadly in line with the estimates. In fact, its earnings exceeded the expectations led by strong growth in gaming, data-center and cloud, and mobile operations. The chip maker is best known for its components used in computers and video games that produce high visual effects. The company has been expanding its product mix to counter tough competition and also to adapt to the changes in the industry. Starting with its numbers, let's have a detailed analysis of this stock.

Results and beyond

Its revenue for the quarter rose 13% to $1.1 billion and came in line with the analysts expectations. Earnings rose to 30 cents a share compared to 23 cents last year, and topped the consensus estimate of 19 cents per share.

The numbers seem to be quite decent and reflect the company's expanding business. As already mentioned, Nvidia is venturing into new segments in order to stand its ground in a highly competitive environment. The chip maker benefited from the expansion into cars and cloud computing, which was evident in its numbers during the quarter. Nvidia's Tegra technology has been incorporated in various cars such as in some of the recent models of BMW . Similarly, Volkswagen Passat will incorporate Tegra for its infotainment system and going forward, Nvidia has various such orders in this segment. Its Tegra processor revenue for cars rose 74% during the quarter, which is a significant achievement and will further strengthen its balance sheet in the days to come.

The Tegra system is also used in smartphones; however in this segment Nvidia had to face tough competition from its peers such as Qualcomm, which has considerably higher market share in smartphones and tablets. Consequently, it shifted its focus to the entertainment industry and navigation systems in cars. In this direction, the company launched Shield, which is its own indigenously developed tablet. The tablet is designed to attract gaming enthusiasts, which will strengthen its presence in the industry.

Chips are driving growth

In the gaming segment, GeForce is yet another strong hold for the company, which powers around 100 million PC's around the world. The recently launched GeForce GTX GPU is even more enhanced than its previous versions, which has the capability to take on the latest generation gaming consoles. Thus, GeForce is a strong product for the company, which delivered solid results in the past and is expected to continue the same momentum in the coming years.

Apart from gamers, GPUs (graphic processing unit) are used extensively by professionals involved in designing. For instance, Abode Illustrator is used for designing purposes and its performance can be enhanced using Nvidia's Quadro GPU, making the experience even better. Therefore, the workstation market also presents huge potential for Nvidia to grow. Tesla also had a strong quarter with record numbers, and the momentum continues that will further add to both its top and bottom line in the days ahead.

In cloud computing, the company made significant progress by offering servers embedded with Nvidia chips to companies such as IBM, Dell and HP. Along with this, many large enterprises are kicking the tires for its GRID graphics technology for use in data centers. During the quarter Nvidia launched GRID test drives, which according to the management will be great help to enterprise IT professionals. It received a great response with more than 10,000 users in the first eight weeks of its launch.

After a strong set of numbers during the quarter, the company is well positioned to deliver similar growth in the third quarter as well. The company has a positive outlook on PC sales in the coming months. Along with this, its entry into cars and data centers is seen as a great a potential, which will further strengthen its business.

Conclusion

Nvidia  has a trailing P/E of 20.6 and an improving forward P/E of 17.1, which is a positive cue of strong fundamentals. In addition, the company had a strong performance during the quarter, which was better than its peers and the management is optimistic for the upcoming quarters as well. In a statement to Reuters, FBR analyst Chris Rolland said "They're doing better than their peers. … The Tegra number was better than expected." All in all, the company has a strong outlook and seems to be well positioned for growth.

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lululemon Stumbles Again, and Twitter Gains on Management Change

Stocks fell again today as concerns about violence in Iraq spread throughout the market. Kurdish rebels gained control of the oil-rich city of Kirkuk, and Sunni militants threatened to push into Southern Iraq. In a press conference, President Obama said the use of force remained an option to prevent a potential breakup of the country that U.S. troops exited in 2011, causing jitters among investors. Stocks slid during the course of the session with the Dow Jones Industrial Average  (DJINDICES: ^DJI  ) finishing down 110 points, or 0.7%, while the S&P 500 dropped 0.7%, and the Nasdaq fell 0.8%. Crude oil prices also jumped 2.4% on the events in Iraq, to nearly $107/barrel.

The day's economic reports were also mostly disappointing as retail sales improved just 0.3% in May, below expectations of 0.7%, and down from April's figure at 0.5%, which was revised up from 0.1%, making May's miss less meaningful. Retail sales are a closely watched economic indicator as consumer spending drives 70% of the country's GDP. Initial unemployment claims also increased slightly, from 313,000 to 317,000, essentially in line with expectations at 315,000. The figure remains low enough to indicate that the labor market is improving, but continuing unemployment claims also rose for the first time in several weeks, though just by 11,000, to 2.614 million. 

lululemon atheltica  (NASDAQ: LULU  ) shares tumbled again today, finishing down 16% after the yoga retailer cut its forecast in its quarterly report this morning. The weak guidance was just the latest bit of bad news for the once high-flying Canadian company, which has seen shares fall by more than 50% since last summer, and hit a three-year low on today's news. After a 2013 that featured a massive product recall, the surprise resignation of its CEO, and embarrassing remarks by its founder, the company said today that same-store sales fell for the second quarter in a row. They also forecast a decline in full-year adjusted EPS at $1.71-$1.76 against the analyst consensus at $1.89. The earnings report comes amid more management concerns as founder Chip Wilson said yesterday that he voted against the company's Chairman and one of its directors in board elections, and CFO John Currie said today that he would retire at the end of the year. Wilson's announcement, in particular, seems to indicate that lululemon is still well off track, following last year's problems. 

Meanwhile, Twitter  (NYSE: TWTR  ) shares were moving higher on a management change of its own. The social network finished up 3.5% as COO Ali Rowghani resigned. Rowghani will not be replaced because CEO Dick Costolo would like more direct contact with the company's engineering and product teams, as Rowghani's departure seems to have resulted from a dispute between the two executives. The announcement comes as Twitter shares have fallen due to concerns about sluggish user growth, which was one of Rowghani's principal responsibilities. With the departure of Rowghani, investors seem to believe the company will be implementing a new strategy to lure additional users. Even if, after its recent slide, Twitter still carries a sky-high valuation, Wall Street has made it clear that the company needs to grow its user base rapidly in order to justify its current stock price. 

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10 Big-Name Stocks Going Ex-Dividend Next Week (May 12-16)

Ex-dividend dates are very important to dividend investors, since you must purchase a stock prior to its ex-dividend date in order to receive its upcoming dividend payout. For more information, check out Everything Investors Need to Know About Ex-Dividend Dates.

Below we highlight 10 big-name stocks going ex-dividend for the week of May 12-16.

1. Microsoft

Microsoft Corporation (MSFT) is set to trade ex-dividend on May 13. The software company offers a dividend yield of 2.84% based on Wednesday's closing price of $39.42 and the company's quarterly dividend payout of 28 cents. The stock is up 3% year-to-date. Dividend.com currently rates MSFT as “Neutral” with a DARS™ rating of 3.4 stars out of 5 stars.

2. Chevron Corporation

Chevron Corporation (CVX) is set to trade ex-dividend on May 15. The oil and gas company offers a dividend yield of 3.39% based on Wednesday's closing price of $126.33 and the company's quarterly dividend payout of $1.07. The stock has been flat year-to-date. Dividend.com currently rates CVX as “Recommended” with a DARS™ rating of 3.5 stars out of 5 stars.

3. Consolidated Edison

Consolidated Edison, Inc. (ED) is set to trade ex-dividend on May 12. The utility company offers a dividend yield of 4.36% based on Wednesday's closing price of $57.80 and the company's quarterly dividend payout of 63 cents. The stock is up 4% year-to-date. Dividend.com currently rates ED as “Neutral” with a DARS™ rating of 3.4 stars out of 5 stars.

4. United Technologies

United Technologies Corporation (UTX) is set to trade ex-dividend on May 14. The technology company offers a dividend yield of 2.02% based on Wednesday's closing price of $116.91 and the company's quarterly dividend payout of 59 cents. The stock is up 2% year-to-date. Dividend.com currently rates UTX as “Neutral” with a DARS™ rating of 3.4 stars out of 5 stars.

5. Du Pont

E I Du Pont De Nemours And Co (DD) is set to trade ex-dividend on May 13. The agriculture chemical company offers a dividend yield of 2.65% based on Wednesday's closing price of $68.05 and the company's quarterly dividend payout of 45 cents. The stock is up 4% year-to-date. Dividend.com currently rates DD as “Neutral” with a DARS™ rating of 3.3 stars out of

Mid-Afternoon Market Update: Markets Show Strength as Prothena Shares Plummet

Related BZSUM Mid-Day Market Update: Coach Slips After Q3 Results; Orbital Shares Spike Higher Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Rise; Merck Earnings Beat Street View

Toward the end of trading Tuesday, the Dow traded up 0.61 percent to 16,548.94 while the NASDAQ surged 0.79 percent to 4,106.63. The S&P also rose, gaining 0.51 percent to 1,878.02.

Leading and Lagging Sectors
In trading on Tuesday, energy shares were relative leaders, up on the day by about 1.41 percent. Meanwhile, top gainers in the sector included Stone Energy (NYSE: SGY), up 9 percent, and Westmoreland Coal Co (NYSE: WLB), up 7.8 percent. Industrials services shares gained by just 0.02 percent in Tuesday's trading.

Top losers in the sector included Chart Industries (NASDAQ: GTLS), Jacobs Engineering Group (NYSE: JEC), and ABB (NYSE: ABB).

Top Headline
Merck & Co (NYSE: MRK) reported a 7% rise in its first-quarter profit. Merck's quarterly profit surged to $1.71 billion, or $0.57 per share, compared to a year-ago profit of $1.59 billion, or $0.52 per share. Excluding certain items, Merck earned $0.88 per share, up from $0.85 per share Its revenue dropped 4% to $10.26 billion versus $10.67 billion. However, analysts were estimating earnings of $0.79 per share on revenue of $10.43 billion. Merck reiterated its full-year earnings forecast of $2.15 to $2.47 per share.

Equities Trading UP
Zillow (NASDAQ: Z) rose on Tuesday's session, gaining 12.13 percent to $102.15 after the a 13G filing from after the close Monday showed a 9.5 percent stake in the company from Tiger Management.

Shares of Orbital Sciences (NYSE: ORB) got a boost, shooting up 15.38 percent to $30.66 after the company and Allian Techsystems' (NYSE: ATK) Aerospace and Defense Groups agreed to combine to create Orbital ATK.

Banco Santander (Brasil) SA (NYSE: BSBR) shares were also up, gaining 12.46 percent to $6.50 on Q1 results. The company reported Q1 recurring net income of 1.427 billion reais ($637 million).

Equities Trading DOWN
Shares of Gogo (NASDAQ: GOGO) were 28.56 percent to $13.12 following news that AT&T (NYSE: T) intended to launch high-speed 4G in-flight connectivity service.

Prothena Corporation (NASDAQ: PRTA) shares were down as well, falling 28.00 percent to $27.13 after the company released some materials from its coming symposium presentation.

Coach (NYSE: COH) was down, falling 9.78 percent to $45.49 after the company reported downbeat quarterly sales. The company reported Q3 earnings of $0.68 per share on revenue of $1.10 billion.

Commodities
In commodity news, oil traded up 0.27 percent to $101.11, while gold traded down 0.19 percent to $1,296.50.

Silver traded down 0.38 percent Tuesday to $19.52, while copper fell 0.68 percent to $3.07.

Eurozone
European shares were higher today.

The Spanish Ibex Index surged 1.31 percent, while Italy's FTSE MIB Index rose 2.15 percent.

Meanwhile, the German DAX surged 1.48 percent and the French CAC 40 rose 0.83 percent while U.K. shares gained 0.91 percent.

Economics
The Federal Open Market Committee begins its two-day policy meeting today.

The ICSC-Goldman same-store sales index gained 1.6% in the week ended April 26 versus the prior week.

The Johnson Redbook Retail Sales Index dropped 0.3% in the first three weeks of April versus March.

The S&P/Case-Shiller home price index rose 0.76% in February, versus economists' expectations for a 0.80% gain. On a year-over-year basis, the index climbed 12.9% in February.

The Conference Board's consumer confidence index came in at 82.30 in April, versus a revised 83.90 in March. However, economists were expecting a reading of 83.00.

Posted-In: Earnings News Guidance Eurozone Futures Forex Global Econ #s Economics Intraday Update Markets Movers Tech

© 2014 Benzinga.com. Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved.

  Most Popular Market Wrap For April 28: Apple Hits New 52-Week Highs In a Volatile Start To the Trading Week Apple Issuing More Bonds to Fund Increased Buyback Amazon's 'Big Spender' Act Not Impressing Investors Financials, Futures Move Lower Following News BofA Has Suspended 2014 Capital Plan Earnings Scheduled For April 29, 2014 UPDATE: Organovo Reports Pre-Release Availability of 3D Liver Contract Services Related Articles (ABB + ATK) Mid-Day Market Update: Coach Slips After Q3 Results; Orbital Shares Spike Higher Mid-Morning Market Update: Markets Rise; Merck Earnings Beat Street View Stocks Hitting 52-Week Highs Zacks Rank #1 Additions for Tuesday - Tale of the Tape Morning Market Movers Orbital Sciences, Alliant Techsystems' Aerospace & Defense Groups to

Europe Follows the Fed

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The European recovery story has been one that a lot of investors love to hate. Despite the upward run in many of the regional indexes, the underlying economic data can be described as ambiguous at best, leaving a lot of folks scratching their heads.

For instance, if you think back to the early stage of the European crisis, the markets there were on a constant seesaw as some data showed that maybe things weren't quite as bad as they seemed, while other data made the situation look worse. It took nearly a year of successive dominoes falling, from the Greek implosion to the Spanish contagion and the Cypriot collapse, before the region's finance ministers realized that a massive systemic bailout would ultimately be necessary.

If any of that sounds familiar, it is because our own financial crisis followed much the same arc, as regulators initially fiddled while the banks burned. In fact, the two situations are virtually analogous in all but time; the European recovery is current running about a year behind our own.

The latest piece of news out of Europe showing the region's recovery is on track is the fact that Greece was recently able to sell a chunk of five-year bonds at extremely favorable rates. That’s startlingly good news, considering the country's recent past.

When Greece announced that it was planning to sell the bonds, demand was already high. While the country said that it was only planning to raise between EUR2.5 billion and EUR3 billion from the sale, the bankers doing the legwork on the deal said they received more than EUR20 billion in bids. The yield on the bond also came well under expectations, demanding just 4.95 percent versus the forecast yield of between 5.25 percent and 5.5 percent. This marks the country's first successful longer-term bond sale since 2010.

Granted, Greece wasn’t compelled to have the monies to pay its upcoming bills, because it has been raising money through the sale of short-term notes for the past few year! s. But this was a critical testing of the waters for the country, showing that global bond buyers believe that the situation on the ground in Greece is improving and that they have faith in the commitment of European financial authorities to maintain the country's stability. That's saying a lot, considering that Greece defaulted on EUR200 billion of its debt just two short years ago, when it had to offer yields of nearly 20 percent in order to refinance those obligations.

Make no mistake, Greece is nowhere near out of the woods. A crippling recession has shrunk the country's economy by more than 25 percent, more efficient revenue systems must still be put in place and political issues remain to be settled. However, the country is clearly on the path towards sustainable recovery. The falling cost of insuring those five-year bonds with credit default swaps is another element of proof.

The Russian takeover of Ukraine's Crimea region has also had the unexpected effect of bolstering confidence in European political and financial authorities. With the European Central Bank (ECB) and the International Monetary Fund stepping in with financial aid packages, politicians tearing down trade barriers such as tariffs on Ukrainian goods, and closer military cooperation with the US and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, the Russian invasion has fostered a greater degree of regional cooperation.

The European recovery is entering the final phase of its recovery. As the US Federal Reserve tapers off its stimulus efforts, the ECB must now shift from crisis containment mode to fostering a broader based recovery across the region. While we've yet to see the exact form those measures will take, odds are the ECB will essentially follow the road map laid by its American counterpart.

Consequently, while the European recovery has been gaining momentum for several months, at least a few years of positive market performance is probably ahead. Keeping in mind that the US bull market has run! for more! than five years, closely tracking the Fed's stimulus efforts, there's still plenty of time to take advantage.

Vanguard European Stock Index (NYSE: VGK) is an easy, low risk play on the region's recovery.

With an expense ratio of just 0.12 percent, it's one of the cheapest broad based European exchange-traded funds (ETFs) available, as well as one of the largest with $16.2 billion in assets.

The ETF’s portfolio is also well allocated to take advantage of the typical recovery. As you'll recall, the US recovery began with the banks as they stabilized in the wake of the central bank's efforts to contain the crisis. While European banks have been serious laggards for more than a year, we're clearly beginning to see the effect of the ECB's stabilization measures, which means that the banks should begin to turn the corner over the next few months. That's particularly true if consumer confidence in the regional continues to show improvement, helping to spur greater loan demand.

The ETF will also benefit from a continued recovery with another 20 percent of its assets divided between industrial and energy names, both of which will likely pick up in about another year if the economic recovery stays on course.

In the meantime, though, 13 percent of the fund's assets are devoted to health care with another 12.8 percent to consumer defensive names, helping to reduce the volatility of its portfolio. While the fund's beta is roughly in line with the broader European market, its standard deviation is actually slightly lower while producing a superior return. It also offers an attractive 3.9 percent yield despite its focus on large, mature companies such as Nestle (OTC: NSRGY), Novartis (NYSE: NVS), HSBC (NYSE: HSBC) and BP (NYSE: BP).

With more good news coming from Europe every day, Vanguard European Stock Index rates a buy up to 65.

Mighty Wings get mighty big price reduction

The Mighty Wings price has been seriously clipped.

The bone-in chicken wings brought McDonald's some angst -- if not embarrassment -- last year when the wings sold poorly at about $1 a wing. This week, McDonald's brought them back to stores -- and began to nationally advertise them again -- at 40% price reduction. Now, a pack of five fetches $3 -- or about 60-cents per wing.

McDonald's now concedes that the early regional testing it did on Mighty Wings last year did not reflect what consumers nationally might be willing to pay. Or, for that matter, just how much spice they want on their wings.

"While pricing during the national advertised launch was consistent with the test markets (Atlanta and Chicago), those markets were heavy wing markets which did not reflect some of our broader customers feelings towards the price and spice of the wings," says Lisa McComb, a McDonald's spokeswoman.

While the amount of spice has not been changed, "there is more awareness that they have a spicy kick to them," says McComb.

For McDonald's, Mighty Wings has been a rather high-profile new product disappointment. While it's not uncommon for some new products to perform well regionally but poorly on a national scale, McDonald's CEO Don Thompson had high hopes for Mighty Wings.

The problem, however, wasn't the product, but the price. "The product is good, but the price was too high," says Scott Hume, founder of the BurgerBusiness.com blog. "The lesson that McDonald's and other quick-service brands keep learning and relearning is that much of the (fast food) audience is unemployed, underemployed or otherwise very cautious with spending."

Although the national re-rollout began this week, "thousands" of McDonald's restaurants have continued to sell Mighty Wings since they were introduced in Sept. 2013, says McComb.

But it's too early to write an obituary for Might Wings, advises Hume. "If Mighty Wings score at 5 for $3 then they'll be back," he says. "But if the price break! doesn't make them sell, then McDonald's is unlikely to give wings another try."