A former United Parcel Service (UPS) employee is accused of stealing and reselling Apple products worth more than $1.3 million.

Court documents, as reported through multiple news outlets, show UPS began an investigation in December after it found Apple products, including laptops and iPhones, destined for Thunder Bay, Ontario, were missing.

Court documents list Orville Martirez Beltrano as the defendant in the case.

Winnipeg police laid several charges, including theft, against the 30-year-old on January 22nd.

UPS’ investigation saw the installation of indoor security cameras, which showed Beltrano removing Apple devices from pallets, taking them to his office, and then moving them to his vehicle. The actions reportedly occurred on three occasions between January 11th and 18th. He allegedly removed 120 iPhones in a single shift during this period.

Police allege the former UPS employee stole at least 866 Apple products between July 2023 and January 2024. He allegedly sold the products through Kijiji, taking payments through e-transfer and cash.

Apple tech isn’t the only thing police have accused Beltrano of stealing. They allege he also stole jewelry worth more than $9,000 from the warehouse.

Court documents allege Beltrano used the proceeds of his sales to purchase a home worth $630,000. He also allegedly made cash deposits worth $232,000 to his bank account between September 2023 and mid-January 2024.

The civil case is looking for a judge to sign off on officials seizing Beltran’s home, Audi, $9,000 in cash and bank accounts.

Beltrano started working at the UPS warehouse on King Edward Street in 2013 as a local sorting supervisor. He has admitted to stealing some of the products in a videotaped interview with police.

Distributed also on: Court of King’s Bench Via: Winnipeg Free Press, Global News, CTV News

It looks like Samsung is upping its storage speeds on its 2025 flagship.

The South Korean company revealed a roadmap on the social media platform Weixin that shared its plans for the next generation of Universal Flash Storage (UFS).

The company has been using UFS 4.0 since the launch of the Galaxy S23, which means it has been available on all of its 2023 handsets and everything since. According to the roadmap in 2025, Samsung will switch to UFS 4.0 4-lane CS next year before switching to UFS 5.0 in 2027.

Samsung Semiconductor says that UFS 4.0 4-lane will improve speed from 4GB/s to 8GB/s, and UFS 5.0 updates speeds to above 10GB/s.

UFS 4-lane memory could possibly be on the S25 series; however, with a 2025 launch, it may not make it time for the company’s flagships. It’s possible we might see the new storage solution on the company’s foldables in 2025.

A quicker UFS solution is definitely useful for AI-based next-gen devices; however, there’s a possibility that the AI tools could be offered through a paid model. For instance, Samsung has previously mentioned that Galaxy AI is free until the end of 2025.

Either way, we’re stuck with UFS 4.0 until next year, which means the Z Fold 6 and Z Flip 6 will feature this slower storage solution.

Image credit: SamMobile

Distributed also on: Weixin Via: SamMobile

Freedom Mobile has added a $45/month “Roam Beyond” plan option to its website.

Roam Beyond plans offer customers data, unlimited talk and text in 81 destinations. Freedom first launched the service in November, offering access to 73 destinations.

The launch was coupled with only one plan option: 60GB of data for $65/month. That plan is still available on Freedom’s website.

The arrival of the $45/month plan, which comes with 15GB of data, adds a second, lower-priced option for those wanting a line with Roam Beyond.

5G speeds are available on Freedom’s network, and 4G speeds are available when used on a partner network. Once the allotted data is used, download speeds will be up to 256kbps on Freedom’s network and up to 128kbps on partner networks.

Both plans include a $5/month digital discount that comes with automatic payments. Without it, the 15GB option will cost $50/month, and the 60GB option will cost $70/month.

The options are available for customers who want to buy a device or bring their own. However, Freedom’s $5/month credit that applies to customers who bring their own devices is not available on either Roam Beyond option.

It’s also important to note that Freedom will charge customers a $30 fee if they switch to another plan within three months.

More information is available on Freedom’s website.

Koodo has expanded its home internet services to several provinces.

When the Telus flanker first launched the service last fall, it was only available in Ontario, Manitoba, and Québec.

Now, it’s also available in Saskatchewan, PEI, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, and Newfoundland and Labrador.

In Ontario, where it already offered the service, it increased the price point of two of its plans.

Its ‘Unlimited Internet 500’ plan now costs $100/month. When Koodo first launched it, it was priced at $90/month.

The ‘Unlimited Internet 1 Gigabit’ also saw its price increase to $110/month, compared to $100/month when Koodo first made it available.

New Brunswick and Newfoundland have the same plans as Ontario, with one exception. The $65/month option in the Atlantic Provinces comes with download speeds up to 75Mbps, while the option in Ontario has speeds up to 100Mbps.

The price points available in Manitoba are also available in Saskatchewan, PEI, and Nova Scotia. However, the upload and download speeds in the Atlantic provinces slightly differ.

Anyone interested in the service can enter their postal code on Koodo’s website to check if the service is available to them.

Best Buy Canada is currently running a promotion on unlocked smartphones with solid discounts, and additional gift cards on purchase with some.

The promotion includes discounts on devices from Google, Samsung and Oneplus. Check out some of the deals below:

Google Pixel 7a 128GB — ‘Charcoal’ — Unlocked: $399.99 (save $200)

Google Pixel 8 128GB — ‘Obsidian’ — Unlocked: $749.99 (save $200) + $150 gift card

Google Pixel 8 Pro 256GB — ‘Obsidian’ — Unlocked: $1,179.99 (save $250) + $150 gift card

Samsung Galaxy S23 128GB — ‘Phantom Black’ — Unlocked: $789.99 (save $180)

Samsung Galaxy S23 FE 128GB — ‘Graphite’ — Unlocked: $739.99 (save $120)

Samsung Galaxy S24 128GB — ‘Onyx Black’ — Unlocked: $899.99 (save $200) + $150 gift card — discount applied in cart

Samsung Galaxy S24+ (Plus) 256GB — ‘Onyx Black’ — Unlocked: $1,149.99 (save $250) + $150 gift card — discount applied in cart

Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra 256GB — ‘Titanium Black’ — Unlocked: $1,499.99 (save $300) + $150 gift card — discount applied in cart

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip5 256GB –‘ Lavender’ — Unlocked: $1,079.99 (save $220)

OnePlus Nord N30 5G 128GB — ‘Grey’ — Unlocked: $299.99 (save $60)

OnePlus Open 5G 512GB — ‘Voyager Black’ — Unlocked: $1999.99 (save $300)

It’s worth noting that the deals mentioned above have different end dates. If you’re going to sit on the idea of ordering a phone, make sure you check when the promotion ends.

Find all promotions on smartphones at Best Buy here.

MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though we may earn a commission on purchases made via these links, helping fund the journalism provided free on our website.

Image credit: Best Buy

Disney has revealed the full list of movies and shows hitting its Disney+ service in Canada in April.

Highlights include Wish, Vanderpump Villa, The Fable, and Go! Go! Loser Ranger.

April 1st

Vanderpump Villa (Three-Episode Premiere)

April 3rd

Kiya & the Kimoja Heroes: Season 1
Life Below Zero: Next Generations: Season 7
Playdate with Winnie the Pooh: Season 1
UFO Factory (Fabricantes de Ovnis)
Wish

April 6th

The Fable (Premiere Episode)

April 7th

Go! Go! Loser Ranger! (Premiere Episode)

April 10th

Blood Free (Two-Episode Premiere)
Drain the Oceans: Season 3 & Season 4
Life Below Zero: Port Protection Alaska: Season 6
Random Rings: Season 3
Shorts Spectacular: Season 2

April 12th

April 17th

Alice’s Wonderland Bakery: Season 2
PJ Masks: Power Heroes: Season 1
Queens: All Episodes
The Secret Score (La Paritura Secreta)
We Were the Lucky Ones (Three-Episode Premiere)

April 19th

Chief Detective 1958 (Premiere Episode)

April 20th

High Hopes (All Episodes)

April 22nd

April 24th

Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted: Seasons 2 & 3

April 26th

Thank You, Goodnight: The Bon Jovi Story (All Episodes)

April 30th

FX’s The Veil (Two-Episode Premiere)

Find out what came to Disney+ in March.

Image credit: Disney

Disney+ costs $7.99/month for Standard with Ads, $11.99/month or $119.99/year for Standard (no ads) and $14.99/month or $149.99/year for Premium. Disney+ is available on Android, iOS, Apple TV, Google TV and more.

Amazon Canada currently has the 2022-released 10th-gen iPad on sale.

It’s worth noting that the retailer only has the Wi-Fi version of the tablet on sale, so if you’re fine with no cellular functionality on your iPad, this is a solid deal.

The tablet features 500 nits of brightness, with a 12-megapixel camera and a USB-C port for charging. It runs on Apple’s A14 Bionic chipset, and sports a large 10.9-inch Liquid Retina display.

The iPad also features a 12-megapixel wide back camera and a 12-megapixel ultra-wide front camera with Center Stage enabled, paired with 4K video recording capability.

Apple iPad (10th Generation) 64GB –‘Pink:’ $499.99 (regularly $599.99)

Apple iPad (10th Generation) 256GB — ‘Pink:’ $699.99 (regularly $799)

Apple iPad (10th Generation) 256GB — ‘Blue:’ $699.99 (regularly $799)

Apple iPad (10th Generation) 256GB — ‘Silver:’ $698.98 (regularly $799)

In his review of the 10th-gen iPad, MobileSyrup reporter Bradley Bennett gave the tablet an 8/10 score and said that the device is a solidly designed iPad with a great screen.

MobileSyrup utilizes affiliate partnerships. These partnerships do not influence our editorial content, though we may earn a commission on purchases made via these links, helping fund the journalism provided free on our website.

Via: iPhone in Canada

Google, in a new paper published in the science journal Nature, showcased how its Machine Learning (ML) technology can be used to forecast incoming floods.

For reference, floods are the most common type of natural disaster and cause more than $50 billion USD (roughly $67.6 billion CAD) in annual damages worldwide. Forecasting floods in advance can save lives and money, and according to Google, its AI-based technology can reportedly do so up to seven days in advance.

To predict floods, models normally use publically available weather data like precipitation and physical watershed information. The models are also calibrated with data from streamflow gauges. However, not all basins have the gauge installed, “and it’s challenging for hydrological simulation and forecasting to provide predictions in basins that lack this infrastructure,” wrote Google.

According to Google, ML helps solve this problem by allowing a single model to be trained on all available river data and applied to ungauged basins where no data are available. This allows models to be trained globally and predict any river location.

Google has forged partnerships with international aid organizations, including the Centre for Humanitarian Data and the Red Cross, to deliver forecasts that can be directly acted upon in times of need.

You can read more about the effort here.

Image credit: Shutterstock

Distributed also on: Google

The documentary about Nickelback, the band everyone loves to hate, is getting a global theatrical release for two nights only on March 27th and 30th, following its premiere at the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) a few months ago.

The band, best known for leader singer Chad Kroeger’s Ramen noodle-like hair and several huge 2000s hits, including “How You Remind Me,” “Far Away,” and my personal favourite, “Look at This Photograph,” has received a lot of hate from music fans and critics, despite its widespread financial success and popularity.

Just Google Image Search “Nickelback Sucks,” and you’ll see what I mean.

Hate to Love: Nickelback chronicles the Canadian rock act’s humble beginnings to becoming what the band calls the “whipping boys of the music industry.”

The movie is playing in 1,350 locations across 30 countries, including Canada. To check if it’s playing in your area, follow this link.

Image credit: Nickelback

Galaxy AI launched earlier this year alongside Samsung’s Galaxy S24 series, and slowly, the functionality has been making its way to the company’s older devices. This week, Samsung’s 2023 handsets will receive AI improvements, but a new report suggests that Galaxy AI may also make its way to the S22 series.

In an interview conducted by Newsis, Samsung’s head of its mobile division, Noh Tae-moon, said that the company is looking into bringing Galaxy AI to its S22, S22+ and S22 Ultra.

Samsung previously said only the Galaxy S23 series, Z Fold 5, Z Flip 5, and Tab S9 would get its new AI features. This was confusing as the S23 runs on the same chip as the S22 series, so it made no sense to leave out the company’s 2022 handsets.

In the interview, Tae-moon explained that he is “reviewing whether ‘Galaxy AI (artificial intelligence) can be applied to previous products including the Galaxy S22 series.” He mentions that considering Galaxy AI combines cloud-based and on-device AI, the technology (on-device AI specifically) is affected by hardware performance.

However, since the S23 FE is pretty much a reskinned S22 series device, there shouldn’t be an issue with bringing Galaxy AI over to the company’s 2022 flagships.

Samsung said previously that Galaxy AI will be part of the One UI 6.1 update in late March; so while it’s possible to see it this week or next, Canadians have to keep in mind that we typically get updates later than in the U.S.

Distributed also on: Newsis Via: 9to5Google