Day: March 20, 2017

Binge-watchers rejoice: Netflix is testing out a button that lets users skip a TV show’s title sequence.

No more watching the same minute-long intro song and credits before every episode of “Orange is the New Black.” Netflix told CNNMoney Friday that some Netflix members recently began seeing a “Skip Intro” button while streaming, but wouldn’t say when it first appeared.

Related: Netflix, Facebook and other techs remain red hot

Netflix (NFLX, Tech30) spokesperson Smita Saran said the feature is one of “hundreds” of A-B tests that the company conducts each year to try out new features.

“We’re looking at what does or doesn’t enhance the viewing experience,” Saran said.

Related: Netflix wants to get into the toy business

Netflix declined to share details about the test, including which platforms the button is available on. Viewers have mostly reported seeing it appear while streaming on computers.

Saran said there’s no word yet on whether the button is here to stay — but social media users have been heaping praise for the “Skip Intro” feature.

CNNMoney (New York) First published March 17, 2017: 3:12 PM ET

Wells Fargo is having a hard time getting Americans to sign up for credit cards these days.

Credit card applications at Wells Fargo plunged by 55% in February, the sharpest decline since the bank’s fake account scandal erupted last September.

Another sign of trouble: Wells Fargo (WFC) said Monday that consumers opened 43% fewer checking accounts than a year ago and interactions with branch bankers fell by 21% in the same month.

Despite taking a series of steps to restore trust with customers, Wells Fargo community banking head Mary Mack admitted “we have more work to do.”

Mack said Wells Fargo ramped up its advertising in February and plans to launch a new marketing campaign in April.

Wells Fargo has suffered double-digit declines in checking account openings and credit card applications each month since the settlement that set off shockwaves across the nation and internally at the bank.

But the February plunge in credit card applications was worse than even the 50% decline Wells Fargo experienced in October during the height of the scandal.

Wells Fargo blamed some of the recent struggles on the fact that last month had fewer days than February 2016, which was a leap year.

That explanation didn’t seem to help Wells Fargo shares. The stock dipped 1% on Monday, but remains near record highs despite all of the turmoil.

Related: Women financial advisers at Wells Fargo 27% more likely to lose their job

Regulators have said that Wells Fargo employees may have submitted as many as 565,000 credit card applications without customers’ knowledge or consent. Some of those fraudulent applications hurt customers’ credit scores, while others led to needless fees. Wells Fargo refunded inappropriate fees and has promised to help those whose credit scores were dinged.

Wells Fargo’s reputation was tarnished by the settlement and allegations of mistreating employees, including whistleblowers who tried to stop the illegal activity.

However, the bank said its customer loyalty scores rose in February for the fourth-straight month.

And Wells Fargo doesn’t seem to be suffering an exodus of customers, many of whom have other products with the bank. Wells Fargo enjoyed a 2% increase in primary checking customers in February to 23.5 million.

“Trends have generally stabilized” since the settlement, Wells Fargo Chief Financial Officer John Shrewsberry said.

Still, Shewsberry acknowledged the scandal has hurt Wells Fargo’s business by increasing expenses. He said Wells Fargo is spending $40 million to $50 million each quarter on lawyers, consultants and other outside professionals.

To offset these elevated expenses and respond to the rise of online banking, Wells Fargo announced plans earlier this year to shut down more than 400 branches by the end of 2018.

Wells Fargo has also taken many other steps to bounce back from the crisis, including reshuffling its executive team and getting rid of the notorious sales goals that led its bankers to open so many accounts, many of them fake.

CNNMoney (New York) First published March 20, 2017: 3:32 PM ET

The

Lucid Air

, a new luxury EV from

Lucid Motors

, now has a price. The base model will start at $60,000, which becomes $52,500 after applying the $7,500 government tax credit. This aggressive pricing undercuts its closest competitor, the entry-level

Tesla Model S 60

, which starts at $68,000 before the tax credit.

That price won’t get you

the 1,000-horsepower car that the company has been proudly showing

, but the company claims that the base model Air will have 400 horsepower with 240 miles of range. The company also says that the base Air comes with the hardware necessary for autonomous driving, 32 cu. ft of cargo space from two trunks, 12-way power seats, a 10 speaker sound system, LED headlights and lots of touch screens. For comparison, the Model S 60 makes 382 hp and gets a claimed 219 miles of range.

It is possible to spend much more on a Lucid Air if you’d like. The company will offer optional batteries and motors with ranges of 315 miles and 400 miles. In addition, you’ll be able to add a dual-motor powertrain capable of around 1,000 horsepower, a glass roof, reclining rear seats, a 29-speaker sound system, and 22-way power front seats with heating, cooling, active bolsters and massage. Lucid says that opting for all of these items will send the price to over $100,000.

The first 255 models will have many, if not all, of these features. These will be the Launch Edition models and will include the 1,000-horsepower powertrain, a 315-mile range, and unique colors and badging. We’ve previously heard that

the Launch Editions will cost around $165,000

, which could buy you two base model Airs with plenty of cash to spare.

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Air travel releases almost 800 million tonnes of CO2 into the atmosphere, pushing us ever closer to our looming environmental catastrophe. NASA scientists want to do something about it, and teamed up with researchers in Germany and Canada to find a way to tackle the issue. Its findings claim that jets that use biofuels emit up to 70 percent less pollution and reduces the formation of water condensation trails (contrails) in their wake.

In order to test if biofuels were cleaner, NASA flew a DC-8 out of California’s Armstrong Flight Center that used different fuels on each trip. A trio of monitoring planes then flew into the CD-8’s wake at distances as close to 250 meters to suck up the exhaust for monitoring. One fuel that appears promising is a mix of hydro-processed esters and fatty acids produced from camelina plant oil. These initial tests believe that the amount of climate-causing emissions fell between 50 and 70 percent.

It’s not just what jet engines burn that contributes to climate change, however, but what condensation trails cause. If you’re unfamiliar, particles of soot pass out of the engine along with water vapor, and at such a high altitude, form ice crystals. The result is a long white trail of ice that takes a while to dissipate, and is the cause of the nonsensical chemtrails conspiracy theory.

The ice, as it lingers in the atmosphere, can form cirrus clouds, which then form a blanket layer over the Earth. That, unfortunately, raises the temperature of the air beneath it by up to 10 degrees celsius, magnifying localized warming. With fewer soot particles in the wake, these contrails don’t form as frequently, which should help the fight against climate change.

This article by Daniel Cooper originally appeared on Engadget, your source for this connected world.

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