Apps

Wise helps transfer money easily from abroad to the Philippines

Setup is easy as 1-2-3

Published

May 22, 2024

Luigi Leonardo

Decades of sending Filipino workers abroad, transferring money from another country to a loved one in the Philippines continues to be a source of frustration for millions of OFWs. Today, a more modern solution wants to help move your money in fewer steps and less fees. Wise, a British fintech company, is now available in the Philippines.

Since starting in 2011, Wise has expanded globally, hiring over 5,500 employees and servicing 10 million active customers worldwide.

Though the company started as a simple transferring service between different currencies, it has since added more services including an international prepaid card. In the Philippines, the company is starting with its standard transferring service, an international prepaid card, and the ability to shop online with a Wise account.

How to set up a Wise account

Wise is now available through the App Store and the Play Store. Creating an account on the platform is easy. All you need is an email address and a phone number. After making the account, the app will ask you basic questions: home address, occupation, preferred currencies.

However, to use the services, you’ll need a bit more to verify your identity. It will require users to upload a photo of a valid ID such as a driver’s license or a passport.

After everything’s set up, you can start a balance with a selected currency. If it’s your first time setting a balance up, Wise will require you to deposit of PhP 1,400. This isn’t a fee, though. You can use the deposit immediately. You can also now send details for your new balance to senders from abroad.

How to fund your new account

Currently, there are two ways to add funds to your account.

The first way is, of course, by receiving funds from a sender. The second way is to use any bank-issued debit or credit card to top up your account.

Wise hopes to add more ways to fund your account in the future. At the time of this writing, the company has already promised future partnerships with e-wallets.

How to move money from your Wise account to a bank account

Once you have your balance set up and have funds to transfer, you can go to the app, select your balance, and hit Send. Enter the amount you want to send and the account details of the receiving bank account.

If you need to convert your funds into another currency, the app will show you the exact exchange rate and fees associated. (Wise says that their fees are lower compared to other methods.)

How to get a Wise card

And now, the juicy part. Under the Card tab, users can apply for a prepaid card they can use anywhere in the world. It will cost a small fee (PhP 369.60 including VAT). While standard delivery is free, users can pay a bit for a faster delivery through DHL.

Once it arrives, users can activate the card by putting in the 6-digit code that comes with the card. After activation, they can use this card everywhere cards are accepted.

Alternatively, users can create a digital card for free and instantaneously.

Apps

Netflix expands its cheaper ad-supported tier to Southeast Asia

This also includes more countries in Europe and South America.

Published

May 15, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

If you don’t care about seeing a deluge of ads on your platforms, you’re an incredibly rare breed these days. That same skill will come in handy for those nicely priced subscription tiers that comes with ads. Netflix, for one, has one of those tiers, and it’s now coming out in more countries.

As is prevalent in other platforms today, an ad-supported subscription tier lowers the price you have to pay every month. The catch, however, is that there will be an occasional sprinkling of ads here and there.

Netflix offers this service, which allows subscribers to get the service for cheap at the expense of their time. Currently, it is limited to only a few major markets in the world. However, the platform is expanding the tier’s reach to more countries in Europe, South America, and Southeast Asia.

Starting in 2027, Netflix’s ad-supported tier will expand to 15 countries: Austria, Belgium, Colombia, Denmark, Indonesia, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Peru, the Philippines, Poland, Sweden, Switzerland, and Thailand.

Netflix says that the ad-supported tier is a popular option for subscribers. Currently, the tier has around 250 million subscribers worldwide. Since some of the new countries have a more budget-conscious attitude when it comes to purchasing services, this number will likely go up after the expansion in 2027.

Apps

Google might limit free storage to only 5GB

The change will affect new users.

Published

May 15, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

Google One is a monthly subscription that gives you at least 200GB of cloud storage for your files and photos. For most people, a Google One subscription starts when Google inevitably tells them that their free storage space is running out and will soon stop backing up files. Starting today, new users might get that warning sooner rather than later as Google tests a lower limit to free storage.

Historically, Google offers users 15GB of free storage as a start. However, especially these days, 15GB can run out rapidly, prompting a Google One upgrade. Still, despite how “little” it is, Google’s free storage is generous compared to its contemporaries.

Now, Google is reportedly going to be more at par with the rest. As spotted on Reddit (via 9to5Google), new users will receive only 5GB of free storage. Based on Wayback Machine, the company changed its policy sometime between February to March.

Notably, 15GB is still available as an option, but users have to link their phone numbers to their accounts first.

According to Google, the policy change is meant to encourage users to upgrade their security. However, critics will point out that it just enables the company to collect more data about their users. Of note, the platform is already pushy about linking phone numbers before the change, but this adds another layer to entice people.

Also, Google confirms that the new policy is only a regional test for now. They have not announced when (or if) the change comes out for real.

Apps

Instagram takes on Snapchat yet again with new Instants feature

Posts disappear after they’re viewed once.

Published

May 14, 2026

Luigi Leonardo

The popularity of Snapchat’s competitors is as fleeting as their disappearing messages. However, despite how volatile the market is, Instagram wants to try again with a new feature (and app) called Instants.

Pardon me if you’ve heard this premise before. Instants is a feature that lets users share disappearing photos. However, unlike the 24 hours allotted for Stories, Instants will disappear right after a friend views them, but they can still react and reply to them.

The idea of Instants is to trim the excess fat from what Instagram is these days. Instagram’s Adam Mosseri admits as much when he said users want as easier way to shoot content.

As such, users won’t have access to Instagram’s editing tools. They also can’t upload pre-shot content from their camera roll. Like its contemporaries like BeReal, the new Instants feature is about living in the moment and sharing exactly what users see.

Despite disappearing after a single view, Instants will be automatically archived, so they can be reuploaded as normal Stories later on.

It isn’t the Wild West, though. Even if it pares down all the extra features, Instants will still use the safety features available to all of Instagram. Users, especially young ones, can mute and block others’ Instants. Likewise, parents will have control over when and how their young children interact with the feature.