Francis Bea
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Francis got his first taste of the tech industry in a failed attempt at a startup during his time as a student at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Never leaving his love for tech behind, he briefly dabbled in tech PR but switched over to contributing for Digital Trends. He covers all things social media and the next generation of emerging tech startups, as well as mobile apps that can’t be missed .
Happy birthday, Tesla! Elon Musk celebrates by donating $1 million to new museum
Happy birthday, Tesla! Elon Musk celebrates by donating $1 million to new museum
The Oatmeal raised over $1 million on IndieGoGo to secure the Wardenclyffe, site of Tesla's final lab, to build a Tesla museum.
Are Vine celebs the next-generation of YouTube stars?
Are Vine celebs the next-generation of YouTube stars?
YouTube vloggers used the platform to gain Internet fame (and money). Are Vine's more famous creators next?
Why we’re cautiously optimistic about Twitter’s new authentication system
Why we’re cautiously optimistic about Twitter’s new authentication system
Twitter formerly had an unreliable system for keeping your account safe - thankfully, it's upgraded solution. Here's why you should get on board.
The big, booming business behind the humble GIF
The big, booming business behind the humble GIF
Internet scion that it is, the GIF is much more than just an animated way for the Internet to make you smile - it's also creating a valuable industry.
We asked, you answered: Would you actually pay for Facebook?
We asked, you answered: Would you actually pay for Facebook?
As suggestions about a pay-for subscription Facebook model arise, we had to ask a wide variety of users if they would actually pay wallets to use the site.
The White House is giving Data.gov a face lift – and it all looks awfully familiar
The White House is giving Data.gov a face lift – and it all looks awfully familiar
Teasing the White House's redesigned public database, Next.Data.gov catches up with the latest design trends and comes off as developer-friendly.
Reddit Insight analyzes the Web’s Wild West, turning it into beautiful, revealing infographics
Reddit Insight analyzes the Web’s Wild West, turning it into beautiful, revealing infographics
A glimpse into Reddit and its Subreddits thanks to Reddit Insights, a hack put together by Hack Reactor students, spotlights how posts become popular.
Twitter finally fixed Direct Message syncing – does it have other plans for the feature?
Twitter finally fixed Direct Message syncing – does it have other plans for the feature?
Even Twitter seems to have neglected its Direct Messages feature, but recently with new updates we suspect that the DM is undergoing a transformation.
Pearltrees launches Android app, makes leap into file management
Pearltrees launches Android app, makes leap into file management
Pearltrees launched its Android version today, while rolling out new file management features.
Want to know what the tech elite Fancy?
Want to know what the tech elite Fancy?
With the help of The Fancy, we've rounded up items that Jack Dorsey, Daniel Ek, Dave Morin, Biz Stone, and Mark Zuckerberg like or are inspired by.
Like Snapchat, Instagram, and Vine videos? Well you might want to check your cache clutter
Like Snapchat, Instagram, and Vine videos? Well you might want to check your cache clutter
Everytime you watch a video on Instagram, the more space you're unwittingly filling up with caches on your mobile device. Here's how to clean your phone.
U.S. State Department spends $630,000 to boost Facebook ‘likes’
U.S. State Department spends $630,000 to boost Facebook ‘likes’
How do you get 2.5 million Facebook followers? Spend $630,000 of course.
Turns out ‘delete’ doesn’t quite mean the same thing to Facebook as it does to you
Turns out ‘delete’ doesn’t quite mean the same thing to Facebook as it does to you
Deleting something on Facebook doesn't exactly mean that the content has been "deleted" as some users have discovered.
Facebook’s Graph Search flaw exposes names with phone numbers
Facebook’s Graph Search flaw exposes names with phone numbers
Facebook claims that phone numbers on Facebook are public, but scraping these numbers ironically merits getting chased by Facebook's lawyers.
On the day of Google Reader’s death, Bloglovin adds new social features to fill out its RSS service
On the day of Google Reader’s death, Bloglovin adds new social features to fill out its RSS service
With Google Reader gone, plenty of RSS readers are filling in the void. Bloglovin' is one of them with brand new social and content discovery features.
This week in Snapchat privacy issues, turns out iOS 7 kills the app’s screenshot notification
This week in Snapchat privacy issues, turns out iOS 7 kills the app’s screenshot notification
Once iOS 7 rolls out to iOS users, Snapchat is in for a PR nightmare since iOS 7 doesn't support screen shot notifications.
Yahoo News gets redesigned into a personalized news reader – will it make you care?
Yahoo News gets redesigned into a personalized news reader – will it make you care?
Yahoo News gets more than a face lift. CEO Marissa Mayer has transformed Yahoo News' humble news content platform into a personalized reader.
This is how Snapchat plans on making money
This is how Snapchat plans on making money
Snapchat is $60 million richer in financing, but the company is finally fleshing out a monetization strategy that includes in-app purchases and native ads.
Introducing the new Fiverr: Goodbye $5 max charge, hello professional profiles
Introducing the new Fiverr: Goodbye $5 max charge, hello professional profiles
Fiverr unveiled version 2.0, with a brand new gig discovery dashboard and a new tier-based seller account.
With Instagram video out, Twitter is on the attack to sign up new Vine users
With Instagram video out, Twitter is on the attack to sign up new Vine users
Twitter isn't sitting still now that Instagram video is available. Twitter is pulling out all the stops to retain and sign up new users - even via email.
This is how to turn off Instagram’s pesky video auto-play
This is how to turn off Instagram’s pesky video auto-play
Turn off the autoplaying videos on Instagram with this quick fix.
Quickmeme gets blacklisted from Reddit for trying to game the system
Quickmeme gets blacklisted from Reddit for trying to game the system
Quickmeme has been banned from Reddit after one of its CEOs was found abusing his moderator position in /r/AnimalAdvice.
There’s a really good reason Instagram videos are 15 seconds long
There’s a really good reason Instagram videos are 15 seconds long
Instagram now offers video recording, but there's a good financial reason that its videos can be recorded for up to 15 seconds.
The Smile Store brings a new market into the vast industry of Instagram printing
The Smile Store brings a new market into the vast industry of Instagram printing
Instagram has little market penetration in India, but Vipul Arora is betting on Istagram's future with The Smile Store, an Instagram photo printing service.
5 million Instagram videos were shared in the first 24 hours
5 million Instagram videos were shared in the first 24 hours
A whopping 5 million video clips were shared on Instagram in the first 24 hours and 40 hours of video per minute.
Instagram has video? Well Vine has a big update too!
Instagram has video? Well Vine has a big update too!
With the video for Instagram release, Vine is fighting back by teasing brand new features.
Hell is Other People is the anti-social network that helps you avoid your friends
Hell is Other People is the anti-social network that helps you avoid your friends
In a social networking-centric society, Even if 'Hell is Other People' is an anti-social network that helps you avoid bumping into your friends around town.
Vine gets an unofficial search engine, Vinecrawler
Vine gets an unofficial search engine, Vinecrawler
Vinecrawler is Vine's unofficial and unsanctioned search engine, and content discovery app rolled into one service.
India’s last state-operated telegram service bites the dust
India’s last state-operated telegram service bites the dust
Telegrams are still around with just handful of services left in India as surprising as that may be, but its presence is waning.
Is Airbnb really more affordable than a hotel? See for yourself
Is Airbnb really more affordable than a hotel? See for yourself
PriceEconomics settles the question of what's cheaper - Airbnb or a hotel - with a study proving that Airbnb is in most cases your best bet.
Twitter working on new feature to help discover people your friends are following
Twitter working on new feature to help discover people your friends are following
Twitter has a new feature in mind to drive people-discovery in a way that surfaces the users a group of your friends may have suddenly followed at once.
This photographer is on an Instagram-hunt for Pantone colors in real life
This photographer is on an Instagram-hunt for Pantone colors in real life
Photographer Paul Octavious scours Chicago in an effort to find 100 colors in real life that match his Pantone color postcards.
Hands on: Skype evolves into a Snapchat competitor with Video Messages
Hands on: Skype evolves into a Snapchat competitor with Video Messages
Feeling the pinch with plenty of competitors in the video messaging space, Skype has joined the game with its own take on video messaging.
For the first time ever, a GIF is being sent into space
For the first time ever, a GIF is being sent into space
A self-portrait of artist, Kim Asendorf, contemplating art was the first GIF was transmitted into space on June 17.