This modern memorial place in QC takes innovation to a whole new level

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At some point in our mortal lives, we will all have to deal with death, loss, and grief. But no matter how natural or inevitable death is, it still remains to be a difficult topic to discuss, even and especially with our innermost circles.

Subsequently, the issues of post-life care and memorial services are usually the last thing on our minds, too—not only because it is taboo, but also because of the notion that it requires a lot of work and money. This should not always be the case, however, because we all must have a choice in how we’d like to commemorate the life of our dearly departed and the cherished memories they leave behind.

Especially at this most difficult hour of our lives, we could do without the hassle and burden of preparing for a funeral. Yet, we would like our departed loved ones to have a peaceful resting place, too. This explains why more and more people all over the world are opting for more innovative and convenient ways in burying their dead as they veer away from the traditional and more costly land burial.

Here in the Philippines, Eternal Bright Sanctuary, Inc. (EBSI) is constructing Aeternitas Chapels and Columbarium, a new, world-class memorial facility on Commonwealth Avenue in Quezon City. 

Priding itself as the gold standard in the death care industry in the country, the soon-to-rise Aeternitas will offer over 45,000 spacious and beautifully designed niches that can house as many as four regular-sized urns per columbarium vault.

Designed by the current Philippine Regulatory Commissioner, Architect Yolanda Reyes, the nine-storey Aeternitas will have 15 premier memorial chapels and 2 grand memorial chapels.

Aeternitas will be strategically located beside St. Peter’s Shrine of Leaders, a parish church, and the proposed Don Antonio and Batasan Stations of the MRT-7, making it readily accessible for future visitors from all over the metro.

For the comfort and convenience of its clients and guests, Aeternitas will have 6 fully functional passenger elevators, centralized air-conditioning system, up to 200 parking slots, a cozy and

comfortable family room, round-the-clock security, and efficient emergency services.

As a “sanctuary of loving memories,” Aeternitas will exude a serene and peaceful ambiance that is in harmony with nature. It will have a modern lobby, pretty pocket gardens, a coffee shop, restaurant, and flower shop, greeneries all over the place, and a glass central ceiling that will allow natural illumination from the sun.

Honor the life and memories of your departed loved ones the modern and convenient way with Aeternitas’ full-service memorial care. 

For more information, contact Aeternitas at 625-0955 or 09171157793; or email them at info@aeternitaschapels.com.

PLDT and Smart ring in Christmas with ‘Holideals,’ their biggest holiday sale

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Brace yourself as leading digital services provider PLDT Inc. and its mobile arm Smart Communications, Inc. are ushering in the Christmas season with the first ever ‘Holideals,’ their biggest holiday blow-out yet for current and new customers.

PLDT and Smart’s Holideals feature huge discounts and irresistible offers that suit your Christmas gift list - whether you’re looking for the perfect present for your loved ones, or simply thinking of a well-deserved treat for yourself to celebrate the season.

“Christmas has always been the happiest season of Filipinos, and as our gift for everyone, we brought together our best deals that make it a lot easier to enjoy the most amazing digital experiences powered by the country’s fastest fixed and mobile networks,” said Andrew L. Santos, PLDT and Smart FVP for Consumer Marketing. “Indeed, there is no better time to be a PLDT Home and Smart customer than now.”

With Holideals, you can enjoy fast and reliable connectivity at home with the whole family with these special PLDT Home offers:

• For new PLDT Home Fibr customers

Save up to Php3,600 on Unli Fibr and enjoy waived activation and installation fees, free speedboost, and zero cash-out when you sign up for a new PLDT Home Unli Fibr plan.

• For current PLDT Home customers

Enjoy free one month when you sign up to a new add-on service, such as a Telpad, FamCam, or TVolution Roku Powered when you apply at any PLDT Store nationwide.

• PLDT Home Prepaid WiFi

Get a Php200 discount (now only Php1,795.00 from Php1,995.00) and a free six-month subscription to iflix.

• PLDT Online Gadget Sale

Get up to 50% discount on gadgets including the First Generation TVolution stick, Telpad, and Smart Watch, among others, on the PLDT Online Store.

Leveling up your digital lifestyle with the latest smartphones and data-packed offers is also a lot easier with Holideals offers from Smart:

• For Smart Prepaid customers

Enjoy discounted load card when you buy the Smart Prepaid Gift Card.

• For Smart Postpaid customers

Enjoy exclusive discounts and deals when you renew or sign up for a new GigaX Plan with the latest flagship devices, including Samsung Note 9, Huawei Mate 20, and Huawei Mate 20 Pro, as well as when you subscribe to a new Smart Bro Pocket WiFi Plan or iPad Plan. Also get a chance to win exciting raffle prizes with your new plans!

• Smart Online Store Bazaar

Enjoy awesome deals and avail of LTE smartphones at a steal of a price when you apply for a Smart Postpaid Plan on the Smart Online Store.

What are you waiting for? Celebrate Christmas with the biggest deals from PLDT and Smart! To learn more and start your holiday shopping, visit www.smart.com.ph/Pages/PLDTSmartHolideals now!

Throwback Shindig with The Company and Jon Santos

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Groove back to the decades of golden music of the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s in a concert driven by nostalgia and one that will tickle the funny bones. See the Philippines’ premier vocal ensemble on stage with a class act comedian in “Throwback with The Company and Jon Santos” on December 1, 2018 at The Theatre at Solaire.

Starting out as an out-of-college regroup, The Company has evolved in their 3 decades in the music industry. From singing the traditional genres, they decided to move to acapella and vocal jazz as a new challenge to themselves and for the novelty of the pieces. Living to its namesake, The Company reinvented their identities while maintaining the bond that they have developed in the years prior their success. The release of their singles “Everlasting Love”, “Muntik na Kitang Minahal” and the popular love song “Now That I Have You” which is often used as movie theme songs, or in wedding halls, have seemingly immortalized their names. The original members apart from Moy Ortiz, have moved on to pursue the next chapters of their lives but not without passing on the torch to their successors whom have kept their legacy alive and very much felt today. 

A stark contrast to the steady melody of songs comes Jon Santos, a powerhouse comedian famous for his impersonations that imprint themselves into the mind. His satirical impressions of the country’s most prominent political personas are complemented by his quick wit, allowing such a seemingly hilarious number to become the controversial stirrer of important conversations. He has transformed himself to the likes of Former President Joseph Estrada, Sen. Miriam Santiago (+), and Batangas Governor Vilma Santos who he admits, is his favorite. Although he became known for his comedic prowess, Jon was able to establish his credibility as a theatre performer who can add more spunk to any character he portrays. He has performed as lead in “Priscilla Queen of the Desert”, and more recently, “Rak of Aegis”.

The Theatre at Solaire’s advocacy of bringing Original Pilipino Music (OPM) under the limelight means offering acts that the audience demands, but also presents ingenious collaborations. “This unexpected tandem will highlight another layer of OPM that goes beyond the tunes, lyrics and voices. The Company and Jon Santos together on one stage merges what the Filipinos love most – good music and witty comedy. You will witness a new wave of theatrics that’s as exciting but with more spontaneity and humorous reality jabs.” says Audie Gemora, Solaire’s Director for Entertainment.

With The Company’s vocals injected with Jon’s brand of comedy, expect a night filled with throwbacks with the best “retro” beats that will make you dance, laugh and remember the heydays of the past,

For tickets to “Throwback with The Company and Jon Santos”, you can call TicketWorld at 891-9999.

About The Theatre At Solaire

THE THEATRE AT SOLAIRE a state-of-the-art certified lyric theatre that provides an unparalleled audio-visual experience for a wide range of theatre plays and musicals, dance performances, concert events, and amplified music and speech events. The fan-shaped layout designed by leading global architecture and design firm Aedas, provides flawless sight lines and ensures a first-class viewing experience from all its 1,740 seats. It is fitted with high-end audio, video and production lighting systems provided by Las Vegas-based theatre consultant group Coherent Design aimed to engage and satisfy its audience. 

The Theatre also boasts an impressive Reception Room and other dressing room facilities to accommodate the needs of production teams and artists. It has a Grand Foyer with a Theatre Cafe and bar for a wide range of refreshments suitable and convenient for guests.

Tess Laus and Max's Group Grow Successful Provincial Franchise in Pampanga

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Tess Laus of San Fernando, Pampanga felt a sense of responsibility to help her province recover after it was devastated by the cataclysmic eruption of Mt. Pinatubo more than 20 years ago, leaving thousands homeless and hundreds of businesses destroyed. The opportunity to do so came when her husband, Levy met with the father of Robert F. Trota, President and CEO of Max’s Group, Inc. (MGI) to discuss the company’s plans to expand through franchising. It was an easy decision for the couple as they saw that there was much potential in working with MGI, especially in helping them achieve their goals of rehabilitating Pampanga.

“When Robert’s father said that they were opening Max’s to franchising, we jumped on the opportunity. The first location we had in mind was the old Villa del Sol branch in San Fernando, and it took us about two months to rehabilitate the store since it was destroyed by lahar,” Tess Laus shares. “We really wanted the Kapampangans to get excited again with the opening of Max’s Restaurant, as we want them to have a place where they can all feel at home and enjoy delicious, real food with loved ones.”

Tess Laus and her husband truly appreciated how Max’s and MGI have always placed tremendous importance on quality assurance for both food and service, and the commitment they have in ensuring that franchisees did the same. As their store reached greater success, the Lauses opened three more Max’s Restaurant branches: one in Cabanatuan, another in Clark, and one more branch in San Fernando, this time in SM City Pampanga.

When MGI expanded its portfolio with the acquisition of the Pancake House Group, the Lauses did not hesitate to get on board, opening two Pancake House branches, one Yellow Cab, and one Dencio’s all within the span of eight months, October 2017 to June 2018.

This year, MGI is focusing on a franchising-led business model to drive expansion and improve accessibility. By franchising its core brands with partners such as the Lauses, the move will leverage on Max’s Group’s brand equity, operational expertise, and scale to propel store network expansion and bring its loved brands closer to more customers.

AI. The Catalyst for Personalized Experiences

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Smartphones today are no longer simple communications devices that surf the web and offer a few apps. With the introduction of Artificial Intelligence (AI), today’s smartphones should be perceived as ‘platforms of intelligence’. Today’s phones strive to understand user behavior in ways that will elevate the user experience to greater heights. Gartner[1] has predicted that by 2022, 80% of smartphones will have on-device AI capabilities, this is up from 10% in 2017. In coming years, an AI smartphone will no longer be a ‘nice to have’, it will be critical to fulfilling consumers’ needs. 

Most AI enabled smartphones in the market today are highly priced. However, Vivo is set to shake up the industry by including AI features into their phones at a much affordable level. The V11 model for example, is designed to understand the needs of users in an ‘intelligent’ and personalized way. For Vivo, the development of its AI features essentially elevates the user experience through better understanding, improved interactions and ‘decoding’ of scenarios in smarter and more personalized ways. 

Meet Jovi, the personal AI assistant

The V11 comes with Jovi - Vivo’s AI assistant, that aims to take the user experience to new heights. Users will not have to stress about missing an action item on to-do-lists with the help of Jovi. 

Picture a world where you have a virtual assistant to help you with your everyday mundane tasks. Jovi comes with features that are creatively incorporated into the V11 to enhance such experiences. 

With Google Assistant, users can now utilize voice commands to complete actions with more convenience and more precision. With this feature, completing tasks, such as playing music or videos, sending messages, booking hotels can easily be done anywhere. The best part? These can all be done hands-free.

Jovi also enables Funmoji - a new and fun way to socialize with friends and families. The V11 can create a unique set of cute expressions using the AI algorithm by detecting changes in users’ facial expressions. This adds further fun and engagement when communicating with each other.

“Jovi - Vivo’s AI assistant, that aims to take the user experience to new heights”

Detects and recalls context and situations

Jovi also comes with Jovi Smart Scene and Google Lens that can easily decode context and situations accordingly. These two features are designed to help users to save valuable time while automating simple chores. 

Jovi Smart Scene is a thoughtful and dedicated personal assistant that specializes in recognizing different scenarios and learns how to proactively support the user accordingly. It helps to provide users with more personalized services that are efficient, interactive and able to assist them in making decisions. From preempting users on bad weather forecasts to checking in on them when they are staying up late at work or updating them on the latest sport results - Jovi has it covered. Essentially, Jovi is the intelligent assistant that understands users’ needs in a better way. 

“Jovi Smart Scene specializes in recognizing different scenarios and provides efficient personalized user experience”

Have you ever seen something you really wanted to buy but had no idea where to purchase it? Just point your V11 camera at an object, and the integrated Google Lens will identify it and perform related searches. Whether you see your dream dress in a magazine, or a dream travel location – just point your V11 at it and Jovi will tell you where to find it. 

AI engine optimizes performance 

The V11 is also here to accommodate the busiest workaholics. V11’s Jovi AI Engine delivers a more efficient allocation of CPU and memory resources than ever before. By ‘reading’ user phone usage habits, the CPU will provide a custom operating mode to consumers. For the high-performing professional, when the V11 detects that he/she is constantly working overtime based on their location and timing, it will remind them to take a rest early. The heart of the V11’s AI features is the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 660AIE processor, which features first-class energy efficiency and processing power that seamlessly accommodates the busiest schedules. 

Imagine having a smartphone that could detect the current apps being used and allocate exactly the correct processing power to optimize performance? This could be the hardcore gamer’s new best friend. The V11 also features an AI Game Mode to ensure an uninterrupted gaming experience, with features such as Game Assistant to access floating call alerts and background calls, and an Automatic Game Mode to run your game in the background while the screen is switched off – so you never lose your progress.

Beyond the powerful Qualcomm Snapdragon 660AIE processor, the V11 comes with a 6GB RAM + 128GB ROM setup which ensures storage is enough for all users. Not only that, Vivo’s Dual-Engine Fast Charging also safely tops up the large 3400mAh capacity battery at a rapid speed, ensuring that the phone battery is well-charged, so gamers can focus on winning.

The V11 is designed to provide a more personalized experience, and to streamline heavy workloads with ease. AI will be the catalyst to stimulate the growth of modern smartphone software and hardware. Essentially, it will be the core engine for understanding and interacting with users in a more intelligent and engaging way. 

For inquiries about Vivo, visit the Vivo website at vivoglobal.ph or check out their

Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/vivophil), 

Instagram (https://www.instagram.com/vivo_philippines/), 

and Twitter (https://twitter.com/vivo_phil) accounts.

About Vivo

A global smartphone brand focused on introducing perfect sound quality and ultimate photography with cutting-edge technology, Vivo develops innovative and stylish products for young people. We now have over two hundred million users and are one of the preferred brands of young people around the world. As an Official Sponsor of the FIFA World Cup™, Vivo believes in the importance of encouraging young people to embrace self-expression and an energetic lifestyle. In the Philippines, Vivo is the top 3 smartphone brand in terms of market share with 1.5 million users nationwide.