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Six years after the announcement of plans to build Atari Hotels in eight cities across the US, including Las Vegas, only one now seems to be moving forward, in Phoenix, Arizona. The Las Vegas deal ultimately "didn't come to fruition," spokesperson Sara Collins told Las Vegas Sun this week, and Atari Hotels is putting its focus into the Phoenix site "for the time being."Phoenix was always meant to be the first site, followed by other hotels in Austin, Chicago, Denver, Las Vegas, San Francisco, San Jose and Seattle. But Las Vegas is now apparently off the table, and there haven't been any signs of life around the other planned locations. The FAQ on the Atari Hotels website notes, "Additional sites, including Denver, are being explored under separate development and licensing agreements." The Atari Hotel project was announced in 2020 just before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic and consequently experienced development delays. Construction on the Phoenix hotel, which was supposed to break ground in 2020, is expected to begin late this year, with its opening now planned for 2028.But maybe don't hold your breath. According to a December press release, the company is still trying to raise $35 million to $40 million to fund the "playable destination" for gamers in Phoenix.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/the-plan-for-a-gaming-themed-atari-hotel-in-las-vegas-has-reportedly-been-scrapped-214212269.html?src=rss

Amazon is reportedly adding Teresa Palmer (The Fall Guy, Warm Bodies, Hacksaw Ridge) to its pantheon of Norse gods for its God of War TV show adaptation. As first reported by Deadline, Palmer will play Sif, Thor's wife and eventual leader of the Aesir, in the live-action adaptation. It may not carry as much weight as the casting of the video game's protagonist that was revealed earlier this week to be Ryan Hurst, but it could hint at the direction the TV show may take.

In another attempt to reduce our attention spans to mush, TikTok has released the PineDrama app, which offers serialized drama series that are roughly a minute per episode. As first spotted by Business Insider, the app is designed exactly like TikTok, but instead of trendy dance videos, you can scroll through and watch "micro dramas."For those new to the category, micro dramas are bite-sized TV shows shot in vertical video and available in minute-long episodes. Don't expect any nominations for Best Original Screenplay with series like The Officer Fell For Me or Married to my past life's nemesis, since they typically offer soap opera vibes with cliffhangers that keep users scrolling to the next episode. The app is designed to keep people on it with a Discover tab, a place to save favorites and the ability to react in real time alongside other viewers.Right now, the micro dramas on PineDrama are all free to watch and don't have any ads. It's unclear if TikTok will introduce any costs or ads to the app, since other micro drama options like DramaBox or ReelShort have a paid structure. Late last year, TikTok also introduced a way to watch micro dramas within its own app, with a section called Minis. It's not the first time we're seeing shorter TV show formats, since Quibi made waves with a format of episodes that were less than 10 minutes long. However, maybe even 10 minutes was too long since the startup eventually called it quits after eight months.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/tiktoks-latest-spinoff-app-feels-a-lot-like-quibi-but-with-shorter-and-cornier-content-185702010.html?src=rss

E Ink tablet maker reMarkable is running a bundle deal right now that can save you between $80 and $90 when buying a reMarkable 2 along with a Marker stylus and a folio case. The savings vary depending on the bundle you configure, but this can bring your out-the-door cost down to $449 from $529 for the tablet, Marker stylus and polymer weave book folio. The offer runs through January 17. The company also sells a newer stylus called Marker Plus that lets you erase by flipping it around just like a real pencil, but that will cost you an extra $50. If you've been eyeing a dedicated writing tablet for work, school or just jotting down notes without the distraction of endless apps, this bundle deal is an ideal opportunity to pick one up. The reMarkable 2 earned our top pick for best e-ink tablet. In our review, we said the tablet was prettier than ever with a 10.3-inch display and a handsome aluminum frame. The tablet is only 4.7mm thick and weighs less than a pound, helping it feel lean and portable. The display can detect over 4,000 different levels of pressure with the Marker stylus, allowing for precise shading when sketching and the latency between the stylus and the screen is just 21ms. reMarkable fitted the display with a resin layer on top of the glass to make writing on it feel more realistic. We didn't think this passed muster, but we found writing on it was a joy nonetheless. The tablet supports PDFs and ePUBs, which can be added via the companion mobile app or a desktop computer. You can also pair the reMarkable 2 with Google Drive, Microsoft OneDrive or Dropbox to access files. The battery is rated for an impressive two weeks between charges. The reMarkable Paper Pro, a higher-end model with a richer feature set like a full color display and a built-in reading light, is our pick for best premium e-ink tablet. The pricier tablet also has bundle deals right now with savings up to $80 depending on configuration. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/tablets/its-the-last-day-to-get-up-to-90-off-remarkable-e-ink-tablet-bundles-150242090.html?src=rss

NBA League Pass, the streaming service that lets you catch hundreds of out-of-market NBA games, is on sale right now for up to 55 percent off. The League Pass Premium subscription is on sale for $75, down from $160, while League Pass Standard is marked down to $50 from $110. We're almost halfway through the season at this point, so it makes sense for a service like League Pass to start offering some discounts. The Standard plan includes commercials and support for only one device at a time, while the Premium tier offers no commercials, in-arena streams during breaks in the game, offline viewing of full games and concurrent streams on up to three devices at once. Last year, League Pass added multiview, which allows you to view up to four games at once on a single screen. This is included across both subscription tiers. The service also added a smart rewind tool that automatically selects key highlights and plays from each game. Outside the US and Canada, League Pass carries every single NBA game live, but within these countries a bevy of restrictions apply. In the US, any games being shown on your regional sports network will be blacked out as the service is meant for out-of-market games only. Also, any nationally broadcast games will not be available live, but instead will be available for on-demand viewing at 6AM ET the following day. The service is only for regular-season games. If you're an avid NBA fan that follows multiple teams then the League Pass almost certainly carries dozens of games you can watch even with the restrictions in the US. Subscribers can get a list of applicable blackouts by entering their ZIP code before signing up. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/get-nba-league-pass-for-up-to-55-percent-off-right-now-163421800.html?src=rss

We now have some idea of what's at stake in the longstanding feud between Elon Musk and OpenAI. As first reported by Bloomberg, the latest filing, as part of a lawsuit that accuses the AI giant of abandoning its non-profit status, claims that Musk is owed anywhere between $79 billion and $134 billion in damages from the "wrongful gains" of OpenAI and Microsoft.Musk claimed in the filing that he's entitled to a portion of OpenAI's recent valuation at $500 billion, after contributing $38 million in "seed funding" during the AI company's startup years. Along with providing "roughly 60 percent of the nonprofit's seed funding," Musk offered recruiting of key employees, introductions with business contacts and startup advice, according to the filing. The monetary estimate comes from C. Paul Wazzan, a financial economist who's serving as Musk's expert in the case. According to Wazzan's calculations, OpenAI earned between $65.5 billion and $109.43 billion in wrongful gains, while Microsoft saw between $13.3 billion and $25.06 billion.The lawsuit between Elon Musk and OpenAI dates back to March 2024, when the xAI CEO first filed a legal action claiming that OpenAI violated its non-profit status. Musk later added Microsoft as another defendant and even tried to get an injunction when OpenAI announced efforts to reorganize its corporate structure. Besides this suit, Musk has named OpenAI in another legal battle, accusing the company, along with Apple, of monopolistic practices that prevent xAI from getting a fair shot in the App Store.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/elon-musk-is-looking-for-a-134-billion-payout-from-openai-and-microsoft-171824945.html?src=rss

Most Apple products are pretty expensive, but some of the most affordable (and useful) ones are AirTags. The Bluetooth trackers are priced pretty reasonably even when not on sale, but they can be a steal if you can get them on a discount - like right now. A four pack of AirTags is on sale for $65 at Amazon, which is only a few dollars more than the record-low price we saw during Black Friday this year. AirTags can be useful for people who travel frequently, helping you to keep track of essentials like your passport as well as a way to keep tabs on luggage while you're on the go. If you do purchase some AirTags, we have some recommendations for useful accessories to go along with them, such as different styles of cases to best attach the trackers to different types of items. These are worth looking over and adding to your shopping cart in order to make the most of the product. AirTags have an IP67 rating for water and dust resistance and their replaceable batteries should last for about a year. They can also support Precision Finding, which gives more exact directions to a lost item, when paired with most models after the iPhone 11. Up to five people can share an AirTag's location, which is helpful for families or large travel groups. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/grab-a-four-pack-of-airtags-on-sale-for-65-202333514.html?src=rss

California Attorney General Rob Bonta has sent a cease and desist letter to xAI, days after his office launched an official investigation into the company over reports that Grok was generating nonconsensualIf you'll recall, xAI and Grok have been under fire for taking images of real individuals and putting them in revealing clothing like bikinis upon random users' requests.Bonta's office demands that xAI immediately cease and desist from creating digitized sexually explicit material" when the depicted individual didn't consent to it or if the individual is a minor. It also demanded that xAI stop facilitating or aiding and abetting the creation... or publication of digitized sexually explicit material" of nonconsenting individuals and persons under 18 years of age.X changed its policies after the issue broke out and prevented the Grok account from being able to edit images of real people into revealing clothing. xAI also moved Grok's image-generating features behind a paywall and geoblocked paying users' ability to edit images of real people into bikinis, but only in regions where it's illegal.In his announcement, Bonta said xAI developed a spicy mode" for Grok to generate explicit content and used it as a marketing point. The California AG also said that Grok-generated sexual images are being used to harass both public figures and ordinary users. Most alarmingly, news reports have described the use of Grok to alter images of children to depict them in minimal clothing and sexual situations," Bonta's announcement reads.The actions above violate California law, including California Civil Code section 1708.86, California Penal Code sections 311 et seq. and 647(j)(4), and California Business & Professions Code section 17200," it said. The state's Department of Justice now expects to hear from xAI on the steps it's taking to address these issues within the next five days.

AirPods work most smoothly with Apple hardware, but they also connect reliably to Android phones, Windows laptops and other Bluetooth devices. The pairing process depends on the platform in use although the basics remain the same. Once the AirPods are placed in pairing mode, most devices detect them quickly and handle the remaining steps in the background. The guide below explains how to pair AirPods with Apple products, how the process differs on newer iPhones that support H2 features and how to connect them to non-Apple devices.How to pair AirPods with Apple devicesApple builds AirPods to pair almost instantly with devices in its own ecosystem. Opening the charging case near an unlocked iPhone or iPad usually brings up an on-screen prompt. Tapping Connect links the earbuds to the device and to every other Apple product signed into the same iCloud account. After that, switching between devices is automatic. Audio output follows the active device as long as each product is using updated software and is signed in with the same Apple ID.If the pairing prompt does not appear, there are a few simple checks that help things move along. Opening the Control Center and selecting the audio output menu confirms whether the AirPods already appear as an available device. If they are listed there, choosing them establishes the connection. If they do not appear, opening the Settings app and checking Bluetooth usually reveals whether the AirPods are in range or already recognized. Opening the case while viewing the Bluetooth menu often triggers the pairing card once more.The process is similar across Apple Watch and Mac. When the AirPods are already linked to an iPhone, they tend to show up automatically on a paired Apple Watch. On Mac, opening System Settings and viewing the Bluetooth section reveals the same device list seen on an iPhone. Selecting the AirPods from that list completes the connection and also syncs the pairing status back to every other Apple device using the same account.Enhanced pairing with newer iPhonesSome newer iPhones support features enabled by the H2 chip used in newer AirPods models. With compatible AirPods, models such as iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 15 Pro Max and the iPhone 16 lineup tend to deliver a faster and more responsive setup experience. When an AirPods case is opened near one of these phones, the device quickly detects the earbuds and displays the pairing card with little delay. This also tends to speed up transitions between devices and improves reliability when switching audio sources.If the fast pairing prompt does not appear on a newer iPhone, reopening the case while the phone is unlocked is usually enough to reinitiate the process. It also helps to confirm that Bluetooth is turned on. Placing the AirPods back in the case for a few seconds and trying again will often reset the pairing state if the earbuds were connected elsewhere.AirPods Pro 3EngadgetHow to put AirPods into pairing modeEvery AirPods model supports a manual pairing mode. This is essential when linking the earbuds to devices outside the Apple ecosystem, or when the automatic prompt fails to appear on an iPhone or Mac. On older AirPods models, pairing mode is activated by opening the lid and pressing and holding the setup button on the back of the case until the LED light flashes white. Newer models, including AirPods 4 and AirPods Pro 3, use a touch-based method instead. With the lid open, tapping the area near the LED light places the earbuds into pairing mode. Leaving the lid open keeps the AirPods discoverable for nearby devices. Closing the case ends the process and requires it to be repeated if the device fails to detect them.Pairing mode does not remove any previous connections. It simply makes the AirPods available to new devices, which is helpful when switching between ecosystems. However, connecting to a new device usually takes priority. If the AirPods are already linked to something else that is nearby, turning off Bluetooth on the previously connected device prevents interference and helps the new device detect them more easily.How to pair AirPods with Android devicesAlthough AirPods are designed for Apple hardware, they function like any other Bluetooth earbuds on Android. Opening the case and placing the AirPods in pairing mode allows Android phones to detect them through the standard Bluetooth menu. The earbuds appear in the list of available devices and selecting them initiates the connection. Once paired, AirPods work for calls and media playback. Some features, such as automatic ear detection and battery status indicators, may require a third-party app on Android and are not supported at a system level. Features such as spatial audio and device switching remain exclusive to Apple's ecosystem but day-to-day performance is consistent on Android.If the AirPods fail to appear, refreshing the Bluetooth device list on the Android phone usually helps. Making sure the earbuds are still in pairing mode is essential since the white LED indicator stops flashing after a short period. Reopening the case and holding the button again, or tapping on the front for newer models, restores discoverability.How to pair AirPods with Windows laptopsWindows 11 handles AirPods as a regular audio device. Opening the Bluetooth and Devices menu in System Settings displays a list of nearby accessories. With the AirPods in pairing mode, the laptop should detect them and display them as an audio device. Selecting them completes the process and adds the earbuds to the device's known accessories. Windows generally reconnects to AirPods automatically on future sessions as long as Bluetooth remains enabled.If the earbuds do not appear in the list, toggling Bluetooth off and back on helps the system refresh the device scan. Checking whether the AirPods are already linked to a different device is another useful step. Windows sometimes struggles to take over a connection when the earbuds remain in range of a previously paired phone so disabling Bluetooth on the other device often resolves the issue.Troubleshooting common pairing issuesMost pairing problems come down to the AirPods not being in discoverable mode or being connected to another device nearby. Resetting the earbuds solves many problems. On AirPods models with a setup button, placing the AirPods in the case, leaving the lid open and holding the button until the LED turns amber then white restores the factory pairing state. On newer models without a physical button, place the AirPods in the case, close the lid for about 30 seconds, then open it and quickly tap the front of the case three times. The status light should then flash amber and then white, to indicate that the reset is complete. This clears previous connections and makes the AirPods behave as if they are new out of the box.Low battery levels can also interrupt pairing. Ensuring both the earbuds and the case have enough charge prevents unexpected disconnections during setup. Interference from other wireless accessories affects pairing on crowded networks. Moving to a quieter spot or turning off surrounding Bluetooth devices helps the AirPods stand out when scanning.AirPods are built to pair quickly with Apple devices but they also integrate smoothly with other platforms. Keeping the earbuds in pairing mode and confirming that Bluetooth is enabled on the device in use ensures a smooth setup every time. Once connected, the AirPods tend to remember the device and reconnect whenever they are nearby which keeps day-to-day use simple regardless of the platform.

I came out of my CyberGhost review with a positive opinion, feeling it had earned its spot in my best VPN roundup. However, even an expert review is subjective, and there's a chance CyberGhost will not work for you. If that's the case, here's how to cancel your subscription.How to stop your CyberGhost subscription renewingCancelling your CyberGhost subscription won't end it right away, unless you delete your account or get the refund (I'll explain how to do both of those later). Instead, the way to cancel CyberGhost is to stop your subscription from renewing at the end of each billing period. Once you've done that, you can keep using CyberGhost until your current period ends.The following steps will cancel auto-renewal if you got CyberGhost through its website. If you bought it through an app store instead, see the next section.

Welcome to our latest roundup of what's going on in the indie game space. Several neat-looking games arrived this week, we got release dates for several others that I'm really looking forward to and a brand-new Steam festival was announced.The Love, Romance, and Heartbreak Debutante Ball is said to be the first Valentine's Day-themed Steam festival. It'll run from February 13 to 20 and feature more than 100 games, including discounts and demos. A showcase will take place on February 13 at 1PM ET on the Sunny Demeanor Games YouTube channel too.Organizers say the festival includes a wide variety of games about love, including RPGs, puzzle games and (naturally) visual novels. You might play as a cat or someone trying to fish an engagement ring out of a claw machine, as a secret agent or a couple that's run off to another planet. I'm intrigued! There will be some NSFW games involved, for what it's worth.New releasesQuarantine Zone: The Last Check seems like a 3D version of Papers Please but with zombies. At a checkpoint amid a zombie outbreak, your mission is to screen survivors for signs of infection. If you're unsure of their status, you can send an individual to quarantine for further observation or a lab for additional screening. Otherwise, you can let them in or send them to "liquidation." Get things wrong and it could spell disaster, but at least you have a sidearm (and a weaponized drone) to help you deal with sticky situations.It looks like there's a lot going on in Quarantine Zone: The Last Check, which is from Brigada Games and publisher Devolver Digital. There are base and resource management aspects as well. It's out now on Steam (usually $20, but there's a 10 percent discount until January 26) and PC Game Pass.Air Hares seems to draw inspiration from classic top-down shoot-'em-ups. But instead of simply blowing up countless ships, your mission is to restore farmland. You'll fire seeds and water to turn barren land into fertile carrot fields. There are still enemies to contend with - you (and perhaps a co-op partner) can dodge and ram them as you try to protect the land.Expect boss battles, too.I really like the aesthetic here. It has a '90s-style cartoon look (I suddenly really want a modern Bucky O'Hare game). Also, the song from the trailer is going to live in my head for weeks.Husband-and-wife team Tim and Megan Bungeroth created Air Hares over six years with the help of several contributors. According to a press release, the game is "inspired by the creators' personal journey with infertility and the idea of creating life rather than destroying it."Air Hares is out now on Steam. It typically costs $9, but there's a 20 percent discount until January 28.Luckshot Games' Big Hops looks like my kind of 3D platformer: joyous and playful. As a young frog who has been kidnapped, you'll try to find airship parts for a raccoon who has promised to help get you home.There are tons of movement mechanics here, and Hop's tongue plays a major role in those. You can use it to swing across gaps, hookshot your way to higher platforms and solve puzzles.Big Hops is out now on Steam, Nintendo Switch and PS5 for $20. The Switch and Steam versions have a 10 percent launch discount until January 19.Cassette Boy is a pixel-art game that might appear to be a 2D exploration puzzler, but there's more going on here. You can rotate the world to discover new secrets and hide enemies and hazards from view so you can move past them. If you can't see something on your screen, it doesn't exist. There's a bit of a Fez influence here, it would appear.Wonderland Kazakiri and publisher Pocketpair are behind this one, which I'm looking forward to checking out when I have a chance. Cassette Boy is available on Steam, Switch, PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X/S for $13.UpcomingI really enjoyed the demo for Aerial_Knight's DropShot (as well as Aerial_Knight's previous games). I'm for sure going to be playing the full game when it hits PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Steam and Epic Games Store on February 17.This is a single-player first-person shooter in which you're skydiving with finger guns. You compete with four enemies to grab the only available parachute as you're falling through the air. Rounds are fast-paced too, generally lasting under a minute.Point-and-click adventure Earth Must Die has been on my radar for a while and we'll all get a chance to try it soon. It's designed to be a playable cartoon (with a runtime of about eight hours) and it has an art style to match.The cast is pretty stellar, with Ben Starr (Final Fantasy XVI, Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, Hades II), Joel Fry (Our Flag Means Death) and a whole load of British comedy figures on board. There's a demo available on Steam now and the full game - from Size Five Games and publisher No More Robots - will land on January 27.Let's wrap things up for this week something very silly-looking from Monster Shop Games. Pie in the Sky is a Tony Hawk's Pro Skater-inspired action arcade game in which you play as a magpie that terrorizes bystanders. You can knock people off the Sydney Harbour Bridge, ram kids off of scooters, actually go skateboarding and, uh, cause havoc from above. In classic THPS-style, there are hidden areas too.This looks like a fun distraction from [gestures at everything]. Pie is the Sky will swoop onto Steam on February 2.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/papers-please-but-with-zombies-a-farming-based-shoot-em-up-and-other-new-indie-games-worth-checking-out-123000437.html?src=rss

X seems to be working again after struggling with an outage that took the service offline and made it slow to load for much of the morning. According to X's developer platform page, there is an ongoing incident related to streaming endpoints that's caused increased errors. The incident started at 7:39AM PT, according to the page.That roughly coincides with a spike in reports at Down Detector. The issues seemed to be somewhat intermittent. At some points, X's website loaded partially and only showed older posts. At other times, the app and website failed to load at all.As of 9:30AM PT, X's Explore and trending pages were loading, but the following" tab wasn't showing posts and instead suggested users find some people and topic to follow" (as shown in the screenshot below).Posts aren't loading.XAs of 11:15AM PT, X's developer site was still indicating ongoing issues, so there may still be some lingering problems even though the website seems to be functioning normally again. Reports on Down Detector have also dropped off considerably.X didn't immediately respond to a request for comment on the outage. As TechCrunch notes, this is the second time this week that X has experienced significant issues. The service also went down for many users around the world on Tuesday.Bluesky changed its profile photo earlier in the week.XBut while the latest issues were widespread, some posts are were still managing to go through. Rival Bluesky, which earlier in the week changed its profile picture on X to its butterfly logo in a bikini, took the opportunity to throw some shade.At 1PM PT, X updated its status page to indicate the issue had been resolved after nearly six hours. It didn't elaborate on the underlying cause.Update, January 16, 2026, 2:09PM PT: Updated with the latest information from X's status page.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/x-is-fully-online-after-going-down-for-most-of-the-morning-171843711.html?src=rss

Google has filed its appeal to the Department of Justice's antitrust case that ended with a federal judge ruling that the company was maintaining a monopoly with its search business. While the company goes through the appeals process, it's also asking that implementation of the remedies from the case, which include a requirement that Google share search data with its competitors, also be paused.As we have long said, the Court's August 2024 ruling ignored the reality that people use Google because they want to, not because they're forced to," Google said in a statement. The decision failed to account for the rapid pace of innovation and intense competition we face from established players and well-funded start-ups. And it discounted compelling testimony from browser makers like Apple and Mozilla who said they choose to feature Google because it provides the highest quality search experience for their consumers."The company says that the requirement that it provide syndication services to rivals" and share search data is a privacy risk and could discourage competitors from building their own products." Both remedies where compromises based on what the Justice Department originally proposed, which included forcing Google to sell its Chrome web browser.After a 10-week trial held in 2023, Google was found to have a search monopoly in 2024 because of the placement it maintained as the default search engine on multiple platforms, and the control it exerted over the ads that appear in search results. Both arguments were key points in the DOJ's original 2020 lawsuit.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/google-is-appealing-the-ruling-from-its-search-antitrust-case-to-avoid-sharing-data-with-rivals-215107905.html?src=rss

If you're looking to up your privacy game on the internet in the new year, you can do so for a little less than usual thanks to ExpressVPN's latest deal. Its two-year plans are up to 78 percent off right now: the Advanced tier is on sale for $101 for two years, plus four additional free months. That works out to $3.59 per month during the promotional period. We've consistently liked ExpressVPN because it's fast, easy to use and widely available across a large global server network. In fact, it's our current pick for best premium VPN. One of the biggest drawbacks has always been its high cost, and this deal temporarily solves that issue. In our review we were able to get fast download and upload speeds, losing only 7 percent in the former and 2 percent in the latter worldwide. We found that it could unblock Netflix anywhere, and its mobile and desktop apps were simple to operate. We gave ExpressVPN an overall score of 85 out of 100. The virtual private network service now has three tiers. Basic is cheaper with fewer features, while Pro costs more and adds extra perks like support for 14 simultaneous devices and a password manager. Advanced sits in the middle and includes the password manager but only supports 12 devices. The Basic plan is $78 right now for 28 months, down from $363, and the Pro plan is $168, down from $560. That's 78 percent and 70 percent off, respectively. All plans carry a 30-day money-back guarantee for new users, so you can try it without committing long term if you're on the fence.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/get-up-to-78-percent-off-expressvpn-two-year-plans-180602525.html?src=rss

CyberGhost is the middle child of the Kape Technologies VPN portfolio, but in quality, it's much closer to ExpressVPN than Private Internet Access. I mainly put it on my best VPN list because it's so cheap, but I wouldn't have done that if it didn't earn its place in other ways - affordable crap is still crap, after all.My universal impression of CyberGhost is a VPN that's not perfect but is always genuinely working to make itself better. It makes decisions based on what will help its users, not to set itself apart in a crowded market. This makes it similar to a lot of other VPNs, but that's not a bad thing - especially at such a low price.Other than its price, the best things about CyberGhost are its intuitive app design, its frictionless user experience and the super-low latencies that make it an ideal pick for gamers. Download speeds are great up close but middling far away. While I love how many servers it's got in Africa and South America, a few too many of them are virtual locations. I'll get into all this and more in the review; feel free to read straight through or use the contents table to find the area that interests you most.Editor's note (1/16/26): We've overhauled our VPN coverage to provide more detailed, actionable buying advice. Going forward, we'll continue to update both our best VPN list and individual reviews (like this one) as circumstances change. Most recently, we added official scores to all of our VPN reviews.Check out how we test VPNs to learn more about the new standards we're using.Findings at a glance Category Notes Installation and UI Windows app has more options and the most sensible organizationmacOS app is very easy to use, but a bit lacking compared to WindowsAndroid and iOS both have simple main pages and slightly confusing preferencesNo browser extensions (free proxy doesn't count) Speed Excellent latency tests, with ping times short enough to lead the VPN fieldGreat download and upload speeds on close-in serversDistant servers lag somewhat on both upload and download, bringing down the worldwide average Security Uses WireGuard, IKEv2 and OpenVPN protocols, but they aren't all supported on all platformsBlocks IPv6 and prevents WebRTC and DNS leaksDisconnects when switching servers Pricing $12.99 per month$41.94 for 6 months ($6.99 per month)$56.94 for 28 months ($2.03 per month), renewing at the same price for 12 months ($4.79 per month)Seven simultaneous connections Bundles Dedicated IP address for $2.50 per month Privacy policy Anonymizes all personal dataCan share data with other Kape subsidiaries, but only if they're based in areas with good privacy lawsRAM-only servers and full-disk encryption confirmed by auditHas never given information to police Virtual location change Unblocked Netflix perfectly in five different regions using streaming-optimized servers and WireGuard Server network 125 server locations in 100 countriesGood global distribution, with nine locations in South America and six in AfricaHowever, most servers in the southern hemisphere are virtual locations that may not give the best speeds Features Kill switch cannot be turned off except on WindowsSplit tunneling by app on Android and by URL on WindowsContent blocker can only be turned on or off, no customizationLarge network of torrent-optimized servers and streaming serversSmart Rules automation is both user-friendly and deep Customer support Online help pages are well-written but poorly organizedLive chat responds quickly; there is a bot but it's easy to get pastCan also submit email tickets through an online portal Background check Founded in 2011 and based in RomaniaAcquired by Kape Technologies in 2017 Installing, configuring and using CyberGhostCyberGhost gets installation and UI largely right. There are no needless hurdles in the setup process. All its app designs put the important controls front and center and don't overload you with needless information. I've broken up my thoughts by platform, as CyberGhost is pretty different depending on where you use it.WindowsCyberGhost downloads and installs amazingly fast on Windows 11. I didn't even have to grant any permissions. I just opened the .exe, clicked through a licensing agreement and logged into the desktop client. It took about two minutes end-to-end, including time I spent digging around in my password vault. The CyberGhost VPN client for Windows 11. Sam Chapman for Engadget Once inside, you're greeted with a UI that looks an awful lot like Surfshark - and if it's not broken, don't fix it. Options for special servers are on the left, the server list is in the middle and the connection interface is on the right. The arrangement prioritizes the most important controls and keeps clutter to a minimum. The only thing I can find to complain about is that clicking on a country with multiple locations doesn't open the menu to choose between them; instead, you have to click on a hard-to-see arrow to the right of the name.To access any of the special servers, click the appropriate tab in the left window, then choose from the list. Everything connects quickly. A gear icon at the bottom-left leads to all the special features and options, organized into three tabs: General (to do with the VPN app itself), CyberGhost VPN (to do with the VPN connection) and Account (to do with your subscription). The names could be better, but I can't argue with the clear and useful descriptions on each feature.MacThe download process on macOS Sequoia is as easy as it is on Windows 11. CyberGhost walks you through every step, installs its helper tools with minimal fuss and is ready to go out of the box. It's best to download directly from cyberghostvpn.com, since the App Store version is designed for iPads, not desktop computers.Right after launching, the Mac app is pinned to the taskbar. To open it as a separate window, click the arrow button at the top-left. While it's in the taskbar, the only things you can do are connect, disconnect and switch to one of your favorite locations. You can do all that from the standalone window, too, so there's not much reason to ever leave it pinned. CyberGhost's VPN client for macOS Sequoia. Sam Chapman for Engadget The interface on Mac differs from the Windows client in other noticeable ways. For one thing, it's permanently in dark mode, whereas Windows users get to choose between light and dark. There are fewer categories of servers in the left-hand column, with only torrenting (called For Downloading) and streaming options available - you can still connect to NoSpy, but only by going to the Romania location on the main list.Also, the control panel gear is in the exact opposite location, sitting at the top-right of the connection window. The organization of options is also completely different and generally not as useful, with all the actual controls crammed into a single General tab. This happened to me once or twice when my internet connection had no problems. Sam Chapman for Engadget Compounding the sense that CyberGhost didn't give its Mac app as much attention as its Windows app, I kept getting the odd error pictured in the screenshot above. The client would tell me I had no internet connection (my internet was fine) and direct me to run a connection test. This would always turn up all green lights and let me connect without any incident. It rarely tripped me up for more than a moment, but it was still bizarre.AndroidCyberGhost on Android is streamlined to the extreme, focusing on ease of use above all else. Connections happen quickly, and the server selection is narrowed down, with only the streaming locations getting their own tab. It's nice, but it does sometimes remind me of when I'd clean my room by shoving all the clutter under the bed. CyberGhost connected on an Android phone. Sam Chapman for Engadget That's mainly because tapping the gear at the top-right opens up a preferences menu with a lot more going on than the main screen. Most of the options here aren't too complicated, but the shift is still jarring, especially since Android doesn't do as well as Windows at explaining what everything does. "Anonymous statistics" and "Share network data for troubleshooting" sound like the same thing to me, and we get nothing on the esoteric concept of Domain Fronting.Still, I'm nitpicking a bit. CyberGhost's Android client does 95 percent of its job very well. Most of the settings aren't necessary anyway, so you can pick your favorite server and be on your way.iOSMuch like its Android app, CyberGhost's iOS offering is sleek on the front end, a little cluttered in the back, but overall quite easy to use. Connections happen within seconds. The main page includes a useful option to tap on your current Wi-Fi network and immediately set Smart Rules for it. As with Android, only streaming-optimized servers and favorites are separated from the rest. The main page of CyberGhost's iPhone app. Sam Chapman for Engadget The control panel also looks very similar to what you get on mobile. The apparent clutter comes from simple on-off toggles and more complex submenus being all jumbled up together, but you can use the VPN just fine without engaging with any of it. For the most part, CyberGhost on iOS does a lot to help you and nothing to get in your way.Browser extensionsCyberGhost doesn't have a full-service browser extension. If you look for an extension link on the download hub, you won't find anything. What it does have is free proxy add-ons for Chrome and Firefox, which can be used to change your IP address to a new location.However, proxies do not encrypt your traffic, leaving out one of the critical aspects of how a VPN works. The extension library pages for the CyberGhost proxies are vague about this, but they're no substitute for a full VPN. They're free and may be convenient for occasional streaming if they don't get caught, but they aren't secure.CyberGhost speed testI conducted all these tests on a wireless connection using the WireGuard protocol. For each, I selected either a physical server or a virtual location close to its physical source. Here's what each metric means in the table below:

Claude Cowork, Anthropic's AI assistant for taking care of simple tasks on your computer, is now available for anyone with a $20 per month Pro subscription to try. Anthropic launched Cowork as an exclusive feature for its Max subscribers, who pay a minimum of $100 per month for more uses of Claude's expensive reasoning models and early access to experimental features. Now Claude Cowork is available at a cheaper price, though Anthropic notes "Pro users may hit their usage limits earlier" than Max users do.Like other AI agents, the novelty of Claude Cowork is its ability to work on its own. If you have the macOS Claude app and a Pro subscription, you can prompt Claude Cowork to work on tasks on your local computer, like creating documents based on files you have saved or organizing your folders. The feature is an evolution of Claude Code, Anthropic's AI coding agent, and can similarly use connectors and the Claude Chrome plugin to work with other apps and the web.As part of this expanded rollout, Anthropic has included a few fixes inspired by early user feedback. You'll now be able to rename sessions with Claude Cowork ("Tasks" in the parlance of the Claude app) and the company says the AI assistant will offer better file format previews, more reliable use of connectors to other apps and confirmation messages before it deletes files.Coding agents top the list of applications of AI that have gained real traction in the last year, so Anthropic applying what it learned with Claude Code to a more general collection of computer tasks makes sense. Claude Cowork is still limited to macOS and Anthropic's paid subscribers, but assuming the AI agent continues to be popular, it wouldn't be surprising if the company brought it to other platforms.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/anthropic-opens-up-its-claude-cowork-feature-to-anyone-with-a-20-subscription-194000021.html?src=rss

If you follow Anthropic, you're probably familiar with Claude Code. Since the fall of 2024, the company has been training its AI models to use and navigate computers like a human would, and the coding agent has been the most practical expression of that work, giving developers a way to automate rote programming tasks. Starting today, Anthropic is giving regular people a way to take advantage of those capabilities, with the release of a new preview feature called Claude Cowork.The company is billing Cowork as "a simpler way for anyone - not just developers - to work with Claude." After you give the system access to a folder on your computer, it can read, edit or create new files in that folder on your behalf.Anthropic gives a few different example use cases for Cowork. For instance, you could ask Claude to organize your downloads folder, telling it to rename the files contained within to something that's easier to parse at a glance. Another example: you could use Claude to turn screenshots of receipts and invoices into a spreadsheet for tracking expenses. Cowork can also navigate websites - provided you install Claude's Chrome plugin - and make can use Anthropic's Connectors framework to access third-party apps like Canva."Cowork is designed to make using Claude for new work as simple as possible. You don't need to keep manually providing context or converting Claude's outputs into the right format," the company said. "Nor do you have to wait for Claude to finish before offering further ideas or feedback: you can queue up tasks and let Claude work through them in parallel."If the idea of granting Claude access to your computer sounds ill-advised, Anthropic says Claude "can't read or edit anything you don't give it explicit access to." However, the company does note the system can "take potentially destructive actions," such as deleting a file that is important to you or misinterpreting your instructions. For that reason, Anthropic suggests it's best to give "very clear" guidance to Claude.Anthropic isn't the first to offer a computer agent. Microsoft, for example, has been pushing Copilot hard for nearly three years, despite seemingly limited adoption. For Anthropic, the challenge will be convincing people these tools are useful where others have failed. The fact Claude Code has been universally loved by programmers may make that task easier.Anthropic briefly made Cowork preview only available to users of its pricey Claude Max subscription. That changed on Friday when the company expanded access to include customers of its $20 per month Pro plan. If you want to try Cowork for yourself, you'll need a Mac with the Claude macOS app installed.Update 01/16/26 2:30PM ET: Updated to reflect Claude Cowork is now also available to Claude Pro customers.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/anthropic-launches-claude-cowork-a-version-of-its-coding-ai-for-regular-people-193000849.html?src=rss

OpenAI plans to start testing ads inside of ChatGPT "in the coming weeks." In a blog post published Friday, the company said adult users in the US of its free and Go tiers (more on the latter in a moment) would start seeing sponsored products and services appear below their conversations with its chatbot. "Ads will be clearly labeled and separated from the organic answer," OpenAI said, adding any sponsored spots would not influence the answers ChatGPT generates. "Answers are optimized based on what's most helpful to you."OpenAI says people won't see ads appear when they're talking to ChatGPT about sensitive subjects like their health, mental state of mind or current politics. The company also won't show ads to teens under the age of 18. As for privacy, OpenAI states it won't share or sell your data with advertisers. The company will also give users the option to disable ad personalization and clear the data it uses to generate sponsored responses. "We'll always offer a way to not see ads in ChatGPT, including a paid tier that's ad-free," OpenAI adds. Users can dismiss ads, at which point they'll be asked to explain why they didn't engage with it.Users will be able to ask follow-up questions about sponsored content. OpenAI"Given what AI can do, we're excited to develop new experiences over time that people find more helpful and relevant than any other ads. Conversational interfaces create possibilities for people to go beyond static messages and links," OpenAI said. However, the company was also quick to note its "long-term focus remains on building products that millions of people and businesses find valuable enough to pay for."To that point, OpenAI said it would also make its ChatGPT Go subscription available to users in the US. The company first launched the tier in India last August, marketing it as a low-cost alternative to its more expensive Plus and Pro offerings. In the US, Go will cost $8 per month - or $12 less than the monthly price of the Plus plan - and offer 10 times higher rate limits for messages, file uploads and image creation than the free tier. The subscription also extends ChatGPT's memory and context window, meaning the chatbot will be better at remembering details from past conversations. That said, you'll see ads at this tier. To go ad-free, you'll need to subscribe to one of OpenAI's more expensive plans. For consumers, that means either the Plus or Pro plans.According to reports, OpenAI had been testing ads inside of ChatGPT since at least the end of last year. As companies continue to pay a high cost for model training and inference, all chatbots are likely to feature ads in some form.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/openai-is-bringing-ads-to-chatgpt-192831449.html?src=rss

Although X removed Grok's ability to create nonconsensual digitally undressed images on the social platform, the standalone Grok app is another story. It reportedly continues to produce nudified" deepfakes of real people. And now, Ashley St. Clair, a conservative political strategist and mother of one of Elon Musk's 14 children, has sued xAI for nonconsensual sexualized images of her that Grok allegedly produced.In the court filing, St. Clair accused xAI's Grok chatbot of creating and disseminating deepfakes of her as a child stripped down to a string bikini, and as an adult in sexually explicit poses, covered in semen, or wearing only bikini floss." In some cases, the chatbot allegedly produced bikini-clad deepfakes of St. Clair based on a photo of her as a 14-year-old. People took pictures of me as a child and undressed me. There's one where they undressed me and bent me over, and in the background is my child's backpack that he's wearing right now," she said.I am also seeing images where they add bruises to women, beat them up, tie them up, mutilated," St. Clair told The Guardian. These sickos used to have to go to the dark depths of the internet, and now it is on a mainstream social media app."St. Clair said that, after she reported the images to X, the social platform replied that the content didn't violate any policies. In addition, she claims that X left the images posted for up to seven days after she reported them. St. Clair said xAI then retaliated against her by creating more digitally undressed deepfakes of her, therefore making [St. Clair] the laughingstock of the social media platform."She accused the company of then revoking her X Premium subscription, verification checkmark and ability to monetize content on the platform. xAI further banned [her] from repurchasing Premium," St. Clair's court filing states.On Wednesday, X said it changed its policies so that Grok would no longer generate sexualized images of children or nonconsensual nudity in those jurisdictions where it's illegal." However, the standalone Grok app reportedly continues to undress and sexualize photos when prompted to do so.Neither Apple nor Google has removed the Grok app despite explicit policy violations.Anna Moneymaker via Getty ImagesApple and Google have thus far done, well, absolutely nothing. Despite the multi-week outrage over the deepfakes -and an open letter from 28 advocacy groups - neither company has removed the X or Grok apps from their app stores. Both the App Store and Play Store have policies that explicitly prohibit apps that generate such content.Neither Apple nor Google has responded to multiple requests for comment from Engadget. That includes a follow-up email sent on Friday, regarding the Grok app continuing to nudify" photos of real women and other people.While Apple and Google fail to act, many governments have done the opposite. On Monday, Malaysia and Indonesia banned Grok. The same day, UK regulator Ofcom opened a formal investigation into X. California opened one on Wednesday. The US Senate even passed the Defiance Act for a second time in the wake of the blowback.If you are a woman, you can't post a picture, and you can't speak, or you risk this abuse," St. Clair told The Guardian. It's dangerous, and I believe this is by design. You are supposed to feed AI humanity and thoughts, and when you are doing things that particularly impact women, and they don't want to participate in it because they are being targeted, it means the AI is inherently going to be biased."Speaking about Musk and his team, she added that these people believe they are above the law, because they are. They don't think they are going to get in trouble, they think they have no consequences."This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/the-mother-of-one-of-elon-musks-children-is-suing-xai-over-nonconsensual-deepfake-images-191451979.html?src=rss

Last week at CES, Lego introduced its new Smart Play system, with a tech-packed Smart Brick that can recognize and interact with sets and minifigures. It was unexpected and delightful to see Lego come up with a way to modernize its bricks without the need for apps, screens or AI.So I was a little surprised this week when the Lego Education group announced its latest initiative is the Computer Science and AI Learning Solution. After all, generative AI feels like the antithesis of Lego's creative values. But Andrew Silwinski, Lego Education's head of product experience, was quick to defend Lego's approach, noting that being fluent in the tools behind AI is not about generating sloppy images or music and more about expanding what it means by teaching computer science.I think most people should probably know that we started working on this before ChatGPT [got big]," Silwinski told Engadget earlier this week. Some of the ideas that underline AI are really powerful foundational ideas, regardless of the current frontier model that's out this week. Helping children understand probability and statistics, data quality, algorithmic bias, sensors, machine perception. These are really foundational core ideas that go back to the 1970s."To that end, Lego Education designed courses for grades K-2, 3-5 and 6-8 that incorporate Lego bricks, additional hardware and lessons tailored to introducing the fundamentals of AI as an extension of existing computer science education. The kits are designed for four students to work together, with teacher oversight. Much of this all comes from learnings Lego found in a study it commissioned showing that teachers often find they don't have the right resources to teach these subjects. The study showed that half of teachers globally say current resources leave students bored" while nearly half say computer science isn't relatable and doesn't connect to students' interests or day to day." Given kids' familiarity with Lego and the multiple decades of experience Lego Education has in putting courses like this together, it seems like a logical step to push in this direction.In Lego's materials about the new courses, AI is far from the only subject covered. Coding, looping code, triggering events and sequences, if/then conditionals and more are all on display through the combination of Lego-built models and other hardware to motorize it. It feels more like a computer science course that also introduces concepts of AI rather than something with an end goal of having kids build a chatbot.In fact, Lego set up a number of red lines" in terms of how it would introduce AI. No data can ever go across the internet to us or any other third party," Silwinski said. And that's a really hard bar if you know anything about AI." So instead of going to the cloud, everything had to be able to do local inference on, as Silwinski said, the 10-year-old Chromebooks you'll see in classrooms." He added that kids can train their own machine learning models, and all of that is happening locally in the classroom, and none of that data ever leaves the student's device."Lego also says that its lessons never anthropomorphize AI, one of the things that is so common in consumer-facing AI tools like ChatGPT, Gemini and many more. One of the things we're seeing a lot of with generative AI tools is children have a tendency to see them as somehow human or almost magical. A lot of it's because of the conversational interface, it abstracts all the mechanics away from the child."Lego also recognized that it had to build a course that'll work regardless of a teacher's fluency in such subjects. So a big part of developing the course was making sure that teachers had the tools they needed to be on top of whatever lessons they're working on. When we design and we test the products, we're not the ones testing in the classroom," Silwinski said. We give it to a teacher and we provide all of the lesson materials, all of the training, all of the notes, all the presentation materials, everything that they need to be able to teach the lesson." Lego also took into account the fact that some schools might introduce its students to these things starting in Kindergarten, whereas others might skip to the grade 3-5 or 6-8 sets. To alleviate any bumps in the courses for students or teachers, Lego Education works with school districts and individual schools to make sure there's an on-ramp for those starting from different places in their fluency.While the idea of teaching AI" seemed out of character for Lego initially, the approach it's taking here actually reminds me a bit of Smart Play. With Smart Play, the technology is essentially invisible - kids can just open up a set, start building, and get all the benefits of the new system without having to hook up to an app or a screen. In the same vein, Silwinski said that a lot of the work you can do with the Computer Science and AI kit doesn't need a screen, particularly the lessons designed for younger kids. And the sets themselves have a mode that acts similar to a mesh, where you connect numerous motors and sensors together to build incredibly complex interactions and behaviors" without even needing a computer.For educators interested in checking out this latest course, Lego has single kits up for pre-order starting at $339.95; they'll start shipping in April. That's the pricing for the K-2 sets, the 3-5 and 6-8 sets are $429.95 and $529.95, respectively. A single kit covers four students. Lego is also selling bundles with six kits, and school districts can also request a quote for bigger orders.

Canada has agreed to drastically reduce its tariffs on imported Chinese EVs from 100 percent to 6.1 percent as part of a new deal between the two countries. In return, China will be reducing tariffs on Canadian canola seeds from 84 percent to about 15 percent.The move is a break from the United States, which maintains a 100 percent tariff on EVs from China, effectively banning them in the country. Mexico currently tariffs the vehicles at 50 percent after increasing its rate last year.Under the agreement, which Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney called "preliminary," Canada will allow up to 49,000 Chinese EVs into the country, with that number rising to 70,000 after five years. Until now the three major North American trading partners had been aligned in trying to protect their domestic electric vehicle manufacturing. Chinese EV companies benefit from state subsidies, and as such can often be priced at a far better value than domestic alternatives.Our relationship has progressed in recent months with China. It is more predictable and you see results coming from that," Carney said to reporters. A warmer relationship may be forming in response to the Trump administration's tariff policies, with China hoping that alienated nations may seek a better relationship with the Eastern power.As to concerns that cheaper electric vehicles from China could hurt the Canadian auto market, the prime minister was unconcerned, saying "it's still in low, single-digit proportion of the size of the Canadian auto sector," Carney added, Canadians buy about 1.8 million autos a year." China remains Canada's second-largest trading partner after the United States.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/canada-cuts-tariffs-on-chinese-evs-as-part-of-new-deal-174241990.html?src=rss

We already knew something Ocarina of Time-related was coming from Nintendo and Lego in 2026, and now we know exactly what that set will look like. Weighing in at a surprisingly modest 1,003 pieces, the typically word salad-y Lego The Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time - The Final Battle is the second Lego Zelda set, following the 2,500-piece Great Deku Tree set in 2024. While the latter lets you choose between building either a Breath of the Wild or OoT-themed replica of the wise old guardian of the forest, the upcoming set is aimed squarely at fans of the series' debut 3D outing. As you can probably guess from the name, it's a brick-built tribute to Link and Princess Zelda's climactic battle with Ganondorf in the seminal Nintendo 64 game, in what remains of the castle. Inside the rubble are three recovery hearts. It's hard to see how this works without a video, but Lego says you can release Link's nemesis by pressing a button that raises him from the debris. As well as the minifigures for Zelda and Link - complete with his Master Sword and Hylian Shield - you also get a suitably transparent Navi to display. And then there's the large poseable Ganon (the pig demon version of Ganondorf), which is probably the highlight of the whole set. Interestingly, the new Ocarina of Time set is the first high-profile Lego announcement since unveiling its new Smart Brick at CES, but it looks like we'll be playing with regular dumb Lego only here. You'll just have to do the final Hyrule-saving "Hyah!" yourself, I guess. Lego The Legend of Zelda : Ocarina of Time - The Final Battle is available to pre-order from today and will be available from March 1, priced at $130. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/the-latest-legend-of-zelda-lego-set-pays-tribute-to-ocarina-of-times-final-battle-172212137.html?src=rss

You know things are messed up when a Big Tech company fights accusations of union-busting by insisting it was only AI layoffs. That's where things stand after a group of fired TikTok moderators in the UK filed a legal claim with an employment tribunal. The Guardian reported on Friday that around 400 TikTok content moderators who were unionizing were laid off before Christmas.The workers were sacked a week before a vote was scheduled to establish a collective bargaining unit. The moderators said they wanted better protection against the personal toll of processing traumatic content at a high speed. They accused TikTok of unfair dismissal and violating UK trade union laws."Content moderators have the most dangerous job on the internet," John Chadfield, the national officer for tech workers at the Communication Workers Union (CWU), said in a statement to The Guardian. "They are exposed to the child sex abuse material, executions, war and drug use. Their job is to make sure this content doesn't reach TikTok's 30 million monthly users. It is high pressure and low paid. They wanted input into their workflows and more say over how they kept the platform safe. They said they were being asked to do too much with too few resources."TikTok denied that the firings were union-busting, calling the accusations "baseless." Instead, the company claimed the layoffs were part of a restructuring plan amid its adoption of AI for content moderation. The company said 91 percent of transgressive content is now removed automatically.The company first announced a restructuring exercise in August, just as hundreds of moderators in TikTok's London offices were organizing for union recognition. At the time, John Chadfield, CWU's National Officer for Tech, said the workers had long been "sounding the alarm over the real-world costs of cutting human moderation teams in favour of hastily developed, immature AI alternatives.""That TikTok management have announced these cuts just as the company's workers are about to vote on having their union recognised stinks of union-busting and putting corporate greed over the safety of workers and the public," Chadfield said.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/tiktok-sued-by-former-workers-over-alleged-union-busting-170446921.html?src=rss

One way to read more in the new year is to incorporate audiobooks as part of your reading habit. Audible is having a sale right now that makes that easier and cheaper to do: you can get three months of access for only $1 per month, or a total of $3. The promotion runs through January 21. An Audible subscription grants one audiobook per month to keep. This can be selected from a massive catalog of new releases and bestsellers. The collection here has just about everything. However, it's easy to plow through a single book in a month. Users also get streaming access to thousands of curated titles. Think of it like Netflix for audiobooks. The catalog is limited, but it gets the job done in a pinch. Subscribers do get access to all Audible original content and they will receive discounts on purchasing audiobooks outright. In other words, it's a neat little service and well worth a buck. The regular price is $15, so make sure to cancel at the end of that three months if you aren't enjoying the platform. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/audible-deal-three-months-of-access-is-only-3-right-now-193859977.html?src=rss

Verizon is offering a very small mea culpa after Wednesday's massive outage, which drew more than 1.5 million reports on Downdetector and lasted hours. Initially, the carrier posted on X that it will offer a $20 credit, but customers must redeem it in the myVerizon app. The company then said the credit could be claimed though customer service (via phone or chat), but our editors' attempts to do so via chat were met with a message to wait for a text with further instructions.Engadget editors began receiving the texts this morning (Jan 16) with a link to redeem. From there, you need to log into your account and visit the Account Overview section. Up top, there should be a Take Action or Mobile Actions button with a red notification circle. Click that and you'll see a pop-up about the credit and a Redeem Now button. After you click that, you're done, and Verizon says you should see the credit in one or two billing cycles. Of course, you'll want to keep an eye out that it actually happens and contact the company if it doesn't show up."This credit isn't meant to make up for what happened. No credit really can," the company wrote. "But it's a way of acknowledging your time and showing that this matters to us." Incensed customers have largely replied with incredulity, both at the miniscule amount, and that it isn't being applied automatically. The entire redemption process takes a few clicks and about a minute to complete, which makes it even more frustrating that it can't be automatically applied to every customer's bill.Update, January 15 2026, 11:57 PM ET: Verizon says the credit can be claimed through customer service via phone, chat and online in addition to the myVerizon app.Update, January 16 2026, 10:29 AM ET: This story has been updated with detailed info about the redemption process which Verizon now says is completed with a link that will be texted to customers.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/how-to-claim-verizons-20-credit-for-wednesdays-service-outage-171909695.html?src=rss

Apple's next-gen Siri is still far off, but this week the company announced that it'll be using Google's Gemini AI for its new foundation models. In this episode, Devindra and Engadget's Igor Bonifacic discuss why Apple teamed up with Google again, instead of OpenAI or Anthropic. Also, they chat about Meta's Reality Lab layoffs, which is refocusing the company on AI hardware like its smart glasses.Subscribe!

The holiday season is fully in the rear view mirror and real life is here to stay. But that doesn't mean the time for gifts is over - especially ones for yourself. You can still take advantage of great January sales on some awesome tech products. Take the Apple Mac mini M4, which is down to $500 from $599. The 17 percent discount gives you 16GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD for only about $20 more than the computer's Black Friday sale. Its beefier models are also on sale: opting for 512GB of SSD will cost you $690, down from $799, while also upping your RAM to 24GB is available for $890, dropping from $999. We gave the Apple Mac mini M4 a 90 in our review thanks in large part to its powerful chip. The M4 works very fast despite being in such a small device. It also offers front-facing headphone and USB-C ports. You can further upgrade to the Apple M4 Pro chip for $1,270, down from $1,399 - a nine percent discount. The Pro model also has Thunderbolt 5 support. Check out our coverage of the best Apple deals for more discounts, and follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/get-100-off-apples-mac-mini-m4-desktop-141615926.html?src=rss

Now that the winter holidays are well and truly past, now's the perfect time to take stock of your tech setup. If you were gifted (or gifted yourself) some new gear in December, make sure that you've got the proper accessories to keep that gear performing at its best. If a new way to power all those batteries would be a benefit, Amazon's currently running a discount on an excellent wireless charging pad. The UGREEN MagFlow Qi2 3-in-1 Charger Station 25W is on sale for $95. That's only a little bit above the lowest price we've ever seen for the product (which was $90), and it's still a 32 percent discount off its usual cost. This is our top pick for a 3-in-1 charging pad thanks to its versatility. The UGREEN can work equally well as a permanent fixture in your home or act as a portable charging station. It boasts a foldable design and has smart little design details to keep it feeling like a premium product. The Qi2 25W charging works across a range of iPhone models and accessories, such as AirPods. There's also a dedicated part of the pad's design for an Apple Watch, which uses a proprietary charging standard, to power up too. Just note that you'll need a newer model of phone and the latest iOS 26 in order to take full advantage of the 25W charging capability. The wireless pad also comes with both a charging plug and a cable. We felt this UGREEN model was a great value at $140, so being able to snag one for a third of the usual price is an even better deal. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/our-favorite-3-in-1-wireless-charger-is-on-sale-for-32-percent-off-214707127.html?src=rss

The fate of Warner Bros. Discovery remains the biggest story in Hollywood, with Paramount Skydance refusing to back down from its rival bid to the proposed Netflix acquisition of the company. If the Netflix deal does go through, the company's co-chief executive, Ted Sarandos, has attempted to ease concerns around what that could mean for theaters.In an interview with The New York Times, Sarandos responded to a question about his company's commitment to the theatrical business by insisting that he has no interest in bringing a swift end to it. "We will run that business largely like it is today, with 45-day windows," he said. "I'm giving you a hard number. If we're going to be in the theatrical business, and we are, we're competitive people - we want to win. I want to win opening weekend. I want to win box office."Prior to this new NYT interview's publication, Deadline reported that it had been told by sources that Netflix was supportive of a 17-day window, which would obviously be far more damaging to theaters. This came after the Stranger Things finale reportedly banked north of $25m during its brief theatrical run over New Year's Eve and New Year's Day.Sarandos was also asked if he regretted saying the theatrical business as we know it today is an "outmoded" idea. He told the NYT: "You have to listen to that quote again. I said 'outmoded for some.' I mean, like the town that 'Sinners' is supposed to be set in does not have a movie theater there. For those folks, it's certainly outmoded. You're not going to get in the car and go to the next town to go see a movie." (Movies are actually nascent technology in Sinners, which is set in the 1930s. Bad example, Ted!) He went on to explain that for someone like his daughter, who lives in Manhattan and has a number of theaters within walking distance of her home, the term does not apply in the same way.The Netflix co-chief exec's latest comments seem to be designed to appease theater owners as much as the movie-going public, after a number of chains opposed the proposed WBD sale. "Such an acquisition will further consolidate control over production and distribution of motion pictures in the hands of a single, dominant, global streaming platform in a market that is already highly concentrated," said trade organization Cinema United in a statement to Congress.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/netflix-will-give-wbd-movies-45-day-theater-exclusivity-if-deal-goes-through-141223786.html?src=rss

Meta is killing the standalone Workrooms app on February 16, 2026. The company presented Workrooms as a virtual reality space where teams can meet and collaborate in an immersive environment when it launched the product. Now Meta says its Horizon platform has evolved enough to support a wide range of productivity apps and tools," so it made the decision to discontinue Workrooms as a standalone app."The company recently slashed its spending on the metaverse and started the process to lay off more than 1,000 employees from its Reality Labs division. Due to those layoffs and organizational changes, it closed three of its VR studios. Reality Labs had lost more than $70 billion since 2021, and Meta told Engadget that it had decided to shift some of its investments from the metaverse towards wearables, such as its AI-powered Ray-Ban smart glasses. The company is also discontinuing Horizon managed services, its subscription service that helps organizations manage their Quest headsets, in February.Users will no longer be able to access the Workrooms app or any of their data in it starting on February 16. Meta is allowing people to download their data if they need it until that date.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/meta-is-closing-down-its-vr-meeting-rooms-as-part-of-its-wider-cull-140000422.html?src=rss

The Italian Competition Authority (AGCM) has opened two investigations into Microsoft-owned game studio Activision Blizzard, centered around the mobile games Diablo Immortal and Call of Duty: Mobile. The AGCM alleges the free-to-play games use "misleading and aggressive practices" to encourage in-game purchases.Regulators say the games rely on a "deceptive user interface design" meant to encourage longer and more frequent play sessions while bombarding players with reminders and opportunities to spend real money in-game. Players might be reminded to buy a limited-time item before it's gone or urged not to miss out on rewards, with in-app messages and push notifications that reach players during and outside gameplay. The authority also raised concerns about virtual currency and in-game currency bundles that can make it harder to understand real-world costs.Parental control settings are also being scrutinized as the AGCM says the default settings are too permissive, such as allowing in-game purchases and unlimited play time. The watchdog will also investigate potential violations of consumer contractual rights and practices that may encourage players to unknowingly give up those rights, such as the EU's 14-day right of withdrawal.Free-to-play games have long leaned on loot boxes and other in-game purchases to drive monetization. Unlike full-priced games like Diablo IV, these systems can blur the line between natural progression and pay-to-win. For an idea of how quickly costs can add up, consider one player who reportedly spent $100,000 on Diablo Immortal.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/italian-regulators-are-investigating-activision-blizzards-monetization-practices-135057481.html?src=rss

One way you can reduce the number of cables you have to deal with on the regular is by investing in a few wireless chargers. Those with iPhones should consider Apple's own MagSafe charger not only because of its sleek and effective design, but also because it's on sale right now at Amazon. The Qi2.2-rated MagSafe charger is down to $30 for the one-meter version, or $40 for the two-meter version. If you have an iPhone 16, iPhone 17 or iPhone Air, this cable can charge your device at 25W as long as it's connected to a 30W power adapter on the other end. While you'll need a more recent iPhone to get the fastest MagSafe charging speeds, the charger can wirelessly top up the battery of any iPhone from the last eight years (iPhone 8 and later). With older iPhones, the charging speed tops out at 15W. The cable works with AirPods wireless charging cases too - it's certified for Qi2.2 and Qi charging. The MagSafe charger is one of our favorite iPhone accessories, and would pair quite nicely with your new iPhone if you're picking up one of the latest models. If you're on the fence about that, be sure to check out our reviews of the iPhone 17, iPhone Pro/Pro Max and iPhone Air. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/apples-latest-magsafe-charger-is-on-sale-for-30-141707636.html?src=rss

San Francisco-founded Smart glasses maker Viture has been sued in a US court by rival XREAL over claims it infringed on its patents, XREAL announced in a press release. The complaint, lodged in a federal Texas court, accuses Viture of illegally incorporating XREAL's patented tech into its products including the Luma Pro, Luma Ultra and Beast models."The lawsuit is not merely about enforcing a single patent," the company wrote. "It is about stopping a pattern of intellectual property infringement that undermines the integrity of innovation and endangers continued technological development in this industry."XREAL has already won a preliminary injunction against Viture in Germany. That resulted in a sales freeze in that country, which could spread to nine other European nations including France, Italy and Spain. That injunction affects Viture's Pro, Luma and Luma Pro smart glasses.Both companies make augmented reality (AR) glasses with built-in displays that connect to smartphone or laptops, letting you play games, watch movies or do productivity tasks. Their products offer similar display resolutions and fields of view, both of which are key specifications for those products.In response, Viture issued its own statement: "Our product does not infringe upon the cited patent in any way," the company told Tom's Guide. "We encourage everyone to look closely at the patent itself and form their own judgment, it becomes clear very quickly how weak and questionable it is. XREAL has simultaneously circulated false claims suggesting that Viture is 'banned across nine European countries.' This is entirely untrue." The company added that it's taking legal action itself because of XREAL's comments.Viture is a relatively new player in the AR/VR world, but XREAL's lawsuit could be a prelude to similar actions, judging by the wording in its press release. XREAL holds over 800 patent and patent applications around the world around AR, VR and other tech, and claims that Viture has fewer than 70 and none in the US and Europe. At CES 2026, XREAL unveiled several new products, including the ROG X R1 AR glasses built in conjunction with ASUS.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/wearables/xreal-files-lawsuit-against-rival-smart-glass-maker-viture-133018692.html?src=rss

You have the best chance to save on streaming services during the holiday shopping season, but throughout the year, the occasional deal pops up that's worth considering. Case in point: this new Disney+ deal. New and eligible returning subscribers can sign up for the Disney+ Hulu bundle (with ads) for $10 for one month of access. That's $3 off the usual price of the bundle for one month, and more than 58 percent off if you consider the cost of each service individually (Disney+ at $12 per month and, separately, Hulu also at $12 per month). We'd be remiss if we didn't mention that this isn't quite as good as the Black Friday deal we saw last year, which offered the same bundle for $5 per month for one year. However, if you missed that offer or just want to try out Disney+ and Hulu for a brief period of time, this is a good way to do so. Disney+ and Hulu make one of the most balanced streaming pairs available, blending family-friendly favorites with acclaimed originals and network TV staples. Disney+ brings a vast library of animated classics, blockbuster franchises and exclusive content from Marvel, Pixar, Star Wars and National Geographic. It's the place to stream nearly every Star Wars film and series, plus the full Marvel Cinematic Universe lineup and Disney's most recent theatrical releases. Hulu balances things out with a more adult-oriented lineup of current TV shows, next-day network episodes and a growing roster of award-winning originals. The platform hosts series like The Bear, The Handmaid's Tale and Only Murders in the Building, alongside comedies, thrillers and documentaries that regularly feature in awards conversations. It's also the home for next-day streaming of ABC and FX shows, making it especially useful if you've already cut the cable cord but still want to keep up with primetime TV. The Duo Basic bundle ties these two services together under a single subscription, offering a simple way to expand your library without juggling multiple accounts. This tier includes ads on both platforms, but the trade-off is significant savings compared with paying for each service separately. For many households, that's an acceptable compromise when it means access to such a wide range of content. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/disney-and-hulu-deal-get-the-bundle-for-only-10-for-one-month-192814913.html?src=rss

The start of the new year is a great time to get your finances in order, and a good budgeting app can help with that. Instead of laboring over a spreadsheet, you can try one of our favorite budgeting apps for less than usual. Monarch Money is running a sale that gives new users 50 percent off one year of the service, bringing the final cost down to just $50. Just use the code NEWYEAR2026 at checkout to get the discount. Monarch Money makes for a capable and detailed budgeting companion. You can use the service via apps for iOS, Android, iPadOS or the web, and Monarch also offers a Chrome extension that can sync your Amazon and Target transactions and automatically categorize them. Like other budgeting apps, Monarch Money lets you connect multiple financial accounts and track your money based on where you spend it over time. Monarch offers two different approaches to tracking budgeting (flexible and category budgeting) depending on what fits your life best, and the ability to add a budget widget on your phone so you can know how you're tracking that month. How budgeting apps turn your raw transactions into visuals you can understand at a glance is one of the big things that differentiates one app from another, and Monarch Money offers multiple graphs and charts to look at for things like spending, investments or categories of your choice based on how you've labelled your expenses. The app can also monitor the spending of you and your partner all in one place, to make it easier to plan together. The main drawbacks Engadget found in testing Monarch Money were the app's learning curve, and the differences in features (and bugginess) between Monarch's web and mobile versions. Still, for 50 percent off, the Monarch Money is well worth experimenting with if you're trying to save money in 2026, especially if you want to do it collaboratively with a partner. Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/one-of-our-favorite-budgeting-apps-is-only-50-for-the-year-for-new-users-204507183.html?src=rss

After telling the YouTube channel Hardware Unboxed that it was putting its RTX 5060 Ti 16GB and 5070 Ti into "end-of-life status," ASUS has backtracked on those comments and now says the GPUs will remain on sale."Certain media may have received incomplete information from an ASUS PR representative regarding these products," the company said in a dedicated press release." The GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and GeForce RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB have not been discontinued or designated as end-of-life (EOL). ASUS has no plans to stop selling these models."ASUS further clarified that supply fluctuations, primarily due to memory supply constraints, have temporarily affected production output and stocks. "As a result, availability may appear limited in certain markets, but this should not be interpreted as a production halt or product retirement. ASUS will continue to support the GeForce RTX 5070 Ti and RTX 5060 Ti 16 GB and is working closely with partners to stabilize supply as conditions improve."Yesterday, Hardware Unboxed said that ASUS "explicitly told us this model is currently facing a supply shortage and, as such, they have placed the model into end-of-life status." In a new pinned comment, the channel noted that the new information "completely walks back their original statement to us."Hardware Unboxed learned of the shortage by speaking to resellers in Australia, who said that the 5070 Ti is no longer available to purchase from partners and distributors," adding they expect that to be the case throughout at least the first quarter of the year. Based on that, along with ASUS's statement, they released the video in question yesterday.Although ASUS now says that it will still make both of those GPUs, being able to buy one could be next to impossible, based on what retailers told Hardware Unboxed. The AI boom has sent the cost of memory soaring, leading to price hikes for GPUs and other PC components. That in turn has led to anger among gamers, and the problem may get much worse before it gets better.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/asus-changes-mind-will-continue-selling-the-rtx-5070-ti-after-all-130934271.html?src=rss

TikTok is bolstering its age-verification measures across Europe. In the coming weeks, the platform will roll out upgraded age-detection tech in the European Economic Area, as well as in the UK and Switzerland.The systems will assess the likely age of a user based on their profile information and activity. When the tech flags an account that may belong to a user aged under 13 (the minimum age to use TikTok), a specialist moderator will assess whether it should be banned. TikTok will send users in Europe a notification to tell them about these measures and offer them a chance to learn more.Also, if a moderator is looking at content for other reasons and thinks an account might belong to an underage user, they can flag it to a specialist for further review. Anyone can report an account they suspect is used by someone under 13 as well. TikTok says it removes about 6 million underage accounts in total from the platform every month.Those whose accounts are banned can appeal if they think their access was wrongly terminated. Users can then provide a government-approved ID, a credit card authorization or selfie for age estimation (the latter process has not gone well for Roblox as of late, as kids found workarounds for age checks).TikTok acknowledged that there's no single ideal solution to the issue as things stand. "Despite best efforts, there remains no globally agreed-upon method for effectively confirming a person's age in a way that also preserves their privacy," it stated in a blog post. "At TikTok, we're committed to keeping children under the age of 13 off our platform, providing teens with age-appropriate experiences and continuing to assess and implement a range of solutions. We believe that a multi-layered approach to age assurance - one in which multiple techniques are used - is essential to protecting teens and upholding safety-by-design principles."TikTok is rolling out these practices after a pilot in Europe over the last year. That project helped the platform to identify and remove thousands more underage accounts. It worked with the Data Protection Commission (its main privacy regulator in the EU) to help ensure it complied with the bloc's strict data protection standards.These measures are coming into force amid intensifying calls to keep kids off social media. A social media ban for under 16s in Australia went into effect last month. Affected platforms have collectively closed or restricted millions of accounts as a result. Reddit has filed a lawsuit over the ban.A similar ban might be on the cards in the UK amid public pressure and cross-party support. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said "all options are on the table" and that he was watching "what is happening in Australia."The House of Lords is set to vote on proposals for an under-16 social media ban next week. If an amendment passes, members of parliament will hold a binding vote on the matter in the coming months.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/tiktok-tightens-age-verification-across-europe-130000847.html?src=rss

If you thought we were exaggerating, the hunger for memory and GPUs is making many companies reassess their priorities. YouTube channel Hardware Unboxed discovered ASUS has stopped producing the RTX 5070 Ti and 5060 Ti 16GB due to the ongoing memory crunch. Both GPUs are 16GB models, making them more expensive to manufacture in the current climate.Demand for GeForce RTX GPUs is strong, and memory supply is constrained. We continue to ship all GeForce SKUs and are working closely with our suppliers to maximize memory availability," an NVIDIA spokesperson told Engadget.At CES 2026, we saw PCs and computing in the next 12 months will have higher prices and more limited availability for consumers. At the end of 2025, RAM prices skyrocketed, driven by demand from AI data centers. That's not stopping anytime soon.- Mat SmithThe other big stories (and deals) this morning

Gone are the days in which you needed to spend a fortune to get a good smartphone. In 2026, features once exclusive to high-end smartphones - big batteries, multi-camera arrays, high refresh rate OLED displays and more - have made their way down to more affordable models. Yes, you'll still need to buy a flagship smartphone to get the best camera or fastest processor, but you don't have to make nearly as many compromises as you once did if you have a strict budget to adhere to when you go shopping for your next smartphone. If you have less than $600 to spend, let us help you figure out what features to prioritize when trying to find the best midrange smartphone. Table of contents

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YouTube channel Hardware Unboxed is reporting that ASUS has stopped producing the RTX 5070 Ti and 5060 Ti 16GB due to the ongoing memory crunch. In its most recent video, the channel states ASUS explicitly" told it the RTX 5070 Ti is currently facing a supply shortage." As a result, the company has placed the model into end of life status," and no longer plans to produce it.Hardware Unboxed also spoke to retailers in Australia, who told the channel the 5070 Ti is no longer available to purchase from partners and distributors," adding they expect that to be the case throughout at least the first quarter of the year. The 5060 Ti 16GB is almost done as well," with ASUS stating it no longer plans to produce that model going forward either. Both GPUs are 16GB models, making them more expensive to manufacture in the current economic climate. And while there might be some hope of the 5070 Ti and 5060 Ti 16GB returning later this year, the channel suggests both are unlikely to make a comeback.Demand for GeForce RTX GPUs is strong, and memory supply is constrained. We continue to ship all GeForce SKUs and are working closely with our suppliers to maximize memory availability," a NVIDIA spokesperson told Engadget. ASUS did not immediately respond to Engadget's comment request.After uploading its video, Hardware Unboxed published a clarification. ASUS did not tell us that NVIDIA said the RTX 5070 Ti has been discontinued. ASUS told us there is very little supply of the 5070 Ti, so their own 5070 Ti products (e.g, the Prime and TUF Gaming) have been put into end of life status," the channel said. With retailers also unable to source 5070 Ti SKUs from any AIB, this effectively makes it a dead product."The AI boom has created an insatiable demand for RAM and other computer components from data center infrastructure companies. In response, many memory manufacturers have shifted their production lines to focus on high bandwidth memory for those clients at the expense of their regular offerings, leading to dramatically increased prices among consumer RAM kits, GPUs and SSDs. In December, Micron Technology announced it would wind down its consumer-facing Crucial brand to focus exclusively on providing components to the AI industry.ASUS is the first of NVIDIA's add-in board (AIB) partners to comment on the memory crunch. AIBs are the companies that produce the majority of GPUs you can buy from NVIDIA and AMD. Historically, NVIDIA has provided its board partners with both the die and memory needed to make a graphics cards. However, a recent rumor suggested the company had told it partners they would need to start sourcing memory on their own.Update 12:55PM ET: Added more context.Update 2:06PM ET: Added comment from NVIDIA.Update 6:31PM ET: Added additional comment from Hardware Unboxed.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/asus-has-stopped-producing-the-nvidia-rtx-5070-ti-and-5060-ti-16gb-saying-theyve-reached-end-of-life-162012253.html?src=rss

After a tumultuous 2025 that saw it lose around 4,000 employees, NASA finally has an operating budget for 2026, and one that largely preserves its scientific capabilities. On Thursday, the Senate passed an appropriations bill funding NASA, alongside the National Science Foundation and a handful of other federal agencies.Going into the appropriations process, the president called for a 24 percent year over year reduction to NASA's total operating budget. As part of that plan, the White House wanted to reduce the Science Mission Directorate's funding by nearly half, a move that would have forced NASA to cancel 55 ongoing and planned missions, including efforts like OSIRIS-APEX. The bill effectively rejects President Trump's plan, reducing NASA's total operating budget by just 1.6 percent year over year to $24.4 billion.Per the new appropriations, NASA's science budget will stand at $7.25 billion, 1.1 percent less relative to fiscal 2024, while shuffling the remaining funds to focus on different priorities. For instance, the House and Senate allocated $874 million (+8.7 percent) for the agency's heliophysics work; planetary sciences, which oversees missions like New Horizons, was cut to $2.5 billion (-6.5 percent) compared to 2024. At the same time, NASA's STEM engagement office, which the president proposed eliminating, escaped unscathed with its funding maintained at parity."It's almost everything we had been asking for, and it's very encouraging to see a House and Senate run by the president's own party agreeing that we need to keep investing in things like NASA science," says Casey Dreier, chief of policy at the Planetary Society, a nonprofit founded by Carl Sagan that advocates for the exploration and study of space. "It contains very clear and direct language that not only is this funding made available to these projects, but that it will be spent on the initiatives that Congress states."Lawmakers also rejected Trump's effort to scuttle the Space Launch System after its third flight. NASA's heavy-lift rocket is billions of dollars over budget, but remains - as of now - the only spacecraft ready to ferry astronauts to the Moon. Compared to the rest of NASA, the fate of the SLS was never really in doubt. Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) secured funding for the rocket as part of Trump's Big Beautiful Bill. "I've been saying for a long time you should never underestimate the political coalition behind the SLS, and I think that was very much validated this year," says Dreier.More importantly, it appears the Goddard Space Flight Center will be safe from further damage. Over the summer, the future of the facility, known for its work on projects like the James Webb Space Telescope, was put in jeopardy. By some estimates, the campus has lost a third of its staff due to workforce cuts, and dozens of buildings, including some 100 laboratories, have been shut down by management. One of the casualties was NASA's largest library, which houses irreplaceable documents chronicling the history of the space race. As part of a "consolidation" effort, many of those documents will be thrown out.Under the appropriations bill, the Senate has directed NASA to preserve all the technical and scientific world-class capabilities at Goddard." It has also instructed the agency to ensure employees of the Goddard Institute for Space Studies are able to continue their work with "minimal disruption." The New York-based office, one of America's leading climate labs, was sent into limbo last spring after the Trump administration moved to shut it down.The bill also provides a lifeline for NASA's to bring back samples of Martian dirt collected by the Perseverance rover. Congress has effectively cancelled the official program tied to that ambition, the Mars Sample Return (MSR), but has set aside $110 million for the agency to continue developing technologies for future science missions to the Red Planet. MSR advocates have argued the mission could lead to significant scientific discoveries, but Dreier notes the program was "ripe for cancellation" after it became mired in mismanagement."I worry MSR now has this stink of bloat, excess cost and threat of overruns that are really going to make it challenging to restart this without having a dramatically different approach," says Dreier, adding that deciding what to do with mission will likely be top of mind for the agency's new administrator, Jared Isaacman.The 2026 budget leaves NASA with fewer resources. Even in areas where Congress allocated the same amount of funds as it did in 2024, the agency will need to do more with less due to inflation. Compared to the absolute blood bath that would have been Trump's proposed budget, a marginal funding cut is the best case scenario given the circumstances, but the circumstances remain less than ideal."There will be another presidential budget request coming out in the next couple of months," Dreier said. "They could do this all over again if they wanted to."In the immediate future, NASA and its employees are at least protected from the potential fallout of another impending government shutdown. Congress has until January 30 to fully fund the federal government, and as of earlier this week, it has yet to find a way forward on appropriations for agencies like the Department of Labor.Correction 9:05PM ET: A previous version of this article incorrectly stated Casey Dreier's surename as Drier. We regret the error.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/science/space/senate-passes-minibus-bill-funding-nasa-rejecting-trumps-proposed-cuts-231605536.html?src=rss

The US and Taiwan have signed an agreement that will see a multi-billion dollar investment into domestic development of semiconductors and related infrastructure. The US Department of Commerce announced that Taiwanese businesses will make an upfront investment of at least $250 billion into their US production capacity, while Taiwan's government will provide credit guarantees of at least another $250 billion in support of the semiconductor industry and supply chain in the US.In exchange, Taiwan will receive a better deal on tariffs. Reciprocal tariffs will be limited to 15 percent, compared with the previous 20 percent rate. Generic pharmaceuticals and their generic ingredients, aircraft components, and unavailable natural resources will be not be subjected to reciprocal tariffs under the arrangement. Taiwanese companies with US production will also see increased import amounts without being charged duties under the Section 232 framework.According to reports from CNBC, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSNC) is already in position to take advantage of the new trade agreement with further expansion in Arizona. The major Taiwanese chip manufacturer had previously committed to investing $100 billion in its US operations over four years. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick told CNBC in an interview that the current US government wants to bring 40 percent of Taiwan's semiconductor supply chain stateside, continuing to use tariffs as an incentive. "If they don't build in America, the tariff's likely to be 100 percent," Lutnick said.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/a-250-billion-trade-deal-will-see-taiwan-bring-more-semiconductor-production-to-the-us-224326501.html?src=rss

Today, Amazon shared more details about the final chapter of its game New World: Aeternum. The company announced in October that it would wind down support for the MMO, with the Nighthaven season to be its last. New World will be delisted and no longer available for purchase starting today, but the game's servers will not be taken offline until January 31, 2027. People who own the game will be able to continue playing until that date. Nighthaven season will continue through to that end date.Players who had previously purchased New World: Aeternum will be able to re-download and continue playing up to the shutdown date. In-game currency such as Marks of Fortune will no longer be available to buy starting July 20, 2026, and refunds will not be offered for Marks of Fortune purchases.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/amazons-new-world-aeternum-mmo-will-go-offline-january-31-2027-205449407.html?src=rss

As part of a new agreement, films from Sony Pictures Entertainment will stream on Netflix first, the companies announced via a joint statement. The new deal expands on the exclusive rights Netflix had to Sony films in the US, and means the service will be the first place people will be able to stream upcoming projects like the live-action adaptation of The Legend of Zelda, and a quartet of biopics about The Beatles.Sony's films will stream worldwide on Netflix in what's called "Pay-1," the first window of availability after a movie's theatrical and VOD releases. As part of the deal, Netflix is also licensing an undisclosed number of films and television shows from the Sony Pictures back catalog to help fill out its library. Netflix says the new arrangement "will roll out gradually" as licensing rights become available throughout the year, with full availability happening sometime in 2029. Neither company shared how long this new setup will last, but did describe the deal as a "multi-year agreement."Netflix and Sony's partnership has been fruitful so far. Films like Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse, Uncharted and Anyone But You have had popular second lives on the streaming service. In the case of KPop Demon Hunters, Netflix was also able to spin a surprise Sony Animation streaming hit into a profitable theatrical run. Netflix will pay Sony north of $7 billion for this new deal, Variety reports - clearly that's worth it to secure the companies' relationship for another few years.Netflix has a similar deal with Universal, which has brought other Nintendo adaptations to the streaming service like The Super Mario Bros Movie. Beyond licensing, the company has an even bigger purchase in mind, though: buying Warner Bros. for $82.7 billion. In an effort to prevent the deal from going through, Paramount is now suing Warner Bros. Discovery for ignoring its own competing bid for the company.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/streaming/netflixs-expanded-sony-deal-includes-streaming-rights-to-the-legend-of-zelda-movie-203011384.html?src=rss

The second season of Amazon's excellent Fallout show is currently airing, but the company is already looking to expand its programming around the popular franchise. Prime Video has greenlit a unscripted reality show titled Fallout Shelter. It will be a ten-episode run with Studio Lambert, the team behind reality projects including Squid Game: The Challenge and The Traitors, as its primary producer.Bethesda Game Studios' head honcho Todd Howard is attached as an executive producer.Amazon's description of Fallout Shelter is: "Across a series of escalating challenges, strategic dilemmas and moral crossroads, contestants must prove their ingenuity, teamwork and resilience as they compete for safety, power and ultimately a huge cash prize."It seems fitting that the producer is the same as Squid Game: The Challenge, where a show critiquing capitalism is turned into a competition about winning money. A reality show sounds like the sort of thing you'd find in a Fallout game side quest accompanied by pointed commentary about greed rather than an activity people of the Wasteland would take seriously. Maybe the new series will be an interesting mix of survival skills and dark humor that feels true to the Fallout ethos. But, and I say this as a big viewer of reality shows, I'm not holding my breath.The name echos the free-to-play mobile game Bethesda released in 2015. Fallout Shelter lets people build and improve their out Vault-Tec residence, managing the resources for a growing cadre of underground survivors. It seems pretty likely that there will be some type of tie-in between the game and the show, but any details about that might pop up closer to when the program is ready to air. It's currently casting, and no release timeline has been shared.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/tv-movies/amazon-is-making-a-fallout-shelter-competition-reality-tv-show-190151855.html?src=rss