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Zenless Zone Zero Version 1.7 launches on April 23, 2025It adds a new story chapter, plus two new S-rank agents to playThis is on top of new in-game events and gameplay modes

Zenless Zone Zero Version 1.7, or 'Bury Your Tears with the Past', will launch next week on April 23 and brings a wealth of new content to the popular urban fantasy game.Foremost, the update introduces a new story chapter that concludes the arc from the game's first season. It will see players discovering the truth behind the Sacrifice crisis, learning more about the enigmatic Hugo and partnering with a special investigator to venture into the hollow.

Image 1 of 4Vivian carries a parasol and a rapier (Image credit: Hoyoverse)Image 2 of 4Hugo is finally becoming a playable agent (Image credit: Hoyoverse)Image 3 of 4Robin's cards can have a range of effects (Image credit: Hoyoverse)Image 4 of 4Overtimeboo is a whole mood (Image credit: Hoyoverse)

Two new playable S-rank characters will be added, both members of the Mockingbird faction. Vivian, an ether anomaly agent, is armed with both a parasol and a rapier, which can be used to seamlessly shift between ground and aerial attacks. Hugo, an ice attack agent, carries a suitcase that can transform into a deadly scythe, slicing through enemies. He has the special ability to trigger the Totalize effect when hitting stunned foes, which inflicts additional damage based on the remaining duration of the stun effect.In addition to this, two new Bangboo companions are also on the way. There's the S-rank Robin, a Mockingbird member capable of throwing randomized cards with a wide range of effects, and my personal favorite the A-rank Overtimeboo. A tired office worker, Overtimeboo brings a whole desk and PC setup to the battlefield, typing away happily until a computer crash sends them into a fit dangerous fit of rage.As someone who has lost hours of important work to PC issues in the past, I can certainly relate and will be trying to add this upcoming arrival to my team as soon as possible.No update would be complete without a slew of new in-game events and this time around the most significant is 'Say It With Flowers'. This sees players embrace the role of a flower shop manager, creating unique floral arrangements. By completing design commissions, you will be able to unlock plenty of rewards and permanent interactive floral arrangement gameplay for Quality Time mode.The Fall Guys inspired Bangboo Bash is also making a return with a ranked mode, offering exclusive event titles and plenty of polychromes for those eager to climb the ranks.If you want to try Zenless Zone Zero ahead of the update, the game is available now as a free-to-play title on PC, mobile, and PlayStation 5.

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Chipolo has launched a new Bluetooth tracker that works with both Apple Find My and Google Find My Device networks. The Chipolo Pop comes in the same form factor and colors as the Chipolo One, which is one of Engadget's best Bluetooth trackers for 2025. But unlike One that only works with the Chipolo app, the company's Spot line that only works with Apple Find My and its Point-branded trackers that only work with Google's network, Pop is compatible with all three.

The Chipolo Pop has a range of 90 meters or 300 feet, longer than the older Chipolo models' 200-feet range. It's dust and water-resistant (IP55) and is powered by a replaceable CR2032 battery that can keep the tracker running for up to a year. Pop works with Apple's Find My network on iPhones installed with iOS 14.5 or later and iPads with iPadOS 14.5. Android phones and tablets must be running Android 9 or later with Google Play Services if you want to link them with the Pop tracker. Even if you technically don't need the Chipolo app, installing it will give you access to extra features like the ability to call your phone by double-pressing the tracker, as well as the ability to change its ring volume to up to 120 dB and to change its ring tone.

A single Pop tracker will set you back $29, but you can get a four-pack in various colors for $89 instead of $116. If you order straight from Chipolo's website, you could get your order as soon as April 20. You can also pre-order the tracker from Amazon, though the model will be released on the e-commerce website on April 30.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/chipolos-pop-bluetooth-tracker-works-with-both-apples-and-googles-find-my-networks-120014022.html?src=rss

New tipoffs suggest Samsung's One UI 7 delay will be lifted on April 15Also, new images claim to show an early version of One UI 8 running on a Galaxy Z Fold 6Samsung has yet to finish rolling out One UI 7

Samsung has already caught a lot of flak for the generationally chaotic rollout of One UI 7, the company’s implementation of Android 15 for Samsung Galaxy phones – and a last-minute delay announced on April 14 hasn’t helped the situation.However, a notable tipster has posited that this delay could be more of a bump in the road than a full-on halt, with the latest rumors suggesting the pause will be lifted on April 15 – that’s today at the time of writing.This comes from Ice Universe, a prominent tipster who shared the suggestion in a seemingly deleted post to X (formerly Twitter), which was subsequently reported by Android Authority.According to an April 15 post made by an unnamed Samsung solutions manager and forum moderator to Samsung’s Korean community forum, the update rollout was paused due to “some issues requiring maintenance”, but they also note that Samsung has “completed its inspection and will resume updates soon."One UI 7 is the long-awaited Android 15-based update for Samsung Galaxy phones and tablets. Though a pre-release version of the update can be found loaded on Samsung Galaxy S25 series phones, as well as the latest A-series models, One UI 7 is still considered unreleased as it has not yet completed its rollout to older handsets like the Samsung Galaxy S24.It has taken so long for Samsung to implement One UI 7 – based on Android 15, which released back in September 2024 – that we previously reported on concerns that Android 16 could release before Samsung manages to issue the update.

One UI 8 possible leaked images

Image 1 of 3(Image credit: Smartprix)Image 2 of 3(Image credit: Smartprix)Image 3 of 3(Image credit: Smartprix)

Though Samsung seems to have just about won the race against Android 16, another rumor has served to visualize just how far we are into the next development cycle.Images shared by Smartprix claim to show a Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 6 phone running an early alpha version of One UI 8, based on Android 16.Besides a few minor visual tweaks to a handful of apps, the report suggests that One UI 8 is focused primarily on optimization.The report adds that the fact that only a few apps have had any changes made suggests that One UI 8 is in very early stages of development.Indeed, if the launch of One UI 7 marks a reset of Samsung’s yearly development cycle, we may not expect to see One UI 8 launched until 2026.I’d personally be happy with a smaller, easier update next time around, if it means a quicker rollout than we’ve seen with One UI 7. Running older software can really take the wind out of the sails of even the best Samsung phones.Let us know what you think of Samsung’s update antics in the comments below.

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Apple rebrands ‘Search Ads’ to ‘Apple Ads’It says it’s because they’re now available beyond just search resultsApple might also be looking to extend its ads into other services

Apple has rebranded its ‘Search Ads’ to ‘Apple Ads’ to mark the broader advertising options beyond search results as it looks to generate more income – and help advertisers generate more income – from more sources.Initially only offered within the App Store’s search results, Apple now displays ads within the Today tab and under ‘You Might Also Like’ sections of specific app pages.Apart from offering more clarity that ‘Apple Ads’ are no longer just search-specific, the name also takes a step in the direction of consistency across other services, for example ‘Apple Music’ and ‘Apple TV+.’

‘Apple Ads’ is the new name for Apple’s advertising business

As well as changing the name for simplicity and consistency purposes, it’s possible that Apple might also be looking to expand its ads businesses, hence the removal of ‘Search.’For example, Apple might be planning to introduce ads across more services, including Apple Maps, to grow its revenue further.All of this is just speculation, though, because Apple’s justification (via 9To5Mac) to participating developers was that its advertising placements have simply expanded since launching in 2016:“When Apple Search Ads launched in 2016, we offered a single ad placement at the top of search results. Today, advertisers can run ads in multiple placements across the App Store, so we’ve decided to change our name.”It’s not the first time we’ve reported on Apple looking to expand its ads business. Just over a year ago, it came to light that the Cupertino giant was possibly testing an AI-powered tool designed to optimize App Store ad campaigns.It had also reportedly made hires in its TV-ad sales business – another indication that it could be expanding the business in a move similar to Netflix, which has a cheaper ad-supported subscription.

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It’s official: OnePlus is ditching the Alert Slider for an iPhone-style customizable button on the upcoming OnePlus 13T, and although that phone is set to release exclusively in China on April 24, its new shortcut key will surely be a permanent feature of future OnePlus phones globally.The Alert Slider has been a defining feature of the best OnePlus phones, and long-time OnePlus fans will no doubt be sad to see it go, but OnePlus is adamant that its replacement – whatever it may be called on the OnePlus 13T – will ultimately improve the user experience.Indeed, in his announcement about the upcoming switch, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau noted that the decision, while “not easy”, is “the right step forward” for the brand, and in an exclusive interview with TechRadar at OnePlus HQ in Guangdong, China, the company’s Senior Product Marketing Manager, Rudolf Xu, echoed Lau’s optimism.“We want to give more freedom to our users, to [let them] customize [that button],” Xu explained. “And actually, this is not a removal of the Alert Slider. You’ve now got the freedom to switch between ring, vibrate, and silence – these things still work – but you’re also getting greater freedom to customize your commands.“For example, [you can now] launch certain apps [using the new button]. So, it’s actually not a removal – it’s an evolution of the Alert Slider.”Xu added that OnePlus has “also brought some dedicated features” to the user experience via the new shortcut key, though he's not yet at liberty to share what those are.

Apple introduced the Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro (above) (Image credit: Future | Alex Walker-Todd)

It’s clear, then, that OnePlus doesn’t see the removal of the Alert Slider as a loss – according to the brand, users only stand to gain functionality from the switch to an Action button-style key. Mind you, that doesn’t mean the company’s decision to axe a longtime feature was an easy one.In his aforementioned statement, OnePlus CEO Pete Lau admitted that “the Alert Slider has always been one of [his] favorite OnePlus features,” and that “when the team first came to [him] with a proposal to make a change to our Alert Slider, [he] was skeptical.“But I knew that if we wanted to build something truly better, we had to take this leap,” Lau explained. “As iconic as it is, it is a huge piece of hardware just to switch sound profiles. That didn’t sit right with me.”

The OnePlus 13T in three shades (Image credit: OnePlus)

As for what OnePlus’ Alert Slider replacement looks like, the brand’s latest teaser video for the OnePlus 13T reveals a grain-of-rice-sized button that sits alone on the left-hand side of the device. Incidentally, Apple’s Action button sits in the same place, though it’s positioned above the iPhone’s volume buttons, where the OnePlus 13T’s volume buttons appear to be placed on the right-hand side of the phone, above the power button.The video also reveals that the OnePlus 13T will feature two main rear cameras stacked vertically à la the iPhone 16, and OnePlus has confirmed (via a Weibo post) that the phone will have a 6.32-inch screen and a 6,000mAh-plus battery.Rumored specs include a Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset, 16GB of RAM, a 50MP main camera, and a 50MP telephoto (with 2x optical zoom), which, if true, would make the OnePlus 13T an attractive compact alternative to the premium OnePlus 13. Here’s hoping it launches outside of China later this year (we've got our fingers crossed).

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Orange 'O' Edition Mk II ANC headphones announced40mm drivers, 50-hour battery life, customizable ANC and 10-band EQ$229 / £169 / about AU$352

Orange has announced new headphones, and I think it's missed a key trick again: even if they turn out to be the best headphones ever made, they don't look very Orange.What I mean by that is that Orange is one of the most recognizable brands in audio thanks to a very consistent visual style. Whether it's a Thunderbird 50 guitar amplifier or the Orange Box bluetooth speaker, if its Orange it's orange.But the new Orange 'O' Edition Mk II ANC headphones are not. And its previous headphones weren't either.I think that's a shame, because Orange has generally been very faithful to its decades-long history of iconic, orange-colored amps.Marshall has always absolutely nailed this, so for example its latest Bluetooth speakers look like little Marshall amps, and its Bluetooth headphones look like someone's stuck tiny Marshall speaker cabinets to your ears.But to my eyes these new Orange headphones look like they might as well just be Sony headphones in a custom McLaren colorway. Marshall's stuff is cool because it evokes rock and roll in a way that indelibly tied to the design of guitar equipment – is that the vibe you get here?

(Image credit: Orange)

Orange ‘O’ Edition MKII: key features and pricing

Looks aside, the specification here appears to be decent: 40mm close voice-coil drivers, ANC with three preset modes and in-app customization, a 10-band customizable EQ, and touch controls on the right headphone.There's Bluetooth 5.2, an included 3.5mm aux cable for wired connections, and up to 50 hours of battery life – with a 15-minute rapid charge delivering a claimed seven hours of play time.And the price is competitive, too: $229 / £169 / about AU$352. That puts it in line with the likes of the Sennheiser Accentum Plus or Sony ULT Wear headphones – good mid-range products, and there's definitely scope for more great-sounding players in this region among the best noise-cancelling headphones.The Orange 'O' Edition Mk II ANC headphones are available to buy now.I understand why these aren't bright orange in a world where headphones tend to be black or beige. But I still think it's a bit like Nike sneakers without the swoosh, Adidas without the stripes, Netflix without the tu-dum: the whole reason that Orange amps are orange was to make them stand out from their none-more-black rivals.

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A Simple Favor introduced us to Emily (Blake Lively) in a deliciously dark comedy thriller. And now she's coming back for Another Simple Favor, and from the newly released trailer it looks like Prime Video may have another campy hit on its hands.How many trailers will you see where a character proclaims that "I'd rather cut my balls off with a rusty knife than go to this wedding"?I do hope he isn't the groom.

Another Simple Favor looks like it'll be tons of fun

Another Simple Favor reunites the team: Lively as Emily Nelson, Anna Kendrick as Stephanie Smothers, and Paul Feig in the director's chair. But this new Prime Video movie is going straight to streaming; the first film was also shown in theaters.This time the action takes place in the beautiful Italian island of Capri, where Smothers is going to be maid of honor at Emily's extravagant wedding to a rich Italian businessman.If you’re thinking that being asked to be maid of honor by someone you put in jail is a bit odd, Stephanie is thinking much the same. "I've got to figure out what she's up to," she says in the trailer. And if there's one thing we know about Emily, it's that where she goes, trouble tends to follow.The original film attracted very mixed reviews, it has become something of a camp classic since it debuted on Prime Video, making it one of the best Prime Video movies. This new movie attracted similar reviews when it was shown at SXSW, which suggests that if you loved the first movie you're likely to love this one too.Another Simple Favor will be streaming on Prime Video from May 1, 2025.

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There's another development in the saga that is governments accusing Google of monopolistic practices favoring its search app and Chrome. The Japan Fair Trade Commission (JFTC) has issued a cease and desist order to Google, demanding the tech company end all efforts to gain preferential treatment on Android phones.

The watchdog alleges that Google required phone makers to preinstall Chrome and Google Search on Android phones — along with setting Chrome as the default browser. It also claims they had to place the icons for each app on the home screen. This arrangement came due to the tech company's power as provider of the Google Play app ecosystem, which Android manufacturers need to install before distribution.

However, the JFTC further claims that Google sweetened the deal, agreeing to give these phone manufacturers a slice of its ad revenue. As of last December, six Android phone manufacturers allegedly had these deals with Google. These arrangements have been ongoing since at least July 2020, if not earlier.

The JFTC's decision follows an investigation, opened in October 2023. It comes the same week as a Japanese delegation, led by Economy Minister Ryosei Akazawa, will visit the US to negotiate tariffs.

The US has expressed similar concerns to Japan. Last November, US federal judge Amit Mehta called Google "a monopolist" within the search engine industry and called on the company to sell off Chrome. An evidentiary hearing on the matter is set to begin later this month, with a trial commencing in May. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/japan-clamps-down-on-googles-android-app-pre-install-deals-130050220.html?src=rss

At long last, NVIDIA has announced its budget GeForce RTX 50-series, but don't expect any major discounts over the previous models. The RTX 5060 will start at $299, just like the RTX 4060 did when it launched two years ago. Of course, it's unclear how many people will actually be able to nab it at that price, given the volatile nature of the GPU market and further fluctuations from the Trump administration's sloppy tariff deployment.

NVIDIA is also launching two variants of RTX 5060 Ti GPUs with 8GB and 16GB of VRAM, priced at $379 and $429, respectively. Those faster GPUs will arrive on April 16, but we don't have a firm date for the RTX 5060 besides a vague May release.

While NVIDIA touts the typical performance improvements, the real selling point of the RTX 5060 and 5060 Ti will be their full support of DLSS 4 upscaling and 4X multi-frame generation. In my reviews of the RTX 5070, 5070 Ti and 5090 cards, I was surprised how much DLSS 4 boosted frame rates while still delivering excellent image quality. But it'll be interesting to see if that technology will see much benefit from slower cards like the 5060 and 5060 Ti.

NVIDIA

Curiously, NVIDIA isn't divulging full specs for these GPUs just yet, even though plenty of early details have already emerged. Officially, the company says the RTX 5060 is powered by 8GB of GDDR7 VRAM, 19 TFLOPS Blackwell shader cores, 5th-gen tensor cores with 614 AI TOPS performance and 4th gen RT (ray tracing) cores that can hit 58 TFLOPS. Unofficially, reports claim it also has 3,840 CUDA cores. In comparison, the RTX 4060 had 3072 CUDA cores and 8GB of GDDR6 VRAM.

The RTX 5060 Ti reportedly steps things up to 4,608 CUDA cores and the aforementioned 8GB and 16GB GDDR7 RAM options. NVIDIA says its Blackwell shader cores offer 6 TFLOPS more performance than the 5060, which should be plenty noticeable in typical gameplay. The RTX 5060 is mostly a 1080p-focused card, while the RTX 5060 Ti is far better suited to 1,440p gameplay — as long as you don't need obscene framerates.

According to NVIDIA's benchmarks, the RTX 5060 can reach 234 fps in Hogwarts Legacy while playing in 1080p with maxed out graphics settings and 4X frame-generation. The RTX 4060, in comparison, hits around 110 fps with 1x frame generation. NVIDIA claims the 5060 can also reach 148 fps in Cyberpunk 2077, 220fps in Avowed, and 330 fps in Marvel Rivals in 1080p with the same graphics settings and frame gen. It could be the perfect card if you're rocking a 240Hz 1080p screen.

As for the RTX 5060 Ti, NVIDIA says it can reach 108 fps in Cyberpunk while playing in 1,440p with Full RT graphics settings and 4X frame generation. That's double the 4060 Ti, which reached 52 fps with 1x frame generation. Even when native performance is solid, NVIDIA also says DLSS 4's transformer upscaling model can improve overall image quality and latency. The 5060 Ti can reach 61 fps and 70ms latency in Hogwartz Legacy natively, but the latency drops to 47ms with DLSS 4 enabled (which also pumps up the frame rate to 171 fps).

As usual, a scaled down version of the RTX 5060 is also headed to laptops, which NVIDIA says will start at $1,099. We don't have specs for that hardware either, but the company claims it'll be able to reach 146 fps in Cyberpunk 2077 while playing in 1080p with ultra graphics settings and 2X frame generation. In comparison, the mobile RTX 4060 reached 60fps with those settings, and it was also limited to 1x frame generation.

The real challenge for NVIDIA with the GeForce RTX 5060 family lies in pricing. The company doesn't directly control how OEMs price their cards, and numbers could also fluctuate wildly depending on stock and economic conditions. So sure, the RTX 5060 and 5060 Ti sound compelling for their price, but it remains to be seen if those figures are actually realistic for consumers. And it'll be interesting to see how AMD responds with cheaper new GPUs, after its Radeon RX 9070 and 9070 XT cards walloped NVIDIA's current mid-range options. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/pc/nvidias-geforce-rtx-5060-gpu-starts-at-299-rtx-5060-ti-at-379-130020340.html?src=rss

If you have been hemming and hawing over whether to buy a new MacBook, then a current sale might just sway you. Right now, Apple's 15-inch MacBook Air with an M3 chip is down to $1,049 from $1,299 — a 19 percent discount. The deal brings our choice for best budget MacBook to just $50 more than its all-time low price.

Apple released the 15-inch MacBook Air with an M3 chip (along with a 13-inch model) in 2024. We gave it a 90 in our review thanks to features such as the M3's fast performance, with a much bigger speed boost than we expected. The 15-inch option also offers a six-speaker array, compared to the 13-inch's quad-speaker array. Plus, it has a sturdy design, along with a great keyboard and trackpad.

Our big con was that this MacBook Air still doesn't have USB-C ports on both sides. Yes, it seems minor, but when your charging cable just reaches where you're sitting, having the option to plug it in on either side makes a big difference.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-15-inch-m3-macbook-air-is-250-off-right-now-131324637.html?src=rss

James Cameron sat down with Meta's CTO Andrew Bosworth on Bosworth's podcast to talk VR cinemaCameron says VR allows him to finally show his films the way they should be seenHe teased the Quest 4, but Bosworth stopped Cameron revealing too much

James Cameron, the Hollywood director behind Titanic, The Terminator and Avatar – believes VR headsets are the future of cinema, based on his experience with next-gen Meta Quest headsets that he isn’t allowed to talk about.And, Meta Quest 4 teasers aside, I think he’s got a point – but Meta needs to make some big changes before Cameron's vision can become a reality (and I’m not talking about its hardware).In a sit-down interview with Meta CTO Andrew Bosworth on Bosworth’s Boz to the Future podcast, Cameron was keen to serve as VR cinema’s hype-man.Cameron explained that VR headsets allow you to get all the benefits of a movie theatre – the curated, 3D, immersive experience – without the downsides – such as a “dim and dull” picture – resulting in an end product that much more closely matches the creator’s vision for the film.“It was like the heavens parted, light shone down,” Cameron told Bosworth. “There was an angel choir singing. It's like, 'Ah'! This is how people can see the movie the way I created it to be seen!”

It seems that Cameron isn’t simply using a Meta Quest 3 or Quest 3S to enjoy his 3D movies either; instead he’s using some Quest prototypes that Andrew Bosworth wasn’t keen for him to talk more about.While he couldn’t reveal much beyond the prototypes’ existence – which isn’t much considering that Meta very openly develops VR headset prototypes to inspire future designs (and even lets people try them from time to time at tech events) – we do know that the experience is apparently “at least as good as Dolby Laser Vision Cinema” according to Cameron.It’s the “ne plus ultra” (read: ultimate) theater option according to the director, suggesting that Meta is focusing on visual performance with its prototypes, and therefore possibly making that the main upgrade for the Meta Quest 4 or Meta Quest Pro 2.As with all leaks and rumors we can’t read too much into Cameron’s comments. Even with these prototypes Meta could focus on other upgrades instead of the display, or it could be designing for the Quest 5 or Quest Pro 3, but given that previous leaks have teased that upcoming Meta headsets will pack an OLED screen it feels safe to assume that visual upgrades are inbound.That will certainly be no bad thing – in fact it would be a fantastic improvement to Meta’s headsets – but if Meta wants to capture the home cinema experience it shouldn’t just focus on its screens, it needs to focus on content too.

VR's 3D film problem

Apple Vision Pro has the easy 3D film access Meta Quest needs (Image credit: Walt Disney Company/Apple Inc.)

I’ve previously discussed how it’s an open secret that the simplest (and really the only) way to watch blockbuster 3D movies on a Quest headset involves some level of digital piracy.3D movie files are difficult to acquire, and 3D movie rental services from the likes of Bigscreen aren’t currently available. And I’ve also complained how absurd this is because, as James Cameron points out, using your VR headset for cinema is superb, because it immerses you in your own portable, private theater.So while the prospect of the Meta Quest 4 boasting high-end displays for visual excellency is enticing, I’m more concerned about how Meta will tackle its digital content library issue.The simplest solution would be to form streaming deals like Apple did with Disney Plus. Disney’s service on the Vision Pro allows users to watch Disney’s 3D content library at no additional charge – though it frustratingly appears to be some kind of exclusivity deal, based on the fact the same benefits are yet to roll out to other headsets or the best AR smart glasses for entertainment.Another option – which Cameron points to – is for Meta to make exclusive deals with creatives directly, so they create new 3D films just for Quest, although worthwhile films take time (and a lot of money) to produce, meaning that Meta’s 3D catalog can’t rely on fresh exclusives alone.

Offline films would be perfect for in-flight entertainment (Image credit: Meta / Lufthansa)

Hopefully this podcast is a sign that Meta is looking to tackle the 3D movies in VR problem from all sides – both hardware and software – as VR entertainment can be superb.While it is more isolated than the usual home theater experience, the immersive quality or VR, combined with its ability to display your show or film of choice on a giant virtual screen, is a blast.At the moment the big drawback is the lack of content – but here’s hoping that’s about to change.

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The city of Harbin says three NSA agents and two universities were involved in attacks on the country's critical infrastructureThe attacks allegedly took place during the Asian Winter GamesThey included running "pre-installed" Windows malware

Chinese authorities have accused the US National Security Agency (NSA), and a pair of American universities, of conducting cyberattacks on the country’s critical infrastructure.A report by the city of Harbin public security bureau said three NSA agents were involved, as well as the University of California and Virginia Tech, in the attacks, which took place during the Asian Winter Games in February 2025"The US National Security Agency (NSA) launched cyber attacks against important industries such as energy, transportation, water conservancy, communications, and national defence research institutions in Heilongjiang province," the report claimed.

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Social disorder

Harbin is located in northeastern China, in Heilongjiang Province, which borders Russia. It sits on the south bank of the Songhua River, making it an important regional hub near the Russian Far East and part of China's coldest region.The goal of the attacks were to sabotage China’s critical information infrastructure, it was further explained, “causing social disorder, and stealing important confidential information”.There were no details on the agents, or how the universities were involved in the attacks.Allegedly, they “repeatedly carried out cyber attacks on China’s critical information infrastructure and participated in cyber attacks on Huawei and other enterprises.”The report does state that the campaign included the activation of “specific pre-installed backdoors” in Microsoft Windows installed on some devices in Heilongjiang.Cybersecurity researchers often warn about Chinese state-sponsored threat actors running cyber-espionage campaigns, malware attacks, and other forms of cybercrime against critical infrastructure in the West. However, China always denies any involvement in these activities and instead accuses the US of being the world’s biggest cyber-bully.In fact, on one occasion it said that Volt Typhoon, a known Chinese state-sponsored group was, in fact, a CIA asset.Via MSN

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After launching iPhone cases in 2024, Beats is now ushering in cablesIt's a further expansion into mobile accessories with a focus on affordability and fun colorsBeats is making three cable types in two sizes and four colors

Beats has already had a packed 2025 with the much-anticipated release of the Powerbeats Pro 2, but for the tech brand’s second act it’s striking a slightly different tone. No, it’s not a follow-up to the return of the iconic Pill speaker or a new shade of Solo Buds; instead, it’s a new mobile accessory and one that I couldn’t be more excited about.Alongside the iPhone 16 lineup in September of 2024, Beats introduced its iPhone case – a sleek, ergonomic plastic one that had a microfiber lining to protect the hardware, support for MagSafe, and maybe most importantly, a sapphire layer for Camera Control.And now Beats is making cables. No, not for audio but for charging devices and even accomplishing data transfers. Best of all, like the Solo Buds, these are platform agnostic and look to use the same high-end braided materials of the Apple-made ones, but with fresh, vibrant, and plain fun shades.

(Image credit: Jacob Krol/Future)

Beats Cables will come in three models for this launch: USB-C to USB-C, USB-A to USB-C, and USB-C to Lightning. You can pick between a shorter 20cm size or a longer 1.5m one, and Beats is offering four colors: Bolt Black, Surge Stone, Nitro Navy, and Rapid Red.The best part, though, might be the price. In either size for just one cable, it’s $18.99 / £18.99 / AU$28.95, or Beats is selling two 1.5m cable packs for $34.99 / £34.99 / AU$54.95. That price just includes the cable, or two, with Beats being quick to note that no power adapter is included. In the new advertisement spot, and in shared images, Beats Cables are shown being plugged into Apple 20-Watt bricks, so for now, Beats isn’t entering the power market.Though, I wouldn’t be shocked to see this mobile accessory division of Beats expanded again. First we got cases, now cables and I wouldn’t mind the return of a MagSafe battery pack in some fun colors.As far as the specs are concerned, Beats Cables are designed to plug and play with both Apple-made devices and Android ones. The USB-C to USB-C cable are designed for charging at up to 60-watts, provided the power source and device it's plugged into support this. These cables also support USB 2.0 data transfer speeds. You can use these for syncing, charging, and CarPlay with an iPhone, or even for Android Auto with an Android device.USB-A to USB-C does work with both Apple and non-Apple devices, but the spec is a bit lower for charging at up to 15-watts. Data transfer speeds are the same up to USB 2.0. You can also use either USB-A to USB-C or USB-C to USB-C cables to power other Beats devices like the Pill or to recharge headphones.Beats USB-C to Lightning cables support fast charging with select Apple devices – think the iPhone, iPad, or even AirPods. You can also data sync or use these for CarPlay.

(Image credit: Jacob Krol/Future)

All of these boast a braided, colorful design with color-matched ends and Beats says these are reinforced to prevent fraying and go through thousands of hours in testing to ensure durability. While it isn’t specified if recycled materials are used in the cable itself, the packaging is made from 100% plant-based material.TechRadar will be putting these cables through some tests in short order, and if it’s anything like the Beats cases for the iPhone 16 lineup, I have a feeling these will be a hit. Especially for those who have ever wished Apple’s USB-C to USB-C cables were a bit more affordable or came in some fun colors – this is the solution.Beats will begin selling its USB-C to USB-C, USB-A to USB-C, and USB-C to Lighting cables in Bolt Black, Surge Stone, Nitro Navy, and Rapid Red in 1.5m or 20cm sizes direct from Apple – and likely on Amazon – right now, and will arrive in Apple Stores on April 17, 2025.

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Conduent has filed a new 8-K form with the SECIt noted a January 2025 breach and said some customer data was takenSo far, no groups assumed responsibility for the attack

Conduent Incorporated, an American business process services company, has confirmed suffering a cyberattack and a data breach in a new filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).In a new 8-K form, Conduent said that in mid-January 2025, it experienced an “operational disruption” caused by unauthorized access from a threat actor. The attackers allegedly accessed a “limited portion” of the company’s environment, and remained there for days (in some cases, for hours, Conduent said)Earlier reports said the attack happened after a “third-party system compromise on an operating system”.

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Supply chain attack

While the attack did not have a material impact on the company’s operations, it did result in the theft of sensitive data.Conduent offers a range of services, including transaction processing, automation, and analytics, across various sectors such as healthcare, transportation, and government.Some of its biggest clients include the US Secret Service, District of Columbia Medicaid, and others. It serves hundreds of government and transportation organizations.In the attack, the threat actors stole data generated by Conduent’s clients: “As part of its ongoing investigation, the company determined that the threat actor exfiltrated a set of files associated with a limited number of the company’s clients,” the filing reads.“Due to the complexity of the files, the Company engaged cybersecurity data mining experts to evaluate the exfiltrated data and was recently informed of its nature, scope and validity, confirming that the data sets contained a significant number of individuals’ personal information associated with our clients' end-users.”At press time, no groups assumed responsibility for the attack, and the data has not yet leaked on the dark web.According to BleepingComputer, this is not Conduent’s first incident, as the company also suffered a data breach in 2020, when the Maze ransomware group managed to encrypt the company’s devices and steal corporate data.Via BleepingComputer

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Windows 10 recently got a patch tinkering with the Recovery EnvironmentSome users are seeing an error message saying the patch failed to installIn fact, the update installed just fine, and the error message is the error

Some Windows 10 users are encountering an error message after applying a fresh patch for the operating system, informing them that the update failed – when in fact it didn’t.Neowin spotted the update in question (known as KB5057589) which was released last week (separately from the main cumulative update for April) and tinkers with the Windows Recovery Environment (WinRE) on some Windows 10 PCs (versions 21H2 and 22H2).Far from all Windows 10 users will get this, then, but those who do might be confronted by an error message after it has installed (which is visible in the Windows Update settings page).It reads: “0x80070643 – ERROR_INSTALL_FAILURE.”That looks alarming, of course, and seeing this, you’re going to make the fair assumption that the update has failed. However, as mentioned, the error isn’t with the update, but the actual error message itself.Microsoft explains: “This error message is not accurate and does not impact the update or device functionality. Although the error message suggests the update did not complete, the WinRE update is typically applied successfully after the device restarts.”Microsoft further notes that the update may continue to display as ‘failed’ (when it hasn’t) until the next check for updates, after which the error message should be cleared from your system.

(Image credit: Lipik Stock Media / Shutterstock)

Analysis: Bugs in the bugs

There’s nothing wrong here, in short, except the error itself, but that’s going to confuse folks, and maybe send them down some unnecessary – and potentially lengthy – rabbit holes in order to find further information, or a solution to a problem that doesn’t exist.The trouble is what’s compounding this is that the whole WinRE debacle has been a long-running affair. A patch for this was previously released in January 2025 most recently, and there were others before that, with some folks witnessing repeated installations of this WinRE fix, which is confusing in itself.That’s why those rabbit holes that you might get lost down could end up seeming so deep if you don’t manage to catch Microsoft’s clarification on this matter.Microsoft says it’s working to resolve this errant error and will let us know when that happens. At least you’re now armed with the knowledge that the update should be fine despite what the error – in block capitals plastered across your screen – tells you (and it should be cleared from your PC in a short time).

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Nintendo is 'losing their identity' according to former PlayStation boss Shuhei YoshidaYoshida suggested that Nintendo is more focused on hardware than innovationHe says the Switch 2 offering third-party titles for new players is "exciting" but less so for those who already play the same games on multiple platforms

Former PlayStation executive Shuhei Yoshida thinks "Nintendo is losing their identity" by focusing more on the Switch 2's hardware instead of innovation.In a recent interview with Easy Allies following the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, where we finally received an in-depth look at the upcoming console, Yoshida shared his thoughts on the reveal, calling it a "mixed message from Nintendo"."In a sense, I think Nintendo is losing their identity, in my opinion," Yoshida said. "For me, they are always about creating some new experience, like designing hardware and games together to create something, [an] amazing new experience. But Switch 2, as we all anticipated, is a better Switch, right?"Yoshida explained that Nintendo has always done things differently when it comes to its reveals, but now compares it to what other companies, like Sony and Microsoft, usually do by focusing on hardware details."It's a larger screen, more powerful processor, higher resolution, 4K 120fps. They even had their hardware person starting the stream as other platforms do."And because it's a better Switch, the core premise of the whole Switch 2 is, 'We made things better', and that's something other companies have been doing all the time."

Special guest Shuhei Yoshida gets real about the Switch 2 pic.twitter.com/CzZYPnTtueApril 14, 2025

Yoshida then praised the Switch 2's ability to offer third-party games like Elden Ring: Tarnished Edition for the first time for new players but suggested it was less tempting for those who already play games on multiple consoles."Of course it's a more powerful Switch, so it's great if your gaming was only on Nintendo hardware," Yoshida said. "It's the first time for you to play amazing games like Elden Ring. But for us, like, the core gamers, who own multiple hardware and play games on PlayStation, Xbox, PC, the games they showed off - especially from third parties... In theory, it's amazing to have all these all-stars of industry games on Nintendo hardware, however, what they showed were like... oh."The Nintendo Switch 2 officially launches on June 5, 2025, and will cost $449.99 / £395.99 or $499.99 / £429.99 for a Mario Kart World bundle.Although pre-orders are now live in the UK, Nintendo has announced that US pre-orders and Canada pre-orders have been delayed to "assess the potential impact of tariffs and evolving market conditions."The company confirmed that the launch date is unchanged and will provide a new pre-order date soon.

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OnePlus has confirmed that it will launch a smaller model of its Watch 3New leaks suggest that it could be a rebadged Oppo Watch X2 MiniThat would mean a 43mm chassis, with a cheaper price to match

Two new leaks appear to indicate that the promised smaller version of the OnePlus Watch 3 will be a OnePlus Watch 3 Mini that's essentially a rebadged Oppo Watch X2 Mini.The OnePlus Watch 3 is one of the best Android smartwatches of 2025 so far, but it lacks appeal for some because of its hefty size. That large chassis packs 120 hours of battery life, but is simply too large for some customers to wear.Earlier this year OnePlus promised us a smaller version, and we've just gotten what may be our best look at it yet.As we reported a few weeks ago, the Oppo Watch X2 Mini is very likely to offer us a glimpse at the OnePlus Watch 3. Oppo and OnePlus share the same parent company, and thus a lot of hardware.Now, two further new leaks seem to confirm that the OnePlus Watch 3 'Mini' is on the way, and that it'll essentially be a re-branded 43mm Oppo Watch X2 Mini.On April 10, X leaker Abhishek Yadav claimed that the new Oppo Watch X2 Mini launched in China would "launch as a rebadged OnePlus Watch 3 Mini in India and globally."The Oppo Watch X2 Mini is a 43mm smartwatch with a 60Hz LTPO AMOLED display, a dual-chip design that aids battery life, and Wear OS 5.Now, new US Federal Communications Commission listings for a new OnePlus smartwatch point to a 43mm smartwatch that's likely to launch any day now. As spotted by 91Mobiles, not only is the chassis identical to the Oppo Watch X2 Mini, its battery capacity of 345mAh is also identical.

A cheaper, more enticing OnePlus Watch 3?

The OnePlus Watch 3 has endured a torrid start to life since it was unveiled earlier this year. While it's a fantastic watch on paper, the launch was delayed for two months because of a typo in the design – the back read 'Meda In China'.Then, in the weeks between the initial launch and the new release date of April 10, the US started to impose sweeping tariffs on imported goods from many countries, notably China. As a result, OnePlus has raised the price of the larger 46mm model from $329 to $499, an increase of more than 50%.The OnePlus Watch 3 Mini will certainly be cheaper than the existing model, which could slightly soften the blow. However, US customers are likely to face a similarly massive price hike on the smaller model. As such, the OnePlus Watch 3 Mini could well cost 50% more than we were expecting, just like the larger model.The expected price hike would be a devastating blow to an otherwise excellent smartwatch with great health chops, Google's suite of Wear OS technology, and segment-leading battery life. It can't match the best Garmins, but it is leaps ahead of Apple Watch and Pixel Watch alternatives for longevity.Sadly, a price hike would put it into the territory of the oft-discounted and excellent Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra. The OnePlus Watch 3 might be one of the first casualties of tariff-fueled tech price hikes, but it probably won't be the last.

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Looking for a different day?A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Tuesday, April 15 (game #674).

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #675) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

CROWDSCOREMAMBAENGINEBOASIMBAKATY PERRYSCARLIONGARTERSCRATCHMERINGUECORSETSCRAPETANGYSTOCKINGS

NYT Connections today (game #675) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

YELLOW: Cabaret garmsGREEN: Deface with a nailBLUE: A sound in common PURPLE: Cut a rug

Need more clues?We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #675) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

YELLOW: BURLESQUE WEAR GREEN: MESS UP THE SURFACE OF BLUE: THEY ROAR PURPLE: LATIN DANCES WITH A VOWEL CHANGED

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #675) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #675, are…

YELLOW: BURLESQUE WEAR BOA, CORSET, GARTER, STOCKINGSGREEN: MESS UP THE SURFACE OF SCAR, SCORE, SCRAPE, SCRATCHBLUE: THEY ROAR CROWD, ENGINE, KATY PERRY, LIONPURPLE: LATIN DANCES WITH A VOWEL CHANGED MAMBA, MERINGUE, SIMBA, TANGY

My rating: ModerateMy score: 1 mistake

After two losses in a row I am just relieved to have completed Connections today.Not that it was easy, with the multiple traps (SCAR and SIMBA from The Lion King being the most obvious).I knew that the inclusion of the first pop star in space, KATY PERRY, had to do with one of her songs – but all I could think of was Fireworks and Hot and Cold and neither of those helped. I’m annoyed I missed it.It’s funny how you get groups sometimes. I was trying to think of all the things that MAMBA could possibly be (snakes, candy, sports, it wasn’t a long list) and added “number five” even though I knew that was relevant to mambo not mamba – and then it clicked.I am super-pleased to get a purple group, even if it was in a very roundabout kind of way.How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Tuesday, 15 April, game #674)

YELLOW: DESIST ABSTAIN, AVOID, CEASE, REFRAINGREEN: CARD GAMES BRIDGE, HEARTS, SPEED, SPOONSBLUE: ELEMENTS OF GREEK DRAMA CHORUS, HERO, HUBRIS, TRAGEDYPURPLE: SECOND WORDS OF "PETER PAN" CHARACTERS BELL, DARLING, HOOK, PAN

What is NYT Connections?NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

Looking for a different day?A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Tuesday, April 15 (game #408).

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #409) - hint #1 - today's theme

What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Fore!

NYT Strands today (game #409) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

LIPPYCHIPGLUTEPITYCLUEDOOR

NYT Strands today (game #409) - hint #3 - spangram letters

How many letters are in today's spangram?• Spangram has 9 letters

NYT Strands today (game #409) - hint #4 - spangram position

What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?First side: bottom, 4th columnLast side: top, 3rd column

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #409) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #409, are…

DRIVERWEDGEIRONPUTTERWOODCHIPPERUTILITYSPANGRAM: GOLF CLUBS

My rating: EasyMy score: Perfect

A belated tribute to the Masters, perhaps. Although, like happy hours, there’s always a major golf tournament going on somewhere in the world, so maybe Strands is bigging up the Chinese Open, which begins in Shanghai tomorrow (thanks, Google).Not being much of a golf person, I had never heard of a UTILITY club before, but it makes sense to have one club that’s a hybrid of different clubs that you can use if you don’t know what to select.Despite my lack of real-world experience, I completed today’s round without the need for a hint. Amazing what you can learn from watching the final hour of a four-day event.How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Tuesday, 15 April, game #408)

SOURNITROLAGERBOCKSTOUTPORTERPILSNERSPANGRAM: MICRO BREWERY

What is NYT Strands?Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

Looking for a different day?A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Tuesday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Tuesday, April 15 (game #1177).

Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,100 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

Quordle today (game #1178) - hint #1 - Vowels

How many different vowels are in Quordle today?• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.

* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).

Quordle today (game #1178) - hint #2 - repeated letters

Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 0.

Quordle today (game #1178) - hint #3 - uncommon letters

Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.

Quordle today (game #1178) - hint #4 - starting letters (1)

Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.

If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:

Quordle today (game #1178) - hint #5 - starting letters (2)

What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?• S• G• C• I

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

Quordle today (game #1178) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle, game #1178, are…

STUMPGRAFTCHORDINPUT

A nice clear run for me today, without any major bumps.With the letters I had available there were no alternatives for any of the four answers, it was just up to me to work out what they were.Thankfully, this was one of Quordle’s more straightforward days, without any obscure words.How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Daily Sequence today (game #1178) - the answers

(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)

The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1178, are…

CHARTPIVOTSTOKEMUMMY

Quordle answers: The past 20

Quordle #1177, Tuesday 15 April: SLEET, MERIT, HARSH, FORAYQuordle #1176, Monday 14 April: DRAWL, CROOK, ACTOR, LANCEQuordle #1175, Sunday 13 April: SHALE, KINKY, SHORN, WHOOPQuordle #1174, Saturday 12 April: BLIND, OVOID, CACHE, THINGQuordle #1173, Friday 11 April: FOLLY, PITHY, SCOWL, CURLYQuordle #1172, Thursday 10 April: LEAST, SEWER, UNTIE, NOOSEQuordle #1171, Wednesday 9 April: LITHE, LEFTY, KNOLL, MULCHQuordle #1170, Tuesday 8 April: WIDTH, VISOR, MEDAL, BROOKQuordle #1169, Monday 7 April: BROTH, SHOUT, BRUTE, CABINQuordle #1168, Sunday 6 April: AMBER, GAUZE, STORE, SLICKQuordle #1167, Saturday 5 April: GUSTY, VAULT, WHINE, BEGATQuordle #1166, Friday 4 April: OAKEN, LOOPY, CURIO, BUTTEQuordle #1165, Thursday 3 April: ASCOT, JETTY, DRUNK, JOLLYQuordle #1164, Wednesday 2 April: INDEX, QUEEN, INCUR, STOLEQuordle #1163, Tuesday 1 April: HUMUS, BALMY, WORRY, ERECTQuordle #1162, Monday 31 March: RECUT, MOODY, WHERE, BRACEQuordle #1161, Sunday 30 March: CRIME, DRINK, CLOVE, TRUERQuordle #1160, Saturday 29 March: LATER, ODDLY, CUMIN, AGREEQuordle #1159, Friday 28 March: TERSE, MUSHY, PROVE, FRONDQuordle #1158, Thursday 27 March: CRONE, APNEA, LIGHT, AWOKE

As well as making room for more Gemini, Google has been updating its photo and video sharing service One of the new features includes Google Photos integration in the Gemini app While one of the features is still a rumor, we hope that it will be rolled out soon

It’s a busy and certainly an interesting time for Google at the moment, and it’s not just because Gemini is slowly taking over. While the company is doubling down on Gemini’s integration across the board of its services, it’s taking the time to seriously upgrade other platforms under its broad umbrella - Google Photos being one of them.Just as Google Messages has been testing some useful upgrades, the company hasn’t forgotten about its photo sharing and storage software, which has also received its fair share of updates and new features, big and small. Two of them are very recent rollouts for Google, and though the third is only a speculation as of now, we’re hoping to see it come to fruition in the near future.

Google Photos gets Gemini integration on Android

(Image credit: 9to5Google)

In October 2024, Google Photos rolled out ‘Ask Photos,’ an AI search tool powered by Gemini that allows you to use natural language questions to filter through your gallery in the Photos app. With this new integration, Android users will be able to connect it to Google Photos and find photos inside the Gemini app itself.According to 9to5Google, there are two sides to this new integration, the first allowing you to find images and videos based on the following:

Your saved faces and relationships in Google PhotosThe location / date a photo / video was taken onA description of what’s in a photoConversation with the Gemini app

For example, you can use prompts such as ‘Find my photos of Alex’, ‘Show me recent selfies’, and ‘Show my photos from my most recent trip’. The second part allows you to ask about specific details in your photos and videos, such as ‘What are the top 10 things we saw on our last trip?’ - similar to the Ask Photos function in the Google Photos app.

Dark mode for Google Photos’ web version

Whether you use Google Photos or not, you probably use dark mode settings on other platforms - for me, it’s always turned on when I'm using YouTube or TikTok. For a while, dark mode was exclusive to the Google Photos mobile app, but just a few weeks ago, Google finally brought it to the web version.It’s a small upgrade for Google Photos, but one that will be very popular with users for sure. You can activate dark mode for Google Photos on the web very easily:

Head to photos.google.com in your web browserClick Settings, and then go into the Appearance sectionFrom there, you can select your choice from different options, including Light, Dark, or Use Device Default

Google Photos tipped for a big redesign

(Image credit: Future)

While this is still speculated, it could be a great design overhaul and one that could make managing your photo library a little smoother.We first spotted this a few weeks back following a leak shared by Android Authority, which pointed to possible changes we could see in the future, one of which shows the ‘Today’ heading no longer having a checkmark next to it but with what looks like a filter icon instead. Additionally, the leak shows a floating search bar in place of the usual Photos Collections and Search tabs.

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There has been increasing attention on open and closed technologies in relation to the development of AI and large language models (LLMs) in the past few years. Meta released Llama as open source, XAI released GROK-1 and, of course, the open source release of China’s DeepSeek model in recent months has been widely publicized.It’s evident that open source technology benefits from community adoption and development, enabling faster iteration, greater security testing and the contributions of many more active minds, experiences and skill sets.Whether the recent LLM releases are driven by such beliefs or by commercial instincts (likely both), it certainly helps in preventing a single player from dominating the market. This perspective was highlighted by the ironically named OpenAI trying to stifle DeepSeek adoption in recent weeks.

A shifting state of play

The tensions of open versus closed technologies have long existed in less sensitive, yet still important, areas. Closed technologies tend to be much more widely adopted as they are more easily packaged and deployed and require less depth of expertise. This can lead to monopolies of the type exemplified by Microsoft or Adobe, whose dominance stifles any real competition; the sheer weight of users and finances might preclude serious challenges. In other areas there might not be monopolies, but still a general market domination by a handful of vendors.Virtual Desktop Infrastructure (VDI) is a good example, where VMware and Citrix have shared the spoils for many years. And if their dominance has been challenged in recent years, this has been due to the growth of cloud hyperscalers which, for the most part, were extensions of existing global, powerful big tech such as Microsoft, Google and Amazon.This state of play is starting to shift somewhat, driven in part by dissatisfaction and distrust of the cloud giants (almost certainly concentrated further by their involvement in AI). This is causing many organizations to ‘reshore’ on-premises or cloud hosted in their own private data center. This dissatisfaction has been fueled by the slow collapse of VMware - perhaps the most well known and widely used of the legacy VDI vendors.

The fall of VMware

VMware was purchased by Broadcom in November 2023, who almost immediately announced several changes including the divestment of their end user computing (EUC) which included Horizon VDI services. The EUC business was subsequently purchased by KKR, a global investment firm, that now offers VDI services under the ‘Omnissa’ brand.The lack of interest shown by Broadcom in the EUC service is a huge knock in confidence for the continued viability of this model, which is not profitable enough for them. It’s uncertain whether the software can be revived under new ownership and there have been worrying indications.Last year, Gartner warned of uncertainty regarding Omnissa’s roadmap and continued semi-dependence for many users on other VMware products. Concerns are currently compounded by recent large-scale layoffs which in one sense should be expected as a post-sale reconstruction, but of course could easily result in the loss of critical internal expertise and a drop in service levels. The recent upheaval has also caused issues concerning price increases and significantly lengthy waits for renewal quotations.

New VDI opportunities

Such concerns are driving customers towards other options and, with Citrix remaining complex and expensive and certainly out of the reach of many SMEs, we are seeing a rise of open source related solutions starting to emerge. Many organizations are now offering KVM-based solutions which both avoid the increasing risks and expense associated with the legacy vendors to offer more accessible, flexible and cost-efficient VDI services.Changes in Microsoft virtualization access licensing in recent years helped open possibilities in the space, which has allowed for more efficient use of hardware and more bespoke options. There are industry specific services arising to serve architecture, engineering and construction (AEC), media production and other compute heavy sectors as well as more generalist, knowledge worker options for finance, law and similar businesses.As VDI offers the potential for higher levels of security, more efficient estate management and greater flexibility in our continuing challenging economic climate, this is to be welcomed.

Challenging big tech dominance

Innovation is critical for a healthy technical ecosystem and the ability to address specific industry requirements, whilst also continuing to focus on lowering carbon impacts and creating greater resilience. Businesses and channel operators should be open to such possibilities and actively engage with potential future partners to support development and mitigate the likelihood of monopolies and big tech dominance.We can see the overreach of some of these players in the news every day; supporting independent innovators is a proactive means of preventing an overgeneralization of power and its associated risks. An open world, rather than a closed one.

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Google Cloud’s us-east5-c (Columbus, Ohio) zone had a six-hour outageIt was caused by a failure to its uninterruptible power supplyOver 20 services and some storage disks went down

Much like the unsinkable Titanic met its demise when it sank, Google Cloud has recovered from a major outage caused by an interruption to its uninterruptible power supplies (UPS).The company confirmed that its us-east5-c zone, otherwise known as Columbus, Ohio, experienced “degraded service or unavailability” for a period of six hours and 10 minutes on March 29, 2025, blaming it on a “loss of utility power in the affected zone.”Over 20 cloud services suffered reduced performance or downtime as a result of the outage, including BigQuery, Cloud SQL, Cloud VPN and Virtual Private Cloud.

Google’s uninterruptible power supply just had a pretty major failure

In its incident report, the company explained exactly what had happened: “This power outage triggered a cascading failure within the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) system responsible for maintaining power to the zone during such events.”“The UPS system, which relies on batteries to bridge the gap between utility power loss and generator power activation, experienced a critical battery failure,” the log continues.Google’s Columbus zone uses powerful chips from Intel like Broadwell, Haswell, Skylake, Cascade Lake, Sapphire Rapids and Emerald Rapids, as well as the AMD EPYC Rome and Milan processors to power its cloud computing services. The cloud giant also noted that “a limited number of storage disks within the zone became unavailable during the outage.”Engineers were made aware of the outage at 12:54 PT on March 29, successfully bypassing the failed UPS and restored power via generator by 14:49 PT. Most services were brought back online pretty quickly, thereafter, but some manual action was required for a full restoration hence the six-hour outage.Google now promises to learn from this event, hardening cluster power failure and recovery paths and auditing systems that did not automatically failover, as well as working with its UPS vendor to mitigate future incidents.

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Our five-star LG G5 review reveals why this has been one of 2025’s most anticipated TVs. With a fresh, new display panel called Primary Tandem RGB OLED (also known as ‘four-stack’) it offers increased brightness and more dynamic color than its G4 predecessor, along with deep black levels that hold up in brighter viewing conditions. It’s fair to say I’ve been properly waiting to get my hands on the LG G5 for a while now.I first saw the LG G5 at an event at Dolby HQ in London, and seeing it next to its predecessor, the LG G4, the fullscreen brightness boost had me excited. It would be no easy task to follow in the footsteps of one of the best OLED TVs of 2024, the LG G4, but early impressions had me believing it could do it.Now, after sinking a load of time into the G5, I can confirm it’s an outstanding TV. If you’re thinking of buying one, you’re in for a treat. Below, I’ve made a list of four movies that I watched during my testing that showed off the G5’s potential to be one of the best TVs of 2025, and I also discuss how it handles sports.

The Batman

(Image credit: Future)

A regular reference disc I use for testing TVs, The Batman is a difficult movie for TVs to make look right. It was mastered at 400 nits (as opposed to the most common 1,000 nits for HDR) meaning it’s incredibly dim to start with. Not only that, but it’s a dark movie with a lot of low-light scenes that really test a TVs handling of black levels.Thankfully, handling the challenges of The Batman was a riddle that the G5 solved easily. Played on 4K Blu-ray with the TV in Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode, black levels were deep and accurate, and shadow detail was excellent. Intricate details in clothing, such as Batman’s symbol on his suit, were clearly displayed even in the darkest scenes.Contrast was also superb, with a perfect balance between light and dark tones in high contrast shots, such as the opening crime scene. Here, light from lamps cut through the gloomy surroundings without sacrificing the accuracy of the dark tones. This movie really showed off just how nuanced the G5 is when handling moody tones.

Wicked

(Image credit: Future)

A new addition to the 4K Blu-ray collection here at TechRadar, Wicked is an extremely colorful movie. Greens, pinks and blues are prominent throughout, and I’ve found green in particular can be a challenge to display accurately, especially on budget TVs.The G5’s color display was outstanding. Every color was not only vibrant with the right level of bright punch, but remained true-to-life in Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode. The G5’s boosted brightness also came into play, and really added gloss to HDR highlights during Elphaba and Glinda’s first arrival into Emerald City.The G5’s contrast paid dividends here as well, adding depth and giving everything a realistic, almost 3D-like effect without making things look artificial.

Oppenheimer

(Image credit: Future)

Much like The Batman, Oppenheimer is great for testing black levels and contrast. It’s also useful for its black-and-white scenes, which show how a TV can handle high contrast sequences while showing a range of gray tones in between.The G5 displayed fantastic contrast in HDR Filmmaker Mode (the 4K Blu-ray does not have Dolby Vision). Not only were the blacks deep and highlights bright, but a full range of gray tones was exhibited. Shadow detail was also solid, maintaining details in clothing, including in a scene when Oppenheimer tours the University with Admiral Strauss, which is often subjected to black crush (meaning the finest differences in deep blacks get lost into one blocky color).In the same sequence, the drawing room is a bright white. The detail of light shining through the windows can get lost here if TV aren't able to tone map the brightness well, but the G5 delivers them perfectly.

Elemental

(Image credit: Future)

Elemental is another colorful entry on this list, but one with the more dazzling, bright hues that are typical for Disney animation.The G5 demonstrated breath-taking colors during Elemental (once again in Dolby Vision Filmmaker Mode), particularly in scenes where Ember interacted with crystals or blew glass. The colors were as vivid as I’d hoped for, and HDR highlights were shimmering throughout – this really is a showpiece for the brightness backing the improved color range of the new panel.Textures such as flowing water, fanning flames and the skin of wind and earth creatures were highly detailed. And they all had a realistic sense of depth, thanks once again to the G5’s brilliant contrast.

Sports

(Image credit: Future)

As I said earlier, a fullscreen brightness boost is one of the most exciting new elements of the G5 compared to its predecessor. This is extremely important when viewing sports, especially with something like football where a big vibrant green field and the crisp colors worn by the players are the key focal points.Watching an HD stream of an Arsenal v Real Madrid match-up with HDR on Prime Video, I opted for Standard picture mode over Sports due to the latter’s oversaturated and gaudy colors. In Standard, the G5 expertly displayed the players and pitch, showing accurate texture and colors. Its 4K upscaling was also effective, ensuring that textures on screen were clear and detailed.Crucially, the fullscreen brightness boost was there. That’s often a real weakness of the best OLED TVs, but the G5 had excellent fullscreen brightness, and even showed only minimal reflections from the overhead lights in our testing room, making them far less of a distraction.As expected, motion handling was good, with no motion adjustments needing to be made, though the Natural or User Control motion settings (with de-blur and de-judder set to 3) helped show sports at their best.

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Windows 11 24H2 couldn’t be installed by the users of some wallpaper customization appsThis was because of compatibility issues with said apps and 24H2Microsoft has now resolved those problems, for the most part anyway

Microsoft has finally lifted a compatibility block preventing some Windows 11 users from upgrading to the latest version of the OS because they had certain third-party wallpaper apps installed.These are apps that let you install custom wallpaper on your Windows 11 machine, and the applications in question didn’t play nice with Windows 11 24H2, misfiring in various ways. That included causing errors, glitches with the wallpapers themselves, vanishing desktop icons, or even issues with virtual desktops.Windows Central noticed that Microsoft has now marked these problems as fixed in a Windows 11 release health status update. So, those with said wallpaper apps are okay to go ahead and install the 24H2 update.Well, in theory anyway, although there are some caveats here, which I’ll come onto next.You may recall that this compatibility block was put in place right when 24H2 first came out, at the end of September last year, so it has taken quite some time to smooth over these issues – and there’s a reason for that, too.

(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)

Analysis: Slight complications

As noted, there are some catches here, as Microsoft tells us in its release health dashboard update.For starters, the compatibility block is only being gradually removed, so you may be waiting a bit longer yet, depending on your PC configuration and the exact app you have installed.Microsoft explains: “Note that several wallpaper applications are currently included in this compatibility hold. For this reason, the specific timing of the resolution of this issue on a given device may depend on the application being used and the timing of that application’s update. As new versions and updates are released for these applications by their respective developers, it’s expected that these issues will be resolved.”Hence the lengthy wait for the resolution of this affair, as it seems that Microsoft wasn’t tinkering with Windows 11 24H2 itself to make these apps work, or at least not doing much in the way of that. Rather, it was apparently waiting on the individual app developers to make their software good with 24H2 themselves.Microsoft further notes that when you fire up the Windows 11 24H2 installation process, you might see a message telling you to uninstall a wallpaper app. You’re advised to either do this – and just dump the wallpaper app for now – or try updating the app, as said prompt might have appeared because you’re running an older version of the program.In other words, updating the wallpaper app and trying to install Windows 11 24H2 again may work – but if not, you’ll likely have to remove the application.Windows 11 24H2 has a history of issues with third-party customization software going back well before release, deep in its testing phase when some popular utilities were banned (to the chagrin of some Windows Insiders). Because 24H2 is built on an entirely new underlying platform, Germanium, this has caused a whole lot more problems than any other update for Windows 11 thus far.And while such a big shift could be expected to be a headache, and trigger more bugs than normal, the amount we’ve witnessed has essentially been a minor avalanche, and a distinctly unpleasant experience for some Windows 11 users.

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4chan, the controversial forum known for birthing early meme culture and Gamergate, is down, following an apparent hack. Per Downdetector, reports of an outage began circulating late Monday evening, with users sharing updates on connection issues through the early hours of Tuesday morning. As of the writing of this article, it's possible to access the website following a long delay, but clicking on any of the board links leads to a timeout.

According to screenshots shared on Imgur (NSFW warning), it appears a hacker gained shell access to 4chan's hosting server. They then went on to post images of the site's phpmyadmin page, and appear to have doxed the entire moderation team alongside many of the site's registered users. While it seems some users took steps to protect their identities, many appear to have used their primary email address to register for the forum, with .edu and even .gov addresses reportedly appearing in the list leaked emails.

It's unclear what this means for the future of 4chan, but some social media and Reddit users are speculating this could be the end of the internet's most infamous forum. In addition to doxing much of 4chan's userbase, the hacker also appears to have leaked the site's source code, revealing security holes that have existed since around the time Hiroyuki Nishimura bought the forum from creator Christoper Poole. It may take months to rebuild a more secure version of 4chan.

If this is the end of 4chan, it would be the most significant de-platforming of extreme right-wing internet users since Kiwi Farms temporarily went down in 2022. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/4chan-the-internets-most-infamous-forum-is-down-following-an-alleged-hack-142516392.html?src=rss

Amazon’s Kindle Scribe is a solid ereader and writing tablet that’s handy for things like scrawling on ebooks and taking notes. The device is back on sale for a record-low price. It’ll currently run you $325, which is $75 or 19 percent off.

This deal is for the second-generation model, which Amazon released last year. Our main qualm about the Kindle Scribe 2 was its high price of $400, which has been mitigated by this sale.

We gave the Kindle Scribe 2 a score of 86 in our review and it’s our pick for the best e-reader E Ink tablet. We appreciated, among other things, the slick design as well as the smooth reading and writing experience it offers.

The Scribe provides a low-latency writing experience with no real perceptible delay between making a mark on the screen with the companion pen and it showing up on the display. There are multiple brush types to choose from, such as a marker, pencil and fountain pen. You can create multiple notebooks and add pages or change the templates as you see fit.

You have a decent-sized canvas on which to make your notes and scrawls as the Scribe has a 10.2-inch display. Obviously, it hooks into Amazon’s Kindle ebook ecosystem, though you can borrow digital tomes from libraries and access them here. Moreover, you can listen to Audible audiobooks via Bluetooth.

Follow @EngadgetDeals on X for the latest tech deals and buying advice.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-second-gen-kindle-scribe-is-back-on-sale-for-a-record-low-price-143105483.html?src=rss

Atomos StudioSonic are studio-grade headphones for $199Large 50mm drivers, with 180º rotating earcups10Hz to 40kHz frequency range, 105dB sensitivity, 30-ohm impedance

Atomos is well known for its high-end video gear for movie-makers, videographers and streamers – and it's just launched an equally hardcore pair of headphones with what looks like a seriously stunning specification.The new StudioSonic Production Headphones are wired over-ears with 105dB sensitivity and 30-ohm impedance, so they're not difficult to drive at all (no amp needed), and the frequency range from 10Hz to 40kHz is very impressive.There are 50mm drivers (40mm is typically the largest dynamic driver you get among the best wireless headphones, for reference) powering this, and I'd expect a very neutral sound from them as monitoring cans.

(Image credit: Atomos)

Atomos Studiosonic Production Headphones: features, pricing and availability

The Studiosonic Production Headphones have 50mm drivers and the ear cups can be swiveled 180 degrees for when you need single-ear monitoring. The detachable two-meter cable is coiled to make it anti-tangle, and there are dual 3.5mm and 6.5mm ports for wide compatibility.They're closed-back so you won't annoy the people around you – and to isolate you from them – and they're made with ultra-soft memory foam so they'll stay comfortable through even the longest listening, mixing or recording sessions.They're not intended for purely recreational music listening, but with specs like these for a very reasonable price, they could be an interesting contender among the best wired headphones for those with an eye on music production.The headphones are available to order now but they won't be shipping until June 2025. The RRP is $199, roughly £150 / AU$312 ex tax.

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I’ve been an iPhone user since 2009 when I got my first iPhone 3G, and since then I’ve been a loyal customer, upgrading annually to the best smartphone Apple has to offer.When Samsung released the S25 series of smartphones earlier this year with AI at their core, I knew I had to finally give Android a proper go and see what Google’s mobile operating system was capable of.Over the next few weeks I’m going to pit my S25’s Galaxy AI features against my iPhone 16 Pro Max’s Apple Intelligence capabilities to see which smartphone has AI features worth using compared to those that are just a gimmick.When I received the S25, early last week, the first thing I decided to do was test Galaxy AI’s photo editing prowess, after all, Clean Up on iPhone is one of the most complete Apple Intelligence features to date, or so I thought.

The dog

Image 1 of 3Original image (Image credit: Future)OriginalImage 2 of 3Galaxy AI (Image credit: Future)Galaxy AIImage 3 of 3Apple Intelligence (Image credit: Future)Apple Intelligence

To start my Galaxy AI Generative Edit versus Clean Up comparison, I decided to start by erasing my French Bulldog, Kermit, from his very plain grey bed. I thought this was a good starting point as while the bed is a plain background, there would be the shadow of the dog coming from the natural sunlight of the window in front of the camera.Galaxy AI had no issue removing Kermit from his bed, in fact not only did it remove the shadow, it continued the brown stitching of the bed’s border, and smoothed out the surface to completely erase any sign of Kermit from the photo.Apple Intelligence’s Clean Up, on the other hand, failed miserably at this simple task, leaving Kermit’s shadow while removing the dog from the bed. This AI editing created a sort of blur effect that would never pass for an edited image, let alone an original one.

Galaxy AI 1-0 Apple Intelligence

The croissant

Image 1 of 3Original image (Image credit: Future)OriginalImage 2 of 3Galaxy AI (Image credit: Future)Galaxy AIImage 3 of 3Apple Intelligence (Image credit: Future)Apple Intelligence

Next up, I took my two smartphones to my local coffee shop to test AI photo editing out in the wild. As I went later in the day, there were only two croissants left, one regular and one pain au chocolat.For this test, I decided to remove the pain au chocolat from a photo as the coffee shop’s branded paper underneath was monochrome and a repeating pattern that I thought would make for an interesting comparison.Again, Samsung’s AI editing was impressive, to say the least. Not only did the pain au chocolat completely disappear from the image, but Galaxy Ai replicated the branded pattern perfectly, keeping some crumbs for added realism.The iPhone’s attempt was again, pretty rubbish, creating a sort of crumpled paper effect and leaving the pain au chocolat’s shadow in plain sight. This was again pretty disappointing from Apple Intelligence, there may be a trend appearing here…

Galaxy AI 2-0 Apple Intelligence

The coffee cup

Image 1 of 3Original image (Image credit: Future)OriginalImage 2 of 3Galaxy AI (Image credit: Future)Galaxy AIImage 3 of 3Apple Intelligence (Image credit: Future)Apple Intelligence

I asked the barista behind the bar if he could pour a Flat White so I could try and remove the coffee cup from his hands using Galaxy AI and Apple Intelligence.I thought it was worth trying just to see how the AI photo editing tools handle pouring liquid, and again the results are night and day.On the S25, the cup disappeared, Galaxy AI recreated the barista’s thumb, inserted some objects on the surface, and tried to create the impact of the hot milk on the sink below.While the liquid’s physics is somewhat off, the editing of the hand and the recreation of what Galaxy AI perceived to be behind the cup were seriously impressive.As for Apple Intelligence… I’ll let the image do all the talking.

Galaxy AI 3-0 Apple Intelligence

The empty shop

Image 1 of 3Original image (Image credit: Future)OriginalImage 2 of 3Galaxy AI (Image credit: Future)Galaxy AIImage 3 of 3Apple Intelligence (Image credit: Future)Apple Intelligence

At this point, I had completely accepted the disparity in effectiveness between Samsung and Apple’s offerings, so I decided to push Generative Edit and Clean Up as far as these flagship smartphones would allow me to.I took a photo of the busy coffee shop, and after erasing one of the people from sight I decided to go even further and just erase everything from the photo, leaving nothing but the seating.Again, Galaxy AI passed with flying colors, recreating the shops outside the window, and extending the sofa where I had removed my table and coffee cup. Apple Intelligence, well… It mushed everything together and was absolutely useless.

Galaxy AI 4-0 Apple Intelligence

A whitewash

It’s fair to say there’s a clear winner when it comes to AI photo editing between these two devices, and if you follow any smartphone news you’re probably not surprised.What was surprising to me, was just how amazing Galaxy AI’s photo editing is, and how bad Clean Up on my top-of-the-line iPhone is.I’ve used Clean Up in the past and found it did a decent, but hardly mind-blowing job when it comes to removing a subject from a photo. After using the S25, I can’t believe Clean Up has even shipped in its current state knowing what alternatives are out there.I want to emphasize that both companies have taken a different approach to AI photo editing. Apple wants to keep the image as close to the original as possible, while Samsung is happy to showcase its AI power and offer more emphatic editing.While I think that’s worth keeping in mind, I do still think Apple’s Clean Up approach should be capable of some of the simple edits you’ve seen above. Instead, it’s come incredibly short of the mark when Samsung’s offering is capable of truly achieving what it sets out to do.

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