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There’s yet another Nintendo Direct coming our way, which is the third in less than a month. This one is entirely focused on the upcoming Switch 2 launch title Mario Kart World. It starts at 9AM ET and should last around 15 minutes.

It’s livestreaming on Nintendo’s YouTube page, but mega-fans can also open up that recently-launched Nintendo Today! app to follow along. We are embedding the YouTube link, so feel free to keep this tab open.

We have no idea what information Nintendo is going to spring on us as part of this Direct presentation. The company has already released a ton of info about Mario Kart World. It’s an open-world racer that can accommodate 24 plays at the same time.

However, there are still a couple of unknowns. Most of these involve the open-world aspect. Are there any rewards for exploration? Are there secret tracks that can only be unlocked by finding them? Can the same be said for unlockable characters? Again, we don’t know, but hope springs eternal.

There’s also the $80 elephant in the room. The exorbitant retail price of Mario Kart World has sent many fans into a tailspin. That’s a whole lot of money, and Nintendo only recently-released its first-ever $70 game. There’s a minuscule chance that the company will throw us a bone and knock $10 off the asking price, but this is highly unlikely given current economic uncertainty. At the very least, we could get some new data regarding the preorder date for US customers. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/heres-how-to-watch-the-mario-kart-focused-nintendo-direct-184825796.html?src=rss

It seems like every few years, gadget makers try to come up with something that will make us care about seeing things in 3D again. Without going all the way back to the 1800s, the first Avatar movie brought millions to theaters to watch blue cat people dance around in stereoscopic vision. Then came the flop that was 3D TVs in the early 2010s before things heated up again with the arrival of VR headsets like the HTC Vive and Oculus Rift. Soon, Samsung will release a new take on the tech with its glasses-free Odyssey 3D Gaming Monitor (model G90XF) and after trying it out, I feel like if 3D has been this good all along, people wouldn't roll their eyes every time the idea gets brought up.

If this monitor looks somewhat familiar, that's because Samsung actually demoed very early pre-production models at CES in both 2024 and 2025. In fact, I tried the first version in Las Vegas almost a year and a half ago, playing Lies of P back when it was a slightly larger 37-inch display. Regardless, the Odyssey 3D is finally going on sale later this month on April 28 for $2,000 and while I don't think it's an essential piece of tech, it's definitely a fun way to experience both games and videos in a new dimension.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

The G90XF features a 27-inch 4K LCD panel with a 165Hz refresh rate, which isn't all that impressive considering its price. And in some respects, it gets even worse when the 3D effect is active. In addition to having two eye and face tracking sensors hidden beneath its bezels, the Odyssey 3D also uses a lenticular filter to create two slightly different versions of the same scene (one for each eye), which gets interpreted by your brain as a 3D image.

This lowers the perceived resolution of the screen, which results in a very faint screen door effect like you might get on a VR headset. For me, this meant I saw a little chromatic fringing around certain objects while individual pixels became more noticeable. Unfortunately, because the monitor is designed to be viewed with two eyes, the effect doesn't come across in photos or videos as cameras typically only record with a single lens/sensor at a time. (Womp womp.)

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

That said, even with all of those limitations, I was still impressed by the Odyssey 3D. In games, the monitor can handle two different levels of integration. There is one for titles specifically co-developed with input from Samsung (denoted with a yellow badge) that take full advantage of the tech and another more general setting for games with basic 3D support.

The first game I played — Khazan: The First Berserker — is a fully certified title and it demonstrated a surprising level of immersion. Even without pushing the sliders for 3D effects like focal distance and depth factor all the way up, trees and foliage around the edge of the screen looked like they were popping out the display right at me, while little gameplay elements like floating orbs of blood just hovered in the space between my face and the monitor. There were also details like snowflakes that looked like they were flying past my head, which was a nice touch.

Importantly, the tech never felt oppressive and thanks to the built-in head tracking, I had the freedom to move around in my seat (just a little bit) without ruining the effect. So instead of being a distraction, it simply added a bit of atmosphere to the game. And it still looked quite sharp and ran as smooth as you’d expect. Sadly, I couldn't play Octopath Traveler, which is another one of Samsung's supported titles, as I think the combination of the 3D effect with the game's retro HD-2D art style would be a great showcase of the tech.

As for other titles, the monitor can convert standard 2D graphics into 3D on the fly. Though, as you might imagine, the effect isn't nearly as pronounced, particularly in more modern titles with fancier graphics. However, when I played Grand Theft Auto: Vice City, characters and vehicles still popped out in a very pleasing way that made a more than 20-year-old game feel brand new. Once again, it wasn’t a groundbreaking change, but added an extra level of fun and immersion to an already very nostalgic game.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

But the Odyssey 3D's abilities don't stop at gaming because the monitor can also convert non-DRM-protected videos (like clips from YouTube) into 3D on the fly. Similar to games, more recent trailers like Avengers: Endgame had an obvious depth effect that made certain scenes shine, though I still wouldn't call it a revolutionary experience. However, for other genres like anime, the display did an even better job of separating stuff in the background from characters up front. On top of all that, the monitor can also convert side-by-side stereoscopic footage into standard 3D videos as well, which is a nice, though rather niche, inclusion. I just wish I didn’t have to click on the notification to activate the 3D effect every time I pulled up a new video.

Of course, the big question is if the Odyssey 3D's added dimensionality is worth an extra $1,000 or more compared to a more traditional monitor with similar specs. And to that I'd probably say no. But I don't think that means this display is a failure, because I found that being able to turn this effect on and off at will without needing extra equipment like glasses made the whole experience rather enjoyable, instead of completely off-putting like so many devices in the past. And if Samsung can make this tech a bit more affordable, it would feel more like a nice bonus that has definite value when viewing certain games or movies. When you consider all the false starts and flops 3D gadgets have had throughout the years, that feels like a small but important win in my book.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Finally, while there are currently 12 games that are fully certified to work with the Odyssey 3D, Samsung says it hopes to bring that number closer to 50 by the end of the year. Currently support titles are listed below.

KHAZAN: The First Berserker

Dragon Ball Z: Kakarot

Lies of P

Psychonauts 2

Little Nightmares II

Palworld

F.I.S.T.: Forged In Shadow Torch

SpongeBob SquarePants: The Cosmic Shake

Like a Dragon: Ishin

Only UP

Darksiders Genesis

Octopath Traveler

The Samsung Odyssey 3D Gaming Monitor will be available for $2,000 starting on April 28, with pre-orders eligible for a $200 credit from select retailers like Samsung.com.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/samsung-odyssey-3d-monitor-hands-on-this-should-be-the-new-baseline-for-glasses-free-3d-190015689.html?src=rss

Samsung Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro brings rugged durability with IP68, MIL-STD-810H and Gorilla GlassMid-range Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chip handles essential business tasksSupports a hot-swappable 10,100mAh battery and POGO charging

Samsung has launched a new rugged tablet featuring a 10.1-inch WUXGA TFT LCD display with a 16:10 aspect ratio, adaptive refresh rate up to 120Hz, and touch sensitivity for gloves under 2mm thick and wet screen use - though not underwater.There aren’t many rugged tablets from major brands, so it’s great to see the Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro built specifically for tough environments. It boasts an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, MIL-STD-810H certification for durability in extreme conditions, and Gorilla Glass Victus+ to protect the screen against scratches and disinfectants like ethanol and bleach-based cleaners.Power shouldn’t be an issue, as the tablet includes a 10,100mAh user-replaceable battery that supports dual hot-swap, allowing one battery to be changed without powering down the device. A POGO pin interface supports dock-based charging, although the dock is sold separately.

3.5mm headphone jack

This isn’t a device aiming to compete with mainstream tablets in raw performance. It’s powered by a 4nm Snapdragon 7s Gen 3 chip, paired with 6GB or 8GB of RAM and 128GB or 256GB of storage, expandable via microSD up to 2TB. This chip delivers mid-range performance and sits below the Snapdragon 7+ Gen 3 and Snapdragon 8 series in Qualcomm’s lineup.For connectivity, the tablet supports 5G (Sub-6), LTE, Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.4, and NFC with front tagging. It also supports both physical SIM and eSIM, though eSIM availability may vary by region. Navigation is covered by GPS, GLONASS, Galileo, BeiDou, and QZSS, although satellite coverage may differ based on location.The Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro includes a 3.5mm headphone jack, a feature increasingly rare in modern devices. Samsung retained the port specifically for frontline workers who rely on wired headsets where Bluetooth may be unreliable or restricted.Don’t expect flagship-level photography from the Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro. This productivity-focused tablet includes a 12MP rear camera and an 8MP front-facing sensor. It does come bundled with an IP68-rated S Pen for added functionality, however.Weighing about 680g, the tablet also supports a USB 3.2 Type-C port, Samsung Knox and Knox Vault for enhanced security, an RGB light sensor, and a programmable Active Key for quick access to user-defined functions.“At Samsung, we understand that frontline professionals need technology that adapts to their fast-paced and demanding work environments,” said Jerry Park, EVP and Head of Global Mobile B2B Team, MX Business at Samsung Electronics.He added the Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro combines "ruggedised durability, enterprise-grade security, seamless connectivity and intuitive AI-driven features to help businesses operate efficiently in harsh conditions while maximizing productivity and minimizing downtime.”The Galaxy Tab Active5 Pro will be available starting April 2025, with a recommended retail price of £769 in the UK. US pricing has yet to be confirmed.

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As we reported last year, the first season of Citadel struggled to achieve a 50% Rotten Tomatoes rating. It's currently sitting at a rather sad 51%, but its spin-offs Citadel: Diana and Citadel: Honey Bunny are much higher rated, with 82% and 75% respectively.So of course Prime Video has canned both spin-offs after just one season apiece.The reason's simple enough: the reviews were often rank: "As generic as they come"; "style over substance"; "what you'd get if a child tried to draw an action blockbuster from memory"; "so frustratingly low-effort it's honestly kind of offensive"), but lots and lots of people streamed it anyway.It's not all bad news for fans of the now cancelled shows, however. Amazon MGM TV boss Vernon Sanders says the tales will continue as part of the mothership show.

What's happening with Citadel?

Here's Sanders: "Having successfully traversed India and Italy, storylines from both Citadel: Honey Bunny and Citadel: Diana will be woven into the upcoming second season of the mothership series Citadel."He continues: "While these successful and widely enjoyed international chapters will not continue as individual series, Season 2 of Citadel will be our most exhilarating yet. With high-stakes storytelling, new additions to our amazing cast and bold, cinematic ambition, the new season will deepen the emotional journeys of Nadia, Mason and Orlick against the relentless force that is Manticore."He also shared a premiere date, or at least a premiere window: Q2 of 2026.The writing was on the wall for the spin-offs because, as Deadline reports, they "have not been global breakouts". The two shows "have been waiting for word on their fates since launching their first seasons in September and December, respectively."That also means the end of what I slightly sarcastically described as a Citadel Cinematic Universe of multiple connected shows set in different countries. It's all about the single show now, and hopefully it'll raise its game for season 2.

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Deezer, a Spotify alternative that launched in the US in 2016, shared on Wednesday that 20,000 completely AI-generated tracks are added to its music service on a daily basis, making up "over 18% of all uploaded content" the platform receives every day.

Like other streaming services, Deezer offers methods for independent artists to upload their own music without having to be part of a larger licensing deal with a record label. While that lowers some barriers, it also leaves the door open for music that isn't made by people at all. Clearly, people are taking advantage of the option.

Deezer introduced a tool for detecting and tagging AI-generated content in January 2025, when at the time, AI-generated music only made up 10 percent of uploads. The tool is helpful, but it feels like a stopgap until there's consensus on whether AI-generated tracks should be allowed to exist in the first place. AI companies contend that training on existing books, movies, music, and internet ephemera is "fair use," but many of the people who made that material feel differently. In terms of pushback, AI music startups Suno and Udio were sued by record labels for copyright infringement in 2024 and artists have spoken out about "unlicensed AI training" but there's yet to be ruling that sets the new legal standard.

Deezer also isn't alone in dealing with an infestation of AI-generated content. It's well-documented at this point that Spotify has the same issue. Subscribers have highlighted dozens of instances of AI-generated tracks that were clearly uploaded to try and game Spotify's popular weekly playlists, and while Spotify has removed some copycat tracks when artists have complained, the company has no qualms with hosting AI music.

"If creators are using these technologies — where they are creating music in a legal way that we reimburse and people listen to them — and are successful, we should let people listen to them," Spotify co-president Gustav Söderström shared on a Big Technology podcast episode from November 2024. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/deezer-reports-18-percent-of-the-music-uploaded-to-its-service-every-day-is-ai-generated-193652533.html?src=rss

On Wednesday, Apple pushed updates to most of its platforms: iOS 18.4.1, iPadOS 18.4.1, macOS 15.4.1, tvOS 18.4.1 and visionOS 2.4.1. They contain two security fixes for flaws that may have been used in real-world attacks, so it's wise to update your devices without too much delay.

Apple is aware of a report that both security issues "may have been exploited in an extremely sophisticated attack against specific targeted individuals on iOS."

One patched bug is in Apple's audio framework, CoreAudio. This memory corruption issue allowed malicious media files to execute code when processed as audio streams. The other relates to the Remote Participant Audio Control (RPAC) framework, which lets communications apps manage audio streams. That flaw allowed an attacker with arbitrary read / write capabilities to bypass Pointer Authentication (a security feature in Apple's processors).

Apple "strongly advises" all users to update their devices.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/ios-1841-patches-two-iphone-security-flaws-used-in-extremely-sophisticated-attacks-194922877.html?src=rss

As if a Spotify outage wasn’t enough for one day, it seems like Zoom – the popular video conferencing service – is in the midst of a pretty large outage.Zoom’s own status does show ‘partial outages’ listed for ‘Zoom Meetings,’ which are, of course, the video calls you’d make on the platform, and Down Detector is showing a large number of reports. It peaked so far to over 55,000 at 3:15PM ET. Right now it’s sitting at closer to 52,000 – still not a small number.I’ve tried to fire up a Zoom meeting to no luck right now, and in posts on X (formerly Twitter) and on Threads, other folks who rely on the platform are encountering other issues.TechRadar’s just reached out to Zoom to ask for an update on this issue, what’s causing it, and when we can expect it to be resolved. We’ll update here, but in the meantime, follow along with our live reporting on this Zoom outage.

Subaru has unveiled its second-ever EV, the 2026 Trailseeker, at the New York International Auto Show. It's a slightly larger version of the company's first electric vehicle, the Solterra, and is likely based on the same platform — also used by Toyota with its BZ4X electric SUV. You can see a few images we grabbed of the new vehicle at the Auto Show this morning right here.

The Trailseeker is taller than the Solterra and has more cargo area, but otherwise resembles that model, with similar body creases along the doors and rear fender. It also has the same type of plastic panels around the fenders, which was something of a polarizing feature on the Solterra.

Range isn't the Trailseeker's strong point as it's equipped with a smallish 74.7-kWh lithium-ion battery and tops out at just 260 miles. Charging won't be blazingly fast either as it's limited to 150kW. However, the electric SUV will be able to handle fast charging in cold or warm conditions thanks to a battery preconditioning system, and you'll be able to pull up to any Supercharger thanks to the NACS port and Subaru's arrangement with Tesla.

Subaru

The Trailseeker does seem to have the goods when it comes to performance and offroading, though. It uses a symmetrical all-wheel drive system with dual motors putting out a combined 375 HP that propel it from 0-60 mph in 4.3 seconds. It also comes standard with 8.3 inches of ground clearance and the company's X-Mode system with settings for snow/dirt, deep snow/mud, grip control and downhill assist control.

It's also loaded with driver assist tech powered by the company's EyeSight system. That includes pre-collision braking, front cross traffic alert, blind spot monitors, lane departure alert, a panoramic view monitor, emergency stop assist, traffic jam assist, lane change assist and adaptive cruise control.

Subaru

The interior looks fairly plain but it does feature a 14-inch touchscreen, the largest on any Subaru to date. In a nod to its techie market, the EV also offers a wide center console that "provides a centralized hub for devices and personal items for easy storage," the company said. That includes two 15W chargers, two fast USB-C chargers for rear passengers, plus Apple CarPlay and Android Auto support.

Pricing will be announced in "early 2026," according to Subaru. However, it's likely to be more expensive than the company's Solterra, which currently starts at $38,495 before any tax credits, and ahead of any future tariffs levied on Japanese imports. This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/the-2026-subaru-trailseeker-ev-has-solid-4x4-bonafides-but-mediocre-range-132516217.html?src=rss

The US government has continued to make drastic cuts to budgets and personnel, but one cybersecurity service has at least temporarily avoided the chop. The Common Vulnerabilities and Exposures database operated by nonprofit MITRE Corp will receive 11 months of federal support. A representative from the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, whose parent agency funds the MITRE database, told Reuters that the department exercised an "option period on the contract to ensure there will be no lapse in critical CVE services." The news was an eleventh-hour announcement, as federal funding for the project was slated to expire today.

This CVE database identifies and tracks cybersecurity vulnerabilities, and it is regularly used by IT professionals. It offers a standardized approach that allows complex and technical information about potential problems to be quickly shared across companies and organizations worldwide.

"We appreciate the overwhelming support for these programs that have been expressed by the global cyber community, industry, and government over the last 24 hours," said Yosry Barsoum, vice president and director for MITRE's Center for Securing the Homeland.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/database-for-cybersecurity-vulnerabilities-secures-last-minute-government-funding-202703659.html?src=rss

Sony is jacking up PlayStation Plus prices in Canada. In an email to Engadget's Kris Holt, the company said the increase would apply to subscribers' first payments on or after June 24. The price hikes are now live on the PS Plus website for new Canadian subscribers. They vary depending on the tier and billing period but range from 12 to 22 percent higher than they were yesterday.

The new Canadian prices for PS Plus Premium are CA$25 monthly (up from $21), $69 for three months (from $60) and — yikes — $225 for a year (from $190). Meanwhile, Extra members will now pay $21 monthly (from $18), $56 for three months (from $50) and $190 annually (from $155). Finally, Essential subscribers' prices go up to $14 monthly (from $12), $35 for three months (from $30) and $110 annually (from $95).

Sony

Other countries saw (previously announced) price increases go into effect on Wednesday. These include — deep breath — Australia, South Korea, Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Argentina, Bolivia, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Mexico, Nicaragua, Panama, Paraguay, Peru and Uruguay. So far, we haven't seen or heard of any US or UK price increases.

The company didn't mention the elephant in the room — tariffs — in its email, instead justifying the price increase in vague terms. "This is necessary to enable us to continue bringing you high-quality games and benefits," it stated.

But in a blog post last week announcing similar rate hikes in other countries, Sony perhaps hinted at the "T" word. "Like many businesses around the world, we continue to be impacted by global market conditions and will be adjusting our local prices for PlayStation Plus," Game Services Director Adam Michel wrote.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/playstation/sony-raises-playstation-plus-prices-in-canada-205342723.html?src=rss

Zoom went down for many of its users this afternoon. People began experiencing issues with video conferencing service over the past few hours, peaking at more than 60,000 reports on DownDetector. Zoom shared an update acknowledging the problems and posted on X that "a restore is underway." Around 5PM ET, the company stated that normal service has resumed.

On the down side, people may have been unable to connect to their meetings and calls during the workday. On the positive side, people may have been unable to connect to their meetings and calls during the workday.

It's been a bad day for online services, as Spotify went down for several hours earlier today.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/zoom-is-back-up-after-outages-this-afternoon-210704980.html?src=rss

American Airlines has announced plans to finally offer free Wi-Fi on flights. The company said that its AT&T-sponsored program will start offering free, high-speed Wi-Fi "across more than 2 million American flights per year" in January 2026.

To be able to access free Wi-Fi you'll have to be a member of American's AAdvantage loyalty program, but once you're signed up, all you'll need to do is log in to access the internet. Wi-Fi will be offered on planes with "Viasat and Intelsat high-speed satellite connectivity", according to American, which includes 90 percent of the airline's fleet. "American is also on pace to outfit more than 500 regional aircraft with high-speed Wi-Fi by the end of 2025," the company says.

Nearly every major US-based airline offer some kind of free Wi-Fi program, and they're all able to do so thanks to satellite connectivity. United started using Starlink for Wi-Fi earlier this year, and both Hawaiian Airlines and Delta ran tests with SpaceX's satellite internet service back in 2022. Delta ultimately went with Viasat for its T-Mobile-sponsored Wi-Fi program in 2023, with the same loyalty program requirement as American Airlines.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/american-airlines-will-provide-inflight-wi-fi-for-free-starting-next-year-211243870.html?src=rss

The world is about to write a new chapter in the story of AI. If the first was about unlocking the technology’s predictive abilities, and the second tapped into its generative (GenAI) potential, the third will be dominated by agentic AI driving autonomous decisions. These technologies offer seemingly unlimited potential, but to unlock it, organizations need to seamlessly connect their AI agents to a multitude of systems and data.Application Programming Interfaces (APIs) have therefore become essential to the success of AI strategies, providing the layer of connective tissue that agents need to communicate with enterprise systems. In fact, they’re already helping to unlock the value of GenAI. IDC claims that those with GenAI-enhanced applications and services in production have roughly five times more APIs than those who haven’t yet invested in the technology.However, if unmanaged, the soaring number of connections between internal and external systems will compound the existing problems around API sprawl. This in turn creates major cybersecurity and compliance risks. As organizations embrace the agentic AI era, their motivation to create new APIs will outpace their ability and desire to follow best practices for governance, security, and lifecycle management, due to the delays they introduce.To mitigate this risk and safely harness the power of agentic AI, IT leaders need a fully integrated API management (APIM) strategy.

Zombies, shadows, and risk

It’s impossible to accurately estimate just how bad API sprawl has become, in part because of undocumented “shadow APIs”. An oft-cited report claimed the number of APIs worldwide exceeded 200 million in 2021.However, with larger enterprises potentially running thousands or even tens of thousands—and an estimated 29 shadow APIs in every enterprise account—all bets are off as to the true number that are active today. In any case, the number is set to explode as agentic AI takes hold. A “build-now-think-governance-later” culture will only add to the number of shadow APIs in existence across organizations.The problem is exacerbated further by the prevalence of zombie APIs—that is, connectors that are no longer actively used but still accessible. For example, a developer might create an API to meet a temporary need to pull data from one system into another, but then fail to decommission it after the transfer is complete. Both shadow and zombie APIs pose a major security risk.This is worsened by the fact that nearly one in three (30%) APIs are unmanaged, and only half of enterprises have software to detect them, according to IDC. On the other hand, threat actors are past masters at seeking out unmanaged and exposed APIs. They know these endpoints may have outdated, weak or missing authentication, and other flaws they can exploit.The result could be anything from data theft and ransomware infections to credential stuffing and fake account creation. This can ultimately lead to compliance risk, financial loss, and reputational damage. Last year’s Trello breach served as a stark reminder of that risk, when an adversary exploited a misconfigured API endpoint to access the data of 15 million users.

Building a robust API Management strategy

Identifying API sprawl as an issue is one thing, but doing something about it can be more challenging. The problem is that the point API Management (APIM) solutions that most organizations rely on are not fit for purpose in today’s agentic AI era. They create IT bottlenecks that stifle innovation and slow development workflows, encouraging developers to take shortcuts when it comes to governance and documentation.To overcome these challenges, organizations should centralize visibility and control of their APIs in one platform and apply federated governance throughout the end-to-end lifecycle. In this way, they can set granular policies, manage security and observability requirements, and automate as much work as possible to alleviate the burden on developers.It’s also important to establish API usage monitoring and control capabilities so partners can be onboarded quickly, and rapidly offboarded if their software becomes incompatible, or when their contract expires. Compliance and ongoing SLA management are other important elements of a central APIM strategy—to minimize regulatory risk and ensure consistent quality of experience.

Towards a more connected future

As enterprises continue to adopt agents at scale, the need for robust API management is critical. If overlooked, organizations will be at risk of increased security vulnerabilities and left unable to unlock the full potential of agentic AI. But with a robust, fully integrated APIM strategy, organizations will have a much firmer foundation for building a truly autonomous future.Taking a unified approach to connecting systems and data will enable IT and business teams to harness the power of agentic AI without increased risk. That will set them on a path to supercharge business operations and free employees to work on higher value tasks, creating a stronger and more lasting competitive advantage.

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It’s been nearly six years since Apple Arcade launched, and while the service hasn’t fully delivered on Apple’s promise back in 2019, it can still be worth paying for. Of course, that’s provided you’re willing to hunt through the 200-ish games currently available on the service. I’ve been playing Apple Arcade games since it launched and these are just a few of my favorites that have stood the test of time.

Best Apple Arcade games of 2025

What is Apple Arcade?

Apple originally released Apple Arcade with the promise of high-quality, exclusive games that are playable across basically every device the company makes. That includes the iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple TV (though you need a controller for the latter). Over time, Apple started allowing games originally launched in the App Store as well, provided that they met certain criteria. All Apple Arcade games are ad-free and have no in-app purchases, something that really helps differentiate its offerings over the flood of low-quality games in the App Store.

While Apple Arcade launched with a pretty excellent lineup, additional games have unfortunately been fewer and farther between in recent years. Apple has also pulled a number of games from the service, including some of the best ones you could get like Sayonara Wild Hearts, Cozy Grove, Assemble with Care, Shinsekai: Into the Depths and numerous others. It’s a reminder that with a subscription service, things can go away at any time.

While we’re not seeing the same cadence of high-quality original games on Apple Arcade as we did a few years ago, I still think the service is worth the $7 per month or $50 per year subscription if you do a lot of gaming on your phone. Some of the best games in the history of the App Store are here (anything with a “plus” symbol denotes a game that was originally sold in the App Store and then brought to Apple Arcade), and there are still a number of excellent originals worth playing. It is worth noting that the “plus” games were not designed with Mac or Apple TV playback in mind and thus only work on an iPhone or iPad. These 16 games are some of the best you can play, and there are a bunch more I want to try for future inclusion on this list. In the meantime, this should be more than enough to get you started.

Check out our entire Best Games series including the best Nintendo Switch games, the best PS5 games, the best Xbox games, the best PC games and the best free games you can play today.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/best-apple-arcade-games-140053796.html?src=rss

Full spoilers follow for The Wheel of Time season 3 episode 8.

The Wheel of Time season 3 has weaved its final episode – and there are plenty of talking points to, well, discuss following its release.As the dust settles on this season's closing chapter, titled 'He Who Comes With The Dawn', then, let's break down what happened in the high fantasy show's latest entry.If the above warning wasn't enough, this is your final one: full spoilers immediately follow for the Prime Video Original's latest episode.

Who dies in The Wheel of Time season 3 finale?

The season 3 finale is the first time we've glimpsed balefire in Amazon's TV apdatation (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

More than enough people, really, but there's one particularly heart-wrenching death that doesn't even happen in Robert Jordan's fantasy book series of the same name.Before I get into that, though, let's look at those supporting characters who took their last breath in The Wheel of Time's latest installment.Jeanie, one of the last two remaining remembers Liandrin's Black Ajah crew, is killed by Elayne. Indeed, she uses Balefire – an incredibly powerful weapon when wielded by those in tune with the One Power – to save Thom Merrilin's life when Jeanie confronts him in Tanchico.Balefire is so potent that it destroys a living being's thread in the Pattern, effectively wiping them out of existence. In fact, such are the dangers posed by it to the Pattern, it was banned among One Power wielders following the conclusion of the War of Power.Anyway, Chesmal, Jeanie and Liandrin's fellow Black Ajah, is seemingly killed by Min; the latter bludgeoning Chesmal on the back of the head to rescue Mat (more on him later).

Melindhra is one of five characters who perishes in season 3's final episode (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

That pair aren't the only villains to bite the dust in 'He Who Comes With The Dawn'. Sammael, one of the Forsaken, is murdered by another of his kin Moghedien. The latter uses her spider-like abilities to string him from the ceiling via his own muscles, skin, and blood; Sammael's body being hung from his cave-based prison via a web of flesh. It's a disgustingly creative way to kill someone and too gory to post a screenshot of.Melindhra, a Malkier-born Maiden of the Spear, also perishes. A member of the shaido clan and someone revealed to be a Darkfriend in season 3's final episode, Melindhra dies when she breaks her oath to The Shadow. Indeed, she warns Lan that Lanfear has not only infiltrated the Aiel camp, but plans on trying to kill Rand after he finally rejected her earlier in episode 8. However, by telling Lan about Lanfear, Melindhra betrays The Shadow, which subsequently claims her life.

Siuan Sanche is surprisingly killed by Elaida's right-hand woman in 'He Who Comes With The Dawn' (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

The episode's most noteworthy death, though, belongs to the Amyrlin Seat herself – that being, Siuan Sanche.At the start of episode 8, we're transported 10 years into the past and shown how Siuan defeated Elaida to become the Aes Sedai's leader. Fast-forward to the present and a still seething Elaida manages to overthrow the White Tower's commander via a vote-based coup.After stripping Siuan of her ability to channel the One Power – a process known as Stilling for female wielders or Gentling for male channelers –Siuan is tried before Elaida, who's the new Amyrlin Seat, and her supporters. Her crimes? Working in secret with Moiraine to find the Dragon Reborn, force all Aes Sedai to bend the knee to him, and help him defeat The Dark One during the Last Battle.However, Siuan does not go gently into that good night. Defiant to the end, she defends herself and her actions before warning that, unless the White Tower follows Rand, the Aes Sedai will stand no chance of defeating The Dark One and his forces. Cue Elaida instructing her right-hand woman Alviarin to behead Siuan for her insubordination.Siuan's death is the latest story-based diversion from the plot that unfolds in Jordan's novels. In 'The Shadow Rising', the fourth book in the series, which season 3 of Amazon's adaptation is based on, Siuan escapes the White Tower after she's Stilled. Like so many changes before it in the TV retelling – alterations that showrunner Rafe Judkins says need to be made – then, this moment will surely vex large sections of the fanbase.

Are Moiraine and Lanfear dead in The Wheel of Time?

Lanfear and Moiraine made it out of this season alive (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

No. They survive their duel, but both characters come out of it bearing new scars.For Moiraine, it's the loss of her lover in Siuan that hurts the most. Sure, she was almost strangled to death by Lanfear and later stabbed with Lan's sword of Malkier (Lanfear wrestled it from him during her fight with him and Moiraine) by the second-most powerful member of the Forsaken, but that's nothing compared to the pain she'll soon feel.Indeed, as Moiraine prepares to die at Lanfear's hand, she suddenly feels Siuan's demise through the One Power. Moiraine's anguish is so great that it enables her to further tap into the One Power, use it to unimpale herself from Lan's blade, and turn the tide of her showdown with Lanfear. Summoning all of her might, Moiraine fights off her adversary and even slashes Lanfear's neck with the sword of Malkier. Before she land the telling blow, though, Lanfear escapes through one of her portals.So, yes, while the duo live to fight another day, Moiraine is left emotionally devastated by Siuan's death and Lanfear physically damaged by the wounds inflicted on her by Moiraine. We'll see them again, then, in one of the best Prime Video shows' next season (if it's renewed, anyway, but more on this later).

How does Rand al'Thor convince the Aiel that he's the true Car'a'carn?

Rand cooks up a storm in the season 3 finale (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

By making it rain. No, I'm not talking about throwing paper money into the air to shower someone with, I mean he literally makes it rain.Indeed, during the latest meeting of the Aiel clan chiefs, the shaido warrior known as Colaudin tries to convince his people that he's the Dragon Reborn. Despite being give temporary dragon tattoos by Lanfear to make his case, though, Colaudin's plan is foiled when Rand uses the One Power to summon a massive storm and make it rain on the Aiel Waste for the first time in centuries. No bad for someone who's mocked for being a Wetlander, eh?By proving himself as the actual Dragon Reborn – the Aiel call him the Car'a'carn, if you'd forgotten – Rand is now in possession of an army that'll help him fight The Dark One. The next step of his plan, then, should be to locate the legendary sword Callandor. Well, once he manages to convince any still non-believing Aiel tribes that he is the Car'a'carn.

What is the creature that Mat Cauthon meets? The Eelfinn explained

This season's eighth chapter finally introduces us to the Eelfinn (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

I suspect this is one of the biggest questions you'll have after the season 3 finale.First mentioned in passing during a conversation between Elaida and Alviarin during this episode's flashback sequence, the Eelfinn are one of two inter-dimensional humanoid beings collectively known as the Finn. The other group is known as the Aelfinn but, seeing as they don't appear in 'He Who Comes With The Dawn', we'll discuss them in more detail once they make their live-action debut.Anyway, the Eelfinn are fox-like humanoids whose realm can only be reached via a specific Ter'angreal – objects of extraordinary power – known as a twisted redstone doorframe. This is the gate that Elaida exits in this finale's opening scene and one that Mat stumbles through in Tanchico.

Mat should've stopped to think before he made his three wishes... (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

The Eelfinn, who are also known as the "foxy folk" in Jordan's novels due to their resemblance to the sly mammalian race, have the ability to grant three wishes to anyone who visits their dimension.However, before these are granted, the Eelfinn set a price that usually pains the person they're granting the wishes of. They also ask if their visitor is in possession of any light-bearing objects, iron, or instruments that can play music. Anyone who has these items will be banished from their realm or, even worse, killed right there on the spot.

Mat's foxhead medallion will serve him well in the battles to come (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

Unfortunately for Mat (in some ways, anyway), he not only makes three wishes that negatively impact him, such as the loss of key memories, but he almost pays the *ahem* price by suffocating to death. Indeed, because Mat makes his wishes before bargaining with the Eelfinn, the latter sets a near-fatal price that results in Mat being hung when he's transported back to the real world. This is a call back to the vision that Min had of Mat being hung earlier in season 3.Despite taking some of Mat's memories, not to mention almost taking his life, too the Eelfinn does gift him something. As Min consoles Mat following his near-death experience, the camera zooms in on a foxhead medallion, which Mat wasn't in possession of before. No spoilers for Mat's story from this point on, but this pendant will be an incredibly important item in events yet to come.

Where's Perrin in The Wheel of Time's season 3 finale?

Perrin is conspicuous by his absence in season 3's final installment (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

Perrin – or, to call him by his new title, Lord Goldeneyes – is nowhere to be seen in the season 3 finale. That's because he had an entire episode devoted to him last week (April 10), which wrapped up his season 3 character arc.Heading into a potential fourth season, Perrin will be in a bit of a tight-spot. After leading The Two Rivers folk and successfully defending the town from an army of Trollocs and Darkfriends, he handed himself over to the Children of the Light for murdering their leader's father in the season 2 finale.As we see in one of this season's finale's final clips, Faile, Bain, and Chiad locate the Children of the Light's camp before heading back to The Two Rivers. Will they try to spring Perrin out of jail? Or will he eventually be freed by the military organization? Hopefully, we'll get an answer in season 4.

Are there any end credits scenes in The Wheel of Time season 3 episode 8?

Nynaeve finally controlled the One Power in 'He Who Comes With The Dawn' (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

No. If you were sticking it out through seasons 3's final end credits to see if there's a mid- and/or post-credits scene, you'll be sorely disappointed.

Has The Wheel of Time been renewed for a fourth season?

Don't look so serious, Rand – I'm sure Amazon will renew the show for a fourth season (Image credit: Amazon MGM Studios/Prime Video)

Amazon hasn't officially announced if The Wheel of Time will return for a fourth season. Prior to this season's release in mid-March, rumors had circulated online that the e-commerce giant's entertainment division wouldn't greenlight another eight-episode installment until it's pored over season 3's official viewing figures.Nevertheless, The Wheel of Time's cast told me that they're "confident" that the series will be renewed for season 4. With each season being received better (on Rotten Tomatoes, anyway) than the one before, the Prime Video TV show deserves another outing. Much will depend on that all-important viewership, though, and whether Amazon can continue to spend millions of dollars on a program that isn't being watched by the bulk of Prime Video's global audience.

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Zoom went down for users for several hoursThe outage was caused by a GoDaddy domain “communication error”Spotify and X also had hiccups, but this was thought to be unrelated

The recent Zoom outage has been blamed on a GoDaddy domain issue, with the GoDaddy Registry mistakenly blocking the zoom.us domain due to a communication error between Zoom’s own domain registrar, Markmonitor, and GoDaddy Registry.The result was reduced service between 2:55 PM ET and 4:12 PM ET, with Zoom Meetings, Zoom Phone, Zoom Contact Center and the Zoom Website all affected.The video conferencing company was quick to add, “There was no product, security, network failure or Distributed Denial of Service (DDoS) attack.”

Zoom outage caused by GoDaddy error

Although Zoom confirmed a “communication error” between Markmonitor and GoDaddy Registry caused the outage, we don’t know any details about the events leading up to the miscommunication.The two domain companies and Zoom worked together to identify and remove the block “quickly,” Zoom added.Separate Downdetector monitoring noted that most complaints related to server connections, with one in five also experiencing login issues and a handful conference calls.The outage came just a few hours after a widespread outage affecting Spotify’s app, website and music streaming services, and a couple of hours before a minor X outage affecting the website and app, however these issues are likely unrelated.Even though services had been restored within less than two hours, some users were being advised to flush their DNS caches and to reconnect if they were still experiencing problems:

For Windows open a command prompt and type "ipconfig /flushdns"For Mac open a terminal window and type "sudo dscacheutil -flushcache; sudo killall -HUP mDNSResponder"

Cisco’s ThousandEyes has also carried out a details analysis of the outage, noting the functionality of DNS and the incident’s impact.“Identifying a specific fault domain when a service encounters issues requires visibility into performance across the entire service delivery chain,” Cisco said.

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The financial industry is built on trust—but in today’s digital economy, that trust is eroding. A staggering 69% of financial institutions have experienced data breaches in the past five years, with 40% of CFOs questioning the accuracy of their own financial records. These statistics point to a systemic issue: financial data is increasingly vulnerable to manipulation, human error, and security lapses.If trust in financial systems continues to wane, the consequences will extend far beyond corporate balance sheets. Market confidence, economic stability, and global commerce all depend on secure, verifiable financial data. Financial breaches do not just expose confidential records; they create ripple effects that destabilize businesses, erode consumer trust, and increase regulatory scrutiny.Traditional cybersecurity measures, such as perimeter-based firewalls and periodic audits, are no longer sufficient. Cybercriminals exploit weaknesses in centralized databases, manual reconciliation processes, and outdated identity verification methods, making financial data a prime target for attacks. The reality is that financial institutions continue to operate on trust-based systems that can be manipulated, rather than on infrastructure designed for inherent security and integrity.

The Shift to Tamper Proof Financial Data

Emerging blockchain technologies are revolutionizing financial security by providing an immutable, real-time ledger of transactions and data. Unlike conventional systems that rely on fragmented databases and manual reconciliation, BSV Blockchain ensures that every transaction is permanently recorded and independently verifiable. This level of transparency isn’t just a regulatory advantage, it’s a fundamental shift in how financial institutions manage risk, enhance compliance, and drive operational efficiency.For years, financial leaders have grappled with unreliable data and delayed audits. Blockchain-based audits can be conducted in real time, allowing institutions to detect discrepancies immediately rather than months later. Therefore, fraud becomes exponentially harder to execute when every financial action leaves a traceable, time-stamped record. The implications for banking, payments, and cross-border transactions are profound. Organizations can now move beyond costly third-party verification processes and instead rely on a single, secure source of truth.

Eliminating Human Error and Strengthening Security

Despite technological advancements, human error remains one of the greatest risks to financial security. Whether it’s misreported figures, duplicated transactions, or unauthorized data alterations, errors can have far reaching consequences. Traditional systems depend on manual oversight and reconciliation, which introduce unnecessary inefficiencies and vulnerabilities.Blockchain provides a safeguard against human error by ensuring that every transaction is cryptographically secured and automatically recorded. This removes the need for constant verification, enabling financial institutions to operate with greater accuracy, efficiency, and trustworthiness.

Digital Identity: The Next Evolution in Financial Security

Fraud, identity theft, and account takeovers remain persistent challenges in financial services and traditional identity verification systems, reliant on passwords and centralized databases, are prone to frequent breaches. The consequences are severe—financial losses, reputational damage, and increased regulatory scrutiny.Blockchain-based digital identity solutions offer a more secure and efficient alternative, benefiting both individuals and institutions.By decentralizing identity management, blockchain enables:

Fraud-resistant authentication, preventing stolen credentials and reducing the risk of unauthorised access.Instant, verifiable identity checks, allowing businesses to quickly confirm identities and comply with financial regulations.A tamper-proof audit trail, ensuring transparency and making financial crimes like money laundering easier to detect.

This technology removes reliance on fragmented, insecure identity systems, giving individuals greater control over their credentials while allowing financial institutions to enhance security and reduce administrative overheads.

Preventing Data Breaches and Strengthening Cybersecurity

One of the most significant weaknesses in financial security today is the inability to prevent large scale data breaches. Hackers target centralized financial databases, authentication systems, and payment processing networks, exploiting vulnerabilities that traditional security measures miss. Even with the best firewalls and encryption tools, the weakest link often lies in how financial data is stored, accessed, and verified.Blockchain shifts financial security from a reactive model to a proactive, built-in defense system. By decentralizing data storage and securing transactions with verifiable proof rather than trust-based authorization, blockchain drastically reduces the risk of large-scale breaches.With regulatory requirements tightening around cybersecurity and financial data protection, institutions that fail to upgrade their security infrastructure will face increased scrutiny, fines, and reputational damage. Blockchain provides a long-term solution that ensures security is embedded into the financial ecosystem itself.

A Future of Verifiable Trust

As someone who has long championed breakthrough technologies, I see blockchain as more than just an evolution of financial security—it is a paradigm shift in how we manage trust in the digital age.The institutions that recognize and adopt this technology today will be the ones leading the financial sector into a new era of accountability, resilience, and growth. Financial systems must move beyond outdated methods of trust that rely on assumptions and intermediaries. Instead, they need technology that guarantees security and transparency at its core.

We feature the best identity theft protection for families.

This article was produced as part of TechRadarPro's Expert Insights channel where we feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today. The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/news/submit-your-story-to-techradar-pro

Virtual private networks (VPNs) are notoriously difficult to work with. Maybe you’re a remote worker who has to sign in to one each day to access company services, or you tried it once because you heard you could use it to access international content, but were met with laggy service and frequent disruptions. Today’s VPNs don’t have to come with those headaches. We tested nine of the best VPN services available now to come up with our top picks, and lay out what you should know before paying for one.We tested nine of the most popular VPN services available now to come up with our top picks, and lay out what you should know before paying for one. Our top pick remains ProtonVPN thanks to its easy-to-use interface, no-logs policy and open-source framework, while other popular options like NordVPN didn't quite make the cut. While we think ProtonVPN is the best VPN for most people, we lay out other good options you can consider, too.

Table of contents

Best VPNs of 2025

What is a VPN?

Are VPNs worth it?

How we tested VPNs

Other VPN services our experts tested

VPN FAQs

Best VPNs for 2025

What is a VPN?

VPNs, or virtual private networks, mask your IP address and the identity of your computer or mobile device on the network and creating an encrypted "tunnel" that prevents your internet service provider (ISP) from accessing data about your browsing history. VPNs are not a one-size-fits-all security solution, though.

Instead, they’re just one part of keeping your data private and secure. Roya Ensafi, assistant professor of computer science and engineering at the University of Michigan, told Engadget that VPNs don’t protect against common threats like phishing attacks, nor do they protect your data from being stolen. Much of the data or information is stored with the VPN provider instead of your ISP, which means that using a poorly designed or unprotected network can still undermine your security. But they do come in handy for online privacy when you’re connecting to an untrusted network somewhere public because they tunnel and encrypt your traffic to the next hop.

That means sweeping claims that seem promising, like military-grade encryption or total digital invisibility, may not be totally accurate. Instead, Yael Grauer, program manager of Consumer Reports’ online security guide, recommends looking for security features like open-source software with reproducible builds, up-to-date support for industry-standard protocols like WireGuard (CR's preferred protocol) or IPsec, and the ability to defend against attack vectors like brute force.

Read more:

How to use a VPN on your iPhone

How to stream video to your TV using a VPN

How to stream using a VPN on your Google TV or Chromecast

How to stream via a VPN on Roku

Understanding VPNs and your needs

Before considering a VPN, make sure your online security is up to date in other ways. That means complex passwords, multi-factor authentication methods and locking down your data sharing preferences. Even then, you probably don’t need to be using a VPN all the time.

“If you're just worried about somebody sitting there passively and looking at your data then a VPN is great,” Jed Crandall, an associate professor at Arizona State University, told Engadget.

That brings us to some of the most common uses cases for VPNs. If you use public WiFi networks a lot, like while working at a coffee shop, then VPN usage can help give you private internet access. They’re also helpful for hiding information from other people on your ISP if you don’t want members of your household to know what you’re up to online.

Geoblocking has also become a popular use case as it helps you reach services in other parts of the world. For example, you can access shows that are only available on streaming services, like Netflix, Hulu or Amazon Prime, in other countries, or play online games with people located all over the globe.

There are also a few common VPN features that you should consider before deciding if you want to use one, and which is best for you:

What is split tunneling?

Split tunneling allows you to route some traffic through your VPN, while other traffic has direct access to the internet. This can come in handy when you want to protect certain activity online without losing access to local network devices, or services that work best with location sharing enabled.

What is a double VPN?

A double VPN, otherwise known as multi-hop VPN or a VPN chain, passes your online activity through two different VPN servers one right after the other. For VPN services that support this, users are typically able to choose which two servers they want their traffic to pass through. As you might expect, this provides an extra layer of security.

Are VPNs worth it?

Whether or not VPNs are worth it depends how often you could use it for the above use cases. If you travel a lot and rely on public WiFi or hotspots, are looking to browse outside of your home country or want to keep your traffic hidden from your ISP, then investing in a VPN will be useful. But, keep in mind that even the best VPN services often slow down your internet connection speed, so they may not be ideal all the time.

In today's world, we recommend not relying on a VPN connection as your main cybersecurity tool. VPN use can provide a false sense of security, leaving you vulnerable to attack. Plus, if you choose just any VPN, it may not be as secure as just relying on your ISP. That’s because the VPN could be based in a country with weaker data privacy regulation, obligated to hand information over to law enforcement or linked to weak user data protection policies.

For VPN users working in professions like activism or journalism that want to really strengthen their internet security, options like the Tor browser may be a worthwhile alternative, according to Crandall. Tor is free, and while it's less user-friendly, it’s built for anonymity and privacy.

How we tested VPNs

To test the security specs of different VPNs and name our top picks, we relied on pre-existing academic work through Consumer Reports, VPNalyzer and other sources. We referenced privacy policies, transparency reports and security audits made available to the public. We also considered past security incidents like data breaches.

We looked at price, usage limits, effects on internet speed, possible use cases, ease of use, general functionality and additional “extra” VPN features like multihop. The VPNs were tested across iOS, Android and Mac devices so we could see the state of the mobile apps across various platforms (Windows devices are also supported in most cases). We used the “quick connect” feature on the VPN apps to connect to the “fastest” provider available when testing internet speed, access to IP address data and DNS and WebRTC leaks or when a fault in the encrypted tunnel reveals requests to an ISP.

Otherwise, we conducted a test of geoblocking content by accessing Canada-exclusive Netflix releases, a streaming test by watching a news livestream on YouTube via a Hong Kong-based VPN and a gaming test by playing on servers in the United Kingdom. By performing these tests at the same time, it also allowed us to test claims about simultaneous device use. Here are the VPN services we tested:

ExpressVPN

NordVPN

Surfshark

Proton VPN

TunnelBear

Bitdefender VPN

CyberGhost

Windscribe

Atlas VPN

Read more: The best password managers for 2023

Other VPN services our experts tested

NordVPN

NordVPN didn’t quite make the cut because it’s overhyped, and underwhelming. As I've written in our full review of NordVPN, the pricing, up to $14.49 for a “complete” subscription, seemed high compared to other services, and its free or lower cost plans just didn’t have the same wide variety of features as its competitors.

TunnelBear

Despite the cute graphics and user friendliness, TunnelBear wasn’t a top choice. It failed numerous basic security tests from Consumer Reports, and had limited availability across platforms like Linux. It did, however, get a major security boost in July when it updated to support WireGuard protocol across more of its platforms.

Bitdefender VPN

Bitdefender doesn’t offer support for devices like routers, which limits its cross-platform accessibility. It also lacked a transparency report or third-party audit to confirm security specs.

Atlas VPN

Atlas ranked lower on our speed tests compared to the other VPNs tested, with a notably slower difference on web browsing and streaming tests. It was a good option otherwise, but could easily cause headaches for those chasing high speed connections. Security-wise, an Atlas VPN vulnerability leaked Linux users’ real IP addresses.

VPN FAQs

What are some things VPNs are used for?

VPNs are traditionally used to protect your internet traffic. If you’re connected to an untrusted network like public WiFi in a cafe, using a VPN hides what you do from the internet service provider. Then, the owner of the WiFi or hackers trying to get into the system can’t see the identity of your computer or your browsing history.

A common non-textbook use case for VPNs has been accessing geographically restricted content. VPNs can mask your location, so even if you’re based in the United States, they can make it appear as if you’re browsing abroad and unblock access. This is especially useful for streaming content that’s often limited to certain countries, like if you want to watch Canadian Netflix from the US.

What information does a VPN hide?

A VPN doesn’t hide all of your data. It only hides information like your IP address, location and browser history. A common misconception is that VPNs can make you totally invisible online. But keep in mind that the VPN provider often still has access to all of this information, so it doesn’t grant you total anonymity. You’re also still vulnerable to phishing attacks, hacking and other cyberthreats that you should be mindful of by implementing strong passwords and multi-factor authentication.

Are VPNs safe?

Generally, yes. VPNs are a safe and reliable way to encrypt and protect your internet data. But like most online services, the safety specifics vary from provider to provider. You can use resources like third-party audits, Consumer Reports reviews, transparency reports and privacy policies to understand the specifics of your chosen provider.

Can you get a VPN on your phone?

Yes, you can use a VPN on your phone. Most major VPN services have mobile apps you can install on iPhones and Android devices so you can connect on your phone to protect your mobile browsing.

What about Google’s One VPN?

Google One subscriptions include access to the company’s VPN, which works similarly to other VPNs on our list, hiding your online activity from network operators. However, Google announced recently that it plans to shut down the One VPN because "people simply weren’t using it." There's no specific date for the shutdown, with Google simply saying it will discontinue the service sometime in 2024. Pixel phone owners, however, will continue to have access to the free VPN available on their devices.

Recent updates

April 2025: Updated for timeliness and to ensure our top picks are still current.

October 2024: Added a "read more" section with links to additional VPN content.

June 2024: Updated to include table of contents.This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/vpn/best-vpn-130004396.html?src=rss

TalkTalk Business customers had DNS-related email issues for several daysSome customers have waited 24 hours for a replyOther TalkTalk issues are also ongoing

TalkTalk Business customers are said to have faced nearly a week without email access due to a domain hosting technical fault.Reporting by The Register says the issue started on the evening of April 9, and customers have been struggling to get hold of the company to regain access to their inboxes.According to the report, TalkTalk admitted to one customer it had mistakenly changed domain settings, while another waited 24 hours for a response from the telecomms giant about email loss.

TalkTalk Business customers faced a days-long outage

TalkTalk is believed to have fixed the issue over the weekend, which seemed to be a DNS error.Name servers were changed to Cloudflare without configured DNS records, however users had no ability to update their own DNS records, worsening the problem.Despite the fix, some users continued to report problems heading into the start of this week.TalkTalk Business’s website boasts that it supports more than half a million UK businesses, and has been doing so for more than 25 years. At the top of its landing page, the company shows off its “24-hour, 365-day support” and ‘Excellent’ Trustpilot rating, but in the case of this most recent incident, customers might beg to differ.Previously, TalkTalk had been criticized over its disappointing customer service, but things changed for the better, and TalkTalk was supposed to have turned a corner.It’s not the only issue that TalkTalk faces, as figures from Downdetector claim it appears to be battling an ongoing, low-level issue with internet connections, and 4% of the complaints are still relating to email issues.A TalkTalk spokesperson told us that the company does not have a comment to share "at the moment," but we were promised an update "if that changes."

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OpenAI CEO says saying "Please" or "Thank You" to ChatGPT costs the company 'Tens of millions of dollars'A Future survey found that roughly 70% of people are polite to AIExperts believe being polite to AI is actually beneficial to the responses you receive, but at what cost?

Do you say "Please" or "Thank you" to ChatGPT? If you're polite to OpenAI's chatbot, you could be part of the user base costing the company "Tens of millions of dollars" on electricity bills.User @tomiinlove wrote on X, "I wonder how much money OpenAI has lost in electricity costs from people saying 'please' and 'thank you' to their models."OpenAI CEO, Sam Altman, responded, "Tens of millions of dollars well spent - you never know." Thanks for lowering the world's anxiety around an AI uprising, Sam. We'll all be sure to waste even more energy by saying "Please" or "Thank You" from now on.In February, Future PLC, the company that owns TechRadar, compiled a survey of more than 1,000 people on their AI etiquette. The survey found that around 70% of people are polite to AI when interacting with it, with 12% being polite in case of a robot uprising.Obviously, there's an energy cost when using ChatGPT, which has massive AI-powered servers that run the whole operation. But as these tools thrive in popularity, are most of us even aware that one simple message, or one AI-generated meme, is impacting the planet?TechRadar reached out to OpenAI for comment, we'll update this story when we hear back.

tens of millions of dollars well spent--you never knowApril 16, 2025

Should we be polite to AI?

If being polite to AI can have such an impact on energy consumption, should we even bother being nice to ChatGPT?Presumably, these 'Tens of millions of dollars' Altman speaks of are due to users saying "Please" or "Thank You" in a contained message rather than at the end of a prompt. Hopefully, OpenAI will respond to our query to give us more of an understanding of how people frame these particular messages.TechRadar writer Becca Caddy stopped saying thanks to ChatGPT and found that being polite to an AI chatbot might actually help with responses.In her article, she wrote, "Polite, well-structured prompts often lead to better responses, and in some cases, they may even reduce bias. That’s not just a bonus – it’s a critical factor in AI reliability.As AI evolves, it will be fascinating to see whether politeness itself becomes a built-in feature. Could AI favor users who communicate respectfully? Will models be trained to respond differently based on etiquette?"So while it may not be energy-efficient, being polite to AI could in fact give you a better experience while interacting with ChatGPT. But is it worth the environmental cost?

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Strava has acquired RunnaThe company says nothing should change for users in the short termIt could impact the paid subscription of both platforms

Two of the best fitness apps for runners and the great outdoors are joining forces. Strava has announced that it has acquired AI-powered running platform Runna.Strava says it has entered a definitive agreement to acquire Runna, combining the biggest fitness community on the planet with Runna's impressive training chops.Strava CEO Michael Martin said that following unprecedented Strava growth in 2024, "it was the right time to look for complementary businesses that could create even greater value for our users," describing Runna's personalized training plans as "a perfect fit" for the company.Runna CEO and co-founder Dom Maskell said the group was "delighted" to be joining Strava and will continue to focus on bringing users the most customized and personalized training plans available. More specifically, Maskell says the investment from Strava "allows us to make even more improvements to everything we do at Runna, benefiting runners worldwide."

The future of Strava and Runna

On paper, the move is a huge boon for both parties, but users of Runna and Strava are likely to be more cautious in their optimism, as the world of subscription-based fitness apps continues to throw up surprises and changes.Recently, Garmin announced Connect+, a subscription platform that includes some pretty woeful AI insights and other features locked behind a paywall. If the merger of Strava and Runna is going to pay off for users, how the two brands manage the process will be crucial.With Garmin swinging and missing so hard on its Connect+ subscription, Strava and Runna getting this right could spell disaster for the former. Strava and Runna offer more enticing subscription packages on paper that could make a combined offering unstoppable.In comments made to The Verge following the acquisition, Martin said, "Effectively, nothing changes for the user out of the gate." He went on to say that the plan for the acquisition is "to invest further into growing the Runna app, invest in the Runna team, and then continue to operate them as independent but in an integrated fashion."He also confirmed that users could expect to see changes as early as the coming weeks, while Runna's Maskell said, "The ambition is to do things where it makes sense" and hinted that more seamless integration between the two apps would be smoother for users, according to the report.Garmin wouldn't be drawn on plans for subscription prices in the interview, but Martin pointed towards Strava's acquisition of Recover Athletics as a guide model, hinting Runna could be included in Strava's overall subscription offering. Whether that would impact the price remains anyone's guess.Strava's CEO actually dropped a hint about the acquisition a few days ago. In a r/Strava QnA, someone said, "Would love to see Strava provide race predictions and dynamic training plans, similar to Runna," to which Martin replied with a simple wink emoji. So it turns out that this news was staring us right in the face.

Comment from r/Strava

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A new iPhone 17 Pro render shows a single color for the whole back of the phoneThis is at odds with previous rendersHowever, it matches a design claim from a reputable source

So far, most renders of the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max have shown them with a two-tone design, where the rumored large new camera block is one color, and the rest of the rear is another. But a new render shows these two elements in the same shade.The image you can see below was shared by @kdctweets (via Phone Arena), and we’d take it with a pinch of salt, since they don’t yet have much of a track record as a leaker – and also it’s unclear whether this image is based on new information they’ve obtained, or just their own vision of what the iPhone 17 Pro might look like.But it’s notable regardless, because recently Mark Gurman – an Apple watcher with a superb track record – claimed that the iPhone 17 Pro series wouldn’t have a two-tone design. So there’s a good chance this image provides a more accurate look at the iPhone 17 Pro’s design than previous renders do.

pic.twitter.com/4vWww2aP7KApril 16, 2025

No two-tone for your iPhone

Whether it all being one color is better or worse than two-tone is somewhat subjective – and may not matter much anyway if you’re just going to put the phone in a case. But while nothing is certain just yet, we’re inclined to believe Gurman on this – meaning the design in this render is probably something along the lines of what Apple will unveil.That said, even if the colors of the two sections are mostly a match, there may be some slight differences in the tone, as a previous iPhone 17 Pro leak suggested the camera housing would be metal, while the bottom half of the phone would be glass. So the colors might not be quite as uniform as they are here.We’ll probably find out for sure in September, as that’s when the iPhone 17 series is likely to be unveiled, but we’d expect plenty more unofficial renders will emerge in the meantime.

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Comper Joris de Man would return to write music for another Horizon Zero Dawn gameDe Man says Guerrilla Games is "very, very good at keeping their cards close to their chest"He couldn't confirm if he's working on a third game, but says, "I'm there for it, is all I can say"

Composer Joris de Man, best known for Killzone and the Horizon series, can't confirm if he's working on the third Horizon game, but would return if Guerrilla Games asked.Ahead of the PlayStation: The Concert Tour, a live music event scheduled to play music from PlayStation's most iconic games like The Last of Us and God of War, TechRadar Gaming sat down with Joris de Man to discuss his time composing music for video games and expressed interest in returning for another Killzone game.When asked if he will continue working on the Horizon series in the future or on the third installment, de Man said he's all in."I'm there for it, is all I can say," de Man said. "Yeah, in terms of what's happening, what I will say is that Guerrilla is very, very good at keeping their cards close to their chest, and even as someone who's known them the past 20 years, I'm always kind of almost a bit shocked and a bit perturbed that I don't know more about what they're cooking up there in Amsterdam."On the topic of different genres he would like to explore next in his career, de Man revealed the desire to write music for a role-playing game (RPG), similar to Diablo or even a Fallout game."I'd love to do an RPG, like a proper RPG, you know, whether it's something a bit like Diablo..." de Man said. "I mean, I'm a massive Diablo fan, so although I have not been much of a fan of the recent one [...] I've not managed to get into it as well as I did with the other three, which I played until the disc was literally gray."But yeah, no, I love those games, so I'd love to write something for that, and otherwise, a Fallout game would also be quite cool to write on, because I just love the original soundtracks, and I'd love to explore that kind of vibe a bit further for a future Fallout game."

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The first gameplay trailer for Cronos: The New Dawn has arrivedIt shows off the upcoming survival horror gameIt also offers a glimpse at its unique 'Merge' mechanics

Silent Hill 2 remake developer Bloober Team has released the first gameplay trailer for its next game, Cronos: The New Dawn.An all-new survival horror property, Cronos: The New Dawn looks a little bit like Silent Hill crossed with Dead Space and The Medium. Its set across two parallel time periods - the post-apocalyptic far future and 1980s Poland.In Poland, players will explore the fictionalized ruined district of New Dawn, which was inspired by the real-world Nowa Huta in Krakow.As a Traveller and agent of the mysterious Collective, it's your job to travel back in time to rescue key people from the incoming apocalypse.

Standing in your way are the Orphans, supernatural creatures that don't stay dead. If you're not able to burn their bodies, other enemies can absorb them in a unique process called 'Merging' - becoming stronger and gaining additional abilities. This is certainly an interesting idea and reminds me a little bit of the terrifying Crimson Head zombies from the Resident Evil remake.The trailer also offers some glimpses of the combat mechanics, with the player wielding a mix of powerful range weapons including a pistol, a meaty shotgun, and a few futuristic looking launchers.They game will feature a soundtrack from award winning composer Arkadiusz Reikowski, who has helmed music for a number of Bloober Team games, in collaboration with the Polish-Ukranian indie folk band Zazula.Cronos: The New Dawn is set to release in 2025 and is coming to Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, PlayStation 5, and PC.

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Xbox's official support account may have spilled the beans on the Oblivion remaster's release dateSeveral X / Twitter users have been sharing direct message videos and screenshotsThe alleged release date is just a few days from now on April 21, 2025

Xbox's official support account may have just shared more than it was supposed to on the alleged remaster for The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion.After a round of screenshots leaked online this week, the internet was once again abuzz with speculation as to if (or indeed when) we'll get to play the long-rumored Oblivion Remastered anytime soon.It seems like we may have just gotten our answer. As reported by GamesRadar, several users on X / Twitter have been claiming that Xbox's official support account, via direct messaging, has been outright stating a release date of April 21, 2025 for Oblivion Remastered. At the time of writing, that's four days from now.

pic.twitter.com/U1SqhpKMbvApril 16, 2025

The above video shows a DM interaction between X / Twitter user Ser_Raven18 and what appears to be the official Xbox Support account."The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered is set to release on April 21, 2025," writes the account.Furthermore, in a reply to gaming account 'Synth Potato, another user shared a screenshot with details on how Oblivion Remastered will be handling the original's bevy of downloadable content, including the legendary Shivering Isles expansion."The remastered version of The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion on Xbox Game Pass will include the base game only. The Shivering Isles DLC, along with other expansions like Knights of the Nine, will be part of the Deluxe Edition."As a screenshot only, this message does carry less weight, and there's always the chance that correspondence here could be fabricated just to stew the pot. So naturally, take everything here with a healthy pinch of salt.That said, a lot of things do seem to be lining up. Hopefully the speculation can be put to bed with an official announcement or trailer soon, especially as the alleged release date is mere days away.

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Apple has released the iOS 18.4.1 update to iPhonesIt fixes an annoying CarPlay bug that has been causing issues for driversCarPlay users have been reporting the problems for weeks

For a few weeks, users of Apple’s CarPlay have been plagued by a series of bugs, crashes and all-round problems that have hampered the in-car entertainment system. Now, though, it looks like Apple has rolled out a fix that has finally put the issues to bed.The fix is included in the iOS 18.4.1 update, which Apple released yesterday. The release notes explain that the patch “provides important bug fixes, security updates, and addresses a rare issue that prevents wireless CarPlay connection in certain vehicles.”That should provide some comfort to Apple customers affected by the irritating issues in their CarPlay-enabled vehicles. That said, we’ll have to wait for user reports to roll in to be sure the fix has worked. That’s because there were several problems that were previously reported rather than just one.

A variety of problems

(Image credit: Shutterstock / Hadrian)

Scouring online forums and message boards, you can find a variety of CarPlay glitches that seem to have recently affected people, as we reported a couple weeks ago.For instance, one user reported that their vehicle’s dashboard was no longer displaying Now Playing information. For others, their devices would repeatedly connect to CarPlay, promptly disconnect, then reconnect again, over and over. Still other users couldn’t connect their devices to CarPlay at all.The problems were being experienced across a variety of different car brands, suggesting that the issues lay with CarPlay itself rather than the vehicles’ own software. And sure enough, the release of this patch by Apple seems to have confirmed that.If you’ve found yourself affected by recent CarPlay issues, we’d recommend you download and install the latest iOS 18.4.1 update on your iPhone. Hopefully, that should finally remedy the glitches once and for all.

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GitHub CEO Thomas Dohmke advocates for coding education in schoolsArtificial intelligence is just amplifying human work, not replacing itUsing AI is just another pillar of continuing to learn

Microsoft-owned GitHub, which has introduced a series of powerful generative AI tools to its popular developer platform in recent years, still believes that there’s a place for traditional code.Speaking on a recent podcast interview with EO (via Business Insider), CEO Thomas Dohmke explained his belief that schools should teach coding just as they do other core subjects, like physics, geography and maths.Advocating for an early start, Dohmke believes children should learn coding from a young age, expressing his belief that skilled developers are still in high demand despite the emergence of artificial intelligence.

GitHub advocates for coding education despite AI

AI tools like GitHub's own Copilot and other popular chatbots, like ChatGPT and Gemini, have democratized coding by making software development more accessible to everyone, ultimately lowering the barrier to entry.For experienced developers, small teams and even solo programmers can now unlock more scale, with AI freeing up time that was otherwise spent on repetitive tasks that can now be automated.With the emergence of the tech, questions have been raised about the future of jobs in coding, with leaner teams potentially reducing job openings, but Dohmke doesn’t seem to be concerned about this and instead still urges people to learn to code.“The anxiety is understandable, but time and again, developers have discovered how to channel the new capabilities into entire domains of innovation that didn't exist before,” he said, indicating that use cases are expanding and the need for skilled programmers isn’t taming.“You got to keep training. You got to keep learning. You're never done with learning,” he added. Reflecting on his three decades in the industry, Dohmke says that if he’d stopped reading blogs and other literature, he’d have been left behind. With this in mind, AI is very much just an evolution of the role rather than the end of it.

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Galaxy S25 series phones are getting a small One UI 7 updateThe release schedule for other phones remains uncertainGalaxy S23 models could get the update next week – or next month

Samsung's rollout of One UI 7 (based on Android 15) has been a long and frustrating one for users, with delays and bugs aplenty – and we've got some more details about when the software might actually arrive on your phone.First up, well-known tipster @UniverseIce notes that the "final full version" of One UI 7 is now rolling out for the Samsung Galaxy S25. Or at least it appears to be in South Korea, so it should reach the rest of the world soon.The Galaxy S25 phones launched with One UI 7 on board back in January, but this latest "final" version seems to bring the handsets up to date with the latest features – including a new charging animation and improved interface support for media player apps.That leaves every other Galaxy phone. Officially, One UI 7 was supposed to be heading to the Galaxy S24, Galaxy Z Fold 6, and Galaxy Z Flip 6 on April 7, though that process was put on pause, and it's not clear if it has fully resumed. Based on reports on Reddit and social media, it seems it may depend on where in the world you are.

Coming soon?

The official One UI 7 rollout timeline for the India region‼️Repost pic.twitter.com/WqzOnmNdU6April 16, 2025

With ongoing uncertainty about the One UI 7 update for Galaxy handsets launched in 2024 and 2025, it's perhaps no surprise that we're seeing conflicting leaks around when older phones such as the Samsung Galaxy S23 are going to be included.If you own a Galaxy S23, you'll be encouraged by a report from Android Headlines suggesting the phone could get One UI 7 as early as next week – though it seems the Canadian carrier listing the leak is based on has now been revised.From Canada to India, where well-known tipster @tarunvats33 has posted another rollout timeline that specifies the Galaxy S23 upgrade date as May 25. Some other phones and tablets will apparently have to wait until June or even July.As has tended to be the norm with One UI 7, we're left with a lack of clarity from Samsung and a lot of conflicting rumors – not helped by the complex logistics of managing software updates across multiple countries and carriers. Once again, Galaxy phone owners are having to patiently refresh their Android update screens and wait.

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Nvidia’s new Game Ready Driver 576.02 has a mountain of bug fixesIt cures many problems with games crashing, and black screen lock-ups with RTX 5000 modelsWhile past-gen Nvidia GPUs aren’t mentioned in the release notes, it appears they got some love here too

Nvidia has released a new graphics driver that brings in support for its freshly introduced RTX 5060 Ti GPU, but I suspect what most gamers will be more interested in is the absolute mountain of bug fixes delivered here.That includes the solutions for various games being crash-happy, as well as the most important fix of all for those who’ve bought one of Nvidia’s Blackwell graphics cards.Yes, Game Ready Driver 576.02 (the release of which VideoCardz flagged) resolves the random black screen crashes that have been frustrating those with an RTX 5000 GPU, or Nvidia claims it does anyway.On top of that, Nvidia lists a couple of other separate bug fixes for issues with RTX 5000 graphics cards getting black screen lock-ups “when playing graphically demanding games” as well as hitting black screens upon installing drivers and booting into Windows. (How about RTX 4000, or earlier RTX GPUs, black-screening, you might be thinking – well, I’ll come back to that).On top of that vital work, a whole lot of general bug fixes are put in place here, such as “stability issues” with Windows 11 24H2 and stability quirks elsewhere, page fault error crashes when using DLSS 4 MFG (Multi-Frame Generation), PCs failing to wake after spending a long period asleep, DisplayPort-related problems, and much more besides.Regarding the fixes for bugs that have hit specific games, we’ve got a lot of work on that front too. Check out the following list of solves:

[Fortnite] random crashes during gameplay[The First Berserker: Khazan] DXGI_ERROR_DEVICE_REMOVED Crash[Star Wars Outlaws] Application will freeze after leaving the game idle for 5+ minutesGame stability issues when playing games with DLSS Frame Generation + GSYNC[Monster Hunter Wilds] Crash after accepting quest with DLSS-FG Enabled[InZoi] Game crashes with error "GPU crashed or D3D Device Removed"[Overwatch 2] Stutter when using VSYNC[Hellblade 2 Senua's Saga] Increased aliasing when using TSR[Hellblade 2 Senua's Saga] Crashing when using Smooth Motion[The Last of Us Part 1] Crash when using Smooth MotionDithering/banding in some games on RTX 50-series GPUs[Control] Flickering corruption in multiple areasStutter when using VSYNCVSYNC in NVCP + frame generation causes issues in DLSS 4 games[Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection] Artifacts on screen when collecting treasures

If you want the exhaustive list of cures applied by Nvidia with this new graphics driver, see Chapter 3 of the full release notes [PDF]. Be warned, it’s a lengthy read.

(Image credit: Nvidia)

Analysis: The importance of getting it right from the off – and what about RTX 4000 GPUs?

There’s a lot of good work here, then, and some important cures for RTX 5000 GPUs. Still, the sheer volume of the remediation work contained within this release doesn’t reflect well on Nvidia, because, in an ideal world, it shouldn’t have been necessary to apply these fixes in a ‘live’ fashion, as it were. These bugs, and notably the showstopping black screen crashes that have been present since the first Blackwell GPUs emerged, should’ve been ironed out before those graphics cards appeared on shelves.This isn’t just about Blackwell, though. These black screen crashes that gamers have been suffering have also affected some of those with past-gen Nvidia GPUs (RTX 4000, or even RTX 3000 models going by some reports, but it’s more the former). There’s no mention of any fixes for black-screening with those graphics cards in Nvidia’s release notes here.However, the positive news is that taking a sampling of reports on Reddit – caveat: hardly a scientific method, but a reasonable barometer of how things are going – it seems that a fair number of folks are saying their RTX 4000 black screen blues have been resolved. Now, not everyone is claiming that – some are still reporting issues (as you can see in the thread below) – but overall, the wind appears to be blowing in a more favorable direction with this latest driver.

Comment from r/nvidia

Overall, then, it seems this is a solid step forward for Nvidia in terms of rectifying the many glitches that have manifested in its graphics drivers since Blackwell GPUs first emerged, which has to be a good thing.But as noted, those bugs should never have been witnessed in such quantities to begin with, and it’s kind of bewildering as to how this happened – only serving to bolster the cases of those who theorized that Blackwell was a rushed launch.

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AWS, Microsoft and Google testify at UK CMA investigationMicrosoft’s licensing terms and fees appear to be a problemGoogle denies dominance, says it’s a challenger

Ever since the UK’s Competition & Markets Authority has been investigating the health of the UK cloud market, the hyperscalers in question have been battling it out against each other by submitting little digs in official documentation meant to act in their defense.This time, AWS is slamming Microsoft for its unfavorable licensing terms, which are preventing customers from being able to use alternative cloud storage providers without excessive fees.“Perhaps 50% of those workloads currently running on Azure would move elsewhere if it was economically feasible,” AWS told the CMA.

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Microsoft’s 2019 changes increased the costs relating to running Windows Server on non-Azure cloud (such as AWS, Google Cloud and Alibaba Cloud), making it up to four times more expensive for customers.Those fees aren’t just affecting customer, either. “AWS said that it has to offset the additional costs imposed by Microsoft’s licensing restrictions including on the cost of licences that need to be repurchased and the additional monetary impact of non-pricing features,” the CMA hearing summary continues, but “it cannot offset all those costs in a profitable way.”Google also agreed with AWS’ comments in a separate hearing summary, providing an example where a customer chose Azure solely for licensing/commercial reasons despite having an actual preference for Google Cloud.However, Google might not be entirely on Amazon’s side. The company described itself as a “challenger cloud provider and a distant third in size to the two market leaders, AWS and Microsoft.” Still, Google is worried that Microsoft could dominate the UK cloud market in as little as five years “if nothing change[s].”Defending its position, Microsoft argued that egress fees are not a major concern for customers, adding that even after removing the fees under the EU Data Act, switching remained low.The outcome of the investigation is anyone’s guess, but the market dominance is clear.When Ofcom first submitted its complaint to the CMA in October 2023, it noted in a report that Microsoft and Amazon accounted for 70-80% of the UK’s cloud market in 2022, estimated to be worth £7 to £7.5 billion. Google, in third place, only accounted for 5-10%.

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o3 and o4-mini are out for Pro, Plus and Team users now, free users can try o4-mini, tooThey can combine and use every tool in ChatGPT's arsenalo3 and o4-mini add reasoning using images to ChatGPT's abilities

OpenAI has just given ChatGPT a massive boost with new o3 and o4-mini models that are available to use right now for Pro, Plus, Team and even free tier users.The new models significantly improve the performance of ChatGPT, and are much quicker at reasoning tasks than the earlier OpenAI reasoning models like ChatGPT o3-mini and o1.Most importantly, they can intelligently decide which of OpenAI’s various tools to use to complete your query, including a new ability to reason with images.OpenAI provided a livestream for the release:

Here are the three most important changes:

1. Combining tools

Both the new reasoning models can agentically use and combine every tool within ChatGPT. That means they have access to all of ChatGPT’s box of tricks including, web browsing, Python coding, image and file analysis, image generation, canvas, automations, file search and memory.The important thing though is that ChatGPT now decides if it needs to use a tool itself based on what you’ve asked.When you ask ChatGPT to do something complicated using the new models, it shows you each step it is taking, and which tool it is using, and how it arrived at that decision.Once it has done all the research the notes on its working out process disappear and you get a report on its conclusions.

2. Better performance

The way that o3 and o4-mini can intelligently decide which tools to use is a step towards the intelligent model switching we’ve been promised with ChatGPT 5, when it finally arrives.As you’d expect from advanced reasoning models, the report you get at the end is extremely detailed, and contains links to all sources used.According to OpenAI, “The combined power of state-of-the-art reasoning with full tool access translates into significantly stronger performance across academic benchmarks and real-world tasks, setting a new standard in both intelligence and usefulness.”The real world result of this is that these models can tackle multi-faceted questions more effectively, so don’t be afraid to ask them to perform several actions at once and produce an answer or report that combines several queries together.

3. Reasoning with images

Reasoning with images in ChatGPT. (Image credit: OpenAI/Apple)

Both new models are the first released by OpenAI that will integrate uploaded images into its chain of thought. They will actually reason using the images, so for example, you could upload a picture of some cars and ask what the name and model of the cars are, then how much retail value they will hold in five years time.This is the first time that ChatGPT has been able to integrate images into a reasoning chain and presents a real step forward for multimodal AI.

Introducing OpenAI o3 and o4-mini—our smartest and most capable models to date.For the first time, our reasoning models can agentically use and combine every tool within ChatGPT, including web search, Python, image analysis, file interpretation, and image generation. pic.twitter.com/rDaqV0x0wEApril 16, 2025

My verdict

I’ve tried the new models on the Plus tier and I’m impressed with both the speed and comprehensiveness of the answers to my queries. While I’ve always enjoyed the depth of reasoning that the o1 and o3-mini models have provided, it’s always meant waiting longer for a response.The o3 model has now become my default model to choose on Plus because it’s fast enough that I don’t feel like I’m waiting around too long for an answer, but I get a satisfying amount of detail.In short, I’m impressed. The new models feel like a natural evolution of ChatGPT into something that’s smarter and more capable. I also like the way that it can decide which of ChatGPT’s various tools it needs to use to provide the best answer.

Trying it for yourself

Here’s how to try the new ChatGPT models for yourself:Plus, Pro and Team users will see that they can select ChatGPT o3, ChatGPT o4-mini and ChatGPT o4-mini-high from the drop-down LLM menu inside ChatGPT, and free tier users can get access to o4-mini by selecting the Reason button in the composer before submitting your query. Edu users will gain access in one week.There’s no visual notification for free tier users that they are now using the 4o-mini reasoning model, but if you click the button and ask ChatGPT which LLM it is using then it now says 4o-mini.There will be a rate limit for how many times a free tier user can use the Reasoning feature, and for Plus users is much higher.OpenAI say they expect to release o3-pro “in a few weeks”, with full tool support. Pro users can already access o1-pro.

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A new costume color customization feature is coming to Marvel Rivals in a patch todayTo unlock new color combos, players will need to exchange Lattice for a premium currency called Unstable MoleculesNetEase Games has confirmed more ways to obtain Unstable Molecules will be introduced in Season 3

NetEase Games has announced a new costume customization feature for Marvel Rivals that will require the exchange of a new currency, but players will need to spend real money to obtain it.In a new X/Twitter post, the developer revealed 'Costume Customization', a highly-requested feature dropping today (April 17) in a new patch that will allow players to change hero costumes' color combinations.The announcement had many fans excited, with many expecting color schemes to be tied to each skin they own. However, in a follow-up post, the studio clarified that the new customization feature will require players to spend Unstable Molecules, a new currency that, for now, can only be bought with real money."Customized Color Costumes will cost 600 Unstable Molecules for exchange," the post reads. "Unstable Molecules can be exchanged from Lattice at a 1:1 rate. You must first obtain the costumes before you can customize them."This means that 600 Unstable Molecules for one color combo will cost 600 Lattice, which is roughly $6.

✨ Unleash your style - Costume Customization is here!You can change your favorite costumes' color combos directly in the Costumes tab starting April 17 at 9:00 AM UTC/2:00 AM PDT. Choose from fresh palettes like Plasma Pulse, Phantom Purple, and more!Just head to the Store,… pic.twitter.com/OswwJFOYELApril 16, 2025

NetEase added that only a select few costumes will have this feature when the patch goes live, but it will "expand more over time to other costumes".So far, four different color combinations have been confirmed for Magik, Psylocke, Luna Snow, and the Winter Soldier, called Rosy Resilience, Phantom Purple, Plasma Pulse, and Winter's Wrath. When players customize costumes, it will also affect the hero's introduction animation, MVP, and emotes.It was also confirmed that starting with Season 3, Marvel Rivals will get more options to obtain Unstable Molecules, suggesting that players may not have to spend real money on Lattice in exchange for the new currency.Marvel Rivals Season 2 is officially live and has introduced a slew of new features, including the new Vanguard hero Emma Frost, a new Krakoa-set Domination map, additional costumes, and a new Battle Pass.

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Google has delivered another blow to Fitbit usersIt's quietly withdrawing support for Google AssistantIt means devices will no longer work with the voice assistant

The death of Fitbit seems more and more inevitable with each passing month, and now Google is ending support for Google Assistant on Fitbit devices, another sure sign of its demise.While Google Assistant is being replaced with Gemini on the best Android smartwatches, likely starting with the Pixel Watch later this year, there's no such hope for users of the best Fitbits, who will lose Google Assistant altogether in the coming days.As noted by multiple outlets, Google recently and quietly announced that Google Assistant support would end on Fitbit."Over the next few weeks, we will be progressively phasing out Google Assistant on your Fitbit device. You can learn more about this process here. This change means that Google Assistant voice control for activities will soon no longer be available on your Fitbit device," the company said in Fitbit's community forum.Google added that "We understand that changes can be disruptive, and we value your feedback," and that it remained "committed to continuously improving your Fitbit app and developing exciting new features. "

Fitbit ends support for Google Assistant

Google assistant going away from r/fitbit

Now, Fitbit users on Reddit are reporting notifications that state "Google Assistant on Fitbit watches is being turned down, this feature will stop working in the coming weeks."Fitbit users have been able to use Google Assistant to ask questions, set alarms, check the weather, and perform many other functions on the devices. The withdrawal makes some sense, given that Google is phasing out Assistant elsewhere. However, as noted, on most devices, that's in favor of the more capable Google Gemini; Fitbit users, however, are simply losing a feature and getting nothing in return.Google's erasure of Fitbit continues apace, and all signs now point to the brand's demise in the future. The company has confirmed that it will sunset Fitbit smartwatches in favor of the Pixel Watch, and chances are its fitness trackers aren't far behind.The company has also shuttered the Fitbit website, and recently endured furious user backlash over an update that crushed the battery life of the Fitbit Sense and Versa 3 because of overheating concerns.How many Fitbit users access Google Assistant on a regular basis is unknown, but the loss of functionality symbolizes another nail in the coffin for the brand and is sure to be unpopular with customers.

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Landmark Admin suffered a ransomware attack in May 2024It was initially believed around 800,000 people were affectedNew investigation determined more than 1.6 million victims

More than 1.6 million people are now thought to have been affected by the May 2024 cyberattack at Landmark Admin, twice as many as originally thought.The company confirmed the news in an updated report filed with the Office of the Maine Attorney General.“The forensic investigation determined that data was encrypted and exfiltrated from Landmark’s system,” the company said. “However, there was insufficient evidence available to identify which files had been compromised. The unauthorized activity occurred between May 13, 2024, and June 17, 2024.”

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Ransomware attacks

Landmark Admin is a third-party administrator (TPA) specializing in administrative support services for life insurance and annuity companies.In late October 2024, the company reported suffering a serious ransomware attack in which threat actors also stole sensitive customer data, with the attack allegedly the work of a ransomware operator called Abyss.Following the breach, Landmark Admin shut down its IT systems and remote access to its network to contain the effects, and brought in third-party security experts, who found the personal information of 806,519 people had been stolen.In a data breach notification letter sent to affected customers, Landmark Admin said that the information stolen included people’s full names, addresses, Social Security numbers, tax identification numbers, driver’s license numbers, state-issued ID card numbers, passport numbers, financial account numbers, medical information, dates of birth, health insurance policy numbers, and life annuity policy information.The information stolen varied from individual to individual, and since the information stolen is highly sensitive, users were advised to be extra vigilant for potential phishing attacks, social engineering, or possible wire fraud.At the time of the breach, Landmark offered credit monitoring and identity theft protection services through IDX, including 12 months of credit and CyberScan monitoring, a $1,000,000 insurance reimbursement policy, and fully managed ID theft recovery services.Via BleepingComputer

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Windows 11 24H2 users have recently been experiencing Blue Screen of Death crashesThese have been caused by the recent March and April cumulative updatesMicrosoft has rushed out a fix that will be applied to 24H2 PCs automatically

Microsoft has confirmed that Windows 11 24H2 has a problem with Blue Screen of Death (BSOD) crashes caused by the latest updates for the OS, and a fix has been hastily pushed through.Those who are running the new April update for version 24H2 of Windows 11 – or the previous March patch (or the optional update from the end of March, which was the April upgrade in testing) – may encounter these random lock-ups which come with a ‘Secure Kernel Error’ message.Windows Latest picked up on this and also points out that a further error message may be displayed (‘Critical Process Died’), but whatever the exact flavor of this mishap you experience, your PC is going to be frozen up like a lump of so much useless ice, and will need rebooting to thaw it.Microsoft has already applied the resolution for this bug, as mentioned at the outset, and that fix is conveniently delivered as a Known Issue Rollback or KIR. What this means is that the cure will be piped through to your Windows 11 PC automatically, and you don’t have to do anything.However, it may take a little time, as Microsoft explains, and there may be up to a 24-hour wait for the rollback to reach your machine (and tweak it so the blue screen crashes are no longer a problem).

(Image credit: Future/Jacob Krol)

Analysis: An emergency solution before the full fix

While this bug first crawled into the inner workings of Windows 11 with the March update (over a month ago) for 24H2, apparently it wasn’t until this month’s April update that the glitch started to affect a wider range of users, Windows Latest informs us. Hence this bug then appeared more firmly on Microsoft’s radar and the company got a fix in place quickly (which likely indicates that this must have been a fairly prevalent bug, to get such a swift response).As noted, you may have to wait a little while for the fix to be automatically applied to your Windows 11 system, but it’s likely to have come through at this point. If not, Microsoft suggests that rebooting your PC may prompt Windows 11 to find the KIR patch and grab it, so that’s worth a whirl.You should also bear in mind that this is not the full fix, as the KIR just disables the problem-causing part of the recent Windows 11 updates (Microsoft doesn’t clarify what that is). A “final resolution” is coming – one that’ll reenable whatever change was made in the original updates, minus the blue screen nonsense (hopefully) – and Microsoft says that’s going to be part of a Windows update in the future.The April patch for Windows 11 24H2 has also been causing headaches elsewhere, primarily due to the appearance of a mysterious folder which is actually part of a security fix (in a very odd fashion). Those who deleted the empty folder, which seemed like a harmless enough course of action to some, have been advised to put it back in no uncertain terms.

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Android 16 adds the Identity Check security feature to more Android phones The feature, which puts a biometric lock on key settings, currently only exists on Google Pixel and Samsung Galaxy devices Android 16 is expected to launch in the second quarter of 2025

Android 16 will bring a new security feature to a wider gamut of handsets, following the tool’s prior addition to Samsung Galaxy and Google Pixel phones.Identity Check, which requires biometric authentication to access key settings and options, was spotted on a OnePlus 13 running a beta build of Android 16 by Android Authority.The Identity Check feature puts a biometric lock on your phone’s key settings, making it more difficult for other people to change essential options.Though less drastic use cases are possible, Identity Lock is especially useful if your phone is stolen, as the thieves would typically have no access to your fingerprint or face scan (though some facial recognition tools can be fooled with an image).The feature was first rolled out to Google Pixel phones in December 2025, while Samsung has incorporated the feature into One UI 7, first seen on the Galaxy S25 series released in February.As we previously reported, the feature works effectively identically to the iPhone’s Apple Stolen Device Protection tool.If you ask me, Identity Check feels like a natural extension of the Theft Detection Lock feature added with Android 15.As we previously reported, Theft Detection Lock uses a combination of AI, gyrometer measurements, and motion detection to determine whether your phone has been stolen, and shut thieves out.To my eye, these increasingly robust security measures demonstrate Google’s awareness of the fact that getting your phone stolen is a two-part story these days – as expensive as it is to replace the hardware, getting your personal information stolen from within the phone can lead to much more serious complications like identity theft and credit card fraud.I’m glad to see Android 16 bringing this feature to more devices – security features shouldn’t be kept exclusive to one brand so long as the general Android hardware base can support them, and while Samsung is known for its close partnership with Google on new Android features, more security for more people is always the right move.What do you think of this new Identity Check feature? Is it something you’d use? Let us know in the comments below, and be sure to check out our guide to the best Android phones ahead of Android 16’s release later this year.

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