Technology News of last week

The 8th-gen iPad mini has a 4,900 mAh capacity batteryIt's a slight reduction on what we saw with the previous modelHowever, actual battery life hasn't been reducedApple is always rather coy when it comes to the battery capacities in its devices, but European Union regulations mean it has to now publish this data publicly: and we just learned that the new 2026 iPad mini has a battery capacity of 4,900 mAh.As Notebookcheck points out, that's lower than the 5,034 mAh battery capacity we saw with the 7th-generation iPad mini, which launched in 2024. It's about 97% of what it was previously, so it's not a huge reduction.That capacity drop needs to be balanced against everything else the new iPad mini brings with it, including an OLED screen for the first time, and a speedy A20 Pro processor (the same as you'll find in the latest iPhone 18 Pro).Preorders for the smallest Apple tablet are open now, with shipping expected on Friday, November 6. Prices start at $699 / £699 / AU$1,099 for the Wi-Fi only model with 128GB of storage on board, and Midnight (gray) and Starlight (cream) are your color options.Capacity downgrades can be good, actuallyThis is the first iPad mini with an OLED screen (Image credit: Apple)At first glance it might seem disappointing that the new iPad mini has a smaller battery than the old one, but that's only part of the story. As with any modern-day gadget, the battery capacity is only one of the factors affecting battery life.Apple says the actual battery life on the new tablet hasn't changed: 10 hours between charges for surfing the web on Wi-Fi or watching video, or 9 hours of surfing the web if you're connected to the internet via a cellular connection.So you're not losing any battery life at all — and because the capacity is smaller, the new iPad mini is slightly thinner and a little lighter than its direct predecessor. The reduction in capacity is actually a benefit.Apple has long managed to squeeze out more battery life from smaller batteries, compared to Android manufacturers, on its phones and tablets, and the trend is continuing on the 8th-gen iPad mini.

Watch Ravens vs Bills on Paramount+ / CBS via YouTube TV (US)Unlock your stream with IPVanish (save up to 83%)Ravens vs Bills kick-off: Sun, Nov 1 at 1pm ET / 6pm GMT / 5am AEDT (Mon)Lamar Jackson's return can't come soon enough for the Ravens, who've plummeted down the pecking order in his absence. The two-time MVP, however, looks set to return for this key NFL 2026 clash with the Bills, who are flying high and coming off a bye. Baltimore's track record with double-digit leads needs no introduction, but even by their standards the capitulation against the Bengals was something special. From 13-0 up at midway, to 13–35 down at full-time, this was a collapse for the ages. Worse still, they blew a double-digit lead the previous week too. Although there's a long way to go, the Ravens' divisional form has brought a note of jeopardy to every game. Not only are they at the bottom of the AFC North, but they're also 0-2 in divisional play, which could end up costing them dearly.On a positive note, while the Ravens' and Bills' run-heavy offenses are well-matched, Buffalo's defense has been atrocious in every facet of the game. They rank 31st for total defense and passing yards, and 30th for points conceded per game. But they have Josh Allen. The 2024 MVP has nine passing touchdowns to go with another eight on his wheels, so while the Bills certainly won't be winning the Vince Lombardi Trophy with the defense in the state that it is, Allen and James Cook alone ensure they'll keep steamrolling good, bad and average opponents in the meantime.Here's how to watch Ravens vs Bills in the 2026 NFL from anywhere in the world.Use a VPN to watch Ravens vs Bills live streams A VPN is a handy piece of software that can make your device appear as if it's back in your home country, so you can unlock your usual streaming services. One of our favourites is IPVanish – it does everything and comes with up to 83% off.🟩 IPVanish – Just $2.49/monthIPVanish is beginning to rank among the top VPN providers and it is a great option to unblock your NFL streaming service.✅ Save up to 83%✅ Just $2.49/month✅ Unlocks all necessary streaming servicesGet IPVanish and stream Ravens vs Bills from anywhere.View DealHow to watch Ravens vs Bills live streams in the USIn the US, the Ravens vs Bills game is being shown on CBS and Paramount+. Paramount+ starts at $8.99/month or $89.99/year. However, you can access Paramount+ virtually for free with a Walmart Plus 30-day trial for $1.Alternatively, YouTube TV, Hulu + Live TV, DirecTV Stream and the Fubo Sports + News plan each carry CBS and will provide near-comprehensive NFL coverage this season. Outside of the US? IPVanish can unblock your stream from anywhere in the world.How to watch Ravens vs Bills live streams in the UKIn the UK, Ravens vs Bills is available to watch on Sky Sports+.Sky Sports packages start at £35/month, with £22/month pricing available to existing Sky customers. You can also tune in via a NOW Sports membership that carries the Sky Sports channels.The game is also available through NFL Game Pass on DAZN, which starts at £18.99/month if you commit to a year or £69.99 for the rest of the season if you pay upfront, and live streams every remaining game, plus RedZone.Away from home? Unlock your Ravens vs Bills stream with IPVanish.How to watch Ravens vs Bills live streams in AustraliaIn Australia, the Ravens vs Bills game is being shown on ESPN via Foxtel, with live streaming available via Kayo Sports. Kayo Sports subscriptions start at AU$30 per month after a 7-day free trial, as detailed above. Equally, you can get your first month for AU$1.It's also available to stream live on NFL Game Pass on DAZN, which is showing every remaining game, including the Super Bowl. Prices start at AU$134.99 for the rest of the season if you pay upfront, rising to AU$34.99/month if you commit to 12 months, and AU$33.99/week on a rolling basis.Not in Australia right now? You can simply use a VPN like IPVanish to watch the action as if you were back home. How to watch Ravens vs Bills live streams in Canada(Image credit: Other)The Ravens vs Bills game is available to watch on DAZN in Canada.DAZN, which is showing every 2026 NFL fixture, starts at CA$24.99/month.If you're out of Canada but still want to tune in, explore the VPN route set out above, which will help you access your account from anywhere.What is the Ravens vs Bills start time?The scheduled Ravens vs Bills kick-off time on Sunday, November 1 is 1pm ET local time in Orchard Park, which is 10am PT / 6pm GMT.That's 5am AEDT on Monday, November 2 in Australia.What is the Ravens vs Bills head-to-head?The Ravens and Bills have faced off on 14 previous occasions. Baltimore won seven of those games, and Buffalo seven.Can I watch Ravens vs Bills on my mobile?Of course, most broadcasters have streaming platforms that you can access through mobile apps or via your phone's browser.You can also stay up-to-date with the latest NFL news and plays on the official social media channels on X/Twitter (@NFL), Instagram (@NFL), TikTok (@NFL) and YouTube (@NFL).We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Back in 2000, Bandai Namco published the third game in the beloved Tales series, Tales of Eternia. It was received very well at launch, being praised for its high-octane action combat, charming cast, and humorous script — though the Western versions on the original PlayStation and PSP were held back by their omission of skits (character-driven dialogue scenes) and slightly subpar voice acting. But now, Tales of Eternia Remastered — developed by TOSE Co. — is here, aiming to remedy these issues and refine the game for a modern audience.Review infoPlatform reviewed: Nintendo Switch 2Available on: PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X and Series S, Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo SwitchRelease date: October 16, 2026I’ve spent just north of 30 hours with Tales of Eternia Remastered, playing through the main story, completing side quests, and exploring the realms of Inferia and Celestia. So, how effectively does this remaster bring a JRPG classic into the modern era? And is it truly worth playing? Here’s my verdict.Gimme a Boost!(Image credit: Bandai Namco)I’ll speak about the core Tales of Eternia experience in good time, but it only seems right to discuss the new stuff that this remaster brings to the table first.Arguably the main thing is the inclusion of Boost Function. This enables you to tailor your experience to your specific wants and needs, with highlights including a random encounter toggle, difficulty options, an increased item capacity setting, and an EXP gain adjuster. My personal favorite feature was the option to restore TP (which you consume when using skills) when camping, which made grinding feel a lot more fluid and easier to manage. The Boost Function suite is filled to the brim, and really helps to make the title more approachable for newcomers. My only real complaint here is that I would’ve loved the option to map a function — such as disabling enemy encounters — to one of the buttons on my Nintendo Switch 2. Having to open the main menu, go into the Customize Section, and then the Boost Function felt a touch clunky.Best bit(Image credit: Bandai Namco)Defeating the Greater Craymel, Celsius, was by far one of the most rewarding moments for me. She was giving me a lot of trouble by evading my Artes and freezing my healers into submission, but after switching up my formation and strategy, I was able to best her in a true battle for the ages.There’s a lot more to uncover, though. For instance, you can switch between remastered and original graphics and sound effects, which is sure to satisfy newcomers and long-time fans.The visual enhancements are relatively light overall. This isn’t a transformative overhaul, and some environments still look a little rough around the edges. But still, the remaster does illuminate some previously obscured details. As you can see in the images below, detailing on the statues is far more intricate, and foliage looks sharper in the remastered graphics mode. And while some may prefer the original pixel sprites, I think the remaster does a good job of cleaning them up a bit while keeping them faithful to the original artwork.Original graphics modeBandai NamcoRemastered graphics modeBandai NamcoWhile we’re on the topic of visuals, I unfortunately have a complaint to make: the cutscenes look pretty poor. They’ve been placed into widescreen, and it looks as if a filter has been applied; the results are underwhelming — characters and backgrounds lack clarity and definition, laying bare the limitations of the original material.That’s a nitpick, of course, and most elements of this remaster still hit the spot. For example, the newly recorded English voice acting is great, and each character’s personality shines through perfectly. Skits are finally here in the West, too, providing plenty of humorous and emotional moments when camping or resting.Objective icons are also introduced, which point you in the direction of the main story objective or side quests. I really appreciated this, especially as I didn’t want to miss out on side content, but if you want to figure everything out for yourself, you can swiftly switch it off in the Customize menu.An underrated classic, reborn(Image credit: Bandai Namco)So, while it’s not flawless, the remaster of this title is solid overall and successfully makes this classic more palatable for modern audiences. But just how fun is the core game in the big 2026?I’ll lay my cards on the table: I had a spectacular time with Tales of Eternia Remastered. This was actually my first time playing the game — after all, I wasn’t even born when it was initially released. In spite of that, there was something so nostalgic about it, the warm, charming world and excellent cast totally captured my attention, and I found myself pouring countless hours into the game every single day.Something that stood out for me was the writing. Yes, the main narrative is nothing special — the world is in danger, and a group of young heroes needs to defy the odds to save everybody. But it’s the characters that make this experience so special. For the most part, you'll spend your time with four key heroes. Reid is a reluctant protagonist who seems to be dragged into the chaos at every turn, Farah is a contemplative, complex young woman learning herself as the story unfolds, Keele is a stuck-up academic type who delivers some hilarious moments, and Meredy is a caring and curious foreign stranger who the crew slowly begins to understand in their quest to prevent disaster. The cast isn’t weighed down by the tired tropes and lazy writing that a lot of JRPGs faced at the time, and each party member is highly memorable.(Image credit: Bandai Namco)But how about the actual gameplay? Well, the combat is pretty unique. It manifests in the form of a fighter-RPG hybrid, with a large focus on reactive action-based commands. While the combat certainly takes some getting used to and the movement can feel a little janky at times, battling your foes feels incredibly addictive. Chaining Artes together to deliver devastating combos and tinkering with formations or skills to get past tough boss battles is highly rewarding, and even random encounters gave me huge satisfaction. The game is undoubtedly challenging, but delivering a finishing blow makes your struggle feel worth it. And if you do fall to your foes, a retry battle option is at hand to dive right back into the action.There’s not too much grinding required, either. I kept random encounters on for the vast majority of my playthrough, and that gave me plenty of experience for big boss fights. If you do want to grab some extra experience, though, you can switch Auto mode on and have your team fight for you, helping you avoid same-y skirmishes.Outside of battle, things are decent too. You can explore the world for items and treasure to bolster your stats, venture into shops to grab stronger gear, and even take on a few minigames. Exploration is highly gratifying as well, and you’ll often find weapons that come in handy for specific areas or recipes that restore your HP or TP when you’re running low. A small complaint I have, though, is that movement feels clunky in the overworld. You need to be very precise if you want to move diagonally, and dragging items like statues could feel a bit awkward at times. This is still a relatively minor issue overall, but in tighter areas, the old-school movement did cause me some minor frustration. I also have to say that the minigames, in general, are pretty bad. They typically control fine, but don’t feel very fun to play at all. Luckily, you can skip these if you’d prefer, which I often did. It was cool to see mouse mode integration for minigames on Nintendo Switch 2, though, which worked a treat in my experience. Speaking of my experience on Switch 2, let’s take a moment to talk about performance. Tales of Eternia Remastered runs in 4K when playing docked and 1080p in handheld, with smooth 60fps across both modes — perhaps to be expected for a less demanding title like this. I didn’t notice any technical hiccups or frame drops during my whole playthrough, so Switch 2 is certainly a top-tier destination for this remaster. (Image credit: Bandai Namco)So let’s address those questions I posed in the intro. Is Tales of Eternia Remastered a worthy modern take on this classic entry? For me, the answer is yes. Some things could’ve been better: the visual enhancements are relatively light, cutscenes look a bit underwhelming, and I would’ve liked a shortcut button for disabling enemy encounters. But the Boost Function provides so much flexibility, the new English dub is great, and the ability to retry battles in an instant keeps the game's pace feeling fast and fluid.And at a core level, this is a great game with a lot to offer, in spite of a few dated elements. The combat, while very much of its time, remains fun and surprisingly strategic; the cast is highly memorable, with skits adding some welcome depth, and exploration is rewarding too. All in all, I had a blast with Tales of Eternia Remastered, and JRPG fanatics are sure to find a lot to love here.Should you play Tales of Eternia Remastered?(Image credit: Bandai Namco)Play it if...You appreciate a challengeTales of Eternia is a fairly challenging game, with some daunting boss fights scattered throughout the experience. I had to retry a fair few times when battling against the mightiest foes, but there’s even a hard and extreme mode if you truly want to test yourself.You want to play a JRPG that doesn’t overstay its welcomeAs a huge JRPG fan, I know that this genre has a tendency to demand an awful lot of your time. But Tales of Eternia hits a real sweet spot. It takes around 25-30 hours to finish (unless you’re a true completionist), and is well-paced throughout, making it a far more approachable title than a lot of other games in this space.Don't play it if...You’re expecting a modern Tales experienceTales of Eternia Remastered remains very faithful to the original, and you’re still getting that 2D action-based combat of yesteryear. It’s not as fluid and free-flowing as modern Tales combat systems, so if that’s what you’re after, it may be worth looking elsewhere.You want top-tier visualsOf course, this is a remaster rather than a remake, so this entry isn't aiming to supply a striking visual overhaul. Even still, the visuals are a bit of a mixed bag; the cutscenes aren’t handled very well, and the in-game graphical enhancements, while decent, aren’t exactly transformative.Accessibility featuresThere are a number of ways to customize your experience in Tales of Eternia Remastered. You can turn subtitles on or off, choose to auto-advance text, remap buttons to suit your preferences, and alter difficulty. While there’s no colorblind mode, in-game elements that previously required color-based identification have been redesigned around visual elements unrelated to color.How I reviewed Tales of Eternia Remastered(Image credit: Bandai Namco)I spent just over 30 hours with Tales of Eternia Remastered, during which time I played through the main story, completed a handful of side quests, and tried out all of the various Boost Function features.For the most part, I played the game in docked mode, with my Nintendo Switch 2 hooked up to the Sky Glass Gen 2 TV and Marshall Heston 120 soundbar. However, I did dip into handheld mode from time to time, and used the Sennheiser CX 80U wired earbuds to enjoy in-game audio.More generally, I’ve covered a huge array of games here at TechRadar, where I serve as a Senior Reviews Writer. I’ve reviewed a number of JRPGs, including Trails in the Sky 2nd Chapter and Dragon Quest I & II HD-2D Remake, as well as Switch 2 exclusives such as Fire Emblem: Fortune’s Weave and Nintendo Switch Sports Resort.First reviewed October 2026

Sam Altman says AI isn't creating security vulnerabilities – it's just helping us discover them far more quicklyAttackers are also finding and exploiting them just as quicklyAI Security Mesh helps you explore fixes at a faster pace"AI is helping us discover all of the security issues that we have developed over the past fifty years," co-CEO Clay Magouyrk worked into a conversation on-stage with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, clearly laboring the point that artificial intelligence is actually helping us to identify existing vulnerabilities.This comes against a backdrop of what could only be described as an onslaught of AI-assisted bug patches – companies are now patching at rates we've never seen before. Oracle's own quarterly patch update recently addressed no fewer than around 3,000 issues, most of which were only identified thanks to AI.With this in mind, Oracle is now helping businesses identify vulnerabilities, investigate exploits before they happen and research fixes through a new partnership with OpenAI.AI is uncovering thousands of existing vulnerabilitiesWith the new Oracle AI Security Mesh feature, businesses will be able to see supporting evidence like reproduction steps and test results to help them rule out false positives and to prioritize the biggest threats.During the conversation with Magouyrk on stage, Altman implied that businesses may eventually need to reconsider their security strategies from the ground up, moving beyond fixing individual bugs toward continuous monitoring – which could spell out potential security team restructuring as AI continues to have an impact on job roles.OpenAI Head of Cyber Johannes Landgraf explained the threat: "Frontier AI is creating new opportunities to help organizations identify and respond to increasingly sophisticated security threats."The biggest worry is that while AI can significantly speed up vulnerability discovery, it's also helping attackers exploit them at that same rate."It's maybe too hard to patch every bug one by one across the entire supply chain," Sam Altman said. "I think we'll need new ways to fix them."For many businesses until now, one of the biggest challenges has actually been getting fixes out of the door quickly enough. The hope is that now, AI Security Mesh can equip businesses with the upper hand to respond as quickly as possible to newly discovered threats.

Looking for a non-toxic coffee maker? I test over a dozen espresso and drip coffee machines every year, and here I've picked out three BPA-free options that deliver peace of mind when you're enjoying your morning brew.Bisphenol A (BPA) is a material used in some hard plastics, and is classified as an endocrine disruptor (a substance that can affect hormone levels). When it comes into contact with food and drinks, tiny amounts can be transferred and consumed.The official stance of the US Food and Drink Administration (FDA) is that "BPA is safe at the current levels occurring in foods. Based on FDA’s ongoing safety review of scientific evidence, the available information continues to support the safety of BPA for the currently approved uses in food containers and packaging."The Food Standards Agency in the UK adopts a similar position, stating that "Where it is allowed to be used, tiny amounts of the chemical may be transferred from some packaging into food and drinks, however the level of BPA detected in food to date in the UK is not currently considered to be harmful."However, in both countries BPAs are forbidden in items intended to be used by babies and young children, and some coffee fans prefer to pick brewers that are BPA-free to play it safe.All three coffee makers below are explicitly marked as BPA-free, but there are some other options to consider if you want to avoid contact with plastics. For example, if you want a manual espresso machine, the La Pavoni Europiccola (reviewed by my colleague Josephine Watson) is worth a look. Although it isn't explicitly marketed as non-toxic, the heating element is stainless steel, and its tank is made from brass to limit contact with other materials in the brew path. Meanwhile, pour-over fans can avoid plastic entirely by opting for a Chemex brewer, or a simple glass or ceramic dripper.Ninja Prestige DualBrew SystemFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureThe Ninja Prestige DualBrew System — known as the Ninja Espresso and Coffee Maker Barista System in the US — is BPA-free, plus Ninja's product FAQ also states that it's free from PTFE/PFOA, chemicals used to make non-stick coatings. PTFE is chemically inert, and regarded as safe at the temperatures used by coffee machines. However, as with BPAs, some coffee-drinkers prefer to avoid it for peace of mind. PFOA has been phased out in the US and UK, having been classified as carcinogenic by the International Agency for Research on Cancer. You will not find it in any modern coffee makers.The Prestige DualBrew System was released two years ago, but remains one of my favorite two-in-one coffee and espresso machines for sluggish mornings. Either fill the brew basket with ground coffee before bed, set the timer, and wake to a hot pitcher full of delicious pour-over, or drop in a Nespresso Original pod and enjoy a rich espresso with zero effort.It's the little features that really make the DualBrew System stand out. For example, the hotplate under the pour-over pitcher offers adjustable time and temperature settings, so you can keep your coffee pleasantly warm without risk of stewing it. Remove the pitcher and you'll find a fold-down drip tray, so you can dispense coffee directly into a cup or travel mug instead.You can adjust the height of the espresso drip tray to accommodate different-sized cups, too, and around the side of the machine, there's a fold-out milk frother for turning your Nespresso drinks into lattes or cappuccinos. It doesn't heat the milk as a steam wand would, but Ninja's designers have added a "recipe" label that provides guidance on the length of time for which you should microwave and whisk the milk for different drinks.Read my full Ninja Prestige DualBrew System reviewFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureNinja Luxe Café PremierThe Luxe Café Premier (which was known as the Luxe Café when it launched in 2024) is another Ninja coffee maker explicitly stated to be BPA-free. Ninja also notes that "after the reservoir, the water does not come into contact with any plastic," which is good to know if you're worried about substances leaching into hot water.It's a brilliant all-in-one coffee maker that takes the trial and error out of making well-extracted coffee, handling the trickiest barista tasks and helping even first-time users produce a consistently well-extracted brew with a fully rounded flavor.When preparing an espresso, the machine does the hard work of dialing in the grinder for you, suggesting an appropriate grind size and then funneling the prepared coffee neatly into the filter basket. A calibrated tamper helps you create a perfectly even bed of coffee, and once the handle is inserted under the brewing group, the Luxe Café will time your shot to make sure it's not extracting too fast or slow.You can push the steam wand down into your milk jug to use the automatic frothing system, or lift it a few degrees to use it manually, depending on how confident you feel. We found that the auto system worked equally well with dairy milk and plant-based substitutes such as oat and almond."Overall, the Ninja Luxe Café delivered on its promises of uncomplicating espresso," said our tester Danielle Abraham. "It consistently created quality espresso and made things simpler by intuitively dosing and providing the correct grind level for the perfect pull, something you’d be hard-pressed to find on other semi-automatic espresso machines at this price point."If you have a small kitchen, the Ninja Luxe Café Mini offers almost exactly the same features in a more compact package, brews "absolutely delicious" coffee, and is also BPA-free.Read our full Ninja Luxe Café Premier reviewFellow Aiden Precision Coffee MakerFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFutureFellow's premium coffee makers are a popular choice for coffee roasters and specialty cafés, and the Aiden Precision Coffee Maker is no exception. The brand states that "Aiden is built with high-quality, food-grade plastic (BPA-free), stainless steel, and silicone, so that you can brew with peace of mind."The Aiden offers a choice of brewing modes, so you can pick the appropriate one depending on how much time you have to spare. Auto Brew mode works like any basic drip coffee maker, simply heating water and pumping it over your ground coffee. The pump will run until the water tank is empty.Guided Brewing mode is where things get interesting. It lets you choose how much to brew, then suggests the optimal dosage, bloom time, and temperature based on the type of beans you've selected. The machine will also tell you whether to use the cone or flat-bottomed brew basket, and can detect which one you've inserted.The Aiden has a cold-brew mode as well, which uses hot water to bloom the coffee, then switches to cold for the remainder of the process. It's a clever trick that means your drink takes just 1.5-2 hours to prepare compared to the 24 hours for traditional cold brewing. The flavor profile is impressively similar, so hats off to Fellow.However, the Aiden loses half a point for its carafe, which lets heat escape a little too easily. Fellow claims it will keep your batch of freshly brewed coffee hot for hours, but during my tests, it cooled noticeably within 45 minutes.In short, the non-toxic Aiden brews exquisite drip coffee, but you'll need to be ready to enjoy it straight away.Read my full Fellow Aiden Precision Coffee Maker review

Watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot for free on Channel 4 (UK)Unblock Channel 4 from abroad with NordVPN – Save 75%Airs on Sunday, November 1Bradley Walsh is better known for fronting The Chase on ITV, but he's now making the step over to Channel 4, at least briefly, to host another quiz show. But, Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot might not be quite what it seems, if you believe internet sleuths that is.There are a lot of clues suggesting Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot could be a hoax. For one, it's on at 9pm, which is not exactly primetime quiz viewing in the UK. The team behind the new, one-off show are also a little suspicious. Tim Hancock is the commissioner, and he has previously worked on The Experiment and Greg Wallace: The Miracle Meat, two spoof/hoax shows that fooled the nation.Throw in the fact that some audience members claimed they signed intense NDAs and you've got a pretty solid theory. Still, if the show is genuine, it'll see three contestants competing to win a million pounds (as you may have guessed) in front of a live audience, with Walsh throwing the questions their way.Reckon it's the real deal, or are Channel 4 playing a big joke on us all? You'll have to tune in to find out, so read on to see how to watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot from anywhere and potentially for free.How to watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot for free in the UKIn the UK, Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot will air for FREE on Channel 4 on Sunday, November 1, 2026 at 9pm.If you miss the broadcast you'll be able to watch it all unfold on Channel 4's streaming platform after the launch.Stream Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot on Channel 4Channel 4 is a free UK streaming service where all you need is an account with a valid UK postcode (e.g. SE1 7PB).The show will be immediately available online from November 1.ABROAD? WATCH CHANNEL 4 FROM ANYWHERE WITH NORDVPN (try 30 days)View DealHow to watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot abroad with a VPNIf you’re traveling abroad when Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot airs, you can watch without regional restrictions using a VPN. .Use a VPN to watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot from anywhere:🟩 NordVPN – get the world's best VPNNot having a VPN is like leaving your front door wide open in a busy city – anyone can walk right in and take a peek.TechRadar regularly reviews all the biggest and best VPN providers and NordVPN is our #1 choice.✅ 75% Off Today✅ 3 Extra Months Free✅ Unlocks Channel 4Get NordVPN and stream Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot wherever you are.View DealCan you watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot in the US?Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot is a UK-only production (for now) and it won't be airing or streaming in the US.Away from home? Use a VPN to watch the show when traveling around – it's easy. Details above..Can you watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot in Canada?Likewise, there are no plans to release Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot in Canada, be it on normal TV or a streaming platform.UK viewer currently traveling in Canada? Download a VPN to connect to your streaming service back home and watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot.Can I watch Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot in Australia?Similarly, there is nothing to suggest that Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot will get a release in Australia at this time.Aussies can also use a VPN to get access to watch UK TV from abroad.Who's involved with Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot?Bradley Walsh (host/presenter)Max Shapira (director)Jacob Greenhalgh (producer)Tim Hancock (commissioner)Will there be more episodes of Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot?At the moment, Bradley Walsh’s Million Pound Shot is billed as a one-off quiz event, with no details of any further editions of the show planned - at least publicly.Of course, if the show is indeed a hoax, it would make sense that there is only the one instalment. Once the twist is revealed there would be no need for more.However, if the quiz show is genuine, and it's a success, there is every chance it will get more episodes in the future.You may also enjoy watching...How to watch The Mob online from anywhere – stream the reality competition showHow to watch Last One Laughing: Halloween online – stream the Halloween special from anywhere for freeHow to watch The Pride of Britain Awards 2026 online for FREEVPN services are evaluated and tested by us in view of legal recreational use. For example:a) Access to services from other countries, (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).b) Safeguarding your online security and making your online privacy more robust when abroad.Future plc does not support nor condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. We do not endorse nor approve of consuming pirated content that is paid-for.

When Sir David Attenborough drops a new docuseries, the whole world sits up and pays attention, and he's back with another installment of his stunning series, Blue Planet.The new season features six hour-long episodes, with footage filmed over four years. Episode topics include tropical seas, the open ocean, polar waters, and what the future holds for our oceans.If the dulcet tones of Attenborough and wondrous imagery of the underwater world weren't enough, this season of Blue Planet will also feature music from the Oscar-winning composer Hans Zimmer.If you're keen to learn more about our oceans and the life inhabiting the world's water, here's how to watch Blue Planet III online and on TV from anywhere for free.Can I watch Blue Planet III for free?Yes. BBC iPlayer is the streaming service you need to watch Blue Planet III for free.You will need an account with a UK postcode (e.g. SE1 7PB) and a valid TV licence.Can't access the free stream because you're away on vacation? You need a VPN – more on that below.How to watch Blue Planet III from anywhereIf you're keen to watch Blue Planet III but you're away from the UK and access to the show is geo-blocked, then you could use a VPN to access it (assuming you're not breaching any broadcaster T&Cs, of course). You may be surprised by how simple it is to do. Plus, we have a great 75% discount on our #1 VPN... Editors Choice🟩 NordVPN – get the world's best VPNNot having a VPN is like leaving your front door wide open in a busy city – anyone can walk right in and take a peek.TechRadar regularly reviews all the biggest and best VPN providers and NordVPN is our #1 choice✅ Up to 75% Off Today✅ 3 Extra Months Free✅ Unlocks BBC iPlayerGet NordVPN and stream Blue Planet III now – from wherever you are.VIEW DEAL ON How to watch Blue Planet III in the UKIn the UK, the first three episodes of Blue Planet III are now available on BBC iPlayer for free. The other three will arrive a week later.The docuseries airs on BBC One on Sunday, November 1 at 8pm BST, with new episodes arriving every Sunday at the same time until December 6.Outside the UK? Unblock your BBC iPlayer stream with NordVPN.Can you watch Blue Planet III in the US?You will be able to watch Blue Planet III on BBC America and AMC+ in the States, but you'll have to wait until January 23, 2027.Visiting the US from the UK? You can use our most-trusted VPN (try risk-free) to unlock your usual streaming platforms and watch the docuseries from anywhere. Can you watch Blue Planet III in Canada?Similarly, you'll have to wait to watch Blue Planet III in Canada, but it'll be on BBC Select in 2027. Some viewers North of the border may be able to access the show via AMC+ too.Away from home? Use a VPN to gain access to all the content you'd normally stream at home.Can you watch Blue Planet III in Australia?(Image credit: free)Viewers in Australia can watch Blue Planet III on Channel 9 and 9Now, but it won't arrive until the new year.Away from Oz? Use NordVPN to access your usual shows from anywhere in the world.Blue Planet III need to knowBlue Planet III episodesEpisode 1 - Tropical Seas: In the tropical seas, year-round sunshine has created the perfect conditions for the ocean’s richest habitats to flourish, but survival takes remarkable and surprising ingenuity.Episode 2 - Open Ocean: Beyond the horizon lies the vast open ocean, a world teeming with extraordinary life where giant blue whales, tiny drifting crabs and tenacious turtles thrive against all odds.Episode 3 - Seasonal Seas: From winter storms to scorching summers, seasonal seas push animals to be resourceful, adaptable and adventurous. Those who can survive these dynamic seas reap rich rewards.Episode 4 - Polar WatersEpisode 5 - The Deep.Episode 6 - Future SeasWhat's been said about Blue Planet III?On the making of the new season, Attenborough said: "Twenty-five years ago, when I narrated the first Blue Planet series, it didn't occur to me that I would be narrating a third series in my centennial year. The ocean is an endlessly fascinating place."In these new programmes we uncover a further wonderful array of underwater life, which is more surprising, more sophisticated and even more important than we ever realised. I am proud and delighted to be associated with Blue Planet III."You may also like to watch...How to watch The Future with Hannah Fry season 2 for free online from anywhereThe best BBC iPlayer VPNsHow to watch BBC iPlayer from abroad We test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Earlier this week, Apple did the thing we’ve all known it would for months and finally unveiled its touchscreen MacBook Pro. Awkwardly dubbed the “PROLED XDR Display,” Apple says the touchscreen panel gives pro users “a whole new way to interact with their content.” Yet, to say I’m unconvinced would be an understatement. While I’m excited for that OLED goodness, I’ve long been skeptical of the benefits of touchscreen laptops, as I find their gesture interactions to be by turns unnecessary and uncomfortable to use for long periods of time. And if something is either so unnecessary that you don’t use it or so uncomfortable that it causes your arms to ache, it probably shouldn’t be in a product. But hey, what do I know? Practically every Windows laptop manufacturer offers at least one touchscreen version, and now Apple has got in on the act. I’m sure Apple will do what it often does and blow everyone else away with a perfected feature that redefines what a touchscreen display should be about … right? Actually, scratch that, I’m still totally unconvinced. Because not only has Apple completely sidestepped the entire issue of arm fatigue, but it seems the company can’t even convincingly explain why anyone should buy a touchscreen MacBook in the first place (and let’s not even talk about the $2,899 starting price or the $14,549 maximum configuration). No, I think I’ll be sitting this one out. Here’s why you might also want to.Simply the best?(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)If we want to understand why this touchscreen MacBook Pro exists — and maybe why you should buy one — we should look at how Apple frames it. The company says that “Graphic designers can now use the entire display as their canvas, no longer constrained by the area of the trackpad when drawing,” and that “musicians can play software instruments right onscreen.”But does Apple actually think that doing either of those things is going to be remotely comfortable for more than about 10 seconds? There’s a reason why people play keyboards horizontally, after all: because playing an entire gig with your arms held rigid and outstretched is a quick path to aching limbs. Why would it be any different on a laptop? Surely Apple doesn’t picture long-term usage like that, so my guess is it expects you’ll do a few quick taps on-screen and then go back to a normal, sane way of using your laptop. But if you only interact with the touchscreen for a few seconds at a time, is it really worth it? Is that kind of limited interaction good value for money when you’re paying a $400 premium over the regular MacBook Pro? Maybe, maybe not, but the fact that Apple’s big, expensive, flagship feature is something many people will simply shrug their shoulders at suggests a failure of inspiration on Apple’s part. Yes, you get a beautiful OLED panel as well for your $400, and that I think is easily justified. But every feature in a product you buy should be able to justify its existence, especially in an Apple product and especially in these expensive times. Yet the touchscreen panel just feels like it’s come along for the ride. After all, Apple is the company that has reinvented category after category, from portable music players to smartphones to tablets and beyond. And now the best it can do is a feature that isn’t comfortable to use for long periods and that is best employed in short bursts with extended periods of inactivity in between. If Apple, of all companies, can’t blow you away with a feature that resets expectations of how the category should work, why is it bothering at all? Apple’s mantra has long been not to be first, but to be best. Does this touchscreen really feel like the best in the industry, or just another addition to the pile?An uninspired feature(Image credit: Apple)In hands-on demos across the land, plenty of people have said that using the touchscreen MacBook Pro feels great — or “totally and wonderfully natural,” in the words of my colleague Lance Ulanoff — and I don’t doubt that it does. But that doesn’t negate Steve Jobs’ criticisms of the idea of touchscreen laptops at all. In his famous critique, Jobs said that “after a short period of time you start to fatigue, and after an extended period of time your arm wants to fall off.” I’m sure that Apple has crafted its touchscreen display in such a way that it does indeed feel amazing when you first start using it. A few taps and swipes and you’re probably ready to part with your cash. The problem is that, unless I’ve missed something, our arms haven’t evolved in the 16 years since Jobs made that oft-cited pronouncement. Keep using a touchscreen laptop, whether it’s made by Apple or anyone else, and you will eventually start to feel fatigue and pain. Given the laws of biology haven’t changed, I was hoping that Apple at least had some sort of killer feature up its sleeve for the touchscreen display. Sadly, I’ve come away disappointed. Even John Ternus, Apple’s new CEO, can’t seem to sell it well. When asked by Wired why Apple decided to release a touchscreen MacBook, Ternus had this to say: “We needed to get to a point where adding touch didn’t make the product lesser in any way. It didn’t make it heavier. It didn’t make it thicker. That came together with the OLED screen, the best display we’ve ever put into a Mac. All of these things, and, oh yeah, it has touch as well.” “Oh yeah, it has touch as well.” It feels like that sums up the inclusion of the touchscreen almost too well. Why did Apple include it in the MacBook Pro? “Yeah, I guess we may as well do it.” That’s the way it sounds to me. Is that the attitude of a company that leads? Of one that prides itself on inspiration and innovation? Or just one that sees everyone else doing touchscreen laptops and thinks it should probably tag along? (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)Look again at what Ternus said. The time was right to include a touchscreen because Apple could do so without making the MacBook Pro worse. Not the time was right because including a touchscreen would elevate the MacBook Pro to exciting new heights. Just, “hey, what’s the worst that could happen?” Apple’s playbook has often been to let others go first and wait until it has the capability to blow everyone else away, not to let others go first and then add their own thing because “I suppose the time is right.” It just screams of passive, unimaginative thinking. Where’s the drive, the passion? The desire to make something “insanely great”? Are we really expected to believe that Steve Jobs made the first iPhone a touchscreen product because he wanted the company’s customers to say “oh yeah, it has multi-touch as well”? That designing an Apple device was a checkbox exercise of adding what you could as long as it didn’t make the experience crap? Jobs was famous for his conniptions, and you can bet everything you’ve got he’d have one if that’s how his teams thought. And yet here we are, with Apple’s own CEO making the headline feature of his latest MacBook Pro feel like an afterthought that half of the company’s users might not even notice. It boggles the mind. Before the PROLED MacBook Pro launched, my colleague Lance Ulanoff pointed out that Steve Jobs often changed his opinions and argued that Jobs would have loved the idea of a touchscreen MacBook Pro. Maybe so, but he would have hated the milquetoast way that Apple has framed it.

Apple iPhone Duo The iPhone Duo is far more versatile than the iPhone Air thanks to its second, tablet-sized screen. But it's also heavier and much more expensive. ProsTwo screensMore camerasBetter battery lifeConsFar more expensiveHeavierNo Face ID Apple iPhone Air The iPhone Air is slim, stylish, lightweight, and a much cheaper option than the iPhone Duo, but it can't match Apple's foldable for photography or versatility. ProsSlim and lightRelatively affordableHigh-quality screenConsOnly one rear cameraLow battery capacityLess powerful The iPhone Duo and iPhone Air are both oddities in Apple’s current smartphone lineup. There’s only one of each, and they meet fundamentally different user needs.Sure, they're both extremely sleek and slim (assuming we’re talking about the iPhone Duo in its unfolded form), and they share some other similarities. But for the most part, these two iPhones couldn't be more distinct.In this article, then, we’ve compared the iPhone Duo and iPhone Duo in full, to help you decide which model is right for you.iPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: specs comparisonThe iPhone DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureThe iPhone AirJacob Krol/FutureThe chart below shows the core specs of both handsets, so you can see at a glance how they compare.iPhone DuoiPhone AirDimensions:117.8 x 84.1 x 11.3mm (folded) / 117.8 x 164.6 x 5.2mm (unfolded)156.2 x 74.7 x 5.6mmWeight:254g165gDisplay:7.6-inch Super Retina XDR OLED (foldable) / 5.4-inch Super Retina XDR OLED (cover)6.5-inch Super Retina XDR OLEDRefresh rate:1Hz–120Hz1Hz–120HzPeak brightness:3,000 nits3,000 nitsChipset:A20 ProA19 ProRAM:12GB12GBRear cameras:48MP main, 48MP ultra-wide48MP mainFront camera:12MP cover, 4MP under-display18MPBattery:4,883mAh3,149mAhCharging:50% in 20 minutes50% in 30 minutesStorage:256GB / 512GB / 1TB / 2TB256GB / 512GB / 1TBiPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: price and availabilityThe iPhone DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureThe iPhone AirJacob Krol/FutureThe iPhone Duo was announced in September 2026 and began shipping in October, with the phone now widely available globally. The iPhone Air is a bit older, having launched back in September 2025, but with no successor yet available, you can still buy it.The Duo comes in four configurations, with the cheapest being a 256GB option for $1,999 / £1,999 / AU$3,499. Next up, there’s a 512GB version for $2,199 / £2,199 / AU$3,899, with a 1TB model costing $2,599 / £2,599 / AU$4,699, and a 2TB configuration coming in at $3,199 / £3,199 / AU$5,899.The iPhone Air also starts in a 256GB configuration, costing $1,099 / £1,099 / AU$1,899, while the 512GB model is $1,299 / £1,299 / AU$2,299, and the 1TB version is $1,699 / £1,699 / AU$3,099. There’s no 2TB version of this phone.So, the iPhone Duo’s starting price is some $900 / £900 / AU$1,600 higher than the iPhone Air’s, and to be honest, you're unlikely to need to pay full price for Apple's super slim handset. It's regularly on sale at third-party retailers including Amazon, so the price gap between it and the iPhone Duo is $900 / £900 / AU$1,600 at worst.With the money you’d be saving by buying the Air, you could also buy an iPhone 17 or an iPad Air, which speaks to how expensive Apple's first foldable phone is.Apple iPhone Duo pricingStorageUS priceUK priceAU price256GB$1,999.99£1,999AU$3,499512GB$2,199£2,199AU$3,8991TB$2,599£2,599AU$4,6992TB$3,199£3,199AU$5,899Apple iPhone Air pricingStorageUS priceUK priceAU price256GB$1,099£1,099AU$1,899512GB$1,299£1,299AU$2,2991TB$1,699£1,699AU$3,099iPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: designFutureFutureBoth of these phones are, first and foremost, examples of beautiful design.With the iPhone Duo, Apple managed to make a remarkably slim phone that’s just 117.8 x 164.6 x 5.2mm when unfolded. That makes it even thinner than the 156.2 x 74.7 x 5.6mm iPhone Air — a phone that has a slim design as one of its main selling points.Of course, when folded shut — as it will be in your pocket — the iPhone Duo is rather chunkier at 117.8 x 84.1 x 11.3mm. At 254g, the Duo also weighs a lot more than the Air, which clocks in at a remarkably light 165g.Before we move on, it's worth reiterating that these measurements make the Air one of the most comfortable phones to use and hold over long periods. Its slimness might seem like a gimmick, but there's a lot to be said for using a phone that feels almost weightless in your hand and pocket.The Duo is equally well-crafted and impressively thin when unfolded, but in day-to-day use, it feels significantly heavier and chunkier than the Air. But then, with two screens, that was inevitable.The iPhone Duo (folded) and iPhone AirFutureThe iPhone Duo (unfolded) and iPhone AirFutureAs far as durability goes, both phones have a Ceramic Shield 2 glass front, a Ceramic Shield glass back, and a titanium frame, and both also have an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance.Of course, foldables are inherently more fragile than single-screen phones like the iPhone Air, but you needn't worry about the Duo breaking after a few folds — Apple has confirmed to TechRadar that the phone's viral screen-cracking issue only affected a "small number of units" at launch.The iPhone Duo and iPhone Air also look somewhat similar from the back, with both having a horizontal camera block — though this block houses two lenses on the iPhone Duo, and just one on the iPhone Air.On the front, the Air has larger cutouts in its screen, allowing for Face ID — something the iPhone Duo lacks. And the two phones come in different colors, with the iPhone Duo being available in Night Sky and Star White shades, while the iPhone Air is sold in Space Black, Cloud White, Light Gold, and Sky Blue shades.So, there are as many differences as similarities here, but the designs of both phones shine, with our iPhone Duo review praising Apple's foldable as “beautifully designed and engineered,” while our iPhone Air review called it “the freshest look that Apple has delivered in years.” These are two great-looking products.iPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: displayThe iPhone DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureThe iPhone AirJacob Krol/FutureYou may not have noticed, but the iPhone Duo has two screens.Its main foldable display is a 7.6-inch 1878 x 2670 LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED panel with 430 pixels per inch, a 120Hz refresh rate, a peak brightness of 3,000 nits, and an anti-glare nano-texture finish.Its smaller cover screen is a 5.4-inch 1398 x 2034 LTPO Super Retina XDR OLED panel with 60 pixels per inch, a 120Hz refresh rate, and a peak brightness of 3,000 nits.The iPhone Air, of course, just has one screen — a 6.5-inch 1260 x 2736 Super Retina XDR OLED panel with 460 pixels per inch, a 120Hz refresh rate, and a peak brightness of 3,000 nits.(Image credit: Future)The specs and quality of both phones' front screens are similar, with our iPhone Duo review saying it has a “bright, sharp, fluid display,” and our iPhone Air review calling its screen “punchy, sharp, and smooth.” So you’re mostly just choosing whether you want one screen or two, and what size(s) you want.That said, having two displays undeniably makes the iPhone Duo more versatile, as it’s suited to both large-screen and small-screen tasks — it also supports the Apple Pencil, which the iPhone Air doesn’t.The nano-texture finish on the Duo's inner screen is a sight to behold, too. It does an excellent job of preventing glare, and an even better job of hiding the phone's crease when viewed straight-on. This crease is, of course, still visible when viewed at an angle, but that doesn't really matter if it's not visible when the Duo is in use.iPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: camerasThe iPhone DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureThe iPhone AirJacob Krol/FutureiPhones tend to excel at photography, but arguably neither of these devices ranks among Apple’s best. Still, of the two, the iPhone Duo has the edge by virtue of having more cameras.On the back, it has a 48MP f/1.6 wide camera and a 48MP f/2.2 ultra-wide one (with a 120-degree field of view). Then, on the cover screen, it has a 12MP f/2.2 punch-hole camera, and on the foldable screen, it has a 4MP f/1.8 under-display one.The iPhone Air, on the other hand, has a solitary 48 MP f/1.6 wide camera on the back, and an 18MP f/1.9 camera on the front.So the main difference here is that there’s no ultra-wide lens on the iPhone Air, making the Duo more versatile for photography. But the Air does have a superior selfie camera, even if the Duo has two front-facing snappers (the 4MP inner-display camera is really not very good).All that said, both phones are still capable ot taking excellent shots. In our iPhone Duo review, we said it has “two strong 48MP lenses and an above-average Center Stage selfie camera,” while in our iPhone Air review, we said its camera “delivers sharp, natural photos and impressive portraits, but lacks the versatility found on other models.”iPhone Duo camera samplesLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff/ FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureLance Ulanoff / FutureiPhone Air camera samplesJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureJacob Krol/FutureiPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: performance and softwareThe iPhone DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureThe iPhone AirJacob Krol/FutureThe iPhone Duo has an A20 Pro chipset, 12GB of RAM, and a vapor chamber, putting it in line with the performance of the iPhone 18 Pro series. The iPhone Air is a step down from that, with an A19 Pro chipset, 12GB of RAM, and no vapor chamber.As such, the Air isn’t quite as high-performing, though unless you’re really pushing it with high-end games or other demanding tasks, you’re unlikely to notice much of a difference, and both phones are speedy. This was reflected in our use of the two devices, with our iPhone Duo review finding that it offered “smooth performance across the board,” while our iPhone Air review said it “feels fast and smooth in daily use, though it can warm up under sustained heavy gaming.” The Air occasionally heats up during FaceTime calls, too.The iPhone Duo has a side-mounted app dockLance Ulanoff / FutureSome apps still aren't optimized for the DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureAs for software, the iPhone Duo launched with iOS 27.1 out of the box, while the iPhone Air — being older — shipped with iOS 26. But both phones can be updated to iOS 27.2 at the time of writing, so there’s not much to choose between them here, though the Duo does feature some unique touches like a side-positioned dock.However, it’s worth noting that it might take a while for all apps to be optimized for the iPhone Duo’s form factor. First-party apps like Messages and Mail look great on either Duo screen, but third-party apps like YouTube and Instagram still need work.This early-stage clunkiness may well be resolved by the time you're reading this, but don't be surprised if you encounter some software-related oddities on the iPhone Duo.iPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: batteryThe iPhone DuoLance Ulanoff / FutureThe iPhone AirJacob Krol/FutureThe iPhone Duo has a 4,883mAh battery, while the iPhone Air has a far lower-capacity 3,149mAh cell. This, unsurprisingly, also means the iPhone Duo lasts longer, with Apple claiming you’ll get 44 hours of video playback from it when using the cover screen or 31 hours with the foldable display, while the iPhone Air is quoted at 27 hours.This largely tallies with our test results. In the case of the iPhone Duo, our reviewer found that “all-day battery life is virtually assured,” while for the iPhone Air we found that it “should last a workday, but heavy users will need to recharge.”And when you do recharge, the iPhone Duo can reach 50% in roughly 20 minutes with a 60W or higher charger, or if you’re using wireless charging, it can get to 50% in around 30 minutes with a 35W or higher MagSafe charger.The iPhone Air takes about 30 minutes to reach a 50% charge whether using wired or wireless charging, so it’s slightly slower here.iPhone Duo vs iPhone Air: verdict(Image credit: Future)The iPhone Duo is far more expensive than the iPhone Air, and that price difference is probably the main thing you need to consider when choosing between them — especially as you could buy the iPhone Air and an iPad for less money than the iPhone Duo.Of course, there are advantages to having two devices in one, and the iPhone Duo is a better phone than the Air in various ways too — it boasts slightly better performance, longer battery life, an extra camera, and, of course, that all-important second screen.Both phones have sumptuous designs, though, and the iPhone Air can hold its own for screen quality — it also features Face ID, which the iPhone Duo lacks.So, if you want a more affordable, beautiful-to-use iPhone that works like every other iPhone you've ever owned, go for the Air. If you're willing to try something new — and happy to pay for the privilege of doing so — the Duo is the obvious choice.

OpenAI plans to buy Google's AI chips as computing demand risesGoogle's TPUs are attracting customers seeking alternatives to Nvidia's GPUsOpenAI plans to deploy its custom-designed AI chip before 2027OpenAI plans to purchase artificial intelligence chips from Google as the ChatGPT developer expands its computing resources beyond its established reliance on Nvidia processors.According to The Information, the proposed purchase involves Google's tensor processing units (TPUs), although financial terms, quantities, and delivery schedules remain undisclosed.The reported agreement follows growing demand for AI computing infrastructure, with technology companies seeking additional processors to support increasingly expensive model training and deployment.Google attracts OpenAI as AI chip demand increasesGoogle's TPUs have attracted customers seeking alternatives to Nvidia's GPUs, which remain widely used for training and operating artificial intelligence models.Alphabet, Google's parent company, has expanded commercial sales of its processors, allowing selected external customers to obtain chips previously used mainly within Google's own computing infrastructure.OpenAI already ranks among Nvidia's major customers, purchasing GPUs for developing and running its AI systems, including the models that power ChatGPT and other services.However, the reported Google purchase indicates that OpenAI intends to obtain computing capacity from another supplier rather than depend exclusively on Nvidia's hardware.In 2025, OpenAI started renting Google's AI chips to support its products, indicating that the relationship predates the latest purchasing plans.The proposed transaction also follows OpenAI's recent announcement that its advanced AI models would become available through Google Cloud, adding another commercial connection between the competing companies.Despite competing in AI development and other technology markets, Google and OpenAI have increasingly entered arrangements involving computing resources and access to their respective products.OpenAI develops custom chips alongside external purchasesOpenAI has also pursued its own processor development programme, announcing in June 2026 that it had designed an AI chip with semiconductor company Broadcom.The company said it intended to deploy that processor before the end of 2026, forming part of a multi-generation effort to develop specialised computing hardware.The custom chip programme, alongside purchases from Nvidia and the reported Google deal, indicates that OpenAI is pursuing several sources of computing capacity.Google's growing chip business could benefit from this demand, particularly as Alphabet seeks commercial returns from its substantial investments in AI infrastructure.Alphabet's finance chief, Anat Ashkenazi, previously said the company expected to recognise a small portion of revenue from TPU sales agreements by the end of 2026.She added that most revenue associated with those agreements was expected to be recognised during 2027, suggesting that the financial contribution would develop over time.Alphabet, Amazon, and Microsoft are collectively expected to spend as much as $600 billion on AI infrastructure during 2026, according to the report.Such expenditure has attracted investor scrutiny, with questions emerging about when investments in computing capacity will generate sufficient financial returns.

One of the biggest names in blockbuster cinema is James Cameron, the man behind massive movies like Titanic, the Avatar franchise and the original Terminator films. He also has a storied history with other hit movies and a range of documentaries, spanning many years.You've probably seen loads of his movies — multiple times, in some cases — but how well do you know them? This 30-question quiz is designed to find out.We'll be asking you questions from across James Cameron's career, asking you about his big franchise movies like The Terminator, Avatar and Aliens, as well as sequels and other works. But we'll also look at some of his other movies, the franchises he's created, the awards he's won, and some of his frequent collaborators tooThis quiz will start with 10 easy questions just to make sure you've actually seen this movies in the first place. Then we'll move to 10 medium questions, to see if you're really a movie buff or not. Finally, there will be 10 hard questions, for those who really know their movie trivia.All of these will test your James Cameron franchise knowledge, and will help you work out where you need to brush up on your trivia. Want to catch up on James Cameron movies? Avatar and its sequels are on Disney+ everywhere, while Aliens and Titanic are too in the UK (Aliens is on Netflix in the US, and Titanic is on Paramount+). The Terminator and Terminator 2 are on Prime Video in the US and Paramount+ in the UK.

Google and NASA are developing a robot to assist astronauts medicallyDeep-space communication delays could make onboard medical assistance essential during emergenciesNASA's robotic assistant could retrieve ultrasound equipment for astronauts experiencing severe painGoogle is developing a robotic medical assistant with NASA to help astronauts handle health emergencies and routine duties during future deep-space expeditions.The system is intended to support onboard medical personnel while also performing maintenance, moving equipment, and managing supplies when medical assistance is unnecessary.The project remains experimental, with laboratory testing indicating progress in basic robotic tasks rather than readiness for autonomous medical procedures.A robotic assistant for astronauts far from EarthThe project brings together Google Cloud, NASA's Human Research Program, Johnson Space Center's robotics team, and the Jet Propulsion Laboratory to develop robotic assistance for spaceflight.The work builds on the Crew Medical Officer Digital Assistant, an AI medical support system that Google and NASA have been evaluating since 2025.That earlier system is designed to help astronauts assess health problems when distance and communication delays make immediate consultation with Earth-based doctors difficult.“An astronaut on a future deep space mission to Mars could face severe operational challenges, including round-trip communication latencies of up to 44 minutes,” said Jim Kelly, Google's public sector vice president.Such delays could complicate medical decisions during emergencies, making onboard resources increasingly important when astronauts cannot receive immediate instructions from mission control.Rather than replacing the crew's medical officer, the robot would assist with practical tasks, leaving diagnosis and treatment decisions under human supervision.For example, an astronaut experiencing intense back pain possibly associated with kidney stones could request an ultrasound examination using equipment retrieved and prepared by the robot.The machine could then help position the necessary equipment while the medical officer examines the resulting images and determines the appropriate response.Early tests show progress, with major limitations remainingGoogle is also adapting navigation technology developed at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory to help the robot move through its surroundings and locate equipment.The team has also used DeepMind's MuJoCo physics simulator to assess movement and object handling before attempting more demanding applications.According to Kelly, during the initial laboratory trials, the robot achieved an 85% success rate when locating and moving a medical bag.That result concerns a relatively basic retrieval task and does not establish whether the system can reliably perform medical examinations or assist with complicated emergencies.“To maximize its utility for a lean crew, the robotic system is designed as a versatile 'payload' handler capable of managing cargo, logistics, and equipment,” Kelly explained.“When not needed for routine maintenance like organizing tools or securing compartments, it can pivot to medical support.”Google has described the work as a proof of concept, with early laboratory demonstrations completed but no confirmed fully integrated, space-ready robot.The agency has declined to provide detailed information about the project, stating that it is examining several advanced AI initiatives with partners for possible future missions.The robot is also expected to handle cargo, organize tools, secure compartments, and support routine maintenance, allowing a small crew to allocate its time more efficiently.Google's proposed system therefore combines physical assistance with AI-enabled support, although its practical capabilities will depend on further testing and successful integration with spacecraft operations.“The ultimate goal is to build a robotic system that can execute a variety of tasks via simple voice instructions, under the astronauts’ direct supervision and command,” Kelly said.“For instance, the robot might be directed to assist with routine health monitoring—such as capturing basic vitals or simple ultrasounds—under the strict guidance of a human crew medical officer.” Via The Register

Intel and AMD discuss cooperation without revealing the project's purposeIntel's existing x86 partnership with AMD already supports shared processor standardsAMD's ZenDNN optimizations are entering Intel's oneDNN software libraryIntel CEO Lip-Bu Tan has discussed potential cooperation with AMD CEO Lisa Su, but neither executive has disclosed what the two companies might develop together.Intel is pursuing customized processors, new semiconductor technologies, and external manufacturing contracts, and Tan is looking to strengthen these businesses.Both companies already cooperate on processor standards and AI software, although their latest discussions could involve different technologies or commercial arrangements.Existing partnerships provide several possibilitiesIntel and AMD established the x86 Ecosystem Advisory Group in October 2024 alongside other technology companies to coordinate improvements to their shared processor architecture.The initiative addresses compatibility across x86 processors, helping software developers support products from both manufacturers while the companies continue competing for customers.Their cooperation has also extended into AI software, with AMD integrating its ZenDNN optimizations into Intel's open-source oneDNN library for CPU-based PyTorch inference.They have also worked on Advanced Matrix Extensions and other x86 capabilities, providing established examples of cooperation between competing processor manufacturers.During a chat with Chinese American Semiconductor Professional Association President Jimmy Cheng, Tan discussed his plans to strengthen Intel's processor business.“We have to reclaim the leadership in CPU. That is something that I am very determined to do,” said Lip-Bu Tan, Intel CEO.“I'm modifying it for customer needs, and so that, to me, is a fast-growing area, and I'm double, triple down on it.”He also described a shift towards accommodating individual customer requirements rather than relying exclusively on Intel's existing processor designs.Intel's foundry business offers another potential areaIntel's manufacturing operations provide another possible area for cooperation, although no announcement has confirmed that AMD intends to manufacture chips through Intel's foundry business.Tan said Intel's 18A manufacturing process had entered volume production, while development of its next-generation 14A technology continued.The company has released version 0.5 of its 14A process design kit, with version 0.9 expected before version 1.0 becomes available for volume production in early 2027.In January, two prospective customers were evaluating 14A test chips, with firm supplier decisions expected during the second half of 2026 and first half of 2027.Tan said several customers wanted to expand their businesses through Intel's manufacturing services, but he did not identify them or disclose potential order sizes.His strategy also includes application-specific integrated circuits, co-packaged optics, advanced packaging, and physical AI, with two or three of these businesses expected to contribute approximately 10% of Intel's revenue individually.Customer confidence remains important to Intel's manufacturing ambitions because chip designers depend on reliable production schedules and manufacturing quality when developing commercial products.According to Tan, a customer waited for six to eight months for him to become CEO and then raised 15 areas where Intel had fallen short.The company said all the complaints were tackled effectively, after which the customer agreed to expand its relationship with Intel.Tan's account appears intended to reassure prospective foundry customers that Intel can resolve manufacturing problems and retain business, but it does not confirm that AMD will use Intel's manufacturing process.Via Tom's Hardware

The state of Delaware wishes to add businesses run by AI agents to the already lengthy list of generous regulations in operationRep. James Comer is demanding safety assessments and warning of potential federal legislation if the results are not satisfactoryDelaware’s bill specifies a 30-month regulatory sandbox for testing, and allows any lawful business to be operated by an Artificial Intelligence Company except bankingThe US state of Delaware is planning to add to its generous business rules by allowing companies to be run by AI agents – but Congress lawmakers are not so sure, with one Republican representative writing to the state's governor expressing his concerns, with demands for safety assessments.Businesses with a Delaware address operate under a range of advantageous regulations, including low (or zero, depending on where the businesses conducts its sales) tax rates and specialized courts.The prospect of an Artificial Intelligence Company (AIC) being founded is not unlikely, but law experts believe that Delaware’s bill could be used to implement a liability shield for businesses with AI interests.Harmful actionsDelaaware’s plans have come under the scrutiny of the House Oversight Committee, wish its chairman, Rep. James Comer, pushing back, with concerns over the ability to place an AI in charge of a business. According to the Financial Times, Comer wrote to the Delaware governor Matt Meyer.“We are concerned," he wrote, "that Delaware’s AIC proposal could be used to protect powerful AI companies and their investors from responsibility for reckless harmful actions.” In short, if things go wrong, the AI is to blame and the owner of the business has no responsibility.The draft bill states a 30-month regulatory period in which the AI would be sandboxed. During this time, the concept can then be tested, with an AI agent making the business decisions rather than a human. Like any other business, the company could be sued, and take legal action itself if warranted.Delaware’s plan could aid in the establishing of AI-centric corporate structures (such as autonomous commerce businesses), something that many believe could happen overseas if no US state acts quickly.Legal certaintyVarious names in business and AI have previously supported the idea of AI-run businesses. Most notable is Mark Cuban, the billionaire investor who suggested earlier this year that as “First to market makes a killing,” any “governor of a state looking to grow their revenues” should allow “anyone to incorporate using an AI agent and stablecoins.”Andrew Baker, a professor of law at the University of California, indicated to the FT that the Delaware legislation could be an attempt to reach a midway point, perhaps to achieve “legal certainty” for Delaware-registered businesses using agentic AI.“Ultimately the most likely outcome appears to be an overly generous liability shield which seems unwarranted without some underlying policy rationale that hasn’t been developed or justified well,” Baker said. As corporations operate as a shield to personal liability, this would not seem beyond the reach of business legislation. However, those cases involve businesses run by humans who have to be accountable to themselves if not the law, and an AI agent has no such moral restrictions.

DJI is a household name when it comes to some of the best drones available to buy today, so the last thing you expect is for it to venture into the home appliances category. And yet that's exactly what it did and DJI's debut robot vacuum nailed every element.Our DJI Romo P review gives it a high score of 4.5 stars out of 5, calling it an "extremely impressive smart-home debut" and it's all thanks to the company's existing drone technology that gives the robot vacuum practically perfect navigation and obstacle avoidance. And it doesn't compromise on cleaning either.This powerful combination is what earned it a coveted TechRadar Product of the Year Award this year, where the DJI Romo P made it to the top in the Home category.It typically retails for well over the two-grand mark, but if you're keen on grabbing one of the best robot vacuums in Australia and save over a thousand dollars, JB Hi-Fi is offering a massive 44% discount on the DJI Romo P right now in an early Black Friday deal. Honestly, that's excellent value — take it from someone who's been testing vacuums of all kinds for a decade.Romo P: was $2299 now $1296Looking like it would happily belong inside the Millenium Falcon, this futuristic robovac is a debut model from DJI and yet it can clean just as well as established competitors in the same price bracket. We call it a "hugely impressive package all-round" and, the best part, you can have it for a lot less than its retail price — it's not even officially Black Friday sales time yet!View DealThere's very good reason that the DJI Romo P won our coveted Home Device of the Year. Let's begin with the obvious, shall we? It's futuristic good looks. There's no robot vacuum like it on the market at the time of writing and it gives off Nothing design vibes where you can see the insides of the machine. I think it would look fabulous inside any modern home.While its 25,000Pa of suction might not seem like a lot compared to other premium models that now boast upwards of 40,000Pa, you really don't need that much and, in real-world use, the high suction spec doesn't always translate well — just take a look at my Mova V70 Ultra Complete review to find evidence of that. The DJI Romo P, instead, harnesses its suction ability well and, as our tests proved, it vacuums well, aided by extendable brushes.It's also an excellent mop, but uses dual spinning pads rather than the roller that I personally prefer.The dock is surprisingly compact and takes care of ongoing maintenance very effectively, giving you as much of an hands-off cleaning experience as is possible for a robot vacuum.The DJI Home app is one of the rare robovac controllers that we actually like here at TechRadar, with our reviewer saying it's "almost everything a robot app should be".All in all, the DJI Romo P is a worthy winner of our Home Device of the Year award and definitely worth considering if you're planning on purchasing a new robot vacuum for your home during the Black Friday sales in Australia this month.

Looking for a different day?A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Sunday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Sunday, November 1 (game #1239).Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints. What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.NYT Connections today (game #1240) - today's words(Image credit: New York Times)Today's NYT Connections words are… MEDICINE CABINETCOMPASSFOG MACHINEINCENSEWATERFALLDISCO BALLNETTLEHIKING BOOTSDRESSING ROOMDRY ICEWATER BOTTLEWIND UPPIQUEKALEIDOSCOPEHUMIDIFIERBACKPACKNYT Connections today (game #1240) - hint #1 - group hintsWhat are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?YELLOW: Equipment for a long walkGREEN: RagingBLUE: Wet not wetPURPLE: Watch your reflectionNeed more clues? We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…NYT Connections today (game #1240) - hint #2 - group answersWhat are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?YELLOW: THINGS TO BRING ON A TREKGREEN: ANGERBLUE: MIST MAKERSPURPLE: THINGS WITH MIRRORSRight, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.NYT Connections today (game #1240) - the answers(Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Connections, game #1240, are…YELLOW: THINGS TO BRING ON A TREK: BACKPACK, COMPASS, HIKING BOOTS, WATER BOTTLEGREEN: ANGER: INCENSE, NETTLE, PIQUE, WIND UPBLUE: MIST MAKERS: DRY ICE, FOG MACHINE, HUMIDIFIER, WATERFALLPURPLE: THINGS WITH MIRRORS: DISCO BALL, DRESSING ROOM, KALEIDOSCOPE, MEDICINE CABINETMy rating: EasyMy score: PerfectA straightforward Connections puzzle to begin the week, without any word games, traps, trickery or cultural gaps.As is often the case with these types of Connections games I got each group in difficulty order and was able to experience that little tingle of perfection, but also disappointment that I wasn’t smart enough to spot a fairly easy purple group.Games this easy also make me suspicious that the NYT puzzle setters are merely giving our brains a day off in order to soften us up before a difficult run. Bring it on!Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Sunday, November 1, 2026, game #1239)YELLOW: KINDS OF TEETH: BICUSPID, CANINE, INCISOR, MOLARGREEN: KINDS OF LOVE: BROTHERLY, PUPPY, SELF, UNREQUITEDBLUE: ENTHUSIAST: FIEND, HEAD, HOUND, LOVERPURPLE: SYNONYMS FOR "SOAKED" WITH FIRST LETTER CHANGED: DOGGY, MATURATED, TRENCHED, TRIPPINGWhat is NYT Connections?NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

Looking for a different day?A new Quordle puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Sunday's puzzle instead then click here: Quordle hints and answers for Sunday, November 1 (game #1742).Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,500 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today — or scroll down further for the answers.Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.Quordle today (game #1743) — hint #1 — VowelsHow many different vowels are in Quordle today?• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too). Quordle today (game #1743) — hint #2 — repeated lettersDo any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2.Quordle today (game #1743) — hint #3 — uncommon lettersDo the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?• Yes. One of Q, Z, X or J appears among today's Quordle answers.Quordle today (game #1743) — hint #4 — starting letters (1)Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 2.If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:Quordle today (game #1743) — hint #5 — starting letters (2)What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?• E• A• L• ERight, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.Quordle today (game #1743) — the answers(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)The answers to today's Quordle, game #1743, are…EXTRAAMITYLUPUSEAGLEIt didn’t take me very long to work out that my final word contained two letter Us, but I really struggled to stop thinking about humus and finally get to LUPUS.This was also a game that featured the rare letter X, although deciding on EXTRA was fairly easy once the start and ending letters had been revealed.Daily Sequence today (game #1743) — the answers(Image credit: Merriam-Webster)The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1743, are…THIRDGOINGSNAILSOOTHQuordle answers: The past 20Quordle #1742, Sunday, 1 November: DROVE, PRIED, SHELL, BEGINQuordle #1741, Saturday, 31 October: ANIME, SWARM, CHALK, RAJAHQuordle #1740, Friday, 30 October: ULCER, DIMLY, BRAIN, BEGUNQuordle #1739, Thursday, 29 October: PRUDE, MINUS, SAVOY, USHERQuordle #1738, Wednesday, 28 October: DEALT, FLUME, SLEEK, RELICQuordle #1737, Tuesday, 27 October: ANKLE, HAVOC, SULKY, WHITEQuordle #1736, Monday, 26 October: ASSAY, GLEAM, MUCUS, WRINGQuordle #1735, Sunday, 25 October: RAINY, BUSED, PROXY, UNDIDQuordle #1734, Saturday, 24 October: TOXIN, SMART, MOUSE, STYLEQuordle #1733, Friday, 23 October: BLIMP, HOIST, FRIED, LURIDQuordle #1732, Thursday, 22 October: DECAL, WIDTH, WOKEN, LEVERQuordle #1731, Wednesday, 21 October: MOIST, VALVE, VERSE, NORTHQuordle #1730, Tuesday, 20 October: COYLY, SAUNA, TRIAL, RASPYQuordle #1729, Monday, 19 October: EXIST, DECOY, HITCH, FLUIDQuordle #1728, Sunday, 18 October: FLINT, FUROR, WEDGE, RODEOQuordle #1727, Saturday, 17 October: QUARK, ENEMY, SPASM, BLOCKQuordle #1726, Friday, 16 October: SHORT, WORTH, JOIST, SLUNKQuordle #1725, Thursday, 15 October: STALE, EPOCH, PIANO, CORNYQuordle #1724, Wednesday, 14 October: TIMID, GROUP, GRILL, EVERYQuordle #1723, Tuesday, 13 October: FLUFF, DEBUT, TEETH, STEIN

Looking for a different day?A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Sunday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Sunday, November 1 (game #973).Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.NYT Strands today (game #974) - hint #1 - today's themeWhat is the theme of today's NYT Strands?• Today's NYT Strands theme is… High and mightyNYT Strands today (game #974) - hint #2 - clue wordsPlay any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.MULEFILESNARERACETIMEDATENYT Strands today (game #974) - hint #3 - spangram lettersHow many letters are in today's spangram?• Spangram has 11 lettersNYT Strands today (game #974) - hint #4 - spangram positionWhat are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?• First side: bottom, 1st column• Last side: top, 6th columnRight, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.NYT Strands today (game #974) - the answers(Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Strands, game #974, are…CLIFFSNOWGLACIERPEAKRIDGESADDLESUMMITSPANGRAM: MOUNTAINTOPMy rating: EasyMy score: PerfectI love how today’s spangram jaggedly rises from one corner to the other.However, despite my enjoyment of some top-level Strands craft I still managed to miss out on spotting it. Instead, I began with the game’s two most obvious words in CLIFF and PEAK.The closest I’ve got to a MOUNTAINTOP is snowmobiling on a GLACIER in Iceland — an experience that was both exciting and terrifying, not least the moment when our guide pointed out a 120ft-deep crevasse we were inches away from falling into. I’m still having the nightmares.Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Sunday, November 1, game #973)SNOOZESLEEPCATNAPDOZESLUMBERDROWSESPANGRAM: ZZZZZZZZWhat is NYT Strands?Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

Chinese researchers report 3.2 Pb/s transmission across a 24-core optical fiberSpatial division multiplexing carries separate data streams through one fiberS+C+L transmission uses three wavelength bands to carry informationResearchers in China say they have transmitted data at 3.2 Pb/s through a 24-core optical fiber, setting a new real-time speed record.At that capacity, data equivalent to thousands of ultra-high-definition films could theoretically move through the connection in just one second.The new figure exceeds the team's previous 2.5 Pb/s record, set earlier this year using similar 24-core fiber technology. How the researchers reached 3.2 Pb/sThe project brought together specialists from the National Key Laboratory of Optical Communication Technology, China Information and Communication Technologies Group, Pengcheng Laboratory, and Fiberhome Fujikura Fiber Optic Technology.Their system combined spatial division multiplexing with S+C+L multi-band transmission, two methods intended to increase information carried through existing optical infrastructure networks.Spatial division multiplexing separates information into distinct channels within one fiber, allowing multiple independent data streams to travel simultaneously through the cable.The S, C and L bands use different wavelength ranges, enabling transmission across a wider section of the optical spectrum.Combining the techniques created engineering difficulties, particularly interference between neighbouring channels carrying simultaneous signals through the fibre network and equipment.The team also had to manage differing specifications across the three wavelength bands without allowing those variations to undermine transmission performance.The test hit record figures with hardware architectures described as compliant with commercial requirements and operated continuously in real time.That operating condition distinguishes the result from demonstrations relying on experimental equipment or signal-processing arrangements developed specifically for laboratory research.The Hubei provincial government website compared the capacity with internet access for approximately 3.2 million households using separate 1 Gbps connections simultaneously.The report describes the rate as sufficient to download “more than 20,000 4K movies” within one second, under ideal conditions.These comparisons describe theoretical network capacity, rather than evidence that individual households could receive such speeds through ordinary broadband subscriptions.The gap between commercial hardware and laboratory recordsThe new figure does not represent the highest speed reported for transmission through a 24-core optical fibre.Laboratory research has reached 5.29 Pb/s using comparable multi-core fiber, exceeding the Chinese group's latest result by over two petabits.Those experiments, however, may depend on advanced processing methods and specialist laboratory equipment that remain unsuitable for routine network deployment.The Chinese group’s reported use of commercially compliant hardware is a significant feature of its claim, although it does not establish immediate commercial availability.A successful real-time demonstration alone cannot confirm long-term reliability, affordable operation or compatibility with existing telecommunications infrastructure under demanding operating conditions.At the moment, there is no official deployment schedule, pricing information or independent assessment of performance during sustained operation under everyday network conditions.Thus, there is no certainty that the technology can move beyond controlled testing into dependable telecommunications networks serving customers at scale.However, the research has shown that combining multiple fiber channels and wavelength bands can deliver substantial capacity under practical test conditions.Via Tom's Hardware

Anthropic is expanding Claude's role across several stages of drug developmentGenerate Biomedicines reports a 70% reduction in CAR T-cell component lengthModified immune cells produced roughly ten times more cancer-detecting receptorsAnthropic is expanding Claude’s involvement in pharmaceutical research, working with biotechnology developers on projects intended to accelerate the creation of new medicines.The AI company has laid out in a new blog post how it is examining scientific and administrative obstacles affecting drug development, from molecular design to clinical trial preparation.Its collaborations involve potential treatments for cancer, food allergies and rare muscular disorders, although most of the treatments remain at experimental stages.Claude enters drug development programmesAt Generate Biomedicines, six scientists used Claude Code to modify a component of CAR T-cell therapy, traditionally employed against blood cancers.Their work sought to create additional room for genetic instructions that could help the treatment address solid tumours.The redesigned component was approximately 70% shorter, while laboratory experiments found that immune cells produced roughly ten times more receptors.The modified cells also destroyed cancer cells more effectively and maintained their activity for longer periods, according to the reported findings.Divergence Labs used Claude to develop antibody candidates for a potential food-allergy treatment involving the immune molecule IgE.The system generated approximately 35,000 molecular designs within one month, producing potential molecules for both functions required by the proposed treatment.Initial experiments identified three designs capable of binding to IgE and another 20 capable of detaching it from immune cells.Three of the 20 designs appeared more effective than the standard medication at removing IgE from immune cells.BigHat Biosciences combined Claude with automated laboratory equipment to improve two antibody fragments being considered for future medicines.Researchers manufactured and tested approximately 1,010 variations over ten weeks, examining binding strength, stability and unwanted molecular aggregation.The strongest cancer-targeting version bound its intended target more than 10 times as tightly and retained stability at temperatures 18°C higher than the original.The other fragment, intended for longer-lasting medicines, aggregated more than 100 times more slowly than its original version.Enveda applied Claude to manufacturing documentation, which had consumed up to 75% of some chemists’ working time.During an assessment spanning 1,061 pages, the system identified all 11 problems previously discovered by human reviewers, as well as seven additional issues.The approach reduced manual checking time by 89%, bringing the review process from more than 25 hours to under three.Anthropic expands into clinical research and drug creationAnthropic has also partnered with Bristol Myers Squibb to assess clinical study plans and estimate their chances of success.Michael Pourdehnad, the pharmaceutical company's senior vice president for early clinical development, said: “From a single prompt, Claude generated a robust initial analysis.”He explained that this helped evaluate development options that would otherwise have required several days of work.The companies intend to extend their collaboration further, examining Claude’s potential contribution to decisions during early clinical development.Anthropic says working directly with drug developers helps identify weaknesses in its models and opportunities for improvement across scientific research.The company also intends to extend Claude's involvement through additional partnerships, research programmes and tools for life-science organizations.

Generic AI tools promise to solve every problem under the sun, from running enterprise CRM to analysing why your cat isn't drinking enough water during a heatwave. And when you try to use one tool with no defined role for every task, results are disappointing and erode trust in technology. Multiply that pattern across hundreds of employees, and you get tokenmaxxing: prompt after prompt, refining AI output until something usable comes out.Some organizations, by instinct, default to blaming the employees for tokenmaxxing, or double down on training on ‘responsible use of AI’. Tokenmaxxing is a symptom of capable people having to create solutions in an environment that lacks clear shape, scope, guardrails - and ways to analyze spend and outcomes. Locking it down is not the solutionTraditional procurement systems were designed for traditional business software cycles. If building an enterprise system takes years, it’s not a big deal if procuring the right vendor takes years, too. Routing AI through procurement to evaluate all options and keep the spend predictable initially felt to organizations like a safe and responsible choice. But software creation is very different today than it was even 5 years ago. Standard IT procurement still takes months, while opening a public LLM chatbot and asking it to generate a landing page is a matter of five seconds.Policies tend to live their happy lives somewhere in the corporate portals, unbothered and forgotten unless an incident calls for a formal investigation. And when the approved systems are slow or restrictive, employees find workarounds. They turn to unvetted shadow AI tools for daily tasks and put proprietary corporate data into public models. Look at the app prototypes that come out of it: the bad code is one problem, but the interfaces are off-brand, ignore corporate design systems and WCAG 2.2 accessibility rules, and lack basic authentication patterns.Restricting AI use for employees in reality means they pay the £18 monthly subscription out of pocket and still use it. It moves the spend somewhere finance can't see it, at least not immediately and not until it’s too late, adding a data governance problem on top.The other consequence is harder to put on a balance sheet. A company where only engineers can create software moves at the speed of engineering's queue, but opening options up to a wider group - product management, analysts, marketers - means a company can speed up innovation while having greater visibility into it.The cost of ungoverned buildingThe pressure is already on. Teneo's Vision 2026 survey of more than 350 public company CEOs and 400 institutional investors found that 53% of investors expect to see a positive ROI on new AI initiatives in six months or less, while only 16% of large-cap CEOs believe they can deliver on that timeline. The same CEOs report that fewer than half of their current AI projects are ROI-positive. Investors want returns on a clock that executives don't think they can meet.Volume is not the problem. Goldman Sachs Research forecasts that token consumption will multiply 24 times, to 120 quadrillion tokens per month, between 2026 and 2030, while semiconductor providers are already delivering 60% to 70% annual declines in cost per token. Tokens are getting cheaper, and we are going to use far more of them. But who - or what - uses tokens is going to change. Organizations are building and deploying AI agents who act on their own. And agentic AI burns far more tokens than good old human prompting, because the queries repeat in sequence: a chatbot request multiplied by 20, or even 50, running unattended. Send an agent to work on an unscoped problem, and it will keep going long after a human would have stopped to ask whether this was worth it.A lot of those tokens go into prototypes that never get to see the real world. Prototyping and sifting through ideas is how software evolves, but building with no eye on production drains resources. Gartner found that at least 50% of generative AI projects were abandoned after proof of concept by the end of 2025, citing poor data quality, inadequate risk controls, escalating costs, or unclear business value. If a prototype works in isolation but has to be scrapped because engineering would need to rebuild it from scratch, that's pure waste.Then organizations have to pay the bill twice - for inflated tokens and lost engineering hours. When teams build with generic LLMs and no guardrails, senior engineers spend hours cleaning up the output. That deepens the trust gap in technical teams. Stack Overflow's 2025 developer survey found that 46% of developers distrust the accuracy of AI output. "Almost right" (but not quite) AI answers are the biggest frustration for 66% of developers, while 45% report that debugging AI-generated code is more time-consuming. Access for everyone, accountability from everyoneThe speed of code generation isn't the problem. Lowering the technology barrier for non-engineers produces better software, software shaped by the people who understand the business need. AI building is an edge, and an edge works best when everyone has it.But alongside democratized access to technology, we need new ways to think about accountability for how you use it and the associated costs. Modern corporate culture can promote unnecessary complexity in how we think and speak about our work. Being able to explain in simple words how you spent your day is a useful exercise, and we should apply the same thinking to AI spend. So, stated plainly: tokens should be used for a job somebody actually needed. In turn, the user needs to be able to explain, beyond the buzzwords, what the purpose was behind a particular token spend. To work, rather than become another source of corporate frustration, this accountability needs to be part of the environment offered. One way to start is to retire the do-everything chat box as the default. Instead, organizations should start thinking about how to give people task-specific agent workflows tailored to their roles, and build execution limits into the software environment. This way, non-technical staff get brand guidelines, fonts, security rules, and components pre-coded into the environment, so the apps they build are compliant and production-ready by default. They don’t need to file separate requests because the shape of the environment already includes the right guardrails on security and spend.What it looks like when it worksBounded workflows pay off in ways you can measure. In a recent mid-sized company implementation, a 3-person data analytics team built an agent that analyses data across all their systems; it saved each of them 12 to 13 hours of manual work a week. Three analysts now produce what once took a team ten times their size, and their daily job also got way more interesting. They spend their time on high-value strategy instead of gathering data by hand.That agent has a clearly scoped job and executes it in line with pre-defined parameters - it is not a chat box with a company credit card.Bringing together abundance and accountingUncontrolled AI costs and falling trust in technology have the same solution, and it is not rationing of tokens. Tokens will be getting ever cheaper, and their abundance is the point of this technology.The answer is in defining and understanding the scope of AI. Give everyone the tool but make it purpose-specific from the start rather than a generic catch-all. Every company I talk to can tell me what it spent on AI last quarter, but when I ask what they wanted to get in return, the answer is murky. This lack of understanding of what job AI should do for an organization is the problem, and the surprising bill is only its symptom. The first step is for the organization to articulate, in the plainest words possible, what the tools are for before the tokens start moving.Store your data in the cloud with the best cloud storage.This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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. 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Paris Masters 2026: Monday, November 2 to Sunday, November 8Daily start time: 5am ET / 10am GMT / 9pm AEDTUS streams: Tennis ChannelAccess your usual streaming services with NordVPNWatch Paris Masters 2026 live streams, as Carlos Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev headline the 40th anniversary of the only indoor event in the ATP 1000 series. The tournament from the Plenitude Arena in the French capital represents the best chance for players to make it to the season-ending ATP Finals in Turin later in November.Top three seeds Alcaraz, Zverev and Ben Shelton have already guaranteed their spots at the eight-man Finals, but beyond that trio it's anyone's guess. After reaching the Shanghai Masters final, Rafael Jódar is holding the final spot with Alex De Minaur his nearest rival. Novak Djokovic, who has won a record seven Paris titles, needs to reach at least the semi-finals after a second-round loss last week in Basel, while American duo Tommy Paul and Taylor Fritz need to go deep to stand any chance of making it to Turin.With 2025 champion Jannik Sinner joined by Félix Auger-Aliassime and João Fonseca on the injured list, Alcaraz will look to put a third-round exit in China behind him as he continues his own return from the treatment room. Flavio Cobolli, the fifth seed, is also struggling with injury after leaving the court in tears in Vienna when withdrawing against Matteo Berrettini – his absence could mean an extra spot in Turin. Zverev, already guaranteed the year-end world number one ranking, will also want to get back to winning ways after struggling in Shanghai.There won't be a dry eye in the house when Gaël Monfils takes to the court – albeit without his racket – for the final time after one of the first-round matches. The 40-year-old Frenchman, whose separation from Elina Svitolina was recently announced, retired in October and will be honored with a special presentation to commemorate one of the most popular player on tour's superb career.The top eight seeds – Zverev, Alcaraz, US Open runner-up Shelton, Daniil Medvedev, French Open runner-up Flavio Cobolli, Arthur Fils, Frances Tiafoe and Alex De Minaur – have byes to the second round.Here's how to watch the Paris Masters 2026 tennis from anywhere, including worldwide TV channels, broadcasters and any free live streams below.Paris Masters 2026 Order of Play – Monday 2 NovemberCourt CentralFrom 5am ET / 2am PT / 10am GMT / 9pm AEDTLorenzo Musetti vs Hubert HurkaczAlejandro Tabilo vs Rafael Jodar (9)Casper Ruud vs Juan Manuel Cerundolo (Q)Not before 1pm ET / 10am PT / 6pm GMT / 7am AEDT (Tue)Denis Shapovalov vs Karen KhachanovNot before 2.30pm ET / 11.30pm PT / 7.30pm GMT / 8.30am AEDT (Tue)Ugo Humbert vs Botic van de ZandschulpCourt 1From 5am ET / 2am PT / 10am GMT / 9pm AEDTLuciano Darderi vs Rinky Hijikata (Q)Luca Van Assche vs Mariano NavoneCameron Norrie vs Matteo ArnaldiFrom 9.30am ET / 6.30am PT / 12.30pm GMT / 11.30pmKyrian Jacquet vs Tomas Machac (Q)Alex Molcan (Q) vs Titouan DroguetHow to watch Paris Masters 2026 for FREEFrance TV will show select matches from the Paris Masters for free in France. Ugo Humbert vs Botic van de Zandschulp has been selected for coverage on 2 November.Alternatively, in the United States, the Tennis Channel is the exclusive home of the Paris Masters 2026, which can be accessed directly or via 'over the top' streaming providers that offer free trials, our favorites are:YouTube TV (21 days free) - USFubo (5 days) - USAustralians can also get a free trial thanks to beIN Sports (7 days).Traveling outside your home country for the tournament? Use NordVPN to get past geo-blockers and tune in to your regular tennis live streams.Use a VPN to watch any Paris Masters 2026 streamAway from home at the moment and blocked from watching the Paris Masters 2026 on your usual subscription?You can still watch the Paris Masters 2026 live thanks to the wonders of a VPN (Virtual Private Network). The software allows your devices to appear to be back in your home country, regardless of where in the world you are, making it ideal for viewers away on vacation or on business. Our favorite is NordVPN. It's the best on the market:🟩 NordVPN – get the world's best VPNNot having a VPN is like leaving your front door wide open in a busy city – anyone can walk right in and take a peek.TechRadar regularly reviews all the biggest and best VPN providers and NordVPN is our #1 choice.✅ 70% Off Today✅ 3 Extra Months Free✅ Unlocks Tennis ChannelGet NordVPN and stream Paris Masters 2026 action from anywhere today.View DealIt's really straightforward to use a VPN to watch the Paris Masters 2026.1. Install the VPN of your choice. As we've said, NordVPN is one of our favorites.2. Choose the location you wish to connect to in the VPN app. For example, if you want to watch the Tennis Channel stream, select 'US' from the listed countries.3. Sit back and enjoy the action. Head to Tennis Channel's website and tune into Paris Masters 2026.How to watch Paris Masters 2026 live streams in the USIn the US, Paris Masters 2026 is being shown on the Tennis Channel. A Tennis Channel subscription then costs $109.99 per year or $11.99 per month. New subscribers can get their first year for $77 for a limited time.Looking for an 'over the top' streaming option that carries hundreds of other channels? The Tennis Channel is also available on YouTube TV, Sling TV and Fubo. As we've mentioned above, both YouTube TV and Fubo come with free-trial options.The Tennis Channel is also available on Sling TV (with its Sport Extra add-on).Outside the US for this tournament? Use NordVPN to unlock your stream of Paris Masters 2026.How to watch Paris Masters 2026 live streams in the UKSky Sports is broadcasting the Paris Masters 2026 in the UK. Specifically on the Sky Sports Tennis, Sky Sports Action and Sky Sports Main Event channels.Prices start at £22/month at present. However, fans can also watch using a NOW Sports 24-hour pass, which costs £14.99. Not in the UK right now? Use NordVPN to access your usual tennis streams.How to watch Paris Masters 2026 live streams in Australia(Image credit: free)In Australia, the Paris Masters 2026 is exclusive to beIN Sports, which offers new users a 7-day FREE trial. You can add beIN Sports to most pre-existing TV packages, or you can sign up as a separate subscription. It costs AU$16.99 month or AU$169.99 if you pay for a year up front, once that week-long trial ends.In addition to the Paris Masters and other tennis tournaments, beIN Sports has the rights to loads of soccer and other sports, including La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga, Carabao Cup and EFL Championship football and rugby.Not in Australia right now? You can simply use a VPN like NordVPN to watch all the action on beIN Sports as if you were back home. How to watch Paris Masters 2026 live streams in Canada(Image credit: Other)Tennis fans in Canada can live stream the Paris Masters 2026 on the TSN network of channels.If you don't have cable, the TSN Plus streaming service costs CA$24.99 a month.Outside Canada while the Paris Masters is on? Simply use a VPN to watch from abroad.How to watch Paris Masters 2026 live streams in New ZealandDisney+, which carries ESPN content is the Paris Masters 2026 TV rights holder in New Zealand. For the men's tournament, you can access Disney+ with a Standard subscription that costs from NZ$16.99 a month, with ads. Ad-free tiers are available at an extra cost.Missing the tournament due to work commitments abroad? NordVPN will give you access to your home streaming service.How to watch Paris Masters 2026 live streams anywhere elseIn the Middle East, beIN Sports has the tennis live streams. In Africa Canal+ and SuperSport are the places to go, depending on your country.In India and the subcontinent, it's Fancode, while Youku in China and UNEXT in Japan are the most prominent broadcasters in Asia.A handy list of broadcasters from all around the world is provided by tournament organizers here.Away from home at the moment? Don't forget NordVPN will give you access to your regular streaming service.Paris Masters 2026 Q&AWho are the Paris Masters 2026 seeds?Paris Masters 2026 seedsMen1. Alexander Zverev2. Carlos Alcaraz3. Ben Shelton4. Daniil Medvedev5. Flavio Cobolli6. Arthur Fils7. Frances Tiafoe8. Alex de Minaur9. Rafael Jódar 10. Novak Djokovic11. Taylor Fritz12. Tommy Paul13. Alejandro Davidovich Fokina14. Jakub Menšík15. Brandon Nakashima16. Learner TienWho are the recent Paris Masters champions?Recent Paris Masters champions2025 – Jannik Sinner2024 – Alexander Zverev2023 – Novak Djokovic2022 – Holger Rune2021 – Novak Djokovic2020 – Daniil Medvedev2019 – Novak Djokovic2018 – Karen Khachanov2017 – Jack Sock2016 – Andy MurrayWhat is the Paris Masters 2026 schedule?Schedule2-3 November: First round 3-4 November: Second round 5 November: Last 166 November: Quarter-finals7 November: Semi-finals8 November: FinalWe test and review VPN services in the context of legal recreational uses. For example:1. Accessing a service from another country (subject to the terms and conditions of that service).2. Protecting your online security and strengthening your online privacy when abroad.We do not support or condone the illegal or malicious use of VPN services. Consuming pirated content that is paid-for is neither endorsed nor approved by Future Publishing.

Walk into the network operations center of any major enterprise and you will see an array of monitoring capability. Massive dashboards track API response times to the millisecond and map digital customer journeys from an ad click on a smartphone all the way to a virtual shopping basket. On paper, enterprise IT has achieved total operational awareness.Step onto the high street at twelve-thirty on a Friday afternoon, however, and that illusion dissolves. A payment terminal freezes at a busy cafe counter. The line extends out the door. The cashier tries rebooting the hardware while office workers check their watches.Within minutes, shoppers begin walking out empty-handed, heading straight for the competitor across the street. Back at corporate headquarters, central monitoring dashboards remain entirely green. As far as IT knows, systems are operating normally.This disconnect represents one of the most significant operational blind spots in physical commerce today. In the UK alone, checkout failures put an estimated £1.7 billion in annual sales at risk. When transactions stall during peak trading windows, that revenue is cannot be recovered.The failure is rarely a collapse of the central cloud. Often, it is a telemetry blackout occurring at the critical physical touchpoint where money actually changes hands.Why payment security creates blind spotsTo understand how physical commerce ended up in the dark, one must look at the intersection of security compliance and legacy monitoring tools. For years, the gold standard of enterprise visibility has been Application Performance Monitoring. These platforms thrive in open cloud environments where software agents can trace code execution and inspect payloads across distributed microservices.Physical payment infrastructure operates under radically different constraints. The Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard mandates strict network isolation to protect cardholder information. Point-of-sale software, payment applications and hardware PIN pads are deliberately locked inside hardened, encrypted subnets.While non-negotiable for security, this architecture creates an operational dead zone. The moment a transaction leaves the standard corporate network and crosses the compliance boundary, visibility ceases. As the signal travels through local hardware, store routers, third-party gateways and acquiring banks, standard IT tools cannot follow.Central teams only discover an outage when store managers log manual helpdesk tickets or when batch reconciliation reports reach the operations team hours later. The cost of the seven-minute windowIT support teams measure incident resolution in hours, but in-store shoppers measure patience in seconds. Research tracking consumer behavior during in-store disruptions shows that shopper patience has a hard limit of approximately seven minutes. Once a payment delay crosses that mark, the customer abandons the purchase entirely. Contrast this narrow seven-minute window with the standard lifecycle of an IT incident. The average payment disruption takes over sixty minutes to diagnose and resolve. By the time an on-duty manager contacts support, the ticket escalates to an engineering queue and analysts begin combing through disparate vendor portals to locate the failure, the high-traffic sales surge has passed.In an era where cash use is in significant decline and frictionless contactless payments are expected, relying on post-incident reviews results in lost revenue.Unlocking real-time payment telemetrySolving this problem requires an architectural evolution from delayed, post-mortem log scraping to real-time telemetry streaming. The key insight lies in understanding that monitoring transaction health does not require exposing sensitive cardholder data. Enterprise architectures must cleanly decouple regulated financial data from operational metadata.While the payload containing card numbers remains locked inside the compliance envelope, operational metadata, such as gateway response codes, handshake transit times, peripheral hardware status, and localized network latency, can be safely extracted and streamed in real time.By transforming every swipe, tap and dip into an operational data feed, engineering teams gain an end-to-end view of the transaction pipeline. Site reliability engineers can finally monitor the health of physical checkout counters with the same fidelity they apply to their cloud applications.Using AI for automated fixesStreaming telemetry provides the necessary visibility, but human analysis alone cannot keep pace with the volume of modern commerce. During a peak holiday rush, an enterprise payment stack might process tens of thousands of transactions every minute across hundreds of distributed venues.A subtle degradation, such as an obscure firmware glitch that causes contactless taps to time out on ten percent of devices, is impossible for a human operator to catch in real time.This is where AI and edge observability can make a decisive difference. Rather than depending on static alerts that trigger after a catastrophic failure, machine learning models analyze continuous velocity curves, baseline latency distributions, and transaction state patterns.When a performance degradation begins, AI tools can rapidly isolate the root cause, instantly identifying whether a delay stems from an in-store network drop, a faulty card reader or a struggling banking gateway.More importantly, this intelligence allows for true closed-loop remediation. Integrated with intelligent payment orchestration platforms, the system can automatically reroute transaction traffic around a failing processor to an alternative rail without the customer noticing a delay. If a store loses connectivity entirely, edge architecture can switch terminals into secure, encrypted store-and-forward modes without interruption.The high street cannot afford operational dead zones. By combining privacy-safe telemetry with AI-driven intelligence, technology leaders can finally bridge the gap between back-end infrastructure and front-of-house revenue, ensuring that when the rush hits, the checkout keeps moving.We've featured the best ecommerce platform.This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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. 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Virgin Media O2 currently employs around 16,000 workersHowever reports claim 25% could be set for redundancyNon-customer-facing roles will likely be heaviest hitSky News has reported that Virgin Media O2 (VMO2) plans to cut an unconfirmed number of jobs – understood to be in the thousands – amid ongoing cost reduction efforts and a bid to get a grip on company debt.Though the number of workers said to be impacted is not yet known, the company currently employs around 16,000 workers, so 'thousands' would represent a significant chunk of its workforce.VMO2 looks to be one of the latest companies in a long list to be flattening its hierarchy, with changes to management reportedly underway.VMO2 job cuts look to be around the cornerCrucially, Sky News reports that non-customer-facing roles will likely be heaviest hit. The firm's customer services typically perform well, it seems, with Virgin Media reporting the fewest number of complaints compared with competitors (via Ofcom) on the broadband front. Though O2 sits somewhere toward the top on the mobile front, beating only Sky Mobile (which also uses the O2 network).An unnamed insider believes as many as 4,000 jobs could be at risk, representing 25% of VMO2's entire workforce.It's believed that the company could share precise numbers and details as part of its Q3 earning call on November 3. Overall company revenue dropped 7.9% last quarter.But VMO2's biggest issue is likely debt. Last quarter, it reported a total net debt equivalent to 5.89x annualized adjusted EBITDA.But VMO2 isn't the only telecoms giant adjusting its workforce in response to financial pressures – VodafoneThree also confirmed plans to cut 1,200 jobs in July 2026, though these were Europe-wide.TechRadar Pro has contacted VMO2 to confirm plans to lay off thousands, but we did not receive an immediate response.

If you work in cybersecurity for long enough, you learn that we really love an analogy or a metaphor and come October you can barely move for talk of security nightmares, cyber monsters and threats lurking in the shadows.I enjoy a good analogy as much as anyone, but there’s one Halloween comparison I don't hear very often. And, for data security at least, I think it might be the most useful one right now: the mask.A mask doesn't make what's underneath disappear. It simply means you don't have to reveal its true identity to everyone who encounters it, and that’s what we’re trying to achieve with sensitive data.Developers need data to test applications, analysts need it to find patterns, and AI tools and agents increasingly need access to enterprise information to do useful work. But needing to use this data isn't necessarily the same as needing to see every sensitive value it contains.That's precisely where data masking comes in. By replacing sensitive information with realistic but unusable values, organizations can preserve the usefulness of data without unnecessarily exposing what's underneath.With AI dramatically increasing where data can travel, who can find it and what can act upon it, that distinction is becoming much more important.A disguise with a serious purposeAt its core, data masking replaces sensitive information with realistic but unusable values. The resulting dataset can retain characteristics necessary for development, testing, analytics and other business processes without unnecessarily exposing the sensitive information underneath. Think of it as a Halloween costume with a security purpose; the data can still show up to the party without revealing its true identity.That distinction matters because protecting data shouldn't simply mean preventing people from using it. Modern businesses depend upon being able to analyze, test against and increasingly train or ground AI systems in enterprise information. Instead, the question should be: does this person, application or AI system actually need the original sensitive value to perform this task?A developer testing an application may need representative customer data, for example, but not necessarily genuine customer identities. An analytics workload may need to preserve relationships and patterns without revealing every account number or personal identifier.If the real value isn't required, exposing it creates risk without creating corresponding business value.Masking removes that unnecessary exposure. Depending on the use case, organizations can also use techniques including tokenization and encryption. The important principle is to match protection to how the information needs to be used rather than defaulting to exposing raw sensitive data.You can't mask what you can't findThere is an obvious complication: before deciding what should wear a mask, businesses need to know where their sensitive information is.That remains surprisingly difficult. The 2026 Thales Data Threat Report found only 34% of surveyed organizations had complete knowledge of where their data was stored. Only 39% said they could classify all of it. Meanwhile, the average organization reported using seven different tools for data protection and monitoring. Cloud infrastructure compounds the problem. Information can be copied into data lakes, SaaS platforms, development environments and backups. Unstructured documents can contain sensitive information nobody realized was there. Applications created years after the data was collected can suddenly gain access to it.AI makes that visibility problem considerably more consequential because finding information is precisely what these systems are becoming very good at.This is where data security posture management (DSPM) becomes important. Rather than treating data security purely as a question of defending infrastructure, DSPM starts with the data itself: discovering and classifying sensitive information and understanding where it resides, who or what can access it, how it is being used and whether its protection is appropriate.Once an organization identifies unnecessarily exposed sensitive data, it can decide whether access should be removed, restricted or protected using controls such as masking, tokenization or encryption.AI data: trick or treat?This becomes particularly important as businesses progress from experimenting with generative AI towards embedding AI into everyday operations.AI applications need data. Agents may need considerably more of it because they are designed not simply to generate content but to retrieve information, make decisions and potentially take actions across different systems.The security implications are already becoming visible. The same research found 61% of organizations reported their AI applications were being targeted by attackers, with sensitive data the leading target. Rapid change within the AI ecosystem was also the most commonly cited AI security risk. The important question, however, isn't simply whether AI can be secured. Organizations also need to ask a more fundamental question:What data are we allowing AI to see in the first place?Giving an AI application access to a database shouldn't automatically mean giving it access to every raw sensitive value contained within it. The same least-privilege principle used for human identities can be applied to data: expose what is necessary for the task and protect what isn't.That could mean masking personal information before it reaches development and testing environments. It could mean tokenizing particularly sensitive values used by an application. It could mean encrypting information and tightly controlling which identities can decrypt it. And in some circumstances, it should mean preventing an AI system from accessing a dataset altogether.Don't make AI security harder than it needs to beThere is a tendency to treat AI security as an entirely new discipline requiring entirely new answers.Some risks certainly are new. But one of the most useful things organizations can do is apply established data-security principles to this new environment.Know where sensitive data resides. Understand its context. Minimize unnecessary access. Protect the underlying value according to how it needs to be used. And continually reassess those decisions as applications and AI systems change.AI may dramatically increase how much value organizations can extract from their data. It doesn't follow that every system extracting that value needs to see everything underneath.Halloween only comes around once a year. For sensitive data, however, having the option to wear a convincing mask year-round is becoming a non-negotiable.We've reviewed and ranked the best data removal services.This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

In the UK, fraud losses reached £1.3billion, showcasing how fraud operates at a growing scale. One of the factors driving this growth is the increasing use of technologies, such as AI, which are becoming dangerous and effective weapons in the hands of a new generation of criminalsAs they continue to evolve, criminal networks are becoming faster and more sophisticated in their operations, and financial institutions face the challenge of adapting to a new era of cybersecurity and fraud prevention powered by the same force threatening the system and customers’ trust.AI is reinventing cybercrimeFraudsters are already using advanced technologies including generative AI to industrialize social engineering. As the marginal cost of a sophisticated attack approaches zero, criminal networks are undergoing a measurable structural shift in how they operate. Skills that previously lived inside a small number of highly specialized criminal groups are now commoditized.Generative AI and synthetic identity creation can now produce composite identities that pass Know Your Customer (KYC) checks, build believable credit histories and operate undetected for months before the fraud is executed. Deepfake-enabled authorization fraud produces voices and videos convincing enough to trick humans into authorizing transactions or transferring access credentials.These examples all reveal a common pattern: they attack the trust layer, the moment where a system or a human decides something is legitimate. Even with incredibly sophisticated models, the tactics will target the system and subsequent operations. AI can now manufacture trust at a speed and quality that was simply not possible before. Why traditional security is falling behindSuch technologies now have the upper-hand as they are largely defeating the customer, not the bank's systems. Fraudsters are using AI to manipulate people into authorizing transactions themselves with more convincing scam calls, more realistic impersonation, more personalized social engineering that erodes the skepticism that used to protect people. The fraud arrives at the bank's systems looking entirely legitimate, because in a technical sense it is.That is where the battle is being fought today. As banks continue to invest in AI-driven detection and the customer manipulation route becomes harder to exploit at scale, the incentive to attack the banks' systems directly increases.We are in a transitional phase, where technology is helping fraudsters to defeat people, this could evolve toward AI directly probing and attacking the institutions themselves. The financial sector should be preparing for that second phase now.Against an adversary that probes, adapts and iterates continuously, the current static nature of traditional security controls are not sufficient. In financial fraud and cybersecurity, AI-driven attacks are not just evading controls, they are mapping them. They behave almost as if they understand the shape of the detection system and are deliberately staying outside its boundaries. A symbiotic relationship between workforce and technologyIn banks and financial institutions, fraud prevention teams are increasingly struggling to keep up with the constant technological evolution of the threats, mostly because they have been trained to think in terms of incidents: if something happens, you detect it, you respond, you close the case.The ones making the most progress are those treating detection as a research function rather than an operational one. They are looking at shifts in behaviors that might suggest something is being tested against us. This different analytical posture ultimately aids in prevention over detection.The professionals who will matter most in five years are the ones who can reason about systems rather than just operate them. There is a need to move from expertise in specific tools to expertise in the underlying principles that make tools work. Principles, such as statistical reasoning, adversarial thinking, systems design, feedback loop analysis, compound over time and remain relevant regardless of what the technology stack looks like in years to come.Not all organizations are equipped to operate this way, and while hiring to fill this gap might be the obvious solution, the reality is that, thanks to advancements and widespread adoption, today we have cutting-edge AI tools that can be easily integrated within existing infrastructure and operations.The way forward is to invest in the work of external providers that make these tools accessible and easy to deploy, combining statistical analysis, reasoning and full explainability.Deploying new technologies without fueling risksYou don’t need to be technically sophisticated to deploy a technically sophisticated attack, and this democratization of capability is what makes the next wave genuinely different. The questions practitioners are working through now are not whether new technologies work, but how to leverage the next generation of capabilities to stay ahead of increasingly automated attacks.The most important principle is to treat your systems as attack surfaces from day one rather than as an afterthought once they are in production. Every model you deploy has assumptions baked into it, and adversarial actors will probe those assumptions systematically. If you have not done that probing yourself first, you are outsourcing your red team function to people with very different intentions.To be effective, AI-driven defenses must work in milliseconds - fast enough to spot risk without disrupting the customer experience. Every transaction is assessed in real time, analyzing hundreds of signals and comparing them against historical patterns to identify any signs of anomalous activity.We've featured the best endpoint protection software.This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

Collaboration platforms have become central to working life, with Microsoft Teams alone serving more than 320 million monthly active users worldwide. Everywhere you look, they are now part of workplace culture and have been a driving force for change in the use of voice services.Part of their ongoing appeal is that they are extremely simple to deploy and their familiarity flattens the learning curve for many users almost entirely. For IT teams, one of the key benefits is that they sit within an established supplier environment and, as a result, can help make procurement more straightforward.Sounds great, but communication infrastructure must also be able to adapt over time - for example, when a business expands or changes how it serves customers. Depending on the platform, any functional limitations may only become clear when a business needs to connect communications with other systems or adapt services for new teams and locations.The point is that inflexibility can create complications that significantly increase the initial cost of a collaboration solution; something that businesses can easily overlook.The hidden cost of inflexibilityBut what do we mean by complications? Well, any given collaboration platform may work perfectly well for everyday internal calling, yet they all have the potential to become restrictive when communications need to support more specialized processes.To break this down, everyday internal calls have relatively simple requirements because employees already know who to contact and how to reach them. However, in use cases such as customer-facing communications, employees may require calls to be directed based on factors such as location or the nature of the inquiry.They may also need access to relevant customer information while the conversation is taking place, whether it is held in a CRM platform or another business application, including a bespoke system where technology integration is more challenging.This is where the level and quality of the integration becomes extremely important, as any limitations may force employees to switch between applications or search manually for information that should be readily available.Get this wrong, and users may require a customer to repeat information, which can extend the interaction and cause frustration. Some businesses may also need more detailed insight into call activity when they are trying to identify problems or improve customer service. For many, this is a central objective when building these systems and processes.Adding workarounds, such as asking staff to look up customer records manually or using a separate connector to pass data between systems, is one option. However, these can make it harder for IT teams to manage the service consistently as requirements change.Why AI changes the equation (again)The issues are becoming even more consequential as businesses look to use AI to handle a greater share of customer communications, because these systems need access to the right information to respond usefully.For an assistant to deal with an inquiry properly, it needs to draw on the same customer information that a human employee would use. But when an inquiry cannot be resolved automatically, the conversation needs to reach the appropriate person without losing its context.This is where any disconnect between the communications environment and core business systems can really limit what an AI assistant can do well. AI that cannot access the right information can create an additional layer of friction for customers and employees.Ideally, these compromises should be avoided entirely. A business should be able to retain the collaboration tools employees already know while adding communication and integration capabilities where needed.In fact, seamless connectivity and interaction between the user, the AI tools being used, and the relevant customer and operational data should be a core objective rather than a nice-to-have. This means that the technology should be able to accommodate changing requirements without creating a dependence on manual workarounds, so organizations have full control over the pace at which they adopt new technologies and processes.Businesses planning to expand their use of AI, which is likely to include a great many of them, should consider whether their current communications infrastructure can support those connections. Granted, it is usually possible to retrofit systems to bridge functionality and service gaps, but if the objective is to use AI effectively across a growing number of customer interactions, flexibility needs to be built into the foundation from the outset.We've featured the best business intelligence platform. This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

Openreach warns landline phones will stop working on January 31, 2027Legacy PTSN system is going digital, so users should switch nowOpenreach remind businesses and consumers alike to check their connectionsOpenreach has issued a reminder warning that the UK's legacy landline phone network will be switched off in less than 100 days.BT's infrastructure arm, responsible for deploying, maintaining and upgrading most of the country's networks, has reminded users the copper-based Public Switched Telephone Network (PTSN) network will be retired on January 31, 2027.There will be no extension to this cut-off, meaning users, both business and consumer alike, will need to ensure their systems are ready for the change.Time to switchThe news of the "big switch off", as Openreach's advice hub calls it, should not be a surprise, as plans were first announced to shut down the PSTN and ISDN networks by the end of 2025 back in 2017 - with the deadline later extended to 2027.It notes that the aging landline network is harder to maintain and more vulnerable to faults, whilst also being unable to keep up with the demands posed by modern usage.Openreach says it has already supported the migration of around 15 million lines off the old copper-based network, and although most of our homes and offices will have already switched to digital-based Internet Protocol (IP) fiber networks, there are a wide range of systems which still rely on PSTN connectivity.Among the items needing upgrading point-of-sale terminals in shops, fire and security alarms, and personal care alarms for elderly and vulnerable people.“Businesses and organisations that delay action are making things harder for themselves, noted James Lilley, Director of All-IP at Openreach."The straightforward migrations have largely been completed. What's left are the complex connections that underpin critical operations, requiring careful planning, supplier coordination, and thorough testing. We are urging businesses to act now, audit their remaining analogue services, and work with their communications provider on a migration plan today.”Openreach's website notes the move to digital phone lines will help provide users with a more reliable service, better-quality calls and smarter blocking of unwanted calls.It tells users to not wait until the deadline, and to get in contact with your service provider as soon as possible to get the move going.Anyone who has not switched by the January 2027 deadline may see limited service after that time, and may be moved to the Emergency Voice and Access Continuity (EVAc) service, a temporary emergency voice-only service which keeps basic voice calls working for a limited time.An FAQ includes the question "I don't want broadband. Can I have a phone line only?" but includes only a wishy-washy response - "If you have a phone line but don’t have broadband, your service provider will help you find the most suitable digital option for your needs."

Custom AI behaviors have arrived in the Philips Hue appAt the moment you can't edit what the AI createsAI features require the Hue Bridge ProWhen we spoke to Hue founder and head of technology George Yianni in September, he told us about some exciting new features coming to the Hue ecosystem including Custom AI Behaviors. And now they've arrived in the Hue app, provided that you have the Hue Bridge Pro.Yianni told us that AI would be "a bit of a game changer" for the platform, and said of the custom behaviors that "natural language is a fantastic way to just describe arbitrarily how you would like your home to behave, and then we can use AI to translate that into a special programming language we’ve developed that runs the automation in the Bridge."According to Yianni, "I now can finally have my home behave exactly the way I wanted to. I think that's a really big deal." But unfortunately according to HueBlog, the behaviors aren't quite behaving the way we'd like them to.The new AI features require the Hue Bridge Pro. (Image credit: Future / Philips)How to use Philips Hue Custom AI BehaviorsThe idea behind Custom AI Behaviors is simple: tell the AI what you want and the AI will craft the appropriate behavior for you and add it to the app. For example, you could tell the AI that you want specific lights to go on at sunset, and to use different color themes each time.That's what Hueblog tried, and the AI understood the mission. But unfortunately it didn't quite get it right: instead of turning on only the specified lights, the behavior turned all the lights on. When Hueblog tried to get the AI to fix the issue "it gave up and simply displayed the error message."It looks like the goal — use AI to make things simple — is perhaps too simple, because as Hueblog put it "you’re entirely limited by the AI’s logic and reasoning. If it doesn’t cooperate, you’re out of luck." Unlike, say, Apple's Shortcuts on macOS and iOS, there's no way to tweak the shortcuts the AI has created if they're not quite doing what you want.This feels like a typical version 1.0 issue, where a feature is rolled out first and then updated based on user feedback. That means the no-tweaking issue is likely to be short-lived: in my experience Hue's pretty good at updating its app to deliver new features.While the new AI features — the new Custom AI Behaviors and the previously launched SpatialAware scene optimization — are reserved for the Hue Bridge Pro, the app also provides updates for all Hue users including easier Screen Sync setup and improved scene recommendations. As ever the Hue app is available for both iOS and Android.

You don't need to be a tech expert to know that the Nintendo Switch 2 will be one of the most sought-after items in this year's Black Friday sales. And although we're now in November, I wasn't expecting to see any deals for a few weeks. But two surprisingly strong Nintendo Switch 2 bundles are already available at the official Nintendo Store, which I think will rival anything we see during this month's sales.• View all Switch 2 bundle deals at NintendoThe first brings together a Nintendo Switch 2 console, a copy of Mario Kart World, a 256GB Samsung microSD card, and a Nintendo Switch 2 Camera for £459.99. That's a total saving of almost £95 compared with buying these items individually.As for the second bundle, you can get a Switch 2, a copy of Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, a 256GB Samsung microSD card, and a Nintendo Switch 2 Camera for £449.99. Oh, and let's not forget the free Nintendo Switch Sports Resort Gym Bag. The total savings from picking up this bundle are around £75.Today's best Nintendo Switch 2 bundlesSwitch 2 Mario Kart World Bundle: £459.99As far as Switch 2 bundles go, this is one of the best value options I've ever seen. You get the console, plus the excellent Mario Kart World, a 256GB microSD card to expand the storage, and a Nintendo Switch 2 camera to use the console's GameChat features. Altogether, the saving is about £95 compared to buying everything at full price, and it's even more of a steal when you consider that the console by itself retails for £419.99.View DealSwitch 2 Sports Resort Bundle: £449.99An equally tempting alternative to the Switch 2 bundle above is this version that swaps Mario Kart World for a copy of Nintendo Switch Sports Resort. Given that this compilation of sports titles that make full use of the console's motion controls retails for less than the racer, it's a slightly cheaper bundle. You still get a 256GB microSD card and a Nintendo Switch 2 camera, as well.View DealAs for the actual value of the extras in both bundles, each contains one of the best Nintendo Switch 2 games to start your collection. Mario Kart World is a fantastic new entry in the party racer series, which expands it with more freedom and open-world elements. Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, meanwhile, is another fun compilation of games that make use of the console's motion controls to recreate tennis, volleyball, bowling, golf, and more.The microSD card is a really nice inclusion as well. Even though the Switch 2 comes with a respectable 256GB of storage built in, having another 256GB on top is very handy as game sizes are continuously increasing, and this means you can have a relatively large library of titles installed at once.Lastly, there's the Switch 2 Camera, which is probably the least valuable item of the bunch. If you do expect to do a lot of online multiplayer with friends and family, though, this will let you make the most of Game Chat features that can put your face and voice in certain games as you play, including Mario Kart World.

Amazon's 'Ask this book' feature is now rolling out to KindlesIt's part of software version 5.20.2So far, users have only reported this landing on 2026 models, and it might currently be US-exclusiveAmazon launched ‘Ask this book’ almost a year ago now, with this AI-powered tool allowing you to ask questions about what you’re reading. However, it was initially only available for the iOS Kindle app, and only in the US.Now, though, that availability is widening — at least a little. As spotted by some Reddit users and The eBook Reader, ‘Ask this book’ has started rolling out to certain Kindle models, including the Kindle Colorsoft 2026 and the Kindle Paperwhite 2026. It’s likely that the other 2026 Kindles will also receive this update, though that hasn’t been confirmed.Indeed, Amazon itself has so far said very little about this rollout. The feature is part of software version 5.20.2, but this doesn’t yet have any release notes, or any confirmation beyond user reports of which models ‘Ask this book’ will actually work with.(Image credit: Amazon / The eBook Reader)Unclear availabilitySo, for now, there’s a question mark over whether the feature is coming to previous Kindle generations — I can say that my Kindle Colorsoft Signature Edition 2024 does not yet have the update. But then it’s a UK model, and previously, the feature had only been available in the US — so it also remains to be seen whether other regions will get it.For now, if you’re curious, you’ll seemingly have to wait and see whether your Kindle gets the update pushed to it — there is no way to force the update currently. The rollout might happen in stages, though, so even if you don’t have it yet, you may still get it. Just make sure Wi-Fi is on so your Kindle can update.As for the ‘Ask this book’ feature itself, it’s potentially very useful, letting you, for example, ask about the plot or characters of a supported book and receive information based on where you’re up to in it — or for the whole book if you don’t mind spoilers.As with most AI features, though, it’s also controversial, with Reddit comments about its original launch including “I hate it,” and “this feature is so invasive.” So it’s certainly not for everyone.

The Explorer 100D is a palm-sized 30,000mAh portable power stationIt uses a long-lasting lithium iron phosphate batteryIt has a maximum total output of 158W and supports direct solar inputJackery has just launched a new portable power station that combines a high capacity with an impressively small and lightweight design.Dubbed the Jackery Explorer 100D, it measures 11.87 x 8.26 x 8.57cm and weighs 850g, which sounds fairly compact when you consider that it has 30,000mAh of power. Indeed, it’s 14% smaller and 12% lighter than the Explorer 100 Plus, making it Jackery's smallest portable power station yet.So, while it will certainly add some weight to your bag, it's small enough to carry around in a backpack, so you can keep your devices powered when out and about or on trips. It’s designed to comply with lithium battery transport standards, too, so you can take it on planes and trains, and even though it’s palm-sized, it also includes a built-in handle and supports an optional shoulder strap.(Image credit: Jackery)An LFP battery with solar supportThe Jackery Explorer 100D also uses a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery rather than the more common lithium-ion ones, meaning it’s theoretically both safer and longer-lasting, with Jackery claiming it has an up to 8-year lifespan and will retain at least 80% of its capacity across 3,000 charging cycles.It has two 140W USB-C ports and an 18W USB-A port, so you can charge, for example, a laptop, phone, and tablet all at once. That said, it tops out at 158W of combined charging power, so you can’t use all of those ports at full power simultaneously.When you need to charge the 100D itself, you can of course plug it in to any outlet, but it also supports up to 100W of direct solar input, making it suited to an off-grid setup.So there’s a lot to like here, and while this isn’t the cheapest 30,000mAh power station, it’s reasonably affordable too, coming in at $99 / €99 (roughly £75 / AU$140). It’s not currently available in the UK or Australia, but Jackery does have a presence in both regions, so that might change.

The Dell Pro Max Tower T2 is one of those desktop workstations that immediately resonated when we tested it. It's fast, performance-driven, and scored 4.5 stars in our review. It's a beast for professional workloads. But here's something else I noticed. The Dell Pro Max Tower T2 workstation can be configured with an Nvidia RTX Pro 6000 Blackwell GPU for $16,780 (was $18,645) at Dell when you sign up to receive newsletters with one of our Dell coupon codes, which gives you 10% off your first purchase.And when you consider that the Blackwell 6000 graphics card costs $15,799 at EmpoweredPC and $17,999 at Newegg, that makes the whole bundle a bit of a steal. • Best for: Enterprise professionals, AI developers, and creative studio engineers.• What we like: The machine itself is superb, blazing through our benchmark tests. It's highly configurable for a range of workloads. But it's the fact that you're getting a full tower workstation for almost the cost of the GPU alone that stands out. • What to know: This is a high-end desktop PC designed for demanding and complex workloads, not your run-of-the-mill business computer. Today's best Dell PC dealPro Max Tower T2 Desktop: was $18645 now $16780Like most Dell PCs, the Pro Max T2 is available in a range of configurations. This is the cheapest one with the Nvidia RTX Pro Blackwell 6000 GPU, running Windows 11 Pro on an Intel Core Ultra 5 235 CPU, 8GB DDR5, and 256GB SSD. But you can spec the machine to fit any workload. Sign up for the newsletter to get 10% off your first purchase. View DealWhy we recommend itThis workstation scored 4.5 stars in our review, and we awarded it a TechRadar Pro Highly Recommended badge. To see how it fared, we ran Dell's Pro Max T2 alongside engineers working with large data warehouses, AI, 3D modeling, 4K and 6K video editing, and large-scale visual events. And it performed beautifully in that role - it's what it was built for. In our review, we found it "a beast of a machine for professionals who need uncompromising power in engineering, AI, and all-around business performance, and who want a machine that is capable today and upgradable for the future." For more work-oriented PCs, we've tested out the best business computers.Price context & historical valueThe workstation's price, configured with this GPU, is about what I'd expect in today's volatile market. However, the value comes from getting it specced with a Blackwell 6000 graphics card for about the same price as buying the GPU on its own. I've listed the cheapest Blackwell config here. However, for truly demanding tasks, I'd recommend bumping up the memory to 32GB - although you can go as high as 128GB, and potentially increasing storage from the base 256GB (Dell sells configurations up to 4TB). Should you buy it?✅ Buy the Dell Pro Max T2 if... You want a high-performance workstation desktop for complicated workloads, AI, or production-grade creative projects. ❌ Skip the Dell Pro Max T2 if... You need a business PC for largely administrative or general content creation tasks. You could spec out the Pro Max T2 for that, but personally, I rate the highly configurable Dell Tower Plus (EBT2250).See all desktop PCs at Dell

Spotify's AI remixing tool is tipped to arrive early in 2027Premium users may have to pay $4–$5 extra for itReaction from potential users has been lukewarmBack in August, Spotify announced plans to introduce new AI-powered features to let users create custom covers and remixes of their songs, and a new rumor suggests the feature may arrive in February — at the cost of a $4–$5 surcharge on top of existing Premium subscriptions.That's according to the Financial Times (via Android Authority), which reports that "people familiar" with the plans reckon a launch could be scheduled to coincide with the Grammys — the music awards show is on Sunday, February 7 — or could happen on some other date within the first quarter of 2027.Spotify is apparently still trying to get artists and labels to embrace the technology, which would (for example) let you turn a dance track in your library into a country ballad, or have one of your favorite artists cover a song recorded by a different singer or band.It's worth bearing in mind that these details are still to be confirmed, as, per the FT, the timing and pricing have not been finalized, though we know from what Spotify has already said that it's keen to push this new feature out.Winning over artists and fansSpotify aims to launch AI music remix service early next year from r/indieheadsThe plan seems to be to reward artists who let Spotify use their music for AI purposes, and one analyst quoted by the FT estimates that 7–8% of US Premium subscribers (of whom there are thought to be around 75 million) would pay the extra few dollars for the feature."Winning over major contemporary stars has proved more challenging than securing participation from some established older artists," says the FT — with Olivia Rodrigo mentioned as one of the artists who have previously taken a public anti-AI stance.If the Reddit boards are any indication of feeling, there's not much of an appetite for these new AI tools among users either. One thread responding to the FT report is filled with negative comments and recommendations for alternative music streaming services."Who wants this?" is indicative of the comments, while the words "gross" and "horrible" are also thrown around. Spotify doesn't, of course, have to convince all of its users to adopt the AI add-on to make it profitable; but as this report suggests, getting artists on board might be the bigger issue.

Windows 11 just got a revamped internet speed test in previewThis feature was shuttled swiftly through development using agentic AI in combination with human oversightMicrosoft boasts that this is about: "Getting from idea to customer value faster. Without AI slop." Others are more cynical, thoughWindows 11 just got a useful change in preview, with its built-in internet speed test being revamped, and the new version was produced using AI (in conjunction with human oversight, I should add).Windows Latest spotted that Marcus Ash, Microsoft's VP of Windows Design and Research, posted on X to explain that the "team moved pretty fast on this one", adding that following feedback asking for the speed test to be improved, "within a day, Diego had a working prototype." (Diego Baca is VP of Design for Windows).Ash tells us: "From there, our connectivity team worked with partners to bring the experience into Windows. The design and build work was driven by an agentic AI workflow, with a person guiding the process in their spare time."The Microsoft exec further explains that this is where he sees "a lot of potential in AI" and using agentic workflows, in terms of "Getting from idea to customer value faster. Without AI slop. That is the way."Analysis: AI, oversight, bugs, and jobs(Image credit: Microsoft)Of course, this is a controversial topic. Mention AI being involved in the coding of Windows 11 and some tempers will flare online, even though we know this is happening anyway. Microsoft has made no secret of that fact.Indeed, among the AI hate and flames on social media, a lot of people are point out that these days pretty much all software is being developed in conjunction with Large Language Models (LLM agents) — even Linux.As one Redditor makes clear: "Newsflash — every single piece of software you use, except for open source projects that are making a statement, you should expect to have AI written code in it. It is pervasive, it is everywhere."The key aspect here is exactly how the AI agent in question is employed.It's one thing for such an agent to be given a task to write a piece of code for a certain feature, and then just to slap that into your software or operating system as it is (or maybe after a cursory glance through the work). It's another thing to have a human programmer working on a feature and using an agent to perform grunt-work (easy but perhaps time-consuming) coding therein — and then to properly check the AI's output.Theoretically, there's nothing wrong with the latter approach, at least in terms of the soundness of the coding work. And as Microsoft's Ash points out, this is really accelerating development times — meaning Windows 11 users will get new features (hopefully capabilities they want, like this improved internet speed test) much more swiftly. Which is exactly why almost every developer is now utilizing this tech.There are problems here, though, and they're bound up in the public perception of Microsoft. Do Windows 11 users trust the company to be using AI in the right — i.e., properly checked and vetted — way? Not really, in many cases, as there remains a lot of doubt over the overall quality of Windows 11 code, and rightly so given the regularity, and severity, of the bugs we've seen (with more prevalence since 2024, and that 24H2 update).As another Redditor observes: "People aren't calling Windows slop because it's being made using AI these days. They're calling it slop because it's being made using AI with woefully insufficient human oversight and even more woefully insufficient QA, leading to repeated disastrous bugs making it to production and end users being treated as beta testers. You want people to stop calling your product slop? Stop shipping updates that take down people's computers or break existing features."The other issue here is that of AI stealing coding jobs from people. Agents may make things happen a lot more quickly, but as Ash notes, this revamped speed test was implemented mainly by an agent — including its design — with the software engineer "guiding the process in their spare time", making it sound like a rather casual amount of effort on the human side of the equation.Is it a particularly sensitive approach to be touting the benefits of AI — as real as they may be for an operating system's ongoing development and maintenance — in this way at a time when Microsoft has been swinging the axe with various job cuts and pushing staff towards voluntary redundancy in a big way? I'd suggest it isn't, and the timing of this particular push of the value of agentic AI is dubious in that respect.At least in this case Microsoft is being upfront and transparent about what it's doing — and we can expect a good deal more AI acceleration of Windows 11's development going forward.

'Thousands' of GCHQ storage devices are missing or unaccounted forMost are likely protected by encryption or PIN accessWatchdog is 'concerned' and 'disappointed'The UK's intelligence and cybersecurity agency, GCHQ, has been slammed by its very own watchdog after failing to account for thousands of missing storage devices.The 2025 Investigatory Powers Commissioner's Office (IPCO) report ultimately concluded GCHQ has failed to establish the location or status of thousands of removable storage devices such as USB sticks, external hard drives and memory cards.While the exact number of devices is unconfirmed, the IPCO report does confirm the estimate to be "in the thousands" – and that's a GCHQ estimate, not a third-party estimate.GCHQ has seemingly lost thousands of USBs, external drives, memory cards"There is a programme of further work to locate and account for as many of these devices as possible," the report adds, noting that "GCHQ will be able to report how many devices have been confirmed as lost."Nevertheless, the IPCO expressed disappointment at how long investigations and remedial action had taken – the problems were actually first brought to the watchdog's attention years ago, so it's not a newly discovered issue. "We remain very concerned about this issue and are disappointed with the time it has taken GCHQ to investigate."The issue was already raised in the IPCO's 2024 report, when the watchdog confirmed that it has asked GCHQ and MI5 to "review their internal allocation and audit of removable media" the year prior.Back then, it was already acknowledged that many of the missing devices were either encrypted or required a PIN to access, however given the intense sensitivity of many of these artefacts, significant risk could still be on the cards.The latest report acknowledged the technical and practical difficulties involve with the ongoing investigation, but calls for continued senior-level oversight." According to the report, GCHQ has commissioned a new tool to monitor the issue.

Grok Bot users recently found they were hitting their usage limits very fastThat’s because Elon Musk decided to throttle Grok Bot usage limitsThe X owner said Grok Bot costs were "unsustainably high"If you noticed that you burned through your Grok Bot usage much faster than usual in recent days, there’s a reason for that: Elon Musk intentionally limited users’ AI agent allowances in the face of “unsustainably high costs.” And as you’d expect, a lot of people are unhappy with that. The revelation came about after an X user pinged platform owner Musk, asking for a Grok Bot reset after they surprisingly hit their 100% usage limit, four days before it was due to reset. They additionally commented that “Normally I don’t even reach 100%.” Musk then replied to the post, stating: “The cost of serving Grok Bot was unsustainably high relative to revenue.” Many X users seemed irked by the situation, with several saying that their Grok Bot usage had hit the 100% limit while they were sleeping and not using any AI agents. Users claimed their usage had suddenly gone from 50% to 100%, 35% to 78%, and 70% to 100%, all supposedly without using Grok Bot at all.Unsustainable costs(Image credit: Shutterstock)Elon Musk’s comments come amid broader scrutiny of the financial sustainability of many AI products. Tech stocks — including those of many leading AI firms — fell sharply last week as investors grew concerned over the profitability of the industry, with Google revealing that its own AI summaries have hurt its search advertising revenue. Concerns have also been raised in recent months over the finances involved in many AI companies’ offerings. For instance, users of AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude Code can often spend many times more in tokens than they’re actually paying in monthly subscriptions, leading to questions over how sustainable many AI business models really are and whether things will need to be adjusted in the near future. This changing landscape hasn’t gone down well with many users, of course. One thread on Reddit dubbed Musk’s about-face an “indirect rug pull” of Grok Bot, with features and usage limited in a bid to cut costs. But it’s unlikely that AI producers will be able to subsidize their products’ costs to users forever. Usage limits will necessarily need to tighten (as OpenAI quietly announced recently, much to the frustration of users) and prices will need to increase for these business models to make sense. So don’t be surprised if Grok Bot’s lower cap is just the first of many big changes looming on the horizon.

Sam Altman has been making headlines for his claims that consumers don’t deserve DRAM because it is only utilized “5% of the time.” In his opinion, DRAM supplies should be prioritized for data centers where its utility can be maximized powering cloud environments.Altman’s perspective is like a utilitarian's fantasy. Humanity’s endurance of short-term pain - by handing over every bit of DRAM we have - will lead to a morally right outcome in the form of a world powered by time-saving, efficiency-increasing, productivity-boosting AI.Sounds great if you’re the head of an AI company, but less so if you just want memory to be affordable again.But what the OpenAI head seems to forget is that the DRAM shortage is part of a crisis he had a hand in creating. When OpenAI’s Stargate datacenter buildout was announced in early 2025, it was predicted that the project would require 40% of the world’s global supply. Supply issues were compounded as leading producers of memory entered a production turndown just a few years before to help stabilize pricing.Will Sam Altman break into your house to steal your RAM?The good news is that there is little Sam Altman himself can do to take your RAM off you. One reddit user asked Google AI the question we’ve all been thinking: “Is Sam Altman going to break into my house and steal my RAM?”We’re safe… for now from r/ChatGPTGoogle reassured the user with, “No, Sam Altman is not going to break into your house to physically steal your RAM.” So at least there's that.But given how constrained the current memory supply is, there are a few ways that AI and other future tech could make the whole situation worse.The worst could still be yet to comeOne of the world’s leading memory manufacturers, SK Hynix, has predicted that the supply shortage could “persist through 2030,” making any hopes of a return to affordable pricing in the next few years a distant dream.With OpenAI and Anthropic both set to hit the public market within that window, there is a lot of uncertainty over how the memory giants that control around 90% of the world’s supply will shift production.Given the difference in revenue between the consumer memory market and the AI market, it wouldn’t be surprising to see a significant production swing towards the high-bandwidth memory required for AI inference and training.This could be compounded by AI’s effect on the job market, with numerous firms enacting hiring freezes as AI strategies help cut out repetitive rote work. Higher unemployment and a lack of open positions could further reduce the demand for consumer memory, swinging production further in favor of AI.But other emerging industries are also looking to take a bite out of the memory market.Robots and autonomous vehicles are coming for your RAMThere has been a recent explosion in the robotics industry: from humanoid bots competing in their very own Olympics, to warehouses staffed by fleets of micro-bots. As AI improves and converges with the robotics industry to produce bots with near-human fine motor control, numerous industries spanning manufacturing, hospitality and logistics could buy robots in place of humans.After all, a robot can work around the clock, doesn’t need to rest, and doesn’t have any rights to be violated with unsafe working conditions or excessive hours. The same goes for an autonomous taxi or cargo truck.But they will need memory to run their little AI brains. And serving the corporate overlords is much more important (and much more profitable) than expanding memory production for the consumer market, so don’t expect things to improve any time soon.

Google confirms it will move away from Jules, which launched in 2025Users have until November 11 2027 to finish projects, then it'll be read-only'Learnings' gained from the 'experiment' will inform Antigravity projectIt feels like just months since Google launched its AI coding agent, Jules, but the tech giant is now shuttering the project as it looks to consolidate its agentic AI efforts.The company confirmed in an X post that "Jules will be winding down" while it "focus[es] on [the] unified experience" that is Antigravity.While Jules itself as a product will be shuttered, with Google describing it as an "experiment to learn how asynchronous coding agents can help developers ship faster," many of the tools it offered will live on under Google's Antigravity project.Google shutters Jules AI coding agentUsers now have until November 11 2027 to finished their ongoing Jules sessions, after which it will operate in read-only mode for existing projects. The company has also introduced an export process to help developers move out of the platform."You can now export everything Jules knows about your work into a local folder: account settings, environment variables, scheduled tasks, connected repositories, memories, setup scripts, and every session, including its prompt, plan, full activity log, and code patches," a more detailed announcement confirms.The decision may not come as a surprise to all – the platform didn't seem especially popular among developers. "Could've just emailed the 3 people this affects," one comment on X reads.Google never shared details of how popular Jules was, but it did boast of thousands of developers testing it during the beta phase. Still, Jules will have likely faced stiff competition from OpenAI's Codex and Claude Code, as well as GitHub Copilot and a long list of others.Looking ahead, Google's focus has now shifted to a consolidated agentic strategy under Antigravity, where it promises to apply the "learnings" it amassed from Jules.

Henrico County in Virginia was forced to remove Flock cameras by handOfficials say the company is failing to fulfil its “contractual obligation”A growing number of police forces are cancelling contracts with FlockWork crews in a Virginia county have removed more than 120 Flock cameras after officials said the surveillance tech company had failed to fulfil its “contractual obligation” to remove them.An image obtained by news outlet 12 On Your Side shows a pile of cameras and solar panels that were collected after Henrico County ended its contract with Flock in early October over privacy concerns. Reportedly, the poles upon which the cameras were mounted still remain, as crews claimed Flock has to remove these itself.The removal of the automatic license plate reading technology comes as public trust wanes, and concerns over privacy continue to grow. Plymouth, Massachusetts also canceled its contract with Flock cameras after a high-profile case involving a motoring journalist made national news. Joel Feder, a writer for The Drive, was ambushed by police when the license plate of the $155,000 Range Rover he was test driving was flagged as belong to a stolen vehicle.The car belonged to Jaguar Land Rover's media fleet. According to Feder, the police had used Flock’s camera system to track the journalist down over a number of days.A very similar license plate on another Jaguar Land Rover media vehicle was also falsely flagged by the Flock system in Nebraska only a few days later, leading to another journalist facing lengthy questioning over the vehicle.Plymouth Police Chief Eric Fadden told The Drive that the City Council voted to discontinue using the Flock system in September of this year. Fadden stated that the police force “did not hear any reply from Flock Safety Corporate or Legal, other than some communication with our local representative.” As a result of the lack of communication, he subsequently directed staff to “disconnect the power cords from the cameras,” according to The Drive.However, the cameras remain the property of Flock, and both Henrico County and Plymouth are still waiting for a response from the company as to when they will be collected. Analysis: controversy refuses to go away(Image credit: Getty Images)Flock’s automated license plate recognition cameras have caused plenty of controversy in the past few months, with stories surfacing of police department misuse, hackers gaining access to millions of images, and general concern over personal privacy.Some people have been taking matters into their own hands by disabling cameras, while a number of software companies have been mapping the location of the cameras to help drivers avoid them.MapQuest enjoyed a resurgence in popularity after it added a new Surveillance Layer to its app, showing the location of cameras from Flock, as well as those from rival companies.But during the TechCrunch Disrupt 2026 event last month, Flock’s CEO Garrett Langley said we shouldn’t "pause progress” in the face of privacy concerns. “If we want to live in a society where, if you commit a crime, you have a higher probability of being held accountable, we shouldn’t pause progress,” he said.Many privacy advocate groups have raised concerns over Flock’s technology, including the recent news that it was capable of processing ambient audio in order to determine screams, gunshots and even car crashes before alerting emergency services.Flock pulled its plans to implement that particular feature, owing to suggestions from consumer rights groups that it could be classed as "mass surveillance", but a huge amount of public mistrust remains.

I've used a pair of Bose QuietComfort Headphones for years, and they remain some of the best cans I've ever owned. The manufacturer just released a new pair in the last few months, promising the same excellent audio quality, strong noise cancellation, and comfortable fit in a whole new package. These Bose QuietComfort Headphones (2nd Gen) are now at Amazon for $219 (was $359) — that's a record-low price.• Browse all Bose deals at AmazonAt the same time as this offer, the original Bose QuietComfort Headphones are at Amazon for $169 (was $359). Personally, I'd pay for the upgraded model if possible, but this is also a record-low price and arguably an even better deal if you're on a tighter budget.Today's best Bose headphone dealsQuietComfort Headphones (2nd Gen): was $359 now $219This is a record-low price for the new version of the flagship Bose QuietComfort Headphones. These continue the manufacturer's reputation as an industry leader when it comes to sound quality and noise cancellation, while also offering a comfortable fit and all-day battery life. Although they were a harder sell at full price, this $140 discount for Black Friday makes them a much better buy if you want some affordable premium over-ear headphones.View DealThe second-generation model has now been revealed, but the original Bose QuietComfort Headphones remain a top choice if you want quality noise-cancelling headphones at a budget price. I've been using a pair for a long time now and rate them highly, while our expert testers also scored them an impressive four stars in our review. You get excellent noise cancellation, top-tier audio quality, and 24 hours of battery life for an all-new lowest-ever price.View DealQuietComfort Ultra Headphones: was $449 now $369The fantastic Bose QuestComfort Ultra Headphones have remained available at this price since Prime Day in June, so it's effectively the new standard price for this model. These offer a clear step up in audio compared to other premium cans, with superbly detailed and energetic sound and the best noise cancellation you can get right now, in a light and comfortable design.View DealWe scored the new model four stars in our Bose QuietComfort Headphones (2nd Gen) review. While they came with a strong recommendation for the impressive sound, snug fit and good noise cancellation, we suggested it was best to wait for a price cut. Now that there's $140 off for Black Friday, the value for money is undeniable.

AI innovation took center stage at IFA Berlin this year, with unprecedented solutions operating alongside vastly enhanced products powered by AI. Exhibitors showcased everything from advanced humanized assistants designed for daily chores to AI-driven robotic pets offering emotional companionship. It will take time for these products to be honed and readily available for consumers, but many innovations are already here. Hisense demonstrated its AI companion suite, which will transform user interaction while Miele’s flagship lineup highlighted the role AI, advanced sensors and connected systems can play in minimizing decision-making in daily tasks.While these products may be received well by tech loving audiences, not all consumers are convinced. When these products make it to market, brands and retailers are likely to be faced with cynicism, safety concerns and complexity-driven confusion. To overcome these challenges, innovators must consider the customer experience.Overcoming the information gapWhen it comes to big-ticket tech purchases, consumers want to understand what they are paying for. High spec products are increasingly complex, and many consumers do not have the technical know-how to understand the differences between products and the potential benefits of new AI-enabled features. In product descriptions and marketing campaigns, brands often prioritize the ‘cool factor’, focusing on innovative new features. While techy audiences take this in their stride, this often alienates consumers who are less confident in their knowledge. These audiences need straightforward explanations of what the product does, how AI or tech has been incorporated and how it can enhance their lives – but they are often hard to find. Unfortunately, some companies take advantage of limited understanding, slapping misleading ‘AI’ labels on their products, which ultimately do not deliver. This disappointment and negative word-of-mouth these customer experiences generate, along with high-profile hacking horror stories and broader concerns about data security, have impacted trust – and a lack of transparency and information only adds to the nagging feeling that companies have something to hide. Companies that are honest and open about how their products incorporate AI, the benefits these features offer and how data is used and stored, can start to rebuild trust and earn the respect of consumers. While exciting high-tech features remain an important marketing tool, a ‘back to basics’ approach that offers easy-to-find answers to common questions and addresses concerns in clear, accessible language can help consumers to understand if a product meets their needs and to feel more comfortable making a purchase.Consider all channels in the retail ecosystemAlthough discovery and research often take place online, more than four in five (85%) consumers prefer to buy electronics in-store. Bricks-and-mortar locations provide the opportunity to see or trial products in person, receive answers to unresolved questions and seek advice from sales assistants – and demand will only increase as products become more complex. While consumers may have a good idea of their preferred product when they enter a store, their decision can change quickly if the experience falls short of their expectations. When shoppers go into a store and cannot find anyone to assist them, they may abandon their purchase or feel undervalued. Despite the importance of the in-store experience, many tech brands are leaving a gap in the funnel. Once goods reach a physical store, the retailer is often trusted to convert intention into action. However, with physical retail coming under pressure due to rising operational costs, many are reducing headcount, which makes it harder for consumers to get the help and advice they came for.Lean into education and advocacyAs AI makes products more complex, availability of information and access to in-depth knowledge is becoming a necessity rather than a nice-to-have. When consumers are uncertain, sales will falter and there is a far higher risk of buyers’ remorse. Retailers must be equipped to convert the confusion of the average shopper into purchases, but training budgets are being cut alongside headcount, with in-person practical training being replaced by online learning. Digital updates can provide a solid foundation, but surface-level modules do not inspire teams’ confidence or build their ability to sell. Many retailers are unable to fund and provide the training required, but brands have an opportunity to step in. Brands with more complicated products should consider placing brand ambassadors in store or providing additional training to stockists’ staff to ensure that someone is on hand to answer challenging questions, reassure shoppers and help them find the model that will strike the best balance between their needs and their budget.Experience is make-or-break for tech brandsBrand equity and goodwill are vital for long-term commercial success. Negative experiences detract from trust in both the retailer and the brand, while positive interactions help to solidify it. Brands should monitor sales and reviews closely, identifying areas for improvement, and work closely with retail partners to address any potential issues at the point of sale. The cost of providing accurate, helpful information online or in-store is negligible, while the cost of ambassadors and training far outweighs the cost of potential failure and subsequent delisting of a brand and its products. Failure to offer in-depth details, expertise and advice can have a sizeable impact on the bottom line: making customers feel comfortable is the only way to ensure AI-enhanced products deliver the expected returns.We've listed the best online courses for learning Word, Excel, HTML, JavaScript, SQL and Python.This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to 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/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

Applebee’s fixes mobile app flaw that exposed customer data through hardcoded database credentialsResearchers found access to personal information including names, contact details, birthdays, and account metadataNo evidence of abuse was found, but the incident highlights the persistent risk of hardcoded secrets in softwareApplebee’s has fixed a serious flaw in its mobile app that exposed sensitive customer information to pretty much anyone. Whether or not anyone malicious actually found this vulnerability and exploited it is not known at this time.The chain has an Android mobile app that allows customers to browse the menu, customize meals, place orders for delivery or pickup, save their favorites, or receive personalized food recommendations. A security researcher from What Security called Robert Wiggins, used AI to analyze the source code of the app and found a gaping hole - hardcoded credentials for a company database.Notifying the businessThe database contained plenty of sensitive information: customer names, their email addresses (both verified and unverified ones), dates of birth, phone numbers, ZIP codes, veteran status, the number of logins, dates of account creation, and the IP address of the most recent login session. We don’t know exactly how many people had their sensitive data exposed that way, but the app has more than a million downloads on the Google Play Store. Wiggins soon realized that there was no way to report the issue either to Applebee’s itself or to its parent company, Dine Brands, so he reached out to TechCrunch. The publication verified his claims by finding the exposed credentials itself, and even created a new entry which Wiggins was later able to extract, and also confirmed the credentials allowed users to modify database entries.TechCrunch managed to get ahold of Dine Brands, who plugged the hole and thanked everyone involved: “We appreciate TechCrunch and the security researcher for bringing this matter to our attention,” the company said. “Our security team promptly launched an investigation and has not currently found any evidence of unauthorized access.” “Our investigation is ongoing, and we will take appropriate steps based on our findings,” the company added. Hardcoded credentials are a very common mistake that sometimes has dire consequences. During production, software developers would leave login credentials inside the code to work faster, allowing the app to skip the tedious process of identifying every single time. However, the credentials are supposed to be temporary and are usually removed from the code before launch. Sometimes, though, the credentials don’t get spotted during final code review and end up in the live version. Crooks who scan the codes for vulnerabilities can then use the information for unauthorized access. A common errorUnfortunately, it is a very common problem. In March 2025, security researchers from Cybernews analyzed more than 156,000 iOS apps and found more than 815,000 hardcoded secrets, thousands of which were “very sensitive and could lead directly to breaches or data leaks.” It’s worth mentioning that in this case, a “secret” means more than just passwords - it also includes API keys and encryption keys. The average app's code exposed 5.2 secrets, and 71% of apps leak at least one secret, Cybernews reported at the time.A few months later, in July, HPE patched a similar bug in Aruba Instant On Access Points, and at roughly the same time, a similar flaw was found in Cisco’s Unified CM, enterprise-grade IP telephony call control platform providing voice, video, messaging, mobility, and presence services. The leaks continued in 2026 - in February, news broke of Chinese state-sponsored threat actors abusing hardcoded credentials found in Dell’s RecoverPoint for Virtual Machines.Applebee’s did not notify its customers about the incident, and it did not publicly disclose it on its website or social channels, at press time. Also, there are no indications that any threat actors exfiltrated this data or leaked it to the dark web.

Lego Advent calendars might be the best type of Advent calendar there is. Behind each door you'll find a Lego character or mini build to complete. Unlike chocolate (gone in seconds), these daily treats stick around throughout the festive season and for years to come — Lego has also got creative with the boxes, transforming them into game boards or scenes where the behind-door builds can live, and turning them into a part of your seasonal decor.I've been holding off placing my order, but now is the time to take the plunge — the full range of 2026 calendars is discounted right now, with at least 20% off list price. And there's plenty of time for it to arrive before Advent begins. I'll be picking up the Lego City set, which the classic festive option and includes everything you need to make a Santa's workshop. However, there are also Marvel and Star Wars calendars (which put a Christmassy twist on your favorite characters), as well as Disney Princess and kid-focused Lego Friends sets.I've rounded up all your deal options below, as well as some bonus discounts on alternative festive Lego sets you might want to throw into your shopping trolley at the same time. Lego 2026 Advent calendar deals Lego City 2026 Advent Calendar 60510 Lego Marvel 2026 Advent Calendar 76340 Lego Star Wars 2026 Advent Calendar 75456 Lego Disney Princess 2026 Advent Calendar 43298 Lego Friends 2026 Advent Calendar 42698 More festive brick bargains Lego Botanicals Wreath, Festive Home Decor Set 10340 Lego Disney Frozen Olaf and Bruni's Picnic Fun Set 43287 Lego Ballerina and Nutcracker Scene 40701 Lego Snowman Ornaments 40812 Lego Gingerbread At-At Walker 40806 Lego Up-Scaled Santa Minifigure 40820 Lego Christmas Table Decoration 40743 Lego Creator Winter Holiday Train 40700 Lego Nutcracker 40640 Lego Wintertime Polar Bears 40571 Lego Icons Santa's Visit 10293

'Heartwood' is a wood-based gaming PC that took seven years to buildIt's stunningly neat, and the hidden trick is that it routes the cooling and other cables outside the PCThose pipes and cables run underneath the desk, which the PC is effectively built into, and down into the basement below, where the full cooling system residesFancy custom PC builds come along with some regularity, but every now and then something really unusual presents itself — and I'd class this as the smartest and neatest desktop computer I've ever seen.Wccftech spotted the rig in question, which was posted in the PC build subreddit by Mithiral67. The gaming PC is called 'Heartwood', and it took a rather incredible seven years to build.It's based on an Inwin 909 case (which looks impressive in itself in brushed aluminum) using a semi-open concept, with the motherboard sitting in an empty space (there's no rear panel with the build here, as you can see in the YouTube video below that shows off this PC).This desktop looks incredibly neat and slick decked out in wood and aluminum, with the nifty lighting in the top of the case too, but where's the cooling and other cabling? That's when the full extent of this build becomes clear, because it also includes the desk underneath the PC.(Image credit: Mithiral67 on Reddit)What the maker has done is route the liquid cooling and power cables down through the bottom of the case and the desk, with these running around the underside of the desk, and then down a leg into the floor, to the basement of the house, where all the water-cooling gubbins (built around a Mora 400) resides.Not only was this build a time-consuming labor of love, it was also a very costly one. Another Redditor enquires about the price of the materials, and according to Mithiral67 the wood itself was around $4,000 – and they said they didn't even want to get into the cost of the woodworking tools.As for the components, the PC is built on a Ryzen 9800X3D processor plus Nvidia RTX 5090 GPU.Waiting out the GPU pricing nightmaresSo, this was a pricey build, and a complex one, but even then, seven years seems like a very long time for putting the PC together — it means Mithiral67 started their project before the pandemic.What gives? Well, as they explain: "For those asking, 7 years was mostly waiting for a GPU at MSRP, literally took 4 generations to get lucky at Micro Center."There you have it. Those hoping to feature an RTX 5090 in their custom build are looking at paying an absolute fortune currently, of course, and getting the Nvidia flagship at list price now seems almost as miraculous a feat as the construction and thoughtful crafting witnessed with this PC.Mind you, even then Mithiral67 had to buy the RTX 5090 as part of a full PC to get it at the equivalent of the sticker price (which worked out fine, as it meant they could use that other PC for playing games while they painstakingly finished off the work of art that is 'Heartwood').(Image credit: Mithiral67 on Reddit)As one admiring Redditor summed up nicely: "This is genuinely the most beautiful setup I've seen, in every aspect from the choice of wood, color, design, and function."There's no shortage of commenters approving of the build, or indeed those pointing out that Sam Altman doubtless disapproves of the amount of RAM used in this desktop, too. Don't you know that's memory which could have powered another AI agent from a data center somewhere?

The current targets are in Ireland, Sweden, Belgium, Luxembourg and EstoniaThe US military is investigating similar issues affecting six US basesOver 400 French supermarkets were attacked in October 2026 In October 2026 hundreds of French supermarkets lost food worth millions of euros after a cyberattack turned their freezers up to 120F (50C) — and it looks like it's happening again, this time in other European countries. This time the targeted supermarkets include Supervalu, which is one of Ireland's biggest supermarket chains, as well as the Swedish retailers Axfood and ICO and big-name supermarkets in Belgium, Luxembourg and Estonia.While the targets are different the method appears to be the same, with remote access turning the freezers into heaters and spoiling their contents.According to one retailer on Facebook, ICA Kvantum Sjöbo, "What shouldn't have happened has happened!"So what's happening?What's happening to the supermarket freezersThis most recent attack follows in the footsteps of the French hack and the more recent Pentagon investigation into refrigeration issues in US military bases. It could well be exploiting a very simple vulnerability, which is that remote refrigeration management systems have weak authentication and "dangerous" software flaws. Certainly in the case of the French supermarkets the BBC reported that the affected units were "older models whose security software could not be updated to ward off a risk" that the manufacturer had identified.The French hack affected over 400 stores, and while the numbers aren't in yet the new hack is likely to reach three figures too.As we noted in our report on the Pentagon investigation, the "Internet of Things" makes it easier for companies to manage large groups of devices automatically and remotely, but it also opens up a new way for hackers to cause trouble — and if the software isn't secure enough or updated when new threats emerge, it effectively puts up a welcome sign for cybercriminals.The European Food Commissioner Christophe Hansen posted on X that "food security requires more attention at all levels. Because the weaponisation of food has become a reality." He's not wrong: whether they're being exploited by cybercriminals looking for an easy payday, tech troublemakers or nation states waging hybrid wars, it's clear that the Internet of Things needs to take security much more seriously. Thinking of buying a new TV?Try our TV size and model finder! You tell it how far you sit from your TV, we'll tell you what size to buy based on viewing angle advice from image quality experts, and we'll recommend our three top TVs at that size for different prices.

When we tested out FastestVPN, we found "above-average speeds and rock-bottom prices" from this service. Now, I'm all for low pricing at a time when everything seems to be costing more and more. But there's something even better hidden in the company's early Black Friday sale that you might've missed. You can get a lifetime premium family password for six users alongside the VPN, for a one-off $27 (was $115) with code FUTUREBF2026. • Best for: Families bundling together privacy and security tools without ever losing or forgetting passwords again. • Why we like it: I really appreciate one-time charge - we've all got subscription-fatigue at this point. Our reader-exclusive code drops the price of the lifetime plan to less than the cost of the two-year plan, so you're effectively getting the password manager free on top of the multi-login VPN. • What you need to know: This deal is for the lifetime plan, but a standard plan for two years is also available. FastestVPN has additional monthly costs for users who need dedicated IP and port forwarding. That might not affect most people, but worth knowing. Lifetime VPN plan with lifetime family password manager: was $115 now $27The Lifetime VPN plan bundles together a 6-user family password manager and VPN for 15 devices at once. For the full discount, use code FUTUREBF2026. View DealWhy we recommend itThere's a lot to like about FastestVPN's lifetime plan - particularly for busy households and home offices. The lifetime password manager for up to six users is the real draw for me, because it means you can protect your accounts with stronger passwords that you won't forget (it feels like I'm reading about password breaches every week these days). On the VPN side, the service offers WireGuard Protocol, 10 Gbps high-speed servers - despite its name, it's not the fastest VPN we've ever tested, but we scored it 4 stars in our review. The platform also offers streaming-optimized servers for Netflix, Disney+, and other popular sites.There's app support for Windows, macOS, Android, and iOS, as well as smart TVs, routers, and Fire Sticks. For more options, we've rounded up the best password managers and best VPNs we've tested.Price Context & Historical ValueConsidering it's lifetime access for under $30, this is great value for general password management and VPN use. The lifetime plan alone typically costs $40 (or $35 for the two-year plan) in the Black Friday sale. Our reader-exclusive code is what makes this the best value. Should you buy it?✅ Buy the FastestVPN Lifetime Plan if... You want to end those never-ending subscriptions critical security and privacy tools for your household. ❌ Skip the FastestVPN Lifetime Plan if... You prioritize VPN speed or don't need a password manager for six users.

Coolgeek P1 Cassette Player unveiledBrings some modern twists like Bluetooth and a HD displayKickstarter campaign just launched; MSRP is $179 but cheaper nowThe cassette player revival began with retro-inspired models such as the EDITH WE-001 and FiiO CP13, but we're beginning to see more modern versions like, well, this strange wall-mounted system. And another new option — the one you're here to read about — definitely falls into the latter camp.Coolgeek, whose RGB light-up turntable we covered several months ago, is back with its newest gadget: the P1 Cassette Player.Like its turntable, this device is being 'released' on Kickstarter, so you can't buy it immediately. However, from what we've been told, it sounds pretty far along in production, so I don't envision the turn-around time being too long here.While the standard price of the P1 is $179 (about £130, AU$260), in true Kickstarter fashion it's available for much cheaper if you sign up to the campaign earlier; it'll be half that price in the 'Super Early Bird' wave, and slowly increase over time.What your money gets you(Image credit: CoolkGeek)At its core, Coolgeek's P1 Cassette Player is... well, a cassette player (think Walkman, but Sony makes those), so you don't really need me to run you through what it does, do you? It plays cassettes. But there's more, of course, or we wouldn't be covering it.For one, the model has Bluetooth 5.3 connectivity, so you can listen to your tapes using your wireless headphones. There's a 3.5mm jack for wired headphone lovers too, as well as a USB-C port, but the latter's just for charging.There's also a little HD display, which is primarily used for arranging the Bluetooth connection. Judging by images we've seen, there's also some colorful LED indicator column (ooh, lights!) probably for volume, but we weren't expressly told what it depicts.Like many retro-inspired gadgets, the P1 is see-through, so you can see your tape spinning around as you listen. Coolgeek told us that it was designed not merely to ape older cassette players, but to have its own design identity.Plenty of the new cassette players we've seen have playful, pastel-colored designs and curved edges, and Coolgeek's P1 looks a lot more mechanical and industrial in comparison — like true 1970s and 1980s tangible tech. So if you've been wanting an alternative cassette player, the campaign might be worth taking a look at.