Meta’s Muse agent was born to shop, while Gemini’s Spark can help you book airline tickets or plan your weekly meals. But while Muse and Spark act like personal assistants, OpenAI’s new AI agents are designed to be, well, another “you” in the office. Dots, which OpenAI boss Sam Altman just unveiled at the company’s annual developers conference, are always-on AI assistants that — as with Muse — you can name, assign cute little avatars to, and chat with in the ChatGPT interface, via text, or even on the phone. But OpenAI is also positioning its Dots as your “delegates” and “extensions” in the office, where they can take on work duties you’ve assigned to them, as well as collaborate with colleagues (and their Dots) on Slack, Microsoft Teams, or in the new ChatGPT Spaces environment. OpenAI’s Dots are workplace agents you can collaborate with via ChatGPT Spaces, Microsoft Teams, or Slack (pictured). Ben Patterson/Foundry Powered by GPT-6 Astra (OpenAI’s “most aligned model,” Altman promised), Dots require a $100-a-month ChatGPT Pro plan or better, and can take on complex work and coding tasks, performing them locally or in the cloud before eventually coming back to report the results. Each eligible ChatGPT account comes with one Dot included, and users will eventually be able to take charge of multiple Dots. During the presentation, Altman was careful to emphasize that Dots let you “stay in control” thanks to Astra’s “built-in protections and safeguards,” while users are free to set custom instructions and boundaries for the assistants. “So this allows you to trust your Dot with as much responsibility as you’re comfortable with,” Altman said. Of course, OpenAI’s Dots debut comes amid mounting anxiety over the rapid growth of AI, with the biggest AI players calling for government regulation and “pacing” of frontier model development, while more and more AI whistleblowers are warning that AI could, quite literally, kill us all with the next decade. Just yesterday, OpenAI released a statement apologizing for an incident where its models hacked into Australian government websites, while another statement detailed new guidelines to bolster AI safety. But OpenAI’s peppy, Apple-style keynote belied the gravity of the moment, with Altman trotting out one agentic AI announcement after another, including GPT-6.1 Sol, a new GPT model designed to deliver Astra-level performance at a fraction of the cost. Also new is a ChatGPT Pro 500 plan, which at $500 a month becomes the priciest of OpenAI’s consumer ChatGPT individual plans. Aside from expanded usage limits, the Pro 500 plan also includes an Ultrafast mode, which boasts eight times the speed of standard mode at a whopping six times the price. Another subscription change involves the $200-a-month Pro plan, which has been re-opened to new subscribers while having its usage allowance cut roughly in half “to reflect our increasingly efficient models,” according to OpenAI. Pro 200 users (who will get to keep their current usage rates “for a bit”) are, quite naturally, already howling in protest. Then there’s Codex Security Cloud, a cloud-based that’s continuously scanning for vulnerabilities while spinning up security fixes, and OpenAI Private Intelligence, which sounds like OpenAI’s version of Apple’s Private Cloud Compute. I plan on testing OpenAI’s Dots once I scrounge up the cash for upgrading my Dot-less ChatGPT Plus account, so stay tuned. _Updated to add details about changes to OpenAI’s Pro 200 subscription plan._

The latest version of Claude Sonnet—Anthropic’s workhorse AI model—has just landed, and with it comes a prompt that could help keep any AI agent from leaping into action before making a plan first. Available now on the web, the Claude desktop app, and other Claude platforms, Claude Sonnet 5.5 is Anthropic’s middle-of-the-road model, It’s a step below Opus 5.5 but apparently just as capable as Fable 5.1 (Anthropic’s pricey frontier flagship) and a step above Haiku 5 (a fast but basic Claude model that’s due for a 5.5 upgrade). In Anthropic’s benchmarks, Sonnet 5.5 achieves scores rivaling Opus 5.5 in areas such as agentic coding and computer use, although the latest Opus model is still on top in terms of “complex, open-ended work requiring sustained judgement,” Anthropic notes. Still, Sonnet 5.5 appears surprisingly powerful and affordable compared to Claude Opus, and it also has the distinction of being the default Claude model for free users. In any event, with a new Claude model comes a new prompting guide, and the guide for the latest Sonnet contains a gem that could come in handy for other AI models, particularly those capable of building things. The prompt concerns “open-ended” requests, including those that don’t strictly define boundaries for what the AI should and shouldn’t do. An example provided by Anthropic is “show me what you can do with this,” with “this” being anything from an Excel spreadsheet to a code snippet. Like ChatGPT and Gemini, Claude can spontaneously start building charts, reports, videos, and other “artifacts” on the fly depending on your request, and an open-ended request could spawn an artifact you didn’t explicitly ask for. Needless to say, those artifacts will eat into your Claude usage limits—not great when you didn’t want them to begin with. In my tests, Sonnet 5.5 was pretty good about keeping its replies text-only when I handed it an Excel spreadsheet of made-up operating costs and asked “show me what you can do with this,” but in at least one instance it did spin up a chart on its own. I’ve previously written about prompts designed to keep AI models from jumping the gun, including one that directs an AI to stay in “pencil-and-paper” mode. But in Claude Sonnet 5.5’s prompting guide, Anthropic shares a new prompt for dialing down preemptive building: > When the user asks for ideas, options, or a plan, give them that and stop. Don’t start building or changing anything until they say to go ahead. You can use that prompt (or something similar) at the beginning of any AI chat, but it’ll be most effective as part of the AI’s custom instructions, or in the case of Claude Code as part of your CLAUDE.md file. Even if you don’t use this particular Anthropic prompt, it’s a good reminder to be specific when asking an AI assistant or coding agent to do something—or _not_ to do something, as it were.

A viral social media post claims Windows 11 stores a preview of every photo ever deleted. The controversy centers around a well-known Windows feature called the thumbnail cache, which can still contain image thumbnails long after their original files have been deleted. The discussion was sparked by user @Ayzacoder, which has been viewed millions of times over the last few days. However, the claim is only partially correct—while Windows 11 can store thumbnails of deleted images, not _every_ image will automatically end up in this cache. > Windows keeps a thumbnail of every photo you've ever deleted. > > It sits in a file called thumbcache_256.db, and forensic examiners pull it routinely. There are 15 more stores like it. > > Here's how to find them and wipe them: > > — Ayzaa (@Ayzacoder) September 26, 2026 ## What is the thumbnail cache? Windows 11 creates thumbnails for photos, videos, and some document types so that they can be displayed more quickly in File Explorer. Instead of recreating the preview every time it’s needed, the operating system stores it temporarily in a local database. This data is stored in the user profile at `%LocalAppData%\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer`. There you’ll find files with names such as `thumbcache_32.db`, `thumbcache_96.db`, `thumbcache_256.db`, or `thumbcache_1024.db`. These are individual thumbnail databases containing preview images in different sizes. This thumbnail cache system has been in place since Windows Vista. Previously, Microsoft used the familiar `Thumbs.db` files convention, which were stored in individual folders. ## Not every deleted photo is saved The claim that’s circulating social media right now gives the impression that Windows 11 automatically archives a preview of all deleted images. However, there’s no evidence to support this. For example, a test conducted by Windows Latest showed that several images that were downloaded and later deleted didn’t appear in the thumbnail cache. The database files weren’t altered at all. The reason? A thumbnail preview is normally only saved when File Explorer (or another application) generates a thumbnail as part of the file preview process. If an image is never actually displayed as a preview anywhere, it won’t have made a thumbnail to end up in the cache. ## Why do thumbnails remain after deletion? The thumbnail cache is stored separately from the original image files. That means when an original photo is deleted, Windows 11 doesn’t automatically remove the corresponding thumbnail. As a result, small image previews may still be present even though the original file itself has long since been deleted from the PC. ## Investigators make use of the data The thumbnail cache has been of interest to IT forensic experts for years. Using specialized tools, stored thumbnails can be extracted from these databases even after the original files have already been deleted. This doesn’t automatically pose a security risk for home users. However, it does show that “file deleted” doesn’t necessarily mean that all associated information is completely wiped from the system. Should you worry? That depends. Since these are thumbnails, they aren’t complete copies of the original images but rather reduced-size previews. A lot of the original detail will be lost, and whether the thumbnail remains recognizable will depend on the size and subject of the image. ## How to clear the thumbnail cache If you want to remove existing thumbnails from your Windows 11 PC, you can do so using the built-in thumbnail cleaner: 1. Press the Windows key + R keyboard shortcut. 2. Type “cleanmgr” and press Enter. 3. Select the Windows drive. 4. Tick the “Thumbnails” box. 5. Click “Delete files.” Windows 11 will then remove the stored thumbnails. The cache will be rebuilt as required whenever you browse folders later. In Windows 11 Pro, Enterprise, and Education, you can also permanently disable thumbnail caching. To do this, open the Group Policy Editor (gpedit.msc) and navigate to User Configuration → Administrative Templates → Windows Components → File Explorer. There you will find the policy called “Disable thumbnail caching.” Microsoft recommends enabling this setting on public computers, shared computers, or any computer where security is a key concern. Users of Windows 11 Home can instead enable the option “Always show icons instead of thumbnails” in File Explorer. This means that image previews will no longer be displayed and, consequently, no new thumbnail previews will be created.

Microsoft is expected to release the next major fall update for Windows 11 in a few days. But when _exactly_? We have a guess. Windows Latest analyzed when Microsoft released the last few fall updates for Windows 11 over the last few years and found that next Tuesday—October 6th, 2026—is the most likely date. According to the analysis, Windows 11 versions 21H2, 22H2, 23H2, 24H2, and 25H2 were all released on a Tuesday. In three cases, that Tuesday fell in October; in two cases, it fell in September. Only one of those October days fell at the _end_ of the month; all other Tuesdays in October came _early_ in the month. Going by the odds, it seems most likely then that Windows 11 26H2 will arrive on the **first Tuesday of October 2026**. Okay, that’s all good and well. But what’s so special about Windows 11 26H2? Who’s going to get it? And _how_ do you get it? We’ve answered all the major questions in our rundown of what to expect when Windows 11 26H2 lands. In short, don’t get too excited; let it come when it comes and install it whenever it’s most convenient for you.

Back in February, Discord first attempted to launch its age verification process—only to run straight into massive user outcry. In response, the company went back to the drawing board. Now, half a year later, the branding of teen and adult accounts has finally rolled out. As a regular Discord user, I wasn’t sure what to expect from the process. So, while waiting my turn, I read up on what I needed to know. ## You can’t opt out Discord first framed age verification on the platform as a move to protect teens. Problem was, it expected users to submit to a facial scan or upload a government ID. That sparked protest—and rightfully so, given today’s greater privacy and security concerns. Now Discord has easier methods to prove adulthood, if you somehow get flagged as a teen. But you can’t escape the classification process. Multiple countries have begun requiring companies to confirm the ages of users, in order to protect children from harmful content and exposure to unsafe adults. The only true way to opt out is to leave the platform all together. ## Verification is now less invasive If you stick around, Discord automatically assigns you an age group based on what it calls “signals.” Using machine learning, the platform guesses your age based on details like how old your account is, who you speak with the most, the servers you belong to, and if you’ve ever subscribed to Nitro. Discord says it does not read your messages (either those sent on servers or over direct message) as part of its evaluation. According to Discord, this method will accurately assign an age category to over 90 percent of users. If it doesn’t, adults can prove their age through credit card info, the Apple App Store or Google Play Store, Google Wallet, or AgeKey. (AgeKey is a service owned by Singaporean age verification company k-ID.) Discord says its third-party vendors for age confirmation must abide by its data retention policies. Namely, any age verification related data can only be kept for the time needed to confirm age, then must be deleted after. If facial age estimation comes into play, it can only be performed on your device. ## You can choose not to verify Still don’t want Discord to have any further information about you in order to escape classification as a teen? You can still keep using the platform, but your access will be more locked down. Teen accounts are restricted from age-gated servers, content, and settings. Messages with sensitive content may be blurred or all together blocked, depending on the source. Direct messages from non-friends will automatically be sent to a message request inbox, allowing you to screen them before they appear in your normal DM list. (For the full details on Teen protections, you can read Discord’s full rundown.) Perhaps a small benefit: Discord is now enabling “spoiler channels,” which will let server owners sequester juicy info without having to age-lock them. (AKA the long-standing workaround.) ## Where to check your status PCWorld Head to _Settings > Account_. Under _Account Status_ , you’ll see “Age Group.” Your status will be listed as either _Teen_ or _Adult_. Anecdotally, users on PCWorld’s The Full Nerd Discord server have reported getting _Adult_ status—and just before I filed this story, I received the same designation, too. So Discord may end up being right about its high estimates for accurately pinpointing “mature” behavior. (We’re all still emotionally unsure it was correct, though.)

NOW JUST $12 **Ugreen Revodok 5-in-1 USB-C Hub** View Deal Tired of missing connectivity on your laptop? Wish you had extra USB-A and HDMI slots but don’t want to buy a bunch of different adapters to juggle? There’s a small accessory you can get that’ll solve your woes: the Ugreen 5-in-1 USB-C hub, normally $16 but on sale for $12 right now. This hub turns your laptop’s USB-C port into five ports _without_ making you give up the USB-C port’s charging capabilities. The hub includes a 100W USB-C Power Delivery port so you can keep your laptop charged while using its other ports: a 4K HDMI, a 5Gbps USB-A data port, and two USB-A ports for peripherals. All laptops _should_ come with these ports by default, but if yours is lacking, this is a great way to add them back in. Need examples of what exactly this hub can do for you? That HDMI port lets you connect a high-res external monitor as a second screen for boosted productivity. The 5Gbps USB-A port is for flash drives and external SSDs, allowing you to fast-transfer data to and from your laptop. And those slower USB-A ports can be used to connect a keyboard, a mouse, a gaming controller, a headset, or maybe a printer. And the best part? Just unplug the hub from your laptop and _everything_ disconnects with it, then plug it back in to instantly reattach it all. It’s a budget option, but one worth having even just as a backup. If you want a more powerful hub (sometimes called a docking station), check out PCWorld’s picks for the best USB-C hubs and Thunderbolt docks.

Thanks to AI data centers, consumer SSDs, flash drives, and SD/microSD cards have doubled or even tripled in price. That really sucks if you haven’t stocked up on local storage options, and it _really_ sucks if you’re relying on SD/microSD cards for DSLRs, dashcams, security cameras, and more. 2026 is not the best year for dying memory cards. They’re impractical or even impossible to repair at home, and they’ve gotten notoriously expensive to replace. If you want your SD and microSD cards to survive as long as possible, here are the most common causes you need to know about and what you can do to avoid premature wear-and-tear. PROMOTION **Get $10 Off on Stellar Data Recovery** Recover lost or deleted photos, videos, and more from any SD card, whether it was accidentally formatted, corrupted, or became inaccessible. Go beyond recovery by repairing corrupted photos and videos, ensuring your cherished memories are not only restored but also fully viewable again, all with one powerful, easy to use solution. Buy now _Note: I’ll only refer to SD cards going forward, but these reasons also apply to microSD cards, which are just miniature versions of the same tech._ ## Flash memory wear Virtually all SD cards use NAND flash memory. While NAND is great because it’s fast, non-volatile, and able to pack a lot of data into a tiny physical space, it has its downsides. The biggest one is that NAND cells physically wear out with every write/erase cycle—too many of those and cells will start to fail, causing errors. That means any real-world use case that involves constant writing and rewriting of data will inevitably cause an SD card to wear out. Dashcams and security cameras with continuous recording can’t exactly avoid this, but a photographer who regularly fills up a card with burst shots and deletes most of them is causing undue wear-and-tear. Mahdi Gharib / Unsplash QLC (quad-level cell) cards are cheaper than TLC (triple-level) cards but have lower per-cell endurance and therefore wear out fast. Likewise, TLC is cheaper than MLC (multi-level) but also dies faster, and the same for MLC versus SLC (single-level). The cheaper the design, the more often you’ll have to replace it. The good news is, SD cards have built-in wear-leveling algorithms that smartly distribute writes so all cells wear out at similar rates. The bad news is, too much static storage can prevent the algorithm from doing its thing. Avoid filling up a card to over 90 percent capacity, and try to reformat the card regularly to give wear-leveling a clean slate to work with. ## Physical damage SD cards aren’t delicate, but they’re more fragile than you might expect. Even if you aren’t snapping it in half, the internal parts are susceptible to factors like temperature, humidity, and static electricity. Extreme heat is a big killer. That microSD card in your dashcam? It bakes in 135°F temperatures for hours, days, weeks throughout the summer, slowly breaking down under the stress. Rain and other forms of moisture exposure can corrode the contacts. Accidental static discharge can instantly fry the entire card, destroying it. Avoid leaving your SD cards in extreme temperatures for long periods of time. Don’t get them wet, and dry them off quickly if they do. Be careful when coming in from the cold, which can cause the inside warm air to condense on the card. And carry your SD cards in a case! ## Manufacturing defects All SD cards can fail “for no reason”—yes, even ones from reputable brands with good quality assurance. Truth is, everything that’s made and assembled in factories has a margin for error, and the bits inside your SD card all have variable failure rates. The most common failure point is the controller, which renders the card inoperable when it dies, but other failure points include bad solder joints and bad flash cells that should’ve been rejected. This means you can buy a high-quality card that unexpectedly dies after a week of light use. H2testw While you can’t avoid manufacturing defects, you _can_ reduce the likelihood by only buying from reputable brands like SanDisk, Samsung, and Lexar. You can also use free tools like H2testw to verify there aren’t any errors on the card. (H2TestW writes data to the entire card and reads it back to ensure all sectors are working properly.) ## Improper ejection or power loss Every SD has two layers: the physical layer where the data is actually written to flash cells, and the software layer (called the file system) that “knows” where to find the data across those cells. Think of the file system as an index or table of contents. When data is written or erased on the card, the file system also needs to be updated. If the card is ejected in the middle of an operation—or if the power goes out—then there will be a mismatch and the file system will have an incorrect view of data on the card. Always wait for the SD card to finish all operations before ejecting, and always make sure to use “safe eject” measures to insure against improper ejects. Also, replace SD card reader accessories once their connection points are worn out and no longer stable, and make sure your laptop/camera batteries don’t die while writing to cards. ## File system corruption The file system of an SD card can get corrupted in other ways beyond improper ejection and power loss. Did you know there isn’t just _one_ file system? A card can be formatted in FAT16, FAT32, exFAT, and others. Sometimes a device might expect or assume your card to be formatted a certain way and write proprietary metadata that corrupts. For example, formatting an SD card within a drone or camera then inserting that card into a PC or Mac can sometimes lead to issues with the index. Or when a card is reformatted improperly, it may have leftover data or structure that causes issues until it’s properly blanked out. Wyze Labs Always format an SD card using the primary device it’ll be used with. If you’ll be using it with multiple devices—like your camera _and_ your laptop—choose a file system that’s supported by all of them. Also consider doing regular health checks to catch a degrading file system before it craps out and causes catastrophic data loss. ## Protect your SD and microSD cards 2026 was not a good year for electronics, and memory cards have gotten _expensive_. Don’t expect prices to come back down until 2027 at the earliest, but even then it’ll be unlikely. Don’t want to shell out unreasonable amounts for a replacement card? Take care of what you’ve got. By understanding what kills memory cards and the habits you can employ to avoid premature death, you’ll be able to add extra years to the lifespans of your SD and microSD cards. That said, if they happen to die anyway, here’s what you should do with it before tossing it.

If you’re a fan of Gems—the Gemini feature that lets you create customized Gemini chatbots with their own instructions and knowledge files—prepare for some big changes coming soon. According to a banner that popped up on the Gems Manager page over the weekend, Google is about to turn Gems into skills, a feature within Google’s Spark AI assistant that offers related but also somewhat different functionality. The news comes just a few weeks after OpenAI announced the impending “retirement” of custom GPTs, a popular ChatGPT feature that’s similar to Gemini Gems. While a number of Redditors spotted the Google banner on the Gems Manager page, I’m not seeing the banner in my own Gemini account. I’ve reached out to Google for more details. As shown in screenshots posted on Reddit, the banner reads: “Starting November 17, 2026, we’ll automatically begin migrating your Gems to skills,” adding that users “will be able to use [their] Gems until they migrate.” A “Learn more” button leads to an empty Google support page. Gemini Gems essentially let you create custom Gemini chatbots, complete with their own custom names and detailed instructions about what they should do and how they should act, plus upload files to use as knowledge bases. Once built, you can chat with a Gem as you would with Gemini, except your Gem can have its own abilities and personality. Skills, on the other hand, are custom instructions for Gemini apps, namely Spark, the personal AI assistant that lives within a separate tab in the Gemini interface. Whereas Gems are launched within their own chatbot environment, Spark skills can be invoked during any Spark chat, typically starting with a “/”. Spark can also call a skill on its own if it determines the skill is relevant to a particular task at hand. Besides invoking skills during Spark chats, you can also add skills to scheduled tasks, or even embed skills within other skills. Those skills can lead to some powerful automations, but they’re not exactly like the customized Gemini chatbots you could spin up using Gems, and it’s not clear exactly how migrated Gems will work once they become skills. In another wrinkle, skills currently only work with Spark, which requires a paid Google AI subscription (such as Google AI Pro for $20 a month) while Gems are available to free Google users. It’s entirely possible that skills will become available in standard Gemini chats once November 17 rolls around, but we’re still awaiting more details. There have been rumblings of Google potentially retiring Gems since August, while code discovered in the Google app has hinted about migrations plans for Gems turning into skills.

A few days ago, Google quietly announced that it’ll be allowing certain Chromebook models to upgrade from ChromeOS to Googlebook OS at some point in the future. The announcement was made via a new support page, spotted by The Verge. Googlebook OS is the company’s newest laptop operating system, which is being launched alongside its new lineup of Googlebook laptops. As of now, the first Googlebooks will come from manufacturers including Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo. However, exactly which models will be included in the upgrade, or how it will be carried out, remains unclear. Google states that more information will follow. Chromebooks that don’t receive the upgrade will still receive regular updates until the end of their standard support period. The operating system combines elements of ChromeOS with Android technology and is tightly integrated with the Gemini AI assistant. That said, our first-hand impressions show that Googlebooks are phone-first, not AI-first and their most compelling feature is actually native support for fully isolated Linux environments.

MATCHES ALL-TIME LOW PRICE **Anker 140W USB-C splitter cable** View Deal What do you do when you need to charge two devices? One option is to use a multi-port charger with multiple cables. Another option is to use a single USB charger with a single cable—like this Anker 2-in-1 USB-C splitter cable that’s now on sale for $15.99, matching its lowest price ever. On one end, it has a typical USB-C connector. Plug that end into any USB-C power adapter, ideally one that can put out up to 140 watts because that’s how much this cable can support. The other end is split into two USB-C connectors for two different devices, like a phone and a tablet, or a phone and a laptop, or a phone and earbuds. You get my drift. The cable itself is 6 feet long, with the main end stretching 5 feet and the split end up to 1 foot (though it can be shortened with the cable slider). That’s long enough to plug into a wall and not be tethered too closely, and two people can charge phones while still using them comfortably. Just be careful when packing it away, as cables of this length can tangle. One caveat worth knowing is that the power delivery isn’t so straightforward. Only when charging a single device does the cable actually deliver the full 140W it’s capable of. When charging two devices and one uses more than 100W, the cable maxes out at 130W. If neither device uses more than 100W, the cable only maxes out at 100W. The first device plugged in gets the higher share.

MATCHES LOWEST PRICE **Ring Indoor Security Camera** View Deal There’s one thing that’ll give you peace of mind when you’re on vacation, at work, or on a grocery run—a security camera that watches over your home and lets you tune in remotely. Right now, Amazon is selling its Ring Indoor Cam for just $25 instead of $50. Not only is that half price, but it matches the lowest price it’s ever been. At half off, the Ring Indoor Cam is a fantastic value. It records 1080p video, it’s easy to install and set up, and it has all the basic features you’d need in an indoor cam. It’ll walk you through setup via the Ring app, and once it’s set up, you can check in at any time via Live View no matter where you are. This Ring camera allows you to stay in the loop day and night, providing clear video and audio around the clock, plus push alerts when motion is detected so you know right away when something amiss happens. And if you spot your dog chewing on your slippers, for example, you can use the Two-Way Talk feature to issue a “Drop it!” command. It does require power, so you’ll have to place it somewhere in the vicinity of a power outlet (a 6.5-feet cable is included, but you can also buy a 10-feet alternative that’s sold separately). But that’s not a bad trade-off considering how little you’re paying for it. For just $25, the Ring Indoor Cam is an easy pick if you want simple, dependable home monitoring without the hassle.

Microsoft recently released optional out-of-band update KB5002907, intended to bring outdated versions of Microsoft 365 Apps back in sync and continuing to receive updates. However, Microsoft quickly halted the rollout of this update due to a serious issue. This update was for Windows PCs on which Microsoft 365 Apps were more than 90 days out of date and either on the Current Channel or Monthly Enterprise Channel. Installing the update would allow those apps to be updated again and switch to a more current update channel. KB5002907 was available via Windows Update. It wasn’t an update for the Windows operating system, nor was it installed automatically. It could only be installed manually. If you installed it, you may have noticed some issues afterward. Here’s what Microsoft says in an updated note for the patch: > Microsoft has received reports of unexpected results on some devices running Office 2016 or Office 2019 after this update is installed. This update was intended to address issues with devices not receiving updates to Microsoft 365 Apps. As part of the repair action applied by this update, some devices were left without functioning versions of Microsoft 365 Apps or Office. To prevent additional devices from being affected, we have paused the rollout of this update. If your device is affected, use the appropriate resolution: > > * In some cases, the product may appear to be unlicensed. Users should reactivate their purchased product: Activate Office for Windows > * In rare cases, the product may have been removed. Users should reinstall their purchased product: Download and install or reinstall Office 2021, Office 2019, or Office 2016 > > > If the issue persists after you complete the appropriate resolution steps, contact Microsoft Support. When you contact support, describe the issue and the steps you have already completed so that we can connect you with the appropriate assistance. A Microsoft spokesperson confirmed the paused rollout to BleepingComputer: “We are aware of these reports and have paused the update while we investigate. Additional customer guidance will be communicated via appropriate channels.”

Remember back when Windows 11 first came out and Microsoft gave everyone a free pass to upgrade? On the surface, it was a generous move; in actuality, it was a ploy to lure us away from Windows 10. #### get windows 11 pro for cheap ### Windows 11 Pro Price When Reviewed: 199.99 Best Prices Today: $59 at PCWorld Store – Win 11 Pro Upgrade Only | $79.99 at PCWorld Software Store Obviously, if Microsoft was giving something away, it was going to come with a catch. In this case, it’s all the ads that are being added to Windows 11, going above and beyond what we’ve seen in previous versions. Fortunately, we can disable those ads… for now, at least. If you’re fed up with all the ads and recommendations throughout Windows 11, there are plenty of ways to push back. Here are the settings you need to turn off to ditch Windows’ worst ads. > **Further reading:** 13 important Windows settings to change immediately ## Shut down Start menu ads Jon Martindale / IDG The Start menu has been fertile ground for Microsoft’s “Recommended” apps since Windows 10, and it’s alive and well in the latest builds of Windows 11. Fortunately, it’s straightforward to turn off. Navigate to **Settings > Personalization > Start**, then look for the option titled “Show recommendations for tips, shortcuts, new apps, and more” and toggle it to **Off**. ## Ditch Windows notification ads Jon Martindale / IDG I’m not a fan of notifications. I have enough trouble concentrating on tasks day to day without pop-ups and alerts distracting me — and the last thing I need are ads disguised as important notifications. Let’s turn those off, shall we? And while we’re at it, let’s remove those pesky full-screen “Finish setting up” prompts, too. Navigate to **Settings > System > Notifications**. Scroll down to the bottom where you’ll find **Additional settings**. Click to expand those options, then uncheck the boxes for “Get tips and suggestions when using Windows,” “Suggest ways to get the most out of Windows and finish setting up this device,” and “Show the Windows welcome experience after updates and when signed in to show what’s new and suggested.” Phew, what a mouthful. ## Stop suggested ads in Settings Jon Martindale / IDG Fed up with Microsoft’s “suggestions” for Copilot and other features in the Settings app? You can turn those off, too. Navigate to **Settings > Privacy and Security > General**, then toggle the option for “Show me suggested content in the Settings app” to **Off**. ## Remove File Explorer ads Jon Martindale / IDG OneDrive may not be one of our top-pick cloud backup services, but it’s still pretty good and affordable. The problem is, being bombarded with ads for it can be a huge turn-off — and if you’re like me, you’re probably sick of those ads in File Explorer. Here’s how to switch those off. Open File Explorer and select the three-dot menu in the actions toolbar. Select**Options** followed by the **View** tab. Scroll down to near the bottom of the list and look for “Show sync provider notifications.” Make sure it’s unchecked, then select **OK**. ## Eliminate widget feed ads Jon Martindale / IDG If you make use of Windows’ widgets, you know all too well that they often try to push you towards breaking stories, stock updates, and other content that may be irrelevant to you. To disable those, you can either turn off specific feeds or disable widgets entirely. To remove an individual widget feed, select the widget icon at the bottom-left of your screen, then select the cog icon at the top-right of the widget window. Select **Show or hide feeds** and switch the feed(s) to **Off**. To remove widgets entirely, right-click on your taskbar and select **Taskbar settings**. Then, toggle “Widgets” to **Off**. ## Disable manufacturer bloatware ads Joel Lee / IDG If you bought your PC or laptop from a major manufacturer like Dell, Lenovo, or HP, there’s a good chance it came preloaded with unsolicited apps (“bloatware”) you don’t want or need. If you don’t want to uninstall them altogether, you can at least cut down on notification spam. Navigate to **Settings > System > Notifications** and look through the list of apps until you find any named after your PC’s manufacturer. Disable those ads by toggling those notifications to **Off**. Sometimes they give their apps names that are less obviously identifying. If you spot any suspicious or unusual apps, do a quick Google search on them to see if they’re worth disabling. ## Block lock-screen and background ads Jon Martindale / IDG The Windows Spotlight feature dynamically changes your background and lock screen images to keep your desktop feeling fresh and interesting. But Microsoft has occasionally shown ads for various games with it, and the related tips can be a little ad-like at times, too. Unfortunately, the only way to stop that for now is to turn off Windows Spotlight. If you’d rather resort to static images that you change yourself, here’s what you can do: Navigate to **Settings > Personalization > Background**. Then, next to **Personalize your background** , use the drop-down menu to select anything other than Windows Spotlight. Also, navigate to **Settings > Personalization > Lock Screen**. Then, next to **Personalize your Lock Screen** , use the drop-down menu to choose any option that isn’t Windows Spotlight. ## Hide the highlight ads in Windows search Jon Martindale / IDG Ah, Windows search, how I love and loathe thee. You’re good at finding apps as long as I type them out correctly, but I don’t need you to show me ads and suggested shopping content. Let’s turn that off. Navigate to **Settings > Privacy and security > Search permissions**. Scroll down until you find “Show search highlights” and toggle it **Off**. ## No more personalized ads Jon Martindale / IDG While all the above settings will prevent Microsoft from serving you as many ads within Windows itself, they won’t stop the operating system from collecting your data to serve you personalized ads in the future. You can put a stop to that now so that even if an ad does somehow get through, it won’t be highly targeted to you and your activity. Disable Windows device usage tracking by navigating to **Settings > Personalization > Device Usage** and toggling **Off** all the options there. You can also disable further gathering of diagnostic data by navigating to **Settings > Privacy and security > General** and toggling all the options there to **Off** as well. **Further reading:** All the ways Windows 11 collects your data

BEST PRICE ALL YEAR **Samsung ViewFinity S9 Ultrawide Monitor** View Deal Prime Day is a week away and we’re already seeing impressive discounts for tech gear we’ve been eyeing. Right now, Samsung’s impressive 49-inch ultrawide monitor is on sale for $799.98, a whopping $400 discount that matches the best price it’s been all year. What’s interesting is that high-end ultrawides like this are typically marketed towards gamers, but this one is a business-class model. You’re looking at double HDMI plus DisplayPort inputs, along with Ethernet and a USB-C port with 90W of passthrough charging, making it a great home office monitor to pair with a laptop. The built-in KVM switch means you can hook up multiple PCs to this monitor and easily switch between them, using the same keyboard and mouse as you switch. With its 5120×1440 resolution, you’re getting tons of screen space—that’s equivalent to two 1440p monitors side by side, but without an annoying bezel down the middle. That’s enough screen real estate to dock multiple apps on screen for maximum productivity, and the 120Hz refresh rate will feel responsive and smooth as you work or watch Netflix. Can you use it for gaming? Sure, but you’ll need a powerful machine to push high frame rates at this resolution, and the 120Hz refresh rate might not be enough if you’re a hardcore gamer. Meanwhile, the VA panel lacks the ultra-fast response times you’d want for twitchy games. This is a monitor that’s designed mainly for productivity but can support casual gaming after hours; it’s not primarily for gamers. Huge 49-inch ultrawides don’t come cheap, especially not from a premium brand like Samsung. Getting this ViewFinity S95UC for just $799.99 is a real deal, and one of the better early October Prime Day deals. If you’re interested in an ultrawide but would rather one that’s more affordable, check out PCWorld’s picks for the best ultrawide monitors.

Monitor placement is key to a healthy posture at your desk, whether for work or gaming. If the monitor is too far, too close, too high, too low, or tilted at the wrong angle, you _will_ develop posture-related problems at some point—like eye strain, fatigue, back pain, or more severe issues like herniated disks and pinched nerves. As someone with chronic back issues who works at a desk all day, I take my workstation setup seriously. I switched to a standing desk and sometimes even use an under-desk treadmill, plus I incorporate all kinds of other desk-related health tips and habits. I know first-hand what can happen when I neglect these things. Proper monitor placement is up there as a top priority. Here’s what I’ve learned over the years and what I do with my monitors now for best comfort and posture while working and gaming. ## Center it, straight ahead of you Whether you have a single monitor or multiples, keep them as centered in front of you as possible. You want to spend the majority of your PC time looking straight forward—not to the side, where you’ll place undue strain on your neck. A neutral, face-forward position. This guy would have to keep his head on a swivel.Esten Erbol / Unsplash If you have multiple monitors, of course they can’t _all_ be perfectly centered. In that case, just make sure you aren’t turning your head to extreme angles. You can cut down on horizontal spanning by using a vertical monitor or stacking your monitors vertically. Just be careful you aren’t craning your neck, wherever it ends up. ## Obey the rule of thirds We all know staring down at a phone all day is bad for our necks and backs, so why do the same with a monitor? Don’t do what every stock image laptop user appears to do, looking down at a 45-degree angle to the laptop in their lap—you’re begging for pain and posture issues. The same is true for the PC monitor that’s ahead of you. Instead, raise your monitor so that your eye level falls somewhere between the top edge of the display and one-third down the screen. This way your eyes will naturally rest at a slightly downward angle while still being able to see the majority of the screen. You can look up or down every once in a while, but try to avoid it for extended periods. _**Note:** It’s a little different if you wear bifocals. In that case, you’ll need to align the monitor with the close-distance portion of your lenses: place the monitor a little lower and tilt it upwards at the right angle._ My neck hurts just looking at this picture.Maxim Ilyahov / Unsplash This also means taking ownership of what’s on your screen, too. If you’re working on a document or reading a website, scroll in a way that puts your subject (e.g., the paragraph of text you’re reading) towards the top half of the screen. In doing this, you’ll keep your gaze at a good height and prevent your neck from craning uncomfortably. Can’t adjust your monitor high enough? You have options—like a monitor riser or monitor arm—that give you more control over the height and positioning of your display. If you want to take it a step further, you can also consider an adjustable standing desk in conjunction with those. ## Keep your monitor at arm’s length For standard-sized monitors in the 21 inches to 27 inches range, you want your display to be about an arm’s length away. Stretch your arm out in front of you (being careful with the angle so you aren’t mistaken for a wayward tech CEO) and see if your fingers can barely brush the screen. If they can—or if they’re close—then that’s a fair distance. For larger displays, it’s OK to sit back even further. You may want to adjust your monitor’s scaling and/or resolution if you find it difficult to read text on the screen. The end goal here is eye comfort. Make sure you aren’t sitting too close or too far, else you may experience eye strain. ## Lean back, lean back Your monitor’s tilt functionality is useful even if you don’t wear bifocals. Indeed, due to the way our eyes naturally gaze downwards, having a light 10- or 15-degree upward tilt is what most experts consider ideal for maximum eye comfort with monitors. If your monitor stand doesn’t tilt, try a monitor arm. The one pictured here is the MountUp MU0004 Single Monitor Arm. Matthew Smith / Foundry If you do wear bifocals, consider a more extreme tilt. The right amount will depend on your eyes, your glasses, and the monitor you’re using. Fiddle around and get it comfortable. If you get it to where neither your neck nor eyes feel strained at the end of the day, you did it. ## Minimize glare from lights It’s not just about _how_ you position your monitor. It’s also important _where_ you position it, at least in relation to the light sources around you. Glare is a real problem for picture quality and quick comprehension of what you’re seeing on the screen, but it’s _also_ something that can lead to eye strain. The harder it is to discern what you’re looking at, the more your eyes struggle to figure it out. Avoid facing your monitor directly towards windows or bright lights—this advice is for _all_ monitor types, but _especially_ glossy screens. If it’s unavoidable, consider using blinds, curtains, or working/gaming with the lights off to avoid undue eye strain. Matte coatings can also help reduce harsh reflections and strain-inducing glares. ## Other helpful tips for desk sitters **Keyboard and mouse also matter.** Keeping your elbows, forearms, and wrists at a neutral angle can make a big difference and prevent repetitive strain. Use a keyboard tray if you need to. Whatever it takes, position your peripherals and accessories to be at a height where your elbows can rest at approximately 90 degrees. **Look away, often.** Eye strain can happen just from staring at a screen for too long. Take a break every 20 to 30 minutes and look at something in the distance, giving your eyes a moment to relax. There’s the oft-cited 20-20-20 rule, which means take a break every 20 minutes to look 20 feet away for 20 seconds. But even just making a cup of tea or gazing out the window for a minute is fine as a more casual approach. **Get moving.** Sitting or standing still for too long is unhealthy, period. Try to move around every hour. Go make a drink, shuffle and dance, shake out your arms and legs, drop and do squats and stretches—whatever works for you. The human body was meant to move. ## You’ll reap the benefits in time Repositioning your monitor and getting use to a new setup isn’t easy, I know. Making any of the above recommended changes will likely feel weird for a while—or even uncomfortable. You may need a few days, weeks, or months for your body to adapt. Stick with it, though, and feel free to make adjustments every few days as needed. It’ll be worth it, I promise. Once you’ve gone through that awkward period of discomfort, you should find that your posture and pains improve with time. Combine it with stretches and exercises and you may find your issues go away entirely. In short, taking care of your monitor placement is taking care of yourself. **Further reading:** These standing desks accessories are worth it

**TL;DR:** Tired of renewing Microsoft 365 every year? Get Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus for Windows for $49.97 (reg. $249.99) and own it outright during this limited-time September Flash Sale. A perpetual license means you pay once and keep the apps on your PC for good. Pick up Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus for $49.97 (reg. $249.99) and skip the annual bill. ### The full Office lineup, minus the renewals Word and Excel handle documents and spreadsheets. PowerPoint builds presentations. Outlook manages email, calendar, and contacts in one place. OneNote keeps notes organized, and Access covers database work that lighter office suites can’t match. This version focuses on stability over constant feature churn. You get a refined interface with dark mode support, built-in security and compliance features, and advanced data analysis tools. Regular security updates continue for the supported lifecycle, and no Microsoft 365 subscription is needed. It’s Windows only, compatible with Windows 10 and 11. It won’t run on macOS. The license installs on one PC, is tied to that device rather than your Microsoft account, and isn’t transferable. Redeem your code within 7 days of purchase. More than 10,000 buyers have already grabbed this one, and it holds a 4.8/5 star rating from 319 verified reviews. Get Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus for Windows for $49.97 (reg. $249.99) during this September Flash Sale, running through Sept. 29. Microsoft Office 2024 Professional Plus for Windows: Lifetime LicenseSee Deal StackSocial _prices subject to change._

**TL;DR:** Get lifetime access to PDF Agile for $39.99 instead of signing up for an ongoing Adobe Acrobat subscription. Adobe Acrobat may be the familiar name for working with PDFs, but it’s far from the only tool available. PDF Agile offers another way to handle everyday PDF tasks without adding another recurring software expense. The all-in-one editor normally costs $119, but it’s currently available for $39.99 with lifetime access. PDF Agile is simple and easy to use. It can edit text, images, or scanned files directly, and convert between PDF and Microsoft Office formats without losing your fonts or formatting. If you work with a lot of documents, there are tools to merge files, split them up, reorder pages, crop layouts, and even reduce file size without sacrificing quality. OCR is also included, so you can extract text from images or scanned documents with just a few clicks. The app includes a full set of annotation tools like highlighting, freehand drawing, and comment bubbles, along with features to redact sensitive content or add electronic signatures. You can also use slideshow mode to present your PDFs without having to convert them into PowerPoint. PDF Agile runs on Windows, and each license works on two devices. Once activated, your access is permanent, with updates included and no recurring fees. If you don’t want to pay monthly for Adobe Acrobat, this is your chance. For a limited time, it’s only $39.99 (MSRP $119) to get PDF Agile for life. PDF Agile Premium: All-in-One Lifetime Subscription (Windows & Mac)See Deal StackSocial _prices subject to change._

October Prime Day (officially known as “Prime Big Deal Days”) is coming next week! If you missed out on June’s Prime Day, this is your chance to snag a bunch of stuff on sale—hopefully stuff that’s already in your cart, waiting for you to pull the trigger. Prime Big Deal Days runs Tuesday, October 6th to Wednesday, October 7th. But if you have cash to spend _right now_ and you want to score some early deals ahead of the big event, here are some of the coolest tech deals I’ve spotted in the days leading up. ## Deals at a glance * **Best cable deal:** Ugreen 100W USB-C Cable (2-pack) for $8.99 (31% off) * **Best smartwatch deal:** Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 for $245 (18% off) * **Best mini PC deal:** Acemagic M5 Mini PC for $563.97 (37% off) * **Best docking station deal:** Anker 14-in-1 Docking Station for $169.99 (37% off) * **Best robot vacuum deal:** iRobot Roomba 115X for $139.99 (56% off) * **Best streaming device deal:** Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Select for $17.99 (64% off) * **Best power bank deal:** Baseus Picogo MagSafe Power Bank for $34.16 (51% off) * **Best wireless charging station deal:** Anker 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station for $139.98 (39% off) * **Best security camera deal:** EufyCam C37 for $99.99 (23% off) * **Best wireless headphones deal:** Beats Studio Pro for $169.95 (43% off) ## Ugreen 100W USB-C Cable (2-pack) Ugreen ### _Now $8.99 (31% off)_ **Who is this for?** These USB-C cables are built for anyone juggling multiple devices that charge via USB-C—so that’s pretty much _everyone_. Rated for up to 100W, these can fast-charge most non-gaming laptops, plus they’re handy for phones, tablets, and all your smaller gadgets. **Why is this deal good?** At $8.99 for two cables, this is the best price we’ve seen in months, allowing you to stock up on cables and never worry again that you’ve grabbed an older, slower cable. What else costs you only $5 a pop and offers this much day-to-day utility? Get the Ugreen USB-C cable 2-pack at Amazon ## Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 Samsung/Amazon ### _Now $245 (18% off)_ **Who is this for?** The Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 is a strong fit for health-conscious Android users who want more than a basic fitness tracker. If you’re someone who takes sleep seriously (or wants to), has a running routine, or needs help monitoring blood pressure regularly, this watch delivers on all fronts and then some. **Why is this deal good?** At $245, down from $300, you’re saving $55 on a watch that typically sticks closer to its MSRP. This pre-Prime Day discount is a fantastic opportunity to save big on a feature-packed smartwatch. Get the Samsung Galaxy Watch 8 at Amazon ## Acemagic M5 Mini PC AceMagic ### _Now $563.97 (37% off)_ **Who is this for?** The Acemagic M5 mini PC is aimed at anyone who wants plenty of processing power in a tiny format. With an Intel Core 5 CPU, 24GB of RAM, and a sizeable 512GB SSD, this tiny machine can handle your daily workload easily—and it won’t choke on Windows 11. The RAM and storage are upgradeable too, meaning you can make it even more powerful in a few years (if hardware prices ever come down). **Why is this a good deal?** Ahead of Prime Day, this $900 mini PC is a steal with the $250+ in discounts via promos that brings its price lower than you can see on the product page. The configuration is great and the fact that you can enjoy a triple display setup with such a tiny PC is amazing. Get the Acemagic M5 at Amazon ## Anker 14-in-1 Docking Station Anker ### _Now $169.99 (37% off)_ **Who is this for?** This Anker 14-in-1 dock is built for anyone who needs a single hub to manage multiple monitors, charge several devices at once, and move data fast. It looks sleek on any desk while providing an easy way to plug all your gear into your laptop even if you’re stuck with a single USB-C port. This dock features four USB-C ports, five USB-A ports, two HDMI 2.0 ports, an Ethernet port, and an audio jack. **Why is this deal good?** At $169.99, down from $269.99, you’re saving $100 on a premium dock that’ll transform your laptop workstation. The 160W total output across four simultaneous charging ports is a game-changer if you’re always juggling multiple wireless devices. Get the Anker 14-in-1 docking station at Amazon ## iRobot Roomba 115X iRobot ### _Now $139.99 (56% off)_ **Who is this for?** The iRobot Roomba 115X is a strong fit for anyone who wants a little bit of extra help keeping the floors in tip-top shape even when they’re busy. It has 15,000 Pa suction and a microfiber mop pad that tackles both dry debris and light floor smudges in one pass. Mop pads aren’t the best robotic mopping option out there, but better options would cost you about 10 times more. **Why is this deal good?** This $180 discount slashes the price of this Roomba by more than half—an excellent budget-friendly price to pay for a vacuum and mop 2-in-1 helper. With four suction levels plus app and voice control, this early Prime Day deal is a smart buy. Get the iRobot Roomba 115X at Amazon ## Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K Select Amazon ### _Now $17.99 (64% off)_ **Who is this for?** The Fire TV Stick 4K Select is a great pick for anyone who wants to upgrade a basic TV with streaming capabilities at a dirt-cheap price. It’s the cheapest 4K streaming stick in Amazon’s Fire TV lineup, granting access to the likes of Netflix, Prime Video, and Disney+ in glorious 4K. All you need is an HDMI port. **Why is this deal good?** You’re getting all that for just $18! Given that Amazon recently bumped up the prices of all its Fire TV devices (citing the global RAM and storage shortage that’s impacting all consumer electronics), this is an immense deal. Get the Fire TV Stick 4K Select at Amazon ## Baseus Picogo MagSafe Power Bank Baseus ### _Now $34.16 (51% off)_ **Who is this for?** This ultra-slim Baseus Picogo Magsafe power bank is the perfect choice for iPhone users or Android users with MagSafe cases. This power bank is just 0.5 inches thin, so it’s easy to slip into a bag or pocket, making it ideal for commuters, travelers, and anyone else who’s worried about phone battery life throughout the day. **Why is this deal good?** The Baseus Picogo already features a 46% discount on page, but there’s an extra price cut you can redeem at checkout, bringing the price down further. Considering the 10,000mAh capacity, 15W wireless charging, razor-thin profile, and fast recharge with USB-C cable, that’s a steal of a deal. Get the Baseus Picogo MagSafe power bank at Amazon ## Anker 3-in-1 Wireless Charging Station Simon Jary ### _Now $139.98 (39% off)_ **Who is this for?** This 3-in-1 wireless charging station from Anker is the absolute perfect purchase for any Apple user who wants to wirelessly charge their iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods at once. No risk of cable tangles, and it sits nicely on your desk and keeps all your gear organized in one place. The charging station also comes with temperature control to protect the health of your batteries in the long run. **Why is this a good deal?** At $139.98, down from $230, this is the best price we’ve seen for this model outside of official sales events. You get 25W charging, active cooling, a live HD touchscreen, and a 65W USB-C adapter included in the bundle. Get the Anker Prime 3-in-1 Charging Station at Amazon ## EufyCam C37 Security Camera Eufy ### _Now $99.99 (23% off)_ **Who is this for?** The EufyCam C37 is the outdoor security camera for anyone who needs their first home surveillance device and doesn’t want to worry about wiring. The detachable solar panel keeps this camera running without direct power, while the 360-degree pan and tilt with AI auto-tracking lets you keep an eye on your entire yard easily. **Why is this deal good?** The $99.99 price tag we’re seeing ahead of October Prime Day is the best price this camera has had so far, making this an easy buy. For the price, you’re getting 4K color night vision, solar power, and zero monthly fees. What more could you want? Get the EufyCam C37 at Amazon ## Beats Studio Pro Headphones Beats ### _**Now $169.95 (43% off)**_ **Who is this for?** The Beats Studio Pro is for anyone who wants to be able to block out the world with active noise cancellation, but it’s especially perfect for commuters, remote workers, and frequent travelers. These headphones have one-touch pairing with both Apple and Android devices, and it has a transparency mode that disables noise cancellation and lets you hear what’s going on around you on demand. **Why is this deal good?** At just $169.95, the Beats Studio Pro have the best discount we’ve seen in months. You’re getting 40 hours of battery life, fast charging, and personalized Spatial Audio. If you’ve been looking for a pair of premium headphones at a great price, well, you found it. Get the Beats Studio Pro at Amazon

NEW LOWEST PRICE **SCUF Envision Pro Wireless V2 Controller** View Deal Amazon is currently selling the SCUF Envision Pro Wireless V2 at a nice discount: normally $179.99, it’s now available for $139.99. That’s a new all-time low price for a wireless gaming controller that boasts some killer features, with one caveat—it’s PC only. This is the 2025 revised version of the SCUF Envision Pro Wireless, specifically designed for PC gaming. It offers a total of 11 configurable inputs, including four rear paddles, two side SAX buttons, and five G-keys on the front. Those G-keys can be programmed to Windows functions, keyboard shortcuts, or macros. Corsair’s iCUE software can also be used to customize key assignments, stick and trigger profiles, and RGB lighting. For shooter gamers, the switchable Instant Triggers are a nice feature. A switch allows you to toggle between normal analog trigger travel and short trigger action that feels like a mouse click. The ABXY buttons and D-pad also feature mechanical Omron switches. This controller can be connected either wirelessly via Corsair Slipstream or via USB-C cable. According to SCUF, the built-in battery lasts for approximately 19 hours with typical use. It weighs around 285 grams, features a 3.5mm audio jack, and has a wireless range of up to 45 feet. Note that the package includes a wireless dongle, a 6-foot USB-C cable, two extra thumbsticks, and covers for the SAX buttons. **Important:** Unlike many Xbox and/or PlayStation controllers, the Envision Pro isn’t a multi-platform controller. SCUF lists Windows 10 and Windows 11 as compatible systems, while macOS and iOS are explicitly not supported. This model is therefore not a good pick for console gamers. If you’re exclusively a PC gamer and you want a premium wireless controller, this price drop is hard to ignore. Save $40 and get the SCUF Envision Pro V2 for its cheapest ever price—and that’s for the White colorway. If you don’t mind the less conventional Steel Gray option, you can save an additional $20.

Time and again, Microsoft has to issue fixes for Windows 11 because its monthly updates cause unexpected damage. But just how prone to errors is Windows 11 really, given the number of updates that constantly cause new problems? And how robust is Windows 10 in comparison? According to Windows Latest, which analyzed all the Windows updates released since January 2026, the results are unsurprising: Windows 10 is significantly more stable and reliable than Windows 11. Most recently, the Windows 11 September update broke USB audio and broke the File History feature, but it’s been a monthly pattern. August broke printers and PDFs, July broke certain Dell PCs, June broke startup and BitLocker recovery, all the way back to January. Of the nine months that have passed this year, Windows Latest found that eight of them involved at least one major issue or regression. Windows 10 hasn’t been flawless this year. For example, a June update caused a BitLocker user lockout problem, echoing a similar issue that flared up back in November 2025. But on the whole, it’s been noticeably more stable, with fewer system crashes and catastrophes. One big reason for Windows 10’s greater stability is that it no longer receives new features. Ever since support ended in October 2025, Microsoft has only been pushing out security updates for Windows 10, and only for users who enrolled in the Extended Security Updates (ESU) program. With fewer sweeping changes, it’s less likely to break. So anyone who’s satisfied with Windows 10’s feature set, has no interest in Copilot AI, and prioritizes stability over fancy new features and experiments is clearly better off with Windows 10. Meanwhile, if you’re on Windows 11 and you’re experiencing system instability or other unexpected issues after installing an update, it’s usually best to roll back the update and wait for future fixes. Windows 11 also has a feature called Known Issue Rollback (KIR) that can revert buggy non-security features without uninstalling the whole update.

When AI PCs first hit the market back in early 2024, Microsoft led the initiative with its hyped-up Copilot+ PC branding. The “Copilot+ PC” label was reserved for Windows machines that met minimum specs for running local AI features: an NPU with 40+ TOPS, at least 16GB of RAM, and at least 256GB of SSD storage, plus Windows 11 24H2 or later. But it seems the end is nigh for the whole Copilot+ PC movement. Windows Central reports that Microsoft’s newest 12-inch Surface Pro and 13-inch Surface Laptop, which were recently showcased at the Snapdragon Summit, both meet the hardware requirements for the Copilot+ PC badge… yet neither of them flaunts it. Jaime Marrero Microsoft’s Surface chief, Brett Ostrom, says that the two devices will not be referred to as Copilot+ devices, which would be a strange move if Microsoft intended to keep pushing the label. Meanwhile, Qualcomm’s SVP of compute and gaming, Kedar Kondap, reportedly told Windows Central that the Copilot+ PC badge is unlikely to be used in the future. The writing has been on the wall for a while now. Windows 11’s Copilot+ AI features were never well-received, feeling like early tech demos when they first launched and newer advancements failing to catch on. A year after debut, we explored all the ways Copilot+ PCs still needed to improve if the movement was going to succeed. That didn’t quite happen. Late last year, Microsoft was seemingly pushing all Windows 11 PCs to become AI PCs regardless of whether or not they qualify as Copilot+ PCs. Then earlier this year, Microsoft exercised deep reflection and came to the conclusion that maybe the right move is to pull back on its AI ambitions in Windows 11 and scale back on AI integration. To add insult to injury, reports suggest that no one is using Microsoft’s Copilot AI. Put it all together and it almost seems inevitable that Copilot+ would be sunset, if not this year then next. Note, however, that Ostrum didn’t say Microsoft is abandoning AI altogether: “[The new Surface Pro and Laptop] are not called Copilot+ PCs, [but] they do meet all the requirements of our previous bar for what Copilot+ devices are. We still lean into the narrative around AI on the edge and being able to have a hybrid solution out there.”

Our mobile phone cameras are taking increasingly better photos and videos, and this isn’t all good news. One of the consequences is that the files themselves are taking up more and more space, and this can become a problem for anyone who saves them on their computer. This is because computer storage capacity hasn’t grown at the same rate. On the contrary, many computers are now sold with fairly small hard drives, which means they quickly fill up. A simple way to save space is to delete all unnecessary duplicate files. Whether they’re photos, videos, or something else, it’s easy to end up saving the same large file in several different places, and this sometimes happens automatically if you’ve enabled various types of backup and synchronization. Finding duplicates is a tedious chore for a human, but much simple for a computer. A handy tool that does the job is called CCleaner. ## What is CCleaner? CCleaner is a popular computer cleaning program. It has been around for more than 20 years and has millions of users worldwide. The program can clean and optimize your computer in various ways, but the feature for finding duplicate files is one of the most useful. CCleaner is what’s known as a “freemium” program, which means the basic version is free, but there’s a paid version for those who want more features. It’s called CCleaner Professional and costs around $30 a year. The free version is sufficient for simply searching for duplicates, but it’s important to be aware that the manufacturer is quite aggressive in its marketing. The program displays warnings such as “You have an urgent performance problem,” but this is mainly a way of promoting the company’s paid service. As a general rule, you can ignore the warnings and instead focus on removing the duplicates. Here’s how to do it. ## 1. Install Foundry You can download CCleaner via **_the Microsoft Store_**. Using the search field on your PC, type **CCleaner** , click _‘Install’_ and __ accept the warning. If you prefer a standard installer, go to www.ccleaner.com and select _‘Free Download_.’ ## 2. Upgrade Foundry If you have an older version, you may need to upgrade to the latest version, called CCleaner 7.x, yourself. Depending on which version you have, you can do this via ‘ _Check for updates_ ’ in the bottom right-hand corner. You can also do this via _‘Settings_ ’ > _‘Updates_.’ ## 3. Start Foundry To start, open CCleaner, click _‘Duplicate Finder’_ in __ the left-hand menu and select _‘Start Now_.’ You can scan your entire computer by clicking _‘Drives’_ and selecting a drive. You can also go to _‘Select specific folders,’_ then _‘Browse’_ to, for example, scan only your Documents folder. ## 4. Delete all duplicates Foundry Start the scan by clicking _‘Scan_.’ Once it’s finished, all duplicates will be displayed in a list organized by file type. To remove all duplicates, click _‘Bulk Selection’_ and choose _‘Keep the oldest files’_ or _‘Keep the newest files_.’ ## 5. Or just a few Foundry Deleting everything can be risky, so you can instead select _‘Deselect All’_ and manually select the files you want to delete. When you’re done, in all cases click _‘Move to Bin’_ (or _‘Delete’_ if you don’t want to be able to recover the file). ## 6. View file Foundry You can find out more about a file by tapping the three dots on the right and selecting _‘View information_.’ Use the link under _‘Location’_ to open the folder where the file is stored. You can also delete the file by selecting _‘Move to Bin’ or ‘Delete’_ (as in step 5). ## 7. Get more power Foundry The Duplicate Finder feature in CCleaner is simple and stripped-back. If you need a more powerful tool, Alldup is a popular free alternative. It has many advanced features for searching through large numbers of files, and offers greater scope for customizing it to your requirements. However, its interface may seem off-putting to inexperienced users. To install it, go to www.alldup.de/en and select ‘ _Download_ ’ from the top menu. Click on _‘Alldup (Freeware)’_ to open the download page. Click on the top _‘Download’_ button and choose to save the file to a suitable location on your hard drive. Double-clicking the file will launch a self-explanatory installation program.

MATCHES LOWEST PRICE **Amazon Smart Plug** View Deal If you’ve ever complained about getting off the couch just to turn off the lamp across the room, then this smart plug from Amazon might be just what you need. It’s now on sale for $12.98 at Amazon, half off its original price and matching the lowest it’s ever been. This tiny little device works without any complicated setup. You don’t need a smart home hub, and you don’t have to wire it up. Just plug it into any power outlet, open the Alexa app, follow a few steps to get it paired and operational, and you’re good. From there, you can turn it on and off from your phone or with voice, effectively controlling whatever you plug into it. “Hey Alexa, turn off the lamp!” and it’s off. This smart plug works nicely with all sorts of household devices that have a physical on/off switch, from lamps to fans to coffee makers. You can even set timers for holiday lights or build schedules to make it look like you’re home even when you’re away on vacation. It’s also possible to create routines that string together multiple smart home tasks. For instance, you can say “Alexa, good night!” and have it mapped to cut off power to the smart plug, turn off your outdoor light, set your morning alarm, and so on—all with a single command. The Amazon Smart Plug is a good first step for anyone who doesn’t own any smart devices yet but wants to dip their toes, but at its original $25 price, it was a hard ask. Now that it’s half off, it’s an easy buy.

Disney doesn’t seem to think too highly of its individual Disney+ and Hulu subscribers. That’s the only explanation for its latest price hikes, which largely eliminate any reason to pay for either service separately. Oh, Disney will still let you do it, but you’ll only be saving 50 cents per month versus the bundle of Disney+ and Hulu together. The a la carte route is a rip-off by design, intended to make Disney’s bundles look more attractive. If Disney had a little more respect for its customers, it would just end this charade and combine Disney+ and Hulu already. Instead, it’s made the cynical calculation that the appearance of a deal is better for business. ## Disney’s latest price hikes See if you can spot the pattern in Disney’s September 2026 price hikes: * **Disney+ (with ads):** $11.99 → $12.49/mo. * **Hulu (with ads):** $11.99 → $12.49/mo. * **Disney+ and Hulu bundle (with ads):** Still $12.99/mo. * **Disney+ (no ads):** $18.99 → $21.49/mo. * **Hulu (no ads):** $18.99 → $21.49/mo. * **Disney+ and Hulu bundle (no ads):** $19.99 → $21.99/mo. (If you’re bundling Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max, those prices quietly ticked upward this week as well. The trio rose from $19.99 to $21.99 per month with ads, or $32.99 to $34.99 without. The cost of Hulu + Live TV also rose from $90 to $100 per month when bundled with Disney+, Hulu on-demand, and ESPN Unlimited.) With the new pricing, paying for just Disney+ or Hulu is a mere 50 cents per month cheaper than combining them, down from $1 per month savings previously. While Disney has obviously been pushing customers toward bundles for some time, the latest price hikes squeeze the a la carte savings down to farcical levels. ## The Hulu-Disney+ merger plan Disney has already made clear its intention to mash Disney+ and Hulu into a single app. If you subscribe to both services, you can now access most of Hulu’s catalog through Disney+, with an option to sync your Hulu profile to port over your watchlist and viewing history. And while Disney has not committed to a timeline for discontinuing the Hulu app, it’s become an afterthought as the company pushes people over to the Disney+ experience. One employee told Business Insider‘s James Faris that Hulu’s app is now “on life support, with no active development.” Strangely, though, Disney has insisted that it will keep selling standalone Hulu and Disney+ subscriptions, even if Hulu’s app goes away. With the latest price hikes, you have to wonder why it would even bother. The charitable view is that Disney doesn’t want to push happy Hulu subscribers out of their current subscriptions and into an unfamiliar app. It also hasn’t ported Hulu’s live TV service into Disney+ yet, so it can’t wind down Hulu’s own app until that happens. But I propose a more cynical explanation: By keeping individual Hulu and Disney+ subscriptions around, Disney gets to crow about the savings you get from combining them. Never mind that those inflated savings come from pushing standalone prices to comical levels, or that bundle pricing continues to rise as well. Instead, Disney can point to the value of getting two services basically for the price of one. ## The bundle savings are a ruse Sadly this outcome was predictable a couple of years ago, as more streamers started bundling their services together. It was easy to see then how standalone prices would rise at much faster rate than bundled pricing, giving customers the feeling of getting a deal even if it’s on services they don’t really want. It’s similar to the playbook that Disney and others followed in their move to ad-supported streaming. While they initially pitched these plans as a way to bring down prices, all they really did was turn ad-free streaming into a bigger luxury, with prices rising at a faster rate than their ad-supported plans. If Disney wanted to do right by its standalone subscribers, it would combine Disney+ and Hulu and automatically grant customers access to both. The company would even waive the 50-cent surcharge for existing subscribers, at least until the next inevitable round of price hikes. The cost to the company would be minimal, and it would even serve the larger goal of moving more people into the Disney+ app, ultimately reducing operating expenses and subscriber churn. Instead, Disney has opted to treat its standalone customers like rubes, with a la carte pricing that serves no purpose beyond making its bundles look better. _Sign up for Jared’s Cord Cutter Weekly newsletter for more streaming TV advice._

For years, collaborating inside Office documents has been the foundation of Microsoft’s productivity scheme. But what’s the plan for the future? In a telling sign of the AI era, users may collaborate and share custom _apps_ they’ve created themselves in Copilot. Microsoft just announced changes to Copilot that realize a deeper vision of AI in the workplace. Some of it is cursory: The Copilot app will now have separate tabs for Home, Code, and agents, now called “Autopilots.” Other changes are more functional, such as a more comprehensive “Today” dashboard that outlines and even performs your to-do tasks. Finally, there are the conceptual changes: Copilot-coded apps and agents, which will require an as-yet undisclosed payment system. Today’s announcement marks the sort of vision statement that Microsoft is known for: Chart out the future, then release various elements of that vision over the subsequent months. You should see the Copilot app’s look-and-feel evolve throughout October. “Today” will launch in a private preview in October as well, Microsoft said. Let’s dig in a bit deeper… Microsoft’s new menu options for the Copilot application. Microsoft ## Today is full of tasks “Today” sounds like the most immediately useful tool in Microsoft’s new design, and that’s because you’ve seen iterations of it ever since Windows 10. For years, Microsoft has used what it knows about your inbox to offer a look at your meetings for the day and what you need to do to prepare for them. Outlook, for example, offers you a Copilot-generated “daily briefing” that highlights action items for you to respond to. (Click the Copilot button in the Outlook app to trigger this.) Mark Hachman / Foundry Like Copilot, Today will also prepare a summary of your day, but a more interactive one. Put another way, Copilot supplies a list of tasks for you to act upon. Today appears to take the next step and proactively perform them. “What’s really important about Today is it’s not just surfacing the work, it’s actually moving it forward,” Jacob Andreou, Microsoft’s executive vice president of Copilot, said in a prerecorded briefing. “So Today leverages Copilot to write the draft that needs to be sent. It actually proposes the change to your schedule when there is a conflict. And if there’s a thing that you forgot, it’ll surface it back to you but always with the context of what actually makes it important.” Microsoft’s Andreou demonstrates the Today functionality. Microsoft You’ll see the Today functionality appear in Outlook and Teams as well as in the “Home” tab in the redesigned Copilot. Will you want Microsoft’s Copilot responding on your behalf? After giving it some thought, maybe! I don’t respond to every email I receive, though I’m not sure what would be more well received, an AI-generated reply or no reply at all. ## Microsoft 365 within Copilot Until now, application vendors have used artificial intelligence to help human users navigate through a maze of tasks and functions, simplifying and automating them. Adobe first integrated AI into Photoshop and other Creative Cloud applications, while Copilot destroyed its human competition when calculating formulas from the Excel World Championship. Adobe later launched Prompt to Edit, using a prompt to control the Photoshop application. Microsoft is now following suit. Microsoft 365 running inside Copilot. Microsoft Adobe’s products have become integrated into ChatGPT: With the correct plugins, you can ask ChatGPT to perform a task, and the chatbot will access the right tool and execute the instructions. Likewise, you’ll now be able to ask Copilot to create a spreadsheet and it will, if all goes as planned, open an Excel spreadsheet and input the correct data. Microsoft says it’ll roll out Microsoft 365 within Copilot in the coming weeks to its “frontier” test program. ## Copilot Code: Now you’re a vibe coder “Code” will form the second tab of the redesigned Copilot, and it’s here where Microsoft sees “vibe coding” intersecting the productivity sphere. “To date, the unit of knowledge work has been the file: the document, the spreadsheet, the deck,” said Jared Spataro, chief marketing officer of AI at Work, at Microsoft. “Those aren’t going anywhere, but Code adds a fourth: small, purpose-built solutions anyone can create to get a job done. Learning to build them is becoming as basic a skill as writing a memo or modeling a budget.” Essentially, Code will be used to create a tracker, dashboard, automation, or a full-fledged app, and then run it safely online, Andreou added. Forget widgets: Microsoft promises Copilot’s Code will be able to spin up its own productivity apps. Microsoft That’s a pretty big statement for Microsoft to make, especially as it asks — well, anyone, really — to take their personal data, give it over to an algorithm, and then run it securely. Microsoft says that a “couple of frontier” customers are testing this, and broad availability will happen over the next couple of weeks. Still, there’s some big, interesting potential here. What happens when consumers start coding their own alternatives to paid software services? I’ve already started looking at this, and I’m sure others have, too. ## Autopilot will roam between Teams, Outlook and beyond It’s fair to say that Microsoft has been behind on rolling out support for agents — though whether its development efforts have truly lagged, or whether it has simply been more careful with how data is handled, is unclear. The other Copilot efforts, from Today to Code, feel like they straddle consumers and businesses. Autopilot, meanwhile, seems aimed at businesses first. The fundamental problem, however, is the same. “The hallmark of an amazing, long-running agent is autonomy and flexibility,” Andreou said. “It is their superpower. That is the same thing that makes them absolutely terrifying to an IT admin or somebody who’s trying to maintain a business posture.” An Autopilot will be an agent that you name, assign a role and tasks to, with its own memory, permissions, compute, and workspace, Microsoft says. Autopilots won’t “live” within any one application, but instead will roam between Teams, Outlook, and other Microsoft applications, governed by oversight and policy. And there could be hundreds, Microsoft believes. Microsoft hasn’t said anything about Autopilots arriving on Windows, or within the consumer or small business versions of Microsoft 365. Still, hundreds of autonomous agents crawling about your virtual workspace? With ongoing reports about how AI agents from OpenAI and others “broke containment” and hacked external companies, I’m still concerned about trading the benefits of automating certain productivity tasks with the risks of autonomous AIs pursuing their own direction. Hopefully, Microsoft has all of this locked down as it begins testing Autopilots at the end of this month. ## How is it all paid for? What Microsoft hasn’t said is how this will all be paid for. Some of this is clear: Basically, all of the chat capabilities within Copilot’s “Home” tab will be governed by user subscriptions like Microsoft 365. But the rest — Code and Autopilot, namely, plus models like Astra and Fable — will be charged using what Microsoft calls “usage-based billing.” “As AI capabilities and the ways people use them continue to evolve, we’re evolving Copilot pricing alongside them,” Spataro’s blog post said. Unfortunately, Microsoft hasn’t said what UBB will be based on, or how much it will actually cost. For now, features like Today and the integration of Microsoft 365 into Copilot feel like they can be realized in the short term. As for the rest? It will all depend on how much users want to pay. That’s why users continue to look hard at local AI versus running it in the cloud — for many, slow, “free” AI makes more sense than more powerful, paid tools.

MATCHES LOWEST PRICE **Ring Indoor Security Camera** View Deal There’s one thing that’ll give you peace of mind when you’re on vacation, at work, or on a grocery run—a security camera that watches over your home and lets you tune in remotely. Right now, Amazon is selling its Ring Indoor Cam for just $25 instead of $50. Not only is that half price, but it matches the lowest price it’s ever been. At half off, the Ring Indoor Cam is a fantastic value. It records 1080p video, it’s easy to install and set up, and it has all the basic features you’d need in an indoor cam. It’ll walk you through setup via the Ring app, and once it’s set up, you can check in at any time via Live View no matter where you are. This Ring camera allows you to stay in the loop day and night, providing clear video and audio around the clock, plus push alerts when motion is detected so you know right away when something amiss happens. And if you spot your dog chewing on your slippers, for example, you can use the Two-Way Talk feature to issue a “Drop it!” command. It does require power, so you’ll have to place it somewhere in the vicinity of a power outlet (a 6.5-feet cable is included, but you can also buy a 10-feet alternative that’s sold separately). But that’s not a bad trade-off considering how little you’re paying for it. For just $25, the Ring Indoor Cam is an easy pick if you want simple, dependable home monitoring without the hassle.

Opera hasn’t made much of a splash lately, with its most recent innovation being a new Paste Protect feature from July 2026 that blocks clipboard hijacking attacks. Indeed, it seems Opera is playing catch-up. The browser’s latest move is an improvement to its free, built-in VPN, according to this announcement post. As part of its “commitment to free, zero-friction browser privacy,” Opera wants to protect you while using your browser on public Wi-Fi networks—and so the browser will automatically enable its VPN protection when it detects you’re on public Wi-Fi. Public Wi-Fi has long been risky, with many establishments failing to put up strong enough guardrails to protect users who hop on. It recently got even riskier to use, with hackers now targeting airports and hotels in an attempt to steal credentials and private data. When you’re on public Wi-Fi, you never know who might be eavesdropping—malicious users can intercept your data, see what you’re doing, and even install malware. That’s why it’s important to take security measures when using public Wi-Fi, and one such measure is to use a VPN. A VPN routes your traffic through its own servers, effectively masking your activity and preserving your privacy. VPNs also add a layer of security between you and hackers. Opera was the first major browser to include a free VPN, initially launching this feature back in April 2016. But now, that same built-in feature is now automatically enabled on public Wi-Fi. For it to work, you’ll have to go to settings and enable “Always use VPN on public Wi-Fi”—but be aware that this feature is being rolled out so you may not see it right away. **Further reading:** Big reasons to switch from Chrome to Opera

#### At a glance ### Expert's Rating ### Pros * Excellent traction on slopes and uneven ground * Good obstacle detection and avoidance * No boundary wire required ### Cons * Automatic mapping struggled on a complicated lawn * Expensive * Large and heavy for smaller yards ### Our Verdict The Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD is a capable robot mower for challenging terrain, with excellent traction and dependable performance once its boundaries are established. Its unreliable automatic mapping, however, is a significant drawback at this price. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today ### Best Prices Today: Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD Retailer Price $2399 View Deal $2399 View Deal $2399 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide The Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD is built for the kinds of lawns that can give robot mowers a lot of trouble: medium-to-large yards with slopes, uneven ground, and irregular shapes. I tested it on a roughly 7,600-square-foot lawn with all three, plus trees, a play structure, bare patches, mulch borders, and a raised strip of grass beside a fence, with a narrow gap below it. At $2,399—discounted from a $2,999 list price—the LiDAX is a premium mower aimed at homeowners whose terrain demands more than a basic model can deliver. ## **Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD: Design and specs** The LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD is a hefty mower, measuring 29.1 × 20.9 × 12.6 inches and weighing 52 pounds. Its UltraDrive system uses four 116-watt hub motors to drive the wheels, while independent suspension and omni wheels help it stay stable on uneven ground and turn in tight spaces. Controls on top of the mower let you enter its anti-theft PIN and perform basic tasks without opening the app, including starting or stopping a mowing job and sending the mower back to its charging station. A large red stop button provides a quick way to halt the mower in an emergency. The Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD uses four driven wheels and a raised LiDAR sensor to navigate difficult terrain without a boundary wire. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry A raised 360-degree 3D LiDAR sensor on top of the mower scans its surroundings, while two forward-facing AI cameras identify lawn boundaries and potential obstacles. A physical bumper on the front of the mower provides another layer of detection when something makes contact with it. Together, these systems let the LiDAX navigate without a perimeter wire. Mova rates the mower for a single lawn up to 0.75 acre. It can store two maps, each covering up to 0.75 acre, and manage up to 150 mowing zones. Its 15.8-inch cutting deck can be adjusted through the app to cut grass from 1.2 to 3.9 inches high. The cutting disc shifts toward the side of the chassis near a raised boundary, which Mova says lets it trim within 1.2 inches of walls, fences, and similar edges. Mova also says the mower can climb an 80-percent grade and cross vertical obstacles up to 2.36 inches high. Its 7.5Ah battery is rated for 150 to 170 minutes of mowing and 0.2 to 0.25 acre of coverage per charge. ## **Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD: Setup and mapping** The mower comes with a charging station and power supply, ground anchors, cable pegs, replacement blades, and the hardware needed to install them. The charging station needs to be placed on level ground with a clear approach so the mower can enter and exit unobstructed. Once I found a suitable spot, I connected the power cable and secured the station and cable with the included anchors and pegs. A flip-up panel on the LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD reveals its onboard display and controls for basic functions, including starting or stopping a mowing job and returning the mower to its charging station. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry Connecting the mower to the MovaHome app was even quicker. The app recognized the mower immediately and pairing it with my phone and connecting it to Wi-Fi took only a couple of minutes. The mower arrived locked, so I had to enter its PIN using the onboard controls before proceeding. The app then ran it through a short calibration routine. The app offers automatic and manual mapping. With AI mapping, the mower identifies the grass and traces the perimeter on its own. Manual mapping requires driving it around the boundary with the app’s virtual joystick. I started with AI mapping, but the lawn proved too complicated. Where the boundary was irregular or poorly defined, the mower sometimes left the lawn and became stuck. On one attempt, it drove into a broad mulch-covered area beside the play structure. On others, it fell over the raised edge near the fence. The MovaHome app provides quick access to mowing modes, manual control, cutting height, mowing direction, and other job settings. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry After several attempts, I gave up on AI mapping and drove the mower around the perimeter myself. That worked, but it erased much of the setup advantage automatic mapping was supposed to provide. The feature might fare better on a flatter lawn with sharper boundaries. On this property, it wasn’t dependable. ## **Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD: Mowing performance** Once the manual map was in place, the LiDAX behaved like a different mower. It traveled systematically up and down the lawn in parallel passes, while the app showed its live position, the area already cut, and its progress through the job. More important, it respected the boundary I had created. It never wandered onto the mulch or veered off the grass while mowing, even though those same areas had confused it during AI mapping. Its all-wheel drive provided plenty of traction to cross the lawn’s slopes, dips, and uneven patches without wheel-spinning or stalling. It also maneuvered cleanly around the trees, play structure, and other obstacles. Mova says the LiDAR and cameras can recognize more than 300 types of stationary and moving obstacles. The app can classify detected objects and assign a confidence rating; in one instance, it identified a person with 90-percent confidence. It also lets you report a mistaken identification and, if you enable the feature, capture photos of detected obstacles. The mower left open areas looking evenly trimmed. I didn’t find obvious missed strips or clumps of poorly cut grass, and it worked close enough around obstacles that little follow-up trimming was needed. ## **Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD: App experience** The MovaHome app puts the information you need during a mowing job on one screen. It shows the mower’s battery and connection status, live position, mapped area, completed area, and overall progress. Start, pause, end, and return-to-station controls are also easy to reach. During AI mapping, the MovaHome app alerted me when the LiDAX became stuck and needed assistance. Michael Ansaldo/Foundry A drop-down menu allows you to switch between all-area, edge, zone, spot, and manual mowing using the virtual joystick. You can choose standard or efficient mowing, adjust cutting height electronically, set the mowing direction, and enable automatic edge mowing. Settings can apply across the whole lawn or vary by zone, and recurring jobs can be scheduled for specific days and times. The app also supports rain protection, frost protection, do-not-disturb hours, recharge-and-resume operation, work logs, and maintenance tracking. Despite the number of options, it rarely feels crowded, and the main controls are easy to find. ## **Should you buy the Mova LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD?** The LiDAX Ultra 3000 AWD didn’t deliver the automatic mapping experience Mova advertises, at least not on my complicated lawn. Driving the mower around the perimeter to map the boundary manually took more time and effort, but it also solved the mower’s navigation problems. Once the map was saved, the LiDAX stayed on the grass, handled slopes and uneven ground, and traveled along a narrow raised edge that had defeated a smaller robot mower. That makes it particularly appealing for medium-to-large lawns with difficult terrain, provided you’re willing to take over the mapping if the AI struggles. Buyers mainly attracted by the promise of effortless automatic setup should be more cautious. Its size and $2,399 price are also hard to justify for a small, uncomplicated yard.

My goal was a simple one: Go to the DMV and replace my old driver’s license with a Real ID one. A tad annoying, yes, but not all that difficult. Yet somehow, I just couldn’t get it started. Maybe it was because we’d just moved to a new apartment, or maybe it was work, or the state of the world, or the fact that I hadn’t had lunch yet. For a million reasons I didn’t fully understand, I just wouldn’t — couldn’t — deal with the Real ID thing. Now, one solution to my Real ID roadblock could’ve been to break it down into manageable chunks, but task management wasn’t the problem here. This was more … _paralysis_ rather than lack or organization. This was brain overload. A list of 20 steps to complete would’ve made things worse. Instead, I just needed a nudge: one small, concrete thing that would at least get me started, like pulling out my wallet. Opening it. Getting my ID out. (That’s three things, but still.) Anything to get started. And yes, I _do_ have my Real ID now, thank you very much. This concept of taking a micro-step toward a daunting goal is sometimes referred to as “task initiation” or “step zero” in ADHD communities, but I’m guessing the process could benefit anyone feeling stuck in place. There are also plenty of effective “step zero” AI prompts making the rounds, along with Goblin Tools, a set of AI-powered tools designed to help break down large tasks into smaller steps. Working with the just-released Claude Opus 5.5 and OpenAI’s GPT-6 Astra, I crafted my own version of a “step zero” prompt that takes any task and gives you that first micro-step, along with a few more (and manageable) follow-up steps. If you’re feeling ambitious after those first steps, you can type “next” for a few more. Here’s the full prompt: > Help me start a task I’ve been avoiding. > > 1. Step Zero: one physical action toward the task, no thinking required. > > 2. Steps 1–3: three mechanical actions, each under 60 seconds. No planning, drafting, deciding, organizing, or figuring out, whatever verb a step uses — “list what the trip needs” is still planning. Don’t assume objects or locations I haven’t mentioned. > > 3. End with: “Reply ‘next’ for three more.” > > Tone: short, plain, neutral. No pep talk. Numbered list, bold the verbs. > > My task: [Fill in task] And here’s a shorter version: > Help me start a task I’ve been avoiding: one physical first action toward the task that needs zero thought, then three more actions under 60 seconds each (no planning, drafting, or deciding, and no assumptions about my surroundings). End with “Reply ‘next’ for three more.” My task: [Fill in task] Notice that this prompt doesn’t probe the “whys” and “wherefores” of your blockage, nor is it intended to guide you all the way through a given task. It also doesn’t make any decisions for you. I tested this prompt with a variety of scenarios (a 10-page work report, preparing a tax return, doing the laundry after a stressful day, and so on) using ChatGPT Instant, Claude Sonnet 5, and Gemini 3.8 Flash, running through a few different iterations before settling on the final version. In my control tests, I noticed that ChatGPT Instant came the closest to spontaneous “step zero” replies without needing the prompt, while Gemini was the worst offender in terms of serving up lengthy task lists. With the prompt either at the beginning of the chat or as a system “instruction”, the responses became reliably short, simple, and direct. For example, here’s what Gemini gave me after I fed it the “step zero” prompt with the task, “I have to apply for a Real ID”: > 1. **Sit** down in a chair in front of your computer or phone. > > 2. **Open** a browser window. > > 3. **Type** your state name plus “Real ID document checklist” into the search bar and **press** enter. > > 4. **Click** the first official state government (.gov) link in the results. > > That’s a little different from “pull out your wallet and get your old ID,” but it works: It’s simple, mechanical, and it gets you started, without any AI-style “you got this!” asides. Give it a shot the next time you’re feeling stuck in neutral.

Back in August 2025, Microsoft launched a new kind of software initiative called “Microsoft 365 Companions,” which were like mini-apps that lived within the taskbar and served a middle-of-the-road solution between simple notifications and complex Widgets. When they first launched, there were three Microsoft 365 Companions immediately available: People, which showed your favorite contacts and let you search your full contact list; Files, which could search, preview, and share cloud files without fully opening them; and Calendar, which let you join Teams calls without opening the full app. But now, just over a year since these Companions were first announced, Microsoft has decided to discontinue them. It’s unclear why they’re being discontinued—Microsoft offers no explanation. According to this Microsoft 365 support page, all three companion apps will be going into retirement starting on December 16th, 2026. You can keep using these until then, and once they’re removed, you won’t lose any data and no other existing Microsoft 365 features will be impacted. Since Microsoft 365 Companions are mostly managed by organization administrators, you may not have to do anything—they will be removed when the administrators trigger the removal. But if you aren’t part of an organization, you’ll have to remove them yourself. You can do this by navigating to Windows Settings → Apps → Installed apps. As far as what you can use in place of them once removed, Microsoft offers the following guidance: > For calendar and people information, use Outlook and Teams. For files, use Windows Search Box, File Explorer, SharePoint, OneDrive, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and more. You can also use Copilot, even when you only remember a few details about what you’re looking for.

Chrome is the most popular browser in the world by a country mile. With more than 77% of the browser market across all kinds of devices, it’s most people’s first choice—especially after a fresh Windows install. But Chrome isn’t some privacy-centric upstart that puts the user first. Just like Google’s “free” search engine, Chrome’s users are the product. The browser collects a lot of information about how, when, and where it’s used, and that can make some people uneasy. If you’re in the nothing-to-hide, nothing-to-fear camp, feel free to mosey along and enjoy your browsing experience with Chrome (resource hog or not). But if you’d rather limit how much data Chrome, and by extension, Google, has on you, there are steps you can take. We don’t know everything Chrome gathers; Google keeps those details deliberately vague. But thanks to court filings, independent studies, and forensic testing from privacy researchers, we do have a clear picture of some of the data Chrome collects behind the scenes. Here’s what the evidence shows, and what you can do about it. PROMOTION **Ever wonder how scammers get your number?** Data brokers collect and sell your personal info, including your phone number, to advertisers and fraudsters. **PCWorld recommends using Incogni** to automatically remove your data from these sites, helping to protect you from spam, scams, and identity theft. Don’t Miss Out ## Telemetry data: How you use the browser Disabling telemetry data in Chrome can help restore some privacy. Jon Martindale Just about every app collects data on how you use the app in question. It’s one of the best tools the developers have for figuring out what works and what doesn’t, and how they can improve the user experience based on the very real habits of its users. Chrome does much the same, but it’s certainly not something you have to be onboard with if you don’t want to. Chrome actually has a built-in tool for disabling at least a portion of its telemetry recording. In the Chrome browser, select the three-dot menu icon in the top-right, then **Settings** > **You and Google** and look for **Help improve Chrome’s features and performance**. Toggle it off. To further restrict how Google tracks you across sites and services, you can logout of the browser and change Chrome’s sign-in habits. Navigate to **Settings** > **You and Google** and consider some of the available options. Select the **Sign out of Chrome** button to log out. You can also use the drop-down menu on the right to decide what happens when you sign in to other Google services. You don’t have to sign in to Chrome just to take advantage of your YouTube Premium account. ## Your browsing history: The websites you visit Reduce unwanted tracking by changing Chrome’s settings on web searches. Jon Martindale Unsurprisingly, Google’s Chrome web browser knows the websites you visit while using it. It’s been caught out collecting even in incognito mode in the past and had to settle a lawsuit just a few years ago, deleting enormous reams of data on user browser activity that it collected, even when it wasn’t supposed to. Although we probably can’t trust Google to entirely disregard what you’re looking at in Chrome, you can at least tell it not to track some of it. Using incognito mode is a good start, but you can also adjust Chrome’s settings to reduce the chance it’s tracking which websites you visit. Navigate to **Settings** > **You and Google** and next to **Make searches and browsing better** make sure to toggle that option to **Off**. For good measure, also turn off **Enhanced spell check** , as that sends what you’re typing to Google. It’ll stop the spellchecker working, but it’s a small price to pay for enhancing your privacy (at least a little). You might also want to navigate to **Settings** > **You and Google > Sync and Google services**, and toggle off **Improve search suggestions** so that you only send your searches to whatever search engine you’re using, not also to your default one (which is probably Google). If you don’t mind reducing your security a little, you can also navigate to **Settings** > **Privacy and security** > **Security** and make sure that under **Safe browser** , you select **No protection**. Any other option sends at least a portion of the URL you’re visiting and the page content to Google to check if it’s safe or not. Also toggle off **Help improve security on the web for everyone** for similar reasons. Alternatively, if you want to improve your protection, the AI enhanced safe browsing feature is interesting. ## Your purchasing habits and advert effectiveness Reducing the amount of personalized ads through Chrome can help reduce another layer of data collection. Jon Martindale Google makes the majority of its money from advert sales, which is why it wants to collect so much data on its users in the first place: to better target ads at them. Although you can’t stop Google sharing some information with advertisers, you can reduce the amount the adverts that do reach you that are personalized. Select the three-dot menu icon and navigate to **Settings** > **Privacy and security**. Select **Ads privacy** followed by each of the tree options in turn: **Ad topics** , **Site-suggested ads** , and **Ads measurement**. Toggle all of them to off to restrict the data Chrome shares with advertisers. Alternatively, you can sack off all the adverts altogether by using an adblocker. Popular options include Ublock Origin and Ghostery and they’re simple to install – they’re some of my favorite Chrome extensions, in fact. You may need to chop and change which one you use on occasion, though, as Google and Chrome updates regularly break certain functions of one blocker or another. It’s an ongoing cat and mouse game. ## Extra tips worth considering Alongside advertisers, Chrome also helps others collect data on you and your browsing habits too. Using anti-tracker and advert blocking extensions and apps is the best way to block them out, but you can also use Chrome to make it more difficult for them as well. * Navigate to **Settings** > **Privacy and security** > **Third Party Cookies**. Toggle on the **Block third-party cookies** off to cut down on what other sites and services can track about you, though certain site features may not work correctly. * Navigate to **Settings** > **Privacy and security** > **Third Party Cookies** and toggle **Send a ‘Do not Track’ request with your browsing traffic** , to **On**. There’s no guarantee a site will listen to it, but if they do, it’s there at least. * **Settings** > **Privacy and security** > **Delete browsing data**. You can do this manually to remove any browsing data Chrome has collected on you, but you can also have it do it automatically after you close the browser, or on a trigger of your setting. It won’t stop Chrome collecting any data, but it will make sure there’s no record of it on your local machine. ## Using another browser The ultimate way to stop Google collecting so much data about you via Chrome, is to simply not use Chrome. I know that’s a tricky proposition when it’s so often the default browser option and much of the internet is built with Chrome in mind. However, that’s not as strictly true as it might seem and you don’t even need to ditch the style of browser you’ve grown used to in moving over. Chrome is based on the Chromium open source project but it’s not the only one. It’s the underlying core of Opera, Microsoft’s Edge, Vivaldi, and the Brave Browser. Any of them will feel quite similar to Chrome, even if they don’t work in quite the same way. There’s also the venerable Firefox, which privacy proponents tend to be quite fond of. There’s also Colibri for a very minimalist browser experience, or Maxthon, which makes bold claims about its lack of user tracking. Give one of them a try. You might find you like it.

Mice from Logitech and now Microsoft support Windows’ latest feature: haptic feedback. But instead of serving as the next productivity enhancement, haptic mice feel like more of a convenience rather than a must-have. Microsoft today announced a new version of the Surface Mouse, a $79.99 ambidextrous mouse that it launched alongside a new 13-inch Surface Laptop ($1,199) and a 12-inch Surface Pro ($1,149) which include Qualcomm’s Snapdragon X2 Plus chips inside. The Mouse is the most intriguing of the three, since it’s specifically designed with new Windows features in mind. In April, I had a chance to try out the new haptics inside the Windows 11 Insider Build 26300.8155, which Microsoft was showing off with a prototype mouse at the time. Haptics, sometimes called force feedback, vibrate and “push back” against your fingers to provide tactile feedback. Some Surface laptops, such as the Surface Laptop Studio 2, have included haptic trackpads for years, as an alternative to the traditional mechanical trackpads that need to be depressed, and whose “clickability” extends only over part of the surface. I’ve always found these trackpads to be particularly useful, as you don’t need to “aim” your finger at a portion of the trackpad. The Surface Mouse — and the Logitech MX Master 4 for the PC and Mac, the ultimate productivity mouse — now support these haptic features as well. Aligning objects in PowerPoint, window snapping, resizing, or hovering over the Close button will all trigger some vibration on the mouse, as well as presumably the existing trackpads as well. (Dragging and dropping files will also eventually buzz your fingers, too.) Logitech’s mice also include the option to turn on additional haptic features via its Actions Ring and Smart Actions, as well as when your mouse is searching for a host via Bluetooth or when it connects. Logitech’s haptics trigger as part of the thumb rest; it’s not clear where Microsoft’s Surface Mouse will conceal its haptic feedback. (I can’t recall where the feedback was when I tried out the haptics several months ago.) Don’t get me wrong: I think haptic touchpads are useful, as they extend the touchpad’s useful surface. I’m less confident about haptics inside a desktop mouse. In a desktop mouse, haptics felt less productive and more of a convenience. A car’s purpose is to transport you from point A to B; there, haptics felt more like a rear-window wiper. Useful? Yes. Necessary? Not for me. The Microsoft representative showing them to me tried to position them as something you’d adjust to quickly, and would miss if they were taken away. I’d even agree! But it still felt like a convenience, rather than a necessity. I can visually see when a window expands, and I can click a window closed without any tactile confirmation. Microsoft even provided MX Master 4 mice for users to try out for themselves. (As a lefty, I avoid dedicated right-handed mice, so I appreciate Microsoft’s efforts to accommodate both hands.) But Logitech’s haptic feedback applies to a _lot_ of potential actions. Too much interaction, and you start to lose track of what that buzz actually signals. So yes, I can’t turn down additional improvements to how I interact with my PC. I just don’t think haptic mice necessarily tell me anything I don’t already know.

NOW $220 OFF **49-inch Innocn Ultrawide Monitor** View Deal If you need a _massive_ ultrawide monitor but you’re on a tight budget, then here’s a deal to consider: Innocn’s 49-incher is on sale for $529.96 at Amazon, down from its original $749.99. That’s a super low price for such an enormous display, making it a great entry-level giant ultrawide. 49-inch displays don’t come cheap. Mid-rangers can easily cost up to $900 and high-end OLED options can cross above $1,500. A huge screen for just over $500? That’s not something you see every day. Its 32:9 ultrawide aspect ratio is uber impressive, with a gentle 1800R curve that wraps around your view for extra immersion. The best part? No annoying bezel down the middle like you’d get when using dual side-by-side monitors. That’s a ton of screen real estate for productivity, and it’s also gaming-capable if you have a powerful enough PC. At this price, don’t expect a lot of performance or extra features. The 144Hz refresh rate is nice, and the USB-C video connection is nifty, but that’s about it. The HDR is minimal, the built-in speakers are meh, and the stand is unremarkable. If there’s one big reason not to get it, it’s the resolution: 3840×1080. Text and images won’t be super-crisp on this monitor. That said, you can’t ask for more when you’re paying bargain-level prices—this is the kind of monitor you get when you just want lots of screen space for multitasking apps and windows. For high pixel density, you’ll have to pay up. Get it if your only priority is a 49-inch ultrawide regardless of resolution. Otherwise, check out some other options via PCWorld’s picks for the best gaming monitors, best ultrawide monitors, and best 4K monitors.

Newer keyboards often feature a Copilot key, which by default launches Microsoft’s AI chatbot. If you don’t use Copilot, you can reassign the key. To do this, open Windows ‘Settings’ and go to ‘Bluetooth & devices > Keyboard.’ Under ‘Customize the Copilot key on your keyboard’, you’ll find a small menu where you can select the ‘Search’ option. Pressing the Copilot key will then open the search box, which you can access via the taskbar. Alternatively, you can set it to ‘Custom’. In this case, Windows will display the two apps “Microsoft 365 Copilot” (if available) and “Copilot”. Furthermore, using the latest version of Microsoft PowerToys, you can assign any programme to the Copilot key. Via the Windows settings in the Start menu, you can reconfigure the Copilot key to a limited extent and, for example, use it to open the search function. Foundry Install PowerToys from the Microsoft Store and open the tools collection. Open the ‘Keyboard Manager’ and click ‘Open Settings.’ Toggle the switches for ‘Keyboard Manager’ and ‘Try the new editor’ to ‘On’ and click ‘Open Editor.’ Now go to ‘Add New Remapping’ and click in the empty field under the ‘Trigger’ menu. Now press the Copilot key. You’ll see that this is actually a keyboard shortcut: Shift + Windows + F23. Next, open the drop-down menu under ‘Action’ on the right-hand side. Select ‘Open App’ and, after clicking the folder icon under ‘Program Path’, locate the EXE file for the desired application. You can accept the remaining settings as they are. Using the new editor in the Keyboard Manager from PowerToys, you can assign any application to the Copilot key. Foundry Finally, click ‘Save.’ The new assignment for the Copilot key takes effect immediately and also overrides the selection in Windows Settings. If you wish to remove the assignment later, open the Keyboard Manager again. The ‘Keyboard Manager’ window will then appear. Click the three dots at the far right of the row containing the assignment, select ‘Delete’ and confirm the security prompt. ## Related content * I tried making Windows 11’s Copilot a habit. Here’s what stuck (and what didn’t) * 9 useful Windows PowerToys features you might’ve overlooked * How to install the Copilot app for Windows 11

Anker sits among our favorite brands for accessories and gadgets, ranging from GaN chargers to power banks to USB-C cables and more. Stuff for your desk, stuff for your travels, and everything in between. Even better is when you’re able to grab Anker gear at a discount. Right now, a bunch of their stuff is on sale on Amazon… so I’ve rounded up the most standout deals worth grabbing today. ## Deals at a glance * Anker 100W USB-C Cable (2-pack) — $12.99 * Anker Nano 45W GaN Charger — $29.99 (was $39.99) * Anker Prime 160W 3-Port GaN Charger — $115.99 (was $149.99) * Anker Prime 250W Charging Station — $149.99 * Anker Prime Foldable MagSafe Charger — $99.99 (was $149.99) * Anker 25,000mAh Laptop Power Bank — $119.99 * Anker Nano 6-in-1 Travel Power Strip — $39.99 (was 49.99) * Anker 10-in-1 Power Strip — $25.99 * Anker Nano 13-in-1 Docking Station w/ Hub — $111.99 (was $149.99) * Anker 6-in-1 USB-C Hub — $29.99 ## Anker 100W USB-C Cable (2-pack) Anker **Who is this for?** The Anker 100W USB-C Cable (2-pack) is a smart pickup if you’re still using the slow cables that came included with your various devices. Toss them in favor of these 100W cords to unlock full charging power on all but the fastest charger blocks and power adapters. These are 6-foot cables, so you can plug into your phone even while you’re on the couch or bed and not be tethered to the wall. **Why is this deal good?** These aren’t officially on sale, but for $12.99 for the 2-pack, you’re paying a measly $6.50 per cable. Normally you’d get cables capped out at 60W for that much, so the deal value is self-explanatory. The included cable ties are a small but genuinely useful touch, too. View on Amazon ## Anker Nano 45W GaN Charger Anker **Who is this for?** The tiny Anker Nano 45W GaN Charger is for smartphone users who want faster and smarter charging without lugging around a large brick. If you’re an iPhone user, it’s even better because it can specifically recognize newer models and smartly adjust power delivery accordingly. It can take an iPhone 17 Pro from 0% to 50% in just 20 minutes, and at night you can slip it into Care Mode for slower overnight charging that avoids overheating. **Why is this deal good?** At $29.99, you’re saving a full 25 percent off the usual price. On top of the 45W charging speed, it has travel-friendly foldable prongs. The smart display is a nice bonus, too, where you can see exactly how fast it’s charging whatever’s plugged in. View on Amazon ## Anker Prime 160W 3-Port GaN Charger Anker **Who is this for?** The Anker Prime 160W 3-Port GaN Charger is for people who need a way to charge up a laptop while also charging a phone and whatever else. The main USB-C port delivers 140W of charging even when all the ports are being used, offering enough for all but the most power-hungry laptops. Despite pushing out that much power, the whole unit is roughly the size of an AirPods Pro case. **Why is this deal good?** At $115.99, down from $149.99, you’re getting $35 off a fast GaN charger that earns its asking price. This is among the lower prices we’ve seen for this model, and it’s a great price to pay for a charger that can replace your laptop brick altogether. View on Amazon ## Anker Prime 250W Charging Station Anker **Who is this for?** The Anker Prime 250W Charging Station is for the tech enthusiast who has too many devices at home and struggles to keep them all charged. The 6-port layout includes four USB-C and two USB-A ports, with the main USB-C port capable of 140W of charging and the whole device capable of up to 250W total. A 2.26-inch LCD display shows real-time charging status and speed at a glance, and a smart control dial lets you adjust charging outputs on the fly. **Why is this deal good?** Even at $150, this is a great deal. Chargers with this much total output and a 140W port typically sit well above this price, and many don’t even have a smart LCD display or control dial to fiddle with power distribution. View on Amazon ## Anker Prime Foldable MagSafe Charger Simon Jary **Who is this for?** The Anker Prime Foldable MagSafe Charger is a 3-in-1 wireless charging station for Apple users. If you’re juggling an iPhone, Apple Watch, and AirPods every day, you can toss their individual chargers and mount them all in one place with this. The Qi2.2-certified magnetic pad delivers up to 25W, enough to take an iPhone 17 Pro to 50% in under 30 minutes. It measures 3.74 x 2.38 x 1.22 inches, weighs just 0.5 pounds, and can even fold flat to slip into a pocket. **Why is this deal good?** At $99.99, down from $149.99, you’re saving $50 on an impeccable all-round wireless charging winner. You aren’t just paying for fast wireless charging, but the space-saving convenience of a clutter-free desk and keeping all your devices in one place. View on Amazon ## Anker 25,000mAh Laptop Power Bank Anker **Who is this for?** The Anker 25,000mAh Laptop Power Bank is, as the name would suggest, for on-the-go workers who need a laptop-capable power bank. Not all power banks suffice for laptops. You want at least 100W of charging through a single port, and that’s what this one offers: three USB-C connections that each top out at 100W. But the kicker? One of those USB-C ports is a retractable cable and another doubles as the carrying strap. That means two built-in cords, so you don’t need to carry anything else with it—just the power bank and your laptop. **Why is this deal good?** At a straight $120, there’s no added discount here right now — though it goes on sale often. But if you’re in need of a laptop power bank _right now_ , it’s a good value for those built-in cables that each support laptop charging speeds. View on Amazon ## Anker Nano 6-in-1 Travel Power Strip Anker **Who is this for?** The Anker Nano 6-in-1 Travel Power Strip is built for anyone juggling multiple devices at a single desk, be it remote workers, students, or home office regulars who are constantly charging phones, tablets, and accessories without enough outlets to go around. With two USB-C ports, two USB-A ports, and two AC outlets packed into a unit barely larger than your palm, it handles everything without the clutter. **Why is this deal good?** At $39.99, down from $49.99, the 67W output is fast enough to top up your phone in under an hour without taking up AC outlets. The 5-foot cord gives you enough flexibility to handle all your devices from exactly how far away you want, and the flat plug sits flush against the wall. View on Amazon ## Anker 10-in-1 Power Strip Anker **Who is this for?** The Anker 10-in-1 Power Strip might not seem like much, offering six AC outlets, two USB-A ports, and two USB-C ports. But it’s a great at-home charging station for two reasons: first, those USB ports mean you don’t have to waste precious AC outlets on power adapters, and second, the AC outlets are situated _outwards_ so the plugs you plug in don’t fight each other for space. **Why is this deal good?** At $26, you’re getting a versatile 10-in-1 charging-and-power solution for a genuinely low price. That’s a good price for an everyday accessory that fits up to 10 devices. The one caveat is that the USB ports share a combined 20W output, so reserve them for smaller gadgets like wireless earbuds. View on Amazon ## Anker Nano 13-in-1 Docking Station with Detachable Hub Mark Hachman / Foundry **Who is this for?** The Anker Nano 13-in-1 Docking Station is a stunner for one main reason: it has a pop-out hub that you can take with you when you’re on the go. Hook your laptop into the full 13-port dock in your home office, then take the 6-port hub for use at the coffee shop. Between HDMI, DisplayPort, USB-C, USB-A, and SD/microSD card slots, this 2-in-1 accessory is ideal for remote workers who are constantly working between home and somewhere else. **Why is this deal good?** At $111.99, down from $150, you’re saving about $38 on a dock that serves double duty. You’re basically getting two goodies in one. Yeah, it’s been cheaper in the past, but it’s still a solid value at this price and earns its place on your desk. View on Amazon ## Anker 6-in-1 USB-C Hub Anker **Who is this for?** If your laptop has limited ports and you want to add a few more, but you don’t want to invest in a full-blown docking station, then the Anker 6-in-1 USB-C Hub is a solid pick. It adds 4K HDMI, USB-C data, double USB-A, Ethernet, and USB-C passthrough charging. Portable enough for on-the-go use, slim enough to use at home without unnecessarily cluttering up your desk. **Why is this deal good?** For just $29.99, you’re getting an essential hub that doesn’t overcomplicate things. Six ports in a pocket-sized unit is a solid value at this price, and the 65W passthrough charging is useful since many budget hubs skip it. View on Amazon

In the newest versions of Chrome—154.0.8037.57/58 for Windows and macOS, and 154.0.8037.57 for Linux—Google has fixed 108 security vulnerabilities, some of which are critical. None of them have been exploited in attacks yet. Meanwhile, Chrome 154 doesn’t offer any new features beyond these security improvements. In the Chrome Releases blog post, Srinivas Sista lists the 108 vulnerabilities that have been fixed, stating that Google discovered 76 of them. The remaining 32 vulnerabilities were identified and reported by external security researchers, and Google has so far awarded them a total of $18,000 in bounties. Eleven vulnerabilities are classified as critical, with three of them being buffer overflows in the Angle graphics library for WebGL. A further 25 vulnerabilities are classified as high risk, 47 as medium risk, and 25 as low risk. The most common types of fixed security vulnerabilities are use-after-free flaws (34), UI misrepresentation issues (12), incorrect authorizations (12), and missing authorizations (11). Chrome usually updates automatically when a new version is available. You can manually check for updates via the menu in **Help → About Google Chrome** (alternatively, Settings → About Google Chrome). Google has also released Chrome for Android 154.0.8037.57 and Chrome for iOS 154.0.8037.55 this week. The Android version addresses the same vulnerabilities as the desktop versions. The Extended Stable Channel for Windows and macOS now includes Chromium 152.0.7977.140. Chrome 155 is due to release in about two weeks. _**Tip:** Whether you keep your browser up to date, you need proper antivirus protections if you want your PC to remain secure and private. Check out our picks for the best antivirus software for Windows as well as best VPN services to stay ahead of security problems._

#### At a glance ### Expert's Rating ### Pros * Exceptional build quality * Quiet switches and a sound-dampening chassis * Now with improved backlighting ### Cons * Cramped key layout * Limited, fiddly settings * Moderate battery life ### Our Verdict The Lofree Flow 2 boasts brilliant build quality and a stylish design. However, it’s not the most practical keyboard, with a cramped button layout and limited battery life. Price at time of review This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today ### Best Prices Today: Lofree Flow 2 100 Retailer Price $109.99 View Deal Lofree $169 View Deal $179.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide When I tested the predecessor to this keyboard, the Lofree Flow, it received high marks despite a couple of minor complaints. Now Lofree is back with the Flow 2, a keyboard that prioritizes build quality and a comfortable typing experience. ## Lofree Flow 2 100: Layout and options It’s available in several different sizes and with various key switch options, but the Nordic layout I tested is called the Flow 2 100. It also has a sticker on the box it comes in that reads Silent Edition. The name 100 means it has 100 keys, comprising the QWERTY keyboard, F1 to F12 along the top, and a numeric keypad on the side. The layout isn’t quite 100 percent, but rather what’s known as 96 percent. This means the numeric keypad on the right is squeezed tightly next to the Enter and arrow keys. It looks smart and is well-built, but is it cleverly designed? I’m not so sure. Mattias Inghe ## Lofree Flow 2: Quiet, but cramped That’s what its predecessor looked like too, and it was one of my minor complaints. Many keyboards with a 96 percent layout give you a small margin between the main keypad and the number keys. This gives the arrow keys a bit of breathing room and separates them from the rest of the keys, making it easier to avoid accidental keystrokes. There wasn’t room for that on the previous model, but the Flow 2 is physically wider thanks to a 3 cm-wide strip to the right of the number keys, which doesn’t seem to serve any purpose. A slight redesign of the right-hand side would have been welcome. It takes time to get used to not pressing the left arrow key instead of Ctrl, for example. Silent Edition refers to the switches. These are linear Pom Cloud switches without a click. These provide a tactile feedback signal roughly halfway to the bottom. You can type very quietly on it if you’re not in the habit of hammering away at the keys. Even a heavy keystroke produces only minimal clatter thanks to several vibration-dampening layers, the solid aluminum chassis, and the dampening rubber feet. You can lay the keyboard flat – at which point it’s barely two centimeters thick – or raise the rear edge using the fold-out feet. ## Lofree Flow 2: Features, connectivity There’s also a small switch under one of the feet that toggles between off, wireless connection, or USB-C. For wireless connectivity, you can connect either via the included 2.4 GHz nano-receiver or up to three Bluetooth pairings. You can then switch quickly between these using an Fn key combination. At the rear, you can extend the feet to adjust the angle. Mattias Inghe One thing I complained about with the previous model was the backlighting, which only shone around the keys and didn’t illuminate the characters. It was of no use in a dark room. This has been rectified, and the characters on all the keys are now clearly illuminated. This comes set up as a Mac/iPad/iPhone keyboard, with keys at the bottom for Mac OS commands, but you can switch the profile to Windows and Android, which use the same instruction set. The package also includes extra keys that you can swap in to give you Windows symbols. What’s missing are the tools to remove the existing keycaps. You’ll need to get these separately. You switch profiles using a hidden keyboard shortcut. You’ll need to look in the printed quick-start guide to find out which keys are used for this, as well as for switching between wireless connections. ## Lofree Flow 2: Side controls, battery life On the right-hand side of the keyboard, there’s a black strip with touch controls. You can swipe forwards or backwards to adjust the volume. That’s all it can do. I’d have liked the option to assign it to other functions, as I can with the Asus ProArt M100, but that would require a good management interface. Apparently there is one – the web-based third-party system VIA – but it’s extremely fiddly to access. The quick start guide states that I must contact Lofree’s customer service and ask them to send a configuration file, which I then upload to VIA’s system. Who on earth can be bothered with that, and why isn’t it simply available to download? Or rather, why isn’t this sort of thing pre-configured from the start? The touch strip on the side. Mattias Inghe The Lofree Flow 2 is powered by a reasonably large 3,000 mAh battery that charges via USB-C. It’s supposed to last for around 120 hours of active use or up to 14 hours with the backlight set to maximum brightness. It’s not the longest-lasting, but it’s hard to say what that means in real life. What counts as active use, and how quickly does it switch to power-saving sleep mode? During my three-day test, the battery level dropped by 20 percent. But I can only see that if I connect via Bluetooth, not with the RF adapter. ## Should you buy the Lofree Flow 2? Priced at $169, the Lofree Flow 2 100 does one thing very well and a couple of things… not so well. The mechanical construction of the keys and the chassis is flawless, and its quiet keystrokes could make it a top-class keyboard for those who don’t want to disturb those around them and appreciate a sense of quality. Lofree also deserve credit for getting the backlighting right. However, I’d have hoped for a more thoughtfully designed keyboard and better usability. The limited functionality of the touch strip, an ill-conceived key layout with wasted space, inaccessible battery status, and mediocre battery life mean I’ll be looking elsewhere for a better alternative. ## Lofree Flow 2: Specifications **Product name** : Lofree Flow 2 100 **Tested** : August 2026 **Manufacturer** : Lofree **Connectivity** : Bluetooth, 2.4 GHz RF, USB-C **Battery** : 3,000 mAh built-in rechargeable **Layout** : 96% QWERTY keyboard **Key type** : Low-profile, Kailh Void switches **Number of keys** : 100 **Other** : Adjustable height, device switch, touch control, white backlight **System requirements** : Device with USB or Bluetooth and Windows, Mac OS, Android, iOS **Dimensions** : 39.8 x 12.6 x 2.15 cm **Weight** : 870 grams **Price** : $169 **Rating:** 3 out of 5

Better coding performance, improved safety and “alignment,” and greater value are among Anthropic’s selling points for its latest Claude Opus model. But for many Claude Opus users, one particular Opus 5.5 promise stands out: less chatter. Claude Opus 5.5 is the first new Claude model since Anthropic pledged to “pace” itself in the face of runaway AI development. In an eyebrow-raising coincidence, OpenAI (which has made similar promises to “pace” its AI work) announced its own new models — Sol and Luna variants of GPT-6 — barely two hours after Anthropic revealed the updated Opus. Now available across all Claude platforms, Claude Opus 5.5 has been trained to communicate “more naturally than prior models,” according to Anthropic’s press release, adding that “it puts the most important information up front, and its style makes it a better work partner over long sessions.” That’s no small thing. Claude Opus 5.5’s predecessor, Opus 5, is a notorious chatterbox, drafting meandering walls of text filled with asides, caveats, and — worst of all — “loose ends.” Opus 5’s loose ends, or “things I should flag,” or “items you should know about,” typically come after it has completed a task or delivered a finished product, compelling you to go back and deal with the dangling threads. Sometimes, Opus 5’s chronic need to leave extra follow-up items after a seemingly finished task felt like a ploy for more work, thus requiring users to spend more tokens. In a side-by-side comparison, Anthropic promises that Opus 5.5’s replies will get to the point more quickly, while also being “less likely to use jargon or idiosyncratic phrases.” In my limited testing of Opus 5.5 with Claude Code, the new model does seem far more direct, answering my questions succinctly without tacking on any loose ends or other random items to chase down. Aside from being far less loquacious, Opus 5.5 is the equal of Claude Fable 5.1 “on most work” while costing 40 percent less to operate than Opus 5, Anthropic says. Turing back to safety, Opus 5.5 is “much less likely than recent models to take hard-to-reverse actions or act outside the boundaries it’s been given,” Anthropic noted, adding that it “attempted to circumvent [containment] boundaries around 85 percent less often than Opus 5 or Claude Mythos 5.1.” (Personally, I’d prefer 100 percent less often, but I suppose that’s progress.) As part of its Opus 5.5 announcement, Anthropic said it’s boosting five-hour usage limits for Claude Pro, Max, and Team subscribers, while tossing in a gratis, one-time usage reset.

Not even a year ago, a rumor arose that Google was working on a new operating system for mobile platforms. Known as Aluminium OS, the OS would combine the best aspects of Android and ChromeOS, all while sidelining ChromeOS as Google’s OS of choice for laptops. Now, Aluminium OS is finally here… but under a completely different name. Because when Google officially unveiled its Googlebooks yesterday, it also marked the launch of Googlebook OS. While surprisingly uncreative in its name, it’s also admittedly a lot more straightforward than Aluminium OS. Developed specifically for its new laptops and largely based on Android 16 and Android 17, Googlebooks are clearly targeting Android users. ## Google’s first new OS in 15 years Unlike ChromeOS, Googlebook OS is designed to feel intuitive to anyone who has ever held an Android smartphone or tablet. It uses the new Material 3 Expressive Design, which has been in use since Android 16, and is therefore largely familiar. Under the hood, however, it also utilizes a Linux kernel, which is why Linux is supported natively. Google is promoting its new devices as a powerful alternative to Windows PCs and Macs. Googlebooks have access to numerous apps from the Google Play Store that are optimized for desktop use. These are by no means all the apps available on the Play Store, though, so the selection is still limited and there are some restrictions. Googlebooks are somewhat suitable for gaming too, partly thanks to controller support, but with a massive caveat: for demanding titles, users will need to stream via GeForce Now as the built-in hardware isn’t enough to run most triple-A games natively. Naturally, Googlebook OS relies heavily on AI. Google offers support for AI agents such as Claude CLI, and with Antigravity it also provides a built-in tool for developers who wish to program further AI support themselves. Google sees Googlebooks as more than just “AI PCs,” something for which Microsoft initially faced a lot of criticism with its Copilot+ PCs. Rather, a Googlebook can be used in close conjunction with an Android device by pairing the two. This allows not only files to be transferred seamlessly, but also apps—and that’s pretty handy if you find that you’re reaching the limits of your smaller device and/or need more power. ## 10 years of updates promised Another standout feature is that Google promises a full 10 years of updates for its Googlebooks. That’s an incredibly long time, considering how fast-moving software and hardware have become. During that period, a new update is expected to release every three months. However, even these new devices aren’t immune to rising hardware prices. The more affordable Googlebooks from Dell and HP start at $899 while models from other manufacturers can reach $1,299 or higher.

The Windows taskbar is a pretty nifty thing, offering a wide range of customization options. You can change its position, size, the buttons displayed, the pinned programs, the appearance of the search box, and much more. However, if multiple people use the computer, they might adjust those settings to suit their personal preferences. This means the administrator will have to manually restore the taskbar to its default state. That said, you can make some of those settings inaccessible. There are two ways to do this: you can freeze the current settings or prevent users from making changes to the taskbar. Both can be done using the Registry or Group Policy. The Group Policy Editor is available in Windows Professional, as well as the Education and Business editions. To completely prevent changes to the taskbar using the Registry, type regedit into the search box and click on Registry Editor. Now, navigate to this folder: **HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Microsoft\Windows\CurrentVersion\Policies\Explorer**. Select Explorer. Right-click in the right-hand pane and choose New → DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name the new value TaskbarLockAll. Right-click on it, select Modify, enter 1 as the value, and confirm by clicking OK. Foundry Now go to Personalization → Taskbar in Windows Settings. Some options (like the option to automatically hide the taskbar) will be greyed out. You’ll find the same setting in the Group Policy Editor. Type gpedit into the search box and open the editor. Go to User Configuration → Administrative Templates → Start Menu and Taskbar, and double-click Lock all Taskbar Settings. Select Enabled and confirm by clicking OK. To prevent standard users from making changes to the taskbar, open the Registry and navigate (again) to the folder **HKEY_CURRENT_USER\Software\Policies\Microsoft\Windows\Explorer**. Right-click in the right-hand pane and select New → DWORD (32-bit) Value. Name the new entry NoSetTaskbar and set the value to 1. In the Group Policy Editor, you’ll find the same setting under User Configuration → Administrative Templates → Start Menu and Taskbar. Double-click on Prevent Changes to the Taskbar and Start Menu Settings and set the status to Enabled.

You probably get plenty of emails that are there to just keep you informed. You’re CC’d on the message, but you’re not actually expected to respond. If you want to make these emails easier to spot, you can set Outlook to highlight them in a different color. Here’s how to do it: If you’re using the classic version of Outlook, go to View > View Options > Conditional Formatting. Next, click Add and enter a name such as CC Emails. Click on Font, set the color (something bright and distinctive), and close the window by confirming with OK. In the Messages tab, click on Condition. Tick the box next to In Which I and, in the menu to the right, select the option I am listed with other recipients on the CC line. Close the windows by clicking OK. The new version of Outlook supports this highlighting feature, too. First, go to View > View Settings and then select Mail on the left-hand side. In the second column, select Conditional Formatting and click Add Rule in the right-hand pane. Enter CC email as the name for the new rule and, in the Condition menu, select the option I am listed in the CC field. Nest, click on Select Color and pick your favorite hue. Confirm by clicking OK and Save, then close the window.

NOW 35% OFF **Baseus Blade Laptop Power Bank** View Deal The Baseus Blade is one of my favorite power banks for laptops. With its large capacity, fast charging speed, and slim-profile design, it’s the perfect companion for anyone who needs laptop power on the go. Right now, it’s on sale for just $54 at Amazon, which is only $2 higher than its lowest ever price. That 35% discount is worth jumping on. The 20,000mAh capacity is enough to fully charge most laptops from zero to full, plenty to get you through a day of work while still compliant with both FAA and TSA regulations for travel. Up to 100W is fast enough for most laptops too, able to reach half charge in under an hour or full charge in about 2 hours. And it’s only 0.7 inches thick while weighing 0.98 pounds, so you can slip it into your bag right next to your laptop unnoticed. That portability is key over other chunky chargers. You can technically charge up to four devices at once with the Baseus Blade between its two USB-C and two USB-A ports, although the USB-As cap out at just 30W so reserve those for smaller devices like phones, earbuds, and other accessories. Note that the 100W output will be split between all used ports when multiple are being used. Keep in mind that this power bank is a niche one—if you aren’t mainly using it for a laptop, you’re overpaying for its specialty. If your phone is your main concern, you might be better off with this Anker travel power bank with built-in cable or this Anker MagSafe wireless power bank.

Microsoft is still busy addressing the damage caused by updates released on September’s Patch Tuesday. The Windows audio issues in particular are proving stubborn and still remain unresolved. Don’t expect a fix soon, as Microsoft doesn’t intend to fix Windows 11’s audio issues until October’s Patch Tuesday. Until then, affected Windows 11 users will have to put up with various USB audio issues on their systems. As a reminder, here are the potential problems you may run into, which will remain unresolved until October 13th, 2026: * Your device displays the following error message in Device Manager: “This device cannot be started (Code 10).” * Your device has no audio output. * Your device’s volume controls don’t respond or remain stuck at zero. * Your device’s sound settings don’t respond or are unavailable. * Your device may work in standard stereo configurations but fail when using multi-channel or 3D audio features. Windows PCs with AMD Radeon GPUs—including the RX 6600, RX 7700 XT, RX 7800 XT, RX 7900 GRE, RX 7900 XTX, and RX 9070 XT—are still reporting driver timeouts, black screens, missing displays, and system crashes, even when not playing games. And issues with both File Explorer and File History, introduced with September’s Patch Tuesday updates, remain unresolved. You may find that new backups aren’t being made and previously made backups are no longer available, making your files unrecoverable. However, _some_ problems have been fixed by an emergency update, including an issue affecting with Claude Cowork and Remote Desktop Services, as well as a fake Defender warning.

#### At a glance ### Expert's Rating ### Pros * Two 10GbE ports, which can be aggregated via link aggregation * Four SATA bays, two of which also accommodate U.2 SSDs * RAM upgradeable to 64GB; ECC modules supported * Metal chassis, magnetic dust filter, quiet fan * UGOS Pro with Docker, VMs, and AI photo search ### Cons * Full volume encryption not available * Only 8GB of DDR4 installed as standard ### Our Verdict The DXP4800 GT is not a refreshed DXP4800, but a completely new design. Two 10GbE ports, U.2-compatible bays, and a second free RAM socket set it apart from its in-house Intel counterparts. The Ryzen Embedded R2514 offers plenty of headroom for containers and a virtual machine without exceeding reasonable power consumption limits. UGOS Pro runs smoothly and offers a wide range of apps. The lack of volume encryption remains the most notable shortcoming. On offer for under $600 without hard drives, you get a lot of NAS for your money. Price at time of review This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Price Today ### Price When Reviewed $560 ### Best Prices Today: Ugreen NAS DXP4800GT Retailer Price $559.99 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide Ugreen is rapidly expanding its NASync series. The DXP4800 GT is the first model in the range to feature an AMD processor and sits between the budget DH models and the more expensive iDX series, such as the NASync iDX6011 Pro. With four drive bays, two M.2 slots, and two 10GbE ports, the DXP4800 GT is also aimed at more demanding home and small business users. Michael Rupp ## Design and build quality The case is made entirely of metal and is correspondingly heavy. Ugreen has retained the familiar rectangular design of the DXP series, but has added a copper-colored frame around the four drive bays. This design feature distinguishes the GT from its black-trimmed sister models at first glance. The gaps are even, and nothing creaks. Large rubber feet dampen the vibrations from the hard drives. The front is divided into four numbered bays and a narrow connection panel. Each bay can be locked using the key provided. Pressing the mechanism at the top unlocks the flap and pushes it out slightly. The power button is located on the left, next to which are five status LEDs for the network and the four drives. Michael Rupp Next come an SD card reader compliant with the SD 3.0 standard, a USB-C port, and a USB-A socket. Both operate at speeds of up to 10Gbit/s, which noticeably speeds up the transfer of camera footage. Michael Rupp The rear is dominated by a 140mm fan behind a magnetically secured grille. The grille acts as a dust filter and can be removed without tools. Michael Rupp Below this are an HDMI 2.0b port, a USB-A port compliant with USB 3.2 Gen 2, two USB 2.0 sockets, the two 10GbE ports, a recessed reset button, and the power supply input. Michael Rupp On the underside, a flap secured with two screws conceals the service compartment. Behind it are two SO-DIMM sockets and two M.2 slots in the 2280 format. Both components are easily accessible. A screwdriver is included, along with screws for 2.5-inch drives and two thermal pads for the NVMe SSDs. The drive trays are made of metal with a plastic handle. 3.5-inch hard drives can be clamped in place without tools between two side rails, while smaller drives are secured with screws. Once all four frames have been removed, the backplane with its four SATA ports becomes visible. Behind it sits the fan, which blows air through the bays. The build quality and choice of materials are on a par with significantly more expensive devices. Michael Rupp ## Specifications At the heart of the system is an AMD Ryzen Embedded R2514. This quad-core processor is from the Zen+ generation, handles eight threads, and has a clock speed ranging from 2.1- to 3.7GHz. The configurable TDP of 12 to 25 watts allows for a design optimized for both power consumption and performance. The integrated Vega graphics handle the hardware transcoding of H.264 and H.265. The Vega graphics offer sufficient capacity for individual hardware-accelerated transcoding tasks; we have not tested multiple parallel 4K streams. Ugreen equips one of the two SO-DIMM sockets with 8GB of DDR4-3200 RAM as standard. The second remains free; officially, up to 64GB is possible. Suitable ECC modules should be used to ensure consistent ECC operation. The operating system is stored on a separate 64GB eMMC storage device and does not take up any space on the data storage drives. Four SATA bays accommodate hard drives with capacities of up to 32TB. Compared to previous DXP models, bays 1 and 2 also support U.2 NVMe SSDs. U.2 SSDs are primarily used in the enterprise sector and are designed for high sustained workloads and high IOPS. In addition, there are two M.2 slots with PCIe 3.0 x2 for SSDs up to 8TB. These serve as a read cache or as a separate high-speed pool. Michael Rupp According to Ugreen, a maximum gross capacity of 144TB is possible with four 32TB SATA drives and two 8TB M.2 SSDs. 32TB NAS hard drives are still expensive at present and, depending on the model and retailer, are available for well into four figures or just below that. A significantly cheaper option per system at present is, for example, four WD Red Plus drives, each with 8TB, costing around $1,400 in total, which provide just under 24TB of usable storage in a RAID 5 configuration. Those looking for a more affordable option can opt for Seagate IronWolf or Toshiba N300 drives with 4TB. Our test unit is fitted with four WD Red Plus drives, each with 2TB. The biggest leap is in the networking. Two 10GbE sockets with an Aquantia AQC113 controller can be bundled for speeds of up to 20Gbit/s or configured as separate segments. Power is supplied by an external 150-watt power supply with a barrel plug. The box also contains two Cat-7 patch cables and an HDMI cable. ## What the NAS OS can do UGOS Pro is based on Debian and operates like a streamlined desktop. Windows can be moved and arranged side by side. In the top right-hand corner, a status bar widget displays CPU and RAM usage as well as the current network throughput. Anyone coming from Windows will find their way around within minutes. At the time of testing, there were 32 applications available in the App Center. Ugreen provides its own apps for photos, music, videos, and backups. These are joined by Snapshot, Vault, SAN Manager and Surveillance Center, among others. Other applications come from the open-source community, including Jellyfin, Home Assistant, and qBittorrent. Installation is a one-click process; the system resolves any dependencies automatically. Michael Rupp Btrfs and ext4 are the file systems to choose from. Btrfs includes snapshots and checksums and is the better choice for most users. The storage management system continuously monitors S.M.A.R.T. values and reports any anomalies via email or push notifications. UGREENlink is used for remote access. The service establishes a connection without a static IP address or port forwarding and incurs no extra cost. Two-factor authentication is included, as is a firewall with geo-blocking. One shortcoming remains: UGOS Pro still does not encrypt entire volumes or storage pools. However, a new feature is the ability to encrypt individual shares. While this improves protection for sensitive or business data, it does not replace the need for full encryption of the entire storage system. ## Setup and commissioning Fitting the hard drives takes less than five minutes. You press the flap at the top edge of a frame, pull it out, and remove the plastic rail. Insert the 3.5-inch drive with the circuit board facing downwards, then the rail snaps back into place over the mounting holes. No screwdriver is required, and the drive fits neatly into place. Michael Rupp 2.5-inch drives, on the other hand, are secured with screws from below. You then slide the frame into the base as far as it will go and lock it in place with the key. After switching on, open the URL **find.ugnas.com** in your browser. The tool locates the NAS on the local network and displays the model, serial number, MAC address, and IP address. Michael Rupp Clicking ‘Connect’ takes you to the wizard. Here, you create the administrator account, select the update strategy, and, if desired, enable UGREENlink. The basic configuration, including a restart, took around 15 minutes. * * * * * * * * * Next comes the storage pool. UGOS Pro offers Basic, JBOD, RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, and 10. Basic uses each drive individually, while JBOD links them together to form a single large volume. RAID 0 distributes the data across all drives and boosts performance, but offers no redundancy. If a drive fails, the data on the array is lost. * * * * * * RAID 1 mirrors the data and halves the capacity. RAID 5 distributes parity data across all drives, can cope with the failure of one drive, and, with four drives of equal size, provides three-quarters of the gross capacity. RAID 6 can withstand two drive failures but sacrifices the capacity of two drives. RAID 10 combines mirroring and striping. For our four 2TB drives, we opted for RAID 5. The pool was ready for use immediately; the synchronization ran in the background for just over three hours. Michael Rupp ## Computing power and AI functions For simple file storage, the R2514 offers significant performance headroom. This pays off as soon as several services are running in parallel. We launched six Docker containers, including a MySQL database and a reverse proxy. The utilization fluctuated between 15 and 25 percent. The Docker Manager displays the repository and local images separately and retrieves containers directly from the official catalog. Michael Rupp A virtual machine running Ubuntu Server was running in parallel. The VM application creates systems from ISO files or imports ready-made OVA packages. For networking, bridge mode via MacVTap, NAT, and pure host mode are available, each separately for both LAN ports. In bridge mode, the VM can be assigned its own IP address on the home network. However, 8 GB of RAM runs out quickly. Anyone wishing to use VMs seriously should install a second processor. Michael Rupp The UGOS photo management system automatically indexes photos and sorts them by faces, locations, and objects. Our test library of 12,000 images was processed in around two hours. The photo management system offers automatic face and person recognition, as well as object and text recognition, and works without requiring a cloud connection. It reliably recognized files that had been imported multiple times and also grouped similar burst shots together. The Model Manager (Models app) supports both locally run and cloud-based models. Local models run comparatively slowly on the R2514 due to the lack of powerful AI acceleration. It is suitable for text summarization, but not for complex image analysis. Michael Rupp ## Data rates in practical testing A Windows computer with a 10GbE card, connected via a switch using Cat 7 cabling, served as the remote station. In a pure network test using iperf3, we achieved 9.4Gbit/s — practically the maximum speed of the interface. When copying large video files to the RAID 5 array comprising four WD Red Plus drives, the NAS wrote at an average of 340MB/s. Read speeds were 430MB/s. This clearly shows that the hard drives, rather than the network, are the limiting factor. As expected, a folder containing 20,000 small files performed less well, achieving 65MB/s. With standard link aggregation, a single client connection does not usually benefit from the combined bandwidth. We therefore had two computers copying files simultaneously. Together, they achieved around 780MB/s without any noticeable increase in latency. Multiple parallel clients are a typical use case for the two ports. The U.2-compatible bays and the two M.2 slots are among the DXP4800GT’s standout features. In our test, however, we focused on operation with four standard hard disk drives and did not test either U.2 or NVMe SSDs as a separate storage pool. We are therefore unable to make a definitive statement as to whether the NAS, when used with SSDs, fully utilizes the two 10GbE interfaces during read and write operations. When importing via the front slot, we achieved 88MB/s with a UHS-I card. Here, the main limiting factor is the memory card used, specifically the UHS-I standard. The power meter showed 25 watts when idle with the drives in sleep mode. During normal operation, the figure fluctuated between 40 and 42 watts; under full load, we recorded 60 watts. The noise level was 38dB(A) during operation. When accessing data, the hard drives are significantly louder than the fan. ## Should you buy the Ugreen NASync DXP4800 GT? With the DXP4800 GT, Ugreen delivers a NAS that defines itself through its networking capabilities. Two 10GbE ports are unusual in this price range, and the device also features U.2-compatible bays and a second free RAM socket. The Ryzen Embedded R2514 isn’t one of the fastest NAS processors, but it offers sufficient performance for containers and a VM. The difference compared to the DXP4800 Plus is clear. The older model features an Intel Pentium Gold 8505 with five cores, DDR5 memory, and a combination of one 10GbE and one 2.5GbE port. Intel leads the way when it comes to individual fast cores, whilst Quick Sync helps with transcoding. When multiple clients are active simultaneously, the second 10GbE port offers a clear advantage over the DXP4800 Plus. The downgrade from DDR5 to DDR4 isn’t a problem in everyday use. That leaves the lack of volume encryption. Individual shares can now be encrypted, but entire volumes or storage pools still cannot. If you can live with that, you’ll get a well-equipped NAS for around $600. ## Technical specifications * **Model:** Ugreen NASync DXP4800 GT * **Processor:** AMD Ryzen Embedded R2514, 4 cores / 8 threads, 2.1- to 3.7GHz, Zen * **Graphics:** AMD Radeon Vega, H.264 / H.265 hardware transcoding * **TDP:** 12 to 25 watts (configurable) * **RAM:** 8GB DDR4-3200 SO-DIMM, two slots, expandable to 64GB, ECC modules supported * **System storage:** 64GB eMMC, separate from the data drives * **Drive bays:** 4 × 3.5/2.5-inch SATA 6Gbit/s, max. 32TB per bay, bays 01 and 02 additionally U.2-compatible * **M.2 slots:** 2 × NVMe 2280, PCIe 3.0 ×2, max. 8TB per SSD * **Maximum capacity:** 144TB gross * **RAID levels:** Basic, JBOD, RAID 0, 1, 5, 6, 10 * **File systems:** Btrfs, ext4 * **Network:** 2 × 10 GbE RJ45, link aggregation up to 20Gbit/s * **Front ports:** SD 3.0, 1 × USB-C (10Gbit/s), 1 × USB-A (10Gbit/s) * **Rear ports:** HDMI 2.0b (4K/60), 1 × USB-A 3.2 Gen 2, 2 × USB 2.0, 2 × 10GbE, Reset, DC input * **Cooling:** 140mm fan, magnetically held dust filter * **Operating system:** UGOS Pro (Debian-based) * **Remote access:** UGREENlink, without a static IP or port forwarding * **Power supply:** External, 150 watts * **Case:** metal, copper-colored accents, individually lockable drive bays * **Power consumption (measured):** 25 watts at idle, 40 to 42 watts during operation, 60 watts at full load * **Noise level (measured):** 38dB(A) in operation * **Contents:** Power supply, mains cable, 2 × Cat 7 patch cables, HDMI cable, screwdriver, screws, thermal pads, drive key * **Warranty:** 2 years

Many users who have installed the latest September security patches for Windows have found that the “File History” feature no longer works—deleted or corrupted files can no longer be recovered. File History automatically saves copies of files, allowing users to recover accidentally deleted or corrupted files using older versions that were stored hours, days, or weeks ago. By default, File History backs up all folders in the user profile (Documents, Music, Pictures, Videos, and Desktop) to an external drive, such as a USB flash drive or a network attached storage (NAS) device. According to Microsoft, the issue is due to a bug that occurs in all current versions of Windows 10 and 11, including 21H2, 22H2, 23H2, 24H2, 25H2, and 26H1. Microsoft wrote on this support page and this one: > After installing the September 2026 Windows security update, some customers using File History, might be unable to create or update backups. File History, available through Control Panel > System and Security > File History, is used to back up files to an external drive or network location. > > Affected devices might incorrectly display a “Reconnect your drive” message even when a compatible backup drive is connected and functioning properly. Additionally, the “Last Backup” timestamp might not update, and previously backed up files might show “No previous version available.” In some cases, Event Viewer might record application crash events referencing `FileHistory.exe` and `KERNELBASE.dll`. There’s currently no fix for the issue, though Microsoft says it is “working on a resolution” that’ll come in a future Windows update. Until an official fix is released, the best solution is to uninstall the security update, which you can do by rolling back a problematic Windows update.

MATCHES ALL-TIME LOW PRICE **Anker 140W USB-C splitter cable** View Deal What do you do when you need to charge two devices? One option is to use a multi-port charger with multiple cables. Another option is to use a single USB charger with a single cable—like this Anker 2-in-1 USB-C splitter cable that’s now on sale for $15.99, matching its lowest price ever. On one end, it has a typical USB-C connector. Plug that end into any USB-C power adapter, ideally one that can put out up to 140 watts because that’s how much this cable can support. The other end is split into two USB-C connectors for two different devices, like a phone and a tablet, or a phone and a laptop, or a phone and earbuds. You get my drift. The cable itself is 6 feet long, with the main end stretching 5 feet and the split end up to 1 foot (though it can be shortened with the cable slider). That’s long enough to plug into a wall and not be tethered too closely, and two people can charge phones while still using them comfortably. Just be careful when packing it away, as cables of this length can tangle. One caveat worth knowing is that the power delivery isn’t so straightforward. Only when charging a single device does the cable actually deliver the full 140W it’s capable of. When charging two devices and one uses more than 100W, the cable maxes out at 130W. If neither device uses more than 100W, the cable only maxes out at 100W. The first device plugged in gets the higher share.

For some time now, there have been complaints across various online forums about how the popular VLC Media Player takes several seconds (sometimes half a minute!) to start up. The problem occurs regardless of size or the type of media file you wish to play. There’s also some unfounded accusations against the VideoLan developers; one often reads claims that Microsoft is deliberately slowing down the open-source media player. However, this theory is contradicted by the fact that this problem only affects some Windows computers. For instance, on one of my PCs running Windows 10, this “moment of silence” when launching VLC has been noticeable for some time. But on a Windows 11 PC, the problem doesn’t occur. Reports from affected users on Reddit suggest the question of whether the issue lies with Windows 10 or 11 misses the crux of the problem. There must be another cause. One thing the affected computers seem to have in common is that Microsoft Defender, which protects against malware, is active. There are no known reports of similar issues with other antivirus software. The VideoLan developers, led by Jean-Baptiste Kempf, have also accused Microsoft on X/Twitter of being responsible for the slowdown. There has not yet been an official response from Microsoft. > This is because of a « bug » from Microsoft Defender in one update of Windows 11, who magically made VLC plugins cache quarantined by Windows. > Reinstalling VLC or regeneration of the plugin cache will fix this. > > Calling open source software embarrassing when it is a Windows… https://t.co/IFLrXFZFsv > > — VideoLAN (@videolan) August 12, 2026 Investigations have revealed that, following an update a few weeks ago, Microsoft Defender has been placing the VLC Player’s plug-in cache (plugins.dat) in quarantine, which causes the program to boot slowly. A faulty Defender signature update (version 1.455.50.0) and the Windows Update KB5121003 are said to be responsible. Microsoft released the latter as part of its patch on August 11th and it has caused a host of problems ever since. However, the VLC Media Player’s start-up issue has, in some cases, been around for quite a while. ## Workaround for VLC Media Player To make VLC Media Player start normally again (usually within a second), reset the plug-in cache. You don’t even have to edit the registry or delete files manually. Instead, you can either reinstall VLC Media Player or instruct the program itself to regenerate the cache. To do this, use _vlc-cache-gen.exe_. Click on the search icon (magnifying glass) in the bottom left-hand corner and type VLC in the search box. The top result should be **VLC media player – reset preferences and cache files**. Click on this and run it–this will reset the settings and cache. fz By the way, since Microsoft hasn’t released a fix for Defender yet, the problem might reoccur. To prevent this, set an exclusion in Defender for VLC Media Player. This basically tells Defender not to scan the directory for malware. This does involve a certain risk, especially if you didn’t download the VLC Media Player from the manufacturer’s website. To set the exclusion in Microsoft Defender, go to the following in Windows 10: _Settings Windows Security Virus & Threat Protection Virus & Threat Protection Settings > Manage Settings Exclusions Add or remove exclusions _`{User Account Control security prompt}`_≫ Add exclusion ≫ Folder_ >> Select the folder `C:\Program Files\VideoLAN\VLC\plugins`. In Windows 11, the procedure is similar: _Settings Privacy and Security Windows Security_ > Then continue as described above

#### At a glance ### Expert's Rating ### Pros * Dramatic SSD speed boost * Enhanced external display support ### Cons * RAM and SSD are not user upgradeable ### Our Verdict The Mac Studio’s SSD speed improvement is so dramatic that even if you bought an M4 Max or M3 Ultra Mac Studio–the previous models–you should consider upgrading to the M5 Max Mac Studio. Plus, the external display support is expanded. Sure it’s expensive, but if you want the best Mac ever made, accept no substitute. Price When Reviewed This value will show the geolocated pricing text for product undefined Best Pricing Today ### Price When Reviewed $2,499 ### Best Prices Today: Apple Mac Studio (M5 Max, 2026) Retailer Price $2,449.99 View Deal $2499 View Deal Price comparison from over 24,000 stores worldwide With the M5 Max Mac Studio, there’s good news, and there’s great news. The good news is that it offers faster CPU processing and graphics. It’s a marginal boost over the previous generation, but faster is always good. The great news is that the improved SSD speed that was introduced with the M5 MacBook Pro comes to Apple’s top Mac. The faster SSD is such a big deal that if you’re in a production environment and you invested in an M4 Max or M3 Ultra Mac Studio, you should seriously consider upgrading, even if the prices are higher. Time is money, and an investment in the current Mac Studio will be money well spent. Here’s our in-depth review of the M5 Max Mac Studio. _Editor’s note: This review originally published on Macworld.com._ ## M5 Max Mac Studio: Our model’s specifications The Mac Studio is available in two standard configurations: A $2,499 model with an M5 Max chip (18-core CPU, 32-core GPU) and 36GB of RAM, and a $5,499 model with an M5 Ultra chip with 96GB of RAM. Customers can customize their purchase by adjusting the number of CPU and GPU cores, and add more memory and SSD storage. This review focuses on the M5 Max Mac Studio with a chip upgrade, additional RAM, and a larger SSD. Here are the specs of our review unit: * **CPU** : M5 Max with 18 cores (6 super cores, 12 performance cores), 16-core Neural Engine * **GPU** : 40 cores * **Memory** : 128GB unified memory (614GBps memory bandwidth) * **Storage** : 4TB SSD * **Ports** : 4 Thunderbolt 5/USB-C; 10Gb ethernet; 2 USB-A (USB 3); HDMI 2.1; 3.5mm audio; 2 USB-C; SDXC Card slot * **Networking** : Wi‑Fi 7 (802.11be); Bluetooth 6; Threads; 10Gb ethernet * **Weight** : 6 pounds (2.7 kg) * **Dimensions** : 3.7 x 7.7 x 7.7 inches (9.5 x 19.7 x 19.7 cm) * **Price (as tested)** : $6,899/£6,899/CA$10,099/AU$10,899 The Mac Studio design reamins unchanged from its introduction in 2022. Fundry ## M5 Max Mac Studio: Performance The odd M4 Max and M3 Ultra offerings Apple had with the previous Mac Studio were due to Apple skipping a generation with its Ultra chips. This time around, Apple decided that the M5 series would have an Ultra chip, so you can get either an M5 Max or M5 Ultra. The $2,499 M5 Max Mac Studio comes standard with an 18-core CPU (6 super cores, 12 performance cores), a 32-core GPU, 36GB of unified memory, and a 512GB SSD. However, this CPU is essentially fixed at 36GB of RAM; if you want more, you must upgrade to the 18-core CPU/40-core GPU, which technically costs $300 but actually adds $600 to the price when the cost of the 48GB RAM upgrade is factored in. It can further be upgraded to 64GB ($400) or 128GB ($2,000). This review looks at the M5 Max option with an 18-core CPU, a 40-core GPU, 128GB of RAM, and a 4TB SSD, which adds $4,400 the price of the Mac Studio. More about the pricing at the end of this review. ### Blackmagic Disk Tests Foundry Typically, we start our reviews by looking at overall performance with Geekbench, and then we work our way through more specific aspects. But the SSD performance is so overwhelmingly good, it’s the story here. I mean, this chart doesn’t look correct, does it? Apple improved SSD performance with the M5 chip series, and we’ve seen big improvements in the M5 MacBook Pro. It’s finally come to the Mac Studio–it’s almost a shame that we had to wait so long. This is one of the key reasons why you should upgrade from another Mac Studio, even if you bought one this year. It’s a difference you’ll definitely feel. ### Geekbench 7 Results are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry Geekbench 7 was released just this year; it’s a general-purpose benchmark tool for gauging performance. The previous-generation M3 Ultra is faster than the M5 Max in multi-core CPU testing, but only by 9 percent. The difference between the M5 Max and the M4 Max that it replaces is more substantial at 22 percent. The M5 Max’s Single-core CPU results are 8 percent faster than those of the M4 Max. We’ve seen improvements of 8 to 10 percent from generation to generation, so that result remains consistent. ### Geekbench 6 Results are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry Since Geekbench 7 is pretty new, we tested with Geekbench 6 for reference. Here, the M5 Max beats the M3 Ultra, but the margin is only 7 percent in the Multi-core tests–a difference you may not notice. ### Cinebench 2026 Results are expressed as Cinebench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry Maxon also has a benchmark tool that tests more strenuously than Geekbench. Unfortunately, we don’t have data from older Mac Studios, so the results here are presented with the M5 Pro Mac mini and the M5 MacBook Pro. Still, you can get a sense of how much and improvement you can experience if you move up the chip series. ### Cinebench 2024 Results are expressed as Cinebench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry We do have Cinebench 2024 results from the previous Mac Studio lineup, and the M5 Max provides a 10 percent GPU boost over the M3 Ultra. The GPU improvement over the M4 Max is a more noticeable 33 percent. ### Geekbench AI Neural Engine Results are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry ### Geekbench AI GPU Results are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry The Mac Studio has become extremely popular for AI development. Our benchmark records don’t go that far back with this test, so we’ve included other M5 chips for reference. The M5 Max’s Neural Engine offers a vast improvement over the M4 Max and the M3 Ultra–that a boon for AI developers. One thing to consider with the Mac Studio and AI is the RAM configuration. To get more than 36GB of RAM, you need to upgrade from the base M4 Max chip, which bumps the price by at least $600, as I outlined earlier. ### iMovie video export Results are times in seconds. Lower times/shorter bars are faster. Foundry The speed gain that the M4 Max had over the M2 Max Mac Studio was much more significant than the one we see between the M4 Max and M5 Max. Keep in mind that the previous comparison actually skips a chip generation since Apple didn’t make an M3 Max Mac Studio. ### Handbrake video encode Results are times in seconds. Lower times/shorter bars are faster. Foundry Another test where the difference between the M4/M5 Max and M2 Max are drastic. The change is much more dramatic when you do not use hardware acceleration. ### Geekbench 7 Compute Results are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry The M3 Ultra posts faster Metal scores in Geekbench 7’s Compute test, but it has a CPU with twice as many core (80 versus the M5 Max’s 40-cores). ### Geekbench 6 Compute Results are expressed as Geekbench scores. Higher scores/longer bars are faster. Foundry With Geekbench 6, the M3 Ultra shows a more significant lead over the M5 Max, but again, it’s an 80-core GPU against a 40-core CPU. ### Video game benchmarks Results are frames per second. Higher rates/longer bars are faster. Foundry We saw frame rate boosts of 30 percent or more in _Total War: Warhammer III_ and _Borderlands 3_. Our results with _Civilization VI_ , an older game, were flat. In all, the multi-core CPU improvements are a tad bit more than the typical increase of 15 percent (or so) that we’ve seen between generations, with the M5 Max showing a boost of 20 percent or more over the M4 Max in many of our tests. If the CPU performance isn’t enough to convince you to upgrade, then take a look at the GPU, where the M5 Max even outperforms the M3 Ultra. Combine that with the SSD improvement, and what we have is proof that Apple can continue to offer significant progress with its chips to make the cheaper Mac Studio a compelling machine atop the Mac lineup. ## M5 Max Mac Studio: Thunderbolt 5 ports Apple upgraded the Thunderbolt ports to Thunderbolt 5 with the previous Mac Studio, so those same ports are on the current model. The throughput is 80Gbps that can go up as high as 120Gbps, but you need a Thunderbolt 5 cable and a supported device to reach those top speeds. Mac Studio rear ports. Fundry The M5 Max Mac Studio supports up to five displays, four over Thunderbolt at 6K/60Hz or 4K/165Hz, and one connected to the HDMI port at 5K/60Hz. The M5 Max Mac Studio also can drive three displays, with two displays at 8K/60Hz or 5K/120Hz or 4K/240Hz, and a third HDMI display at 5K/60Hz. These supported specs are improved over the M4 Max Mac Studio, so the new Mac Studio’s display support gets a boost. ## M5 Max Mac Studio: Same ol’ good stuff This iteration of the Mac Studio is a chip upgrade and nothing much else (besides the boosted display support, which is tied to the chip.) The design is the same as it has been since the Mac Studio’s introduction in 2022, and it’s not likely to change for a long while. The port configuration is also the same, and the keyboard, mouse, and display are sold separately. Speaking of display, Apple did release new displays earlier this year, though you might be able to find something comparable to Apple’s $1,499 Studio Display–it’s not a bad display, it’s just that it’s quite pricey. The Studio Display XDR is also expensive, but it’s the display that professionals who demand top-notch color and image quality will want. ## M5 Max Mac Studio: Price Except for its non-upgradeable design, there hasn’t been a “catch” with the Mac Studio until now. That catch is the higher price. The base M5 Max model starts at $2,499, a $500 increase over the M4 Max Mac Studio, but no more expensive that it was after Apple hiked prices in June. However, the Ultra Mac Studio went up in price again. In June, Apple increased the M3 Ultra Mac Studio’s starting price from $3,999 to $5,299, and now Apple has raised the starting price of the M5 Ultra another $200 to $5,499. Apple increased the Mac Studio price last June, and made more price increases with this new release. Foundry These are steep increases, enough to make anyone pause, even if you’re using a model from the M2 generation. If you feel like you can’t ever get enough speed, then you won’t blink at the higher prices. Others might want to wait. But I think these higher prices aren’t going to go down, even if the supply chain shortages that cause them eventually get resolved. These prices are the new normal, so some Mac buyers will need to reset their personal upgrade cycles. ## Should you buy the M5 Max Mac Studio? If you’re a Mac Studio user, you need a fast Mac. Apple’s improvements to the SSD are so compelling that even if you have an M4 Max or M3 Ultra Mac Studio, you should consider upgrading. Yes, it’s a pricey proposition, but your workflow will notice the improvement. But if you have a older Mac Studio and working with AI, you could wait for the next generation, because future M-series chips promise to have better AI capabilities. In that case, waiting isn’t a bad idea. However, like I said, the Mac Studio is a pricey proposition, and if you’re an individual professional whose means of offsetting the cost of purchase aren’t as immediate as, say, someone in a bigger production house, then continue to enjoy your current Mac Studio investment. If you’re new to the Mac Studio, I recommend buying a current model over an older M4 Max or M3 Ultra Mac Studio. The faster SSD is worth it alone.

It’s the official launch day for Google’s refreshed take on laptops. You can read my impressions here — long story short, it seems to be a platform made with phone-first users in mind. But if you’ve decided that you’re interested and want to pick one up, you have a choice of five at the launch, from the biggest names in the laptop industry: Acer, Asus, Dell, HP, and Lenovo. Pre-orders open today, both at Google’s official online store (at least in the US) and various retailers, with deliveries planned for October 4th. Google has set a few minimum standards for Googlebooks, notably 16GB of RAM (far more than the cheapest Chromebooks), an Intel or Qualcomm processor (MediaTek models are planned later), and a touchscreen. ## Acer Googlebook 14 — $899 Michael Crider/Foundry * CPU: Intel Core Ultra 5 series 3 325 * RAM: 16 GB * Storage: 512GB * Screen: 14″ 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen, 120Hz * Trackpad: Gorilla Glass * Weight: 2.51 pounds (1.13 kg) * Ports: USB-C x 3 Acer has the cheapest laptop in this initial blitz. It’s also the most typical, just barely making it out of the area of “budget” laptops compared to Windows models, thanks to its luscious OLED touchscreen with boosted resolution and refresh rate. It’s on the light side with no obvious exotic materials in its construction, and lacks some extras like a haptic trackpad. Strangely, it’s the only fully convertible (Yoga-style) laptop among the first batch. ## Asus Googlebook 14 — $1299 Michael Crider/Foundry * CPU: Intel Core Ultra 5 series 3 325 * RAM: 16 GB * Storage: 512GB * Screen: 14″ 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen, 120Hz * Weight: 2.18 pounds (.98 kg) * Ports: USB-C x 2, USB-A, HDMI With a whopping $400 price jump over the nearly identically named Acer model, you can really see the range of the initial models. The Asus design is slimmer and sleeker with an all-metal shell and a pleasingly rough texture, very similar to the Zenbook A14. Even though it’s using an Intel processor and packs six speakers, it’s claimed to last 16 hours thanks to a boosted 70-watt hour battery. I also like the broader port selection. ## Dell XPS Googlebook — $1199 Michael Crider/Foundry * CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite * RAM: 16 GB * Storage: 512GB * Screen: 13.4″ 2560×1600 IPS touchscreen, 120Hz * Weight: 2.2 pounds (.99 kg) * Ports: USB-C x 2 If there’s one device that surprised me at Google’s press event, it’s this one. This is, indeed, a Dell XPS model, sleek and light as that implies. If I hadn’t known the context I would have assumed it was a standard XPS 13. With the smaller screen and Snapdragon processor, and 18 hours of quoted battery life, this is the road warrior of the bunch. Interestingly, Best Buy is showing a lower price than Google, “just” $999. ## HP Googlebook 14 — $1299 Michael Crider/Foundry * CPU: Qualcomm Snapdragon X Elite * RAM: 16 GB * Storage: 512GB * Screen: 14″ 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen, 120Hz * Weight: 2.74 pounds (.98 kg) * Ports: USB-C x 2 HP’s initial Googlebook offering feels a lot like the Asus model, though not quite as sleek…which is strange, since it’s using a Snapdragon processor. And I have to say that it’s lower-rated battery life (15 hours) and considerably heavier weight for the same screen size (2.74 pounds) really don’t look great in comparison, for all that these laptops appear similar. The only standout on the spec list is a fingerprint reader integrated into the power button. ## Lenovo Googlebook 15 — $1099 Michael Crider/Foundry * CPU: Intel Core Ultra 5 series 3 325 * RAM: 16 GB * Storage: 512GB * Screen: 15.3″ 2880×1800 OLED touchscreen, 120Hz * Trackpad: Gorilla Glass * Weight: 2.68 pounds (1.22 kg) * Ports: USB-C x 2, USB-A, HDMI The only initial laptop in this range that stretches into the mid-size category comes from Lenovo. Though its screen is 15.3 inches, it’s using a similar OLED panel and 2.8K resolution as several others, and I liked the wavy texture of the bottom, very reminiscent of the Pixelbook Go. You also get a fingerprint reader and some big speakers flanking the keyboard, and Lenovo’s typical manual privacy shutter on the webcam. But a bigger screen without a bigger battery means less longevity. I hesitate to offer a standout pick after only a couple of hours to compare these laptops, but the Acer model with its convertible screen and low price and the Dell XPS with its super-sleek chassis made the biggest impressions on me. Reviews will be coming later, and as I recommended in my editorial, I would hesitate against pre-orders until those reviews come out. More models are already in the pipeline, including at least one Lenovo tablet that’s been spotted already. Oh, and one last warning, which was reiterated to me more than once during the Google preview event: With the RAM and storage issues plaguing the market, don’t be surprised to see those prices go up sooner rather than later.

According to information from ChannelGate, AMD may be set to raise prices on several of its products, reported by Digital Trends and gathered by @harukaze5719 on social media. Graphics chips for the consumer market, AI accelerators, and motherboard chips could all become around 10 percent more expensive in the fourth quarter of 2026—right around the corner. > According to ChannelGate, AMD will increase chip price about 10% in Q4 > > It is result from TSMC's price increase. The product include AI accelerator chips, consumer GPU and motherboard chipsets. > > The report isn't stated the 'CPU' side, but should consider also include. https://t.co/uWgd1ARcH8 pic.twitter.com/rKDT8KzGVz > > — 포시포시 (@harukaze5719) September 17, 2026 AMD has apparently already informed its partners of the planned price increases. The reason? Increased manufacturing costs at TSMC, which produces a large proportion of AMD’s chips. However, the reports don’t mention AMD’s Ryzen processors, and there’s currently no confirmed data to suggest that these will also become more expensive. Still, since Ryzen processors are also manufactured by TSMC, there’s a risk that higher production costs will affect them as well.