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The chronicle of the polygonal failure known as the Cybertruck continues as Tesla issues a new physical recall that covers all 2024 and 2025 models built between November 13, 2023 and February 27, 2024. In the announcement, Elon Musk’s company says that “the stainless steel panel of the cantrail assembly may delaminate at the adhesive joint, which may cause the panel to separate from the vehicle.” The cantrail is the portion of the roof that joins the pillars that form the vehicle’s roof structure. Tesla adds that, “if the cantrail panel separates from the vehicle while in drive, it could create a road hazard for following motorists and increase the risk of injury or a collision.” The company claims that it will replace the cantrail assembly “with one that meets durability testing requirements.” Why the one now in place doesn’t meet durability testing requirements is anyone’s guess, but Tesla is well known for using components that don’t meet durability testing, like when it implemented touchscreens in its Model S in 2012. Tesla sourced screens and electronics that were not graded for cars, so they failed. We also know that the Cybertruck’s design is so bad that it has affected the company’s ability to manufacture it properly, as Musk himself has admitted. But this is just shoddy craftsmanship. The Cybertruck has been plagued with a seemingly endless litany of construction quality problems, which we have compiled here. And for those keeping tabs and watching Tesla’s stock sink into oblivion, this recall shows that Tesla has sold far fewer than Musk would like you to believe. A punch-on-the-face contrast to what Musk was selling in the company’s October 2023 investors call: “The demand is off the charts,” he gleefully told them. “We have over 1 million people who have reserved the car.” Here is the definitive and constantly updated timeline of all Musk’s Cybermucks. Or as complete as I could make it, because I’m sure I’m missing some specific problems from some owner in the Cybertruck Owner Club forum. I’ll continue to update the list as new issues appear. November 21, 2019 Elon Musk unveils the Cybertruck for the first time. He claims its windows are made of ‘Armor Glass’, a bulletproof material that won’t even dent when you hit it, even at close range with a steel ball. Seconds later, two windows break in a live demonstration. Musk claims it will reach customers in late 2021 starting at $39,900. August 8, 2021 Tesla announces it won’t be able to get the Cybertruck out in 2021 due to production problems. The company says it will be pushing the date to early 2022. January 31, 2022 Once again, Musk announces that Cybertruck production is delayed again to late 2022 due to various design and manufacturing challenges. November 1, 2022 Unsurprisingly, Tesla says it won’t be able to meet its late 2022 release window, pushing the release once again to the end of 2023, with “early production” in mid-2023. “We’re in the final lap for Cybertruck,” Musk says on a financial conference call. January 24, 2023 In an interview with Fast Company, industry experts say they doubt that the Cybertruck’s design will allow the company to produce it in any significant numbers. Adrian Clarke—a professional car designer who now writes design critiques for The Autopian—and others in the industry believe it’s having and will have lots of problems: “As soon as we saw [the Cybertruck], everyone I know in the industry started laughing. We just thought there is no way they’re gonna be able to get that into production,” he says. Clarke believes it’s going to be extremely hard to make “those dead straight panels.” July 20, 2023 The first production prototype of the Cybertruck rolls off the production line at the Giga Texas factory, and eagle-eyed auto industry experts immediately spot one major quality mishap: the front and back passenger doors don’t align. Misalignment like this is not new to Teslas, but Elon Musk vowed to eliminate the problem back in 2021. These problems will continue in models through the entire production run. Also, during a May 2023 shareholder meeting, Musk insisted that the Cybertruck would be built as an exoskeleton, a solid steel skin design that would act as the structure—like an arthropod have—making the car virtually indestructible. But car and manufacturing experts Cory Steuben pointed out on the famous automotive video blog Munro Live, that the Cybertruck clearly does not have an exoskeleton. According to him, the Cybertruck’s assembly line pictures clearly show a regular unibody chassis, just like the one you would find on “an old Honda Ridgeline or a Model Y,” with its flat panels just acting as your usual body. August 24, 2023 It’s official. The Cybertrucks coming out of Tesla’s Texas factory are not good enough, according to Musk. The CEO writes a leaked internal email to Tesla employees, revealing his concerns in categorical terms: “Due to the nature of Cybertruck, which is made of bright metal with mostly straight edges, any dimensional variation shows up like a sore thumb.” December 1, 2023 Remember the promised $39,900 starting price tag? It was wrong. The real starting point is officially announced: $60,990. January 25, 2024 Reports of the locking differential feature being inoperational appear, displaying a “Coming Soon” message during use​ according to The Drive. February 2, 2024 Tesla issues an over-the-air software update recall for 2.2 million vehicles, including the Cybertruck, due to the font size of the ABS, brake, and park indicators being too small, which could increase the risk of a collision. February 22, 2024 New Cybertruck owners report rust and corrosion on the allegedly stainless-steel body of the truck, especially in vehicles exposed to rain. This was one of the biggest selling points that Musk touted when he announced the truck. February 28, 2024 Multiple owners report seeing 25 critical system errors within a few days of using the truck, including warnings from the high-voltage system, “critical steering issue” system malfunctions​, and “loss of system redundancy” that alerted drivers that the “vehicle may suddenly lose electrical power, steering, and propulsion, and may be unable to apply the parking brake.” There were also alerts for degraded adaptive drive control plus automatically disabled traction, lane departure avoidance, and stability controls. Some users also report door latches that don’t work. March 12, 2024 Add another link to Elon Musk’s long chain of broken promises: He previously announced a futuristic optional camping tent that matched the polygonal shiny looks of the car but that sleek render of the future turned out to be a sad hodgepodge of flaccid fabric in real life. March 13, 2024 The Cybertruck Owners Club forum is now flowing with multitude of reported problems. Owner “cyberstank” reports how they took delivery on March 13, “made it one mile down road, started getting steering error, flashing red screen, pulled off the side of highway. Now the truck is dead and I’m waiting for a tow truck. Dealer couldn’t do anything for me. It was great for 5 minutes. I tried everything, restarting, screen is stuck black and keeps beeping”. Their message finishes with: “Tesla really rushed these trucks out, what a nightmare.” March 26, 2024 One owner reports problems with the Cybertruck’s autopilot system: “I encountered a truck on the other side of a two-lane highway. My Cybertruck suddenly made a hard brake stop when we both had a clear wide enough space between us. Luckily there is no vehicle at the back as it would have been a definite collision.” In the same thread, others report similar problems but, to be fair, users report this happens with other Tesla models. April 1, 2024 Owners all over the internet show the effects of the Cyberguillotine: Tesla didn’t include anti-pinch sensors for the Cybertruck’s frunk, which could cause severe injuries or amputations if fingers get caught. The truck will slice the hell out of your fingers—or any body appendage—that gets too near to its closing front hood. (It happens with its doors too.) April 9, 2024 Apparently, the Cybertruck’s allegedly bullet-proof and indestructible, so-called ‘Armor Glass’ can’t stand hail, as this Redditor shows. The cost for the repair, according to the owner? “Just got an estimate of $2,326.75 via app service request.” April 15, 2024 Tesla halts all Cybertruck deliveries after owners report a problem with the accelerator pedal, which could become stuck down, due to lubricant residue causing the pedal cover to shift and become lodged in place. April 19, 2024 Tesla physically recalls all its Cybertrucks. The recall notice states: “The accelerator pedal can become stuck, sending the truck accelerating beyond control, making it a danger to everyone on the road.” June 25, 2024 Tesla is forced to recall its Cybertruck for the fourth time in the US due to issues with trim pieces that can come loose and front windshield wipers that can fail. The problems announced by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration affect over 11,000 trucks. One issue involves the windshield wiper motor controller receiving too much electrical current. This can cause wipers to fail and reduce visibility, posing a crash risk. Tesla will replace the wiper motor for free and must notify all owners by letter by August 18. The other recall concerns a trim piece along the truck bed that may come loose and become a hazard for other drivers. Tesla will fix this issue by replacing or reworking the trim piece and will notify owners on the same date. March 20, 2025 Tesla issues a new physical recall that covers all 2024 and 2025 models built between November 13, 2023 and February 27, 2024: About 46,000 units, most of the Cybertrucks ever shipped. A stainless steel may fall because it doesn’t meet durability testing requirements,, causing a risk of injury or collision. View the full article

I'm always looking for Mac apps that speed up repetitive tasks, and Rapidmg is my latest find. It's a neat macOS utility that speeds up the app install process for many programs outside the Mac App Store. While you can download and install apps via Homebrew for the fastest possible experience, plenty of apps are unavailable for install via the package manager. Instead, they're available for download via your favorite developers' websites, where you can download a DMG (Disk Image) file to install the app. Rapidmg automates the process of installing apps from DMG files and executes a bunch of actions that will save you a fair bit of time. What's the deal with DMG files?The Mac's DMG format is similar to the ISO format on Windows, which can be used to mount virtual volumes, clone entire discs, and much more. It's a common way to distribute Mac apps online. To you, opening a DMG file appears as if you're launching the app itself, because it uses the app's icon and name. Once you open a DMG file, you'll see a small window containing the app's icon, which you drag into the Applications folder on your Mac. The DMG format allows developers the ability to customize the size and background of this window, creating some unique install layouts. This Aymeric on Software blog post does a great job documenting the history of the DMG file, in case you want to learn more about it. How Rapidmg speeds up the install workflow Credit: Pranay Parab Once you open a DMG file, it'll be mounted as a volume, and you'll see the installation pop-up. You drag the app's icon to the Application folder to complete the installation. This installs the app, but you still have two more things to do. You need to unmount the volume (right-click it on the desktop and click Eject), and delete the unwanted DMG file, which serves no purposes after an app is installed. Rapidmg can automate this entire process for you. Once Rapidmg opens a DMG file, it'll automatically move the app to your Mac's Applications folder, unmount the volume, and delete the DMG file (if you want it to). To use it, install Rapidmg, and then right-click any DMG file. Select Get Info and under Open with:, select Rapidmg. You may click Change All to make Rapidmg the default app for opening DMG files. With this done, just double-click any DMG file and Rapidmg will handle the rest for you. To streamline the process, launch Rapidmg, then click the gear icon in the top-right corner to configure it. Select the drop-down menu next to After Expanding, and choose Delete the disk image to get rid of the install file. That's all there is to it! Rapidmg is a free download via the Mac App Store and you can use it for free for one week. After that, you can pay $1 to unlock the app forever. As always, you should be cautious when you download Mac apps from unknown developers. While macOS has security protections to keep you from launching suspicious apps, you should still only download apps from reputed developers to avoid accidentally installing malware. Using Rapidmg is safe and it doesn't make you more vulnerable to security threats, but keep your guard up when downloading any apps from the internet. View the full article

A random tree in Toronto—yes, a tree—has become an unlikely online sensation, racking up dozens of glowing five-star reviews on Google. Known affectionately as “Rodney the Tree,” the landmark recently gained viral attention after a screengrab of its Google Maps listing was shared on the subreddit r/MadeMeSmile. The post’s caption: “Someone marked a random tree in Toronto as a tourist attraction – and the reviews are genuinely taking me out,” alongside a handful of screengrabs of the 180 online reviews. One visitor claimed to have traveled all the way from the UK just to see Rodney, who stands proudly on a patch of grass near King Street and Strachan Avenue. “Definitely worth it,” they wrote. “We did the night tour, which I would highly recommend.” Another reviewer from nine months ago, who “traveled all the way from South Carolina”, described the tree as the “real gem of Toronto,” above the city’s other famous landmarks, notably the CN Tower, Royal Ontario Museum (ROM), and Casa Loma museum. If you are planning a visit to Rodney The Tree, however, be careful not to accidentally view the wrong tree. As one reviewer warned, “there is a similar (but far inferior) imposter nearby.” The Reddit thread quickly turned into a celebration of other hilariously overhyped attractions, including the now-infamous Bude Tunnel in the UK. Once ranked no. four on TripAdvisor in its area, the tunnel is simpley a covered walkway connecting a Sainsbury’s car park to a nearby road. But according to the 1,500-plus reviews, it’s nothing short of life-changing. One user gushed: “came here with a group of friends as it was known to be a popular destination. Drove from Preston and were not disappointed. Easy 100m long and protects you from the Cornwall sunshine. Considering going back.” Of course, not everyone was charmed. One unimpressed visitor gave the tunnel a single star: “It’s just a walkway with nothing to see… surely someone is having a joke.” Not everyone can get in a joke, apparently. View the full article

To ban or not to ban cellphones in school, that is the perennial question facing parents and educators across the country. A new study published in The Lancet lends credence to the latter camp, finding no evidence that restricting student access to cellphones improved either well-being or grades in reading and math. The study examined 30 schools in the U.K., 20 of which restricted cellphones in some capacity, 10 which did not. “In restrictive schools, phones were not allowed to be used during the school day for recreational purposes, and were required to be kept off inside bags, stored in lockers, kept in a pouch, handed into the school reception, or phones were not allowed onto the school premises altogether,” the authors wrote. “In permissive schools, phones were permitted to be used at any time or at certain times (e.g., breaks/lunch) and/or in certain zones (e.g., outside).” Contrary to popular belief, the researchers found no significant difference in the mental well-being of those students allowed to use their phones compared to those who were not. Importantly, that doesn’t mean cellphones don’t pose problems. The researchers found that the more time students spent on cellphones and social media, the lower their mental well-being. However, banning cellphones and eradicating social media isn’t the answer here. While plenty of research shows the damage phones and social media can do to our mental health and dwindling attention spans, love them or hate them, cellphones aren’t going anywhere. Educators and administrators are better off putting their energy into helping teenagers navigate a world with cellphones and social media. Learning how to focus despite the pull of a phone in their back pocket will serve students better than coming up with ways to circumvent restrictive phone policies. “Reactionary hacks have been pushing the false narrative that social media and smartphones are leading to declining literacy and mental health problems. It’s false, and it’s simply the latest iteration of a long running freak out about the technology and media that young people are using,” writes journalist Taylor Lorenz in User Mag. While no one thinks students should be allowed to scroll on their phones all day in class, banning phones outright won’t magically make all problems disappear. If you’ve ever tried to ban a child from doing literally anything, you’ll understand why. View the full article

After social media rattled the old gatekeepers of information, new digital ones have emergedView the full article

ICE Mortgage Technology announced additions for its Encompass LOS, while Mortgage Cadence is bringing out a new version of MCP aimed at mid-sized depositories. View the full article

A short-cut for UK debt issuanceView the full article

If you've ever sat in front of your Windows PC wondering exactly what is causing it to run so sluggishly, some clarity may be on the way: Microsoft is testing a new FAQ page in Windows 11 that will analyze your system specs and give you some advice about why you might not be seeing top performance speeds. The feature is currently hidden away in the preview release of Windows—it's not even active in the earliest testing version—but developer ‪@phantomofearth.bsky.social‬ has managed to access the relevant screens and find out how they work. The new page will apparently make its home in the System tab of Settings. As per the screens shared online, an example of a frequently asked question is: "Is my GPU sufficient for high end gaming and video experience? How can having a dedicated GPU enhance my experience and productivity?" The answer then explains that less than 4GB of memory for a GPU can lead to lower performance and visual quality. New Frequently Asked Questions list in Settings > System > About hidden in builds 26120.3576 and 22635.5090. Has some questions related to the Windows version and device specs. (vivetool /enable /id:55305888)[image or embed] — phantomofearth ⛄ (@phantomofearth.bsky.social) 17 March 2025 at 23:52 Then there's: "How does having 4-8GB of RAM impact my PC's performance? Can I run modern applications smoothly with this RAM capacity?" The response explains that you'll be fine editing documents and browsing the web, though tasks such as photo and video editing may be more of a challenge for your system. These questions and answers will apparently be tailored to each specific system, so you'll only get information that's relevant to your own setup. This could potentially be pretty useful when it comes to figuring out what's slowing down the performance of your computer, or getting advice on which component needs an upgrade. It's worth bearing in mind that a huge chunk of Windows users aren't even going to know what RAM is, let alone how it impacts the performance of their system. For those users, I could see the FAQ section being helpful—certainly more helpful than a dry list of system specs, which is all that's available right now. Right now, Windows 11 gives you a basic list of system specs. Credit: Lifehacker That said, the responses are a little on the generic side (I really hope Microsoft hasn't given Copilot the job of writing them). Information like "a high-end GPU can provide better graphics, smoother gameplay, and faster processing" isn't exactly a revelation, and doesn't really quantify how much improvement a user might see with a graphics card upgrade—so some estimates on potential performance gains would be welcome. However, the more precise these FAQs get, the greater the risk of inaccuracies: Microsoft wouldn't want a user to be in the situation of buying an expensive GPU upgrade only to see minimal performance boosts because of a slow CPU, for example. Assessing PC speeds and the contribution of each component is a complicated business, which is probably why these FAQs are rather vague at the moment. Hopefully, Microsoft can work in some more specifics before this feature actually launches without running the risk of misleading users. Of course, a lot of the details also might change between now and whenever this gets pushed to all Windows users—if indeed it ever does see the light of day. But it's a potentially useful new addition to the OS that will provide some extra context to your system specs. View the full article

While it's generally useful to get notifications on your phone, there are times when it's too much, too fast, such as after you disable Airplane Mode or when your family text thread is blowing up while you're in the middle of a meeting. On Android, you can turn on silent mode or snooze or disable notifications entirely—or you can rely on the new Notification Cooldown feature, which temporarily lowers the literal and figurative volume on your alerts so you don't have to manage those modes yourself. We've known this feature was coming for a while, and it finally arrived on Android 15 with the March 2025 update. How Notification Cooldown worksNotification Cooldown manages a deluge of alerts that come in over a short period of time by temporarily lowering your device's volume and minimizing on-screen pop-ups. The cooldown can last up to two minutes. Notifications don't disappear entirely when Notification Cooldown is enabled, so you don't need to worry about missing important alerts. You can still view them in the notification shade by pulling down from the top of your phone's screen. Calls, alarms, emergency alerts, and priority conversations will still come through during a cooldown. Unfortunately, there's no option to customize Notification Cooldown—such as the alert threshold that triggers it, how long it lasts, and which apps are cooled—other than turning the feature on or off. How to enable (or disable) Notification CooldownTo turn Notification Cooldown on or off on your Pixel device, open Settings and go to Notifications > Notification cooldown (under General). Use the toggle next to "Use notification cooldown" to enable or disable the feature. Notification Cooldown may be on by default, so you can opt out if you prefer not to use it. If you don't see this option in your phone's settings, make sure you've updated your device to the latest version of Android 15. View the full article

Consulting group says that US government purchases have slowed and global economic uncertainty has risenView the full article

General managers around the National Hockey League are putting some of their old roster and team management tactics on ice. That’s because NHL front offices, through a partnership with software company SAP, are now using the SAP-NHL Front Office App, bringing reams of data and information into a single all-encompassing platform. Given that so much of the sports world is driven by numbers—goals, shots, saves, salaries, and more—all the data and information can be difficult to wrangle. For those working in the front office in the NHL, it could mean “staring at eight computer screens,” and “carrying around a big binder” to make sure it’s all on-hand, as Don Waddell, GM of the Columbus Blue Jackets, tells Fast Company. But the new Front Office app brings it all onto a single dashboard. Waddell says that it was immensely helpful during the recently passed NHL trade deadline, as he was able to look at or access roster information, look at contracts for every player in the league, and even get a quick gauge on which players had no-trade clauses. While SAP has been working with the NHL since 2017, offering on-the-fly insights on the bench and generating in-game insights, the front office staff—the people running the team or organization—have had to cobble together data and information from different sources. The NHL has had that data, and the whole idea behind the Front Office app was to make it easier than ever to access for general managers and others. “It’s been in the hands of the clubs since December,” says Steve McArdle, chief operating officer at the NHL. “We’ve heard very positive feedback on the design and functionality. It’s not just an app for the sake of an app—it’s taking the best of all worlds, and changing the way information is delivered.” ‘One-stop shop’ Given that each and every NHL team relies on data to inform decisions about roster moves, contract negotiations, and more, the league wanted to make sure it was doing its best to make decision-making as efficient as possible. So by leaning into the existing relationship the NHL had with SAP, and then building an app for iPads, which were already being used in various faculties by the clubs, creating the app was a natural next step. Its designers see it evolving and becoming even more useful in the future. “The first iteration, we were focused on pulling the data together to answer core questions that GMs might have,” says Dan Fleetwood, VP of global sponsorships at SAP. “We wanted to get information to their fingertips.” Fleetwood also says that the magic of the app is its simplicity. “It’s a consumer-grade application,” he says, meaning that NHL GMs—many of whom were hockey players themselves, lacking tech-heavy backgrounds—can pick it up and use it with ease. “The beauty of it is that it’s a one-stop shop,” says Waddell. “SAP has been around for a long time,” he adds, “and though we’ve always had smart hockey people,” it’s great to add some “smart technology, too.” View the full article

I've been trying to get back into playing guitar and I've noticed one thing: Both the App Store and Google Play are replete with guitar-tuning apps that are full of either upsells or advertisements. Isn't there any application that helps tune your guitar without bothering you? It turns out, there is. LikeTones, a music-education company, offers a guitar tuner for Android and iPhone that's both free to use and free of ads and upsells. You can open this application, play a string on your guitar, and start tuning. The application automatically detects which string you're trying to play and tells you whether to tune up or down. If you'd rather not use this automated tuning, or find that it doesn't quite work, you can tap a string to tune it specifically. This also plays the note from your phone's speakers, giving you an idea of how the string should sound. Because not every guitar is the same, this application offers support for six, seven, eight, and 12 string guitars in the settings. There's also support for various alternative tunings. You can also configure the reference frequency, if you want—this is useful if you need to tune to a piano or other instrument that isn't quite standard. Credit: Justin Pot It's a well-thought-out application, and the best I could manage to dig up in my capacity as an amateur guitarist and professional app recommender. It even has a built-in metronome. There are other solid options out there. Jon's Tuner for iPhone also works quite well, and is clean, but doesn't offer the same flexibility in terms of alternative tuning schemes. The Android version of Jon's Tuner, which I found reference to online, seems to be missing from Google Play. There is a solid Android alternative, though: Tunerly, which is completely open source. This app offers a simple user interface and settings, allowing you to choose specific tuning schemes. For most people, though, LikeTone Guitar Tuner is currently the best option. It works on both Android and iPhone, it's clean, it works well, and it stays out of your way. Try it if you're even a little unhappy with your current guitar tuning application. View the full article

The top five banks had a combined unpaid principal balance of more than $26 billion at the end of Q4 2024. View the full article

Amid rapid technological advancements, return-to-office policies, and political and economic uncertainty, soft-skills like conflict mitigation are rising through the ranks as desirable skills for professionals. Skills needed for jobs are rapidly changing, with LinkedIn estimating that 70% job skills will change by 2030. In response, the social network identified the top 15 fastest-growing skills in the United States with its inaugural Skills on the Rise 2025 report. With a quarter of professionals planning on learning new skills, LinkedIn’s list pinpoints the most popular skills for both professionals and companies hiring. LinkedIn identified growth on skills by measuring various metrics and comparing the findings from 2024 and 2023. The metrics included the increase of a skill mentioned in paid job postings, the rate of new skills added to users’ profiles, and skills of users hired within the past year. Successful collaboration is crucial in a tension-filled world Landing second place on the list, conflict mitigation is set to become popular among various industries like higher education, consulting, and tech. By navigating workplace conflicts effectively, conflict mitigators generate successful collaborative environments. Other soft skills on the list include innovative thinking, public speaking, and adaptability, with professionals prioritizing. “You can teach technical skillsets but if you are unable to work well with others, listen effectively, collaborate with others, be respectful, be open to outside thoughts you will struggle,” one LinkedIn user commented on the list. LinkedIn’s report also notably accounts for the proliferation of AI use in the workplace, with AI Literacy landing the top spot on the list, and large language model (LLM) development and application scoring farther down the list. Here are the full 15 skills in order: AI Literacy Conflict Mitigation Adaptability Process Optimization Innovative Thinking Public Speaking Solution-Based Selling Customer Engagement and Support Stakeholder Management LLM Development and Application Budget and Resource Management Go-to-Market Strategy Regulatory Compliance Growth Strategy Risk Assessment View the full article

Rate-setters are grappling with combination of a sluggish economy and continuing price pressuresView the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Hisense 65U6N, a PCMag Editor's Choice winner (that also made it into Lifehacker's "Best 65-inch TVs to Buy in 2025" roundup in the budget category) is currently on sale for $498, down from its regular $734 price tag. This 65-inch 4K QLED TV uses a mini-LED backlight system to deliver solid contrast and color accuracy—something you’d expect from pricier models. It supports Dolby Vision, HDR10, and HLG—meaning whatever you stream will look sharp and vibrant. That said, it’s a 60Hz panel, so motion won’t be as smooth as on higher-end 120Hz or 144Hz models. Gamers might also want to think twice—while it does support VRR (variable refresh rate), it lacks AMD FreeSync and Nvidia G-Sync, which could be a dealbreaker for serious competitive gaming. But at an input lag of just 3.6 milliseconds, casual gaming is still solid, according to this PCMag review. Hisense 65-Inch U6 Series Mini-LED ULED 4K Smart TV (2024 Model) $498.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $734.04 Save $236.04 Get Deal Get Deal $498.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $734.04 Save $236.04 Hisense went with Google TV for the software, which is a win if you like a clean interface and easy access to all major streaming apps like Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, and Apple TV. Plus, hands-free Google Assistant support means you can control your 65U6N and compatible smart home devices just by talking. Apple users will appreciate its AirPlay 2 support, making it easy to stream directly from an iPhone or Mac. Android users, of course, get Google Cast. One notable omission is that this TV only has an ATSC 1.0 tuner, meaning it won’t support over-the-air 4K broadcasts with ATSC 3.0. However, if that’s not a dealbreaker, its smart features still make it a strong pick. The remote feels surprisingly premium, with a brushed-metallic plastic design and a shiny navigation pad. Dedicated buttons for Netflix, Prime Video, and YouTube make it easy to jump into your favorite apps, and the built-in mic means you don’t have to shout across the room to give voice commands. Connectivity-wise, you get four HDMI ports (one with eARC), two USB ports, an Ethernet port, an optical audio output, and multiple 3.5mm jacks. It also comes with sturdy metal legs for tabletop placement or VESA compatibility if you want to mount it. If you’re after a step up, the Hisense 65U7N ($698, down from $998) offers a brighter display, 144Hz refresh rate, and ATSC 3.0 tuner; but at this price, the 65U6N is hard to beat for everyday streaming and casual gaming. View the full article

On a good first date, you want chat about hobbies, and siblings, and dream jobs. Nobody wants to kill the vibe by inquiring how much student debt the other person has. But as a relationship progresses, you'll find yourself assessing a lot about your partner: Their values, emotional management, political leanings, and so much more. The subject of money, however, often gets pushed to the side—sometimes, until it's too late. We all have different relationships with money. Some of us are cautious-minded savers, others are profligate spenders. Some are always padding their rainy day fund; others can’t resist purchasing new stuff every paycheck. When you’re in a relationship, it’s paramount to find out how your partner operates when it comes to money—because if the relationship continues for the long haul, it will come up. A lot. Here’s how to lay the foundation for ongoing financial intimacy. Do it early on (and ramp up gradually)It’s easy to let the subject of money slide due to discomfort. But if you want to avoid a large, emotional misunderstanding down the line, cut to the chase early on. Within your first few weeks or months of dating, start asking questions to uncover their financial situation. It can begin casually with questions like, “Are you more of a saver or a spender?” or “Do you pay attention to the stock market?” or “What’s your favorite thing to splurge on?” to get a glimpse into their general money perceptions, and ramp up to more specific questions about their credit score, salary, and debt as time passes. Keep in mind, disclosure isn’t a one-way street. Be prepared to share your own behaviors, habits, debts, and financial history in due time. Give advance noticeWhile some conversations will arise organically, if they don’t, make it known you want to have a conversation involving money. Rather than ambushing them over sushi with, “So, how much do you contribute to your 401(k) every month?” try something like, “When we have some free time next week, I’d love to touch base on this money goal I’m working towards and get your thoughts.” Ask about their childhoodWe all come with a money “story” or particular set of beliefs and fears around money that we absorbed from our families while growing up. Asking how they were raised is one of the easiest ways to gain insight into their attitudes about money. Some grew up in households where discount shopping reigned, every receipt was saved, and Ziploc bags were washed and re-used. Others were allowed to spend hundreds on trendy clothes for the first day of school and went to a different island every winter break. To find out more about the money attitudes they absorbed, ask questions like: How was money handled when you were growing up? Were you encouraged to save from a young age? Did your parents give you money when you went to the mall, or did you have to use your own? Did your parents fight about money often? Where did your family take vacations? Use a personal financial goal to start the conversationTo make it more subtle and less awkward, use one of your own money goals to get the conversation going. Share your desire to get better at budgeting, save enough that you can quit your job to freelance, pay down debt, or buy a new car. Saying something like, “I’m working towards saving enough to make this down payment. Do you have any suggestions?” can open up a candid conversation and lend insight into their money behaviors without putting them on the spot. This can (and should) eventually segue into questions about their short-term and long-term financial goals. Ask hypothetical “what if” questionsIf it’s early on in a new relationship, or you’re not sure where to start, try framing questions as “what if” scenarios to get an idea of where their financial opinions stand. Things like: What if you won the lottery—what would you do with the money? Would you rather spend your life at a job you don’t love but pays really well, or one you’re passionate about, but will never make you rich? If you had to save 50% of your salary in one year, how would you do it? But also ask real-world questions...Some conversations will revolve around general opinions and attitudes about money, but others should be designed to reveal answers to specific questions you have. Whether you want to know if they save for retirement, ever gamble, have an emergency fund, how often they invest in the stock market, or simply their daily spending habits, devise those questions beforehand. These specifics will round out the more general picture you’re getting of their overall relationship with money. Mention an article or statisticsIf you want to understand where your partner stands financially but you're scared to broach the topic, you can take some of the heat off yourself by foisting the attention on a third party. Try something like, "I read this online article about having a money talk with your partner. Why don’t we just play along and try it out?” Seeing as how money disagreements and “financial incompatibility” are one of the leading causes of divorce, it’s a topic that shouldn’t be ignored. Discuss future real-life scenariosWhile you won’t want to do this in the first month of dating, as you get more serious and begin to broach subjects like marriage and children, don’t leave money talks out. This is the time to get specific on how the two of you would handle money as a long-term team, with questions like: “When you’re married, do you want to keep a joint family account, separate personal accounts, or both?” “If you wanted to make a large purchase, would you consult your spouse beforehand?” “How do you feel about setting joint financial goals?” “If your kids wanted to do an extracurricular or take a trip you couldn’t afford, what would you do?” “What age would you ideally like to retire?” Have regular money talksA couple’s discussion about finances should never be a one-off. Once you’ve laid the foundation for open and honest communication about money, make it a habit. If you’re living together, engaged, or married, set up monthly “money dates” to review bills, budgeting, spending and savings, or large purchases. You can use the time to review current expenditures, air any worries, discuss goals, and create long-term financial plans. Here's how you can take a good, hard look at exactly where your money is going. View the full article

The regulator is reviewing Fannie's operations and those of another government-sponsored enterprise, where there was reportedly a separate executive departure. View the full article

Too often, we get stuck waiting—waiting for a boss, a higher-up, or even a partner to hand us the reins and tell us it’s our time to shine. But here’s the truth: empowerment isn’t something you’re given. It’s something you take. If things aren’t going your way, there’s no one else to blame—it’s up to you to make a move. If you’re tired of waiting for someone else to recognize your potential or tell you what to do next, here are three actionable steps to take control and empower yourself today: Stop Asking for Permission—Start Taking Initiative Empowerment begins when you stop waiting for someone to tell you what to do and start taking proactive steps toward what you know needs to be done. Identify a recurring problem at work and propose a solution to your team or supervisor. Even if it’s not implemented, the act of stepping forward demonstrates your leadership mindset and builds confidence. Instead of waiting for your boss to address a gap in team communication, suggest implementing a weekly check-in meeting. Better yet, create a suggested communication matrix with specific questions to ask to ensure gaps are minimized. Taking initiative shows you care about the team’s success and your role in it. This puts you in the best position to shine and to keep top-of-mind when positions or projects pop up that require your skillset. Remember that your boss most likely has a busy calendar with shifting priorities and mounting headaches, if you can make their job easier and alleviate some of their headaches, you will be the hero in their workplace story. Word will travel that you are resourceful. Cultivate Self-Awareness and Lean into Your Strengths Understanding your own strengths, weaknesses, and values is the foundation of self-leadership. You don’t need your boss to define your role—you need to define how you show up in it. This simple reframe will help you take back the influence that many of us give away. Spend 10 minutes each week reflecting on recent wins and challenges. What strengths did you leverage? Where could you improve? Use this insight to guide your actions. Also, assess how you feel at the end of each day for one week and note which job functions you were performing when you felt like you were succeeding and when you felt most stressed. That will help you pinpoint the best positions and functions for you. If you’re naturally skilled at relationship-building, consider how you can use that strength to foster collaboration or improve team dynamics, even without being prompted. It will be those relationships that will get you through tough times and could prove beneficial when up for that next promotion too. Don’t forget that you are the captain of your own ship and the chief navigator of your workplace and life experiences. You do not need to be the victim or bystander. Embrace Feedback as a Tool, not a Threat Empowered leaders view feedback as an opportunity to grow, not as a personal attack. Seek out feedback proactively, even if it’s uncomfortable—it’s a critical step in refining your approach and building trust. Without this feedback, you will undoubtedly experience blindspots on your journey. Be open to feedback if you want to minimize painful mistakes. At the end of a project or meeting, ask a colleague or manager, “What’s one thing I did well, and one thing I could improve?” Listen without defensiveness and take actionable steps to improve. Younger says, “We can choose to remove the clay that we place over our brilliance.” She points out that being proactive about requesting feedback allows our brilliance to shine through. When receiving feedback that your presentations need more clarity, take a public speaking course or workshop to elevate your skills and demonstrate your commitment to growth. In this example, be sure to ask what specific areas of your presentation lack clarity. That way, you will not waste time on the wrong things. Often, people shy away from feedback, because they are afraid of what they might find. Those who are eager to go into the unknown of feedback and take in the good with the bad quickly discover the benefits. We cannot be our best and become more self-empowered unless we know where to smooth our rough edges. The good news is that we all have them. So, there is nothing to be ashamed about. Instead, look at the courage you display when you eagerly seek the feedback as a badge of honor. Claim Your Leadership Role Empowerment isn’t a gift someone hands you—it’s a mindset you cultivate. By taking initiative, leveraging your strengths, and embracing feedback, you build the confidence and competence needed to lead yourself—and, in turn, inspire those around you. Stop waiting for permission. Start leading yourself, and watch how others begin to follow. View the full article

In an era where nearly everything we do carries a digital footprint, experts warn that our freedoms are increasingly under attack. But the average internet user can take steps to fight back against threats that range from mass surveillance to the decline of net neutrality to changes to the very architecture of the internet. The American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) is calling on people to become involved in the nonprofit’s wide-ranging work at the intersection of technology and civil liberties. Last month, for example, it filed Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) requests seeking transparency about DOGE’s access to Americans’ personal information and has a petition for people to sign that will be sent to Congressional members. “There’s such an important space for everyone to be involved in defending and continuing to advance rights,” Nicole Ozer, technology and civil liberties director for the ACLU of Northern California, said during a discussion at the Fast Company Grill at SXSW. “This is not a moment where we just have to crawl into a ball, this is a moment where we have to be aggressively using our entire toolkit to be doing what’s right for ourselves and our communities.” Fighting for what people want is important, especially because many people may not appreciate the access afforded by the internet, added Alissa Starzak, deputy chief legal officer and global head of policy at Cloudflare. “We sort of take it for granted, but now is a time when it’s starting to fall apart, and so really thinking about what we can do to sort-of make sure that doesn’t happen is going to be important.” What’s scary right now One sign that Western democracies are moving closer to their versions of a restricted internet was the recent, temporary ban of TikTok, said Stan Adams, public policy specialist at the Wikimedia Foundation. “As a precedent, that is not a great thing for Western democracies.” The TikTok ban also raised important questions about who implements that type of ban—and how, Starzak added. “People are going down into the internet’s architecture and they’re changing things so that they can limit access, and that is a very scary world if you think about the open internet as a good thing.” What’s more, in a time when we’re all living “incredibly digital lives,” the ACLU is focused on ensuring that all of digital information—about who we are, where we go, what we do, and what we know—is safeguarded and isn’t weaponized against us, Ozer said. For example, the ACLU is working to pass laws to limit the use of geofence warrants so the government can’t find out every single person who has been somewhere at a given time—be it SXSW, a protest, or a reproductive clinic, Ozer added. “That is so scary, particularly in this current moment.” Even age verification laws for certain websites, which Adams pointed out are ostensibly intended to keep children from viewing harmful content, also have implications for digital freedom. That’s because they serve as a partial block to people who don’t have a government ID, people who cannot prove who they are, or people who don’t want to submit a facial scan. “It’s still a trend in the wrong direction,” Adams said. “It’s just a soft way of saying don’t go there, which is bad for internet freedom generally.” Why activism matters If Cloudflare gets pressured to block something, the company prioritizes transparency and tries to advertise what’s happening so that people know, Starzak said. “The reality is if you live in a democracy, you should care about these issues.” What’s more, she said, there have been some victories that show the power of activism—such as early-2010s opposition to the Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) and the PROTECT IP Act (PIPA), which the U.S. Congress ultimately decided not to pass that legislation. “We all have a role to play,” Starzak said. Adams and Ozer echoed this sentiment. “People like the internet, we all use it, it’s a valuable tool for everyone,” Adams said. “And when we get upset about things that the government does or the companies do, we should speak out about that.” Finally, Ozer emphasized that people have more power than they may realize, especially when it comes to issues people care about. “Democracy doesn’t defend itself and laws don’t pass on their own,” she said. “ We have to have the power as people to move those issues forward.” View the full article

Many imagined someone in their own hard-nosed imageView the full article

Government debt service payments are biggest portion of rich nations’ GDP since at least 2007, says OECDView the full article

Sixteen years ago, I received a phone call that was both unexpected and surprising. On the other end of the line was Lisa (a pseudonym) who had previously been the leading applicant for an open job position at our agency. Lisa had learned about our agency from some of her peers who worked with us and who had encouraged her to apply for a position in the firm. But, halfway through the interview process, Lisa informed us that even though she really wanted to work with us, she had received an offer from a competitor that she just couldn’t refuse. At the time, we were a start-up agency that was bootstrapping its way forward. We simply couldn’t match the salary that the competitor was offering Lisa. Believe me, if we could have, we would have. Lisa’s portfolio of work, CV, and recommendations were more than impressive. Although we were disappointed, we thanked Lisa for participating in the interview process and genuinely wished her all the best in her career. This is a scenario that many start-ups find themselves in—wanting to attract their industries’ “best and brightest” but being unable to compete with the big guys in the area of compensation. But, back to the phone call. In a faint whisper, Lisa asked if the position at our agency was still available. I replied yes, it was, and asked why she was whispering. As it turns out, Lisa was whispering because she was in her new workplace and didn’t want her colleagues to overhear the call. I reminded her that we wouldn’t be able to match her current salary, to which she replied: “I’d rather be working with you guys at a lower salary than be working here in a toxic culture.” (Lisa’s peers who worked at our agency had told her about our fun and often quirky culture.) So, we offered the position to Lisa, who immediately quit her job and came to work at our agency, where she excelled in her role. Lisa’s story should be good news for any company seeking to attract top talent, but especially those that can’t afford to compete on the basis of salary. Here are five ways to compete for talent without having a huge budget for salaries. 1. Build a highly engaged company culture A study conducted by Glassdoor, one of the world’s largest recruiting sites, found that 77% of employees consider a company’s culture before applying for a job, and that 56% of applicants rank company culture as being more important than salary when it comes to job satisfaction. If you want to attract top talent, prioritize building a highly engaged company culture where employees are excited about the work they do and are committed to helping their organizations succeed. Let your culture act as a magnet to attract top talent—even if you aren’t exactly hitting the top of your industry’s salary scales. 2. Prioritize work/life balance Of respondents in a FlexJobs Career Pulse Survey, 64% stated they would choose better work/life balance over better pay. And no wonder! Workplace stress has been linked to physical, emotional, and mental health challenges, including high blood pressure, cardiovascular disease, anxiety, depression, and substance abuse. If your organization can’t compete for top talent on the basis of salary, try competing on work/life balance by offering generous time off opportunities like “Half-Day Fridays,” flexible working hours, and work-from-home opportunities. 3. Provide opportunities for professional development Ambitious employees often forego higher salaries in favor of professional development that could fast-track their careers in the long run. That’s why a great way to attract top talent is to provide candidates with opportunities for professional development that they would not otherwise find at your competitors. But, what professional development programs would attract the type of employees you would want to apply at your firm? Research conducted by PayScale found that nearly a third of all respondents reported that they would be most interested in management/leadership training. Other coveted training opportunities included professional certifications and technical skills training. 4. Offer non-monetary benefits Cold hard cash isn’t the only thing that can motivate an individual to want to work at an organization. In a study conducted by Randstad US, 61% of respondents indicated that they would be willing to accept a lower salary if an organization offered a great benefits package as part of their compensation. And, in a survey by the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, 80% of respondents reported that they would choose a job with benefits even if an identical job offered 30% more salary but no benefits. If you can’t go toe-to-toe with your competitors based on salaries, consider offering benefits like workplace wellness programs, gym membership, health insurance, and access to mental health resources. 5. ‘We grow, you grow’ programs When Lisa left a higher-paying job to come to our agency, we promised her that as the company grew and became more profitable, her salary would likewise grow—a promise that we were able to keep. Sometimes, all it takes to win over a candidate is to demonstrate that you value their contributions and that as the company grows, they will reap the benefits. If your company simply can’t offer top-tier salaries, consider using these strategies. You may be pleasantly surprised to find that you can compete effectively for top talent without having a huge budget for salaries. View the full article

Like clockwork, when my daughter turned 9, she started to show interest in nail polish, lip balm, and haircare. “Mommy, I think I need shampoo for my specific hair type,” she told me. I knew the day would come when my daughter would be lured in by beauty products, but I still found myself unprepared to respond. I feel a responsibility to help her navigate what will be a lifelong relationship with the beauty industrial complex. This means helping her decide what products are safe and appropriate to use. More importantly, though, it means helping her see beauty as a tool of self-care, rather than an external standard she must achieve. [Photo: Evereden] This is becoming an increasingly complex task for today’s parents. For one thing, the beauty industry is bigger than ever, with new products and brands popping up daily. Many contain active ingredients that aren’t appropriate for young skin, but that hasn’t stopped tweens from flocking to Sephora to buy them. All of these brands—from Sol de Janeiro to Drunk Elephant—are marketed to adults, with models who are much older than the brand’s youngest customers. The good news is that there’s a new wave of startups emerging that cater specifically to younger consumers, including Starface and Bubble. One of the most successful brands in this category is Evereden, which began as a baby brand in 2018 but has grown alongside its customers by creating skincare products for kids and now tweens. It’s currently making its biggest play for the tween set by launching fragrances designed to compete directly with the Sol de Janeiro mists that are highly coveted by middle schoolers. In many ways, Evereden is filling an important gap in the market for age-appropriate beauty products for young girls. It’s a void left behind by Bonne Bell, the iconic cosmetics brand that catered to generations of American tweens but shuttered a decade ago after years of declining sales. Evereden’s approach offers a glimpse into what today’s tweens care about, and what it takes to win them over. Growing With The Customer Parents who slathered Evereden’s creams on their preschoolers in 2018 are now living with preteens. Evereden is prepared for them. Two years ago, it launched a $22 lip oil that comes with a charm attached that feels like an upscale version of Lip Smackers. (Everden’s formula is certified by the Environmental Working Group to be free of toxic chemicals; meanwhile, EWG says Lip Smackers contains ingredients that could cause allergies, reproductive toxicity, and cancer.) [Photo: Evereden] This week, Evereden is launching a $69 three-piece set of fragrance mists that come in fun, colorful bottles. And when I tested them, they seemed to capture the bright, sugary essence of girlhood. This isn’t an accident. While many adult perfumes are complex and subtle, tweens tend to have simpler sensibilities. That’s what Evereden found when it did a focus group with 200 tweens and teens, asking them to choose among 70 scents. The final fragrances are fresh, floral, and sweet. Over the past five years, the fragrance industry has exploded, and tweens have contributed to this growth. Sol de Janeiro became Sephora’s best-selling brand partly because of the success of its fragrance mists, which are extremely popular among middle schoolers. But Evereden cofounder and CEO Kimberley Ho points out that many of the fragrances that tweens are buying from Sephora aren’t designed for kids. Sol de Janeiro’s advertising, for example, features voluptuous women in bikinis on Brazilian beaches. “Mists were the most requested product last year,” Ho says. “Many parents told me they weren’t comfortable with their child using Sol de Janeiro. The brand’s campaigns are sexual, because they’re meant for adults.” [Photo: Evereden] Ho was careful to market Evereden’s new mists in an age-appropriate way. The boxed set comes with a quiz—reminiscent of something you might find in retro magazines like Girls’ Life or Tiger Beat—that helps you decide which mist to wear on a given day. Are you feeling girly? Darling, with its undertones of strawberry and rose, is for you. Are you feeling a little sassy and independent? Supernova, with its pear and bamboo notes, is the right pick. “We use the same model for all the fragrances, because the message is that we are all multidimensional,” Ho says. “Tweens are at an age when they are trying to figure out who they are. We’re trying to say that you can be many things at once.” The Rise and Fall of Bonne Bell In many ways, Evereden is using the playbook of Bonne Bell, which defined tween beauty for generations of Americans. The brand was founded in 1937, at a time when the concept of the “teenager” was first emerging in U.S. culture. The company realized it had an opportunity to tailor products to girls who were curious about their mother’s makeup and skincare, but weren’t ready to take on an adult beauty regimen. The brand launched a range of teen-focused drugstore products that girls could afford to buy with their babysitting money. It was famous for its three-step acne-fighting regimen called Ten-O-Six. In 1973, it launched Lip Smackers, lip balms that came in flavors like cherry and Tootsie Roll. Two years after that, Bonne Bell launched perfumes. A vintage Lip Smackers ad [Photo: twitchery/Flickr] The branding of these products was distinct from beauty products targeted at adults; Bonne Bell featured younger models with more natural makeup in scenarios that were more about having fun than being sexy. As a result, many parents felt comfortable with their daughters filling their vanity with these products. In the 2000s, Bonne Bell began a slow decline. Competitors like Wet n Wild and L’Oréal started going after the tween and teen market with similar products. And retailers like Bath & Body Works tapped into the tween market by creating fun, limited-edition body sprays and washes that middle schoolers loved to collect. But this was also the dawn of e-commerce and social media, which led to an explosion of new beauty brands in the marketplace. Many tweens were drawn to these other brands, which resulted in Bonne Bell losing market share. In 2015, the company announced it was shuttering its operations. Lip Smackers products have reemerged under a new owner but have nowhere near the same market share they once had. [Photo: Evereden] Bonne Bell for Gen Alpha While the market is now overflowing with beauty brands, there are very few that focus exclusively on the tween consumer. This makes business sense. Brands stand to generate far more revenue by reaching a wider demographic—particularly if tweens are among them. But Ho believes it’s worth creating tween-specific products. For one thing, thanks to the clean beauty movement, many parents are very conscious about what they are putting on their children’s bodies. As their toddlers turn into tweens, they want to be careful about potential toxins or hormone disruptors in beauty products. From the start, Evereden has been focused on clean formulations that are also effective. Ho brought on three chief scientific officers who are professors of dermatology at Harvard and Stanford. Together, they’ve developed products free of 2,000 ingredients known to cause harm. The new fragrance mists are made without any preservatives such as butylated hydroxytoluene, which is commonly used in perfumes in the U.S. but has been banned in other countries because it is carcinogenic. [Photo: Evereden] And parents aren’t the only ones who are eager for age-appropriate products. Based on her focus groups, Ho has concluded that most tweens aren’t interested in plunging fully into the world of adulthood and the beauty rituals that go along with it. They’re just curious and want to dip their toe in the water. Until now, there haven’t been many options for them to explore, so they’ve embraced brands meant for older consumers. I see this in my own daughter. She’s intrigued by my perfume and makeup. But she also seems to understand that girlhood is precious and worth holding on to. When Evereden’s perfume mists arrived, she took the quiz with all the seriousness of a school math test. She decided to wear the Supernova scent, because she was feeling spunky. But who knows which one she’ll choose tomorrow? View the full article

Treasury says law firm’s Moscow division paid £3.9mn to designated entities View the full article