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Uncertainty is ruling the markets that are used to set mortgage rates and as a result, they remained in the same tight range since the start of the month. View the full article

Latest draft sent to Kyiv steps up demands and offers no security guaranteesView the full article

Levies on some vehicles set to reach 40%-50% when combined with threatened reciprocal tariffsView the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you're in the market for a new Apple Watch, the Series 10 is currently $100 off during Amazon's Big Spring Sale. Normally priced at $399, the current discount brings the smartwatch down to just $299. This is as low a price as this watch ever gets, according to price-tracking tools. The Series 10 is a solid staple of the Apple smartwatch ecosystem. There are plenty of reasons that make this watch the best option for most people. It's smaller and lighter than previous models, and the screen is bigger, brighter, and faster than earlier series. Lifehacker's associate tech editor Michelle Ehrhardt even says it was the first Apple Watch model to actually tempt her to upgrade. Even if you aren't interested in features like, say, measuring how far below water you are up to 20 feet, the Series 10’s comfort alone might make it the best Apple Watch for you. If you're still wearing the more budget SE, this discount could be a perfect way to upgrade or replace your current wearable. Credit: Michelle Ehrhardt The bottom line is the Apple Watch Series 10 is still the same experience you’ve come to expect from an Apple Watch, but with a little more convenience and comfort than earlier models. You still have a square body, and aside from the dive sensors, the same fitness tracking. If you're already a loyal Apple Watch user looking for subtle but significant upgrades, this is a good time to snag a Series 10 at a more affordable price. Apple Watch Series 10 $299.00 at Walmart $399.00 Save $100.00 Get Deal Get Deal $299.00 at Walmart $399.00 Save $100.00 Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

Welcome to AI Decoded, Fast Company’s weekly newsletter that breaks down the most important news in the world of AI. You can sign up to receive this newsletter every week here. AI pioneer Illia Polosukhin offers a blockchain-flavored open-source enablement platform Illia Polosukhin, who coinvented the Transformer architecture at Google in 2017, is now launching a new company called Near AI. The company will offer services through a blockchain-powered platform that functions as a secure marketplace for open-source AI models and agents. Polosukhin is a strong advocate for transparent, open-source AI models, which he believes are the best way to promote responsible adoption in an equitable and safe manner. He’s deeply concerned about individuals’ data privacy and the data sovereignty of companies and countries in a world where just a few tech giants control the largest AI models and the vast amounts of data they collect. His vision is to empower many developers to build powerful models openly, while giving users more control over their data. The challenge, however, is that developers of open-source (or open-weight) models typically offer their work for free. This means they incur development costs without generating revenue—and must also worry about potential liability if someone later uses their models to cause harm. According to Polosukhin, some open-source developers are reluctant to host their models on Hugging Face due to the risk of weight leaks. Hosting models on their own server clusters shifts the burden of governance and compliance—especially regarding user data—entirely onto them. On the Near platform, which Polosukhin and his team have been developing since mid-2024, that burden is eliminated. “For developers it’s a very effective way for them to ship their models and agents because they don’t need to deal with all the GDPR compliance themselves for user data,” Polosukhin says. “We build a very simple hosting platform that does all that and they also get distribution.” He likens the Near platform to an app store—but for open-source models and agents. The platform leverages blockchain technology to create a decentralized network of users—including enterprises, independent developers, and researchers—around the world, Polosukhin explains. Each user must have the appropriate hardware configuration to join the network. Once connected, they can run encrypted versions of models locally and pay a fee per token to the model’s creator. User registration and payment coordination are handled on the blockchain. Users benefit by gaining access to models from verified developers on a trusted platform—one where neither Near nor the model creators can see the user data running through the models. For enterprises in regulated industries, this could be more appealing than sending sensitive data to a frontier model provider like OpenAI or Google, where privacy and security are less transparent. Between 2018 and 2022, the Near Foundation raised $650 million to build the Near protocol and platform. Now, Near AI—the newly formed company—will offer specialized services for developers and users on top of that platform. Don’t be surprised if Near AI raises a new funding round in the near future. With new Google and DeepSeek models, AI parity seems very real Remember when OpenAI’s Sam Altman said that other frontier model developers shouldn’t bother trying to catch up to OpenAI? What a difference a year makes. For a long time, OpenAI’s models enjoyed a comfortable performance lead over the competition—but that’s changed. Google, which had been slow to accelerate development of generative models that might someday exceed human intelligence, yesterday released a new reasoning model called Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental that outperforms OpenAI’s best across several well-known benchmark tests. Gemini 2.5 Pro Experimental now leads in the math and science benchmarks Graduate-Level Google-Proof Q&A (GPQA) and the 2025 American Invitational Mathematics Examination (AIME). It also achieves a state-of-the-art score of 18.8% on Humanity’s Last Exam, a notoriously difficult test set designed to capture the human frontier of knowledge and reasoning. Google DeepMind leader Demis Hassabis says on X that Gemini 2.5 “reasons through its thoughts before responding, effectively mimicking how humans process thoughts.” “It approaches a problem gradually, refines potential solutions, and chooses the best one,” he says. The model’s standout features include native multimodality—it processes images, video, audio, and code as tokens—and the ability to hold vast amounts of information (up to a million tokens) in memory while reasoning through problems and selecting the best answer. The plot thickens. The Chinese AI lab DeepSeek has just released a new open-source model called DeepSeek-V3-0324, which improves on the earlier V3 model in reasoning, math, science, and coding. Anyone can download the model from Hugging Face and start developing their own models and apps with it. Developers can’t do the same with OpenAI’s and Google’s top models, which do not reveal their code, training data, or model weights. A year ago, most industry observers believed China was years behind U.S. AI companies in model performance; now, the gap is said to be just a few months. The takeaway is that state-of-the-art frontier models aren’t as precious or untouchable as they once were. That’s why OpenAI, Google, and others are racing to get consumers hooked on their chatbots, agents, and other applications as quickly as possible. Their main value is no longer in powering enterprise systems at premium prices via APIs—it’s in getting as many consumer users as possible into subscription plans, as AI becomes a bigger part of everyday work and life. Anthropic and Databricks team up to service enterprises in regulated industries Databricks and Anthropic are joining forces in a five-year partnership that will integrate Anthropic’s Claude AI models directly into the Databricks Data Intelligence Platform. As a result, Databricks’ more than 10,000 enterprise customers will be able to send their proprietary data through the most advanced Anthropic models within the AWS, Azure, or Google clouds. Many of Databricks’ customers are enterprises in regulated industries such as finance and healthcare, so being able to run advanced AI models on the same platform as their data storage is a major advantage. Databricks notes that its tools allow enterprises to create AI agents that not only understand their organizational data but can also reason about it using Anthropic’s Claude models. “They are the leading AI model out there and so getting that in front of our customers is really what all this is about,” says Databricks VP of generative AI Naveen Rao. “We want to give our customers the best AI capabilities to unlock the value of their data.” Databricks customers will have access to Anthropic by default within the Databricks cloud, eliminating the often-protracted process of adding a new vendor. The Anthropic fees will simply appear on their Databricks bill. Rao says the two companies will first focus on helping existing Databricks customers get the most out of the Anthropic models. They may then shift focus to attracting new enterprise clients with the combined strengths of Databricks’ data security and governance and Anthropic’s state-of-the-art intelligence and safety controls. “We meet customers all the time who have clarity on their model story but are looking for something in terms of their long-term data story, and I’m sure the opposite or the compliment is true on the Databricks side,” says Anthropic chief product officer Mike Krieger. “You’re often meeting a customer on some portion of their journey, and being able to help them fast-forward through some discovery on the other parts helps you show up well.” More AI coverage from Fast Company: The ‘living globe’ that can help drones fly without GPS This watchdog is tracking how AI firms are quietly backing off their safety pledges Otter’s new AI agents are built to boost sales and streamline meetings Will AI-generated anime reshape storytelling—or replace it? Want exclusive reporting and trend analysis on technology, business innovation, future of work, and design? Sign up for Fast Company Premium. View the full article

While getting a home you're thinking of buying inspected to make sure it's not harboring any hidden problems goes without saying, it's just as important to do a deep dive on the neighborhood you'll be moving into. But while you can look up crime stats and compare property values, how can you know if you’re going to personally vibe with the new surroundings? Here are seven strategies you can try in order to vibe-check your potential new neighborhood before signing a lease or taking out a mortgage. Walk the area instead of driving aroundWhether you’re a walker or you believe strongly in driving to the end of your driveway to collect the mail, a stroll through a prospective neighborhood is an effective way to gauge its overall feel. If you have a dog, taking it for a walk there is just as effective (and might make you feel more comfortable). Walking around will show you whether your neighborhood is buzzing with activity at all hours, or if it’s super quiet. You’ll get a feel for whether neighbors socialize a lot, or if they keep to themselves. This will let you know if the area matches your energy, or if you’ll be bored or irritated living there. Walking around also gives you the chance to run into residents and chat them up a little. Some casual conversation can reveal a lot about the character of the place, and whether people are happy living there or gritting their teeth every day. Hang around at different times of dayWalking is a good technique, but so is sitting. Take a drive to your new potential block at different hours of the day and just sit there for a little while and listen. Noise is one of the leading complaints people have about their neighbors, but it can be difficult to notice when you’re actively touring a home and engaged with a real estate agent. Sitting for a bit and listening will tell you whether the neighborhood is packed with barking dogs, screaming children, loud train tracks, blasting stereos, or vicious arguments. Try a short-term rentalIf you have the time and flexibility, look for a short-term rental in the neighborhood you're considering. A brief mini-vacation there will give you a day or two to see what everyday life might be like there. You'll also have the opportunity to find out how walkable it is, what the local stores and nightlife are like, even how easy it is to find street parking. If you can’t wait to get out of there after a few days, you'll know everything you need to about whether it's the spot for you. Preview the nightlifeWalking and staking out the neighborhood are effective ways to gauge the vibe, but make sure you include some weekend evenings on your schedule. A neighborhood that’s pin-drop quiet on a Monday morning might transform into an enormous block party on Friday night—which may or may not be what you’re looking for. If you can, check it out during a holiday as well—a neighborhood that has regular block parties or other social events to mark these occasions will have a very different vibe from a spot where everyone keeps to themselves. Even if you’re not going to be renting out a room, you might consider redirecting your nightlife to the new neighborhood for a few nights. Hit up some restaurants, bars, coffee shops, or other venues. These will be your go-to spots when you live there, so knowing whether they’re walkable, always crowded, incredibly noisy, or just not your tempo is valuable information. Check out the grocery storesThere is absolutely a hierarchy of grocery stores, so you should check out your options in your potential new neighborhood. High-end spots will be clean and well-stocked, with fresh produce but higher prices. Lower-end stores might not be a pleasant shopping experience, and might indicate a neighborhood on a downward spiral. And having no local options and being forced to drive to a big-box store—or having dollar stores and convenience stores as your only grocery option—might make living there a lot more difficult. Your feelings about the local grocery situation might depend on your lifestyle, but it’s worth it to make sure the stores match up with your expectations and needs, whatever they are. Test your commuteIf you’re going to be commuting to and from work, school, or some other location regularly, do a test run or two. Get to the prospective neighborhood a little early, start the clock, and start your commute from there. Whether driving or taking public transportation, this will be the best way to get a feel for whether your commute is about to get much, much more nightmarish, a lot easier, or not change in any way at all. Check the local calendarOne thing you should look at when vetting any neighborhood is any list of public events in the general area you can locate. Many communities have public websites with information about upcoming festivals, block parties, and community events like local theater productions. You can also check out the local chamber of commerce for event information. View the full article

In 1983, six businessmen got together and opened the first Hooters restaurant in Clearwater, Florida. Hooters of America LLC quickly became a restaurant chain success story. With its scantily clad servers and signature breaded wings, the chain sells sex appeal in addition to food—or as one of the company’s mottos puts it: “You can sell the sizzle, but you have to deliver the steak.” It inspired a niche restaurant genre called “breastaurants,” with eateries such as the Tilted Kilt Pub & Eatery and Twin Peaks replicating Hooters’ busty business model. A decade ago, business was booming for breastaurant chains, with these companies experiencing record sales growth. Today it’s a different story. Declining sales, rising costs and a large debt burden of approximately US$300 million have threatened Hooters’ long-term outlook. In summer 2024, the chain closed over 40 of its restaurants across the U.S. In February 2025, Bloomberg reported that the company was on the verge of filing for bankruptcy. Hooters isn’t necessarily going away for good. But it’s certainly looking like there will be fewer opportunities for women to work as “Hooters Girls”—and for customers to ogle at them. As a psychologist, I was originally interested in studying servers at breastaurants because I could sense an interesting dynamic at play. On the one hand, it can feel good to be complimented for your looks. On the other hand, I also wondered whether constantly being critiqued might eventually wear these servers down. So my research team and I decided to study what it was like to work in places like Hooters. In a series of studies, here’s what we found. Concocting a male fantasyland More so than most restaurants, managers at breastaurants like Hooters seek to strictly regulate how their employees look and act. For one of our studies, we interviewed 11 women who worked in breastaurants. Several of them said that they were told to be “camera ready” at all times. One described being given a booklet with exacting standards outlining her expected appearance, down to “nails, hair, makeup, brushing your teeth, wearing deodorant.” She had to promise to stay the same weight and height, wear makeup every shift, and not change her hairstyle. Beyond a carefully constructed physical appearance, the servers relayed that they were also expected to be confident, cheerful, charming, outgoing, and emotionally steeled. They were instructed to make male customers feel special, to be their “personal cheerleaders,” as one interviewee put it, and to never challenge them. Suffice it say, these demands can be unrealistic—and many of the servers we interviewed described becoming emotionally drained and eventually souring on the role. ‘The girls are a dime a dozen’ It probably won’t come as a surprise that Hooters servers often encounter lewd remarks, sexual advances, and other forms of sexual harassment from customers. But because their managers often tolerate this behavior from customers, it created the added burden of what psychologists call “double-binds”—situations where contradictory messages make it impossible to respond properly. For example, say a regular customer who’s a generous tipper decides to proposition a server. Now she’s in a predicament. She’s been instructed to make customers feel special. And he’s already left a big tip, in addition to being a regular. But she also feels creeped out, and his advances make her feel worthless. Should she push back? You might assume that managers, aware that their scantily clad employees would be more likely to face harassment, would try to set boundaries and throw out customers who treated servers poorly. But we found that waitresses at breastaurants have less support from both management and their coworkers than servers at other restaurants. “Unfortunately, the girls are a dime a dozen, and that’s how they’re treated,” a former server and corporate trainer at a breastaurant explained. The lack of coworker support might also come as a surprise. Rather than standing in solidarity, the servers tended to compete for favoritism, better shifts and raises from their bosses. Gossiping, name-calling, and scapegoating were commonplace. The psychological toll My research team also wanted to learn more about the specific emotional and psychological costs of working in these types of environments. Psychologists Barbara Fredrickson and Tomi-Ann Robert have found that mental health problems that disproportionately affect women often coincide with sexual objectification. So we weren’t surprised to find that servers working in sexually objectifying restaurant environments, such as Hooters and Twin Peaks, reported more symptoms of depression, anxiety, and disordered eating than those working in other restaurants. In addition, they wanted to be thinner, were more likely to monitor their weight and appearance, and were more dissatisfied with their bodies. Hooters didn’t reply to a request for comment on this story. Why are women drawn to the job? Given our findings, you might wonder why any women would choose to work in places like Hooters in the first place. The women we interviewed said that they sought work in breastaurants to make more money and have more flexibility. A number of servers in one of our studies noted that they could make more money this way than waitressing at a regular restaurant or in other “real” jobs. For example, one of the servers we interviewed used to work at a more run-of-the-mill restaurant. “It was OK, I made OK money,” she told us. “But working at Hooters . . . I’ve walked out with hundreds of dollars in one shift.” All the women we interviewed were in college or were mothers. So they enjoyed the high degree of flexibility in their work schedule that breastaurants provided. Finally, several of them had previously experienced objectification while growing up, or they’d participated in activities centered on physical appearance, such as beauty pageants and cheerleading. This likely contributed to their decision to work at a Hooters or one of its competitors: They’d been objectified as adolescents, and so they found themselves drawn to these kinds of setting as adults. Even so, our research suggests that the financial rewards and flexibility of working in breastaurants probably aren’t worth the potential psychological costs. Dawn Szymanski is a professor of psychology at the University of Tennessee. This article is republished from The Conversation under a Creative Commons license. Read the original article. View the full article

Climate activist group claims victory after demand to end new oil and gas becomes UK government policyView the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Roborock is the maker of many fine robot vacuums (and vacuum/mop combos). They are so fine, in fact, that even when they're on sale, as many of them have been for the past few days during Amazon's Big Spring Sale, they can cost you several hundred dollars. One Roborock vacuum-and-mop combo, however, is really discounted right now: The Q7 Max is $189.99 (Amazon lists its regular price as $299.99 and the Roborock website shows the original price as a whopping $599.99). The Roborock Q7 Max specs Roborock Q7 Max Robot Vacuum and Mop So, what do you get for $189.99? The Q7 Max comes with 4,200Pa of suction, which is modest but powerful. (Some Roborocks ratchet the suction power up to 10,000Pa, but if you're dealing with a standard amount of household dust, this should suffice.) This device also vacuums and mops simultaneously, saving time and effort. Like other models, you get 30 adjustable water flow levels, which means you can customize what the robot does based on your own preferences and flooring materials. It's not self-cleaning when it's in its dock, so you will need to empty the dust and water tanks periodically. One of the key selling points of this brand's vacuums is its Lidar navigation, which enables the vacuums to create 3D maps of your space over time. From there, the machine will figure out the most efficient cleaning route and learn to avoid obstacles. It detects stairs, automatically returns to its charging dock when it needs to, and comes with a feature that allows you to lock it in using the mobile app so your kids and pets can't mess with it. It'll run for up to 180 minutes on one charge and can cover over 3,200 square feet in that time. This model uses a rubber brush that stays low to the floor to pick up dirt and hair, both from flat surfaces and out of crevices. All that being said, it only runs on 2.4G wifi, so don't try to connect it to anything heavier-duty. The Best Amazon Spring Sale Deals You Can Get Now Apple AirPods Pro 2 Wireless Earbuds — $169.99 (List Price $249.00) Ecobee Smart Thermostat Enhanced — $169.00 (List Price $189.99) soundcore by Anker Q30 Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones with Multiple Modes, Hi-Res Sound, Custom EQ via App, 40H Playtime, Comfortable Fit, Bluetooth Headphones, Multipoint Connection — $55.99 (List Price $79.99) Blink Mini 2 (White, 2-Pack) — $37.99 (List Price $69.99) 2024 Apple iPad mini A17 Pro chip, Built for Apple Intelligence, Wi-Fi 128GB - Blue — $399.00 (List Price $499.00) Apple Watch Series 10 (GPS, 42mm, Black, S/M 130-180mm, Sports Band) — $299.00 (List Price $399.00) Sonos Era 100 Wireless Speaker - White — $199.00 (List Price $249.00) Fire TV Stick 4K Max Streaming Player With Remote (2023 Model) — $39.99 (List Price $59.99) Fitbit Inspire 3 Health & Fitness Tracker (Midnight Zen/Black) — $69.95 (List Price $99.95) Roku Express 4K+ HDR Streamer with Voice Remote — $29.85 (List Price $39.99) Deals are selected by our commerce team View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you’re a developer, hobbyist, or just someone trying to keep up with modern programming tools without emptying your wallet, this deal might catch your eye: Microsoft Visual Studio Professional 2022 is currently going for $27.97 on StackSocial—down from its usual $499. That’s a one-time payment for lifetime access. Once you buy, the redemption code gets emailed to you instantly, and you have 30 days to activate it. There are no recurring fees, just a fully loaded development environment with features that make coding faster, cleaner, and less of a headache. This version of Visual Studio marks a shift—it’s their first 64-bit IDE that handles larger projects without choking. If you’ve ever waited for your code editor to stop freezing while dealing with massive workloads, that’s less of a concern here. It supports cross-platform app development through .NET MAUI, so you're covered whether you’re building for Android, iOS, or desktop. Plus, features like Live Share make collaboration less chaotic. You can co-code in real time, control what collaborators see, and even carry over your custom settings. There’s also IntelliCode, which is basically AI that learns your coding habits and fills in the blanks intelligently. It can finish lines of code or suggest the next logical move based on your style and context. It’s a little eerie, but it works. You can also build, test, and deploy to Azure right from the IDE, which is great if you’re cloud-focused. There are some things to keep in mind. This is for Windows users only. If you’re working on a Chromebook, iPad, or even a 32-bit system—this won’t work. It’s compatible with Windows 10 and 11, and you’ll need at least 4GB of RAM (though more is better). Depending on how many features you install, it also takes up anywhere from 850MB to 210GB of storage. View the full article

Oh what a tangled web, CoreWeave . . . View the full article

ASUS has officially introduced the NUC 15 Pro+, a high-performance mini PC designed to deliver advanced computing capabilities in a sleek, compact form factor. Announced on March 19, 2025, the NUC 15 Pro+ integrates the latest Intel Core Ultra processors and offers up to 99 TOPS for AI-enhanced power, alongside support for quad 4K displays, cutting-edge connectivity, and a durable, upgrade-friendly chassis. Performance Boost with AI-Enhanced Power The NUC 15 Pro+ features up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 processor (Series 2) paired with Intel Arc Graphics, delivering an 18% performance increase over previous-generation NUC models. With up to 99 TOPS of AI performance, the device is engineered to handle intensive workloads, making it suitable for professionals, creators, and multitaskers seeking both speed and energy efficiency. Quiet Operation with Advanced Cooling Designed for whisper-quiet computing, the NUC 15 Pro+ incorporates a new thermal design optimized for improved airflow. ASUS reports that the advanced silent-cooling system reduces noise by 1.2 times compared to earlier models, maintaining peak performance even under heavy processing loads. Next-Generation Connectivity Equipped with Intel WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, the NUC 15 Pro+ offers high-speed wireless connections. WiFi 7 supports data rates up to 46Gbps and can simultaneously handle up to 16 streaming devices. The device also includes proximity sensing to detect user presence, intelligently locking or waking the system to conserve energy. Bluetooth 5.4 offers data speeds up to 2Mbps and connectivity over distances up to 240 meters. Immersive Visual Experience The mini PC supports up to four 4K displays via two HDMI 2.1 ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports, delivering sharp, vivid visuals ideal for both multitasking and entertainment. A new sync-off feature helps reduce energy consumption by powering down connected monitors when the system is idle. Tool-Free Upgradability ASUS designed the NUC 15 Pro+ with a sleek 0.7-liter aluminum chassis that combines aesthetics with practicality. A spring-loaded hinge lever allows users and IT personnel to access the internals for tool-free upgrades, making it simple to replace or expand RAM and storage. Durable and Sustainable Design Built to meet US MIL-STD-810H certification, the NUC 15 Pro+ is tested for reliability in harsh environments and around-the-clock operation. This rugged design minimizes downtime and supports long-term use with reduced maintenance needs. Detailed Specifications The NUC 15 Pro+ is available in both pre-configured Mini-PC and customizable Kit versions. Supported operating systems include Windows 11 64-bit, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, and RedHat Enterprise Linux. CPU options range from Intel Core Ultra 5 to Ultra 9, with memory configurations supporting up to 96GB DDR5-6400. For storage, users can choose between M.2 2280 and 2242 PCIe Gen4x4 SSDs, with support ranging from 128GB to 2TB. Connectivity features include Intel WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, 2.5G Ethernet, USB 3.2 and Thunderbolt 4 ports, as well as HDMI CEC support. The device operates at temperatures between 0–35°C and stores safely between -40–60°C. The ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ is available now, offering a powerful, compact solution for users who demand performance, efficiency, and flexibility in a mini PC format. Image: Asus This article, "ASUS Launches Compact and Powerful NUC 15 Pro+ Mini PC" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

ASUS has officially introduced the NUC 15 Pro+, a high-performance mini PC designed to deliver advanced computing capabilities in a sleek, compact form factor. Announced on March 19, 2025, the NUC 15 Pro+ integrates the latest Intel Core Ultra processors and offers up to 99 TOPS for AI-enhanced power, alongside support for quad 4K displays, cutting-edge connectivity, and a durable, upgrade-friendly chassis. Performance Boost with AI-Enhanced Power The NUC 15 Pro+ features up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 processor (Series 2) paired with Intel Arc Graphics, delivering an 18% performance increase over previous-generation NUC models. With up to 99 TOPS of AI performance, the device is engineered to handle intensive workloads, making it suitable for professionals, creators, and multitaskers seeking both speed and energy efficiency. Quiet Operation with Advanced Cooling Designed for whisper-quiet computing, the NUC 15 Pro+ incorporates a new thermal design optimized for improved airflow. ASUS reports that the advanced silent-cooling system reduces noise by 1.2 times compared to earlier models, maintaining peak performance even under heavy processing loads. Next-Generation Connectivity Equipped with Intel WiFi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, the NUC 15 Pro+ offers high-speed wireless connections. WiFi 7 supports data rates up to 46Gbps and can simultaneously handle up to 16 streaming devices. The device also includes proximity sensing to detect user presence, intelligently locking or waking the system to conserve energy. Bluetooth 5.4 offers data speeds up to 2Mbps and connectivity over distances up to 240 meters. Immersive Visual Experience The mini PC supports up to four 4K displays via two HDMI 2.1 ports and two Thunderbolt 4 ports, delivering sharp, vivid visuals ideal for both multitasking and entertainment. A new sync-off feature helps reduce energy consumption by powering down connected monitors when the system is idle. Tool-Free Upgradability ASUS designed the NUC 15 Pro+ with a sleek 0.7-liter aluminum chassis that combines aesthetics with practicality. A spring-loaded hinge lever allows users and IT personnel to access the internals for tool-free upgrades, making it simple to replace or expand RAM and storage. Durable and Sustainable Design Built to meet US MIL-STD-810H certification, the NUC 15 Pro+ is tested for reliability in harsh environments and around-the-clock operation. This rugged design minimizes downtime and supports long-term use with reduced maintenance needs. Detailed Specifications The NUC 15 Pro+ is available in both pre-configured Mini-PC and customizable Kit versions. Supported operating systems include Windows 11 64-bit, Ubuntu 24.04 LTS, and RedHat Enterprise Linux. CPU options range from Intel Core Ultra 5 to Ultra 9, with memory configurations supporting up to 96GB DDR5-6400. For storage, users can choose between M.2 2280 and 2242 PCIe Gen4x4 SSDs, with support ranging from 128GB to 2TB. Connectivity features include Intel WiFi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, 2.5G Ethernet, USB 3.2 and Thunderbolt 4 ports, as well as HDMI CEC support. The device operates at temperatures between 0–35°C and stores safely between -40–60°C. The ASUS NUC 15 Pro+ is available now, offering a powerful, compact solution for users who demand performance, efficiency, and flexibility in a mini PC format. Image: Asus This article, "ASUS Launches Compact and Powerful NUC 15 Pro+ Mini PC" was first published on Small Business Trends View the full article

New Jersey-based cloud computing provider will seek $1.5bn, down from initial target of $4bnView the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. I test and review a lot of robot vacuums and mops. Usually, they're premium or flagship models, which makes the Switchbot K10+ an outlier, but it still impresses me every time I use it—so much that it is one of the few vacuums I've held onto to use myself. When Switchbot upgraded the K10+ to the K10+ Pro, it got even better (they made the vacuum suction more powerful and dropped the mop attachment). Right now, during Amazon's Big Spring Sale, it's $300, which is half off its regular price. Switchbot K10+ Pro Robot Vacuum Mini Robot Vacuum $299.99 at Amazon $599.99 Save $300.00 Get Deal Get Deal $299.99 at Amazon $599.99 Save $300.00 What makes it so special? It's tiny. About 2/3 the size of normal robot vacuums, it can get between and under spaces no other robot can. The radius it makes around chair legs and furniture is tiny, as well. It's quiet, and it doesn't get stuck on larger debris, or trapped in places because it's so small it can escape any spot most robots get stuck in. Despite having about half the suction of premium robots, it works spectacularly across carpet, hardwood, tile, or rugs. The tower is petite, and is self-emptying. The Switchbot app is simple and easy to navigate, too. You can still create complicated maps and schedules. While, generally speaking, I think most people should get a combo vacuum and mop these days, I've gifted the K10+ Pro to a number of people for their offices or smaller homes, and they've all raved about the machine. The current sale puts it below $300, and at that price, it is the best robot vacuum deal out there. The Best Amazon Spring Sale Deals You Can Get Now Apple AirPods Pro 2 Wireless Earbuds — $169.99 (List Price $249.00) Ecobee Smart Thermostat Enhanced — $169.00 (List Price $189.99) soundcore by Anker Q30 Hybrid Active Noise Cancelling Headphones with Multiple Modes, Hi-Res Sound, Custom EQ via App, 40H Playtime, Comfortable Fit, Bluetooth Headphones, Multipoint Connection — $55.99 (List Price $79.99) Blink Mini 2 (White, 2-Pack) — $37.99 (List Price $69.99) 2024 Apple iPad mini A17 Pro chip, Built for Apple Intelligence, Wi-Fi 128GB - Blue — $399.00 (List Price $499.00) Apple Watch Series 10 (GPS, 42mm, Black, S/M 130-180mm, Sports Band) — $299.00 (List Price $399.00) Sonos Era 100 Wireless Speaker - White — $199.00 (List Price $249.00) Fire TV Stick 4K Max Streaming Player With Remote (2023 Model) — $39.99 (List Price $59.99) Fitbit Inspire 3 Health & Fitness Tracker (Midnight Zen/Black) — $69.95 (List Price $99.95) Roku Express 4K+ HDR Streamer with Voice Remote — $29.85 (List Price $39.99) Deals are selected by our commerce team View the full article

Last year, Google released a niche feature in its experimental NotebookLM product that turned out to be a sleeper hit. You could upload any document to NotebookLM, and it would use AI to generate a two-person conversational podcast out of it. These aren't meant to be uploaded online for viewership, but for you to listen to as a learning ad. The idea is that there are times when it's easier to understand a concept when two people are just casually conversing about it. If that sounds appealing to you, good news: you no longer need to dive into the unfamiliar NotebookLM interface to try it out. Google's AI-generated podcasts, called Audio Overviews, are now available for free directly in the Gemini app and website. And now that Audio Overviews are integrated directly into Gemini, you can even use Gemini's own Deep Research reports as sources for your podcast. Personally, I've found it useful to first prompt Gemini to create a Deep Research report on a topic, then directly generate an Audio Overview from it (skipping past having to read it myself). Generate and download podcasts on any topicTo get started, use the Gemini website or the Gemini app. To upload your own document or slide show, click the Plus button and add in your desired source file. As soon as the file is processed, you'll see a button for Generate Audio Overview. Credit: Khamosh Pathak Press the button and wait for Gemini to begin its work. It can take anywhere between 3–5 minutes to generate your podcast audio, depending on the depth of the material. Alternatively, you can prompt Gemini to create a report for you using the Deep Research option below the text box. Here, too, you'll have to wait a couple of minutes until the research is ready. Then, open the Deep Research document, click the down-arrow button, and then use the Generate Audio Overview button. You can also just enter "Generate Audio Overview" in the text box. Credit: Khamosh Pathak When the processing is done, you'll get a notification from the Gemini website or the app. You'll now see a player in the chat box. Hit the Play button to start playback, and use the seek bar to jump to any point in the recording. Yes, there's speed control too, but you can only increase the playback speed up to 1.5x. Credit: Khamosh Pathak I got 10 minutes of podcast overview from a 12-page document, so the detail isn't bad. If you don't want to listen to your podcast right away, or if you'd like to share it, you can also download the audio for offline payback. Click the three-dot menu button in the audio player and choose the Download option. Credit: Khamosh Pathak From here, you can also choose the Share conversation option to share your Gemini chat and recording using a link. And while you're in Gemini, you might want to try creating your own custom AI Bots, called Gems, since those are now free for everyone to use. View the full article

Military officials from France and UK to travel to Kyiv soon, says French president View the full article

A federal judge has ruled that The New York Times and other newspapers can proceed with a copyright lawsuit against OpenAI and Microsoft seeking to end the practice of using their stories to train artificial intelligence chatbots. U.S. District Judge Sidney Stein of New York on Wednesday dismissed some of the claims made by media organizations but allowed the bulk of the case to continue, possibly to a jury trial. “We appreciate Judge Stein’s careful consideration of these issues,” New York Times attorney Ian Crosby said in a statement. “As the order indicates, all of our copyright claims will continue against Microsoft and Open AI for their widespread theft of millions of The Times‘s works, and we look forward to continuing to pursue them.” The judge’s ruling also pleased Frank Pine, executive editor of MediaNews Group and Tribune Publishing, owners of some of the newspapers that are part of a consolidated lawsuit in a Manhattan court. “The claims the court has dismissed do not undermine the main thrust of our case, which is that these companies have stolen our work and violated our copyright in a way that fundamentally damages our business,” Pine said a statement. Stein didn’t explain the reasons for his ruling, saying that would come “expeditiously.” OpenAI said in a statement it welcomed “the court’s dismissal of many of these claims and look forward to making it clear that we build our AI models using publicly available data, in a manner grounded in fair use, and supportive of innovation.” Microsoft declined to comment. The Times has said OpenAI and its business partner Microsoft have threatened its livelihood by effectively stealing billions of dollars worth of work by its journalists, in some cases spitting out Times‘s material verbatim to people who seek answers from generative artificial intelligence like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. ————— The Associated Press and OpenAI have a licensing and technology agreement that allows OpenAI access to part of AP’s text archives. View the full article

Fast Company’s Creative Director Mike Schnaidt shares a first look at the magazine redesign. So if you are a typeface fanatic, you won’t want to miss this breakdown. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. If you have big DIY plans for spring, or if you just enjoy adding to your tool collection, you might have noticed that tools can be pretty expensive. Whether you’re doing yard work or woodworking, having the right tools can make the job easier—so it's worth waiting for good deals. Here are a few of the best tool deals to check out during Amazon’s Big Spring Sale. Deals on power toolsPower tools are an essential part of a DIY kit. You'll need a decent-quality cordless drill for most projects, and other tools for cutting and finishing will make your DIY projects faster and more professional-looking. The DeWalt 20-volt drill and driver set comes with a drill, an impact driver, two 1.5-amp batteries, a charger, and a tool bag. It’s on sale for $124.00, 48% off its regular price. This is a good beginner kit because it comes with everything you need to get started with your DeWalt tools. The Bosch 2.25 horsepower router is on sale for $128.75, 35% off its regular price. It comes with a quarter-inch and a half-inch chuck to accept most standard-sized router bits. This is a good tool for finish work as it allows you to round corners, cut detail into the edges of your work, and even fabricate moulding. This is a corded tool, so you’ll need a power source to use it. The DeWalt 12-inch, double bevel sliding miter saw is on sale for $499.00, 25% off its typical price. This saw can cut compound angles like the ones you need to make for crown molding or some styles of bench legs. This is also a corded tool, and you’ll need a power source to use it. Dewalt Double Bevel Sliding Miter Saw $499.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $669.00 Save $170.00 Get Deal Get Deal $499.00 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $669.00 Save $170.00 Deals on landscaping and garden toolsIt's time to get your outdoor spaces set up for success as the weather warms up. Keeping weeds at bay and making sure all your plants are properly trimmed requires tools like these. The EGO 56-volt cordless leaf blower is on sale for $329.99, 35% off its usual price. This leaf blower comes with a 5-amp-hour battery, a 2.5-amp-hour battery, and a charger. It can run for about 90 minutes before needing a fresh battery. The Greenworks 40-watt cordless 16-inch lawnmower is on sale for $209.99, 30% off its typical price. It comes with one 4-amp-hour battery and a charger. You can mow for about 45 minutes before you need to recharge the battery. Greenworks G-MAX 40V 16'' Cordless Lawn Mower $209.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $299.00 Save $89.01 Get Deal Get Deal $209.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $299.00 Save $89.01 Miscellaneous tools and accessoriesKeeping your home shop running requires more than just power tools. You’ll need other tools and accessories to make all your DIY dreams come true. The Craftsman four-gallon wet/dry shop vac is on sale for $103.38, 30% off its regular price. It comes with a variety of hoses and attachments and one air filter to get you started. A Goodyear triple-tap 40-foot extension cord and reel is on sale for $77.99, 48% off its usual price. This reeled extension cord is good for running shop power overhead to keep your floor free of trip hazards. The cord has an LED indicator light in the connector to show when it has power. Craftsman four-gallon wet/dry shop vac $103.38 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $146.65 Save $43.27 Get Deal Get Deal $103.38 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $146.65 Save $43.27 Safety equipmentProtecting your ears and eyes while you’re working on DIY projects is essential, so the best deals are always on safety equipment. Saving yourself a trip to the emergency room is priceless. A pair of Walker protective earmuffs have electronic noise-canceling technology that allows you to hear what’s going on around you while protecting your ears from damaging levels of noise. They’re on sale for $40.87, 49% off their regular price. A pair of No-Cry anti-fog safety glasses are on sale for $12.59, 26% off their regular price. These glasses provide UV protection, making them good for outdoor projects, and they are scratch resistant to avoid impaired vision while you’re wearing them. Walker's Razor Slim Earmuffs $40.87 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $79.99 Save $39.12 Get Deal Get Deal $40.87 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $79.99 Save $39.12 Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

At the beginning of the hit 2003 movie Love Actually, Hugh Grant’s character muses that whenever he gets gloomy about the state of the world, he redirects his attention to the arrivals gate at Heathrow Airport. Another remedy would be to consider the vast natural wonders of space, but perhaps that’s more of a William Shatner move. Regardless of your leading-man preference, if you are in need of some wonder this week, there will be a partial solar eclipse early Saturday morning visible in certain parts of the world. Here’s what that all means and where and how to best see it. What is a partial solar eclipse? The moon orbits the Earth while our home planet orbits the sun. When the moon travels between the sun and Earth, an eclipse takes place. The type depends on how the three moving objects line up. If it is not in a perfect line, a partial eclipse occurs. If it is a perfect line, the sun is completely blocked and a total eclipse occurs. (Cue Bonnie Tyler.) When the moon travels between the sun and the Earth while at its farthest point away from Earth, this is called an annular solar eclipse. (No great pop songs have yet been written about this phenomenon.) When and where can you see the partial solar eclipse? The eclipse will take place on Saturday, March 29, 2025. According to NASA, people in the northeastern United States, Europe, western Africa, eastern Canada, and over the Atlantic Ocean are in for a show. Shortly after a beautiful sunrise, those on the East Coast of the United States will witness a partial solar eclipse. Those in New York City should expect it to begin at 6:44 a.m ET. Things kick off even earlier in Boston at 6:31 a.m. The folks at NASA have compiled a handy list of major cities and the exact timeline for your convenience. NASA.gov What is the best way to view the eclipse? The first rule of viewing a partial solar eclipse is safety. You cannot look directly at it without damaging your eyes. You need solar eclipse glasses. The American Astronomical Society has a list of approved vendors, which can help you procure some. Other than that, set multiple alarms to ensure you don’t sleep or work through it. If you need a hand waking up, brew some coffee. Then look up and marvel at the sky and for a moment feel a small part of a larger universe—just like Captain Kirk. View the full article

You’ve heard of burner phones. What about burner email? So much of the internet now requires that you hand over your email address before you’re able to use any services—from an app you’ve downloaded to signing up for a newsletter or redeeming a special offer online. But who says you have to give your real email address? Next time you’re asked, consider using an email mask. There are a growing number of services that give out disguised email addresses and relay any messages to your actual address. Experts say this can be a powerful tool to safeguard privacy and security. Here are some pointers on the whys and hows of email masking: Mask on The idea behind email masking is simple. The masking service gives you a randomized address you can use as a decoy instead of your actual email. It can be a series of unrelated words, or a string of letters and numbers. When someone sends a message to the burner email, it will be automatically routed to your address without anyone knowing. Providers include privacy-focused search engine DuckDuckGo’s Email Protection service, Firefox Relay from browser maker Mozilla, email service FastMail, and independent services like Addy.io. The encrypted service Proton Mail offers email masking with its password manager and standalone SimpleLogin service. There are many others. It’s one of the features Apple offers users subscribing to its iCloud+ or Apple One services. When you’re using the Safari browser app on your iPhone and need to input your email, you can tap the field above the onscreen keyboard to “Hide My Email,” which then creates a random address as a substitute. It’s also available on Mac computers with the desktop Safari browser or Mail app. If you’re using a different browser or app, you can still manually create a random email address by going into your iCloud settings. A Key Feature Most services have a free version with basic options and a premium tier with more features. Some free services can only receive emails but not reply to them. However, an important feature users should look for is the ability to do both, said Proton CEO Andy Yen. “Maybe you never reply to a newsletter and that’s fine,” said Yen. But it’s a problem if, for example, you used your email alias to buy something online and there’s an issue with your order that the site needs to ask you about. “Then the ability to reply is actually pretty important,” he said. Most masking services have a dashboard control panel where you can view the various alias addresses you’ve activated. If you notice one starting to get a lot of spam, just turn it off. When should I use it? Mask your email when you want to add an extra layer of privacy or protect yourself from data leaks or unauthorized information sharing. An email mask is a “general-purpose tool that can be used in any context,” says Santiago Andrigo, principal product manager at Mozilla. However, he recommends using it in two key situations. The first is when you’re unsure what a website will do with your email address. “Masking your email gives you control—if you start receiving unwanted messages, you can easily block any emails coming to that email mask,” Andrigo said. The second scenario is “when your association with a service could reveal sensitive personal information,” he said. For example, if you join an online community for a specific medical condition or a minority group, a data breach could expose your participation. Email fail There are myriad reasons not to give out your email address to anyone who wants it. It could be sold to marketers or shady data brokers, eroding your privacy by helping them build a profile of you for legitimate or nefarious purposes. If your address ends up on the wrong mailing list, it could result in more junk or phishing emails. And if an online service is hacked, attackers could make off with logins, passwords and other personal information. Using unique passwords for all your online accounts—typically with the help of a password manager—is good cybersecurity practice. “But the real pain point for any user is actually not the password getting leaked, but actually the email getting leaked,” said Yen. Changing your password after a data breach is standard practice but it’s a lot harder to change another piece of sensitive information, your email address—unless you’re using a mask. False solutions There are other so-called hacks that you might have heard about. You could set up a throwaway account with a free email service like Gmail or Yahoo. But it’s tedious to do this. Some Gmail users add a plus sign and an extra phrase or combination of characters between their username and the @ sign. It helps track who’s sharing your address as well as filter messages. But “from a privacy standpoint, that does nothing,” said Yen. “Because people can just simply take away the plus and get your original address.” What about the man in the middle? Email masks use their servers to relay message traffic between the sender and the recipient. So how can you be sure those servers are private? Look for reputable providers that promise not to keep your messages. If you’re shopping around for an email masking service, Yen advises checking if it has “proper terms and conditions,” a privacy policy and is based in a jurisdiction where it could be legally held accountable. “We state very clearly we’re not keeping a copy of anything that passes through our servers,” Yen said. Firefox Relay says in its FAQs that it does not “read or store any of your messages.” “In the event that an email cannot be delivered to you, we will keep it on our servers and delete it after it has been delivered (in no event will we hold onto it for more than three days),” it says. Apple says it “doesn’t read or process any of the content” in email messages that pass through Hide My Email except for standard spam filtering. “All email messages are deleted from our relay servers after they’re delivered to you, usually within seconds,” the iPhone maker says. AP Technology Writer Barbara Ortutay in Oakland, Calif. contributed to this report. Is there a tech topic that you think needs explaining? Write to us at onetechtip@ap.org with your suggestions for future editions of One Tech Tip. —Kelvin Chan, AP Business Writer View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. Amazon's Big Spring Sale is back for its second year, and while it doesn’t go as hard as Prime Day, there are still plenty of worthwhile discounts. It runs from March 25 to March 31, and the best part is you don’t need a Prime membership to shop. That said, Prime members do get access to deeper discounts, and if you’re not one, Amazon’s free 30-day trial lets you cash in on the best deals without any commitment. One of the discounts spotted is on the Google Nest Cam (Indoor, Wired), now down to $69.99 from $99.99—this is the lowest it's ever been, according to online price-trackers. It runs over wifi, plugs into any standard outlet, and offers built-in smart motion alerts for people, pets, and packages—though you’ll need a Nest Aware subscription for the full suite of features. Video is recorded in 1080p with HDR, which is sharp enough for most people’s needs. Night vision is solid too, and everything runs through the Google Home app, where you can view the live feed or event history. It also comes with two-way audio, so you can talk through the camera if needed, and the motion detection is responsive without being jumpy, according to this PCMag review. Google Nest Security Cam (Wired) - 2nd Generation - Linen, 1080p, Motion Only $69.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $99.99 Save $30.00 Get Deal Get Deal $69.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $99.99 Save $30.00 You’ll get real-time notifications through the Google Home app, but features like 24/7 recording and advanced smart alerts require a Nest Aware subscription, which starts at $8/month. That said, the core features hold up just fine if all you need is a basic check-in cam while you’re out. The wired setup isn’t as flexible as a battery-powered option, but it does save you the hassle of recharging. Also, it doesn’t support Apple HomeKit or Alexa, so this is really best for people already committed to Google’s smart home setup. Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication. One of the more interesting markdowns during Amazon’s Big Spring Sale is the Kindle Scribe (2024), now down to $364.99 from $449.99. That’s the lowest it’s ever been, according to price trackers. If you’ve been eyeing Amazon’s first writeable Kindle, this is probably the time to check it out. Amazon Kindle Scribe (64GB) $364.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $449.99 Save $85.00 Get Deal Get Deal $364.99 at Amazon /images/amazon-prime.svg $449.99 Save $85.00 The Kindle Scribe looks and feels premium with its aluminum build and 10.2-inch glare-free E Ink display. It’s available in Metallic Jade and Tungsten, though the back is a bit slick and reportedly a fingerprint magnet, so a case isn’t a bad idea. This version includes the Premium Pen, which snaps magnetically to the side and comes with an eraser and a shortcut button. Writing on the Scribe feels smooth thanks to the slightly textured glass, and it responds without any noticeable lag. You can choose between different pen types—fountain pen, pencil, marker—and choose between notebook templates like checklists, planners, and music sheets. That said, the writing experience is still a step behind dedicated e-ink note tablets in the market. Additionally, while writing feels natural, managing those notes isn’t quite as seamless. The AI-powered summarizer and handwriting cleanup tools process slowly and awkwardly, creating separate pages that don’t merge back into your original notes, according to this PCMag review. Reading is still where the Scribe shines. The display is crisp, adjusts lighting automatically, and has more than enough space for books, PDFs, and scribbles. It holds 64GB of storage, which is more than most people will need. Battery life stretches up to 12 weeks if you’re just reading, though regular writing brings it down to about three. Audiobook lovers should know there’s no headphone jack, so Bluetooth only. And while performance is generally solid, page turns and library scrolling lag a bit behind what you’d get on something like the Paperwhite. All in all, if you’re mainly a reader who wants occasional note-taking, the Scribe at this price is a solid pick. But if your goal is serious digital journaling or replacing your paper notebooks altogether, this might not go far enough yet. Shopping for tech? Lifehacker can help you make the right decision. Browse our tech reviews and head-to-head comparisons for everything from laptops and smartwatches to e-bikes and home gyms. Subscribe to our deals newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox, or browse our best-of lists directly on Amazon, including: The Best Over-Ear Headphones The Best Wireless Earbuds The Best Adjustable Dumbbell Sets The Best Projectors View the full article

Broadcaster to close three of 10 customer service centres, affecting jobs in Stockport, Sheffield and LeedsView the full article