ResidentialBusiness

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source. Target is no stranger to competition with Amazon sales. They've overlapped their Circle Week sales with Prime Day many times before. Since October Prime Day is around the corner, Target has just announced its own sale for October. Here are all the details you need to know. What is Target's Circle Week?Circle Week is Target’s name for its biggest sale. As the name suggests, it lasts a whole week, and while it used to happen just once a year but, it now occurs multiple times a year. The most recent sale was this summer, and before that, in the spring, overlapping with Amazon's Prime Day and Big Spring Sale, respectively. When is Circle Week?The next Circle Week will take place from Oct. 5 to Oct. 11. That means it begins two days before October Prime Day, which runs from Oct. 7 through Oct. 8. Do you need to be a member to shop the sales during Target Circle Week?Like Amazon's Prime Day sale, you will need to be a Circle member to take part in the sale, but unlike a Prime membership, Target Circle is free. You can sign up for an account on the Target app or Target.com. You can also pay for a Target Circle 360 membership, which grants you early access to the sale as well as other perks, like same-day delivery. If you're a teacher or student, you can save 50% on the one-year Circle 360 subscription through Sept. 13; otherwise, it starts at $10.99 per month. But again, a paid membership isn't necessary to get all the best Circle Week deals. What deals can I find during Target Circle Week?Circle week will focus on apparel; home products like kitchen appliances, storage, floor care, and bedding; fun and entertainment; and Halloween costumes and treats. You'll also find tech products on sale, which we'll be covering as usual. You can shop in person or online, and there will be a "Deal of the Day" for every day of the event that will start at 40% off. While Target hasn't released a list of deals you can expect, you can get a pretty good idea from past Circle Week sales. Here are some of the deals they had at the tail end of the Circle Week last fall. What competitors are also offering sales?Amazon’s October Prime Day will take place from Oct. 7 through Oct. 8, so all the other sales tend to revolve around these dates. Walmart will likely have its Walmart Deals sale, like they've done in the past, and Best Buy will likely have its own sale as well. I'll cover the details of those sales as they are released. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding my work at Lifehacker as a preferred source. After years of wincing through aggressive massage gun sessions, I just assumed muscle relief required enduring a little bit of pain. There's a reason for the saying, "hurts so good," right? But it turns out you don't need to suffer to see results: The Rally orbital massager, which I have previously reviewed, has completely changed my hard-ass approach to recovery. Don't get me wrong—percussive massage guns have their place. They're powerful and effective at working out the deepest knots. But after months of inconsistent use, I realized something: I was avoiding my own recovery tool. The aggressive pounding felt like punishment rather than self-care, turning what should've been a daily wellness ritual into something I'd postpone until I was in serious pain. I'd skip sessions when I needed them most, only reaching for my massage gun when my muscles were screaming for attention. By then, I'd need that aggressive percussion just to make a dent in the tension I'd allowed to build up. During marathon training especially, I simply can't let this happen. That's where orbital massages come in. Rally Orbital Massager $499.00 at Rally Shop Now Shop Now $499.00 at Rally Why Rally's gentler recovery changes everythingThe Rally's orbital massage technology works differently than traditional percussive guns—instead of hammering muscles with rapid-fire pulses, picture the circular motion of a car buffer. Luckily, the motion is gentle enough that it feels more like a human touch, as opposed to turning me into a car getting buffed. The Rally has taught me something crucial about sustainable self-care: I'm infinitely more likely to reach for a device that feels good to use, rather than one that hurts. It's a game-changer for consistency. With my old massage gun, I'd psyche myself out before sessions: "Do I really need this? Can I handle the intensity right now?" With the Rally, there's no mental barrier. I can use it while watching TV, during work breaks, or as part of my bedtime routine, without dreading the experience. Building up when you need toHere's the best thing about the Rally: It can double as a percussive massager when you need more intensity. But now, instead of starting with the nuclear option, I work my way up to it. It's more comfortable and, I find, more effective: My muscles respond better to massage when they're already relaxed and have good blood flow. I'll begin with the gentle orbital motion to warm up tissues and increase circulation, then switch to percussion mode if I encounter stubborn knots. I am far from anti-percussion massage—there are times when you need that deeper, more aggressive treatment, like after a particularly intense workout, when dealing with chronic knots, or for trigger point therapy. But now, those hurt-so-good instances are the exception, rather than the rule. The Rally's ability to switch between modes means I'm not locked into one approach. I have the gentleness for daily maintenance and the power for when things get serious. The best recovery tool is the one you actually useBy embracing the gentler, orbital massage as my daily default, I've created a sustainable self-care routine that prevents problems rather than just treating them. Proactive care beats reactive treatment every time. Maybe my muscles are thanking me not because I'm punishing them less, but because I'm caring for them more consistently. Sometimes the revolutionary approach is simply being kinder to yourself, and having the tools that make that kindness effective. If you've been avoiding your massage gun or find yourself using it only when you're already in pain, consider making the switch to orbital massage as your primary recovery method. Your future self (and your muscles) will thank you for choosing consistency over intensity. View the full article

A reader writes: I just finished conducting a job interview where it was clear from the candidate’s answer to the first question that he was not going to get the job, but I felt like it would be rude to indicate that so abruptly. So I wasted 20 more minutes of his time going through the motions and by the end we both knew it was not a fit but I didn’t know what to say. Is it ever okay to cut the interview short? I answer this question — and two others — over at Inc. today, where I’m revisiting letters that have been buried in the archives here from years ago (and sometimes updating/expanding my answers to them). You can read it here. Other questions I’m answering there today include: Did my old coworker keep me from getting hired? Resumes without any dates for work history The post is it rude to cut short an interview if the candidate obviously isn’t the right fit? appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Your efforts have implications. Don’t assume everyone is as prepared as you are. By Domenick J. Esposito 8 Steps to Great Go PRO for members-only access to more Dom Esposito. View the full article

Your efforts have implications. Don’t assume everyone is as prepared as you are. By Domenick J. Esposito 8 Steps to Great Go PRO for members-only access to more Dom Esposito. View the full article

We may earn a commission from links on this page. Folks are finally starting to get their iPhone 17s, and now that the new phones are in the hands of people who don’t work for Apple, flaws are starting to come to light. Specifically, durability testers are saying that you might want to slap a case on your new phone. Most notably, it turns out that the iPhone 17 Pro has a major flaw with its camera bump. While the lenses themselves are fine, the edges on the raised camera “plateau” (as Apple is calling it) can apparently get scuffed just by hanging out in the same bag or pocket as household items like coins or keys. That’s according to testing by reliable YouTube reviewer Zack Nelson, or JerryRigEverything, who bemoaned Apple’s decision to avoid adding a chamfer or other protective barrier around the camera bump. “I think it was intentional,” the YouTuber says in his video. “So it looks cooler.” According to Nelson, the scratches probably have to do with Apple’s decision to move back to anodized aluminum for this model, as opposed to the titanium the company started using with the iPhone 15 Pro. Aluminum provides better cooling, and strong scratch resistance anywhere that the anodizing process adheres to, but the catch is that without chamfers, those corners tend to get missed during the anodizing bath. For instance, when Nelson tried to scratch the flat parts of the plateau (as well as the rest of the back of the phone), it only produced dust that could be easily wiped off, good as new. But those camera plateau corners remained permanently chipped, even after wiping. This follows a similar report from Bloomberg, which noted that display models of both the blue iPhone 17 Pro and black iPhone Air seemed especially prone to scratches, as well as posts from users, pointing out scratches across all colors and multiple models of the new iPhones, especially after being attached to MagSafe accessories. While it’s possible that some of these scratches could be wiped away, as shown in Nelson’s video, those around the corners look particularly nasty, and I’m not just talking about the camera plateau. How to stop scratches on your iPhone 17While it’s certainly not ideal that your bare iPhone could be susceptible to scratches, there is a simple solution—slap a case on it. That’ll hide your fancy Apple branding, sure, but it will also ensure your phone doesn’t take the brunt of your keys or loose quarters, and add a barrier around those camera plateau edges. This year, Apple has three case options, including a clear plastic, silicone, and a new fabric style case called TechWoven. In testing by YouTuber Arun Maini, or Mrwhosetheboss, the clear case was easily susceptible to scratches by simple household objects, but all other options held up well. That’s a relief for anyone who was burned by Apple’s previous fabric case, FineWoven, which also had its own scratch-related drama when it debuted alongside the iPhone 15 line. Alternatively, you could go third-party. In that case, you’ve got plenty of options. Lifehacker sister publication CNET has praised Otterbox in the past, which I can also attest to by personal experience. For a more premium look, you could also go for Nomad’s leather cases, which I can also give a personal recommendation to. View the full article

Dependencies are often invisible until your schedule’s already slipping. Learn how to spot, map, and manage them to avoid delays, align teams, and protect your timeline from chaos. The post Dependencies in Project Management: Types, Tools, and Tactics appeared first on The Digital Project Manager. 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. Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding Lifehacker as a preferred source for tech news. It's impressive how far TCL has been pushing the limits of QLED technology. The QM7K is its latest mid-tier QD-Mini LED smart TV and it offers great value for your money. Right now, the 65-inch QM7K is marked down 41%, bringing its price down to $877.99 (originally $1,499.99), the second lowest price it has ever been, according to price-tracking tools. The 85-inch QM6K, which is the more affordable version, is 37% off right now. The QM7K is better in every way than the QM6K except for color accuracy. It has better contrast, brightness, gaming specs, black levels, processing, and other specs, but the QM6K is still a great option for those on a tighter budget. TCL 65-Inch Class QM7K Series QLED, 144hz, 288hz Gaming Rate, Anti-Reflective Screen, Bang & Olufsen Audio, Atmos (85QM7K, 2025) $877.99 at Amazon $1,499.99 Save $622.00 Get Deal Get Deal $877.99 at Amazon $1,499.99 Save $622.00 I personally tested the QM7, which is a slightly older model of this TV, as well as the more budget QM6K, and I can tell you TCL is not skimping out on these TVs. They feel and look truly premium. This QM7K is no different. Its highlights are a bright panel, making it great for sunlit rooms. It has deep blacks and almost no light bloom, giving it that premium picture quality. Gamers will appreciate the 144 Hz native refresh rate and 288 Hz support panel with VRR and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, making it a smooth experience. Since it's a Google TV, it has hands-free Google Assistant and Google Cast, which makes streaming almost anything from your phone or computer a breeze. It can also do the same for iPhones with AirPlay. If you're a color stickler, you might notice that the colors run a little warmer out of the box, according to PCMag's "excellent" review, but that's something you can edit easily in the picture settings. If you want a massive, bright, colorful smart TV with that "wow" factor, get the 65-inch QM7K, but if brightness is not as important to you, consider the 85-inch QM6K. Either option is a great TV for a killer price. Our Best Editor-Vetted Tech Deals Right Now Apple AirPods Pro 2 Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds — $199.00 (List Price $249.00) Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge 256GB Unlocked AI Phone (Titanium JetBlack) — $699.99 (List Price $1,099.99) Apple iPad 11" 128GB A16 WiFi Tablet (Blue, 2025) — $299.00 (List Price $349.00) Roku Streaming Stick Plus — $29.00 (List Price $39.99) Deals are selected by our commerce team View the full article

A reader writes: I don’t like to do birthday stuff for my birthday. No, not even that. Or that. Or that. Or … It’s got nothing to do with the dreaded Getting Older; in fact, I don’t really know why. I just don’t want to. When my coworker went around collecting people’s birthdays, I gave mine to her, but specified that I didn’t want to have it celebrated. I was very clear about this. It wasn’t “Oh, you don’t need to make a fuss about me” or anything similarly wishy-washy. I said that I didn’t want anything to be done about it. For a couple of years this was fine, but then we got a new coworker, Pollyanna. One of our other coworkers, Kelly, also didn’t want to do birthday things, and the first hint I had of a problem was when Pollyanna set up a group chat for everyone but Kelly in which she planned a surprise “group lunch” which totally wasn’t for Kelly’s birthday because Kelly’s birthday is in December and it’s May so it’s fine! I commented that I had thought Kelly didn’t want anything done for her birthday and was roundly ignored. The lunch happened, Kelly was clearly taken aback but responded gracefully, we went on with life, and Kelly ended up going on to a new job (with a pay bump, so good for her!) shortly thereafter. Then it got to be my birthday, and wouldn’t you know, Pollyanna planned a lunch for me. I did my best to be as gracious about it as Kelly had been, but afterwards I went to Pollyanna and said that I knew she’d been trying to do something nice for me and she maybe didn’t know that I dislike birthday stuff — she did, it’s noted on the list that our manager keeps of people’s birthdays, but I figured it was an easy out — but I’d prefer not to. She laughed and said I shouldn’t worry about getting older, it happens to everyone, better than the alternative, etc, and besides I look so much younger than I am, no one would ever guess! I said it had nothing to do with that and I just didn’t want to; she said “okay” and I figured that was the end of it. Then it got to be my birthday again, and Pollyanna made a production out of loudly proclaiming that she knew I didn’t want anything for my birthday but she had to at least get me a little cake and a coffee shop gift card and a greeting card that a bunch of people signed and so forth. I again tried to be gracious about it and accepted the gift card, which in hindsight was a mistake, but again reiterated that I didn’t want anything done, this time in public to everyone. This year I figured I’d just short-circuit the whole thing and used a personal day for my birthday. And when I came in the day after, my cube had been inundated in Happy Birthday tat, including a wrapped present sitting on my chair. A few minutes later, when someone asked me what I was doing, I said that I was a little annoyed someone had put all this junk in my cube that I had to clean out before I could start work — possibly not the most tactful phrasing, I admit. I tossed everything, including the unopened present. And of course, Pollyanna is now incensed that I threw away her present and referred to all her thoughtful decor as “junk,” and how dare I be so unfriendly and mean, she spent money on that stuff you know! She was just trying to make me feel better about my anxiety about aging! To her credit, she hasn’t been refusing to interact with me on work-related stuff, but even a few weeks later it’s very clear that I’m still in the doghouse with Pollyanna and a few of her work friends. I want to try to deal with this myself before I take it to our manager, but I’m not sure where to start. If directly telling her twice didn’t deliver the message, what am I supposed to do? At least next year my birthday will be on Saturday… Your birthday being on a Saturday won’t stop her. This is someone who celebrated another coworker’s birthday five months late, also against her will. (Or maybe she’ll still be smarting from your “junk” comment next year, but I wouldn’t count on it.) And you already did try to deal with this directly! Several times. You told her twice, very clearly, that you didn’t want anything done for your birthday. She decided she knows better than you and ignored you. If you really want to try one more time, you could go back to her and say, “I’m pretty frustrated that I’ve told you repeatedly I don’t want to celebrate my birthday at work, and three times now you’ve ignored that and done something anyway. I want to tell you one final time: I do not celebrate my birthday at work, and it’s getting really weird that you’re trying to overrule me. If you keep doing this, I’m going to talk to Manager, because this really isn’t okay — and for what it’s worth, there are people who don’t celebrate birthdays for religious reasons and if you ignore one of them, it’s going to turn into a legal problem for the company.” (This is true!) If she tries to tell you that you shouldn’t worry about getting older, etc. etc., you should say, “That’s not the issue. People don’t want their birthdays celebrated for all sorts of reasons, and you need to respect that I’ve asked you to stop.” At this point, though, you’d be more than justified to go to your manager without talking to Pollyanna again. It would be very reasonable to say to your manager, “Can I get your help in stopping Pollyanna from forcing birthday celebrations on people who have explicitly asked her not to? I’ve told her clearly for three years in a row that I don’t want anything done for my birthday, and every year she has overruled me with cakes, presents, and/or birthday decor in my cube. Since she’s ignored me, I’m hoping you can explain to her that if people don’t want their birthdays celebrated, she needs to respect that. Especially considering that some people don’t celebrate birthdays for religious reasons, her insistence on doing this seems really problematic to me.” The post my coworker insists on celebrating my birthday even though I’ve asked her not to appeared first on Ask a Manager. View the full article

Hi everyone, In today’s world of well-established systems, it’s often the smallest changes that leave the biggest mark. From the English-Italian interpreter who knows that “raining cats and dogs” doesn’t call for an animal rescue, to the mindset shifts that reshape business culture, all the way down to the everyday tweaks that make work easier: small things matter. Enjoy this week’s read! – Maja Our Favorite Articles 💯Irreplaceably Human (Hegemon)It’s the human mind that gives meaning to facts. This piece explores why interpretation, context, and nuance remain uniquely ours. 👉​ Keep reading​. Gen Z & Career Minimalism (Glassdoor)Climbing the corporate ladder isn’t the dream anymore. Glassdoor calls this shift “career minimalism,” a redefinition of what success looks like at work. 👉 ​Read on​. Free Ergonomics Assessment (Business Insider)Ergo-Audit, a free tool to help remote workers evaluate and improve their home-office setups: because comfort and posture aren’t perks, they’re productivity essentials. 👉 ​Find out more​. Unforgettable Applicant (Wellfound)Recruiters share practical ways to stand out in a sea of applications without overhauling your entire resume. 👉 ​Learn more​. This Week's Sponsor 🙌Too many emails? Declutter your inbox with Meco, your home for reading newsletters. Try it for free ​Remotive​ Jobs 💼Let's get you hired! These teams are hiring now: 💻 Engineering 👉 ​Senior DevOps Engineer (AWS) at Proxify​ (CET +/- 3 hours) 👉 ​Senior Independent Software Developer at A.Team​ (Americas, Europe, Israel) 👉 ​Senior Independent AI Engineer / Architect at A.Team​ (Americas, Europe, Israel) 👉 ​iOS Developer at nooro​ (USA Only) 👉 ​Founding Engineer at Rey​ (Europe) 👉 ​Senior Data Scientist at BaxEnergy​ (European Timezones) 🔎 QA 👉 ​Senior QA Engineer at Tether​ (UK) 🌐 DevOps/SysAdmin 👉 ​Senior Site Reliability Engineer at BaxEnergy​ (European Timezones) Free Guides & Tools​Public Job Board​We curate 2,000 remote jobs so you don't have to! ​Find your remote job →​ ​Exclusive Webinar​3 Mistakes to Avoid When Looking For A Remote Startup Job (And What To Do Instead) ​Register for free →​ ​Job Search Tips​Looking for a remote job? Here are our tips to help you work remotely ​Check it out →​ Join the Remotive newsletter Subscribe to get our latest content by email. Success! Now check your email to confirm your subscription. There was an error submitting your subscription. Please try again. Email address Subscribe Powered by ConvertKit View the full article

Meet at the intersection of people, process, and purpose. By Rory Henry CFP®, BFA™ For CPA Trendlines Go PRO for members-only access to more Rory Henry. View the full article

Meet at the intersection of people, process, and purpose. By Rory Henry CFP®, BFA™ For CPA Trendlines Go PRO for members-only access to more Rory Henry. View the full article

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web. Google completed the rollout of the August 2025 spam update today...View the full article

Go PRO for members-only access to more CPA Trendlines Research. View the full article

Go PRO for members-only access to more CPA Trendlines Research. View the full article

This week's tour of the world of young people careens around like an out-of-control bullet train. Everyone's talking about a pop star with a body in his trunk, a dental trend powered by TikTok, astrology-based beauty tutorials, and a football stat hound's ultimate rabbit hole. It’s a lot to take in. Who is D4vd and why was there a body in his trunk? Everyone under a certain age is talking about the singer D4vd, and it's not because he has a new album out. On September 8, Los Angeles police discovered a body in the trunk of an abandoned Tesla registered to David Anthony Burke, the birth name of the 20-year-old musician. The body was later identified as the remains of Celeste Rivas, who was reported missing from her home in Riverside on April 5, 2024, when she was just 13 years old. The online speculation is that D4vd was in a relationship with Rivas, but that has yet to be confirmed. The singer has reportedly been cooperating with authorities, no cause of death has been determined, and no charges have yet been filed. If you're wondering who D4vd is, you're not alone: The singer's rise to fame is a quintessentially Generation Z story. His career began with online fame gained through posting Fortnite videos online, but YouTube removed his content for using copyrighted music. At the suggestion of his mom, D4vd began recording original songs using free iPhone tools, which he posted to SoundCloud. The end result was a recording contract, an album, and a couple of songs with over 1.5 billion plays on Spotify. D4vd's biggest hit, "Romantic Homicide" mixes the pop music of the 1970s with 1990s-style lo-fi production, and it's actually good. But D4vd's lyrics are chilling given later developments. "I killed you and I didn't even regret it," he sings on the track, "I can't believe I said it, but it's true." But just because you write a song about killing your lover doesn't mean you're guilty of it. In any case, the story is dark, tragic, and developing, and D4vd is innocent until proven guilty. Hot Generation Z trend: veneersYeah, it's a mood shift to go from murder to teeth, but such is the nature of life in 2025. Anyway, the newest dental trend among younger people is veneers. Whether it's speculation that Gen Z super-celebrity Mr.Beast is rocking a set of artificial choppers, the 250,000 videos posted to TikTok's #veneers tag, or the below deep-dive on the topic from venerable YouTuber Papa Meat, false fronts are very of-the-moment. Maybe the fascination comes from the straight, white teeth of influencers. Maybe it's hyper-awareness of teeth caused by taking too many selfies. Or maybe it's because veneers are sort of funny. Choose your own explanation. Hot Generation Z trend: astrological makeupI'm fascinated with makeup trends and pop occultism, so I'm glad makeup influencers are bringing my two interests together on TikTok. The new hotness among makeup influencers is the “rising sign" beauty trend, where the makeup you wear is determined by your astrological sign. In astrology, your "rising sign" supposedly represents how other people see you. So if your rising sign is Scorpio, you might go with a look that's "intense, dark, and dramatic." If Gemini is rising, you want to go "playful and vibrant." I don't understand how the position of the stars at the time you were born could possibly inform the makeup choices you make next Thursday, but if combining mysticism with style choices makes it a little easier for people to slog through another day, I'm in favor. First AI-animated feature film in production We all knew it was going to happen eventually, and now it has: OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, announced today that it's producing the first feature film animated solely through artificial intelligence. Critterz, a feature-length version of the AI-made short film above, has a $30 million budget, and production will be finished in nine months, an impossibly short time-frame for a traditionally animated or CGI film. Critterz's animation may be AI, but its script and voice acting are being done the old-fashioned way—by professional Hollywood actors and writers who will gladly let OpenAI pay them a lot of money for making funny voices. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal, Open AI hopes to premiere Critterz at the Cannes Film Festival, presumably in 2027. Whether anyone wants to see an AI-animated movie remains to be seen. It sounds like a terrible idea to me, but I'm not the target demographic. Anyway, you can check out the first teaser/promo video here. Viral video of the week: Scorigami returns Leave it to Gen Z to come up with a new way to enjoy football. "Scorigami" is a term coined by writer/YouTuber John Bois that describes an NFL final score that has never happened before in the league's history. YouTube channel Secret Base is in the middle of a four-part examination of the phenomenon that starts with the first ever NFL football game played in 1922 and continues to the present, seen through the lens of "this is the only time any two pro teams have ended a game with this score." The series is equal parts sports, history, comedy, and statistics, with fascinating digressions and side trips to explore things like how the NFL owes its entire existence to a random guy's truck breaking down in Texas at the turn of the century and how it's possible—extremely unlikely, but still possible—to score a single point in a football game. In other words, it's the kind of documentary that would be rejected by ESPN for being too math-y and rejected by PBS for being too sporty, but is able to find a home and hundreds of thousands of viewers because YouTube exists. 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. Did you know you can customize Google to filter out garbage? Take these steps for better search results, including adding Lifehacker as a preferred source for tech news. The Samsung S90D 4K OLED TV is currently going for $1,697.99 on Woot until Sept. 30 or while supplies last. That’s over $180 cheaper than the current Amazon listing ($1,878.99), and the lowest price it’s hit so far, according to price-trackers. Just a heads up: Delivery is handled by a freight carrier, so you’ll need to provide a valid phone number and address during checkout to schedule it. Prime members get free shipping while everyone else pays a $6 fee. It comes with a standard one-year Samsung warranty and all the essentials in the box, including the stand and a SolarCell remote that charges via USB-C or sunlight. Samsung S90D 4K OLED TV $1,697.99 at Woot $3,297.89 Save $1,599.90 Get Deal Get Deal $1,697.99 at Woot $3,297.89 Save $1,599.90 This is a 77-inch QD-OLED from Samsung’s 2024 lineup, second only to their flagship S95D. It’s powered by their new Neo Quantum 4K AI Gen 2 chip, which helps with upscaling and automatic adjustments depending on what you’re watching or playing. Just know that while HDR10+ is supported, Dolby Vision is still missing. It’s a good pick for gaming with 4K at up to 144Hz, VRR support across the board (HDMI VRR, FreeSync, G-Sync), and a very low input lag in Game Mode. If you’ve got both a console and a gaming PC, you’ll appreciate the full HDMI 2.1 bandwidth on all ports. It’s also fully compatible with both PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X and S. As for the display itself, it’s what you’d expect from a quality OLED: deep blacks, rich contrast, and no blooming around bright objects. It holds up well in darker rooms and offers wide viewing angles, which is nice if you’re watching with a group. In brighter settings, though, it doesn’t get as punchy. SDR brightness is average, and dark scenes can look a little washed out in harsh daylight. That said, reflection handling is solid for daytime viewing. And while it supports Dolby Atmos over eARC, there’s no support for DTS audio formats, so that’s something to note for Blu-ray fans. Samsung also dropped ATSC 3.0 support for the 2024 models, so no 4K over-the-air broadcasts. And like most smart TVs these days, the built-in Tizen interface has ads; although you can reduce them, there’s no way to turn them off fully. But for everything the S90D does get right, including gaming performance, viewing angles, and a clean panel with almost no blooming, it holds up well as a mid-high-end option for most setups. Our Best Editor-Vetted Tech Deals Right Now Apple AirPods Pro 2 Noise Cancelling Wireless Earbuds — $199.00 (List Price $249.00) Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge 256GB Unlocked AI Phone (Titanium JetBlack) — $699.99 (List Price $1,099.99) Apple iPad 11" 128GB A16 WiFi Tablet (Blue, 2025) — $299.00 (List Price $349.00) Roku Streaming Stick Plus — $29.00 (List Price $39.99) Deals are selected by our commerce team View the full article

Agentic SEO goes beyond Google to optimize for AI-driven discovery, influence, and traffic flows in a reconfigured digital ecosystem. The post Agentic AI In SEO: AI Agents & The Future Of Content Strategy (Part 3) appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

Google has completed the rollout of the August 2025 spam update, following a 27-day rollout cycle. This update started on August 26, 2025 and 12 pm ET, and was completed on September 22, 2025. This was a broad spam update, not a link spam update and was a pretty big and widespread update, similar to the December 2024 spam update but took 20 days longer to rollout.View the full article

Google is testing a new AI Search based option codenamed Darksteel. This reminds me of when we caught Google testing 47 different AI Search options back in March but Darksteel was not one of them.View the full article

Marketers must adapt to AI-powered journeys as Google shifts from keyword bidding to intent-driven ad placements. The post How AI Mode Will Redefine Paid Search Advertising appeared first on Search Engine Journal. View the full article

The Quiet Skill That Shapes Your Career We spend plenty of time talking about how managers should lead their teams. But there’s less talk about the other side of the relationship: how you manage your boss. When the dynamic with your manager isn’t working, it can drain energy, slow progress, and keep good ideas buried. Managing upwards is the skill of turning that relationship into something productive, where you’re seen as a trusted partner, not just a follower. More Than Flattery or Politics Managing upwards isn’t about playing games. It’s about building influence, understanding how your manager sees you, recognising what they need, and bridging the gap between their perspective and yours. Done well, it makes your work more visible, your voice more credible, and your career path clearer. Watch: Russell Caird on Maximising Your Power In our recent Skills Taster Session, Russell Caird explored how to strengthen your relationship with your manager and maximise both your personal and positional power. Watch the replay here You’ll learn practical strategies for: Understanding different manager styles. Securing time for meaningful conversations. Rebuilding trust after mistakes. Navigating senior stakeholders with confidence. A Shift You Can Try Today Before your next 1:1, ask yourself two questions: How do I see my manager? How do they likely see me? That small shift in perspective can change the tone of the conversation and help you build influence where it matters. The post How to Manage Upwards Without Losing Yourself appeared first on Think Productive UK. View the full article

Thanks to generative AI, every part of our discipline is in flux: the tactics and strategies that yield great results, the tools and processes we use to achieve them, even the unit economics that justify it. One suggestion put forward…Read more ›View the full article

At a time when educators are increasingly concerned about technology’s impact in the classroom, the Washington Post published ​an op-ed​ with a contrarian tone. The piece, written by the journalism professor Stephen Kurczy, focuses on Green Bank, a small town in rural West Virginia, home to the world’s largest steerable radio telescope. Due to the sensitivity of this device, the entire area is a congressionally designated “radio quiet zone” in which cell service and WiFi are banned. The thought of a disconnected life might sound refreshing, but as this op-ed argues, there’s one group for which this reality might be causing problems: the students in Green Bank’s combined elementary and middle school. “Without WiFi, the 200 students couldn’t use Chromebooks or digital textbooks, or do research online,” Kurczy writes. “Teachers couldn’t access individualized education programs online or use Google Docs for staff meetings.” Some teachers in the school are frustrated. “The ability to individualize learning with an iPad or a laptop – that’s basically impossible,” explained one teacher, quoted in the piece. “Without the online component of our curriculum fully working, it’s really detrimental to our instruction,” said another. These concerns aren’t merely hypothetical. As Kurczy points out: “Green Bank consistently [posts] the lowest test scores in the county.” He quotes the school’s principal, who blames this on the students’ “lack of access to engaging technology.” The message of this op-ed is clear. At a time when we’re rushing to condemn phones in classrooms, we should be careful not to extend this ire to other ed-tech innovations, as without these, students struggle. It’s a tidy point. But is it true? I decided to dig a little deeper… To start, the claim that Green Bank posts the lowest scores in the county is easily confirmed. But there’s a caveat here: Pocahontas County, which includes Green Bank, is small. It includes only one other middle school and two other elementary schools, so even modest differences in the student populations can create big changes in measured performance. The only other middle school in the county, for example, does boast higher test scores, but it also serves only around 100 students, meaning that a small cohort of more advantaged children could explain the entire gap. (It’s perhaps notable that this higher-performing school is co-located with a hospital and across the street from a country club.) What we really need is time-series data. The classroom iPad/Chromebook revolution took off in the 2010s, so if the lack of WiFi is what’s holding back Green Bank, we should see a unique decline in their performance starting last decade. I couldn’t find time-series data for individual schools, but ​I could for individual counties​ in West Virginia. Given the small size of Pocahontas County and the fact that roughly half of its elementary and middle school-aged students attend the school in Green Bank, if the lack of WiFi is really negatively impacting the student population, this should be reflected in the county-level data on performances in grades 3 to 8. So what do these data actually teach us? First, let’s look at scores on standardized math tests in Pocahontas County over time. These scores had been steadily increasing, but then, around 2017, they began to drop. We then see, starting in 2022, the start of a post-pandemic recovery. The timing here seems to roughly align with the WiFi hypothesis: if iPads and Chromebooks took off last decade, then we might expect to see a negative impact on performance in Green Bank right around this point. To run a proper controlled analysis, however, we need to compare these changes to similar counties in West Virginia that had full access to WiFi. Fortunately, we have these results. The following chart measures both the magnitude of the performance drop from 2019 to 2022 and the magnitude of the subsequent recovery from 2022 to 2024. It compares Pocahontas County to the entire state, as well as to a set of five counties with similar population sizes, demographics, and socio-economic status. The result? Compared to other counties in the state, Pocahontas County schools had a smaller performance drop and larger recovery. Put another way: the county in which nearly half of the measured students lacked access to WiFi did better than other counties with similar student populations and full access to classroom technology. The more plausible story told by this data is that rural West Virginia schools are struggling, and something appears to have made this worse around 2015 to 2017 (most likely deteriorating economic conditions). But the solution to these problems is likely not as simple as getting more internet-connected Chromebooks into the students’ hands. (That being said, the fact that this school is using old technology is a problem, just for other reasons. As Kurczy’s reporting reveals – he wrote an entire book on this town – the teachers in Green Bank are frustrated. They feel left behind by the county, and they are missing out on the productivity gains we take for granted, like the use of shared documents or the ability to easily distribute assignments online.) The big news coming out of Green Bank is that the school district has finally negotiated an agreement with the observatory to allow classroom WiFi, and, I guess, I’m happy to hear it However, the more important reminder here – and this applies to me as much as anyone else – is that when it comes to writing about technological impacts, we have to be wary of motivated reasoning. Just because something feels like it should be true doesn’t mean that it necessarily is. The data often – frustratingly – paints a more nuanced picture. The post Does WiFi Make Students Smarter? appeared first on Cal Newport. View the full article

At a time when educators are increasingly concerned about technology’s impact in the classroom, the Washington Post published ​an op-ed​ with a contrarian tone. The piece, written by the journalism professor Stephen Kurczy, focuses on Green Bank, a small town in rural West Virginia, home to the world’s largest steerable radio telescope. Due to the sensitivity of this device, the entire area is a congressionally designated “radio quiet zone” in which cell service and WiFi are banned. The thought of a disconnected life might sound refreshing, but as this op-ed argues, there’s one group for which this reality might be causing problems: the students in Green Bank’s combined elementary and middle school. “Without WiFi, the 200 students couldn’t use Chromebooks or digital textbooks, or do research online,” Kurczy writes. “Teachers couldn’t access individualized education programs online or use Google Docs for staff meetings.” Some teachers in the school are frustrated. “The ability to individualize learning with an iPad or a laptop – that’s basically impossible,” explained one teacher, quoted in the piece. “Without the online component of our curriculum fully working, it’s really detrimental to our instruction,” said another. These concerns aren’t merely hypothetical. As Kurczy points out: “Green Bank consistently [posts] the lowest test scores in the county.” He quotes the school’s principal, who blames this on the students’ “lack of access to engaging technology.” The message of this op-ed is clear. At a time when we’re rushing to condemn phones in classrooms, we should be careful not to extend this ire to other ed-tech innovations, as without these, students struggle. It’s a tidy point. But is it true? I decided to dig a little deeper… To start, the claim that Green Bank posts the lowest scores in the county is easily confirmed. But there’s a caveat here: Pocahontas County, which includes Green Bank, is small. It includes only one other middle school and two other elementary schools, so even modest differences in the student populations can create big changes in measured performance. The only other middle school in the county, for example, does boast higher test scores, but it also serves only around 100 students, meaning that a small cohort of more advantaged children could explain the entire gap. (It’s perhaps notable that this higher-performing school is co-located with a hospital and across the street from a country club.) What we really need is time-series data. The classroom iPad/Chromebook revolution took off in the 2010s, so if the lack of WiFi is what’s holding back Green Bank, we should see a unique decline in their performance starting last decade. I couldn’t find time-series data for individual schools, but ​I could for individual counties​ in West Virginia. Given the small size of Pocahontas County and the fact that roughly half of its elementary and middle school-aged students attend the school in Green Bank, if the lack of WiFi is really negatively impacting the student population, this should be reflected in the county-level data on performances in grades 3 to 8. So what do these data actually teach us? First, let’s look at scores on standardized math tests in Pocahontas County over time. These scores had been steadily increasing, but then, around 2017, they began to drop. We then see, starting in 2022, the start of a post-pandemic recovery. The timing here seems to roughly align with the WiFi hypothesis: if iPads and Chromebooks took off last decade, then we might expect to see a negative impact on performance in Green Bank right around this point. To run a proper controlled analysis, however, we need to compare these changes to similar counties in West Virginia that had full access to WiFi. Fortunately, we have these results. The following chart measures both the magnitude of the performance drop from 2019 to 2022 and the magnitude of the subsequent recovery from 2022 to 2024. It compares Pocahontas County to the entire state, as well as to a set of five counties with similar population sizes, demographics, and socio-economic status. The result? Compared to other counties in the state, Pocahontas County schools had a smaller performance drop and larger recovery. Put another way: the county in which nearly half of the measured students lacked access to WiFi did better than other counties with similar student populations and full access to classroom technology. The more plausible story told by this data is that rural West Virginia schools are struggling, and something appears to have made this worse around 2015 to 2017 (most likely deteriorating economic conditions). But the solution to these problems is likely not as simple as getting more internet-connected Chromebooks into the students’ hands. (That being said, the fact that this school is using old technology is a problem, just for other reasons. As Kurczy’s reporting reveals – he wrote an entire book on this town – the teachers in Green Bank are frustrated. They feel left behind by the county, and they are missing out on the productivity gains we take for granted, like the use of shared documents or the ability to easily distribute assignments online.) The big news coming out of Green Bank is that the school district has finally negotiated an agreement with the observatory to allow classroom WiFi, and, I guess, I’m happy to hear it However, the more important reminder here – and this applies to me as much as anyone else – is that when it comes to writing about technological impacts, we have to be wary of motivated reasoning. Just because something feels like it should be true doesn’t mean that it necessarily is. The data often – frustratingly – paints a more nuanced picture. The post Does WiFi Make Students Smarter? appeared first on Cal Newport. View the full article