High Potential — the ABC show about a single mom with an exceptional mind who winds up working as a consultant for the Los Angeles Police Department — debuted its first season a year ago. Now, Kaitlin Olson’s fashionable crime-solver Morgan Gillory is tackling new crimes in season 2.

The second season of High Potential will debut much like last season — episodes of the crime drama will air on ABC first before streaming on Hulu. In addition to Olson, the show stars Javicia Leslie as Daphne, Deniz Akdeniz as Lev “Oz” Ozdil, Amirah J as Ava, Matthew Lamb as Elliot and Judy Reyes as Selena. Daniel Sunjata plays Morgan’s by-the-book partner Karadec, and Steve Howey joins the cast in season 2 as new precinct captain Nick Wagner.

High Potential is based on the French series Haut Potentiel Intellectuel. According to official descriptions, the first few episodes of season 2 will again pit Morgan against the Game Maker and continue the storyline with Ava’s missing dad, Roman.

When to watch High Potential’s season 2 premiere on Hulu

Season 2 of the Kaitlin Olson-starring series will air on ABC on Tuesday and stream the following day on Hulu. Here are the release details for the first three episodes.

• Episode 1, Pawns: Premieres on ABC on Sept. 16 at 10 p.m. ET/10 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT. Streams on Hulu on Sept. 17.
• Episode 2, Checkmate: Premieres on ABC on Sept. 23 at 10 p.m. ET/10 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT. Streams on Hulu on Sept. 24.
• Episode 3, Eleven Minutes: Premieres on ABC on Sept. 30 at 10 p.m. ET/10 p.m. PT/9 p.m. CT. Streams on Hulu on Oct. 1.

Hulu has two plans: a basic, ad-supported option for $10 a month, or $100 a year, and a mostly ad-free option for $19 a month. You can also get Hulu in a bundle with Disney Plus and HBO Max, Disney Plus and ESPN Unlimited, Disney Plus and ESPN Select (formerly ESPN Plus) or just Disney Plus.

Slow cooking transforms tough, inexpensive cuts of meat into melt-in-your-mouth dishes that rival upscale restaurants, all while requiring minimal hands-on time. These compact countertop devices consume significantly less electricity than your oven, helping reduce monthly utility costs.

With their straightforward operation, slow cookers shine during the cooler months when hearty meals are most appealing. Whether craving rich beef stew, robust chili, succulent pork shoulder, or perfectly shredded chicken, these versatile appliances work their magic unattended. Simply prep your ingredients in the morning, and return home to the aroma of a fully cooked meal waiting on your table.

To see how much you can save using a slow cooker instead of the oven, I priced out the cooking time and cost for a pork shoulder recipe — a relatively cheap cut of meat — using all three methods. The savings are significant; the more you use your slow cooker or multicooker, the greater they’ll get. 

How I got these numbers

The easiest way to figure out how much a pressure or slow cooker might save you versus the big oven is to calculate the wattage pulled per hour, versus how much an electric stove would use. For this exercise, we’ll compare the energy draw from a full-size electric stove to that of a standard 6-quart slow cooker and a 6-quart Instant Pot pressure cooker. 

It’s difficult to prorate the wattage pull for lower temperatures, so I calculated each appliance at its max energy draw, even though you probably won’t generally be cooking on high for these long sessions. The slow cooker and oven totals would likely drop a bit if they were set to lower temperatures, but the Instant Pot would not.

I used one of Food Network’s top-rated recipes for each to calculate the time needed and the total cost to cook a large pork shoulder (classic slow-cooked food) using all three appliances. It’s worth noting that pressure cooking with an Instant Pot takes significantly less time than slow cooking in an oven or a slow cooker.

How much does an electric oven cost to run?

To determine electric oven consumption, you’ll calculate the wattage pull per hour of cooking. Most electric ovens draw around 3,000 watts, depending on the temperature. Electricity rates also vary widely by state. To find yours, consult this chart with the 2022 prices listed in cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh). 

Once you find your oven’s wattage (either on the appliance’s tag, the owner’s manual, or an online product listing), multiply that number by the number of hours you use the oven each day. Then, divide by 1,000 watts (1 kilowatt) to find the kilowatt-hours (kWh) of electricity consumed.

Next, determine the average price per kWh of electricity in your state for the year according to the US Energy Information Administration. Multiply that amount by the number you just calculated (3, in this example) to determine your daily operating cost. 

Working with New York’s electricity rate of 17 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh), a 3,000-watt oven would cost me about 51 cents per hour. Properly slow-cooking a 6-pound boneless pork shoulder in the main oven will cost about $3.57 for the full seven hours.

How much does a slow cooker cost to run?

Slow cookers are also electric, so you’ll use the same methodology as above to find their cost. The wattage pull for slow cooker models varies; larger ones will use more energy. A standard 6-quart slow cooker has a max output of 260 watts.

Using these figures, we can determine that a slow cooker uses about 9% of the total energy draw of a large oven. Again, factoring in New York’s electricity costs, we can safely say a leading six-quart slow cooker will cost about 5 cents per hour. That’s 91% more energy-efficient than the average full-size electric oven. The pork shoulder recipe calls for eight hours of cooking, costing you about 40 cents using a slow cooker.

How much does an Instant Pot cost to run?

A similar recipe for pork shoulder cooked in an Instant Pot called for one hour of cooking for a four-pound pork shoulder cut into pieces. Instant Pots will draw different amounts of energy based on the setting. For pressure cooking, a standard 6-quart model will draw about 1,000 watts or one-third the energy draw of a big oven.

Knowing this, we can determine that in New York State, it will cost you about 17 cents per hour to pressure cook. Because this recipe is for a smaller pork shoulder cut into pieces, I’ll add 30 minutes to that cook time. That would net about 26 cents to cook a similar 6-pound cut of meat, not diced into pieces, in an Instant Pot.

How much can a slow cooker or Instant Pot save you?

Of these three methods, the big oven is the most expensive way to cook low and slow by a good margin. While $3 of savings might seem small, expanding it out over a year of long braises and slow cooks could save you some serious dough on your overall energy bill. If you slow cook once weekly, that’s a quick savings of $150 for the year.

All is not equal: One significant consideration

One big caveat is that these three cooking methods, while similar in some ways, don’t deliver the same results. Many swear by braising meats and slow cooking in the authentic oven, even if it takes longer and costs more. And they might not be wrong. With pressure cooking, for instance, I’ve never gotten precisely the same result as with slow oven-roasting, but specific recipes come pretty close. People are also critical of slow cookers for their propensity to make food appear mushy, not just tender, when used for long periods. 

Bonus: Instant Pots are cheap and slow cookers, even cheaper

If trimming money from your monthly bill has drawn you to the slow cooker or Instant Pot, you likely don’t want to shell out a ton of money to buy one. The good news is you won’t have to: A 6-quart Instant Pot can be had for around $80 (less if you find one on sale) and slow cookers start at around $40. It’s also worth noting that every Instant Pot has a slow cooker function, so there’s no need to stock your kitchen with both.

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition has a really odd green group — simple once you get it, of course. If you’re struggling but still want to solve it, read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is published by The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can play it for free online.

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Fore!

Green group hint: Name of a league.

Blue group hint: Subjective scoring.

Purple group hint: Drinking vessel.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Golf scoring terms.

Green group: WNBA.

Blue group: Sports that have judges.

Purple group: ____ cup.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is golf scoring terms.  The four answers are birdie, bogey, eagle and par.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is WNBA. The four answers are Association, Basketball, National and Women’s.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is sports that have judges. The four answers are diving, figure skating, gymnastics and skateboarding.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is ____ cup. The four answers are America’s, Ryder, Stanley and World.

One issue with next-gen AirPods such as the AirPods Pro 3 is that they often look very similar to the previous model, leaving many people to question whether the upgrades really matter. However, after using the AirPods Pro 3 for five days, I can say that these buds are significantly improved in four key areas: fit, sound quality, noise cancellation and battery life. The result is that you don’t feel like you’re making any compromises when buying the AirPods Pro 3. Read on to see just how much they’ve improved in each area and how they stack up against other top true-wireless earbuds.  

Before I get into all the changes, here’s a quick breakdown of what’s stayed the same.

• The AirPods Pro 3’s list price is still $249 (£219, AU$429). That wasn’t a given with all the uncertainty surrounding the Trump administration tariffs, but we’ll see where their street price shakes out on Amazon and other retailers where AirPods models often get discounted.
• The AirPods Pro 3 are powered by Apple’s H2 chip — the same one that powers the AirPods Pro 2, AirPods 4 and Beats Powerbeats Pro 2. Rumors pointed to an H3 chip, but that didn’t happen. 
• Nor did we get any new color options; white is still the only option.
• The AirPods Pro 3 stick with Bluetooth 5.3, just like the AirPods Pro 2 (though some true-wireless earbuds have already jumped to Bluetooth 6.0).
• The buds still feature a MagSafe charging case with USB-C and wireless charging (no USB-C charging cable is included). 

Now for the upgrades: I’ll run through them quickly, then share my take on many of them.

What’s new or upgraded

• While they look similar to the previous model, the AirPods Pro 3 have been redesigned and their geometric shape has changed a bit, with the angle of the bud shifted. They’re the same length but are slightly smaller width-wise, slightly larger depth-wise and weigh a touch more (5.55 grams vs. 5.3 grams on the AirPods Pro 2).
• They come with new foam-infused silicone ear tips in five sizes, including a new extra-extra small size.
• They’re equipped with heart-rate sensors like the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2.
• 2x better noise cancellation compared to the AirPods Pro 2, according to Apple.
• While they have 10.7mm drivers like the AirPods Pro 2, those drivers have been upgraded to take advantage of the buds’ new multiport acoustic architecture, which moves more air through the buds and improves sound quality.
• The microphones have been upgraded.
• Transparency Mode has been enhanced.
• New Live Translation feature (also available for the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 series, but not the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2).
• Their battery life has improved to 8 hours with noise cancellation on and up to 10 hours in Hearing Aid mode with transparency on.
• Instead of being IPX4 splash-proof like the AirPods Pro 2, they’ve got an IP57 rating, which means they can withstand a sustained spray of water. (I poured water on them and they survived just fine). They’re also dust-resistant.
• The case now includes a U2 chip, boosting Precision Finding range in the Find My app by 1.5x (requires an iPhone 17).
• Like with the AirPods 4, there’s no longer a button on the case for Bluetooth pairing. You simply double tap on the front of the case to have the buds go into Bluetooth pairing mode.

Watch this: Apple AirPods Pro 3 Review: The Complete Package

11:18

Modified design improved the fit for me

As I mentioned, the AirPods Pro 3 are slightly narrower, but more importantly, their shape and bud angle have been adjusted so the ear tips point more directly into your ear canals.

Additionally, the ear tips have been redesigned. Traditional foam tips tend to feel dense and squishy at the same time, but these new tips are infused with a thin layer of memory foam, particularly toward the front, giving them a firmer and more premium feel.

Enlarge Image

The tips now come in five sizes, including a new extra-extra small option. There’s still no extra-large tip (which I was hoping for), but the large size now fits more like XL. Note that the new tips attach differently than before, so they aren’t compatible with the original AirPods Pro or Pro 2.

The buds felt noticeably different in my ears than the AirPods Pro 2 — snugger and more secure. With the Pro 3, Apple put a big emphasis on fit since a tight seal is key to sound quality and noise canceling, and it wants people to notice both have improved.

I think more people will be able to get a better fit with these buds, though I’m sure there will be some folks who were just fine with the fit of the AirPods Pro 2 who will say they prefer their fit.

Read more: Best AirPods Pro 3 preorder deals — $20 reward for select Best Buy members

Heart-rate monitoring 

I haven’t spent much time using the new heart-rate monitoring feature yet, and I don’t consider it a must-have in earbuds, particularly if you already own an Apple Watch or another watch with heart-rate monitoring capabilities. While the heart-rate sensors have been custom-designed for the AirPods Pro 3 (they’re Apple’s smallest heart-rate sensors) and aren’t identical to the ones in the Powerbeats Pro 2, my experience using them was the same as with the Powerbeats Pro 2, which I’ve tested more extensively.

The monitoring is compatible with a number of fitness apps, including Apple Fitness and Fitness Plus, and can work in tandem with the Apple Watch’s heart-rate monitoring feature to get the most accurate measurement between the two devices. You can also use a single bud for heart-rate monitoring — a feature Beats added to the Powerbeats Pro 2, too.

The one drawback of using the heart-rate monitor on the Powerbeats Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3 is that you need to launch an app to see your heart rate. For example, with the Apple Fitness app, you have to start a workout activity like an outdoor walk, run or cycle. By contrast, with the Apple Watch (and other fitness watches), your heart rate appears as soon as you put the device on, making your heart rate easy to track whether you’re working out or not.

Using the heart-rate monitor does affect the AirPods Pro 3’s battery life — dropping from 8 hours with noise canceling on to 6.5 hours — which is likely why Apple didn’t design it to be always on. Still, I wish there were an option to keep the sensors running at times and have my heart rate show up in a widget on my iPhone’s home screen (or even lock screen), instead of only when I manually start it in a fitness app.

Apple ups its noise-canceling game 

The two biggest improvements people were hoping for in the AirPods Pro 3 were sound quality and noise-canceling performance, with voice-calling performance coming in a close third.

I tested their noise-cancellation capabilities on a plane against the AirPods Pro 2 and could definitely tell a difference, with the Pro 3s tamping down the cabin noise to a faint hum. The AirPods Pro 2 did a good job, but the Pro 3s took the noise level down even further. I can’t say the Pro 3’s noise canceling is exactly twice as good as the Pro 2’s, which Apple claims, but it’s definitely better.

When I got back to New York City, I put them up against the Bose QuietComfort Ultra Earbuds (2nd Gen), which a lot of people consider to have the best noise-canceling capabilities when it comes to earbuds — or headphones for that matter. (Although Sony’s WH-1000XM6 headphones also offer outstanding noise cancellation — I named them the “new noise-canceling king” in my review).

What I can say is that Apple’s noise canceling now matches Bose and Sony, though it’s hard to name a clear winner without a pricey testing rig to provide scientific results. Apple says the AirPods Pro 3 offer the “world’s best in-ear active noise cancellation,” but it’s unclear whether it tested the AirPods Pro 3 against the 2nd Gen Bose QC Ultra Earbuds, which were released on June 28 internationally and on Sept. 10 in the US. In the fine print, Apple says that testing was conducted in July 2025 and comparisons were “made against the best-selling wireless in-ear headphones commercially available at the time of testing.”

I swapped Bose’s QC Ultra Earbuds 2s back and forth with the AirPods Pro 3 while riding the subway and walking the streets. Both have truly impressive noise-canceling capabilities. Compared to the AirPod Pro 2, the Pro 3s are designed to improve noise cancellation across all frequencies, including mids and highs that can be challenging to muffle. I could still hear people’s voices on the streets but they were toned down significantly and, unless they were talking loudly, I had a hard time understanding what they were saying. On the subway, the buds blocked out about 80-85% of the noise around me.

When I took the buds out of my ears or went into Transparency Mode, I was often shocked by just how much external noise there was.

More refined sound with better bass

The sound quality gains may not be quite as big as the noise-canceling gains, but the Pro 3’s sound is definitely improved over the Pro 2’s. The bass has more definition and extension — it hits harder and goes deeper — and the earbuds sound clearer, more natural and open with more sparkle in the treble. I also think they play a little louder.

I ran through the usual tracks I use for testing headphones — it’s an eclectic mix. They included Spoon’s Knock Knock Knock, Athletes of God’s Don’t Wanna Be Normal, Orbital’s Dirty Rat, Bjork’s Hollow, Drake’s Passionfruit, Pixies’ Vault of Heaven, Florence and the Machine’s Choreomania, various Foo Fighters songs, plus David Byrne’s new album Who Is the Sky?

Testing AirPods for sound quality is a bit tricky since Apple’s spatial audio can make tracks sound different — sometimes better, sometimes just different. Most of my testing was done on Apple Music (using an iPhone 17 with near-final iOS 26), which has plenty of tracks optimized for spatial audio. I also tried Spotify and streamed a few movies on the Apple TV app, since the improved audio carries over there as well.

Read more: You can preoder the iPhone 17 today — get it free with these carriers

Enlarge Image

You aren’t going to get quite the same level of sound quality that you’d get from a good pair of wired studio headphones, but that extra bit of clarity and definition puts the AirPods Pro 3 in the same league as some of the best-sounding earbuds, including the Sennheiser Momentum True Wireless 4 and Sony WF-1000XM5. I’d still give audiophile buds like the Noble Fokus Amadeus and Bowers & Wilkins Pi8 the slight edge sound-wise, but those models are larger, more expensive and can’t match the noise-canceling and voice-calling performances of the AirPods Pro 3.

Unlike most high-end earbuds and headphones, Apple doesn’t let you adjust the sound profile with EQ settings. Still, the AirPods deliver all the hallmarks of premium audio — or at least premium Bluetooth audio. Apple has leveled up the listening experience with purer, more accurate sound, tighter bass and a touch more openness. In my AirPods Pro 2 review, I noted how impressive the sound was for such small, lightweight buds — though it still fell a bit short of the very best earbuds out there.

Simply put: The AirPods Pro 3’s sound doesn’t fall short anymore. And while they come at a premium price, these small, lightweight earbuds deliver remarkably good audio for their size.

Voice-calling performance

AirPods have long stood out for voice-calling performance compared to other true-wireless earbuds. Back when the originals launched, I remember Android users buying them just for calls — and every generation since has remained top-tier in that department.

The thing that struck me in my tests with the AirPods Pro 3 was just how much background noise they eliminated. I made calls in the streets of New York City with a lot ambient noise around me, including traffic and ambulance sirens, and callers told me they couldn’t hear any of it. In loud environments, my voice would sometimes warble or sound a bit digitized to callers, but when I shared a recording of what I was actually hearing, they were surprised — even stunned — by how much background noise was removed.

Enlarge Image

While the voice-calling performance of the AirPodsPro 3 seems slightly better, I’ll have to run more comparisons to truly determine how much of a difference there really is. With iOS26, the AirPods Pro 2 and other H2-chip models — including both AirPods 4 versions — are getting an update that adds studio-quality recording and promises better voice-calling performance. As Apple says, “With the H2 chip, beamforming microphones, and computational audio, users will also enjoy more natural vocal texture and clarity across iPhone calls, FaceTime, and CallKit-enabled apps.”

The AirPods Pro 3 do have upgraded microphones, so that’s a plus when it comes to noise reduction and voice pickup. And that upgraded acoustic architecture with more air flow should help with hearing callers even better.         

Live translation

Apple’s Live Translation is one of the new features that’s being highlighted with the AirPods Pro 3, but it’s also coming to other AirPods with the H2 chip, including the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 models, though not the H2-equipped Powerbeats Pro 2 (sorry, Beats owners).

At Apple Park, I got a demo of the live translation feature as a Spanish-speaking presenter spoke to a small group of us for a few minutes. What she said was translated on the fly into English as I listened on the AirPods Pro 3, which were connected to an iPhone 17 Pro. The translation was done locally on the iPhone 17 Pro (no internet required), and the delay between what the speaker said in Spanish and what I heard in English was brief — only a second or so — and the translation sounded quite natural.

At home, I tested the feature with Spanish-language YouTube videos and TV (you first have to download the language you want). It worked well for the most part, and you also get a text readout of the translation as you hear it in your ears. The only real limitation is that it currently supports just five languages: English, French, German, Portuguese and Spanish.

You can program the action button on the iPhone to quickly launch the Live Translation app or hold both stems of the AirPods to launch it. With the translation done locally on your phone, you don’t need cell coverage to use the feature, so you can take advantage of it in remote places, too.

For live conversations in different languages to work, everyone involved needs to be wearing AirPods with an H2 chip. Also note: Live translation only works on iPhones that support Apple Intelligence — that includes the iPhone 15 Pro, as well as all iPhone 16 and iPhone 17 models.

While companies like Samsung, Google and even some budget Amazon earbuds also offer live translation (with Samsung and Google supporting far more languages), Apple’s version is notably simple to use and access. We’ll have to see how it evolves over time.

Transparency and Hearing Aid modes

One area I expected Apple to improve with the AirPods Pro 3 is Hearing Aid mode. I still need to test it more thoroughly, but the already best-in-class Transparency Mode now sounds even more natural, likely thanks to upgraded microphones, and includes an automatic Conversation Boost “for clearer speech in noisy environments.”

If you’re not familiar, transparency modes let you hear the outside world while still wearing the buds, even though they’re blocking your ear canals. Hearing Aid mode builds on that by using transparency to amplify the sounds around you.

Better battery life through chemistry

As noted, battery life has improved in both noise-canceling and transparency modes: up to 8 hours on a single charge with noise canceling on (7.5 hours with spatial audio and head tracking), and up to 10 hours with transparency and Hearing Aid mode. That number drops to 6.5 hours when heart-rate monitoring is engaged. It’s also worth noting that Apple lists total battery life with the charging case as 24 hours, versus 30 hours for the AirPods Pro 2. Some people, including me, are a bit perplexed as to why the overall battery life time is lower, particularly when the charging case is slightly bigger (my protective OtterBox Core Series case for the AirPods Pro 2 didn’t quite fit on the AirPods Pro 3’s case). 

What’s interesting is that the battery in the buds is apparently the same size (with the same capacity) as the battery in the AirPods Pro 2; it’s the battery chemistry that’s changed. That change is largely what’s behind the battery life improvements, along with some energy efficiency gained through new software written for the AirPods Pro 3. You get an additional three charges in the charging case, which is less than the AirPods Pro 2’s four charges.

While certain AirPods Pro 3 features and enhancements are being made available to the AirPods Pro 2 and AirPods 4 through firmware updates, the AirPods Pro 3 have software written exclusively for the earbuds’ hardware upgrades and new acoustic architecture. That unfortunately means the AirPods 2’s battery life, sound quality and noise-canceling capabilities won’t be getting any better.  

Upgraded U2 chip in charging case for Find My

While Apple didn’t add a new H3 chip to the buds, it did add a new U2 chip to the charging case. It says the new chip increases the range for Precision Finding in the Find My app by 1.5x (MacRumors reports that it offers 3x the range, but Apple says it’s 1.5x on its site). Whatever the exact number, it means you’ll be able to use Precision Finding to hone in on your case’s location — almost like a metal detector — even from farther away. Note that while the buds and case can both be tracked in Find My, only the case supports Precision Finding, so you’ll want to lose them together if you hope to track them this way.

Enlarge Image

I tested out the feature and the range is extended and it also seemed zippier and more reliable. Like the U1, the U2 uses ultra-wideband technology, delivering improved spatial awareness and location accuracy to Bluetooth. There’s been some speculation about whether Apple could use the technology to deliver other features to the AirPods Pro 3, including lossless audio (via the charging case). But for now it’s only being used to enhance the ability to find the Pro 3’s charging case should you lose it. 

While the U2 chip first appeared in the iPhone 15, you’ll need an iPhone 17 model to get the better range for Precision Finding with the AirPods Pro 3 (I tested it with an iPhone 17). I’m still confirming this and will update this section as I get more info and do further testing.

Additional features

The AirPods Pro 3 have all the same features as the AirPods Pro 2, including Conversation Awareness, Adaptive Audio, Hearing Protection head gestures to interact with Siri or manage calls and plenty of others. I won’t rehash every feature from the Pro 2, but here’s a rundown of the new additions coming to both models with iOS 26. I’ll be testing them further in the days ahead.

• Studio-quality audio recording: Apple says that “interviewers, podcasters, singers and other creators can record their content with greater sound quality, and even record while on the go or in noisy environments, with Voice Isolation.”
• Upgraded voice-calling performance: “Users will enjoy more natural vocal texture and clarity across iPhone calls, FaceTime and CallKit-enabled apps,” it says.
• The new Camera Remote feature allows you to “start or stop video recordings from a distance with a simple press of the AirPods stem.”
• AirPods models with the H2 chip will also be able to detect when you fall asleep and automatically pause what you’re listening to.

AirPods Pro 3 final thoughts (for now)

While I didn’t get a new H3 chip and I was hoping that the charging case would be able to convert into a Bluetooth transceiver to use the buds on a plane with an inflight entertainment system, I did get most of what I was looking for in the AirPods Pro 3. The changes may seem incremental to some folks, but all the key elements such as fit, sound quality and noise cancellation have been noticeably leveled up along with single-charge battery. Not everybody will care that much about heart-rate monitoring, but for some, it’ll be a welcome add.

The latest iPhone system, iOS 26, is being released this week, bringing a new Liquid Glass interface and other features. Before you update, make sure iOS 18.6 on your iPhone is in top form to make it feel faster, more private and easier to use.

I tested the latest update and found 10 quick changes that had an immediate impact. Some help cut background battery drain, others boost privacy and a few are just small “quality of life” upgrades that make the iPhone smoother overall. The best part? None of them require advanced know-how — and most take less than a minute to turn on.

So if your iPhone has been dragging a little or you’re just curious about hidden features, these settings are worth checking. They can refresh your phone’s performance, extend its battery life and buy you more time before you even think about upgrading. 

For more on what’s new in iOS 18, learn about improvements to the overhauled Calculator app and the Mail app. And don’t forget to consult our iOS 18 upgrade checklist, which includes making sure you have a proper backup before upgrading.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Watch this: 11 Hidden Features in iOS 18

06:44

Turn off categories in the Mail app

With email, everyone has their own way of dealing with the influx of messages. Traditionally, the Mail app has kept a chronological list, but that can get unwieldy if you also get scores of promotions, receipts and other types of email. The new categories feature creates virtual buckets for Primary, Transactions, Updates and Promotions, and guesses how your messages should be sorted.

If that approach doesn’t work for you, here are two things to try.

• In the event that categories are somewhat useful, but you still want a chronological view of your Inbox, swipe all the way to the right of the categories and tap All Mail.

• To turn off categories altogether, tap the three-dot menu (…) in the top-right corner, and then tap List View.

Change the default buttons on the lock screen

In real estate, location is everything, and the bottom corners of the iPhone lock screen are the prime spots, each an easy thumb press away when your device is still locked. Before iOS 18, those posts were held by the flashlight and camera buttons, with no way to change them.

In iOS 18, you can finally replace them with other buttons — or remove them entirely, a balm for folks who unknowingly activate the flashlight (believe me, there’s a better way to turn it on). You can add buttons to recognize music via Shazam, enable Dark Mode, set an alarm/timer, enable Airplane Mode, open your Wallet, send money via Tap to Cash and more.

Here’s how:

1. On the iPhone’s lock screen, touch and hold anywhere on the display until you see the Customize button. You’ll need to unlock the phone using Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. If it opens the home screen, swipe down from the center-top of the screen (not the right edge, which brings up Control Center.

2. Tap Customize and then choose Lock Screen.

3. Remove one of the buttons by tapping the – (minus) button on the icon.

4. To replace the button with another function, tap its space (now with a + icon) and then choose the one you want on the next screen. (You can also opt to leave that space empty with no button.)

5. Repeat those steps for the other button if you want to change it.

6. Tap Done when you’re finished.

7. Tap the lock screen again to exit the customize mode.

Get important alerts using Prioritize Notifications

For iPhone models that can run Apple Intelligence, a new option in iOS 18.4 is fast becoming one of my favorite AI features. Go to Settings > Notifications, and under Apple Intelligence, tap Prioritize Notifications. As new alerts come in — and some days feel like they arrive in floods — Apple Intelligence determines which ones are more likely to be important to you. For example, texts from people in your contacts could be flagged in favor of random scam messages. On that settings screen, you can enable or disable priority notifications for individual apps.

Set up some of the new tasks available on the Action button

The Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 16, iPhone 16E and iPhone 16 Pro replaced the dedicated mute switch found on every earlier iPhone model with a configurable control. By default, it serves the same purpose — hold it to turn Silent Mode on or off — but you can configure it for other actions like opening the Camera app, performing multiple actions at once or even ordering coffee. The iOS 18.4 update adds Visual Intelligence as an option for the Action button. That makes the AI technology available on the iPhone 16E, which does not include the novel new Camera Control but is now an option for any iPhone with an Action button.

In iOS 18, the Action button gets new capabilities. You can bypass Control Center and choose a control of your choice, such as opening the Remote interface for navigating Apple TV or using Shazam to identify a song.

To choose a different action for the Action button, go to Settings > Action Button. Swipe sideways to select and activate one of the available actions. For the Controls, Shortcut and Accessibility options, tap the Choose button to pick which specific action to run.

Give your home screen a radical new look

You wouldn’t think that putting icons where you want is a radical new feature, but that’s because iOS has always had a locked arrangement. Apps get added from top to bottom, left to right. You could rearrange the order in which icons appear and move them to other screens, but that was about it.

In iOS 18, apps can be positioned nearly anywhere. You no longer need to deal with a wallpaper image of your kids or pets being obscured by icons. They still adhere to a grid — Apple isn’t about to sanction anarchy — but can be placed freely.

Also, Dark mode finally applies to all of the iPhone’s home screen, with options for coloring icons and affecting the brightness of the wallpaper image. Here’s how to customize the looks.

Arrange apps: Touch and hold the home screen to enter “jiggle mode,” and then drag the icons to new positions. It will still slide them around to fill spaces, but with patience, you can move them into the spots you want.

You can also quickly turn compatible apps into widgets that display more information. Maps, for instance, can be a map of your current location with shortcut buttons to search for places or bring up a list of nearby places (such as dinner spots). Touch and hold the app icon and look for a row of resize buttons in the menu that appears. Once expanded beyond the standard icon size, you can drag the handle in the bottom-right corner of the new icon. To get it back to its single icon size you need to touch and hold again and choose the single-icon button

Set Dark mode: If you’ve ever subjected yourself to the retina blast of black text on a white background late at night in a darkened room, you will appreciate the new Dark mode option for the home and lock screens. iOS has previously included a Dark mode, where light backgrounds switch to black or dark gray, text switches to white or light gray and other interface elements are dimmed to coexist in a dark environment. That’s never been applied to the home and lock screens in any significant way — only the dock and some widgets — until iOS 18.

First, touch and hold the home screen to enter jiggle mode. Tap the Edit button in the top-left corner and choose Customize from the menu. At the bottom of the screen, choose a mode for the icons and background: Automatic, Dark or Light (I’ll get to Tinted in a moment). In Dark mode, the icons gain black backgrounds, and folders and the Dock become dark gray. (Developers have the option of making Dark mode icons for their apps. In the meantime, apps not yet optimized get a generally darker appearance.)

In Dark mode, the background image also changes. Apple’s default iOS 18 wallpaper dynamically changes from light to dark as the day progresses, or you can choose colors that offer a light and dark option. If you use a photo, its overall exposure is reduced to dim the light output.

If you want dark icons but aren’t a fan of the dimmed photo treatment, tap the sun icon in the corner of the options sheet at the bottom of the screen to toggle back to Light mode just for the background.

Tinted icons: A new and different option is to tint all of the app icons so they share the same color. In the Customize options at the bottom of the screen, choose Tinted as the icon style. You can then adjust the Hue (the slider with the color spectrum) and Luminosity (the slider with the dark to light range) to choose the color tint you prefer.

What if you want to match a color from a background image? Tap the eyedropper button and then drag the reticle to pinpoint the color you want — the border indicates the selected color.

The tint is applied not only to icons but to widgets as well. For a widget such as Photos, the images it displays show up as duotones to match the theme.

Large icons: Do the labels below each app icon seem redundant to you? Now you can remove the labels and increase the size of the icons with one setting. Open the Customize options as described above and tap the Large button.

After making any of these changes, tap anywhere on the screen to apply them and exit the Customize interface.

Change up how the Control Center looks

Control Center was once a convenient place to quickly access controls such as playback volume and Airplane mode but under iOS 18 it’s a configurable playground. You can position controls where you want, resize many to reveal more information and add new controls on multiple screens.

Swipe down from the top-right corner to reveal the Control Center (or swipe up from the bottom on the iPhone SE). To enter edit mode, touch and hold or press the + button at the top-left corner.

Just as with moving apps, drag a control to another slot on the screen to reposition it. Many of the controls also include a bottom-right handle that can resize the control — in most cases, it reveals the name of the control and its current status (such as Flashlight Off).

Control Center also now spans multiple screens. Swipe up to view controls for media currently playing, Home controls for smart lights and appliances and a page dedicated to the communication options that appear when you long-press the Connectivity block containing Airplane Mode, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Cellular and others. Look closely and you’ll see that those screens are actually individual controls expanded to occupy the entire Control Center area.

You can rearrange the order of those screens by moving their controls. Suppose you want Home controls to be the first swipe instead of Now Playing: In the editing mode, drag the large Home control up to the previous screen (Now Playing will shift to the right to make room).

To remove controls, tap the – (minus) button that appears. You can also add other controls: Tap Add a Control and scroll through the available options ranging from starting a Screen Recording to a host of accessibility options.

Read more: All the new controls you can add to Control Center

Lock or hide any of your sensitive apps

Our phones carry some of our most sensitive data and yet it’s not uncommon to hand a phone to a friend to view photos or look up something online. That doesn’t mean they’re going to snoop but it doesn’t not mean they might be more curious than you’re comfortable with. For data you want to ensure stays out of sight or to add a layer of protection in front of sensitive information, iOS 18 adds the ability to lock and hide apps.

For example, let’s say you keep an ongoing set of lists of gift ideas for family members in the Notes app. You can lock individual notes but that requires a separate step. Maybe a few ideas were made as individual quick notes or drawings. Instead of micromanaging access, you can lock the entire Notes app by doing the following:

Touch and hold the app icon you want to lock and choose Require Face ID or Require Touch ID (or Require Passcode if Face ID or Touch ID are not enabled) from the menu that appears. Confirm your choice by tapping Require Face ID (or similar) in the next dialog.

To remove the authentication step, touch and hold the app and choose Don’t Require Face ID (or similar).

Nothing outwardly indicates that an app is locked — you’ll find out when you try to open it. There’s one more level of app security available, which is to hide apps in a special locked folder. Touch and hold the app and choose Require Face ID and then tap Hide and Require Face ID in the dialog. Confirm the action by tapping Hide App on the next screen.

The app disappears from the home screen and gets slotted into a Hidden folder at the bottom of the App Library (swipe left beyond your last home screen to view the App Library). To access apps there, tap the Hidden folder and authenticate with Face ID.

iOS 18 imposes some limitations on hidden apps. Some, such as many of the built-in ones like Notes or Reminders, can only be locked and cannot be hidden at all. Also, the Hidden folder locks itself when you launch an app or swipe away from the App Library.

Turn off Loop Videos in the Photos app

Many apps have implemented a small but annoying (to me) feature, and now Photos under iOS 18.2 has it too: Videos automatically replay when you watch them until you tap the Pause button. That can be fun once or twice, or when viewing short clips. I’m not a fan of having to take action to make them stop each time.

Now I can take action once. Go to Settings > Photos, scroll down until you see Loop Videos and turn the option off. A video will play on its own but then stop at the end as it should.

If you’d rather the video didn’t play at all until you tap the Play button, also turn off Auto-Play Motion in the same Settings screen.

Adjust the view of your calendar

Big new features like locking and hiding apps are great additions but so are the tiny changes that you encounter every day. The Calendar app includes two new ways to view your schedule.

In iOS 18, when you’re in the Month view in portrait orientation, pinch with two fingers to view more or fewer details. As you “zoom in,” individual events appear as colored bars and then as labeled events with times, all while keeping the monthly grid of days and weeks.

The Day view, which breaks down your day hour by hour, now has a new Multi Day view that shows two consecutive days to give you context for what’s coming without turning the phone into landscape orientation and viewing the Week view. Tap the View button at the top of the Single Day view and choose Multi Day from the popup menu.

Improve movie and TV show dialogue in the TV app

Trouble hearing dialogue in movies and television shows isn’t a new problem — for example, Apple TV has had a feature for a while where you can ask Siri, “What did she say?” and it will automatically back up a few seconds, turn on subtitles and replay that section of the video. You can even buy soundbars that can overcome muffled TV speech. There are a lot of reasons it’s harder to hear dialogue but the TV app in iOS 18 includes a high-tech workaround to make dialog easier to discern.

While you’re watching a video in the TV app, tap the More (…) button and then expand the Audio heading in the menu that appears; if the phone is in horizontal orientation, tap the Audio Adjustments button. Tap Enhance Dialogue and choose Enhance or Boost. They each dampen background noise and raise the dialogue’s audio.

These are just a few new features and changes in iOS 18. Check out our broader coverage of Apple Intelligence, more impressions of the system after using it for months and how these all work together with the iPhone 16 models.

73% off with 2yr plan (+4 free months). Now only $3.49/month

See more details

See at Now

Watch the Premier League in the UK from £15 with Now

Now

See at Fubo

Watch the Premier League in Canada for CA$31.50 a month

Fubo Canada

See at Stan Sport

Watch every Premier League match live in Australia from AU$32 a month

Stan Sport

There’s more than just bragging rights at stake on Sunday as fierce city rivals Man City and Man United go in search of a much-needed win, both teams having made poor starts to the new season.  

Below, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services for watching English Premier League games as they happen, wherever you are in the world, and how to use a VPN if it’s not available where you are.

The hosts come into the match looking to avoid a third successive defeat following back-to-back losses to Spurs and Brighton before the international break. Of key concern to City manager Pep Guardiola will be how unusually vulnerable City have looked defensively, especially when dealing with counterattacks. 

While Ruben Amorim’s United won last time out, that 3-2 victory over newly promoted Burnley was far from convincing. Last month’s humiliating Carabao Cup exit to League Two Grimsby Town is still fresh in supporters’ memories, too. 

Manchester City takes on Manchester United on Sunday, Sept. 14, at the Etihad Stadium, with kickoff set for 4:30 p.m. BST. That makes it a 11:30 a.m. ET or 8:30 a.m. PT start in the US and Canada, and an 1:30 a.m. AEST kickoff in Australia in the early hours of Monday morning. 

How to watch Man City vs. Man United in the US without cable

The Manchester derby will be broadcast on NBC and streaming service Peacock. To stream the game live, you’ll need a Peacock Premium or Premium Plus account. 

Peacock offers two Premium plans, and after recent price increases, the ad-supported Premium plan costs $11 a month, and the ad-free Premium Plus plan costs $17 a month.

How to watch the English Premier League 2025-26 season from anywhere with a VPN

If you’re traveling abroad and want to keep up with all the EPL action while away from home, a VPN can help enhance your privacy and security when streaming. 

It encrypts your traffic and prevents your internet service provider from throttling your speeds, and can also be helpful when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks while traveling, adding an extra layer of protection for your devices and logins. VPNs are legal in many countries, including the US and Canada, and can be used for legitimate purposes such as improving online privacy and security. 

However, some streaming services may have policies restricting VPN use to access region-specific content. If you’re considering a VPN for streaming, check the platform’s terms of service to ensure compliance. 

If you choose to use a VPN, follow the provider’s installation instructions, ensuring you’re connected securely and in compliance with applicable laws and service agreements. Some streaming platforms may block access when a VPN is detected, so verifying if your streaming subscription allows VPN usage is crucial. 

Price $13 per month, $75 for the first year or $98 total for the first two years (one- and two-year plans renew at $100 per year)Latest Tests No DNS leaks detected, 18% speed loss in 2025 testsNetwork 3,000 plus servers in 105 countriesJurisdiction British Virgin Islands

ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. Prices start at $3.49 a month on a two-year plan for the service’s Basic tier.

73% off with 2yr plan (+4 free months). Now only $3.49/month

Livestream Man City vs. Man United in the UK

This massive Sunday afternoon clash is exclusive to Sky Sports and will be shown on its Sky Sports Main Event and UHD channels. If you already have Sky Sports as part of your TV package, you can stream the game via its Sky Go app. Cord-cutters will want to set up a Now account and a Now Sports membership to stream the game. 

Sky’s standalone streaming service Now offers access to Sky Sports channels with a Now Sports membership. You can get a day of access for £15 or sign up to a monthly plan from £35 a month right now.

Livestream Man City vs. Man United in Canada

If you want to livestream EPL games in Canada this season, you’ll need to subscribe to Fubo. The service has exclusive rights to the Premier League once again and is broadcasting all 380 matches live.

Fubo is the go-to destination for Canadians looking to watch the EPL, with exclusive streaming rights to every match. It currently costs CA$27 for the first month, then CA$31.50 a month from then on.

Livestream Man City vs. Man United in Australia

Livestreaming rights for the EPL are now with Stan Sport, which is showing all 380 games live, including this match. 

Stan Sport will set you back AU$20 a month (on top of a Stan subscription, which starts at AU$12). It’s also worth noting that the streaming service is currently offering a seven-day free trial.

A subscription will also give you access to Premier League, Champions League and Europa League action, as well as international rugby and Formula E.

Quick tips for streaming the Premier League using a VPN 

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming EPL matches may vary.
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log in to your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location. 
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

Saul “Canelo” Álvarez and Terence Crawford step into the ring tonight in a pro boxing matchup that will see Álvarez defending his title as super middleweight champion. 

As the crowd descends upon Las Vegas to watch the pair square up, the question lingers in the air of whether Crawford will beef up his weight — and by how much — to meet his opponent’s. While Álvarez is a seasoned super middleweight contender (and current undisputed champion), Crawford has never fought in this weight class and planned to pack on pounds to move up two levels for this fight. However, the Nebraska native is undefeated (41-0 with 31 knockouts) and has earned championship titles in four different weight classes as a lightweight, light middleweight, junior welterweight and welterweight. 

Veteran boxer Mike Tyson said he’d like Crawford to win, but he doesn’t believe it’s likely with Álvarez being highly skilled and the weight disparity. But, “There’s been upsets before,” he said. 

Like Tyson, viewers are planning to watch the bout to see who wins the title. Scroll down to find out what time to stream the live event on Netflix and who else is on the card. 

What time is the Canelo vs. Crawford fight on Netflix?

Fight night kicks off on Saturday, Sept. 13, at 9 p.m. ET (6 p.m. PT), live from Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. Regardless of plan type, all Netflix subscribers can watch the event around the globe.

Headlining the main card is the Canelo Álvarez vs. Terence Crawford bout, with a combined purse prize of $200 million. Three other fights are on the main card:

• Callum Walsh vs. Fernando Vargas Jr.
• Christian Mbilli vs. Lester Martine
• Mohammed Alakel vs. John Ornelas

Preliminary fights can also be streamed on Netflix’s Tudum site in Spanish and English beginning at 5:30 p.m. ET. 

Netflix offers three plans, ranging from $8 a month for its ad-free version to $18 or $25 per month if you want to stream without ads. You can also watch the docuseries, Countdown: Canelo vs. Crawford, on the service. 

Amid a nationwide rush by AI companies to build data centers to support their feverish growth, and by many locales to attract them, some cities are saying whoa, not so fast.

That’s the case in both St. Louis and St. Charles, Missouri, two cities just 30 minutes apart in the heart of the country.

On Aug. 22, St. Charles imposed, in a unanimous vote by the city council, a one-year moratorium on new data center construction after news broke about a secretive data center project possibly coming to the city, which stirred up protests from local residents.

In St. Louis, the head of that city’s planning agency this week proposed a similar moratorium “while the city develops a full understanding of the issue and develops quality land use, environmental, and other regulations,” according to a memo cited by St. Louis Public Radio. It’s a pause that the mayor supports.

There’s good reason for those cities to be concerned. Data centers, stuffed with thousands of computers to handle basically everything you do online, have a voracious need for electricity and water, and no small amount of land or building space. The arrival of generative AI has dramatically amped up demand for such facilities by companies including OpenAI, Google, Microsoft and Meta.

Between 2021 and 2024, the number of data centers in the US nearly doubled amid AI’s swift advances. Meanwhile, the Trump administration’s AI Action Plan has offered full-throated support for building data centers and funneling resources to support them.

Two of the biggest concerns regarding data centers include the copious amount of water needed to cool the servers and the strain they cause on the electric grid.

I heard objections to AI data centers from residents of Pennsylvania and Louisiana this summer when I was researching the environmental and energy impacts of those facilities. A retired school principal who had organized community resistance told me: “I worry about the kind of world I’m leaving for my grandchildren. It’s not safer, it’s not better, and we’re selling out to these big corporations. You know, it’s not in their backyard, it’s in my backyard.” 

Data center pushback in St. Charles

When St. Charles residents learned about data center plans for their city, hundreds showed up at a town hall meeting to let their opposition be heard. The center, known as Project Cumulus, would sit on about 440 acres.

“The effects of whatever that facility would bring, long term, short term, you name it, our house is going to feel it, whether it be the subsidized cost for building additional infrastructure, for bringing the water in, the electricity,” St. Charles resident Andrew Gardner told St. Louis Magazine at the time.

The residents’ opposition and action worked.

In an August email, shared by St. Louis Public Radio, the developers behind Project Cumulus told the City of St. Charles that they were withdrawing their application for a conditional use permit. They said they would incorporate community feedback and prepare a revised proposal.

Days later, the city enacted its one-year moratorium on new data center construction.

According to St. Louis Public Radio, the company behind Project Cumulus appears to be Google, but that has not yet been confirmed. On the other side of the state, Google is constructing a $1 billion data center in Kansas City, Missouri.

Google didn’t immediately respond to CNET’s request for comment.

A pause on data centers, not a ban

In St. Louis, Mayor Cara Spencer supports pausing new building permits for data centers while the city develops new regulations rather than banning data center construction entirely. 

“While I have concerns about data centers’ effects on the environment, utility prices, vibrancy and urban living,” Spencer said in a statement to CNET, “I also recognize their importance to key industries in St. Louis, including biotech, the geospatial field, agtech and health care, and my office is working closely with the Board of Aldermen and key stakeholders to propose responsible regulations to allow for their appropriate development.”

Currently, Missouri has nearly 50 active data centers with the majority located in Kansas City and St. Louis. 

Uber is being sued for the second time in four years by the Department of Justice over complaints about its ridesharing service’s treatment of customers with disabilities.

According to the suit, a copy of which was posted online by the website TechCrunch, the company is alleged to “routinely refuse to serve individuals with disabilities, including individuals who travel with service animals or who use stowable wheelchairs.”

The lawsuit also accuses Uber of imposing cleaning surcharges related to service animals and charging cancellation fees to disabled riders who’ve been denied service.

“And Uber’s drivers insult and demean people with disabilities or ask them inappropriate questions,” the suit states. 

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

In a statement provided to CNET, Uber said: “Riders who use guide dogs or other assistive devices deserve a safe, respectful, and welcoming experience on Uber — full stop. We have a clear zero-tolerance policy for confirmed service denials, and we fundamentally disagree with the DOJ’s allegations.”

The company pointed to the US Service Animal policy, which all drivers are required to agree to, and says it takes “decisive action, including permanent account deactivation” when that policy is violated.

“We continue to invest in technology, training, and dedicated reporting channels — such as a 24/7 service animal denial hotline — to ensure riders can quickly alert us so we can investigate and address issues,” the statement said. “We remain deeply committed to expanding access and continuously improving the experience for riders with disabilities.”

The company also pointed to a page it provides where passengers can file a complaint.

In 2021, Uber was sued by the DOJ for charging wait-time fees to disabled customers who needed more time to get to their rides. That suit was settled in 2022. 

While a company like Uber may have plenty of money to settle a case like this, the DOJ’s aim may be to create awareness of violations of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). 

“On-the-ground enforcement of the ADA by DOJ and private parties is critically important both with regards to the specific cases at issue but also more broadly as a message that disability discrimination is prohibited by federal law and will not be tolerated,” said Shira Wakschlag, general counsel at The Arc of the United States, a nonprofit that advocates for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. 

“Enforcing the ADA in cases like these is critical to ensuring that the law’s promise of creating a more accessible and inclusive world for people with disabilities is realized,” she said.

In addition to the web pages and app options Uber offers to report instances of bad customer service or discrimination, Wakschlag said customers can also report discrimination directly to the DOJ via its website or work with organizations such as The Arc that can field complaints.

“The media can also play an important role in bringing these stories out of the courtroom in a way that the general public understands what is at issue and how it impacts people in the real world,” she says.

Separately, Uber is also facing a suit from the Federal Trade Commission from earlier this year, when the agency accused the company of deceptive pricing practices related to its Uber One subscription service.

It’s here. You can preorder the new iPhone lineup right now to ensure you get Apple’s new flagship in your hand at launch. We’re all buzzing with excitement over Apple’s iPhone 17 lineup, which was announced at the company’s Apple Event 2025 Sept. 9. It includes the base iPhone 17, the new iPhone Air and the 17 Pro, as well as the larger 17 Pro Max. But don’t forget to grab something to protect you nifty new device. Tons of your favorite brands, like Casetify, have already released new cases for the upcoming iPhone 17 models. Even Apple has dropped its new line of cases, with some fun new accessories, too. 

We will continue to update this list as more iPhone 17 cases become available. In the meantime, here are the cases you can currently grab to outfit your new iPhone. 

Watch this: The New iPhone Air Changes the Game for Preorders

05:34

iPhone 17 cases available now

Apple is known for its traditional silicone cases. And don’t worry, those are making a return for the new iPhone 17 series — even the new iPhone Air. But there’s an added feature this time, the crossbody strap. This strap can help you bring your phone around like a bag, no hands or pockets needed. You’ll also get 3% cash back if you purchase with your Apple Card.*

Beats iPhone 17 series cases are available at its Amazon storefront in a variety of styles and colors, including rugged and kickstand options.

The Spigen storefront on Amazon has plenty of new MagSafe cases for the iPhone 17 lineup with a large selection of styles and colors. You’ll also find discounted screen and camera lens protects at a discount.

Prefer an ultra thin case? Pitaka has some stylish and slim options on its Amazon storefront.

Otterbox has iPhone 17 cases available on its Amazon storefront right now. Whether you’re looking for MagSafe cases, leather options or something rugged, there are plenty of options for everyone.

ESR has released tons of different cases for the new iPhone 17 lineup. Plus, no matter which one you pick, they’re all MagSafe. And best of all, these are already discounted up to 28%. You can also shop via the brand’s Amazon storefront.

Popular Smartish cases, including the Gripmunk and Gripzilla, are joining the iPhone 17 crew along with the new Case Clinger and Wallflower models. And we’re already seeing some eye-catching discounts on these cases.

If you’re looking for a more minimalistic look for your phone, take a look at the iPhone 17 series case collection at Nomad. You’ll find high-end cases made with Horween leather, as well as sleek, modern options that won’t be distracting.

Encased has plenty of iPhone 17 series cases available on its Amazon storefront right now, starting at just $14. Whether you’re looking for a case with a belt clip, a wallet case or even a waterproof case, you’ll find a plethora of options here.

Native Union is also offering phone cases for the iPhone 17 series in a variety of colors for those looking for eco-friendly options.

For a variety of rugged case options, be sure to shop the Urban Armor Gear collection of iPhone 17 series cases.

Arc has released tons of different cases for the new iPhone 17 lineup in colors that match the phones. There are a variety of styles available, including Titanium models — though those are considerably more expensive.

Casetify has a vast array of iPhone 17 series case options. If you want something for your new device that stands out from the crowd, don’t skip browsing Casetify’s wares.

Torras has iPhone 17 series cases on its Amazon storefront, with multiple styles available — including several with 360-dregree spin stand ring for added convenience.

From kickstand cases to bundles with screen protectors, there are tons of options to chose from for the whole lineup. 

You can shop Mkeke iPhone 17 series cases at its Amazon storefront now. If you’re looking for a bargain buy, these low-cost cases can still help you protect your phone from drops and other accidents. Just note that while these cases do support wireless charging, they are not designed for MagSafe accessories.

Aohi released a new Magarmor case for the new iPhone 17 lineup. This case uses next-gen materials to give you max protection but no bulk. And it’s already $20 off. 

If you’re looking for a luxury case with storage for your new iPhone 17 series phone, look no further. Burton Goods has some great full-grain leather options for you.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

Can I use my iPhone 16 case with my iPhone 17?

Unfortunately, no. The dimensions of the iPhone 16 and iPhone 17 do not line up. If you try to use your old case for your iPhone 17, it will not fit. The good news is that there are many new cases you can choose from.  

How do I preorder the iPhone 17?

You can preorder the iPhone 17 series at select online retailers and carriers. 

First, decide which model iPhone you want to buy: iPhone Air, iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro or iPhone 17 Pro Max. Then, select your preferred color and storage capacity. You also need to decide if you’ll trade in an older iPhone, which could get you up to $700 back from Apple.

Once you make those decisions, you’ll need to choose an optional carrier and AppleCare Plus coverage (or forgo it) and click the blue Add to Bag button. You can then include any accessories you want and enter your payment information to complete your purchase.

How do iPhone 17 trade-in offers work?

Multiple carriers offer trade-in savings, some valued at up to $1,100 on eligible trade-ins, which could net you a free iPhone 17 Pro. Note, however, that most trade-in deals from carriers require you to become a customer, and the terms often require you to choose some of the priciest plan options.

Not a fan of contracts? Some retailers also offer trade-in programs, which could offer gift cards toward future purchases instead. This can be a great way to take advantage of savings without necessarily being locked into a contract. Retail offers may not provide as much of a deal as traditional trade-in offers from carriers, though, so keep that in mind as you shop.

*All information about the Apple Card has been collected independently by CNET and has not been reviewed by the issuer.

Watch this: The iPhone 17 Is Here! Watch the Announcement at the Apple iPhone 17 Event

05:56

Now that the iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air have been announced, iOS 26 is set to hit older iPhone devices soon. The latest version of the OS brings several new features to iPhones, as well as Apple’s updated design language, Liquid Glass. 

Liquid Glass adds a combination of translucency and shiny, glass-like accents throughout the user interface, giving the operating system a new look in more than one way. And despite all of the differences between it and what’s found on current iPhones right now, iOS 18, Liquid Glass isn’t nearly as dramatic as it looks upon first glance. That’s a good thing, since there’s no real learning curve, so anyone familiar with iOS will feel right at home. 

Watch this: The New iPhone Air Changes the Game for Preorders

05:34

If you want a glimpse of just how Liquid Glass changes the look of your iPhone compared to iOS 18, I’ve highlighted some of the changes below. And if you’re looking to get one of the new iPhones, don’t miss the best iPhone 17 and iPhone Air pre-order deals. 

Home screen

Looking at the home screens, the primary difference you’ll find is that in iOS 26, the dock background and the search option that sits between the dock and the home screen icons are more transparent and have a sheen to the edges, whereas in iOS 18, these are slightly darker. 

Other smaller changes are that the icons on iOS 26 look slightly larger, and some app icons seem to have been more influenced by the redesign than others, most notably (from the screenshots) Settings, Camera and Mail. 

For Liquid Glass to really shine on the home screen, you’ll want to opt for the “All Clear” mode, which will create the most dramatic change to your icons and widgets. Going this route could potentially introduce some viewability issues, but the “reduce transparency” setting remedies this quite well.

Control Center

Things here are largely unchanged. Outside of the new glassy look in iOS 26, the 1×2 and 2×1 controls are more rounded than those of iOS 18. 

Lock screen

It’s easy to see the differences that Liquid Glass brings to the iPhone lock screen. The digital clock in iOS 26 dynamically resizes depending on the wallpaper and the number of notifications you have at any given moment, which is pretty cool. The clock itself on iOS 18 can be changed, but it won’t change in size in response to content displayed on the lock screen. 

The background on notifications is clearly different between the two OS versions, with iOS 18 providing more opacity and black text versus iOS 26’s near-transparent background on white text. The controls at the bottom in iOS 26 also appear more like physical buttons with depth and more of a see-through background. 

The new unlock effect in iOS 26 is that the motion of unlocking your iPhone will appear as though you’re lifting a sheet of glass, highlighted by a shiny edge to give it form when you begin to slide your finger up. 

Menus and dynamic tab bars

A new addition in iOS 26 is the introduction of dynamic tab bars in apps that will change depending on whether you’re scrolling or trying to perform a specific action. Apple says this will create a more intuitive experience while freeing up space for your content. If you were to replace the glass effect with heavily saturated colors, no one would blame you for mistaking this new tab bar with what Google’s doing in Android 16 in some of its apps — they look a lot alike. But compared to iOS 18, this new dynamic tab bar should not only reduce sifting through multiple menus, but it looks pretty good in the process. 

iOS 26 will dynamically adapt to light and dark backgrounds

While it’s harder to compare Liquid Glass to iOS 18 here, an upcoming feature is that buttons and menus will adapt depending on the content’s background color. For instance, when you’re scrolling through an app with a light background, the floating menu options will appear with black text for easier viewing and will automatically change to white upon scrolling to a dark background.

iOS has had this type of feature show up in a less dramatic fashion before, as you can tell from the photos app screenshots above. Comparing these to what’s on the horizon, it’s hard not to get excited about the small tweaks Liquid Glass has in store, too. 

Those are just a few of our initial findings, and we’ll likely add more once we surface them. If you want more about iOS 26, check out three upcoming features that are a bigger deal than Liquid Glass.

Watch this: iPhone Air Is a Wild Card – and Starts a Big Change for Apple

06:39

Tired of the same old Netflix recommendations? There’s a much larger world of content lurking just beneath the surface of your homepage, accessible through a series of secret codes. Most viewers are unaware that this hidden catalog even exists.

Think of these codes as a master key to Netflix’s entire library. They unlock hundreds of hyper-specific micro-genres, allowing you to bypass the algorithm and browse exactly what you’re in the mood for. Whether you’re searching for cult ’80s horror films, heartwarming teen romances, or even the platform’s collection of “short-ass movies,” these codes take you there instantly.

Using this system feels like stepping behind the velvet rope of the service. It transforms the often frustrating experience of endless scrolling into a fun and efficient treasure hunt. If you want to break free from the recommendation loop, these codes are your ticket to discovering hidden gems you would never have found otherwise.

For more, check out our favorite sci-fi movies on Netflix and learn how to share your favorite Netflix clips via text message or social media.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

What are Netflix secret category codes?

Netflix codes are a set of unique numerical identifiers that can help you find specific genres or sub-genres in the Netflix library on the streamer’s website (not the app). 

Typically, you’re constrained to the genres available via the main Netflix menu. There’s no way to choose by specific category other than what’s been chosen for you when you log on. Using these codes opens up an entire library of options for you to choose from that can help you better settle on what to watch for the night. It can even help you discover shows and movies.

Adding these codes to the ends of Netflix URLs lets you directly access collections of movies and TV shows that fall under your chosen category. For example, if you’re short on time and want to queue up a shorter movie, you could check the 90-Minute Movies category with the code 81466194. Looking for something for your entire brood to enjoy? The “Family Movie Night” collection, accessed with code 2013975, is chock-full of favorites even Grandma can get into. 

There are more than 36,000 codes to choose from so don’t worry about memorizing them or trying random sequences. Resources like Netflix-Codes.com have an entire directory to sift through so you can search for what you’d like to watch there and find corresponding codes in no time. 

How do I find Netflix’s secret menus of movies and shows?

There isn’t an all-encompassing Netflix secret menu per se. Instead, you will use URLs with special codes to display certain curated collections of movies and shows. 

Netflix-Codes.com has a good list of the streaming platform’s hidden genre categories and subcategories. In total, there are about 20 top-level categories covering genres like animation, foreign films and classic movies. Within those main genres are many more hyper-specific subgenres denoted by numeric codes.

All you need to do is find the category you want, copy the related code and append it to the end of a Netflix URL.

What kinds of categories does Netflix offer?

There’s much more to Netflix than what you’ve been scrolling through. At last count, there were more than 36,000 unique categories to explore.

The entirety of the categories available on Netflix starts with broad main genres like Action, Comedy and Drama, but they get more specific as you dive even deeper. There are straight-to-the-point collections like Movies Directed by Women (code 2974953), or more specifically targeted curated lists, like Supernatural Soaps (code 81238162), just in case you like your werewolves with a side of angst and romance. 

Feeling “Very Demure, Very Mindful?” The very queen of that TikTok trend, Jools Lebron, has a collection just for you. Likewise, if you’re missing football in the off season, check out Touchdowns, Triumphs & Trials.

Rather than relying solely on the standard homepage categories or Netflix’s algorithm, you can use these secret codes to pinpoint and explore different nooks and crannies of the catalog to find hidden gems. 

Netflix codes for award-winning movies and shows

Netflix secret codes are exactly that — secret. There’s no official directory, and it’s hard to get a full list, as categories will go empty as movies and shows move on and off Netflix. The names of categories will also change often as well so you’ll want to be vigilant when you go searching for what you want to watch. 

To make it easier for you, there are even categories that you can use to find all the award-winning movies and shows to be discovered on the streamer. 

• Award-winning movies: 89844
• Award-winning TV programs: 89814
• Award-winning documentaries: 93108

How do I find more Netflix codes?

If you’re not comfortable with editing Netflix URLs, you can use a browser extension to access the secret menus. The Better Browse for Netflix extension for Chrome is a great choice. Here’s how to use it:

1. Go to the Chrome Web Store and search for “Better Browse for Netflix.” (Note that this extension is unavailable for Firefox users.) 

2. Click Add to Chrome. 

3. Click Add Extension.

4. Log into your Netflix account in a new tab.

If the extension is installed, you’ll see a Browse All option at the top of your Netflix home screen next to My List. Click it to scroll through the subgenres or to search through specific categories. 

Alternatively, you can use the FindFlix: Netflix Secret Category Finder browser extension for Chrome or Firefox. This add-on will create a drop-down menu complete with Netflix categories for your browser that you can scroll through by clicking on the FF icon that will appear on the top right of your screen. There’s no need to scroll Netflix natively with this add-on and it features 7,500 categories alphabetized for your convenience. 

A third way is through the Netflix Codes website. Here’s how:

1. Visit Netflix-codes.com in any PC or mobile browser. 

2. Find the genre or subgenre you want to explore. 

3. Tap the code next to the genre or subgenre you want.

4. If you’re on a device that has the Netflix app installed, the app should open and take you directly to the genre or subgenre you chose. If you don’t have the app installed, it’ll open Netflix through the browser and you can view the specific movies and shows available. 

5. Tap the title you want to watch and it’ll start playing. 

Finally, if you’re comfortable with creating custom URLs, you can use Netflix codes manually in your browser. Here’s how: 

1. Visit Netflix-codes.com on any PC or mobile browser. 

2. Find the genre or subgenre you want to explore. 

3. In another tab, type in http://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/INSERTNUMBER, but replace INSERTNUMBER with the specific genre or subgenre code. For instance, http://www.netflix.com/browse/genre/81466194 will take you to “90-Minute Movies.” 

4. If done correctly, you’ll be taken to Netflix to peruse the titles available in that section. 

Simply repeat this process the next time you find a code for a Netflix category you’d like to explore. You can do this as many times as you’d like. 

For more Netflix tips, learn how to get the most out of Netflix on your phone or mobile device and how to improve picture quality on streaming services.

On Wednesday, just one day after SpaceX acquired $17 billion of wireless spectrum from telecommunications company EchoStar, Elon Musk made some typically bold claims for how he would put it to use. The second-richest person in the world described a vision where Starlink could be your one-stop-shop for connectivity, whether at home or when you’re away from your Wi-Fi. 

On the All-In podcast, Musk said Starlink could eventually combine its home internet service with mobile. But he was careful to note that Starlink wouldn’t be putting AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon out of business anytime soon – those companies still own far more of the wireless spectrum that’s used to send texts, make calls and stream videos. But the billionaire grinned when it was suggested that one way to acquire more spectrum would be to purchase Verizon outright.

“It’s not out of the question,” Musk said. “I suppose that may happen.”

The SpaceX CEO also outlined a plan to utilize the newly acquired spectrum to use Starlink satellites, which SpaceX calls “cell towers in space,” to send data directly to customers’ phones. Out of SpaceX’s 8,140 total satellites in orbit, 657 are direct-to-cell. The rest are used for Starlink’s internet service. 

“This is kind of a long-term thing,” Musk said of the EchoStar spectrum purchase. “It will allow SpaceX to deliver high-bandwidth connectivity directly from the satellites to the phones. But there are hardware changes that need to happen in the phone.”

Watch this: Hands-On with T-Mobile’s T-Satellite Service

01:55

In order to use the EchoStar spectrum, cellphones would have to be outfitted with chipsets that work with those frequencies. Musk estimates that would take about two years.

“I think their place in the ecosystem is to support the big carriers by providing satellite connectivity so that they can connect anywhere, anytime,” Jeff Moore, an industry analyst with Wave7 Research, told CNET.

In July, SpaceX launched a partnership with T-Mobile that uses Starlink satellites to fill connectivity gaps in dead zones around the country. Customers enrolled in the T-Satellite service can send SMS texts right now, but the service will expand next month to include data support in third-party apps like AccuWeather, AllTrails, WhatsApp and X.

The new EchoStar spectrum would essentially hypercharge Starlink’s direct-to-cell bandwidth capabilities, but it will take some time to get there. 

“It’s out there already, but the more capacity you have, the better, and the more frequencies you have the better,” says Moore. “There’s certainly room for improvement. I think that’s the intention of the spectrum transaction.”

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

See at Fubo

Carries CBS, Fox, ABC, ESPN and NFL Network for $56 per month

Fubo Sports

See at Peacock

Sunday Night Football games on NBC

Peacock Premium: $11 per month

See at YouTube TV

Best single streaming service for NFL fans

YouTube TV: $83 per month

The NFL season is back, and so are new ways to watch without cable. Last year, fans who cut the cord often had to lean on live TV streaming services like YouTube TV, which cost about $83 a month. This season looks different. With new standalone apps and updated skinny bundles, it’s possible to put together a package that delivers the games you want for less.

Both ESPN and Fox have launched direct-to-consumer streaming services that give fans new options outside of the usual bundles. On top of that, platforms like Fubo and Sling are offering slimmer packages that cover most — though not all — of the channels needed to catch every matchup week after week.

I broke down the channel lineups, compared prices, and tested combinations to see which setup works best. If you want to follow the season without overspending, here’s how to stream NFL games in 2025 and the best service combo for football fans.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

The winning combination is the new Fubo Sports skinny bundle paired with Peacock. Keep reading to find out why this is the best option for NFL fans this season and why YouTube TV is still a good choice, especially if you aren’t already a subscriber.

NFL channel lineup

The NFL season is split across six channels:

• CBS: Sunday afternoon games
• Fox: Sunday afternoon games
• NBC: Sunday Night Football
• ABC/ESPN: Monday Night Football
• NFL Network: seven international games played in Europe

Not included in the above are Thursday Night Football, which streams on Prime Video, and the two Christmas Day games on Netflix. For the purposes of this exercise, I’m going to assume you have an Amazon Prime account that lets you watch the TNF games on Prime Video and that you have a Netflix account or will be spending Christmas with someone who has Netflix for the two Christmas Day games.

Streaming a la carte option

I first investigated using the new ESPN DTC and Fox One streaming services, along with Paramount Plus and Peacock, to watch the NFL this season. The coverage works out like this: 

• Paramount Plus: Sunday afternoon CBS games
• Fox One: Sunday afternoon Fox games
• Peacock: Sunday Night Football on NBC 
• ESPN DTC: Monday Night Football on ESPN/ABC

Pricing is as follows:

• Paramount Plus: $8 per month
• Fox One: $20 per month
• Peacock: $11 per month
• ESPN DTC $30 per month

That works out to a total of $69 per month or $276 for the four-month season. And it’ll soon be even less because ESPN and Fox announced a bundle for a combined $40 a month starting Oct. 2. So, if we subtract $10 per month for the last three months of the season, you’ll pay $246 for this quartet for the NFL season that runs from early September to early January.

There are two reasons why I don’t like this plan. First, it doesn’t save you all that much money compared to the other options, as you’ll see below. Second, switching between the CBS and Fox games on Sunday afternoons would be a lot slower and clumsier because you’d have to close Paramount Plus and then open Fox One and vice versa just to change channels. I’d much rather be able to toggle between CBS and Fox on the same service. 

So, that led to my skinny bundle research.

Sports-focused skinny bundles from Fubo and Sling

Fubo and Sling TV each released skinny bundles geared toward sports fans, but neither offers all the channels you need to watch the NFL.

Sling’s new skinny bundle costs $20 a month and includes NBC along with ABC and Fox stations in select markets and NFL Network. It does not, however, offer CBS or ESPN. So, if you go with the $20-a-month Sling Select plan, you would then need to get Paramount Plus for $8 a month for Sunday afternoon CBS games and the DTC ESPN app at $30 a month for Monday Night Football. That’s a total of $58 a month or $232 for the four-month season.

Fubo’s new skinny bundle costs $56 per month and includes ABC, CBS and Fox as well as ESPN and NFL Network. The missing piece is NBC for Sunday Night Football, so you’d need to pair it with the $11-a-month Peacock Premium for a total of $67 a month. And right now, Fubo Sports is $10 off for the first month. So, for the season, Fubo Sports would cost $214 and Peacock would cost $44 for a total of $258.

Of the two skinny bundle combinations, the Fubo-and-Peacock plan is the better option. Even though it costs more than my Sling/Paramount Plus/ESPN plan, I like the idea of watching the CBS and Fox games on Sunday afternoons on Fubo and using Peacock only for the Sunday night game when it’s the only game on. Plus, keeping track of which games are on which service is easier with two streaming services than the trio required if you go the Sling route.

In both cases, you would spend less than with YouTube TV. YouTube TV currently has a deal, however, that keeps the costs pretty close if you aren’t already a subscriber. Right now, new customers can get the first two months of YouTube TV for $50 a month, which means for the NFL season, you would pay $266. But the price for current subscribers is $332.

Fubo’s main package costs $85 per month but it has a new skinny bundle that includes most of the channels you need for the NFL and multi-view to watch up to four channels at once. This new Fubo Sports plan costs $56 per month ($46 for the first month) and includes Fox along with ABC and CBS (but not NBC) in addition to ESPN and NFL Network. It also includes access to ESPN’s new streaming app. You can add RedZone to Fubo’s skinny bundle for an extra $10 a month.

Fubo Sports is currently available in 50 markets and expanding daily, according to Fubo. You can plug in your zip code on Fubo’s welcome page to see if it’s available in your area. 

Read our Fubo review. 

Priced at $83 per month, YouTube TV checks all the NFL boxes and is the best sports streaming service for NFL fans. Local channels ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC are included in most markets, as are ESPN and the NFL Network so you can watch Sundays and Monday nights. Its multi-view feature is great on Sunday afternoons where there are games on CBS and Fox at the same time (plus you can add up to two more sporting events like the US Open final or the MLB postseason games in October). You can get RedZone with the Sports Plus add-on for $11 a month. 

Plug in your ZIP code on YouTube TV’s welcome page to see which local networks are available in your area.

Read our YouTube TV review.

Of the 50 metro markets where Fubo Sports is currently available, it’s available in 14 NFL cities, but with New York and Los Angeles having two teams each, that’s half of the league’s 32 teams.

It pays for existing YouTube TV subscribers to switch

When you factor in the current YouTube TV and Fubo Sports discounts for new subscribers, you’d save only $8 by going with my recommended pairing of Peacock and Fubo ($12 if you include RedZone.) In this case, I recommend YouTube TV because of the ease of having one streaming service for watching NFL football instead of two. 

YouTube TV is the best single streaming service for football fans. It’s the cheapest live TV streaming service that has all the NFL channels and multi-view that lets you watch up to four games at once. Fubo’s standard plan is a close second; it costs only $2 more per month than YouTube TV, includes all the channels you need for NFL games and offers multi-view.

The math is different for existing YouTube TV subscribers. If you don’t want to watch RedZone with its new commercials, you’ll save $74 over the course of the season if you unsubscribe and switch to Fubo Sports and Peacock. And if you include RedZone in the equation, existing YouTube TV subscribers would save $78 this season by switching to the duo of Fubo Sports and Peacock. 

The Apple Watch Series 11 made its debut at Apple’s “awe dropping” event in Cupertino, California, on Tuesday, vying for a spot on your wrist with a mix of fresh updates including new hypertension notifications, sleep score analysis, 5G connectivity and increased battery life. 

With a decade of upgrades and refinements, the Series 11 represents a big move for Apple as it leans further into its health and fitness features across its Apple Watch lineup. Alongside the Series 11, Apple also unveiled the Apple Watch Ultra 3 and Apple Watch SE 3, along with the new iPhone 17 lineup (including the brand new iPhone Air), and the latest generation of AirPods (Pro 3).

Watch this: Everything Announced at Apple’s iPhone 17 Event in 7 Minutes

07:18

Both the Series 11 and the new Ultra 3 will ship with WatchOS 26, which Apple previewed at the Worldwide Developers Conference in June. The update brings a cleaner “liquid glass” UI, live translation for text messages, a redesigned Notes app for your wrist and Workout Buddy; Apple’s new AI-powered companion that offers real-time motivation based on your personal metrics during certain workouts.

Pricing and availability

The Apple Watch Series 11 is available for preorder now and will hit stores on September 19. Pricing starts at $399 (£369, AU$679) for the 42mm aluminum Wi-Fi model, while the LTE version of the same watch runs $499. The titanium LTE version of the 42mm model is priced at $699.

New health features

The biggest addition is a feature that can notify you when you’re showing signs of hypertension or high blood pressure. The Apple Watch will send alerts if it notices consistent patterns over a 30-day period that could warrant a follow-up with a doctor, and then allow users to log their blood pressure on the Health app (from a cuff) to confirm. 

Another health upgrade is the new Sleep Score, which grades your sleep session on a scale of 1 to 100 or low to excellent. The watch doesn’t just hand you a number with no context; it breaks down your score and shows you factors that may be contributing like bedtime, sleep interruptions and duration, highlighting specific factors that may have impacted your sleep.

Design updates

Visually, the Series 11 looks much like the Series 10, with the same thin profile and edge-to-edge display. But there’s a subtle, practical upgrade: the aluminum model now uses stronger, more scratch-resistant glass, making it more durable for everyday wear.

Connectivity and battery

For the first time, the LTE model of the Series 11 supports 5G connectivity, which Apple says is not only faster but also more efficient at conserving battery life when in use.

Battery life has also received a bump. The Series 11 now promises up to 24 hours on a charge, compared to the 18 hours of the Series 10. Apple tends to be conservative with its battery claims. In real-world use, we may see it stretch beyond the official promise as I’ve consistently been able to stretch out the Series 10 claim to almost 30 hours. 

This is a developing story. Follow all of CNET’s 2025 Apple Event coverage for live updates, hands-on impressions, and more announcements as they’re revealed.

Liquid Glass isn’t just coming to your iPhone — It’s coming to just about every Apple product with a screen you can think of, including your Mac. MacOS 26 Tahoe will bring the design overhaul, which can be both somewhat dramatic or barely noticeable, with an overall look of feeling fresh while remaining comfortably familiar. 

MacOS 26 Tahoe is far from just a design overhaul and will come with several new features when it officially rolls out, but it’s easy to get caught up with all the styling Apple has done with this release. Some of these changes are brand new and some are new for the Mac but borrowed from iOS, like changes to the icons. 

New icon options for the Mac include color tinting and making them completely clear like you can on the iPhone. But even without those visual tweaks, Apple went to work on redesigning the standard Mac icons — some of which haven’t been changed in decades.  

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

What’s more interesting to me is that Apple manages to tell the same story while visually saying less with some of the redesigned icons. 

If you’re curious, I’ve highlighted a few of the new icons you can expect to see in MacOS 26 Tahoe, but you should keep in mind that the icons could change again by the time the official build is released. Below, I’ll compare the newly designed icons to the current version of MacOS, Sequoia. 

For more, don’t miss what to expect at the Apple event today.

Tucked in, flattened down and rounded out

Icons on the Mac now feel more like that of those on iOS, with a more rounded, squircle design. Compared to Sequoia, Tahoe’s icons become flatter in the details and sometimes that texture found in the former OS version’s icons is replaced with a subtle translucent effect. Sequoia’s sometimes concave or indented style has been pushed outwards, allowing for Liquid Glass to add a little shine on the corners of elements within the icon’s design. Apple has also pulled in all icon elements that had previously hung off the edges — now everything is tucked within the icon shape. 

Books

The Apple Books icon updates are simple, but do a lot for the overall design. The pages show gradients to inform depth and the edges add a touch of the signature Liquid Glass shine. Additionally, a book cover has been added behind the pages, showing off a layered glass look. 

Contacts

The Contacts app icon largely looks the same as far as the elements within it are concerned, but otherwise — wow, what a difference. The cardboard-box brown of the “contact book” is replaced with a gradient and translucent off-white surface with a contrasting standard profile image. There’s one less colored tab to the right of the icon, and the remaining three are now flat in design and span the entire height of the icon. 

Digital Color Meter

Another good example of Apple turning down the detail without sacrificing impact is the Digital Color Meter app. The dropper no longer hangs off the edge, the background is a simple white instead of stark red, the shapes have been simplified to circles and the colors take on more pastel shades.

Disk Utility

MacOS Tahoe shows Apple pulling back and toning down details of its icons while communicating the same thing. The Disk Utility app is one of the better examples of this — compare the new version to Sequoia and previous versions. 

Folders

For years and years, the default folder on a Mac has been a turquoise blue, without much customization at your disposal. And maybe the folder color on your Mac isn’t something you’ve cared to spend time on thinking about, but if who’ve wished that they could change their folder color, you’ll be able to with Tahoe. 

Tucked into the Appearance menu in system settings is a new default folder color option, allowing you to switch between red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, pink and graphite. In addition, the icon in Tahoe shows a document in it, as opposed to Sequoia’s empty folder.

iPhone Mirroring

The updated iPhone Mirroring icon is now more representative of what the app does. It may not say much about the app’s functionality, but it’s a step up from Sequoia’s icon with a single iPhone. 

Photos

Another subtle Liquid Glass icon tweak is found in the Photos app. In essence, it’s the same design, but the overlapping, oblong color panels look to have a slight decrease in overall width and Apple has added shiny glass edges to them. 

Settings

The updates to the Settings icon in Tahoe are minor, but it’s a good example of Liquid Glass’ subtlety. That inward depth the icon has maintained for over a decade has shifted, colors are changed, and the teeth of the gears are both widened and softened. Liquid Glass is most notable in the smaller gear, which is slightly more transparent, as if it has a piece of layered glass on top of it. 

Stickies 

The Stickies app redesign is a return to how its icon appeared from 2000 to 2020, according to Basic Apple Guy’s MacOS icon history chart. Instead of what looks like a Post-It notepad, the latest icon returns to a stack of three notes lying on top of each other. 

Text Edit

Tahoe’s update to the Text Edit app might almost be too reductive from Sequoia’s, removing the pen entirely, leaving only a segment of a piece of notebook paper. It’s most certainly simplified, but Mac users that may not be so intimately familiar with each individual icon may easily mistake Text Edit for something else. 

For more, don’t miss how Apple’s iPhone release schedule might change.

Hollow Knight: Silksong isn’t an easy game, but that difficulty is one of the reasons why fans love it. There are likely some in the fanbase who might even feel it’s too easy, and for them, developer Team Cherry added the most famous of cheat codes to the game, although it doesn’t give you 30 lives. 

The famous Konami Code, best known for its inclusion in the NES game Contra, does work in Silksong, but it will make the game far harder, not easier. The secret was found not long after the game came out on Thursday over at the Silksong subreddit. A variation of the code can be inputted in the Extras section of the title screen to unlock the Steel Soul mode on a new playthrough. The description of the unlocked mode says, “No reviving. Death is permanent.” 

As the description suggests, Steel Soul is a permadeath mode, meaning that once you die, it’s game over and your save is wiped. Considering how difficult Silksong has been even for veterans of the Hollow Knight, this option is truly for those who want the highest of challenges. It appeared in the original Hollow Knight as an optional setting made available after beating the game, but Silksong players just need to press a few buttons on the menu screen to unlock it.

The code needed to unlock Steel Mode in the Extras section of the title screen is Up, Down, Up, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right. For consoles, you will need to use the respective controller’s Dpad, while PC requires either using a controller Dpad or the arrow keys on the keyboard. There are no additional buttons to press, and when inputted correctly, the screen will flash. To activate the new much harder difficulty option, back out of the Extras screen, select Start Game, pick New Game and that will take you to the Mode Select screen where Steel Soul is now available. 

The Konami Code was first used in Gradius, a shoot ’em up game made by the company and released for the NES in 1986. The full code is Up, Up, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left, Right, B, A, and Start on a controller and was programmed into the game’s code by developer Kazuhisa Hashimoto as a way to test the game easily, as it added all the power-ups to the player’s ship. Hashimoto had mistakenly left the code in the NES game, and it was eventually discovered by players in the U.S. 

The Konami Code is mainly remembered for its use in 1987’s Contra for the NES, which gave players 30 lives to start the game with. It has since been used in other Konami games and paid homage to by other game developers. Tech companies such as Google and Facebook have also used the code as an Easter egg in their different services over the years. 

Hollow Knight: Silksong is out now on PC, Switch, Switch 2, Xbox One, Xbox Series X and Series S, PS4 and PS5. It’s also available for Xbox Game Pass subscribers. 

Apple’s “Awe Dropping” iPhone 17 event is Tuesday and we expect to see new models of the iPhone, Apple Watch and AirPods. As we inch closer to Tim Cook starting the keynote, rumors and leaks about the iPhone 17 are still coming in. We’ve seen reports of a new selfie camera, faster MagSafe charging and a new purple (or green) color.

But when the iPhone 16 debuted, there was criticism aimed at its screen. The phone starts at $829 and still has a 60Hz display, despite most phones from competitors having high-refresh-rate screens topping off at 90Hz or 120Hz, which gives a smoother scrolling effect that just looks premium. Given that Pro models have had higher screen refresh rates for years, it’s been frustrating to see Apple not bring the feature to lower-end models.

At a time when Apple is under pressure from a US Department of Justice antitrust lawsuit; facing criticism from shareholders and media about being “behind in the AI race” with Apple Intelligence; and dealing with threats from President Donald Trump about adding a tariff to the iPhone if manufacturing isn’t relocated to the US, the company’s next iPhone launch will be a pivotal moment. 

The burden is on Apple to deliver an exciting iPhone 17 lineup that includes big changes to the iPhone Pro models as well as a new iPhone Air version. But the “regular” base iPhone is due for some TLC, especially its display. Fortunately, there are three rumors circulating that point to the iPhone 17’s screen coming with a sizable update. Taken together, they suggest the screen on the iPhone 17 could be one of the largest updates to a base iPhone display in a long time.

Apple hasn’t announced anything yet or confirmed any of these rumors. And we won’t know what’s what for certain until the next iPhone is officially released. For more leaks, check out CNET’s iPhone 17 rumor roundup.

The iPhone 17’s high-refresh-rate display (120Hz)

In 2018, the Razer Phone debuted with the first-ever high-refresh-rate display. Other phones at the time had screens locked at a static 60Hz. The Razer Phone was aimed at gamers, and having a screen with a high refresh rate made gameplay look more immersive. It also made mundane things, like system animations or scrolling a social or news feed, look smooth and dynamic.

In 2025, nearly every major phone, including cheap ones costing less than $300, has a 90Hz or 120Hz screen — well, except the iPhone. Apple first added Pro Motion displays (its name for a high-refresh-rate screen) in 2021, to the iPhone 13 Pro and 13 Pro Max. But non-Pro models still have a static 60Hz display to this day. That should change soon.

The iPhone 17 will have a high-refresh-rate screen, according to a report from 9to5Mac. The story cites an X post from Young that’s since been taken down. It’s unclear if the screen will be identical to the one on the iPhone 16 Pro or if it’ll be something different. But if the iPhone 17 gets an LTPO screen with an adaptive refresh rate (with 1 to 120Hz), that could also mean the “regular” base iPhone 17 will get support for an always-on display. That latter feature debuted on the iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max, and is absent from the base iPhone 15 and iPhone 16.

The iPhone 17’s 6.3-inch display

The regular iPhone, dating back to the iPhone 12, has had a 6.1-inch screen. The iPhone 16 has one despite the iPhone 16 Pro rocking a 6.3-inch display. But the iPhone 17 will get a similar 6.3-inch display, according to a post on X from supply-chain analyst Ross Young. This is bad news for small-phone fans, though 6.1 inches was already well beyond the 5.4-inch screen found on the iPhone 12 Mini and 13 Mini.

If the increased screen real estate comes from shrinking the bezels around the display, like Apple did with the iPhone 16 Pro, it should mean that the iPhone 17 itself will be relatively the same size as the iPhone 16.

The iPhone 17’s new Ceramic Shield

One of the sleeper additions on the iPhone 16 Pro was that it got an updated Ceramic Shield (the 16 and 16 Plus didn’t). Just as a reminder, Ceramic Shield isn’t just glass in that it’s composed of nano ceramic crystals embedded in a glass matrix. In my long-term review for the 16 Pro, I found that the updated Ceramic Shield was nearly unscathed after seven months of use, especially compared with my iPhone 15 Pro Max, which had the original version of Ceramic Shield and was covered in scratches after the same amount of time.

The iPhone 17 could get a more scratch resistant display, according to a post from Weibo user Instant Digital. It sounds like this might be different from Ceramic Shield in that it could also have an antireflective coating, similar to the one on the Galaxy S25 Ultra. MacRumors first reported on the rumor and also hedged it, saying the new coating may’ve been scrapped because it proved too complicated to apply at scale.

I doubt the iPhone 17 will get an antireflective screen, but I’d love if it did. I can still hope, though, that its screen comes with a more durable display.

The MTV Video Music Awards return tonight, giving fans a chance to watch their chosen winners in 19 categories, including best collaboration, best new artist, best choreography and the coveted video of the year. Social-driven categories added in recent years have created opportunities for lesser-known viral artists and internet favorites to take home a Moon Man trophy, making the competition open to almost anyone.

This year’s ceremony will be hosted by L.L. Cool J and feature a star-studded lineup of presenters and performers. Names on the roster include Brittany Snow, Ciara, Busta Rhymes, Sabrina Carpenter, Ricky Martin and KPop Demon Hunters stars Audrey Nuna, EJAE and Rei Ami. Fans of the group will also be excited to know their hit single Golden is nominated for Song of the Summer.

The biggest award of the night, Artist of the Year, includes some of music’s most powerful names as nominees: Beyoncé, Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga and Taylor Swift. Video of the Year features seven nominees, with heavy hitters like Lamar, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars and Billie Eilish all in the running. Meanwhile, Mariah Carey will take the stage as this year’s Video Vanguard Award honoree, performing a career-spanning set of hits. Carey also has new music on the way — her upcoming album drops later this month, and her single Type Dangerous is nominated for best R&B.

Fans could make their voices heard by casting votes at vote.mtv.com, but votes are now closed. Artists like Alex Warren, Doechii, Leon Thomas, Blake Shelton, Brent Faiyaz and KATSEYE are also up for honors across several different categories.

Here’s everything you need to know to stream the 2025 MTV VMAs live if you don’t have cable or a satellite provider.

How to watch the 2025 MTV VMAs

You can stream the awards broadcast on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET (5 p.m. PT) on Paramount Plus Premium and CBS. Right now, the streaming service is offering a deal that cuts the annual price in half.

Cord-cutters who prefer a live TV streaming experience can watch CBS or the MTV channel’s simulcast on platforms such as YouTube TV, DirecTV (check out the $30 entertainment package), Hulu with Live TV or Fubo (its new $56-per-month plan carries CBS). 

The VMAs will be available to stream on Paramount Plus Premium only, and not the Paramount Plus Essential plan. Premium costs $13 per month, or $120 a year (without any discounts applied). Each subscription plan comes with a seven-day free trial. 

If you’re ready to upgrade your iPhone, you might want to hang tight. 

Apple’s fall event is happening on Tuesday, during which it’s expected to debut the iPhone 17 lineup. So if you wait just a bit longer, you can either score the latest device or get a discount on previous models. 

Preorders for new iPhones typically open up the Friday after they’re announced, meaning you’ll likely be able to place an order for the iPhone 17 starting Sept. 12. The phones usually ship a week later.

Watch this: Hey, Apple: Steal These S25 Edge Features for a Skinny iPhone

04:33

Newer iPhones tend to include camera and processor upgrades, as well as new features to make them more enticing. For instance, the iPhone 14 Pro models introduced Dynamic Island, the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max debuted the Action button and the iPhone 16 series added the Camera Control button and Apple Intelligence across the full lineup, rather than on just the Pro models. 

According to leaks and reports, the iPhone 17 lineup, which Apple technically has yet to confirm, could have a fresh camera setup and new color options and, perhaps most notably, could include a slimmer version of the iPhone to compete with similar offerings such as Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Edge. It’ll likely arrive with the recently announced iOS 26, which features Apple’s biggest software design shakeup in more than a decade.

You can check out our iPhone 17 rumor roundup for more on what might be coming in the fall. 

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Will waiting for the iPhone 17 be worth it?

Overall, iPhone upgrades in the past several years have been relatively modest. And it’s likely, based on rumors, that the iPhone 17 lineup will generally follow that mold. 

But even with more moderate changes, now’s not a good time to buy a new iPhone, if you can help it. We’re just a couple days away from the anticipated launch of Apple’s next smartphone. So if you hold on a little longer, you can snag that flashy new device when it drops. 

If you buy a new iPhone 16 now, you’ll probably pay full price for something that in just a few days’ time will technically be outdated (the harsh reality of the annual phone release cycle). And even if you get a good deal through your carrier now, if you stick it out just a bit longer, you could potentially get an even more lucrative deal once the iPhone 17 drops and carriers ramp up their promotions. 

If anything, waiting to see what the iPhone 17 has in store could at least help you confirm whether going with the newest device or an older one like the iPhone 16 or 15 is worth it. After all, if the differences are minimal, you might as well save a couple of hundred dollars by choosing a previous model. And chances are — if the iPhone 17 is anything like the last several iPhones — no one will even be able to tell. 

But what about tariffs?

One big unknown is whether tariffs will affect the price of the iPhone 17, which could sway your purchasing decisions. While smartphones and computers were given an exemption from President Donald Trump’s more extensive tariffs, he recently said Apple will still have to pay a 25% tariff on iPhones made outside the US. This would almost certainly lead to a price hike. 

But even without tariffs, the iPhone is due for a markup, according to CNET’s Patrick Holland. “The iPhone hasn’t had a price hike in five years and is due for one,” he writes. “Historically, that’s the longest stretch of time the company has gone without an increase.” (You can check out more of his thoughts here.) 

So, is it still worth waiting for the iPhone 17? It depends. If you were already planning on purchasing a new iPhone and can’t wait much longer, I can understand panic-buying now. But bear in mind you’ll still likely pay full price for an iPhone 16 model that will be worth less the moment the iPhone 17 drops. So, you might be coughing up more for an iPhone 17, but at least you’ll get more bang for your buck. 

So, when’s the best time to buy a new iPhone?

There’s not necessarily a “best” time to buy a new iPhone, because prices are pretty consistent throughout the year, but the fall is an enticing option. That’s when Apple introduces its latest slate of iPhones, and when carriers are eager to attract new customers with abundant trade-in deals and promotions. And again, even if you don’t want the latest and greatest iPhone, you can at least snag an older version at a discount right after the iPhone 17 drops. 

In general, we recommend upgrading to a new phone if your existing one is more than two generations old. You can typically wring more life out of your device, but if you want to stay on top of the latest features like Apple Intelligence, leveling up is the way to go. And with just a couple more days left before the anticipated drop of the iPhone 17, you might as well see what fresh capabilities Apple has up its sleeve. 

The MTV Video Music Awards are back, giving fans a chance to vote for their favorite nominees across 19 categories including Best Collaboration, Best New Artist, Best Choreography, and the coveted Video of the Year. In recent years, the addition of social-driven categories has opened the door for viral artists and internet favorites to take home a trophy, making the competition broader than ever.

This year’s ceremony will be hosted by L.L. Cool J and feature a star-studded lineup of presenters and performers. Names on the roster include Brittany Snow, Ciara, Busta Rhymes, Sabrina Carpenter, Ricky Martin, and KPop Demon Hunters stars Audrey Nuna, EJAE, and Rei Ami. Fans of the group will also be excited to know their hit single Golden is nominated for Song of the Summer.

The biggest award of the night, Artist of the Year, includes some of music’s most powerful names: Beyoncé, Bad Bunny, Kendrick Lamar, Lady Gaga, and Taylor Swift. Video of the Year features seven nominees, with heavy hitters like Kendrick Lamar, Ariana Grande, Bruno Mars, and Billie Eilish all in the running. Meanwhile, Mariah Carey will take the stage as this year’s Video Vanguard Award honoree, performing a career-spanning set of hits. Carey also has new music on the way — her upcoming album drops later this month, and her single Type Dangerous is nominated for Best R&B.

Fans can make their voices heard by casting votes at vote.mtv.com until Friday at 6 p.m. ET. Artists like Alex Warren, Doechii, Leon Thomas, Blake Shelton, Brent Faiyaz, and KATSEYE are also up for honors across several different categories.

Here’s everything you need to know to stream the 2025 MTV VMAs live if you don’t have cable or a satellite provider.

How to watch the 2025 MTV VMAs

You can stream the awards broadcast on Sunday at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on Paramount Plus Premium and CBS. Right now, the streaming service is offering a deal that cuts the annual price in half.

Cord-cutters who prefer a live TV streaming experience can watch CBS or the MTV channel’s simulcast on platforms such as YouTube TV, DirecTV (check out the $30 entertainment package), Hulu with Live TV or Fubo (its new $56-per-month plan carries CBS). 

The VMAs will be available to stream on Paramount Plus Premium only, and not the Paramount Plus Essential plan. Premium costs $13 per month, or $120 a year (without any discounts applied). Each subscription plan comes with a seven-day free trial. 

Watch this: iPhone Air Is a Wild Card – and Starts a Big Change for Apple

06:39

Meal kit vs. prepared meal delivery

The first big decision you’ll make is whether you want meal kits, which require some prep and cooking, or a prepared meal service that sends fully cooked meals that are ready to heat and eat. Meal kits will demand more of your time and energy but they’ll also cost a little less per serving. Some meal kits can actually save you money over groceries. Prepared meals require almost no time and energy, other than what it takes to actually eat the food, but typically run a few bucks more per serving.

Cost

After you’ve picked between meal kits or meal delivery, you’ll want to find a service within your budget. There are meal kits with recipes for as cheap as $5 a serving with basic menus and no-frills recipes. More expensive services include recipes with more exotic ingredients, high-end cuts of meat, and organic produce, but can cost as much as $15 a serving. Here I’ve outlined all the best cheap meal delivery services for 2025. 

Healthiness

Most meal delivery services have healthy options, and some are much healthier than others. If you’re keen on eating low-calorie, low-carb, plant-based or pescatarian food, certain meal kits and meal delivery services will be better than others. Our list of the healthiest meal delivery services for 2025 is a good place to find all the most nutritious options. 

Number of meals per week

Lastly, you’ll have to decide exactly how much food you’ll want sent to you per week. If you can’t imagine yourself cooking more than twice per week, don’t order more than two meal kits because they typically won’t last more than a week in the fridge. Most meal kit services offer plans as small as two meals per week and as many as six.

Most prepared meals either arrive frozen or can be frozen after unboxing. That means it’s less of an issue if you order too many meals on your first go around. However, some fresh food delivery services, including Gardencup, Thistle, and Sakara Life, are not meant to be frozen.

Most services allow you to change the number of meals or servings in your plan even after you’ve started. With nearly every service, the more meals you order per delivery, the cheaper it is per meal. 

Google’s new Pixel 10 phones are here, and they boast a handful of spec upgrades over their predecessors, as well as more AI features.

The three models look very similar to last year’s Pixel 9 phones. There’s a standard Pixel 10, a higher-spec Pixel 10 Pro and a large Pixel 10 Pro XL. 

There are still some differentiators between the baseline and Pro models, but that lead is shrinking with more top-level features trickling down. All in all, they’re powerful handsets that rank among the year’s best phones.

Pixel 10 price comparison

• Pixel 10: $799. The Pixel 10 didn’t get a price increase from last year’s standard model despite getting more features.
• Pixel 10 Pro: $999. The Pixel 10 Pro also kept its predecessor’s price, though it hasn’t changed much from the Pixel 9 Pro.
• Pixel 10 Pro XL: $1,199. The top-end Pixel 10 Pro XL got a $100 price hike this year, with a handful of spec upgrades.

Both the Pixel 10 ($799) and Pixel 10 Pro ($999) retain the prices of their predecessors, keeping them in line with their equivalents from other brands, like the Samsung Galaxy S25 ($799) and Galaxy S25 Plus ($999). 

But the Pixel 10 Pro XL got slightly more expensive this year, getting a $100 price bump to $1,199 (up from the $1,099 Pixel 9 Pro XL with 128GB of storage), likely to account for the higher 256GB starting storage option. 

Pixel 10 lineups’ design and display changes, compared

• Pixel 10: Unchanged, but additional camera. The baseline model got an extra camera, widening the lens part of its camera bump, and the display is slightly brighter.
• Pixel 10 Pro: Unchanged. The smaller Pro model looks almost exactly like its predecessor, and the display is slightly brighter.
• Pixel 10 Pro XL: Unchanged. The larger Pro XL looks just like its predecessor, and the display is slightly brighter. 

The Pixel 10 lineup looks virtually the same as last year’s Pixel 9 phones, leaving most of the upgrades under the hood. 

All three phones retain the general design of last year’s phones: a metal back with a pill-shaped camera bump. The only major difference is that the glass on the Pixel 10’s camera bump is slightly wider, owing to the third, telephoto camera fit into it. All three models are ever-so-slightly heavier than their predecessors (from 6 grams on the Pixel 10 to 11 grams on the Pixel 10 Pro XL), possibly due to their nominal battery capacity increases. 

The standard Pixel 10 retains its predecessor’s 6.3-inch OLED display, though its maximum brightness has been increased to 3,000 nits (up from 2,700). Likewise, the Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL inherit their 6.3-inch OLED and 6.8-inch OLED displays from their predecessors, but they also get maximum screen brightness increases to 3,300 nits (up from 3,000). 

Comparing Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL cameras

• Pixel 10: Added rear camera, for a total of three. A 48-megapixel main, 13-megapixel ultrawide and new 10.8-megapixel telephoto make up the rear cameras, plus a 10.5-megapixel selfie camera.
• Pixel 10 Pro: Same trio of rear cameras. A 50-megapixel main, 48-megapixel ultrawide and 48-megapixel telephoto make up the rear cameras, plus a 42-megapixel selfie camera.
• Pixel 10 Pro XL: Same trio of rear cameras. A 50-megapixel main, 48-megapixel ultrawide and 48-megapixel telephoto make up the rear cameras, plus a 42-megapixel selfie camera.

As with other brands, Google has previously differentiated its standard and Pro models by reserving an extra zoom camera for its top-end phones. That changes this year, as the standard Pixel 10 gets a telephoto lens, shrinking the feature gap between the phone tiers.

The Pixel 10 packs a 48-megapixel main camera, though its 13-megapixel ultrawide is a slight downgrade from the 50-megapixel ultrawide shooter in the Pixel 9, which means the new phone may not take as sharp of photos when set to its widest capture settings. The trade-off is the addition of a 10.8-megapixel telephoto with 5x zoom that still adds a lot of functionality, even if it may not take as high-resolution photos as the zoom cameras on its Pro siblings.

The Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL retain their predecessors’ trio of rear cameras: a 50-megapixel main, a 48-megapixel ultrawide and a 48-megapixel telephoto with 5x zoom. Ostensibly, not much has changed here, though they still take up to 8K video (better than the 4K video maximum on the Pixel 10).

The selfie cameras on all three phones are unchanged from last year, but represent a boost when going from the 10.5-megapixel front-facing camera on the Pixel 10 to the 42-megapixel selfie shooters on the Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL.

All Pixel 10 model specs, compared

• Pixel 10: Better CPU, slightly bigger battery. The Pixel 10 gets the Google Tensor G5 chip, as well as a 4,970-mAh battery.
• Pixel 10 Pro: Better CPU, slightly bigger battery. The Pixel 10 Pro gets similar spec upgrades, including the Google Tensor G5 chip, as well as a 4,870-mAh battery.
• Pixel 10 Pro XL: Better CPU, slightly bigger battery. The Pixel 10 gets the Google Tensor G5 chip, as well as a 5,200-mAh battery.

This year’s Pixel 10 lineup got the usual set of incremental upgrades along with slight boosts to battery capacity, which could have an impact, however small, on increasing battery life.

Like the other models, the Pixel 10 gets the new Google Tensor G5 chip, which Google promises will perform better than its predecessor, last year’s Tensor G4. The new handset inherits the Pixel 9’s 12GB of RAM and baseline storage options of 128GB or 256GB. If you want more, you’ll have to use cloud options or pay more for a Pro or Pro XL model.

The Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL also have the Tensor G5 chip, which helps power new AI features. Similar to the base model, the Pro versions inherit the same specs as their predecessors: 16GB of RAM and the options of 128GB (Pixel 10 Pro only), 256GB, 512GB or 1TB of storage.

Across the board, all models got slight battery capacity increases, though curiously, the Pixel 10 Pro has the least with 4,870-mAh (up from 4,700-mAh in the Pixel 9 Pro). The next largest is the standard Pixel 10, which got an increase to 4,970-mAh (up from 4,700-mAh in the Pixel 9). The Pixel 10 Pro XL has the largest battery with a 5,200-mAh capacity (up from 5,060mAh).

The Pixel 10 Pro XL also has the edge in juicing up its battery, with a maximum 45-watt wired charging, compared to 30 watts on the Pixel 10 and 10 Pro. All three support Qi2 wireless charging.

All three Pixel 10 phones receive Android 16 out of the box. It was released in June, a month after Google I/O 2025, far earlier than when it typically comes out (usually alongside that year’s Pixel phones). They also get a slew of new AI features like Magic Cue, which scrapes data from Gmail, Google Messages, Google Calendar and other information sources to surface timely details and events.  

Watch this: The Google Pixel 10 Pro XL’s Camera Is So Smart, It Almost Took the Photos for Me

07:57

After Apple presumably unveils the iPhone 17 at next week’s Awe-Dropping Apple event on Sept. 9, the familiar waiting game begins: a few days until preorders open, followed by what can feel like an endless slog before the new phones finally arrive. But when exactly?

We don’t know everything yet. Despite months of leaks, Apple still holds onto the key details, such as shipping dates, until the official announcement. Once the rumored iPhone 17, iPhone 17 Air, Pro and Pro Max are actually revealed, we’ll be able to confirm speculation about colors, display, cameras and more. We’ll also learn how much the new iPhone will cost, which is also still up in the air.

Read more: Should You Buy an iPhone 16 or Wait for the iPhone 17?

Keep in mind, the preorder and release dates we’re about to mention are based on Apple’s past launch schedules. The iPhone 17 timeline is still speculative, and Apple didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Watch this: iPhone 17 Event Clues: Everything to Expect on Sept. 9

06:38

When will the iPhone 17 be released?

For nearly a decade, Apple has announced its new iPhone lineup in early September. The only exception was in 2020 during the COVID-19 pandemic when the release was pushed back to Oct. 23 for the iPhone 12 and 12 Pro, and Nov. 13 for the iPhone 12 Mini and 12 Pro Max.

A supposed leak reported on by German site iPhone-Ticker lines up with expert opinion, and we cannot verify these dates because we don’t have access to the internal documents iPhone-Ticker is sourcing. But if these leaks are true, they suggest that preorders for the iPhone 17 will begin on Sept. 12, with a Sept. 19 release. 

Here’s a chart for the release dates of previous iPhone models:

To see this year’s dates in the same chart format (because some of us prefer an easy-to-read chart), the schedule looks like this. The preorder and release are not official dates from Apple: 

Will all of the new iPhones be released in September?

Based on last year’s release, Apple may release everything in the fall except its least expensive option — this year, the iPhone 17E. The iPhone 16E was released in February, and Apple is widely expected to follow the same format for the rumored iPhone 17E.

That would mean the iPhone 17 Pro Max, iPhone 17 Pro, iPhone 17 Air and the iPhone 17 base model — if that’s the lineup — would be released in September. The iPhone 17E — if it exists — would be released in February.

Apple’s future iPhone release dates

Apple is expected to change its release format with the rumored iPhone 18. Reports suggest that Apple will only release higher-end models in fall 2026 — iPhone 18 Pro, Pro Max, Air and a rumored new foldable iPhone — and release the rest of the line in winter 2027.

Why does Apple split iPhone release dates?

By pushing its top-of-the-line Pro and Pro Max models in September, Apple can capture much of the holiday shopping season. Releasing the more basic models in the winter allows a second crest of excitement, but diehard fans and holiday shoppers will have already spent their money on the pricier models in the fall.

Already qualified Argentina could deliver a hammer blow to Venezuela’s World Cup 2-26 qualification hopes as these two team’s meet on Thursday in Buenos Aires. 

Below, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch the game as it happens, wherever you are in the world and how to use a VPN if the match isn’t available where you are.

Lionel Scaloni’s defending world champs sealed their place in next summer’s tournament back in March, but today’s nevertheless remains significant, with the fixture likely to be Lionel Messi’s final competitive home match for Argentina. 

Fernando Batista’s Venezuela meanwhile currently sit in seventh in the CONMEBOL standings, with a win against their opponents today or against Colombia next week should to be enough for La Vinotinto to claim their place in an intercontinental playoff match. 

Argentina takes on Venezuela on Thursday at the Estadio Monumental in Buenos Aires, with kickoff set for 8:30 p.m. ART local time in Argentina. That makes it a 7:30 p.m. ET or  4:30 p.m. PT kickoff in the US and Canada, a 12:30 a.m. BST start in the UK and a 9:30 a.m. AEST kickoff in Australia on Friday. 

How to watch Argentina vs. Venezuela in the US 

Thursday’s World Cup qualifier will be broadcast on NBC’s streaming service Peacock.

Peacock offers two Premium plans, and after recent price increases, the ad-supported Premium plan costs $11 a month, and the ad-free Premium Plus plan costs $17 a month.

How to watch Argentina vs. Venezuela from anywhere with a VPN

If you’re traveling abroad and want to keep up with all the World Cup qualifier action while away from home, a VPN can help enhance your privacy and security when streaming. 

It encrypts your traffic and prevents your internet service provider from throttling your speeds. VPNs are legal in many countries, including the US and Canada, and can be used for legitimate purposes such as improving online privacy and security. They can also be helpful when connecting to public Wi-Fi networks while traveling, adding an extra layer of protection for your devices and logins. 

However, some streaming services may have policies restricting VPN usage to access region-specific content. If you’re considering a VPN for streaming, check the platform’s terms of service to ensure compliance. 

If you choose to use a VPN, follow the provider’s installation instructions, ensuring you’re connected securely and in compliance with applicable laws and service agreements. Some streaming platforms may block access when a VPN is detected, so verifying if your streaming subscription allows VPN usage is crucial.

Price $13 per month, $100 for the first 15 months (then $117 per year) or $140 for the first 28 months (then $150 per year)Latest Tests No DNS leaks detected, 18% speed loss in 2025 testsNetwork 3,000 plus servers in 105 countriesJurisdiction British Virgin Islands

ExpressVPN is our current best VPN pick for people who want a reliable and safe VPN, and it works on a variety of devices. Prices start at $3.49 a month on a two-year plan (excluding VAT) for the service’s Basic tier. 

Note that ExpressVPN offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

61% off with 2yr plan (+4 free months)

How to livestream Argentina vs. Venezuela in the UK

This World Cup qualifier is being shown exclusively live in the UK on Premier Sports 1. 

A full subscription to Premier Sports costs £12 a month for the network’s annual Pay As You Go tier. 

You can also get the channel via a full subscription to Premier Sports, giving you access to all of the network’s channels, which have the UK broadcast rights to Scottish Premiership matches, BKT United Rugby Championship and Investec Champions Cup rugby, plus NHL and Nascar. 

Can I livestream Argentina vs. Venezuela in Canada?

No broadcaster has the rights to show this game live in Canada. 

That also means that if you’re traveling tot he region, you’re unlikely to be able to watch the game as you normally would at home, because of geoblocking. 

There’s one option to get around this. By using a VPN, as explained above, you can set your location to a country where the match is being broadcast, and go from there.

Livestream Argentina vs. Venezuela in Australia for free

It’s good news for soccer fans Down Under, with this match set to be broadcast free in Australia on SBS. 

Viewers can livestream this World Cup qualifier on the free-to-use SBS On Demand service.

The platform has dedicated apps for Android and iOS, and you can also access the service on Android TV, Amazon Fire TV stick, Apple TV and most smart TVs.

Quick tips for streaming Argentina vs. Venezuela using a VPN 

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming this match may vary.
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble getting the game after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log into your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases, with smart TV services, after you install a cable network’s sports app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. Having a VPN on your router will also help since both devices will appear to be in the correct location. 
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

Everyone is talking about AI, but the AI technology from one of the world’s biggest companies doesn’t get much mention. That’s because Apple Intelligence arrived last year with lofty aims that the company has yet to fulfill. Does that make it a failure? Not entirely. In fact, I use several Apple Intelligence features that improve how I use my iPhone. 

I sat down to figure out just which of the current Apple Intelligence features I regularly use. They aren’t necessarily the showy ones, like Image Playground, but ones that help in small, significant ways. Hopefully, we’ll see more capabilities when Apple announces new iPhone 17 models next week at its Sept. 9 event.

If you have a compatible iPhone — an iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 16E, iPhone 16 or iPhone 16 Pro (or their Plus and Max variants) — I want to share six features that I’m turning to nearly every day.

More features will be added as time goes on — and keep in mind that Apple Intelligence is still officially beta software — but this is where Apple is starting its AI age.

On the other hand, maybe you’re not impressed with Apple Intelligence or want to wait until the tools evolve more before using them? You can easily turn off Apple Intelligence entirely or use a smaller subset of features.

Get alerted to priority notifications

This feature arrived only recently, but it’s become one of my favorites. When a notification arrives that seems like it could be more important than others, Prioritize Notifications pops it to the top of the notification list on the lock screen (with a colorful Apple Intelligence shimmer, of course). In my experience so far, those include weather alerts, texts from people I regularly communicate with and email messages that contain calls to action or impending deadlines.

To enable it, go to Settings > Notifications > Prioritize Notifications and then turn the option on. You can also enable or disable priority alerts from individual apps from the same screen. You’re relying on the AI algorithms to decide what gets elevated to a priority — but it seems to be off to a good start.

Summaries bring TL;DR to your correspondence

In an era with so many demands on our attention and seemingly less time to dig into longer topics … Sorry, what was I saying?

Oh, right: How often have you wanted a “too long; didn’t read” version of not just long emails but the fire hose of communication that blasts your way? The ability to summarize notifications, Mail messages and web pages is perhaps the most pervasive and least intrusive feature of Apple Intelligence so far.

When a notification arrives, such as a text from a friend or group in Messages, the iPhone creates a short, single-sentence summary.

Sometimes summaries are vague and sometimes they’re unintentionally funny but so far I’ve found them to be more helpful than not. Summaries can also be generated from alerts by third-party apps like news or social media apps — although I suspect that my outdoor security camera is picking up multiple passersby over time and not telling me that 10 people are stacked by the door.

That said, Apple Intelligence definitely doesn’t understand sarcasm or colloquialisms — you can turn summaries off if you prefer.

You can also generate a longer summary of emails in the Mail app: Tap the Summarize button at the top of a message to view a rundown of the contents in a few dozen words.

In Safari, when viewing a page where the Reader feature is available, tap the Page Menu button in the address bar, tap Show Reader and then tap the Summary button at the top of the page.

Siri gets a glow-up and better interaction

I was amused during the iOS 18 and the iPhone 16 releases that the main visual indicator of Apple Intelligence — the full-screen, color-at-the-edges Siri animation — was noticeably missing. Apple even lit up the edges of the massive glass cube of its Apple Fifth Avenue Store in New York City like a Siri search.

Instead, iOS 18 used the same-old Siri sphere. Now, the modern Siri look has arrived as of iOS 18.1, but only on devices that support Apple Intelligence. If you’re wondering why you’re still seeing the old interface, I can recommend some steps to turn on the new experience.

With the new look are a few Siri interaction improvements: It’s more forgiving if you stumble through a query, like saying the wrong word or interrupting yourself mid-thought. It’s also better about listening after delivering results, so you can ask related followup questions.

However, the ability to personalize answers based on what Apple Intelligence knows about you is still down the road. What did appear, as of iOS 18.2, was integration of ChatGPT, which you can now use as an alternate source of information. For some queries, if Siri doesn’t have the answer right away, you’re asked if you’d like to use ChatGPT instead. You don’t need a ChatGPT account to take advantage of this (but if you do have one, you can sign in).

Invoke Siri silently without triggering everyone else’s devices

Perhaps my favorite new Siri feature is the ability to bring up the assistant without saying the words “Hey Siri” out loud. In my house, where I have HomePods and my family members use their own iPhones and iPads, I never know which device is going to answer my call (even though they’re supposed to be smart enough to work it out).

Plus, honestly, even after all this time I’m not always comfortable talking to my phone — especially in public. It’s annoying enough when people carry on phone conversations on speaker, I don’t want to add to the hubbub by making Siri requests.

Instead, I turn to a new feature called Tap to Siri. Double-tap the bottom edge of the screen on the iPhone or iPad to bring up the Siri search bar and the onscreen keyboard. 

On a Mac, go to System Settings > Apple Intelligence & Siri and choose a key combination under Keyboard shortcut, such as Press Either Command Key Twice.

Yes, this involves more typing work than just speaking conversationally, but I can enter more specific queries and not wonder if my robot friend is understanding what I’m saying.

Stay on task with the AI-boosted Reduce Interruptions Focus mode

Focus modes on the iPhone can be enormously helpful, such as turning on Do Not Disturb to insulate yourself from outside distractions. You can also create personalized Focus modes. For example, my Podcast Recording mode blocks outside notifications except from a handful of people during scheduled recording times.

With Apple Intelligence enabled, a new Reduce Interruptions Focus mode is available. When active, it becomes a smarter filter for what gets past the wall holding back superfluous notifications. Even things that are not specified in your criteria for allowed notifications, such as specific people, might pop up. On my iPhone, for instance, that can include weather alerts or texts from my bank when a large purchase or funds transfer has occurred.

To enable it, open Control Center, tap the Focus button and choose Reduce Interruptions. 

Remove distractions from your pictures using Clean Up in the Photos app

Until iOS 18.1, the Photos app on the iPhone and iPad lacked a simple retouch feature. Dust on the camera lens? Litter on the ground? Sorry, you need to deal with those and other distractions in the Photos app on MacOS or using a third-party app.

Now Apple Intelligence includes Clean Up, an AI-enhanced removal tool, in the Photos app. When you edit an image and tap the Clean Up button, the iPhone analyzes the photo and suggests potential items to remove by highlighting them. Tap one or draw a circle around an area — the app erases those areas and uses generative AI to fill in plausible pixels.

In this first incarnation, Clean Up isn’t perfect and you’ll often get better results in other dedicated image editors. But for quickly removing annoyances from photos, it’s fine.

For more on Apple Intelligence features, check out how to create Genmoji, how to use Image Wand and, if you want to scale things back, how to disable select Apple Intelligence features.

Watch this: iPhone 17 Event Clues: Everything to Expect on Sept. 9

06:38

Between hikes at Netflix, Apple TV Plus and Peacock, streaming services haven’t held back on increasing prices in 2025. It’s as good a time as any for a deal, and Paramount Plus is offering one for new and returning subscribers.

Now through Sept. 18, you can get half off Paramount Plus’ annual plans, which require you to pay up-front for the 12 months. You can choose between $30 for a year of Paramount Plus Essential, which is ad-based, and $60 for Paramount Plus Premium, which has no commercials outside of live TV.

Paramount Plus last hiked prices in summer 2024, bringing the typical cost of Essential to $8 per month, or $60 per year, and Premium (then called Paramount Plus with Showtime) to $13 per month, or $120 per year. If you sign up for the current annual plan deal, you’d need to remember to cancel if you don’t want your subscription to renew at full price.

In addition to excluding ads, Paramount Plus’ Premium plan differs from Essential by providing access to downloads, all Showtime programming (there’s only some on Essential) and your local, live CBS station. (With Essential, you can watch the NFL on CBS and the UEFA Champions League via separate live feeds.) This fall, subscribers to Paramount Plus can watch season 27 of South Park, season 2 of Taylor Sheridan’s Landman and season 3 of Tracker, among other series.

Cookout season may be winding down, but there’s still plenty of time to fire up the grill and impress guests with a perfectly cooked steak. The tricky part is finding that balance between juicy and tender without crossing into overcooked or leaving the middle raw. Anyone who’s grilled before knows just a minute too long or too short can change the entire meal.

The good news is, with the right timing and a few simple techniques, you can consistently hit the level of doneness you want — whether that’s rare, medium, or well-done. Pro chefs rely on specific tricks to check temperature and texture, and once you know them, it’s easier to get restaurant-quality results at home.

So if you’re planning one last backyard get-together before the weather shifts, these steak tips can help you grill with confidence. With nothing more than salt, heat, and a little know-how, you’ll serve steaks that taste exactly how you and your guests like them, every time.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

I spoke to Joe Flamm, chef-partner and culinary director of Chicago’s BLVD Steakhouse. “Doneness is such a preference and everyone has their own,” he said. “For something as simple as steak, prepared with just salt and fire, you want it exactly how you want it.”

We love using a meat probe for checking the temp on larger cuts of meat, chicken and other foods, but this gadget-free method works on steaks and burgers and saves you from having to pull out the thermometer. Here, we unpack a simple trick for testing steak doneness using only your hands, guaranteeing you’ll nail it every time.

Read more: A Beef Expert Told Me the Best Cheap Steak Cuts to Look for at the Market

Practice makes perfect

Doneness in steak is frequently associated with color, as the steak goes from bright red when rare, through various stages of pink, until it becomes well done and has the pink cooked completely out of it. (RIP, ribeye.) It’s difficult to gauge color without cutting into the steak, which you don’t want to do until it comes off of the heat and has a moment to rest. Otherwise, the juices spill out of it, making for a drier, tougher outcome, especially if you’re going to put it back on the fire for additional cooking. It’s even more important not to do this prematurely if your preference leans toward medium well or well done; you want as much juice left in the meat as possible.

Doneness is also associated with temperature, with the internal temperature of the inside of the meat typically graduating between 120 and 160 degrees Fahrenheit as you move between rare and well done. This can be accomplished with a meat thermometer, but there is another method frequently applied by chefs that doesn’t require any gadgets.

With bigger cuts, such as a whole prime rib roast that will be sliced after cooking, “a thermometer is super helpful for consistency and accuracy,” says Flamm, but “for smaller cuts and for speed, many chefs can check it by feel,” he says. “If you’re cooking 100 filets a night, every night, it begins to fall into place.”

Understanding doneness in steak and why overcooking is bad

What’s a home cook to do who isn’t in the habit of cooking dozens of steaks on repeat, many times a week? Before we get to the shortcut trick to help you learn this, it’s important to understand the transformation your steak undergoes as it cooks to higher and higher temperatures.

In basic terms, the longer a steak cooks, the firmer the meat becomes, which has to do with the chemical process the meat is undergoing. “Whenever you cook a steak for a longer period there’s a breaking point where fat and muscle are done breaking down,” explains Flamm, “and you’re just drying out the steak and losing moisture, which gives the steak a tougher texture.” This increasingly firmer or tougher texture is key to being able to check the doneness of steak without relying on a thermometer.

Read more: I Did the Math to See if Buying Meat Online Is Cheaper Than the Grocery Store

Technique for testing doneness

Learning to check for doneness by feel doesn’t necessarily require hundreds of dollars of raw materials to get the requisite practice. Neither does it rely on any particular gadget. It’s not exactly a one-handed method, but the method only involves the use of your hands.

Whether or not you have the means or mentality to quit your job and go to culinary school, here’s a culinary school trick to understand doneness in meat, using the fleshy base of your thumb as a point of comparison in the resistance of the steak when poked.

Here it is: With one hand, gently touch your thumb and forefinger together, keeping the rest of your fingers relaxed, in a half-assed “A-OK” signal. You don’t want to press your thumb and forefinger together — simply make light contact between them. With the forefinger of your opposite hand gently poke the fleshy base of your thumb. 

You’re not pressing down here, just giving it a quick jab. This is approximately the level of resistance you should feel for a medium rare steak when similarly jabbed in the center of the meat. (Quick aside here about clean and/or gloved hands. Also, the steak will be hot on the outside, yes, but again, a brief jab is all that’s in order.)

Subsequently, as you move your thumb to lightly touch your middle finger, the tension in the base of your thumb increases, and this represents how a medium-cooked steak should feel. As you stretch your thumb to reach the ring finger, now you’ve got medium well, and the tension in the thumb when touched with the pinkie finger reveals well done.

Regardless of how you like your steak cooked, and how you’d personally define it, now you have a consistent point of comparison available to you at all times with which to practice, whether you’re cooking steak once a week or once a year.

What’s the best way to cook steak?

So, what’s the best way to cook a steak? Opinions abound regarding direct heat versus indirect heat, hard searing and reverse searing, and even cooking steak in an air fryer. Flamm recommends a time-honored method: “For me, it’s searing the steak hard, and then using indirect heat to slowly let it render and come up in temp to the place where you want it to be,” he says, finishing your seared steak in the oven. 

You can consult various recipes for time and temperature recommendations with the indirect heat method, just be sure to factor in that your steak will continue to cook while resting, and to take your steak out and give it a good jab every so often. 

Read more: Avoid Dry Beef Syndrome: Here Are the Best Ways to Reheat Steak

Fresh on the heels of August’s black moon is September’s full moon, which will be among the most interesting full moons of 2025. It’s coming with a total lunar eclipse, making it a blood moon. Viewers in the US won’t be able to see the upcoming lunar eclipse, but the moon should still appear redder than usual. 

The total lunar eclipse, which takes place on Sept. 7, will be visible primarily in Asia, Australia, Eastern Europe and Eastern Africa. Most of the rest of Europe and Africa will see a partial eclipse, while North and South America are left out this time around. 

A blood moon only occurs during a total lunar eclipse, when the moon angles behind the Earth in such a way that the Earth blocks much of the sun’s light. What’s left passes through Earth’s atmosphere on its way to the moon, which filters out the blue light. That leaves only the sun’s red light to hit the moon and reflect to Earth, giving it a reddish glow. 

This effect lasts roughly two hours and will only happen in the regions that can witness the lunar eclipse. 

According to The Old Farmer’s Almanac, September’s full moon, also known as the corn moon, will see peak brightness at around 2:09 p.m. ET on Sept. 7. Since that’s the middle of the day, the best time to view the corn moon will be at night during Sept. 6 or Sept. 7. The moon will remain almost full for a couple of days immediately before and after Sept. 7, giving you several days to view the full moon. 

How rare are lunar eclipses?

Total lunar eclipses are less frequent than partial eclipses, making September’s full moon a special occasion for those in the eclipse’s path. Since the Earth and the moon have stable orbits, they are also entirely predictable. The last lunar eclipse occurred in March 2025, with the one before in November 2022. 

The next total eclipse is due in March 2026, but it will take place primarily in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean, where virtually no one will be able to see it. The next five will be New Year’s Eve in 2028, June 2029, December 2029 and then two more in 2032. Of those, only the one in 2029 will be visible in the US. 

Can I livestream the lunar eclipse?

You can livestream the lunar eclipse! Numerous websites, including Time and Date, FOX Weather and the Royal Observatory in Greenwich will livestream the happenings. Per Time and Date, the eclipse should last an hour and 22 minutes, starting at around 15:28 UTC, or 11:28 a.m. ET on Sept. 7. 

Cooking a thick steak at home can feel intimidating. Get the timing wrong and you risk an undercooked center or a dried-out edge. Traditionally, most people sear the outside first, then finish in the oven to bring the inside up to temp. But chefs have been using a smarter trick for years: flipping that process around.

Reverse searing starts low and slow in the oven, then finishes with a quick, high-heat sear at the end. The result? Perfectly even doneness from edge to center with a beautifully caramelized crust on the outside. Ribeye, filet mignon, or any thick cut benefits from this method because it gives you more control over temperature and locks in flavor without overcooking.

After trying it myself, I can see why professionals swear by it. The texture, flavor, and consistency are hard to beat, and it’s one of those techniques that makes you wonder why you ever cooked steak any other way.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

What is reverse searing?

Reverse searing involves cooking meat at a low temperature for even, gentle cooking and then finishing on the stovetop or grill for a caramelized crust. Low-and-slow cooking is often favored to deliver tenderness to tough cuts. Imagine what it can do when you start with something that is already tender.

“By cooking at a lower temperature, you let the marbling and collagen of the beef break down slowly, resulting in something that’s extra meaty and juicy,” says Danny Ganem, Culinary Director of Gioia Hospitality Group, which includes the newly-opened Daniel’s Steakhouse in Miami. “It’s great for melding flavors and adding even more tenderness to a thick cut of steak.”

Read more: Reddit Agrees, the ‘137 Club’ Is the Best Way to Make Steak. Here’s How It Works

High heat is reserved for the end of the process after the meat is perfectly relaxed, “to achieve that beautiful mahogany crust,” says Ganem, without it seizing up due to the sudden temperature difference when you put a cold steak on a hot pan. This also keeps the natural moisture content of the meat — its juices — more evenly distributed during the cooking process.

What do you need for a reverse sear?

Chefs will often apply a sous vide technique for a reverse sear, but you don’t have to get that technical to accomplish it at home. “The best tools are a temperature-controlled oven that can achieve consistent temperatures of under 180 degrees Fahrenheit, a sheet pan with a wire rack, and a good cast iron (or heavy-duty stainless steel) pan where you can finish your steak at a high temperature,” says Ganem. (Food writer hack: If you don’t think you already have the necessary wire rack — check your toaster oven.)

An oven-safe thermometer with a temperature alert is also helpful for tracking the internal temperature of the meat in the thickest part while it cooks. I highly recommend this over an instant-read thermometer, which requires you to repeatedly open the oven to check. If you’re relying on timing or other cues rather than precise temperature tracking, you’re potentially losing the accuracy that this method can ensure.

What cuts are best for reverse searing?

Reverse searing works best with thick cuts of steak. Anything under an inch and you don’t have enough thickness to get an accurate temperature reading in the center of the steak, so look for grocery store steaks that are cut to at least 1.5″ to 2″ thick, or ask your butcher for those dimensions, or even thicker. This method can even apply to thick cuts from pork or lamb.

Certain steak cuts are naturally limited in their thickness, so this method doesn’t apply to every cut. “My personal preferences for reverse searing are big and thick cuts like a Porterhouse, Côte de Boeuf, (bone-in ribeye) or a beautiful Prime Rib,” says Ganem. I tried it with a 1.5-inch thick ribeye from the grocery store. (Spoiler alert: Never has a grocery store cut seen a better outcome.)

Reverse searing method

You will need:

• Thick cut steaks (at least 1.5-inch thick)
• Salt and pepper
• High-heat cooking oil and butter (optional)
• Sheet tray with wire rack
• Oven-safe thermometer
• Cast iron or heavy-duty stainless steel pan (nonstick not recommended for this)

Directions:

1. Assemble equipment and preheat oven to 180 to 200 degrees Fahrenheit
2. Season steaks liberally with salt and pepper on both sides. Place steaks on wire racks over a sheet tray, and insert an oven-safe thermometer into the thickest part of the steak, as centered as possible.

Reverse sear temp chart

Doneness	Oven temp
Rare	105-110 F
Medium rare	115-120 F
Medium	125-130 F
Medium well	135-140 F

3. Cook until temperature reaches desired doneness. This may take 30 to 40 minutes or more, depending on the consistency of your oven temp and the desired temperature: 
4. If you’re watching the temperature increase with an oven-safe thermometer, you’ll have a sense of when your steaks are about to come out of the oven. In the last minute or two, heat oil (with optional butter) in pan until nearly smoking.
5. Once out of the oven, sear steaks on both sides for about 1 minute per side, making sure the entire surface of the steak is in contact with the pan.
6. You may choose to rest the steaks momentarily when done cooking, but with the reverse sear method, this is less important, as the consistency of the lower temperature early in the cooking process helps with the even distribution of juices.

Benefits and drawbacks for reverse searing

Because the reverse sear method takes much more time than simply searing on the stovetop or grill, “the biggest drawback is time consumption and planning,” says Ganem. “You can’t simply pull a steak out of the fridge and cook it fast.”

I found this to be a bonus, however, in terms of preparing the whole meal. While the steak was in the oven I was able to use the stovetop to prepare other components without having to keep a close eye on the meat, which were then ready to go when the steak came out for its last couple minutes of searing and I could give it my full attention.

Not having to rest the meat also means that you get to enjoy it hotter, a bonus which cannot be understated. Regardless of effective “tenting” during the rest period that other methods require, your steak is going to lose some of its heat while it waits to be cut.

Dealing with slow internet is a frustrating experience, especially if you’re gaming with friends, streaming a show or trying to work from home. When I started experiencing slow Wi-Fi at home, even though I was paying for 1 gigabit speeds, I knew that there had to be something I could do about it. 

Sometimes you can blame your internet provider or upgrade your router, but in other cases, there could be minor issues that could be easily resolved in a few simple steps. As someone who writes about broadband daily, I’ve realized the value of a good internet connection and that troubleshooting your speeds doesn’t have to be complicated. Here’s what I learned.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

‘Enough is enough’

The red flags are there for a reason, so don’t ignore them: the buffering, the slow downloads and the interrupted Zoom calls. I wouldn’t usually have paid attention to these signs, since I had never had a problem with my internet before. A solid internet connection has become vital since I started working from home in 2024.

My family and I also noticed that streaming our favorite shows, like the newest season of Squid Game, had become a pain due to our fluctuating speeds. I finally gave in, said enough is enough and contacted my internet service provider, Verizon Fios. The Fios agent was shocked that I was experiencing internet issues since I was on the company’s second-fastest tier, the gigabit plan.

“You shouldn’t even be experiencing fluctuating speeds with your plan,” the Verizon Fios agent said over the phone. I was stumped.

I didn’t want to make a hasty decision switching out my current provider or buying a new router. So I turned to CNET’s advice for help.

What is gigabit internet?

Your internet speed is measured in megabits per second. In other words, your speed is measured by how much data can be processed over a network in a second. Gigabit internet refers to 1,000 megabits. The more data processed over your network, the better your connection performs.

Top providers that offer gigabit internet

As of June 2024, data from the Federal Communications Commission show that over half of the US population has access to gigabit speeds. Service typically ranges anywhere between $50 to $90 monthly. You can find gigabit service from internet providers such as Frontier Fiber, Google Fiber, Optimum, Verizon Fios, AT&T and more. Though cable providers like Spectrum and Astound Broadband’s gigabit plans are more widely available nationwide than other ISPs, but might be pricier down the line. You could end up paying double your initial price after a year, since most cable providers are notorious for hiking up their prices after a year.

Depending on the connection type available at your address, most fiber ISPs like AT&T and Google Fiber won’t increase your prices after a year and can offer symmetrical download and upload speeds of 1,000Mbps, whereas a cable connection may only top out at 35 to 50Mbps. To learn more about where you can sign up for gigabit service, read our review on gigabit internet and the best fiber internet providers for July 2025.

4 expert tips to boost your internet

At the start of this journey, I felt like a kid riding their first bike. It felt daunting because I didn’t know where to start. Thankfully, one of our pages details how to boost your Wi-Fi connection in four simple steps. Here’s how it went.

1. Take a speed test

Before you do anything else, conduct an internet speed test. I chose Ookla’s speed test because this is the format I am most familiar with. CNET recommends Ookla for its consistency, and it also shows you your speed test history once you create an account. (Disclosure: Ookla is owned by the same parent company as CNET, Ziff Davis.)

This step was fairly easy. I conducted a few speed tests online. The image above is a test I took near my workspace. Speeds of 248 to 275Mbps aren’t bad, being on a gigabit plan supported by a fiber connection makes them surprising (and disappointing). I took it a step further and went to an area of my home where we experienced the most internet trouble.

I avoid working in the basement most days because the internet is inconsistent. After conducting a speed test, I found our speed dipped to 76Mbps in downloads and 19Mbps in uploads. This area is the farthest from my router, so it only makes sense that the signal is weaker. According to the FCC, the minimum mark for broadband speeds is 100Mbps download and 20Mbps upload. My speeds were missing that mark.

It should be noted that Ookla is not the only speed test you can try. Just recently, CNET broadband expert Cierra Noffke tested out the Orb internet speed test. Noffke writes that it doesn’t just test your download and upload speeds. Orb, which was developed by the same creators of Ookla, measures the overall health of your home network using multiple metrics and continuous speed tests. On the other hand, if your household uses mostly streaming services, Fast.com is a solid option, as it measures your internet’s capacity to stream Netflix. M-Lab is also at the top of my list, as it has an easy-to-use program. You can always keep it simple as well by turning to resources from your provider. My provider (and many other ISPs) also offers its own Verizon Fios speed test.

2. Move your router or your workspace

This next step requires you to experiment a bit with your router’s location or your workspace. It wasn’t easy to uproot my entire workspace, so I moved my router closer to my existing workspace area instead. This step wasn’t a significant change because the router was already placed across the room from my workspace. You should ideally move your router to a central location. Using an Ethernet cable might be helpful, especially if the new location of your router is far from the modem.

In any case, moving your router too far from the modem might prove troublesome. You can try to raise your router instead and mount it to the wall, if possible. That way, you don’t need to jump through all these hoops to install an Ethernet cable.

3. Add a Wi-Fi extender

If moving your router is not an option, try contacting your internet provider for additional equipment. After contacting my ISP, I discovered that a Fios Wi-Fi extender came with my plan at no extra cost to my monthly service bill. The extender came with a small guide, and at first glance, it seemed pretty simple.

Obtaining equipment from your ISP is not the only option — many Wi-Fi extenders currently on the market support Wi-Fi 6. CNET previously named the TP-Link RE605X as the top pick for the best Wi-Fi extender due to its affordability and easy-to-use controls. Note: TP-Link routers could be banned sometime this year due to a recent government investigation. That said, the next best thing is the Linksys RE7310, currently priced at $80, which tied in performance with the TP-Link RE605X when we tested them. Check out our other top picks for the best Wi-Fi Extenders.

Pair your extender to the router

The extender came with a coax cable, a coax splitter and a small set-up guide that outlined four steps: confirm the internet connection, plug it in, pair it and finally move the extender to a designated spot in your home. Seems simple enough, right? I went through the first three steps without running into any issues. I paired my extender to my router using the coax cable.

Placing your extender

Things took a turn with the final step. After pairing, I unplugged my extender and moved it to the basement, where the signal was weaker. The light from the extender wasn’t the solid white it should have been. Instead, it was a yellow color, meaning the extender was disconnected from the router. Solving this problem took some time as I went back through the set-up guide and covered my bases again.

During this process, I also discovered Verizon Fios’ complete Wi-Fi extender set-up guide online. Some ISPs offer customers the option of self-installation.

Here are some of the top internet providers nationwide that have how-to pages and guides dedicated to installing devices that boost your internet:

The complete set-up guide mentioned an Ethernet cable, but I was not provided one, so I wondered if that prevented my extender from connecting to the router. I contacted Verizon Fios to make sure I was not missing any parts. Per our conversation, Verizon Fios confirmed that an Ethernet cable is recommended but not necessary. The coax cable works just as well.

Ethernet offers a wired connection through cables, which you can plug directly into the router, and should provide faster speeds than Wi-Fi. CNET’s own Hallie Seltzer tested this at her home.

I decided to pivot my approach and placed the extender a bit closer to the router, near my workspace. After a few minutes, I saw a solid white color — the sign of success.

4. Prioritize your traffic

After installing the extender, my internet speeds surged, making this step optional for me. If you cannot obtain a Wi-Fi extender, you can try managing how much bandwidth your household consumes through your router settings. For instance, Verizon Fios allows customers to set up parental controls, which can eliminate access to certain websites. Other routers can even schedule access to the network for certain devices. This process will look different depending on your internet provider and your equipment.

How much speed do you need for your home?

High-speed internet may be enticing, but you may not even need it. According to OpenVault’s first quarter 2024 report, over a third of Americans use the internet at gigabit speeds, a 20% increase from 2023. In addition, its fourth quarter 2024 report shows that the average American household uses 569Mbps in downstream speeds and 32Mbps in upstream. In other words, if you can access gigabit speeds, it should be plenty fast for your household. Finding the right speed will also boil down to your household’s activities. Check out our speed recommendations below.

Our speed recommendations

• 1Mbps: Sending emails 
• 5 to 10Mbps: Web browsing 
• 10Mbps: Using social media
• 10 to 20Mbps (or 35Mbps in 4K): Streaming in HD
• 25 to 35Mbps: Online gaming

For more information, read our comprehensive internet speed guide.

Why you might not be seeing the speeds you’re paying for

Even if you are on your provider’s fastest plan, there is no guarantee you will see the exact speeds promised. What’s advertised by your ISP may not be the actual speeds you get. Many conditions can impact your internet speeds. According to AT&T’s website, certain materials, dense walls and even furniture can obstruct your Wi-Fi signal. Other common factors contributing to a weaker signal include outdated equipment, poor router settings, bad weather and extreme cases like hacking or malware. In addition, finding the right Wi-Fi band for your router or investing in a network switch can also help optimize your internet connection at home. To ensure you’re making the most of your internet, read our guides on how to weatherproof your internet and secure your connection from hackers.

My main takeaways

Once I successfully installed my extender, I conducted another speed test in my basement and I saw a surge in my internet connection, coming in at 598Mbps in download and 187Mbps in upload.

What I discovered about optimizing my speeds at home

• Router and Wi-Fi extender placement are key. The location of your router and extender is directly proportional to optimizing your speeds. Give it a few tries and place your extender in different areas of your home. Ensure you don’t place the extender too far or close to the router.
• Conduct a series of speed tests after every step, monitoring any changes in your internet connection.
• Seek out self-installation guides. Many ISPs, including AT&T, Cox, Spectrum and Xfinity, offer comprehensive self-installation guides online for devices that boost your signal. Don’t hesitate to seek them out.
• Consider buying a Wi-Fi extender. While your ISP might recommend using its equipment, many Wi-Fi extenders support Wi-Fi 6 and should do the trick. Check out our top picks for the best Wi-Fi extenders.
• A coax cable works just as well as an ethernet cable. Your ISP might recommend an Ethernet cable for pairing your extender to the router, but a coax cable also works.
• When in doubt, contact your ISP for support and discuss your options. You can also try negotiating with your ISP, which might be best if you’re looking to upgrade your plan.

What’s the bottom line?

Since completing this experiment, I’ve seen a drastic change in my internet connection. My family and I can stream our shows without problems and my Zoom calls are running more smoothly than ever. I outlined four steps on this page, but you might need to do a few extra steps to ensure you cover all your bases. Fixing your internet doesn’t have to be complex. This is my first time experimenting with this, and I’ve discovered a new comfort level with my internet connection and how it works.

Crossing a border is stressful enough — and now your phone adds another layer. According to new figures from US Customs and Border Protection, nearly 15,000 device searches were carried out between April and June — over 1,000 of them using advanced tools that copy or analyze a phone’s contents. The rising numbers raise questions about how much personal data travelers may be handing over without realizing it.

One way people are protecting their privacy is by traveling with a no-frills device. A basic or burner phone can keep you connected for calls and texts while limiting the amount of personal information stored on it. It’s not just about crossing borders either — having a stripped-down device can help cut screen time, reduce distractions and give you a mental break from constant notifications.

Even celebrities have embraced the switch. Conan O’Brien has said that carrying a simpler phone helps him stay focused, proving that sometimes less really is more. If your smartphone feels like it holds too much of your life, scaling back — whether for travel or everyday use — might be worth considering.

Read more: Best Prepaid Phone of 2025

Although carriers have offered prepaid phones since the ’90s, “burner phones” or “burners” became more popular in the 2000s following the celebrated HBO series The Wire, where they helped characters avoid getting caught by the police. Though often portrayed in that light, burners aren’t only used by criminals, but really by anyone concerned with surveillance or privacy infringement.

What is a burner phone, and how does it work? Here’s everything you need to know about burners and how to get one.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

What is a burner phone?

A burner phone is a cheap prepaid phone with no commitments. It comes with a set number of prepaid call minutes, text messages or data, and it’s designed to be disposed of after use.

Burners are contract-free, and you can grab them off the counter. They’re called burner phones because you can “burn” them (trash them after use), and the phone can’t be traced back to you, which makes them appealing to criminals. Burner phones are typically used when you need a phone quickly, without intentions of long-term usage. 

Burners are different from getting a regular, contract-bound cellphone plans that require your information to be on file.

Why should you use a burner phone?

Burner phones are an easy way to avoid cellphone contracts or spam that you get on your primary phone number. Burners aren’t linked to your identity, so you can avoid being tracked down or contacted.

You don’t have to dispose of a burner phone after use. You can add more minutes and continue using it. Burner phones can still function as regular phones, minus the hassle of a contract.

You can also get a burner phone as a secondary phone for a specific purpose, like having a spare phone number for two-factor authentication texts, for business or to avoid roaming charges while traveling. Burner phones are often used by anyone concerned with privacy.

Read more: The Data Privacy Tips Digital Security Experts Wish You Knew

Burner phones, prepaid phones, smartphones and burner SIMs: What’s the difference? 

Burner phones are cheap phones with simple designs that lack the bells and whistles of a smartphone. Because they’re designed to be disposable, you only get the essentials, as seen by the most common version, the flip phone.

All burner phones are prepaid phones, but not all prepaid phones are burners. What sets a burner apart is that you won’t have to give away any personal information to get one, and it won’t be traceable back to you. Again, a burner phone is cheap enough to be destroyed after use.

Prepaid smartphones are generally low-end models. You can use any unlocked smartphone with prepaid SIM cards, essentially making it a prepaid phone.

If you want a burner, you don’t necessarily have to buy a new phone. You can get a burner SIM and use it with an existing phone. Burner SIMs are prepaid SIMs you can get without a contract or giving away personal information.

Where can you buy a burner phone?

Burner phones are available at all major retail outlets, including Best Buy, Target and Walmart. They’re also often available at convenience stores like 7-Eleven, local supermarkets, gas stations and retail phone outlets like Cricket and Metro.

You can get a burner phone with cash, and it should cost between $10 and $50, though it may cost more if you get more minutes and data. If you’re getting a burner phone specifically to avoid having the phone traced back to you, it makes sense to pay with cash instead of a credit card.

If you just want a prepaid secondary phone, you can use a credit card. Just keep in mind that credit cards leave a trail that leads back to you.

There are also many apps that let you get secondary phone numbers, including Google Fi and the Burner app. However, these aren’t burners necessarily because the providers typically have at least some of your personal information.

If you’re just looking to get a solid prepaid phone without anonymity, check out our full guide for the best prepaid phone plans available. We also have a guide for the best cheap phone plans.

Earlier this week, I received an email from the communications team at Netflix announcing the debut of a new astrology hub on the streaming platform. According to the release, these curated playlists include show and movie recommendations that “reflect the character traits and themes most associated with that sign.” They don’t include this week’s horoscope. At least for now. 

Lots of people feel strongly about their zodiac sign and how it affects their lives. While I don’t normally give much thought to being a Sagittarius, it seems like Netflix astrologers have me figured out.

Netflix has determined that “Sagittarians bring adventure,” so my recommendation list is populated with action movies and shows like Lost, The Outer Banks, Fast & Furious and Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire. While I don’t exclusively like action and adventure titles, they’re absolutely my go-to when I’m looking for something to throw on and pass the time. 

(I admit I’m a little jealous of Scorpios, who are classified as folks who “revel in mystery.” Their recommendations include personal favorites of mine like Dept. Q, The Residence, Black Doves and Knives Out. Maybe my ascendant, or rising sign, is in Scorpio.) 

My willingness to take chances on action, no matter how outlandish or wild it seems, is also why I started watching the wildly fun series In the Mud, an Argentinian crime drama about five inmates in a women’s prison who bond after a failed breakout attempt. The show has sat at the top of the Global Top 10 for a few weeks now. The first 15 minutes of the first episode, which features a violent, life-and-death prison van escape, will easily hook you in. 

As each month of the zodiac calendar approaches, Netflix’s Tudum page will release a more detailed recommendation list, complete with breakdowns of why certain shows and films should, in theory, appeal to your sign. 

Things kick off with Virgo season, where you can find titles like The Queen’s Gambit, Bet and Tidying Up With Marie Kondo, all of which appeal to the methodical, detail-oriented brain. Maybe this is you, maybe it’s not. My editor, a Libra, joked that she felt attacked when she saw the titles in her recommended list (it hit a little too close to home). 

This could just the algorithm appealing to what it already knows about us. Either way, scrolling through this new zodiac hub to see what the stars predict has proven to be a fun game, and I found a new series to watch as a result.

Now that the weather’s cooling down, I’ve traded most of my outdoor grill time for cozier meals made indoors. The cast-iron skillet and air fryer have been getting plenty of use, and I’ve found that some recipes transition perfectly between all three. Cornell chicken is one of those dishes. This 75-year-old classic has stood the test of time, and it’s still one of the best ways to enjoy flavorful, juicy chicken.

The recipe has unlikely roots. It was created by Robert Baker, a Cornell University food science professor known for his love of poultry and knack for creating simple, reliable flavor. His vinegar-based marinade uses a handful of pantry staples, yet it transforms chicken into something truly special – crisp on the outside, tender inside, and tangy in every bite.

Whether you’re cooking it in a skillet, crisping it up in the air fryer, or saving the recipe for the next warm day on the grill, Cornell chicken is versatile enough to work year-round. It’s comfort food with a little history behind it, and it proves that simple recipes often last the longest.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

The beauty of Cornell chicken is its simplicity. No bottled sauces, no fancy tools — just a time-tested formula that works whether you’re grilling over charcoal, gas, or even using your oven’s broiler. It’s one of the earliest recorded barbecue chicken recipes in the U.S., and it’s still a favorite in upstate New York for good reason. One bite and it’s clear: this Ivy League bird has serious backyard cred.

Whether you like to cook your summer bird in an air fryer, over a cast-iron skillet or directly on the grates of your gas or pellet smoker — I made this recipe on all three and it worked each time — this simple and straightforward marinade is easy to make in large batches and worth adding to your rotation. 

What’s special about Cornell chicken?

Baker wrote the proverbial book on barbecue chicken, according to many, after extensive recipe testing in the 1950s. He was unhappy with the bland state of American cuisine and created this recipe to help serve tasty food en masse at large cookouts.

“Cornell chicken,” as it’s known, is beautifully simple and remains one of the most lauded chicken marinades and summer cookout recipes. You’ll find Cornell chicken served at restaurants, particularly in upstate New York, where the university is located, family picnics, food fairs and festivals across the country.

What’s different about Cornell chicken?

Cornell chicken uses one unusual element, a beaten egg, to add a creamy coating and let the chicken skin get crispy without burning. There’s also poultry seasoning for depth of flavor and vinegar to add tang and help the marinade penetrate. 

If you’re wondering how to make Cornell chicken, it’s easy — use just five ingredients and a similar cooking method to traditional barbecue chicken. This chicken marinade is vinegar-based so it’s akin more to a Carolina style than the sweet Kansas City or St. Louis styles. Baker suggests using a charcoal grill to keep unwieldy flames from cooking the skin unevenly.

How to make perfect Cornell chicken

Ingredients

• Bone-in chicken pieces
• 1/2 cup vegetable cooking oil
• 1 cup apple cider vinegar
• 1.5 teaspoons poultry seasoning
• 1 beaten egg
• Salt and pepper to taste

Directions

• Step 1: Beat the egg. Add oil and beat again.
• Step 2: Whisk together all the ingredients in a bowl.
• Step 3: Add chicken pieces and toss to coat. Refrigerate for at least three hours and up to 24 hours.
• Step 4: Place coated chicken on a medium-high grill (Baker suggests charcoal) or hot cast-iron skillet and reserve any leftover marinade.
• Step 5: Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, flipping and basting the chicken with leftover sauce every five minutes. The basting should be light at first and grow heavier toward the end of cooking.
• Step 6: Cook until internal temperature reaches 160 degrees F.

Can you make Cornell chicken in an air fryer?

Yes and I did. I put half of my batch in the air fryer and the other half over a hot flame the way Baker intended. Both methods worked well. The grill gave me a slightly more caramelized char while the air fryer was faster and there was less to clean up.

Can you use any chicken for Cornell chicken?

Baker’s original recipe calls for broilers (small whole chickens), but this recipe can be applied to any bone-in, skin-on chicken. You can use boneless, skinless chicken, but you won’t get that coveted crispy skin that Baker’s Cornell chicken recipe aces.

As it turns out, some forum users have even experimented with using the Cornell chicken cooking recipe on wings — to pretty immediate success. One person from the r/Wings subreddit shared their successful Cornell chicken wings, after using the same basic six-step process included in Baker’s original recipe.

If you don’t feel like making this sauce, these are the best bottled barbecue sauces we’ve tried.

Watch this: Best Air Fryers: Cheap vs. Expensive

19:24

Cornell chicken FAQs

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Today’s NYT Strands puzzle might be the easiest the Times has ever offered. I hardly needed any clue words to unlock in-game hints. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story. 

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Up the hill

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Nursery rhyme time.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

• ROAN, CRACK RACK, ROTE, CANE, FIRE, FINE, FAIL

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

• PAIL, CROWN, BROKE, AFTER, TUMBLING, WATER, FETCH

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is JACKANDJILL. To find it, look for the J that’s seven letters down on the far-right row, and wind up.

I’d estimate that I cook at home about 90% of the time. That means I’ve run through a ton of kitchen appliances, ranging from revolutionary to downright useless. Luckily, the Chefman Everything Maker is pretty dang clever — and it’s become my go-to appliance that I use almost daily. 

Right now for Labor Day, you can get a sweet 25% discount on the Everything Maker. The normal list price of $60 on the Chefman website already feels like a good deal for what this appliance can accomplish — which is, well, everything. Currently the Midnight color is just $45 on Amazon, which is a steal. The Concrete-hued version is also on sale for a few bucks less at just over $40. Here’s why it’s earned a permanent spot on my counter.

How I use my Everything Maker

I’ve made crispy hash browns, gooey grilled cheese, breakfast sandwiches and perfectly golden pancakes — all in one compact machine. And it’s not just a breakfast tool. I’ve used it for late-night quesadillas and quick lunches more times than I can count in the past few weeks. 

The design is intuitive, easy to store upright (although I rarely put it away) and surprisingly durable. No extra bells and whistles here. It’s just a well-made, easy-to-use appliance that works every time.

The Chefman Everything Maker lives up to its name by offering a versatile, all-in-one cooking solution that fits easily on a countertop. With a 12-inch nonstick cooking surface and a slim, compact design, it’s well-suited for small kitchens or anyone looking to simplify meal prep. I’ve found it particularly convenient for cooking breakfast foods like eggs and pancakes with the lid open, then switching to grilled sandwiches or quesadillas with the lid closed. 

It also heats quickly and evenly, reaching up to 428 degrees Fahrenheit (220 degrees Celsius), which is enough for searing, sautéing or even light grilling. I made a summer flatbread (with burrata, pesto and prosciutto) over the weekend and used the Everything Maker to lightly sear some peaches to add as a topping. They came out perfectly. 

Hey, did you know? CNET Deals texts are free, easy and save you money.

Cleanup is another strong point. The nonstick surface wipes down easily after use — no scrubbing or soaking required — which has made it a reliable go-to for quick weekday meals. 

The Everything Maker also comes with a digital cookbook featuring 16 chef-crafted recipes, which I’ve used as inspiration for trying new dishes beyond my usual routine. While it doesn’t replace every kitchen tool, the Everything Maker handles a surprising variety of tasks in a compact footprint.

My buying advice

Whether you’re shopping for a gift or just want to level up your own cuisine game, the Chefman Everything Maker is a surprisingly versatile little appliance. Even at full price, it offers solid value and delivers big on convenience, but for just $45, you really can’t beat the value.

While the Everything Maker isn’t on sale on the Chefman website currently, it’s still worth checking Chefman’s website from time to time. They run promotions regularly (in fact, my favorite blender is discounted right now).

If you’re looking for other useful, fun gifts for your favorite hostess or the chef in your life, here are our favorite kitchen gifts under $50.

Apple will announce new iPhone 17 phones at its annual fall event on Sept. 9, showing off new features of iOS 26, possible camera updates and new case designs, all leading up to a dramatic price reveal. This year, that figure could be $50 higher for the iPhone 17 Pro models, based on a rumor that surfaced on the Chinese social media site Weibo, from a user named Instant Digital (Setsuna Digital).

The rumored price jump corroborates an earlier prediction from Jefferies analyst Edison Lee, who says that the iPhone 17 Air (17 Slim), 17 Pro and 17 Pro Max will get a $50 price increase to offset the higher costs of components and tariffs, as reported by Business Insider. He didn’t mention the regular iPhone 17 getting a price increase. If true, that would mean that the starting prices for the iPhone 17 series will be:

• iPhone 17: $829
• iPhone 17 Air: $979
• iPhone 17 Pro: $1,049
• iPhone 17 Pro Max: $1,249

Instant Digital also thinks that the baseline iPhone 17 Pro will come with 256GB of storage instead of 128GB like the iPhone 16 Pro.

Since what President Donald Trump touted as “Liberation Day,” the possible effect of tariffs on the iPhone’s price has been widely discussed. And yet iPhone prices have remained the same so far this year. 

This news follows a May report by The Wall Street Journal that Apple is considering a price spike and could attribute it to new and updated features instead of tariffs. In any case, the launch of the rumored iPhone 17 will likely come with a higher price, no matter what Trump says or does.

Apple is the third-largest company in the US, and most of its products are manufactured in China. The iPhone’s ubiquity has made it a symbol for the ongoing uncertainty of the US economy and politics. But even without higher component costs or tariffs, the iPhone has been overdue for a price increase. The last one was five years ago.

Historically, that makes it the longest stretch of time Apple has gone without a price increase since the five-year period between the iPhone 5 and the iPhone 7, which ended with a costlier iPhone 8. We can learn a lot by looking at how Apple has handled earlier price hikes (and a one-time drop) and what that means for the iPhone 17. 

To figure out the likelihood of a price increase, I grouped iPhone models into a few categories: the standard, the flagships and the behemoths. The standard includes models like the original iPhone, the iPhone 8, the iPhone XR and the iPhone 16. The flagships include variants like the iPhone X, iPhone 11 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro. The behemoth’s designation is for phones like the iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone XS Max and iPhone 16 Pro Max. (Other versions that Apple sold, like the iPhone 5C, the SE series, the iPhone Mini line and the current iPhone Plus line, don’t factor into this analysis.) Also, I use the US starting price for each iPhone before any carrier discounts are applied. 

Let’s dive in.

Standard iPhone prices

Since its debut in 2007, the standard iPhone has had four price increases and one correction. Many folks might remember paying $199 for the original iPhone, but in reality, the phone cost $499 off-contract. In 2008, Apple raised the price $100 with the launch of the iPhone 3G to $599, where it would stay for four years. Then, in 2012, the iPhone 5 was introduced with a taller, 4-inch screen and a higher $649 price tag.

Fast-forward to 2017, the 10th anniversary of the iPhone, and the iPhone 8 debuted at a cost of $699, a $50 increase. Every year between 2017 and 2019, the price for the standard iPhone changed. In 2018, the iPhone XR launched at $749. The following year, the iPhone 11 came out, and the price dropped back to $699. And what makes that drop interesting is that the iPhone 11 was the first standard Apple phone with two rear cameras: a wide-angle and ultrawide. Up till then, all other standard iPhone models had only a single rear camera. From 2007 to 2019, when Apple increased prices, it was in $50 increments, except between the first and second iPhone models.

Then 2020 happened. It was a wild year for the iPhone and everyone because of the pandemic. But Apple managed to launch the iPhone 12, which cost $829, marking the largest increase for the standard iPhone: $130. Subsequent models all had the same price: The iPhone 13, 14, 15 and 16 all cost $829.

If Apple follows its previous pattern, then the standard iPhone is due for a price increase. The last increase was in 2020, five years ago, and Apple has never gone six years without a price hike on the standard model. But will the company slowly increase the price over a few years, like it did between the iPhone 7, 8 and XR? Or will it go all in like it did with the iPhone 12?

Apple’s most popular product is the standard iPhone, and it’s safe to expect that the iPhone 17 will cost more (and would have even if Trump hadn’t been elected). Now, we just need to wonder how much tariffs and politics might drive the price up even more.

The flagship: iPhone Pro model prices

Apple hasn’t always had an iPhone Pro variant, but it did starting in 2017 with the launch of the iPhone X, which had a starting price of $999. The phone debuted next to the $699 iPhone 8, making the 8’s $50 increase seem like nothing.

But here’s where things get interesting. Apple has never raised the price on the iPhone Pro model. The iPhone X, XS, 11 Pro, 12 Pro, 13 Pro, 14 Pro, 15 Pro and 16 Pro all cost $999. That’s eight years without a price increase!

What’s even more shocking is when you correct for inflation: the 2017 iPhone X’s $999 price would be $1,298 in 2025, according to the Consumer Price Index Inflation calculator. The iPhone Pro is overdue for a price hike, and I expect the iPhone 17 Pro to cost more.

The behemoths: iPhone Plus, Max and Pro Max prices

Since 2014, Apple has sold a big version of the iPhone. Some of these were nothing more than a larger version of the standard iPhone with a bigger screen and battery, as well as some minor differences, like the iPhone 6 Plus having optical image stabilization on its camera while the iPhone 6 didn’t. But beginning with the iPhone 7 Plus, the larger version started having “pro” features, like a second rear camera and portrait mode.

In terms of pricing, the iPhone 6 Plus debuted at $749, which was $100 more than the iPhone 6. And that $749 price stuck around for the iPhone 6S Plus and 7 Plus. In 2017, Apple had three iPhone models: the $699 iPhone 8, the $749 iPhone 8 Plus (a $50 increase from the 7 Plus) and the $999 iPhone X.

In 2018, Apple launched the $1,099 iPhone XS Max, which I consider the true successor to the initial iPhone Plus line. That means the big iPhone got a $350 increase in a single year, the largest Apple has ever made. I admit some people might not think the XS Max is a follow-up to the Plus and would deem it an entirely new iPhone variant. But this is my commentary.

Like the iPhone Pro, the Max and Pro Max would have the same price for years. In 2023, Apple raised the barrier of entry for the Pro Max model and didn’t offer a $1,099 version of the iPhone 15 Pro Max with 128GB of storage. Instead, you had to pay $1,199 for the 256GB variant, which technically cost the same as the iPhone 14 Pro Max with 256GB of storage.

The iPhone 17 and 17 Pro’s prices

Even without tariffs, it’s safe to assume that the iPhone 17 lineup’s prices will be higher for some models. But when you factor in everything that’s happened this year, it’s hard to gauge just how much the price will go up and whether that’ll affect just one or two models, or apply across the entire iPhone 17 line.

This year, Apple raised the price on its most affordable model. Although it lacks the SE branding of the previous low-cost iPhone, the iPhone 16E came with a $599 price tag, $170 more than the $429 iPhone SE (2022). 

Apple doesn’t talk about unreleased products or their prices. But we do have an unusual-for-Apple clue as to how these tariffs could affect the company.

“Assuming the current global tariff rates, policies and applications do not change for the balance of the quarter and no new tariffs are added, we estimate the impact to add $900 million to our costs,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said during a quarterly earnings call on May 1.

Obviously, that $900 million number wasn’t just for the iPhone but for all Apple products. And that was three weeks before Trump threatened another tariff aimed purely at the iPhone. But $900 million is a lot for any company to swallow, and eventually, that added cost will need to be recouped. That usually means higher prices, even if Trump pressures Apple to attribute the increase to “new designs and features.”

If there’s one thing for certain, we’ll know exactly what those prices will be when Apple launches the next generation of iPhone models at its September event.

Apple didn’t respond to a request for comment.

When it comes to watching horror movies, one of my favorite sub-genres is sci-fi horror. Give me the terror of deep space, futuristic worlds where things have gone terribly awry, and larger-than-life spaceships where the crews are trapped with unspeakable horrors. While Alien might be the most popular movie in this genre, there are some amazing sci-fi horror flicks out there just waiting to be discovered.

One of my favorites is Pandorum. Released in 2009, it’s is a claustrophobic trip into space in which a mechanic wakes up on a colony ship to see that things have gone very wrong. There’s a derelict spaceship, terrible things hunting through the hallways and a mystery unfolding in the bowels of the ship. It gives off big Dead Space vibes, and it’s an underrated classic. 

It’s streaming for free on Tubi right now.

Pandorum captures the terrifying feel of a broken-down ship, the fear of being surrounded by a hull where only space is waiting outside and a world that juxtaposes body horror and existential dread. Its cinematic style grabbed my attention and kept me watching, even when I desperately wanted to look away. 

Corporal Bower (played by Ben Foster) wakes up from cryo-sleep with a troubling case of amnesia. Almost immediately, it’s clear that things have not gone to plan on Elysium, the colony ship transporting 60,000 humans from an overpopulated Earth to a new world. The machinery around him is degraded, the power keeps flickering and he seems to be entirely alone. 

Bower is soon joined by Lt. Payton (played by Dennis Quaid), an officer who also wakes from cryo-sleep without any answers. After the two of them manage to activate auxiliary power, they decide to go to the bridge to figure out what’s going on. Bower manages to escape the cryo area to find that the rest of the ship is in even worse condition. 

On a ship that has devolved from its original humanitarian mission of settling a new planet, he is accosted by creatures that only vaguely resemble people, as well as humans fighting to survive. Bower finds two companions — a member of the agriculture team who doesn’t speak English but has been hunting the predatory creatures, and Nadia, an environmental scientist. 

The three of them head for the ship’s reactor to reset the power and get everything running so they can decipher what’s happened and why. Along the way, they encounter a sketchy survivor who tells them things collapsed when the bridge received bad news from Earth and was overtaken by Pandorum, a space-inflicted malaise that can cause psychosis, triggered by strong emotional states. 

At the same time, Lt. Payton, who was left in the cryo-sleep chamber, finds another survivor who seems to be struggling from Pandorum and tells Payton what actually happened on the bridge. Payton tries to calm the survivor down, but he only seems to get worse the more they talk. Payton shoves him into a cryo-sleep pod to keep him from causing havoc, as he continues to talk Bower through what he needs to do to restart the reactor and get the ship working again. 

Pandorum’s vibe is perfect for anyone who loves hard science-fiction horror. With a hulking, collapsing spaceship as the main set, winding and claustrophobic passages, and a world that’s evolving within the metal walls, this dread-infused movie lasts less than 2 hours. The lurking possibility of Pandorum warping everyone’s perspective, the monsters in the walls, and the tragedy that kick-started everything work together to deliver a thrill-packed adventure full of dread.  

The third act of Pandorum is when it all escalates and secrets are revealed — the truth of the bridge, where the ship has been piloted, and what comes next for the survivors on board — but you’ll need to watch for yourself to find out what’s been happening on Elysium. 

Pandorum wasn’t a hit when it was released, but 16 years later, it’s still a fantastic example of the sci-fi horror genre, and it delivers plenty of twists and turns. Stream it for free on Tubi, and find out what the Elysium is hiding today. 

Maybe you’ve been following iPhone 17 rumors. Or you’ve thought about installing the iOS 26 betas (on a test device, please). That doesn’t change the fact that iOS 18.6 is what’s running on your iPhone now, and it offers more features than you may have realized, from priority notifications using Apple Intelligence to the revamped and highly modular Control Center.

After digging into the latest update, I found 10 settings that immediately improved my iPhone use. Some are simple “quality of life” upgrades, while others help cut down on background drain or boost privacy.

You don’t need to be a tech expert to make these changes, and most take less than a minute to apply. If your iPhone has been feeling a little sluggish or just not working the way you want it to, these quick adjustments might be all it takes to get things back on track.

For more on what’s new in iOS 18, learn about improvements to the overhauled Calculator app and the Mail app. And don’t forget to consult our iOS 18 upgrade checklist, which includes making sure you have a proper backup before upgrading.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Watch this: 11 Hidden Features in iOS 18

06:44

Turn off categories in the Mail app

With email, everyone has their own way of dealing with the influx of messages. Traditionally, the Mail app has kept a chronological list, but that can get unwieldy if you also get scores of promotions, receipts and other types of email. The new categories feature creates virtual buckets for Primary, Transactions, Updates and Promotions, and guesses how your messages should be sorted.

If that approach doesn’t work for you, here are two things to try.

• In the event that categories are somewhat useful, but you still want a chronological view of your Inbox, swipe all the way to the right of the categories and tap All Mail.

• To turn off categories altogether, tap the three-dot menu (…) in the top-right corner, and then tap List View.

Change the default buttons on the lock screen

In real estate, location is everything, and the bottom corners of the iPhone lock screen are the prime spots, each an easy thumb press away when your device is still locked. Before iOS 18, those posts were held by the flashlight and camera buttons, with no way to change them.

In iOS 18, you can finally replace them with other buttons — or remove them entirely, a balm for folks who unknowingly activate the flashlight (believe me, there’s a better way to turn it on). You can add buttons to recognize music via Shazam, enable Dark Mode, set an alarm/timer, enable Airplane Mode, open your Wallet, send money via Tap to Cash and more.

Here’s how:

1. On the iPhone’s lock screen, touch and hold anywhere on the display until you see the Customize button. You’ll need to unlock the phone using Face ID, Touch ID or your passcode. If it opens the home screen, swipe down from the center-top of the screen (not the right edge, which brings up Control Center.

2. Tap Customize and then choose Lock Screen.

3. Remove one of the buttons by tapping the – (minus) button on the icon.

4. To replace the button with another function, tap its space (now with a + icon) and then choose the one you want on the next screen. (You can also opt to leave that space empty with no button.)

5. Repeat those steps for the other button if you want to change it.

6. Tap Done when you’re finished.

7. Tap the lock screen again to exit the customize mode.

Get important alerts using Prioritize Notifications

For iPhone models that can run Apple Intelligence, a new option in iOS 18.4 is fast becoming one of my favorite AI features. Go to Settings > Notifications, and under Apple Intelligence, tap Prioritize Notifications. As new alerts come in — and some days feel like they arrive in floods — Apple Intelligence determines which ones are more likely to be important to you. For example, texts from people in your contacts could be flagged in favor of random scam messages. On that settings screen, you can enable or disable priority notifications for individual apps.

Set up some of the new tasks available on the Action button

The Action button on the iPhone 15 Pro, iPhone 16, iPhone 16E and iPhone 16 Pro replaced the dedicated mute switch found on every earlier iPhone model with a configurable control. By default, it serves the same purpose — hold it to turn Silent Mode on or off — but you can configure it for other actions like opening the Camera app, performing multiple actions at once or even ordering coffee. The iOS 18.4 update adds Visual Intelligence as an option for the Action button. That makes the AI technology available on the iPhone 16E, which does not include the novel new Camera Control but is now an option for any iPhone with an Action button.

In iOS 18, the Action button gets new capabilities. You can bypass Control Center and choose a control of your choice, such as opening the Remote interface for navigating Apple TV or using Shazam to identify a song.

To choose a different action for the Action button, go to Settings > Action Button. Swipe sideways to select and activate one of the available actions. For the Controls, Shortcut and Accessibility options, tap the Choose button to pick which specific action to run.

Give your home screen a radical new look

You wouldn’t think that putting icons where you want is a radical new feature, but that’s because iOS has always had a locked arrangement. Apps get added from top to bottom, left to right. You could rearrange the order in which icons appear and move them to other screens, but that was about it.

In iOS 18, apps can be positioned nearly anywhere. You no longer need to deal with a wallpaper image of your kids or pets being obscured by icons. They still adhere to a grid — Apple isn’t about to sanction anarchy — but can be placed freely.

Also, Dark mode finally applies to all of the iPhone’s home screen, with options for coloring icons and affecting the brightness of the wallpaper image. Here’s how to customize the looks.

Arrange apps: Touch and hold the home screen to enter “jiggle mode,” and then drag the icons to new positions. It will still slide them around to fill spaces, but with patience, you can move them into the spots you want.

You can also quickly turn compatible apps into widgets that display more information. Maps, for instance, can be a map of your current location with shortcut buttons to search for places or bring up a list of nearby places (such as dinner spots). Touch and hold the app icon and look for a row of resize buttons in the menu that appears. Once expanded beyond the standard icon size, you can drag the handle in the bottom-right corner of the new icon. To get it back to its single icon size you need to touch and hold again and choose the single-icon button

Set Dark mode: If you’ve ever subjected yourself to the retina blast of black text on a white background late at night in a darkened room, you will appreciate the new Dark mode option for the home and lock screens. iOS has previously included a Dark mode, where light backgrounds switch to black or dark gray, text switches to white or light gray and other interface elements are dimmed to coexist in a dark environment. That’s never been applied to the home and lock screens in any significant way — only the dock and some widgets — until iOS 18.

First, touch and hold the home screen to enter jiggle mode. Tap the Edit button in the top-left corner and choose Customize from the menu. At the bottom of the screen, choose a mode for the icons and background: Automatic, Dark or Light (I’ll get to Tinted in a moment). In Dark mode, the icons gain black backgrounds, and folders and the Dock become dark gray. (Developers have the option of making Dark mode icons for their apps. In the meantime, apps not yet optimized get a generally darker appearance.)

In Dark mode, the background image also changes. Apple’s default iOS 18 wallpaper dynamically changes from light to dark as the day progresses, or you can choose colors that offer a light and dark option. If you use a photo, its overall exposure is reduced to dim the light output.

If you want dark icons but aren’t a fan of the dimmed photo treatment, tap the sun icon in the corner of the options sheet at the bottom of the screen to toggle back to Light mode just for the background.

Tinted icons: A new and different option is to tint all of the app icons so they share the same color. In the Customize options at the bottom of the screen, choose Tinted as the icon style. You can then adjust the Hue (the slider with the color spectrum) and Luminosity (the slider with the dark to light range) to choose the color tint you prefer.

What if you want to match a color from a background image? Tap the eyedropper button and then drag the reticle to pinpoint the color you want — the border indicates the selected color.

The tint is applied not only to icons but to widgets as well. For a widget such as Photos, the images it displays show up as duotones to match the theme.

Large icons: Do the labels below each app icon seem redundant to you? Now you can remove the labels and increase the size of the icons with one setting. Open the Customize options as described above and tap the Large button.

After making any of these changes, tap anywhere on the screen to apply them and exit the Customize interface.

Change up how the Control Center looks

Control Center was once a convenient place to quickly access controls such as playback volume and Airplane mode but under iOS 18 it’s a configurable playground. You can position controls where you want, resize many to reveal more information and add new controls on multiple screens.

Swipe down from the top-right corner to reveal the Control Center (or swipe up from the bottom on the iPhone SE). To enter edit mode, touch and hold or press the + button at the top-left corner.

Just as with moving apps, drag a control to another slot on the screen to reposition it. Many of the controls also include a bottom-right handle that can resize the control — in most cases, it reveals the name of the control and its current status (such as Flashlight Off).

Control Center also now spans multiple screens. Swipe up to view controls for media currently playing, Home controls for smart lights and appliances and a page dedicated to the communication options that appear when you long-press the Connectivity block containing Airplane Mode, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Cellular and others. Look closely and you’ll see that those screens are actually individual controls expanded to occupy the entire Control Center area.

You can rearrange the order of those screens by moving their controls. Suppose you want Home controls to be the first swipe instead of Now Playing: In the editing mode, drag the large Home control up to the previous screen (Now Playing will shift to the right to make room).

To remove controls, tap the – (minus) button that appears. You can also add other controls: Tap Add a Control and scroll through the available options ranging from starting a Screen Recording to a host of accessibility options.

Read more: All the new controls you can add to Control Center

Lock or hide any of your sensitive apps

Our phones carry some of our most sensitive data and yet it’s not uncommon to hand a phone to a friend to view photos or look up something online. That doesn’t mean they’re going to snoop but it doesn’t not mean they might be more curious than you’re comfortable with. For data you want to ensure stays out of sight or to add a layer of protection in front of sensitive information, iOS 18 adds the ability to lock and hide apps.

For example, let’s say you keep an ongoing set of lists of gift ideas for family members in the Notes app. You can lock individual notes but that requires a separate step. Maybe a few ideas were made as individual quick notes or drawings. Instead of micromanaging access, you can lock the entire Notes app by doing the following:

Touch and hold the app icon you want to lock and choose Require Face ID or Require Touch ID (or Require Passcode if Face ID or Touch ID are not enabled) from the menu that appears. Confirm your choice by tapping Require Face ID (or similar) in the next dialog.

To remove the authentication step, touch and hold the app and choose Don’t Require Face ID (or similar).

Nothing outwardly indicates that an app is locked — you’ll find out when you try to open it. There’s one more level of app security available, which is to hide apps in a special locked folder. Touch and hold the app and choose Require Face ID and then tap Hide and Require Face ID in the dialog. Confirm the action by tapping Hide App on the next screen.

The app disappears from the home screen and gets slotted into a Hidden folder at the bottom of the App Library (swipe left beyond your last home screen to view the App Library). To access apps there, tap the Hidden folder and authenticate with Face ID.

iOS 18 imposes some limitations on hidden apps. Some, such as many of the built-in ones like Notes or Reminders, can only be locked and cannot be hidden at all. Also, the Hidden folder locks itself when you launch an app or swipe away from the App Library.

Turn off Loop Videos in the Photos app

Many apps have implemented a small but annoying (to me) feature, and now Photos under iOS 18.2 has it too: Videos automatically replay when you watch them until you tap the Pause button. That can be fun once or twice, or when viewing short clips. I’m not a fan of having to take action to make them stop each time.

Now I can take action once. Go to Settings > Photos, scroll down until you see Loop Videos and turn the option off. A video will play on its own but then stop at the end as it should.

If you’d rather the video didn’t play at all until you tap the Play button, also turn off Auto-Play Motion in the same Settings screen.

Adjust the view of your calendar

Big new features like locking and hiding apps are great additions but so are the tiny changes that you encounter every day. The Calendar app includes two new ways to view your schedule.

In iOS 18, when you’re in the Month view in portrait orientation, pinch with two fingers to view more or fewer details. As you “zoom in,” individual events appear as colored bars and then as labeled events with times, all while keeping the monthly grid of days and weeks.

The Day view, which breaks down your day hour by hour, now has a new Multi Day view that shows two consecutive days to give you context for what’s coming without turning the phone into landscape orientation and viewing the Week view. Tap the View button at the top of the Single Day view and choose Multi Day from the popup menu.

Improve movie and TV show dialogue in the TV app

Trouble hearing dialogue in movies and television shows isn’t a new problem — for example, Apple TV has had a feature for a while where you can ask Siri, “What did she say?” and it will automatically back up a few seconds, turn on subtitles and replay that section of the video. You can even buy soundbars that can overcome muffled TV speech. There are a lot of reasons it’s harder to hear dialogue but the TV app in iOS 18 includes a high-tech workaround to make dialog easier to discern.

While you’re watching a video in the TV app, tap the More (…) button and then expand the Audio heading in the menu that appears; if the phone is in horizontal orientation, tap the Audio Adjustments button. Tap Enhance Dialogue and choose Enhance or Boost. They each dampen background noise and raise the dialogue’s audio.

These are just a few new features and changes in iOS 18. Check out our broader coverage of Apple Intelligence, more impressions of the system after using it for months and how these all work together with the iPhone 16 models.

Grilled cheese has always been one of those comfort foods that feels impossible to improve. For years, I made mine the same way: butter on bread, cheese in the middle, and a skillet on the stove. It worked, and I never questioned it. Then I tried making it in an air fryer, and suddenly, my “perfect” method didn’t seem so perfect anymore.

The bread comes out evenly golden and crunchy, the cheese melts into a gooey center, and the sandwich feels lighter since it barely needs any butter. The best part? The kitchen doesn’t turn into a hotbox while you cook.

Once you’ve made grilled cheese in an air fryer, it’s hard to go back to the pan. The process is quick, the cleanup is easy, and the results are consistently better. If you’re looking for a simple upgrade to a classic, this might be your new go-to method.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

If you don’t own an air fryer, I recommend Ninja’s glass-bowl model. It’s the best we’ve tested and makes a mean grilled cheese. Making an air fryer grilled cheese is fast and easy and leaves almost no mess. Here’s why your next grilled cheese should start and end in the air fryer.

Why an air fryer grilled cheese works so well

An air fryer is basically a small convection oven with nonstick surfaces, circulating hot air around whatever you put in its basket. Unlike your saute pan or skillet, it cooks from all directions at once and typically in less time. Unlike your oven, it is compact and efficient, heats up quickly and may not even require preheating. 

Your toaster oven could never do this. While toasted cheese is a possibility (and reheated toaster oven pizza is a revelation), grilled cheese is not. Your toaster oven is not designed to support fat on the underside of whatever you’re cooking and you’ll end up with a mess too complicated to clean.

For your grilled cheese, the air fryer is working on both of the bread surfaces and the cheese all at once, resulting in a quicker melt, which adheres the cheese to the bread slices together making for a much easier flip. (Flipping is still recommended but with far less drama.)

The air circulation provides deep crunchiness, not only to the surfaces that received the butter or mayo treatment but to the entire crust. Any inclusions beyond cheese in the interior of the sandwich are also transforming because of the ambient heat. Simply placing a lid on your saute pan or skillet can’t achieve the same results, as the components will become steamed and potentially soggy.

How I make a grilled cheese in the air fryer

• Assemble a grilled cheese as you would otherwise
• Sliced bread
• Sliced or shredded cheese (I like American cheese for a basic grilled cheese and a combo of gruyere and cheddar for an upgrade.)
• Butter or mayonnaise for the outside of the bread slices (dealer’s choice)

For a basic grilled cheese, you can assemble the sandwich in the basket of your air fryer: bread with buttered side down, followed by sliced or shredded cheese, then topped with the final slice with buttered side up.

Set the heat to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and cook for 3 to 6 minutes on each side, flipping halfway through. The already melted cheese will keep your sandwich nicely together during the flip. You can get a lightly golden grilled cheese in less time but I recommend hanging on for 5 to 6 minutes for a deeply crunchy sandwich. 

Another perk of the air fryer is that you can more easily peek to see where you are without adversely affecting the outcome.

The air fryer is even better for a stacked grilled cheese 

This is where the air fryer really shines in the grilled cheese realm. Every element of an upgraded grilled cheese adds a degree of difficulty when trying to cook in a skillet, much of which is mitigated in the safe confines of an air fryer. Thicker bread. Thicker cheese, like hunks of camembert or brie. 

And think of all the great grilled cheese ingredients that can be slippery: apple slices, roasted red peppers, tomatoes, pickles, etc. Any grilled cheese with more than two components can be challenging to flip gracefully in a skillet, even for trained cooks.

To prove a point, I assembled a fancy grilled cheese with camembert, prosciutto and apple slices. (Plus mayonnaise on the exterior, because I was being fancy, and mayo gives your sandwich a little extra tang.) Because of its height, I assembled it fully outside of the air fryer and then carefully placed it in the drawer.

After 6 minutes of air fryer cooking, the flip was seamless and the sophisticated outcome belies the fact that you spent all of one minute assembling the masterpiece. The exterior of the ham even got a little bonus crisping. So the air fryer invites you to go to town with whatever you can dream up for your grilled cheese: cured or cooked ground meats, grilled veggies, various sauces and relishes — you name it. An epic grilled cheese variation is limited only by the confines of your imagination.

Do I need to preheat an air fryer for grilled cheese?

A grilled cheese is a quick-cooking sandwich no matter how you do it so you don’t want to add on minutes of additional time for something that only takes minutes to accomplish. That said, while preheating your air fryer may be a waste of time for certain preparations, I think putting it on for just a minute to heat up the nonstick surface that the sandwich sits on is worthwhile to get that golden crust working right away.

Are there drawbacks to making air fryer grilled cheese?

Depending on your model and size of air fryer, and the shape of bread you choose, it can be tricky to make more than two sandwiches at once, so it might not be the most family-friendly method for making grilled cheese. But for a solo meal or date night, your air fryer is the grilled cheese hack you didn’t know you needed. 

Opening a bottle of wine doesn’t always mean finishing it in one sitting. Maybe you just want a glass with dinner or you’re saving the rest for the weekend. The question is, how long will that open bottle actually stay drinkable before the flavor starts to fade?

The good news is wine doesn’t go bad the instant the cork comes out. With a little care, you can stretch its life for several days. Storing the bottle upright, keeping it sealed tightly, and putting it in the fridge — even if it’s red — slows down the oxidation that dulls flavor.

How long it lasts depends on the style. Whites and rosés usually keep their freshness for up to five days, reds can hang on for three to five, and sparkling wines give you just a short window of one to three days before the bubbles and taste start to drop off.

Here are some invaluable tips on how long your wine can be expected to last, and how to store it to keep it fresh even longer.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

Read more: Need to Find High-Quality Wine on a Budget? Here’s How

Here’s how long wine lasts and how best to store it

Once any bottle of wine stays open beyond the few hours it takes to breathe and decant, its quality begins to deteriorate. That’s why it is crucial to take some steps to preserve its longevity, should you want to finish the remaining beverage before it essentially turns to vinegar.

According to wine educator Rachel Thralls, each wine type requires different storage methods. Here’s a breakdown of the most common.  

Red wine 

Days it will last in the fridge: 3-5

“Red wines can be stored in a cool, dark place with a cork or in your wine fridge or refrigerator,” says Thralls. “The more tannin and acidity the red wine has, the longer it tends to last after opening.”

For example, a lower tannin wine like Pinot Noir won’t last as long as rich reds like Cabernet Sauvignon. 

“Some wines will even improve after the first day open,” Thralls adds. “If you don’t have a wine fridge, your regular fridge is better than letting the wine sit out in a 70-degree room. Just take the red wine out about 10 minutes before you want a glass so it warms up a little. The red wine will also open up in the glass.” 

Full-bodied white wine

Days it will last in the fridge: 2-3

“Full-bodied white wines such as oaked chardonnay and viognier tend to oxidize more quickly because they see more oxygen during their prebottling aging process,” explains Thralls. “Be certain to always keep them corked and in the fridge. If you drink a lot of this type of wine, it’s a really smart idea to also invest in vacuum caps.”

Sparkling wine

Days it will last in the fridge: 1-3

“Sparkling wines lose their carbonation quickly after opening,” says Thralls. “A traditional method sparkling wine such as cava or Champagne (which have more atmospheres of pressure, aka more bubbles) will last a little longer than a tank method sparkling wine like prosecco.” 

Invest in a bouchon (sparkling wine stopper) for best results. If you’re really serious about preserving your Champagne, Coravin makes a bougie sparkling wine preservation system that pumps carbon dioxide back into the bottle to extend its effervescent fridge life by weeks.

Light white, sweet white and rosé wines

Days it will last in the fridge: 4-5 

“Most light white and rosé wines will be drinkable for up to a week when stored in your refrigerator with a cork,” advises Thralls. “You’ll notice the taste will change subtly after the first day as the wine oxidizes. The overall fruit character of the wine will often diminish, becoming less vibrant.” 

Tips for storing wine

The aforementioned guidelines are helpful for any wine novice. Thralls suggests a few general rules to take into consideration with any opened bottle. 

1. Invest in a wine preserver. “They work very well for keeping wine after it’s been opened. You can use the cork and push it back in or try [a product such as] Repour, which removes the oxygen from the bottle.” Coravin wine systems are pricier but these high-tech units actually refill the bottle with argon gas, extending the life of red and white wine for up to a month.

2. Store any open wine in the refrigerator. “Or a wine fridge, if you have one,” says Thralls. “This cold storage will slow down any development of the wine, keeping it fresh. The ideal cellar or wine fridge temperature is 55 degrees Fahrenheit.” 

3. Keep wine away from direct sunlight or sources of heat. “This includes above a refrigerator or oven. It will get ‘cooked’ and ruin the aroma and flavor.” 

Ideal serving temperatures for wine

One could argue that wine temperature depends on personal preference; there are optimal temperatures that somms and wine professionals aim for.

Generally, wine actually tastes better served slightly cool, which applies to whites and reds. This $21 device can chill warm wine (or any other liquid) in seconds.

“The same ideology of experiencing coffees, teas and sparkling waters at different temperatures also applies to wine,” says Thralls, revealing that the more delicate floral aromatics in fine wines can actually be subdued at overly cool temperatures or burn off too quickly when the wine is too warm. 

“If you drink affordable wine most of the time, serving it slightly chilled will disguise most ‘off’ aromas,” she says. “A wine above 70 degrees Fahrenheit will start to smell more alcoholic because of increased ethanol evaporation that occurs as the temperature rises.”

Thralls says that this is a good reason to not fill your wine glass up to the brim. “A typical serving of wine is about 5 ounces and a bottle of wine contains just over 25 ounces, so you should get about five glasses of wine per bottle,” she explains. “The extra space in a typical wine glass is designed to hold the aromas when you swirl and smell your wine, so try and save some space.”

The ideal serving temperatures for each type of wine

Champagne and sparkling wines

Affordable sparkling wines taste best served at 40 to 45 degrees Fahrenheit. If you have a high-quality, more expensive Champagne or sparkling wine, serve at ideal light white wine temperatures, which are slightly warmer.

Light white wines and rosés

Examples of light white wines are Sauvignon Blanc and Pinot Grigio. These wines are best served between 45 to 50 degrees Fahrenheit, slightly cooler than heavier white wines. Rosé wines also taste best and maintain their crispness and acidity at these temperatures.

Heavy whites and light reds

Heavier white wines, such as chardonnay, taste well at a range of temperatures depending on someone’s personal preference, from 48 to 56 degrees Fahrenheit. Oak-aged whites’ fruit tends to taste better when served slightly warmer. Lighter red wines such as Pinot Noir taste better at this cooler end of the spectrum.

Read more: 5 Most Common Wine Drinker Mistakes to Avoid, From a Wine Expert

Medium-bodied reds

Medium-bodied reds, such as merlot, are best served right around 55 degrees Fahrenheit. This temperature is also the ideal cellar temperature. You can grab your bottle right out of your cellar and pour a glass. Keep in mind that wines tend to warm up in the glass as well.

Full-bodied and aged reds

Full-bodied reds such as cabernet sauvignon, syrah and zinfandel are best served between 59 and 68 degrees Fahrenheit. But isn’t that too cold for a red wine? The wine will taste much better if cool and, as Thrall mentioned, the glass will warm the wine as well. 

No matter how you swirl it, a good wine is one that doesn’t end up down the drain. If you must tap out and savor the remainder of your bottle for future imbibing pleasure, take all of these tips into consideration and you’ll never waste money (and precious alcohol) again. Cheers.

Wine expiration FAQ

So, you’ve got Apple TV Plus and you’re looking for some solid sci-fi TV shows to add to your watchlist. Well, look no further. Before you ask, yes, Severance is on this list. But that groundbreaking series is just the tip of the genre iceberg. Want to know more? Well, please, read on.

It’s no secret that Apple’s streaming service (which just raised its monthly price) has flown under the radar for some time. It feels like many of the streamer’s titles show up on the platform without much promotion, waiting for you to discover them for yourself. There is some fun in that. But it can be easy to get stuck in the thick of things, without a clear understanding of which TV show to click play on. 

One thing I’ve noticed with Apple TV Plus’s original programming is that every show — whether it’s a light-hearted space jaunt or dystopian drama — features detailed world-building, creative storytelling and engaging performances. Sci-fi shows such as For All Mankind, Murderbot and Dark Matter immediately come to mind. And, yes, there’s always Severance.

Below, you’ll find CNET’s guide to the best sci-fi shows to watch on Apple TV Plus right now. You could be in the mood for a neo-noir mystery, an epic monster battle or something with a scientific flair. There are choices, choices, choices — so settle in and click play.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source.

Read more: Apple TV Plus Review: Small Library but the Quality Is Top-Notch

Invasion is an epic sci-fi drama about an alien invasion. The detail that makes this series different is its international scope. Now in its third season, the show travels around the world to offer a variety of perspectives on the global threat. The events in the series takes place in real time, adding a sense of urgency to the mix. 

The adaptation of Martha Wells’ bestselling book series, Murderbot Diaries, has already carved a unique niche in Apple TV Plus’s sci-fi library. Starring Alexander Skarsgård (who delivers in everything he’s in) as the murder-y bot in question, the program follows the exploits of a security bot who protects his human clients while secretly watching hours upon hours of TV. If you want action, comedy and science fiction, Murderbot delivers all three.

All six episodes of Dr. Brain were directed by Kim Jee-woon (the director behind I Saw the Devil), which pretty much tells you that this show will be a dark and twisted ride. The series follows a brain scientist named Sewon Koh, who’s found a way to hack into the memories of dead people. This is a medical breakthrough, to be sure, but Sewon is more focused on using this experimental technique to solve the mystery behind a family tragedy. 

Rashida Jones stars as Suzie in Sunny, a series Apple TV Plus describes as a dark comedy. After Suzie’s husband and child mysteriously disappear, she is given a robot to help her grieve. As the show unfolds, Suzie begins to learn her husband’s secrets, leading the program to take a darkly dramatic turn. Presented in a sleek, near-future lens, Sunny feels very Black Mirror-y, which is a good thing.

If Ted Lasso set the stage for quirky comedies on the platform, Severance has to be the title that cemented Apple TV Plus as a streamer devoted to high-concept genre programming. The series follows Mark (Adam Scott), who works for Lumon Industries, a biotech firm that has a unique (albeit terrifying) system to maintain its employees’ work-life balance. Ben Stiller executive produces and directs most of the first season’s episodes, proving once again he’s a stellar talent behind the camera.

Hello Tomorrow! takes place in a retro-future where door-to-door salesmen sell real estate on the moon. The world-building is one of the biggest draws of the series, which unfortunately didn’t get a season 2 renewal. Billy Crudup, Allison Pill, Dawshane Williams, Hank Azaria and Susan Heyward make up the show’s strong cast.

What would life be like if the space race never stopped? That’s the big question For All Mankind answers. The prestige sci-fi drama occurs in an alternate reality where America and the Soviets compete for outer-space dominance. Thanks to the always creative vision of show creator Ronald D. Moore and the committed performances of its epic ensemble cast, this is probably the best science fiction series you’re not watching.

What if we did things differently? We’ve all asked ourselves that question at least once throughout our lives. That question comes to life in Dark Matter, a high-concept twisted series based on Blake Crouch’s book. The series stars Joel Edgerton as Jason, a college professor who suffers a strange assault that alters his life and reality. Jennifer Connelly, Jimmi Simpson and Alice Braga co-star alongside him in a show that’ll keep you guessing until the season’s finale.

Monarch: Legacy of Monsters

The Godzilla universe finally came to TV in this Apple TV Plus series. Monarch: Legacy of Monsters seeks to reveal the organization’s secrets as they connect to the monsters who leveled San Francisco. Kurt Russell stars in his first role in a TV series in nearly five decades. Here, he and his son Wyatt play Army officer Lee Shaw in the 1950s and present day. The monsters and Russell’s star power alone are reasons enough to tune in.

The Last Days of Ptolemy Grey

Samuel L. Jackson pivots away from the superhero genre to bring topics of age and dementia to the forefront. Here, he plays Ptolemy Grey, an aging man with Alzheimer’s. Thanks to the support of an orphaned teen and the progressive research of an extraordinary doctor, Ptolemy can regain his wits to get closure in his own life while also looking for answers to his nephew’s sudden death.

Using Hugh Howey’s book trilogy as inspiration, Silo explores a dystopian future world where humanity’s survivors live in an underground structure. Varied classist drama permeates the underground city. Population control, a murder mystery and the potentially lethal world outside keep the show humming. Rebecca Ferguson, Common and Tim Robbins lead the ensemble cast.

Apple TV Plus did the unthinkable in adapting Isaac Asimov’s epic sci-fi book series. But the streamer pulled it off. Jared Harris plays Hari Seldon, an exiled math professor, for predicting the fall of the Galactic Empire. Lee Pace delivers a formidable performance as Brother Day. The space drama follows Seldon and his followers as they fight to save humanity.

Jason Momoa flexes his acting chops in See. The program, created by Peaky Blinders mastermind Steven Knight, explores a dystopian future where humanity has lost the ability to see. The loss of sight doesn’t slow down people’s ability to battle, and it surely is a spectacle to see blind warriors wield weapons for war. Momoa’s charisma and passion shine through, which makes the show enjoyable, even if it is a hard-to-believe concept.

Mark Protosevich, the writer responsible for movies like Thor, I Am Legend and The Cell, created Sugar — a series that wears its love for the film noir genre on its sleeve. Visually, Sugar is a delight. Add Colin Farrell’s soft-spoken, empathetic private investigator to the mix, and you have a stylish murder mystery with patience and compassion. An unexpected twist flips the show on its head later in the series, transforming the story into something else entirely. 

We keep collecting more details about what Apple’s first foldable iPhone will look like when it launches in 2026. The latest information is pretty intriguing.

As reported by Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, the foldable is code-named “V68.” It will have four cameras and be available only in black-and-white variations. The device will also rely on Touch ID (not Face ID) and will not have a SIM card slot. The four cameras will consist of one on the front, two on the back, and one on the inside.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Don’t miss any of our unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add CNET as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

The report collects the latest news about the Fold, Flip or whatever Apple calls its first foldable. We’ve already reported that the phone will cost nearly $2,000 and will be released as part of the iPhone 18 bonanza in September 2026. We have words of warning for Apple as it prepares to become the final major mobile player to jump into the foldable phone pool, with rivals Samsung and Huawei already having taken a big lead in the race.

Watch this: Apple’s Foldable iPhone Said to Use Samsung Parts

05:05

Moving beyond the iPhone ‘rectangle’

Jon Rettinger, a tech influencer with over 1.65 million YouTube subscribers, is enthused about Apple finally adding a new-look item to its product line.

“The beauty of Android has always been a variance of form factors,” Rettinger told CNET. “You have flips, folds, even rolls now. On the Apple side of the fence, it’s just been, ‘What size rectangle do you want?’ I, for one, am beyond excited about the prospect of Apple diving into the foldable space.”

Rettinger admires the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, calling it “about as close to the perfect foldable as possible.” But he thinks that Apple can help disrupt the segment with its own version.

“Apple is entering a mature market with its first product. The tolerance for first-time issues, especially at an anticipated high price, will be extremely low,” he says. “However, if they ship a competitive product, I think they’ll have an absolute home run on their hands.”

Let’s bite into the details of the latest Apple iPhone foldable rumors. Bloomberg says Apple has changed course on the screen tech. The company is no longer going with on-cell touch sensors, which “can create air gaps between the screen and its cover” and thereby increase the visibility of a crease — one of the biggest pitfalls of foldable phones so far with all brands.

Instead, Apple will use an in-cell touchscreen, similar to what current iPhones use. The company believes this will enhance touch accuracy and reduce the visibility of the crease.

The report also says the iPhone foldable will utilize a C2 modem, Apple’s first cellular chip with “capabilities approaching the latest from Qualcomm.”

Like Rettinger, fellow influencer Austin Evans, who has 5.68 million YouTube subscribers, is also “really excited” about the iPhone foldable and is “curious about how Apple will differentiate,” Evans told CNET.

“The biggest thing I’d like to see is for it to turn into an iPad mode when open,” Evans said. “Especially if they include Pencil support.”

Your kidneys are working nonstop, handling far more than most people give them credit for. They clear waste from your blood, balance fluid levels, regulate hormones, and even influence things like blood pressure and energy.

Even though they’re essential, kidney health doesn’t always get the focus it should. The CDC estimates that more than 1 in 7 adults in the US are living with chronic kidney disease, and many of them don’t even know it. That’s why prevention and daily care are so important.

Taking simple steps now can help protect your kidneys and keep them functioning well for years to come. A few small, consistent habits can go a long way toward lowering your risk and supporting overall health.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

Fortunately, you don’t need to make dramatic lifestyle changes to support kidney health. Incorporating a handful of nutrient-rich superfoods into your regular meals can make a significant difference. These foods help reduce inflammation, support healthy blood flow, and ease the load on your kidneys so they can keep doing their job. If you’re looking to give your kidneys the boost they need, these 13 simple additions to your diet are a great way to start.

Your diet and gut health also play a major role in your wellness, especially when it comes to keeping your kidneys healthy. There are 13 superfoods you should keep in mind when considering natural ways to give your kidney health a boost. 

Read more: 6 Important Blood Tests You May Need for Your Overall Health

13 superfoods for kidney health

1. Cabbage

This nutrient-dense vegetable is low in both potassium and sodium while packing in fiber, vitamins C and K and more.

Plus, cabbage is versatile. You can use it in salads and slaws, but you can also use it as a wrap for tacos, sandwiches and more.

2. Fatty fish

Fish delivers protein, and when you choose a fatty fish like tuna, salmon or trout, you’re also getting omega-3 fatty acids. Omega-3 fats may help reduce fat levels (triglycerides) in the blood and may also lower blood pressure, according to the National Kidney Foundation.

If you have CKD, you may need to keep an eye on the phosphorus and potassium levels of the fish you choose. The National Kidney Foundation has a chart you can use to determine levels in specific types of fish. Although, it’s best to consult with your doctor.

3. Bell peppers

Like cabbage, bell peppers pack in lots of good nutrients with low levels of potassium. With them, you get vitamins B6, B9, C and K, plus fiber. They deliver antioxidants too.

You can slice them and eat them with dips or roast them and add them to dinner.

4. Cranberries

Cranberries help to prevent urinary tract infections. These usually stay in your bladder, they can travel up to your kidney, making kidney problems worse. Fortunately, regularly consuming cranberries can help you avoid this unwelcome situation.

Plus, cranberries have antioxidants that can help fight inflammation, and they can boost your heart and digestive health. It turns out, these tart berries aren’t just for the Thanksgiving table.

5. Blueberries

We’ve talked about some of the best foods for kidneys, but you can take it a step further. The question is: What foods help repair kidneys? Blueberries deliver.

With high levels of antioxidants and loads of vitamin C and fiber, blueberries are all-around healthy. They can also help to reduce inflammation and support bone health, reversing some of the issues that can come with CKD.

6. Dark, leafy greens

There are plenty of reasons to turn to dark, leafy greens like spinach or kale. They deliver so many nutrients that they can help you get key vitamins and minerals, plus immunity-boosting benefits.

Be advised that greens can come with a decent amount of potassium. If you have CKD, talk to your doctor before adding more of these to your diet.

7. Olive oil

Rich in antioxidants and healthy fatty acids, olive oil can boost your overall wellness. A study from Harvard University found that olive oil may lower cholesterol levels and the risk of cardiovascular disease, dementia and some types of cancer.

Beyond all this, it can help you add flavor to dishes without turning to salt or butter. To get more antioxidants, choose unrefined or cold-pressed olive oil that’s virgin or extra virgin.

8. Garlic

Another antioxidant-rich, inflammation-fighting food, garlic also contains a specific compound called allicin. For people with CKD, allicin — an active compound found in garlic — worked just as effectively to help protect kidney health as a prescription drug. If you’re looking for the best foods for your kidneys, garlic has to make the list.

Plus, it’s an excellent way to add flavor when you’re skimping on salt.

9. Onions

From the same family as garlic, onions give you another excellent and salt-free way to add flavor (bonus points if you saute them in olive oil). Onions also deliver important nutrients like vitamins B6 and C, manganese and copper.

They also contain quercetin, a chemical that can help your body fight cancer, and organic sulfur compounds that can reduce your risk of high blood pressure, stroke and heart disease.

10. Cauliflower

Cauliflower brings the crunch, paired with plenty of vitamins C, B6, B9 and K, along with fiber. It also contains compounds your body can use to neutralize certain toxins, a big help when your kidneys aren’t doing their best filtration work.

Cauliflower does contain some potassium and phosphorus, though, so while it makes the list of foods good for kidneys, people with CKD may want to moderate their intake.

11. Egg whites

Egg whites are specifically recommended for people with kidney problems. They give you a way to increase your protein levels — which can be important with later-stage CKD, especially if you’re on dialysis.

12. Arugula

Arugula is packed with nutrients your body needs like magnesium, iron, calcium and vitamins A, B9, C and K. Plus, it’s antioxidant-rich and has glucosinolates, which can help your body protect itself against a range of cancer types.

You can eat arugula raw (it’s a great salad base), but you can also sprinkle it over whatever you’re whipping up. It’s great on pizzas, in omelets and with pasta, for example.

13. Apples

Apples deliver the cancer-fighting quercetin and fiber that can help to keep your cholesterol and blood sugar at healthy levels. They’ve got plenty of antioxidants.

Better yet, they’re easy to work into your diet. Leave a bowl of apples on your counter and you’ll have a kidney-healthy, grab-and-go snack whenever you need one.

Looking for the most recent Strands answer? Click here for our daily Strands hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle, Connections and Connections: Sports Edition puzzles.

Some students have been back to school for weeks, but others see that first day looming large. Today’s NYT Strands puzzle has a timely related theme. If you need hints and answers, read on.

I go into depth about the rules for Strands in this story. 

If you’re looking for today’s Wordle, Connections and Mini Crossword answers, you can visit CNET’s NYT puzzle hints page.

Read more: NYT Connections Turns 1: These Are the 5 Toughest Puzzles So Far

Hint for today’s Strands puzzle

Today’s Strands theme is: Back to school.

If that doesn’t help you, here’s a clue: Stock your locker.

Clue words to unlock in-game hints

Your goal is to find hidden words that fit the puzzle’s theme. If you’re stuck, find any words you can. Every time you find three words of four letters or more, Strands will reveal one of the theme words. These are the words I used to get those hints but any words of four or more letters that you find will work:

• PACK, PACT, TOLL, LAPS, SLAP, SLAT, LOST, BOOK, BOOKS, CRAP

Answers for today’s Strands puzzle

These are the answers that tie into the theme. The goal of the puzzle is to find them all, including the spangram, a theme word that reaches from one side of the puzzle to the other. When you have all of them (I originally thought there were always eight but learned that the number can vary), every letter on the board will be used. Here are the nonspangram answers:

• LAPTOP, FOLDERS, BACKPACK, NOTEBOOKS, CALCULATOR

Today’s Strands spangram

Today’s Strands spangram is SUPPLIES. To find it, look for the S that is five letters down on the far-right row, and wind backwards.

With fall right around the corner and cooler weather on the way, you’ll probably use less energy than you did during the peak of summer. Still, if high utility bills have already stretched your budget and you’re feeling the pressure, you’re not alone. This CNET survey found that more than 78% of US adults are worried about the cost of their home energy use.

The good news is that there are simple, expert-backed strategies that can help cut those expenses without sacrificing comfort. By making a few small changes, you can lower your monthly costs and keep your home running more efficiently year-round.

With that said, there are plenty of ways you can still save on gas, electricity and water in the coming months. Even small habits, like unplugging unused appliances, washing your clothes a different way, cooking with some energy-saving appliances or setting your thermostat to the right temperature can help save money and make your home more energy-efficient.

Here are eight steps you can take to start saving electricity, gas, water — and cash. For additional money-saving tips, check out more on how to weatherstrip your home to save on bills and a simple home upgrade that can help you save on summer cooling costs.

1. Get an electricity audit

Many electric companies offer a free audit, where they do a room-by-room examination of your home and look at your electricity bills to help determine where you’re wasting energy. You can follow the recommendations to help reduce your electric bill. If you can’t get an audit for free, you might still be able to qualify it under the energy efficient home improvement credit and recoup the costs during tax season.

Even if your electric company doesn’t provide this service, you can easily perform a DIY home energy audit using the US Department of Energy website’s instructions.

2. Adjust your thermostat

One of the simplest ways to reduce your electricity bill is to adjust your thermostat. According to the Department of Energy, you can save as much as 10% on your heating and cooling costs by adjusting your thermostat by 7 to 10 degrees for 8 hours per day. In other words, keep it a bit warmer in the summer and a bit cooler in the winter.

A simple way to do this is to adjust your thermostat when you’re either asleep or away from home. If you have a smart thermostat, you can preset your thermostat to adjust during these hours so you don’t forget.

3. Turn down your water heater

Many water heater manufacturers set thermostats at 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 C). But in reality, most households only need it set at a maximum of 120 Fahrenheit. Setting your water heater to a lower temperature can save hundreds of dollars a year.

Adjusting a water heater’s temperature is a quick and easy fix. The thermostat dial on your water heater is likely near the bottom of the tank on the electric or gas control valve. Be sure to check the owner’s manual for instructions to adjust it — and if you have any questions, consult a professional technician.

4. Turn off and unplug what you aren’t using

By leaving things around your house plugged in and turned on when you aren’t using them, you’re driving up your electric bill unnecessarily.

You can start by turning off lights when you aren’t in the room or when it’s light enough outside to rely solely on natural light. Multiply your light bulb’s wattage by what your electricity provider charges per kilowatt to find out how much you’re saving. That amount only increases with the wattage of the bulb. While it doesn’t seem like much, it can add up over time.

You can also save money by unplugging appliances you aren’t using. Phantom energy, the energy your appliances use when they’re plugged in but not turned on, can cost an average of $100 per year.

5. Use your dishwasher

It might sound counterintuitive to suggest running an appliance to save on your electricity bill. And yes, there was a time where dishwashers used far more water than they do today. But the Department of Energy regulates how much water modern dishwashers can use. Any dishwasher manufactured since 2013 is limited to using 5 gallons of water. If it’s a compact size dishwasher, it’s limited to 3.5 gallons.

You might think that surely you use less than 5 gallons of water to hand-wash your dishes. But the US Geological Survey estimates that it takes anywhere from 9 to 27 gallons of water to hand-wash a load of dishes. (If you’re curious, we’ve also got a tip on how to load your dishwasher the right way.)

6. Take advantage of off-peak rates

Electricity use tends to be higher during certain times of the day and the year. First, demand is higher in the winter and summer when people are running heaters and air conditioners. It’s also higher during the daytime and evening hours.

Some electricity companies offer time-of-use plans, increasing rates during peak hours and decreasing them during off-peak hours. If you have one of these plans, you can save money by running large appliances like your dishwasher and washing machine early in the morning or late at night.

7. Change your air filters

Your air filter helps to catch any dirt, dust, pet hair and more, preventing it from making its way into your HVAC. When you don’t change your air filters regularly enough, this debris gets into your HVAC system and bogs it down, reducing its efficiency. According to the Department of Energy, replacing your filters on schedule can lower your air conditioner’s energy consumption by anywhere from 5% to 15%.

8. More ways to save on your bills

There are many steps, big and small, that you can take to reduce your consumption and save money on your bills. The Department of Energy has an entire section of its website devoted to providing tips to help you save on energy. And while plenty of them come with a price tag, there are many more just like those on this list that you can do for free.

For more, check out the ceiling fan trick that can help your house stay cooler this summer, and you can also explore our solar cheat sheet.

More energy and money saving tips

Looking for the most recent regular Connections answers? Click here for today’s Connections hints, as well as our daily answers and hints for The New York Times Mini Crossword, Wordle and Strands puzzles.

Today’s Connections: Sports Edition might be tough. Not sure how many people who play this are up on Six Nations Rugby. Read on for hints and the answers.

Connections: Sports Edition is out of beta now, making its debut on Super Bowl Sunday, Feb. 9. That’s a sign that the game has earned enough loyal players that The Athletic, the subscription-based sports journalism site owned by the Times, will continue to publish it. It doesn’t show up in the NYT Games app but now appears in The Athletic’s own app. Or you can continue to play it free online.  

Read more: NYT Connections: Sports Edition Puzzle Comes Out of Beta

Hints for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Here are four hints for the groupings in today’s Connections: Sports Edition puzzle, ranked from the easiest yellow group to the tough (and sometimes bizarre) purple group.

Yellow group hint: Big win.

Green group hint: Think scrums.

Blue group hint: Good catch!

Purple group hint: College towns.

Answers for today’s Connections: Sports Edition groups

Yellow group: Decisive victory.

Green group: Countries in Six Nations Rugby.

Blue group: Names of NFL WRs.

Purple group: Big 12 school locations.

Read more: Wordle Cheat Sheet: Here Are the Most Popular Letters Used in English Words

What are today’s Connections: Sports Edition answers?

The yellow words in today’s Connections

The theme is decisive victory. The four answers are blowout, landslide, romp and runaway.

The green words in today’s Connections

The theme is countries in Six Nations Rugby. The four answers are England, France, Ireland and Wales.

The blue words in today’s Connections

The theme is names of NFL WRs. The four answers are Ceedee, Ladd, Puka and Rome.

The purple words in today’s Connections

The theme is Big 12 school locations. The four answers are Ames, Lawrence, Manhattan and Morgantown.

Meta is diving into AI video generation with a splash. The company will work with and license models from Midjourney AI, one of the most popular AI image and video companies.

Alexandr Wang, Meta’s chief AI officer, revealed the partnership in a post on X Friday. It’s still unclear when a possible Meta x Midjourney model could be available for people to use.

Meta teased a possible tool, MovieGen, at its 2024 Connect event, but we haven’t heard much since. Right now, you can upload an existing file or image, or you can choose to “restyle” an existing video, which allows Meta to create a new version of your video with a different aesthetic or background, for example. But there’s no straightforward, wholesale creation tool. That’s different from competitors like OpenAI and Google, which let AI enthusiasts prompt with text and images to create with Sora and Veo 3.

Read more: AI Essentials: 29 Ways You Can Make Gen AI Work for You, According to Our Experts

Creative software companies like Runway, Luma and Pika have also bolstered their products, driving a new wave of AI products throughout the past year. Meta and Midjourney’s partnership is the latest sign that AI video is a key component in the ever-competitive race to entice users with the most advanced AI products. 

Midjourney is a household name in AI image creation, and I was fairly impressed with its new AI video model when I tested it earlier this summer. It’s also emblematic of another trend in AI media in that it’s embroiled in a massive copyright infringement lawsuit. Disney and Universal sued the company in June, writing that the program was “a bottomless pit of plagiarism” and that it allowed users to create imagery featuring protected characters like Yoda and Shrek. Meta faced a similar claim, with a group of authors alleging that the company used its copyrighted content without permission to train its AI. But the court ruled Meta’s actions were justified as fair use.

So far, Meta’s focus has been on integrating its chatbot into its social media platforms, like Instagram and Facebook. Its AI models, named Llama, have competed with OpenAI’s GPT-5 and Google’s Gemini. But this summer, the company has supercharged its efforts in AI, spending billions to poach top AI talent and reorganize its internal team structure. The Midjourney partnership is one of the first major moves from the new team, and it could point to how that new team is going to be approaching innovation. For Meta, working with one of the most popular AI media companies could give it the boost it needs.

Months of waiting and sorting through numerous leaks finally paid off on Wednesday, as Google unveiled the Pixel 10 phone lineup at its Made by Google 2025 event. Not only did we finally get details about the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, Pixel 10 Pro XL, Pixel 10 Pro Fold, Pixel Watch 4 and Pixel Buds 2A, it was all wrapped up in a tech event that was — dare we admit — actually fun.

Hosted by The Tonight Show’s Jimmy Fallon in a format more like the talk show he’s famous for, the tech event included presenters and celebrity guests who didn’t look like they were delivering a script they’d been rehearsing for weeks. Everyone seemed to actually enjoy themselves as they revealed Google’s latest products. And yes, AI played a big part, too, but it wasn’t the unrelenting focus of the show.

If you missed the event, you can catch the whole thing at YouTube, or get right to the important stuff and read on for more details.

Don’t miss any of CNET’s unbiased tech content and lab-based reviews. Add us as a preferred Google source on Chrome.

Watch this: Everything Announced at Made by Google 2025 in 7 Minutes

06:58

Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL are real

Surprise — Google announced new phones! OK, this was the least surprising part of the event, but it still feels good to finally know what exists and when it’s coming. The phones keep the same looks as the Pixel 9 series, but they’re powered by new Tensor G5 processors that Google says is more powerful and simultaneously power-efficient.

On the base Pixel 10, however, there’s a surprise just barely visible in the camera bar: a new dedicated telephoto camera that joins the existing wide and ultrawide cameras. It shares the same 5x optical zoom as the pro models, but with a lower-resolution sensor and a lens with a narrower aperture.

Preorders for the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro and Pixel 10 Pro XL began yesterday and the phones will be in stores and shipping starting Aug. 28. Read our hands-on coverage of the phones here:

Pixel 10 Pro Fold opens Google’s next chapter of foldables

Folding phones so far have had an Achilles’ hinge: small particulates like sand can get inside the case and mess things up. The Pixel 10 Pro Fold is one of the first to have an IP68 rating for dust and water resistance, meaning you can take your $1,800 phone to the beach. Or maybe make that the pumpkin patch, because the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is arriving later than the other Pixel 10 phones, on Oct. 9. You can preorder it now.

That sealed-against-the-elements approach does mean Google made a tradeoff: Compared to the svelte Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, the Pixel 10 Pro Fold is larger and heavier — but it also contains a more robust 5,015-mAh battery. It’s $200 cheaper than Samsung’s foldable, too. 

Pixel Watch 4 talks to Gemini and is your new health coach

The Pixel Watch 4 has new fitness options including real-time guidance while exercising. And if you forgot to start a workout, the watch (with AI help) can detect the activity in the background and remind you of it later, giving you credit for the effort you made. It’s also the only smartwatch that can detect a loss of pulse and call emergency services automatically. 

The smartwatch, which comes in 41mm and 45mm sizes, also has Gemini on board. “You don’t have to repeat yourself, you don’t have to switch to a robo-voice,” said CNET’s Vanessa Hand Orellana in her first-look video. It also includes emergency satellite texting if you find yourself out of cellular range with a dead phone battery.

 Like the Pixel 10 Pro Fold, the Pixel Watch 4 models can be preordered now but won’t arrive until Oct. 9.

Pixel Buds 2A are more affordable earbuds

Joining the Pixel Buds 2 Pro in the market are the Pixel Buds 2A, an affordable ($130) pair of wireless earbuds that offer active noise cancellation, a smaller and lighter overall build and a twist-to-adjust stabilizer feature for setting a comfortable fit.

How do they differ from the Pixel Buds Pro 2? CNET’s David Carmoy writes, “While the Pixel Buds 2A are also powered by Google Tensor A1 chip, they’re missing a microphone in each bud (they have two mics per bud while the Buds Pro 2 have three) and the Buds 2A leave off wireless charging, a voice accelerometer, head tracking for spatial audio and a ringtone speaker in the case for Find My Device. They do add the ability to replace the battery in the charging case.”

They’re available for preorder now in hazel and iris colors, and ship Oct. 9.

Pixel Buds Pro 2 owners will see new features

Coming in a software update next month, owners of Pixel Buds Pro 2 will be able to answer calls or send them to voicemail with a nod or shake of the head. You’ll be able to talk to Gemini live in noisy locations, and benefit from adaptive audio that applies noise cancellation while letting important sounds come through. At the other end, a new feature will protect your hearing from loud sounds.

Magic Cue is a Gemini assistant that pulls data from your correspondence

In the rollout of all the various AI technologies in the industry, the current stretch goal is “agentic” interactions with software: Having an AI that knows all sorts of details about you and can act to get the important stuff in front of you when needed. (And do it in a privacy-first way, one hopes.)

Magic Cue is Google’s implementation. It’s a new Gemini-based feature that can look through your earlier messages, emails and photos to pull details about things like restaurant reservations and flight times. Magic Cue runs on the Pixel device itself, so sensitive data stays private and not shared to the cloud.

A lot of Gemini AI intelligence is still coming soon

At the start of the event, Fallon sat down in typical talk-show format with Rick Osterloh, senior vice president of platforms and devices, to chat about Gemini and the marvels of AI. Aside from Magic Cue, which will be shipping on the Pixel 10 phones, a lot of the features and products we’ve been hearing about are still on the horizon.

“For instance, Gemini could do something like plan a team celebration dinner for 12 people tonight,” he said. “It might go find a restaurant that’ll accommodate that group. … Look for a karaoke place nearby and maybe even order custom T-shirts for the celebration.”

And when will that be possible? Fallon asked. “A lot sooner than people think,” Osterloh replied. “This kind of thing is coming this year.”

The Pixel 10 Pro and 10 Pro XL can zoom to 100x with AI help

Pro Res Zoom on the Pixel 10 Pro phones pushes zooming far beyond what would seem to be possible with typical small cameras. Usually when you zoom beyond the optical limits of the cameras, details get fuzzy as the software upscales the image. With Pro Res Zoom, when you go beyond 30x zoom, it uses generative AI to build a sharper version. CNET’s Andrew Lanxon got both impressive and head-scratching results while taking photos in Paris using the Pixel 10 Pro XL.

Camera Coach uses AI to encourage better photos

Smartphone cameras have employed AI for several years, such as identifying subjects in order to blur the background for Portrait modes or quickly snapping several shots at multiple exposures and blending them together to create well-balanced lighting throughout. Now Google is using AI to help you take better photos.

Camera Coach is a new feature in the Pixel Camera app that looks at the scene in front of the lens and generates multiple suggestions for how to improve the photo before it’s captured. To show this off, podcaster Alex Cooper brought Fallon out to be her model and sat him down on a couch. When she activated the feature, Camera Coach suggested that she move the camera closer to the subject, position his head in the upper portion of the frame, lower the camera to eye level and turn on Portrait mode.

“To all the girls that are watching, I personally know how hard it is to train your boyfriend or your husband to get that perfect shot,” said Cooper. “And now Camera Coach can just train all the boys for us.”

Don’t call it MagSafe: Pixelsnap brings Qi2 magnetic charging to the Pixel 10

The Qi2 spec includes not just faster charging but also an array of magnets on the back for connecting to accessories. Sound familiar? The presenters mentioned Apple’s MagSafe system, then paused with the realization that they probably shouldn’t have name-checked it during the Google event. On the Pixel 10 phones, it’s called Pixelsnap and should work with accessories made for Apple’s ecosystem too.

Gemini live translation, and the Pixel 10 will be available in Mexico

In an impressive segment demonstrating Gemini live translation during a phone call, musician Karen Polinesia announced, in Spanish and translated by the technology, that for the first time, the Pixel 10 will be available for sale in Mexico.

This article is being updated; stay tuned for more.

If you’re bound and determined to spend less than $1,000 on a gaming laptop, and you want one with a GPU from Nvidia’s latest GeForce RTX 50 series, then among your limited options is the MSI Katana 15 HX. This 15.6-inch laptop features RTX 5050 graphics and is regularly discounted to $999 at Walmart. It proved to be a strong overall performer, especially for its price, including solid 1080p frame rates. While I was impressed with its performance, I found it hard to overlook some of its shortcomings. 

As soon as I pulled it out of the box, I was surprised by the bulk and heft of the laptop. It’s nearly a pound heavier than the Acer Nitro V 16S AI, which has a larger (and more modern) 16-inch, 16:10 display. The Katana 15 HX’s display is an old-school 15.6-inch, 16:9 panel, and as soon as I powered it on, I was greeted with a dim image — and that was with brightness already turned all the way up. Other budget touches include a 512GB SSD that I quickly filled to capacity after installing only a handful of games and a fuzzy 720p webcam that’s sorely outdated.

The Katana 15 HX delivers on the top priority of any gaming laptop, providing good 3D performance for the price. But you don’t have to look very far for very long to find its limitations. None are deal breakers, however, and if you have only $1,000 to spend on a gaming laptop and don’t want one with previous-gen graphics, then the Katana 15 HX certainly fits the bill. For about $300 more, however, the Acer Nitro V 16S AI or Lenovo Legion 5i each offers a more well-rounded package.

MSI sells a few fixed configurations of the Katana 15 HX B14W. I tested the entry-level model, which is sold at Walmart for $1,200 but is regularly on sale for $999. It features an Intel Core i7-14650HX and RTX 5050 graphics, along with 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. The display is a 15.6-inch IPS LCD with a 1,920×1,080-pixel resolution and a 144Hz refresh rate. 

Also at Walmart is a $1,499 model that bumps you up to an RTX 5070 GPU, 1TB SSD and a higher-resolution (2,560×1,440 pixels) and faster (165Hz) display.

The MSI Katana 15 HX B14W starts at £1,399 in the UK and AU$2,199 in Australia. 

MSI Katana 15 HX B14W performance

With its 14th-gen Core i7 CPU that has 16 cores and 24 threads and RTX 5050 GPU with 8GB of dedicated video memory and set at its max TDP of 155 watts, the Katana 15 HX B14W provides excellent bang for your buck. It handled our application benchmarks without breaking a sweat, and on the tests that really matter — our 3D gaming benchmarks — it managed to keep pace with a pair of pricier budget gaming models, the Acer Nitro V 16S AI and Lenovo Legion 5i, that feature RTX 5060 graphics.

The Katana 15 HX B14W produced excellent 1080p frame rates on our Shadow of the Tomb Raider and Guardians of the Galaxy benchmarks and actually outpaced the Acer Nitro V 16S AI, whose RTX 5060 is more capable than the Katana’s RTX 5060 but set at a lower TDP of 85 watts, which limits its performance.

The Katana 15 HX B14W excelled on our F1 24 benchmark, hitting an average of 104 frames per second at 1080p with the Ultra High quality setting. That was better than the Lenovo Legion 5i 15IRX10 (82fps) and Acer Nitro V 16S AI (74fps). 

The Katana 15 HX B14W fell behind these two competitors on our Assassin’s Creed: Shadows benchmark, each of which managed to exceed 60fps at 1080p with High settings. The Katana averaged only 53fps with the same settings. But, you’ve got a couple of options to get smooth 1080p gameplay with Shadows on the Katana 15 HX. When I dropped the quality setting to Medium, I averaged 65fps. The other move is to use AI upscaling, and with DLSS enabled, I was able to average 66fps at the highest Ultra High setting. 

Keeping thermals in check is a challenge for any gaming laptop, and the Katana 15 HX B14W with its full-wattage RTX 5050 GPU certainly relies on its two cooling fans. Under normal load, the fans kicked in only occasionally, but they were a near-constant presence during games. They get pretty loud, but a good pair of headphones will allow you to largely ignore them.

Battery life is rarely impressive on a gaming laptop, with the focus on power over efficiency. The Katana 15 HX B14W lasted a little over 6 hours on our YouTube streaming battery drain test, which isn’t great but about an hour longer than we got with last year’s MSI Cyborg 15.

Budget touches abound

The Katana 15 HX’s strength is the performance it provides for the price. Where it falls short is in the design and features departments. 

I wasn’t surprised to find an all-plastic design, given the low price, but I was taken aback by the heft of the system. It’s thick at over an inch (more when you include the chunky rubber feet on which it rests) and tips the scales at more than 5.5 pounds, which is heavy for a laptop of this size. The Lenovo Legion 5i has a slightly smaller 15.1-inch display and is more than a pound lighter at 4.3 pounds. And even with a larger 16-inch display, the Acer Nitro V 16S AI is almost a pound lighter than the Katana 15 HX.

Another area where the Katana 15 HX shows its budget status is the display. MSI outfitted it with a 15.6-inch, 16:9 display that feels behind the times, as most laptops have moved to a taller 16:10 panel. It suffices for 1080p gaming, and the 144Hz refresh keeps things looking smooth. The overall picture looks a bit muted, however, because of the display’s limited brightness. I measured peak brightness with a Spyder X Elite colorimeter at only 280 nits. Though not uncommon on cheaper laptops, I look for a minimum of 300 nits and really like to be closer to 400 nits. The Acer Nitro V 16S AI and Lenovo Legion 5i were each considerably brighter. The Nitro V hit 443 nits, and the Legion 5i’s OLED panel achieved a peak of 518 nits. Basically, if you need a better display, you’ll need to attach the Katana’s HDMI output to an external one or buy a different laptop.

The webcam is another decidedly budget touch on the Katana 15 HX. While most laptops in 2025 offer at least a 1080p camera, you’re stuck with a fuzzy 720p cam here. It produces a grainy image and lacks an IR sensor that would let you use facial recognition to use with Windows Hello. And without a fingerprint reader, the Katana 15 HX is completely devoid of biometrics for easy, secure logins.

Three other budget items to report:

• The 2-watt stereo speakers produce underwhelming sound; use headphones instead, preferably with active noise cancellation to neutralize the fan noise. 
• The 512GB SSD can fill up fast after installing just a couple of games. There’s no room for another drive, but you can easily swap it out for a larger-capacity SSD down the road.
• There are no Thunderbolt 4 ports; the fastest you get is a USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port that provides only 10Gbps speed.

Let’s end with a positive: The keyboard isn’t terrible. It feels roomy, and the keys offer shallow travel but with enough of a satisfying snap when pressed or mashed to be serviceable. And you get four-zone RGB LED lighting when many budget gaming laptops offer only a single zone. With four brightness levels for the RGB lighting, you can dial in the effect to match the ambient lighting of your gaming setup. Ten keys — the WASD keys, four arrow keys, spacebar and power button — offer translucent or partially translucent keycaps to let more color shine through. 

Lastly, despite the presence of a number pad, you get four full-size arrow keys, which are a necessity on a gaming laptop. Three keys were shortened, however, to accommodate the four arrow keys and numpad — the right-Shift, Copilot and Function keys — and I wish they were dropped down away from the other keys to make them easier to locate by touch. 

Is the MSI Katana 15 HX B14W a good budget gaming laptop?

If you want the best frame rates for the lowest price, then it’s a solid pick. But you’ll need to live with some budget touches, the worst of which is the dim display. If you can extend your gaming laptop budget from $1,000 to around $1,300, then the Acer Nitro V 16S AI or Lenovo Legion 5i provides a brighter display, lighter design, higher-resolution webcam and bump to RTX 5060 graphics along with double the RAM and storage.