Microsoft Build summary: 4 big announcements you’ll want to know

Microsoft Build 2025 is almost at an end. Microsoft’s annual developer conference might be aimed at software engineers and cloud devs, but realistically, there’s plenty in there to dig into even if you don’t work as a programmer. Unsurprisingly, the theme throughout the conference this year (and for some years previous now) has been AI. In his opening keynote, Microsoft’s CEO Satya Nadella highlighted the importance of AI and the company’s plan of “building the open, agentic web at scale....

July 31, 2025 · 5 min · 888 words · Charles Garza

New Google Maps features offer a preview of doom-conscious tech

If this last year felt a little more apocalypse-y than others past, it’s not without good reason. And as with every industry, tech is starting to take notice. As such, many of thenew Google Maps features announced this weekpreview a tone shift within the industry. As technology plateaus, rather than shallow convenience, the focus appears to be transitioning to quality-of-life improvements, and hopefully, sustainability. One element of our day-to-day lives that has undergone a begrudging transformation is grocery shopping....

July 31, 2025 · 4 min · 675 words · Laura Kelly

New Sonos S18 satellite speaker shows up in an FCC filing

Most companies like to wait for a major conference or event to unveil a new product, but Sonos may have gotten scooped by a new set of filings made at the Federal Communications Commission.Documentsreveal that Sonos is working on new satellite speakers that could add surround sound capabilities and voice control commands to its popularPlaybarsoundbar, according to a report fromVariety. The filing, published by the FCC on Monday, December 31, is heavily redacted but still offers enough detail to give us an idea about what is coming down Sonos’ pipeline....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 362 words · Michael Watson

On a tight budget? This LG UltraGear gaming monitor is below $300 today

Your gaming desktop needs to be paired with a gaming monitor if you don’t want to waste its potential. However, if you’ve already spent most of your budget ongaming PC deals, you should check out this offer from Walmart: the 32-inch LG UltraGear QHD gaming monitor for only $298. The $51 discount on the display’s original price of $349 isn’t going to last forever though, and it could be gone as soon as tomorrow, so we highly recommend proceeding with your purchase immediately to make sure you pocket the savings....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 338 words · Tricia Turner

Phones with 7-day battery life are actually coming soon, says fuel-cell maker

Despite all the amazing advancements we’ve seen with smartphone technology in recent years, we’re still left asking, “So what about battery life?” If it’s ever been a serious issue for you, chances are you’ve settled on a solution by now, whether it’s carrying around a portable charger, housing your phone in a bulky battery case, or occasionallydiving into Starbucksto use a one of its wireless charging stations. These options, while certainly useful, of course aren’t ideal....

July 31, 2025 · 3 min · 444 words · Julie Gray

Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 4 Episode 8 release date & everything we know

Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 4 Episode 8 release date & everything we know As new episodes near their end, Kanan is involved in something much bigger than he is. The consequences will play out in Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 4 Episode 8, but who comes out on top? For those unfamiliar, Raising Kanan follows the early years of Kanan Stark in the 1990s, with his family known for their successful drug business he desperately wants to be a part of....

July 31, 2025 · 4 min · 690 words · Jack Mills

Probes exploring Earth’s hazardous radiation belts enter final phase of life

A pair of small robotic spacecraft called the Van Allen probes have been exploring the radiation belts around Earth to learn about how particles move through the belts and how the belts are affected by geomagnetic storms. Now the probes are moving into the final phase of their exploration, coming closer to Earth to gather more data before burning up safely in the atmosphere without creatingspace debris. The probes were launched in August 2012 to explore the band of hazardous charged particles that make up the Earth’s radiation belts....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 412 words · Danielle Jacobs

Readying for Mars mission, rover finds clues to life in the Chilean desert

A trial NASA rover mission in the Mars-like Atacama desert.Prof Stephen B. Pointing Ever wondered how theMars Curiosity roverwas trained? With no tech support available on Mars, engineers have to plan out exactly how the rover will navigate the alien environment and collect samples before sending anything into space. Now a rover testing out Mars-like environments here on Earth has successfully collected soil samples in a trial mission to find signs of life....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 360 words · Robert Wright

Samsung is adding Auracast to its wireless earbuds and 8K TVs

One of the more exciting aspects of the latest Bluetooth 5.3 specification’sLE Audioplatform is the inclusion ofAuracast. It’s a clever way of turning Bluetooth devices like phones and TVs into mini radio stations that are able to broadcast audio over Bluetooth to an unlimited number of nearbywireless headphones, speakers, etc — without the hassle of Bluetooth pairing. We’ve been waiting for more than a year to see a major electronics player announce support for Auracast, and it’s finally here: Samsung says it will beadding Auracast to its Samsung Galaxy Buds2 Pro and select 2023 TVsin September....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 400 words · Vanessa Tran

Save big on latest Apple MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Dell XPS 13 today

If you need a powerful computer for yourhome officethat won’t put you in the red, then look no further. We’ve curated a fine selection of three options that put the “top” in laptop — the Apple MacBook Air, MacBook Pro, and Dell XPS 13. With prices starting from $880 and discounts up to $100 off, theselaptop dealsare great for just about everyone. Dell XPS 13— $880, was $900 With Dell’s catalog of laptops, it can be hard to pick out the right one for you if you don’t know what you’re looking for....

July 31, 2025 · 6 min · 1251 words · Kim Hanson

Swipe typing isn’t new, but it’s the best addition to iOS since Siri

Dismissed in a short sentence during the WWDC 2019 keynote presentation was one of the more interesting new features iniOS 13— the introduction of swipe-typing on the standard iOS keyboard. If you’re faithful to Apple, then the whole concept of swiping-to-type may have passed you by, but it’s standard onGoogle’s Gboard appand various other Android keyboards, such as the one installed on Samsung devices. Even then, you may not have given it a try, as most are so used to typing with their two thumbs, or prodding each key individually with a single finger, that alternative ways to type only slow us down....

July 31, 2025 · 5 min · 1031 words · Terry Peterson

Tesla recall aims to end the chill in newer vehicles

In Tesla’s third recall announcement this month, the electric-car maker is having to address an issue with faulty software that’s affecting heat pump performance. The problem is preventing a number of newer cars from warming up and impacts their ability to sufficiently defrost icy windows, which could compromise safety. The recall,announced this weekby the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), involves more than 26,000 Model S, X, 3, and Y vehicles from the 2021 and 2022 model years....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 347 words · Paul Thomas

Tesla’s self-parking feature, Summon, is now available on the Model 3

After months of waiting,Tesla Model 3owners can now get theSummon parking feature, which has been available on the Model S and Model X for some time. Summon allows a car to park itself without anyone in it. The feature allows cars to be parked in tight spaces where the doors can’t be opened, and also creates plenty of opportunities for showing off. Tesla confirmed the newsin a tweetresponding to a video showing a Model 3 maneuvering itself into a tight garage....

July 31, 2025 · 2 min · 391 words · John Ingram