Author: Elon Mark
Let’s cut to the chase—Samsung’s latest QD-OLED computer monitor is absolutely awesome, and I’ve loved having it at my desk for the past month or so. Every game I play on it looks incredible, and it has quickly become the centerpiece of my battle station.Even so, I’m still having trouble recommending 4K high-refresh monitors to people who have to buy and build their own systems. Having a monitor with some room to grow is the right choice, but the gap between performance and capability can be frustrating if you’re on otherwise budget-friendly hardware. If you’re thinking of making an upgrade,…
It’s nearly summer. The flowers are in full bloom, the birds are well north, and REI is kicking off its annual anniversary sale, the outdoor company’s biggest sale of the year. This year’s REI sale starts May 16 and runs through Memorial Day, May 26. Many items are up to 30 percent off, but REI Co-op members save up to 20 percent off any full-price item of their choice and an extra 20 percent off any REI Outlet item. To get the discount, add the promo code ANNIV2025 at checkout.Several other retailers have also launched early Memorial Day sales, including…
Other Good MagSafe AccessoriesThe accessories below aren’t as great as the top picks in this guide, but they’re still good options if you’re looking for more MagSafe gadgets.Photograph: Julian ChokkattuBelkin iPhone Mount With MagSafe for $30: Using Apple’s Continuity Camera feature, you can wirelessly use your iPhone as a webcam for a MacBook. It supports various video calling apps too, from FaceTime to Zoom. This circular silicone puck magnetically sticks to the back of your iPhone and can be used as a phone grip or kickstand, but you need to keep your screen close to a 90-degree angle, or else…
Honorable MentionsPhotograph: Parker HallThere are a lot of great soundbars out there, and we don’t have room to feature them all. Here are some others you might want to consider.LG’s S95TR for $1,000-1,500: LG’s 9.1.5-channel soundbar (8/10, WIRED Recommends) doesn’t perform as well as Samsung’s flagship Q990 series, but it could be a better choice for those with newer LG TVs like the C4, which can connect wirelessly and use its speakers in tandem with the bar for more immersion. It also supports gaming features like 120-Hz pass-through, but only includes one spare input.Sony Bravia Theater 9 for $1,400: Sony’s…
Russia targeted Ukraine on Sunday with one of its largest drone bombardments of the war, an apparent show of force only a day before President Trump is expected to talk with President Vladimir V. Putin as Mr. Trump pushes Russia to accept a cease-fire deal.The drone barrage, in which an estimated 273 exploding drones and decoys were recorded in the skies across Ukraine, killed a woman and injured several other people.It came hours after Mr. Trump said on Saturday that he would talk with Mr. Putin and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine, who has agreed to an unconditional and immediate…
For the grad who is constantly jotting down random thoughts, mapping out to-do lists, or prefers hand-written notes, a digital notebook is an excellent choice, and they won’t run out of pages. The ReMarkable 2, the top pick in our Best Digital Notebooks guide, has a matte screen that feels like paper, and writing on it is quick and responsive. They can organize different notebooks or quick sheets and sort them via folders and tags.The stylus doesn’t need to be recharged, and it attaches to the side of the tablet magnetically. For an extra $50, there’s the Marker Plus upgrade,…
Other Folding Phones to ConsiderRazr 2025 series Photograph: Julian ChokkattuMotorola Razr+ (2025): There is technically a third phone in Motorola’s latest Razr lineup: the Razr+ 2025. However, it’s nearly identical to last year’s Razr+ 2024, with fresh colors and the improved IP48 rating and titanium-reinforced hinge. It sits in an awkward middle ground, though. It’s not as affordable as the standard Razr, which offers a pretty nice experience for the money. But it’s also not as flagship as the Razr Ultra. It is also the only one of the lineup without the ultrawide camera. I usually love telephoto zoom lenses,…
Do you take a lot of notes? Whether it’s daily to-do lists, notes for class, or just jotting down the various thoughts in our brains, it’s nice to have somewhere to write everything down. Sure, you could just open your Notes app, but physically writing something down helps you remember and learn more. It also feels nice to stop typing for a minute and get a sensation of analog, while still digitally storing it. If this sounds up your alley, good news: we’ve got the best digital notebooks and more for you.There are E Ink tablets, smart pens, and notebooks…
On Friday, Epic Games announced Darth Vader would be returning to Fortnite as an in-game boss—but this time, players would be able to chat with him through conversational AI. “Ask him all your pressing questions about the Force, the Galactic Empire … or you know, a good strat for the last Storm circle,” Epic said in its announcement.Unfortunately, players had other plans. Mere hours after Vader appeared in Fortnite, gamers began posting clips of AI Vader going rogue.“What freaking fucking food is that Darth Vader? Tell me,” says streamer Loserfruit in one clip posted to X. “Freaking? Fucking? Such vulgarity…
OpenAI is launching a cloud-based software engineering agent called Codex in an attempt to ride a wave of hype surrounding vibe coding or building software using AI. It says this tool will let developers automate more of their work in a way that should be both safer and less opaque than existing tools.OpenAI’s Codex is available through the web for ChatGPT Pro users from today. It can generate lines of code but also move through directories and run commands inside a virtual computer, automating more of the work that developers go through when writing code.“We’re about to undergo a pretty…