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Garmin watches are great for running, but are a bit tricky to work with when you’re trying to track strength training in the gym. (I have some tips here on how to make the most of that strange experience.) But an app called LiftTrack makes up for Garmin’s shortcomings, giving you the Garmin-based strength experience that maybe Garmin should have given you in the first place. 

Workout creation makes more sense with LiftTrack

Credit: Beth Skwarecki

LiftTrack is an app (available for iOS and Android) that helps you to create workouts, schedule workouts, and view your history of workouts and lifts. If you’ve used an app like Hevy or Strong to track strength training, you’ll be familiar with the idea. 

Create a workout in LiftTrack, and the experience is similar to those strength training apps: you’ll choose exercises, say how many sets and reps you plan to do, and arrange them into the order you’d like, supersetting pairs of them if you like. 

In Garmin’s own app, the process is backwards: you arrange blocks of work and rest, assigning exercises to them afterward. You can’t change weight or reps from one set to another unless you break the exercise out of its little repeat loop and create a new block. It’s an interface that makes sense for HIIT but not so much for a traditional gym workout of squats and curls. 

LiftTrack has some built-in strength programs (as does Garmin) and an AI routine builder (which Garmin does not). After creating a workout, you can sync it to your calendar for a given day, or set up a repeating schedule so that your bench press workout will appear every Monday. 

Your Garmin watch will pick up on the routine

LiftTrack’s underlying features, like the ability to sync a workout to your calendar, are features Garmin has had all along. Garmin just doesn’t connect them to each other well. For example, there’s no simple way to tell Garmin that you want to bench every Monday. But Garmin does have a calendar that will automatically offer you a bench press workout if you set it up that way. 

So to do the workout, you just show up to the gym, select Strength Training on your Garmin watch, and the day’s workout will pop up asking if you’re ready to start. As you go through the workout, your watch will record your reps and let you indicate the weight you used. Once the workout is finished, the data syncs back to LiftTrack. 

LiftTrack lets you view your history and progress

Viewing a strength workout after the fact has never been super easy in the Garmin app. You can view today’s workout, yes, but you can’t easily get a big-picture view of things like how the weight you can squat has trended up over time. 

LiftTrack, once again, provides what Garmin does not. I can see my strength training history on a calendar (without any runs or other workouts cluttering it up), view my most recent workouts, and see charts of my progress on each lift. 

Based on that history, LiftTrack can then update your next workout, recommending that you go a little heavier if you were able to lift more than expected last week. In short, it’s everything that Garmin should have included in their strength training feature, but didn’t. 

Paxos mistakenly minted $300 trillion of PayPal’s PYUSD stablecoin on Wednesday during an internal transfer. Within minutes, the company identified the error and burned the excess tokens. The transaction appeared on Etherscan, then was quietly reversed before any funds moved or users were harmed.

Paxos said there was no security breach and customer funds were safe. The amount exceeded all US dollars in circulation and surpassed the entire cryptocurrency market combined. Stablecoin issuers possess the power to create or delete billions in synthetic dollars instantly — a capability that distinguishes them from Bitcoin transfers, which are irreversible. Tether mistakenly minted and burned $5 billion in USDT in 2019.

Read more of this story at Slashdot.

Ever since since 2018, the United States Mint has issued special $1 coins every year to honor American innovation and the “pioneering efforts of individuals or groups.” The Mint has just revealed the designs for 2026 $1 Innovation coins, and one of them features Apple co-founder and former CEO Steve Jobs. It features a young Jobs sitting cross-legged in front of a quintessential California landscape with rolling hills and oak trees. “His posture and expression, as he is captured in a moment of reflection, show how this environment inspired his vision to transform complex technology into something as intuitive and organic as nature itself,” the announcement reads. 

Under the project, the US Mint showcases innovations and innovators from different states, the District of Columbia and the five US territories. It works with the governor and other officials of each state or region to determine the best design to represent the people and inventions being featured. Jobs, of course, represents California, where he was born and from where he ran Apple, which became one of the biggest companies in the world under his leadership. 

In addition to Jobs’ design, the Mint is also issuing $1 coins featuring Iowa’s Dr. Norman Borlaug, who led initiatives to develop more resilient crops, and an aerial view of the Cray-1 supercomputer in Wisconsin. Finally, the design honoring mobile refrigeration, which represents Minnesota, features a 1940s-era truck with an early front-mounted refrigeration unit. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/the-us-mint-is-honoring-steve-jobs-by-putting-him-on-a-1-innovation-coin-130033801.html?src=rss

Over a decade since Microsoft tried to make talking to Cortana on PCs a thing — and spectacularly failed in the process — the Windows giant is taking another swing at voice commands with its Copilot AI assistant in Windows 11. Starting today, the company is rolling out an upgrade to its existing Copilot Voice and Vision features which will let you say “Hey, Copilot” and then ask your PC a question based on what’s on the screen. If you’re looking at pictures of Hawaii, for example, you could ask your Windows 11 PC where exactly they were taken, have it plot you a flight plan and potentially even give you some budgeting tips to afford that island vacation.

Microsoft’s jaunty promotional videos for the Copilot features, set to Vampire Weekend’s almost two-decade-old “A Punk,” make the process look practically seamless. One user asks Copilot to show them how to stream their music in the “best possible quality,” and the AI proceeds to highlight the exact location of the streaming settings in Spotify, while suggesting they choose the lossless option. Another person asks Copilot to write up a short biography based on their photo portfolio. Now Copilot isn’t just about searching the web or generating novelty AI art, it’s making it easy for users to perform practical tasks without much effort.

Microsoft is clearly striving for the convenience of the Star Trek ship computer, a dream that also pushed Amazon to invest billions in its Echo devices and Alexa. The difference with Copilot is that you’re not just talking to a faceless speaker — Microsoft is also trying to make Windows 11 aware of what you’re doing on your screen. The “Hey Copilot” feature and all of the Copilot Vision are cloud-based, so you’ll have to live with image data of your desktop making its way to Microsoft’s servers. That involves a level of trust the company has lost with many users, especially after the messy debut of Recall, its first flagship AI-powered feature.

It doesn’t help that many people are still peeved about the death of Windows 10 support this week. Unsurprisingly, the company stresses that “Hey, Copilot” is a purely opt-in feature that’s buried in the Copilot app settings. (Of course, that can always change, especially if the company wants to juice AI engagement stats in a few years.)

Microsoft

I suspect it’ll be even harder for users to swallow where Microsoft wants to take Copilot: Giving it the ability to perform Windows tasks on its own. That’s the goal of the experimental Copilot Actions feature, which initially debuted as a tool that could perform tasks on websites. Once enabled, Copilot Actions can be prompted to handle manual tasks, like resizing and straightening an a folder of photos. If any questions pop up, it can prompt you to answer them within the Copilot app. And as Copilot Actions is handling its job in the background, you’re free to do anything else you’d like on your computer.

Conceptually, Copilot Actions sounds similar to handing off a task to a real life assistant — but just like a human assistant, there’s always a chance something could go wrong along the way. It’s also not hard to imagine the feature being coopted by nefarious malware down the line, since it’s basically a Windows script in a better interface. Microsoft says it’s tested Copilot Actions “extensively” internally, and it’s rolling out the feature slowly to gather feedback.

Just like “Hey, Copilot,” it’s entirely opt-in, and you can see everything Copilot Actions is doing step-by-step in the Copilot app. Microsoft says you’l be able to jump in and take control of a Copilot Action job at any point, as well as control the permissions of AI agents in Windows 11’s user settings. Copilot tasks are also performed in a contained environment, according to Microsoft, which allows for even more specific permissions controls as well as runtime isolation (so Copilot can’t affect the rest of your system beyond its specific task).

And as if we’re not already inundated with Copilot all over Windows 11 already, Microsoft also plans to add an “Ask Copilot” search function right on Windows 11’s taskbar. The company claims it’s part of a mission to make the taskbar “a dynamic hub” for accomplishing tasks, but personally I like to keep my taskbar clear so I can cram in more app windows. Like everything Microsoft is announcing today, the Ask Copilot bar will also be entirely opt-in.

As someone who’s been skeptical of Microsoft’s Copilot initiatives so far, I could actually see myself using “Hey Copilot” if it works as advertised. It sounds far more practical than the old Siri voice commands, which were limited by simplistic language models from a decade ago. Microsoft is also expanding AI actions built into Windows 11, including a new integration with Manus, an AI agent that can do things like turn several documents into a website, as well as Filmora, which lets you create AI videos right from the File Explorer.

The new “Hey Copilot” and Copilot Vision features are available today on all Windows 11 PCs that have access to Copilot. Microsoft is also making Copilot Vision broadly available around the world today where Copilot is available. Copilot Actions and the Ask Copilot taskbar feature will “gradually” become available to Windows 11 Insiders, according to Microsoft.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/microsofts-next-windows-11-ai-gamble-just-say-hey-copilot-130000875.html?src=rss

Pinterest is taking new steps to reduce the amount of AI slop its users are seeing. The service is adding settings that allow people to “dial down” AI-generated content in a number of categories that are “highly-prone” to such imagery, the company said in an update.

While most social platforms have grappled with how to deal with the rise of AI-created content, Pinterest has been particularly inundated. Its image-board UI has proven particularly susceptible to AI slop, and users have complained about the difficulty of finding content created by humans.

Now, Pinterest is offering users more control over how much AI content appears in their recommendations. The service is adding a “refine your recommendations” setting that allows you to toggle generative AI content from specific categories, including art, architecture, beauty, fashion, entertainment, health, home decor and sport. According to the company, these topics have seen an influx of AI-generated content, but users should “expect even more additions in the future.”

Notably, Pinterest isn’t promising to root out generative AI content entirely. Rather, it says the new settings should “dial down” the amount of AI-based content they’re seeing in a particular category. A spokesperson for the company says this is because not all AI-generated content on the platform is low quality and some users are in fact open to seeing AI-generated material.

The setting also applies only to image pins, not video, so it likely won’t do much to prevent Sora or other AI-created video clips from appearing in your feeds. For AI-created or AI-edited content that does continue to surface, Pinterest says it will label these posts more prominently. The company started experimenting with labels back in May, but has now “ramped up” its tools for identifying such content. 

Pinterest’s new settings are available now on desktop and Android and will be available on iOS in the next few weeks.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/social-media/pinterest-will-let-you-dial-down-ai-slop-in-your-feeds-130000337.html?src=rss

ExpressVPN is one of the best VPNs on the market, with user-friendly apps, excellent speed test scores and a strong security record. In my ExpressVPN review, I found it to live up to its positive word of mouth, especially when unblocking foreign streaming sites. But no service is perfect, and my cup of VPN tea is not everybody’s. If you’re looking to switch away, follow this guide to cancel ExpressVPN.

How to cancel ExpressVPN on desktop

No matter where you originally signed up for ExpressVPN, you can cancel through your browser on a desktop platform. With any browser (i.e. Chrome, Safari, etc), the steps are as follows. Note that doing this will instantly cancel your ExpressVPN subscription and revoke your access to the service.

1. Go to expressvpn.com. In the top bar, click on My Account. Enter your username and password to sign in.

2. You’ll be taken to your account dashboard. In the menu on the left-hand side of the screen, click Subscription.

3. Scroll down until you find the words “Subscription details.” You should see a box containing the monthly cost of your subscription. At the right of that box, click Cancel Subscription.

4. From here, follow the on-screen prompts to complete cancellation.

Sam Chapman for Engadget

If you’re not ready to lose ExpressVPN service just yet, you can end auto-renewal instead of cancelling altogether. You’ll still be able to use ExpressVPN until your subscription runs out.

To cancel auto-renew, go to the subscription tab of your account dashboard and find the box with your subscription ID (it should be right at the top). In that box, click the link that says Edit subscription settings, then scroll down and click Turn Off Automatic Renewal. If you change your mind before your subscription lapses, you’ll be able to turn it back on later.

How to cancel ExpressVPN on mobile

You can also cancel ExpressVPN on your phone or tablet, but the process is largely the same — some buttons are just in different places. As above, this instantly ends your ExpressVPN subscription. Here’s how to do it.

1. Go to expressvpn.com in your mobile browser. Tap the three horizontal lines at the top-right, then in the menu that appears, tap My Account.

2. In the account dashboard, tap the three horizontal lines at the top-right once again. This time, scroll down to the expanded “My Account” menu and tap Subscription.

3. Scroll down to the “Subscription details” box and tap Cancel Subscription.

4. Follow the prompts on the screen to complete cancellation.

Like on desktop, you can also turn off auto-renewal so your subscription ends when your current pay period expires. Go to the subscription tab of your account dashboard as described in the steps, find the box with your subscription ID, then follow the steps from the last paragraph of the previous section.

Cancelling ExpressVPN through an app store

The website is almost always the right way to cancel ExpressVPN, but there is one exception: if you originally signed up through the Google Play Store or Apple App Store. This includes both paid subscriptions and the 7-day free trials ExpressVPN offers to app store users.

In this case, you’ll need to cancel through the app store where you originally made the purchase. On Apple, open the app store, then tap Subscriptions and scroll down to find ExpressVPN. On Android, open Google Play and tap Payment & subscriptions, then Subscriptions. In both cases, once you’ve found ExpressVPN, tap it and scroll down to find the button for cancellation.

How to get a refund from ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN offers a full refund to anyone who cancels a subscription within 30 days of purchase. You can also get a refund if your subscription renews without your consent — if that happens, you have 14 days to request your money back.

Sam Chapman for Engadget

There’s no dedicated button for asking for a refund. Instead, you’ll need to contact ExpressVPN. To do that, go to expressvpn.com/support, then click on the button in the bottom-right corner that says Need help? Chat with us! This will open a chat with a bot which you can use to ask for your money back. Unfortunately, there’s no public link to email the support team, so live chat is the only option here.

ExpressVPN alternatives

Depending on what made you want to cancel ExpressVPN, there are a few other VPNs you might like better. Proton VPN is my favorite provider at the moment, combining great apps with a unique focus on privacy rights (it’s also cheaper). NordVPN has a lot of useful features ExpressVPN leaves off its no-frills clients. And if you’re all about speed, Surfshark is the current fastest VPN in my tests.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/vpn/how-to-cancel-expressvpn-and-get-a-full-refund-123020142.html?src=rss

The difference in emissions between plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and gas cars is merely 19 percent and not 75 percent as lab tests show, according to a report by a group of European transport and environment NGOs. They analyzed data transmitted by the onboard fuel consumption meters of 800,000 plug-in hybrids registered in the continent between 2021 and 2023. What they found was that the real-world carbon dioxide emissions of PHEVs were 4.9 times higher than what they’re supposed to emit on paper, mostly because of manufacturers’ and testers’ flawed assumption on the share of the vehicles’ electric driving mode. 

Specifically, the official estimates for the share of electric driving mode are 84 percent, but the share is only as little as 27 percent in the real world. That means most of the driving done on PHEVs uses gas. In addition, even when PHEVs are in electric driving mode, they’re still emitting considerable pollution. Apparently, their electric motors don’t have sufficient power to operate on their own, and their combustion engines have to supply power for almost a third of the distance driven. The lack of fast charging in PHEVs also makes it less convenient to charge, leading people to just fill their tanks with gas. All these factors don’t only translate to pollution, but also to additional gas expenses. The report says drivers end up paying $582 more than official estimates for fuel costs.

As The Guardian notes, carmakers have been pushing for the adoption of PHEVs in Europe as a low-emissions alternative that won’t give owners range anxiety, with Volkswagen, Mercedes-Benz and BMW accounting for most of the sales over the past years. The researchers have noted that four major carmaker groups have avoided over $5.8 billion in fines between 2021 and 2023 due to the underestimation of PHEV emissions in the lab. These official emission numbers allowed companies to comply with the required carbon dioxide emission targets for their fleets. Based on real-world data, however, the vehicles they sold emitted 52 million tons more carbon dioxide than they were supposed to.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/plug-in-hybrids-emit-almost-as-much-pollution-as-gas-cars-report-finds-120032534.html?src=rss

It could be a consequential act of quiet regulation. Cloudflare, a web infrastructure company, has updated millions of websites’ robots.txt files in an effort to force Google to change how it crawls them to fuel its AI products and initiatives.

We spoke with Cloudflare CEO Matthew Prince about what exactly is going on here, why it matters, and what the web might soon look like. But to get into that, we need to cover a little background first.

The new change, which Cloudflare calls its Content Signals Policy, happened after publishers and other companies that depend on web traffic have cried foul over Google’s AI Overviews and similar AI answer engines, saying they are sharply cutting those companies’ path to revenue because they don’t send traffic back to the source of the information.

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