This major collaboration,
It’s a regrettable reality that there is never enough time to cover all the interesting scientific stories we come across each month. In the past, we’ve featured year-end roundups of cool science stories we (almost) missed. This year, we’re experimenting with a monthly collection. November’s list includes forensic details of the medieval assassination of a Hungarian duke, why woodpeckers grunt when they peck, and more evidence that X’s much-maligned community notes might actually help combat the spread of misinformation after all.
Credit:
Tamás Hajdu et al., 2026
Back in 1915, archaeologists discovered the skeletal remains of a young man in a Dominican monastery on Margaret Island in Budapest, Hungary. The remains were believed to be those of Duke Bela of Masco, grandson of the medieval Hungarian King Bela IV. Per historical records, the young duke was brutally assassinated in 1272 by a rival faction and his mutilated remains were recovered by the duke’s sister and niece and buried in the monastery.
China’s central bank has flagged stablecoins as a specific concern in its latest push against virtual currencies, warning that the tokens fail to meet requirements for customer identification and anti-money-laundering controls and risk being used for fraud, money laundering, and unauthorized cross-border fund transfers.
The People’s Bank of China released a statement Saturday following a Friday meeting on virtual currency regulation, saying crypto speculation has recently increased due to various factors and now presents new challenges for risk control. Virtual currencies do not hold the same legal status as fiat currency and cannot be used as legal tender, the bank said, adding that all virtual currency-related business activities are “illegal financial activities.”
China banned cryptocurrency trading in 2021. The bank said it will intensify efforts to combat illegal financial activities to maintain economic and financial stability. In October, PBOC Governor Pan Gongsheng said the central bank would closely track and evaluate the development of overseas stablecoins.
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More than 45 million people in the United States rent their homes, and as purchasing a home continues to be out of reach for many, that number probably isn’t going down anytime soon. If you’re a renter, you know that renting often comes with some compromises in terms of control over your environment, space, and interior design. Being limited in what you can do because you don’t actually own the walls and floors can be a real challenge when it comes to making the space nice.
But with a few clever ideas, you can make your rental more comfortable, more useful, and less expensive—and ensure that you get all of your security deposit back when you move out. There are a lot of useful hacks out there for renters, but these are the fundamental, most useful hacks that you might not think of, but every renter should know.
Renters—especially first-time renters—often assume that they can’t change anything in a rented place. This is absolutely not true—while you might not want to actually spend money on an actual renovation to a place you don’t own (although some people do just that), there are actually a lot of things you can temporarily upgrade to make your basic box of an apartment feel more luxurious.
Basically, if you can remove it, you can swap it. Light fixtures, cabinet and drawer pulls, bathroom mirrors, shower heads, faucets, toilet seats, and wall plates can all be easily removed and replaced with better, more stylish options. You put the old stuff in storage until you move out, and then you just swap everything back—and take your nicer stuff with you to the next place.
Painting is powerful, and it’s not uncommon for a landlord to allow you to paint your apartment or rental house, helping you to inject some color and personalization into the place. But paint can’t repair janky walls, and painting a whole apartment (or even one room) can be a messy prospect. And sometimes you want to jazz up a space with tile—like kitchen backsplashes.
Peel-and-stick options like temporary, removable wallpaper or wall tiles is a prime hack. It covers any defects in the walls, offers an enormous range of styles and designs, and peels right off without leaving a mark when you move out. In some cases, you can even re-use the tile or wallpaper at your next home, if you’re really careful removing and storing it.
If you’re renting a tiny space, like a studio apartment, making it feel larger and making it more functional can be a challenge, especially since you can’t just hire a contractor and renovate the heck out of it. If you’re puzzling out how to make a small space multifunctional and less cluttered, the answer is probably folding furniture.
Wall desks that fold down, folding dining tables, folding chairs, freestanding Murphy beds—just about any furniture that you use can be found in folding format, allowing you to transform a space into several different rooms with just a few quick moves.
Apartments often come with small kitchens and bathrooms, which can make cooking and washing up an exercise in frustration. An easy hack is to pick up some stove and sink covers for both the kitchen and bathroom. These handy items are cheap and provide extra prep space when you need it, then lift away to let you use your stove and sinks for their intended purpose. They can make small bathrooms and kitchens a lot more functional.
Rentals often have floors that tell a fascinating story of abuse, damage, and poor design choices. From painted floors to carpets you’d prefer not to touch with your bare skin, nothing makes an apartment feel like a punishment than a terrible floor—and no amount of good taste on the walls or in your furniture choices will erase that awful floor.
So, cover it. You may not be able to sand and stain an abused hardwood floor, or tear up a carpet that was last cleaned in the previous decade, but you can very effectively cover it with a temporary floor that will pop right off when it’s time to move. This hack not only beautifies the space while you’re living there, it also guarantees that you don’t add to the damage and get nicked for stains, tears, or gouges.
This can be as simple as putting a rug over a gross carpet or putting peel-and-stick tile (or a vinyl rug) on a kitchen or bathroom floor. Deck tiles can upgrade a gouged and stained floor into an attractive and temporary surface. If you just want to cover an ugly floor and give your space a more modern, updated look, vinyl rolls are a cheap and easy option to install—and remove.
Drywall is amazing stuff, but it’s not exactly strong. It’s very easy to dent, ding, and otherwise damage your walls just by living near them. And every dent and ding could cost you when it’s time to move out; while a strategically-placed piece of art might hide that hole in the wall, it’s eventually going to be a problem.
Luckily, there’s Erase-A-Hole. With this stuff, you don’t have to spend six hours on YouTube learning how to mud and sand drywall repairs. You just rub the stick on the wall, let it dry, and then touch up the paint if necessary. If you love hanging things on your walls, this is going to save you hours of sweaty work when you move out.
If your apartment is several flights up in a building without elevators, groceries soon become the biggest challenge in your life. Carrying heavy grocery bags up those stairs is not only a chore, it’s also an invitation to disaster because you’re probably going to try to carry everything in one trip, leading to broken bags, broken eggs, and possibly injuries because you can’t see your own feet.
The stair-climbing cart is the hack you need. You use it as a normal grocery cart in the store, but when it’s time to get all those goods up to your apartment, it makes pulling everything up the stairs easy, safe, and fast.
Tension rods aren’t just for shower curtains. Investing in a pack of simple tension rods can transform your rented home in a wide variety of ways:
Use them to hang curtains without drilling into walls
Place them inside kitchen cabinets to create extra vertical storage (and under the sink to hang all those cleaning bottles)
They can also be placed vertically inside cabinets to organize baking sheets and other flatware
Closet space is always a challenge in small rentals. That’s why every renter should know about these closet triangles. They can dramatically increase the storage capacity of any closet, allowing you to hang several shirts or pants in the same space without making any changes to the closet itself. They work with any type of hanger, and you’ll be able to use the extra space in your closet for any other storage needs you might have.
When you sign a rental contract, you’re taking on a legal responsibility for the condition of the apartment. When you move out, landlords are quick to pounce on any perceived damage that goes beyond “wear and tear” from normal living. After living there for years, are you going to remember if that stain on the floor was already there? And even if you remember, can you prove it?
Before you move in, take a video of the place as you walk through. Focus in on anything that’s already stained, scuffed, damaged, or simply aged. Take your time and fully document the condition of the place. When you move out, you’ll be able to demonstrate that you left the place in the same condition you found it, and ensure you get your security deposit back.
Pat Gelsinger, the former Intel CEO who was pushed out in late 2024 during a five-year turnaround effort, told the Financial Times that the “decay” he found when he returned to the company in 2021 was “deeper and harder than I’d realized.” In the five years before his return, “not a single product was delivered on schedule,” he said. “Basic disciplines” had been lost. “It’s like, wow, we don’t know how to engineer anymore!”
Gelsinger was also unsparing about the Biden administration’s implementation of the 2022 Chips Act, legislation he spent more time lobbying for than any other CEO. “Two and a half years later [and] no money is dispensed? I thought it was hideous!” There’s what Gelsinger carefully calls “a touch of irony” in how things played out.
Intel’s board forced him out four years into a five-year plan, then picked successor Lip-Bu Tan — who Gelsinger says is following the same broad strategy. Tan has kept Intel in the manufacturing game and delivered the 18A process node within the five years Gelsinger originally promised. Asked what went wrong, Gelsinger conceded he was “very focused on managing ‘down'” and should have managed “up” more. He also would have pushed harder for more semiconductor expertise on the board, he said.
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
We may earn a commission from links on this page. Deal pricing and availability subject to change after time of publication.
Black Friday sales officially start Friday, November 28, and run through Cyber Monday, December 1, and Lifehacker is sharing the best sales based on product reviews, comparisons, and price-tracking tools before it’s over.
Follow our live blog to stay up-to-date on the best sales we find.
Browse our editors’ picks for a curated list of our favorite sales on laptops, fitness tech, appliances, and more.
Subscribe to our shopping newsletter, Add to Cart, for the best sales sent to your inbox.
Sales are accurate at the time of publication, but prices and inventory are always subject to change.
The DJI Osmo Action 5 Pro (Adventure Combo) is down to $369 from its usual $449, which price trackers confirm is the lowest it has ever gone. Plenty of people default to GoPro for action cams, but DJI has been steadily carving out a space of its own. The Action 5 Pro shows why, as highlighted in our Associate Tech Editor Michelle’s review.
It’s small, light at 5.2 ounces, and surprisingly sturdy. It’s waterproof down to 65.6 feet without extra housing, which makes it safe for pool dives or sudden rainstorms. The camera shoots sharp 10-bit 4K120 footage, and its ultra-wide 155-degree field of view gives your clips a more dramatic look without obvious distortion. It also has dual touchscreens—front and back—which helps when you’re framing yourself or switching modes mid-shot.
Most people buy an action camera for two things: stability and reliability. DJI leans hard into both. Its RockSteady stabilization keeps movement under control, even if you’re running, biking over uneven roads, or strapping it to a helmet. The tradeoff is a slight crop, but the wide sensor covers that gap well. What stood out in testing, including PCMag’s “Outstanding” review, which named it the Best Action Camera of 2024, is the battery performance. DJI uses a 1,950mAh Extreme Battery Plus and a new 4nm image processor, and the results hold up in real use. The reviewer recorded 26 minutes at 4K60, 154 minutes at 4K30, and 182 minutes at 1080p30 before needing a break, and none of these tests triggered overheating. A GoPro Hero13, under the same conditions, lasted only about half an hour at 4K60 and shut down from heat. For anyone planning long shoots or travel content, that difference matters more than any spec sheet.
This particular Adventure Combo is also loaded with extras. You get the camera, three Extreme Battery Plus packs, a horizontal-vertical frame for quick orientation changes, two quick-release mounts, an adhesive curved base, locking screws, a USB-C PD cable, and a multifunctional battery case that holds and charges the batteries. DJI also includes a 1.5-meter extension rod, a rubber lens protector, a glass lens cover, and an anti-slip pad. It even has 48GB of internal storage, which is rare for action cams, plus a microSD slot for expansion. For $369, it’s still not a small spend, but compared to the competition, this one’s clearly built to go further without burning out, and it gives you a full setup out of the box.
Nowadays, both large retailers and small businesses compete for Black Friday shoppers, so you can expect practically every store to run sales through Monday, December 1, 2025. The “best” sales depend on your needs, but in general, the biggest discounts tend to come from larger retailers that can afford lower prices: think places like Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy, and Home Depot. You can find all the best sales from major retailers on our live blog.
In short, yes, Black Friday still offers discounts that can be rare throughout the rest of the year. If there’s something you want to buy, or you’re shopping for gifts, it’s a good time to look for discounts on what you need, especially tech sales, home improvement supplies, and fitness tech. Of course, if you need to save money, the best way to save is to not buy anything.
Black Friday used to be bigger for major retailers and more expensive tech and appliances, while Cyber Monday was for cheaper tech and gave smaller businesses a chance to compete online. Nowadays, though, the distinction is almost meaningless. Every major retailer will offer sales on both days, and the smart move is to know what you want, use price trackers or refer to guides like our live blog that use price trackers for you, and don’t stress over finding the perfect timing.
Two former U.S. congressmen announced this week that they’re launching two tax-exempt fundraising groups “to back candidates who support AI safeguards,”
reports The Hill, “as a counterweight to industry-backed groups.”
Former Representatives Chris Stewart (Republican-Utah) and Brad Carson (Democrat-Oklahoma) plan to create separate Republican and Democratic super PACs and raise $50 million to elect candidates “committed to defending the public interest against those who aim to buy their way out of sensible AI regulation,” according to a press release…
The pair is also launching a nonprofit called Public First to advocate for AI policy. Carson underscored that polling “shows significant public concern about AI and overwhelming voter support for guardrails that protect people from harm and mitigate major risks.” Their efforts are meant to counter “anti-safeguard super PACs” that they argue are attempting to “kill commonsense guardrails around AI,” the press release noted…
The super PAC is reportedly targeting a Democratic congressional candidate, New York state Assemblymember Alex Bores, who co-sponsored AI legislation in the Albany statehouse.
“This isn’t a partisan issue — it’s about whether we’ll have meaningful oversight of the most powerful technology ever created,” Chris Stewart says in their press release.
“We’ve seen what happens when government fails to act on other emerging technologies. With AI, the stakes are enormous, and we can’t afford to make the same missteps.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
It’s not over yet. If you haven’t grabbed something discounted in the Black Friday sales, don’t worry, because plenty of them have been rebadged for Cyber Monday — the most ’90s sounding day of the year. To celebrate, a petite edition of TMA.
We’ve collected the best of the bunch still available at time of writing. This year, there are plenty of deals on streaming services and other subscriptions; we think the Disney+ Hulu bundle ($60 for one year) is one of the stronger offerings, considering it typically costs $13 per month. That’s less than half price, if you can’t be bothered to do math in the early hours of Monday morning. Better still, the offer is available to new and existing subscribers.
Other recent discounts include 25 percent off the Pixel 10 Pro and 20 percent off Sonos’ top soundbar, the Arc Ultra.
Check out all the biggest deals on our Cyber Monday 2025 hub — and come back for our regularly scheduled TMA tomorrow.
— Mat Smith
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/general/the-morning-after-engadget-newsletter-121521058.html?src=rss
Sonos is offering several deals on home audio for Cyber Monday. One of the standouts is a discount of $100 on the Sonos Era 300, which is available now for $379. Sonos’ Era line has previously included one of our top smart speaker picks, and the Era 300 is the only standalone speaker from the company that offers spatial audio.
The spatial audio angle is the highlight feature for the Era 300, which can stream compatible tracks from either Apple Music or Amazon Music. While the spatial audio features proved to be hit and miss in our review, this is still an outstanding speaker with excellent audio quality. It delivers rich, detailed and balanced audio that can hang with just about anything else Sonos offers.
The speaker supports voice control via Alexa or Sonos Voice Control. It also offers Trueplay tuning, which listens to how your room shapes the sound and adjusts accordingly. In this model, you don’t need to use your phone: Its built-in mics scan your room for you. That’s especially handy for Android users, since phone-based Trueplay (from other models) is iOS-only.
If the Era 300 is a bit out of your budget, Sonos has loads of other products on sale for Cyber Monday. You can get the smaller — but still mighty — Era 100 for $169 (23 percent off). The portable Move 2 is down to $399 (20 percent off). Even the company’s headphones, Sonos Ace, are on sale for $279 (30 percent off).
Sonos home theater products are discounted, too. You can get the Arc Ultra soundbar for $879 (20 percent off), or the Sub 4 subwoofer for $719 (also 20 percent off). Or, if you’re in the market for both and have the budget, save even more on a bundle: Get the Arc Ultra and Sub 4 for $1,499 (25 percent off).
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/sonos-cyber-monday-deals-get-the-era-300-speaker-on-sale-for-100-off-120010514.html?src=rss
If you know the name Ron Gilbert, it’s probably for his decades of work on classic point-and-click adventure games like Maniac Mansion, Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, the Monkey Island series, and Thimbleweed Park. Given that pedigree, October’s release of the Gilbert-designed Death by Scrolling—a rogue-lite action-survival pseudo-shoot-em-up—might have come as a bit of a surprise.
In an interview from his New Zealand home, though, Gilbert noted that his catalog also includes some reflex-based games—Humungous Entertainment’s Backyard Sports titles and 2010’s Deathspank, for instance. And Gilbert said his return to action-oriented game design today stemmed from his love for modern classics like Binding of Isaac, Nuclear Throne, and Dead Cells.
“I mean, I’m certainly mostly known for adventure games, and I have done other stuff, [but] it probably is a little bit of a departure for me,” he told Ars. “While I do enjoy playing narrative games as well, it’s not the only thing I enjoy, and just the idea of making one of these kind of started out as a whim.”
For such a tiny piece of tech, a good wireless microphone can have an outsize impact on the quality of your videos. If you’ve been waiting for a serious sale to pick up a mic of your own, Cyber Monday may be your chance. The DJI Mic Mini kit is on sale for more than half off at B&H Photo Video: you can snag it for a mere $80. That’s an all-time low price compared to the set’s usual $170 price tag. The full package includes two mics, a receiver and a charging case, as well as two windscreens and other accessories.
Depending on what peripherals you need along with your wireless microphone, DJI has several other promising Cyber Monday deals. If you don’t want the charging case, you can get the Mic Mini without for just $66, which is a of 45 percent discount. Another option is a bundle featuring a single mic, receiver, charging dock and accessories for $45, or 49 percent off the regular price.
DJI’s Mic Mini microphones (transmitters) weigh just a third of an ounce and attach easily to subjects via magnets or clips. Everything pairs automatically and they offer high quality 24-bit, 20Hz to 20K Hz recording. They also connect easily to smartphones over Bluetooth and other DJI devices like the Action 5 Pro and Osmo Pocket 3 cams using DJI’s OsmoAudio direct connection. With a range of 1300 feet and 48 hours of battery life with the charger case, they’re an excellent addition to a creator’s bag of tricks. Again, note that you can grab one a big cheaper without the charging case.
DJI’s Mic Mini deal includes two mic transmitters and a receiver that can be connected to a camera or phone, along with the charging case, two windscreens, a splitter USB-C cable for charging, a 3.5mm camera audio cable, two magnetic clips, a smartphone adapter, a charging cable and a compact carrying case. At this price the deal may not last the week, so if you’ve been eyeing one, act quickly.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/dji-cyber-monday-deals-include-the-mic-mini-kit-with-a-charging-case-on-sale-for-just-80-110007210.html?src=rss
If you need a stocking stuffer for a tech enthusiast in your life, a microSD Express card is a petite but powerful option. And this Cyber Monday, the prices have come down enough that you might also want to splurge and get one for yourself. One notable deal available now is the Samsung P9 microSD Express Card, which is on sale for $75. That’s a quarter off its usual list price to add 512GB to your device.
This Samsung microSD model is one of the few that is currently compatible with the Nintendo Switch 2. On its own, a microSD card might feel a little underwhelming as a standalone gift, but it’s actually a very useful addition if you’re presenting someone with some new Nintendo hardware this holiday, because modern game file sizes are pretty dang hefty. That means if you want to have easy access to more than a few titles in your game library, more storage is a must. If the 512GB option feels like overkill, the 256GB version of Samsung’s Nintendo 2 microSD card is also 35 percent off at $39.
But Nintendo fans aren’t the only ones who can appreciate more digital storage. MicroSD cards are useful for a range of other gaming handhelds, as well as a bonus for drone enthusiasts and even some tablet owners. And if Samsung isn’t your brand of choice, there are several other options that are also on sale for Cyber Monday. The Lexar 256GB Play PRO microSD Express Card is going for about $49. The SanDisk 256GB microSD Express Card currently costs $60, and SanDisk’s 512GB option is down to about $89.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-nintendo-switch-2-compatible-samsung-p9-microsd-express-card-is-25-percent-off-for-cyber-monday-100034365.html?src=rss
Clean up literally and figuratively this Cyber Monday with discounts on vacuums from Dyson. One of our top picks for a robot vacuum is the Dyson 360 Vis Nav robot vacuum, which is on sale right now for a record low price of $400. That’s a $600 savings on this simple and effective cleaning tool.
In our testing, the Dyson 360 Vis Nav robot vac was one of the most powerful models for suction, making it a good option for households with pets, and it also impressed for its obstacle avoidance. It has Wi-Fi connectivity and an easy-to-use mobile app from Dyson, but the 360 Vis Nav doesn’t have a self-emptying dust bin and no mopping capabilities. Since this model doesn’t boast too many high-end features, a sale like Cyber Monday is a great time to take advantage for people who want a simple and reliable choice for keeping floors clean.
Cordless vacuums are also a part of the sale. Take the Dyson V9 Motorbar cordless vacuum on sale for just $270 at both Dyson and Amazon, which is a discount of $330. That’s more than half off. Dyson devices are all over our list of the best cordless vacuums, and for good reason. The company makes effective products. The V9 Motorbar has been designed to clean all floor types, in addition to upholstery. It’s also been engineered to squeeze into tight spots, which is great for hitting those oft-neglected parts of the home.
The suction power is on point and the battery lasts for 40 minutes before requiring a charge. That’s just enough time to vacuum a standard-sized home if you don’t stop for too many breaks. The V9 is getting a bit long-in-the-tooth. If you want a newer model, the V11 Extra is on sale for $400, which is a discount of $260. This one boosts the suction power and increases the battery life to 60 minutes.
Dyson V11 cordless vacuum for $400 ($260 off) at Amazon and Dyson
Dyson V9 Motorbar cordless vacuum for $270 ($330 off) at Amazon and Dyson
Dyson V12 Detect Slim cordless vacuum for $400 ($330 off) at Amazon and Dyson
Dyson AM09 Hot+Cool jet focus heater and fan for $300 ($200 off) at Amazon and Dyson
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/dyson-cyber-monday-deals-robot-vacuums-and-cordless-vacuums-are-up-to-600-off-right-now-090059733.html?src=rss
Their announcement calls it “more than a multicloud solution,” saying it’s “a step toward a more open cloud environment. The API specifications developed for this product are open for other providers and partners to adopt, as we aim to simplify global connectivity for everyone.”
Amazon and Google are introducing “a jointly developed multicloud networking service,” reports Reuters. “The initiative will enable customers to establish private, high-speed links between the two companies’ computing platforms in minutes instead of weeks.”
The new service is being unveiled a little over a month after an Amazon Web Services outage on October 20 disrupted thousands of websites worldwide, knocking offline some of the internet’s most popular apps, including Snapchat and Reddit. That outage will cost U.S. companies between $500 million and $650 million in losses, according to analytics firm Parametrix.
Google and Amazon are promising “high resiliency” through “quad-redundancy across physically redundant interconnect facilities and routers,” with both Amazon and Google continuously watching for issues. (And they’re using MACsec encryption between the Google Cloud and AWS edge routers, according to Sunday’s announcement:
As organizations increasingly adopt multicloud architectures, the need for interoperability between cloud service providers has never been greater. Historically, however, connecting these environments has been a challenge, forcing customers to take a complex “do-it-yourself” approach to managing global multi-layered networks at scale…. Previously, to connect cloud service providers, customers had to manually set up complex networking components including physical connections and equipment; this approach required lengthy lead times and coordinating with multiple internal and external teams. This could take weeks or even months. AWS had a vision for developing this capability as a unified specification that could be adopted by any cloud service provider, and collaborated with Google Cloud to bring it to market.
Now, this new solution reimagines multicloud connectivity by moving away from physical infrastructure management toward a managed, cloud-native experience.
Reuters points out that Salesforce “is among the early users of the new approach, Google Cloud said in a statement.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
Holiday shopping can be tough because you may only have so much money to spend on gifts and things for yourself. Sticking to your budget might be more important to you this year than ever, and you’re looking for deals that can help you do that. Engadget can help with that, at least in the electronics department. Yes, there are plenty of great deals on big-ticket items this year like game consoles and robot vacuums, but it would be a mistake to think you can snag an excellent gadget for $100 or less. If that sounds like just what you’re looking for, you’ve come to the right place. Here, we’ve curated the best Cyber Monday deals on tech you can get for $100 or less.
Apple AirTags (four pack) for $63 (36 percent off): iPhone users who frequently misplace things should invest in a few AirTags. Slip them into your wallet, bag, jacket and other belongings to keep track of their locations in the Find My app. Just make sure that, if you’re going to attach one to your keys, you also pick up an AirTag holder to go along with it.
Audible — three months for $3 + $20 Audible credit: For literally $1 per month, you can get access to Audible’s enormous library of published audiobooks, podcasts and Audible Originals (which can be anything from never-before-heard books to live performances). It’s only three months, after which you’ll have to cancel or renew at the regular price, but an audiobibliophile can cram a lot of listening into 90 days.
Amazon Smart Plug for $13 ($12 off): Getting into the smart home space can seem daunting, but opting for a small but powerful device like the Amazon Smart Plug can make it much easier. It’s one of our favorite smart plugs because it’s almost entirely plug-and-play. It’s super simple to set up and then you can control almost anything you plug into it with Alexa voice commands or mobile app. The only caveat is that it only supports Alexa voice control, making it the best option for those who already use Amazon’s voice assistant often.
Starz — one year for $12: Pay upfront for one year and you can get more than $50 off a Stars annual subscription. There’s a month-to-month option too, which costs $3 per month for the first three months if you don’t want to commit to the full year. Either option gives you access to the entire Starz TV and movie library with offline viewing and no ads.
LEGO Botanicals Happy Plants Building Toys 10349 for $18 (20 percent off): Here’s an ideal Secret Santa gift — everyone loves Legos and these cheery little guys will keep your giftee company at their desk or on a windowsill, and are the lowest-maintenance plants around. Also at Target and Walmart; it’s one of many Lego Cyber Monday deals you can get right now.
Roku Streaming Stick Plus for $19 (52 percent off): This is one of the best Roku devices to get if you’re on a budget and just want to make an aging TV set feel a little bit newer. This model supports 4K HDR content, has pretty accurate universal search and gives you access to a ton of free content to watch via Roku’s streaming OS.
Apple TV+ — 6 months for $36: Apple TV+ is offering six months of access for only $36 for Cyber Monday, which comes out to a discounted price of $6 per month for the six-month period. The deal is live now for new and eligible returning subscribers and runs through December 1, giving you a chance to stream shows like Silo, The Morning Show and For All Mankind for less. The biggest caveat to the deal is that you must subscribe directly through Apple and not through a third-party service.
HBO Max — one year for $36: HBO Max’s Cyber Monday deal gives subscribers one year streaming for $36 through December 1. This Cyber Monday streaming deal is on the ad-supported option, which normally goes for $11 per month. With this discount, you’re getting it for $3 per month for one year. You can sign up via HBO Max’s website or, if you’re a Prime Video subscriber already, via that service as an add-on.
Twelve South AirFly SE Bluetooth Audio Transmitter for $26 ($14 off): If you (or someone on your gift list) travels by plane a lot, they might appreciate this dongle. It adds a Bluetooth connection to any 3.5mm aux audio jack so they can use their AirPods or other wireless buds to watch in-flight entertainment. $26 isn’t the lowest price we’ve seen (it went as low as $16 earlier this year).
Govee Smart LED Light Bars for $30 ($20 off, Prime exclusive): Another of our stocking stuffer picks are these smart LED light bars from Govee. They can stand up or lie flat so they can go just about anywhere and are infinitely adjustable via the app. You can even set them to light up in sync with your music. Alexa and the Google Assistant will let you control them with just your voice (and a smart speaker).
DJI Mic Mini wireless lav mic for $66 (45 percent off): Content creators or anyone who just needs higher quality audio in the videos they make will want a wireless microphone like the DJI Mic Mini. Its lightweight and easily attaches to almost anything via clips or magnets, and it pairs easily with smartphones and cameras via Bluetooth. You can also get a configuration that includes a charging case for $80.
LEGO Star Wars Millennium Falcon A New Hope 25th Anniversary Collectable 75375 for $68 (20 percent off): This is a set that any Star Wars fan will love to build and then love to display once it’s complete. The 921-piece set features a fully-detailed Millennium Falcone, buildable stand and nameplate.
Samsung P9 microSD Express card (512GB) for $75 (25 percent off): There are only a handful of microSD Express cards on the market right now, and they are the type you need if you want to expand the storage on your new Switch 2. After testing a bunch of these cards to find the best microSD Express card for Switch 2, our biggest takeaway was that most of the ones on the market right now work well and you should get the capacity you want at the cheapest price you can find. This is a great deal on a 512GB card, and there are other Cyber Monday deals on 256GB cards, too.
Google TV Streamer 4K for $75 ($25 off): Our top pick for the best streaming device right now, the latest version of Google’s streamer supports 4K video and an excellent, easy-to-use interface that will feel familiar to anyone who’s seen a set with the Google TV technology built in. It provides access to all of the major streaming services including Netflix, Disney+, HBO Max, YouTube and more, plus it has a handy on-screen pop up that lets you control all compatible smart home devices right from your TV.
Amazon Kindle for $80 ($25 off): Amazon’s entry-level Kindle is the best budget e-reader on the market right now, with a compact and durable design, plus a crisp display. If you already have a bunch of ebooks purchased through the Kindle Store, it’s one of the best options for you, and Amazon’s Whispersync feature lines up where you are in the e-printed version with the narration if you go back and forth between reading and listening to Audible audiobooks.
Anker Laptop Power Bank (25K, 100W) for $88 (35 percent off): A top pick in our guide to the best power banks, this Anker brick is kind of a one-and-done device. It has enough capacity to charge all sorts of devices from smartphones to laptops to handheld gaming consoles, and it has two built-in USB-C cables so you don’t even have to remember to bring your own to use it. Also available at Anker.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/the-best-cyber-monday-deals-for-100-or-less-score-big-discounts-on-apple-anker-streaming-services-and-more-080046748.html?src=rss
Cyber Monday is a fitting time to snag great deals on cybersecurity products, such as a subscription to a VPN. Ongoing access to a VPN keeps your online activity private, which is particularly useful during the holiday season, whether you’re doing lots of online shopping, making travel plans or simply accessing the seasonal rom-coms from a streaming service’s other markets. In honor of Cyber Monday, Proton VPN is offering a discount of 75 percent off two years of access to its VPN Plus tier. You can currently purchase a subscription for $59.76, which works out to $2.49 per month. That yields overall savings of $180 on the company’s usual $10 a month pricing.
Proton VPN is our pick for the best VPN overall because it checks all of the boxes it needs to. There is a free plan with unlimited data, but with that you can only connect to servers in a few countries and the connection might not be fast enough for you to watch anything from your preferred streaming service’s library in that locale. The VPN Plus tier unlocks a lot more options, such as the ability to connect to 15,000 servers across more than 120 countries and simultaneous protection for up to 15 devices.
The apps are well-designed — Proton has clients for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android — and it’s easy to find a feature or setting you’re looking for. In our testing, Proton VPN Plus had a relatively small impact on browsing speeds. Our download speeds dropped by 12 percent and uploads by 4 percent, while the global average ping remained below 300 ms (which is especially impressive if you’re connecting to a server on the other side of the planet).
Perhaps, most importantly, though, it’s Proton’s commitment to privacy that helps make its VPN an easy recommendation. There’s a no-logs policy, meaning it does not log user activity or any identifiable characteristics of devices that connect to the VPN. Proton’s servers use full-disk encryption to bolster privacy as well.
Proton VPN is not the only service to offer a Cyber Monday VPN deal this year, of course. There are plenty of others available on services we like. Here are the best of the bunch if you’re looking for an alternative to Proton VPN.
Surfshark One (24 months + 3 free months) for $59.13 (88 percent off): A VPN is great, but it’s not enough to protect your data all on its own. Surfshark One adds several apps that boost your security beyond just VPN service, including Surfshark Antivirus (scans devices and downloads for malware) and Surfshark Alert (alerts you whenever your sensitive information shows up in a data breach), plus Surfshark Search and Alternative ID from the tier below. This extra-low deal gives you 88 percent off all those features.
NordVPN Plus (24 months + 3 free months) for $105.03 (74 percent off): NordVPN has taken 74 percent off its Plus subscription for Cyber Monday. For only a little more, you get a powerful ad and tracker blocker that can also catch malware downloads, plus access to the NordPass password manager. A Plus plan also adds a data breach scanner that checks the dark web for your sensitive information.
CyberGhost (24 months + 4 free months) for $56.94 (84 percent off): CyberGhost has some of the best automation you’ll see on any VPN. With its Smart Rules system, you can determine how its apps respond to different types of Wi-Fi networks, with exceptions for specific networks you know by name. Typically, you can set it to auto-connect, disconnect or send you a message asking what to do. CyberGhost’s other best feature is its streaming servers — I’ve found both better video quality and more consistent unblocking when I use them on streaming sites.
Private Internet Access (36 months + 4 free months) for $79.20 (83 percent off): Private Internet Access (PIA) is giving out the best available price right now on a VPN I’d recommend using. With this deal, you can get 40 months of PIA for just under $2 per month — an 83 percent discount on its monthly price. Despite being so cheap, PIA has plenty of features, coming with its own DNS servers, a built-in ad blocker and automation powers to rival CyberGhost. However, internet speeds can fluctuate while you’re connected.
ExpressVPN Basic (15 months) for $74.85 (61 percent off): ExpressVPN may be the most user-friendly VPN for sale right now, with fast download speeds (only 7 percent losses in our last test), quick connections and apps designed to stay out of your way. It’s not the most feature-rich, but it excels at any bread-and-butter VPN task, staying leak-free and unblocking Netflix everywhere. You also get access to server locations in 105 countries.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/cyber-monday-vpn-deals-get-75-percent-off-proton-vpn-two-year-plans-plus-save-on-nordvpn-expressvpn-and-more-070013207.html?src=rss
Amazon might be best known for its Prime Day shopping sprees, but the retailer also has plenty of big bargains for Cyber Monday, including on its own-brand items. Right now, you can pick up the Amazon Smart Plug for $13, which is the lowest price we’ve seen for this piece of home tech. The Smart Plug usually costs $25, so you’re getting nearly half off if you buy during this sale.
The Amazon product is one of our selections for the best smart plugs on the market. It’s an excellent addition for homes that rely on a lot of Alexa-enabled devices. The smart plug can be easily set up in the Alexa app and is, appropriately, a plug-and-play part of your home’s gadgetry.
Once connected, you’ll be able to use any device with Alexa to control whatever it’s plugged into. For instance, you can group multiple plugs together as lights and then just say “Alexa, turn all the lights off” and it’ll do just that. They are compatible with just about any household device with a physical on/off switch, including lamps and coffee makers.
While these are the perfect smart plugs for Alexa households, they are only for Alexa households. The plugs don’t integrate with any other digital assistant. They are still the best choice for those tied into the ecosystem. Other smart plugs on sale for Cyber Monday include the Kasa Mini smart plugs; you can get a four-pack for $24.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/get-the-amazon-smart-plug-for-a-record-low-price-on-cyber-monday-060008101.html?src=rss
After a successful November 27th launch to the International Space Station, Russia discovered an accident had occurred on their launch site’s mobile maintenance cabin — when a drone spotted it lying upside down in a flame trench.
“The main issue with the structure collapse is that it puts Site 31/6 — the only Russian launch site capable of launching crew and cargo to the International Space Station (ISS) — out of service until the structure is fixed,” reports the space-news site NASA Spaceflight
There are other Soyuz 2 rocket launch pads, but they are either located at an unsuitable latitude, like Plesetsk, or not certified for crewed flights, like Vostochny, or decommissioned and transferred to a museum, like Gagarin’s Start at Baikonur. As a result, Russia is temporarily unable to launch Soyuz crewed spacecraft and Progress cargo ships to the ISS, whose nearest launch (Progress MS-33) was scheduled for December 21….
When the rocket launched, a pressure difference was created between the space under the rocket, where gases from running engines are discharged, and the nook where the [144-ton] maintenance cabin was located. The resulting pressure difference pulled the service cabin out of the nook and threw it into the flame trench, where it fell upside down from a height of 20 m. Photos of the accident showed significant damage to the maintenance cabin, which, according to experts, is too extensive to allow for repairs. The only way to resume launches from Site 31/6 is to install a spare maintenance cabin or construct a new one.
Despite the fact that the fallen structure was manufactured in the 1960s, two similar service cabins were manufactured recently at the Tyazhmash heavy-engineering plant in Syzran for other Soyuz launch complexes at the Guiana Space Center and Vostochny Cosmodrome. The production of each cabin took around two years to complete, however, it was not for an emergency situation.
“Various experts gave different possible estimates of the recovery time of the Site 31 launch complex: from several months to three years.”
Read more of this story at Slashdot.
