While it didn’t quite make the cut in our guide to the best virtual private networks (VPNs), NordVPN remains one of the more popular providers out there for a reason, and right now you can save up to 76 percent on its two-year plans, with an Amazon gift card thrown in as a sweetener. With Prime Day due to take place at some point in July, that deal looks even better.
Right now, if you take out a 24-month Plus plan at $4.39 per month, you’ll pay $105.36 for the whole period, which is a 70 percent discount on Nord’s regular price. The plan includes the full suite of Nord’s VPN features and Threat Protection Pro anti-malware, plus you’ll get a $20 Amazon voucher thrown in.
If you’d rather opt for a NordVPN Complete plan, which includes 1TB of encrypted cloud storage, you’ll pay $5.39 per month or $129.36 over two years. This option comes with a $40 Amazon gift card.
The US-only NordVPN Prime plan comes with all of Nord’s features from the cheaper tiers, plus the NordProtect identity theft protection service, which gives you up to $1 million in cyber insurance, as well as credit and SSN monitoring. That plan currently costs $7.39 per month or $177.36 over two years, and includes a $50 Amazon gift card. All plans have a 30-day money-back guarantee.
Using a VPN is the best way of bypassing geo-restricted content and adding another layer of privacy when browsing the web over public Wi-Fi. Our current number one pick is ProtonVPN, based on its combination of security, usability and privacy features. Its open-source framework is also a plus. You can browse its current pricing plans here.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/cybersecurity/vpn/get-a-free-amazon-gift-card-when-you-sign-up-for-a-discounted-nordvpn-plan-155835142.html?src=rss
Intel is putting a bunch of Arc Alchemist GPUs on the chopping block, including both desktop and mobile models. The one that stands out the most is the Arc A750, which is also the most recent one to be included in Intel’s Product Change Notification (PCN) documentation with an ‘End of Life’ (EOL) designation. According to the document, the
It was just four years ago that Sony promised to launch 12 live service games by early 2026. Since then, many of those have been delayed, canceled, or taken offline. But that doesn’t seem to be deterring the console maker. PlayStation Studios CEO Hermen Hulst said in a new business update that live service games…
Scientists have successfully grown beating human hearts inside pig embryos for the first time, marking a significant advance in developing human-animal chimeras for potential organ transplantation. The hybrid embryos survived for 21 days, during which the fingertip-sized hearts began beating, according to findings presented at the International Society for Stem Cell Research meeting in Hong Kong.
Researchers — led by Lai Liangxue at the Guangzhou Institutes of Biomedicine and Health — reprogrammed human stem cells to survive in pigs and introduced them into pig embryos with two heart development genes knocked out. The human cells, tagged with luminescent biomarkers, were visible glowing within the developing hearts.
A text expander can be extremely powerful as it detects when you type a keyword and replaces it while you are typing. People often use them to write quick text snippets.
When a game is in the works as long as Dragon Age: The Veilguard was, it’s bound to have a ton of unused assets and concept art. Developers like BioWare go through so many artistic iterations of a game within normal development cycles, so you can imagine how many more a game like The Veilguard had when it was rebooted…
For as long as I can remember, Nintendo’s gamepads have been a core part of my life. The NES’s original rectangular controller was awfully unergonomic, but I still loved it, and it set me down the path of being a lifelong gaming and gadget geek. The SNES’s rounded gamepad practically defined my childhood. It’s so iconic, you can still see echoes of its layout in most controllers today. I didn’t have much love for the Nintendo 64’s triple-armed monstrosity (or that system in general), but the Gamecube’s cartoonishly quirky controller was fantastic, especially when Nintendo’s WaveBird finally made wireless gaming a reality. And while I didn’t like the Wiimote or Wii U tablet much either, I can respect the swings Nintendo took with both of them.
So, believe me when I say this: The Switch 2 Pro Controller is the best gamepad Nintendo has ever made. It feels wonderfully ergonomic and luxurious in your hands, its joysticks are buttery smooth and all of its buttons deliver excellent feedback. It’s a huge step up from the original Switch’s Pro controller, which felt weirdly cheap and plasticky, especially when rotating its analog sticks. And, as an added bonus, the Switch 2 Pro controller is also customizable, thanks to two rear buttons that can be quickly programmed in any game. There’s even a 3.5mm jack to plug in wired headphones, something I’ve never seen on a Nintendo controller before (but which has been standard on Xbox and PlayStation systems for decades).
The Switch 2 Pro Controller isn’t perfect, though. For one, it costs $85 (up from its originally announced $80 price, thanks to the Trump administration’s tariffs). I suppose that’s not as bad as buying a whole new pair of Joy-Con 2s for $95, and it’s not too far off from the PlayStation 5’s $75 Dual Sense 2, but it still stings. It’s even more painful when you consider that 8Bitdo’s excellent Ultimate wireless controller currently costs $50 (down from a $70 launch price), it works with the Switch 2, has rear buttons and it features Hall effect joysticks. That means they’re impervious to the drifting problem that plagued the Switch 1’s controllers.
While gamers have been begging Nintendo to implement Hall effect sticks for years, the company still hasn’t listened. Both the Joy-Con 2 and Switch 2 Pro Controller appear to use the same mechanism as the Switch 1’s accessories. In an interview, Nintendo producer Kouichi Kawamoto said the company “redesigned everything from scratch,” for the Joy-Con 2, and from my time with the Pro 2 Controller it also feels significantly different than before. But really, all I can do is hope and pray it doesn’t start drifting. One Reddit user claimed that their Switch 2 Joy-Cons were drifting right out of the box, but that doesn’t appear to be a widespread issue.
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
Beyond the pricing and technical disappointments, though, the Switch 2 Pro Controller is a dream to play with. It seriously leveled-up my Mario Kart World performance, since it was easier to drift around corners and hop up to rails without cramping my hands, something that’s unavoidable with the Joy-Con 2. I was able to play for several hours with the new Pro controller and I didn’t notice any pain, and I could also still hold it easily as my palms got sweaty.
As someone who was raised on every version of Street Fighter 2 on the SNES, I also had to put the Switch 2 Pro Controller through its paces for fighting games. And let me tell you, the hadoukens came easily. The controller’s D-pad sits under my left thumb comfortably, and it’s a cinch to click and rotate to perform Street Fighter 2 moves. While playing Soulcalibur 2 (now available as part of the Gamecube Classics for Nintendo Online subscribers), the Switch 2 Pro controller was also comfortable while holding my right fingers above the face buttons, similar to an arcade stick. (That’s a Soulcalibur technique I learned on the Dreamcast and never let go.)
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
Despite being fine-tuned for Mario Kart, the Switch 2 Pro Controller isn’t ideal for more realistic racing games since it doesn’t have analog triggers like its predecessor. Nintendo engineers have said in interviews that the company opted for digital triggers since they’re quicker to respond. Premium gamepads like the Xbox Elite have switches that let you choose between quick trigger modes and long analog presses, so there’s clearly a cure for Nintendo’s analog aversion. But implementing that sort of customization also makes gamepads far more complex and expensive.
At least Nintendo gave us a modicum of customization with the Switch 2 Pro controller’s rear GL and GR buttons, which sit right above the handle grips. You can instantly remap their functionality in any game from the Switch 2’s quick settings menu, making it easier to do things like switch weapons or jump without moving your thumbs away from the joysticks. I ended up remapping the drift and action buttons in Mario Kart World to GL and GR, which helped me avoid reaching up to hit the top trigger buttons. You can also remap all of the Switch 2 Pro Controller’s buttons from the Switch 2’s accessibility menu, where you can create presets for different titles too.
Devindra Hardawar for Engadget
After around 10 hours of playing a variety of games, the Switch 2 Pro Controller’s battery fell to 82 percent. Nintendo claims it can last up to 40 hours, but unfortunately I haven’t been able to play that much during this review. Based on what I’m seeing, though, the gamepad should reach 40 hours easily.
As much as I like the Switch 2 Pro Controller, it’s undoubtedly an extravagance at $85 when 8Bitdo’s Ultimate gamepad offers even more features for $50. But if you’re a dedicated Nintendo fan, or you just can’t accept third-party controllers, it’s also one of the best gamepads you can buy today.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/gaming/nintendo/switch-2-pro-controller-review-nintendos-best-gamepad-simply-costs-too-much-151330215.html?src=rss
It’s been nearly a year since we first spied a reference to an AMD Ryzen 5 5500X3D processor, a chip that until now has not officially existed. That just changed, though, with AMD adding a product page to its CPU database, and with it comes confirmation of the full specifications. The only thing we don’t know just yet is the price, though
The open-source mobile app Organic
Maps is used by millions of people on both the Android and iOS
platforms. In addition to featuring offline maps (generated from OpenStreetMap cartography) and
turn-by-turn navigation, it also promises its users greater privacy
than proprietary options. However, controversial decisions taken by the
project’s leaders, feelings of disenfranchisement among contributors, and
even accusations of embezzlement have precipitated a divide in the
community, leading to a new fork called CoMaps.
London-based Nothing has confirmed a new strategy for the U.S. smartphone market that could take the fight directly to the likes of Apple, Samsung, and Google. The upcoming Nothing Phone (3) flagship won’t be sold via beta programs (and have gimped cell network support), but it will now be supported by all major service providers AND be sold
Omega Pilot Evolution is a high-speed VR futuristic racing game heading to Quest, Pico and PlayStation VR2.
Developed by XOCUS (EXOcars), Omega Pilot Evolution is a sequel to 2022’s Omega Pilot. A first-person VR racing game with anti-gravity vehicles, the studio states these tracks are designed for “extreme speed and skill-based maneuvering.” Solo modes are supported alongside asynchronous and real-time multiplayer modes, with global and friends-only leaderboards also included.
— XOCUS 一 EXOcars is LIVE � (@XocusVR) June 12, 2025
Each race offers various weapons ranging from energy blasters to electromagnetic pulse (EMPs), also providing shields to defend yourself from such attacks. Finishing races and earning victories awards in-game currency, which can then be used to upgrade ship aspects like speed, handling, durability and visual customizations.
Not much else is currently known, as we’ve yet to see gameplay footage or an announcement trailer from XOCUS. While the initial social media announcement confirms plans for Quest, Pico and PlayStation VR2 launches, PC VR and Steam are notably absent from that list.
As for a release window, Omega Pilot Evolution lists a November 2025 release on PlayStation VR2. It’s unclear if this also applies to Quest and Pico, since the store pages aren’t currently live.
Apple announced a ton of new features and changes across its products during the company’s big WWDC 2025 event. iOS 26, in particular, is chock full of updates, with a long list of iPhones that support the newest update. However, some of these new features will only run on newer iPhones. Even if your iPhone can update to iOS 26, you might be missing out on the full experience.
Most of the features on this list are powered by Apple Intelligence, Apple’s suite of generative AI features. As it happens, Apple Intelligence requires an iPhone 15 Pro or newer to work. That includes, of course, iPhone 15 Pro Max, but also iPhone 16, 16 Plus, 16 Pro, and 16 Pro Max. If you don’t have one of those six phones, you can’t use any Apple Intelligence features—both the existing ones released throughout the iOS 18 era, as well as any of the new features in iOS 26. It’s a little confusing, since there are a lot of iPhones that can run iOS 26 that aren’t these iPhones—basically iPhone 11 and newer—but that’s the way Apple wants it, unfortunately.
Here’s what you’re missing out on if you don’t have a newer iPhone:
Live Translation
Apple’s Live Translation features for iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS Tahoe seem great. Live Translation uses AI to translate both text and audio in real time across various apps and services. So, you might see translations appear next to messages sent in a language you can’t read, or hear translations when on a call with someone who speaks a language you don’t understand.
Visual Intelligence
Visual Intelligence itself isn’t new this year. The Apple Intelligence feature debuted with iOS 18.2, and lets Apple’s AI analyze anything in your camera feed. The feature started as an iPhone 16 exclusive, but Apple did bring it to 15 Pro and 15 Pro Max models as well.
It’s always a bummer when you spend the day taking photos on your phone, only to notice when you’re home that those photos came out smudgy—all because your camera was dirty.
iOS 26 has a (presumably AI-powered) feature to fix that. Apple didn’t announce this one, but beta testers discovered that when the camera is dirty, the new Camera app now warns you to clean the lens before taking a photo.
Genmoji and Image Playground
Genmoji and Image Playground are getting updates with iOS 26—the AI features rolled out last year, allowing you to generate emojis and images with text-based prompts.
This year, Apple is adding the ability to mix together different Genmoji and emoji to create brand new icons, which introduces an Emoji Kitchen-like feature to the iPhone. In addition, Image Playground now lets you add ChatGPT styles, like anime, oil painting, and watercolor, to your generations.
AI-integrated Shortcuts
Shortcuts has been available on all iPhones since iOS 12, but with iOS 26, Apple is integrating AI features to the automation tool. These shortcuts will let you summarize text, generate images, or utilize Apple Intelligence models to power your shortcuts.
If your iPhone can’t access AI tools at all, you probably won’t feel the absence of these upgrades much anyway.
Messages features
Messages is getting some useful new features this year. Two key features are polls and backgrounds: You’ll be able to make polls for your friends and family to answer, and choose from a set selection of backgrounds for your chats. Other chat apps have had these features for years, of course, but it’s cool they’re finally in the Messages app—and both are compatible with all iPhones running iOS 26.
That said, each feature has AI integrations that will only work on iPhone 15 Pro and newer. First, polls: In addition to choosing your own poll questions, newer iPhone owners will also see AI-generated poll suggestions. (I’m not entirely sure why you’d want this, but it’s there.) In my opinion, Backgrounds’ AI feature is more useful, since you can use Apple Intelligence to generate a background for your chats. I’d prefer to choose my own image to set as a background, but this at least opens up the background possibilities.
Reminders
If you have one of these iPhones compatible with Apple Intelligence, you’ll notice iOS 26 suggests new reminders based on the contents of your messages and emails. If you’re chatting with your roommate about needing to buy more coffee, for example, you might see a suggested reminder to add it to your grocery list.
Plus, iOS 26 will categorize task lists for you using Apple Intelligence. There’s a new “Auto-Categorize” setting, complete with an Apple Intelligence logo, if you want to outsource that task to Apple’s AI.
Apple Wallet
On iPhone 15 Pro and newer, iOS 26 will use AI to automatically pull data from your emails to show you up-to-date order tracking in Wallet. The app already has non-AI support for order tracking, but it’s not particularly used by stores and merchants.
Lock Screen
iOS 26 has exactly one non-AI feature that isn’t supported on all compatible devices: The Lock Screen has a new 3D effect that automatically adjusts the size and position of the time depending on the the photo you choose, prioritizing the subject of the photo. It’s neat, and only works on iPhone 12 or newer. If you have an iPhone 11, you’re out of luck.
The Outdoor Trade Show is the UK’s only outdoor sports trade show, welcoming some of the biggest brands from Britain and beyond to display their wares.
This year, it was held in Liverpool and welcomed brands from across the outdoor pursuits space, including camping, hiking, climbing and trail running, alongside plenty of bikepacking swag.
While not a specific cycling show, we pushed our noses into the exhibition centre to sniff out the best cycling tech.
Sea to Summit camping setup
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This makes for a seriously lightweight setup. Nick Clark / Our Media
Bikepackers will be well aware of Sea to Summit’s camping equipment, with the brand selling everything from lightweight tents to collapsible cutlery.
The brand was displaying its latest sleep solutions, with the Ultralight Insulated Air Sleeping Mat and Aeros Ultralight Pillow looking ideal for featherweight camping gear.
There are multiple colours available. Nick Clark / Our Media
Much like a Chesterfield sofa, the Ultralight Insulated Air Sleeping Mat features a dimpled surface that is said to provide good stability and support.
It also has an R-value (a measurement used for insulation) of 3.1, which the brand says is perfect for spring, summer and early autumn.
Inflation is made easy with the stuff sack. Nick Clark / Our Media
The mat is inflated from the pack sack using the Bernoulli principle to blow air into a plastic portion, which is then compressed through the valve.
The Velcro on the mat interacts with the microfibre finish on the pillow. Nick Clark / Our Media
This sack can also be used to inflate the Aeros Ultralight Pillow, which sticks to the mat using Velcro, keeping it in position throughout the night.
The Ultralight Insulated Air Sleeping Mat weighs in at 430g and is priced at £140, while the pillow is sold separately for £35 and weighs only 60g.
There are multiple Spark bags in the range, with some equipped for temperatures as low as -18ºC. Nick Clark / Our Media
Sea to Summit also had its Spark Ultralight Sleeping Bag on show, which is comfortable down to 7ºC, weighs in at 387g and features a longitudinally baffled design said to retain heat better. This comes at a pretty price of £330.
Combined, they should make for an excellent sleep setup for lightweight bikepacking.
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Silva Free 2000 M head torch
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The Silva Free 2000 M is well suited to bikepacking. Nick Clark / Our Media
This headtorch from Silva caught my eye, with its modular design looking great for ticking off those last couple of miles when the night sets in.
The design is simple and feels secure. Nick Clark / Our Media
The design enables you to wear it as a head torch or mount it directly to a helmet, giving it great versatility on and off the bike.
The versatility of the Silva Free 2000 M is impressive. Nick Clark / Our Media
The unit’s party piece is that the light portion can be mounted directly to the battery, giving you a torch or lantern to navigate campgrounds.
This model has an output of 2,000 lumens and is priced at £284.99, although there are more powerful variants in the range, which may be more suitable for high-speed night riding.
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Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 Bikepack Tent
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The high-top design adds space to sit up. Nick Clark / Our Media
If you plan on spending a long time away bikepacking, a good tent is an essential.
This unreleased two-man, bikepacking-specific tent from Big Agnes packs down small enough to fit between most dropped handlebars and weighs in at around 1.8kg.
The Big Agnes Copper Spur UL2 Bikepack has a large interior. Nick Clark / Our Media
It’s a double-skinner, meaning you won’t be waking up soaked by your own breath, and features plenty of storage inside with specific helmet storage.
There are two doors to the tent, both featuring space outside to protect your bikepacking bags from the elements during the night.
The orange ribbon can be used to hang wet clothes. Nick Clark / Our Media
There are attachments to dry off wet clothes on the top of the tent, and sticking to the bikes theme, the Big Agnes logo features a chainring outline.
The tent packs down and can easily be attached to a fork mount. Nick Clark / Our Media
We don’t have any official pricing, but it looks like luxury bikepacking material.
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Jetboil Stash camping stove
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Everything you need is kept in the pan. Nick Clark / Our Media
If you’re looking for one of the most compact cooking solutions, the Stash looks a great option.
Indents on the lid keep the canister secure. Nick Clark / Our Media
The design sees the stove and gas canister secured in the pan for easy storage.
The stove is made from titanium and folds away. Nick Clark / Our Media
Instead of using a full-titanium design, Jetboil has employed an aluminium pan for better heat transfer.
The stove itself is made from titanium and folds away into a smaller profile.
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Suunto Aqua Light headphones
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The Suunto Aqua Light headphones were released recently. Nick Clark / Our Media
These cycling headphones from Suunto feature an open-ear design using bone conduction to send the music through your jaw and into your eardrum.
We’ve tested similar models in the past, giving the Suunto Wing 4.5 stars in our review.
The new headphones feature IP68 waterproofing, which Suunto says makes them waterproof for two hours at two metres.
Battery life is up to 10 hours and there’s now 32GB of offline audio storage.
While it’s nice to listen to your surroundings while bikepacking, when the hammer has to be put down to make a checkpoint, some music can be just the ticket – as long as you’re not putting yourself or others at risk.
The Radicle peer-to-peer code
collaboration project has released Radicle
Desktop: a graphical interface designed to simplify more complex
parts of using Radicle such as issue management and patch reviews.
Radicle Desktop is not trying to replace your terminal, IDE, or code
editor – you already have your preferred tools for code browsing. It
won’t replace our existing app.radicle.xyz and search.radicle.xyz for
finding and exploring projects. It also doesn’t run a node for
you. Instead, it communicates with your existing Radicle node,
supporting your current workflow and encourages gradual adoption.
Distros align with GNOME 49’s move to make Wayland the only supported sessionLike any other distro with GNOME 49, the next interim release of Ubuntu will be Wayland-only – at least in its GNOME variant.…
An anonymous reader shares a report: Slack, an instant-messaging service popular with businesses, recently blocked other software firms from searching or storing Slack messages even if their customers permit them to do so, according to a public disclosure from Slack’s owner, Salesforce.
The move, which hasn’t previously been reported, could hamper fast-growing artificial intelligence startups that have used such access to power their services, such as Glean. Since the Salesforce change, Glean and other applications can no longer index, copy or store the data they access via the Slack application programming interface on a long-term basis, according to the disclosure. Salesforce will continue allowing such firms to temporarily use and store their customers’ Slack data, but they must delete the data, the company said.
Nubia, a Chinese company usually known for smartphones, has officially thrown its hat into the premium tablet ring with the unveiling of the Nubia Pad Pro. Announced today, the device—rocking a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, DDR5X RAM, and 10.9-inch 144Hz display—will top out at $600, potentially placing it in competition with established players
