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Some laptops are performance powerhouses, but work better as a desktop and can be bulky to travel or commute with. If you’re looking for an ultraportable laptop that still offers robust performance but isn’t a headache (or a shoulder ache) to lug around, the MacBook Air remains one of the best lightweight laptops available, with a sleek and modern design to boot. Right now, as part of Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, the Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (2025, M4) is 21% off at $1,099 (originally $1,399), marking its lowest price ever. 

Apple MacBook Air 13-Inch (2025, M4)

$1,099.00
at Amazon

$1,399.00
Save $300.00

$1,099.00
at Amazon

$1,399.00
Save $300.00

The 2025 MacBook Air 13-inch model earned an Editor’s Choice Award from PCMag, which lauded it for its faster M4 processing chip, boosted RAM (even in the base model), quieter, fanless build, and Improved Center Stage camera, as well as Apple Intelligence features. The 15-inch model’s starting price is also lower than the previous-generation 15-inch Air, and it comes with 16GB RAM and 512GB storage and weighs just 2.7 lbs. Apple claims the battery lasts up to 18 hours, and in real-world testing, it actually exceeded that expectation by nearly two hours. 

That said, some ultraportable Windows laptops outpace it, and the battery life, while impressive, is still about 90 minutes short compared to the 2024 model. Still, it surpasses the MacBook Pro in many areas, according to our reviewer. Much of this is due to the upgraded M4 chip, making it a potent combination of power and affordability. In our tester’s findings on CPU performance, the Pro only performed 5% better, making the Apple MacBook Air 15-inch (2025, M4) a versatile option for a range of users, now priced better than ever at $300 off.

If you’re looking for the 13-inch model instead, that’s also on sale right now for $250 off during the Amazon Big Spring Sale.

Earlier this month Honda decided to cancel a trio of electric vehicles it was planning to build in the US. And those cancellations are having a ripple effect. Today Sony Honda Mobility—the automaker’s joint venture with the electronics and entertainment company—announced that it won’t bring its EVs to market either.

Although Honda was an early adopter of hybrid technology, it has been left badly lagging when it comes to developing battery-electric cars. The diminutive Honda e might look like the most adorable city car you’ve ever seen, but it struggled to find more than 12,000 buyers in four years across Europe and Japan.

Here in North America, the Prologue has done much better: Honda sold 33,000 in 2024, and another 39,000 last year. But the rebadged GM, which shares a platform with the Chevrolet Blazer, has seen sales implode since the end of the federal clean vehicle tax credit last fall, and it, too, leaves production at the end of the year. An earlier plan to use GM’s battery platform for lower-cost EVs, meant to arrive in 2027, died in late 2023.

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Ring has today announced a spec bump to its battery-powered video doorbells for all those folks who can’t wire their units to power. The flagship Battery Doorbell Pro (2nd gen) gets 4K video, with 10x zoom and the promise of far longer time between recharges than the previous model. At the same time, it’s bringing 2K imaging to its lower-end battery doorbells, the Battery Doorbell Plus and Battery Doorbell (2nd gen). The former, as fitting its higher price, gets a quick-release battery pack, while both models get 2K video and 6x zoom. Naturally, these features are already available on Ring’s wired products, the bulk of which were announced back in September 2025.

The company is also aware that swapping out batteries isn’t ideal if you really need a doorbell to work all of the time. That’s why it’s also launching a new Solar Charger which integrates into the mount, keeping your doorbell running for longer between trips to the wall outlet. There’s also a bigger Solar Panel, which pumps out more juice than its smaller sibling, and can be mounted in a wider variety of places. All of the above are available to pre-order from today, and are priced as follows: Pro ($250), Plus ($180), Battery Doorbell ($100), Solar Charger ($50), Solar Panel ($60).

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/home/ring-adds-4k-to-its-battery-powered-video-doorbells-130021181.html?src=rss

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The 13-inch Apple MacBook Air (2025, M4, 512GB) is down to $949 for Amazon’s Big Spring Sale, a $250 drop from its usual $1,199 and its lowest price yet, according to price trackers. This is Apple’s most accessible laptop, and an easy-to-recommend choice as a long-term machine for everyday use. Reviews back that up, with PCMag giving it an “outstanding” rating and naming it the best ultraportable laptop of 2025. Over at Lifehacker, senior tech editor Jake Peterson has also pointed out in his coverage that this Air is a better value for most buyers than stepping up to a MacBook Pro, especially at a discount like this.

Apple MacBook Air (2025)

$949.00
at Amazon

$1,199.00
Save $250.00

$949.00
at Amazon

$1,199.00
Save $250.00

The M4 chip keeps things feeling quick in everyday use. You can move between a bunch of tabs, documents, and light edits without things getting stuck or slowing down. Apple has also made 16GB of RAM the standard this time, which helps the laptop hold up better over time. It’s the kind of change you notice after a few months, when everything still runs the way it did on day one, even if you’re someone who leaves apps open in the background. The 13.6-inch Liquid Retina display is also easy to like. Text looks crisp, colors feel natural, and it’s bright enough to use comfortably in most lighting. Using it day to day feels straightforward—the keyboard is comfortable enough that you don’t think about it much, and Touch ID makes small things like unlocking or approving downloads faster.

You also get Wi-Fi 6E and MagSafe charging, so you can free up the two Thunderbolt 4 ports for accessories. Those ports can also drive up to two external 6K displays, which is more flexibility than older Air models offered. That said, the port selection is limited to two USB-C connections, so using multiple peripherals often means adding a hub. Storage is fixed at 512GB unless you pay more upfront, and upgrades get expensive quickly within Apple’s ecosystem. This also is not built for heavy, sustained workloads like advanced video editing or 3D rendering, where a MacBook Pro is still the better fit. But for everyday use, this covers a wide range of tasks without feeling restrictive, and the combination of performance, display quality, and battery efficiency makes it the best MacBook for most people.

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The DJI Osmo 360 Essential Combo is down to $389.35 for Amazon’s Spring Sale (March 25 through March 31), a sizable drop from its usual $599. This bundle gives you more than just the camera. You get the Osmo 360 itself, an invisible selfie stick, a protective pouch, a rubber lens guard, a charging cable, and an extra battery pack. DJI is also discounting other versions like the Skiing, Cycling, and Vortex combos, but the Essential kit covers most general use cases without locking you into one activity.

DJI Osmo 360 Essential Combo

360 camera with native 8K 360° video and extra batteries

$389.35
at Amazon

$599.00
Save $209.65

$389.35
at Amazon

$599.00
Save $209.65

At this price, it sits closer to midrange action cameras while offering something those cameras don’t: full 360-degree capture. The Osmo 360’s main draw is its ability to record native 8K 360 footage at 30fps. That gives you enough resolution to crop and reframe clips later without losing too much detail. In practice, it means you can shoot first and decide your angles after. Battery life is decent for a compact camera, with DJI estimating it at around 100 minutes when shooting 8K, and up to 190 minutes if you drop to 6K at 24fps. The included extra battery in the Essential Combo helps stretch that further.

The invisible selfie stick does exactly what it promises by removing itself from footage automatically, so you get that floating third-person perspective without editing. There’s also a SuperNight mode for low-light scenes, slow-motion recording up to 100 fps, and a selfie mode for wide-angle clips. You also get 105GB of built-in storage (though you can expand it when needed), which is a practical addition, especially if you forget a microSD card. The OLED touchscreen is bright enough for outdoor use, and at around 0.4 pounds, the camera stays easy to carry for long shoots.

That said, 8K 360º footage sounds great, but it demands more storage and editing time, and while DJI’s app is fairly approachable, working with 360-degree video adds extra steps compared to standard video. Also, low-light performance improves with SuperNight mode, but it does not fully match traditional action cameras with larger sensors. Still, at $389.35, the overall package feels more accessible, and it’s a good entry point into 360º video if you’re willing to spend a bit more time editing.

Hearing aid company Sonova has put its Sennheiser consumer audio division on the auction block less than five years after acquiring it, the company announced on Reddit. “Today Sonova announced they intend to divest the business and will focus on Hearing Care,” Sonova wrote, adding it intends to find “the right new owner.”

Sennheiser’s consumer audio division mainly manufactures high-end headphones like the HD 400, HD 500, HD 600 and HD 800 series and recently launched the HDB 630, $500 wireless headphones aimed at audiophiles. The company’s most (in)famous lineup is the HE series, which includes the $55,000 HE 90 and €89,990 HE 1.

Sonova originally purchased Sennheiser with the intent of expanding its demographic to younger customers. At the time, it said “even if [young people] don’t have hearing loss, most of them will gradually get hearing loss with age, and devices like Sennheiser’s allow us to have earlier consumer access to such people.” For its part, Sennheiser said it wanted to relinquish its consumer business in order to focus on its pro audio, business and Neumann (high-end microphone) divisions that it still owns.

Things apparently didn’t go to plan, though. Sonova’s Sennheiser division’s sales in the last half-year declined significantly year-over-year and the company was hit with a €6 million fine over its retail pricing practices (that occurred prior to the acquisition). However, the company’s recent products have been praised by the audiophile community as a return to previous form, with Engadget’s audio reviewer Billy Steele calling the HDB 630 “a sonic marvel.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/audio/sennheisers-owners-want-to-sell-its-consumer-headphone-business-121830441.html?src=rss

Late last year, Samsung launched its newest generation of affordable A-series phones, starting with the entry-level A17. Following the arrival of the flagship Galaxy S26 line, the company has returned to flesh out the rest of its midrange portfolio. The more affordable Galaxy A37 and Galaxy A57 sport some interesting upgrades, even when compared to some of their pricier siblings.

Core specs and features

Before we dive into my hands-on impressions, I want to do a quick rundown of each phone’s specs as that should help set up (or temper) expectations. As you’d expect based on their numbering, the A37 is the more affordable of the two with a base price of $450 for 6GB of RAM and 128GB of storage. You can also choose 8GB RAM and 256GB of storage for $540. Notably, when compared to the A17, the A37 features a much more recent and more powerful Exynos 1480 chip that brings a big jump in NPU performance and helps unlock much of the phone’s newfound AI capabilities. It also comes with a large 6.7-inch AMOLED display, a 5,000mAh battery and three rear cameras. However, two of those will likely get more use than the other as the A37 packs a 50-megapixel main camera and an 8MP ultra-wide, along with a 5MP macro shooter. 

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Meanwhile, the Galaxy A57 is a bit more expensive, starting at $550 for 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, or $610 for the 8GB/256GB version. It also features a slightly more powerful Exynos 1680 processor and a higher-res 12MP sensor for its ultra-wide lens, but aside from that, it has the same general camera setup as A37 and the same size battery. One small difference is that the A57 has Bluetooth 6 connectivity and Wi-Fi 6E, but the A37 is still stuck with BT 5.3 and basic Wi-Fi 6.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Both phones come with IP68 ratings for dust and water resistance (which is an upgrade from IP67 on the A36) and 120Hz refresh rates. However, the most important shared trait is that while neither supports wireless charging, they can both take wired power at up to 45 watts, which is actually faster than a base Galaxy S26’s limit of just 25 watts. Finally, in addition to six years of OS and security updates, the A37 and A57 are getting some trickle-down AI features from its flagship siblings. Those include improved support for Google’s Circle to Search, Object Eraser and better transcription and translation capabilities in the Samsung Voice Recorder app.

Galaxy A37 impressions

Both phones have nearly identical designs, right down to the same screen size and number of cameras. That said, one area where Samsung cut corners on A37 is that it features a plastic frame instead of the A57’s aluminum. But even when you hold them side by side, it’s rather difficult to discern between the two. There’s no obvious difference in appearance or button layout, so the main way to tell the two apart is by feeling for the cooler touch you typically get from a metal chassis. Alternatively, if you look closely, you’ll notice that the A37 has slightly thicker bezels around the outside of its screen. 

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

Compared to the Galaxy A17, the A37’s Exynos 1480 felt significantly snappier and much better equipped for multitasking or AI-based tasks like removing unwanted objects from photos. Regardless, as the less expensive of Samsung’s new midrange phone options, the company did a really good job disguising the major differences between the two new models. 

Galaxy A57 impressions

To be honest, the A57 wasn’t quite as appealing as the A37 due to its higher price and no additional features. The main tool it has that isn’t available on its more affordable sibling is Samsung’s Best Face camera tool, which allows the phone to analyze people’s expressions so you can select your favorite reaction and put it in the photo you want. On paper, its Exynos 1680 chip should be a bit faster, but in normal use, it’s really hard to tell. And unlike the A37, which comes in four colors (white, charcoal, lavender and gray/green, depending on the retailer), the A57 is only available in navy. 

Early thoughts

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

As a more powerful and more premium alternative to the $200 A17, the A37 feels like a worthy upgrade for the money. It offers noticeably smoother performance along with a more elegant hole-punch selfie cam (instead of a waterdrop) and stereo speakers (instead of mono). Starting at $450, the A37 can also undercut the Pixel 10a while offering a larger 6.7-inch AMOLED display (versus 6.3 inches for the Pixel) and a smattering of equivalent AI features. And in some ways, the wider selection of colors just reinforces that Samsung is probably placing bigger bets on the A37’s market prospects. If I were looking for an affordable Android phone with a big screen, I’d give more consideration to this new middle child in Samsung’s A-series lineup.

Sam Rutherford for Engadget

As for the A57, it’s certainly not a bad phone, but starting at $550, it suffers from being in a much more competitive price bracket. For those who prefer smaller devices, the $500 Pixel 10a is cheaper while offering even better AI tools, a cleaner UI, wireless charging, a slightly larger battery and unmatched photo quality. However, the A57’s biggest rival is arguably another Samsung phone: the Galaxy S25 FE. Aside from slower wired charging, it has an even nicer design, an extra year of software and security updates (seven total) and a proper telephoto camera instead of a macro lens. And while its MSRP is a bit higher at $650, it’s regularly on sale for under $600 (or less), which effectively sidesteps the A57’s biggest advantage. 

That said, no matter which one you prefer, more options for affordable gadgets are always welcome — especially with the price of smartphones and PCs increasing due to the global RAM shortage.

The Galaxy A37 and A57 will officially go on sale April 9. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/samsung-galaxy-a37-and-a57-hands-on-the-cheaper-phone-might-be-a-winner-120000965.html?src=rss

Apple has introduced more than just new features, like an AI playlist generator, with iOS 26.4 in the UK. The company now requires users in the region to verify their ages and to prove they’re 18 years old or above before they can access “certain services or features, or take certain actions on their account.” Users can verify their ages in Settings by linking a credit card to their account or scanning an ID. For people who’ve had an Apple account for a while, the company will check if they already have a payment method on file that can prove they’re of age.

The company says it will automatically switch on its Web Content Filter and Communication Safety features for everyone under 18 and for those who haven’t verified their ages. These tools are integrated into Apple’s operating systems and can restrict users from accessing specific websites on Safari and third-party browsers, as well as warn users when they’re receiving or sending images and videos containing nudity.

Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, praised Apple for the decision, especially since it’s not required to implement age verification for the iOS or its App Store under the region’s Online Safety Act. “Apple’s decision that the UK will be one of the first countries in the world to receive new child safety protections on devices is a real win for children and families,” the regulator said. “Our rules are flexible and designed to encourage innovation, particularly in age assurance. We’ve worked closely with Apple and other services to ensure they can be applied in a variety of contexts in order to ensure users are protected. This will build on the strong foundations of the Online Safety Act, from widespread age checks that keep young people away from harmful content, to blocking high-risk sites and stepping up action against child sexual abuse material.”

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/apple-introduces-age-verification-for-icloud-accounts-in-the-uk-115340237.html?src=rss