Consumer Tech
Robots and smart devices people actually buy, use, and return.

Best Buy's Ultimate Upgrade: Big Discounts Start Now
AirPods Pro 3 are $50 off, one of the year's biggest deals. Best Buy’s Ultimate Upgrade Sale is live for five days, and it’s not just a tease for gadget lovers who binge on new hardware. The retailer is touting deep cuts across categories—from 4K TVs to fresh Apple gear, smartphones, and smart-home
Google Gemini lands native Mac app
Google just turned your Mac into a desktop AI assistant. Google is pushing Gemini beyond mobile and browsers by shipping a native Mac app that mirrors its Windows counterpart, promising a “true desktop experience” you can wake with a keyboard shortcut. The app, available on macOS 15 (Sequoia) and ne

Tomodachi Life: Sharing Jokes Despite Nintendo Limits
Tomodachi Life on Switch is a joke machine—Nintendo won't let you export. The new Tomodachi Life: Living the Dream leans hard into the series’ rubber-hose absurdity, turning the console into a playground for improvised gags and surreal social setups. The Verge notes that the Switch version armloads

Europe’s New Age-Check App for Social Media
Europe’s new age-check app for social media is coming. The European Commission says the tool is technically ready and will be rolled out soon, a move President Ursula von der Leyen framed as a milestone in kids’ online safety. The plan signals a dramatic shift for platforms that host youthful users

Google Data Handovers to ICE: EFF Demands Probe
EFF says Google handed billions of users' data to ICE without notifying them. The Electronic Frontier Foundation has asked California and New York attorneys general to open investigations into Google for deceptive trade practices, contending the company fails to alert users before handing over their

FCC Grants Netgear Conditional Import Approval for Routers
Netgear just dodged a full router ban with a temporary green light. The FCC granted conditional approval to import future consumer routers, cable modems, and cable gateways into the US through October 1, 2027—despite the company building many devices in Asia and showing no public plan to relocate ma

Google data handover to ICE under scrutiny
Google handed over user data to ICE without notice, the Electronic Frontier Foundation alleges, a claim that puts the tech giant’s privacy promises on the hot seat and tests how far consumer protections have fallen in the age of mass data sharing. In a blunt missive to the attorneys general of Calif