Technology

All Premier League clash sees the Cherries and the Old Gold clash for the second time in a week.

Exclusive: The video game-inspired blaster line arrives at the New York Toy Fair with swappable parts.

The video game-inspired blaster line includes interchangeable parts, letting you build a Nerf blaster exactly as you want it.

Paramount Plus is the underdog out of all the best streaming services. It's great for classic movies and popular series including The Good Wife, Yellowstone, and its spin-off 1883, which make up some of the best Paramount Plus shows. With its March 2025 schedule arriving, its already extensive library of titles is about to get even better.

Of course, Paramount Plus will be bringing brand new TV titles this month (we're quite excited for its new true crime series Happy Face) as well as filling the gaps in the calendar with old favorites from the greatest filmmakers out there. Think Inglorious Basterds (2009), Mulholland Drive (2001), and Marie Antoinette (2006), a varied concoction of Hollywood's finest. Take it from me, this month your Paramount Plus watchlist is in store for a big revamp. At least I know mine is.

Everything new on Paramount Plus in March 2025

Arriving on March 1

A League of Their Own (movie)
Annihilation (movie)
Becoming Jane (movie)
Blue Crush (movie)
Boys on the Side (movie)
Cloud Atlas (movie)
Continue (movie)
Crawl (movie)
Dune (1984) (movie)
Edge of Tomorrow (movie)
Elizabethtown (movie)
Ex Machina (movie)
Face/Off (movie)
Failure to Launch (movie)
Foxcatcher (movie)
Foxfire (movie)
Frozen River (movie)
Good Will Hunting (movie)
Harlem Nights (movie)
Inglorious Basterds (movie)
Julie & Julia (movie)
Jungleland (movie)
Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life (movie)
Lara Croft: Tomb Raider (movie)
Love, Rosie (movie)
Marie Antoinette (movie)
Middle School: The Worst Years of My Life (movie)
Million Dollar Baby (movie)
Motherhood (movie)
Mulholland Drive (movie)
Only the Brave (movie)
Pan’s Labryrinth (movie)
Practical Magic (movie)
Pulp Fiction (movie)
Rat Race (movie)
Room (movie)
Run All Night (movie)
Searching For Bobby Fischer (movie)
Serpico (movie)
Shutter Island (movie)
Sicario: Day of the Soldado (movie)
Sleepy Hollow (movie)
Snake Eyes (movie)
Son of a Gun (movie)
Staying Alive (movie)
Sugar & Spice (movie)
The Abandon (movie)
The Fifth Estate (movie)
The Glorias (movie)
The Heartbreak Kid (2007) (movie)
The Hurt Locker (movie)
The Ides of March (movie)
The Kite Runner (movie)
The Lodge (movie)
The Machinist (movie)
The Manchurian Candidate (movie)
The Other Boleyn Girl (movie)
The Queens of Comedy (movie)
The Sum of All Fears (movie)
The Terminal (movie)
The Virgin Suicides (movie)
The Warriors (movie)
The Way Of The Dragon (movie)
The Weekend (movie)
The Women (movie)
There Will Be Blood (movie)
Trail of Justice (movie)
Up In The Air (movie)
Wayne’s World (movie)
Wayne’s World 2 (movie)
Witness (movie)
Strange Darling (movie)

Arriving on March 3

The House with a Clock in Its Walls (movie)
Rumours (movie)

Arriving on March 4

Sin City Gigolo: A Murder in Las Vegas (TV show)

Arriving on March 5

The Amazing Race season 37 (TV show)
The Fairly OddParents: Abra-Catastrophe Special (TV show)
The Surreal Life season 2 (TV show)

Arriving on March 8

Babylon (movie)
India Sweets and Spices (movie)

Arriving on March 10

Ringo & Friends at the Ryman (TV show)

Arriving on March 11

Tom Petty: Heartbreakers Beach Party (TV show)

Arriving on March 16

Bridge of Spies (movie)

Arriving on March 18

The Last Manhunt (movie)

Arriving on March 19

Teen Mom: The Next Chapter season 2 (TV show)

Arriving on March 20

Happy Face (movie)

Arriving on March 21

The Hunting Party (movie)

Arriving on March 23

The Free World (movie)

Arriving on March 26

Mass (movie)
Basketball Wives season 11 (TV show)

Arriving on March 31

American Psycho (movie)
American Psycho II: All American Girl (movie)

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Kentucky and Tennessee have flooded repeatedly in recent years, but with little ability to develop land on higher ground, many residents are forced to continue living in high-risk areas.

As Donald Trump rages against renewable energy, solar power is being reimagined as a symbol of American “energy dominance.”

• Eight wallpapers for the Pixel 9a have leaked
• They match four expected colors for the handset
• The phone could make its debut this month

Sometimes it's not the specs, the design, or the features of an upcoming phone that leak out: it's the wallpapers. And we now apparently have the official, preinstalled backdrops for the Google Pixel 9a.

These images come courtesy of Android Authority, and you can go right ahead and download them in full resolution if you want to. The set of pictures have supposedly come from a source inside Google.

It appears we're looking at abstract interpretations of flowers here. There's a lot of color and a lot of creative blurring on show – it's possible they were made in collaboration with a digital artist, but we don't have any details on that right now.

The eight wallpapers seem to match the four Pixel 9a colors that have been leaked so far: Obsidian (black), Iris (purple), Porcelain (white), and Raspberry or Peony (pink). We've got light mode and dark mode variations for each color.

The Pixel 9a rumors so far

The Pixel 9a may borrow some components from the Pixel 9, shown here (Image credit: Philip Berne / Future)

There have been plenty of Pixel 9a rumors flying around recently. Indeed, the Google mid-ranger is expected to get a full reveal sometime this month, at which point we'll get a proper look at the wallpapers and everything else.

Compared with the Google Pixel 8a, the biggest change would appear to be the removal of the iconic Pixel camera bar on the back of the phone – the next model will apparently be flat on the back, which isn't quite as interesting from a design perspective.

On the inside, we should get a Tensor G4 chipset (like the other Pixel 9 phones), and that's set to be paired with 8GB of RAM and either 128GB or 256GB of storage. It seems we're also looking at a 6.3-inch, 120Hz display.

As for pricing, the phone is expected to match its predecessor with a starting price of $499 / £499 / AU$849, though the version with more storage could get a small price bump. Free trials of YouTube Premium, Fitbit Premium, and Google One are expected to be included.

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Plus: The FBI pins that ByBit theft on North Korea, a malicious app download breaches Disney, spyware targets a priest close to the pope, and more.

From property taxes to insurance and repairs, owning a home is expensive.

Plus: The FDA clears Google’s Loss of Pulse feature on the Pixel Watch 3, Oura launches a pregnancy study, and Photoshop gets its first proper app.

Despite increasing competition, Netflix continues to cement its place as one of the best streaming services, starting 2025 with a bang by bringing a whole host of titles that Rotten Tomatoes has dubbed near perfect, awarding a 100% score.

Netflix latest offerings include Oscar-nominee Wallace & Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl, the latest in the long-running Dragon Ball saga, and new crime doc sensation American Manhunt: O.J. Simpson. From true crime to true love, prison penguins to prison drama there’s something for everyone – and we're only at the end of Feb.

I can’t wait to get binging on these movies and shows, and you can read the full list of new titles with 100% on Rotten Tomatoes below.

Wallace and Gromit: Vengeance Most Fowl (Movie)

After a long absence, Ardman Animation’s most famous creations returned with a brand new feature length film. The movie contained all the heart and humor we expect from Nick Park and co. and Ben Whitehead slipped into his feature debut as Wallace – following the death of Peter Sallis – like a pair of old slippers.

And the critics agreed, with Filmweek calling it “The most sheerly entertaining movie I’ve seen this year.”

Cunk on Life (TV Special)

Diane Morgan’s sardonic host returned for a feature length instalment of the mockumentary spin-off from Charlie Brooker's (the Black Mirror creator) shows, as Philomena Cunk set out to venture right up the universe to provide answers to the big questions, and plenty of laughs.

Decider called the special “laugh out loud funny” while The Guardian praised the host, commenting that “Morgan is peerless.”

Dragon Ball Diama (Season 1)

Comic Book Resource called the latest instalment in the long-running franchise “the best Dragon Ball fans have eaten in years” with the inter-quel (set between the iconic Dragon Ball Z and follow-up Dragon Ball Super) telling the story of Goku and the gang being turned into children before exploring the unknown Demon Realm. While the DB saga can be hit and miss at times, Diama is an often hilarious nostalgic treat.

Offline Love (Season 1)

The Japanese dating series sees a group of young singles spend 10 days in Nice, France, stripped of smartphones and other connected devices and left to find love the old-fashioned way – through chance encounters and dating.

Decider called the show a “fun throwback” to the pre-internet days, and it’s not hard to see why the easy-going nature of nurturing relationships against the stunning surroundings of the French city has become such a hit.

Cassandra (Season 1)

“Fusing elements of sci-fi, horror, psychological thriller, and women-focused family dramas” according to Collider, Cassandra follows the Prill family as they move into a house unoccupied for decades.

Their arrival awakens the AI domestic helper based there, who has greater intentions than household chores. Inverse said the show could be Netflix's “next international hit,” while Collider called it a “sleek, ambitious limited series.”

American Manhunt: O.J. Simpson (Season 1)

While the Simpson case may seem well-covered ground, this new true crime doc has been called “compelling, gripping, and, at times, jaw-dropping” by FandomWire, and it’s hard not to agree, with the mini-series uncovering a few new pieces of information and footage, and featuring a rare interview with former prosecutor Christopher Darden.

Asura (Season 1)

This Japanese drama, set in Tokyo in 1979, follows four sisters who, upon discovering their aging father’s affair, find their lives beginning to unravel as hidden truths are revealed and facades drop.

Critics have praised the character driven storytelling and fascinating characters, as well as the deft touch of writer/director Hirokazu Kore-eda (director of Monster (2023) and Broker) with the New York Times saying the helmer delivers a “stylishness to make it sing.”

Black Warrant (Season 1)

Based on Sunil Gupta & Sunetra Choudhury’s book about Gupta’s time as a jailer in an Indian prison, this Hindi-language thriller covers the author’s experiences at Tihar Prisons in the early ’80s.

A “piercing look at Tihar, an absorbing story of a baptism by fire and an insightful snapshot of an era in the life of a nation” (NDTV), the drama gives an uncompromising look at the hardened men on both sides of the bars, and a system designed to punish rather than rehabilitate.

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• The De'Longhi La Specialista Touch is a new bean-to-cup coffee machine
• It can adapt brewing to suit your coffee beans, and offers five milk textures
• The machine can also prepare cold brew coffee in five minutes

De'Longhi makes some of the best coffee makers we've tested here at TechRadar, and its latest bean-to-cup machine looks like it could rival the technical skills of a professional barista. Not only does the new De'Longhi La Specialista Touch offer an extensive menu of hot and cold drinks, it can also tailor the brewing process to suit your preferred beans, and offers five different milk textures. The only thing you need to worry about is pouring the latte art.

Unlike the De'Longhi La Specialista Opera, which launched in October, the new La Specialista Touch has a large color touchscreen that lets you browse through a list of preset drink options, and tinker with brewing settings, taking your pick from 15 grind sizes and three brewing temperatures.

Not quite sure how to extract the most flavor from your beans? The machine's Bean Adapt technology makes recommendations for different types of coffee, with optimized dosing, grind and extraction settings for different types, roasts, and blends. Once you've found something you like, you can save it to your personal profile so you can access it quickly next time.

(Image credit: De'Longhi) Plant or dairy

As a fan of a good macchiato, what I find most intriguing is the machine's new milk texturizing system, which uses a cool-touch automatic steam wand to produce five different milk textures. The system has settings for both plant and dairy milk, which is always welcome too. Many machines are optimized for dairy only, and struggle to create silky foam with almond or oat alternatives.

Another particularly interesting feature is cold extraction, which De'Longhi promises will create a smooth drink with the same flavor profile as traditional overnight cold brewing, but takes just five minutes from start to finish. Several coffee machines I've tried recently have done a respectable job of cold extraction, so I'm interested to see how the La Specialista Touch compares.

I'll be testing the new machine very soon, and will bring you a full review so you can see how it holds up against the competition – and whether it can create the dreamy, creamy microfoam it promises. It's available now direct from De'Longhi, priced at £699 (about $880 / AU$1,400).

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AMD’s most powerful processor to date, the EPYC 9965, is being offered on eBay and other online retailers, at the time of writing, with discounts of up to 47%.

Compared to other similar instances I tracked before, the big difference is that there are far more EPYC 9965 on sale in the US than before and all the CPUs are brand new.

Launched in October 2024, the EPYC 9965 is AMD’s most expensive CPU with a suggested retail price of $14,813 and its most powerful as well with 192 Zen 5c cores and 384 threads. A search on eBay for 100-000000976, the OEM SKU (stock keeping unit) code for the 9965, brings up 10 results, all of them US-based and brand new.

This is the first of several articles based on data I’ve compiled on 41 AMD Zen 4 and Zen 5 CPUs (socketed, OEM). In the rest of the series, I will be looking at the cost per core, performance per core, AMD CPUs that are getting more expensive, all this with the new Ryzen 9 9900/9950 X3D CPUs in the backdrop.

Some sellers offered the 9965 for as little as $8,250 when buying a pair; individual pricing started from $8,369. Oddly enough, searching for EPYC 9965 brought up several entries from mainland China. I estimate at 100 the total number of EPYC 9965 currently on sale on eBay.

On the open web, Wiredzone, a popular online US-based retailer stocks the EPYC 9965 for just over $10,000, a fair bit more expensive than eBay but it’s a recognized business. It has been at this price for more than three months now. About a dozen other retailers worldwide sell AMD’s flagship server processor for less than $11,000, a clear sign that supply is relatively abundant.

The EPYC 9965 requires a special motherboard if you plan to run a pair of them (because, why not). Experiencing 768 threads on one motherboard such as the Gigabyte MZ73-LM2 with up to 24 DIMM slots is something few of us will ever need, especially when such a dual-socket motherboard retails for about $2500 and requires a special casing. But if you want the best workstation out there, that’s a very good place to start.

This Comino Grande server is an example of the type of device that could accommodate the 9965 (Image credit: Comino) So, why such a drop?

Demand for this particular type of processor, one which focusses on hyperscalers such as Amazon AWS, Microsoft Azure and Google Cloud, has been one of the drivers of AMD’s success in the server market. AMD’s market share rose from nearly zero a decade or so ago to about 25% in 2024.

So what to make of the myriad of vendors that are selling this flagship, cutting-edge server processor for thousands of dollars less than the sticker price? Could excess inventory be a reason as to why prices have gone down so quickly on such a recent CPU?

But here’s the thing, during my research, I was shocked to see that the 9965 was not the only one to have such a big discount: the 9655P (up to 47%), the EPYC 9655 (up to 57%) and so on, and so forth all experienced big price drops.

Indeed, my snapshot survey of AMD’s 5th gen socketed CPUs (with a sprinkle of Threadripper), 41 CPUs in all, reveals that the majority of models have a discount of 20% or more once they hit retail.

History repeating itself

I began tracking this odd scenario back two years ago when I noticed that US retailers were selling the then-three month old EPYC 9954 processor with a massive 30% discount. A month later, in March 2023, I found that hundreds of used 64-core 3rd gen EPYC CPUs were being as Chinese hyperscalers rushed to upgrade their servers.

It looked like someone in the supply chain tried to make a quick buck off the ‘obsolete’ hardware with prices tumbling down to just over $1000 in June 2023. The same happened with the 128-core EPYC 9754 server processor which saw significant discounts but nothing on the scale I am seeing today.

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One week, the tech news will slow down – but not this week. It's been another seven days packed with announcements, rumors, reviews, and debate, and our In Case You Missed It summary will bring you right up to speed on everything that's been going on.

We've got everything from a new iPhone to next-gen AI to cover here, with some Netflix leaks and an outrageous OnePlus gaffe in between, so whatever your tech tastes you're going to find something that's of interest here.

No doubt the next week in tech is going to be just as frenetic as this one, so make sure you're up to speed on all the major news – so you're ready for the next batch.

7. Framework launched a cute desktop PC

We're quite taken with the new Framework Desktop (Image credit: Framework)

Framework is well known for its modular laptops that promote user choice and reduce e-waste, and now it's turning its attention to desktop PCs, too: the new Framework Desktop is a compact, colorful, and cute system with parts you can easily swap in and out.

While we haven't been able to put this PC to the test yet, it certainly impresses in terms of its looks and specs (led by new AMD Ryzen AI Max processors). You've got a host of customization options to pick from, and the system starts at $799 / £799 (about AU$1,265).

• Read more: My favorite laptop maker just unveiled its first desktop – and it's the cutest little PC I've ever seen

6. OnePlus made an embarrassing typo

"Meda in China" apparently... (Image credit: Future)

You wouldn't think an obvious typo would make it all the way to a finished hardware product from one of the biggest gadget companies in the business, but here we are: certain OnePlus Watch 3 models have rolled out with "Meda in China" labels on them.

It's all rather embarrassing for OnePlus, though the manufacturer has tried to keep a sense of humor about the whole affair. Due to the mistake, the full launch of the wearable has been pushed back a couple of months, but the preorder deals have improved.

• Read more: Whoops! OnePlus Watch 3 delayed by two months due to an embarrassing typo, but there is some good news

5. Photoshop got a new iPhone app

Adobe has a new Photoshop app to show off (Image credit: Adobe)

Various flavors of Photoshop for mobile have appeared down the years, but the latest Photoshop app for iPhone (with Android coming soon) is the most complete and most powerful yet, bringing over many of the best features from the desktop application.

As you might have expected, some of the more advanced tools need a paid subscription to access, but this is an app that's bound to be of interest for anyone who wants to edit photos on the go – and we've got all the key details right here.

• Read more: Photoshop gets its most powerful free iPhone app so far – with a mix of classic tools and Firefly AI

4. Stranger Things season 5 was leaked

The Stranger Things squad is returning one last time (Image credit: Netflix)

It feels as though the Stranger Things kids have grown up as Netflix has grown up as a streaming service – the show debuted way back in 2016 – and so there are mixed emotions as we get to the fifth and final season, made up of eight episodes and due this year.

If you're keen to avoid spoilers ahead of the season premiere, you might want to skip this extensive leak, which has rocked Netflix: details of the plot, when the episodes will air, and more besides have appeared online, and it isn't the first time this has happened, either.

• Read more: Netflix reportedly suffers huge Stranger Things season 5 leak as supposed launch date, release schedule, and plot details emerge online for the popular show's final chapter

3. ChatGPT levelled up

ChatGPT is more natural and knowledgeable than ever (Image credit: ChatGPT)

The pace of AI development isn't slowing down: OpenAI just pushed out an upgraded GPT-4.5 model for its ChatGPT bot, promising a "more natural" conversation experience and a "broader knowledge base" – as well as, hopefully, fewer hallucinations.

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has admitted the company is struggling to scale up the data center support for its models, so for the time being GPT-4.5 is in a "research preview" stage, and can only be accessed by those paying top dollar for a subscription.

• Read more: ChatGPT-4.5 is here for Pro users now and Plus users next week, and I can't wait to try it

2. We reviewed the iPhone 16e

Say hello to the iPhone 16e (Image credit: Future)

The iPhone 16e is being widely seen as the next model in the iPhone SE series – but as the name change and price hike indicates, this is actually the start of a new iPhone range, with close to top-tier performance wrapped inside a mid-range package of materials.

Our full iPhone 16e review will tell you everything you need to know about the latest Apple iPhone: what's good about it, what could be better, and why it might be the perfect phone for you. Only seven more months, and we'll be welcoming the iPhone 17 series...

• Read more: I tested the iPhone 16e for a week and found it's a good phone that stretches the definition of 'budget'

1. Amazon unveiled Alexa+

Alexa+ was launched by Amazon this week (Image credit: Future)

Amazon's long-rumored next-gen AI upgrade for Alexa is here, so it – in theory – can catch up to ChatGPT, Copilot, Gemini, Siri with Apple Intelligence, and all the other AI assistants that have appeared since we first started chatting with Alexa more than a decade ago.

TechRadar was at the Amazon Alexa+ launch event, and we've got all the details you need on the upgrade: the new features it brings with it, when it's going to start rolling out, the Echo devices it will and won't work with, and how much you'll have to pay to get it.

• Read more: Amazon unveils Alexa+, its brand new AI-infused voice assistant

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Here are the answers for The New York Times Mini Crossword for March 1.

A good baby monitor is your link to your child when you can't be close. You want to choose one that will ensure your baby is safe, whether they're sleeping soundly in their crib or enjoying playtime with the nanny while you're away from home. Thankfully, modern tech has provided new solutions to age-old problems, and checking in on your child is easier than ever thanks to high-tech baby monitors like the Momcozy 5-inch Dual-Mode Smart Baby Monitor. The dual-mode baby monitor can be paired with the app and a dedicated parent unit, keeping you in the know and your baby in sight.

Peace of mind for new parents

(Image credit: Momcozy)

A new baby in the house is life-altering, and it can be scary to leave your little one alone in their room at night, even when you're in desperate need of sleep. A smart monitor from Momcozy can help you relax when your baby sleeps by providing useful, nonintrusive, smart features that keep you informed about your little one's well-being. Nobody wants to wake a sleeping baby, but parents need to be reassured they're safe and made aware when their needs change. Baby monitors from Momcozy offer useful alerts for smart features like real-time motion and cry detection, so you know when your little one stirs from their slumber. These alerts help you to stay one step ahead of your baby’s needs, keeping them safe from potential dangers.

It's recommended that parents lay their babies down to sleep on their backs, but that doesn't mean your little inchworm can't figure out how to get themselves in other positions once they've been laid down. The 5-inch Dual Mode Smart Baby Monitor from Momcozy features unique smart detection technology that can detect all of your baby’s movements and even offers cry detection. Paired with the dedicated parent unit the cry detection and top-tier movement detection functionality, you can check in on your baby as they sleep and ensure you know that your baby is safe when it matters the most. Paired with the Momcozy app's instant alerts, the Momcozy Dual Mode Smart Baby Monitor ensures your little one's safety and gives you peace of mind.

Keeping toddlers safe

(Image credit: Momcozy)

Watching our little ones grow is one of life's greatest joys, but it can also be incredibly stressful. There's nothing quite like waking in the middle of the night to find your newly mobile toddler standing at your bedside when you thought they were safely in their crib. That's where this Momcozy monitor's Danger Zone alert comes in handy. It offers an instant app notification to let you know when your little Houdini has escaped the crib and may be wandering the halls of your home.

Danger Zone alerts aren't just great for keeping your child safe at night. They can also be used to designate safe play spaces for your toddler during the day, like a sandbox in the backyard or a playroom in the house. Using this monitor, your toddler can enjoy some important independent playtime, and you can focus on getting through chores or catching a much-needed moment for yourself without worrying that your little one is getting into something they shouldn't.

It takes a village

(Image credit: Momcozy)

Raising babies is hard work, but it's made easier when there are helping hands. Sometimes we need to leave the little ones with Grandma, Auntie, or even a friendly neighborhood teenager who babysits. Having a smart monitor that only connects to your smartphone would be limiting. The Momcozy 5-inch Dual-Mode Smart Baby Monitor allows you to share video access with up to 20 friends and family members, ensuring that the village that helps raise your baby is just as connected as you are.

Creating a connected network for safety and security

(Image credit: Momcozy)

With this monitor, you can create a smart network with optional Wi-Fi or non-Wi-Fi connected monitoring with advanced encryption so that you can control who connects to the video. This keeps you and your house safe and secure, while giving you and your loved ones the tools for peace of mind.

The Momcozy 5-inch Dual-Mode Smart Baby Monitor is equipped with a 1080p resolution high-definition camera that captures crystal-clear video. The camera is also bolstered by superior night vision to ensure that video of your little one is just as clear at night as it is during the day. The parent unit uses a 5000mAh battery, giving the 5-inch screen over 10 hours of performance when the display is always on and up to 20 hours when set to its standard mode. You can be sure your monitor will last through the night while your little one is sleeping.

(Image credit: Momcozy)

We can't all be with our little ones 24/7, and a baby monitor has become an essential purchase for parents. Parenting is a unique adventure for each person, but the desire to stay connected and to keep an eye on your baby’s safety is a universal one felt by working parents and stay-at-home parents alike. Whether you're creating a baby registry for a new bundle of joy or need a new solution to keep your toddler safe, a smart baby monitor from Momcozy is the secure, reliable choice to keep you connected when it counts the most.

Humane bricked its pricey gadget on Friday afternoon. A short time later, a hacker got the codes to unlock it and potentially turn it into the true smartphone replacement it was meant to be.

When OpenAI first introduced ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice Mode, I was intrigued by the idea that this might be the template for a voice assistant capable of all the Star Trek-style feats that Amazon and Google had promised a decade ago. A fluid, back-and-forth conversation with an AI that didn’t sound like you were talking to a robot stuck in 2014, capable of everything ChatGPT does, seemed ideal. It was a major reason I continued paying $20 a month for ChatGPT Plus.

It's worth taking a moment to appreciate what ChatGPT Advanced Voice Mode can do, albeit imperfectly. You can engage in a real-time conversation with ChatGPT, one with the rhythm and even some of the emotions inherent in a human voice. You can interrupt the AI mid-sentence, and it won't forget what you were discussing. It generally mimics human listening and response behavior, even to the point of not waiting for you to finish speaking; it can interrupt you right back.

OpenAI recently decided to share the sound of ChatGPT with a version of Voice Mode that doesn't require a subscription fee. That raises an obvious question: If ChatGPT’s Voice Mode is now free, is it even worth paying for ChatGPT Plus anymore? Now, before you hit the cancel button, you should know the free version is not identical to what paying users get. OpenAI has made sure there’s still an incentive to upgrade.

First, the free tier is powered by GPT-4o mini, a smaller, slightly less powerful version of the GPT-4o model ChatGPT Plus users talk to. That means free-tier responses might be a little less nuanced and a bit more generic. The biggest difference, though, is the daily limit. Free users only get Voice Mode for a limited time each day before they’re cut off, while Plus subscribers can keep chatting five times as long.

Another major perk for Plus users is access to richer features like video and screen sharing within Voice Mode. While the free version is great for basic conversations, Plus users get a more immersive experience that lets ChatGPT provide visual explanations, making it more useful for things like troubleshooting, learning new skills, or getting walkthroughs on complex topics.

Sound Planning

I wanted to evaluate the differences between ChatGPT's free and Plus versions of Advanced Voice Mode. I conducted three distinct tests to see how each performed: a casual multi-turn conversation, a tongue twister challenge, and a request for entertainment recommendations. These tests aimed to assess both versions' responsiveness, coherence, and depth of interaction.​

For the casual conversation, I started by saying, "Hey ChatGPT, how's your day going?" I then asked the AI for a hobby suggestion and asked how to get into those hobbies. Both AI models responded immediately and in a similarly casual way. They each offered a couple of ideas for hobbies, and both suggested photography as an option. The free version's second suggestion was painting, while in ChatGPT Plus, the other suggestion was to try something more active, like hiking. Asking about how to start painting led to a somewhat generic list of painting supplies, and the same for hiking gear. Oddly, they both had the same suggestion for a camera to get if I wanted to try photography: the Canon EOS Rebel T7.

I then decided to test the listening ability of the models with a classic tongue twister by saying: "Alright, ChatGPT, let’s test your listening skills. Can you repeat this back to me? Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers. A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked. If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers, where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?" There was zero difference in the accuracy of the response or the speed. Both almost immediately said it back exactly right.

For the final test, I chose something that involved a search and judgment. I asked about a movie to watch and a restaurant to try in my town this weekend. They each paused for a couple of seconds before answering.

Both suggested seeing the new Captain America movie, though the free version offered the new Paddington movie as an alternative. The Plus model suggested Mufasa instead. They were perfectly in sync in recommending the nearby AMC theatre, though, and both pointed to the Hudson House restaurant in my town as the place to eat.

Pay for more

I conversed with both models for a while longer and noted a lot of overlap, if not outright repetition, between them. But, as I mentioned before, I was soon told I had maxed out my time with the free Voice Mode, whereas I went nearly twice as long with the Plus version before choosing to stop, with no indication I was close to reaching my time limit.

Both versions of ChatGPT's Advanced Voice Mode were helpful, accurate, and equally good at mimicking human speech in all three tests. While the GPT-4o model is undoubtedly better and more powerful than GPT-4o mini, you'd have to be a real power user to detect that.

If you’re a casual user who wants to mess around with AI voice chat for a few minutes each day, the free version is honestly pretty great. It’s smooth, responsive, and easy to use. You'd need to really rely on using it a lot to make Voice Mode the sole reason to pay for ChatGPT Plus. That said, there's a lot more to the subscription than just the better AI model for voice.

I've written about many of the ways I employ ChatGPT, and ChatGPT Plus means I have access to better models and extra features for everything from planning dinner ideas, entertaining children, keeping my New Year's Resolutions, and performing many other tasks. That includes getting access to the Tasks feature for ChatGPT, which lets you schedule AI missions in the future.

So, is it still worth paying for? If you’re just here for casual AI chats, maybe not. But if you’re using ChatGPT in other ways, that $20 a month still buys you a noticeably better experience. And if you’ve already been paying for ChatGPT Plus, I'd say the extension of Voice Mode to the free tier is not nearly enough of a reason to cancel. Of course, if OpenAI more than doubles the price, I may reconsider.

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Netflix continues to prove why they're one of the best streaming services, releasing a new trailer for their twisted comedy series Welcome to the Family. It looks like a hilarious mashup of Knives Out and Weekend at Bernie's, with all the inheritance politics of the Daniel Craig mystery smashing headfirst into the corpse chaos of the 80s comedy.

In Welcome to the Family, “A struggling single mom rallies her quirky family to outsmart a mafia boss after her estranged, wealthy father dies, leaving them with his debt.” Said debt, it turns out, is the very apartment that Cristina (Marimar Vega) and her family live in. Teaming up with his second wife Luciana (Erika Buenfil), who also stands to lose big in the deal, they formulate a plan: hide the body until the late patriarch's will can be falsified to return ownership of everything abc to the family and outsmart an increasingly agitated mob boss. However, with a nosy neighbor poking around and a lovestruck police officer on the case, things begin to unravel as the family desperately try to keep their ruse under wraps.

Judging by the trailer, which you can watch below, the show looks to be an absolute blast for fans of crime comedy, with everything from cartoonish mafioso and over-the-top violence to absurd characters to a lawyer who makes Breaking Bad’s Saul Goodman look like a paragon of virtue. Meanwhile, the sunkissed setting and bickering family dynamic will appeal to anyone who felt that Modern Family needed more organized crime.

Titled Bienvenidos a la Familia in its native Mexico, the show is a remake of the Catalan Benvinguts a la família, which ran for two seasons in its home country before finding international acclaim when it was acquired by Netflix for global release.

Confusingly, both are now available on the streamer under the Welcome to the Family title, so be sure to check the release year. That being said, the Catalonian version is well worth a watch, receiving critical acclaim on its release in 2018 and being favorably compared to Weeds and Shameless. Critics also pointed out how its themes of eviction and displacement tie into the larger context of the Catalan independence movement and the 2017 declaration of independence from Spain. The new version looks to play things more broadly, with a high-budget sheen that differentiates it from the bleaker, darker original. That’s not to say the Spanish-language version won’t have points to make, but fans of the original would be wise to expect a more popcorn-friendly approach this time out.

Either way, I’m always here for a new black comedy, especially one from the home of After Life and Santa Clarita Diet. And with a cast that’ll be familiar to anyone up to speed with Mexican cinema and telenovelas – including Ana Layevska, Erick Elías, and Martín Altomaro – Welcome to the Family is one I'll be checking out when it arrives new on Netflix in March.

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