Technology

• Zscaler uncovered “Edgecution,” a malicious Edge extension deployed via fake Outlook update sites shared in Teams phishing
• Attack uses ZIP archives with Python runtime to escape browser sandbox, creating a backdoor capable of shell/PowerShell execution and system data theft
• Believed linked to Initial Access Brokers tied to ransomware group Payout Kings, showing evolving sophistication in access‑for‑sale operations

If you are using the Edge browser be careful - there is a malicious campaign going round that uses the browser to deploy a backdoor via an extension.

According to security researchers Zscaler, scammers are reaching out to their victims via Microsoft Teams, pretending to be IT support. They claim the user needs to install an Outlook update, or a spam filter, and direct the victims to a fake “Outlook Updates Management Console” website.

There, the users are instructed to run one of the three provided processes, all of which download a ZIP archive that, when executed, creates a scheduled task. This task starts the Edge browser in headless mode (invisible to the user) and installs an extension officially called “Edge Monitoring Agent”. Zscaler, on the other hand, calls it “Edgecution”.

Creating a Native Messaging manifest

The ZIP archive also contains an embedded Python runtime and a Python-based backdoor. The runtime creates a Native Messaging manifest - a file that tells the browser how to communicate with the backdoor. That’s the way the threat actors managed to escape the browser’s sandbox and run the backdoor on the compromised computer itself.

That backdoor can do multiple things, from executing shell commands, to running PowerShell and arbitrary Python code. It can also write files on the host, enumerate running processes, and gather system information.

Zscaler believes this is the work of an Initial Access Broker (IAB), a malicious group whose only job is to obtain access to a victim’s infrastructure and then sell it - or share it with a partnering group. This particular IAB, the researchers believe, is connected to a ransomware operation called Payout Kings.

“The Edgecution browser extension illustrates the evolving sophistication of initial access brokers operating in the ransomware landscape,” Zscaler warns. “The reliance on a malicious browser extension to relay commands to a Python-based native host demonstrates a creative approach to evade traditional endpoint detection.”

A full list of Indicators of Compromise (IoC) can be found on this link.

Via BleepingComputer

We're officially on day three of Prime Day 2026, and Amazon's discounts on MacBooks and iPads couldn't be better timed.

Apple just raised prices across nearly its entire Mac lineup — including MacBooks, iMac, and Mac Studio — alongside the iPad family and home products such as the HomePod and Apple TV 4K.

While Apple's online store is already reflecting the higher prices, Amazon is still offering some of the best discounts we've seen all year on MacBooks and iPads — even without updating the new original prices.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Those deals look even better now that Apple's higher MSRPs are officially in effect. For instance, Apple now lists the 13-inch MacBook Air with the M5 chip, 16GB of RAM, and 512GB of storage at $1,299.99, but Amazon currently has it for $949. Likewise, the entry-level iPad now starts at $449 from Apple, while Amazon is selling it for just $299.

There's no telling how long these prices will last — though we're hoping they stick around through the remainder of Prime Day's four-day run. For now, keep scrolling for the best live deals on Macs, iPads, and Apple home devices that let you beat Apple's latest price increase.

You can even use the sidebar to jump to specific sections for each device category in the United States and the UK. Furthermore, while Apple hasn't raised prices for the Apple Watch, AirTags, or iPhone, I'm including deals for those as well since it's Prime Day after all.

Today's best iPad deals in the US

While Apple just raised the starting price of the iPad A16 to $449, Amazon still has it down to just $299 for Prime Day. The most significant upgrade for this model over the previous generation is the A16 chip for faster performance, and you'll also get double the storage as standard (128GB instead of 64GB).

Other features include a sharp 11-inch Liquid Retina display and solid 12MP front- and rear-facing cameras, making this iPad the best iPad for casual streamers and scrollers.

Read our 11-inch iPad A16 review here.View Deal

Amazon has the newest iPad Air with the M4 chipset on sale for $519 right now, which is an even stronger deal with Apple's new starting price set at $749 for the 11-inch Air. In addition to Apple's superfast M4 chip inside, this iPad features a crisp Liquid Retina display, 128GB of storage as standard, 12MP front and rear cameras, and support for Apple's AI features.

Read our iPad Air 11-inch review here.View Deal

Apple's iPad Pro offers one of the best views on any tablet, thanks to a Tandem OLED Ultra Retina XDR display, and excellent performance from the superfast M5 chip under the hood. For Prime Day, Amazon has the Wi-Fi, 256GB 11-inch iPad Pro with M5 at just $899, which is a 10% discount for Prime Day, but an even larger discount over Apple's new price of $1,199.

Read our iPad Pro 11-inch review here.View Deal

Much like the larger iPad Air, the 13-inch iPad Pro offers the excellent top-of-the-line iPad experience at an even bigger scale. It has an excellent, vibrant OLED screen and great performance thanks to the M5 chip. It's $100 off on Prime Day at Amazon, at just $1,099 for the Wi-Fi 256GB variant, and that's an even larger discount over Apple's new starting price of $1,499.View Deal

Today's best Apple MacBook deals in the US

Apple's MacBook Neo has been a hit since its launch earlier this year, and Prime Day is your chance to save on this impressive machine. Right now, Amazon has the starting configuration at just $589.99, which isn't the largest discount, but still some savings. For that, you can get a 13-inch Liquid Retina display, an A18 Pro chip, 8GB of RAM, 256GB of storage, and up to 16 hours of battery life.

That Prime Day discount is made even stronger, as the Neo now starts at $699 from Apple, so it's effectively over $100 off.View Deal

If you're after the MacBook Neo with Touch ID built into the color-matched keyboard and 512GB of storage versus the 256GB starting size, Amazon's also discounting the higher-end model. This MacBook Neo is seeing a similar 2% discount, down to $689.99 from $699. But again, that's an even bigger discount now as Apple is listing this at $799!View Deal

With an impressive $150 discount, this Prime Day deal makes the 13-inch MacBook Air with M5 an excellent purchase. And Apple's price increase makes this even more of a steal, as it's $949 on Amazon and starts at $1,299 from Apple. For that price, you get the latest chipset, 16GB of RAM, and a bigger 512GB SSD for much less. Simply, it's a workhorse.

Read our MacBook Air 13-inch M5 review here.View Deal

After a larger screen, but still ultra-portable Mac? Well, the 15-inch MacBook Air with M5 is also discounted for Prime Day, down to $1,149.99 in every color. That's an even better deal than the now-$1,4999 starting price directly from Apple for the same configuration.View Deal

If you don't need an M5 Pro or M5 Max but still want a larger 14-inch screen with a Pro shell that offers more ports, Prime Day is also bringing discounts on the 14-inch MacBook Pro with the M5 chip. Right now, the starting configuration with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage is 9% off at $1,549. That is an even larger discount than Apple's, though, as the M5 MacBook Pro now starts at $1,999 there.View Deal

For creative professionals, the 14-inch MacBook Pro powered by the performance-driven M5 Pro chip is the one to choose, and Prime Day has it starting at $1,549. This beast flies through demanding workloads like video editing without skipping a beat. It's also a major discount compared to Apple's now-$2,499 starting MSRP.

Read our full MacBook Pro M5 review here.View Deal

Today's best Apple AirPods deals in the US

This might just be the best Prime Day tech deal — Apple's AirPods Pro 3 for $179. Apple's newest premium buds feature improved Active Noise Cancellation, outstanding audio, a comfortable in-ear design, and new features such as live translation and heart-rate tracking. These do-it-all buds really are 100% flagship audio, and the noise-canceling quality is outstanding.View Deal

The AirPods 4 are Apple's cheapest AirPods, and you can find them on sale for $99, which is the lowest price we've seen this year and $30 shy of the record-low. The AirPods 4 feature a new design for all-day comfort and feature Apple's H2 chip, which supports personalized spatial audio and voice isolation. You also get a redesigned case with 30 hours of battery life and support for wireless charging via USB-C.

Read our full Apple AirPods 4 reviewView Deal

Amazon has the AirPods 4 with active noise cancellation on sale for $148.99, which is the best deal you can find right now. The AirPods 4 feature a new comfortable design, handy controls, and Apple's H2 chip, which supports personalized spatial audio and voice isolation.

Read our full AirPods 4 with ANC reviewView Deal

Amazon has the all-new AirPods Max 2 on sale for $399, which is the lowest price we've seen. The over-ear headphones now include Apple's H2 chip, which delivers adaptive audio, personalized volume, and improved voice isolation, resulting in superior sound. You're also getting up to 1.5x more Active Noise Cancellation and 20 hours of battery life.

Read our full AirPods Max 2 reviewView Deal

If you haven't heard, wired headphones are all the rage, which is why Apple's EarPods for $14.88 are an excellent Prime Day deal. A slim, quality-looking design, clear sound, and comfortable fit are just a few of their best qualities. This model works with all devices that have a Lightning connector – which is iPhone 14 and before – so if you've got a newer iPhone, you'll instead want the USB-C version ($16.99 at Amazon).View Deal

Today's best Apple Watch deals in the US

Amazon has a $50 discount on the new Apple Watch SE 3, making it an excellent bargain. The Apple Watch SE 2 currently holds the position as the best budget smartwatch, but the SE 3 more than matches it — and it's a smarter buy while it's on sale this week at Amazon.

Read our full Apple Watch SE 3 reviewView Deal

My favorite Prime Day Apple deal is an over $100 discount on the Apple Watch Series 11. The thinnest Apple Watch yet, with a wraparound LTP3 OLED display, it's a great-looking watch with Apple Intelligence-powered smarts and a boosted battery, clocking in at 24 hours of average use.

Read our full Apple Watch 11 reviewView Deal

You can save $100 on the brand-new Apple Watch Ultra 3 at Amazon's Prime Day sale. Packed with premium features, you're getting Cellular connectivity, a boosted 42-hour battery life, and emergency satellite messaging. Today's deal is the lowest price we've seen this year.View Deal

Today's best Apple AirTag deals in the US

Apple's second-generation AirTag with louder sound, a 50% improvmenet in range for Precision Finding, and the rest of the features that made the first-gen such a great item tracker are at the lowest price ever ahead of Prime Day 2026. Right now, Amazon has a single AirTag for just $24. View Deal

Another very good Prime Day Apple deal - Apple's 2nd-generation AirTag 4-pack is getting a first-time discount, on sale for $89. Great for people like me who tend to misplace things, simply attach the AirTag to anything you don't want to lose or keep track of, such as luggage or your keys, and your iPhone will locate the item.View Deal

Today's best Apple iPad deals in the UK

If you prefer a tablet with a larger display, you can save £200 on the 13-inch iPad Air with an M3 chip and bag one for its lowest-ever price at Amazon. Apart from the bigger screen, it's identical to the 11-inch version. So, you get the same powerful M3 chip, a sharp Liquid Retina display, 12MP front and back cameras, 128GB of storage at a minimum, and Apple Intelligence compatibility for all the fancy new AI features.View Deal

Today's best Apple MacBook deals in the UK

The latest MacBook Neo has been available for less earlier this Prime Day, but is still on sale for £50 below RRP. This brand-new and fantastic laptop packs a 13-inch Liquid Retina display, an A18 Pro chip, 8GB of RAM, 512GB of storage, and up to 16 hours of battery life, all for only £650.View Deal

Today's best Apple AirPods deals in the UK

Apple's newest premium buds feature improved Active Noise Cancellation, outstanding audio, a comfortable in-ear design, and new features such as live translation and heart-rate tracking. To use, these are the do-it-all buds that offer excellent audio quality and top-tier noise-cancellation. Today's deal is the best price you can find on Apple's newest AirPods, and just £5 more than the record-low price.View Deal

This is a new record-low price for Apple's newest buds. The AirPods 4 feature a new design for all-day comfort and pack Apple's H2 chip, which supports personalized spatial audio and voice isolation. You also get a redesigned case with 30 hours of battery life and support for USB-C for wireless charging. Just be aware that this cheaper version does not support active noise cancellation, so it may be worth paying the extra to get that benefit with the deal below.View Deal

Willing to spend a bit more? Amazon's early Prime Day deals feature the AirPods 4 with active noise cancellation for their lowest price ever. These AirPods 4 feature a new comfortable design, handy controls, and Apple's H2 chip, which supports personalised spatial audio and voice isolation. There's also that all-important ANC to block out distracting noises and outside sounds, which is great when you want to focus at work or are commuting.View Deal

The AirPods Max use an Apple-designed dynamic driver to provide high-fidelity audio — and they sound fantastic for it. Exceptional active noise cancellation, personalised Spatial Audio, and Dolby Atmos support all reinforce that. They feel good on your head as well, thanks to the knit-mesh canopy and memory foam ear cushions, so you can easily wear them for the full 20 hours of battery life if you ever want or need to. Grab them now for a record-low price.View Deal

Today's best Apple Watch deals in the UK

Here's a new record-low price for the Apple Watch SE 3. Apple's cheaper smartwatch is currently our pick for the best Apple Watch to buy if you're on a budget, as it delivers a full health and fitness tracking experience, all the convenient on-wrist features you need, and that familiar Apple style, but at a fraction of the price.View Deal

The latest Apple Watch 11 is down to its lowest-ever price in the latest Amazon Prime Day sale. The thinnest Apple Watch yet, with a wraparound LTP3 OLED display, it's a great-looking watch with Apple Intelligence-powered smarts and a boosted battery compared to previous devices, clocking in at 24 hours of average use.View Deal

This is the lowest price for one of Apple's latest and most advanced wearables — not bad, considering it was only released just last September. Apple deals are very few and far between, and though £100 off may seem a little stingy, it's quite the steal for a brand new premium Apple device.View Deal

Today's best Apple AirTag deals in the UK

This four-pack of the best-selling Apple AirTags is on sale for 15% off for Prime Day. These are a great way to keep track of keys, your phones, a child's backpack, luggage, or any other possession you'd rather not misplace. The AirTag can be attached to anything you don't want to lose, and your iPhone will locate it or send out a ping so you can track it down.View Deal

Today's best Apple iPhone deals in the UK

The high-end iPhone 17 Pro Max has fallen to its lowest-ever price at Amazon. We gave this premium handset an impressive 4.5-stars in our review for its stellar performance and fantastic cameras. Quite simply, if you demand a lot from your phone, this is easily one of the best you can buy right now.View Deal

The Apple iPhone Air 512 GB is the thinnest iPhone ever. It has a 6.5-inch Display with ProMotion, a powerful A19 Pro chip, Center Stage Front Camera, all-day battery life and a whopping 24% off thanks to this Amazon Prime Day deal.View Deal

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

Banks aren’t short on AI ambition. Across the industry, there are almost weekly announcements about new deployments, new partnerships, and new capabilities.

But amidst the lofty pronouncements, not enough attention is given to building the underlying architecture that makes any of it sustainable.

The UK Treasury Committee has already warned that the financial system is not adequately prepared for a major AI-related incident, and from where I sit, that warning is aimed squarely at how modernization programs are being run.

This is a governance problem which stems from unmade decisions; most banks have yet to make the strategic, organisation-wide commitment that should determine what gets built, before anyone starts building.

There is a real opportunity to be grasped by inviting the risk team to be part of design before you begin delivery.

Risk teams are being invited to the table too late

In traditional program structures, risk and compliance are brought in to validate decisions already made. Platforms are selected, designs agreed and timelines set, and the role of the risk function has typically been to check these things, rather than shape them. That model was never ideal, but now, in the AI-era modernization push, is structurally backwards at best and dangerous at worst.

A genuinely AI-ready bank requires continuous data lineage, runtime-embedded controls and a real-time, cloud-native core. None of these can be retrofitted cheaply once architecture decisions have already been made. By the time a compliance team discovers that a new platform can't meet AI governance or data traceability requirements, the cost of fixing it is prohibitive

If the risk function is part of the design process from the outset, banks can build a risk-conscious architecture rather than a risk-adjacent one. The difference in outcome is substantial, and increasingly, the difference between an institution that can operate confidently with AI and one that can't.

How legacy cores create invisible risk

The story of legacy architecture's constraints on innovation is well told, but it also creates blind spots that risk professionals can't see, let alone manage.

Batch-processing cores are the clearest example of this. When a core updates positions overnight rather than in real time, AML and fraud systems are operating on stale data. Suspicious activity that occurs between batch runs is invisible until the next cycle, a direct operational liability as the volume and speed of financial crime increases.

Fragmented data pipelines create a related problem. Continuous lineage (the ability to trace every decision to its data source) is a prerequisite for AI governance. On architectures where data moves through multiple disconnected systems before reaching an analytics layer, that lineage is structurally impossible to maintain without a modern, cloud-native architecture.

Finally, third-party AI deployment adds an additional layer of exposure. When models are embedded in platforms a bank doesn't have full control over, it leaves compliance teams operating with limited visibility into how decisions are being made.

Under the EU AI Act, which requires traceability and explainability for high-risk AI systems which may credit decisioning and fraud detection, that becomes a direct regulatory risk, and that's just one of a raft of emerging AI regime banks must navigate.

Risk is moving from chronic to acute

What has changed is the speed at which risk moves.

Banks now have to contend with an increase in state-based cyberattacks on financial supply chains, a trend accelerated by geopolitical instability, with agentic AI substantially increasing the speed and scale of those attacks.

Under regimes such as DORA, which introduce near real-time cyber incident reporting, means institutions need detection and response infrastructure that operates on live data, capable of identifying and escalating incidents as they happen rather than after the fact. Batch architectures don't meet this standard, and the window to remediate is narrowing.

The EU AI Act raises the bar further on traceability and explainability, particularly for credit decisioning and fraud detection, both areas where AI adoption is moving fastest.

Banks not designing against these requirements are accumulating risk, not avoiding it. The regulatory deadlines are known. The technical requirements are understood. The question is whether the architecture being selected today is capable of meeting the obligations that will be enforced tomorrow.

What risk-intelligent modernization looks like

I have sat in enough program steering committees to know that the moment risk professionals are brought into a modernization program shapes everything that follows.

When we arrive after the architecture is set, we are negotiating against decisions that are already expensive to reverse. When we are in the room from the start, we can design the non-negotiables in rather than bolt them on.

The practical starting point is three questions that every bank should answer before any platform decision is made:

What risk posture must we preserve throughout migration? The answer defines the non-negotiables for any new architecture: data integrity, audit continuity, access controls, and the governance structures that cannot lapse during transition.

What are we engineering against on a ten-year horizon? Regulatory requirements in 2036 will look different from those in 2026. The architecture being selected today needs to be capable of meeting obligations that do not yet fully exist, which means flexibility and real-time data capability are not optional extras. Some of the newer, digitally-native fintechs have demonstrated that building with this horizon in mind from the outset produces materially different, and more resilient, architecture than retrofitting compliance onto an existing estate.

What governance must change so we don't embed legacy risk into a modern platform? New infrastructure running old processes is window-dressing. If you modernize technology without modernizing governance, you recreate the same control failures in a different environment.

Modernization is not risk-free. But the risk of standing still now exceeds the risk of moving carefully, and the cost of getting the architecture wrong compounds with every year it goes unfixed.

Store you business data in the cloud with the best business cloud storage services.

This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today.

The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

The power bank that I use just about every day has hit an unbelievable low price for Amazon Prime Day, and it's one of the most tempting bargains I've come across so far.

• Browse the full Amazon Prime Day sale

Yes, you can grab the Anker Nano 10K 45W Power Bank for just $41.99 (was $59.99) at Amazon US or just £35.99 (was £49.99) at Amazon UK, representing a savings of around the 30% mark in both markets. This is an incredible deal on a charger that's saved my bacon a few more times than I'd care to admit.

I can be pretty forgetful and often leave the house without fully charging my phone, which has landed me in more than my fair share of sticky situations. But since picking up the Anker Nano 10K 45W Power Bank, things have been different. With its 45W wattage, I can fast charge my device in a pinch, and its integrated cable means I've always got a way to charge my devices on the fly.

Want to hear more about this exquisite deal? Then scroll on down for the key details.

Today's best Anker Nano 10K 45W Power Bank deal in the US

Anker's ultra-compact yet surprisingly powerful power bank is the ultimate travel companion, boasting speedy 45W charging, a solid 10,000mAh capacity, and an integrated USB-C cable for seamless use. It can easily slip into a pocket or small bag, and it's decently lightweight, making it ideal for taking on the go.View Deal

Today's best Anker Nano 10K 45W Power Bank deal in the UK

I adore Anker's small yet mighty power bank for a few key reasons. Firstly, it's a strong performer, delivering fast-charging up to 45W and a solid 10,000mAh capacity. But it's also very practical, thanks to its integrated USB-C cable and phenomenally compact form, meaning it can easily slide into your pocket or small-sized bag.View Deal

In my Anker Nano 10K 45W Power Bank review, I described the model as a "highly practical" and "well-designed" option, highlighting its durable and handy built-in charging cord, as well as its neat display and versatile ports.

I also found it to be a good value-for-money option at launch; however, this deal makes it an absolute steal. I'd certainly buy it right now for even better value if I didn't already have one! The current Prime Day deals actually place this power bank at a near record-low price, so it really is a fantastic time to snap it up.

If you're often forgetting to charge your phone, or if you want a compact power bank to take on your summer travels, then I strongly suggest picking up the Anker Nano 10K 45W right now — but make sure to act fast and grab it while it's cheap!

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: get a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire, Ring & Blink from £13.99
• Amazon Haul: up to 30% off
• Apple: up to 33% off AirPods & Apple Watch
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja & Tefal
• Beauty: up to 60% off Philips & Oral-B
• Essentials: household goods from £5
• Fans: from £20
• Fashion: up to 50% off
• Gaming: £90 off PlayStation 5
• Headphones: up to 50% off Beats & Sony
• Laptops: from £149
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £79.99
• Toys: up to 25% off Lego and Tonies
• TVs: from £129.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Shark & Roborock
• Wearables: up to 30% off Garmin & Oura

Woody the toy cowboy has faced a lot of frightening moments over the course of five Toy Story movies, but the actor voicing him for the last 30 years is trepidatious over the possibility that AI will supplant him. Tom Hanks told Entertainment Weekly in a new interview that the idea of AI replacing his voice is "a scary thought."

"Time is undefeated," Hanks said. "The question would be whether or not we could cobble together some version of me. Every word we have ever recorded in time in Toy Story is on digital media somewhere, so they could put together anything they would want."

Debates about AI in movies and film are raging even as the technology is deployed to reproduce the voices and complete performances of people who have passed away. Not to mention fully AI-generated films that otherwise employ human voice actors.

AI acting

Most entertainment projects with AI so far have generally involved the participation or approval of the performers themselves, but they also demonstrate how quickly the technology has matured. What once required painstaking effects work can increasingly be achieved with sophisticated machine learning models trained on years of existing material.

Hanks has himself been in AI-assisted productions, specifically in the film Here, which relied on AI to de-age him and co-star Robin Wright for part of the film rather than depending entirely on traditional visual effects.

Hanks' concerns extend beyond his own career. He has elsewhere suggested that his biggest worry is whether audiences will eventually stop caring whether a performance comes from a human being at all, not trusting that what they see isn't produced with AI. That feels like a more unsettling question than whether Woody could return without Hanks.

Future films

(Image credit: Disney Pixar)

There's a little irony in Hanks' comments. The original Toy Story was a technological revolution that some saw as a threat to traditional hand-drawn animation. Three decades later, one of the stars who helped usher in that revolution is looking at the next wave of technology with understandable caution.

Caution doesn't mean dismissal of AI, of course. Hanks is known for being part of projects using advanced tools like motion capture, digital filmmaking, and experimental visual effects throughout his career. His concern seems more about what gets lost when technology starts replacing the people audiences are connected with in the first place.

And while each individual use of AI can be justified as another filmmaking tool, there's still a larger question about where AI assistance ends, and replacement begins. The answer will probably depend on what audiences decide they value rather than purely technical capabilities. Movie stars are more than collections of facial expressions and vocal recordings, and recreating the performance that audiences associate with Woody, that's more than just "good enough," would be a tall order.

I've been scouting for Prime Day deals, but this one stopped me in my tracks. Currys is running an excellent summer sale on back-to-school and business laptops, but Amazon has absolutely crushed them on the price of the Asus Zenbook A14 for £500 (was £600) for Prime Day.

• Shop Amazon's Prime Day deals

This 14-inch OLED laptop features a Snapdragon X X1-26-100 processor that's engineered for day-to-day work and study tasks, alongside 16GB LPDDR5X memory, and a well-sized 1TB SSD. For general office and school tasks, that's pitch-perfect for the price.

Over at Currys, however, the exact same model is priced at £599 (was £999) for the Snapdragon-powered machine with 16GB RAM and - wait for it - 512GB SSD. So, you're getting twice as much SSD storage from Amazon at an even cheaper price. I wouldn't even look twice at Currys for this specific model while this Prime Day deal is live.

For more savings, I'm live-tracking all the best Prime Day home office deals.

Snapdragon X X1-26-100 | 16GB LPDDR5X | 1TB SSD

Excellent price for an efficient work laptop. This 14-inch OLED ultra-portable machine excels at battery life, and tailored for running office apps, emails, and web browsing. View Deal

Snapdragon X X1-26-100 | 16GB LPDDR5X | 512GB SSD

Only buy this if Amazon's Zenbook deal isn't available. It's a good price, but it's lacking the storage space the Prime Day deal has. View Deal

That's not to say the Currys summer sale is bad. In fact, having charted all the deals, I found it a treasure trove of well-priced laptops for work and study. You can see my article on the top 4 laptop deals at Currys here.

But considering the massive price difference, and the improved SSD size, I'd go for the Amazon deal all-day long (or while it lasts, which might not be long as Prime Day ends tomorrow).

We were impressed with the A14 when we reviewed this laptop. Scoring it 4 stars and awarding it a TechRadar Recommends badge, we found this ultra-lightweight MacBook Air-style Windows laptop possessed "brilliant design, capable all-round performance, and an impressive battery life."

As a budget-tier laptop, it's got it faults, but we loved the "fabulously thin and light" design and performance are impressive. Perfect, then, for campus and the commute.

• See all laptop deals at Amazon
• Shop all computing deals at Currys

It's been years since I last owned my own Kindle, as I ultimately do prefer physical copies to add to my collection, and only otherwise used my OG Kindle while travelling. However, whenever Amazon Prime Day rolls around, I do tend to second-guess myself when I see the meaty discounts on some of the best Kindles.

• Browse all early Prime Day deals at Amazon

In particular, I was tempted by the new Kindle Scribe Colorsoft; as an avid manga reader, I was super excited by the idea of freeing up some shelf space (and if you read manga, you'll know that comes in short supply once your collection grows) by reading some of my less-favored series digitally. However, after trying it for a couple of weeks, I'm only using it for its primary function: as an ereader.

Sure, I'm pretty impressed by this all-in-one E Ink notepad, comic and book reader, but especially right now, the price is a huge turn-off. Put it this way; the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is currently $519 (was $679) in the US and £442 (was £569) in the UK.

Meanwhile, the Kindle Paperwhite is on sale for $124 (was $159) at Amazon US and £113 (was £159) at Amazon UK and the significantly more performant and multifunctional iPad 11-inch (A16) is $299 (was $349) at Amazon US and £309 (was £329) at Amazon UK. That's a $96 / £20 saving for an arguably better combination.

Below, I've detailed the key differences between each device.

Amazon Kindle Scribe Colorsoft

(Image credit: Future/Rami Tabari)Pros and cons

Pros
+Gets the basics right
+Color and Scribe features are well-packaged
+Large and sharp display

Cons
- Pricey
- Some features could use updating

The Kindle Scribe Colorsoft is the latest, most performant ereader from Amazon, offering a combination of three different Kindle types: the standard E ink display Kindle, the notepad-like Kindle Scribe, and the color display Kindle Colorsoft.

Each is useful in its own right; reading comics and manga on the Scribe Colorsoft is a delight, though text boxes that spread across panels can be cut off if you use the full page panel view. It's pretty well optimized for the task, though even in vivid mode, colors can be a little washed out.

The writing experience is great. The screen is super responsive, the stylus is comfortable in use and features a shortcut key as well as a functional eraser, and the addition of color to the display means you can select different pen and highlighter colors to create more detailed annotations.

It packs all the usual useful Kindle features (including Word Wise, which is great for younger readers or language learners) as well as AI features like note summary and handwriting-to-text conversion.

However, there are three major things to note when it comes to the Kindle Scribe Colorsoft.

First is that you can't actually use all of these features in tandem, meaning you can't markup comics or manga, though that's likely not a use case many people would want.

Second is that even outside of major sales events like Prime Day, you can get a Kindle, a Scribe, and a Colorsoft at almost the same price as this all-in-one device; and if you don't really need either the note-taking or the color display at the same time, you might as well do that.

Third is that while the large slate might be what you're looking for in terms of drawing, writing and graphic novel reading, it makes it a lot less portable than the standard or Paperwhite Kindle experience, which for me is the main reason I prize an ereader over a book.

Amazon Kindle Paperwhite

(Image credit: Future)Pros and cons

Pros
+7-inch display is great
+Fastest Paperwhite yet
+Excellent battery life

Cons
-Expensive for a mid-range ereader
-Ads on lock screen in some markets (unless you pay extra)

A step up from the basic Kindle, the Kindle Paperwhite offers a bright and beautiful screen for reading your favorite books. At this point, I'd very rarely recommend the standard base model for any reason beyond its low price, whereas the Kindle Paperwhite is genuinely enjoyable to read on, and that includes comics and manga.

With its E Ink Carta 1300 display, the 12th-generation Kindle Paperwhite offers great contrast for easy reading, a slightly larger screen, comfortable bezels for long hours of reading and 16GB storage (though we're not thrilled 4.5GB of that is dedicated to the operating system.)

If you've tried the 11th-generation model, there's a slim margin of upgrade with this newer, 12th-generation model, but if you're currently using any older Kindle Paperwhite or standard Kindle, you'll certainly feel the difference.

It's fast, the battery is great, and it excels at exactly what it was created for; reading. That's doubly true thanks to its slim profile, making it easy to grab and stash in your bag; at 211g, it's super lightweight to carry.

It's worth noting that, at list price, we're not 100% happy about the Kindle Paperwhite's value proposition. This goes for a lot of Amazon devices, which only feel like a good deal during major sales events, but for context, spend a little more on the Kobo Libra color which costs $219.99 / £219.99 and you can get a color ereader with a screen of the same size, double the storage, a more ergonomic design and writing capabilities.

Of course, if you're bedded into the Amazon ecosystem with access to its vast library of books through a Prime Membership, it's still a no-brainer.

Apple iPad 11-inch (A16 chip)

(Image credit: Jacob Krol/Future)Pros and cons

Pros
+A16 chip is very capable
+Now starts with 128GB of storage
+iPadOS 18 runs smoothly here

Cons
-No major changes over the previous generation

While the latest, 11th-generation iPad didn't reinvent the tablet-shaped wheel, it brought a nice refresh in the form of the A16 chipset, powering a fast, responsive iPadOS experience.

It's a great productivity machine, and especially when paired with an Apple Pencil, it offers everything you could want from a Kindle Scribe Colorsoft and more, with its app library including fantastic options for note-taking, drawing and more intensive creative functions like video editing; though you're better off with an Apple Silicon-powered tablet like the iPad Pro (M5) or iPad Air (M4) if that's your rodeo.

It weighs just over a pound, so it's less primed for travel, and an e-ink display offers weeks of battery life, whereas the 11th-generation iPad only stretches to roughly 10 hours with general use; that's why pairing it with a Kindle Paperwhite for your reading needs is my top recommendation.

Still, even on its own, it stands as a solid alternative to a Kindle altogether, but especially at its price, I'd wager it's a superior choice to a Kindle Scribe Colorsoft for most. After all, you can just install the Kindle app and read your favorite books, comics, and manga on the vastly superior display.

More early Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Beauty: 50% off toothbrushes & hair tools
• Cheap TVs: smart TVs from $69.99
• Garden: tools, mowers, planters from $24.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Mattresses: Sealy, Serta & more from $186
• Patio: outdoor furniture, rugs & decor from $19.99
• Sports: 50% off fitness gear, treadmills & clothing
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More early Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £24.99
• Amazon Haul: up to 30% off
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Beauty: up to 60% off Philips & Oral-B
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Fashion: up to 50% off
• Father's Day: up to 50% off gifts & drinks
• Headphones: up to 50% off
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• Toys: up to 25% off Lego and Tonies
• TVs: from £129.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Eufy & Roborock
• Wearables: Garmin & Huawei from £36.99

• Big Tech was hit with $3.5B fines over three years, Surfshark found
• Many were fined for using personal data unlawfully
• Enforceability remains a key challenge

Major tech companies have already been hit by fines totalling $3.5 billion for using vast amounts of users’ personal data to train their AI models, raising hopes that the days of AI operating in a regulatory vacuum might be coming to an end.

The figures come from Surfshark, one of the best VPNs on the market, which recently analysed 10 AI-related sanctions imposed on the usual suspects — Anthropic, Meta, Google, Clearview, Apple, Amazon, and OpenAI — between 2022 and 2026.

Disturbingly, nine out of ten fines were imposed for using users’ personal data — including biometric data, copyright-protected content, facial images, and children's voice recordings — without user consent or legal authorisation.

AI violations: which company misused our data the most?

(Image credit: Surfhsark)

According to Surfshark’s study, Clearview AI was the first, in 2022, to be fined a total of around $46 million for collecting facial images for its facial recognition database.

But the pace picked up in 2024, with five new separate fines imposed on Google, OpenAI, Meta, Clearview, and Amazon.

The size of the fines has also increased substantially, signalling a positive shift from regulatory warnings to severe financial consequences. In 2024, Meta was fined $1.4 billion for collecting users’ biometric data without consent, followed by Anthropic in 2025 with a record $1.5 billion for training its AI models using pirated books.

On a different note, the $250 million fine imposed on Apple in 2026 for AI misleading marketing practices might signal that current AI advertisement tactics might also soon become a thing of the past.

"This could be only the beginning," says Dr. Luis Costa, research lead at Surfshark. "The overarching trend suggests that accountability is catching up with innovation, and the industry must re-evaluate both how it builds AI and how it markets it."

The industry must re-evaluate both how it builds AI and how it markets it

Dr. Luis Costa, Surfshark

While regulations and authorities seem to be starting to catch up and match their punishments with Big Tech's wrongdoings, the findings continue to raise serious questions about the risks users face when using these AI platforms.

"Firstly, the scale of unauthorised data collection is unprecedented: 90 per cent of AI-related fines imposed since 2022 relate to the use of data without the necessary consent," Costa explains.

"Second, this harvesting often targets highly sensitive, unchangeable data, as seen in Meta’s $1.4 billion biometric settlement and Amazon’s fine over children’s voice recordings," he adds.

It also remains alarming that many companies fail to adequately inform the public about how their sensitive data is used, leaving consumers oblivious to the fact that their personal information is permanently baked into commercial AI models.

Better enforceability is needed

Additionally, while these fines may seem exorbitant, it is worrying that the financial impact of such punishments rarely acts as a deterrent to these large technology companies, whose market capitalisation runs into the hundreds of billions of dollars.

In its research, Proton previously found that the $7.8 billion in privacy and competition fines imposed on Big Tech in 2025 could be collectively paid by these firms in less than a month.

However, Costa argues that the issue is more complex and regulators might be working toward targeted changes. "First, regulators are escalating the financial stakes, shifting toward massive penalties like Anthropic's $1.5 billion and Meta's $1.4 billion settlements."

Additionally, a major challenge right now is actually enforceability — particularly as some companies have already been exploiting loopholes to avoid paying fines. Clearview AI, for example, managed to avoid paying $105 million in fines imposed by four different European regulatory authorities by arguing that it did not fall within European jurisdiction.

"Even if these early fines are manageable for tech giants, their real value lies in establishing the firm legal precedents that will govern how AI must operate in the future," Costa concludes.

Sorry Sony (and Bose, and AirPods) I know the best earbuds I've ever tested — and they're a Technics product called the EAH-AZ100.

I know, try to see past the immediately forgettable name, because once you get past that alphabetty spaghetti, there's a seriously good set of earbuds in a great little offer here.

Do you like my lead image? I just went out into the full glare of the sun on the hottest recorded UK day in June — for a full three minutes — to get it, to prove I'm using them right now. I also snapped the photo above because the most-asked question I get when I tell people I'm TechRadar's Audio Editor is 'What are the best earbuds with noise cancelling?'

Take note of the subtle shift in phrasing there; not the best noise cancelling earbuds — no, the best current earbuds with noise cancelling. They're quite different things actually, because one can be read as 'I just want the closest thing to actively-generated silence I can get, in a small box please', whereas this specific question above prioritises sound quality, but adds ANC because it is a desirable extra. And I love that.

Anyway, people want a definitive answer and leave the complicated reasoning to Scarrott. Obviously I'm flattered, because it means they trust my judgement (well done there. I do know my stuff). But I've already spilled the answer above: it's these Technics buds, and has been for quite some time.

They came out in January 2025, and they're built on the original May 2023-issue EAH-AZ80, which were also excellent. And both products are somehow still the only earbuds on the market able to offer multipoint to three devices simultaneously, rather than two. Think it's a small perk? Try it for two weeks, then give them back to me. You won't be able to…

Today's best Technics EAH-AZ100 deal

A new lowest-seen price! The excellent EAH-AZ80 that came before this model basically tore up the rule book on sound quality and features in wireless earbuds – and the AZ100 are even better. Released in January 2025, these little beauties are still the only earbuds to offer multipoint to three devices simultaneously, plus excellent sidetone tech for hearing your own voice in calls, as well as some of the most neutral and detailed audio in an even smaller, even more premium-feel design. Oh, and this deal is £17 cheaper than our price trackers have ever seen. Highly recommended. View Deal

Look, the Technics EAH-AZ100 are still sitting pretty at the top of my guide to the best earbuds for a reason. They're incredibly secure and comfortable to wear; Technics pioneered a 'concha fit' design (which initially looks a little deep for a top-plate, but works beautifully), and it's a trick several rivals soon adopted in a post-AirPods-stem market, whether they'd choose to admit it or not.

They also offer LDAC support, which is one of my favourite hi-res wireless codecs and a simple route to better-quality audio streaming for Samsung and Sony smartphone owners.

And did I mention the call handling? It's excellent. Technics deploys both its known Sidetone tech (to slightly amplify your own voice, so it's not muffled by the buds in your ears as you talk) plus its newer proprietary JustMyVoice technology here, which captures your speech while simultaneously suppressing background noise.

Noise cancelling is also very good, but best of all, though, is the sound. As we enthused in our Technics EAH-AZ100 review, the soundstage is neutral and natural, yet simultaneously expansive, engagingly dynamic, and energetic.

I've used the EAH-AZ100 earbuds practically every day since they launched. Before that, I'd used their older siblings every day, and let me tell you: they're the best. I say this as someone with much of the consumer earbuds oeuvre at their disposal (I'm not bragging, it's work — my job is to review earbuds and headphones), so I do know the best from the also-rans.

Yes, I typically prefer over-ears for sound quality, but when running around, earbuds are more portable — especially in a UK heatwave where those ear cups can get a little hot. And in an in-ear design, I love the sonic performance of these buds, especially when the Prime Day deal is this good.

Did you struggle to sleep in the heat last night? What you need is a super-quiet fan, and you're in the right place to find one in the Amazon Prime Day sales. We test dozens of fans here at TechRadar, and I've put together this collection based on brands and models we know are dependable and effective.

• Check out all Amazon's Prime Day fan deals

When choosing a quiet fan for your bedroom, take a minute to think about the space. Will you be keeping the fan on your bedside table? If so, a fan with a rechargeable battery might be the best option, letting you run it all night while leaving plug sockets free for phone chargers. If you want to blow a blanket of air over your bed, consider an adjustable-height fan that you can direct at your duvet.

Some of the best fans have been selling out extremely quickly in the Prime Day sale, for obvious reasons, but all these deals are still in stock at the time of writing so grab one before they blow away on their own.

Amazon Prime Day quiet fan deals

Levoit makes some of the best value fans we've tested here at TechRadar, and this is an exceptional deal for one you can control with either a remote or a smartphone app. It's hit a record-low price for Prime Day 2026.View Deal

Another super quiet fan from Levoit, this model is specially designed for night time, with adjustable height to direct airflow at your bed. At under £80 it's one of the cheapest fans from a reputable brand this Prime Day.View Deal

Dreo's air fans and air circulators have been selling out fast during the current heatwave, but you can still grab a great deal on this oscillating standing fan, which can drop as low as 20dB at night and includes a useful timer.View Deal

I'm a big fan of SwitchBot's smart home tech and this near-silent desk fan will play nicely with all your other smart devices. It's rechargeable so you can keep it on your bedside table even if there's no plug socket available.View Deal

I'm relying on a Dimplex fan to keep me cool at night, and this versatile desk/standing fan should do the job for you as well. At under £100 it's a great Prime Day deal, and will serve you well for many heatwaves to come.View Deal

Be prepared

The current heatwave might have broken by the time your new fan arrives, but it's still a good idea to grab one during the Prime Day sales. As we've seen, the weather forecast can change within the space of a week, so it's never a bad idea to have one handy and ready to go next time the mercury rises.

Buying a fan now also means you won't be in such a rush. If you're in a hurry, it can be tempting to grab anything that has a good review, but not all fans are suitable for all rooms, so it pays to take some time now and make sure you're making the right choice.

The latest fans can move a large volume of air much more easily than older models, and are more energy efficient as well, which will keep you cooler and reduce your energy bills in the long term. That's not necessarily something you have time to think about if you're rushing to pick up a fan — any fan — in a sweat-soaked panic.

More Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: sign up for a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire TV, Ring & Blink from £24.99
• Amazon Haul: up to 30% off
• Apple: AirPods Pro 3 for a record-low price
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja, Tefal & Sage
• Beauty: up to 60% off Philips & Oral-B
• Essentials: household goods from under £10
• Fashion: up to 50% off
• Father's Day: up to 50% off gifts & drinks
• Headphones: up to 50% off
• Laptops: from £149.99
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £125
• Toys: up to 25% off Lego and Tonies
• TVs: from £129.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Eufy & Roborock
• Wearables: Garmin & Huawei from £36.99

• Sony is going all out for GTA 6 marketing
• The PS5 homepage, PS Store, and PS App have been updated with a GTA 6 theme
• Pre-orders have officially begun

Sony has gone full Grand Theft Auto 6 marketing mode as pre-orders for the most anticipated game of all time officially begin.

The wait is finally over, GTA 6 pre-orders are now live, and in anticipation of the game's release later this year, Sony is showing that it definitely has a favorite by updating the PlayStation 5 homepage, PS Store, and PS App with a new GTA 6 theme.

Now, when players boot up their PS5, they're greeted by a full-screen animation of the game's logo, before it fades into an ad for the game on the console's welcome hub.

When navigating to the PS Store, the background now features co-protagonists Jason and Lucia, and the "Must See" UI has been updated with purple boxes that provide details on the Ultimate Edition, trailers, the Vintage Vice City and GTA+ pre-order bonuses, and a way to pre-order.

GTA 6 is now the first thing you see when you boot up your PS5, they made an entirely new UI for this, insane. pic.twitter.com/xmz8h6RLzIJune 24, 2026

As spotted by Shinobi602, Sony has also updated the PS App logo with GTA 6 branding. Instead of the blue icon, it's been replaced by the game's sunset theme and palm trees.

It's clear that Sony is going all out to maximize the GTA 6 marketing, and it's not even a first-party exclusive.

It also shared in a post yesterday that "thanks to a close partnership" with the studio, "GTA 6 will play best on PS5" and take advantage of PS5’s features "to deliver a deeply engaging single-player experience."

@techradar

♬ original sound - TechRadar

GTA 6 officially launches on November 19 for PS5 and Xbox Series X and Series S, and will cost $79.99 / AU$129.95 / £69.99 for the Standard Edition and $99.99 / AU$159.95 / £89.99 for the Ultimate Edition. Pre-loads begin on November 12.

It's also confirmed that physical copies won't have a disc and only include a digital download code in the box.

As both a hardcore gamer and an audio geek, I used to spend a lot of time agonizing over whether to invest more money on a gaming headset or whether I could spend more on a great pair of headphones to cover both my hobbies. If you find yourself in the same boat, it's your lucky day: I'm here to help you make that decision and, with some of the great deals available this Prime Day, I can help save you some cash to boot.

• View the full Amazon Prime Day sale

I've been reviewing audio gadgets for many years now and have reviewed a bunch of gaming headsets in my time at TechRadar. What I've found is that headphones absolutely can do double duty as an alternative to a dedicated gaming headset, but you really need to consider what kind of features are the biggest priority for you personally.

Gaming headsets vs headphones: which should you buy?

When it comes to gaming headsets, there are a few kinds of features you can expect. Low-latency connectivity will often set these apart from wireless headphones, nixing any lag and ensuring you can respond to gunshots and monster cries quickly.

I've always found specific gaming sonic profiles super useful as well — headsets that can boost footsteps are fantastic for FPSes, for example, making it harder for people to sneak up on you. Pick up the Turtle Beach Stealth Pro for $167.94 at Amazon (was $329.99) and you can experience both of these features in spades.

Gaming headsets have historically been way ahead of the curve in terms of battery life. That's partly because not all of them offer ANC and some wireless headphone brands have really caught up in this area. For example, you can get the Sennheiser Momentum 4 for $179.55 at Amazon (was $299.99) and they offer up to 60 hours with ANC on, which is seriously competitive.

But I wouldn't say headsets get the upper hand on every front, with some areas being more of dead heat. I've not always found gaming headset's boom mics to be higher quality than the built-in call mics on higher-end headphones. But some offer fold-to-mute functionality that makes it easier to mute yourself when you want some privacy, for example the Corsair HS55 Surround v2, which you can pick up for $39.99 from Amazon (was $59.99).

Meanwhile, while many headsets these days offer spatial audio, so do a good proportion of high-end headphones — honestly, both camps contain great examples with deeply immersive audio and yet there are also plenty of headsets and headphones that promise spatial effects that sound pretty mono-directional. The absolute undisputed champ here is also on offer right now: you can buy the Apple AirPods Max 2 for $399 at Amazon (was $549).

For me, traditional headphones get the edge over a gaming headset in a couple of key areas. Headphones tend to offer superior music playback, as they've been engineered with that in mind — I know, I know: 'thanks Captain Obvious' — so they tend to handle soundtracks and your fave tunes better.

On top of this, they can also come crammed with innovative features. For example, the Sony WH-1000XM6 offer nice touches like speak-to-chat for automatic transparency mode during conversations and head gestures for accepting and rejecting calls. If you're keen to try out some of these cutting-edge advances, you can currently grab the Sony WH-1000XM6 for $378 at Amazon (was $459.99).

Ultimately, whether you need a dedicated headset or you can get away with using the same pair of headphones for listening to tunes and gaming will depend on the features you most rely on. Fortunately, there are so many great Prime Day deals available on each right now that no matter which choice you make, you can be sure you'll get it for a bargain price.

Headsets for gaming

HyperX Cloud III S Wireless

Corsair HS55 Surround v2

SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro

Pros

• Excellent sound quality
• Very detailed audio
• Long battery life
• Extremely versatile with multiple connectivity

Cons

• Eye-watering price tag
• ANC isn’t the best
• Non-intuitive physical controls

Razer BlackShark V2 Pro — PlayStation Version

Pros

• Battery life for days, literally
• Incredibly clear mic audio
• Beautiful stitching and finish
• Great sound reproduction
• Multi-device compatibility
• Comfortable and adjustable

Cons

• Physical chat mix control only on Xbox version
• No wired operation on consoles
• Synapse software required to get the best out of the mic

Beyerdynamic Tygr 300 R

Pros

• Best-in-class audio quality
• Comfortable as heck
• Robust cable
• Open back design great for single player

Cons

• Expensive
• No replaceable cable
• No built-in mic

Turtle Beach Stealth Pro

Pros

• Incredible audio quality
• Flawless active noise canceling
• Excellent build quality and comfort
• Versatile connectivity options

Cons

• Average sounding microphone
• Expensive

Headphones for gaming

Sony WH-1000XM6

Pros

• Class-leading noise cancellation
• Excellent audio performance
• Super lightweight and comfortable
• Highly intuitive touch controls
• They're foldable again!

Cons

• Price increase over previous model
• Battery life is nothing special
• Still not waterproof
• Some may find them to be a tad bulky

Apple AirPods Max 2

Pros

• Even better active noise cancellation
• Live Translation that's easier to use than on Apple's earbuds
• Adaptive Audio means meatier, punchier sound than the originals
• Even head-tracked Spatial Audio feels more accurate and crisp

Cons

• Battery life hasn't been improved
• That flimsy 'headphone bra' case remains
• Still very iOS-only (Android owners need not apply)
• No wireless hi-res codec support still

Sennheiser HD 599 SE

Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen)

Pros

• Predictably brilliant noise cancellation
• As comfortable as these things ever get
• Balanced, energetic sound

Cons

• Not quite the perceived value of some rivals
• Humdrum control app

Nothing Headphone (a)

Pros

• Great sound that's a big upgrade over Headphone (1)
• Fantastic on-ear control options and app
• Gigantic battery life

Cons

• Still heavy, with a strong clamping force
• Some rivals offer better sonic detail
• No auto-pause feature or case

Sennheiser Momentum 4 Wireless

Pros

• Neutral, crisp, detailed sound
• Excellent ANC and transparency
• Incredible battery life even with ANC deployed

Cons

• A little plain aesthetically
• Design doesn't fold up into the headband

More Prime Day deals in the US

• Amazon Devices: Fire Sticks & Echo from $18
• Amazon Haul: viral gadgets, tech & appliances from $1.99
• Apple: MacBooks, AirPods & AirTags from $29
• Back-to-school tech: 48% off laptops, headphones & tablets
• Cheap TVs: Samsung, Sony & LG from $89.99
• Headphones: 50% off Beats, Bose & Samsung
• Laptops: Apple, HP & Dell from $199
• Smartwatches: up to $250 off Garmin & Apple
• Vacuums: Dyson, Shark & Bissell from $34

More Amazon Prime Day deals in the UK

• Amazon Prime: get a 30-day free trial
• Amazon Devices: Fire, Ring & Blink from £13.99
• Apple: up to 33% off AirPods & Apple Watch
• Appliances: up to 45% off Ninja & De'Longhi
• Fans: from £20
• Headphones: up to 50% off Beats & Sony
• Tablets: Samsung & Lenovo from £79.99
• Vacuums: up to 40% off Shark & Roborock
• Wearables: up to 30% off Garmin & Oura