Technology

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Strands puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Strands hints and answers for Wednesday, April 2 (game #395).

Strands is the NYT's latest word game after the likes of Wordle, Spelling Bee and Connections – and it's great fun. It can be difficult, though, so read on for my Strands hints.

Want more word-based fun? Then check out my NYT Connections today and Quordle today pages for hints and answers for those games, and Marc's Wordle today page for the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Strands today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Strands today (game #396) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?

• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Get the bug

NYT Strands today (game #396) - hint #2 - clue words

Play any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.

• THAN
• DOLE
• SOAP
• TOOL
• SNAP
• LADS

NYT Strands today (game #396) - hint #3 - spangram letters How many letters are in today's spangram?

• Spangram has 10 letters

NYT Strands today (game #396) - hint #4 - spangram position What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?

First side: left, 4th row

Last side: right, 3rd row

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Strands today (game #396) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Strands, game #396, are…

• LADY
• STINK
• DOODLE
• LIGHTNING
• POTATO
• ASSASSIN
• SPANGRAM: ENTOMOLOGY

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 3 hints

ENOTOMOLOGY, and I will tell you as I’ve just googled it, is the study of insects, encompassing their biology, ecology, behavior, and interactions with humans.

I must admit that a couple of the bugs that made today’s search are ones that I thought were just names for things, rather than names for actual insects.

Until today I thought DOODLEbug was the name given, during the Second World War, to flying bombs – rather than a small unattractive creature that lives in sand.

Strictly speaking, LADYbugs are beetles rather than bugs and they’re really fascinating.

The two facts that I remember most about them is that although they have a short lifespan (two years at most) they hibernate for about nine months of that time and secondly that the charming name for a large group of them is a “loveliness”.

STINKbugs don’t have an official collective term but the experts like to call large groups “a stench”.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, 2 April, game #395)

• DAZZLE
• TWINKLE
• SHIMMER
• SPARKLE
• GLEAM
• RADIATE
• SPANGRAM: STAR POWER

What is NYT Strands?

Strands is the NYT's not-so-new-any-more word game, following Wordle and Connections. It's now a fully fledged member of the NYT's games stable that has been running for a year and which can be played on the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

I've got a full guide to how to play NYT Strands, complete with tips for solving it, so check that out if you're struggling to beat it each day.

Looking for a different day?

A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Wednesday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Wednesday, April 2 (game #661).

Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.

What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.

SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.

NYT Connections today (game #662) - today's words

(Image credit: New York Times)

Today's NYT Connections words are…

• SCANNER
• BROWSER
• POSTER
• READER
• NOTICE
• BEACH
• REGISTER
• FOLDER
• SUNDAY
• BULLETIN
• SCALE
• TREE
• SODA CAN
• CONVEYOR BELT
• KEYBOARD
• ANNOUNCEMENT

NYT Connections today (game #662) - hint #1 - group hints

What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: Written proclaimations
• GREEN: As seen at Walmart
• BLUE: The common word rhymes with “cabs”
• PURPLE: The answer is a part of your hand

Need more clues?

We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…

NYT Connections today (game #662) - hint #2 - group answers

What are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?

• YELLOW: PRINTED NOTIFICATION 
• GREEN: SEEN AT A GROCERY CHECKOUT COUNTER 
• BLUE: THINGS WITH TABS
• PURPLE: PALM ___ 

Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.

NYT Connections today (game #662) - the answers

(Image credit: New York Times)

The answers to today's Connections, game #662, are…

• YELLOW: PRINTED NOTIFICATION ANNOUNCEMENT, BULLETIN, NOTICE, POSTER
• GREEN: SEEN AT A GROCERY CHECKOUT COUNTER CONVEYOR BELT, REGISTER, SCALE, SCANNER
• BLUE: THINGS WITH TABS BROWSER, FOLDER, KEYBOARD, SODA CAN
• PURPLE: PALM ___ BEACH, READER, SUNDAY, TREE

• My rating: Hard
• My score: 2 mistakes

Although PALM__ made up the purple group, and I was very pleased with myself to get it, the blue collection of THINGS WITH TABS was far harder — as if often the case when Connections has fun with the multiple meanings of words.

In this case it was even harder for me, as the thing Americans call a tab on a soda can is called a ring pull in the UK.

I made my two mistakes trying and failing to get SEEN AT A GROCERY CHECKOUT COUNTER.

In my head I was associating CONVEYOR BELT and SCANNER with airport security, so I tried multiple variations with KEYBOARD and READER before getting the right foursome. Shameful, seeing as I worked at a grocery checkout for several years in my late teens.

I’m glad to say I was never one of those cashiers who would comment on what the customer was buying, those people are the worst.

How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.

Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Wednesday, 2 April, game #661)

• YELLOW: CAPRICE FANCY, IMPULSE, LARK, WHIM
• GREEN: ILK KIND, LIKE, SORT, TYPE
• BLUE: WILLIAMSES HANK, ROBIN, TENNESSEE, VENUS
• PURPLE: WORDS PRONOUNCED DIFFERENTLY AS PROPER NOUNS HERB, JOB, NICE, READING

What is NYT Connections?

NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.

On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.

It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.

It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.

• GreyNoise observed a spike in scanning throughout March 2025
• Thousands of IP addresses were scanning PAN-OS GlobalProtect portals
• These activities usually lead up to a cyberattack, researchers claim

Someone may be getting ready to attack Palo Alto Network devices, security researchers are warning after spotting a rise in activity.

Analysts from GreyNoise said they observed a “significant surge” in login scanning activity against the company’s PAN-OS GlobalProtect portals, with almost 24,000 unique IP addresses attempting to access these portals in March 2025.

“The pattern suggests a coordinated effort to probe network defenses and identify exposed or vulnerable systems, potentially as a precursor to targeted exploitation,” the article reads. This could also mean that someone’s found a zero-day vulnerability in these endpoints and is now looking to see how many endpoints it can compromise through it.

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Remote code execution risks

“Over the past 18 to 24 months, we’ve observed a consistent pattern of deliberate targeting of older vulnerabilities or well-worn attack and reconnaissance attempts against specific technologies,” said Bob Rudis, VP of Data Science at GreyNoise. “These patterns often coincide with new vulnerabilities emerging 2 to 4 weeks later.”

For GreyNoise, there is no doubt that this is a malicious campaign. Of the 24,000 unique IP addresses that scanned Palo Alto devices, 154 were labeled as “malicious” beyond reasonable doubt, while the rest were classified as “suspicious” in the past. Their locations are mostly in North America, throughout the US and Canada.

The majority of the targets are also based in the US.

GreyNoise says this activity could be linked to separate PAN-OS reconnaissance-related tags, such as PAN-OS Crawler, where they observed a single spike on March 26, 2025 involving 2,580 unique source IPs.

Obviously, the end goal is not known at this time, but vigilance is advised. IT teams should review their logs since mid-March to see if they were targeted, and should be on the lookout for signs of compromise. They should also harden their login portals and block known malicious IPs.

Via BleepingComputer

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A Minecraft Movie director Jared Hess has given short shrift to the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in the entertainment industry.

Speaking to TechRadar ahead of the film's release on April 4, Hess revealed that AI wasn't used at any point during A Minecraft Movie's development. However, he admitted that its wide-ranging application throughout the movie- and TV-making business was inevitable, even though it can't – and likely won't – come close to replicating the creativity that human artists, animators, voice actors, and other talented industry folk possess in abundance.

"We didn't use it as part of development," Hess emphatically replied when I asked if he leaned on AI during production on one of 2025's new movies. "We were old school, so we used human artists with awesome brains and imaginations.

I just hope AI is used as a tool and not as a shortcut

Jared Hess, A Minecraft Movie director

"Look, AI is going to affect every aspect of life, including entertainment," he continued. "I just hope it's used as a tool and not as a shortcut. Again, the human experience is so critical to all forms of art, and that kind of nuance and voice and perspective is something that AI can't replicate. It's currently able to imitate things, sure, but I'm always just going to gravitate toward the human [experience] wherever I can."

AI's application in the entertainment business has exploded over the past year. From its controversial use in Oscar-nominated flick like The Brutalist and its fellow Academy Award nominee Emilia Perez, to its multifaceted application on some of the world's best streaming services, artificial intelligence's influence on Hollywood will only grow from here.

As Hess said, here's hoping it's implemented in the correct manner and at the right time, rather than being mishandled in order to replace the human workforce and human invention as we know it.

'I wanted to barf my brains out!'

Jared Hess had a hard time using one piece of technology during the movie's development (Image credit: Warner Bros. Pictures/Mojang Studios)

Warner Bros' take on Mojang Studios' universally popular Minecraft sandbox video game benefitted from the use of other forms of technology, though. There was one particular piece of virtual reality (VR) tech that Hess says he "couldn't handle", too, because of how nauseating it felt.

"We actually used Minecraft VR," he told me. "We also had this thing called the virtual art department. It was based in Unreal Engine, and allowed us to physically drop ourselves into Minecraft's Overworld and the Nether to set up shots, position cameras, and work out how to film in this environment.

"I remember that the crew brought me some VR goggles and, dude, I wanted to barf my brains out!" he added with a laugh. "I'm not meant for VR – I couldn't handle it. So, I just said to my team 'pass me a controller [and] let's do this old school on an Xbox console!'"

Be sure to keep an eye out for my review of A Minecraft Movie later today (April 2) to see whether it's worth watching when the film arrives in theaters. In the meantime, read more coverage of A Minecraft Movie, plus some other intriguing articles of mine, below.

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• Elden Ring is coming to the Nintendo Switch 2 in 2025

• Elden Ring is coming to Nintendo Switch 2 this year
• FromSoftware made the announcement at the Switch 2 Direct today
• More games like Split Fiction and Hogwarts Legacy are also arriving as launch titles on June 5

FromSoftware's award-winning Elden Ring is coming to the Nintendo Switch 2 in 2025.

The announcement comes from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct Showcase today, where the company finally unveiled a full breakdown of the Switch 2 and confirmed a June 5, 2025 release date.

Alongside Elden Ring, we also received confirmation that a bunch of other games, including Hazelight Studios' Split Fiction, Hogwarts Legacy, and Street Fighter 6, will be coming to the console as a launch title, as well as Tony Hawk: Pro Skater 3 + 4 this summer.

We can expect even more from Nintendo this week as it's announced that it will be airing two Treehouse presentations this week, offering a new look at Switch 2 gameplay.

You'll be able to tune in for the first broadcast on April 3 at 7AM PT / 9AM ET / 2PM BST, and the second will take place at the same time on April 4.

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• Millions of free VPN users have sent their data to China without realizing it
• At least five VPNs are linked to Qihoo 360, a Shanghai-based firm believed to have links with the Chinese military
• Experts found a total of 20 China-owned apps, counting over 70 million downloads on the US Apple store

Millions of free VPN users in America have sent their data to China without knowing it. At least five of these services are linked to Qihoo 360, a Shanghai-based firm hit by US sanctions in 2020 for alleged links with the Chinese military.

These are the worrying findings from an investigation carried on by the Tech Transparency Project (TTP) into the top 100 free VPN apps on Apple's official app store in the US. Overall, experts found 20 apps had undisclosed Chinese ownership and have been downloaded more than 70 million times.

The China-linked VPN apps are also currently available in both Apple and Google's official app stores in and out of the US, the UK included. This indicates that the real number of impacted users is likely to be even higher.

The danger of China-linked VPNs

While the best VPN services boost your online anonymity and security by encrypting your internet traffic and spoofing your IP address, malicious apps pose great risks to your privacy.

That's because providers can potentially read the internet traffic rerouted via their servers. "That risk is compounded in the case of Chinese apps, given China’s strict laws that can force companies in that country to secretly share access to their users’ data with the government," TTP experts noted.

Worse still, understanding the real ownership behind these free VPN applications isn't easy. TTP found that none of the 20 China-linked services disclosed this crucial information. The team was able to determine this by piecing together several corporate documents.

Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN, Snap VPN, and Signal Secure VPN are the five services linked to Qihoo 360. The Shanghai-based firm has been previously accused of having ties with the Chinese military. For this, the US sanctioned the company on national security grounds in June 2020.

All in all, "Apple is not taking adequate steps to determine who owns the apps it offers its users and what they do with the data they collect," TTP experts note.

We contacted Apple, but we are still waiting for a response at the time of writing.

I first raised the alarm about the Turbo VPN family of #VPN apps and their Chinese ownership links in 2018. Looks like I was right & they're connected to blacklisted Chinese security firm Qihoo 360. It highlights the problem with free VPNs...April 2, 2025

Apple isn't alone to allegedly failing user privacy, though.

As reported by the Financial Times, Qihoo-linked apps were all available on Apple and Google’s US stores as of last week. "After the Financial Times contacted Apple for comment, Thunder VPN and Snap VPN were pulled from its store," pointed out the publication.

It's estimated that three of these apps alone were downloaded more than 1 million times from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store combined in the past three months.

Turbo VPN even obtained Google's verified badge, a label that helps users easily identify secure and trustworthy services.

TechRadar was also able to confirm that, at the time of writing, these apps are still available across Apple and Google's official app stores in the UK. The apps are likely to remain available in other markets, too, considerably raising the number of impacted users.

Which are the China-linked free VPNs?

TTP experts flagged a total of 20 free VPN apps with shady Chinese ownership. This count excludes those services clearly labelling themselves as Chinese in the App Store, making their China connection clear to users.

As mentioned earlier, five of these have links with Shanghai-based Qihoo 360, a company believed to have ties with the country's military bodies. Below is the full list:

Read More

• Qihoo 360-linked VPNs (Turbo VPN, VPN Proxy Master, Thunder VPN, Snap VPN, and Signal Secure VPN)
• X-VPN
• VPNIFY
• VPN Bucks
• VPN Proxy Master
• LinkWorldVPN
• WireVPN - Fast VPN & Proxy
• Wirevpn - Secure & Fast VPN
• VPN Proxy OvpnSpider
• Best VPN Proxy AppVPN
• Ostrich VPN
• HulaVPN
• VPN Ⓟ (removed from App Store in 2024)
•  Best V2ray (removed from App Store)
• Alphaoo Net (removed from App Store)
• SwiftLink VPN (removed from App Store)
• Speedy Quark VPN
• Now VPN
• Incognito Net (removed from App Store)
• Pearl VPN

Next steps

With the deadline for the TikTok ban in the US looming in the background, more people in the country may soon be tempted to download a free service to find a quick and easy way to circumvent potential blocks.

If you aren't willing to invest in a premium VPN service, I recommend checking Proton VPN and Privado VPN, as they currently are the most secure freebies you can find on the market.

I also invite everyone who has previously downloaded one of the aforementioned applications to delete their account and apps from their device as soon as possible.

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Details of the next-gen Nintendo console have been revealed.

• The Nintendo Switch 2 launches on June 5, 2025
• Mario Kart World will be an exclusive launch title
• The news comes from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct Showcase today

Nintendo has announced that the Nintendo Switch 2 will launch on June 5, 2025.

The news comes from the long-awaited Nintendo Switch 2 Direct Showcase today, where it was confirmed that the Switch successor will arrive this summer.

Earlier on in the broadcast, Nintendo revealed Mario Kart World alongside a gameplay trailer, confirming that it will be an exclusive Switch 2 launch title.

We'll keep you updated on pricing and preorder details once Nintendo announces them.

In comparison, the original Switch started at $259.99 / £259.99 / AUD$435, and the Nintendo Switch OLED launched at $349.99 / £309.99 / AU$539.95.

Considering the leap in current-gen tech like the PS5 to PS5 Pro, TechRadar Gaming initially predicted the Switch 2 to cost around $399.99 / £349.99 / AU$699.95 or lower.

Today's Direct was just the start, as Nintendo has announced that it will be airing two Treehouse presentations this week, offering a new look at Switch 2 gameplay.

The first broadcast will air on April 3 at 7AM PT / 9AM ET / 2PM BST, and the second will take place at the same time on April 4.

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David Fincher, Brad Pitt and Quentin Tarantino are working on a sequel to Tarantino's Oscar-winning Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood, and they're making it for Netflix.

That’s according to Variety, which says that the project doesn't yet have an official title.

It's "an especially unique production," Variety says: not only is Fincher helming the sequel to another high-profile director's movie, but it's moving from a theatrical studio to a streamer. The first movie was released by Sony Pictures in 2019.

What to expect from the Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood sequel

(Image credit: Sony Pictures Releasing )

Brad Pitt will be returning to the role of Cliff Booth, one of the two main protagonists in the original movie, and with Fincher directing it's a bit of an old pals' act: the two worked together on Fight Club, Se7en and The Curious Case of Benjamin Button. However, Variety doesn't expect Leonardo DiCaprio to return, and Margot Robbie is unlikely too.

The backstory here is a little complicated. Quentin Tarantino set out to write what he said would be his tenth and final movie, The Movie Critic, but in early 2024 it was reported that that film had evolved into two movies – and that one of them was a spin-off from Once Upon a Time. However, both movies were then reportedly scrapped in April 2024 as The Hollywood Reporter published a fascinating feature, 'How Quentin Tarantino's 'The Movie Critic' Fell Apart'.

According to THR: "The project initially focused on a writer working for a fictional porn magazine in the late 1970s and then it quietly evolved, amid a flurry of rewrites, into something resembling a spinoff of his ninth film, Once Upon a Time in Hollywood (with some potential meta twists, as we’ll explain later)."

And now, as The Playlist puts it, "it's all just flipped upside down". "Tarantino must have loved the script and didn’t want it to languish in a drawer because sources close to the filmmakers tell us he approached Fincher, and Netflix has quietly put together the deal, which will probably end up being around a $200 million budget to shoot in California this July – yep, it’s being fast-tracked and happening fast, meaning we’ll get additional casting soon."

In the meantime, you can watch Once Upon a Time... in Hollywood on Netflix.

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• Nintendo has revealed Mario Kart World as its first Switch 2 launch title
• Mario Kart World will be exclusive to the Switch 2
• A special presentation will air on April 17, showcasing a deeper look at the game

Nintendo has unveiled its first major Switch 2 launch title, Mario Kart World.

The announcement came from the Nintendo Switch 2 Direct, where we were finally treated to our first look at the next Mario Kart game and it's releasing exclusively for the Switch 2.

Mario Kart World will support 24 racers and, from the gameplay trailer, seems to allow players to drive off a map's racetrack. There also appears to be a ton of cosmetics for characters in the roster, like Mario, Peach, and Yoshi, alongside a variety of vehicles to use.

What's more, Nintendo has confirmed that it will be holding a Mario Kart World Direct presentation on April 17 at 6AM PT / 9AM ET / 1PM BST, providing an in-depth look at the upcoming racing game.

Nintendo has also announced that it will be airing two Treehouse presentations this week, offering a new look at Switch 2 gameplay.

The first broadcast will air on April 3 at 7AM PT / 9AM ET / 2PM BST, and the second will take place at the same time on April 4.

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It's the first game officially announced for the Switch 2.

• Testing has shown that the RTX 5080 is close to the RTX 5090’s performance
• This is despite the RTX 5090 having quite a beefier spec, and laptops with this GPU being much more expensive
• There are reasons for this, though, on the performance front, seemingly wrapped up in power use and thermals

Nvidia’s RTX 5080 laptop GPU is surprisingly close to the performance of the RTX 5090 mobile, going by some recent testing of gaming laptops that use these freshly arrived graphics cards.

Although this isn’t as much of a case of glowing praise for the speed of the RTX 5080 as such – though it is very fast – rather it’s more about a relative lack of oomph that the Blackwell flagship GPU seems to be burdened with (for a reason that I’ll come back to later).

As you might recall, there have already been mutterings about the performance offered by the laptop version of the RTX 5090 compared to Nvidia’s flagship on the desktop (though some scenarios may suggest otherwise).

Now, however, VideoCardz noticed that Notebookcheck.net’s comparative testing of the RTX 5080 laptop GPU has shown how close it is in frame rates to the top dog RTX 5090 mobile – within 10% to 15%, in fact.

The report from Notebookcheck.net shows that, for example, in Assassin's Creed Shadows at Full HD (ultra-high details) you’re getting 74 fps with the RTX 5090, and 63 fps with the RTX 5080. Switching to 4K resolution makes the difference 39 fps plays 34 fps, which is only an 11% slowdown.

That’s based on testing using Schenker Neo 16 laptops that have the RTX 5080 and 5090 inside, paired with the same processor (the AMD Ryzen 9 9955HX).

Generally speaking, as you’d expect, the gap is a bit bigger at 4K versus lower resolutions, but it’s never all that huge, and often around, or just over, the 10% mark.

(Image credit: Future) Analysis: Component claustrophobia

There’s no doubting that the RTX 5090 makes a superb graphics engine for any gaming laptop, the trouble is it also makes said portable exorbitantly expensive. That’s pretty much our review of the new Razer Blade 16 with the RTX 5090 (pictured above) in a nutshell.

When you look at the huge price difference of a laptop with an RTX 5090 and one with an RTX 5080, which means that you’re paying around two-thirds more (or thereabouts) for only a difference of 10% (and maybe a bit) – it’s difficult to justify forking out the tons of money necessary to grab a portable with the Blackwell flagship. Really difficult.

You may be scratching your head at this point if you’re familiar with the relative specs of these two laptop GPUs. The RTX 5090 boasts 37% more graphics cores, and 50% more (superfast) video memory too, which adds up to considerably more oomph on paper. So why isn’t the RTX 5090 also considerably speedier than the RTX 5080?

Well, as VideoCardz points out, the power envelope that limits these two mobile GPUs is the same, namely 150W (or a 175W temporary boost). And that restriction on the wattage being supplied to the GPU is really what’s holding back the RTX 5090 – and the thermal constraints of having such a very powerful graphics card in a relatively small and claustrophobic laptop chassis.

While this is only one round of (very limited) testing being presented here, given that factor, the relative results aren’t so surprising. What we must also remember about the RTX 5090, though, is that it’ll be able to do what it does in a more refined manner than the RTX 5080. (I presume, anyway – feedback around the fan noise with the mobile RTX 5090 seems favorable, from the likes of our sister site, PC Gamer).

In the overall picture, though, unless you’re really not concerned about the asking price and money is no real object, RTX 5080 laptops look a far, far better option currently than gaming notebooks using the RTX 5090. Although we do also have to consider that those flagship portables may offer other options alongside the RTX 5090 that lesser models from the same laptop range don’t (maybe the fanciest screen going, for example, but that’ll also jack up the price tag).

At any rate, right now, trying to see the benefits of the Blackwell flagship in its laptop form factor, compared to the truly formidable RTX 5090 desktop GPU, is an uphill struggle, frankly. Maybe pricing will start to reflect this as a function of demand, mind you – we shall see.

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The Bravia 8 II is the company's new flagship OLED and is accompanied by the Bravia 5 and Bravia 2 LCD TVs.

The two new soundbars with wireless subwoofers are designed to pair with the company's TVs.

• The Nintendo Switch 2 Nintendo Direct is just minutes away
• Accessory maker Dbrand has opened reservations for the Killswitch, its Nintendo Switch 2 case
• The case offers comprehensive protection and lots of cool features

With the Nintendo Switch 2 Nintendo Direct just minutes away, accessory maker Dbrand has opened reservations for its Killswitch Nintendo Switch 2 case.

Part of its existing Killswitch line, which includes cases for gaming handhelds like the Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally, the Killswitch Nintendo Switch 2 case looks like a pretty robust and practical way to keep your console protected.

Both Joy-Con can be removed with the case attached and benefit from enhanced ergonomic grips for more comfortable play. The case also doesn't inhibit the system's in-built kickstand, which is definitely good news for those intending to play lots of games in tabletop mode.

If that wasn't enough, the Killswitch comes with an custom adapter for the Nintendo Switch 2 dock that turns it into a display stand, with the Switch 2 in full view while still maintaining video output functionality.

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There's also a transparent travel cover, which offers crush protection and keeps the screen safe from any scratches when it's in you bag. A removable game card holder can then be slotted inside the cover, with space for ten games.

The number of features here is honestly a little absurd, but I mean that in the best possible way. This looks like it could be the ultimate storage solution for the Nintendo Switch 2 and, given Dbrand's track record when it comes to making great accessories, I'm optimistic that it will live up to this lofty expectation.

It is set to launch in June and if you want to be among those to get their hands on one first, the product is now up for reservation on the Dbrand website. This isn't your usual pre-order, as it costs just $3 / around £2.30 which is credited towards the final purchase price.

If you get cold feet, the reservation can be refunded at any time.

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• New Gmail E2EE method uses client-side encryption and customer-controlled keys
• Gmail and non-Gmail users will all be able to open encrypted emails
• It even works with organizations using S/MIME

Gmail enterprise users will be getting a new and improved end-to-end encryption model to keep their data safe in their email client, the company has revealed.

With the update, business users will be able to send encrypted emails to recipients using any email services, not just fellow Gmail users.

The change welcomes the simplification of the encryption process, eliminating the need to exchange certificates.

Gmail enterprise users are getting better E2EE

Explaining why the updated system is better, a blog post from Google Workspace Senior Product Manager Johney Burke and Product Manager Julien Duplant explained S/MIME requires certificates to be deployed and exchanged between all users before sending encrypted messages.

The Google leaders also noted that few organizations actually use S/MIME due to the complexity and cost.

Gmail’s new E2EE works by using client-side encryption and customer-controlled keys, which allows it to work regardless of the recipient client’s chosen email platform.

If the recipient is using Gmail (either as an enterprise or personal customer), the email will auto-decrypt in the inbox. Non-Gmail users will receive a link to view the message via a restricted version of Gmail. For companies that use S/MIME, Gmail will send an encrypted email via this method for a more seamless experience.

“IT teams also have the option to require all external recipients (even if they are Gmail users) to use the restricted version of Gmail,” Burke and Duplant added. “This helps ensure that their organization’s data does not end up stored on third-party servers and devices.”

Alongside the new encryption method, Google has also added a client-side encryption default mode so that IT teams can enforce encryption for sensitive teams, classification labels for easy email identification, data loss prevention (DLP) and a new threat protection AI model to improve spam and phishing detection.

For now, early access to E2EE emails in Gmail is only available via request.

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• Epson QS100 is a 4K ultra short-throw projector
• 160-inch images from just inches away
• 4,500 lumens, but no Dolby Vision HDR support

The best ultra short throw projectors are pretty bright, but they're not usually quite this bright: the new Epson QS100 4K PRO-UHD HDR short throw laser projector puts out a whopping 4,500 lumens.

For context, our number one 4K laser UST projector is the Hisense PX3-Pro, and that's 3,000 lumens, so we're talking a 50% boost from the Epson.

That brightness gives it great power, enabling it to project images of up to 160 inches in size from just inches away. But there's one key HDR feature missing: it doesn't have Dolby Vision HDR to help make the most of that brightness.

(Image credit: Epson) Epson QS100 short throw laser projector: what you need to know

This isn't the brightest projector you'll see in 2025 – the Hisense LG9 laser TV is brighter at 5,000 nits, but you can actually buy the Epson; the Hisense doesn't have a release date yet.

And it's much brighter than our recommended projector for daytime and sports viewing, the 4,000 lumen Epson EpiQVision Ultra LS800.

The HDR here supports HDR10 and HLG standards, and there's dynamic tone mapping for frame by frame optimization – but as I mentioned above, it would be better if it came with Dolby Vision to provide more accurate tone mapping and to ensure that all that brightness is really well-optimized on a scene-by-scene basis.

The light source is rated for 20,000 ours of "virtually maintenance-free" operation, and if you're a gamer there's support for auto low latency mode for low-lag gaming. There's no 120Hz support of any kind here, though – it's 60Hz all the way, even at 1080p.

The Epson has individually adjustable feet, multi-point picture settings and an optional wall mount bracket, and it's designed to play nice with Crestron, Control4 and PJLink-compatible control systems.

As you'd expect, there's a hefty price tag for that super-bright display: the MRSP is $4,999 (about £3,870 / AU$7,920), which is quite a step up from the $3,499 / £3,199 / AU$4,999 of the Ultra LS800. Still, if you want something that's going to dazzle among even the best projectors, you'll have to pay for it.

The Epson QS100 4K PRO-UHD laser projector is available now from authorized Epson dealers.

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• UNA Watch is a modular smartwatch looking to take the fight to Apple and Garmin
• It's built to be sustainable, with replaceable parts you can fix and upgrade yourself
• It also features activity tracking, health metrics, and other smartwatch features

The UNA Watch is a brand-new modular smartwatch that's looking to take the fight to Apple and Garmin with a fresh, sustainable approach to wearables. As of April 2, you can now back the project on Kickstarter and get your hands on in the process.

The UNA Watch is "the world's first modular GPS sports watch." With shades of the best Garmins baked into its design, it features the usual suite of smartwatch tricks, including activity tracking metrics, notifications, workout and performance tracking, and daily health tracking.

While it likely won't give the Apple Watch Ultra 2 a run for the title of best smartwatch in terms of premium features, its core ethos is such that it could be an industry-leading wearable in terms of sustainability, longevity, and modular design.

UNA Watch is coming for the smartwatch market

(Image credit: UNA)

As mentioned, the UNA Watch's party piece is its sustainable design. You build the watch yourself, assembling parts like the chip, housing, and the USB-C (yes, USB-C) charging port.

That all means that every part can easily be replaced in case you need to repair it, theoretically lengthening the lifespan significantly. In the future, Una envisions even using this process to upgrade parts, just like you would a gaming PC. That means you could theoretically upgrade your display, chip, or even battery in the future.

The UNA Watch comes with an accompanying app that presents metrics like your daily steps, heart rate, and workouts.

The Kickstarter page is now live and has already garnered a groundswell of support. There's a very limited number of UNA Watches available in the first tier of support, the Una Watch Launch special, which costs just £210 (roughly $270). According to the Kickstarter page, that should include shipping duties and taxes for the US, Canada, UK, and EU.

More premium options get you add-ons like a custom strap, and UNA's dev tool, which lets you write your own apps and custom firmware for the watch too.

Live now, you can see the full Kickstarter page for Una Watch here. Early Kickstarter shipping estimates are currently listed as August 2025.

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