A new Quordle 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: Quordle hints and answers for Wednesday, March 19 (game #1150).
Quordle was one of the original Wordle alternatives and is still going strong now more than 1,100 games later. It offers a genuine challenge, though, so read on if you need some Quordle hints today – or scroll down further for the answers.
Enjoy playing word games? You can also check out my NYT Connections today and NYT Strands today pages for hints and answers for those puzzles, while Marc's Wordle today column covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about Quordle today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
Quordle today (game #1151) - hint #1 - Vowels How many different vowels are in Quordle today?• The number of different vowels in Quordle today is 4*.
* Note that by vowel we mean the five standard vowels (A, E, I, O, U), not Y (which is sometimes counted as a vowel too).
Quordle today (game #1151) - hint #2 - repeated letters Do any of today's Quordle answers contain repeated letters?• The number of Quordle answers containing a repeated letter today is 2.
Quordle today (game #1151) - hint #3 - uncommon letters Do the letters Q, Z, X or J appear in Quordle today?• No. None of Q, Z, X or J appear among today's Quordle answers.
Quordle today (game #1151) - hint #4 - starting letters (1) Do any of today's Quordle puzzles start with the same letter?• The number of today's Quordle answers starting with the same letter is 0.
If you just want to know the answers at this stage, simply scroll down. If you're not ready yet then here's one more clue to make things a lot easier:
Quordle today (game #1151) - hint #5 - starting letters (2) What letters do today's Quordle answers start with?• R
• S
• W
• N
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
Quordle today (game #1151) - the answers (Image credit: Merriam-Webster)The answers to today's Quordle, game #1151, are…
I was a WAFER away from a 7-guess finish in less than a minute today, gambling on GAMER instead.
Still, it was very pleasing to get home without any other issues, thanks to my 15-letter start revealing a handful of greens and yellows.
How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.
Daily Sequence today (game #1151) - the answers (Image credit: Merriam-Webster)The answers to today's Quordle Daily Sequence, game #1151, are…
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, March 19 (game #381).
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 #382) - hint #1 - today's theme What is the theme of today's NYT Strands?• Today's NYT Strands theme is… Wetland patrol
NYT Strands today (game #382) - hint #2 - clue wordsPlay any of these words to unlock the in-game hints system.
• Spangram has 10 letters
NYT Strands today (game #382) - hint #4 - spangram position What are two sides of the board that today's spangram touches?First side: bottom, 3rd column
Last side: top, 3rd column
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Strands today (game #382) - the answers (Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Strands, game #382, are…
I’m sure I wasn’t the only one who tapped out wading birds a couple of times before WADING BIRD.
A tangent, and this is a very niche irritation, but I don’t like it when the Spangram ends in the middle of the puzzle. It feels wrong.
FLAMINGOs are amazing birds. Not only do they look brilliant, but they also do lots of strange things – like eat with their heads turned upside down, stand on one leg and only fly at night. The best thing, though, is that the collective noun for a group of flamingos is a flamboyance.
How did you do today? Let me know in the comments below.
Yesterday's NYT Strands answers (Wednesday, 19 March, game #381)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.
With Genshin Impact Version 5.5, or 'Day of the Flame's Return', set to launch next week on March 26, developer Hoyoverse has shared some new details about what's included in the update.
Most significantly it introduces two new playable characters: Varesa and Iansan. Varesa is a 5 star Electro Catalyst user, with the ability to enter a Fiery Passion state to deal increased damage.
She's got quite a unique design, with cow-like horns and a tail. Outside of the battlefield, she has a very laid back personality and is almost never seen not nibbling on some kind of food.
Image 1 of 3The Version 5.5 key art. (Image credit: Hoyoverse)Image 2 of 3Veresa loves snacking. (Image credit: Hoyoverse)Image 3 of 3Iansan is a fitness obsessed fighter. (Image credit: Hoyoverse)Iansan is a 4 star Electro Polearm user and a fitness instructor with a variety of workout-themed attacks. She can smash enemies with makeshift dumbells while healing allies and enhancing their attacks.
The update will also expand the open-world, extending the Natlan map by allowing you to venture into the area surrounding the Great Volcano of Tollan. It contains a special hidden city, plus new mysteries to discover.
In the area, you will also encounter a new tribe - the Collective of Plenty. Devoted to fitness, they share an interesting culture founded in competitions to test their strength.
Occasionally, you'll be able to transform into the Tatankasaurus, a new Saurian from the Collective of Plenty that can smash from large Pulverite chunks and dash across water.
Of course, it wouldn't be a Genshin Impact update without a new event. This time it's the 'Tournament of Glory in Bloom' seasonal event which prominently features the new NPC character Ifa.
New optimizations are also being added, including a handy boss tracker and a revamped Artifact levelling experience.
Interested in diving in? Genshin Impact is available as a free-to-play title on mobile, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and PC.
You might also like...Despite having no previous experience in malware coding, Cato CTRL threat intelligence researchers have warned they were able to jailbreak multiple LLMs, including ChatGPT-4o, DeepSeek-R1, DeepSeek-V3, and Microsoft Copilot, using a rather fantastical technique.
The team developed ‘Immersive World’ which uses “narrative engineering to bypass LLM security controls” by creating a “detailed fictional world” to normalize restricted operations and develop a “fully effective" Chrome infostealer. Chrome is the most popular browser in the world, with over 3 billion users, outlining the scale of the risk this attack poses.
Infostealer malware is on the rise, and is rapidly becoming one of the most dangerous tools in a cybercriminal's arsenal - and this attack shows that the barriers are significantly lowered for cybercriminals, who now need no prior experience in creating malicious code.
AI for attackersLLMs have ‘fundamentally altered the cybersecurity landscape”, the report claims, and research has shown that AI-powered cyber threats are becoming a much more serious concern for security teams and businesses by allowing criminals to craft more sophisticated attacks with less experience and at a higher frequency.
Chatbots have many guardrails and safety policies, but since AI models are designed to be as helpful and compliant to the user as possible, researchers have been able to jailbreak the models, including persuading AI Agents to write and send phishing attacks with relative ease.
“We believe the rise of the zero-knowledge threat actor poses high risk to organizations because the barrier to creating malware is now substantially lowered with GenAI tools,” said Vitaly Simonovich, threat intelligence researcher at Cato Networks.
“Infostealers play a significant role in credential theft by enabling threat actors to breach enterprises. Our new LLM jailbreak technique, which we’ve uncovered and called Immersive World, showcases the dangerous potential of creating an infostealer with ease.”
You might also likeMax has canceled The Sex Lives of College Girls after three seasons, but the hit comedy series might find a new home on another streaming service.
The Sex Lives of College Girls wrapped its most recent season in January, which saw beloved cast member Reneé Rapp (Mean Girls) depart the series after the first two episodes. By the third season, the characters were only midway through their sophomore year and its cliffhanger-free finale left fans wondering if this was the end for the show.
But despite the coming-of-age comedy making it onto Max's top 10 list of most-watched shows over the years, the streamer has decided not to renew the series. However, there is still hope for The Sex Lives of College Girls as Warner Bros. Television is reportedly looking for another streaming service to pick it up, sources familiar with the matter told The Hollywood Reporter.
'We are living in an era where we need comedy badly'Justin Noble, who co-created the series with Mindy Kaling, made an Instagram announcement (see below) regarding the cancelation. Although he was disappointed and surprised by Max's decision to ax The Sex Lives of College Girls, he wrote that there are “discussions with some new potential homes for the show".
He added that: "I can’t help but mention that it feels like there are fewer and fewer comedy series every month – and we are living in an era where we need that comedy badly. So I really hope that turns around, but I will always be proud of this show for being the things that we weren’t seeing enough of: a hard comedy ensemble where ladies get the jokes."
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The Sex Lives of College Girls follows the lives of four 18-year-old college roommates as they navigate their sexually active lifestyle and the challenges of adulthood. The Guardian hailed it as a "modern-day Friends," but it unfortunately hasn't met the same success as some of the other best Max shows like Hacks or Barry.
This isn't the first time one of Kaling's projects has been canceled and moved to one of the best streaming services. Her sitcom The Mindy Project first aired on Fox in 2012, before being canceled after three seasons. The Mindy Project was then saved by Hulu and finished its six-season run.
If The Sex Lives of College Girls were to be re-homed on another streaming service, there's a potential it would attract a wider audience and be renewed for a fourth season. For now though, it remains as another canceled show on Max's scrap pile.
You might also likeMicrosoft is developing a feature in Windows 11 that provides some easy to understand information on the spec of your PC, and how powerful the hardware inside the device is.
Neowin noticed that a regular contributor to the Windows rumor scene on X, PhantomOfEarth, uncovered some new work on this capability which remains hidden under the bonnet of Windows 11.
New Frequently Asked Questions list in Settings > System > About, hidden in builds 26120.3576 and 22635.5090. Has some questions related to the Windows version and device specs. (vivetool /enable /id:55305888) pic.twitter.com/AkaP8XR3PRMarch 17, 2025
PhantomOfEarth found the new FAQ section in preview builds 26120.3576 and 22635.5090, and they enabled the functionality using a Windows configuration utility (ViVeTool).
You may recall that this feature was first discovered in the background of Windows 11 back at the start of 2025, when the same leaker aired images of some ‘cards’ in the Settings app, which are compact info panels that display the specs of the PC so they’re easy to see at a glance.
These panels (in System > About, within Settings) display core specs such as the CPU, graphics card, and amount of memory and storage. On top of that, as we noted at the time, Windows 10 users already had this feature live, in testing, and it came with a FAQ section tacked on.
Now that FAQ has arrived in Windows 11, as mentioned, and it provides a range of questions and answers on elements of the spec of the host PC.
The nifty bit is that the FAQ is tailored based on the PC that’s running Windows 11. So for example, if you haven’t got a discrete GPU, and you just use the integrated graphics provided by your processor, Microsoft will provide info on exactly what that means for your prospects of running certain software or games.
Or if you’ve got a low amount of system RAM, you’ll be given details on how that leaner allocation might affect the running of apps on your PC.
(Image credit: Shutterstock) Analysis: Shaping up nicely (albeit at a very early stage)It’s good to see this FAQ section arriving in Windows 11, although it was expected to do so, given that it was present in Windows 10 (testing) already. (However, I’m not quite sure why Microsoft is developing this for Windows 10 at all, given that the OS is shuffling off its coil before too long, something Microsoft is now regularly reminding us about in, erm, creative ways, shall we say).
We still must remember that at least for Windows 11, this is a hidden feature and not yet enabled in testing, so there’s no guarantee it’ll ever arrive in the finished version of the operating system (the same’s true for Windows 10, for that matter).
I think it’s quite likely that it will be pushed through to Windows 11, though, given that this will be a helpful feature for computing novices who aren’t sure about the capabilities of their PC. The tailored nature of the new FAQ is particularly useful, so the info provided is guaranteed to be relevant to the user.
Still, the answers to the questions posed do remain a little generic, but I can see them being fleshed out by AI in the future. This could be a good use of Copilot in getting the assistant to be of more use to the less tech-savvy out there.
As I’ve discussed in the past, this new approach looks far superior to the Windows Experience Index, which computing veterans may recall from back in the day. The WEI, as it was known, was introduced with Windows Vista, and rated your PC’s performance in a bunch of categories – but it was convoluted and confusing, rather than helpful.
It looks like Microsoft is going to do much better with this fresh take on the concept, but the proof, as ever, will be in tasting the pudding – and this feature is still very much at the mixing ingredients stage right now.
You may also like...Wouldn't it be great if you could have all the benefits of headphones without having to bother with the headphones? That's what a new technology creating "audible enclaves" could one day deliver.
The technology comes from professor of acoustics Yun Jing at Pennsylvania State University, whose team has found a way to project sound so that only the intended listener can hear it. It's currently short range – about 1m – and relatively quiet at 60dB, but both range and volume should be improved by using higher power transmitters.
(Image credit: Heyonu Heo) How do audio enclaves work?Audio enclaves are made using ultrasound waves, which are higher frequency than the sound waves we can hear. Two waves are passed through acoustic lenses that bend them, creating a curved path for the waves to follow. Those paths converge at the destination – that's you.
The clever bit here is that each individual wave is inaudible on its own, so nobody hears anything unless they're at the sweet spot where the two waves are in the right place for the listener's ears – then they form something your brain can actually make out.
The hope is that the technology could be used to deliver private audio in public places, such as in classrooms or at outdoor venues, and possibly inside vehicles too.
This isn't the first time we've been promised personalized directional audio. In 2016, Turtle Beach announced their Hypersound speakers which used transparent glass to create "highly directional audio". The promotional video is below.
Turtle Beach announced a partnership with Chinese audio firm Audfly in 2021, and the resulting Focusound speakers demonstrate one of the downsides of the tech: where normal speakers start at a double-digit low frequency (ie, down to 20Hz), these directional speakers have a much higher starting point: 500Hz to 600Hz. That makes them good for speech but not great for music.
This tech isn't likely to remove all need for the best wireless headphones, and may not work on something like an airplane, where the ambient noise is so loud that you'll still need some of the best noise cancelling headphones – but imagine if you could switch your TV to sending sound that only you can hear with a push of a button once the family goes to be, or imagine hearing interesting commentary about a museum exhibit simply by standing in the right place. No headset needed – I like the sound of that (if I'm in the sweet spot).
You might also likeWhile we await AMD's addition to its Strix Point Ryzen AI 300 series processors - like the Ryzen Z2 Extreme for handheld gaming PCs - Team Red is already planning its next generation of mobile APUs, codenamed ‘Medusa Point’. Unfortunately, there’s been some disappointing news.
According to Kepler_L2 (who covers tech rumors and leaks) on X, AMD's upcoming Zen 6 APUs (notably the Medusa Point lineup) won't use RDNA 4 architecture - based on unearthed code in AMD’s GPUOpen Drivers - and instead, will likely use RDNA 3.5. This discovery was made via RDNA 4's device ID 'Gfxlp12', which is for discrete GPUs only according to one line of the code.
Essentially, this means that next-gen features like FSR 4 potentially won't be available on any devices that use next-gen Zen 6 APUs - which will be a huge disappointment for many expecting the new upscaling tech to come to handhelds or laptops. We don't yet know what APUs are included in the Medusa Point lineup or whether any of its processors will star in future handheld gaming PCs, but given the pace of development in the handheld market right now, it would be a surprise if they didn’t.
While no FSR 4 isn't exactly a dealbreaker, it's been shown to provide exceptional image quality enhancements - specifically within its performance mode, in some sequences even outdoing Nvidia's DLSS 3 CNN model - and it would help replace FSR 3's existing performance mode, which significantly sacrifices image quality for better performance.
(Image credit: Lenovo) This leaves me worried about the state of potential Medusa Point APU-powered handheld gaming PCs…I must clarify again that we still know very little about Medusa Point APUs, particularly whether they’ll be used for handheld gaming PCs. But assuming that they will (which I'm almost certainly sure of), no FSR 4 is a disappointment, to say the least.
I'm aware that AMD isn't ruling out the chance of FSR 4 coming to RDNA 3: Nvidia's Frame Generation tech could only now be making its way to RTX 3000 series GPUs, similar to FSR 4’s potential backport. However, I'm convinced that even if it does, it won't be the full package, with the new frame-gen model potentially missing.
The good news is that the upcoming Medusa Point processors may yield fantastic performance results in games regardless - we've seen AMD’s chief rival Intel achieve this recently, with the MSI Claw 8 AI+ using Intel's Core Ultra 7 258V processor to provide a huge jump over the original Intel-powered Claw, but there are still games that definitely require upscaling.
Hopefully, FSR 4 exclusivity on RDNA 4 GPUs can end soon (as this would even help current handhelds like the Asus ROG Ally), but I doubt it. Let's pray that I'm wrong.
You may also like...A Windows zero-day vulnerability which has remained unpatched for eight years has been exploited by 11 nation-state attackers, and countless financially motivated groups, experts have warned.
Trend Micro’s Zero Day Initiative (ZDI) criticized Microsoft for downplaying the importance of the findings into the vulnerability, tracked as ZDI-CAN-25373, which is a flaw in Windows that allows attackers to craft malicious shortcut (.lnk) files, enabling the execution of hidden commands when a user interacts with these files.
This exploit can be abused by embedding harmful code within the .lnk file, which the victim then unknowingly runs when opening the shortcut. The vulnerability was used in data theft attacks, espionage, and malware distribution.
"Very detailed information"The researchers said the bug has been in use since 2017, and that they found some 1,000 weaponized .LNK files recently. The total number, obviously, is much bigger.
After sifting through the files, ZDI said the majority came from nation-state actors (70%), and were used in espionage or data theft. Of that number, almost half (46%) were built by North Korean actors, followed by Russia, Iran, and China, with roughly 18% each. The rest fell to financially motivated groups.
That being said, most victims are government agencies, followed by firms in the private sector, financial organizations, think tanks, and telecommunications firms.
The researchers also slammed Microsoft for allegedly downplaying the issue: "We told Microsoft but they consider it a UI issue, not a security issue. So it doesn't meet their bar for servicing as a security update, but it might be fixed in a later OS version, or something along those lines,” Dustin Childs, head of threat awareness at the Zero Day Initiative, told The Register.
"We consider that a security thing. Again, not a critical security thing, but certainly worth addressing through a security update," Childs opined.
Microsoft seems to agree, at least about the “not critical” part. A spokesperson told The Register: "While the UI experience described in the report does not meet the bar for immediate servicing under our severity classification guidelines, we will consider addressing it in a future feature release."
You might also likeThe Google Pixel 9a is official and brings with it a mix of neat upgrades to keep the budget phone firing on all cylinders.
Starting at $499 / £499 (we're still waiting on Australian pricing), the Pixel 9a isn't as affordable as Pixel a-series models of the past but tracks with the Pixel 8a, and notably undercuts the iPhone 16e.
Like the Pixel a-series releases in recent years, at a quick glance you’ll not see a huge amount of difference in the Pixel 9a over the full-fat Google Pixel 9 or the outgoing Pixel 8a. But digging deeper there are a suite of changes here that could make it a new contender for our best cheap phones list.
(Image credit: Google)For starters, the Pixel 9as comes with a new design. The rear-spanning camera bar of the Pixel 8 and the pill-shaped module of the Pixel 9 and Pixel 9 Pro models has been ditched for a smaller, narrower module, which to my eyes has made the 9a seem more compact.
Helping with that are new sides that are less rounded than those of the Pixel 8a but still curve at the top, which should make the Pixel 9a feel a little more comfortable to grip for longer prions. The dust and water resistance has also got a boost and now has a rating of IP68. Just don’t expect a glass back, as Google has stuck with a plastic composite, which is pretty much a signature of the Pixel a-series.
You do get a nice choice of colours for the Pixel 9a, comprising a lavender-esque ‘Iris’, a bright pink ‘Peony’, the standard ‘Porcelain’ white, and the ever-present ‘Obsidian’ black.
(Image credit: Google)One neat but not immediately obvious upgrade is the new “Actua Display”, which comes in at a larger 6.3 inches and can now hit a peak brightness of 2,700 nits; that’s a decent jump from the Pixel 8a’s 2,000-nit peak brightness.
A variable refresh rate of 60Hz to 120Hz remains present, but Google noted the new display is more scratch-resistant than that of the Pixel 8a, which should help make the 9a more durable than the older phone.
@techradar ♬ original sound - TechRadar New Tensor chip, a fresh camera, and a lot of AI (Image credit: Google)At the heart of the Pixel 9a you’ll find Google’s latest Tensor G4 chip, which gets paired with 8GB of RAM. Don’t expect screaming fast raw performance to take on the latest Snapdragon or Apple A-series chips, but do expect capable performance such as the kind we’ve seen in the main Pixel 9 models, and responsive AI features.
The smart processing chops of the chip should also help get the most out of the new 48-megapixel main camera on the Pixel 9a. What may seem like a downgrade in sheer resolution on the Pixel 8a’s 64MP main camera, doesn't look set to be the case, as the new camera has a wider aperture that should deliver brighter photos, especially in low-light citations.
A 13MP ultra-wide camera remains, but it now has a Macro Focus mode, a first for the Pixel a-series, and should help deliver crisp up-close photos.
Around the frost you’ll find a 13MP f/2.2 camera, which is business as usual for this Pixel, though the larger display should help make snapping a selfie easier than ever.
The big upgrade for the cameras will likely come from improvements in the sensor and the processing on the Tensor G4 chip.
But the real photography chops will come in the form of the AI features, with the Pixel 9a getting the host of tools that its predecessor came with, but also those introduced with the Pixel 9 phone last year, such as Add Me that lets users combine two shots into one, along with upgrades to tools like Magic Editor and native access to the Pixel Studio that lets you create images with text prompts.
Google Pixel 9a specsOther AI features include Google Gemini being at the heart of the Pixel 9a, including Gemini Live that allows you to have natural conversation with the generative AI-powered virtual assistant.
There’s also Theft Detection that uses AI to identify potential theft attempts and lockdown the phone if needed, and Crash Detection that also uses AI to detect when you might have had a crash and alert the emergency services.
Rounding all this out is a larger battery, coming in at 5,100mAh, which is a solid jump from the 4,492mAh on the Pixel 8a, plus seven years of software support.
Could this be the best Pixel phone for everyone? (Image credit: Google)Now I and the phones team need a closer look at the Google Pixel 9a before we draw any conclusions. And I’d advise you to wait for our full review before buying the phone when it’s released in April.
But Google rarely misses with the Pixel a-series, and the 9a looks to bring a decent mix of upgrades to make it a compelling phone at a palatable price. If that 48MP camera delivers the photography goods, then the suite of AI features, neat design and new display should all be icing on the cake.
Take all this into account and then contrast it to the more-expensive, less well-equipped iPhone 16e and I’d argue Google has somewhat embarrassed Apple on the affordable phones front. The Pixel 9a offers a lot more for a chunk of change less.
I think we could be looking at a new budget phone champion here, when all things are considered, and perhaps an Android phone that I’ll recommend for most people. Stay tuned to TechRadar for more, and let me know your thoughts in the comments below.
You might also likeAdobe has announced major updates to its Firefly generative AI services to support even more media types, including video and 3D.
Revealing the new offerings at its Adobe Summit 2025 event, the company introduced a new Firefly Creative Production tool with a no-code interface for creating new variants of existing assets and making repetitive multimedia production tasks even quicker.
Adobe said that marketers might want to change the language or aspect ratio of a video to cater to different markets and services, but editing video has previously been a mission that takes hours, days or even weeks.
Adobe Firefly just revolutionized video editingThe update consists of a series of new APIs, but the most game-changing is the translate and lip sync API which will translate spoken dialogue into other languages while maintaining voice authenticity and also matching lip movements.
The reframe API also promises handy productivity boosts for designers and editors – it will automatically resize videos while identifying scenes to accurately keep subjects central. A handy tool for converting a landscape video to mobile-friendly portrait productions.
Already, early adopters have reported a 70-80% increase in asset variant production efficiency and a 75% reduction in asset revision time. Estée Lauder has been using Firefly’s updates to shorten the time it takes to deliver digital marketing campaigns across its 25 brands in 150 countries.
Adobe GenStudio and Firefly Enterprise Solutions GM Varun Parmar summarized: “Generative AI increases the capacity of marketers and creatives, enabling them to focus on what matters most, their craft.”
Moreover, Firefly also works with Custom Models via Adobe GenStudio for Performance Marketing for businesses to create new assets that adhere to brand guidelines.
The translate and lip sync, reframe and Custom Models APIs are all generally available now.
Discover the power of generative AI with Adobe Firefly
See what's new in Firefly and how it can help power individuals and teams to quickly and creatively design on-brand content customized for your business. Try out Firefly's new tools by clicking here.
You might also likeIn a bid to keep up with emerging tech and boost customer acquisition and retention, website builder giant Wix has unveiled its new no-code interface, Wix Functions.
Businesses can use the no-code tool to create custom business flows and elements like dynamic pricing rules, checkout conditions and tailored loyalty rewards without needing any coding expertise.
Besides creating their own flows from scratch, users can also pick from a library of templates to help them get up and running.
Wix FunctionsIn an announcement, the company described how businesses may want to impose location-based fees for some customers and trigger discounts for returning buyers, which they can now do through Wix Functions with ease. “
The function then outputs the desired action, which the Wix app executes in real-time,” the announcement explains.
“Wix Functions gives businesses even more control over their operations, enabling them to customize more workflows, further automate processes and implement advanced business rules," said Tomas Petras Rupšys, Head of Wix Functions.
“The function’s output directly influences how the Wix app behaves in real-time, ensuring that businesses can seamlessly adapt their operations to meet unique needs, further empowering business owners to operate more efficiently and scale with ease,” Rupšys added.
To get the most out of Wix Functions, Wix suggests customers use it in conjunction with Wix Automations, a feature that was launched earlier this month and described as a tool to “support advanced business workflows” with a fully customizable automation engine.
Wix and Wix Studio for Wix Stores, Wix Bookings, Wix Restaurants, Wix Donations, Wix Forms and Wix Loyalty Program will all work with Functions, which is available for free, just like Wix Automations.
Also like Automations, the company is also charging for optional premium upgrades, unlocking unlimited actions and access to business solutions like checkout and payments.
You might also likeWhile AMD and Nvidia make big moves for gamers with the Radeon RX 9000 series and RTX 5000 series GPUs respectively, Intel remains a potential dark horse for affordable PC gaming this generation. Its already-launched Battlemage Arc B580 and B570 GPUs offer strong alternatives to AMD and Nvidia's more affordable options - and now, it's taken a great step that will further help gamers.
As reported by TweakTown, Intel's XeSS 2 SDK is now available to download via GitHub, meaning game developers will be able to implement the technology (with full functionality) into their games. This means XeSS 2 (powered by AI) Super Resolution, Frame Generation, and XeLL Low Latency will likely show up in upcoming titles - and the prime example is Assassin's Creed Shadows, which will feature XeSS 2 and launches on March 20.
A wide range of Intel's hardware including the Arc B580 and B570, Lunar Lake APUs, and the full suite of Intel Core Ultra laptop chips will have access to the full range of XeSS 2 features, notably within the best Ultrabooks and the recent MSI Claw 8 AI+. However, some older hardware won't have access to XeSS 2's Frame Generation due to a lack of AI capabilities - this is similar to Nvidia's DLSS 3 and 4, as its AI-powered Frame Generation tech isn't available on RTX 3000 and older GPUs.
In short, Team Blue is making a serious effort to catch up to AMD and Nvidia; the Battlemage GPUs are a great starting point, and future enhancements to its XeSS technologies could take it a step closer.
I want it... (Image credit: MSI) This has me even more excited to own an MSI Claw 8 AI+ handheld...As much as I love my Asus ROG Ally, it's gradually starting to collect dust. I yearn for a more powerful handheld gaming device, to push performance levels higher, and the MSI Claw 8 AI+ looks like the perfect answer. With XeSS 2's SDK now readily available for developers, it's probably the ideal time to get my claws on a Claw.
AMD's FSR 4 won't be available on anything other than RDNA 4 hardware - and that's a huge bummer for me and many other hoping that the likes of the ROG Ally or Lenovo's Legion Go (including its new prototype) would benefit retroactively from the new upscaling technology. The only other serious option (for now) is the MSI Claw 8 AI+, as it has access to all of XeSS 2's offerings - and I've been absolutely gushing over it based on performance showcases and benchmarks.
The same goes for Ultrabooks using compatible Intel processors - gamers will be able to enjoy XeSS 2 in more games in the future, and as integrated graphics keep improving, it's exactly what is needed for more variety away from Nvidia and AMD: it's worth noting that DLSS 4 and FSR 4 are already available in a decent amount of titles (a number that will only continue to grow), so it's great to see that Team Blue has made efforts to expand XeSS 2's reach.
You may also like...Hundreds of Android applications, installed millions of times from the Google Play Store, were part of a large-scale ad fraud campaign that displayed unwanted ads and tried to steal sensitive data from the victims, experts have warned.
Cybersecurity researchers from Bitdefender, who also credited IAS Threat Lab, said they discovered at least 331 apps that were available via the Google Play Store which, cumulatively, amassed more than 60 million downloads, mostly on older Android variants (Android 13 and older).
The apps were mimicking simple utility apps such as QR scanners, expense tracking apps, health apps, wallpaper apps, and others.
Protecting your Android phoneMost applications first became active on Google Play in Q3 2024, and by the time Bitdefender’s research completed, only 15 remained active. The vast majority of victims are located in Brazil, followed by the US, Mexico, Turkey, and South Korea.
When the victims downloaded one of the apps, they first hide their icons from the launcher (something that’s only possible on older versions of Android). The apps retained “some functionality”, but they are able to show out-of-context ads over other applications in the foreground. Some try to gather user credentials, credit card data, and other information.
Some apps can even start without user interaction, something that shouldn’t be possible even on Android 13.
While eventually all of the apps will be removed from the Play Store, people who have them installed on their devices remain at risk. If your Android smartphone is acting strange (lagging, displaying ads over different ads, overheating, spending data while idle), make sure to remove any unwanted apps, or those that you aren’t actively using.
Furthermore, if possible, make sure to use the latest version of Android. At the moment, that is Android 15, with the next iteration scheduled for later in 2025.
You might also likeMicrosoft is once again trying to persuade Windows 10 users that they need to upgrade to Windows 11, ahead of the impending cessation of support for the older operating system later this year.
This time, though, the nudge to upgrade isn’t being delivered within Windows 10 itself, but via email – although it isn’t the first time Microsoft has tried this approach.
I received an email from Microsoft (sent to the email address linked to my Microsoft account) regarding my Windows 10 PC needing an upgrade at the end of November 2024, a few months back, but now the software giant is sending out fresh messages to upgrade this month.
I didn’t get this latest mail (not yet, anyway), but Windows Latest did, and although it carries the same title, a warning that ‘End of support for Windows 10 is approaching,’ the email itself is somewhat different.
The overall thrust of the content is similar though. There’s a prominent reminder of the exact date that Microsoft halts support for Windows 10 – which happens on October 14, 2025 – and some suggestions of what to do with your old PC (trade it in, or recycle the machine). You can also click a link to check your upgrade eligibility for Windows 11.
Microsoft also clarifies that your PC will continue to work, it’s just that there will be no more support – as in software updates – piped through. There’s also a link to some blurb on how Windows 11 is more secure (which is certainly true), and a nudge to use OneDrive to back up your files if you plan to use Windows 10 after the deadline has passed, heading into 2026.
(Image credit: Future / Jeremy Laird) Analysis: Overstepping boundaries and taking some odd anglesThere are a couple of things that strike me as odd here. Firstly, the plug for OneDrive feels very gratuitous, and hardly a solution to counter the prospect of having your PC compromised by running an out-of-date OS. Where on earth is the stern warning that it really isn’t a good idea to run Windows 10 on your PC when support for the operating system expires?
As you may be aware, without security updates, your computer will be left vulnerable to exploits, as when holes appear in Windows 10, they will no longer be patched up – a recipe for disaster, potentially.
Of course, if you really want to stick with Windows 10, then for the first time ever, consumers can pay to extend support, and I’d recommend you do so (for other options, explore my article on how to prepare for Windows 10 End of Life). Oddly enough, Microsoft doesn’t mention this extension of support in its email.
I say it’s odd, but then, Microsoft would really prefer you upgrade to Windows 11 anyway, either on your current PC – if it’s eligible – or by purchasing a new Windows 11 computer. And to that end, there’s a link in the email to ‘explore new computers’ which is something Microsoft has been urging us to do for a while now. As I’ve discussed before, there’s arguably merit to the suggestion in some ways, but a whole lot of other concerns outweighing that around the environmental toll that a ton of Windows 10 PCs ending up on the scrapheap might usher in.
These are serious worries, and likely why Microsoft is sending the other message in this email advising on recycling (or trading in) your old Windows 10 PC if you do upgrade.
The other point here is do you want to be getting emails direct from Microsoft about Windows 10 upgrades? Well, in some ways, I guess it’s better (or at least slightly less annoying) than being pushed to upgrade within the operating system itself, but the problem is, Microsoft is doing that as well – so Windows 10 users are getting both barrels, as it were. Sigh…
We can likely expect several further barrages of these kind of emails as 2025 progresses, and the October support deadline draws nearer – messages that folks may well be wanting their spam filter to deal with, frankly.
Don’t get me wrong here: I’m not saying it isn’t important to warn consumers about the dangers of an out-of-date operating system – it definitely is – but Microsoft is rather overstepping with its broad approach here, and worse still, this particular email actually undersells those dangers (while overselling other Microsoft products).
You may also like...Adobe has introduced 10 new purpose-built AI agents it says can enhance customer experiences and marketing workflows across its Adobe Experience Cloud and has already promised to add more soon.
Unveiling the new offerings at its Adobe Summit 2025 event, the company boasted of the one trillion experiences per year its Adobe Experience Platform activates, which gives its latest AI tools a “deep, semantic understanding of enterprise data, content and customer journeys.”
Adobe’s approach revolves around simplicity, and while many enterprises might want to personalize their agents, the pre-configured tools have data governance and regulatory compliance built-in off-the-shelf, which all helps companies get up to speed more quickly.
Adobe agents - and an Agent OrchestratorTo manage agentic AI, Adobe has launched a new Adobe Experience Platform Agent Orchestrator interface, which works with Adobe’s own agents and third-party ecosystems.
From launch, the 10 new agents include: account qualification, audience, content production, data insights, data engineering, experimentation, journey, product advisor, site optimization and workflow optimization agents.
Adobe’s content production agent is perhaps a standout, allowing marketers and creatives to automate parts of their workflows by generating and assembling content based on a brief. The system adheres to pre-defined brand guidelines to produce accurate results the first time around.
The site optimization agent is also noteworthy for its always-on support for performant brand websites – it can automatically detect, recommend and then fix issues to boost customer engagement.
“Adobe is uniquely positioned to help brands meet this moment, with deep expertise in unifying AI, data and content production workflows to execute the right digital experiences with precision, while uncovering unseen problems,” said Digital Experience Business SVP Amit Ahuja.
At the same time, Adobe launched its Brand Concierge, a new AI application that enables conversational experiences tailored to individual brand interactions by using a company’s unique brand attributes and customer data.
Citing a 1,200% increase in traffic to US retail sites from GenAI sources between July 2024 and February 2025, Adobe Brand Concierge can create a more tailored experience in B2C settings, for example booking follow-up meetings on behalf of customers, but it also has B2B applications such as connecting sales and marketing teams.
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You might also likeMicrosoft has officially launched the Xbox Adaptive Joystick, which can be purchased now exclusively at the Microsoft Store.
Available for $29.99 / £24.99, the Xbox Adaptive Joystick is a wired Xbox accessory that connects via USB-C to other Xbox devices, such as an Xbox Series X or Series S console or Xbox Wireless Controller. It's also compatible, and perhaps best used, with the Xbox Adaptive Controller.
The Xbox Adaptive Joystick is quite sleek and simple in design. Its flat top features a single analog stick that can be pushed in similar to those on the Xbox Wireless Controller. The front of the joystick houses one bumper and one trigger-style buttons, while four face buttons rest at the top-middle of the device.
Players are able to fully customize their button layout on the Xbox Adaptive Joystick. They can also create and swap between multiple button profiles via the Xbox Accessories app which is available on both console and PC.
It also seems like the Xbox Adaptive Controller will be a fuss-free setup too. As a Windows device, it'll seamlessly work with Xbox Series consoles and Windows PCs without any updates required.
Microsoft's accessibility push on Xbox has been quite impressive, with dedicated controllers available to meet the needs of disabled players. Sony has also thrown its accessibility hat into the ring with the PlayStation Access controller, which our own managing editor, Rob Dwiar, awarded four out of five stars in his review.
You might also like...Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang has announced a new collaboration between the company, Google DeepMind, and Disney Research which is bringing AI-powered Star Wars robots to life.
Taking to the stage at Nvidia's GTC 2025 keynote on Tuesday, Huang revealed Blue, a Star Wars-inspired research robot capable of incredible movement akin to those seen in your favorite sci-fi movies.
The companies have teamed up to create Newton, the physics engine behind the robot's movement, which is expected to be released as open source later this year.
Huang said, "Can you believe you're looking at complete real-time simulation? This is how we're going to train robots in the future. Blue has two Nvidia computers inside." Nvidia's CEO went on to interact with Blue on stage before telling the robot to go home.
Nvidia's press release reads, "Newton is open source, empowering the entire robotics community. This enables roboticists to use and distribute the framework freely and contribute cutting-edge research to its development."
Now, this is all very proof of concept for the consumer, so what does Nvidia, Google, and Disney's collaboration mean for you and me? Well, we might not reap the rewards any time soon but after seeing Blue in action on stage, I'm convinced Disney's dream of having droids in Disney World is now going to become a reality.
In fact, just last week a report from Axios at SXSW stated that Disney is planning to showcase the robots in its entertainment parks at some point this year.
I've always wanted a robot, please make this a realityYou know, robots are pretty scary, I get it. But as someone who constantly struggles to deal with the stress of life in the 21st century, I'd absolutely jump at the opportunity to have a Star Wars droid in my home.
While I love my French Bulldog, Kermit, he can't do the dishes, he can't do the washing up, and he sure as heck can't understand what I'm saying (although I think he chooses to ignore me).
Now, this concept of a small cute robot doing all my chores in my home is not going to arrive anytime soon, but Newton's physics engine makes it a real possibility in the near future, and I'm sold on that idea.
Give me a robot that can make my life easier through the power of AI and I'll take out a loan to get one. My productivity would soar, my mental health would improve, and best of all, I'd hopefully never have to wash the dishes again.
You might also likeFull spoilers follow for Daredevil: Born Again's first four episodes and Echo.
We're halfway through – well, give or take – Daredevil: Born Again's first season. The arrival of episode 4, titled 'Sic Semper Systema', on Disney+ pretty much marks the midway point of the show's debut outing. And, thankfully, Marvel is finally starting to peel back the layers on some of its biggest mysteries.
So, if you want more details on Adam and/or Muse, the meaning behind this episode's title, or answers to an entirely different question, I've got you covered. Major spoilers follow for Daredevil's standalone Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU) adventure, so proceed with caution if you're not caught up.
Who is Daredevil: Born Again villain Muse and who is playing him? Muse's backstory might be expanded upon in the MCU compared to his comic book counterpart (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)I already covered Muse's comic book history in my Daredevil: Born Again cast and character guide. But, here's another quick rundown on the masked individual with a penchant for the macaber.
In the comics, Muse is a nameless serial killer who uses his victims to create grotesque works of art. And, when I say "uses his victims", I mean that in the literal sense. Indeed, everything from their blood, skin, and other body parts are put to use by Muse to make stomach-churning paintings, sculptures, and other forms of art.
A recent addition to Daredevil's rogues gallery, Muse only made his comic book debut in Daredevil Volume 5 #11, which was released in September 2016. He was known to possess superhuman strength and agility, and had the ability to make himself imperceptible to Matt Murdock and his vigilante alias. That made Muse more difficult to track down.
Which actor is actually playing Muse? (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)In Daredevil: Born Again, it doesn't seem like Muse will be superpowered. With the MCU favoring a more grounded, realistic take on Marvel's illustrious literary works, it appears Muse will be an ordinary (if that's the right word to use) serial killer who won't be able to go toe-to-toe with someone like Daredevil.
Indeed, Born Again's official trailer briefly showed Murdock's crimefighter making light work of Muse. Sure, it's only the tiniest of clips, so it's hard to determine if the MCU's Muse would stand any chance of holding his own in a duel with Daredevil. Based on that evidence, though, he won't.
Alright, so which actor is playing Muse? We still don't know. Four episodes in, Born Again's end credits sequence hasn't given us any indication who it might be. Marvel fans, myself included, have a wild theory about which Born Again character may be moonlighting as the murderous Muse, though. Hopefully, it won't be long before we find out if we're right.
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This question is far easier to answer.
The Marvel Phase 5 TV show's first three episodes heavily implied that Wilson Fisk's estranged wife had an affair with a man named Adam. That happened while Wilson Fisk was recuperating after his surrogate daughter Maya Lopez shot him in Hawkeye, and then after she used her own superhuman abilities on Wilson to mess with his head in Echo's final episode.
'Sic Semper Systema' finally confirms that Vanessa had an extramarital affair with Adam while Wilson wasn't in New York City. It also reveals that Wilson Fisk tracked him down and, to paraphrase the city's newly-installed mayor, had a polite chat with Adam to prevent him from seeing Vanessa again.
Despite promising Vanessa that he'd never hurt Adam, though, the ever-deceptive Wilson Fisk hasn't exactly kept his word. In episode 4's final moments, it's revealed that Wilson Fisk has got Adam locked up in an undisclosed location. Not only that, it appears as though Fisk is denying Adam his basic human rights as he has no access to food, water, and clean clothes. Judging by Adam's appearance, he's been imprisoned for some time, too.
As for which actor is portraying Adam, that'll be Lou Taylor Pucci, who starred in 2013's Evil Dead remake, Apple TV+'s Physical TV series, and American Horror Story: 1984 on Hulu.
What does Born Again episode 4's title 'Sic Semper Systema' mean? Episode 4's title has a deeper meaning for numerous Born Again characters (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)Translated into English, the Latin phrase roughly means "thus always to the system".
There are multiple things we can read into its use in one of the best Disney+ shows' fourth chapter. The most obvious one relates to Matt Murdock, who's spent the past three-and-a-half episodes battling the US legal system to get justice for his clients.
Then there's Fisk, who continues to beat his head against a brick wall when it comes to the bureaucracy and red tape that stands between him and his mayoral pledges to get things done.
'Sic Semper Systema' also relates to Muse and Frank Castle/The Punisher, both of whom make their first MCU appearances in this episode. The pair are fighting the system in their own unique ways – Muse getting away with literal murder, while Jon Bernthal's anti-hero has railed against the status quo and doled out his own form of justice for years now. So, this chapter's title could refer to any number of characters in the show.
Who is Leory Bradford in Born Again? Episode 4's connection to Secret Invasion and The Marvels explained No, Leroy Bradford isn't a Skrull masquerading as a human (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)Amid everything else that goes on in 'Sic Semper Systema', the MCU weaves its interconnectivity magic once more by making a passing reference to two of the lowest-rated MCU projects of all-time.
At points throughout episode 4, Murdock meets Leroy Bradford, a petty thief who becomes the former's lates client. Bradford is facing another stint in prison after he's accused of stealing groceries from a local store.
In spite of Bradford's protestations that he didn't do it, Murdock confirms the evidence is firmly stacked against him to the overwhelming evidence that Bradford is the culprit. In a last-ditch attempt to prove his innocence, Bradford asks "could it have been a Skrull?", to which Murdock replies "nope".
Episode 4's reference to the Skrulls, aka the shapeshifting alien race we've seen in multiple Marvel projects, is pretty significant. It means their presence on Earth is no longer a secret. If a petty criminal like Bradford knows they exist, then all of humanity will.
Regardless, the Skrulls haven't exactly been used to their full potential in the MCU. The three projects they've appeared – Captain Marvel, Secret Invasion, and The Marvels – aren't exactly fan favorites. In fact, the latter two are considered to be among the worst MCU productions ever. You've got to wonder, then, if we'll ever see the Skrulls used in another Marvel movie or TV show.
When will the next episode of Daredevil: Born Again air on Disney+? "Hey Matt, just to let you know that two new episodes will drop next week!" (Image credit: Marvel Studios/Disney+)Episode 5 is set to be released on Tuesday, March 25 in the US. It'll air on Wednesday, March 26 in the UK and Australia.
It won't be the only one that does so, though. I previously reported on Daredevil: Born Again's unusual release schedule, which confirmed there'll be a two-parter next week. So, you'll be able to watch episodes 5 and 6 on Disney+, aka one of the world's best streaming services, on the aforementioned dates.
You might also likeWe’ve long predicted that the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge could be positioned between the Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus and the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra, and now a pricing leak suggests we were right.
Android Headlines claims that – in Europe at least – the Galaxy S25 Edge will start at somewhere between €1,200 and €1,300, for which you’ll apparently get a model with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM.
We won’t bother with a price conversion here as those are rarely accurate, but for comparison, in France, you can get a Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus with that amount of storage for €1,172, while the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra starts at €1,472. So that Galaxy S25 Edge price would put the phone somewhere between the two, but closer to the S25 Plus’s price.
The Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge (Image credit: Lance Ulanoff / Future)For reference, in other regions the 256GB Samsung Galaxy S25 Plus costs $999 / £999 / AU$1,699, while the Samsung Galaxy S25 Ultra starts at $1,299 / £1,249 / AU$2,149. So if the pricing above proves accurate then we'd expect to see the Galaxy S25 Edge cost somewhere between those two.
It’s a similar story for a version of the Galaxy S25 Edge with 12GB of RAM and 512GB of storage, which Android Headlines says will cost somewhere between €1,300 and €1,400.
That again would put it between the cost of the 512GB Galaxy S25 Plus and the 512GB Galaxy S25 Ultra, which elsewhere cost $1,199 / £1,099 / AU$1,899 and $1,419 / £1,349 / AU$2,349 respectively.
Three titanium shadesAndroid Headlines also shared the colors that the Galaxy S25 Edge will apparently be sold in, saying we can expect Titanium Icyblue, Titanium Silver, and Titanium Jetblack, which likely means titanium will be used in the construction of the phone.
We’d take all of this with a pinch of salt for now, but the Samsung Galaxy S25 Edge might be announced quite soon, with Android Headlines saying to expect it next month. Not all sources agree, but most leaks suggest we’ll see it by the end of May at the latest.
So hopefully we’ll know all the official specs and prices before too long, but in the meantime we’ll be sure to bring you all the credible leaks and rumors about Samsung's upcoming slim smartphone.
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