Feed aggregator

• Twin 210-degree cameras provide complete coverage, with 5.2K video
• A rear 2.7K camera comes in the box too
• The main camera can be disattached and used as a regular 360 camera

Vantrue might have created the most versatile and fun dash cam we've seen yet – the triple camera Element 360 (E360).

Its front camera features twin 210-degree lenses that combine for complete 360-degree coverage of the front and cabin of a vehicle, outputting 5.2K video (presumably that's the combination of what is effectively two 2.7K cameras).

That main 360 camera is complemented by a rear 2.7K camera with ultra-wide 165 degree view, which is designed to be positioned on your rear windscreen to cover off any blindspots from the main camera's front and cabin view.

And here's a neat party piece – the front onboard camera unit of the Element 360 (more commonly known as the E360) is easily removable from a vehicle for use as a regular handheld 360 camera, much like the offerings from Insta360 and GoPro.

For such uses, the E360 can be attached to Vantrue's handheld mount – a selfie stick with tripod feet (included in the pricier E360 Ace bundle), armed with batteries that can power the camera for up to four hours of record time.

We wouldn't expect the E360 to replace a dedicated 360 camera like the powerful Insta360 X5, but it's a fun feature for users who want the capture the personal touch to their journeys in addition to the dash cam's primary purpose.

The E360 costs $349.99 / £269.99 at Amazon, while the E360 Ace, which adds the handheld mount, costs $459.99 / £359.99 at Amazon – we've seen sizable discounts on those prices already.

Image 1 of 3

(Image credit: Vantrue)Image 2 of 3

(Image credit: Vantrue)Image 3 of 3

(Image credit: Vantrue) Dash cam fun, on board smarts

Vantrue's E360 is a versatile onboard and regular 360 camera, but it's also backed up by the sort of tech we'd expect from a serious dash cam.

It features the current generation Sony Starvis 2 sensor, HDR video, a quad-core processor, decent night vision capabilities and 15 seconds pre-recording activated by motion detection, complete with GPS data.

The front camera features a touchscreen, but it can also be voice controlled through basic prompts, while a 24-hour parking mode is available, provided the E360 is hardwired into the vehicle.

However, it's the main camera's 360-degree coverage with seamless stitching for a distrotion-free 5.2K video output, plus its unique handheld mode, that really stand out.

We're currently conducting an in-depth review of the Vantrue E360 which will be published soon. From our experiences with other Vantrue dash cams such as the E1 Pro, we expect good things. We can't speak of its quality as a regular 360 camera – however, it's unlikely to challenge the Insta360 X5, our favorite dedicated 360 degree camera.

You might also like

• The best dash cam 2025: finest car cameras for every budget
• I've reviewed dozens of dash cams, and 70mai's new rotating 4K dash cam is unlike any other
• This small, affordable 4K dash cam has a unique ‘enhance’ trick for license plates and signs

• Warner Bros has scanned over 20 movies in 8K
• Scanning from film, including 70mm
• But is there any point to 8K over streaming?

One of the big downsides of the best 8K TVs is that there's precious little 8K content to watch. But Warner Bros' latest news suggests that good things are coming. Over 20 good things, in fact, as a start.

Speaking at the NAB 2025 event this week, Warner Bros said that it has scanned over 20 films in 8K. As FlatpanelsHD reports, it didn't name the movies, but it did say that it was scanning movies shot on film, including movies shot on 70mm, in 8K. That's a combination for home theater heaven.

The studio has previously teamed up with Samsung to deliver 8K movie trailers for Creed III, Barbie, Blue Beetle, Dune: Part Two, Wonka and Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. And Apple is also producing 8K entertainment, albeit with a focus on Vision Pro so far.

The news that more 8K entertainment is coming is great, but there's still something missing before we can believe that the 8K future is actually coming.

Warner Bros has previously showcased a range of 8K trailers including one for Aquaman and the Lost Kingdom. (Image credit: Warner Bros) 8K home entertainment: what's missing

The big question remaining is: how will we actually get our 8K entertainment in way that makes jumping to 8K actually worth it?

There's a huge, disc-shaped hole in the high quality home entertainment ecosystem: Blu-Ray tops out at 4K and there are no plans for an 8K successor.

The answer could be online video, but not as it's currently being delivered by the major streaming services: streaming services use compressed video formats, and that's anathema to the kind of people who care enough about picture quality to buy an 8K TV or projector, and to pay for 8K movies.

The bitrate for 8K is huge, so much so that the IEEE has produced a paper about it. If delivered via Netflix or the other best streaming services, it would come with such compressed colors that the extra resolution would be a pointless trade-off. If we can have higher bitrate streaming, I'd rather we just had better-quality 4K, closer to what you get from the best 4K Blu-ray players.

Speaking of which, the answer could be Kaleidescape. The firm makes high-end movie streamers and also delivers downloads, and its movies are delivered at the same high-quality as 4K Blu-rays. It's just joined the joined the 8K Alliance to "play a pivotal role in shaping the future of premium home cinema". An 8K movie equivalent of Qobuz's hi-res audio downloads could be compelling – although it could also be very costly.

It's clear that something is needed, however, because the dearth of 8K content is clearly worrying the TV firms and keeping sales numbers low: Sony has quietly confirmed that it's stepping away from 8K TV manufacturing for the time being and other manufacturers such as LG haven't announced new 8K models for some time.

I'm excited by the idea of 8K-quality 70mm movies being available at home, but they need to reach people in a way that makes them superior to what we have now, or it'll all be pointless.

You might also like

• The best TVs of all kinds
• This 4K Blu-ray alternative could be the shot in the arm that 8K TVs desperately need
• Samsung QN900F review: the latest and greatest 8K TV

Here's a look back at the turning point that made the Apple Watch into a powerful health tool and what's kept it relevant in the face of competitors for a decade.

Are you living in New Orleans and looking for the best internet provider? We've listed all available options, from the fastest to the cheapest plans.

• Microsoft appears to be mulling the idea of building Edge’s new tab page around Copilot
• The new layout for the page is still hidden in testing, though, so it’s still very early days
• It looks more streamlined, dispensing with MSN content on the face of it, though it’s not clear if that’s how the final implementation will pan out

Microsoft Edge already has the Copilot AI assistant built in, but now it’s been spotted taking center stage in the web browser’s new tab page (known as NTP for short).

Windows Latest flagged up that this change (first noticed on Reddit) is present in the Canary (earliest) testing channel for Edge, although it’s not active by default. You must enable various experimental flags behind the scenes to get it working.

To explain the NTP briefly, whenever you create a new tab in Edge, this is what you see. Effectively it’s a (kind of) blank canvas, and right now in the release version of Microsoft’s web browser it contains a central search box (for firing up a Bing search) which is complemented by MSN feed material. (You can customize the latter to show very little of the feed, or have it cover most of the screen – in the latter case, the NTP isn’t such a blank canvas).

With the new scheme of things seen in testing, all that is replaced by a central Copilot prompt.

You can still type in a search query – as you would with the current search box – but alternatively, you can ask the AI assistant anything you would elsewhere (such as via Copilot on the web, or in the Windows taskbar, or Copilot in the Edge side panel for that matter).

There are shortcut buttons below the Copilot prompt box on the NTP, allowing the user to click to ‘write a draft’ or to ‘learn something new’ and so forth.

Windows Latest further points out that there’s also a small dropdown menu that allows you to adjust how the NTP works. The ‘Default’ setting here is a mix of search and chat suggestions, so based on what you type in the Copilot prompt, theoretically Edge will determine whether you’ll get a fuller AI response, or a simple Bing search result.

Alternatively, you can select ‘Search and Navigate’ which is focused on web searching (with no AI responses), or there’s a ‘Chat’ setting which offers a conversational experience with Copilot.

In other words, you can go for a more traditional search (as is currently the case with the NTP), a full-on AI experience, or a mix of the two (by default) with Edge hopefully making intelligent decisions about what needs to be done based on your initial query.

(Image credit: Windows Latest / Microsoft) Analysis: More AI, but more streamlined (for now)

Remember, all of this isn’t even in testing yet, it’s still in the early stages of being readied to be tried out in the Canary channel. The ‘Chat’ setting mentioned above doesn’t work at all yet – it just brings up a Bing search result – and the shortcut buttons (for the likes of writing a draft) don’t work either. As such, this is still a rough idea, and it could well change before it’s fully enabled even for testers.

We can see the direction that Microsoft is thinking of heading in, though, and this overhauled NTP certainly has positive aspects. It’s a lot less cluttered and the refreshed new tab page looks commendably clean, notably rid of the MSN feed gunk that a lot of folks aren’t keen on.

There are people who will argue that it’s just Microsoft pushing AI and Copilot in yet another way, but to be fair to the software giant, there is a choice to dispense with the AI responses (by electing for the basic ‘search’ option). And also, if that’s the price we must pay to get a more streamlined NTP with no MSN content peppered about, then it’s arguably well worth paying.

That said, as Windows Latest also points out, Microsoft is testing MSN content within Copilot (on Android currently), and it’s quite possible that this (personalized and targeted) material will be served via the Copilot box on Edge’s refreshed NTP. It might not pan out that way, but it seems unlikely that Microsoft is going to stop pushing its network content anytime soon.

You might also like

• I’ve tried the new Opera Air browser – here are 3 features that have already convinced me to ditch Chrome
• Microsoft gets rid of ‘Edge uninstall’ advice page after facing criticism over it having nothing to do with removing the app, and just promoting the browser instead
• How to use Microsoft Edge

• iRobot launches new flagship Roomba Max 705 Vac with AutoEmpty Dock
• It has slightly more suction than other Roombas but is otherwise much simpler
• It costs $899.99 / £699 and is available for preorder now

iRobot has unveiled a brand new flagship robot vacuum – the Roomba Max 705 Vac, alongside AutoEmpty dock. And while it looks like a very capable robovac, I can't help but feel rather underwhelmed, and a little confused, too.

It looks like the only area where this robovac improves on the rest of the range is that it has a higher maximum suction level. That's great – cleaning power is pretty key if your robovac is going to be useful, after all – but it's not the most exciting attribute for a flagship model.

What's more, there are several ways where the Max 705 Vac is lacking compared to the other Roombas. It's the only model not to offer mopping capabilities alongside the vacuuming, which also means the dock is significantly more basic than the AutoWash one that comes with the 405 and 505 models.

(Image credit: iRobot)

I'm not averse to a vacuum-only robot, and I don't believe in complicating for the sake of complicating, but it is confusing to have a flagship model with a feature list that's so much shorter than the models beneath it.

The reason I know it's a flagship model is because it has 'Max' in the name. The naming scheme for iRobot goes Roomba (good), Roomba Plus (better), Roomba Max (best).

To be fair, the pricing does reflect this relative simplicity. The Max 705 Vac costs $899.99 / £699, compared to $999.99 / £699 for the Roomba Plus 505 beneath it. That's significantly more affordable than most robovacs' top-of-the-range models – many of today's very best robot vacuums have list prices well into four figures.

(Image credit: iRobot)

Elsewhere, you're getting the brand's most advanced LiDAR navigation ('ClearView Pro') and object detection technology ('PrecisionVision AI'), two rubber rollers to effectively pull up hair and whisk it into the bin, an auto-empty dock capable of holding up to 75 days' worth of dust and dirt, and a slick design that includes textured sections to blend more seamlessly in with your home decor. All great features, but none unique to the Max 705 Vac.

It will automatically boost suction when it senses it's on carpet, which might be a unique feature, although the Plus 505 can "intelligently adapt for deep cleaning' which sounds like it could be the same thing.

This sucks

Aside from feeling underwhelmed by the new launch, I'm also frustrated to see that iRobot appears to have gone back on its plans to publish suction specs for its robovac line. Instead, it's insists on conveying its bots' cleaning powers comparative to the 600 Series. Not only does that make comparison with other brands' models impossible, but it's also not exactly a modern benchmark given the 600 launched over a decade ago.

Based on iRobot's specs, the 705 Vac offers "180x more power-lifting suction" than the ancient 600 Series, while the rest of the range merely offers 70x more. But without a figure in Pascals, I can't compare that to what other brands are offering with their robovacs.

(Image credit: iRobot) A late addition

The Roomba Max 705 Vac is an unexpected straggler following a major iRobot reboot last month. In mid-March, the brand scrapped almost its entire fleet of robovacs and replaced them with new models. The new Roomba features included overdue upgrades like the introduction of LiDAR for navigation, alongside more innovative features like a bot that squishes the dirt in its onboard bin so you don't have to make room for a bulky auto-empty dock.

The only model to survive the cull was the Roomba Max 10 Combo, which at that point was still rather new. I pointed out at the time that this was a shame, because that model hadn't been massively well received, and looked rather dated compared to its new stablemates.

It looks like the Max 705 vac is replacing that model. It seems like it'll be a better robovac, with basic features in line with the rest of the range, even if there's nothing especially new. The 705 is also less than half the price of the Max 10.

I'd assume that a Combo model is in the works and will be joining the range at some point, although that's purely speculation.

The Roomba Max 705 Vac Robot + AutoEmpty Dock is available for pre-order now, with the official launch due on 11 May 2025. Direct from iRobot it costs $899.99 / £699.

You might also like...

• How do robot vacuums navigate?
• Browse the best robot vacuums for pet hair
• I tested this robovac with a pop-up puck, and it could be a game-changer for cleaning under the sofa

• The senior game designer for the original The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion is impressed by Bethesda and Virtuos' remaster
• Bruce Nesmith thought the game was going to be a texture update and doesn't think calling it a "remaster" doesn't do it justice
• Nesmith would categorise the game as "Oblivion 2.0"

Bruce Nesmith, the senior game designer for the original The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion, has shared his thoughts on Bethesda and Virtuos’ new remaster and doesn't think the term "actually does it justice".

In a recent interview with VideoGamer, Nesmith said that he spent years working on the original game and that "A lot of blood, sweat and tears went into it", but revealed he hadn't heard about the remaster until the game leaked online ahead of its official announcement.

"I intimately knew every single scene that they were showing. And they looked amazing," he said.

The game has been rebuilt in Unreal Engine 5 and features all-new character models, a new lighting system, environment improvements, and a rework of the game mechanics.

The enhancements are so significant that Nesmith doesn't think calling it a remaster is doing the game justice.

"I was assuming this was going to be a texture update," he explained. "I didn’t really think it was going to be the complete overhaul that they’ve announced it to be… I would not have batted an eye at that.

"But to completely redo the animations, the animation system, put in the Unreal Engine, change the leveling system, change the user interface. I mean, that’s, you’re touching every part of the game. That’s a staggering amount of remastering. It almost needs its own word, quite frankly. I’m not sure remaster actually does it justice.”

Bethesda shadow dropped The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered the day it was revealed, and the game quickly garnered over 190,000 concurrent players on Steam.

Seeing the reception to the 2006 remaster, Nesmith said the number one thing he feels is "pride".

"A game that I worked on has the longevity to still generate interest 20 years later and to be worth the effort—it sounds like considerable effort—and time that Bethesda put into remastering it," he said.

Since Nesmith thinks that the term "remaster" doesn't do the game justice, he thinks "The closest that could come [to categorizing it] is Oblivion 2.0."

The Elder Scrolls 4: Oblivion Remastered is now available on PC, PS5, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, and Xbox Game Pass for $49.99 / £49.99 and $59.99 / £59.99 for the Deluxe Edition.

You might also like...

• The Elder Scrolls 6 - everything we know so far
• Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders live: latest UK stock updates as My Nintendo Store's pre-order date arrives, while US pre-orders remain delayed
• The latest PS5 software update is bringing back classic console designs

Have you ever watched a trailer and thought: "this is going to be the best or the worst thing I've ever seen"? If not, watch the trailer for Heads of State embedded below.

The movie, coming to Prime Video on July 2, stars John Cena as the US President and Idris Elba as the UK Prime Minister. And in this movie, they're action heroes.

You read that right. In Heads of State, two of the world's leaders are ass-kicking, wise-cracking, gun-toting action heroes.

I've watched the trailer a few times now and I honestly don't know if this is going to be absolute genius and become one of the best Prime Video movies or if everyone involved should be kept away from cameras for the rest of their lives.

Heads of State could be the strangest Prime Video movie yet

Here's the synopsis: "UK Prime Minister Sam Clarke (Idris Elba) and U.S. President Will Derringer (John Cena) have a not-so-friendly and very public rivalry that jeopardizes their countries’ 'special relationship.' But when they become the targets of a powerful and ruthless foreign adversary—who proves more than a match for the two leaders’ security forces—they are begrudgingly forced to rely on the only two people they can trust: each other."

That means teaming up with Priyanka Chopra Jonas's secret agent, going on the run and finding a way to thwart a conspiracy that threatens the entire world.

It's a strong cast: in addition to the three leads the film also stars Paddy Considine, Stephen Root, Carla Gugino, Jack Quaid and Sarah Niles. And its director, Ilya Naishuller, made the Bob Odenkirk-starring Nobody, which gave us John Wick meets Better Call Saul, which was a hoot.

Heads of State is clearly very silly. But if like me you loved the daft action movies of the 80s, this could be an absolute blast.

Heads of State will be on Prime Video, one of the best streaming services, from July 2, 2025.

You may also like

• G20 is Prime Video's #2 movie but critics are calling it chaotic – here are 3 better action thrillers I recommend streaming instead
• Prime Video's most chaotic femme fatale is back for Another Simple Favor and I can't wait to find out her deadly secret
• New Prime Video movies: every new film being released in April 2025

• Google is asking workers to come back to the office three days per week
• Different teams will have slightly different mandates
• Those unwilling or unable to adhere to the new policy will be asked to leave

Google is reportedly enforcing a new hybrid work model whereby employees are being asked to come to the office at least three days per week, and those who fail to comply could face consequences.

A CNBC report claims workers unwilling or unable to comply with the hybrid working policy will be offered voluntary exit packages.

However, it's not entirely black and white, because it looks like Google is not enforcing a company-wide mandate, and decisions could vary by team.

Google is heading back into the office

According to the reports, Google Technical Services workers must adopt the new hybrid working routine or accept the exit package. Employees from its People Operations (HR) team must return to the office three days per week if they live within 50 miles of an office, and remote-only workers could be ineligible for promotions unless they go hybrid.

For the AI Division, boss Sergey Brin has mandated in-office presence, adding that 60 hours per week is optimal for productivity.

It's not just renewed office working policies that are affecting Google staff, because the company has initiated numerous rounds of layoffs over the past couple of years, including redundancies in its HR and cloud divisions and further job losses in the Pixel and Android teams.

Despite efforts to cut costs, Google is still managing to perform well each quarter. In its final quarter of fiscal year 2024, it posted a 12% year-over-year increase in revenue. On February 5, CEO Sundar Pichai said that the company would "invest approximately $75 billion in capital expenditures in 2025."

Google isn't the only company to be enforcing new return-to-office (RTO) mandates, with IBM asking its workers to follow a similar three-day routine just last week.

TechRadar Pro has asked Google to confirm the details of its newly enacted policy, but we did not receive an immediate response.

You might also like

• Still working from home? We've listed the best laptops for WFH
• IBM orders workers back to the office, or face the consequences
• Fancy a change? These are the best job sites and best recruitment platforms

• New usage limits up the amount of messages per week for o3 and o4-mini
• You get 100 messages a week for o3 and 300 a day for o4-mini
• You can see the date that your usage limits will reset

ChatGPT has updated its usage limits for Plus users, meaning you now get more time with its latest models like ChatGPT-o3 and ChatGPT o4-mini.

With a ChatGPT Plus, Team or Enterprise account you now have access to 100 messages a week with the ChatGPT-o3 model and a staggering 300 messages a day with the o4-mini model. You also get 100 messages a day with the programming-focused o4-mini-high.

OpenAI describe ChatGPT-o3 and ChatGPT o4-mini as their “smartest most capable models yet”, and emphasise that they contain “full tool access”, which means they can agentically access all of ChatGPT’s tools.

This tools include web search, analyzing files with Python, deep reasoning and what OpenAI calls “reasoning with images”, meaning it can include analyzing and even generating images as part of its reasoning process.

In our testing we’ve been most impressed by the speed of both new models.

The new usage limits are effectively a doubling of the old rate limit for the o3 and o4-mini models, and mean we can all enjoy more time using them, provided you are a Plus subscriber, which costs $20 a month (£16 / AU$30) a month.

(Image credit: Apple/OpenAI) How do I know how much I have left?

There is no way to determine how many messages you have left in your current week while using ChatGPT Plus, however, you can check the date that your weekly usage limit restarts at any time by highlighting the model in the model picker drop-down.

When you hit your limit you’ll no longer be able to select the model that you’ve maxed-out on in the model drop-down menu.

What's next for ChatGPT?

The next release from OpenAI will be o3-pro. In a message on the updated usage limits page OpenAI say “We expect to release OpenAI o3‑pro in a few weeks with full tool support. For now, Pro users can still access o1‑pro.”

While it won’t affect people using ChatGPT.com, the usage limits also apply to developers using the API, which has recently had image generation capabilities added.

You might also like

• ChatGPT started speaking like a demon mid-conversation, and it's both hilarious and terrifying
• Character.AI's newest feature can bring a picture to uncanny life
• ChatGPT news just got a major upgrade from The Washington Post

• Nvidia's stock woes may be coming to an end based on one reputable leaker's sources
• Multiple online retailers are reportedly receiving RTX 5000 series GPUs
• The RTX 5090 supposedly isn't among the new batch of GPUs

Nvidia's RTX 5000 series GPU launch has been one of its most controversial yet, with inflation, scalping, and low availability issues - and fortunately, the latter problem may finally see a shift in a positive direction soon.

According to Moore's Law Is Dead on YouTube (MLID), Nvidia is improving its supply of RTX 5000 series GPUs - notably the 70-series GPUs and the recent RTX 5060 Ti - based on information from multiple major online retailers. MLID also mentions some RTX 5080 GPUs included, but there's still no sign of significant stock relief for the RTX 5090.

It's a big potential change based on the launch of the flagship GPU, the RTX 5090, alongside the RTX 5080: both of Team Green's powerhouse Blackwell GPUs have had little to no availability since their launch, with most consumers left at the mercy of retailers selling partner cards with inflated prices (if any were in stock to begin with).

However, if this leak is legitimate, it could spell good news for those who are waiting for the Founders Edition options if those will be available again via Nvidia alongside partner cards being restocked; tariff uncertainty is still present across the board for all things tech (especially for partner cards), but consumers may have a better shot at obtaining the RTX 5000 series GPUs at launch price when buying directly from Nvidia itself.

Regardless, the problem of scalpers still remains - so even if Team Green has more Founders Edition cards, the only measure stopping scalpers is its 'limited' Verified Priority Access scheme.

(Image credit: Nvidia) This is another reminder of why the Verified Priority Access scheme should be permanent for Nvidia

Just to clarify, the leaks from MLID indicate that major online retailers are seeing an influx of RTX 5000 series GPUs, so there's no guarantee we will actually see significant restocks for Founders Edition cards from Nvidia. However, if this does happen, it reinforces the importance of the Verified Priority Access (VPA) scheme.

This gives consumers who have made an Nvidia account by a certain date (currently January 30) in the US, an opportunity to buy the Founders Edition cards at their launch price. It's a measure created to fend off scalpers, and while it doesn't completely eliminate the issue, it certainly makes life easier for genuine buyers.

The problem is that the VPA scheme is only available in the US and is seemingly only implemented during periods of low availability. As I've stated previously, I feel this should be a permanent scheme going forward; there's always going to be high demand and scalping for Nvidia's GPUs, regardless of controversies such as poor drivers and missing ROPs, especially for flagship GPUs and the RTX 5090 is a prime example.

It's not the same for online retailers, as each will have different policies regarding purchases - and I don't think inflated pricing will get better anytime soon on that end, unfortunately. Despite that, I think a combination of more Founders Edition stock and a permanent VPA scheme could do Team Green wonders.

You may also like...

• The best Nvidia graphics card in 2025: top picks from Team Green for gaming, creating, and more
• Forget the RTX 5090 – the RTX 5070 is the best gift Nvidia has given PC gamers in ages
• Cyberpunk 2077 on the Nintendo Switch 2 will offer Nvidia's DLSS tech

• A special B&O A9 speaker design, limited to 30 speakers
• A rock legend photographed by a photographic legend
• £3,995 (about $5,300 / AU$8,300)

Bang & Olufsen has just unveiled a very limited-edition version of its premium Beosound A9 speaker, featuring an iconic photo of David Bowie.

The design has been created in collaboration with acclaimed British music photographer Denis O'Regan, and it's going to be limited to just 30 speakers.

Each buyer will also get a 12-inch by 8-inch limited edition print signed and numbered by Regan alongside a printed box "sleeve" and a Certificate of Authenticity.

The go-to guy for photographing rock royalty

Denis O'Regan caught the music photography bug when he sneaked a camera into London's Hammersmith Odeon to capture Paul McCartney, and he became the most prolific photographer of Bowie.

He's shot everyone from AC/DC to ZZ Top, was an official photographer at Live Aid, and has been the official photographer for Bowie, Duran Duran, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Queen, Neil Diamond, Bee Gees, Pink Floyd and Thin Lizzy. He was also the first ever Artist in Residence at the Albert Hall.

Talking about the Bang & Olufsen collaboration, O'Regan said: “Throughout my career I've been privileged to hear fans and collectors describe one of my images as their 'favourite picture of Bowie'. Five years after crouching in the aisle at Newcastle's City Hall to capture this image, I set off on one of two stadium tours accompanying David around the world as his chosen photographer. This favourite of mine is the image I've selected as my chosen moment for the B&O A9 speaker cover.”

While you'll get that lovely signed print as part of the package, the fun here is really having that striking image on display on a large speaker that's already design to showcase its looks. It's bigger and more expensive than most of our picks of the best wireless speakers – but in this limited-edition version, it's especially hard to resist.

The Denis O’Regan Edition A9 Speaker will be available via west-contemporary-editions.com from Friday 25th April 2025 at 12:00 BST, with a price of £3,995 (roughly $5,300 / AU$8,300).

You might also like

• These heavyweight luxury speakers look like Doctor Who villains
• These speakers look like they belong in Elton John's house
• The best speakers for every budget

Roku has just announced a bunch of new products, and we're delighted with the new mini-LED Roku Plus Series TVs, which bring that screen tech down to an unbelievably new low price – considering how much we liked the previous Roku Plus Series and the Roku Pro Series TV with mini-LED, we're excited for the value of these new models.

Roku also announced some new streaming sticks, and this is where things get, uh, sticky. There's nothing wrong with the sticks themselves, which replace the old Roku Express models in Roku's range – one delivers budget streaming with HD only, and one delivers 4K HDR for a little more money.

But it means that Roku's streaming stick lineup is now stupidly confusing if you're looking for a 4K option.

There are three products in Roku's stick range: the Roku Streaming Stick Plus, the Roku Streaming Stick 4K, and the Roku Streaming Stick. Let me ask you a couple of questions about them…

You have a 4K TV, and you want a 4K streaming stick, obviously; which should you buy? The 4K model, of course. Well, except, the Plus also does 4K.

Okay, now you know this, here's a follow-up: Which is the best model in the range, with the most advanced features for 4K HDR viewing? Probably the Plus, right, since it does 4K, but it's Plus. It's more.

Wrong, the Streaming Stick 4K is the only one with Dolby Vision HDR, and is the higher-end model in the range.

This naming convention is so obviously confusing that the official Roku site actually refers to the Plus model as the Roku Streaming Stick Plus (4K) whenever it's mentioned in written text.

Here are the details on the new stick range (plus the Roku Ultra box, for context):

I don't blame Roku for having a more expensive model for Dolby Vision, because Dolby charges hardware makers a fee to include its products, which isn't the case for basic HDR10 or HDR10+.

But I don't really understand why you'd bother with the Streaming Stick Plus at all in this case. The Streaming Stick 4K has been out for a while now – could Roku not bring its price down by $5, so that we wouldn't really need the Plus at all, to keep it simple?

I have to assume that we're in a strange transitional stage of Roku's lineup. The Streaming Stick 4K has been around for a while, so I'm guessing it may be removed soon and there might be a new product coming – maybe something a little pricier than 4K model that splits the difference between the Plus and the $99 Roku Ultra.

Or maybe Roku will just remove the 4K model from the lineup eventually and say 'If you want Dolby, pay $99' – though if it does that, hopefully it'll actually release the Ultra in countries such as the UK…

(Image credit: Lance Ulanoff/Future)

Roku is far from the first tech company to release a confusing range of devices – and this isn't even the first streaming stick range to have too many similar products in.

Amazon used to offer the Fire TV Stick Lite, Fire TV Stick HD, Fire TV Stick 4K, and Fire TV Stick 4K Max all at once (though it has since removed the Lite).

That always felt like more products than were really needed, and likely to cause confusion – except that Amazon's lineup has clarity in the product names. It's perfectly clear which sticks do 4K, and which is the best of the bunch.

Roku's range needs a little realignment – and I expect it might be coming later this year. In the meantime, just make sure you read the specs carefully before buying if you want to add one of its sticks to one of the best TVs…

You might also like…

• Roku's new wireless security cameras will guard your home for up to two years on a single charge
• Brace yourselves, Fire TV Stick fans – Amazon may make a huge, risky software change later this year
• Is the YouTube TV app missing from your Roku? You're not alone, here's how to fix it

If you live in the Northeast, you'll likely have these major internet providers available to you. Here's what you should know.

Taking the drug made one writer feel so sick she quit and focused on healthy habits instead of her body size. Turns out, 65% of people using GLP-1 drugs for weight loss quit within a year.

Trump is changing his tone about tariffs on China, but it is unclear if he will change any policies. And, a sweeping list of executive actions targeting higher education and K-12 schools.

(Image credit: Anna Moneymaker)

• The Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses are getting two major AI updates
• AI camera features are rolling out to countries in Europe
• Live translation tools are rolling out everywhere the glasses are available

Following the rollout of enhanced Meta AI features to the UK earlier this month, Meta has announced yet another update to its Ray-Ban smart glasses – and it's one that will bring them closer to being the ultimate tourist gadget.

That’s because two features are rolling out more widely: look and ask, and live translation.

Thanks to their cameras, your glasses (when prompted) can snap a picture and use that as context for a question you ask them, like “Hey Meta, what's the name of that flower?" or “Hey Meta, what can you tell me about this landmark?”

(Image credit: Meta)

This tool was available in the UK and US, but it’s now arriving in countries in Europe, including Italy, France, Spain, Norway and Germany – you can check out the full list of supported countries on Meta’s website.

On a recent trip to Italy I used my glasses to help me learn more about Pompeii and other historical sites as I travelled, though it could sometimes be a challenge to get the glasses to understand what landmark I was talking about because my pronunciation wasn’t stellar. I also couldn’t find out more about a landmark until I learnt what it was called, so that I could say its name to the glasses.

Being able to snap a picture instead and have the glasses recognize landmarks for me would have made the specs so much more useful as a tour guide, so I’m excited to give them a whirl on my next European holiday.

(Image credit: Meta) Say what?

The other tool everyone can get excited for is live translation, which is finally rolling out to all countries that support the glasses (so the US, UK, Australia, and those European countries getting look and ask).

Your smart specs will be able to translate between English, French, Italian, and Spanish.

Best of all you won’t need a Wi-Fi connection, provided you’ve downloaded the necessary language pack.

What’s more, you don't need to worry about conversations being one-sided. You’ll hear the translation through the glasses, but the person you’re talking to can read what you’re saying in the Meta View app on your phone.

(Image credit: Meta)

Outside of face-to-face conversations I can see this tool being super handy for situations where you don’t have time to get your phone out, for example to help you understand public transport announcements.

Along with the glasses’ sign-translation abilities, these new features will make your specs even more of an essential travel companion – I certainly won't be leaving them at home the next time I take a vacation.

You might also like

• I finally tried the Meta AI in my Ray-Ban smart glasses
• Mark Zuckerberg just teased next-gen Ray-Ban smart glasses
• Meta's new smart glasses come with some much-needed upgrades

• Nintendo has warned that it may not be able to meet Nintendo Switch 2 demand in Japan
• "approximately 2.2 million people" have applied to buy one there
• Pre-orders are currently live in the US and UK, though very hard to get

Nintendo has issued a warning that it may not be able to meet the huge demand for Nintendo Switch 2 units in Japan.

In a recent statement posted to X / Twitter that we have machine translated, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa said that the company has "been procuring many material[s] and proceeding with production in advance" in order to deliver enough Nintendo Switch 2 consoles to customers.

Unfortunately, the company has been inundated with "approximately 2.2 million people in Japan alone" applying to purchase the console via the My Nintendo Store. This number "far exceeds" expectation and "the number of Nintendo Switch 2 consoles that can be delivered" on the June 5 launch day.

As a result, he states that "a significant number of customers" will not be offered the chance to buy one. Those affected will thankfully not need to apply to purchase again, though, as applications will "automatically carry over" to the next sale date.

"We deeply apologize for not being able to meet your expectations despite prior preparations," he continued. He also reassured fans that Nintendo is "currently working on further strengthening our production system."

Other retailers in the region will be opening Nintendo switch 2 pre-orders tomorrow, which could give shoppers another chance to buy if they missed out.

"We plan to continue producing and shipping a considerable number of Nintendo Switch 2 units in the future," he concludes. "We apologize for the delay in our ability to meet your expectations, and we appreciate your understanding."

Nintendo Switch 2 pre-orders are currently open at retailers in the US and UK, though demand seems similarly high. It's very tricky to get your hands on a console, though we do have seven Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order tips that might help.

You might also like...

• These GameStop Switch 2 trade-in offers can save you up to $175 if you're looking to replace your old Switch
• I spent four hours with Nintendo Switch 2, and it hasn't just exceeded my expectations – it's blown them away
• Going hands-on with the Nintendo Switch 2 Pro Controller feels like a fantastic upgrade, but I have just one small concern

• A new report claims the iPhone 16 is gaining in popularity
• The iPhone 16 Pro, meanwhile, seems to be losing sales
• This all makes sense due to the iPhone 16’s great new features

The iPhone 16 is one of the best iPhones you can buy, and it looks like the data might agree, with this model apparently selling in phenomenal numbers. That’s according to a report published by CIRP (via 9to5Mac), at least, and it paints an interesting picture of Apple’s phone lineup, with the iPhone 16 Pro in particular seeming to miss out.

The iPhone 16 appears to have been the main winner among Apple’s phone offerings, making up roughly 20% of sales as of March 2025. Contrast that to March last year, when the iPhone 15 counted for about 14% of Apple’s iPhone sales.

Conversely, CIRP’s report claims that “The iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max together accounted for 38% of iPhone sales in the quarter, down from the 45% share for the similarly positioned iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max one year ago.” Much of that change seems to be down to the iPhone 16 Pro, which accounted for 17% of sales this year – down from 22% in Q1 2024.

That suggests that consumers are opting for the more affordable iPhone 16, rather than stepping up to the more expensive iPhone 16 Pro. At the end of the day, that shouldn’t come as much of a surprise.

Increasingly attractive

(Image credit: Future)

I love my iPhone 16 Pro, and I’ve found it to be a massive step up from the iPhone 12 Pro I had before. Its combination of 120Hz display and excellent photographic capabilities mean it offers me something that the regular iPhone 16 can’t match.

But at the same time, I can see why people would want to skip the Pro model and opt for a more affordable alternative. The iPhone 16 came with some significant upgrades over its iPhone 15 predecessor, including improved Camera Control, a better A18 chip, an Action button, and more. None of these features were available to this iPhone tier before.

It’s likely that Apple gave the iPhone 16 a sizeable upgrade to help differentiate it from the iPhone 16e, which became the company’s 'budget' option when it launched in February 2025. Otherwise, there may not have been much to help separate the two models.

In the end, we have to take these figures with a pinch of salt, as they are not official sales numbers. But they certainly make sense, and I’m not surprised to see Apple fans snapping up the increasingly-attractive iPhone 16.

You might also like

• The iPhone 16 family brings A18 and A18 Pro chipsets, with a serious boost to processing power
• I found the absolute best use for the iPhone 16 Camera control – you just have to get a little wet
• I took the iPhone 16 Pro to a soccer game and its nightography powers blew me away

Softr is a no-code platform that can help you create all kinds of web apps, marketplaces, ERP, dashboards, and more, all from a visual editor, without writing a single line of code. Together with its peers, Softr has gained traction in recent years thanks to its promise of democratizing and streamlining the app creation process.

In this review, we'll explore Softr's standout features, user interface, ease of use, integration and extensibility, deployment and maintenance, pricing, and documentation, and compare it with some of its peers in the no-code space.

Softr: Features

Softr gives you access to over 90 pre-built templates that you can use as starting points to launch web apps faster than starting with a clean slate. You’ll find templates to create help desk portals, all kinds of internal business tools, CRMs, member communities, marketplaces, and a lot more.

Each template has its own layout, and customizable options, which you can tweak as per your needs.

Keeping up with the times, the platform also offers you the option to create an app with an AI prompt.

(Image credit: Softr)

Irrespective of how you start your app, the platform will ease its customization thanks to its drag-and-drop interface. The interface makes it rather straightforward to create layouts, structure pages, and tweak components inside them. The simplicity of it all ensures that even if you don’t have any prior web development experience, you can cobble together a web app without too much fuss.

Softr also supports user management and authentication features, to help create gated content, subscription-based services, or private communities. You can enable email-based logins, two-factor authentication, Google sign-in, and even SSO via SAML and OpenID protocols. You can also create different user groups and control what each group can see, or do.

Similarly, Softr offers integrated payment processing through Stripe, to help build subscription-based apps. It also supports PayPal, and Gumroad for digital purchases.

While it originally started as an interface on top of Airtable, Softr can now work with popular third-party databases, ranging from simple options like Google Sheets, and Notion to relational databases like PostgreSQL, MySQL, MariaDB, and more.

You can also create workflows, and automate tasks by integrating your Softr-built app with the Zapier automation platform. This will help set up triggers and actions between your app and other services, for instance to send personalized welcome emails, or for adding users to a CRM, and such.

Best of all, Softr ensures that all your apps are responsive, and display nicely on desktops, tablets, and smartphones.

Softr: Interface and Ease of Use

The platform’s interface is clean and user-friendly. The dashboard gives you access to your projects, as well as the ability to create new ones. You can either start with a blank canvas, use a template, or generate an app with AI.

Softr’s design interface is straightforward, with a navigation bar on the left side where you can access key components like Pages, Themes, Database, Users, and Settings.

You can easily create pages, tweak layout by repositioning or adding, and deleting blocks, all without dealing with complex menus or settings.

(Image credit: Softr)

All pages have blocks, which you can think of as pre-designed components that cater to different purposes. For instance, you can add a Calendar block to map project deadlines, or coordinate team schedules, and such.

You can customize any block from a properties panel that appears when a block is selected. While it does quicken the app creation process, remember though that Softr blocks don’t give you the same level of design freedom that you get with other platforms like Bubble.

For instance, you can add multiple CTA buttons to your app, and change their order of appearance, but can’t reposition them to any part of the page, as you can with Bubble.

As you are building, you can use Softr’s Preview function to look at your app. Very helpfully, it gives you the option to look at the app from the point of view of any user, including logged out users.

You can use the device selector to preview the app as it would appear on devices with different screen sizes. Interestingly, you can even scan the QR code to preview the app on your actual device as well, without installing additional apps.

Softr: Integration and Extensibility

The Airtable integration is one of Softr's biggest strengths, enabling users to easily manage data and display it within their applications.

Beyond Airtable, Softr connects natively to simple spreadsheets, SQL databases, and even data warehouses like BigQuery.

On top of that it also integrates with business apps like HubSpot Chat, Documint, Google Analytics, and more. The platform also natively supports Stripe, PayPal, and Gumroad to help you roll in e-commerce functionality in your apps.

If you want more, you can connect your apps to more sources with Softr’s recently introduced REST API connector.

(Image credit: Softr)

Similarly, you can break beyond Softr’s default capabilities by embedding JavaScript into your app’s pages. Thanks to this flexibility, you can inject your own code snippets, and there are lots of commonly used code snippets in the documentation, and even embed third-party widgets directly into their applications. You can, for instance, easily embed Calendly in your Softr app to schedule and manage appointments.

Softr: Deployment and Maintenance

Once you’ve developed and previewed your app, you can easily deploy them to a live domain, literally with a single click.

The platform relies on the AWS infrastructure, and like its peers, it too handles hosting, domain management, and SSL certificates.

When deploying an app, the platform gives you the option to deploy it to a free Softr subdomain. Or, if your membership tier allows it, you can also point Softr to a custom domain, and publish there instead.

The platform claims it’ll automatically scale all Softr apps according to traffic, which makes the platform suitable for all kinds of businesses, and use cases. However, while not many users have faced any performance issues with their apps, some advise caution for using the platform to build large-scale apps, primarily depending on where you have stored your data.

Softr: Pricing and Documentation

Softr offers a tiered pricing structure.

The free plan includes a basic set of features. You can use it to explore the platform, and build small, personal apps, or prototypes. While you can only publish one app, you can invite as many collaborators as you want to help build the app. It also limits the number of building blocks, the data sources, and the number of records you can use in your app.

Paid plans unlock more advanced features such as custom domains, more data sources, and integrations, and the ability to remove Softr branding. The Basic plan starts at $59/month (or $49/month billed annually) and lets you publish three apps.

Then there’s the $167/month Professional plan ($139/month billed annually), and the $323/month Business plan ($269/month billed annually). As you move up the tier, you’ll get additional features, and functionality, as well as more support options.

(Image credit: Softr)

Talking of support, Softr offers comprehensive text, and video documentation, howtos, and courses, for new users. The documentation covers everything from getting started to publishing. It also has detailed, illustrated guides on advanced topics such as integrating third-party tools, and writing custom code.

In addition to the documentation, Softr offers support through a community forum, and a 24/7 live chat. Some paid tiers also get a personalized onboarding call, and priority support.

Softr: The Competition

Softr shares the space with several other point-and-click no-code platforms that can all churn out web apps.

For starters there’s Bubble, which is often thought of as a more robust platform than Softr, especially when it comes to building complex apps. Bubble offers greater flexibility, though it comes with a steeper learning curve.

Then there’s Bildr, which puts great emphasis on visual development, and offers far more customization freedom. Bildr’s best for those of you who want better control over both the backend and frontend of your web apps. But this means that just like Bubble, Bildr too has a steeper learning curve than Softr.

On the other hand, Softr is a better option for you if you want simplicity, and quick deployment. You also get that same level of simplicity with Adalo, though this platform is primarily designed to build mobile apps.

Softr: Final Verdict

Softr is a good no-code platform for anyone who wants to use their existing business data to build, and roll out web apps quickly. Its plethora of templates, AI builder, and drag-and-drop interface, make it an attractive option for non-technical users.

That said, while Softr is an excellent platform for those who need to deploy quickly, it might fall short for users who need deep customization, and control over their apps.

All things considered, while Softr isn’t as extensible as some of its peers, its ease of use makes it a wonderful platform for creating all kinds of business apps, dashboards, and marketplaces.

But this might soon change for the better, as Softr is set to inherit full-stack app-building capabilities. When these updates roll out, sometime in 2025, you’ll no longer need third-party workflow automation tools, and external databases, which will open up the platform to an even wider range of use cases.

Check out our list of Best Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) software.