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• Someone used an AirPod to record flying disc throw statistics
• Tested with throws of up to 45mph and no damage
• Strava-friendly export for dedicated disc throwers

One of Apple's most famous adverts opened with "Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round pegs in the square holes. The ones who see things differently." The text didn't explicitly say "here's to the ones sticking AirPods on frisbees", but I think Steve Jobs would have approved of the Redditor who's done exactly that.

Paul Tracer, aka Disastrous-Body-297, has invented a use for AirPods that I'm pretty sure nobody at Apple ever considered. He used them to upgrade a standard frisbee and to stream real-time data. It can even export sessions to the Strava app.

Airpods can track frisbee throws from r/airpodsWhy upgrading a frisbee with AirPods isn't completely crazy

As the intrepid inventor explains: "The AirPod streams motion data to the phone and detects/analyses throws in real time. With optional voice feedback into the second AirPod. It measures speed, revolutions, airborne time, throw count. It also measures heartrate (either with latest AirPods or external HR)."

You can try it for yourself: the app is the sports metrics app Kinapod, which the creator says is currently going through Apple's approval process. The AirPod is literally just put through a hole created in the dead center of the disc. Tracer says "Just punch a hole in the center of the disc and that’s it! You’ll be surprised how reliable it is. The AirPod stem is not entirely cylindrical, it doesn’t slide out."

The result is a lot of data: average speed, maximum spin, total airborne time, and more.

There's a market for that kind of information: as one Redditor, lenfantsuave, joke posts, "Tech disc: I will never financially recover from this." Tech Disc is a company that makes a range of launch monitors for disc golf priced at $299.99, which track multiple metrics and flight paths in order to help players improve their game, and someone from the firm joined in the online conversation to praise Tracer's ingenuity.

Tracer's tracker is very much a "fun thing" rather than a serious setup, not least because expensive earbuds aren't the most cost-effective gyro sensors to attach to a frisbee; the risk of damage or destruction is clearly pretty high, although the AirPods have survived so far according to Tracer.

Tracer is currently chatting with Redditors on forums such as r/discgolf about alternative and more affordable ways of collating data. And in the meantime, the AirPod/Frisbee combination made me and other Redditors happy: "This is very rad," says claybythebay9, while GrandMasterFlex reckons, and I'm including to agree, that "this is sick as hell".

As Apple's ad put it, "while some may see them as the crazy ones, we see genius." Or as SilverMelodyPrincess says in the Reddit thread: "Apple accidentally made the most over-engineered frisbee stat tracker and I'm here for it."

Computing is so ubiquitous that we often see more than one in most households, including laptops, desktops, all-in-ones, smartphones, tablets, and so on. But there was once a time when that certainly wasn't the case. In that context, some comments made by industry stalwarts of the past may appear like massive miscalculations.

Ethics in AI

The late Ken Olsen was the co-founder and CEO of Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), a major company in the mid-20th century that produced a series of minicomputers over the decades in which it operated until its decline in 1998.

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Despite being a key part of the computer industry, Olsen was adamant that the computer was something isolated to the enterprise — delivering his infamous comments in 1977 at a convention of the World Future Society. There are, however, two very important caveats.

Firstly, computers at the time were either gigantic mainframes or minicomputers that needed specialized staff to manage. Secondly, Olsen later claimed his words were taken completely out of context.

Smart living

Olsen claimed he wasn't referring to the sort of computers we see today in homes like desktop PCs or laptops, but actually the then-futuristic proposal of a master computer that would automate different functions around the house.

What the executive was referring to was what we now understand as the smart home. However, regardless of the context, his comments still missed the mark — as the rise of smart home technology has been a very exciting development during the 21st century.

That said, the vision of a fully automated and intelligent home has proven massively prohibitive, partially due to cost, partially due to hardware, and finally due to slow interoperability and integration. That latter element, however, is finally something that's been changing thanks to the Matter smart home standard.

Republicans passed more than $1 trillion for the Pentagon alongside a budget blueprint that would let them bypass Democrats to unlock new funds for the Iran war and Trump's election overhaul bill.

(Image credit: Anna Moneymaker)

Here are hints and answers for the NYT Strands puzzle No. 872 for Thursday, July 23

We check in on one state public broadcasting network a year after President Trump signed a law ending federal funding of public media.

The agreement gives American companies priority access to nuclear reactors and fuel to Saudi Arabia. It's expected to last decades and be worth billions of dollars.

(Image credit: Andrew Harnik)

• White Eagle knocked Matador's head off with a precise high kick during combat
• Matador continued fighting after losing its head and head-mounted sensors during battle
• EngineAI's humanoid robot can perform uppercuts, spinning kicks, and rapid recovery after falls

A white T800 humanoid robot named White Eagle stunned spectators in China after landing a precision kick that dislodged its rival's head.

The bout was part of the opening contest of the Ultimate Robot Knock-out Legend (URKL) tournament, the world's first full-scale humanoid robot fighting event.

Held at the Shenzhen Nanshan Cultural and Sports Center, the event drew 32 teams from around the world.

A robot that kept fighting

The most striking moment came when White Eagle's opponent, a black-clad robot called Matador, lost its head to a precise high kick.

Despite losing its head-mounted sensors, the machine kept throwing punches and absorbing strikes, finishing the match through its torso-based core systems alone.

Organizers said the sequence shows the robot's durability and its resistance to sustained physical impact, according to the Guangzhou Daily.

According to EngineAI, the T800 stands 1.73 meters tall and can perform uppercuts, spinning kicks and rapid recoveries after falls.

The company said each unit costs roughly $50,000 and features strong posture control, dynamic perception and shock-absorbing capabilities for combat.

All 32 competing teams used the EngineAI T800 as a standardized platform, ensuring every fighter entered the ring with identical hardware.

Selection for the inaugural tournament reportedly involved rigorous testing of each robot's stability and combat responsiveness before the event officially began.

The Shenzhen Nanshan Cultural and Sports Center provided the backdrop for a tournament organizers hope will grow into a recognized global sporting franchise.

Tournament tests more than robot strength

The URKL format assesses robots through effective strikes, body stability, defensive and evasive abilities, and overall durability in combat.

That structure means victory depends on more than simply delivering the hardest punch or kick.

EngineAI founder and CEO Zhao Tongyang said the tournament aims to develop a globally influential commercial humanoid robotics fighting franchise.

He also said competition could support research and industrial development by exposing machines to demanding physical conditions.

"We want to use competition to drive research and industry development," Zhao said. "Let the event feed back into technology, and let technology drive the industry."

Real combat could help assess mechanical balance, millisecond-level decision-making and coordination between multiple sensor systems.

Feedback from such conditions could accelerate the movement of intelligent robots from laboratory development toward commercial use.

Actor Donnie Yen attended the event and compared the experience favourably with staged combat scenes from films.

"Honestly, I used to see robot fighting only in science fiction movies. But today, for the first time, I got to watch real robots fighting up close,” Yen said during the opening ceremony.

The event's unusual head-loss incident reveals the durability of the T800, while also showing the limits and risks of using complex humanoid machines in physical combat.

Future contests will likely determine whether such events can produce useful engineering data beyond entertainment.

Via Global Times

Here’s a breakdown of what the new devices will cost you.

• There was very little mention of the Samsung Galaxy Ring at this year's Unpacked presentation
• Nevertheless, it sounds like a Galaxy Ring 2 is coming
• I interviewed Annika Bizon, VP of Product and Marketing for Mobile Experience, who gave me the inside scoop

What a day! We've just seen Samsung's vision for the future of wearables at Samsung Galaxy Unpacked, including its AR glasses and the new Samsung Galaxy Watch Ultra 2 and Watch 9.

However, conspicuous by its absence was the next iteration of Samsung's smallest wearable, the Samsung Galaxy Ring. While Samsung did confirm the Samsung Galaxy Ring's sleep apnea detection functionality was getting a coveted FDA certification — a significant badge of quality — very little else was said about the Ring, or its next generation.

While the silence has led some to believe that the Ring might be a one-and-done device, people are still passionate about the smart ring form factor. After all, the Oura Ring 5 was released this year, so I thought Samsung would be looking to follow up its smash-hit Galaxy Ring with a Galaxy Ring 2.

(Image credit: Future)

While it didn't appear in this year's presentation, it seems that a successor is, indeed, on the way. During an interview with Samsung's VP of Product and Marketing for Mobile Experience, Annika Bizon, I asked if there was any word on a potential Galaxy Ring 2.

"I will say yes, we are looking at the future of Ring, watch this space," Bizon told me. "It will definitely form part of our future portfolio of wearables."

I noted that Bizon was wearing a Samsung Galaxy Ring as we were speaking. "Well, I love it because it's discreet health," she said. "It tells me some of the things I need to know and when I put my watch back on, they'll work together."

There was definitely a "yes" in there, and the remark about the future portfolio suggests a new device, as well as a follow-up to the existing one, could be in the works. And the Galaxy Ring has certainly got fans inside Samsung's executive team.

Besides, Samsung aggressively pursuing certifications for the first-generation Ring shows it remains committed to investing time and money into its smallest wearable form factor. The short segment at Unpacked felt like a reminder that yes, the Ring exists, and there's more on the way.

Even though it's a mere tidbit compared to all the big news we got at the event, this is exciting stuff for fans of the best smart rings. The recent announcement of the blood-pressure monitoring startup Signal Ring from ex-Head of Android Tom Moss shows that tech companies are still pushing the limits of what smart rings can do.

Samsung’s Galaxy S26 FE and Galaxy Tab S12 appeared in a Google app list, hinting at software prep before a possible late-summer launch.

The post Samsung Galaxy S26 FE and Galaxy Tab S12 Surface in Google App Ahead of Launch appeared first on TechRepublic.

China is considering tighter controls on AI models, training data, and chip designs, potentially limiting how Chinese technology reaches global users.

The post China Considers Export Controls on AI Models, Training Data and Chip Technology appeared first on TechRepublic.

Samsung's Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra and Fold8 debut at Unpacked 2026 with new cameras, AI tools, prices, and clear trade-offs for buyers choosing a foldable.

The post Samsung Unveils Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra and Fold8 at Unpacked 2026 appeared first on TechRepublic.

• Anduril and Archer Aviation unveiled Thunder, an autonomous tiltrotor "loyal wingman" designed to fly alongside crewed attack helicopters
• The rotocraft can carry up to 10 air-to-ground missiles or 76 guided rockets while simultaneously being equipped with counter-drone technology
• Its first flight is targeted for 2027, but no price was disclosed, and no named customer was announced

Anduril opened the 2026 Farnborough International Airshow with the kind of reveal the event is increasingly built around: not a jet, but a robot.

The defense startup, in partnership with electric-aircraft maker Archer Aviation, pulled the wraps off Thunder, a Group 5 autonomous attack rotorcraft designed to fly alongside crewed attack helicopters like the Boeing AH-64 Apache and the US Army's upcoming Bell MV-75 Cheyenne II, or operate entirely on its own.

The Thunder aims to address the growing recognition that the modern battlefield is essentially a killing field for near-surface weaponry and personnel by offering a cheaper, safer option for Western militaries.

A concentration on 'mass' drives the Thunder's design

Anduril has repeatedly mentioned mass when it comes to the Thunder, and for good reason.

The Thunder can not only essentially act as an autonomous aerial unit in a formation that has other attack helicopters in it, but it can carry an impressive amount of munitions and electronic warfare equipment to boot, essentially multiplying the threat any squadron of helicopters poses with it.

Not only does it risk fewer lives, if any, but it also costs less than both a fully equipped attack helicopter and the trained personnel required to man it, making it a relative no-brainer for the future if it lives up to its promise.

The trade is meant to be obvious: field enough autonomous wingmen cheaply enough that losing one is an accounting event, not a casualty notification. This is the same "affordable mass" doctrine Anduril and others have been pushing into the fighter world through Collaborative Combat Aircraft programs.

The Thunder simply extends it from fixed-wing fast jets down into Army attack aviation, which is arguably where Ukraine has shown the need is most acute.

It is also, tellingly, a teaming concept rather than a replacement one. Anduril is not claiming Thunder makes the Apache obsolete; it is claiming Thunder keeps the Apache relevant by absorbing the parts of a mission most likely to get a crew killed, while the humans stay farther back and make the decisions.

Anduril's Collaborative Combat Aircraft ambitions are already on display: a drone it designed recently launched an AMRAAM air-to-air missile at a digital target, with human pilots still firmly in control even as the device's autonomy continues to grow.

The Thunder is today a full-scale mockup with a 2027 first-flight target, meaning some details are subject to change. But even as Anduril Industries remains tight-lipped about cost and potential customers, the rotorcraft appears linked to Britain's Project NYX Apache-wingman program, for which the UK arm of the defense contractor has already been shortlisted.

• Russia is adding magnetic compasses to drones affected by satellite navigation jamming
• The Molniya can use Earth’s magnetic field for basic directional guidance
• A camera periodically checks the compass during the drone’s flight

Russian engineers have reportedly fitted a basic magnetic compass onto the cheap Molniya attack drone to counter satellite jamming.

The modification offers a low-cost alternative when electronic warfare systems interfere with GPS or GLONASS signals used by many unmanned aircraft.

Although the upgrade does not make the drone completely immune to interference, it removes dependence on satellite signals for basic directional guidance.

A compass helps the Molniya survive satellite jamming

Most drones depend on satellite navigation systems that both Ukrainian and Russian electronic warfare units have spent the war jamming and spoofing.

Unlike satellite navigation, a magnetic compass reads Earth’s magnetic field directly and does not depend on an external radio signal.

This makes the system difficult to disrupt through conventional jamming, which targets the signals drones use to determine their position and maintain planned flight paths.

The modification could therefore help the Molniya continue following a general course after electronic warfare systems interfere with satellite navigation.

According to Ukrainian defence advisor Serhii Beskrestnov, the latest upgrade was done by Skolkovo technologies.

“Skolkovo technologies continue to develop. A compass was installed on the Molniya drone, and the camera periodically tilts down to look at it,” he said.

The Molniya has also appeared in versions controlled through fibre-optic cables, which cannot be disrupted wirelessly because commands travel through a physical connection.

Those cables, however, add weight and create limitations for range, payload capacity and deployment flexibility.

Beskrestnov has also reported a Molniya attack involving no control antenna, with an onboard camera and computer handling navigation and target selection.

These developments suggest that the low-cost drone is being adapted through different approaches to reduce dependence on vulnerable communications links.

Low cost makes simple upgrades attractive

Russia’s approach to cheaply upgrading the Molniya drones suggests that it is focused on spending less in the war against Ukraine.

The Molniya drones are pretty cheap and are largely made of plywood and aluminum tubing.

This explains why Russian engineers can add simple technologies instead of redesigning the entire aircraft around more expensive navigation systems.

Beskrestnov has estimated that Russia can build 10 to 15 Molniya drones for the cost of one Supercam reconnaissance drone.

The Supercam can cost close to $100,000 per aircraft, according to the estimate, making the cheaper Molniya suitable for modifications that prioritise affordability over sophisticated hardware.

In response to Beskrestnov, Russian military analyst Ian Matveev said, “I’m sure in the documents it says: Navigation equipment based on the principles of Earth’s magnetism.”

His remark captured how a low-cost compass fix can outperform far pricier electronic warfare countermeasures on the battlefield.

However, the magnetic compass does not provide precise satellite positioning, and the drone remains vulnerable to other countermeasures affecting its control, sensors or flight systems.

Via Defence Blog

Samsung’s $1,199 Galaxy Z Flip8 adds a thinner design, expanded FlexWindow tools, and new AI controls while retaining the same battery and rear cameras.

The post Samsung Galaxy Z Flip8 Launches at $1,199 With Thinner Design appeared first on TechRepublic.

Here are hints and the answer for today’s Wordle No. 1,860 for Thursday, July 23.

Cancer diagnoses are on the rise in sub-Saharan Africa and the Eastern Mediterranean regions, but care lags behind.

Playable through Microsoft’s new Xbox Backward Compatibility program for PC, you’ll be able to relive classic Xbox titles directly on your laptop, desktop or handheld.

Researchers found Chinese and Russian SDKs in Android apps marketed to U.S. military users, highlighting software supply chain and enterprise privacy risks.

The post Third-Party SDKs Raise Privacy Questions for Apps Marketed to U.S. Military appeared first on TechRepublic.

Apple is reportedly testing a 6.96-inch iPhone screen for its 2027 anniversary lineup, a change that could make the Pro Max feel nearly 7 inches.

The post Apple Tests Nearly 7-Inch Screen for Future iPhone Pro Max Model appeared first on TechRepublic.