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Better and more accurate weather forecasts could soon be a more common occurrence for all of us thanks to a new upgrade from Nvidia.

At its Nvidia GTC 2025 event, the company unveiled the next step along in its plan of using a digital twin of planet Earth to help forecasters build more accurate forecasting models.

The NVIDIA Omniverse Blueprint for Earth-2 weather analytics model provide a significant update on the original iteration, announced at GTC 2024, providing more accurate and powerful tools to make forecasts even better.

Better forecasts, faster

Nvidia says severe weather-related events have caused a $2 trillion impact on the global economy over the last decade, and better forecasts could be one way of mitigating this.

It says the NVIDIA Omniverse Blueprint for Earth-2 offers a number of useful tools, including Nvidia GPU acceleration libraries, a physics-AI framework, development tools and microservices to help speed up the process of going from prototyping to production with weather forecast models.

In effect, Nvidia says this should all help developers build solutions that deliver warnings and updated forecasts in seconds, rather than the minutes or hours needed with traditional CPU-driven modeling.

“We’re seeing more extreme weather events and natural disasters than ever, threatening lives and property,” said Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang.

“The NVIDIA Omiverse Blueprint for Earth-2 will help industries around the world prepare for — and mitigate — climate change and weather-related disasters.”

The platform has already signed up several major climate tech companies including AI company G42, JBA Risk Management, Spire and others.

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• Sennheiser has announced a new premium set of headphones called the HD 550
• It's aimed squarely at audiophiles and gamers
• You can pre-order it now for $299.95 / £249.99

Sennheiser has announced a brand new headphone model specifically geared toward gaming and audiophiles.

The Sennheiser HD 550 open-back headphones are pitched as bringing "a compelling new choice to audiophiles and gamers seeking next-level capability". Sennheiser is talking a big game for the HD 550 too saying that the headphones will boast "sprawling stereo imaging and an ultra-light build, the HD 550 is an open invitation to unpack the lush layers of today’s music and games for hours on end."

In terms of what's under the hood, the HD 550 headphones will feature a custom 38mm transducer, that will offer "exceptional clarity" from 6Hz to 39.5kHz.

And for gaming specifically, Sennheiser says that players will get "superb, lag-free spatial awareness and immersion" from the HD 550. Punchy bass, crystal-clear transients, and neutral mids without straying from the truthful voicing that audiophiles prefer, will also be at the core of the audio the HD 550 can give you in games.

Describing the HD 550s, Sennheiser Audiophile Product Manager Klas Hanselmann says in the official press release: "Audiophiles looking for featherlight headphones with honest voicing and deep bass extension are in for a treat."

Elsewhere, practically speaking, the HD 550 will share the 500 series characteristic of having a modular design, allowing users to swap out cables and earpads easily. It's a wired set of headphones, and comes with a 6ft/1.8m cable, with a 3.5mm jack connection, but also offers extra compatibility by coming with a 6.35mm adapter.

It also only weighs 8.36oz / 237g so comes in lighter than a DualSense Wireless controller, for example, and way lighter than my personal premium gaming headset pick, the SteelSeries Arctis Nova Pro Wireless.

The HD 550 comes hot on the heels of the new Sennheiser HD 505 headphones too which we really rated in our full review.

(Image credit: Sennheiser)

It might be obvious, but it's worth noting that these are Sennheiser headphones through and through - not a dip back into full-fledged gaming headsets from the premium audio brand. There's no microphone here, for example, and they are geared toward folks who are after, simply, top-tier audio for their games - as well as the flexibility to choose their own microphone.

Nonetheless, I'm excited about the HD 550 set of headphones. I was a huge fan of some of the last gaming headset models the brand made in the GSP 670s, 370s, and 300s.

While the HD 550s are a very distant relation to such headsets, I'm enormously looking forward to trying something from the brand that is definitively geared towards gaming. Plus, with the HD 550 being wired, it could be an audiophile's dream PS5 headset, Xbox Series X headset, or Nintendo Switch headset.

The Sennheiser HD 550 headphones are available to pre-order at Sennheiser Hearing right now for $299.95 or £249.99.

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• Perplexity AI has launched an ad campaign starring Squid Game actor Lee Jung-jae
• The ad mocks Google, renamed Poogle, as useless compared to Perplexity
• The ad showcases how important AI assistant reliability is to consumers

AI conversational search engine Perplexity is getting as ruthless in its marketing as the judges in Squid Game's eponymous game show. The company has introduced a major celebrity-driven ad campaign featuring Squid Game star Lee Jung-jae and some jabs at Google.

The 90-second spot above portrays Jung-jae playing a game very similar to the Squid Game. First, he must figure out how to get coffee stains out of a white shirt. When he opens the very obvious Google parody Poogle, it responds in typical search engine fashion with a list of blue links.

Realizing that sifting through articles for answers isn’t going to cut it, he panics and asks Perplexity instead. Using its voice model, the AI chatbot provides him with clear, step-by-step guidance.

He next has to ask Perplexity how to make cheese stick to pizza. Perplexity provides the right answer before quipping, “Don’t use glue,” a direct nod to the infamous mistake Google’s AI made in suggesting Elmer’s glue as a potential pizza ingredient.

The ad concludes with Jung-jae being asked to name the first Korean to win an Emmy award, which he doesn't need any help with as he is that actor.

Perplexity pokes at Google

The timing of the ad campaign is no accident, as Netflix’s third and final season of Squid Game is expected to drop in June. The campaign is also part of a yearlong partnership between Perplexity and Artist United, which Jung-jae co-owns. Artist United has also integrated Perplexity into its daily research and content creation operations.

The ad begins running today in the U.S. before rolling out to Korea, Japan, and Europe over the next ten days. Each region will get a localized version of the text and voiceovers, though Jung-jae’s dialogue will remain in Korean.

Perplexity’s strategy with the ad is notable beyond just having a world-famous actor poke fun at the search industry’s biggest player. It suggests that Perplexity grasps that accuracy and reliability are what people care most about when it comes to AI assistants.

If Perplexity can overtake Google's reputation as the go-to online information authority, it would be a major coup. Even seizing on small cracks in Google's place at the top could propel Perplexity above many of its rivals.

Whether Google has the glue to fill in those cracks after making pizza is an open question.

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President Trump and President Vladimir Putin of Russia held a lengthy phone call on Tuesday to discuss a possible ceasefire in Ukraine. This is part of Trump's efforts to end the Russia's war in Ukraine and while he didn't get a ceasefire agreement, some progress was made. We hear the latest.

And in Ukraine, people are watching these and other developments with concern, skepticism, and with dark humor.

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I love The Simpsons. Even if I criticized the show's decision to keep churning out seasons, I'm a sucker for the classics, and I endured two hours of pain to get Blinky the Fish tattooed on me.

You could say it's a big part of my life, so I am actually quite thrilled by the news that Disney+ is getting a Stream channel that will play non-stop Simpsons episodes.

Considering one of the best Disney+ shows has so many episodes now, 768 – you want to be precise – choosing which one I want to revisit can sometimes take a very long time.

Even when I look at my self-appointed "golden era" between seasons 1 and 12, there are still so many I enjoy revisiting. Now, Disney+ is doing the hard work for me, and I consider that a huge win. I'm excited to tune in and be surprised by whatever episode is showing at the time, ready to relive some iconic moments.

Unfortunately, Streams is only available in the US for now, so UK and Australian subscribers will have to wait for this fun new feature.

How does the Simpsons Stream work?

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Instead of navigating The Simpsons library, this stream will continuously play episodes 24/7, and at launch, it's kicking off from season 1 all the way up to new episodes. However, the press release has suggested that the "programming lineup of the stream will be refreshed monthly," implying it will continue to show random episodes or perhaps opt for themed line-ups. (I'd love to see a Treehouse of Horror one, personally!).

Still, it's important to note that season 3, episode 1, Stark Raving Dad, will be omitted from the stream, as Polygon has reported this is per the wishes of Matt Groening and others behind the episode, which the publication has explained in their previous coverage.

This is an exciting addition to one of the best streaming services, and it definitely simplifies the viewing experience by doing the hard work for us. Hopefully putting an end to wasting precious free time scrolling through all the episodes.

Of course, if you'd rather choose for yourself, the episode library will be there on demand as normal.

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• Apple’s first foldable device could have impressive battery life
• That’s according to a new rumor that details Apple’s latest efforts
• It would compete with Samsung’s best foldable on battery life

Apple’s first foldable device appears to be on the way – we got another rumor seemingly confirming that just today – and now a new detail has emerged that could help Apple compete with the likes of the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7.

According to a Chinese leaker known as Phone Chip Expert (via MacRumors), Apple has been pulling out all the stops to increase the efficiency of its foldable display. That could give it an edge against the best foldable phones in what is a highly competitive market.

To achieve this, Phone Chip Expert claims that Apple has reduced the display driver integrated circuit from 28nm to 16nm. That’s a massive reduction and could significantly impact battery life.

Apple likes to promise that its devices come with “all day battery life,” and when you’re dealing with a large screen like on a foldable product, battery life is key. That makes Phone Chip Expert’s claim seem believable at first glance.

All day battery life

(Image credit: Future)

A move like this makes a lot of sense. After all, a foldable iPhone or MacBook will have a much larger display than its non-foldable siblings, and all that screen real estate can get awfully power-hungry. That’s something we’ve seen in other foldable devices like the Asus Zenbook 17 Fold, which have failed to impress us with their mediocre battery life.

Apple is thought to be building both a foldable iPhone and a MacBook-iPad hybrid with a foldable display. In the case of the former, it’s likely to directly compete with the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7, which is rumored to get the same battery capacity as the Galaxy Z Fold 6.

That said, Samsung is apparently working on making its foldable screen more efficient, so it will be fascinating to see which device comes out on top here.

At the moment, most of this is confined to the land of rumors, but it is worth noting that Phone Chip Expert has a reasonably solid track record regarding Apple rumors.

They correctly predicted that Apple would build its own servers to run Apple Intelligence and that the iPhone 15 would continue to use the A15 Bionic chip instead of the newer A16 chip, among other claims.

That doesn’t mean that this latest rumor is nailed on to happen, though. Various sources have claimed that Apple’s first foldable device could arrive in either 2026 or 2027, so we’ll have to wait until then to judge the efficiency and battery life of Apple’s first foldable product.

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• HP Threat Insights Report reveals new malware campaigns
• Victims have their data exfiltrated by a remote access trojan
• Attackers have been observed using fake CAPTCHA verification pages

New research has claimed victims are increasingly infecting themselves with malware thanks to a surge in fake CAPTCHA verification tests - taking advantage of a growing ‘click tolerance’ as users are increasingly accustomed to ‘jumping through hoops to authenticate themselves online.’

This isn’t the first report to flag this attack, with security researchers identifying fake CAPTCHA pages spreading infostealer malware in late 2024, but HP’s latest Threat Insights Report now warns this is on the rise.

Users were commonly directed to attacker-controlled websites, and then pushed to complete convincing but fake authentication challenges.

More campaigns identified

These false CAPTCHAs usually trick users into running malicious PowerShell commands on their device that install a Lumma Stealer remote access trojan - a popular infostealer capable of exfiltrating a wide range of sensitive information, like browser details, email credentials, client data, and even cryptocurrency wallets.

Fake CAPTCHA spreading wasn’t the only threat uncovered, with attackers also able to access end-users webcams and microphones in concerning attacks spread via social engineering attacks, primarily using open source RAT and XenoRat to control devices, exfiltrate data, and log keystrokes.

Alongside this, attackers were observed delivering malicious JavaScript code “inside Scalable Vector Graphic (SVG) images to evade detection”. These images are opened “by default” in browsers, and the embedded code is executed, “offering redundancy and monetization opportunities for the attacker” thanks to the remote access tools.

"A common thread across these campaigns is the use of obfuscation and anti-analysis techniques to slow down investigations," said Patrick Schläpfer, Principal Threat Researcher in the HP Security Lab.

“Even simple but effective defence evasion techniques can delay the detection and response of security operations teams, making it harder to contain an intrusion. By using methods like direct system calls, attackers make it tougher for security tools to catch malicious activity, giving them more time to operate undetected – and compromise victims endpoints."

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Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad review

The Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad is an affordable laptop cooling pad, designed to prevent your laptop from overheating during heavy gaming sessions or creative workflows. Given its price point, it would be reasonable to assume you’ll get only moderate-weight cooling. But blow me down: its three 100mm fans, two 80mm fans and one 70mm fan help you secure some pretty cool running.

I ran it through the 3DMark Stress Test on our Acer Predator Helios 300 with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080, and the cooling it offered was genuinely pretty glacial. After running 15 minutes of running, the temperature of the laptop had risen from 22.2ºC to only 37.5ºC. That’s a temperature rise of just 15.3ºC – and, in the time I've been testing laptop pads, is the most extreme cooling I’ve seen. It's significantly better than the 31.9ºC warming I saw on our baseline test of the laptop alone.

Despite being frostier than a penguin whose name you just blanked on, the Liangstar’s fans are pretty quiet. Ten minutes into the test, I used a sound meter to measure noise – from a few inches away from the device and at my head height. At 59dB and 45dB respectively, the results weren’t really any worse than any of the best laptop cooling pads I’ve tested, and roughly equivalent to the noise the Acer Predator Helios 300 made on its own.

When it comes to design, the Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad is well put together, in that sharp, angular style common to a lot of gaming gear. Using it felt ergonomically comfortable; I was able to tilt it to the right angle for my wrists, while the flip-up rests didn’t get in the way of using the trackpad or keyboard. Meanwhile, the monochrome lighting is a little more subtle than the RGB type common to many cooling pads – whether this is a positive or negative likely depends on your chromatic predilections, but I feel it’s nice enough here. I’m less keen on the tribal back tattoo at the bottom of the Liangstar, but maybe I’m just not the target audience.

With its powerful performance, you’d be forgiven for expecting this laptop cooling pad to be pricey. But it’s actually competitively priced in most markets: the blue-lit version I tested retails for just $19.99 / £20.99, although Australian readers will have to pay AU$66.91. In the US, you can also get red, white or multi-color lit versions for $22.49, $19.99 or $22.99 respectively. All told, this is a decent saving compared to the $29.99 / £29.77 / AU$49.77 TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad or $26.99 / £21.99 Tecknet N5 Laptop Cooling Pad – despite the fact the Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad offers superior cooling. So all told, if you care most about getting the best cooling for your cash, the Liangstar should be your go-to.

(Image credit: Future) Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad review: price & availability

• Released December 16, 2019
• Current price of $19.99 / £28.99 / AU$66.91

First launched on December 16, 2019, the Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad is currently available for $19.99 / £20.99 / AU$66.91 from Amazon, with the US price being the lowest we’ve ever seen it. There may be some fluctuations here, though: the MSRP in the UK is listed as £28.99, yet prices have dropped as low as £14.44, so it’s worth keeping an eye on our price trackers, as you may be able to pick up even more of a bargain.

However, even at Amazon’s current prices, it undercuts most other products we’ve tested. The only exception is if you’re based in Australia – over there, the TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad comes in cheaper at AU$49.77, but in tests I found its cooling less impressive than the Liangstar, meaning you may well find the extra AU$17.14 is a price worth paying.

(Image credit: Future) Should I buy the TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad? Buy it if…

You want the best cooling
Thus far, the Liangstar delivers the best cooling performance I’ve seen from a laptop cooling pad at the affordable end of the market, keeping our testing laptop at a pretty balmy 37.5ºC during its intensive stress test.

You want an absolute bargain price
Even compared to other affordable laptop cooling pads, the Liangstar is surprisingly cheap. It’s priced much cheaper in the US and UK than many other cooling pads, despite the fact it offers superior cooling.

Don’t buy it if…

You want specific styling
The Liangstar is neither fish nor fowl in terms of design. Without conspicuous RGB lighting, it may not have enough of a gamer vibe for the esports crowd, but its hard angles and tribal logo might be a bit much for creatives.

You’re buying from Australia
OK, this is less of a "don’t buy" than it is a "think before you buy". The Liangstar has a bit of a markup in Australia, even more than we’d expect from the exchange rate and extra shipping. So it's worth considering if it’s as much as a bargain in your market.

(Image credit: Future) Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad review: also consider

TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad
The TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad can’t quite rival the Liangstar for cooling – its temperature rise was 22.8ºC versus the Liangstar’s 15.3ºC – but it does almost make up for it when it comes to cool points. Its customizable RGB lighting guarantees to give your gaming setup that extra pop, offering 10 different settings for its rainbow-hued LED trim. Read our full TopMate C12 Laptop Cooling Pad review.

How I tested the Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad

• Tested it over multiple days
• Ran a stress test and measured temperature difference with a thermal camera
• Recorded the volume of fan noise 10 minutes into test with a sound level meter

To test the Liangstar Laptop Cooling Pad, I carried out all of the standard benchmarks we run on laptop cooling pads. Firstly, I measured our Razer Predator Helios 300 with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3080 testing laptop’s hottest point to set a baseline, then ran a 3DMark Stress Test for 15 minutes with the cooling pad set to its maximum setting and then remeasured the temperature.

In addition, I checked how much noise the device kicks out with a sound level meter. Once the test had been running for ten minutes, I recorded the sound levels from three inches away and from head height to get a sense of the immediate and subjective noise levels generated by the cooling pad and the laptop combined. I then contrasted this against the noise generated by the laptop’s fans alone.

As well as this quantitative data, I made sure I got plenty of experience using the cooling pad so I could assess its ergonomics and how well it functions in practice. Here I benefited from the many years I’ve spent testing gadgets as well as the 30 years I’ve spent using gaming setups.

• First reviewed: March 2025
• Read more about how we test

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