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Philips, maker of the some of the best business monitors around today, has unveiled the Philips 27B2U6903, which comes with UHD 4K resolution and Thunderbolt 4 connectivity as standard. 

The 27-inch monitor comes features an IPS LED panel with a resolution of 3840 x 2160 and support for 1.07 billion colours, making it ideal for anyone who needs to work in creative industries or to content content.

Thunderbolt 4 also adds a lot of oomph to the 27B2U6903, enabling a dual-screen setup via daisy-chaining, transferring data to external devices, and charging devices at up to 100W in power. For good measure, Philips has also added RJ45 for ultra-fast ethernet connections.

Smart features

(Image credit: Philips)

Philips says one of the standout features of the 27B2U6903 is PowerSensor 2, which aims to save power by putting the monitor and its connected PC in sleep mode when a user walks away from them. When it detects their return, the devices are powered up.

Philips also highlights its Smart KVM feature, which lets users hot-key between different input sources (think: PlayStation 5) by pressing the Ctrl key three times. 

As with most modern monitors, the 27B2U6903 is height adjustable, and can tilt, pivot, and swivel to your heart's content, all of which is vital for a monitor you will likely be looking at for many hours of the day. 

The Philips 27B2U6903 will cost around £450, and is available now. 

The best business monitor? 

The Philips 27B2U6903 is facing some pretty stiff competition for the crown of the best business monitor going. 

After hours of testing, TechRadar recommends the BenQ PD3220U, a premium 4K monitor that comes with a 32-inch IPS panel, HDR, a wide array of ports, and support for KVM switching, like the 27B2U6903. 

The Huawei MateView 4K+ 3:2 aspect is also an intriguing proposition, offering an unusual 3:2 display that is perfect for coding and other vertical tasks. The 28.2-inch display is pretty stunning, too. 

Ultrawide fans, we have something for you too: the best ultrawide monitor is the LG UltraGear 38GN950, a massive 38-inch behemoth that looks fantastic and comes with a 160Hz display. 

Anyone looking for an ultrawide monitor on a budget (at least relatively), should look at the AOC CU34G2X, which comes in a 34-inch configuration and really suits gaming.

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Synchron, maker of an implantable brain-computer interface, unveiled new demos of how the device could be used to control Amazon Alexa products like the Fire Tablet and Apple's Vision Pro headset.

Synchron, maker of an implantable brain-computer interface, gives new demos of how its Stentrode implant could be used to control Apple's Vision Pro headset and Amazon Alexa devices like the Fire Tablet.

Microsoft has signed a deal with one of the most infamous nuclear power facilities in the US as it looks for more ways to ensure the demand for AI computing is met.

The legacy of the Three Mile Island (TMI) nuclear plant has long been shaped by the 1979 Unit 2 meltdown, which had a profound effect on public perceptions of nuclear energy. What a lot of people don't know is that Unit 1 was not only unaffected, but continued to operate safely and reliably for decades.

Now, in a major new step, Constellation has signed its largest power purchase agreement with Microsoft, leading to the planned restoration and restart of TMI Unit 1 under the name Crane Clean Energy Center (CCEC). The project is expected to bring 835 megawatts of carbon-free power to the grid, create 3,400 jobs, and contribute over $3 billion in taxes.

Support for nuclear energy remains strong

Under this agreement, Microsoft will purchase the energy produced by the renewed plant to match the power consumption of its data centers within the PJM grid.

The tech giant has been exploring nuclear energy as a way to power its data centers for a while now, although this will be by far its most high profile deal.

"This agreement is a major milestone in Microsoft's efforts to help decarbonize the grid in support of our commitment to become carbon negative," noted Bobby Hollis, VP of Energy at Microsoft.

Joe Dominguez, President and CEO of Constellation, commented on the deal, saying, “Powering industries critical to our nation’s global economic and technological competitiveness, including data centers, requires an abundance of energy that is carbon-free and reliable every hour of every day, and nuclear plants are the only energy sources that can consistently deliver on that promise."

Before TMI Unit 1 can be restarted, it will undergo substantial modernization, including upgrades to the turbine, generator, and cooling systems. Approval from the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission will also be required, with plans to extend the plant’s operations through 2054. The plant is scheduled to come back online by 2028.

A report by The Brattle Group found that the Crane Clean Energy Center, renamed to honor former Constellation CEO Chris Crane, will not only add more than 800 megawatts of clean energy but also inject $16 billion into Pennsylvania’s GDP and generate $3 billion in taxes. Additionally, Constellation has committed $1 million over five years to support local workforce development and community programs.

Public support for nuclear energy remains strong in Pennsylvania, with a recent poll showing a 2-to-1 margin in favor of restarting TMI Unit 1. Governor Josh Shapiro praised the project, saying, “The Crane Clean Energy Center will safely utilize existing infrastructure to sustain and expand nuclear power in the Commonwealth while creating thousands of energy jobs and strengthening Pennsylvania’s legacy as a national energy leader.”

The resurgence of nuclear energy, particularly as a reliable, carbon-free power source for energy-intensive sectors like data centers, is increasingly appealing to firms like Microsoft and Oracle who are betting big on it.

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When 2025 rolls around, I’ll have been a professional fitness writer for ten years, and a professional technology writer for five. In my long career writing about fitness and fitness tech, I’ve tried almost every category of workout equipment and health-based technology you can imagine.

I really mean it.

I’ve tried all manner of gadgets in the name of a review, from smart glucose monitors that require needles in your arms to smart sleep masks that play soothing sounds. I’ve tried intelligent insoles that slip into your shoes to tell you about your running gait, and AI-powered cameras that help you work out with dumbbells.

Smart workout mirrors? Smart rings? Peloton classes? Electro-stimulation to improve muscle tone? Bone-conduction headphone technology? All boxes checked.

It’s a far cry from reviewing the best fitness trackers and best running shoes on the market. In that time, amongst all the gadgets I’ve tested, there’s only a handful of pieces of hardware that I really use in my personal life on a regular basis.

It almost says a lot about the state of the industry that each piece of wellness tech is marketed as a game-changer, a problem-solver, yet I keep coming back to the same old bits of kit. As someone with unfettered access to all the gear in TechRadar towers, that says a lot. So, without further ado, below I’ve listed the only pieces of tech I go back to time and time again.

Bone conduction headphones: Shokz OpenRun

(Image credit: TechRadar)

Whether you’re running, cycling or doing any form of exercise outdoors, it pays to be aware of your surroundings.

I’ve used Shokz OpenRun for years as a way to listen to music or podcasts broadcasting from my phone during runs without sacrificing situational awareness. You could technically do the same thing with AirPods or other workout headphones using their HearThrough or Conversation modes, but the best bone conduction headphones are built to leave your ears free.

While the OpenRun Pro are more expensive, offering faster charging and longer life, I still use the original OpenRun and have experienced no problems with the battery even after all this time.

They’re comfortable to wear for long periods and during very long runs, I also call my wife or family to break up the monotony and they can hear me just fine.

This is the set of headphones that got me through two marathons over two consecutive years.

In-ear headphones: Jabra Elite 8 Active

(Image credit: Becca Caddy)

In my marathon off-seasons, I like to hit the gym in order to regain the muscle mass I lose when running takes over my life.

This is where a lot of gear falls down for me to use: even the best smart rings, for example, are at risk of scratching and being damaged when I’m lifting weights, so I use a watch instead.

Likewise with bone conduction headphones: while outside I like to be able to hear my surroundings, in a commercial gym you need headphones to kill the gym’s music and the noise of other gym-goers to focus on your own workouts.

I used to use a cheap pair of Anker Soundcare P20s for this, but when those finally died, I switched to a pair of Jabra Elite 8 Active, the best workout headphones on the market right now, and haven’t looked back.

They’re comfortable, tough, completely waterproof (they survived a glass of water, at any rate), and have Active Noise Canceling I can switch on and off if I need to ask a staff member a question, or another lifter if I can work in. Easy to set up, simple to use, tough as nails, and long-lasting.

Smartwatch: Garmin Epix Pro

(Image credit: Future / Matt Evans)

I really want to recommend the Apple Watch Ultra 2 here as it’s functionally fab, but short battery lives on smartwatches continue to be a frustration for me.

The Garmin Epix Pro lasts for ages, and it has the running tool I use most: route creation. For hikers, runners, and cyclists yet to plan routes using Garmin Connect and follow the directions on your watch, it’s a game changer. It’s the single smartwatch feature that’s made the most difference in my training.

I also like big, chunky watches and dislike charging watches often, so the Fenix range (including the Epix Pro) fits the bill nicely. Although I know some people find smartwatches uncomfortable to wear in bed, I don’t mind at all.

Plus, even though I don’t tend to use my smartwatch to formally track sets and reps in the gym, it doesn’t get in the way of my weight-based workouts in the same way that a smart ring does, so it’s passively tracking activity and calorie burn in the background and factoring it into my recovery metrics.

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Chucky is a bit of an outlier when it comes to horror. Usually, you can't beat the original movie, and any sequels or TV adaptations pale in comparison – check out TechRadar's ranking of every Chucky movie. But the Peacock series impressed critics so much that it has a 93% Rotten Tomatoes score, placing it above the 1988 movie Child's Play. With this in mind, it really is a shame that the horror hit has been canceled.

The adaptation ran for three successful seasons before it was announced that it would not continue, with The Hollywood Reporter announcing they had pulled the plug on the killer doll. While previous attempts to deactivate Chucky did not go so well, unfortunately, they've finally done it. For now, at least.

Confirming the news in a statement, creator Don Mancini said: “I’m heartbroken over the news that Chucky won’t be coming back for a fourth season, but am so grateful for the killer three years we did have."

He added: “I’d like to thank UCP/SYFY/Peacock/Eat the Cat, our awesome cast and Toronto-based crew (the best in the business), and finally, to our amazing fans, a big bloody hug. Your incredible #RenewChucky campaign really warmed Chucky’s cold heart. Chucky will return! He ALWAYS comes back.”

What made the Chucky series better than Child's Play?

Bride of Chucky is actually good okay? (Image credit: MGM)

It's a big question and the Rotten Tomatoes critics' consensus cited its "absurd humor and creative horror" as being a huge hit. There may be other factors at play, such as nostalgia, or more people getting into horror, but it is refreshing to see the iconic doll having such a successful time on the small screen.

Some of the entries into the franchise have not been good at all, including Child's Play 3, which has a pretty awful 19% rating on the aggregator. Others spark more debate among fans such as Bride of Chucky which is still considered rotten on the whole, but fans like me will go to bat for it mostly because of Jennifer Tilly's performance as Tiffany.

But despite the series' success, it wasn't enough to save it from getting the chop. So season 3 is the end of the road but if you want to live the brutal, bloody memories, you can still stream the previous episodes.

Peacock does have a new horror series on route, called Hysteria, starring the Evil Dead's own Bruce Campbell, so there'll be plenty to sink your teeth into throughout October and beyond.

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Israeli commandos are currently conducting a raid inside southern Lebanon, and there are indications that Israel may send more forces into the area, a senior U.S. official told NPR.

(Image credit: Menahem Kahana)

There are fewer tents on San Francisco sidewalks. The city has ramped up enforcement of anti-camping laws, and police are playing a bigger role.

(Image credit: Martin Kaste)

These crops are treated with different herbicides, insecticides, fungicides and more. Be sure to give these fruits and veggies a rinse before taking a bite.

If you like sleeping on your stomach but constantly deal with back pain, these are the best mattresses that can help you rest peacefully.

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Intel’s Core Ultra 9 285 CPU is the subject of the latest Arrow Lake leak, and a sighting of this processor in Geekbench gives us some purported specs, and a glimpse of the potential performance on offer – with a caveat.

The Geekbench 6 result was flagged up on X by BenchLeaks, with the Core Ultra 9 285 running in an Asus Prime Z890-P motherboard (with LGA 1851, the new socket for Arrow Lake processors).

[GB6 CPU] Unknown CPUCPU: Intel Core Ultra 9 285 (24C 24T)Min/Max/Avg: 5461/5579/5560 MHzCodename: Arrow LakeCPUID: C0662 (GenuineIntel)Single: 3081Multi: 14150https://t.co/zPyFYuKEoHSeptember 30, 2024

What the leak tells us is (add the usual salt) that the Core Ultra 9 285 is a 24-core (24-thread) CPU and this is the 65W TDP (thermal design power) variation. (As opposed to the Core Ultra 9 285K, which is the unlocked 24-core processor that can be overclocked, with a TDP of 125W for PL1).

The Intel Core Ultra 9 285 will have the same core configuration as its K counterpart, meaning 8 performance cores alongside 16 efficiency cores. The chip has 36MB of L3 cache, with a base clock speed of 2.5GHz, and max boost speed of 5.6GHz. In the Geekbench 6 testing the chip was paired with 8GB of DDR5-5600 memory, meaning DDR5 system RAM with a speed of 5600MHz.

Scoring anomaly

Achieving a score of 3,081 in Geekbench for single-core is not bad at all. However, the Core Ultra 9 285 does stumble with its multi-core result of 14,150. As Wccftech, which spotted the above tweet, points out, that falls short compared to the vanilla Core i9-14900 (current non-K flagship) which hits around 17,000 to 18,000 for multi-core.

Something’s clearly awry here, then, as the plain 285 will not be that far off the pace of the 285K unlocked version – we expect further benchmarks will show that. Note that the non-K Arrow Lake CPUs, include the Core Ultra 9 285, will not launch until Q1 2025, so aren’t as close to shipping as the K versions (but they aren’t a million miles away either).

As we previously reported, we might see Intel’s first Arrow Lake CPUs, which will be those K models spearheaded by the 285K, as early as October 2024.

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Google has announced its latest multibillion-dollar effort to strengthen connectivity and prepare for increased adoption of cloud and high-performance computing.

A $2 billion investment is set to fund two new data center campuses in South Carolina in a move that will bolster the company’s US infrastructure.

The two campuses, located at 1055 Research Center Drive in Ridgeville and in the Winding Woods Commerce Park in St. George, Dorchester County, will span areas of 230 and 206 acres respectively, and are expected to generate 200 operational roles and as many as 1,200 long-term construction jobs.

Google continues investing in data centers

On top of the Dorchester County investment, Google has also earmarked another $1.3 billion to enhance its Berkeley County data center, which has been operational since 2007. The move marks an expansion of the company’s existing commitment to the state, where it has already invested heavily over the years.

“Today marks a significant milestone in Google's collaboration with South Carolina. Our continued investment is a testament to the state's exceptional workforce and thriving business environment," noted Google’s Global VP of Cloud Supply Chain and Operations Monique Picou.

South Carolina’s Governor, Harry McMaster, added enthusiasm about the investment: “We are proud to support Google’s new operations in Dorchester County and value the opportunities they will create for the people of South Carolina.”

Besides bolstering its on-land infrastructure, the company has also been investing heavily in subsea cables. The company has been expanding its subsea cable infrastructure heavily in recent years, adding a new line between Australia and Africa earlier this year.

Connecting Australia with South Africa, the cable will then run on terra firma via Zimbabwe, Zambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda and Uganda before terminating in Kenya.

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Hackers have found a creative new way to distribute spam by abusing the infrastructure of legitimate websites. Since the crooks don’t technically take over the website, and it continues to operate as intended, spam filters are having a hard time blocking these emails. As a result, the campaigns are more successful in reaching people’s inboxes.

The good news is that the emails are blatant spam, and unless the recipients click on the links without even reading the contents of the email, they should be able to spot the fraud immediately.

The new campaign was spotted by cybersecurity researchers from Cisco Talos, who explained in a technical write-up how the trick is in abusing sign-up and registration services. Many websites allow users to register a new account, and once that happens, the website will send an email to the address associated with the newly generated account.

No validation

The attack works by overloading the name field with text and a link. Since the site does not validate, or sanitize, this content in any way, it returns to the victim in the post-registration email, unfiltered. The worst part is - there’s no defending against it:

“Unfortunately for defenders, there is very little we can do to defend against such spam messages,” Cisco Talos said. “Most of the emails sent by these contact forms are legitimate, so the malicious email blends in with the otherwise legitimate traffic.”

But the good news is that the emails sent like this are easy to spot. They still look, and read, like your usual post-signup email, albeit with somewhat modified content. That should make it clear to any recipient that the site is being abused and that the email should be deleted on the spot.

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Microsoft Copilot is about to get a brand new look and additional features, including a voice mode with four new voices.

Windows Latest has some screenshots of how the new-look Copilot will work, and gone is the rather austere look of the previous incarnation and in its place there's a new pastel-shaded user interface. While the recent addition of Copilot ‘Wave 2’ for Office 365 customers was very focused on enterprise users, the new Copilot 2.0 appears to be much more about making AI accessible for general users, with a redesigned home screen that invites you to explore.

Work it harder, make it better

Windows Latest reports that the new interface is faster and sleeker than the old one, and more on par with ChatGPT. Copilot 2.0 uses a card-based design, with each card encouraging you to use AI and explore its potential. So, you might find it asks you if you’d like to start a journal, or if you need some help getting to sleep. There’s also a new voice mode, so you can talk to Copilot for the first time, and in response, it will talk to you using one of four new voices - Meadow, Grove, Wave, and Canyon.

The new Copilot 2.0 will ask you your name when you first use it, then remember your name whenever you log in with your Microsoft account. To complement the completely redesigned interface there are two different modes - Night and Day. Day is brighter and full of pastel shades, while Night is a dark mode.

The new Copilot 2.0 appears to have been rolled out to users in India and Brazil. We’re not sure when it will be available to the rest of the world, and there’s also no word on a mobile version. ChatGPT recently rolled out Advanced Voice mode to ChatGPT Plus users, and Gemini already has Gemini Live up and running.

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