While many newer iPads can be upgraded to the latest operating system, iPadOS 27, older models are limited to earlier versions. The iPad Pro 12.9-inch (3rd generation), iPad Pro 11-inch (1st generation), iPad Air (3rd generation), iPad (8th generation), and iPad mini (5th generation) cannot upgrade to iPadOS 27. These models can run iPadOS 26.

Consult the chart below to find out the latest version of iOS or iPadOS that your tablet supports. To identify which iPad model you own, go to Settings > General > About. There you will find the “Model Name” and “Model Number.” The model number begins with an A followed by four digits. If you see a string of characters with a slash, such as MY3K2LL/A, you’re looking at the part number. Tap it to reveal the model number. On older iPads, you can also find the model number printed in very small type on the back.

The Latest Version of iOS or iPadOS by iPad Model

How to update an old iPad

You can update your iPad wirelessly over Wi-Fi or connect it to a computer and use Finder, Apple Devices, or iTunes, depending on your computer. Either method installs an update compatible with your iPad; using a computer won’t let you install an operating system your model doesn’t support.

How to update an old iPad wirelessly

Step 1. Back up your iPad

Connect your iPad to Wi-Fi, then go to Settings > [your name] > iCloud > iCloud Backup. Make sure iCloud Backup is turned on and select “Back Up Now.”

Stay connected to Wi-Fi until the backup finishes. Check the date and time of the last successful backup under “Back Up Now” to confirm it completed.

Step 2. Check for and install the latest iPadOS

Plug your iPad into a power source and keep it connected to Wi-Fi during installation. Go to Settings > General > Software Update. Your iPad will check for an update and show the currently installed version of iOS or iPadOS.

If an update is available, select “Download and Install” or “Update Now,” depending on whether it has already downloaded, and follow the onscreen instructions. If no update is available, you’ll see a message that your software is up to date.

How to update an old iPad using your computer

Step 1. Back up your iPad

First, connect your iPad to your computer using the appropriate USB-C, Lightning, or 30-pin cable for your model. If you see a message asking for your iPad passcode or asking you to “Trust This Computer,” follow the prompts.

Then back up using the prompts appropriate for your operating system. Wait for the backup to finish before updating.

• macOS Catalina 10.15 or later: open Finder and select your iPad in the sidebar. Select “General,” then select “Back up all of the data on your iPad to this Mac.” Click “Back Up Now”.
• macOS Mojave 10.14 or earlier: open iTunes and click the iPad button in the toolbar. Select “Summary,” then click “Back Up Now”.
• Windows 11: open the Apple Devices app and select your iPad in the sidebar. Select “General,” then select “Back up all of the data on your iPad to this computer.” Click “Back Up Now”.
• If you’re using iTunes on Windows instead of Apple Devices, click the iPad button in the iTunes toolbar, select “Summary,” then click “Back Up Now”.

Step 2. Check for and install the latest iPadOS

Check whether an update is available for your iPad:

• macOS Catalina 10.15 or later: open Finder and select your iPad in the sidebar. Select “General,” then click “Check for Update.”
• macOS Mojave 10.14 or earlier: open iTunes and click the iPad button in the toolbar. Select “Summary,” then click “Check for Update.”
• Windows 11: open the Apple Devices app and select your iPad in the sidebar. Select “General,” then click “Check for Update.”
• If you’re using iTunes on Windows instead of Apple Devices, click the iPad button in the iTunes toolbar, select “Summary,” then click “Check for Update.”

If an update is available, click “Download and Update” and follow the onscreen instructions.

Have an old iPhone? Check out our story on how to update an old iPhone.

Updated on October 8, 2026, with iPadOS 27 compatibility information and current instructions for updating and backing up your iPad.

Pacific Health Sciences is recalling Babies' Magic Tea Baby Sleep Gripe Water, a liquid supplement for babies, after testing by the FDA found it contained methanol, ethanol, and isopropanol alcohol.

According to the FDA, it measured approximately 8.3% ethanol, 0.35% methanol, and 0.48% isopropanol in the bottles. That ethanol level is in the range of a strong craft beer, and should not be in a product made for infants. Methanol is a poison that can cause blindness, organ damage, and death when swallowed in large enough amounts. The FDA notice says the substances may pose a risk depending on how much is consumed and the age and body weight of the child using the product. The company reports no adverse events tied to this lot so far.

How the alcohol got into the bottles is unknown. The notice also does not say how many bottles reached customers, only that they were distributed to Secrets of Tea, which sold them through its own website and other online retailers, including Amazon.

If you have a bottle at home, check the lot number. The affected lot is 25122bw, with a best-before date of 12/2028. It is printed on the bottom of the blue cardboard box and on a side panel of the 4-ounce amber bottle.

Parents and caregivers should stop using any product from that lot. They can throw the bottle away or return it to the place of purchase for a refund.

Anyone who has symptoms after using the product should seek medical attention and contact Pacific Health Sciences at 310-457-1775 or myorder@pacifichealth.com. Reactions can also be reported to the FDA's MedWatch program.

Power stations from Anker, Bluetti, EcoFlow, and Jackery are up to 50% off during Amazon's Prime Big Deal Days, which end October 7th. I have tested and trust all four brands, and the deals range from portable models that keep your phone charged and a couple of lights on to home systems that keep the refrigerator running.

Start with the equipment you want to keep running. Capacity, measured in watt-hours (Wh), tells you how much energy the battery stores. A 1,000Wh battery could theoretically power a 100W device for 10 hours, but conversion losses and the station's own electronics shorten that time, so every runtime estimate in this guide assumes roughly 80% of rated capacity is usable.

Output, measured in watts (W), determines what the station can power. A 1,500W kettle requires at least 1,500W continuous output, even if you use it for only a few minutes. A refrigerator also needs enough surge output (the brief extra power its compressor draws at startup) to get going.

250 to 300Wh: phones, laptops, and lights anywhere you need them

A capacity of 250 to 300Wh with 300 to 600W of output suits phone charging, a laptop, LED lights, or a small fan. At a combined 30W average, a 300Wh battery provides roughly eight hours. A laptop drawing a steady 60W cuts that to roughly four.

Both stations below are easy to carry. A 300W station can only run devices that draw 300W or less, which rules out a 1,500W kettle. If you mainly want to charge a laptop, check USB charging power as well as AC output, and choose a larger battery for more time between charges.

The small station to buy: Bluetti Elite 30 V2

The deal: $219.99, down from $319.00 (31% off)

The Elite 30 V2 is the small-station to buy for charging electronics and running compatible small appliances. Its 288Wh battery and 600W output give you twice the output of the cheapest station here, and at approximately 9.5 pounds it is still easy to carry. It also comes in fun colors, including light green, pink, purple, light blue, and, of course, black.

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Lowest price and lightest weight: EcoFlow River 2 240

The deal: $189.00, down from $249.00 (24% off)

If price or weight decides it, the River 2 240 costs $31 less than the Bluetti and weighs approximately 7.8 pounds. Its 243Wh battery and 300W AC output suit phones, lights, and a small fan. The Bluetti's extra cost buys approximately 19% more capacity and twice the output, which makes it the better choice for most people.

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1,000Wh: portable refrigerators, home office gear, and shorter outages

Around 1,000Wh capacity and 1,800 to 2,000W output is a useful combination for a portable refrigerator, lights, laptops, and occasional use of more demanding equipment within the station's limits. At a combined 60W average, a 1,000Wh battery gives you roughly 13 hours; at 200W, roughly four.

Weight and charging speed matter if you carry the station frequently or recharge between stops. The two 1,000Wh models below weigh about 25 pounds. Compatible solar panels can replenish them away from an outlet, but are purchased separately.

Best 1,000Wh value with high solar input: Bluetti Elite 100 V2

The deal: $448.00, down from $899.00 (50% off)

The Elite 100 V2 is the 1,000Wh deal to grab. Its 1,024Wh battery and 1,800W output handle a portable refrigerator, lights, and laptops. Its 1,000W maximum solar input lets it recharge faster than most of its competitors, so if you want the ability to use solar during an outage, this is the way to go. It weighs in at 25.4 pounds.

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Fastest recharge before a storm: Anker Solix C1000 Gen 2

The deal: $469.99, down from $599.00 (22% off)

The C1000 Gen 2 has the same 1,024Wh capacity as the Bluetti and a higher 2,000W continuous output. It can recharge fully in 49 minutes with fast charging enabled in the app, which helps when you have a short window to charge it up before a storm arrives or taking on the road. It weighs 24.9 pounds.

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Powers a portable refrigerator for under $400: EcoFlow River 2 Pro

The deal: $349.00, down from $429.00 (19% off)

The River 2 Pro gives you 768Wh of capacity and 800W of output, a big step up from the small stations without crossing $400. That suits longer electronics use and compatible portable refrigerators. It weighs 18.15 pounds.

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2,000Wh: refrigerators, lights, and small appliances during an outage

For a refrigerator, modest lighting, and phone charging, I would start with around 2,000Wh capacity and at least 1,500W continuous output, then check the refrigerator's startup requirements. If those devices average 100W combined, a 2,000Wh battery provides roughly 16 hours. At a 200W average, that falls to about eight hours.

Refrigerator model, room temperature, and connected equipment change runtime considerably. Anker specifies up to 35 hours for the S2000 powering a refrigerator alone, based on testing with a 24.7-cubic-foot refrigerator in a 77°F room. Adding other devices reduces that time.

Best low-cost backup for household essentials: Anker Solix S2000

The deal: $649.99, down from $999.99 (35% off)

If your main concern is keeping a refrigerator and smaller essentials running during an outage, the S2000 is the first deal to consider. Its 2,010Wh battery stores almost twice as much energy as Anker's C1000 Gen 2 for an additional $180, a worthwhile upgrade when you expect to use the station primarily at home and can handle its 35.7-pound weight. Its 1,500W continuous output suits a household that prioritizes a few essentials.

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Upgrade for higher loads or a second battery: Anker Solix C2000 Gen 2

The deal: $849.99, down from $1,499.00 (43% off)

Spending another $200 on the C2000 Gen 2 gets you 2,400W continuous output and the option to add an additional Anker storage battery for roughly 4kWh total capacity. Its initial 2,048Wh capacity is nearly the same as the S2000's, so the reason to upgrade is the ability to power more demanding equipment and expand capacity later. At 41.7 pounds, it is also heavy.

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A super-quiet back-up for the bedroom: EcoFlow Delta 3 Max

The deal: $799.00, down from $1,199.00 (33% off)

If the station will sit next to a bed, the Delta 3 Max runs at 25 decibels or less, while most stations run at 30 to 50dB. It still provides 2,048Wh of capacity and 2,400W of output, and it accepts up to 500W of solar input. At approximately 45 pounds, your bedroom is probably where it will stay.

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Saves your battery for what matters most: Jackery HomePower 2000 Plus V2

The deal: $999.00, down from $1,199.00 (17% off)

I like the HomePower 2000 Plus V2's Priority Routing feature. You pick the devices that matter most, and when the battery drops to a level you set, the station shuts off everything else so the remaining energy goes to your priorities. That feature is the justification for the $149.01 premium over the Anker C2000 Gen 2, which has the same 2,048Wh capacity and 2,400W output. The HomePower also supports expansion, with up to five Battery Pack 2000 Plus V2 batteries (2,048Wh each).

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3,000Wh: longer outages and more appliances at once

A battery around 3,000Wh provides more time with the same essentials connected: roughly 24 hours at a 100W average, or eight hours at 300W. A refrigerator and freezer, lights, and electronics all share that reserve.

Look for 2,400W or higher continuous output if you also want to use a microwave or other demanding appliance, and total the watts of devices operating together. A 1,500W appliance running continuously would consume the usable energy in a 3,000Wh battery in roughly 1.6 hours, so use heating and cooking appliances briefly when you want to preserve backup time.

More stored energy for longer outages: Bluetti Elite 300

The deal: $999.00, down from $1,499.00 (33% off)

The Elite 300's 3,014.4Wh battery holds approximately 47% more energy than the Anker C2000 Gen 2 for another $149.01, with the same 2,400W output. Its 12V/30A DC output also suits compatible RV equipment. At approximately 58 pounds, it is best suited to a planned location in your home or RV.

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Higher output for several appliances: Jackery HomePower 3000

The deal: $1,269.00, down from $1,499.00 (15% off)

The HomePower 3000 offers a different reason to spend more. Its 3,072Wh battery is close to the Elite 300's capacity, but continuous output increases to 3,600W. That makes it the more useful choice if your outage plan involves several appliances operating together. It includes a 30A AC outlet and weighs approximately 59.5 pounds, so there is little weight difference from the Bluetti.

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A big system you can expand later: Jackery HomePower 3600 Plus

The deal: $1,538.00, down from $1,899.00 (19% off)

The HomePower 3600 Plus combines a 3,584Wh battery and 3,600W output with storage expandable to approximately 21kWh through additional batteries. It provides about 17% more initial capacity than the HomePower 3000 for $269 more, and weighs 77.2 pounds. A single station supplies 120V; two identical units connected in parallel can supply 240V to handle large appliances.

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The US Department of Transportation (DOT) has ended its review of how the 10 largest U.S. airlines handle passenger data without finding any violations or taking any enforcement action, according to a September 4 DOT notice. The notice adds no new rules. It merely reminds airlines of obligations they already have, which means travelers' privacy protections are unchanged.

DOT opened the review in March 2024 and looked at how Alaska, Allegiant, American, Delta, Frontier, Hawaiian, JetBlue, Southwest, Spirit, and United collected, used, sold, shared, and protected passenger information between January 2022 and March 2024. It placed particular emphasis on employee privacy training and on preventing data breaches. DOT found that every airline has a training program for staff who handle passenger data, a readily available privacy policy, and systems to safeguard that data.

As the only federal regulator of airline privacy practices, DOT's authority rests on a ban on unfair or deceptive practices. In the closure notice, DOT lists three things it would treat as a violations: failing to follow a published privacy policy, failing to properly safeguard sensitive data, and misrepresenting data practices to customers. It also clarifies that airlines should be transparent about what they collect and whether they share it.

Pricing was also addressed. DOT says airlines should avoid setting prices based on who the customer is, a practice often called personalized pricing, where two travelers searching for the same seat could be shown different fares based on data collected about them. Federal law already bars airlines from discriminating against passengers by race, color, national origin, religion, sex, or disability. Reuters notes that Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said last year he would quickly investigate any personalized pricing, and that Delta has repeatedly denied using AI to set individualized prices.

Read more: Is AI Charging You More for the Same Flight?

Critics say the review did not address their concerns.

In an August 26 letter to the Government Accountability Office, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.) and Rep. Shontel Brown (D-Ohio) wrote that DOT has never taken a privacy enforcement action in the four decades it has held sole authority, and that airlines' responses to the 2024 review were never made public .After the closure, Wyden told Reuters that DOT is treating a privacy policy and training as enough despite "clear evidence of privacy abuses."

Their letter points to two examples. The first is Airlines Reporting Corporation, a data broker owned by major U.S. airlines, which they say sold access to roughly 722 million passenger travel records to agencies including the Department of Homeland Security and the IRS without warrants or court oversight. ARC shut the program down in November 2025.

The second is a 2016 Justice Department inspector general audit that found the US Drug Enforcement Agency paid at least 19 airline employees for passenger itineraries, dates of birth, and seat numbers; the letter says a 2024 follow-up found the payments were continuing. DOT's closure notice does not mention either matter.

The DOT says its Office of Aviation Consumer Protection receives air travel complaints and uses them to spot trends and to investigate and bring cases against airlines and ticket agents. Concerns about airline security go to Transportation Security Administration, and questions about biometric screening go to Customs and Border Protection, because both agencies have separate authority over passenger information.

If you've been buying ice cream from the freezer aisle and wishing you could control what goes into them, the Ninja Creami does exactly that. Pick ingredients for your base, freeze them up, and let the Creami do the rest. You get real-deal frozen deliciousness, made just the way you want.

Right now, for Prime Big Deal Days, it's on sale at a solid discount. The standard 7-in-1 model, the NC301, is down to $179.99, from its $229.99 list price, which works out to 22% off. 

What the Ninja Creami does

The Creami works differently from an old-fashioned churn. You mix up a base, freeze it in one of the included 16-ounce pints for 24 hours, and then the machine's dual-drive motors press a paddle down through the frozen block and shave it into something smooth, which is what Ninja calls its Creamify technology. You'll get seven one-touch programs to pick from: ice cream, lite ice cream, gelato, sorbet, milkshake, smoothie bowl, and a mix-in cycle for adding chunks after the first spin.

Each program will run for somewhere between one and two and a half minutes according to Ninja. As such, the overnight freeze is the only real waiting you'll have to do. The 24-hour freeze does mean you'll need to plan a day ahead, so keeping a second batch in the freezer while you eat the first one is probably the way to use it.

Thankfully, you get two pints with storage lids in the box, along with the outer bowl, the paddle, and a 30-recipe guide. The pints, lids, and paddle are dishwasher safe. Since you'll be making the base yourself, you can decide how much sugar goes in, throw in some protein powder, or make a dairy-free version. This is the main reason to own one of these, in my opinion, because it's such an easy way to make your protein intake a bit more exciting than it usually is.

The machine itself is an 800-watt unit that takes up about 17.4 by 8.6 inches of counter space and stands 18.4 inches tall, and Ninja offers a one-year limited warranty on it.

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Read More: Best Prime Day robot vacuum deals

Amazon Prime Big Deal Days on October 6 and 7 is a great time to buy a robot floor cleaner, with deals across brands and from budget to top of the line. You don't have to wait, though: most of these deals are already live on Amazon ahead of the official sale.

I've been testing robotic vacs and mopvacs for years and picked ten of my favorites from the event. The first four suit most homes, and the rest solve specific problems, from pet hair to stubborn messes to a vacuum-only budget. Sale prices start at $139.99, with discounts of up to 57% off.

The first choice is whether you want a mop at all. Every pick except the last two vacuums and mops, so if you only want a vacuum, skip to the end. After that, the difference is how much work the dock does for you. The Roomba 105X asks you to fill the water tank and attach the mop pad yourself, while docks like the Shark PowerDetect's and the Roomba Max's wash and dry the mop on their own.

Best overall: Roborock Saros 10R

The deal: $999.99, down from $1,599.99 (38% off), on sale now

If you've wanted a premium robot vacuum but couldn't justify the full price, this is the deal to grab. The Saros 10R is $600 off a model that normally sells for $1,599.99, and it's available now rather than only during the two-day event.

The discount lands on a robot loaded with premium features: a 3.14-inch ultra-slim design, 22,000Pa suction, StarSight Autonomous System 2.0 navigation, and a dual anti-tangle system. Its AdaptiLift chassis helps it handle changes in floor height, something I've seen it do in my own home. The low profile reaches under beds, sofas, and cabinets where dust collects, and the anti-tangle system is designed to reduce the hair you have to pull from the brushes.

At $999.99, it also undercuts the sale price of the Narwal Flow 2 below, which is why I'd single it out for stretching your Prime Day dollars.

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Best budget pick: iRobot Roomba 105X Combo

The deal: $199.99, down from $469.99 (57% off), on sale now

For a first robot vacuum, or for routine dust, crumbs, and dirt handled without a big outlay, start here. The Roomba 105X Combo uses ClearView LiDAR to map your home, can vacuum, mop, or do both, and automatically detects carpet to keep the mop off your rugs. Its AutoEmpty dock can hold up to 75 days of debris.

The trade-off is that you fill the water tank and attach the mop pad yourself, so it asks for more of your time than the pricier docks below. At $199.99, you get much of the convenience that makes robot vacuums useful without paying for advanced features you may not need.

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Best for new technology: Narwal Flow 2

The deal: $1,044.99, down from $1,499.99 (30% off), on sale October 6 and 7

The Narwal Flow 2 scrubs with a moving fabric track that keeps more mop material pressed against the floor at once. That gives it more surface area to scrub and keeps each spot in contact with the mop longer as the robot passes over it. The track debuted on the original Flow, and when I tested the Flow 2 in my own home, I was very impressed with its cleaning abilities. We also gave it a Techlicious Spotlight Award at CES 2026.

The Flow 2 changes how that track gets its water. Sixteen nozzles spray 140-degree hot water onto the moving fabric before it scrubs, up from 104 degrees on the original Flow. Afterward, a scraper removes dirt and used water from the track and sends it to the robot's wastewater tank.

Its new AI Floor Tag feature identifies items such as jewelry, phones, and wallets, steers around them, and records their location in the app. With 31,000Pa of suction, a tangle-resistant brush system, and a base that automatically empties the robot and washes and dries the mop, it handles vacuuming and mopping with minimal intervention.

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Best flagship specs: Dreame X60 Max Ultra Complete

The deal: $1,499.98, down from $1,699.99 (12% off), on sale now

The X60 Max Ultra Complete is Dreame's top model, and its 35,000Pa suction rating is the highest in this roundup and one of the highest period. A retractable pressure plate forms a semi-sealed chamber over carpet to hold that suction in place and pull out embedded dust.

The mopping hardware is just as ambitious. Two spinning mop pads press down with up to 15 newtons of force at up to 230RPM, and Dreame says they swing outward up to 1.57 inches to reach under furniture and along edges. The dock scrubs the pads with 212°F water, dries them with hot air, and the pads mop at up to 104°F.

Navigation is where it separates itself from the pack. Dual 120-degree cameras recognize more than 280 object types, down to items about 0.39 inches across, and a blue proactive light is designed to reveal hair and light-colored liquids that are hard to see. It climbs double-layer thresholds up to 3.47 inches, though only 1.77 inches for a single step. The dock handles the rest. It empties the robot for up to 100 days, refills the water tank, and has a dual-compartment system that automatically adds cleaning and pet odor solutions.

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Best hands-off value: Shark PowerDetect NeverTouch Pro

The deal: $499.99, down from $999.99 (50% off), on sale now

Nobody wants to babysit a robot vacuum, and this is one of the least expensive ways to get a dock that runs the whole routine. After each run, the robot returns to its base, which empties the debris into a bagless bin with a HEPA seal that Shark says traps 99.97% of pet allergens and dust. The base also refills the water tank, and washes and dries the mop pad. Shark says the system is maintenance-free for up to a month.

The feature behind the NeverTouch name is the pad itself. The robot drops its mopping pad off at the base to be washed and dried, then picks it back up, with no help from you. It also lifts the wet pad when it senses carpet. While mopping, the pad extends up to an inch to reach edges, and Shark's StainDetect sensing sends the robot back for extra passes over stained areas.

The trade-off is how long the dock runs between visits. A month is shorter than the Roomba Max 705X's 75 days or the Dreame's 100, which is the cost of the lower price.

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Best for pet hair value : Eufy E25 Robot Vacuum and Mop Combo

The deal: $599.99, down from $999.99 (40% off), on sale now

Shedding dogs and cats turn hair into one more chore, and the E25's brush is built around that problem. Its DuoSpiral roller is split into two sections that push hair toward the central suction opening instead of letting it wrap around the roller. Bristles loosen hair caught in carpet fibers, and rubber fins help carry it in. Side brushes sweep loose fur along edges into the main brush's path, and 20,000Pa suction pulls hair and debris from carpets and hard floors.

Its HydroJet roller mop keeps refreshing with clean water while it works, and Eufy's all-in-one station empties the robot, washes the mop, dries it with hot air, refills the robot with water, and collects wastewater. That's $400 off the regular $999.99 price.

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Best for stubborn floor messes: Ecovacs Deebot X12S Pro Omni

The deal: $949.00, down from $1,299.99 (27% off), on sale now

Dried spills, kitchen grease, and muddy paw prints are the messes I'd point the Deebot X12S Pro Omni at. Its FocusJet technology pre-sprays cleaning solution directly onto stains before the mop roller passes over them.

The OZMO Roller 3.0 continuously rinses itself with fresh water and scrubs with 4,000Pa of downward pressure at 220 RPM. The roller lifts when the robot encounters carpet, and a cover keeps the wet roller from touching carpet fibers. At 3.86 inches tall, it also stays low enough to reach under many sofas and beds. It earns its price on floors that need more than a quick automated wipe.

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Best mop value: iRobot Roomba Max 705X Combo

The deal: $699.99, down from $1,399.99 (50% off), on sale now

Half off makes the Roomba Max 705X Combo the strongest mopping deal here. Its heated roller mop scrubs at 200 RPM, extends to reach along edges and into corners, and continuously washes itself as it cleans. A cover protects carpets from the wet roller (shown above), and a SmartScrub setting gives especially dirty areas extra attention.

The AutoWash Dock handles the messy part afterward: it empties the robot's debris for up to 75 days, heat-washes the roller at 161°F, dries it, and refills the cleaning solution. At $699.99, it's a major purchase, but it does far more than give your floors a quick once-over.

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Best vac only: Shark AI Ultra

The deal: $239.99, down from $549.99 (56% off), on sale now

Not everyone needs or wants a mop, so there's no reason to pay for one. The Shark AI Ultra is the vacuum-only robot I'd buy. It maps your home with 360-degree LiDAR and cleans in a grid pattern, taking multiple passes over dirt and debris. A self-cleaning brush roll resists hair wrap, which matters for pet owners. You can schedule runs and start cleanings by voice with Alexa or Google Assistant, and if the battery runs low mid-clean, it recharges and picks up where it left off.

The bagless self-empty base holds up to 30 days of dirt, and the HEPA filter removes 99.97% of dust and allergens down to 0.3 microns.

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Best for low furniture: Eufy 11S Max

The deal: $139.99, down from $279.99 (50% off), on sale now

At $139.99, the Eufy 11S Max is the cheapest robot in this roundup: $60 less than the Roomba 105X Combo and $100 less than the Shark AI Ultra. It also has the slimmest profile of any robot here with a listed height, at 2.85 inches, compared with 3.13 inches for the Dreame X60 Max Ultra Complete, 3.14 inches for the Roborock Saros 10R, and 3.86 inches for the Ecovacs Deebot X12S Pro Omni.

Low beds and sofas call for a slim robot, so measure the gap under yours before you buy. A robot can't clean beneath furniture it can't fit under.

You run it from a remote, and it skips the self-emptying dock, Wi-Fi, and mapping that the Shark AI Ultra offers. If your goal is keeping everyday dust and debris under control, you get a low-profile robot for half its $279.99 regular price.

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A molecule made by bacteria in your gut is linked to faster decline in thinking skills and more Alzheimer's-related changes in the brain, according to a University of Wisconsin-Madison study published in Nature Communications. The molecule, called imidazole propionate (ImP), is a byproduct certain gut microbes produce when they digest histidine, an amino acid found in many protein-rich foods.

Researchers measured ImP in the blood of 1,196 adults with no cognitive impairment, whose average age was 61. People with higher ImP scored lower on tests designed to catch early Alzheimer's-related changes, and their blood also showed more markers of Alzheimer's-related protein damage and nerve cell injury.

Over repeated visits, the quarter of participants with the highest ImP levels declined faster than the quarter with the lowest.

Those findings show a connection, not the cause, so the team looked for more evidence. A gene variant carried by about 43% of people of European ancestry is linked to higher ImP levels, and earlier large genetic studies had tied the same variant to higher Alzheimer's risk. Because inherited variants are set at conception, they can work as a natural experiment that sidesteps diet and lifestyle. Using it, the researchers estimated that each step up in genetically predicted ImP came with 16% higher odds of Alzheimer's.

In the lab, male mice bred to develop Alzheimer's-like disease received ImP in their drinking water. They built up more amyloid plaques, the sticky protein clumps associated with Alzheimer's, and showed more of the tau protein changes seen in advanced disease.

The lab studies also showed that ImP reached the brain and made the blood-brain barrier, the tight lining that controls what gets into the brain from the bloodstream, more leaky. The researchers had not expected that, since computer modeling suggested ImP could not cross the barrier freely. Human brain blood vessel cells grown in a dish also lost barrier strength when exposed to ImP.

The gut side of the story is murkier. The team sequenced the DNA in stool samples from 294 people and found several bacterial species carrying the gene for the enzyme that makes ImP, including members of the Lactobacillus and Streptococcus groups. Only one of them, Streptococcus pasteurianus, rose and fell with blood ImP levels.

Federico Rey, a UW-Madison bacteriologist who co-led the study, says the ImP-producing bacteria are present in a large share of people but are rarely abundant, yet a microbe does not need to be abundant to affect its host.

For now, the findings do not support giving anyone a diet plan. The human data cannot prove that ImP causes Alzheimer's, the mouse experiments used only males, and the mice received ImP directly rather than producing it through gut bacteria. The study also measured ImP in relative units rather than absolute concentrations, so no threshold for a "high" level exists yet.

Co-lead Barbara Bendlin, UW-Madison professor of medicine, says cutting out eggs or red meat is no solution, because the body needs histidine and "it's all over the place."

The researchers see several possible ways to lower ImP that have not been tested in people: changing the bacteria that make it, blocking the bacterial enzyme involved, using diets that limit its production, or stopping it from entering the bloodstream. Bendlin compares the hoped-for result to statins, which lower cholesterol in people whose levels run high.

ImP has also been tied to type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, clogged arteries, and chronic kidney disease, so lowering it could matter beyond your brain health. Longer-term studies in people and animal experiments using defined bacterial communities are the researchers' next steps.

What is the difference between MSI Crosshair and Stealth, and which one should I buy?

Choose an MSI Crosshair 16 laptop if sustained gaming performance and high CPU/GPU power are your priorities. The Crosshair A16 HX pairs AMD Ryzen HX processors with up to RTX 5070 graphics, while the Crosshair 16 Max HX uses Intel Core Ultra HX processors and reaches up to 200W combined CPU/GPU power. Choose the Stealth 16 AI+ if you want stronger portability, a 240Hz OLED display and up to RTX 5080 graphics in a 4.39-pound chassis.

The MSI Crosshair series laptops are high-performance gaming laptops offering different models. First, you have the Crosshair 16 Max with the Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX processor that can deliver up to 200W of total performance. Next, there’s the Crosshair A16 HX configured with the AMD Ryzen 9 8940HX processor and delivering up to 190W. Configurable with top specs from either AMD or Intel with powerful NVIDIA RTX Graphics, the 16-inch laptop is a jack of all trades, able to run AI workloads and robotics simulations or create a presentation for work or school. And yes, it can absolutely deliver buttery-smooth frame rates and beautiful graphics when it’s game time. It’s the ideal powerhouse for creatives, students, professionals, gamers, and programmers. 

But say you need extreme portability injected into the equation. Then the lightweight MSI Stealth series is the way to go. The Stealth 16 AI+ seamlessly combines power and portability by outfitting an Intel® Core™ Ultra 9 processor 386H and up to NVIDIA RTX 5080 Laptop GPU into a sleek aluminum chassis that weighs less than 5 pounds with a thickness of only 0.66 inches. This is the laptop for mobile professionals and anyone who wants a versatile notebook that can handle heavy workloads including productivity and AI, as well as gaming, and that doesn’t look like a gaming PC.

MSI Crosshair Series: the Gaming Laptop for Any Scenario

MSI offers several models of the Crosshair 16 series including the Crosshair A16 with AMD Ryzen 9 8940HX processor and the MSI Crosshair 16 Max with Intel Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus processor. For the graphics card, both iterations top out at an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Laptop GPU with 12GB GDDR7 VRAM for the Crosshair 16 Max, and 8GB GDDR7 VRAM for the Crosshair A16. It’s a combination ripe for heavy productivity and multitasking, including large spreadsheets, STEM applications, and research. 

But let’s start with gaming and that NVIDIA GPU. The Crosshair 16 series uses NVIDIA’s powerful Blackwell architecture that includes ray and path tracing for more realistic lights, shadows, and reflections. To ensure optimal graphics, DLSS 4.5 employs AI-powered rendering and frame generation, which also produces higher frame rates. There’s also NVIDIA Reflex 2 that works to significantly reduce input lag. It’s a clutch feature for anyone who plays FPS or DOTA-style games. As it stands, expect to play most of your games at the highest settings with little to no compromise.

How do the Crosshair 16 series laptops perform under demanding workloads?

Outside of running games at some of the highest settings with little to no latency, the RTX 5070 lends itself to plenty of non-gaming activities. Creatives, architects, engineers, and students should appreciate the GPU’s efficiency in accelerating video effects and exports, rendering 3D models, visualizing CAD projects, and encoding livestreams. Meanwhile, comp-sci and STEM students have a platform for learning CUDA programming, experimenting with smaller local AI models, and building projects in Unity or Unreal Engine. 

But we can’t forget the CPUs. Both the Ryzen 9 8940HX and Core Ultra 9 290HX Plus processor can power through the most demanding tasks you throw at them. That level of processing comes in clutch when you’ve got your latest class assignment, 30 browser tabs, a video call, and an unwieldy Excel workbook all competing for attention. The Crosshair 16 series can also tackle more demanding coursework, including compiling code, analyzing large datasets, creating CAD models, and running engineering simulations. 

How well does the Crosshair 16 series handle AI workloads? 

Thanks to the GPU’s Tensor Cores, the Crosshair 16 series is a great starting point for learning the ropes of AI development. It can easily run smaller LLM workloads as well as AI-powered photo and video editing and GenAI tasks. Students could build handy chatbots to manage notes, transcribe lectures, or assist with projects. 

I’d be remiss if I didn’t talk about the Crosshair 16’s design and other key features. The MSI Crosshair 16 Max weighs up to 5.1 pounds, and measuring up to 14.29" x 10.62" x 0.86 - 0.94" while the Crosshair A16 HX has dimensions of 5.07 lbs,14.29” x 10.62” x 0.86 - 1.01”. The Crosshair 16 series are 8% lighter and thinner than the previous model. And they’re giving Gundam in all the best ways. The etchings on the lid resemble the gridlines on the pilot’s head-up display, with MSI’s dragon mascot, Lucky, lit up in beautiful RGB backlighting. Crosshair is written in a funky, futuristic font that makes the notebook stand out from other MSI laptops, as does the graphic detailing and Crosshair icon on the palm deck.

There’s more RGB goodness emanating from the full-size, island-style keyboard with full num pad. The Crosshair A16 HX has a 4-zone RGB keyboard, while the Crosshair 16 Max HX steps up to 24 zones. The laptop’s undercarriage is basically a massive stylishly designed vent, which helps airflow to the redesigned Cooler Boost technology with 2 fans and 4 exhaust vents.  MSI says the redesign brings in up to 51% airflow, which will help keep everything cool for longer stretches of high performance. That will definitely come in handy, as the Crosshair 16 series has MSI Overboost technology onboard, which pushes combined wattage to up to 190W for the Crosshair A16 and up to 200W for the Crosshair 16 Max.

The Crosshair 16 series offers a healthy variety of ports, including two USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 ports, three USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, Ethernet, HDMI 2.1, a headset jack, DC-in, and a Kensington lock. 

Whether you’re gaming, studying, watching video, or editing it, the Crosshair 16’s display is one to watch. The Crosshair A16 HX pairs a 2560 x 1600 QHD+ resolution with a fast 240Hz refresh rate and 100% DCI-P3 color coverage, delivering fluid motion for competitive games and detailed visuals for creative work.

The Crosshair 16 Max HX offers two QHD+ display options. The 240Hz IPS-level panel prioritizes responsiveness and fluid motion, while the 165Hz OLED panel with VESA DisplayHDR True Black 1000 delivers deeper blacks, richer contrast, and more immersive visuals. Buyers can choose based on whether refresh rate or OLED image quality matters more to them.

The MSI Crosshair 16 is working with a stacked deck, and it’s dealing consumers a winning hand. Thanks to its powerful specs and thoughtful features, the laptop is a tried-and-true beast whether you’re racking up the kills in your favorite shooter or working on your latest LLM or GenAI project. Built for performance, the Crosshair 16 can tackle a wide swath of tasks without breaking a sweat.

MSI Stealth 16 AI+: premium performance meets maximum portability

Everyone loves a powerful laptop. However, a lot of those powerful systems are absolute units. That’s fine for the home office, but for those of us who are constantly on the run, it’s a no-go, with our aching backs as testament. So what’s a student or mobile professional supposed to do? 

Rather than play the compromise game, I’d like to suggest the MSI Stealth 16 AI+. A thin-and-light system weighing only 4.39 pounds with a svelte thickness of 0.66 inches, the Stealth 16 AI+ was built for the work-on-the-go crowd. But don’t write off the laptop as one of those performance-lite machines. You know the ones. Can only handle bare-minimum productivity and multitasking with laughable gaming capability.

No, my friends, MSI found a way to cram a whole lot of power into that tiny chassis. The laptop is available with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 processor, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Laptop GPU 16GB GDDR7 VRAM, and an NPU that can reach up to 50 TOPS. All in all, the Stealth 16 AI+ is a lean, mean multitasking/AI/productivity/gaming machine. And it’s got some upgradability. The laptop has two RAM slots and two SSD slots in case you need a memory or storage boost.

But before we get into the performance and use cases, let’s talk about the design, because the redesigned Stealth 16 AI+ is an absolute beaut. The Charcoal Black all-aluminum chassis is elegant and doesn’t indulge in the bright RGB-saturated light show that screams “gamer” unless you want it to. Instead, the notebook is all rounded edges with a lid that has a pair of interlocking geometric rings that subtly form an S along the right and the MSI iconography and Stealth wordmark along the bottom left. 

A 240Hz OLED Display for Gaming and Content Creation

Opening the laptop is your first hint that this is not your average laptop with the glowing 4-zone RGB keyboard sandwiched between a pair of speakers. A stunning 16-inch, 2560 x 1600 OLED display with a 240Hz refresh rate is the centerpiece of the show, ensconced in barely-there bezels. The display is designed with low blue light and eye care features such as VESA HDR True Black 600 and SGS Eye Care certification. Plus, the panel has 100% DCI-P3 coverage with Delta E<1 color accuracy, which designers, photo and video editors will appreciate.

For such a slim system, the Stealth 16 AI+ has a healthy line of ports, including a pair of Thunderbolt 4 ports, two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, HDMI 2.1, Ethernet, a headset jack, DC-in, and a Kensington lock slot. 

The Stealth 16 AI+ undoubtedly has gamer DNA. But the notebook is more than that, particularly for creative professionals. That lovely, color-accurate display and high refresh rate lend themselves to smoother motion when scrubbing through video timelines, moving objects across a canvas, or navigating complex 3D scenes. NVIDIA Studio, a hardware and software platform designed for video editors, photographers and graphic designers, is also on board. Paired with the RTX 5080 GPU and its 16GB of VRAM, NVIDIA Studio can boost high-resolution video editing, motion graphics, 3D rendering, and AI-powered creative apps, essentially transforming the Stealth 16 AI+ into a portable creative studio.

And let’s not forget the Intel® Core™ Ultra 9 processor 386H. With its 16 cores (4 performance / 8 efficiency / 4 low-power efficiency), the Stealth 16 AI+ is a multitasking/productivity master. For instance, a video producer could use the Stealth to edit high-resolution footage while running Photoshop, managing project files, and researching assets in a browser. The processor’s cores can distribute demanding production work and lighter background tasks across its performance, efficiency, and low-power efficiency cores. Meanwhile, its NPU can also accelerate supported AI features such as transcription, background removal, subject tracking, and noise suppression, leaving more CPU and GPU resources available for editing and rendering.

So, if the Stealth 16 AI+ can do all of that for creatives, what about its bread-and-butter audience: gamers? Rocking the second most powerful mobile GPU in NVIDIA’s Blackwell lineup, the laptop should have little trouble running today’s most demanding games. Ray tracing can produce more realistic lighting, shadows, and reflections, while DLSS 4.5 can help offset the resulting performance hit and deliver higher frame rates. The results should look particularly captivating on the Stealth’s 240Hz OLED display.

Supporting all that performance is a combined CPU and GPU power budget of up to 175W when the laptop is plugged in and set to its maximum-performance mode. MSI’s Cooler Boost with Intra Flow system manages the resulting heat, helping the components sustain performance within the Stealth’s thin chassis.

The RTX 5080 handles the visual workload, while the Core Ultra 9 386H processes game logic, physics, player inputs, character behavior, and the instructions sent to the GPU. Its performance cores tackle the game’s most time-sensitive tasks, while the efficiency cores can manage background applications such as Discord, recording software, and web browsers. This division of labor helps maintain responsive gameplay and the high frame rates needed to take advantage of the Stealth’s 240Hz display. 

And since it’s in the name, we definitely have to talk about AI. With the Core Ultra 9 386H comes an NPU that can reach up to 50 TOPS. The Stealth’s AI hardware has uses beyond novelty image generators. The processor’s NPU can handle supported background features more efficiently, leaving the CPU and GPU available for more demanding work. Creators can use compatible tools to track subjects, remove backgrounds, reduce noise, upscale footage, or generate captions, while developers can prototype private document assistants and other local AI applications.

The Stealth 16 AI+’s RTX 5080 can accelerate local language models, video transcription, AI-assisted editing, image generation, computer vision, and application development. Its 16GB of VRAM provides plenty of room to store and process the data before calculations, but it remains a mobile development and inference system. However, it’s not a replacement for the infrastructure used to train large foundation models. 

Which Laptop Should You Pick, the MSI Crosshair or Stealth?

So, we have two MSI laptops, both powerful and capable of pulling multiple tasks outside of their gaming footprint. But which one’s right for you? Choose the MSI Crosshair if you prioritize sustained CPU/GPU performance and expect to spend most of your time gaming, rendering, coding, working with engineering applications or running demanding workloads.

Choose the MSI Stealth 16 AI+ if you want strong gaming and creator performance but frequently carry your laptop. Its lighter aluminum chassis, 240Hz OLED display and RTX 5080 option make it especially suitable for mobile creators, professionals and students.

Both are gaming laptops, but their priorities are different: Crosshair emphasizes sustained performance. Stealth emphasizes performance with portability

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FAQs

How much does the MSI Crosshair 16 series laptops cost?

There are several versions of the MSI Crosshair 16. The MSI Crosshair Max 16 HX starts at $2,599 while the Crosshair A16 HX costs $2,699. Keep in mind, both versions of the laptop have different configurations along with different pricing.

Is the MSI Stealth 16 AI+ good for gaming?

Yes, the MSI Stealth 16 AI+ is a strong gaming laptop, especially when configured with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5080 Laptop GPU. It can run modern AAA games at high settings, while NVIDIA DLSS 4.5 can improve frame rates and image quality through AI-powered upscaling and frame generation. Its 240Hz OLED display also delivers smooth motion, fast response times, vivid color, and deep contrast.

For the best gaming performance, the laptop should be plugged in and set to its highest performance mode, which allows the CPU and GPU to use up to 175 watts of combined power. Performance will vary by configuration, game, resolution, cooling, and graphics settings.

Which is better for students: MSI Crosshair or MSI Stealth?

Crosshair makes more sense for students who prioritize sustained gaming, STEM, engineering, or creator performance. Stealth is better suited to students who frequently carry their laptop and value a lighter chassis, professional design, and OLED display.

Which laptop is better for content creation?

Although both laptops have high-resolution screens, for content creation, OLED is king. That’s why I’m giving it to the Stealth with its QHD+ OLED panel, 100% DCI-P3 coverage, and a Delta E score below 1. Plus, it’s got NVIDIA Studio support, and the more powerful RTX 5080 option. But don’t write the Crosshair off just yet, as it remains a strong choice for creators who prioritize sustained CPU/GPU performance over portability.

Can MSI Crosshair and Stealth run AI locally?

Yes, depending on the application and selected configuration. Both product families use NVIDIA RTX GPUs capable of accelerating compatible local AI applications. Common workloads can include: local language-model inference, transcription, AI-assisted photo and video editing, image generation, computer vision and application development. However, local AI performance depends heavily on the selected GPU, VRAM capacity, system memory, model size, quantization, software framework and power settings.

Why is a 240Hz display important?

A 240Hz display refreshes its image up to 240 times per second, producing smoother motion and clearer fast-moving action than a regular 60Hz screen. That can make opponents easier to track and controls feel more responsive in shooters. The higher refresh rate also adds fluidity to scrolling, video timelines, and 3D creative work. To realize its full benefit, however, the laptop must render the application or game at correspondingly high frame rates.

Apple patched a flaw in iPhones, iPads, and Macs and says the bug may have been exploited in an "extremely sophisticated" attack against specific individuals using iOS. Apple disclosed the vulnerability, tracked as CVE-2026-86950, on September 28.

The bug sits in CoreGraphics, the part of Apple's software that processes images and other visual files across its platforms. Apple classifies it as an out-of-bounds write, where software writes data outside the memory set aside for it. According to Apple, processing a maliciously crafted file could let an attacker use this vulnerability to run their own code on the device. 

Apple hasn't identified the attackers, the victims, or how the attack was delivered. Apple credits Meta Product Security with reporting the flaw, suggesting that the attack could have been routed through Facebook, Instagram, or WhatsApp.

The fix for this flaw is now available in iOS 26.7.1, iPadOS 26.7.1, macOS Tahoe 26.7.1, and macOS Sequoia 15.8.1.

Journalists, activists, public officials, and others who are likely spyware targets should install the update first. Everyone else should install it too. On an iPhone or iPad, open Settings, tap General, then tap Software Update. On a Mac, open the Apple menu, choose System Settings, click General in the sidebar (scroll down if you don't see it), then click Software Update.

Read more: Four iOS 27 settings to change the day you install it

If you’ve been thinking about upgrading to an OLED TV but don’t want to spend flagship-TV money, Roku’s first OLED sets are already getting a substantial price cut ahead of Amazon’s Prime Days. You can save $300 on the 55-inch Roku Pro Series OLED or $400 on the 65-inch model. The offers are available now through October 4, so you don't have to wait for Amazon's October 6–7 Prime Days event to get the savings.

Unlike an LCD TV, an OLED panel can turn off individual pixels to show true black. That makes dark movie scenes look deeper and more lifelike, without the faint glow you can sometimes see from an LCD's backlight. The Pro Series has a 4K OLED display with a 120Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision and HDR10+ support, Dolby Atmos and gaming features including a variable refresh rate.

You get Roku's familiar smart-TV interface, along with four HDMI 2.1 ports, Bluetooth headphone mode for private listening, and a remote finder built into the TV so you can find it when it slips between couch cushions.

I’m also a big fan of Roku’s included tool-free stand that uses large hand-tightening knobs instead of requiring a screwdriver or other tools, especially helpful if you’re setting up the TV alone.

At $699.99 for 55 inches or $799.99 for 65 inches, these prices also put Roku's first OLED TVs into a very different part of the market than their original launch prices. If you have the room, the 65-inch model at $799.99 is the best deal here. It's only $100 more than the discounted 55-inch and $200 less than the smaller model's regular price.

If you've wanted OLED picture quality without moving into four-figure territory, this is a sale worth looking at. To get these deals, you'll need to use the following promo codes before the October 4 deadline.

55-inch Roku Pro Series OLED: $999.99, $699.99 with code ROKUOLED300

65-inch Roku Pro Series OLED: $1,199.99, $799.99 with code ROKUOLED400

GET THE DEAL ON AMAZON

Qualcomm has been making a lot of noise of late, and it's only going to get louder. This week in Hawaii, the company announced two new mobile chips: the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6. Qualcomm flew me out to watch the keynote in person, and it's clear that Qualcomm has its eyes firmly on AI. From gaming to on-device chatbots, video tools, and even next-gen wireless connectivity, the company is laser-focused on creating a serious ecosystem buoyed by its powerful chips and the ever-evolving capabilities of AI.

To Qualcomm, the future of AI is mobile and decidedly Android-powered. Both the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 and the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 will be making appearances in a number of upcoming phones. Qualcomm even advised the audience to keep an eye on Mobile World Congress 2027. And while new smartphones are always exciting, my fervor dimmed when I noticed that many of these phones won't be coming stateside, with the exception of the intriguing Motorola Signature 27. The Signature 27 will use the Extreme Gen 6, the more powerful of the two new chips.

While I'm annoyed I won't be able to get my hands on the upcoming Honor and Xiaomi phones, I'm excited about what Qualcomm's new chips mean for the future of mobile computing. These premium chips are a strong indicator that flagship phone makers are bullish on local AI as well as smarter cameras and image processing, PC-style gaming, and speedier wireless connections.

Meet Elite Gen 6

But before we get ahead of ourselves, let's say hello to our new chip friends. The Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 6 is Qualcomm's entry-level premium chipset, while the Extreme chip sits firmly at the top of the mountain. Both chips use a new 2nm manufacturing process that should help future phones run demanding AI, gaming, and camera features without increasing heat and battery drain at the same rate as performance. The chips also sport an Oryon CPU that can reach up to 5GHz, a Hexagon NPU, next-gen Adreno graphics, an X105 5G modem, and the FastConnect 8800 connectivity system. If you're unfamiliar, FastConnect 8800 is the part of the Snapdragon platform responsible for Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, ultra-wideband, and Thread connectivity. The company claims faster, more reliable connections with compatible devices and networks.

There are a few features that set the Snapdragon 8 Elite Extreme Gen 6 apart from the Elite Gen 6. First off, it has more powerful on-device AI as well as support for larger AI models. It also has dedicated AI graphics hardware with more graphics memory. The chip boasts advanced professional-video features with greater sustained performance. So if you want all the bells and whistles, make sure you look for a device with the Extreme chip.

But if most of the phones that will use either chip won't make it to U.S. markets, why should you care? Frankly, because of the phone that will grace our shores. When the Motorola Signature 27 lands later this year, it will have an Extreme chip; it could give Samsung, Google, and Apple a run for their money, provided the Extreme lives up to the hype. And if you watched the keynote, you heard a lot of claims.

For instance, Qualcomm claims 13% faster CPU performance and 37% better CPU efficiency than the previous generation. That means we should see faster app launches; less slowdown during taxing activities like gaming, video editing, and AI processing; less heat-induced performance throttling; and longer battery life. Those last two gains depend heavily on the Signature 27's ArcticMesh cooling, which combines liquid metal, copper mesh, diamond-infused thermal gel, and a larger vapor chamber.

Qualcomm's evolving AI

And it wouldn't be 2026 if we didn't talk about AI. As the technology becomes more ubiquitous, it's imperative that devices have enough power to handle increasingly demanding tasks locally instead of in the cloud. It's a privacy and a performance issue. Running AI directly on the phone can produce faster responses, work without an internet connection, and keep more information on the device. However, on-device AI is not automatically private. Your privacy still depends on whether the phone or app sends any of your data to the cloud.

Both chips include dedicated AI hardware called the Hexagon NPU. According to Qualcomm, the Extreme can run larger, more demanding AI models while using less power.

That extra capability could let your phone summarize long documents, understand conversations and distinguish between speakers, edit photos based on your preferences, and coordinate tasks across multiple apps. It could also allow more AI features to run locally without immediately sending your information to the cloud.

It can improve your gaming experience, too. The Extreme chip uses dedicated AI hardware to improve gaming graphics. The chip's Adreno Neural Fusion technology can render a game at a lower resolution and use AI to produce a sharper image. Plus, it can generate additional frames to make gameplay appear smoother.

Upscaling and frame generation can improve image quality and bump up frame rates while reducing the burden on the GPU, potentially lowering heat and power consumption. Keep in mind that AI-generated frames don't improve responsiveness the way frames rendered directly by the GPU do.

Your photography will also get an AI alley-oop. The Extreme's Intelligent Pixel Control technology helps the camera identify individual parts of a scene, including faces, hair, skin, skies, food, and moving subjects. Instead of processing the entire image the same way, AI can adjust each element separately. This could produce more natural portraits, better exposure, steadier footage, and improved low-light video. Qualcomm says the technology can make real-time skin-tone adjustments, which could help phones render a wider range of complexions more naturally, particularly in difficult lighting. However, the results will still depend on each phone maker's camera hardware and software tuning.

The Extreme also supports 8K video at 60 fps, 4K slow-motion video at 240 fps, and the professional-quality APV video format. As with Intelligent Pixel Control, however, the final results will still depend on the phone's camera specs and manufacturer tuning.

Faster connectivity

In addition to improved AI, the new chips are designed for faster connectivity. Both chips have Qualcomm's X105, the first modem-RF system designed for 3GPP Release 19, the latest set of 5G Advanced standards. Release 19 is intended to improve network speed, reliability, efficiency, and satellite connectivity with some future-proofing, laying groundwork for 6G. The modem supports theoretical 5G download speeds of up to 14.8Gbps. Both chips also include FastConnect 8800, which supports next-generation Wi-Fi 8, faster Bluetooth, ultra-wideband, Thread, and satellite communication. Together, these technologies could provide faster cloud-based AI, more reliable connections in crowded areas, and expanded satellite services.

Bottom line

Currently, the Motorola Signature 27 is the only phone confirmed to be coming to the States with one of the new chips. That's a bit of a bummer until you consider that Samsung regularly uses Qualcomm chips in its flagship phones. So, it's not a stretch to think the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S27 series could rock at least one of these processors. The same goes for the 2027 versions of the Galaxy Z Fold and Z Flip. Of course, the chips' ultimate performance will depend on how phone manufacturers adapt them to their designs, features, and price points. Cooling, battery capacity, memory, camera hardware, and software optimization will determine whether Qualcomm's lofty performance and efficiency claims translate into a noticeably better phone.

Google released Chrome 154 this week, closing 108 security holes in the browser more than three billion people use every day. Eleven of those flaws are rated critical, Google's highest severity level.

All 11 critical bugs are memory-corruption flaws: coding errors that let a webpage write more data into a piece of Chrome's memory than it's supposed to hold, or reach back into memory the browser already freed up. Either area of vulnerability can allow an attacker's own code execute inside Chrome, using the same access to your computer the browser itself has, just from opening a webpage.

Chrome updates itself automatically in the background, so you may have already downloaded the patch. However, the fix only takes effect after you restart the browser. Google says this update is rolling out gradually over the coming days.

To check where you stand, open Chrome's menu (the three dots in the top right corner), then Help, then About Google Chrome. That screen shows your current version number and starts downloading any pending update on its own. If it installs one, close and reopen the browser to finish the job.

The fix covers Chrome on Windows, Mac, and Linux. If you're on Android or iOS, check your phone's app store for a pending Chrome update, too, since mobile versions ship on their own schedule. And if you use a Chromium-based browser other than Chrome itself, such as Microsoft Edge, Brave, or Opera, watch for a similar update from that browser maker in the coming days, since they typically pull in Google's underlying security fixes on their own timeline.

Read next: Best antivirus software 2026: free and paid picks

Hisense has built an empire on overdelivering on its features without gouging your wallet. But that doesn't mean the company doesn't have more premium systems in its arsenal. Case in point, the U7SG series of televisions. Targeting sports fans, gamers, and movie buffs, the U7SG focuses on performance, but still manages to hit the sweet spot in many consumer budgets.

I had the opportunity to see the U7SG in action earlier this year, and with its captivating color and suite of features, I'd absolutely love to see more. The U7SG comes in several flavors, starting with the 55-inch, which costs $749.99 at Amazon. Next up are the 65-inch and 75-inch models, priced at $999.99 and $1,299.99. And if you want to go really big, there are the 88-inch, 100-inch, and 116-inch models. However, pricing for those hasn't been announced yet.

This is a TV, so the screen is obviously the star of the show. The U7SG is outfitted with a 4K Hi-QLED MiniLED Pro display. Since it combines two technologies, namely quantum dot technology that ensures more vivid color and more LEDs that make for more precise backlighting, Hi-QLED MiniLED can give OLED a run for its money. And since both technologies use older LCD technology as their backdrop, they're cheaper than OLED.

Other key advantages lie in the brightness, with Hisense claiming up to 3,000 nits of peak brightness as well as up to 3,000 local dimming zones, depending on the size of the TV. That brightness ensures color won't be washed out when viewing in direct sunlight. And the local dimming means smaller lighting zones, which translate into better black levels, contrast, and decreased light bloom around bright objects.

I saw two flavors of the U7SG: one screen played an action movie while the other played a replay of a soccer game. During the action sequence, I watched the grizzled protagonist run into danger, guns blazing. A well-placed shot to a fuel barrel created a glorious ball of reddish-orange flames with thick plumes of black smoke that were clearly visible despite an inky black sky.

But where the movie was dark and gritty, the soccer match was an explosion of vivid hues. The energy was frenetic, with flags from PSG and Real Madrid flying furiously throughout the stadium. Details were so crisp that I saw the sweat trickling down the brow of one player. And during an instant replay, I saw individual blades of grass. It was an impressive showing. The display's 165Hz refresh rate was on full display, ensuring there wasn't a hint of blur when blink-and-you'll-miss-it moves like a feint or a meg were executed.

To keep things looking this good, Hisense has implemented plenty of tech to create the optimal viewing experience depending on the scenario. First up is Hi-View AI Engine Pro, Hisense's proprietary AI processing technology, which uses AI algorithms to adjust brightness, detail, color, motion, and depth in real time. The TV also has Dolby Vision support to ensure movies look their best no matter the scene. Hisense also included Filmmaker Mode and IMAX Enhanced. The former is designed to show movies and TV shows the way the creator envisioned, with accurate color, accurate frame rates, and disabled post-processing. The latter is the opposite, creating a more cinematic experience with brighter colors and immersive audio.

For the gamers among us, the U7SG also has a number of gaming-centric technologies baked in. There's Dolby Vision Gaming and HDR10+ Gaming, which use dynamic metadata to adjust HDR in real time for better highlights, contrast, and color accuracy. AMD FreeSync Premium Pro reduces screen tearing and input lag by ensuring the frame rate of the display and GPU sync up.

And speaking of the display, that 165Hz refresh rate doesn’t just provide ultrasmooth motion for sports and action movies. It also comes in clutch for gaming too. It helps keep breathtaking moments like perfectly drifting through a hairpin turn in Forza Horizon 5 as clean as your expert steering. Think of it as a highway with more lanes: a conventional 60Hz or 120Hz TV can display the same content, but the 165Hz panel has more capacity to show additional frames when the source provides them. Gamers with a compatible PC can push performance further with Game Booster 330 by lowering resolution in favor of higher frame rates.

There's also Game Bar, an onscreen overlay that monitors settings such as FPS, VRR, and HDR in real time. When enabled, Game Bar can make quick updates to the image frame by frame to keep everything looking good and running smoothly.

The U7SG has 2.1.2 multi-channel surround sound, which features a left and right speaker, a subwoofer, and a pair of upward-firing speakers. Combined with Dolby Atmos and DTS Virtual:X, both audio technologies designed to simulate surround sound, the built-in speakers should produce powerful sound even without a soundbar. The 116-inch model has 6.2.2 channel audio, which breaks down into six directional speakers, a pair of subwoofers, and two up-firing speakers, all built into the television.

The U7SG has plenty of ports, including four HDMI 2.1 ports (4K@165Hz VRR, eARC and CEC), Ethernet, two USB ports (USB 3.0 and USB 2.0), an RF antenna, and an optical digital audio output. It's more than enough to fully trick out your A/V entertainment setup.

It's a foregone conclusion that modern TVs are smart; it's just a matter of which platform is driving everything. In the case of the U7SG, it's Google TV with Gemini. Google TV allows you to search for entertainment across your streaming apps, and with Gemini onboard, you can use Google's AI to search for movie and TV recommendations, tap into other smart home devices, or ask about the weather.

The Hisense U7SG offers a premium suite of features designed to create optimal visual and audio experiences. The screen is a showstopper, with colors so vivid that you could almost get an afterimage if you stare too long. Hisense has loaded up the TV with a compelling suite of gaming-centric utilities designed to make your games look and play at optimal levels whether you're playing on a console or PC. And the cherry on top might be the integrated speaker system, which sounds good without the aid of a soundbar. But outside of everything the U7SG offers, the best thing is the price. It's sticker shock in the best way. Hisense has mastered the art of premium offerings at midtier prices.

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Over the course of nearly two decades, I've reviewed hundreds of products, including my fair share of televisions. I'll admit it: I can be a bit of a specs snob, so in my own life, specs come first. I want the pinnacle of what's offered, or at least everything my budget can afford. But Hisense might break me of that habit, as its new E7SF TV brings features normally found on a flagship television to an entry or mid-tier price point.

Just in time for football season, Hisense is rolling out the E7SF, a 4K TV starting at $699.99 for the 50-inch model, with the 55-inch only costing $749.99 on Amazon. There's also a 65-inch model for $999.99. If that's not big enough, Amazon also has the TV in 75-inch, 85-inch, and a whopping 100-inch sizes.

If you've read any of my reviews over the years, you know I'm a huge OLED fan. However, QLED and MiniLED displays have made a big impression since their arrival, particularly when it comes to brightness and value.

Here's a quick cheat sheet for anyone unfamiliar with QLED and MiniLED. Both are based on LCD display technology and use LEDs to illuminate the picture from behind. QLED adds a layer of quantum dots designed to produce brighter, more accurate colors. Hisense calls its implementation Hi-QLED, but the underlying idea is the same.

MiniLED focuses on the backlight rather than the color-producing layer. It replaces conventional LEDs with much smaller ones, allowing manufacturers to pack more of them behind the display and divide them into more precisely controlled dimming zones. That can produce brighter highlights, finer details, deeper blacks, and better contrast than a conventional LED-backlit LCD TV.

MiniLED is particularly well suited to rooms that receive a lot of sunlight, since its higher brightness can make the picture easier to see during the day. And because it doesn't use OLED's self-emissive pixels, there's considerably less concern about permanent image retention or burn-in. Depending on the TV's size, Hisense claims a brightness of up to 600 nits. And if that's not enough visual razzle dazzle, the E7SF also has AI Picture, which relies on internal processing to enact enhancements in real time. Hisense also included Dolby Vision, which relies on the metadata created by filmmakers to adjust brightness, color, and contrast frame by frame when watching movies.

I had the opportunity to see the E7SF in action earlier this year, and the colors were absolutely mesmerizing. Watching FIFA recaps, the color immediately drew me in. The turf was a gorgeous verdant green with details so clean that I saw clumps of dislodged dirt from where the cleats dug in. The stadium was a sea of red and blue, matching the teams on the field fighting feverishly for the win. Despite the frenetic action, the motion remained smooth.

Those smooth images have a lot to do with the E7SF's 144Hz refresh rate. As a gamer and avid football fan, this is right up my alley. The way I don't want to miss a snap or play when I'm rooting for my teams is the same way a clipped or missed frame can mean the difference between landing the winning blow or taking it.

To further ensure that games will look their best on the E7SF, the television has AMD FreeSync Premium technology. It's an adaptive synchronization tech that matches up the display with the frame rate of your graphics card, eliminating any unsightly screen tearing and stuttering when you're fighting your way to victory in whatever game you're playing. The television also has Game Booster 240, which means it can support a 240Hz refresh rate, typically at the cost of resolution. It's a feature reserved for high-end gaming PCs, since current-gen consoles only support 120Hz.

Other gaming features include Dolby Vision Gaming, which does the same thing as Dolby Vision but for selected games, going frame by frame. Hisense also included HDR10+ Gaming, which uses dynamic metadata to update contrast and brightness scene by scene.

And speaking of consoles, let's take a quick accounting of the E7SF's ports. It has a pair of HDMI 2.1 ports (4K@144Hz), two HDMI 2.0 ports (4K@60Hz), Ethernet, two USB ports (USB 3.0 and USB 2.0), an RF antenna, and an optical digital audio output. That's more than enough to hook up several consoles, a gaming PC, and a soundbar if you so choose. However, you might not need to with the E7SF, or at least not right out of the box.

In addition to Dolby Vision, the E7SF supports Dolby Atmos, which adds height and surround cues to a soundtrack's mix. Played through the TV's 2.0 multichannel speakers, that translates to a fuller, more dynamic sound than you'd get from standard stereo, even without the illusion of true overhead audio.

Although the demo space where I saw the E7SF was a bit chaotic, I couldn't deny the robust roar of the crowd as a goal was scored. And that was probably the point. Hisense is positioning the E7SF as the ultimate TV for hosting, and where better to put that to the test than in a room full of loud, talkative guests?

And finally, putting a bow on this feature-packed affordability smorgasbord, the E7SF has Amazon Fire TV with Alexa+ and an Alexa Voice Remote. It's essentially having an Echo in your TV, but this one can search shows and movies for you as well as give recommendations using the sound of your voice. And if you're a big smart home fan, the TV can be integrated into your IoT setup.

Hisense is offering TVs that are bursting at the seams with features, including 4K resolution with eye-popping color and detail, a high refresh rate that will make gamers and sports fans happy, and onboard Alexa and Fire TV. And every single size is less expensive than the new iPhone Duo. If you're in the market for a TV that is the epitome of bang for your buck, the E7SF should be on your watchlist.

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