TechSpot

Researchers found a way to spy on your browsing by watching your SSD's activity

Skye Jacobs — Thu, 28 May 2026 13:46 -0500

The method, known as FROST – short for "fingerprinting remotely using OPFS-based SSD timing" – focuses on how different processes compete for storage access. That competition leaves behind small but measurable timing differences. By monitoring those timing shifts, the research team was able to determine which other sites and applications...

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Uber is spending heavily on AI, but returns remain elusive

Alfonso Maruccia — Thu, 28 May 2026 13:04 -0500

Uber has increasingly positioned AI as a core part of its technology stack, and AI models now represent a significant portion of its corporate spending. Costs are rising, but the company has yet to see meaningful returns in terms of ROI. According to President and Chief Operating Officer Andrew Macdonald,...

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Redmagic 11S Pro gaming phone gets cooling and CPU upgrades, but drops to 16GB RAM as price climbs to $849

Skye Jacobs — Thu, 28 May 2026 12:28 -0500

At the center of the device is the overclocked Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 Leading Version, which serves as the primary upgrade over the Redmagic 11 Pro released late last year. Nubia isn't changing the broader formula; instead, it's trying to squeeze more performance out of familiar hardware. For users...

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Windows can now share audio to two Bluetooth headphones at once, sort of

Kishalaya Kundu — Thu, 28 May 2026 11:07 -0500

In a blog post, Microsoft explained that shared audio enables a PC's audio output to be transmitted simultaneously to two Bluetooth LE audio devices.

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Paper Mario just got a native PC port, no emulator required

Skye Jacobs — Thu, 28 May 2026 10:29 -0500

Instead of simulating the original hardware, the project runs the game through an N64 recompilation toolchain that adapts the game's code for modern systems. The distinction is meaningful: emulation recreates the console environment wholesale, while recompilation converts the game's original code to run natively on current hardware. In practice, that...

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Ultima Underworld returns as a fan-made Unity remake after 10 years of work

Alfonso Maruccia — Thu, 28 May 2026 09:38 -0500

Unity Underground (UU) is a fan project designed to recreate the Ultima Underworld experience with the Unity engine. The developers worked on the project for more than ten years, and they have now shared the results with the wider gaming community. The original Ultima Underworld is historically important but a...

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This startup has raised $12 million to make liquid-metal circuit boards rewritable

Skye Jacobs — Thu, 28 May 2026 09:12 -0500

In an email to Tom's Hardware, Itera described the underlying approach as a form of electrowetting, where electric fields are used to precisely move liquid metal alloys across a glass substrate. Instead of relying on fixed copper traces, the system dynamically forms connections by shifting conductive liquid, effectively redrawing the...

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Valve's Steam Machine may cost more than today's Steam Deck OLED

Rob Thubron — Thu, 28 May 2026 08:49 -0500

Brad Lynch, who has a history of Valve-related leaks, posted a concerning warning on X yesterday.

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Philips and AOC join the 1,000 Hz monitor race with new 1080p models

Daniel Sims — Thu, 28 May 2026 08:22 -0500

At a recent press conference, AOC and Philips, in collaboration with BOE, unveiled two of the earliest monitors to achieve 1,000Hz at 1080p. The blisteringly high refresh rate could offer a competitive edge in esports games and improve motion clarity in other titles.

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MSI celebrates 40th anniversary with dragon-themed Titan laptop and MEG Ace motherboard

Rob Thubron — Thu, 28 May 2026 07:56 -0500

The star of the show is the Titan 18 HX Dragon Edition Draco Epic, a special edition version of MSI's desktop-replacement gaming laptop. The lid features a large, metallic blue dragon – a nod to the company's logo – mixed with constellation-style lines, gold markings, and a 40th-anniversary logo.

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Elizabeth Warren wants to tax AI data centers as power bills climb

Skye Jacobs — Thu, 28 May 2026 07:31 -0500

In a Time magazine op-ed published Wednesday, the Massachusetts Democrat argued that the economic gains tied to AI are not being broadly shared. Instead, she said, they are flowing to a narrow set of firms and executives while ordinary consumers face rising costs linked to the technology's expansion.

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Tech executives are suffering from "AI psychosis," says Box CEO

Alfonso Maruccia — Thu, 28 May 2026 06:58 -0500

Box co-founder and CEO Aaron Levie has coined a name for what he sees afflicting the C-suite: "AI psychosis."

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Microsoft is rolling out its Windows 11 CPU-boosting update – here's how to enable it

Rob Thubron — Thu, 28 May 2026 06:15 -0500

Microsoft lists the change in update KB5089573 as a "General Performance" improvement, saying it accelerates app launches and core shell experiences such as the Start menu, Search, and Action Center.

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The Nvidia App Settings You Should Actually Be Using

Tim Schiesser — Thu, 28 May 2026 05:20 -0500

The Nvidia App has evolved far beyond basic driver updates. From monitor tweaks, to DLSS overrides and recording tools, these are the settings PC gamers should actually be using.

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Steam Deck OLED is back in stock with a $300 price hike

Daniel Sims — Wed, 27 May 2026 17:32 -0500

The Steam Deck OLED 512GB variant has risen from $549 to $789, while the 1TB model has climbed from $649 to $949. The entry-level LCD Steam Deck, which had anchored the lineup at $399, has been discontinued entirely. Competitive pricing was one of the Steam Deck's most unexpected strengths when...

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The Netherlands just blocked a US company from buying the app Dutch citizens use for everything

Alfonso Maruccia — Wed, 27 May 2026 16:19 -0500

As far as technology is concerned, US and Europe are growing apart at an accelerated rate. EU authorities are working to build their own digital sovereignty, while member states are now actively pushing foreign buyers away when it comes to local service providers.

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Gigabyte bundles 1 gram of pure gold with every RTX 5090 Infinity to celebrate 40th anniversary

Kishalaya Kundu — Wed, 27 May 2026 14:50 -0500

On the official Aorus Taiwan website, the company announced that the promotion will run from May 25 to June 7, with eligible buyers receiving "1 gram of 999 pure gold" with every RTX 5090 Infinity, while supplies last. The company described the freebie as a "gold item," leaving it unclear...

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Taiwan just busted an alleged Nvidia GPU smuggling ring using Japan as a cover

Skye Jacobs — Wed, 27 May 2026 14:06 -0500

Taiwanese prosecutors detained three individuals last week for allegedly falsifying export documents for Super Micro Computer servers. Investigators also seized about 50 servers they believe were being prepared for export using similar paperwork. However, officials suspect that at least one shipment had already slipped through.

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This startup wants to destroy cancer tumors using ultrasound instead of surgery

Alfonso Maruccia — Wed, 27 May 2026 12:48 -0500

HistoSonics, a company founded by biomedical engineer Zhen Xu in 2009, is developing a technique called histotripsy to target different types of cancer. Xu has been refining the approach for years in an effort to treat tumor cells without the need for incisions or other potentially invasive procedures.

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TCL is selling a 300Hz 1080p gaming monitor for $88

Skye Jacobs — Wed, 27 May 2026 12:06 -0500

At first glance, the specs are familiar. A 1080p resolution on a 24.5-inch panel is hardly cutting-edge in 2026, but that combination continues to hold its place in esports for a reason. Higher resolutions demand more GPU power, and in games where milliseconds matter, players often prioritize frame rate stability...

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Spotify CEO defends AI music, promises musicians will be adequately compensated

Kishalaya Kundu — Wed, 27 May 2026 11:30 -0500

Speaking to the Financial Times, Norström described the new feature as a "legal" and "controlled" way for users to create AI-generated music without resorting to piracy. He acknowledged that some of the backlash to AI-generated content is "reasonable," but said Spotify will continue to protect musicians while offering users an...

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Ferrari bet its legacy on an EV designed by Jony Ive. The backlash wiped out $5 billion in a day.

Skye Jacobs — Wed, 27 May 2026 10:47 -0500

Matteo Salvini, Italy's deputy prime minister and transport minister, weighed in publicly, writing on X: "It looks nothing like a (Ferrari). Is this supposed to be 'innovation'? Who knows what (company founder) Enzo Ferrari would say." That kind of response shows how far the Luce departs from Ferrari's established identity.

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Apple's M5 MacBook Air drops to $899 in latest deal

Ivan Franco — Wed, 27 May 2026 10:35 -0500

Apple's latest MacBook Air is down to $899, matching one of the lowest prices seen so far for the ultraportable. The base config includes 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, and a 13.6" Liquid Retina display, while the M5 chip adds improved AI and productivity performance in Apple's fanless thin-and-light design.

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DuckDuckGo's app is growing in popularity after Google turned search into AI

Alfonso Maruccia — Wed, 27 May 2026 10:08 -0500

Google has decided to turn web search into a more chatbot-like experience, and not everyone is thrilled with the change. Critics of AI-driven search are now expecting a significant backlash, with many users looking for alternative search services to avoid reinforcing Mountain View's LLM-centric approach. According to data provided by...

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Smartphone shipments face worst decline ever: memory crisis and US-Iran war hit market

Rob Thubron — Wed, 27 May 2026 09:34 -0500

According to IDC's latest Worldwide Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, global smartphone shipments are forecast to fall 13.9% year over year in 2026 to 1.09 billion units. That's worse than the 12.9% decline that the company predicted in February, and it would leave the market at its lowest shipment total since 2013.

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Samsung averts strike with $340,000 bonuses for semiconductor workers

Skye Jacobs — Wed, 27 May 2026 08:22 -0500

Samsung sits at the center of today's computing stack, turning out memory chips used in smartphones, electric vehicles, and the high-performance servers that run large-scale AI models. With the memory sector already facing shortages and sharply higher prices, even a short stoppage could have rippled across multiple industries.

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Most Americans want digital shelf labels and surveillance pricing banned

Rob Thubron — Wed, 27 May 2026 07:56 -0500

According to a new survey from GBAO Strategies distributed by the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union, 65% of American voters think ESLs will cause grocery prices to increase, while 68% think surveillance pricing will have the same result.

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Inside the data center boom that's consuming Chile's last water

Daniel Sims — Wed, 27 May 2026 07:32 -0500

The Quilicura wetland, just north of Chile's capital, Santiago, has the largest concentration of data centers in Latin America. Consuming billions of liters of water annually, data centers have exacerbated dry conditions in a swamp already suffering from the worst drought in over 100 years of recordkeeping.

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The Witcher 3 is getting a third expansion in 2027, but minimum specs are increasing

Rob Thubron — Wed, 27 May 2026 06:57 -0500

Rumors that a third expansion for the Witcher 3 was in the works really picked up steam back in January when Polish industry insider Borys Nieśpielak claimed that Fool's Theory, which is remaking the first Witcher game, was also developing the add-on.

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Motorola Razr phones are secretly hijacking Amazon launches with affiliate redirects

Skye Jacobs — Wed, 27 May 2026 06:15 -0500

The issue was first spotted by a user, rather than disclosed in any official announcement. A Razr 60 Ultra owner on Reddit noticed something odd when opening the Amazon app from the app drawer. Instead of launching directly, the phone briefly opened a browser window, passed through a third-party URL,...

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