Disney's 2026 D23 expo was chock-full of massive film and TV news, from X-Men casting to first looks at highly anticipated Pixar sequels.

But those announcements were just the tip of the iceberg for the House of Mouse, which shared what you can expect from Disney Animation Studios, Pixar, Marvel, and Star Wars from now until late 2029. That's a lot of film and TV to look out for, so we've rounded up every update, announcement, and teaser right here to make sure you don't miss anything.

Movies announced and previewed at D23

The Incredibles 3

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Get your super suits out, because The Incredibles 3 is on its way. It's the first Incredibles movie not directed by Brad Bird. While Bird still penned the script, Peter Sohn (Elemental) is helming the film instead.

At D23, Pixar's chief creative officer Pete Docter revealed concept art and teased that the film will focus on Violet (voiced by Sarah Vowell) and Dash (voiced by Huck Milner) as they try to prove they can be big-time Supers like their parents, Bob (voiced by Craig T. Nelson) and Helen (voiced by Holly Hunter).

How to watch: The Incredibles 3 hits theaters June 16, 2028.

The New Simpsons Movie

Nearly two decades after The Simpsons Movie gifted us Spider-Pig, Springfield's most famous family returns to the big screen in The New Simpsons Movie. Extremely early footage screened at D23 shows Homer (voiced by Dan Castellaneta) chasing a ball at a baseball game. It's not long before the chase spirals out of control, with seriously destructive (and funny) results.

How to watch: The New Simpsons Movie hits theaters Sept. 3, 2027.

The Princess Diaries 3

Disney has yet to release a first look or release date for the highly anticipated Princess Diaries 3. However, star Anne Hathaway did come to D23 in order to provide eager audiences with an update that work on the film is still underway, telling them, "Being part of the Disney family also means being part of a legacy studio that deeply values the family audience it makes content for. It’s why we are working so hard to get The Princess Diaries 3 right. Thanks for your patience."

While Hathaway is returning to The Princess Diaries as Genovia's Queen Mia Thermopolis, Julie Andrews, who played Mia's grandmother Queen Clarice Renaldi, confirmed this week that she will not be reprising her role.

How to watch: The Princess Diaries 3 does not yet have a release date.

Ghost Market

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Pixar's getting spooky. At D23, the animation giant announced a new original film, Ghost Market, which will officially be its first ghost movie. Directed by Trevor Jimenez and Jesse Andrews, the film introduces Kyle, a young boy living in Hawaii who stumbles upon a haunted market.

Meet Kyle and the market's "hungry ghosts" in the first sneak peek above, where Kyle assures us Ghost Market isn't as nightmare-inducing as other scary movies.

How to watch: Ghost Market hits theaters in the spring of 2028.

Gatto

Credit: Pixar

In addition to Ghost Market, Pixar also showed off new art for its next original release, Gatto. Directed by Luca's Enrico Casarosa, the film follows street-smart Venetian stray cat Nero (voiced by Mark Ruffalo), who winds up indebted to cat mob boss Rocco (voiced by Laurence Fishburne). Along the way, he'll find an unlikely friendship with street musician Maya.

How to watch: Gatto hits theaters March 5, 2027.

Coco 2

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Pixar also gave D23 attendees a look at concept art for the highly anticipated Coco 2, which sees a now-teenaged Miguel returning to the Land of the Dead. Actor Benjamin Bratt took to the D23 stage to reveal that he will reprise his role as Ernesto de la Cruz, and that the villainous singer is on the warpath for vengeance against Miguel.

How to watch: Coco 2 hits theaters Nov. 2029.

The Bluey Movie

Disney released a teaser trailer for The Bluey Movie, which shows Bluey and Bingo chasing a red balloon. The teaser offers viewers their first look at the film's CG animation style, which differs from the TV show's 2D style.

How to watch: The Bluey Movie hits theaters Aug. 6, 2027.

Tangled

Credit: Disney

Disney unveiled the release date for its live-action remake of 2010's Tangled, which will arrive in theaters on March 31, 2028. Now in production, the film stars Teagan Croft as Rapunzel, Milo Manheim as Flynn Rider, and Kathryn Hahn as Mother Gothel. Attendees also got to see exclusive footage from the movie, including a look at Rapunzel's magnificent mane.

How to watch: Tangled hits theaters March 31, 2028.

Ice Age: Boiling Point

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Queen Latifah and Dennis Leary stopped by D23 to dish on the upcoming Ice Age: Boiling Point, the first Ice Age film since 2016's Ice Age: Collision Course. The film will return to the dinosaur-inhabited Lost World, introducing a new character who's a "jurassic" twist on acorn-lover Scrat.

How to watch: Ice Age: Boiling Point hits theaters February 5, 2027.

Lilo and Stitch 2

Love is in the air in Lilo and Stitch 2, the sequel to Disney's 2025 live-action Lilo and Stitch remake. Star Maia Kealoha announced the film is coming to theaters May 28, 2028, and that it will introduce the live-action version of Stitch's love interest, Angel.

How to watch: Lilo and Stitch 2 hits theaters May 28, 2028.

Romy and Michele 2

Lisa Kudrow and Mira Sorvino showed up to D23 in full Romy and Michele glam to promote their sequel to 1997's Romy and Michele's High School Reunion. According to the pair, Romy and Michele still own their Beverly Hills boutique, and are now on the hunt for true love.

How to watch: Romy and Michele 2 will premiere on Hulu. The release date has not yet been announced.

Clay

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Disney announced a new original animated film, Clay, set for a November 2028 release. Directed by Fawn Veerasunthorn (Hexed), the film is set in a magical forest and stars Academy Award winner Kieran Culkin as the misfit Flip. He's chosen to mentor a living ball of clay named Mushy, but unfortunately for Mushy, Flip is not at all ready to take on such a task.

How to watch: Clay hits theaters Nov. 2028.

Star Wars: Starfighter

Credit: Lucasfilm Ltd.

Director Shawn Levy and Ryan Gosling showed D23 viewers the first trailer for Star Wars: Starfighter, the franchise's next theatrical release. According to Variety, the trailer shows a young boy (Flynn Gray) playing with a decommissioned starfighter jet until pilot Kade Auberon (Gosling) tells him off. It also features looks at the jet in action. Levy emphasized that the film is a fully standalone story, with no other ties to the Skywalker saga.

How to watch: Star Wars: Starfighter hits theaters May 28, 2027.

Hexed

Credit: Disney

Two high-profile actors are joining the voice cast of Disney's upcoming coming-of-age tale Hexed. Jodie Foster will play Queen Celeste, and Walton Goggins will play Beef Roger Crummchuck, a green three-eyed cat. Foster and Goggins join the already announced Hailee Steinfeld and Rashida Jones, who play young witch Billie Doe and her cautious mother, Alice.

How to watch: Hexed hits theaters Nov. 25, 2026.

Zootopia 3

Credit: Disney

With Zootopia 2 taking $1.8 billion at the box office and becoming the highest-earning Hollywood animated film ever, it was only a matter of time before Disney announced a sequel. At D23, the studio announced Zootopia 3 is officially in the works. Based on the film's feathery logo — and the appearance of a feather in Zootopia 2's post-credit scene — it's clear the film will be bringing birds into Zootopia's ecosystem, the same way Zootopia 2 introduced reptiles.

How to watch: There is no release date yet for Zootopia 3.

Frozen 3

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Disney pulled out all the stops when it came time to discuss Frozen 3. Stars Kristen Bell and Idina Menzel sang snippets of a foreboding new song, Josh Gad sang a romantic ditty that suggests Olaf will get a love interest, and Disney showcased new concept art and footage. The film takes place around Anna (voiced by Bell) and Kristoff's (voiced by Jonathan Groff) wedding and introduces a mysterious new villain.

How to watch: Frozen 3 hits theaters Nov. 24, 2027.

X-Men

The cast of "X-Men" takes the stage at D23. Credit: Jesse Grant/Getty Images for Disney

The buzziest announcement from D23 was undoubtedly the cast announcement for Marvel's upcoming X-Men movie, set for a May 5, 2028, release and directed by Jake Schreier (Thunderbolts*). Already introduced in Spider-Man: Brand New Day, Sadie Sink will be playing Jean Grey. Joining her in the newly announced cast are Christopher Abbott as Professor X, Maya Boyd as Storm, Indie Navarette as Rogue, Samara Weaving as Emma Frost, Kit Connor as Cyclops, and Adam Driver as villain Nathaniel Milbury.

How to watch: X-Men hits theaters May 5, 2028.

Avengers: Doomsday

Marvel couldn't leave this D23 without giving fans one more sneak peek at Avengers: Doomsday, which offers the best glimpse yet at Robert Downey Jr.'s take on Doctor Doom.

In this special look, The Fantastic Four's Sue Storm (Vanessa Kirby) discusses how the brilliant Victor von Doom used to be kind and caring. But once everything he loved was ripped from him, he became a broken shell of himself.

The rest of the teaser highlights just how much of a threat Doom is. He's easily able to fend off Thor (Chris Hemsworth), before delivering the incredibly hard line: "Hell answers to me, for I am Doom." The Avengers, dare I say it, look absolutely doomed.

How to watch: Avengers: Doomsday hits theaters Dec. 18, 2026.

TV shows announced and previewed at D23

Kingdom Hearts

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Tetsuya Nomura and Square Enix's hit Kingdom Hearts series is getting an anime adaptation, Disney announced at D23. Everything from story to release date is under wraps, but Disney did release a first-look image of game protagonist Sora and his Keyblade. According to Disney, the Kingdom Hearts anime "reimagines the iconic adventure with a brand-new story that will expand on the universe of Kingdom Hearts while celebrating the characters that have captured the hearts of millions of fans around the world."

How to watch: Kingdom Hearts is coming to Disney+ and Disney Channel. A release date has yet to be announced.

Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 3

Disney released a new teaser trailer for Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 3, which adapts Rick Riordan's The Titan's Curse. This season sees Percy Jackson (Walker Scobell) on another quest, with his trusty satyr bestie Grover (Aryan Simhadri) at his side, along with new arrivals Thalia Grace (Tamara Smart) and Bianca de Angelo (Olive Abercrombie). Notably missing is Annabeth Chase (Leah Sava Jeffries), who's been kidnapped. This latest teaser trailer highlights Percy's distraught reaction to that development, as well as a pivotal desert-set sequence in the Junkyard of the Gods. As Percy Jackson book fans know, that scene (and the whole season, really) is going to hurt.

How to watch: Percy Jackson and the Olympians Season 3 premieres Nov. 20 on Disney+.

Oswald

Credit: Disney

One of Walt Disney's first breakout characters, Oswald the Lucky Rabbit, gets his time in the modern-day spotlight in the three-part TV miniseries Oswald. Written and directed by Jon Favreau, the series combines live-action footage and hand-draw 2D animation. It also features a cast of comedy greats, including Albert Brooks, Amy Sedaris, Kathryn Hahn, and Steve Martin.

How to watch: Oswald premieres Feb. 2027 on Disney+.

Scrubs Season 2

This year's Scrubs reboot returns Sept. 30, and the show's newly released first look reveals that yet another familiar face is joining J.D. (Zach Braff). Turk (Donald Faison) and Elliot (Sarah Chalke) at Sacred Heart. Scott Foley is reprising his role as Sean Kelly.

How to watch: Scrubs Season 2 premieres Sept. 30 at 8 p.m. ET on ABC, and streams the next day on Hulu.

Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man Season 2

Need more Spider-Man after Brand New Day? You're in luck, because Season 2 of Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man is just a few months away. The animated series returns this coming January, and a first look revealed at D23 showed that both Gwen Stacy and Eddie Brock are entering the fray.

How to watch: Your Friendly Neighborhood Spider-Man premieres January 2027 on Disney+.

Spidey and His Amazing Friends

That's not all the Spidey series goodness that came out of D23. Disney also announced that preschool series Spidey and His Amazing Friends has been renewed for a seventh season, and that upcoming special Spidey and the Avengers: Halloween Team-Up will feature Este Haim and Patrick Stump as villains Hallows Eve and Jack O'Lantern.

How to watch: Spidey and His Amazing Friends is now streaming on Disney+.

The Imagineering Story Season 2

In The Imagineering Story, Academy Award-nominated director Leslie Iwerks takes viewers behind the scenes of Disney Parks attractions and introduces the people who create them. Season 2 is currently in production and is set for an early 2028 release date.

How to watch: The Imagineering Story Season 2 premieres early 2028 on Disney+.

Ahsoka Season 2

It's been three years since Ahsoka Season 1 left its titular character (Rosario Dawson) stranded on the planet Peridea in a whole different galaxy, all while Grand Admiral Thrawn (Lars Mikkelsen) returns to wreak havoc. What happens next? According to the teaser trailer above, a hearty amount of lightsaber duels, spaceship dogfights, and Anakin (Hayden Christensen) flashbacks are in store.

How to watch: Ahsoka Season 2 premieres Jan. 20 on Disney+.

VisionQuest

Marvel released the first trailer for the upcoming series VisionQuest, which Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige has labeled the end of the "Wanda trilogy" that began with WandaVision and continued with Agatha All Along. The series sees the return of Paul Bettany as "synthezoid" Vision, who's dealing with a serious identity crisis as he tries to understand the memories he gained in the WandaVision finale.

As he does, he'll cross paths with the human avatars of other Marvel AI characters, including Dum-E (Henry Lewis), U (Jonathan Sayer), J.A.R.V.I.S. (James D'Arcy), F.R.I.D.A.Y. (Orla Brady), and E.D.I.T.H (Emily Hampshire). Also back is Avengers villain Ultron (James Spader), now also in a human avatar, and hopefully less ready to destroy all of humanity.

How to watch: VisionQuest premieres Oct. 14 on Disney+.

TL;DR: Watch Liverpool vs. Como in a 2026 pre-season friendly for free on SportyNet. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

Pre-season is all about getting ready for the upcoming season, and if that means playing the same team twice in a single day, so be it. Liverpool are facing off against Como in a pair of behind-closed-doors games this weekend, and you can watch both live with a simple hack.

If you're interested in watching Liverpool vs. Como from anywhere in the world, we've got all the information you need.

When is Liverpool vs. Como?

Liverpool vs. Como in a 2026 pre-season double-header kicks off at 6:30 a.m. ET and 1 p.m. ET on Aug. 16. These fixtures take place at Anfield.

How to watch Liverpool vs. Como for free

Liverpool vs. Como in a 2026 pre-season double-header is available to live stream for free on SportyNet.

SportyNet is geo-restricted to Brazil, but anyone can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can live stream Liverpool vs. Como for free from anywhere in the world.

Live stream Liverpool vs. Como for free by following these simple steps:

1. Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in Brazil

4. Visit SportyNet

5. Watch Liverpool vs. Como for free from anywhere in the world

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ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan)

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The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer generous money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Liverpool vs. Como without committing your cash. This is obviously not a long-term strategy, but it gives you enough time to stream these fixtures before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for SportyNet?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on SportyNet, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries, including Brazil

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices, including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and usually offers a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99.

Live stream Liverpool vs. Como for free with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: Watch Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid in a 2026 pre-season friendly for free on SportyNet. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

What can we expect from José Mourinho’s Real Madrid this season? We honestly have no idea, but we'll get a valuable insight when his side travels to face Schalke 04 this weekend. Naturally, Real Madrid will expect to win. But anything can happen in a fixture like this. Experimentation is likely, after all.

If you're interested in watching Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid from anywhere in the world, we've got all the information you need.

When is Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid?

Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid in a 2026 pre-season friendly kicks off at 11 a.m. ET on Aug. 16. This fixture takes place at the Veltins-Arena.

How to watch Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid for free

Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid in a 2026 pre-season friendly is available to live stream for free on SportyNet.

SportyNet is geo-restricted to Brazil, but anyone can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can livestream Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid for free from anywhere in the world.

Live stream Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid for free by following these simple steps:

1. Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in Brazil

4. Visit SportyNet

5. Watch Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid for free from anywhere in the world

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Credit: ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan)

$12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)

Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer generous money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid without committing your cash. This is obviously not a long-term strategy, but it gives you enough time to stream this fixture before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for SportyNet?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on SportyNet, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries, including Brazil

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices, including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and usually offers a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99.

Live stream Schalke 04 vs. Real Madrid for free with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: Watch RC Lens vs. PSG in the 2026 Trophee des Champions for free on ITVX. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

Domestic seasons are fast approaching. This weekend showcases some of the final friendly fixtures before the new campaigns officially begin, but over in France, there's something more significant taking place: the Trophee des Champions.

Cup winner RC Lens face off against Ligue 1 champions PSG in this showpiece event. We're expecting a fiery contest between the passionate rivals.

If you're interested in watching the 2026 Nations Championship from anywhere in the world, we've got all the information you need.

When is RC Lens vs. PSG?

RC Lens vs. PSG in the 2026 Trophee des Champions kicks off at 2:45 p.m. ET on Aug. 16. This fixture takes place at the Stade Bollaert-Delelis.

How to watch RC Lens vs. PSG for free

RC Lens vs. PSG in the 2026 Trophee des Champions is available to live stream for free on ITVX.

ITVX is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can livestream RC Lens vs. PSG for free from anywhere in the world.

Livestream RC Lens vs. PSG for free by following these simple steps:

1. Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

4. Visit ITVX

5. Watch RC Lens vs. PSG for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window

Credit: ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan)

$12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)

Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer generous money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch RC Lens vs. PSG without committing your cash. This is obviously not a long-term strategy, but it gives you enough time to stream this fixture before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for ITVX?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on ITVX, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries, including the UK

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices, including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and usually offers a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99.

Live stream RC Lens vs. PSG for free with ExpressVPN.

The best HBO Max deals and bundles in August 2026:

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Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle

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Best Student Deal

HBO Max Student

Save 50% on HBO Max Basic With Ads

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Looking for some exciting new films or shows to watch this summer? HBO Max is the place to find them. With the latest season of House of the Dragon available to stream and major movies like Backrooms arriving on the platform soon, there are plenty of exciting things to watch.

If these have caught your eye, the good news is that HBO Max has several bundles available at the moment worth checking out, including a popular bundle with Disney+ and Hulu.

We've broken down that offer and other bundles below, so you can find the best option for you. With streaming prices on the rise, offers like these are a great way to save some cash while accessing your favorite services.

Alongside bundles, we've also broken down HBO Max's standard plans in case you're interested in its service on its own.

Best Disney+ bundle deal

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Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max Bundle

$19.99/month with ads, $32.99/month ad-free

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Why we like it

The HBO Max, Disney+, and Hulu bundle is a top-tier choice for those looking to have access to some of the biggest streaming services around. Starting at $19.99 per month, this bundle grants you access to Hulu, Disney+, and HBO Max's streaming services for a much lower price than what you'd pay for them on their own. If you've already got Disney+ and Hulu subscriptions, this bundle is worth every cent. If you're interested, there are two plan options to choose from:

• Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle (with ads) — $19.99 per month (save 42%)

• Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle (no ads) — $32.99 per month (save 41%)

Best Hulu bundle deal

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Hulu and HBO Max Bundle

Add HBO Max to your Hulu base plan from $10.99 per month

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Why we like it

If you're not interested in the Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max mega bundle, you can just get Hulu and HBO Max together if you already have a Hulu base plan, which starts at $11.99 per month. HBO Max Basic with Ads can be added onto your plan for $10.99 per month, or you can splash out on the HBO Max Standard plan for $18.49 per month.

• Hulu with HBO Max add-on — from $10.99 per month

Best student deal

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HBO Max Student Discount

Students save 50% on HBO Max Basic With Ads

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Why we like it

It's always nice when streaming services have a deal for students, and HBO Max's offer is definitely worth taking advantage of. Students who can verify their status with UNiDAYS are eligible to get the HBO Max Basic With Ads plan for just $5.49 per month. That's a 50% discount off its $10.99 monthly price. After verifying your status, you'll receive a unique code to redeem the discounted plan on HBO Max.

• HBO Max Student Discount — $5.49 per month (save 50%)

HBO Max's monthly plans

HBO Max offers several subscription plans. If you don't mind sitting through ads, HBO Max's Basic With Ads plan starts at $10.99 per month, or the annual plan is $109.99 per year. If you can't stand ads and don't mind spending a bit more, the Standard plan costs $18.49 per month or $184.99 per year. If you really want to go big on an HBO Max plan, you can spring for the fancy Premium plan, which costs $22.99 per month or $229.99 per year.

Below, we've broken down what each plan includes, per HBO Max's website, so you can learn a bit more before you buy.

Basic With Ads — $10.99 per month, $109.99 per year

• Stream on two devices at once

• Full HD 1080p resolution

Standard (Ad-free) — $18.49 per month, $184.99 per year

• Stream on two devices at once

• Full HD 1080p resolution

• 30 downloads to watch on the go

Premium (Ad-free) — $22.99 per month, $229.99 per year

• Stream on four devices at once

• 4K Ultra HD video quality (as available)

• Dolby Atmos immersive audio (as available)

• 100 downloads to watch on the go

If you're wondering where to start once you've set yourself up with an HBO Max subscription, we've got an excellent selection of recommendations to point you in the right direction. Looking for a great TV show to kickstart your next binge-watching session? Have a look through our roundup of the 20 best TV shows streaming on HBO Max. Or if you prefer movies, we narrowed down the 25 best movies on HBO Max to make your next movie night a spectacular one.

TL;DR: ChatPlayground gives you access to 20+ AI models, and a lifetime subscription is only $54.97.

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ChatPlayground AI: Lifetime Subscription (Unlimited Plan)

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Anyone who has used AI knows that one model can be incredible at one type of task and then laughably awful at something that seems extremely similar. ChatGPT may be great at writing emails, but ask it to write anything longer, and you run into a wall. That’s why it’s so common to use multiple models, but paying for each one is expensive. If you want a smarter way to work, ChatPlayground is a new platform that gives you 20+ popular AI models, and a lifetime subscription is only $54.97 (reg. $619).

Using ChatPlayground is really simple. Just enter a prompt, choose which models you want to send it to, and watch results come in. Seeing them lined up side by side makes it so much easier to compare the output from different models, and then you just pick the one that works for you. You can finally close all your other AI tabs and let your computer breathe.

It’s not all text. You can also generate images with top AI image models, work on code, and tune your prompts for sharper responses, all in the same interface. Upload a PDF or an image, and the models answer questions about that document directly, so research and reference work all stays in the same place.

Your chat history stores records of past conversations, so you can always go back and check previous results. The Unlimited plan also includes priority access to new features and future models as they land, which is really important because even the most popular AI models are still in their infancy.

Stop paying a separate bill for every AI model. Get lifetime access to ChatPlayground on sale for $54.97. Sale ends Aug. 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Whether you're single and looking for some quick fun, online or offline, or in a relationship, trying to experiment with non-monogamy, the internet has no shortage of viable hookup and kink-friendly sites and apps for you to explore. 

By far the oldest and most popular of the bunch is AdultFriendFinder, with millions of registered users worldwide, but if you've exhausted its potential or just want to explore alternatives, there's a wide variety of sites out there catering to short-term fun, kink exploration, and polyamory. 

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Credit: AFF

AdultFriendFinder

 

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Here are four of our favorite AFF alternatives in 2026:

Ashley Madison

In internet notoriety, Ashley Madison might even surpass AdultFriendFinder on the list of "naughty" sites, largely because it was founded in 2001 as a way for married people to be unfaithful. And they weren't subtle about it: the site's actual slogan at launch was "Life is short. Have an affair." 

However, in 2026, Ashley Madison underwent a rebrand, with less focus on adultery and more on non-monogamy, as reflected in the site's new slogan: "Where Desire Meets Discretion." The mechanics of the site will be familiar to anyone who has used a dating site, with some key differences. First, profiles are anonymous by default, with the option to upload hidden or blurred photos, only unlocked when you consent to give a chat partner a "Private Key." Second, the app has a Stealth Mode feature that hides the icon and mutes notifications, so another person using your phone won't accidentally stumble on the app.

Another major similarity to AFF: Ashley Madison skews both male and older, with the 2015 data breach revealing that roughly 80 percent of the site's users are men, and the most active age group is 30-49. 

Of course, you don't actually have to be married or in a long-term relationship to use the site. And there's a strong incentive for women to sign up, since most of the site's features are unlocked for free for female accounts. 

Feeld

If you're looking to play the field, so to speak, and want a gender-inclusive, sex-positive app that gives equal consideration to monogamous and non-monogamous users, you'll love Feeld. The app was built from the ground up to cater to kinksters, alternative dating, and polyamory, with one of the standout features being linked profiles: if you're in an open relationship, both you and your partner can use the app together, from linked profiles, as you search for a third (or fourth!) to bring into your world. 

One of the app's main benefits is its culture. People are generally upfront about their wants and intentions, and there's a heavy focus on ethical non-monogamy and consent. 

An added bonus, if you happen to be a data nerd: Feeld regularly polls its own users and releases data about app behavior, so you can learn cool facts about other people using the app, such as just 42 percent of users self-report as being heterosexual, or 55 percent of users say that they discovered a new kink since using the app. 

Naughty Charm

Despite being founded all the way back in 2000, Naughty Charm has largely flown under the radar, especially compared to the other names on this list, but don't sleep on it as a viable hookup alternative to AFF. Because it's part of the Together Networks site platform, including Flirt, UpForIt, and BeNaughty, it has a massive pool of potential matches to offer you, across both North America and Europe, and though signup is very easy, much like with AFF, you will need a paid membership to actually talk to people in a one-on-one setting.

The physical layout of the site is also similar to AFF's, with a top ribbon hosting most of the useful features, but it's noticeably more modern and intuitive in design. And while the site is definitely hookup-focused, it doesn't allow nudity in public-facing spaces, nor do its profiles host dedicated spaces for you to list your kinks. 

If you're a kinkster looking for a compatible partner, there are better options, but if you want some short-term fun and like having a huge pool of potential partners to draw from, Naughty Charm is worth a visit.

FriendFinder-X

Alright, admittedly, this one is a bit of a cheat, since both AdultFriendFinder and FriendFinder-X are part of the same Friend Finder Networks umbrella of websites, but too many people overlook FriendFinder-X in favor of the more notorious big brother site. 

Creating an account isn't quite as fast as with AFF, but after five short steps, you're registered and ready to mingle. Layout-wise, the site is extremely similar to AdultFriendFinder, with user profiles populating the large middle section of the site and Community and Live tabs at the top ribbon, but one instant difference is the status symbols appended to every profile, including yours. Green, the default status, indicates that someone is online and ready to chat, and the site's culture very much promotes that level of spontaneity. 

However, the main downside is similar to AFF: you need a paid account to do almost anything dating-related on the site, from browsing profiles to privately messaging other users. If you want to keep things free, you're confined to the public areas, which include live chats, webcam broadcasts, and personal blogs, but there's plenty of fun here to keep you distracted for hours.

In the age of on-demand everything, it’s no surprise that we can get "dates" (and I use that term loosely) with the tap of a button. Thanks to classic hookup apps like Tinder and newcomers like Pure, finding a sexy new friend can be as straightforward as ordering a pizza. As for the quality? That’s about the same as your pizza — hit or miss, depending on the time of day, where you're located, and how hungry you are.

Fortunately, you’ve got me, your resident dating app expert (though I prefer modern-day Carrie Bradshaw), to guide you to the promised land, aka the best hookup apps.

I’ve spent the past three years (yes, years) researching, downloading, and testing dozens of the top dating apps to find the best ones for all kinds of daters, including the one-night-stand crowd. From discreet sexting apps to dating sites for serious relationships, I've swiped through them all. I also consulted a helpful panel of sex and relationship experts to make sure my picks are solid.

How to get the most out of hookup apps

My number one rule is to be brutally honest about what you want. Are you here for a good time? Own it. That means staying in your lane; don't go looking for a one-night stand on an app like eharmony. I mean, just read through Reddit. Women are on these apps (despite what all the dudes think/say) and are looking for FWBs, but they ignore 99 percent of messages because guys either send weird openers or pretend to want a relationship just to get a hookup.

"Hookup apps help prevent situations where people are on mainstream dating sites with the intention of having a casual hookup but are unclear about these intentions," Suzannah Weiss, resident sexologist for Biird and author of Subjectified: Becoming a Sexual Subject, tells Mashable. "They also give women a space to be openly sexual creatures without judgment."

And here's a little secret I picked up from Alexander Liebisch, the CEO and founder of TinderProfile.ai: Timing is everything. He found that people messaging on Tinder's "Free Tonight" feature after 10 p.m. on a weekend had a 45 percent higher chance of hooking up.

So, whether you're looking for a one-night stand, a regular FWB situation, or just a space to explore your sexuality, I've got you covered. Based on all my hands-on testing and expert consultations, I’ve broken down the best hookup app for every type of person and mood.

Recent updates to this guide

• Hinge: Hinge just keeps getting better, so I’ve bumped it up higher on my list as of October 2025. In our most recent update in August 2026, it still earns the top spot. Its user base is growing, and my own recent tests on the app have been surprisingly positive.

• Sniffies (added September 2025): I've added Sniffies, the map-based app for queer men, because it's been gaining a lot of traction. (It got a little too spicy for Apple and was pulled from the App Store, so it's now technically a dating site.) Don't say I didn't warn you about the NSFW content.

• FetLife (added September 2025): FetLife is my new favorite "Honorable Mention." It's not your typical hookup app; it's more of a social network for the kink community (and, oddly enough, the best hookup app for gamers). Just remember: it's a community, so don't treat it like Tinder.

• Plenty of Fish (removed January 2025): POF went through a rebrand recently, and honestly, I'm not impressed. My latest tests showed they removed key features like free messaging with non-matches, and I kept running into the same old profiles.

• Match (removed August 2025): I know some people say they've found casual hookups on Match, but that's not what it's for. Match is where you go to find a serious, long-term relationship, and I still recommend it for that. But for a hookup? You're just fishing in the wrong pond.

Why some popular hookup apps didn't make the cut

You might notice a few apps that pop up in ads or other lists are missing here. That’s intentional. I swipe through the good, the bad, and the downright sketchy so you don’t have to. For an app to make my list, it has to be effective, safe, and worth your time.

Here's a shortlist of apps that didn't make the cut this year:

• Wild: You’ve probably seen ads for this one. On paper, Wild sounds like the perfect casual dating app. In practice, the paywalls are aggressive, the distance filter doesn't work, and you have to pay for anything that's even remotely useful. Unless you're willing to spend serious cash upfront (and hope for the best), the experience feels more limited than with more open apps like Tinder.

• DOWN: This app (formerly "Bang With Friends") is known for its simple "Get Down" vs. "Get Date" feature. It sounds clever, but in reality, the experience is messy at best. Many users report feeling scammed by subscriptions that don't deliver matches, or finding that the few real people on there are... let's say "odd." It’s hard to recommend an app when the main user complaint is "Is anyone real?" Hard pass.

• Facebook Dating: Yes, Facebook has a dating section, and it’s surprisingly massive (and completely free, which is huge). While it's a decent option for casual dating, the vibe tends to be a bit more "friends of friends" and "relationship-focused" than the anonymous, no-strings energy you get from apps like Pure or Feeld. (For Mashable's Chance Townsend, signing up was "the most uneventful dating experience" of his life.) It's worth a shot if you're already on Facebook, but it didn't quite crack my top tier for hookups specifically.

Many of the suspiciously inexpensive robot vacuums cut corners so close to the sun that they quickly shift from helpers around the house to agents of chaos. The more basic the tech under the hood, the more likely you are to come home to a vacuum stuck under the couch (rather than a fully swept home).

Most cheap robot vacuums don't have the suction power or brush roll system necessary to pry crumbs or pet hair out of any carpet pile. That mediocrity extends to many robot vacuum and mop combo models, which don't "scrub" so much as feebly drag a damp cloth across the floor. At that point, it'd be less of a bother to get a decent stick vacuum and do it yourself.

Long story short: Buying a robot vacuum just because it's cheap puts that glorious hands-off cleaning experience in jeopardy. But after testing countless robovacs at home over the past few years, we can personally confirm that not all cheap robot vacuums are crappy. Smart mapping and self-emptying docks are easy to find for just a few hundred dollars, and more premium features like small obstacle avoidance and automatic mop washing and drying are often available below $500.

Recent changes to this guide

August 2026: I removed the 3i G10+ due to relevancy and stock issues online. The Dreame D20 Pro Plus was added in its place as the best budget robot vacuum for pet hair.

March 2026: I added the Eufy C28 as the best budget roller mop robot vacuum. (It's also the only "budget" roller mop robot vacuum out there right now.) I consider this a replacement for the Eufy X10 Pro Omni, which was the best budget self-washing and drying station for much of 2025.

July 2025: I replaced the Roomba 205 DustCompactor with the 3i G10+. The G10+ has significantly stronger suction and better mapping than the Roomba, plus more advanced features like small obstacle and pet waste avoidance and a livestream pet camera.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

Hurdle Word 1 hint

Unhealthy.

Hurdle Word 1 answer

TOXIC

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Opposite of micro.

Hurdle Word 2 Answer

MACRO

Hurdle Word 3 hint

A noisy inhalation through the nose.

Hurdle Word 3 answer

SNORT

Hurdle Word 4 hint

To accommodate

Hurdle Word 4 answer

CATER

Final Hurdle hint

A type of bear, known for its white fur.

Hurdle Word 5 answer

POLAR

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

After nights of almost complete darkness, the Moon is finally illuminated enough to be able to spot some lunar features on its surface. Keep reading to find out what you might be able to see.

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Sunday, Aug. 16, NASA's Daily Moon Guide tracker tells us the Moon phase is in Waxing Crescent phase, with 15% of its surface visible.

There's finally some features to spot again, both with and without visual aids. Without any, you can see the Mares Crisium and Fecunditatis. With binoculars or a telescope you'll also be able to see the Endymion Crater.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon will take place on August 28.

What are Moon phases?

The Moon doesn't look the same from Earth every night. As it travels around our planet, it moves through a lunar cycle that takes roughly 29.5 days to complete, according to NASA. The changing positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon affect how much of the Moon's sunlit side we can see, creating the different phases. Over the course of the cycle, the Moon progresses from a narrow crescent to a half Moon and eventually a Full Moon, before starting the sequence over again.

The eight phases are:

New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

TL;DR: The latest Stuff Your Kindle Day takes place on Aug. 15-16. Fantasy and Sci-Fi Worlds, hosted by Book Below, is offering fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal books for free.

Big plans for this weekend? Cancel them, because Stuff Your Kindle Day is back in a big way.

The Fantasy and Sci-Fi Worlds event, hosted by Book Below, is dropping free fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal books all weekend. And even better, everything you download to your Kindle is yours to keep forever. We know you might have a busy schedule this weekend, but this is clearly all that matters at this point. It's time to make some calls.

Looking to make the most of the latest Stuff Your Kindle Day? We've lined up everything you need to know about this popular event.

When is Stuff Your Kindle Day?

Fantasy and Sci-Fi Worlds takes place from Aug. 15-16. This two-day event gives you the chance to properly assess your options, make a plan of attack, and then spend all weekend stocking up.

Which books are free?

Fantasy and Sci-Fi Worlds is offering free fantasy, science fiction, and paranormal books for free. There's a helpful hub page with everything neatly organized and instructions on how the event works:

1. Browse free books — explore the collection of free books in your favorite genres and discover new authors by scrolling through the list

2. Click store link — select the Amazon store link for any book that interests you, taking you directly to the book's page on Amazon

3. Download while free — download your free books to your Kindle device or app

Is Stuff Your Kindle Day the same as Amazon Kindle Unlimited?

Everything you download on Stuff Your Kindle Day is yours to keep forever, and there's no limit on the number of books you can download. Stuff Your Kindle Day downloads don't count towards the 20 books that Amazon Kindle Unlimited subscribers can borrow at the same time.

The best Stuff Your Kindle Day deal

Opens in a new window

Credit: Amazon

Kindle (16GB) + Kindle Unlimited (3 Months)

$109.99 at Amazon

 

Shop Now

Why we like it

These popular e-readers let you take your entire library on the go. With weeks of battery life and an anti-glare display, you can read anywhere and anytime with the Kindle. Plus, you can get three months of Kindle Unlimited for free with your purchase for a limited time.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move on to the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity with how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible — and common — for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

Easy difficulty hints, answers for August 16 Pips

Number (6): Everything in this space must add up to 6. The answer is 3-3, placed horizontally.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally; 5-4, placed vertically.

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 4-6, placed vertically; 5-4, placed vertically.

Number (12): Everything in this space must add up to 12. The answer is 4-6, placed vertically; 6-0, placed horizontally.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for August 16 Pips

Equal (5): Everything in this space must be equal to 5. The answer is 5-5, placed horizontally; 1-5, placed horizontally; 5-0, placed horizontally.

Less Than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 0-2, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 4-3, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-3, placed horizontally.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 1-5, placed horizontally; 4-3, placed horizontally; 3-0, placed horizontally.

Equal (0): Everything in this space must be equal to 0. The answer is 0-2, placed horizontally; 5-0, placed horizontally; 3-0, placed horizontally; 0-4, placed horizontally.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 3-3, placed horizontally; 0-4, placed horizontally.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for August 16 Pips

Number (9): Everything in this space must add up to 9. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically; 4-4, placed vertically.

Less Than (5): Everything in this space must be less than 5. The answer is 4-4, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically; 1-1, placed horizontally.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 6-5, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-3, placed vertically.

Number (9): Everything in this space must add up to 9. The answer is 2-6, placed vertically; 1-1, placed horizontally; 6-5, placed horizontally.

Number (9): Everything in this space must add up to 9. The answer is 3-3, placed vertically; 2-6, placed vertically.

Equal (5): Everything in this space must be equal to 5. The answer is 5-5, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 1-4, placed vertically.

Less Than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 2-0, placed vertically.

Less Than (4): Everything in this space must be less than 4. The answer is 0-5, placed vertically.

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 0-5, placed vertically.

Less Than (2): Everything in this space must be less than 2. The answer is 2-0, placed vertically; 0-4, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 0-4, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (1): Everything in this space must be greater than 1. The answer is 2-1, placed vertically.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 2-1, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-4, placed vertically.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Today's Connections: Sports Edition will be easier if you've ever watched baseball.

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight, and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections: Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. The sports Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Each puzzle features 16 words, and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes before the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Atlantic Coast

• Green: QBs out west

• Blue: Blue Jays

• Purple: Types of defenders

Here are today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: ACC Schools, Abbreviated

• Green: First Names of AFC West QBs

• Blue: Toronto Blue Jays

• Purple: Defensive___

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #692 is...

What is the answer to Connections: Sports Edition today?

• ACC Schools, Abbreviated: BC, CAL, CUSE, PITT

• First Names of AFC West QBs: BO, FERNANDO, JUSTIN, PATRICK

• Toronto Blue Jays: BIEBER, CEASE, GUERRERO, SPRINGER

• Defensive___: BACK, END, INDIFFERENCE, TACKLE

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you're familiar with musical theater.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Musical

• Green: Involved

• Blue: Family tree

• Purple: Older humans

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Musical Performance

• Green: Participant

• Blue: Family Relationship Modifiers

• Purple: Descriptors for Our Human Ancestors

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #1162 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Musical Performance: CONCERT, GIG, SET, SHOW

• Participant: ACTOR, AGENT, PARTY, PLAYER

• Family Relationship Modifiers: GRAND, GREAT, HALF, STEP

• Descriptors for Our Human Ancestors: FROM NEADER, HANDY, UPRIGHT, WISE

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you enjoy French cuisine.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Savory gelatin.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter A.

The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

ASPIC

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you know a bit of trivia.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Learn by doing

The words are related to receiving guidance.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe being guided by a leader or mentor.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.

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NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Job Training.

NYT Strands word list for August 16

• Intern

• Disciple

• Apprentince

• Protege

• Mentee

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Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Content warning: suicide, self-harm.

By no means a light watch but an important and timely one, Mission sees a young man struggling to feel connected to society, contemplating dying by suicide but giving himself one week to convince himself to stay alive.

Written and directedy with disorientating flair by Scottish director Paul Wright (Arcadia), this BBC-produced film explores the personal and social reasons behind suicidal behaviour through the experience of Dylan (a phenomenal George MacKay). It's not a sensational, generalised depiction of mental health, but instead a splintered, chaotic endeavor to visually render one person's complex perspective. 

MacKay, who starred in Wright's For Those in Peril back in 2013, gives a mercurial performance as a man vehemently trying to find meaning in a world he feels alienated from. Dylan yearns for the reality of his younger self, free of inhibition and full of wonder, and he scorns conformity. But where is the line between uninhibited whims and total anarchy? Dylan will test both his own and societal boundaries in a week-long crusade, which sees whimsy and transgression at either end of a slippery slope.

Mission is as much a film about death as it is about life.

Rosy McEwen as Claire in "Mission." Credit: BBC

Dylan's "mission" is to live, in every sense of the word, through experiences he's never allowed himself to have. Feeling stuck in his waiter job and overwhelmingly lonely and rudderless, he struggles to find a sense of purpose. Here, MacKay imbues Dylan's physicality with monotonous, mechanical movements and blank stares, flicking lights on and off, and internalising his rage over incessant phone vibrations and drilling outside his apartment.

Through voiceover, we gain insight into Dylan's inner turmoil as if we're reading his diary: "I don't know how to live in this world the way it is," he says, longing for a way to connect. He's buoyed by two people, his friend and co-worker Becky (Bridgerton's Emma Naomi), whom he clearly has feelings for, and his sister Claire (Scarpetta's Rosy McEwen), whose connection with Dylan has deep roots. Through sweet home video flashbacks (and adorable performances from youngsters Oliver Boyd and Matilda Thomson), Wright weaves Dylan and Claire's relationship as one of childhood magic, silliness, and creative expression. Their bond, though changed in adulthood, becomes the true heart of the film.

Dylan's turning point occurs during a routine check-in interview with his boss, James (Emun Elliott), that sees Dylan move from parroting corporate speak to admitting his hatred for the job as "soul-destroying." From here, he quits, slowly obsessing over James, an initially amiable but eventually contemptible representation of everything Dylan hates. 

Retreating to an abandoned shack on the edge of a lake, Dylan ideates ending his life. However, he gives himself one week to find a "reason to go on." He begins a quest of total ecstasy, commanding himself to "do something," whatever euphoric act comes to mind. "Embrace the random. No longer be afraid. Connect to the forgotten parts of yourself," he declares in voiceover, setting out the rules of his manifesto. But there's a difference between singing karaoke in front of strangers and more harmful acts, as Dylan's increasingly extreme choices simmer with anarchy. 

George MacKay is fearless in Mission.

George MacKay in "Mission." Credit: BBC

Fresh off miraculous performances in Rose of Nevada and The End, MacKay truly leans into physicality with Mission. The actor builds a character so erratic, interior, and determined that it's hard to know whether we're barracking for Dylan or, frankly, fearful of him. Every turn sees him plunging into bacchanalian excess and self-harm, making unbridled decisions that could cause others or himself harm. So, while we're along for this life-affirming ride, we're almost becoming complicit in something malevolent, with no ability to change anything.  

Seeking solace in childhood unpredictability, Dylan yearns for a time when "everything was possible," seeing random acts as a form of resistance. He sees his alienation from society as a license to disturb, to provoke. Going from the embodiment of mechanistic drudgery to a man of sheer glee, convulsing and writhing with animalistic expression and chaotic energy, MacKay pushes himself to the absolute limit.

McEwen is superb as Dylan's sister Claire, whose practicality sees her struggling to understand her brother's pain and acting as his anchor in the mayhem. "Everyone's just trying to live their life," she says, unable to see how a simple sentence could be so complicated for Dylan. However, one particular scene between the two proves one of the most quietly powerful conversations I've seen on screen, with MacKay and McEwen showing pure talent.

Mission relishes in punk cinematography, editing, and sound.

In order to explore Dylan's frame of mind, Wright leans into the disorientated style of his documentary Arcadia, a celebrated work of juxtaposition and montage. With meticulous, energetic editing from Jennifer Mackie and Michael Aaglund, Mission splices Limbo and Bring Them Down cinematographer Nick Cooke's stunning shots with frenetically edited footage of current events, abstract visuals, home footage, and MacKay's voice-over.

Roly Porter's hypnotic score is a constant companion to Dylan, with The Unheard composer finding poignancy and care in the protagonist's darkest moments. And as a sum of its parts, Mission becomes an intense, sobering experience, one that aims to get us inside Dylan's deepest thoughts.

Ultimately, Mission pulls us under with Dylan, rattled and contorted into his high-stakes "experiment" without the ability to connect with him ourselves. Through MacKay's fearless performance, Wright's discombobulating style, and a timely theme, the film wrestles with existence and connection, balancing darkness and light, despair and hope. It's a haunting watch, but one with an all-important glimmer of hope.

Mission was reviewed out of its premiere at Edinburgh International Film Festival. International release dates TBC.

If you're feeling suicidal or experiencing a mental health crisis, please talk to somebody. You can call or text the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline at 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org. You can reach the Trans Lifeline by calling 877-565-8860 or the Trevor Project at 866-488-7386. Text "START" to Crisis Text Line at 741-741. Contact the NAMI HelpLine at 1-800-950-NAMI, Monday through Friday from 10:00 a.m. – 10:00 p.m. ET, or email info@nami.org. If you don't like the phone, consider using the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline Chat. Here is a list of international resources.

Before there was Donald Duck or Goofy or even Mickey Mouse, there was Oswald the Lucky Rabbit.

And now Oswald is finally getting his very own TV miniseries.

At this year's D23 fan event, Disney announced that Oswald the Lucky Rabbit will star in a live-action animated three-part TV miniseries on Disney+.

The "Oswald" miniseries is written, directed, and executive-produced by Jon Favreau. The cast includes an all-star comedy lineup, including Albert Brooks, Amy Sedaris, Kathryn Hahn, Steve Martin, Al Madrigal, Ravi Cabot-Conyers, Mykal-Michelle Harris, and Ryder Allen.

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The road to his own Disney series was a long one for Oswald.

Oswald the Lucky Rabbit was first created in 1927 by Walt Disney and Ub Iwerks for Universal Pictures. Oswald starred in more than two dozen theatrical short films in the late 1920s, animated by Walt Disney Studios. However, in 1928, Universal took control of the Oswald character from Disney, prompting the latter to create a replacement known to audiences as Mickey Mouse.

The rest is history. Mickey soon became more popular than Oswald, who faded into obscurity after a few final appearances in the 1950s.

In 2006, Disney gained the rights to Oswald in a bizarre trade with NBCUniversal. Disney received the Oswald trademark and rights to the Disney-era animated films, and in exchange, NBCUniversal was able to have play-by-play announcer Al Michaels' services for NBC Sunday Night Football. Since then, Oswald has made cameo appearances in animated shows, Disney theme parks, and video games like Epic Mickey.

Now, Oswald is finally set to receive his very own Disney miniseries, which will mix hand-drawn 2D animation with live-action.

The miniseries comes to Disney+ in Feb. 2027.

Marvel Studios debuted the first trailer for its Disney+ series VisionQuest at D23 in Anaheim, California, offering the clearest look yet at Paul Bettany's return as the sentient AI hero Vision.

The trailer finds Vision living in hiding and grappling with an existential crisis after essentially being resurrected in WandaVision. As part of his search for answers, Vision converses with several other artificial intelligences drawn from his own programming, including FRIDAY (Orla Bradley), DUM-E (Henry Lewis), JARVIS (James D'Arcy), and Ultron (James Spader). Much of Ultron is shown in human form in the footage, and the other Tony Stark-created AIs appear less than thrilled to have him around. An understandable reaction, given that Ultron nearly wiped out humanity in Avengers: Age of Ultron.

According to Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, VisionQuest will serve as the final installment in what he's calling the "Wanda trilogy," following WandaVision and Agatha All Along. It's also expected to be Marvel's last live-action Disney+ series for the foreseeable future, part of a broader pullback from television that multiple outlets have reported in recent months. That shift already led to the cancellation of Wonder Man, which drew backlash from fans after the show was scrapped just months after being renewed for a second season.

VisionQuest premieres on Disney+ on Oct. 14.

One of the few hit Pixar films without a sequel is finally getting one.

At its D23 fan event in Anaheim, Disney unveiled what the company has been working on for its Coco 2 sequel.

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Disney announced that the original Coco director, Lee Unkrich, will be returning to direct alongside co-director Adrian Molina. In addition, Benjamin Bratt will return to reprise the role of Ernesto de la Cruz, which means that Ernesto de la Cruz will be returning in the Coco sequel, too. In fact, it appears that Ernesto de la Cruz will play a major role in the upcoming film.

"To some, Miguel is a little menace who ruined a career and destroyed a legacy," Bratt said onstage at the event. "Ernesto de la Cruz is back for revenge, sending Miguel on an adventure back to the Land of the Dead. Proving fate has a sense of humor, Miguel must team up with a handsome superstar: me."

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Based on what Bratt had to say, it seems Coco 2 will take Miguel back to the land of the dead, where he'll have to join forces with Ernesto de la Cruz, the music superstar who was revealed as a fraud that killed Miguel's great-great-grandfather Hector in the first film.

Speaking of Miguel, Disney provided a first look at the upcoming Coco 2, which seemingly will star Miguel as a teenager.

Coco was a big success for the company when it was released in 2017. The film grossed more than $800 million worldwide and won two Academy Awards, one for best animated feature and another for best original song, "Remember Me."

Disney CEO Bob Iger previously shared that a Coco sequel was in the works in March of last year.

Coco 2 is currently scheduled to hit theaters in November 2029.

The next time Kingdom Hearts is on your television screen, you might not be playing it as a video game but watching it as an anime TV series.

A slew of Disney-related movies and TV shows have been announced over the past 24 hours as part of D23, the company's annual fan event, which is currently taking place in Anaheim, California. Disney announced that an anime TV series based on the Kingdom Hearts video game franchise will debut soon on Disney+'s streaming platform and the Disney Channel.

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Kingdom Hearts is a massively popular video game series by Square Enix, the gaming developer behind hit franchises such as Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest. The series follows a young boy named Sora as he goes on adventures alongside Donald Duck and Goofy. Numerous Disney characters have recurring roles and make appearances throughout the game series, including Mickey Mouse and various Disney Villains.

According to Disney, the anime series "reimagines the iconic adventure with a brand-new story that will expand on the universe of Kingdom Hearts while celebrating the characters that have captured the hearts of millions of fans around the world."

The show will be developed by Disney in partnership with video game creator Tetsuya Nomura and Square Enix.

“Kingdom Hearts has captivated gamers everywhere with its unique blend of adventure and imagination,” said President of Disney Kids & Family Ayo Davis. “There’s something really exciting about taking a world fans have spent years exploring through the games and bringing it to life in a completely new way. And with a creative team that is working closely with the legendary Tetsuya Nomura, our new series will be unmistakably Kingdom Hearts, while giving fans a whole new way to experience the world they love.”

There was some Kingdom Hearts video game news at D23 as well, with the next installment in the series, Kingdom Hearts 4, receiving a "late 2027" release date. In an article posted on Disney's investor website right before the announcement, Disney unveiled that Kingdom Hearts is now a billion-dollar franchise.

Disney has not yet announced a timeline for the Kingdom Hearts anime TV series.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move on to the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity with how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible — and common — for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

Easy difficulty hints, answers for August 15 Pips

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 4-4, placed vertically; 0-6, placed vertically.

Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 0-6, placed vertically; 6-6, placed horizontally; 6-5, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically.

Equal (3): Everything in this space must be equal to 3. The answer is 3-3, placed vertically.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for August 15 Pips

Greater Than (8): Everything in this space must be greater than 8. The answer is 4-6, placed horizontally; 4-2, placed vertically.

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 6-3, placed horizontally.

Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 4-2, placed vertically; 6-2, placed vertically.

Number (6): Everything in this space must add up to 6. The answer is 6-3, placed horizontally; 3-1, placed vertically.

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 6-1, placed vertically.

Less Than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 6-1, placed vertically; 3-1, placed vertically; 0-2, placed vertically.

Less Than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 0-2, placed vertically.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for August 15 Pips

Greater Than (4): Everything in this space must be greater than 4. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically.

Greater Than (0): Everything in this space must be greater than 0. The answer is 2-1, placed vertically.

Equal (1): Everything in this space must be equal to 1. The answer is 2-1, placed vertically; 1-1, placed vertically; 1-0, placed vertically.

Greater Than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (16): Everything in this space must be greater than 16. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally; 6-5, placed vertically.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 0-0, placed horizontally; 0-2, placed vertically.

Less Than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 0-2, placed vertically.

Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally.

Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 2-2, placed horizontally; 2-5, placed vertically.

Greater Than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (3): Everything in this space must be greater than 3. The answer is 6-4, placed horizontally.

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 6-2, placed vertically.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 3-0, placed horizontally; 4-0, placed horizontally.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Today's Connections: Sports Edition will be easier if you've ever watched baseball.

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight, and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections: Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. The sports Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words, and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes before the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: No chips

• Green: Working at the country club

• Blue: Seen in KC

• Purple: Spelled like a W team

Here are today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Teams to Never Win a World Series

• Green: Jobs at a Golf Course

• Blue: Kansas City Teams

• Purple: Anagrams of WNBA Teams

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #691 is...

What is the answer to Connections: Sports Edition today?

• Teams to Never Win a World Series: BREWERS, MARINERS, PADRES, ROCKIES

• Jobs at a Golf Course: CADDIE, GREENSKEEPER, STARTER, SUPERINTENDENT

• Kansas City Teams: CHIEFS, CURRENT, ROYALS, SPORTING KC

• Anagrams of WNBA Teams: CASE, MADRE, RIFE, SWING

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

Marvel surprised the crowd at its D23 panel Friday night with new footage from Avengers: Doomsday, offering fans an exclusive look at the upcoming film.

In the clip, Sue Storm of the Fantastic Four tells the assembled Avengers that Victor Von Doom (Robert Downey Jr.) wasn't always the villain they're facing now, hinting that the character's turn followed the loss of everything he held dear, presumably including his wife and child. The footage cuts between close-ups of the ensemble cast as the moment lands.

The footage arrived just as Marvel unveiled the cast of its X-Men reboot, and the ensemble glimpsed in the Doomsday clip includes several of the franchise's Fox-era mutants, including Cyclops, Professor X, and Magneto.

The footage also delivers a jolt of action, showing RDJ's Doom shrug off a direct hit from Thor before summoning what appears to be a full army of Sentinels — the towering, mutant-hunting robots known for their flight capabilities and energy-blast attacks. Bad news for the good guys.

Avengers: Doomsday is set to hit theaters Dec. 18, 2026.

SPOILER WARNING: This piece references plot details from Spider-Man: Brand New Day, including Sadie Sink's role in the film.

Marvel unveiled the cast of its long-awaited X-Men reboot at D23 on Friday night, assembling a notably younger ensemble than the mutant team audiences have known from two decades of Fox films.

Disney and Marvel revealed that the new lineup includes Sadie Sink (Stranger Things, The Whale) as Jean Grey, Kit Connor (Heart Stopper Forever, Elden Ring, Warfare) as Cyclops, Christopher Abbott (Wolfman, Girls, Sanctuary) as Professor Charles Xavier, Samara Weaving (Ready or Not, Over Your Dead Body) as Emma Frost, Inde Navarrette (Obsession) as Rogue, and Broadway performer Maya Boyd as Storm, with Adam Driver (Marriage Story, Girls, House of Gucci) joining as the villain Mr. Sinister.

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The cast appeared onstage alongside Marvel Studios president Kevin Feige, with Driver joining via video. Feige said the actors had only just met backstage for the first time, and cautioned that the roster revealed Friday isn't the complete lineup. Driver, for his part, said he and Feige had discussed him joining the Marvel Cinematic Universe for years before they "found something perfect with characters I feel very deeply about."

The younger cast marks a deliberate departure from the X-Men most audiences already know. A number of actors from the 2000s Fox films — including Patrick Stewart as Professor X, Ian McKellen as Magneto, James Marsden as Cyclops, Rebecca Romijn as Mystique, and Alan Cumming as Nightcrawler — are set to return this December in Avengers: Doomsday. Channing Tatum's variant of Gambit is also set to appear, with the character formally appearing in Deadpool & Wolverine after a decade of the purported film being stuck in developmental hell.

Notably absent from Friday's announcement was any casting for Wolverine, but Hugh Jackman did tease that he and Ryan Reynolds' Deadpool could appear in Avengers: Doomsday.

Some of the cast announcements have been known for a few weeks. Connor's role as Cyclops and Weaving's as Emma Frost had previously been reported, and the Hollywood Reporter had exclusively reported the prior week that Abbott was a strong contender for Professor X. Navarrette recently broke out in the summer hit Obsession, while Boyd is best known for leading the Broadway production of & Juliet.

The film is set for release on May 5, 2028.

SAVE $549: As of Aug. 15, the Anker Solix S2000 portable power station is down to $649.99 from $1,199 at Amazon — a 46% discount and one of its best prices yet.

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Credit: Anker Solix

Anker Solix S2000

$649.99 at Amazon
$1,199 Save $549.01

 

Get Deal

Anker's Solix S2000 portable power station just dropped to one of its best prices yet.

It's on sale for $649.99 at Amazon — down from $1,199. A big selling point here is fridge backup — Anker says it'll keep your fridge running for 35 hours on a full charge. That's because the unit barely draws power while idle, so more of the battery goes toward keeping your food cold rather than being wasted.

The battery itself is an LFP (lithium iron phosphate) battery, which means it's built to last longer than a typical lithium-ion battery. Anker rates it for 10,000 charge cycles, which works out to about 15 years of regular use before you'd need to think about replacing it.

Despite holding almost 2,000Wh of power, it's smaller and lighter than most power stations in this category, weighing under 36 pounds. It puts out 1,500W continuously (3,000W at peak), enough to run about 99% of typical home appliances, though that'll depend on exactly what you're plugging in.

You've got six ways to recharge it, including solar, a wall outlet, your car, or a generator, so you're not locked into one option. It's got eight outlets split between the front and back, keeping things easy to reach instead of crammed together, and if the power cuts out while you're working, it switches over in under 10 milliseconds, fast enough that you probably won't even notice.

Blackout-proof your kitchen while it's actually affordable. Grab the Anker Solix S2000 portable power station on Amazon before it returns to full price.

The best Disney+ deals and bundles in August 2026:

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Best Hulu Bundle Deal

Disney+ and Hulu Bundle

Get 6 months for $11.99/month

Get Deal

---

Best HBO Max Bundle Deal

Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max Bundle

$19.99/month with ads, $32.99/month ad-free

Get Deal

---

Best ESPN Bundle Deal

Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN Unlimited Bundle

$35.99/month

Get Deal

Whether you're looking to jump into the latest superhero saga or journey to a galaxy far, far away, Disney+ is the streaming service for you.

Home to Marvel, Star Wars, Pixar, and more, Disney+ offers a library stuffed with shows and films to keep both adults and kids entertained. With Disney+, you can watch Pixar's latest movie Hoppers, season two of X-Men '97, the upcoming third season of Percy Jackson and the Olympians, and much more.

If you've had this streaming service on your radar but you're unsure which plan is the best fit for you, we've got you covered with a selection of Disney+ streaming deals. Right now, the streamer is offering six months of its ad-supported Disney+ and Hulu bundle for only $11.99 per month (which renews at $12.99 per month after six months), or six months of its ad-free plan at $17.99 per month (which will return to $19.99 per month after the six-month promotional period).

There's also the Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max package, which is a great investment for those who already use the other two streaming services but want to cut costs. We've detailed all available bundle deals below, along with basic information on Disney+ plans if you just want the House of Mouse's service on its own.

Best Hulu bundle deal

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Credit: Disney

Disney+ and Hulu Bundle

Get 6 months of Disney+ and Hulu (With Ads) for $11.99/month, then $12.99/month

Get Deal

Why we like it

For those interested in the Disney+ and Hulu bundle, the streamer is offering deals on both its ad-supported and ad-free plans. For the plan with ads, new and eligible returning subscribers can lock in for six months at $11.99 per month before it returns to $12.99 per month. And if you're interested in going ad-free, the Premium plan is down to $17.99 per month for six months, then returns to $19.99 per month.

• Disney+ and Hulu Bundle — $11.99 per month for six months, then $12.99 per month

• Disney+ and Hulu Bundle Premium — $17.99 per month for six months, then $19.99 per month

Best HBO Max bundle deal

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Credit: Disney

Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max Bundle

$19.99/month with ads, $32.99/month ad-free

Get Deal

Why we like it

The Disney+, Hulu, and HBO Max bundle is one of the best available at the moment. Starting at $19.99 per month, you can have three excellent streaming services right in the palm of your hand. The $19.99 per month option is for the With Ads plan, but if you'd prefer to watch your favorite content without ads, the No Ads plan costs $32.99 per month. Compared to what you'd pay for each of these on their own, you're saving 42% with the ad-supported plan and 41% with the ad-free plan.

• Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle (with ads) — $19.99 per month (save 42%)

• Disney+, Hulu, HBO Max Bundle (no ads) — $32.99 per month (save 41%)

Best ESPN bundle

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Credit: Disney

Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN Unlimited Bundle

$35.99/month

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If you're a sports fan looking to add ESPN to your bundles, you're in luck: Disney offers bundles with both ESPN Select and ESPN Unlimited. According to ESPN, "ESPN Select includes ESPN+ content only. Fans who want ESPN+ exclusively may subscribe to the ESPN Select plan. ESPN Unlimited includes all of the ESPN networks and services, including ESPN+."

The Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle, which has ads, is available for $35.99 per month. The Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN Unlimited premium bundle without ads is available for $44.99 per month.

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle — $19.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle Premium — $29.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle — $35.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Unlimited Bundle Premium — $44.99 per month

Best Disney+ monthly plans

Disney+ offers two standard plans if you just want the service on its own. The Disney+ ad-supported plan comes to $11.99 per month, while the ad-free Disney+ Premium plan will set you back $18.99 per month or $189.99 per year if you'd rather pay annually.

• Disney+ (With Ads) — $11.99 per month

• Disney+ Premium (No Ads) — $18.99 per month, $189.99 per year

Disney+ has also created an "extra member" plan for people using your account who live outside of your household, as they crack down on password sharing. If you're looking to add another person to your account, you're only allowed one extra profile and can choose from the following add-on plans:

• Disney+ (With Ads) — $6.99 per month

• Disney+ Premium — $9.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu Bundle — $7.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu Bundle Premium — $10.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle — $11.99 per month

• Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Select Bundle Premium — $14.99 per month

There's a wealth of shows and films to check out on Disney+ after you sign up. If you want some help finding something to watch, check out our roundups of the 12 best TV shows for adults on Disney+ and the 20 best movies on Disney+ to start building out your watchlist.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

Hurdle Word 1 hint

A mistake.

Hurdle Word 1 answer

SNAFU

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Ways information is relayed.

Hurdle Word 2 Answer

MEDIA

Hurdle Word 3 hint

To destroy.

Hurdle Word 3 answer

BREAK

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Like an apartment.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

CONDO

Final Hurdle hint

An area without light

Hurdle Word 5 answer

UNLIT

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

When Nobel Laureate John C. Mather used to give talks about the James Webb Space Telescope, he would often use an impressive analogy — that the observatory was so sensitive, it could detect the heat of a bumblebee as far away as the moon.

That's because Webb, a collaboration of NASA and the European and Canadian space agencies, was built to detect the faintest, most ancient light in the universe — galaxies and stars that formed just a few hundred million years after the Big Bang.

But there's an irony to having the world's most powerful infrared telescope in space: While Webb is exceptional at seeing unfathomably distant things, it struggles to take pictures of objects in our own cosmic backyard, like Mars and Saturn.

Because the planets in our solar system are so bright, they flood the telescope's sensors with more light than they can handle. To get these shots, astronomers have had to use dark filters — akin to wearing solar eclipse glasses — to avoid blinding the camera.

Now, telescope operators have a workaround, and it doesn't require astronauts visiting the spacecraft a million miles away for maintenance. Instead, engineers are sending a software update from the ground that will let Webb photograph bright planets without throwing away useful data.

The new readout method, called "superstripe," should allow Webb to safely photograph targets that are 100 or more times brighter than it could handle before, said Bryan Holler, a scientist at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore.

Even Holler, who took Jupiter photos with Webb in 2022, admits those first images were a blurry mess. That's because the camera took several seconds to read the whole image while the planet's fast‑moving clouds shifted. Those test images were intended to assess how much unwanted stray light Webb would see as Jupiter moved onto the camera detector.

Left: Early images of Jupiter and its moon Europa were blurry and overexposed, highlighting the James Webb Space Telescope's challenges taking images of bright solar system objects. Credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / B. Holler / J. Stansberry

Right: Credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / B. Holler / J. Stansberry

Webb later produced more photogenic Jupiter images by using shorter exposures and more selective settings. 

"The nicer Jupiter images that are out there from people who really know how to do image processing, they were able to actually deblur some of those images using the data," Holler told Mashable.

But sharpening software can't rescue light that was never recorded in the first place. Until now, scientists have tried to solve the problem by cropping the camera's view down to a tiny box to limit the incoming light. The new superstripe technique is an upgrade: Instead of taking one picture, the camera scans the planet in thin slices, stealing many rapid glances.

Because the camera captures each individual slice in a fraction of a second, it doesn't get dazzled by the glare. Plus, the quick snaps mean there's little time for changes in extraterrestrial storms or auroras to blur the shot. Afterward, the software stitches the slices together into a single crisp picture.

Although Webb wasn't built to look at our solar system, many astronomers are eager to use it to study nearby worlds anyway. Webb's biggest advantage is its location: It can look out into the cosmos without Earth's air getting in the way.

Advanced sharpening software can vastly improve Webb's bright and blurry solar-system pictures, but image processing can't recuperate light that was never recorded. Credit: NASA / ESA / CSA / Ricardo Hueso / Imke de Pater / Thierry Fouchet / Leigh Fletcher / Michael Wong / Joseph DePasquale

"A lot of that tends to come back to this pesky atmosphere," Holler said. "It's fine for breathing and everything, but when you really want to study surfaces or atmospheres, you have to leave [our] atmosphere."

Even giant telescopes on the ground have trouble seeing through Earth’s blanket of air, which absorbs certain types of light before they can reach the telescopes’ lenses.

Researchers say this new software could open the door to new discoveries. The stripe-style camera trick could catch rare moments, like when a giant planet, one of its moons, or even its rings briefly block a background star, giving scientists cleaner measurements of their sizes and atmospheres.

It will also allow astronomers to observe exoplanets orbiting ultra-bright stars outside our solar system, such as 55 Cancri e, a scorching-hot lava world 41 light-years away.

The superstripe readout capability is scheduled to roll out with Webb's next observing cycle, which begins next July. For the rest of us, just sit back and relax: Sharper views of our own cosmic neighbors are on the way.

Over the past few years, Prime Video has become the ultimate destination for young adult and new adult shows.

The Summer I Turned Pretty whipped the world into a frenzy over the Team Conrad versus Team Jeremiah debate. Maxton Hall served up swoon-worthy enemies-to-lovers angst. Off Campus proved an irresistible addition to TV's hottest new subgenre: hockey romance.

These shows and more — We Were Liars, Elle, Every Year After — are all part of Prime's push to court Gen Z. Its latest hit, Sterling Point, is no exception. Created by Megan Park, the director of exceptional coming-of-age films The Fallout and My Old Ass, the series is another entry in Prime's robust YA library. It's also its most refreshing standout.

Sterling Point follows New York teen Annie (Ella Rubin) as she visits the Canadian island she and her twin brother Connor (Keen Ruffalo) inherited from the grandfather they never knew. Plot-wise, the show doesn't reinvent the wheel. In fact, it has quite a few elements in common with several other Prime YA hits. The Canadian lake setting of Every Year After. The family secrets of We Were Liars. The love triangle of The Summer I Turned Pretty. The class divide of Maxton Hall. Many of these are standard teen drama tropes, and Sterling Point isn't afraid to dig into others: magical summers, messy birthdays, grief over losing loved ones. Yet despite this familiarity, Sterling Point manages to set itself apart, and in doing so becomes Prime's most exceptional teen drama.

For starters, Sterling Point is a completely original entry in Prime's adaptation-heavy slate. Unlike The Summer I Turned Pretty, Maxton Hall, Off Campus, Every Year After, and We Were Liars, it's not based on a book series. And unlike Legally Blonde prequel Elle, or the cancelled Cruel Intentions, it has no ties to prior films.

This is not a knock against adaptations. YA novels, especially YA romances, have huge audiences who deserve to see their beloved stories leap off the page. That kind of built-in fandom is also a TV network's dream, so no wonder Prime is pursuing adaptations in such intense fashion. (Other streamers have pulled similar moves: Netflix with My Life with the Walter Boys, Forever, and the now-concluded Heartstopper, and Hulu with the now-concluded Tell Me Lies.)

However, like any good TV lineup, Prime's younger-skewing collection needs variety. That means original shows to balance out its host of adaptations. Benito Skinner's college-set Overcompensating fills this niche on the comedy front, but on the teen drama front, Prime has yet to find that kind of success with an original. (It canceled 2025 teen drama original Motorheads after just one season.) Sterling Point, which took the number one spot on Prime Video's chart and which has generated huge buzz across social media, may very well be the Prime YA original with staying power.

Sterling Point's status as an original already makes it a major outlier in Prime's teen drama catalog. But what truly sets it apart is its tone, which remains grounded and naturalistic even as its story takes its fair share of soapy turns.

Of Prime's teen dramas, Sterling Point is the first one I watched that genuinely captures how young people talk. Other offerings like The Summer I Turned Pretty or We Were Liars have more affected dialogue, with voiceovers often narrating directly from the book. The effect is one of glossy drama, but Sterling Point strips the gloss away in favor of natural pauses and overlapping dialogue. Characters ramble and apologize for rambling. They interrupt one another and apologize for that, too. Nothing feels like a mimicry of conversation: It just is conversation. That even extends to Sterling Point's occasional use of slang, which avoids the trap of feeling forced. At one point, Connor calls a plate of spaghetti "gas," and the moment is as lived-in as it is silly.

That same natural feeling is present across Park's prior projects. The former star of a teen drama herself, having appeared in The Secret Life of the American Teenager, Park has emphasized the importance of writing dialogue that sounds like a teen would actually say it. She also encouraged the actors to improvise, creating a sense of messy realness that highlights the strengths of her young cast. Several exchanges feel drawn from a mumblecore movie, which only feels fitting given that Jay Duplass — a key figure of the mumblecore genre, along with his brother Mark — stars as Annie and Connor's father.

The majority of Prime's YA series offer up lovely fantasies of romance and self-discovery, and Sterling Point certainly indulges in these fantasies as well. But its dialogue makes them feel more down-to-earth, all without ever diminishing the big life changes its characters are experiencing. It's a show that manages to have that timeless teen drama quality, earning comparisons to classics like Dawson's Creek and The O.C. in a way that Prime's flashier YA shows haven't. Yet even though it boasts a throwback quality (the lack of phone service around Sterling Point helps), it remains rooted in the now. Thanks to that, out of all Prime's moves to woo Gen Z, Sterling Point is the series that's closest to actually getting them right.

Sterling Point is now streaming on Prime Video.

TL;DR: Pay $69.97 once for lifetime access to 1min.AI’s all-in-one business platform — but only through Aug. 16.

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Credit: 1minAI

1min.AI Advanced Business Plan Lifetime Subscription

$69.97
$540 Save $470.03

 

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AI subscriptions aren’t cheap, but it’s manageable if you only use one model like ChatGPT. However, if you need tools for generating images, writing copy, analyzing documents, or translating between languages, a platform like 1min.AI is a more viable option. 

1min.AI gives you lifetime access to some of the most popular AI tools, including ChatGPT, Gemini, Mistral, and many others. It’s also only $69.97 for a lifetime subscription right now (reg. $540).

1min.AI runs in your browser and pulls a ton of everyday work into one place. You can research keywords, draft blog posts, rewrite and shorten text, generate social posts, and keep a consistent brand voice across projects.

There are tools to summarize or translate documents, chat with multiple PDFs at once, and spin up slide presentations. For visuals, you can generate images from prompts, upscale low-resolution pictures, remove backgrounds, extend edges, or turn rough sketches into cleaner artwork.

Here’s a small sample of the AI models you’ll get access to:

• GPT-5.5 Pro

• Claude 4.1 Opus and Claude 4.5 Sonnet

• Gemini 3.1 Pro

• Llama 3

• Mistral models

The Advanced Business Plan includes 4,000,000 credits each month, plus the chance to earn up to 450,000 more through daily logins and other tasks. Credits are shared across writing, images, audio, and video, so you can lean harder on whichever tools you need that month.

The plan supports up to 20 members, with shared workspaces, an unlimited prompt library, unlimited storage, and unlimited brand voices. If you don’t use all your credits, they just roll over, so you aren’t missing out if you have a lighter month.

It’s currently only $69.97 to get a 1min.AI lifetime subscription, but only if you order through Aug. 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Live stream Serie A for free on SportyNet. Access these free live streams from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

What do you look for when watching elite football? Do you need the speed and physicality of the Premier League? Do you yearn for the technical ability of La Liga? Or perhaps you love spotting young talent in Ligue 1?

If you are passionate about tactical discipline and defensive organization, Serie A is the league for you. Some of the world's best players have competed in this competition, including Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Paolo Maldini. The league isn't the powerhouse that it once was, but it still offers fascinating matchups week after week.

If you want to watch Serie A for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

What is Serie A?

Serie A is a professional football league in Italy and the highest level of the Italian football league system. The league is contested by 20 clubs, with each team playing 38 fixtures. Serie A is home to some of football's most successful clubs, including Juventus, Napoli, Inter Milan, and AC Milan.

The defending champions are Inter Milan.

When is Serie A?

The 2026-27 Serie A season will start on Aug. 22. The season will end on May 30.

How to watch Serie A for free

Select Serie A fixtures are available to live stream for free on SportyNet.

SportyNet is geo-restricted to Brazil, but anyone can bypass these restrictions with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in Brazil, meaning you can unblock free live streams of Serie A from anywhere in the world.

Access free live streams of Serie A by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in Brazil

4. Visit SportyNet

5. Watch Serie A fixtures for free from anywhere in the world

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Credit: ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan)

$12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)

Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams of Serie A without actually spending anything. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch select fixtures (plus Premier League action) before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free live streams all season, you will need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for Serie A?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport for free, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries, including Brazil

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices, including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

• Fast connection speeds

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 80% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with a money-back guarantee).

Live stream Serie A for free from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: Get 5 years of flowkey Classic for $67.99 (reg. $899) through Aug. 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

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Credit: Flowkey

flowkey Piano Learning App: Classic Plan (5-Year Subscription)

$67.99
$899 Save $831.01

 

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If learning piano is one of those goals that keeps getting pushed to the bottom of your “things I want to do” list, flowkey offers a way to practice without committing to a traditional lesson schedule. Flowkey’s interactive piano learning platform combines guided courses with songs you can learn at your own pace, and a five-year Classic subscription is currently $67.99 (reg. $899) through Aug. 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

The app listens as you play and provides real-time feedback on your notes and chords, helping you catch mistakes as you practice. Its Wait Mode can pause your progress until you hit the correct notes, while slow-motion playback and looping let you spend extra time on difficult passages. You can also practice each hand separately and follow synchronized sheet music while watching video lessons from professional pianists.

The song library includes more than 1,000 classical and public-domain pieces, with music from composers including Bach, Debussy, Chopin, Beethoven, Mozart and Liszt. Arrangements are available across beginner, intermediate, advanced, and pro levels, so you can choose versions that match your current abilities rather than jumping straight into something that’s above your skill level.

Aside from individual songs, flowkey Classic includes courses covering music theory, chords, sheet music and foundational techniques such as hand positioning, playing with both hands and basic rhythms. The subscription works across laptops, phones, and tablets, and the platform is available in 11 languages!

This deal is worth a look if you’re more interested in building a consistent piano habit rather than squeezing in lessons through a short trial period. Whether you’re starting from scratch or getting back to an instrument you haven’t played in years, the five-year subscription gives you the time you need to learn lessons and songs at your own pace.

For a limited time, flowkey Piano Learning App: Classic Plan is available for $67.99 (reg. $899) through Aug. 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Pay $39.97 for a 5-year AdGuard VPN subscription and lifetime access to the AdGuard Family Plan (reg. $439.39) — but only through August 16.

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AdGuard VPN + Ad Blocker Family Security Suite

$39.97
$439.39 Save $399.42

 

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Nobody wakes up excited to manage another digital subscription. This AdGuard bundle offers a simpler setup: Pay $39.97 once for five years of AdGuard VPN and lifetime access to the AdGuard Family Plan. Regularly $439.39, the bundle is available at this price for just one more day.

AdGuard VPN encrypts your internet connection to help keep browsing activity and transferred data more private, particularly when using unfamiliar networks. Its zero-logging policy means the service says it does not collect browsing activity or internet traffic.

The VPN supports up to 10 simultaneous device connections, making it practical for a household with phones, tablets, and computers. Subscribers receive unlimited data and access to servers across more than 60 locations, with apps available for major platforms, including iOS and Android.

The second half of the bundle tackles everyday browsing clutter. AdGuard blocks banners, pop-ups, video ads, and other interruptions while helping limit tracking by activity analyzers. It also warns against potentially harmful or phishing websites.

Parents can use the included controls to restrict access to inappropriate content, while the family license extends coverage across multiple personal devices. That combination can make browsing cleaner for adults and more manageable for children without piecing together several separate tools.

Order through Aug. 16 at 11:59 p.m. PT to get this AdGuard VPN and Ad Blocker bundle for just $39.97 (reg. $439.39).

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

Waking up in a stranger's moving vehicle is anybody's idea of a nightmare, and it's exactly how we meet Lena (Dakota Gorman) in Hellcat. But it's not where we leave her.

Writer/director Brock Bodell's feature film debut careens through 90 minutes of nail-biting threats, leading to a wild conclusion that will have you howling. The spoiler of it all has had critics finding ways to describe the film without giving anything away.

"Over and over, critics danced around the secret at the heart of the film, but none would reveal it," Mashable Entertainment Editor Kristy Puchko writes in her spoiler-free review. "Now, having seen Hellcat, I understand not only the secret it keeps but also why my friends and colleagues kept mum."

But now, the film is out on Shudder, and we can talk about it. What happens at the end of Hellcat, and what does it all mean? We recommend watching the film first, then coming back here for the analysis. Because major spoilers ahead.

What is Hellcat about?

Dakota Gorman as Lena in "Hellcat." Credit: Shudder

In a truly horrific scenario, Nashville woman Lena finds herself trapped in the trailer of a man who introduces himself — through an intercom embedded in a taxidermied coyote head — as Clive (Todd Terry).

"You've been infected," Clive says, and he's right. Lena has a wound on her upper arm, and from it spreads black veins indicating infection. He insists he's a "good" and "honest man" who found Lena wounded at her campsite, bandaged her wounds, and confined her in his trailer. Lena doesn't remember what brought her to this place, so all she has to go on is Clive's narrative and what she finds in the camper.

Investigating her moving prison, Lena finds raw, bloody meat and syringes full of sedative in the fridge. She discovers a locked room fitted out with a blood-stained bed, thick shackles, and bars on the windows, and in the bed is another woman (Liz Atwater). Every last awful discovery suggests Clive to be a sadistic villain.

Who is the other woman in Clive's trailer?

Liz Atwater as Holly in "Hellcat." Credit: Shudder

Early on while she's exploring the trailer, Lena finds a photo of a woman holding a little girl. Through the intercom, Clive reveals that's his wife and their daughter, Holly. It's Holly who was locked up in the back, though Lena won't realize this until the final act. What Clive tells her is that his daughter was "attacked" when she was at college. "She don't see eye to eye with her old man these days," he says. "Things just… changed between us."

This reflects Lena's strained relationship with her own father, who doesn't know how to talk to her after the passing of her mom. But the bigger change between Clive and Holly is that the latter is a werewolf. After she was bitten in college, her dad began locking her up and sedating her during full moons to keep her from hurting herself or anyone else. When he failed and Lena got bit, he abducted her too. And he doesn't tell Lena the truth about Holly, because he's trying to protect his daughter above all else.

However, as Holly is moved from the rolling prison to the passenger seat of her father's pick-up truck, she pushes back against his plan. She says, "I know you want to help, but it can't be this way."

What's Clive's plan?

"Hide the silver." Credit: Shudder

Knowing the infection spreads fast, Clive is headed to a specialist, one Dr. Jancowski, who is "the top research physician at Stanford, who lost his license because some Berkley nutjobs didn't like him testing on animals." They've been driving for four hours across Tennessee, from Nashville to Knoxville, where Dr. Jancowski is said to be a veterinarian at the dinner show at amusement park Golly World, and their only hope of helping Lena. Clive insists, "He's as legit as they come."

Clive is a big believer in cryptids and the paranormal. His camper is littered with such literature, including Celestial Delights sci-fi comics, books on alien abductions, and a book on werewolves titled The Bite That Drips, written by Jasper Deville. He's even self-published his own book, Transformance, which Lena also finds in the trailer. So, when seeking some advice after Lena bites Clive, he turns to an expert, calling to Deville's (James Austin Johnson) midnight radio show, We’re Out There.

This is how Clive first heard about Dr. Jancowski. But when he tells Deville, "I've got a were," the broadcaster's confident on-air persona shudders. And unfortunately for Clive, the host breaks the news to him off-air that Dr. Jancowski is fictional. "I kind of thought you knew what we were all doing here," Deville says. "This ain't exactly NPR."

Before the show's over, a new threat enters in the form of another caller, who claims he's spotted Clive's trailer on the road and recommends to Lena "hide the silver."

What happens at the end of Hellcat?

Hold onto something, Lena. Credit: Shudder

Urged by Holly, Clive lets Lena loose in the middle of nowhere. There, she flags down a cop (Jordan Mullins) and asks for a ride to the hospital. However, the officer's intentions are far from noble. He soon reveals he’s the creepy caller from the radio show — and he’s a big fan of Clive's writing on werewolves, showing Lena his own copy of Transformance.

The cop calls into We're Out There, announcing he's "got the were in my cruiser" and is "going to take care of this." Clive, of course, is tuning into his favourite show at this very moment, which is convenient for Lena, as her former captor becomes her only hope. When Clive and Holly catch up to the cop, a battle ensues. Lena escapes the cruiser, Clive is shot, and the cop is killed.

It's not over though, as the full moon rises, and Clive guides Lena through sudden, blood-boiling labour. It’s pure horror, cut with shots of the full moon, as Lena gives birth to a tiny little werewolf. It seems the infection impacted her unborn child, not Lena.

Lena and Clive have a moment, in which he explains he "didn’t mean to scare" her, before passing out, in what looks like his final breath. With her baby in her arms, she wanders back to the road, where Holly pulls up in her dad's truck.

Forming an unlikely little were-family of three, Lena, Holly, and the cub have "no earthly idea" where they’re going. We’re left to watch them drive away, with only the trailer’s license plate, "HELLCAT," to reflect on.

Is Clive dead? Or...

But hark! What's this? Hellcat cuts to Clive, sitting by the lake in the morning light, seemingly sleeping instead of dead. We hear the sounds of a ukulele, crashing waves, and happy giggling, the sound of a memory perhaps. And it's interrupted by a horrible gasp, like a monstrous awakening.

Earlier in the film, Lena managed to bite him in an attempt to escape. Since then, Clive has feared that might turn him too. Does this final gasp mean not only that Clive is not dead but also that he and Holly now have something more in common?

We'll keep an eye out for confirmation, or at least news of Hellcat 2.

Hellcat is now streaming on Shudder.

If it wasn't already obvious from politics and entertainment, the Baby Boomers, born between the years 1948 and 1964, aren't ready to go quietly into retirement or give up the pursuits of youth. In fact, many of them are rekindling their romantic flames: a whopping 20 percent of them have tried dating apps, according to Pew research, and they spend just under 40 minutes a day testing their luck like the rest of us.

Don't expect to find the Baby Boomers on Tinder, though. For long-term dating, the Boomers are more likely to use age-appropriate dating services like OurTime or SeniorMatch, or larger, more general-purpose dating sites like eharmony, according to Axios. 

But there's an entire cohort of older daters who aren't focused on the search for a long-term partner but still want to connect, and they're increasingly doing so on retro dating directories like AdultFriendFinder. 

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Credit: AFF

AdultFriendFinder

 

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Here's why these services are winning back the Boomers:

No swiping games

Senior citizens aren't immune to swipe fatigue. In fact, according to research by Forbes Health, roughly 69 percent of Baby Boomers are experiencing app burnout, with the primary reason given being "inability to find a good partner." 

But what happens when you ditch the swiping mechanic entirely? The AdultFriendFinder experience doesn't rely on a matchmaking system, even though it does offer one as well. Instead, AdultFriendFinder creates organic communities in chat rooms, discussion boards, story comment sections, and webcam rooms, where you can initiate a conversation with someone who catches your eye or impresses you with their writing, or you can be the one attracting others.

For Boomers tired of endlessly swiping with minimal results, retro dating directories are a phenomenal alternative.

Large Boomer representation

Dating sites and apps typically cater to a younger crowd, for the obvious reason that younger people are more likely to be single, but that can make life tough for older daters looking to match with people in their age range or generation. 

Retro dating directories like AdultFriendFinder, which has been around since 1996, when the youngest Boomers were in their early 30s, have managed to retain or recapture a larger cohort of older singles, which means you'll actually get results when you set your age filter to 55+, especially if you live in a city.

AdultFriendFinder has been tight-lipped about its exact user demographics, but my current Online Now page gives a good representation of what you can expect to find in a large metropolitan area in North America: out of 12 featured profiles, six are over the age of 40, four are over the age of 50 and two are over the age of 60. 

Bare naked honesty

One major gripe about dating apps, across all age groups, is how difficult it is to accurately assess other people's intentions. In a landmark article from earlier this year titled "Dating Burnout: Why the Apps Exhausted Everyone," the authors identified "evaluation labor" as a major causal factor. Does the person you're talking to really like you? Do they really want "something serious" or are they secretly chasing something casual?

If you've spent any time on Hinge, Bumble, or any of the popular dating sites like eharmony or PlentyOfFish, you know that this kind of questioning is pretty much unavoidable in these contexts. People aren't always fully honest about their intentions, or, even worse, they don't always know what they want. 

But AdultFriendFinder is a major exception. On this platform, people feel free to be totally transparent, so much so that it's entirely common to come across full frontal nudity in profile photos, or extensive lists of kinks and turn-ons. And for the generation that basically invented the Summer of Love and letting your freak flag fly, there's a lot of appeal in this naked honesty. 

Paid memberships filter out unserious daters & bots

The free dating apps definitely have a lot to recommend them, but there's a sneaky benefit to using a paid dating service like AdultFriendFinder: it's easier to filter out fake accounts or unserious daters. 

Sure, it's free to create an AFF account, but if you actually want to talk to people one-on-one, you need to upgrade to a paid subscription, and that extra step filters out a lot of half-committed daters or would-be scammers. And considering approximately one in six Boomers has fallen victim to an online romance scam, this built-in filter adds some serious peace of mind.

In the end, the Baby Boomers are just as susceptible to swipe fatigue as the rest of us, and they're actively looking for a more community-based approach to online dating.

Portable power stations are great for camping, van adventures, content creator assignments, or the worksite. If you live in an area that’s prone to power outages, a portable power station can keep your phone charged, your CPAP machine on while sleeping, and some can even power the refrigerator, so you won’t have to worry about food spoilage. 

Portable power stations come in tons of varieties. Some are great for camping, while others weigh hundreds of pounds, power an entire house, and really push the limits of what we could consider portable. The market has seen significant expansion in the last few years, and we have tons of great models to choose from these days, so you're allowed to be as picky as you’d like about the power provided, port options, and nice extras. Here are Mashable’s favorite portable power stations.

Being a woman on the internet has never been easy, but trying to find a genuine connection on a dating app in 2026? It’s exhausting. Between the emboldened creeps, the "swipe fatigue," and surprisingly convincing AI profiles, it's enough to make you wonder if applying for Love Island is the more sane alternative. (Spoiler alert: it's not.)

The reality is, dating right now comes with a unique set of challenges —especially when it comes to safety. A 2026 survey from SSRS found that 55 percent of women believe meeting someone in person from a dating app is unsafe, compared to just 30 percent of men. We’re dealing with a constant barrage of low-effort "hey" messages, unsolicited dick pics, men who are definitely married, and the underlying safety concerns men just don't have to think about. It’s enough to make you want to swear off dating entirely and just get another cat (no judgment here).

And can we address one of the biggest myths floating around Reddit? The idea that women "don't want sex" or aren't on these apps for casual hookups and sexting is nonsense. We want pleasure, fun, and intimacy just as much as anyone else. The problem isn't our sex drive — it's the delivery. There's a world of difference between a guy who knows how to flirt like a normal human being and someone who leads with unhinged, aggressive messages. When men show up with respect and basic social awareness (the bare minimum, fellas), we're more than happy to match that energy.

But despite the challenges, dating apps do work. SSRS reports that 37 percent of U.S. adults have used a dating app, and 50 percent of users have ended up in a committed relationship with someone they met online. The key isn't giving up and hoping for an old-fashioned meet-cute; it's finding the best dating apps for women that prioritize your safety, respect your boundaries, and help you filter out the nonsense.

Fortunately for you (and my sanity), navigating this mess is literally my job. As Mashable's resident dating expert for the last three years, I've put dozens of dating apps and websites to the test. From classics like eharmony to sex-positive newcomers like Pure, I tried them all. I did the swiping, verifying, and blocking to figure out what actually works. So whether you want a serious relationship, a casual hookup, or just an app that puts you in control, I've found the options genuinely worth your time.

The dating apps I'd skip (and why)

You'll probably notice a few popular apps are missing from my list. That’s intentional. Part of my job is to filter out the platforms that aren't worth your time, money, or sanity — especially when safety is a top concern for women. An app doesn't get my recommendation just because it's well-known; it has to be effective, trustworthy, and populated by real human beings. Here are a few I think women should skip.

• Plenty of Fish (POF): I know this one still shows up on a lot of lists, but in my experience, it feels like a low-tech ghost town. POF launched way back in 2003, and both the interface and user experience feel completely dated. After testing it out, I (along with tons of Redditors) can confirm that it's plagued by spam accounts, ghost profiles, and paywalls that hide basic search filters. Your time is much better spent elsewhere.

• "Hookup" sites (like BeNaughty, Fling, Kasual): You've probably seen ads for sites promising instant, no-strings-attached fun. Based on my research and endless user complaints, I strongly advise women to steer clear. Many of these platforms are notorious for dubious billing practices, aggressive bot networks designed to keep you paying, and a complete lack of message moderation — creating an unsafe environment where harassment and catfishing run rampant.

Open-ear earbuds sit on the exterior of the ear, but they also come in many shapes and sizes, from clip models to ear hook models. Some are specifically designed for working out, while others are better for everyday use. The Bose Ultra Open earbuds are an especially popular pick, thanks to their sound quality and color options, but at $299, they're hardly the most affordable option.

Plus, since the Bose Ultra Open came out in 2024, big audio brands like Sony have released open earbuds of their own, while Shokz has introduced noise reduction into the category for the first time. To help you find the best open earbud models available in 2026, we tested the latest options from Soundcore, Sony, Shokz, Bose, and more.

What are open earbuds?

Open earbuds let you get as close as possible to the feeling of not wearing earbuds at all. Unlike in-ear earbuds, which sit in your ear canal, open earbuds sit just outside your ears (as the name would suggest). Some models hold the speaker component in place with an ear hook, while others opt for an ear cuff.

People generally opt for open earbuds for three main reasons:

1. They provide a private listening experience while leaving you almost completely aware of your surroundings. It's like the best transparency mode you've ever used.

2. For some people, not having an earbud physically in their ear is generally more comfortable.

3. The hooks and cuffs (along with general awareness of your surroundings) make them a great option for keeping you in place and alert while you're working out, working, or simply existing in the world.

What are the drawbacks of open earbuds?

As you may have gathered from the section above, open earbuds don't come with active noise cancellation. That's mostly thanks to how much sound they let in (by design) and the difficulty of cancelling out sound without having the device covering your actual ear canal.

Also, thanks to the whole open ear-canal situation, these aren't going to be the earbuds for audiophiles. That's not to say open earbuds sound bad — if you've never tried them, we promise they sound much better than you're imagining — but you will lose out on some of the nuance of a song without having the earbud actually in your ear.

That said, many pairs still have equalizers on their companion apps to help you make them sound their best. Our best picks for sound, the Bose Ultra Open earbuds and Shokz OpenFit Pro earbuds, even have spatial audio features that work surprisingly well.

Most open earbuds will also boast some form of special technology that keeps them from leaking too much sound. While these pairs do pretty well in keeping the sound just to you, most pairs (including our picks) will be prone to some leakage, especially at higher volumes.

Finally, some open earbuds — mainly those with ear hooks — tend to have slightly bulkier cases. If you like to travel especially light, it's something to keep in mind.

How to wear open-ear earbuds

Open-ear earbuds come in three major styles: cuff, ear hook, and bone conduction. How you wear them depends entirely on which style you have. Cuff earbuds "clip" onto the ear, not unlike a piece of jewelry, generally around the area right above the earlobe. Ear hook earbuds have a hook situated around the back of your ear and a speaker component situated right over your ear canal. Finally, bone conduction earbuds sit right behind the ears, with a band that goes around the back of the head to hold them in place.

Regardless of the style, its important to adjust the exact positioning of your open earbuds to see which offers the best sound, especially as the wrong positioning can deteriorate the quality.

For a visual representation of what wearing a cuff-style earbud looks like, you can check out our open earbuds explainer.

What about bone conduction headphones?

Bone conduction earbuds work exactly like the name implies they do — they use your skull to conduct sound waves, instead of projecting the sound into your ear, like most of the picks are on list. Typically, a band runs from either side of the users head to help hold the headphones in place.

Shokz, the brand behind our top pick, is a popular maker of these kinds of headphones. While we do consider them open earbuds, we have yet to test any bone conduction earbuds — look out in the future for that update. On that note:

What's next in our testing pipeline

The open earbuds market is rapidly expanding, so we'll be testing more as we can get our hands on them. We recently added the Sony LinkBuds Clip and Soundcore AeroFit 2 Pro to this guide.

In addition to the earbuds that made our initial guide in May 2025, we tested out the Nothing Ear (Open) earbuds ($149), the Sony Linkbuds Open ($199.99), the Anker Soundcore AeroClip earbuds ($169.99), and the Shokz OpenFit Air ($119.95). While none of the above were bad earbuds by any means, we found our picks to outshine them in their comfort and sound quality, especially when considering their respective prices.

TL;DR: Get the iPhone 17 for free from T-Mobile when you trade in your eligible phone on an Experience More or Experience Beyond plan. The Apple iPhone 17 Pro is also free with T-Mobile — qualify by bringing your number on an Experience Beyond plan (no trade-in needed).

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Credit: Apple

T-Mobile: Free iPhone 17 and iPhone 17 Pro

 

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Samsung and Google have completely taken over the tech news cycle with a flood of new foldables, smartwatches, smart glasses, and flagship phones, leaving Apple fans stuck in the annual pre-launch waiting room.

We know talk of the iPhone 18 is exciting, but you don't actually have to wait for Apple's next keynote to score a major upgrade. Between soaring component costs and global RAM shortages that are driving up retail prices across the board, T-Mobile is softening the blow by rolling out a set of limited-time free iPhone 17 offers.

If you want the simplest entry point into the Apple ecosystem, the iPhone 17e is currently free when you switch to almost any qualifying T-Mobile plan, no trade-in required. For those eyeing standard flagship specs, the iPhone 17 is completely free over 36 months on an Experience More or Experience Beyond plan when you turn in an eligible trade-in device. And if you want the flagship iPhone 17 Pro for free, simply bring your existing number over to an Experience Beyond plan (no trade-in required).

All of these deals are live through the weekend.

T-Mobile requires you to pay local sales tax on the full retail value of the phone upfront, alongside a standard $35 device connection fee per line at checkout. Your savings are then applied as monthly bill credits spread over 24 to 36 months.

Paying a small fee in upfront taxes and fees to walk away with a brand-new iPhone 17 or iPhone 17 Pro remains one of the highest-value carrier plays on the market this weekend. You know it makes sense.

TL;DR: Watch Manchester United vs. Milan in a 2026 pre-season friendly for free on SportyNet. Access this free live stream from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

There are a number of really interesting pre-season friendlies taking place this weekend, but Manchester United vs. Milan is probably the best of the bunch. Manchester United are an intriguing prospect under Michael Carrick, and here they come up against their last coach, Ruben Amorim.

If you're interested in watching Manchester United vs. Milan from anywhere in the world, we've got all the information you need.

When is Manchester United vs. Milan?

Manchester United vs. Milan in a 2026 pre-season friendly kicks off at 10:45 a.m. ET on Aug. 15. This fixture takes place at the Tarczyński Arena.

How to watch Manchester United vs. Milan for free

Manchester United vs. Milan in a 2026 pre-season friendly is available to live stream for free on SportyNet.

SportyNet is geo-restricted to Brazil, but anyone can secure access with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can livestream Manchester United vs. Milan for free from anywhere in the world.

Live stream Manchester United vs. Milan for free by following these simple steps:

1. Sign up for a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in Brazil

4. Visit SportyNet

5. Watch Manchester United vs. Milan for free from anywhere in the world

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Credit: ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan)

$12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)

Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but they do tend to offer generous money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Manchester United vs. Milan without committing your cash. This is obviously not a long-term strategy, but it gives you enough time to stream this fixture before recovering your investment.

What is the best VPN for SportyNet?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on SportyNet, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries, including Brazil

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices, including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

• Fast connection speeds free from throttling

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and usually offers a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99.

Live stream Manchester United vs. Milan for free with ExpressVPN.

The Moon's visibility is still fairly low as it begins to return following the New Moon. If you're interested in some moon-gazing, check back again tomorrow.

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Saturday, Aug. 15, NASA's Daily Moon Guide tracker tells us the Moon phase is in Waxing Crescent phase, with 8% of its surface visible.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon will take place on August 28.

What are Moon phases?

The Moon doesn't look the same from Earth every night. As it travels around our planet, it moves through a lunar cycle that takes roughly 29.5 days to complete, according to NASA. The changing positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon affect how much of the Moon's sunlit side we can see, creating the different phases. Over the course of the cycle, the Moon progresses from a narrow crescent to a half Moon and eventually a Full Moon, before starting the sequence over again.

The eight phases are:

New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

This content originally appeared on Mashable for a US audience and has been adapted for the UK audience.

It's 2026 and times are good for low-effort consumers. Yes, you can get pretty much anything you want by just tapping and swiping of your smartphone: Your shopping, your favourite takeaway, your high-ticket tech, even — our personal favourite — a hot date. And why shouldn't you? Online dating is nothing new. Apps and websites have dominated the dating world for the best part of 20 years. In fact, some sites go all the way back to the mid-1990s. But things are constantly evolving in the world of app-based dating.

According to our favourite sex-perts at Lovehoney — the progressive sex toy brand that sells everything from lingerie to lubricants and dildos — we're living in horny-but-wholesome times. Lovehoney has named 2026 "The Year of Pleasure."

That doesn’t mean quick-and-easy pleasure from one-night stands and flings. It may come as some surprise, but research says that one-night stands are on the out. Would-be daters are now cruising for "purposeful pleasure" and "meaningful connections." That means hookups with substance — flings that mean something. Yes, we're still hooking up, but we're getting more selective about who we hookup with and why. So, it's important to get the right dating app because each app offers something a little different. And you need the right tools to find the right date.

To help you get started, we’ve looked at the top apps and taken advice from sex and relationship experts.

What to know before you swipe

Before you start downloading apps, it’s good know just how to approach online dating. Our advice is to be 100 percent honest about who and what you’re up for. And maybe give a pass to the mainstream dating apps that are more about romance and happily ever afters (the likes of eharmony, in other words). The best hookup apps make chatting quick and easy (messaging, video calls, all that good stuff), and even the best free options will have features like profile verification to keep you safe.

Our main advice though is to stick to apps which are purpose-built for hookups, casual fun, and satisfying your kink (whatever that kink might be). It can be freeing, not to mention productive, to be open about specific desires. The ways in which we understand sex and relationships are changing all the time — just looking at fast-growing "heteroflexible" sexuality — and hookup apps allow you to explore curiosities with no judgement or social anxiety.

It doesn’t matter what you’re looking for, whether it's the chance to explore a new sexual frontier, a friends-with-benefits situation on the reg, or an old school one-night stand (the one-night stand might be going out of fashion, but it’s still hella fun as long as it’s safe and on your terms).

Whatever your desire, we’re here to help make it happen. This guide to the best hookups apps is based on Mashable’s own real-world testing, expert input, and general experience. We’ve broken down each of the best hookup apps available right now, with an option for every type of dater and every dating desire.

These are the best hookup apps for 2026.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you know your logos.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Tired

• Green: Sections

• Blue: Words within words

• Purple: Also words within words

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Exhausted

• Green: Segment

• Blue: Ending in units of length

• Purple: Ending in synonyms for follow secretly

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #1160 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Exhausted: BEAT, FRIED, SPENT, WORN OUT

• Segment: LEG, PHASE, STAGE, STRETCH

• Ending in units of length: CHAMOMILE, GRINCH, HOTFOOT, LANYARD

• Ending in synonyms for follow secretly: BEANSTALK, EYESHADOW, HIGHTAIL, SOUNDTRACK

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you double up a vowel.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Not tight.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There is one recurring letter.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter L.

The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

LOOSE

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Wordle.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you know a bit of trivia.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Sacred space

The words are related to religion.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe Christian church.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is horizontal.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is In Church.

NYT Strands word list for August 15

• Pews

• Altar

• Bible

• Pulpit

• In Church

• Candles

• Hymnal

• Lectern

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Strands.

TL;DR: On sale for just $41.99, this bundle includes Microsoft Visual Studio Professional 2026 and 15 coding courses, but the 97 percent discount ends after August 16.

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Credit: Microsoft

Microsoft Visual Studio Professional 2026 + The Premium Learn to Code Certification Bundle

$41.99
$1,999.99 Save $1,958

 

Get Deal

Building a better coding toolkit does not have to mean buying software and training separately. For the final two days of this promotion, Microsoft Visual Studio Professional 2026 and a 15-course Learn to Code Certification Bundle are packaged together for $41.99, down from $1,999.99.

Visual Studio Professional 2026 is a 64-bit integrated development environment built to handle large solutions and demanding workflows. Developers can create .NET and C++ applications for Windows, Linux, and containers, build cross-platform apps with .NET MAUI, and design responsive web interfaces in C# using Blazor.

Hot Reload applies code changes while an app is running, so you spend less time restarting projects after every edit. IntelliCode and built-in AI features provide context-aware completions, refactoring assistance, and code suggestions designed to reduce repetitive work and catch potential problems earlier.

CodeLens brings test status, references, authors, recent changes, and commit history directly into the editor. Live Share also lets teammates collaborate in real time without requiring everyone to clone a repository or install every dependency first. Integrations with GitHub, Azure, and other DevOps workflows help projects move from development to deployment more smoothly.

The included training bundle gives newer developers a place to begin and experienced programmers room to expand. The 15 multi-lesson courses cover OpenAI fundamentals, Python 3, C++ for beginners, practical JavaScript projects, and other useful coding topics.

This is not a stripped-down consolation package. It is a professional development environment paired with structured instruction at an unusually low one-time price.

Don’t miss getting Microsoft Visual Studio Pro 2026 + a 15-course Learn to Code Certification Bundle for just $41.99 through Aug. 16.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

The new Google Pixel 11 was just unveiled this week. This usually prompts some consumers to question how Google's latest smartphone stacks up against Apple's current generation iPhone. 

However, this isn't really the most apt comparison. Because the phones run different operating systems, owners of either device may be reluctant to switch ecosystems in search of greener pastures.

The real head-to-head is between the Google Pixel 11 and its most direct Android rival: Samsung's latest flagship smartphone, the Galaxy S26. Let's put these two Android devices head-to-head.

Google Pixel 11 vs Samsung Galaxy S26: Price

With the cost of technology rising amid global shortages of semiconductors, memory, and storage, price is likely front of mind for many consumers.

Both the Google Pixel 11 and Samsung Galaxy S26 start at $899 with 256GB and 12GB of memory.

Currently, the Google Pixel 11 is only available via pre-order and the Samsung Galaxy S26 has been out for a few months. Consumers are looking to purchase a new device immediately may therefore be able to find discounts on the Galaxy S26 right now. If they don't mind waiting, both smartphones will likely be priced similarly once the Pixel 11 is readily available in stores.

Google Pixel 11 vs Samsung Galaxy S26: Specs

Both the Google Pixel 11 and Samsung Galaxy S26 offer some real processing power. These are the flagship smartphones from two of the leading Android device manufacturers, after all.

The Pixel 11 is powered by Google's latest custom chipset, the Tensor G6, while the Samsung Galaxy S26 is powered by Qualcomm’s Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy, which has been optimized for Galaxy smartphones. With AI features being a major selling point for both devices, processing power is going to matter a lot.

So, which is more powerful? While the Tensor G6 is a significant upgrade over its predecessor, the Tensor G5, experts have shared their disappointment in the chipset's capabilities. Don't get us wrong, Google has undoubtedly been able to optimize its own chipset specifically for the Pixel 11's Gemini-powered features. However, based on the performance benchmarks currently available, the Galaxy S26's Snapdragon 8 processor takes the clear lead in areas including CPU performance, gaming, and battery life.

Aside from the chipset powering each smartphone, the Pixel 11 and Galaxy S26 are quite similar specs-wise. Both devices run Android. Both have a 6.3-inch display with 120Hz refresh rate, although the Pixel 11 has an OLED display and the Galaxy S26 sports an AMOLED display. Both smartphones are quite similar in size, although the Pixel 11 is 0.1 inches taller than the Galaxy S26. 

In addition, both models offer 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage.

Perhaps the most noticeable differences are their batteries and weight. The Pixel 11 has a 4,985 mAh battery, whereas the Samsung Galaxy S26 has a 4,300 mAh battery. The Samsung Galaxy S26 is also nearly a full ounce lighter than the Pixel 11.

Google Pixel 11 vs Samsung Galaxy S26: Cameras

Smartphone cameras are a huge selling point, and both the Pixel 11 and Galaxy S26 deliver four of them: three rear-facing cameras and one selfie camera.

The Pixel 11 has a 48MP wide-angle camera, while the Galaxy S26 has a 50MP camera. The Pixel 11's ultrawide camera is 13MP, while the Galaxy S26 sports a 12MP ultrawide camera. The Pixel 11 has a 10.8MP telephoto camera, while the Galaxy S26 has a 10MP telephoto camera. The Pixel 11 and Galaxy S26 have 10.5MP and 12MP selfie cameras, respectively.

As one can see, the camera specs on both devices are quite similar and the slight differences will be barely noticeable to most. The real comparison may come down to each phone's software features. The Pixel 11 has features such as Camera Looks and Magic Capture, while Galaxy AI offers its own photo-editing tools.

One notable difference, however, is video resolution. While the Samsung Galaxy S26 can record video in 8K, the Pixel 11 is limited to 4K recording.

Our top mobile and health tech editors from PCMag, CNET and ZDNET share their thoughts on Google's Made by Google Pixel event hosted by Trevor Noah. What were the coolest features on the new Pixel devices, and what felt like a dud? 

Another day, another tariff on tech from President Donald Trump.

On Thursday, Trump announced new tariffs specifically targeting drones made outside of the United States, as well as their components.

So, what drones are now subject to tariffs and what will the impact be?

Trump has now imposed a 100 percent "ad valorem" tariff on drones that are "particularly sensitive" to national security concerns. An ad valorem tariff basically means the the tariff is calculated as a percentage of an item’s customs value. Essentially, a 100 percent ad valorem tariff doubles the price of the drone.

Smaller drones that are considered to be "not particularly sensitive" to national security will face a 25 percent tariff.

Drones and components from the European Union, Japan, Liechtenstein, South Korea, Switzerland, and Taiwan will be subject to a 15 percent tariff. Drones from the United Kingdom will only face a 10 percent tariff.

The 100 percent tariff will go into effect in 21 days, while the tariffs on smaller drones will take effect in 180 days.

Based on the details and carve-outs, it seems pretty clear that these tariffs are specifically meant to target drones imported from China. Some of the biggest drone manufacturers in the world, such as DJI, have already been banned from releasing new products in the U.S. by the Trump administration. 

These tariffs will further complicate things for those companies. These additional costs imposed on older, existing product lines that were already approved for sale in the U.S. will likely force companies to raise prices. As a result, older products could be sold to U.S. customers at higher prices than newer models cost outside the country.

Will these new drone tariffs stick? Trump has faced legal issues with his tariffs before. Recently, the Trump administration was forced to refund $100 billion in tariffs that the Supreme Court had struck down. However, those billions of dollars were refunded to the affected companies, not the consumers who had paid higher prices because of the tariffs.

So, regardless of what the future holds for Trump's drone tariffs, the biggest losers are the American people.

Spotify has spent years trying to turn its app into a place where people watch podcasts. But its latest move sends one of its own video shows somewhere else.

The Ringer, a sports and podcasting website owned by Spotify, has started live-streaming Ringer Wise Guys, the newly renamed version of The Ringer Gambling Show, on Twitch. The sports betting show aired its first episode on Amazon-owned Twitch on Monday, Aug. 10, according to The Ankler, which first reported the move.

The show features "Cousin Sal" Iacono, Joe House, Raheem Palmer, Anthony Dabbundo, and Tate Frazier. Ringer founder Bill Simmons confirmed on X that every episode will stream live on Twitch while remaining available on podcast platforms.

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The move also revives a Ringer Twitch account that had been dormant for roughly eight years. The company briefly used the channel for staff gaming streams in 2018, before Spotify acquired The Ringer in 2020.

Importantly, Ringer Wise Guys is not abandoning YouTube. The Ringer's own show page says viewers can catch new episodes on Twitch, YouTube, and podcast feeds on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays. The Twitch streams give the show another live distribution point rather than replacing Google's video giant.

Why bring a podcast to Twitch?

Twitch is not exactly overflowing with podcasts — its Talk Shows & Podcasts category currently accounts for less than 1 percent of the platform's live audience.

Still, Twitch offers a young audience and a viewing experience built around live participation. Nearly 70 percent of its viewers are between 18 and 34, making it a potentially useful match for a show centered on sports and gambling.

The format fits, too. A sports betting show can react to breaking news, debate picks, and take cues from viewers in the chat. Its four-day-a-week schedule gives The Ringer repeated opportunities to make the podcast feel like a live appointment instead of another full-length video dropped into a feed.

Noah Malale, Spotify's director of originals partnerships and new initiatives, told The Ankler that Spotify has always wanted to "meet fans where they are," adding that Simmons and The Ringer have long sought to stay at the forefront of new media.

The Ringer is not the first company to see Twitch as a home for talk programming. Twitch launched a Sports Accelerator Program in 2021 specifically for sports podcasts, talk shows, reaction streams, watch-alongs, and similar formats. Some ESPN radio affiliates also stream on the platform, actor Keke Palmer launched the live talk show Keke Live earlier this year, and New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani made Twitch the interactive center of his recurring Talk With the People series. Mamdani's show is simulcast across several platforms, but audience questions come through Twitch chat.

These examples show what Twitch can offer podcasters: a place to record episodes live, interact with viewers in real time, and build a community of new fans before distributing the finished show across YouTube, Spotify, and traditional podcast feeds.

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Twitch has been building beyond gaming

Twitch is still best known for gaming, but its recent product changes are designed to make a wider range of live content easier to find, watch, share, and monetize.

As Mashable previously reported last year, Twitch began developing vertical and dual-format streams to improve viewing on phones. The feature rolled out more broadly in June, allowing creators to broadcast horizontal and vertical versions simultaneously. Twitch says 70 percent of new viewers now arrive on mobile, and the system also produces both formats for clips and video-on-demand uploads.

The company's redesigned mobile app opens to a personalized feed of live streams and includes a separate feed for clips. Twitch has also introduced collaborative tools such as Stream Together and Shared Chat, which allow creators to combine broadcasts and their communities. Those features could be useful for multi-host podcasts, guest interviews, and live crossover episodes.

Twitch has been broadening its business tools at the same time. It has expanded access to subscriptions and Bits, worked on matching creators with sponsors, improved its clipping tools, and tested new ad formats, including ads that appear when a viewer pauses a stream. That gives a podcast several ways to earn beyond the ads inserted into its traditional audio feed.

The strategy is not limited to Twitch. Its parent company, Amazon, restructured Wondery last year to place greater emphasis on creator-led, video-integrated podcasts such as New Heights and Armchair Expert. Amazon moved Wondery's narrative shows to Audible and put its creator-focused operation into a new services group designed to help shows earn across multiple channels, Reuters reported.

That makes Twitch both a partner and a competitor for Spotify. It offers Spotify access to a live audience while sitting inside another tech giant's expanding podcast operation.

Spotify's podcast strategy has changed

Spotify arrived at this moment after its own podcast reset. Beginning in 2019, it spent heavily to acquire podcast companies including Gimlet Media, Anchor, and Parcast, followed by The Ringer in 2020. It also paid for major exclusives, with The Joe Rogan Experience being a prime example.

The company later began moving away from that expensive, tightly controlled approach. In 2023, Spotify eliminated roughly 200 podcast jobs and folded Gimlet and Parcast into Spotify Studios. In its announcement about the reorganization, Spotify said it would concentrate on creator partnerships, loyal audiences, "always-on" programming, advertising, and a higher-margin podcast business.

A year later, Spotify renewed its deal with Joe Rogan but ended the show's exclusivity, allowing full episodes to return to YouTube, Apple Podcasts, and other services. That was an early sign that Spotify could make money from a show without keeping every listener inside Spotify.

The Ringer has become central to the next version of that strategy. In Oct. 2025, Spotify launched its first free, ad-supported streaming television channel with Samsung TV Plus, offering Ringer video podcasts around the clock. That same month, Spotify and Netflix announced a distribution deal for shows including The Bill Simmons Podcast, The Rewatchables, and several of The Ringer's sports podcasts.

The Netflix arrangement limits full YouTube distribution for some participating shows, while Ringer Wise Guys is still publishing on YouTube. In other words, Spotify is not following one rule for every podcast. It is testing different combinations of reach, exclusivity, licensing, advertising, and platform fit.

At the same time, Spotify continues to invest in making its own app a video destination. The company lowered the requirements for video podcasters to join its Partner Program, built tools that let creators replace and measure sponsorships, and introduced a Distribution API that lets publishers post and monetize video on Spotify without changing hosting providers. In May, Spotify said more than 500 million users had streamed a video podcast, an increase of nearly 50 percent year over year.

Spotify has been adding video tools on the music side as well, including direct uploads, editorial pitching, and charts for music videos, part of a broader effort Mashable recently examined. The app may have started with audio, but Spotify is now competing for more of the time people spend looking at a screen.

There are more players in this game

Watching a podcast has become nearly as common as listening to one. Edison Research found that 82 percent of weekly podcast consumers watched video podcasts in the third quarter of 2025, compared with 78 percent who listened to audio-only shows.

YouTube remains the enormous obstacle facing everyone else. The platform says podcast content attracts more than 1 billion monthly active viewers. Netflix has built out a growing podcast slate, while Disney+ and Hulu recently struck their own video podcast deal with iHeartMedia. Spotify, meanwhile, has tried to improve video inside its app and distribute its shows onto some of those same services.

Twitch is nowhere near YouTube's scale in podcasting, and one Ringer show hardly constitutes a sweeping Spotify rollout. Still, the experiment crystallizes several trends reshaping the industry: video replacing audio as the default format for many major shows, tech companies favoring creator-led programming over expensive narrative productions, and podcasts migrating to whatever platform offers the right audience or format.

For Ringer Wise Guys, that now means Spotify, YouTube, podcast apps, and Twitch. The podcast wars have officially escaped the podcast app.

Wake up to a message saying your iPhone may be a target for mercenary hackers? It may not have been as noisily in your face as other emergency alerts, but you still need to take it seriously.

The direct-to-device threat notification, which appears as a banner on your iPhone's lock screen and atop the home screen, is a recent expansion of Apple's existing threat detection features, designed to alert users of mercenary spyware attacks. The banner only appears on a device if Apple detects activity "consistent with a mercenary spyware attack," the company explains.

It reads: "Apple detected a mercenary spyware attack targeted at your iPhone. There are actions you can take now to protect your data and device."

What does the spyware alert mean?

Mercenary spyware attacks are highly resourced, individualized attempts to penetrate devices in order to install surveillance programs. Often associated with state-sanctioned espionage and enabled by private tech companies, these attacks typically target individuals with political affiliations, including journalists, activists, politicians, and diplomats.

Apple uses internal threat intelligence technology to detect activity associated with the intrusions.

If you get an alert, it doesn't necessarily mean spyware has successfully been installed on your device, but it does mean Apple has "high-confidence" you are a target. And that means you need to act fast to protect your information.

In a statement to TechCrunch, Apple confirmed it sent threat notifications to users in more than 110 countries late Thursday (Aug. 13) and more than 150 countries to date.

How can I verify the alert is real?

Apple's threat notifications will never include clickable links or ask users to open attachments, log into accounts, or install apps. If your alert includes any of these, it is fake.

In addition to on-screen alerts, iPhone users will receive a threat detection notification in their device's account settings, which appears under their Apple Account information. If your device is potentially being targeted, you will see a new menu option titled "Apple Threat Notifications." It should have a red notification badge next to it.

Credit: Apple

Credit: Apple

Apple will also send a message with additional threat information to the email address associated with your account. If you feel like you can't trust an email, log into your account via a desktop computer or laptop. You should see an additional threat notification banner at the top of the page.

Got all three? You're the lucky spyware winner.

What do I do if I get a spyware alert?

Users should immediately take steps to lock down their accounts and protect their personally identifiable information, Apple advises. The company suggests soliciting help from experts and directs users to partner organization Access Now and its 24/7 helpline.

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Users can also switch their devices to Lockdown Mode, which walls off specific apps, websites, and other features that are susceptible to such attacks. When an iPhone is in Lockdown Mode, users can't access message attachments, click links, or continue sharing photo albums with contacts. Users can't FaceTime contacts that haven't been called within the last 30 days. Certain web browsing features and automatic WiFi joining are disabled. And other devices are automatically disconnected from your phone.

TV is no stranger to odd-couple investigators. Scully and Mulder from The X Files. Cohle and Hart from True Detective. Any iteration of Holmes and Watson. Now, HBO's Lanterns adds its own twist to this tried-and-true formula, asking, "what if these investigators... were space cops?"

The space cops in question are Green Lantern Hal Jordan (Kyle Chandler) and his trainee John Stewart (Aaron Pierre). Like the rest of the intergalactic Green Lantern Corps, they're able to manifest glowing green constructs with the help of a Power Ring. However, Lanterns takes a more minimalist approach to these abilities, molding the sci-fi elements of Green Lantern into an earthbound mystery with an irresistible duo at its heart.

Lanterns is a thoughtful mystery by way of DC.

Aaron Pierre in "Lanterns." Credit: HBO Max

Created by Chris Mundy, Damon Lindelof, and Tom King, Lanterns charts the growing pains in the mentor-mentee relationship between Hal and John. Smart-mouthed Hal constantly belittles John, calling him "junior" and often failing to loop him in on key Lantern information. A former Marine, John does his best to stay stoic and not snap at Hal, but by the time the show picks up, the cracks in his resolve are starting to show. Yet as his father (J. Alphonse Nicholson) reminds him over the phone in Lanterns' premiere, as a Black man, John doesn't get the luxury of acting out. He's going to have to work twice as hard to be Green Lantern, and once he has the position, he's going to be held to a different, tougher standard than his white predecessor.

Lindelof brought racism to the forefront of his 2019 "remix" of Watchmen, which centered the 1921 Tulsa race massacre, police brutality, and the pervasiveness of white supremacy today. He, Mundy, and King similarly make race a focal point in Lanterns, albeit to a far lesser extent. Here, the focus is less on America's history of racial violence and more on the impossible benchmarks John and his family know he must hit in order to succeed as a Lantern, the pressures of which Lanterns explores in its most compelling hour.

Issues of race also linger as Hal and John make their way to the small town of Rushville, Nebraska to investigate possible alien involvement in a shooting. During their snooping, they get to know local bigwig William Macon (Garret Dillahunt), whose anti-alien anxieties echo anti-immigrant talking points. Oh, and he has a personal militia, because of course he does.

Lanterns complicates our perception of Rushville and its inhabitants as its central mystery unravels. (It hits great on rewatch.) It also packs in several key Green Lantern elements, from constructs to aliens. However, the show does reshape them in order to fit its grittier, more grounded mystery tone. Aliens in Lanterns are almost always disguised as humans, while constructs are often limited to shields. While the lack of more flashy sci-fi visuals can feel a bit removed from the intergalactic shenanigans of Green Lantern, it does make the moments when the show truly lets loose feel more monumental.

Kyle Chandler and Aaron Pierre have impeccable chemistry in Lanterns.

Aaron Pierre and Kyle Chandler in "Lanterns." Credit: John Johnson / HBO Max

Carrying us through this mystery is the dynamic duo of Chandler and Pierre, whose performances mesh perfectly, even if their characters don't.

Chandler's Hal is as grating as he is charming. He waltzes into rooms knowing he pushes everyone's buttons, and more importantly, knowing exactly which ones will get what he wants. But while his cockiness could risk being constantly infuriating, Chandler tempers it with an affable sweetness that gives Hal an endearing quality. He'll still piss you off, along with everyone in Rushville, but you'll have a fun time with it.

Where Hal is all smooth talking and impulsive schemes, Pierre's John is a brick wall of restraint. He's buttoned-up, but Pierre masterfully lets that facade of control slip to highlight John's frustration with his so-called mentor. His annoyance at Hal results in some of the show's funniest moments, yet it's all tinged with the thorny reminder of his rigorous journey to become a Green Lantern. Pierre has already proven himself to be a star, especially in 2024's Rebel Ridge, and he continues to prove that here with his commanding sense of gravitas.

Pierre and Chandler's performances are perfect foils, with each scene feeling like a sparring match, usually capped off with the verbal equivalent of a big brother noogie from Hal. Between their chemistry, an intriguing puzzle box, and its ever-relevant themes, Lanterns bursts onto the scene as a thrilling new entry to the DC Universe.

Lanterns premieres Sunday, Aug. 16 at 9 p.m. ET on HBO and HBO Max.

A minority investor in adult creator platform OnlyFans just said in an interview that it's "probably the least-likely platform to be disrupted by AI."

Following OnlyFans owner Leonid Radvinsky's death in March, investment firm Architect Capital bought a minority stake (16 percent) in the company in May for $535 million, Variety reported. In an interview with The Information's editor-in-chief Jessica Lessin posted this week, Architect Capital founder James Sagan said that people pay OnlyFans creators for connection, not content quality. (Lessin shared that her husband, Sam Lessin, was a co-investor alongside Sagan in the OnlyFans deal.)

"People are not coming to OnlyFans for the quality of the content, which AI might be able to faithfully replicate, but in fact for human connection," Sagan said. He invoked the loneliness epidemic and said, "This is the only place on the internet where you can authentically communicate with a human. And that's why people pay for this content."

"People pay upon the dimension of authenticity." Most creator revenue comes from messages between creators and fans, not generic pictures, he said. When Mashable has viewed earnings of OnlyFans creators, messaging is typically the highest line on the invoice. But some creators' use of "chatters" to message fans has been well-documented online. In Dec. 2025, a federal judge dismissed a class action lawsuit about OnlyFans chatter "scams." Subscribers filed it, claiming they'd been misled into thinking they were talking to the actual creator.

"We will never use AI in any capacity to disrupt creators," Sagan said, "and they're not disruptable anyways." He did say AI will benefit the platform only to "empower" creators, though he didn't want to get into specifics. He did mention LLMs and how they're useful in capturing personality, but when Lessin pushed him — isn't that a bot? — he said that AI would be useful tools but not to disintermediate the creators or automate chats.

Creators are already way ahead of this. Mashable reported that sex workers are "cloning" themselves with AI to make sexy chatbots in 2023, and a 2024 survey found that most adult creators were already using AI in their work.

He reiterated that OnlyFans would only build tools to "empower" creators, "to help them make more money and help them scale their authentic brand."

"In a world in which you have a lot of AI slop, in a world in which everything is AI-generated, the scarce asset is authenticity, the scarce asset is human connection, and I think that will be more and more important on a forward-looking basis," he said.

Sagan and Lessin discussed more in the wide-ranging interview. Back in Feb., when rumors swirled that Architect Capital would buy a majority stake in OnlyFans, the firm also discussed the company going public. Sagan discussed this again now, that there's a "world in which we could go public." He also discussed the destigmatization of the platform, due to cultural moments like the recent TV show Margo's Got Money Troubles.

Samsung seemed all set to bring back a cool camera feature on the Galaxy S27 line, but it seems like those plans have been scuttled.

Korean outlet ETNews (per 9to5google) reported that Samsung has opted against reintroducing variable aperture to the Galaxy S27 series, set to launch early next year. Rumors and reports had indicated that Samsung wanted to bring the tech back after it had briefly been part of the Galaxy series in the S9 and S10 days, but it sounds like that's not going to happen now because of manufacturing costs and the burden of a thicker camera bump.

For those who aren't into photography, variable aperture would let the phone's camera physically change shape to bring in more or less light depending on the situation at hand, like a real camera. Samsung had included this in its phones for a couple of years starting around 2018, but opted for a software solution in more recent devices. We've been hearing that Apple is planning to add the feature to the upcoming iPhone 18, so Samsung probably wanted to add it to the S27 for competition's sake.

Unfortunately, for the time being, it seems like that won't happen.

SAVE 13% OFF: As of Aug. 14, save $4 on the Pokémon TCG Mega Evolutions Perfect Order 3-Pack. That saves you 13% off its $29.99 list price. Get three packs in one, plus a special Chikorita card.

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Credit: Pokemon

Pokemon TCG Mega Evolutions Perfect Order 3-Pack

$24.95 at Amazon
$29.99 Save $5.04

 

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If you're looking for value, Pokémon's Perfect Order expansion has reliably been an affordable option. That continues to be true with its multi-deck packs that even feature special promo cards. And right now, the savings are even more significant.

As of Aug. 14, get the Pokémon TCG: Mega Evolutions Perfect Order 3-Pack for just $24.95. That takes $4.05 off the set's original price of $29.99 for 13% savings. Plus, with this discount, each booster pack is about $8.32 each.

The Mega Evolution Perfect Order collection features over 120 cards with new Mega Evolution Pokemon and over 25 Trainer cards. Plus, these cards feature over 30 new special illustrations. Some of the best cards inside the Perfect Order set include Mega Clefable ex, Mega Starmie ex, and Meowth ex.

Will you get lucky and pull one of these sought-after cards? Grab this three-pack now from Amazon and find out.

The best TV deals to shop this weekend:

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Best Hisense TV deal

Hisense 85-inch U6 Pro Hi-QLED Mini LED 4K TV

$1,099.99 (save $900)

Get Deal

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Best LG TV deal

LG 65-Inch C6 OLED 4K TV

$1,799.99 (save $900 + get free $149.01 Amazon credit)

Get Deal

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Best Samsung TV deal

Samsung 65-inch S90H OLED 4K TV

$1,799.99 (save $900)

Get Deal

It may not be the best time to buy a TV traditionally, but TVs don't tend to ask for your permission before kicking the bucket. If you need a new one, then you need a new one. Fortunately, there are still plenty of TVs from our favorite brands, like Hisense, Samsung, and LG, on sale for much less than usual this weekend.

With a new NFL season kicking off and an epic fall movie lineup coming in hot, you'll be glad you made the investment into something better. I did some digging and found a few noteworthy options to consider if you're in dire need of a TV upgrade. And if you need a few pointers for your TV-buying journey, check out our simple TV specs guide.

Best Hisense deal

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Credit: Hisense

Hisense 85-inch U6 Pro Hi-QLED Mini LED 4K TV

$1,099.99 at Amazon
$1,999.99 Save $900

 

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Why we like it

Our favorite budget TV of 2026, the Hisense U6 Pro, falls in the sweet spot of performance and value.

It packs an impressive full-array local dimming setup, vibrant quantum-dot color, and deep black levels, an anti-glare coating for minimal reflections, and a peak brightness of 1,200 nits. Considering it's not an OLED TV, these are nice touches. It also boasts a native 144Hz refresh rate, AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, and two HDMI 2.1 ports, making it a solid choice for gamers seeking a big screen on a budget. It comes in a wide range of sizes, but the 85-inch model is currently down to a record-low $1,099.99 at Amazon. That's 45% off a TV that's been out for under six months.

Best LG TV deal

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Credit: LG

LG 65-Inch C6 OLED 4K TV

$1,799.99 at Amazon
$2,699.99 Save $900.00

 

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Why we like it

"Budget OLED TVs aren't really a thing, but the LG C6 is the best affordable OLED TV given its competitors' prices," Mashable's TV expert Leah Stodart writes. She named it the best OLED TV for most people last month, calling out its brilliant picture, excellent contrast in dark rooms, upgraded audio over the C5, and refresh rate boost from 144Hz to 165Hz. The 65-inch model is down to just $1,799.99 at Amazon and Best Buy, from its usual $2,699.99 price. But if you choose Amazon, you'll also get a $149.01 Amazon credit with your purchase. That's 33% in savings and free money.

Best Samsung TV deal

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Credit: Samsung

Samsung 65-inch S90H OLED 4K TV

$1,799.99 at Best Buy
$2,699.99 Save $900.00

 

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Why we like it

The S90H is the mid-range OLED from Samsung's 2026 lineup — and just a step down from our favorite OLED of the year (so far). OLED TVs are much more expensive due to their superior contrast, but like the LG TV above, you can get the 65-inch model for just $1,799.99 this weekend, down from $2,699.99. The stock at Amazon is running pretty low, but fortunately, Best Buy is offering a similar discount. Compared to last year's model, the S90H gets a brightness increase and an upgraded anti-reflection display. It supports 4K at 165Hz, NVIDIA G-SYNC, and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro, making it another great choice for gamers.

More of the best TV deals this weekend

• LG 55-inch 75B QNED 4K TV — $379.99 $599.99 (save $220)

• Hisense 65-inch E7 Mini LED Hi-QLED 4K TV — $547.97 $999.99 (save $452.02)

• Insignia 85-inch Class F50 Series 4K Fire TV — $599.99 $899.99 (save $300)

• LG 55-inch LX7B Gallery Mini LED 4K TV — $899.99 $1,299.99 (save $400)

• Hisense 65-inch S7 Canvas Hi-QLED 4K TV — $999.99 $1,999.99 (save $1,000)

• LG 65-inch LX7B Gallery Mini LED 4K TV — $999.99 $1,799.99 (save $800)

• Samsung 85-inch M80H Mini LED 4K TV — $1,299.99 $1,799.99 (save $500)

• Hisense 65-inch UR8 RGB Mini LED 4K TV — $1,499.99 $1,999.99 (save $500)

• LG 65-Inch B6 OLED 4K TV — $1,699.99 $1,999.99 (save $300)

• Samsung 75-inch R85H Micro RGB 4K TV — $1,999.99 $2,799.99 (save $800)

The best SSD deals at a glance:

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Best internal SSD deal

Samsung 9100 Pro Internal SSD, 1 TB

$249.99 (save $90)

Get Deal

---

Best external SSD deal

SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD, 4TB

$499.99 (save $300)

Get Deal

---

Cheapest SSD Deal

PNY CS900 Internal SSD, 1TB

$169.99 (save $30)

Get Deal

Another week of the memory chip shortage means contending with price hikes. Mashable's Haley Henschel reported this week that even outside RAMageddon, Windows laptops could face price increases due to rising Microsoft licensing fees.

But enough with all these rising prices; let's talk about price cuts, because luckily, there are some. This week has rained savings with an ultra-rare MacBook Pro deal that's still live, and as we head into the weekend, we're looking at SSD deals.

As of Aug. 14, we rounded up the best SSD deals to shop now. In previous weeks, Amazon has been the one-stop shop on SSD savings, but this week we've found major savings across retailers, including Best Buy and B&H Photo.

So if you're on the hunt for SSDs, these are the best deals to shop now:

Best internal SSD deal

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Credit: Samsung

Samsung 9100 Pro Internal SSD, 1TB

$249.99 at Amazon
$339.99 Save $90

 

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Even in the midst of RAMageddon, Samsung has managed to drop SSD prices. We're continuing to see majors savings on Samsung's internal SSDs, including its Pro line. Right now, grab the Samsung 9100 Pro Internal SSD (1TB) for just $249.99. That saves you $90 off its list price of $339.99 for 26% savings.

This SSD is built to handle big jobs, whether you're building a workstation or looking to upgrade for AI computing. Whether you're on a laptop or desktop PC, the Samsung 9100 Pro Internal SSD delivers high speeds up to 14,700/13,300 MB/s.

More internal SSD deals

• PNY CS900 Internal SSD, 1TB — $169.99 $199.99 (save $30)

• Crucial BX500 Internal SSD, 1TB — $179.99 $241.27 (save $61.28)

• Kingston NV3 M.2 2280 Internal SSD, 1TB — $183.27 $196.54 (save $13.27)

• Crucial P310 Internal SSD, 1TB — $184.99 $219 (save $34.01)

• Lexar NM790 Gen 4 Internal SSD, 1TB — $199.99 $249.99 (save $50)

• Samsung 990 Internal SSD, 1TB — $229.99 $269.99 (save $40)

• Samsung 990 Pro Internal SSD, 1TB — $239.99 $319.99 (save $80)

• Sandisk Optimus GX Pro, 1TB — $269.99 $296.99 (save $27)

• Acer Predator GM7 SSD, 2TB — $278.99 $309.99 (save $31)

Best external SSD deal

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Credit: SanDisk

SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD, 4TB

$499.99 at B&H Photo
$799.99 Save $300

 

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If you're looking for external support and something to take on the go, you can't beat this deal on SanDisk's Extreme Portable SSD. With an astounding 4TB of storage, it features read and write speeds of up to 1050 and 1000 MB/s.

Its list price of $799.99 makes it quite the investment, but as of Aug. 14, buy it for nearly 50% off. At B&H Video, shop the SanDisk Extreme Portable SSD (4TB) for just $499.99 and save $300. That's a major steal on this durable, yet portable SSD.

More external and portable SSD deals

• SSK Portable SSD, 500GB — $86.39 $95.99 (save $9.60)

• Crucial X10 Pro External SSD, 1TB — $145.99 $161.99 (save $16)

• SSK Portable SSD, 1 TB — $152.09 $168.99 (save $16.90)

• Lexar ES3 Portable SSD, 1TB — $152.99 $169.99 (save $17)

• Sandisk 3.2 Gen 2 Portable SSD, 1TB — $164.99 $190.99 (save $26)

• Samsung T7 Portable SSD, 1TB — $229.99 $274.99 (save $45)

• Samsung T9 Portable SSD, 1TB — $239.99 $287.99 (save $48)

• Sandisk Extreme Portable, 1TB — $269.99 $299.99 (save $30)

Chloe Radcliffe is a lot of things: comedian, writer, actor, are only a few of the many words that might be used to describe her. So like most up-and-coming comedians, she is hard to define. One word she has used, especially in her hit solo show, is "cheater."

To get a better idea of who Radcliffe actually is, Mashable's Executive Producer Mark Stetson sits down with the multi-hyphenate to talk about her comedy process, her famous stand-up bits, Cheat, her "solo show about how I have a history of cheating in most of my relationships." In her raw and honest show, she explores the decisions and patterns in her life and the way we as a society handle infidelity and the people who cheat.

"I don't think the way we talk about cheating helps us cheat less," she says in the interview above. "We have more sympathy for serial killers than we do for cheaters."

In the latest episode of Mashable's Say More, Chloe also breaks down how she crafts and hones a joke over time, the nuance behind discussing sensitive topics like infidelity through comedy, and hosting her web series In Tandem with Chloe Radcliffe. She also shares hilarious behind-the-scenes stories from the Bradley Cooper-directed Is This Thing On?, including what it was like doing magic for a group of unbelievably mean 11-year-olds!

So, Chloe Radcliffe is a lot of things: hilarious, an avid cyclist, and yes, cheater. But when it comes to cheating, she might be changing the narrative.

Radcliffe is performing her solo show, Cheat, at Joe's Pub in NYC on Aug. 19 and 20.

Want more film and TV news and reviews delivered straight to your inbox? Sign up for Mashable’s Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

SAVE 15%: As of Aug. 14, you can get the Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Robot Window Cleaner for $594 at Amazon. That's a 15% discount, or $105.99 in savings.

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Robot Window Cleaner

$594 at Amazon
$699.99 Save $105.99

 

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If you have floor-to-ceiling windows, large glass sliders, or high-rise panes that feel impossible (and terrifying) to reach, you might want to invest in a robot window cleaner. (I also had no idea this was a thing!)

As of Aug. 14, you can get the Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Robot Window Cleaner for $594 at Amazon, down from $699.99. That's a 15% discount, or $105.99 in savings. This is also the lowest price we've tracked for this model.

This thing works exactly how you'd expect: It uses powerful suction and smart navigation to stick directly to vertical glass and wipe away dust, fingerprints, and smudges. Thanks to its TruEdge technology and WIN-SLAM 5.0 navigation, it scrubs deep into corners at 200 RPM and maps out an efficient cleaning path. Its wide-angle triple-nozzle spray system loosens stuck-on dirt before the wet pad wipes it clean, while 12 levels of anti-fall and suction protection keep it locked onto the window.

What really sets the W3 Omni apart, though, is its self-cleaning base station. Instead of forcing you to pull off gross pads mid-job, the station automatically rinses the wiping pads in just one minute so you can keep cleaning hands-free.

SAVE $50: As of Aug. 14, DJI's Power 1000 V2 Portable Power Station is down to $399.98 at Amazon. The deal ends after Aug. 14.

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Credit: DJI

DJI Power 1000 V2

$399.98 at Amazon
$449.99 Save $50.01

 

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Power outages and off-grid trips just got a little less stressful. DJI's Power 1000 V2 portable power station is on sale for $399.98, down from $449.99. That's an 11% discount, saving you $50. But don't sit on this one — the deal ends today.

Mashable's Lauren Allain tested the DJI Power 1000 V2 and gave it a 4.4 out of 5, calling it "a great model for content creators, those who prioritize a super-quiet power station, or anyone looking for exceptional value in portable power." She was especially impressed by how quiet it runs, noting it operates at "as quiet as 26 decibels," which makes it easy to keep on overnight without the whir of a fan bothering anyone nearby.

Allain also praised how quickly the power station charges, writing that "it takes just 56 minutes to go from dead to 100 percent battery power when recharging with standard wall power."

DJI has also built in some solid safety features that are worth knowing about. The 1,024Wh LFP battery comes with an intelligent battery management system, a flame-retardant housing, and a rated 10-year lifespan, so it's designed to hold up over years of regular use. If you're worried about outages specifically, the built-in UPS switches over in just 10 milliseconds, so your devices stay powered without so much as a flicker.

Off-grid living has never looked this quiet. Get the DJI Power 1000 V2 portable power station at Amazon.

SAVE $400: As of Aug. 14, the Samsung 77-inch S85H Series OLED 4K Smart TV is down to $2,397.99 from $2,797.99 at Amazon — a 14% discount.

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Credit: Samsung

Samsung 77-Inch Class S85H Series TV

$2,397.99 at Amazon
$2,797.99 Save $400

 

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Amazon has marked the Samsung 77-inch S85H Series OLED 4K Smart TV down to $2,397.99. That's 14% off its $2,797.99 list price, which comes out to a $400 saving. If a massive OLED upgrade has been on your list, this is the kind of price drop you'll want to act on before it's gone.

The OLED panel delivers true blacks and bright highlights in the same scene, so nothing looks washed out. Samsung's NQ4 AI Gen2 processor analyzes what's on screen in real-time and adjusts brightness, motion, and color as it goes — useful whether you're watching a slow drama or a fast action scene.

For gaming, it supports 120Hz motion handling along with Nvidia G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, which keep fast-moving games smooth rather than choppy. If you're watching something that isn't native 4K, the built-in AI upscaling sharpens it so lower-res content doesn't look noticeably softer next to your 4K library.

Samsung also had its color accuracy validated by Pantone, so skin tones and colors look natural rather than oversaturated.

Grab the Samsung 77-inch S85H Series OLED 4K Smart TV at Amazon while it's $400 off.

TL;DR: Get the iPhone 17 for free from T-Mobile when you trade in your eligible phone on an Experience More or Experience Beyond plan. Alternatively, the Apple iPhone 17 Pro is free when you switch to T-Mobile and bring your number on an Experience Beyond plan (no trade-in needed).

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Credit: Apple

T-Mobile: Apple iPhone 17 for free

 

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Samsung and Google are still the center of attention right now. Samsung just dropped three new foldables smartphones, two smartwatches, and smart glasses. Google then came along and dropped new smartphones, smartwatches, and more. Apple fans still need to wait for news of the latest iPhones.

Can't wait? You should know that you can still secure a limited-time offer on iPhones from T-Mobile. That's great news in the face of Apple price increases due to RAMageddon.

These are the best free iPhone deals from T-Mobile this week:

• iPhone 17e — free when you switch to almost any T-Mobile plan with no trade-in required

• iPhone 17 — free when signing up for 24 months of an Experience More or Experience Beyond plan and trading in an eligible phone

• iPhone 17 Pro — free when you switch to T-Mobile and bring your number on an Experience Beyond plan (no trade-in needed).

T-Mobile will charge taxes on these free deals, as well as a $35 device connection fee. That's a small catch, but that's how it often goes with this kind of deal.

If you’re still rocking an iPhone 12 or 13, you’re missing out on some genuinely game-changing features. The iPhone 17 is the first base model built specifically to handle Apple’s most advanced AI features. Mashable's Stan Schroeder said it's an "excellent phone that matches the iPhone Pro models in many ways that matter." That's enough for us to consider upgrading.

Get the Apple iPhone 17 for free this week with T-Mobile.

Google just announced a bunch of new products at its Made by Google event, including the brand-new Pixel Watch 5. On the surface, there isn’t much to see compared with the 4, but will upgrades to Gemini Intelligence be enough to tempt you to upgrade?

SAVE $50: As of Aug. 14, the Samsung 43-inch QLED Q7F Series Smart TV is down to $297.99 from $347.99 at Amazon — a 14% discount.

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Credit: Samsung

Samsung 43-Inch Class QLED Q7F Series

$297.99 at Amazon
$347.99 Save $50

 

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A good QLED TV for under $300 doesn't come around often, but Amazon's got you covered. The Samsung 43-inch QLED Q7F Series Smart TV is on sale for $297.99, down from $347.99. That's a 14% discount, saving you $50.

This TV upscales everything to 4K, so even older shows and lower-res content look sharp. It also automatically adjusts picture and sound settings based on what's on screen, so a loud action movie and a quiet drama don't get treated the same way.

Thanks to Quantum Dot technology, colors stay accurate even during your TV's brightest scenes, so you're not stuck with washed-out whites during a sunny outdoor shot. And with HDR10+ on board, blacks stay deep, and contrast stays sharp, meaning you'll actually see detail in dark scenes instead of a muddy blob.

Samsung Knox keeps an eye out for shady apps and phishing attempts, and it extends that protection to any other smart devices connected through your TV, not just the TV itself. The TV comes with access to more than 2,700 free channels, including 400-plus Samsung TV Plus channels, covering news, sports, and movies with zero subscription required.

Under $300 for a QLED TV? Don't sleep on this one. Grab the Samsung 43-inch QLED Q7F Series Smart TV at Amazon.

TL;DR: Live stream the 2026 European Athletics Championships for free on BBC iPlayer. Access these free live streams from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

We're still a couple of years away from the next quest for Olympic medals, but that doesn't mean the best athletes are sitting back and relaxing. No, there are PBs to chase, rivals to beat, and world records to set. And some elite athletes will be targeting all of that at once in the 2026 European Athletics Championships.

The Alexander Stadium is welcoming some of track and field's biggest stars this month. The likes of Keely Hodgkinson, Mondo Duplantis, and Femke Bol will be battling it out for places on the podium. Norway's Jakob Ingebrigtsen has already secured a stunning victory. We're excited to see what's next.

If you want to watch the 2026 European Athletics Championships for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

What are the European Athletics Championships?

The European Athletics Championships are a biennial track and field event organized by the European Athletics Association. The championships bring together the continent’s best athletes to compete across sprint, distance, field, road, and combined events for medals.

When are the 2026 European Athletics Championships?

The 2026 European Athletics Championships take place from Aug. 10-16 at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, UK.

How to watch the 2026 European Athletics Championships for free

The 2026 European Athletics Championships is available to live stream for free on BBC iPlayer.

BBC iPlayer is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can bypass these restrictions with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock free live streams of the European Athletics Championships from anywhere in the world.

Access free live streams of the 2026 European Athletics Championships by following these simple steps:

1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

4. Visit BBC iPlayer

5. Watch the 2026 European Athletics Championships for free from anywhere in the world

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Credit: ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan)

$12.99 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee)

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The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can gain access to free live streams of the European Athletics Championships without actually spending anything. This is obviously not a long-term solution, but it does give you time to watch the entire event before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free streaming platforms, you will need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for BBC iPlayer?

ExpressVPN is the best service for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport for free, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries, including the UK

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices, including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy so your data is always secure

• Fast connection speeds

• Up to 10 simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 80% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with a money-back guarantee).

Live stream the 2026 European Athletics Championships for free with ExpressVPN.

TL;DR: 8BitDo's FlipPad, a flip-style USB-C controller that turns your phone into a retro handheld, is available in the U.S. on Amazon for $29.99. The gamepad has also officially launched across Europe and Amazon UK, retailing for €29.99/£24.99.

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Credit: 8BitDo

8BitDo FlipPad Mobile Gaming Controller

$29.99 at Amazon

 

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8BitDo's FlipPad is available at Amazon in the U.S. for $29.99, turning your phone into a mini retro handheld with real, clickable buttons instead of a flat touchscreen. Now it's expanding overseas: the FlipPad officially launched across Europe on Aug. 14, via distributor Game Outlet Europe, and it's available on Amazon UK for £24.99 and other European retailers for €29.99.

The FlipPad clips onto your phone and plugs in through USB-C, so there's no Bluetooth pairing, no charging, and no annoying lag or drop-outs while you play. When you're done (or a call comes in), you just flip the controller up and out of the way; there's no need to unplug anything.

The FlipPad is built for portrait-mode gaming, so it's great for retro titles and mobile games that support controllers. You get a full D-pad and ABXY buttons, so every input feels like an actual button press, not a screen tap.

It works with both iPhone (iOS 26.2 or later) and Android (13.0 or later) devices, and it's designed to fit most phone cases, so you don't have to take your case off just to use it. 8BitDo says the hinge is rated for more than 6,000 open-and-close cycles, and the USB-C connector can handle over 10,000 plug-ins.

Credit: 8BitDo

At under $30 in the U.S. and similarly priced across Europe, the FlipPad is an affordable way to make mobile gaming feel like it's supposed to. If cloud gaming or emulators are your go-to on mobile, this could be the accessory that makes mobile gaming satisfying.

Stateside gamers can grab it on Amazon U.S.; UK gamers, Amazon UK has now got you covered.

Apple Stores don’t typically have sales, but there are sometimes discounts — if you know where to look. Bridget Carey explains the fine print of Apple’s latest back-to-school promotions for students and offers some other tricks to scoring a cheaper laptop and accessories.

The original "notch" iPhone is now officially obsolete.

On Thursday, Apple added the iPhone X to its list of obsolete products. Originally launched in 2017, the iPhone X was the first iPhone to feature a "notch" on top of its display, ushering in the era of modern iPhones that are nearly bezel-less on all sides, aside from a camera/sensor cutout on top.

Being on the obsolete list means that the product is no longer eligible for hardware service at Apple Stores or the company's Authorized Service Providers. Being nearly nine years old, the iPhone X doesn't get the new versions of iOS either, so if you still use one, it's probably (definitely) time to move on and get a new phone.

In addition to the iPhone X, Apple also added the 2018 15-inch MacBook Pro to the obsolete list. That machine still rocked an Intel processor; Apple introduced the first MacBook Pro with its own silicon (the M1 chip) in 2020 and hasn't looked back since.

There's some symbolism in the iPhone X going obsolete in 2026, the year when Apple is likely to usher in another radically different phone, the foldable iPhone Ultra. There are also rumors that Apple plans an iPhone 20 Pro with an all-glass, no-notch design for 2027, which could be the beginning of the end of iPhones with camera cutouts in their displays.

SAVE $10.50: The DJI Power 140W GaN Charger is on sale at Amazon for $59.49, down from the list price of $69.99. That's a 15% discount.

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Credit: DJI

DJI Power 140W GaN Charger

$59.49 at Amazon
$69.99 Save $10.50

 

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Our modern tech brings us plenty of joy. There's getting real-time livestreams of concerts, chatting with family across the globe, and never being more than one click away from streaming your favorite movie. While plenty of this tech has made our lives easier, there's a common complaint about a tech-ridden life: batteries die. Instead of dealing with multiple power bricks and charging cables, simplify the process thanks to this Amazon deal.

As of Aug. 13, the DJI Power 140W GaN Charger is on sale at Amazon for $59.49, marked down from the standard price of $69.99. That's a 15% discount, taking $10.50 off the price.

DJI is a standout brand for content creation. From drones to the Mic Mini and the Osmo Pocket 4, DJI makes life easier, and the Power Charger plays to the same tune. With a 140W power delivery, the GaN Charger ups the game, offering smart temperature control and stable charging across all three ports.

The DJI logo on the charger itself is actually an LED status indicator that lets you know when the charger is in use. DJI says this is an ideal charger for high-performance devices in the DJI ecosystem. The brand says it can recharge three DJI Air 3S batteries in under 180 minutes or three DJI Mavic 4 batteries in 240 minutes.

If you're ready to streamline charging up life's essential tech, consider the DJI Power 140W GaN Charger while it's on sale for under $60.

The best DJI camera deals:

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Best DJI camera deal

DJI Osmo Pocket 3

$399 (Save $100)

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Best DJI camera bundle deal

DJI Osmo 360 Adventure Combo

$454 (Save $176)

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If you’ve had your eye on a DJI camera, Amazon has some decent deals worth checking out right now.

DJI cameras are also a popular choice for vloggers and content creators, so if you're looking to give your content a boost, these deals are definitely worth a browse. We've hand-picked some of our favorite deals to help you find the right product at the right price.

These are the best DJI camera deals on Amazon.

Best DJI camera deal

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Credit: DJI

DJI Osmo Pocket 3

$399 at Amazon
$499 Save $100

 

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Why we like it

The DJI Osmo Pocket 3 is a small camera, but it packs a whole lot of punch. It has a 1-inch sensor for 4K footage, plus a rotating 2-inch touchscreen and 3-axis mechanical stabilization to keep videos smooth. It’s particularly handy for travel and vlogging because it’s small enough to slip into a pocket or bag.

Best DJI camera bundle deal

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Credit: DJI

DJI Osmo 360 Adventure Combo

$454 at Amazon
$630 Save $176

 

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Why we like it

The DJI Osmo 360 is built for shooting big, immersive footage. It has a 1-inch sensor, 8K/30fps 360-degree video, shoots 120MP 360-degree photos, and can record for up to 190 minutes. It also comes with a 1.2m Invisible Selfie Stick to help you take third-person-style shots. Memory is a big plus too, with 105GB of built-in storage.

With this bundle, you'll get the Osmo 360, a carrying case, three 1,950mAh Extreme Batteries Plus, a Multifunctional Battery Case 2, and a lens cleaning cloth.

More DJI camera deals

• DJI Osmo Mobile 8 Gimbal Stabilizer — $119 $149 (save $30)

• DJI Osmo Action 4 Adventure Combo — $288 $339 (save $51)

• DJI Osmo 360 Essential Combo — $389.35 $479 (save $89.65)

• DJI Osmo Pocket 3 Mount Bundle — $401.99 $501.99 (save $100)

• DJI Osmo Pocket 3 Vlog Bundle 2 — $483 $598 (save $115)

The Pokémon TCG remains the most expensive card game on the market, but you don't have to pay scalper prices for the latest expansion if you know where to look.

In fairness to the Pokémon Company, more cards are being printed than ever, but the supply of popular collections like Ascended Heroes is still not enough to meet the demand. To help with the higher prices, there are some go-to tactics to keep in mind to help take the sting out of your trading card budget. 

To pay as little as possible to the scalpers, here are the best places to buy Pokémon cards in 2026 — including packs and single cards. 

Quick links: Best Pokémon card prices right now

Credit: Mashable Photo Composite/The Pokémon Company

• Mega Evolution Pitch Black Booster Box — around $180 on TCGplayer, market price dropped by over $100 since late June.

• Mega Evolution Pitch Black Booster Bundle — now under $40 at TCGplayer or around $44 at Amazon.

• Mega Evolution Pitch Black Elite Trainer Box — regularly under $75 across a variety of sellers at TCGplayer.

• Mega Evolution Perfect Order Booster Box — well under the $200 mark at TCGplayer, with occasional sale drops at Amazon.

• Mega Evolution Perfect Order Booster Bundle — currently on sale for just over $40 at Walmart, but as low as $41 at TCGplayer.

• Mega Evolution Chaos Rising Booster Bundle — regularly under $40 at TCGplayer after another large market dip, and is frequently on sale at Amazon for just over $40.

• Mega Evolution Ascended Heroes Booster Bundle — well over MSRP, but is finally starting to see dips at around $87 at Walmart and TCGplayer.

• Mega Greninja ex Premium Collection — another large fall-off in market price in June, now well under $50 across various TCGplayer sellers.

Where to buy Pokémon cards in 2026

Amazon

A broad selection and frequent collection-box discounts make Amazon worth checking away from release week. Amazon may not always have the lowest of the low prices, but the larger selection of third-party retailers means you’ll always find Booster Bundles, Elite Trainer Boxes, Booster Display Boxes, and even single packs readily available. 

Plus, many listings come with Amazon’s 30-day refund/replacement guarantee, so you can get a refund if there are any issues.

Best Buy

Third-party listings are usually among the highest-priced here, but any rare "sold and shipped" online listings from Best Buy itself tend to come in at MSRP. 

These used to sell out instantly. Now, the retailer has changed the process so that you can instead register your interest via the "ask for an invite" button. Eventually, Best Buy sends out random invites to buy through a randomized lottery-style system. 

You won’t always get the opportunity to buy at MSRP, but consistently checking and registering interest for anything new gives you better odds of avoiding paying scalper prices. 

Target

Target is good for restocks like Walmart, but prices are usually higher. That said, Target Circle 360 members can get early access to restocks like Walmart+ — so it's still worth keeping an eye out for Target drops.

TCGplayer

If you want to pay the lowest prices for new Pokémon expansions on release, TCGplayer is still the go-to in 2026. 

Owned by eBay, this dedicated trading card platform is often packed with individual sellers who are always looking to undercut traditional retailers like Amazon and Walmart to maximize their chances of a sale. 

Unlike Amazon or Walmart, TCGplayer never sells and ships stock directly — meaning everything bought comes from a third-party seller. TCGplayer still offers buyer protections, but many buyers don't want to deal with external sellers. 

That said, TCGplayer currently holds the gold standard in market price tracking for every card and product, so you should always at least keep it bookmarked to be sure you’re getting a good deal on whatever you’re buying. 

Walmart

Walmart is useful for restocks and can often undercut Amazon listings on price — or at least act as a useful backup if good Amazon deals sell out. Having a Walmart+ membership can give you early access to restocks, but keep in mind those sell out very quickly.

Pokémon Center

The Pokémon Center is the best official retailer to buy Pokémon TCG expansions, since you can also get exclusive editions (like ETBs for new expansions coming with extra packs and an added promo card). On the other hand, any drops sell out almost instantly, as expected. With that, we recommend following deal-tracker accounts on social media, such as @PokemonDealsTCG on X (formerly Twitter) — or @pokemondealsuk on X in the UK. 

Accounts like these are great at detecting when the Pokémon Center website suddenly implements a queueing system, which usually means a new product drop is incoming. By turning on your push notifications for these accounts, you can join said queue and give yourself the best odds of having stock available when you finally get on the site. 

Tips for avoiding overpaying

• Check Pokémon Center first to establish the original price.

• Compare sealed products against TCGplayer's market price.

• Don't assume a six-pack Booster Bundle should cost $80+ just because several listings say so.

• Use Best Buy's invite system and local-stock tools for new launches.

• Buy singles if you're only chasing one or two cards.

Where to buy Pokémon TCG singles in 2026

Credit: Mashable Photo Composite/The Pokémon Company

TCGplayer remains the most useful all-around marketplace for U.S. buyers, since you can compare conditions, sellers, recent sales, and market prices in one place.

Interestingly, eBay (the company that owns TCGplayer) is actually the most useful for graded cards, older promos, Japanese releases, and listings where you want to inspect the exact card. Still, we recommend checking each card’s respective page on TCGplayer for its specific market price, rather than treating active asking prices as market value.

For new cards, patience still pays. That’s because release-week prices can skyrocket as demand peaks. After waiting a few weeks, the market price can drop — usually with cheaper listings following suit.  

Pokémon TCG 2026 release schedule and MSRP guide

Credit: Mashable Photo Composite/The Pokémon Company

Using Pokémon Center pricing as the benchmark where possible, we’ve laid out the MSRP prices for each Pokémon expansion’s product following release. 

As mentioned earlier, shortages for the more in-demand expansions mean we often see these selling across the likes of Amazon and TCGplayer, so treat these numbers as more of a guide on how much more you’ll be paying — rather than a guaranteed checkout price.

Mega Evolution: Ascended Heroes (Jan. 30)

Ascended Heroes kicked off 2026 with a huge special set inspired heavily by Pokémon Legends: Z-A, mixing Mega Evolutions with more Trainer Pokémon. Products rolled out in waves.

• Booster Bundle (six packs) — $26.94

• Pokémon Center Elite Trainer Box — $59.99

• Mega Feraligatr, Mega Meganium, and Mega Emboar ex Box — $21.99

Links: Amazon, TCGplayer, Walmart, Best Buy, Target

Mega Evolution: Perfect Order (March 27)

Perfect Order centers on more Pokémon Legends: Z-A Mega Evolutions in Lumiose City, with Mega Zygarde ex, Mega Clefable ex, Mega Starmie ex, and Meowth ex among its best cards.

• Booster Display Box (36 packs) — $161.64

• Booster Bundle (six packs) — $26.94

• Elite Trainer Box — $49.99

Links: Amazon, TCGplayer, Walmart, Best Buy, Target

Mega Evolution: Chaos Rising (May 22)

Chaos Rising put Mega Greninja ex at the front of the TCG alongside even more Pokémon inspired by Legends: Z-A.

• Booster Display Box (36 packs) — $161.64

• Booster Bundle (six packs) — $26.94

• Elite Trainer Box — $49.99

Links: Amazon, TCGplayer, Walmart, Best Buy, Target

Mega Evolution: Pitch Black (July 17)

Pitch Black is the newest full expansion currently available, built around Mega Darkrai ex, Mega Zeraora ex, Mega Chandelure ex, and Mega Excadrill ex. It is also one of the easiest 2026 sets to find near retail.

• Booster Display Box (36 packs) — $161.64

• Booster Bundle (six packs) — $26.94

• Elite Trainer Box — $49.99

Links: Amazon, TCGplayer, Walmart, Best Buy, Target

Pokémon TCG: 30th Celebration (Sept. 16)

Pokémon's anniversary expansion is the next major release, introducing Futuristic rare cards while revisiting fan-favorite Pokémon across several product waves.

The Elite Trainer Box, Sylveon ex Box, and Greninja ex Box arrive Sept. 16. The Booster Bundle and Binder Collection follow on Oct. 2, while the Day and Night Ultra-Premium Collections and Figure Collection arrive Nov. 6.

• Booster Bundle (six packs) — $26.94

• Pokémon Center Elite Trainer Box — $59.99

• Standard Elite Trainer Box — $49.99

Each 30th Celebration booster contains five foil cards plus a foil Basic Energy, so its price-per-pack isn't directly comparable with a standard set.

Links: Amazon, TCGplayer, Walmart, Best Buy, Target

Top value Pokémon cards among 2026 expansions

Credit: Mashable Photo Composite/The Pokémon Company

Based on our latest full market sweep, these have been the headline pulls from this year's released expansions:

Ascended Heroes

• Mega Gengar ex — 284/217 — $1,118.76

• Pikachu ex — 276/217 — $1,093.18

• Mega Dragonite ex — 290/217 — $705.60

Perfect Order

• Mega Zygarde ex — 124/088 — $133.12

• Meowth ex — 121/088 — $128.68

• Mega Zygarde ex — 120/088 — $62.19

Chaos Rising

• Mega Greninja ex — 116/086 — $212.20

• Mega Greninja ex — 122/086 — $182.07

• Cinccino ex — 119/086 — $62.43

Pitch Black

• Mega Darkrai ex — 116/084 — $243.48

• Mega Darkrai ex — 120/084 — $172.86

• Morpeko ex — 117/084 — $100.30

Collecting strategy

At the end of the day, the best way to get Pokémon cards in 2026 comes down to your priorities: do you want to pay MSRP or as close as you can get, or are you looking to pay as little as possible for what’s readily available?

If the latter, always check TCGplayer along with Amazon and Walmart — as sellers across all three (even Amazon and Walmart directly, not just third-party sellers) try to undercut each other below market price. For an even better chance at paying less, wait a few weeks/months after launch for prices to cool off. 

We should warn against waiting too long, as older expansions with in-demand cards (like Destined Rivals and Phantasmal Flames) end up bumping in price as stock runs low.

To pay around MSRP, you’ll need to keep your eyes on the market much more closely on a daily basis. Sign up for retailer newsletters like Target Circle 360 and Walmart+ for early access to stock drops, and follow deal trackers to be notified of new drops as soon as possible. Be sure to follow all your trading card shops on social media platforms as well. 

More often than that, smaller shops get frequent but small allotments of ETBs and packs from the latest expansions, but it is usually first-come, first-served. If you get lucky, you’ll not only be able to buy new packs of Pokémon cards at MSRP, but you’ll be supporting your local card shop business. 

The Daily Show hosts sometimes take audience questions between segments, and Jon Stewart was posed a great one by a recent attendee: Who's his least favourite interview guest?

The answer? Donald Rumsfeld, who was U.S. Secretary of Defense during the Iraq war. In the clip above, Stewart says he concocted a trap for Rumsfeld that he thought would allow him to "win the interview", but then got so focused on it that he missed something he felt undermined his argument.

"I did not, to my feeling, have a satisfying encounter with him. And it tortured me. Like literally, couldn't sleep," says Stewart. "I lost more sleep over that interview than he lost over the entire war."

Want more film and TV news and reviews delivered straight to your inbox? Sign up for Mashable’s Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

TL;DR: The Pokémon TCG: Mega Greninja ex Premium Collection is available for $60.95 at Amazon, down from its $99.99 list price.

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Credit: The Pokémon Company

Pokémon TCG Mega Greninja ex Premium Collection

$60.95 at Amazon
$99.99 Save $39.04

 

Get Deal

Mega Greninja ex’s big premium box has already come a long way down from the triple-digit prices we saw around launch, and Amazon is once again giving Pokémon TCG collectors a chance to grab the eight-pack collection for well below $70. 

As of Aug. 12, the Pokémon TCG: Mega Greninja ex Premium Collection can be picked up for as low as $60.95 at Amazon. Against its $99.99 list price, that knocks $39.04 off the box for a 39% discount — working out to roughly $7.62 per booster pack before you even account for the included promos and extra collectibles.

The cheapest Amazon option comes from third-party seller EmpireGameCenter, with free delivery currently estimated for Aug. 19. What’s more, this is the lowest price a third-party seller has ever sold this box for at Amazon, as confirmed via price tracker camelcamelcamel. 

Inside the collection are eight Pokémon TCG booster packs — two Chaos Rising, four Perfect Order, and two Phantasmal Flames, alongside a standard foil Mega Greninja ex promo card and a much larger lenticular version for display. You even get a Mega Greninja tech sticker, giving collectors more than simply opening another stack of boosters. 

The Mega Greninja ex card is pretty handy in the trading card game. Its Mortal Shuriken Ability lets you discard a Basic Water Energy from your hand to place six damage counters on one of your opponent’s Pokémon, while Ninja Spinner can follow up with as much as 200 damage. 

As good as this deal is, you can still save more outside of Amazon. Walmart currently lists it for $59.99, while TCGplayer has unopened boxes starting from $49.06 with shipping included — going only $1.60 over market price. 

TL;DR: The Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Chaos Rising Booster Display Box is on sale for $189.94 at Amazon, down from its $279.99 list price.

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Credit: The Pokémon Company

Pokémon TCG Mega Evolution Chaos Rising Booster Box

$189.94 at Amazon
$279.99 Save $90.05

 

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The Chaos Rising expansion in the Pokémon TCG has been steadily dropping in price, and Amazon’s latest offer on the 36-pack Booster Display Box has finally seen it drop below the $190 mark. 

As of Aug. 14, the Pokémon TCG Chaos Rising Booster Display Box is now priced at $189.94 on Amazon, after having $90.05 taken off its $279.99 list price for a 32% discount. That’s not only a whole $40.01 below the $229.95 Amazon price we spotted over Prime Day in June, but also the lowest we’ve ever seen at the retailer, confirmed via price tracker camelcamelcamel. 

With 36 Chaos Rising booster packs of trading cards inside, the $189.94 price works out to roughly $5.28 per pack. Compared to the $8.49 price you pay to buy single Chaos Rising packs, this means you’re also saving $3.21 per pack. 

TCGplayer is technically still a touch cheaper, with English Booster Box listings starting from $184.99 with shipping included — almost $4 less than its estimated market price of $188.55. 

Chaos Rising itself contains more than 120 cards, with over 35 Pokémon and Trainer cards featuring special illustrations — with SIR Mega Greninja ex, MHR Mega Greninja ex, and SIR Cinccino ex among the most valuable chase cards worth up to $212 each. You can buy any of these cards individually on TCGplayer. 

Speaking of Greninja, you can still buy the Mega Greninja ex Premium Collection for around $60 after an Amazon price drop. Plus, the Pokémon TCG’s Perfect Order Booster Bundle is now only $49.99 after a $10 price cut. 

TL;DR: Pay $129.97 once for a lifetime MagellanTV subscription with 4,000+ ad-free documentaries and new content added weekly.

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Credit: MagellanTV

MagellanTV Documentary Streaming Service: Lifetime Subscription

$129.97
$999 Save $869.03

 

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Some nights call for another sitcom rerun. Others call for black holes, ancient civilizations, unsolved crimes, or the rise and fall of an empire. MagellanTV makes those deeper dives easy — and its lifetime subscription is currently just $129.97 instead of $999 through Aug. 23.

The documentary-focused streaming platform features more than 4,000 movies and series from filmmakers around the world. Its library spans space, science and technology, true crime, ancient history, war and military, nature, biography, travel, art, culture, social issues, and plenty more.

Rather than scrolling through a general entertainment service hoping to uncover something substantial, viewers get curated collections devoted to real stories, discoveries, people, and events. Exclusive playlists make it easier to explore a subject in depth, while new documentaries added weekly keep the selection fresh.

Everything streams without advertising interruptions. Where available, documentaries include 4K quality at no additional charge, giving sweeping nature footage and ambitious historical productions the presentation they deserve.

MagellanTV works across TVs, laptops, tablets, and mobile devices, so viewers can start a series on the sofa and continue it elsewhere. Programs can also be cast from a mobile device to Roku, Fire TV, Chromecast, or a compatible smart TV.

Instead of adding another recurring charge to the monthly budget, smart viewers can make one payment and receive lifetime access.

For documentary fans who regularly have to work hard to find thoughtful, well-produced stories, this is a win.

Get lifetime access to MagellanTV for just $129.97 instead of $999 while you can.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

TL;DR: Pay $199.97 once for lifetime access to 2TB of FileLu cloud storage (reg. $600).

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Credit: FileLu

FileLu Cloud Storage Premium Plan: Lifetime Subscription (2TB)

$199.97
$600 Save $400.03

 

Get Deal

Cloud storage is useful, essential even. Paying for the same space every month is less appealing. FileLu offers another approach. Pay $199.97 just once and get lifetime access to its 2TB Premium Plan.

That makes this limited-time offer a practical choice for anyone ready to replace a recurring storage bill with one upfront purchase. The plan provides room for work documents, family photos, videos, creative projects, device backups, and more, with no limit on the number of files or folders you can store.

FileLu also gives experienced users plenty of ways to move data. In addition to web and mobile uploads, it supports FTP, FTPS, WebDAV, Rclone, URL uploads, a command-line interface, API access, and S3-compatible object storage. The FileLuSync app can schedule automatic folder backups from a computer or server, making the service useful for both everyday storage and longer-term protection.

Security features include SSL-protected transfers and encrypted storage. For more private material, Secure-SoloCypher Encryption lets users control the decryption key, while multiple folders can be protected with end-to-end encryption.

The plan works across desktop, web, Android, and iOS, so files remain within reach across devices. Global CDN support helps uploads and downloads move quickly, and FileLu places no speed or individual file-size limits on Premium accounts.

Families and teams can create shared spaces, collect files from others through FileDrop, share direct links, and allow comments on folders. Bulk folder downloads, multiple simultaneous downloads, email attachment backup, and ad-free links round out the package.

For buyers who know they will need cloud storage for years, paying once is a confident way to simplify the budget.

Don’t miss lifetime access to 2TB of FileLu Premium for a one-time $199.97 (reg. $600) for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

Written and directed by David Robert Mitchell, The End of Oak Street plays like a twisted reimagining of Steven Spielberg's Jurassic Park. The suburban Platt family is having an average summer of block parties, parental bickering, and unrequited crushes when time travel upends their lives.

Dinosaurs now prowl their streets, tower over their homes, and descend from the skies. Neighbors are turned into bloody remains, bedecking their yards like grisly lawn ornaments.

And then comes that ending. Whether or not you liked The End of Oak Street for Mitchell's gruesome kills, slasher-style scares, or bewilderingly bad dialogue, you might well be scratching your head over that ending.

So, let's get into it.

How does the time travel in The End of Oak Street work?

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

In the film's first act, set in 1982, there's a news broadcast about NASA researching temporal anomalies. But the Platt family is so caught up in their domestic drama, they don't take note.

The first family member to get a hint of what's to come is mother Denise (Anne Hathaway). When visiting her friend, the widow Mrs. Huddleston (Anne Gee Byrd), Denise is shown a strange plant that's come up inexplicably fast in Mrs. Huddleston's backyard. A subsequent research trip to the library garners little information in the books of contemporary flora. But librarian Mrs. Valcourt (Emily Kuroda) is able to look at Denise's Polaroid of the plant and instantly identify it as being from 200 million years ago.

Later come the flashing lights, noticed by adolescent Brian (Christian Convery) and his rambunctious dog, Starbuck, while Denise was working on her Erica Jong-like novel. These lights, as Brian's Carl Sagan-obsessed sister Audrey (Maisy Stella) will later posit, are effectively wormholes to another time. So, when the big flashing light sounds after father Greg (Ewan McGregor) gets back from his pizza deliveries, two miles of Flowervale are transported back to an age when dinosaurs ruled.

In this setting, the Platts must fight for survival against an array of prehistoric creatures that are all too happy to make them a family meal. But when Denise and Greg discover a large, shiny orb in a neighbor's house, they believe it's a portal back to their time, as they can see contemporary houses within it. Now, it's just a matter of making it to such a portal with their whole family before it disappears.

How does The End of Oak Street end?

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

After Greg is eaten by a T. rex, Denise, her children, and orphaned neighbor girl Jeannette (Jordan Alexa Davis) head to the home of the aforementioned librarian, because there's a possible portal floating near her roof. A shattered window suggests Mrs. Valcourt has already had some unwelcome company. And indeed, Denise and the kids soon encounter some crocodile-like dinos eating what was presumably Mr. Valcourt.

After much Scooby-Dooing around the second-floor hallway, Mrs. Valcourt gives her life to save the Platts from the dinos. Then, Denise, the kids, and the family dog leap through the portal and find themselves in a cement swimming pool. An understandably annoyed woman chides them for being in her pool, and then tells them the date is July 11, 1982. This is the same day their neighborhood was swallowed by a portal, but about twenty minutes before it will happen again. Jeannette runs off to warn her parents.

The surviving Platts look down on the doomed Oak Street, and Audrey wonders aloud if there are doubles of them down there, in their house. Unspoken is that Greg is still alive here.

The Platts fret about what they can do in such a short time to save others. Denise tells the kids to go to the hills, where the portal won't reach. She has phone calls to make.

While Mitchell's script doesn't let us in on those calls, the film's resolution will make clear who was on the other end. From there, the Platts sit at a bus stop and wait. For what? The arrival of a familiar vehicle with a Pete's Pizza topper. To bring Greg to them, Denise orders a pizza, calling him up to the hills where he'd be safe from the portal's arrival.

The family embraces, and The End of Oak Street cuts to a year later.

News reports detail how the neighborhood was swapped for one from millions of years before. But the authorities captured or killed the dinosaurs who appeared in 1982. As for the human residents of Oak Street, several of them give on-camera testimonials championing Denise's heroic actions. Mrs. Huddleston, Mrs. Valcourt, and the Platts' ornery next-door neighbor, Mel Jacobs (P.J. Byrne), were all saved, because they listened when Denise's phone calls told them to get out.

As for Denise, her book about her unhappy marriage was lost to time and a flooded basement. But her time in the past led to her penning a new book called The End of Oak Street.

Does the ending of The End of Oak Street create a time paradox?

Credit: Warner Bros. Pictures

Mitchell's movie does not lay out the specifics of its time travel. Is it a time loop? Does it establish with its final act an alternate timeline? Within the film itself, it's unclear. But here's our best estimation.

The Platt family traveled back in time, and returned home through their joint efforts to survive. By calling Greg to them in the hills, Denise saves him from becoming T. rex food. However, she also dooms a version of herself and her kids to dino land without Greg.

And without her husband's intervention, Denise would likely have been eaten by the T. rex. So, did Denise doom another version of herself to death? Specifically, a version of herself that sought freedom over her family? It's a pretty intense way for Mitchell to make a family-first argument. But beyond that, is it even possible the Platts could survive without Denise? At the first sign of trouble, Greg's go-to is hidden whiskey and goofy dad jokes. His plan was to stay put in their house until the town blipped back. But in the film's finale, a year has passed and no such return blip has brought the houses back. So, even if they could have survived a year, that wouldn't have been a solution.

Beyond that, if post-dino fight Denise prevents pre-dino fight Greg from going back in time, then the path to her and the kids getting back to the future wouldn't happen. That would be a time paradox. However, The End of Oak Street may not be a time-loop movie. Perhaps Denise created an alternate timeline and pulled Greg successfully into that. If this is the case, The End of Oak Street offers a happy ending that's still bizarrely dark.

The final sequence shows Denise walking through her home, where framed photos hang of the family smiling, Brian with a girlfriend who probably doesn't prefer his sister, and the Polaroid of the Greg who did die, posing before some rutting brontosauruses. As Denise meets her family in the yard, they're joined by Jeannette and her parents. A family barbecue! What could be more indicative of an American happy ending?

Except, what did Greg make of all this information? The photo being framed in the home and Denise's book suggest he was told about what happened to him (or a version of him). He's not the man who risked his life to save his wife, but now he is her husband. Does he have any guilt for moving on with post-dino fight Denise while the family he knew is doomed to die in the past? Is Denise haunted by the choice to leave a version of her kids to be thrust into the prehistoric hell with which she is all too familiar? Are her children going to be able to form meaningful long-term relationships when they watched their parents bicker, their father die, and their mother replace him with the ring of a phone?

The End of Oak Street won't grapple with any of these possibilities.

Focus on the barbecue, it beckons, leaving audiences with a flimsy happy ending that hearkens back to the likes of 1956's The Bad Seed and Invasion of the Body Snatchers. All three movies offer a resolution that entreats: Forget the horrors you've seen! The child killer is ruthless, but she's been smote by lightning! The pod people are among us, but surely the U.S. government will stop them... somehow.

These 1950s movies aimed to coddle the audience with an ending that wouldn't leave them scared. In the case of The Bad Seed, they even added a curtain call, where the child actress is playfully spanked by her onscreen mother to give the audience assurance that the horrors of the film shouldn't follow them home. And perhaps we harbor a crooked sentimentality for these endings, because we like to think art and audiences have moved past such clumsy compromises. These endings certainly don't fit, as they seem ludicrously life-affirming and abrupt after so much horror. But it's 70 years later, and studios are still spoon-feeding us such senselessly happy endings, as if we can't recognize how pandering and preposterous they are. It's not charming now; it's infuriating slop.

The End of Oak Street is now in theaters.

Dylan Meyer has been building her career as a screenwriter with spirited movies like XOXO and Moxie. Now, she makes her directorial debut with The Wrong Girls, a stoner comedy that co-stars her wife, Kristen Stewart, and Arrested Development's Alia Shawkat.

The pair play "nimrod" besties Frankie and Molly, who are bumbling around Los Angeles while high on psychedelic drugs made from giant squid fluids. This deep-sea dose has given them the ability to speak telepathically to each other and to their two cats, Dio and GG, voiced by Seth Rogen and Kumail Nanjiani.

To celebrate the film's release, Meyer sat down for a virtual interview with Mashable Entertainment Editor Kristy Puchko.

Together, they dug into the personal origins of The Wrong Girls, as well as inspiration points like The Blue Planet, Romy and Michele's High School Reunion, and Empire Records. Plus, they got into casting cats and how Meyer's collaboration with Stewart reveals a new — and more true to life — side to the critically heralded performer

Mashable: Congratulations on the movie. It's very, very fun. I know it came from a personal space for you. Can you tell me a little bit about the origins of The Wrong Girls?

Dylan Meyer: Yeah, I lived with my best friend Maggie McLean, who's now my producing partner, for five years. But it was definitely like the happiest and most, like, safe five years of my whole life. It was the first time I ever really felt like I had a home. Our little life together was very dysfunctional and very broke and very chaotic, but I really thought it was so sweet and funny in its own way. Like, the things that happened to us were deserving of the same kind of care and treatment that I see a lot of men's movies about their friendships get. I realized that there weren't movies like that really for women. 

Kristen Stewart and Alia Shawkat star in "The Wrong Girls." Credit: NEON

Like, when I was scraping my mind at the time, Romy and Michele's High School Reunion was almost the only girl-buddy movie that I could think of that was that straightforward. And we were such nimrods. I remember thinking, like, "God, I'm also an idiot." We could have our own movie, and, like, why isn't there one? You know, like, why isn't there a great Dumb and Dumber that's about girls? Girls are also Dumb and Dumber.

That's something I love about The Wrong Girls. It's a movie where women get to be dumb, and that's part of the joy and the freedom of it. I think like in Romy and Michele, like in Dumb and Dumber, there's a sense of defiance in it, like: These are the rules of being an adult. But what if I say no?

I agree. There are so many more ways to cut this cake than we've been led to believe. This is a 14-year journey to make this movie. I wrote the original draft of this in 2012, when we still lived together, and you know, it's really grown with me over the years. But like, I remember the [COVID] pandemic happening and me thinking, "Oh God, like, how will we ever tell stories normally again?" And then I was like, "Well, the one story I'm not really worried about is The Wrong Girls, because they probably barely even noticed there was a pandemic. They were just getting high in their house, as they were already before then." You know?

It's a very good point. Speaking to that, how did psychedelics derived from deep-sea creatures come into play?

I've been obsessed with giant squids since I saw 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea when I was five. Like, I think that giant squids have occupied a cosmic question mark in my brain. This idea that we've never really seen one, but they're massive, and they're down there? It's just this thing about how we know more about outer space than we know about the bottom of the ocean floor. Like, I'm really convinced that it's a psychedelic place down there, like, in the truest sense of mystery, imagination, possibility, freak-show stuff. It's all going down down there. We know it. 

Like, if you spend time watching Blue Planet or any other like deep-sea explorative programming, you will see that there is freaky stuff going on down there. So, it felt like a really natural fit to me that, like, if there's something mysterious and inexplicable and cosmic that we might be able to distill its origin point, [it's] that. Also, this is such a California movie, so the ocean being a part of it is, like, a key ingredient. So, it sort of all factors in. This is such a freak-flag movie for the two girls, and so I think the giant squids are, like, the natural other freak-flag contender. 

I've spent so much time watching Blue Planet and just sort of, like, truly immersing [myself] in what kind of chaos is going on under the sea, and I think it's bottomlessly inspirational.

Kristen Stewart and Alia Shawkat star in "The Wrong Girls." Credit: NEON

Are you the kind of person who's like, "I'm good watching it on the screen," or if you had the chance to go into a submersible and check those depths out, would you be the Steve Zissou?

This is a big question. No, I don't think I'm a submersible guy. My knee-jerk reaction is like, no, probably not. I mean, I am obsessed with sharks and terrified of sharks. Like, I would put sharks at the top of my fear and love list. So, I think that the ocean is kind of a complicated place for me. I don't think submersibles are for me. And I'm not even particularly claustrophobic in my life, but I do think that's not natural. I don't think we're supposed to go down there like that.

I do want to talk about the other key animals in this movie: the cats. Tell me about writing for cats.

So, obviously, I'm a cat guy. I currently have two. And when Maggie and I lived together, there was always some random cat living with us that didn't belong to us. Like just a cycle of never-ending —

Squatter cats?

Yeah. I've had a lot of different cats over the years. Not all of them are your soulmate. Some of them are terrible roommates. [In writing for Dio and GG,] I was looking for the perfect foil for people who, like, can't get it together. And cats are that. 

Cats have it absolutely together. Nothing has it more together than they do in certain ways. We all know cats are judgmental, but, like, these guys [Frankie and Molly] specifically are so dysfunctional that I wanted the cat voices to really be almost stand-ins for the rest of the world, filtered through the really limited experience they have. I also wanted to write cats that have just been absorbing everything all the time. So they're familiar with pop culture. 

I wrote them as just shitty roommates, judgmental shitty roommates, and then as we, like, filmed it and went back with Seth and Kumail [for additional dialogue recording sessions), then I was sort of working with like, "Okay, what is the thing that most complements like this expression [on the cat's face]?" And it was something that was able to evolve over the course of making the whole movie and wasn't like one static thing.

Tell me about casting both the physical cats and the human voices of them.

I looked through a lot of different cats that were available, which was a very challenging decision for me. It felt like the biggest decision I was ever going to make, in some ways. And I wanted cats that their physicality brought me a comedic experience, even if, like, they were refusing to perform comedically. Like, I was sort of hedging my bets on, "Okay, cats are not actors. We know this. What can I sort of get that will buffer the experience of looking at them and bring me comedic joy every time I look at them?" So I chose their faces for these exact reasons. 

I have never had a purebred cat, and I think those might be purebred cats. There's two per cat. They come in pairs. But I guess my feeling is that all kinds of cats wind up in shelters, and you don't know why they're there. 

Like my cat now, Cozy, he looks like he could have been designed in a lab in Korea. But he's just from the streets of Van Nuys, you know? He's just a Valley boy. I got his DNA tested, 82% American domestic cat. So, these cats, I chose them because they looked so funny, and especially that brown one's little wall-eyed thing. I burst into hysterics every time I even see him do anything. 

Then, Seth is a producer on the movie. And again, sort of in the shitty roommate category, Seth's voice to me just brings up like some dude you live with [who's] kind of a judgmental bro.

Kumail I targeted as a cat fan. This whole movie was really brought together as, like, a labor of love by the people that made it. We were not, like, dangling fat paychecks in front of anyone. [The pitch to Kumail was basically,]  "Do you really like cats, and would [you] like to be a cat?"

One of them was more frightened, and one of them was sassier. Kumail was just this frightened cat guy; it just made me laugh so hard. Kumail actually lost his cat of, like, 15 years during the process of making this movie. And I was having to ask him for voice notes as we were temping in, like trying out new dialogue along the way. And we only got to bring them in for official recording so many times, and I remember feeling like really worried about poking — 

The bruise?

Yeah, I was like, "Does it make you feel better to be a cat now, or does it make it worse?" He can always say no if he doesn't want to, but he's such an incredible team player. And everyone was so good to me in that way, so yeah, those are the cats.

Incredible. Then, you've got two incredible leading ladies. For Kristen in particular, she's a heralded actress. But she's not necessarily known for comedy, and I really enjoyed The Wrong Girls because it felt like watching her let go in a way I haven't seen in the other comedic work. So I'm curious for you, how did it come about that you were like, Kristen's the right pick for this?

I actually wanted Kristen to be in this movie long before we were ever together. We met a very long time ago. And when I met her, who she actually is in life is quite close to this character [Frankie]. It's not who we're used to seeing her perform in role[s]. But Kristen is from the Valley, and she's actually really funny. 

Like in my life with her, I have experienced her own comedic timing enough to know that I'm like, "This is a missed opportunity in terms of this performer." And comedy is very vulnerable in a different way than what I think she's been used to doing. 

All of the comedy is an extension of the regular performances. So the character was already very close to Kristen, which is sort of like a dirtbaggy skater punk type from the suburbs of Los Angeles that smokes a lot of weed. That's, like, Kristen in life and Kristen in art. 

And then to me, in the next era of whatever movies are, you should just hire a really good actor because a really good actor is a good actor. And I knew she's funny because I live with her and she makes me laugh all the time. But she's a really brilliant performer and just not given the right set of circumstances to really showcase that [sense of humor]. So, I think the part being right allowed her to showcase some other stuff that people don't see from her as often.

I love that, and I love the final dance number. You mentioned Romy and Michele, and The Wrong Girls' climax did remind me of the "Time After Time" number or like Barb and Star, where you have this like musical moment amid the comedy. But I also enjoy that your approach to it is a little more grounded, I think because it doesn't create a gloss for these girls. Can you tell me a little bit about how you approached that final dance number?

There's a couple of components. Like, one thing is that I really wanted it to be... It's not a musical number in that, like, a song descends from nowhere. It is very much playing internally in their shared brain. I thought that was such a funny use of that kind of set piece that we've seen in other capacities. But, it was really paying off the premise of the telepathy, which is the wish fulfillment of having it with your best friend; you could effectively share earbuds or whatever and listen to a song that no one else can hear. Like [you can] have an experience that no one else is a part of, that's so private and so shared. 

So, narratively, it really was the final extension of everything else we'd been working on in the film. And then there's this question of like, "Can you suddenly know a choreographed dance number, or are you still, like, yourself?" And I think in asking myself that, I was like, "It would leave the reality of this movie for these girls to suddenly become incredible dancers that, like, have a routine. So, it needs to be more like in the spirit of you're eight, and you're making up a dance with your best friend." 

LaKeith Stanfield and Kate McKinnon co-star in "The Wrong Girls." Credit: NEON

There's just enough coordination between the two of them that they feel like they're in the same space, but also that no one is magically a professional dancer. It's born from just, like, the freedom of self-expression and the joy of self-expression, which is what it should be coming from. And as I said, this is such a freak-flag movie. So, to me, it was like the culmination of joy, connection, and private moments. 

And Céline [Dion], who's, you know, obviously the patron saint of feelings, as far as I'm concerned, a big operatic feeling...

And patron saint of also dancing to the beat of your own drum —  

Yes, like, dude, that is a freak-flag lady. You know what I mean? She is like on her own vibe, absolutely in the same way. And I think it was important to use Céline for me, because I wanted someone who felt a little like underrated in the way that the girls feel underrated. Céline Dion in the scope of the universe, not underrated. But by like arty punk guys [that Frankie and Molly are around] —

Céline is not considered cool. 

Right. Underrated, not cool. This movie's got a lot of earnestness. And so her being the patriot saint of feelings, and like allowing the girls to have this just true joy finale that's totally private and shared, and then you get this like fun comedic button with it being witnessed by people, who cannot hear that song — it felt like the exact right ending. 

But that dance sequence didn't become a part of this movie until maybe a year before we actually made it. I was driving around in Albuquerque, listening to the radio when Love Lies Bleeding was happening. And suddenly, like, I think Justin Timberlake's "Mirrors" came on. And I was like, "Oh, the movie wants it. Absolutely. What am I doing? Like, it needs this. It needs this, like, big feeling." Empire Records is such an influence on this movie. And I I wanted it to feel as good as it could possibly feel, and so that's how I feel when I watch them do that. I just feel such pure joy.

The Wrong Girls opens in theaters Aug. 14.

If you haven’t heard of AdultFriendFinder (AFF), honestly, consider yourself lucky. This online platform has seriously earned its reputation for being one of the raunchiest and spammiest "dating" sites cluttering the internet.

Sure, the name sounds wholesome and innocent enough, right? But peel back those endless paywalls, and what you find is a digital den packed with X-rated content, questionable profiles, problematic language, and aggressive marketing tactics that seem way more interested in your wallet than your actual experience. They constantly push you to spend more money on basic functions. (Oh, and did I mention it’s also visually offensive? Seriously ugly, aesthetically speaking.)

The best way to describe the AdultFriendFinder website (no app) is through its overall layout, which feels like a relic from the early 2000s internet. It's a mess of flashing banners, intrusive ads, and a user interface so poorly designed it feels intentionally built to overwhelm and confuse anyone brave enough to sign up. You know that scene in Because I Said So where Diane Keaton’s character awkwardly stumbles upon AdultFriendFinder while trying to vet dates for her daughter? Yeah, that's still the energy.

But is there anything redeemable behind the chaos? In this review, we do a deep dive into the AdultFriendFinder experience to figure out exactly how it works (or doesn't), what features it offers, and whether it actually connects people looking for hookups.

This site is for making adult "friends," not friends who are adults. Credit: Screenshot: AdultFriendFinder

What is AdultFriendFinder?

AdultFriendFinder is one of the most well-known sites for finding quick sexual encounters and literally anything else even remotely related to sex. The rowdy feed of matches makes it heaven for anyone looking for a good time with no filter — and hell for someone who wouldn't be caught dead clicking on a "There are hot singles in your area" ad.

On AFF, you can find someone to sext via messaging or video chat (and plan to get it on IRL, if that's what you're looking for), watch live streams, or join niche group chat rooms to connect with other members. You can easily view photos and videos from other members, though interacting is often locked behind a paywall. Is it worth $20-something per month? Depends on how much fishy content you're willing to overlook for a juicy sexting session.

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Credit: AdultFriendFinder

AdultFriendFinder

 

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So, who's actually on this platform? While the site used to flash huge, questionable stats like "98,897,765 hot photos" on its signup page, those crazy numbers seem to be gone now (though they may show for people who've never logged onto the site before; we couldn't get it to replicate it in incognito mode, so it's probably safe to say they're just gone). According to Similarweb's data for May 2026, AdultFriendFinder has pulled in around 9.8 million visits.

AdultFriendFinder's ranking has slipped significantly; noting a steady drop from previous years, it currently sits at 84th in the Adult category in the United States. This suggests people might be finding better alternatives elsewhere, and we're not surprised. Today, you can download kink- and poly-friendly hookup apps like Feeld and Pure, plus hookup destinations like Tinder, which have a huge user base of people ready to meet.

Specifics on the demographic that most people care about — the gender ratio — can be hard to track down. According to SimilarWeb, the audience is roughly 76.44 percent male and 23.56 percent female. This kind of imbalance is pretty common on hookup-focused sites. It means it's likely a paradise if you're a straight man, maybe hit-or-miss if you're a straight woman or LGBTQ man, and probably an actual hellscape if you're an LGBTQ woman trying to navigate it.

On the flip side, AFF does let you identify as and search for a man, woman, a couple, or trans. They've made some attempts to be a "sex-positive" site with blogs, groups, and even a "sex academy." However, their language around the LGBTQ community has historically been anything but inclusive or positive. Previously, the AFF sign-up page listed "TG/TV/TS" as the "trans" gender selection — we'll let you infer what those stand for. After reaching out to AdultFriendFinder about it, this language has improved somewhat with more gender options that are appropriately labeled, though "trans" is still a separate selection from "man" or "woman," which feels more like fetishization than inclusivity.

The sexual oreintation selection is a bit more inclusive than the "searching for" section. Credit: Screenshot: AdultFriendFinder

Is AdultFriendFinder legit?

As far as legitimacy goes, AdultFriendFinder is a real site with real users. However, the question is whether you can really find what you're looking for there, or if you'll mostly find a bunch of bots and scammers. Many users report that it feels like a scam site due to the number of fake profiles and the pressure to spend more money. Compared to other legit sites, its reputation is definitely questionable.

Because AFF is pretty spammy, it's hard to tell how many active members are actually using the site. The 1.4 Trustpilot score isn't reassuring either.

From the start, AdultFriendFinder makes it clear that it's not really aiming to build long-term relationships. The site emphasizes casual hookups and even allows for explicit content, so users know what they're getting into. But if you're looking for something more than just a one-night stand, you might want to consider other platforms.

One of the biggest turnoffs for potential users is that so many features are locked behind a paywall. While you can technically sign up for free, you can't do much beyond browse profiles or view photos from other members. Free members have very limited interaction options; you typically need to upgrade to send messages or see anything substantial. There’s also a brand-new age verification feature that won’t let you past the home page unless you verify you’re actually of age. You can either take a photo of your face to confirm your age or upload a valid photo ID that confirms your birth date. (Honestly, we’re glad they’re at least trying to protect minors from seeing anything they shouldn’t be seeing or connecting with pervy older people.)

There's brand-new age verification feature that won’t let you past the home page unless you verify you’re actually of age. Credit: Screenshot: AdultFriendFinder

How does AdultFriendFinder work?

Signing up takes like 30 seconds. Seriously, just an email, username, password, and a quick intro will do. Of course, you'll have to go through the strict new age verification process too, but it's pretty quick.

Once you're in, brace yourself for the instant notification spam; apparently, a gray silhouette is enough to attract attention here. To even think about connecting with someone real, you absolutely have to add photos and details to your profile — essentially, prove you're not just another bot contributing to the noise.

AdultFriendFinder features a personality questionnaire to personalize your profile and up your chances of finding a compatible match. Credit: Screenshot: AdultFriendFinder

After registering, there are a ton of ways to personalize your account (way more than you'd expect for a hookup site, honestly). The more you fill out, the better your chances of meeting someone (and improving your sex life). There are the basic physical appearance questions about eye and hair color, and since I identified as a woman, cup size was an option. (If you identify as a man, I'm sure you can guess what question they ask.)

The site also features a Personality Type test and a "My Kinks" form where you can select whether or not you're "curious about, into, or can't live without" a certain kink (e.g., anal, bondage, role play, etc.). It also lets you choose whether you're a voyeur, the giver, or the receiver.

One weird thing about the Personality Type test is that it asks several questions about whether or not you enjoy shopping at discount stores — not really sure what that's about. It also asks whether or not "a quiet time for prayer should be allowed in school." You can choose "strongly disagree, somewhat disagree, somewhat agree, or strongly agree."

Once you finish the personality test (20 questions), you can opt to have your Personality Type show up on your profile or have it hidden. It will also show you which personality types complement yours.

Credit: Screenshot: AdultFriendFinder

Matching on AdultFriendFinder: What to expect

Here’s what you can expect when you're looking for a connection:

• Like a traditional dating site, AFF throws a collage of potential matches at you, showing who's online or nearby. But any resemblance to a "traditional" site stops there.

• You barely have to scroll before noticing that there's no shortage of nudity. Depending on whether you set your preferences to men, women, or both, you'll see all of that stuff up close, personal, swinging around, in action. You name it, it'll pop up.

• You can try to refine your results by gender, age, location, race, sexual orientation, body type, etc., but good luck making a dent in the sheer volume of profiles (real or otherwise).

• The message section looks weirdly like old Gmail. You'll get a mix of messages; some might be genuinely friendly, but expect a fair share of instant, crude ones too. It's the online dating equivalent of creeps on Tinder, but amplified.

How much does AdultFriendFinder cost?

You can do a decent amount of looking without paying (this includes browsing profiles, getting limited messages, and hitting up some chat rooms). But hit any of that "juicier hidden content" or try to actually talk to someone, and you'll smack into a paywall or the site's non-monetary currency, "points." You earn points through activity on the free version, which is kind of like playing a mini-game just to unlock basic functionality.

To really get anywhere, especially if you're a guy looking for women (as some on Reddit noted, women prefer paid members for perceived credibility), you'll need a Gold membership. The prices bounce around a bit, but generally, the longer you commit, the cheaper the monthly rate.

Here is how the current pricing breaks down:

• 1 month of Gold is $24.95 (billed monthly)

• 3 months of Gold is $20.95 per month (billed quarterly at $62.85)

• 12 months of Gold is $14.95 per month (billed once at $179.40)

The prices bounce around a bit, but generally, the longer you commit, the cheaper the monthly rate. Credit: Screenshot: AdultFriendFinder

The site shoves other weird add-ons at you, too. For example, there's a separate fee required just to "interact with standard members" on the platform. That costs $19.95 for one month, or $11.95 a month if you bill it quarterly. These layer-on costs, meaning the price you see for Gold might not be the actual price of a usable experience.

AdultFriendFinder also gives members the option to confirm their identity with ConfirmID. If you do this, the site promises to give you two weeks of Gold for free. The ConfirmID works by entering your legal first and last name, home address, gender, and date of birth, and uploading a copy of your driver's license, passport, or other government-issued ID.

If you spend more quality time on the site than expected, springing for a paid membership is definitely something to consider. Once you're paying, you basically become royalty on the site: Your profile will appear way higher in searches, you can use the most advanced searches, unlock profiles with private photo albums, check out video profiles, and message to your heart's content. A general rule is that increased involvement and payment on your end generally equals more success on the website, as your constant activity and heightened searchability make it easier for others to find you.

So, does AdultFriendFinder work?

Once you get past the in-your-face sexplosion of naked profile pictures, horny AIM-era profile names, and explicit videos, the big question is: Does AdultFriendFinder actually work? Like, can you realistically log on and find what you're looking for? The short answer is... maybe, but probably not as well as you'd hope. While you're there, you will have to stay on guard for window shoppers and scammers.

Let's put it this way: AFF might work if you are very open-minded, specifically looking to blow off steam with casual sex or explore niche kinks, and you're completely over the slow pace of traditional dating sites. It has a ton of activities, ranging from direct messaging, sending virtual gifts and tips, watching live videos of people in your feed, joining adult chat rooms that can get very niche, or entering photo contests.

Aside from the NSFW content, the website is relatively straightforward (albeit ugly). Every feature is advertised in big letters, notifications are displayed clearly with labels, and you don't really have to click around to find anything. This makes it super accessible for users of all ages, even those who aren't tech-savvy and can't even figure out Facebook. Buttons are all over the place, but you figure it out after messing around for a few minutes.

Think of AdultFriendFinder as the dating site version of New York City — it never sleeps. It's like that booty call who's always awake when you text them. Or at least that used to be the case... 10 years ago. What was once a hot site that a few Reddit users were quick to hype up is now one of the dating sites that Reddit users can't help but diss — in the few instances that AFF is even being discussed at all. It's notable that, on a site where online dating is such a mammoth topic of discussion, AdultFriendFinder has rarely been mentioned in a positive light since the early 2010s. The Reddit community is diverse and open-minded; if a dating site exists, someone on Reddit has used it and has an opinion. When an innocent soul does ask if it's legit, AFF usually gets dragged for sketchy pricing and being riddled with fake profiles.

However, some Reddit members have praised AFF as a site for men meeting men. Even so, the site's still buggy and isn't exactly great for meeting real people who aren't, as one Reddit user so eloquently put it, "busted and unstable."

Good for: Very open-minded people looking to blow off steam

Stating the obvious, AdultFriendFinder is a space for people who want to bang with no strings attached, people who are in a sexual rut, people who are tired of porn, and people who find sites like eharmony boring. Getting to know someone for weeks before meeting up can be exhausting, and sometimes, you want to skip the small talk and do the dirty with a random. It's gonna get kinky out there, and that's great for those who are dying to blow off steam and want someone who will respond well to a brusque, sexy message.

As with all dating sites, catfishing is a big buzzkill. Your chances of being pursued are way higher if you have a lot of pictures of the same person (AKA you), videos, and a genuine profile that lets people know they're not dealing with something sketchy. Even if you've had bad luck with online dating in the past, AdultFriendFinder is the place to be honest.

Bad for: People looking for a real relationship and the entire socially conscious community

If you're a cynic, conservative by any means, get sketched out easily, or aren't a fan of dick pics, you'll probably hate it. Similarly, if you appreciate a well-crafted, aesthetically pleasing website that feels safe, no matter how badly you want to have sex, one glance at the landing page likely signals that it's not for you.

AdultFriendFinder is not the place to be if you're trying to make friends unless "with benefits" is tacked onto the end. Every inch of the site screams: "This website is used to have sex," and you should really listen to that.

As illustrated by the flood of artsy activism guides on Instagram in recent years, it's clear what content appeals to young people on the internet: Something aesthetically pleasing, shareable, and digestible. The "shareable" part doesn't totally apply to online dating, but apps like Hinge and OkCupid closely follow this design trend by limiting the number of words (and ads) in each tab, steering clear of endless scrolling, and ensuring that important info isn't cluttered with flashing clickbait.

AFF could do so much more to make people take it seriously

We're not knocking a quick hookup or no-strings-attached relations. This isn't about morals. Genitals are quite literally in your face from the moment you make an account, and that's just not cute. There are chiller ways to go about insinuating that this is a hookup website without feeling like you're trapped in a sex dungeon with strangers.

I could not get past the fact that the entire site looks like it's about to invite five viruses to your computer. We're talking terrible graphics that look like they were made on Microsoft Paint and pictures of women who look like they're from Pornhub in 2007. (That's when AdultFriendFinder was officially sold and rebranded from its original parent company.) Reddit user Snoo53279 summed it up in a comment from July 2020: "The people on AFF are definitely real, but there is a huge smattering of bots that also get in the way, so it can be a bit of a PITA to use." If they're not bots, they could be men posing as a couple to seem less threatening.

The parade of women on the landing page is questionable for two reasons. This shouldn't even need to be clarified, but not everyone is looking for a woman. At the least, the advertising isn't inclusive — but this crosses into fetishization territory. The cherry on top is that the women in the photos (unsurprisingly) probably aren't even members of the site, according to a disclaimer at the bottom of the landing page.

AdultFriendFinder's overall outdated vibe goes past an aesthetic annoyance — it's downright problematic at times. The lack of inclusivity for the LGBTQ+ community is nearly unforgivable, and we'd be scared to see some of the related rhetoric that AFF users feel comfortable spewing. Without even a dash of social awareness, it's hard to see how anyone who's not an out-of-touch straight cis man would feel comfortable on this site.

Attempting to navigate the shoddy design might be enough to smother your horniness. Three main issues can make the site borderline unusable: It looks shady as hell, an alarming portion of the user base is made up of bots and spam accounts, and the user interface itself is outdated and rife with bugs.

AdultFriendFinder alternatives

Given AdultFriendFinder's... challenges... you're probably wondering where else you can look for casual connections or kink exploration online. While AFF might feel slightly more "legit" than sites with names that scream spam (you know the ones), there are definitely much better places to spend your time and money.

Here are a few alternatives that offer a significantly better experience:

• Pure: Think of Pure as a more modern, less eyeball-assaulting option for no-strings-attached hookups. It has a sleek, "hella-millennial" design (way better than AFF's retro mess) and features like self-destructing messages and profiles that disappear after an hour, giving it a casual, in-the-moment feel. It's basically a sexier, more private Snapchat for hookups.

• Feeld: If you're a single or couple looking for group sex, polyamory, or exploring LGBTQ+ friendly dynamics, Feeld is a much better bet than navigating AFF's often problematic space. It's designed for open-minded individuals and couples and is generally praised for being more inclusive (though it had some bugs after a recent update, which seem to be getting addressed). It skips the unicorn hunting and rampant fetishization found elsewhere.

• FetLife: If the "My Kinks" section on AFF piqued your interest but the endless bots scared you off, FetLife is exactly where you need to be. It's kind of like Myspace (RIP) for the BDSM, fetish, and kink community. You can find local kink events, join hyper-specific groups, and connect with real people who share your exact desires in a much safer, community-policed environment.

• Sniffies: If you're a gay, bi, trans, or queer man looking for a hyper-direct hookup, skip AFF entirely and head to Sniffies. This map-based cruising platform lets you see exactly who's looking for action in your immediate area. You don't even need to register for an account to browse the map, and it displays users' intentions and preferred sex positions right on their avatars.

• Mainstream Apps (like Hinge or OkCupid): While not strictly hookup-focused, even mainstream apps offer a more palatable and less spammy user experience. Their design is cleaner, there's less ad overload, and they prioritize clear information over flashing explicit content, which some users might find a relief compared to AFF's chaos.

Ultimately, you have options that are more modern, more inclusive, and simply less likely to make you feel like you need a virus scan after logging on.

The final verdict: Is AdultFriendFinder worth it?

AdultFriendFinder is a low-pressure way to find a friends-with-benefits situation without insulting anyone. Everyone is pretty much there for the same reason, and though it'll feel pretty unorthodox if you've only ever used Tinder to scope this type of thing out, AFF's blunt advertising at least means you won't have to explain that you're not looking for a relationship. It's niche-friendly and has a ton of interactive outlets to indulge your primal urges.

But that freedom comes with a price — the price is feeling like one of those people who fall for the ads that pop up before a free Pornhub video. It's not that a site dedicated to sex and sexting is inherently scammy — it's that AdultFriendFinder drowns you with explicit photos on profiles that might not even be real people while asking you to pay for a subscription with every click.

Unfortunately, no matter how in the mood you are, some people aren't cut out for the nothing-left-to-the-imagination approach with grammar mistakes all over the place. It wants to be sex-positive so badly, but the language the site has used in reference to the trans community is the furthest thing from that.

The site's functionality and safety aren't where they need to be in 2026. If security measures were tightened, graphics and photos were cleaned up to feel more relevant, and decision-makers behind the scenes were given a lesson in inclusivity and pronouns/identities, AdultFriendFinder could be a handy tool to find attachment-free hookups and connect with a community that's down for anything.

This isn't a dating or hookup site we would personally use, but if you're feeling brave, you can register for AdultFriendFinder here. Just don't try this at work.

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Credit: AdultFriendFinder

AdultFriendFinder

 

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SAVE $200: As of Aug. 14, the Eufy Omni S2 robot vacuum and mop has been discounted to $1,399.99 at Amazon. That's $200 off its full price of $1,599.99.

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Credit: Eufy

Eufy Omni S2 Robot Vacuum and Mop Combo

$1,399.99 at Amazon
$1,599.99 Save $200

 

Get Deal

Keeping your house clean, especially if you have a busy summer schedule, can feel like a lot. That's where robot vacuums come in handy. While the FCC may have banned models made outside the U.S., you can still get models already in circulation, and Amazon's a great spot to find deals.

If you're looking for a robot vacuum that can also mop, the Eufy Omni S2 is one option on sale right now.

As of Aug. 14, Amazon has the Eufy Omni S2 robot vacuum and mop discounted to $1,399.99 for a limited time. Compared to its full price of $1,599.99, that's $200 in savings.

With such a premium price tag, the Eufy Omni S2 offers quite a lot when it comes to cleaning. In terms of vacuuming, it features AeroTurbo 2.0 technology and 30,000 Pa of suction with 100 AW airflow, which can clean deep into carpets. It also comes with a DuoSpiral main brush and anti-tangle side brushes that help prevent hair of all lengths from getting caught up inside it and slowing it down.

Mopping is mighty helpful as well. This combo cleaner can generate electrolyzed water on every pass, which helps kill off bacteria. Its HydroJet 2.0 technology uses 140-degree Fahrenheit water to clean the roller mop as well, so every clean feels fresh. Not to mention, it can easily detect floor types as it's moving around, so the mop will auto-lift if it hits a carpet.

Plus, the Eufy Omni S2 features 3D MatrixEye 2.0 smart navigation technology to help avoid obstacles and get an efficient clean in every room. If it sounds like the perfect fit for you, don't miss out on this great deal at Amazon.

Want to learn more about getting the best out of your tech? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories and Deals newsletters today.

SAVE $30: As of Aug. 14, the Craftsman Gunmetal Chrome Mechanics Tool Set is on sale for $139 at Amazon. That's a 18% discount on the list price.

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Credit: Craftsman

Craftsman Gunmetal Chrome Mechanics Tool Set

$524 at 169
$599 Save $75

 

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If you're looking to upgrade your tool set without spending a fortune, this Craftsman tool set deal is worth checking out. As of Aug. 14, the Gunmetal Chrome Mechanics Tool Set is down to $139, saving you $30 on the list price.

If you've got a big DIY project coming up, now could be a good time to make sure you've got all the tools you need.

The 121-piece kit has everything you need for a huge range of DIY jobs, including a wide selection of sockets, ratchets, wrenches, hex keys, specialty bits, and more. Its high-count 180-tooth ratchet is designed for working in confined spaces with a reduced arc swing, and the long-panel wrenches provide increased leverage to loosen stubborn fasteners.

It also has Tight Torque technology designed to help you with difficult jobs, such as removing fasteners with rounded heads and reducing further rounding during common maintenance tasks. Plus, the sockets and wrenches have easy-to-read size markings to help you find the right tool.

The set is also engineered to meet or exceed ASME specifications.

Pick up this tool set deal at Amazon now.

SAVE $75: As of Aug. 14, the Google Pixel 10a is on sale for $524 at Amazon. That's a 13% discount on the list price.

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Credit: Google

Google Pixel 10a

$524
$599 Save $75

 

Get Deal

Earlier this week, the Made by Google event announced new Pixel phones. New Pixel 11 models will be released next week, and there's even a new Pixel 11 Fold on its way. But if you're not interested in the newest tech, you can score deals on older models.

As of Aug. 14, the Google Pixel 10a has dropped in price by $75, taking the cost down from $599 to $524. This deal is for the 256GB phone across all four colorways.

The Google Pixel 10a has a powerful camera, 30+ hours of battery life, and built-in AI features through Gemini, all making it the perfect choice for a well-rounded smartphone. Its Actua display reaches up to 3,000 nits of peak brightness, and the scratch-resistant Corning Gorilla Glass 7i and IP68 water and dust resistance make it a durable option, a good choice if you're clumsy.

And it's an unlocked Android phone, so you're not locked into any plans or stuck with one carrier; you have the flexibility to choose this yourself.

Find this Pixel deal at Amazon right now.

TL;DR: Best Buy is celebrating its 60th anniversary with a sale running Aug. 17-23, plus an in-store-only Anniversary Day event on Aug. 22 with limited-quantity deals, including a gift card offer.

Best Buy is turning 60, and instead of blowing out candles, it's blowing out deals.

The retailer got its start as a small audio shop in St. Paul, Minnesota, and six decades later, it's marking the milestone with a sale, a sweepstakes, a YouTube collab, and — somehow — its own line of sneakers.

Here's everything you need to know.

The anniversary sale: Aug. 17-23

The main event is a week-long sale running Monday, Aug. 17, through Sunday, Aug. 23, both in stores and online. Expect deals across iPads, headphones, laptops, and other tech. Best Buy is also refreshing the lineup with even more offers during anniversary weekend, Aug. 21-23.

Members get an extra perk: My Best Buy Plus and Total members earn 10% back in rewards during the sale, up to $60. And if you're approved for the My Best Buy Credit Card, you'll earn 15% back in rewards on purchases made on your first day with the card.

Anniversary Day: one day, in stores only

On Saturday, Aug. 22, Best Buy is running six special offers that are exclusive to physical stores, including a gift card deal. Quantities are limited — each store will have 50 of the 60th-anniversary gift cards available — so get there early.

The upgrade sweepstakes

Got an ancient phone, TV, or gaming system gathering dust? Best Buy wants to see it. Customers can submit photos of their oldest tech on Best Buy for a chance to win anniversary prizes.

Custom 3D-printed shoes

Credit: Best Buy

And because 60 years apparently calls for footwear, Best Buy partnered with Nexbie on a limited-edition run of 3D-printed anniversary shoes, available for purchase on Best Buy.

Best Buy also teamed up with tech YouTuber Marques Brownlee to trace how phones have evolved over six decades and how the retailer has been part of that journey.

Sixty years in, Best Buy is still finding new ways to throw good deals your way — sneakers included.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you know your logos.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Patterned

• Green: Thought-related

• Blue: Drawing essentials

• Purple: Similar shapes

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Black-and-yellow

• Green: Places where everyone thinks the same ways

• Blue: Comic book artist's tools

• Purple: Triangle logos

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #1160 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Black-and-yellow: BUMBLEBEE, CAUTION TAPE, CHARLIE BROWN, WOLVERINE

• Places where everyone thinks the same ways: BUBBLE, ECHO CHAMBER, HIVEMIND, SILO

• Comic book artist's tools: BRISTOL BOARD, DIP PEN, INDIA INK, STRAIGHTEDGE

• Triangle logos: BASS ALE, CITGO, DELTA AIRLINES, GOOGLE DRIVE

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

TL;DR: Apple TV Plus just added 19 previously rent-or-buy movies to its subscription library at no extra cost, including Titanic, Arrival, The Sixth Sense, and Gone Girl.

It's a Friday night, you're scrolling through your streaming apps, and you land on a movie you've wanted to rewatch for years. Then you see the price tag — $3.99 to rent, $14.99 to buy — for a movie you've already watched a dozen times. So you close the app and settle for whatever's actually included in your subscription instead.

Apple TV Plus just made that whole dilemma disappear for a solid chunk of its classic movie catalog. The service, usually known for its slate of original shows and movies, just added a batch of classic titles that are normally rent-or-buy purchases, and they're now streaming free for anyone with a subscription. You'll find them tucked into a new "Great Movies Available Now on Apple TV" carousel inside the Apple TV app.

It's not clear yet whether this is permanent or a limited-time thing. Apple tried something similar a few years ago, and it didn't stick around, so it might be worth getting started before these titles go behind a paywall again.

The lineup varies depending on where you're located, but it's currently live in the U.S., Canada, and the U.K. Here's what's included in the U.S. right now:

• The Martian

• Arrival

• The Bourne Identity

• Looper

• E.T.

• The Proposal

• I, Robot

• Forgetting Sarah Marshall

• 21 Jump Street

• The Sixth Sense

• Gone Girl

• Zoolander

• Zodiac

• Charlie's Angels

• Titanic

• Mission: Impossible – Ghost Protocol

• A Beautiful Mind

• The Aviator

• The Rookie

This freebie drop joins a library of more than 300 Apple originals. Apple TV normally runs $12.99 per month or $99 per year, though it's also included with Apple One if you're already paying for other Apple services.

New subscribers can grab a seven-day free trial to test it out before committing. It's available through the TV app on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Android, and Windows, or through a browser at tv.apple.com.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

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If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

Hurdle Word 1 hint

To create.

Hurdle Word 1 answer

CRAFT

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Something frightening.

Hurdle Word 2 Answer

SCARY

Hurdle Word 3 hint

To steal.

Hurdle Word 3 answer

POACH

Hurdle Word 4 hint

To speak.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

UTTER

Final Hurdle hint

Fluid that circulates oxygen.

Hurdle Word 5 answer

BLOOD

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

It's all starting to come together.

One of the core mysteries throughout Silo has been where the giant underground cities came from, and why they were built. Now, seven episodes into the third season, we still don't know the why — but we're starting to get a sense of the who.

What happens at the end of Silo Season 3, episode 7?

Congressman Daniel Keene (Ashley Zukerman) and journalist Helen Drew (Jessica Henwick) have been on a strange journey so far in Season 3's flashback storyline. They've dug into what happened to Daniel's sister Charles (Jessica Brown Findlay) on that Iran mission, been followed by a mysterious gray-haired man, and even had their car take on a life of its own to essentially kidnap them.

Finally, though, episode 7 seems to bring some answers. After their autonomous vehicle abduction, they're met by Senator Thurman (Laura Innes), who introduces them to the billionaire they were discussing at the end of episode 6, Per Stensen (Colin Hanks). Stensen tells them they'll get all the answers they crave if they sign a simple NDA.

"Once we've signed, you'll get on the plane, and this time tomorrow you'll know everything," says Senator Thurman.

Once the plane lands in Atlanta, Georgia, Stensen tells Helen that the next leg of the journey will be via helicopter. She asks where they're going, and he tells her a property of his.

"It's 300,000 acres," says Stensen. "That's 400 square miles. It used to consist of 42 individual farms."

In the episode's final scene, we finally get a glimpse of what they're going to see.

"I wasn't just being dramatic before," says Senator Thurman. "This really is about saving the world."

"What the hell is that?" asks Helen, and the senator tells her that Daniel — who has a background in engineering — knows.

"Er, it's a drill," he says, looking out of the window. "It's a very big drill."

Who built the silos?

The drill Daniel sees on the ground is the same digging machine we've seen before, now sat rusting in the watery cavern at the very depths of Silo 18. Even though it's not explicitly spelled out, what we're seeing at the end of episode 7 is obvious: It's the beginning of the silos being constructed.

The people behind the project? Senator Thurman, who describes herself as a "believer" in the vision, and billionaire Per Stensen, who is funding the project and believes it's about saving the world.

The big questions that still remain, though, are what happens to the world that forces everyone underground? And, hundreds of years on, who is in charge of the network of silos?

Silo Season 3 is streaming now on Apple TV, with new episodes dropping every Friday.

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TL;DR: Unblock porn sites for free with a VPN. The best service for unblocking porn sites is ExpressVPN.

The online world is full of content restrictions and blockades. It might not always seem like that, but look around. More and more restrictions on your movement are coming into force.

Porn naturally comes with a lot of restrictions, but there's really nothing wrong with adults visiting their favorite sites at entirely appropriate moments. When the time is right, you should be able to bypass content restrictions to access sites like XNXX from any network and location. And fortunately, you can do exactly that with a quick and easy hack.

If you want to unblock porn sites like XNXX from anywhere in the world, we've got all the information you need.

How to unblock XNXX for free

VPNs are useful tools that can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to secure servers in other locations. This straightforward process can bypass geo-restrictions to access porn sites like XNXX from anywhere in the world.

Unblock porn sites like XNXX by following these simple steps:

1. Sign up for a VPN (we recommend ExpressVPN)

2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

3. Open up the app and connect to a server in a location that supports access to XNXX

4. Visit XNXX

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Credit: ExpressVPN

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The best VPNs for bypassing content restrictions are not free, but leading VPNs do tend to offer free-trial periods or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can unblock porn sites like XNXX without actually spending anything. This obviously isn't a long-term solution, but it does mean you can retain access to porn sites when temporarily away from a secure network.

If you want to retain permanent access to everything the online world has to offer, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for porn is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for porn?

ExpressVPN is the best service for fast and reliable unblocking of porn sites like XNXX, for a number of reasons:

• Servers in 105 countries

• Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

• Strict no-logging policy

• Fast streaming speeds free from throttling

• Up to eight simultaneous connections

• 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $78.18 and includes an extra four months for free — 78% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Unblock XNXX for free with ExpressVPN.

The New Moon has passed, but the Moon hasn't returned to full visibility quite yet. In fact, it will take a few more days before we can spot anything on its surface again.

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Friday, Aug. 14, NASA's Daily Moon Guide tracker tells us the Moon phase is in Waxing Crescent phase, with 3% of its surface visible.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon will take place on August 28.

What are Moon phases?

The Moon doesn't look the same from Earth every night. As it travels around our planet, it moves through a lunar cycle that takes roughly 29.5 days to complete, according to NASA. The changing positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon affect how much of the Moon's sunlit side we can see, creating the different phases. Over the course of the cycle, the Moon progresses from a narrow crescent to a half Moon and eventually a Full Moon, before starting the sequence over again.

The eight phases are:

New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

Today's Connections: Sports Edition will be easier if you've ever watched football.

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight, and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

What is Connections: Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. The sports Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words, and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes before the game ends.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

Here's a hint for today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Bad team

• Green: Non-power conferences

• Blue: Third

• Purple: Scientific element

Here are today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Easy Opponent

• Green: "Group of 6" College Conferences

• Blue: Associated with No. 3

• Purple: Ends in an Element on the Periodic Table

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #690 is...

What is the answer to Connections: Sports Edition today?

• Easy Opponent: BREEZE, CUPCAKE, PUSHOVER, TOMATO CAN

• "Group of 6" College Conferences: AMERICAN, MAC, MOUNTAIN WEST, SUN BELT

• Associated with No. 3: BRONZE MEDAL, DALE EARNHARDT, FIELD GOAL, HAT TRICK

• Ends in an Element on the Periodic Table: 9-IRON, ADAM SILVER, KAHLEAH COPPER, PHOENIX MERCURY

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Connections.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move on to the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity with how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible — and common — for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

Easy difficulty hints, answers for August 14 Pips

Number (6): Everything in this purple space must add up to 6. The answer is 2-6, placed vertically; 2-2, placed horizontally.

Number (6): Everything in this red space must add up to 6. The answer is 2-6, placed vertically.

Number (6): Everything in this light blue space must add up to 6. The answer is 3-3, placed vertically.

Number (6): Everything in this orange space must add up to 6. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically.

Number (6): Everything in this dark blue space must add up to 6. The answer is 6-5, placed vertically; 1-2, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 1-2, placed vertically.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for August 14 Pips

Number (9): Everything in this space must add up to 9. The answer is 0-4, placed vertically; 5-3, placed horizontally.

Equal (3): Everything in this space must be equal to 3. The answer is 5-3, placed horizontally; 4-3, placed horizontally; 3-1, placed vertically; 3-6, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (0): Everything in this space must be greater than 0. The answer is 6-5, placed horizontally.

Number (9): Everything in this space must add up to 9. The answer is 4-3, placed horizontally; 6-5, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-1, placed vertically; 2-6, placed vertically.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for August 14 Pips

Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 2-2, placed horizontally; 2-5, placed vertically.

Number (16): Everything in this space must add up to 16. The answer is 2-5, placed vertically; 6-2, placed horizontally; 5-1, placed vertically.

Number (6): Everything in this space must add up to 6. The answer is 5-1, placed vertically; 2-3, placed horizontally.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically; 4-5, placed vertically.

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 4-5, placed vertically; 3-6, placed horizontally.

Number (11): Everything in this space must add up to 11. The answer is 3-6, placed horizontally; 0-5, placed vertically.

Less Than (3): Everything in this space must be less than 3. The answer is 1-1, placed vertically; 0-5, placed vertically.

Number (15): Everything in this space must add up to 15. The answer is 6-6, placed horizontally; 3-0, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 3-5, placed horizontally; 2-4, placed vertically.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 0-4, placed vertically.

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 0-4, placed vertically; 4-6, placed horizontally.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 2-4, placed vertically; 4-6, placed horizontally.

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you like geology.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

Often seen inside rocks.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

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Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter G.

The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

GEODE

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Wordle.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you know a bit of trivia.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Discovered by accident

The words are related to popular discoveries.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe invented items.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.

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NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Inventions.

NYT Strands word list for August 14

• Penicillin

• Slinky

• Inventions

• Plastic

• Microwave

• Velcro

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to today's Strands.

Officials in Acton, Massachusetts, say a teenager charged with killing two members of his family was using generative AI chatbot ChatGPT to explore violent scenarios prior to the murders.

Arjun Aravind, 17, is accused of killing his 45-year-old mother, Sudha Venkatesan, and 14-year-old brother, Siddharth Aravind, this week. The boy's father was not home when the murders took place.

Arjun Aravind was located by police in nearby Wayland, Massachusetts, on Wednesday morning and taken into custody without incident. 

Speaking to reporters following Aravind’s arrest, Middlesex County DA Marian Ryan made a point of highlighting Arjun Aravind's internet use, saying the teen created violent scenarios on ChatGPT and masked it as fantasy fiction.

"The investigation has so far shown that Arjun had recently been demonstrating some concerning behavior, including using the internet and ChatGPT to make searches for theoretical ideas or fantasy stories regarding the killing of his family," Ryan said, according to an NBC News report.

"He was engaged in the use of ChatGPT in creating fantasy stories, kind of the gothic novel kind of stories, asking questions, creating characters, asking what about this if this happened to that, and they seem to appear to relate to threats to his family."

Mashable's request for comment from OpenAI, the San Francisco company behind ChatGPT, was not returned as of press time.

While numerous parents have accused chatbots of playing a role in young people harming themselves, some prosecutors are now pointing the finger at AI companies for allegedly abetting crimes. Earlier this year, Florida man Hisham Abugharbieh was accused of killing two college students and using ChatGPT to inquire about disposing of the bodies.

OpenAI announced an update in December that purportedly puts "teen safety first" for underage users of ChatGPT. The company stated that it had refined its Model Spec, which guides how OpenAI's AI models should behave, and put a new set of principles in place for how it chatbot responds in high-stakes situations involving users under 18.

A report released in March from the Center for Countering Digital Hate found that eight out of 10 popular AI chatbots helped researchers posing as teen boys plan violent crimes in over half of the responses. 

Disclosure: Ziff Davis, Mashable’s parent company, in April 2025 filed a lawsuit against OpenAI, alleging it infringed Ziff Davis copyrights in training and operating its AI systems.

OpenAI's Chief Revenue Officer announced today that she is leaving the AI giant.

"I wanted to let you know that I made the difficult decision to leave OpenAI in the coming weeks to pursue other opportunities," said Denise Dresser, the now-former OpenAI CRO, in a post shared to her LinkedIn. "I’m incredibly proud of all we’ve accomplished together and deeply grateful to the extraordinary people and customers who made this chapter so meaningful."

On its own, Dresser's departure may not be so noteworthy. However, what is notable is that Dresser is the second OpenAI executive to leave the company just this week, and one of several to leave the company within the last few months.

Two days ago, OpenAI executive Brad Lightcap also announced his departure from OpenAI. Over his years with the company, Lightcap wore many hats. Lightcap was promoted to OpenAI's COO role in April but later shifted out of that position to lead special projects within the company.

“Over the last few months, I’ve been focused on the next horizon,” Lightcap said in a note to OpenAI employees, as reported by Bloomberg. “I believe there are a few important things the world will need to get right as we enter this next period. I’ll have more to share soon.”

Just one month ago, OpenAI lost its number two executive, Fidji Simo. Simo had gone on medical leave months earlier and said she ultimately decided to leave in July as a result of ongoing health issues. Perhaps Simo would have stayed with the company if not for these circumstances. 

However, Simo wasn't the only high-profile OpenAI employee to leave in July either. That very same month, OpenAI head ethicist Chloé Bakalar departed the company as well. While Bakalar's departure apparently occurred last month, it was only recently revealed in a Financial Times report.

The tenures of the departing executives vary widely: Lightcap had been at the company since 2018, while Dresser leaving after just nine months.

Are these OpenAI departures a sign of something more concerning going on within the company? OpenAI has dealt with multiple high-profile departures at once before. For example, chief marketing officer Kate Rouch left in April of this year, shortly before OpenAI lost two research heads Kevin Weil and Bill Peebles.

With that said, these recent departures are certainly something to keep tabs on. Concerns surrounding OpenAI's safety protocols are at all-time highs following a few high-profile security incidents. Is this really the best time for OpenAI to lose Bakalar, who was reportedly its only dedicated ethicist?

OpenAI CEO Sam Altman has recently been going on about how the company is on the cusp of bringing a kind of digital superintelligence once confined to science fiction novels to reality. Would these executives not want to be with OpenAI for this achievement?

As of now, the departing former OpenAI executives haven't shared exactly what spurred their decisions to leave the company or why they chose this particular moment. Perhaps we'll find out more soon enough. 

SAVE $130: As of Aug. 13, the Google Pixel 11 and Pixel Watch 5 bundle is on sale for $1,168.99 at Amazon. That's a 10% discount on the list price.

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Credit: Google

Google Pixel 11 + Pixel Watch 5

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Looking to do a full overhaul of your personal tech? Well, this new Google bundle deal saves you $130 on a new phone and smartwatch. As of Aug. 13, you can get the Google Pixel 11 and Pixel Watch 5 for $130 less.

If you order the new Google Pixel 11 any time between Aug. 12-27, you'll get $130 off the Pixel Watch 5, while supplies last and subject to availability. Just be aware that if you return the Pixel 11 without the Pixel Watch 5, you’ll be charged for the discount you received.