Tech

The Marshall Heston 120 Soundbar Is Big and Beautiful, but Does It Rock?

The Marshall Heston 120 Soundbar Is Big and Beautiful, but Does It Rock?

Under the surface are 11 individually powered speakers, including two five-inch woofers, two midrange drivers, two tweeters, and five “full-range” drivers. The collection includes both side-firing and upfiring drivers to bounce sound off your walls and ceiling for surround sound and 3D audio formats like Dolby Atmos and DTS:X. Around back, you’ll find solid connectivity, including HDMI eARC/ARC for seamless …

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How Genes Have Harnessed Physics to Grow Living Things

How Genes Have Harnessed Physics to Grow Living Things

The original version of this story appeared in Quanta Magazine. Sip a glass of wine, and you will notice liquid continuously weeping down the wetted side of the glass. In 1855, James Thomson, brother of Lord Kelvin, explained in the Philosophical Magazine that these wine “tears” or “legs” result from the difference in surface tension between alcohol and water. “This …

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NordVPN Is Still a Pretty Dang Good VPN

NordVPN Is Still a Pretty Dang Good VPN

One of my favorite new additions isn’t on the desktop app, though. NordVPN recently introduced scam call protection on Android, with an iOS version planned for the future. I’ve been using it for months, and it has easily flagged more than a hundred spam calls to my phone. It works a treat, even if it’s not one of NordVPN’s big …

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Use Google Gemini and ChatGPT to Organize Your Life With Scheduled Actions

Use Google Gemini and ChatGPT to Organize Your Life With Scheduled Actions

The developers of the big generative AI chatbots are continuing to push out new features at a rapid rate, as they bid to make sure their bot is the one you turn to whenever you need some assistance from artificial intelligence. One of the latest updates to Google Gemini gives you the ability to set up scheduled actions. These are …

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Best Gifts for Gym Lovers Who’d Rather Be Lifting Right Now

Best Gifts for Gym Lovers Who’d Rather Be Lifting Right Now

Body scales—like dietary supplements—should be a request, not a surprise; I would only gift one if they’ve explicitly said they want one. Nevertheless, this is for the gym rat who tracks macros in their sleep. If they’re logging every rep, meal, and REM cycle, they’ll love the Runstar FG2015 Smart Scale. Unlike a standard foot-only scale, this one has a …

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I Ditched Alexa and Upgraded My Smart Home

I Ditched Alexa and Upgraded My Smart Home

Until recently, my smart home setup was in chaos. After years of testing, buying, and upgrading to the latest smart home gadgets in an attempt to make my life easier, it became a bloated mess that was actually making it more complicated. My Alexa, Google Home, and Apple Home apps were awash with dead devices, duplicates, and automations that simply …

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Jury says Apple owes Masimo $634M for patent infringement | TechCrunch

Jury says Apple owes Masimo 4M for patent infringement | TechCrunch

A federal jury in California ruled Friday that Apple must pay medical device maker Masimo $634 million for infringing a patent on blood oxygen monitoring technology. Reuters reports that the jury found that the Apple Watch’s workout mode and heart rate notification features violated Masimo’s patent. “This is a significant win in our ongoing efforts to protect our innovations and …

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Disney and YouTube TV reach deal to end blackout | TechCrunch

Disney and YouTube TV reach deal to end blackout | TechCrunch

After a two-week blackout, YouTube TV and Disney announced Friday that they have reached a deal. In addition to bringing Disney networks like ABC, ESPN, and FX back to YouTube’s streaming TV service, the deal will also see ESPN make its new direct-to-consumer service available on YouTube TV at no additional price. YouTube will also be able to sell select …

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