Tag Archives: Technology & Electronics

Apple may release its first ‘low-cost’ Mac laptop in early 2026

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It seems Apple is preparing to debut a low-cost Mac laptop in the first half of 2026. According to Bloomberg, such a system is in early production at the company’s overseas suppliers and Apple is testing the devices internally.

Apple’s aim with this laptop, per the report, is to draw people away from the likes of Chromebooks and cheap Windows PCs and into its own ecosystem. The company is said to be making the system with casual users, students and businesses in mind — the kinds of folks who use laptops for tasks like web browsing, light media editing and working on documents. Apple is also reportedly planning to aim the system at potential iPad buyers who’d still rather have a traditional laptop.

The laptop is said to have a new design with a “lower-end LCD display” and it’s expected to run on an A-series iPhone processor that’s said to deliver better performance than the M1. It’s also likely to have a smaller display than the 13.6-inch MacBook Air.

Performance is important, but the price point will be crucial if Apple wants to really compete with the proliferation of Chromebooks and entry-level Windows devices. The company is said to be ready to sell this Mac for “well under $1,000.” Chromebooks and Windows laptops often sell for just a few hundred bucks. Higher-end Chromebooks cost around $600, so Apple would likely have to sell this laptop for $700 or less for it to make a real splash.

Apple has traditionally focused on making premium devices, but would be a smart time for the company to enter the lower end of the market. Microsoft is ending support for Windows 10, including on devices that don’t support Windows 11 and owners of such systems (including businesses) may need to buy new laptops in the near future to have the latest security updates.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/laptops/apple-may-release-its-first-low-cost-mac-laptop-in-early-2026-174143869.html?src=rss

The best VR headsets for 2026

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Stepping into VR is about more than strapping on a headset and loading a game. The best VR headsets today are gateways to fully realized experiences, whether that’s gaming, fitness, creative work or simply spending time inside a richly rendered virtual world. As the hardware has improved, so has the sense of presence, with sharper displays, wider fields of view and tracking systems that make movement feel more natural and responsive. The result is VR that feels less like a novelty and more like a platform you can actually spend time in.

That said, not every headset is built for the same function. Some prioritize ease of use and standalone play, while others demand a powerful PC in exchange for higher fidelity. Compatibility also matters more than ever, especially as VR begins to overlap with mixed reality and early smart glasses experiments. Whether you want a simple way to explore virtual spaces or a high-end rig that pushes immersion as far as possible, this guide breaks down the best VR headsets you can buy in 2026 and explains who each one is really for.

I tend to judge candidates for the best VR headset on a few basic criteria: Ergonomics, immersion and controls. It's not that hard to shove a mobile display into a plastic headset and strap some cheap elastic headbands onto it. But it takes real design skill to craft something that's well balanced, includes a supportive headstrap, and doesn't feel uncomfortable after 30 minutes.

My test for ergonomics is fairly simple: How long can I wear a headset until I start to feel discomfort? For the most ergonomic devices, like the Quest 3, that could easily be an hour or two. But heavier PC hardware often feels cumbersome after just 15 minutes — you won’t find those kinds of devices in our list of the best VR headsets.

Immersion, meanwhile, comes from having high resolution screens with fast refresh rates, like a 120Hz refresh rate, helping users feel fully present inside a virtual world. Field of view is also a major element, as it describes how well VR screens can cover what you see. A narrow FOV makes it feel like you're peering through a pair of binoculars, which limits your sense of “presence.” The best VR headsets aim for a wider field of view, helping virtual environments feel more natural and fully surround you.

A wide field of view, on the other hand, can make it seem like you’re actually flying over the globe in Google Earth. We look at a few popular video games, like Superhot, Beat Saber and Pistol Whip, on every headset to judge how immersed we feel and how enjoyable the gaming experience is overall.

The best controllers fit naturally in your hands and offer accurate tracking. The industry has basically adopted the design of Meta’s excellent touch controllers, but we're also seeing intriguing leaps forward like Valve's finger tracking gamepads. We judge controllers based on how easy they are to hold, how they hold up to sweaty gameplay sessions and how easily headsets can track their position in space.

However, it’s important to look at a virtual reality headset’s specs as a whole, including compatibility with your existing hardware and the kind of experiences you plan to use it for. Depending on what you’re looking for in yourVR headset, you’ll want to consider factors like your PC’s CPU and graphics card if you plan to use the headset to play the best VR games. You might not need a super powerful PC, but you should check the minimum requirements for the headset you’re looking to purchase. If you’re not looking to invest in a VR headset solely for gaming, features like head tracking allow you to explore your environment just by simply moving your head in the simulator. This often results in a more immersive and realistic experience.

The Vive Focus Vision is a sleek premium standalone VR headset that can also deliver solid PC VR. But it’s also running aging hardware, it’s riddled with software issues and it’s expensive compared to the Meta Quest 3.

As great as the Meta Quest 3 is, the Quest 2 is still a very good entry-level VR headset, and it’s worth considering if it’s on sale below its current $250 list price. The Meta Quest Pro, on the the hand, is an expensive boondoggle best ignored.

Outside of Meta’s hardware, the HTC Vive Pro 2 remains a fantastic PC headset, but it’s far more expensive than the Valve Index, which is more comfortable and offers better audio.

At the most basic level, a VR headset is simply a high quality screen that you’re holding up to your face. For a wired headset, the actual work of rendering a game is done on either a PC or game console. For completely wireless devices, like the Meta Quest 3, that work is handled right on the headset. They rely on either external sensors, or sensors built into the headsets, to map your physical space. While you can use a traditional gamepad or keyboard and mouse in VR, they typically use motion tracking controllers to immerse you in their 3D environments.

What VR headset is best for full body tracking?

While we’re still waiting for a truly great haptic VR bodysuit to arrive, you can still achieve accurate body tracking with most Steam VR-compatible PC headsets. The Valve Index and HTC Vive Pro 2 both rely on room-tracking sensors that can map your body more effectively than the built-in sensors on competitors. You can also add HTC Vive Trackers to wrist and leg straps, as well as belts, for even better coverage. The Meta Quest 3 doesn’t have any easy body tracking solutions, but you can add Vive trackers when it’s plugged into your PC to mimic a Steam VR headset.

Only a few experiences, like VRChat, take advantage of full body tracking at the moment. Currently there aren’t any body tracking solutions for the PlayStation VR and VR2, but we’re intrigued by the company’s Mocopi body trackers, which were really announced in Japan.

Oculus is the previous name for Meta’s VR hardware. Currently, Meta only supports the Quest 3, Quest 3S and Quest Pro, all of which are wireless headsets. As we explain above, PC VR headsets can generally achieve better quality virtual reality, since they rely on more powerful graphics hardware.

Currently, Microsoft’s Xbox consoles don’t support any VR headsets.

November 2025: Updated to include the Apple Vision Pro M5.

April 2025: Updated to include review scores for our top picks, where applicable.

November 2024: Added the HTC Vive Focus Vision to the "others we tested" section.

October 2024: Updated our "best cheap VR headset" top pick to be the Meta Quest 3S.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ar-vr/best-vr-headsets-140012529.html?src=rss

Apple’s Mac mini M4 drops to $479 for Black Friday

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While there are lots of great Black Friday sales on cheaper devices, it's the big ticket items that really make a world of difference. Take Apple's 2024 Mac mini M4, which has dropped to $479 from $599 as part of early Black Friday deals. The 20 percent discount brings Apple's mini desktop computer with 16GB of RAM and 256GB of SSD to only $10 more than its all-time low.

We gave the Mac mini M4 a 90 in our review, in part, because it packs an incredible amount of power into such a small design. It also has front facing USB-C and headphone ports, a first for the Mac mini lineup. Plus, it starts with 16GB of RAM, an upgrade from its predecessors. 

However, if you want more memory or storage, the other Mac Mini M4 models are also on sale. You can get 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD for $719, down from $799. Then there's the option for 24GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD at $889, down from $999. Plus, if you want to bundle in three years of AppleCare+, each model ends up being about $100 cheaper than normal.

If you're looking to build a desktop setup from scratch, there's a small but notable discount on Apple's Magic Trackpad as well. It's down to $120, which is only seven percent off its usual price but it's the cheapest we've seen it.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/apples-mac-mini-m4-drops-to-479-for-black-friday-150749921.html?src=rss

Meta finally made a proper WhatsApp app for Apple Watch

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Meta has unveiled an overhaul for the WhatsApp experience on Apple Watch. The first official such app for the wearable is rolling out today and it includes support for what the company calls "many requested features." You'll now be able to see everything your friends are saying via your Apple Watch as longer WhatsApp messages won't be truncated. You'll have the option to respond to messages with quick emoji reactions.

The Apple Watch app will enable you to record and send voice messages from your wrist. In addition, you'll be able to see call notifications with details on who's trying to get in touch with you without having to look at your iPhone. Other features include the ability to see "clear images and stickers" on the Apple Watch app, as well as more of your chat history. Of course, there's still end-to-end encryption for your messages and calls.

The new app is a major upgrade over only being able to reply to WhatsApp messages via mirrored iPhone notifications on Apple Watch.  To use it, you'll need an Apple Watch Series 4 or newer that's running at least watchOS 10.

It's a little wild that it has taken Meta so long to create a proper Apple Watch app. Even BlackBerry made a BBM app for the wearable, and that was a decade ago. But perhaps it shouldn’t be too surprising given how long we had to wait for an Instagram iPad app.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/meta-finally-made-a-proper-whatsapp-app-for-apple-watch-150000781.html?src=rss

Alexa+ comes to the Amazon Music app

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Amazon has launched its new and improved AI assistant in the Amazon Music app. From today, anyone signed up to Alexa+ Early Access with the latest version of the app downloaded to their iOS or Android device can start using Amazon’s reimagined virtual assistant for music discovery and organizing their libraries.

To access the chatbot, you tap the “A” button in the lower right corner of the screen when Amazon Music is open. You can then test its knowledge by asking it a range of questions, from something as basic as finding a recently released song by a particular artist, to more complex searches based on a single lyric or the name of the TV show the song you’re trying to find is featured in.

Alexa+ is designed for more conversational interactions, so you can use natural language prompts and then ask follow-up questions as you would if you were talking to a friend, to narrow down its search results. Amazon says you can search for specific eras, moods and instruments, as well as telling Alexa what you don’t want it to serve up.

Alexa+ can also be used for playlist creation, allowing you to request something as specific as a high-energy running playlist with songs from a particular decade that starts with a song from a certain artist. You can also be more vague, asking for something that fits your current mood or the time of day.

Alexa+ in Amazon Music is being marketed not only as an AI tastemaker and personal DJ, but also a music expert, so you can ask it things like the inspiration for a song’s lyrics, where an album charted and questions about upcoming live performances.

Alexa+ has been gradually rolling out in Amazon’s various smart devices since the beginning of the year, with mixed results. You’ll be using it in everything from new Ring devices, to the latest Kindles and Vega, Amazon’s new smart TV operating system. It’s also built into the new Echo Studio speaker, and Engadget’s Billy Steele was impressed by the AI assistant’s more human-like conversation skills, even if it’s still prone to basic errors right now, such as getting the day of the week wrong in a response.

Alexa+ is currently available in Early Access for all tiers of Amazon Music. Eventually it’ll be free to all Prime members, and available to non-Prime members for $20 per month (more than an Amazon Prime subscription on its own).

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/entertainment/music/alexa-comes-to-the-amazon-music-app-143234227.html?src=rss

Motorola introduces its latest takes on the Moto G and Moto G Play phones

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Motorola has been consistently offering solid budget smartphone offerings, and the company back with new refreshes to its Moto G and Moto G Play for 2026. The latest versions offer some incremental tech upgrades and a couple lovely new color options for the aesthetic upgrades. 

These smartphones both sport 6.7-inch displays with 120Hz and peak brightness of 1,000 nits. The Moto G boasts a 50MP camera as well as a 32MP front camera for selfies, while the Moto G Play has 32MP for its main camera and 8MP for the front camera. Both devices' photography is backed by quad pixel technology to provide detailed image capture in a variety of lighting conditions. These two phones have a 5,200mAh battery and adds some quick-charging options: 30W for the Moto G and 18W for the Moto G Play. On the durability front, the Moto G is still using Gorilla Glass 3 and boasts an IP52 water resistance rating, as the 2025 model did, and the same will also be available in the Moto G Play model.

Both phones are getting some Pantone color options in leather-inspired finishes. The Moto G will have a gray color called Slipstream or the purple of Cattleya Orchid, while the Moto G Play comes in Pantone Tapestry blue.

Moto G will continue to retail starting at $200 and will be available directly from Motorola starting on December 11, followed by Amazon and Best Buy availability on January 15. The Moto G Play will be available online from Motorola, Best Buy and Amazon on November 13 for $170; the model will arrive in stores some time in the coming months.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/mobile/smartphones/motorola-introduces-its-latest-takes-on-the-moto-g-and-moto-g-play-phones-140000620.html?src=rss

Logitech is going after keyboard snobs with the hot-swappable Alto Keys K98M

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Logitech is hoping to attract all the keebheads out there with its latest Alto Keys K98M. While this keyboard has been available in Asian markets for a while, Logitech finally brought its customizable work keyboard to the US. It may appeal to a specific demographic, but it's a welcome return to hot-swappable offerings from Logitech. The Alto Keys K98M is now available in US markets through its website for $119.

According to Logitech, the Alto Keys K98M comes with hot-swappable Logi Marble linear switches. While Logitech sells several mechanical keyboards, the last notable one with a hot-swappable board was the Logitech G Pro X from 2019. Now, Logitech wants to dive back into the hardcore side of the keyboard world with something that's more tailored for the workspace. Instead of obnoxious RGB lighting, the Alto Keys K98M features a translucent frame that's paired with white backlighting. For long days, the keyboard has a UniCushion design, where the full frame gasket mount absorbs typing vibrations for an improved feel and sound.

For customizability beyond switches, Logitech included three action keys that can be programmed for whatever you need. The first three F keys also work as Easy-Switch buttons that let you cycle between up to three devices. The Alto Keys K98M works wirelessly through Bluetooth and is compatible with Windows, macOS, ChromeOS and iPadOS. Logitech said that the keyboard will get up to a year of wireless use if you keep the backlighting off. When the Alto Keys K98M's battery runs low, you can continue using it as you recharge it through the USB-C port.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/computing/accessories/logitech-is-going-after-keyboard-snobs-with-the-hot-swappable-alto-keys-k98m-031051209.html?src=rss

Apple’s App Store website is actually an app store website now

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For those of us living in the Apple ecosystem, the App Store is second nature. It's a core part of the Apple experience and the go-to spot for any applications you might want for your device. So I was fairly shocked to learn that up until today, the link apps.apple.com would send you to a page with information about the App Store, but not actually take you to said digital storefront. 

That's right, it took until the year 2025 for Apple to create a browser version of the App Store. 

Maybe it never seemed necessary since the App Store is pre-loaded on any Apple device. I don't foresee many edge cases where I'd want to look in a browser rather than actually use the App Store on one of my machines, although I'm sure now that I've said so, I'll wind up doing exactly that within a week. But still, the first App Store debuted 17 years ago. Which, particularly in tech years, is a really, really long time.

In any case, the browser App Store lets you pick your hardware platform from a dropdown on the far left, so you can peruse software for different platforms wherever you're on the web. There's also a search field as well as a list of app categories that you can sift through. All the stuff you'd expect from the actual App Store, just in a browser. Entries for specific applications will prompt you to open the listing in the device’s App Store where the button would normally let you buy the software. Which leaves me once again surprised this took so long to create and also questioning who will actually use it.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/apps/apples-app-store-website-is-actually-an-app-store-website-now-233841960.html?src=rss

iOS, iPadOS and macOS now let you frost Apple’s Liquid Glass

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As expected, iOS 26.1 is out now for all Apple smartphone users today, and it includes what is sure to be a popular feature from the beta. Once installed, this update lets people opt to give the Liquid Glass look a frostier, more opaque appearance. You can find the option to tint the screen behind notifications and tab bars within the Settings menu. It's under Display & Brightness, then the Liquid Glass section. The feature is also present in iPadOS 26.1 and macOS 26.1, both of which also dropped today.

Ever since Apple unveiled the Liquid Glass design it had planned for the next versions of iOS, the aesthetic has been divisive. (We at Engadget have been pretty well split down the middle about it from the start.) The tinting of the newest operating systems joins a growing roster of accessibility and visibility options to customize how Liquid Glass looks, from the full-on transparent mode to a higher-contrast and higher-opacity approach. 

One other standout from the 26.1 OS releases is for the iPad users. Those of you who wanted the return of Slide Over for multitasking can breathe a sigh of relief: after appearing in the beta last month, the feature is back. Many iPad owners appreciated how Slide Over let them control screen real estate without constant rearranging of windows. The feature has been reimagined for the tablet's current capabilities, essentially letting you pin a window to the top of your screen and hide it when you want. This window can also be resized and given your aspect ratio of choice.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/big-tech/ios-ipados-and-macos-now-let-you-frost-apples-liquid-glass-225513425.html?src=rss

Black Friday VPN deals are still live: Get 75 percent off Proton VPN two-year plans, plus deals on NordVPN, ExpressVPN and more

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A VPN subscription can make for a good holiday gift. Everyone could do with having a VPN to help protect their online activity from prying eyes (and, perhaps, access more things to watch from their favorite streaming services). It's something useful that a gift recipient may have never realized they needed. Of course, you may be looking for a great deal on a VPN yourself, and the Black Friday discount for Proton VPN is nothing to sniff at. You can get two years of access to the VPN Plus tier of the service for $59.76, which works out to $2.49 per month.

That's a discount of 75 percent compared with the regular price of $10 per month. Overall, you'd save $180.

Proton VPN is our pick for the best VPN overall because it checks all of the boxes it needs to. There is a free plan with unlimited data, but with that you can only connect to servers in a few countries and the connection might not be fast enough for you to watch anything from your preferred streaming service's library in that locale. The VPN Plus tier unlocks a lot more options, such as the ability to connect to 15,000 servers across more than 120 countries and simultaneous protection for up to 15 devices.

The apps are well-designed — Proton has clients for Windows, Mac, iOS and Android — and it's easy to find a feature or setting you're looking for. In our testing, Proton VPN Plus had a relatively small impact on browsing speeds. Our download speeds dropped by 12 percent and uploads by 4 percent, while the global average ping remained below 300 ms (which is especially impressive if you're connecting to a server on the other side of the planet).

Perhaps, most importantly, though, it's Proton's commitment to privacy that helps make its VPN an easy recommendation. There's a no-logs policy, meaning it does not log user activity or any identifiable characteristics of devices that connect to the VPN. Proton's servers use full-disk encryption to bolster privacy as well.

Proton VPN is not the only service to offer a Black Friday VPN deal this year, of course. There are plenty of others available on services we like. Here are the best of the bunch if you're looking for an alternative to Proton VPN.

  • Surfshark One (24 months + 3 free months) for $59.13 (88 percent off): A VPN is great, but it's not enough to protect your data all on its own. Surfshark One adds several apps that boost your security beyond just VPN service, including Surfshark Antivirus (scans devices and downloads for malware) and Surfshark Alert (alerts you whenever your sensitive information shows up in a data breach), plus Surfshark Search and Alternative ID from the tier below. This extra-low deal gives you 88 percent off all those features.

  • NordVPN Plus (24 months + 3 free months) for $105.03 (74 percent off): NordVPN has taken 74 percent off its Plus subscription for Black Friday. For only a little more, you get a powerful ad and tracker blocker that can also catch malware downloads, plus access to the NordPass password manager. A Plus plan also adds a data breach scanner that checks the dark web for your sensitive information.

  • CyberGhost (24 months + 4 free months) for $56.94 (84 percent off): CyberGhost has some of the best automation you'll see on any VPN. With its Smart Rules system, you can determine how its apps respond to different types of Wi-Fi networks, with exceptions for specific networks you know by name. Typically, you can set it to auto-connect, disconnect or send you a message asking what to do. CyberGhost's other best feature is its streaming servers — I've found both better video quality and more consistent unblocking when I use them on streaming sites.

  • Private Internet Access (36 months + 4 free months) for $79.20 (83 percent off): Private Internet Access (PIA) is giving out the best available price right now on a VPN I'd recommend using. With this deal, you can get 40 months of PIA for just under $2 per month — an 83 percent discount on its monthly price. Despite being so cheap, PIA has plenty of features, coming with its own DNS servers, a built-in ad blocker and automation powers to rival CyberGhost. However, internet speeds can fluctuate while you're connected.

  • ExpressVPN Basic (15 months) for $74.85 (61 percent off): ExpressVPN may be the most user-friendly VPN for sale right now, with fast download speeds (only 7 percent losses in our last test), quick connections and apps designed to stay out of your way. It's not the most feature-rich, but it excels at any bread-and-butter VPN task, staying leak-free and unblocking Netflix everywhere. You also get access to server locations in 105 countries.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/deals/black-friday-vpn-deals-are-still-live-get-75-percent-off-proton-vpn-two-year-plans-plus-deals-on-nordvpn-expressvpn-and-more-153737335.html?src=rss