TechRadar News

• Brad Smith hits back at Trump administration's decision to target Microsoft
• Five out of six tech/science medal holders were born outside of the US
• "We should all be worried," Smith says

Microsoft President Brad Smith has warned that new restrictions under the Trump administration could severely damage America's technology industry by limiting its access to skilled migrants.

Speaking with Politico, Smith criticized the administration's decision to restrict Microsoft's ability to sponsor skilled foreign employees for permanent US residency under the green card scheme.

By discouraging workers from moving to America, Smith worries that they could be incentivized to move to other countries, both losing America access to skilled professionals while simultaneously boosting other countries' access.

Smith hits back at Trump administration to limit green card

Microsoft's President's comments come in a response to US Vice President JD Vance's October 8 2026 memo declaring that Microsoft and seven other companies would be suspended from sponsoring foreign workers for permanent residency.

"Our message to Microsoft is, you’re a great American company, but you’ve got to hire great American workers," Vance said (via The Guardian). "You cannot lay off American workers and then replace them with foreign indentured servants."

Adobe, Cognizant, Infosys, Capgemini, Tata, Wipro and HCL are also impacted by the changes.

"I think we should all be worried about sending – intentionally or inadvertently or otherwise – signals that send the most talented next wave of AI [or] SI software engineers to other countries, rather than the United States," Smith said.

Smith also criticized the Trump administration for failing to get the numbers right about its green card applications, calling Vance's comments "completely off base" and slating the government because "the green card backlog is so long."

"We should consider the fact that when the president honored six Americans with these technology and science medals, five of the six had come to the United States as immigrants," he added.

The next steps continue to play out, but legal challenges and international worker uncertainty could both be on the cards.

• AI giants are investing billions to train engineers in a bid to help their customers
• US FDE engineer jobs rose 6x year-over-year, two years in a row
• Consultancies are advertising the most FDE jobs, it seems

US tech giants are now spending billions of dollars deploying specialist engineers to help their customers realize the benefits of AI, with AWS, Anthropic, OpenAI and Google all recently announcing expansions to their forward-deployed engineer (FDE) programs.

We've already surpassed the point that model capabilities were the limit – now, companies are struggling with legacy infrastructure and identifying real-world use cases, so AI developers are getting involved to help them out.

As part of the ongoing shift in how AI is being sold, those developers are no longer just selling their AI to customers – they're also taking responsibility over its deployment.

FDEs are the future of enterprise AI adoption

Already, we've seen OpenAI backing its FDE business with a massive $4 billion investment and AWS footing a $1 billion bill for FDEs, while Anthropic shared plans to train 10,000 specialist engineers by the end of 2027.

Lightcast research even highlights the extensive growth in FDE job roles, with around 200 FDE job ads shared in the US in 2023 and a similar number in 2024. By 2025, this had increased 6x to around 1,200 advertised positions, yet in the first nine months of 2026 the report found 7,300 roles, another 6x increase year-over-year.

"As businesses move from developing AI technology to applying it, they need professionals who can bridge the gap between technical products and operational problems," the report explains.

Interestingly, three of the four top companies advertising roles were consultancies (Deloitte, Accenture and KPMG), with just one of them being a tech firm (Google). Consultancies are positioning themselves as a key part of the chain, and Anthropic's recent announcement to support engineer roles within third-party consultancies aligns with this emerging trend.

Lightcast Head of Global Research Elena Magrini explained in an interview with CNBC that a sharp growth in wages also implies that these companies are fighting over a limited pool of talent.

Looking ahead, the most successful AI companies may no longer be the ones with the most advanced models – rather, they could be the ones using human engineers in the best way to gain more customers.

The Corsair Vengeance line of RAM remains one of the best desktop memory kits we've ever tested. Amid sky-high RAM prices, we've been tracking discounts on the range built for both performance and eye-catching aesthetics.

If you're building or upgrading a modern Intel or AMD rig with a generous pool of fast, reliable memory, Corsair's Vengeance RGB 32GB DDR5-6000 CL36 kit has dropped to $510 (was $546) at Best Buy. In contrast, both Newegg and Corsair have the Intel-only model at this price.

32GB is a comfortable amount of headroom for gaming, multitasking, and most content creation work, and the CL36 timings at 6000MT/s strike a reasonable balance between speed and price for DDR5.

Vengence 32GB DDR5-6000 RAM kit: was $545.99 now $509.99
Two 16GB DDR5 modules running at up to 6000MT/s with CL36-44-44-96 timings and AMD Expo and Intel XMP 3.0 support for one-click overclocking. Each module features ten individually addressable RGB LEDs across a panoramic light bar, controllable through Corsair's iCUE software, along with onboard voltage regulation for more stable overclocking.View Deal

Why we recommend it

Vengeance RGB is one of Corsair's most established DDR5 lines, and this kit hits a sensible middle ground: fast enough to make a real difference in gaming and multitasking, priced well below Corsair's flagship overclocked kits, and backed by a limited lifetime warranty.

AMD Expo and Intel XMP 3.0 support means getting to the rated 6000MT/s speed is a one-click process in most BIOS menus rather than manual tuning, and the onboard voltage regulation Corsair includes is aimed at making that overclock more stable out of the box.

At 45mm, the heat spreaders should clear most tower air coolers without issues, which isn't always guaranteed with RGB memory.

Should you buy it?

✅ Buy the Corsair Vengeance RGB 32GB kit if...

You're building or upgrading an AMD or Intel DDR5 rig and want 32GB as a comfortable baseline.

❌ Skip the Corsair Vengeance RGB 32GB kit if...

You don't want to install iCUE software to control the lighting, or you're chasing the tightest possible latency at this speed.

Price Context & Historical Value

This is the best price I can find on Corsair's CMH32GX5M2E6000Z36 SKU - this is the one that supports both Intel XMP 3.0 and AMD Expo. For comparison, the Intel-only model is also available for $510 from Newegg and direct from Corsair.

What to know before you buy

CL36 timings are respectable but not the tightest available at DDR5-6000; kits with CL30 timings offer lower latency at a similar or sometimes higher price if that matters more to you than budget. As with any high-speed memory kit, it's worth checking your motherboard's QVL list to confirm compatibility before buying, since not every board handles 6000MT/s DDR5 equally well.

There’s a phrase I often used to use when referring to Elon Musk: Don’t bet against Elon.

This stemmed from long before he became a supervillain, and was instead no more than an oddball tech-sector genius primed to become a real-life Tony Stark. It was at the tail-end of this honeymoon, in 2017, that Musk unveiled the Tesla Roadster 2020, a luxury model EV that promised insane specs and performance (0-to-60 mph in 1.9 seconds) and maybe even something we’d only dreamed of: rockets that might let it fly.

Now, for chronology sticklers, Musk did not promise rockets during Tesla's November 2017 event; it was primarily devoted to the Tesla Semi. That tease came months later on his favorite platform, Twitter, where Musk wrote:

“SpaceX option package for new Tesla Roadster will include ~10 small rocket thrusters arranged seamlessly around car. These rocket engines dramatically improve acceleration, top speed, braking & cornering. Maybe they will even allow a Tesla to fly …”

I posted my skepticism with a Tom Hanks GIF of him saying “Really?”

@LanceUlanoff @elonmusk Yes, really. https://t.co/SMt0yydSA6October 16, 2026

This morning, my X feed has been filled with people replying to that old post with “Yes, really” and wild videos of the fully redesigned Tesla Roadster flying with the aid of what appears to be 10 thrusters (SpaceX rocket engines).

In the videos shared from Musk’s launch event, the Roadster inexplicably rides up a vertical incline and then flies off it, flips over, and lands on its wheels.

Yes, a car can fly. We may not have affordable healthcare or housing, world peace, safe social media, or know if AI will save us or kill us, but we have a car that can fly.

Do a kickflip! https://t.co/DJ1Bq1yu8mOctober 16, 2026

I’m not discounting the impressive engineering or sheer audacity of the flying Tesla Roadster, but it’s been a long time since Musk crashed his own launch event with a “one-more-thing” Roadster update, and I feel different about, well, just about everything.

Back then, it had been five years since I had interviewed Musk and gotten him to playfully whistle Fly Me to the Moon. The busy entrepreneur’s personality had been shifting slowly to a more petulant and unpredictable place. I’d recently sat through a Tesla Model 3 launch where he abruptly ended a press conference without taking any real questions from journalists, and at the Semi event, he showed up incredibly late, though he did deliver the goods in the end.

I see things differently now

Now, when I look at this more geometric and rocket-filled Tesla Roadster (it looks nothing like the one I saw in 2017), it’s through the prism of everything else Musk has done in the last five or so years.

He purchased Twitter, smothered the brand, and rebooted it as the darker and often angrier X. To be fair, some now report that X has started to rekindle some of its older, kinder, and more inclusive community (I’ve experienced a bit of this myself), but it’s still a far cry from the place Musk so enjoyed when he touted all his latest Tesla and SpaceX advancements back in 2017.

Musk became not just the face of government cost-cutting; he became President Donald Trump’s weapon of choice, with the Musk-led Doge taking an axe to life-saving programs around the world.

It’s hard to reconcile the excitement of a flying car with the man who now guides it.

Or is it?

(Image credit: Getty Images)

The fact is that no one needs this car, and anyone who understands even the tiniest bit of physics (and rocket technology) knows that the power and effort to lift and fly a one-ton car is extraordinary.

Its thrusters have nothing to do with the EV motors or batteries — they’re cold-gas thrusters, which use massively compressed gas stored in a 200-liter tank and a 400-liter tank. Musk was clear that this car is not expected to be road legal, which is good, because I’m frankly terrified of the idea of something crashing into it and rupturing those tanks.

But even if he delivers multiple of these cars for the invite-only crowd it’s aimed at, and it doesn’t turn out to be a one-off (which, let’s face it, is likely), why bother? If it’s so impractical that it can never make it to American roads, or any others, what was the point outside of a fun few seconds to watch?

Musk has his devotees, and I can see them tripping over themselves to applaud the unveiling (finally, after almost a decade) of this promised Tesla Roadster update, but for many others Musk is just another inscrutable tech bro who does what he does for his own reasons with very little, if any, of them having to do with the betterment of humankind.

So, thanks for the tech showcase, Elon. You have anything for what’s really ailing the world?

• Attackers exploited vulnerable devices to install legitimate bandwidth-sharing software and hijack internet connections
• Compromised systems were covertly added to proxy networks, enabling anonymous criminal activity
• Campaign affected at least 143 devices across 34 countries, highlighting patching and access-control failures

When threat actors break into a system, they don’t need to install malware to make use of the compromised endpoint - they can install perfectly legal, normal software, and still walk away with a paycheck they didn’t earn.

A recent proxyjacking campaign spotted by security researchers GreyNoise impacted hundreds of devices in dozens of countries.

Proxyjacking

Proxyjacking is a type of attack in which a device is hijacked and assimilated into a proxy network. Usually, cybercriminals would break into a computer, install malware and create a proxy network of their own, which they can later rent or use themselves. Threat actors are always in need of “clean” and unflagged devices and IP addresses behind which they can hide, making residential proxies - both malicious and legal - highly wanted services.

Some of the biggest malicious residential proxies out there include IPIDEA, NetNut, and Cloudrouter. All of them are now either entirely dismantled, or severely disrupted, but while they were operational, they offered hundreds of thousands (sometimes millions) of IP addresses associated with an internet connection used in a household (hence the name “residential IP address”).

But malicious proxies are difficult to pull off. To assimilate a device into the network, the threat actor needs to deploy malware which, as soon as it’s spotted, will be flagged by antivirus products and quarantined. In the newest attacks, spotted by GreyNoise, someone went for a legitimate app with similar functionality, instead.

The researchers found someone installing Pawns.app, primarily a rewards platform that lets users earn money by completing online surveys and playing games. However, it used to offer a bandwidth-sharing feature that let users earn money by allowing business clients to route their internet traffic through the user’s residential IP address. At the start of the year, the app discontinued the feature, but it seems it still works for older versions.

“As of 2026, Pawns.app does not offer internet bandwidth sharing,” a notification on the app’s website reads. “This feature was discontinued and is not associated with Pawns.app anymore.” But the app’s Terms of use still describe traffic sharing as available in some versions of the application, and its business website still promotes an SDK for bandwidth monetization.

Targeting D-Link

Apparently, someone picked up on this and went to work. According to GreyNoise, they targeted D-Link ShareCenter NAS devices, Ubiquiti UniFi Video NVRs, as well as SAP NetWeaver Visual Composers. These contained different vulnerabilities: CVE-2024-3272 and CVE-2024-3273 for D-Link, CVE-2021-44228 for Ubiquiti, and

CVE-2025-31324 for SAP, which the threat actor leveraged to deploy Pawns.app. GreyNoise also said that the attackers targeted Hikvision and Dahua DVR/NVR devices, but did not say which vulnerabilities they leveraged against these devices.

At the moment of publication, the researchers identified at least 143 compromised devices worldwide, located in 34 different countries. While they all had legitimate software installed, it was deployed without their knowledge or consent, making the entire ordeal illegal.

“While “earn on your internet” is voluntary, proxyjacking is a crime. Proxyjacking is when an MCA (malicious cyber actor) forces victim devices into proxy networks in order to monetize their bandwidth,” GreyNoise warned.

If you’re worried someone might have done something similar to a device under your control, GreyNoise created a free service that lets you check if your IP interacted with its Global Observation Grid. The researchers said it can serve as a potential indicator of proxyjacking.

Apart from scanning IP addresses, businesses should educate employees about the risks associated with installing free apps, as well as about the importance of keeping devices patched. They should also detect residential proxy IP addresses in authentication logs, as well as deviations in user authentication behavior and characteristics beyond geolocation, such as mismatches in device identifiers, or session identifiers.

Via BleepingComputer

• Phishing campaigns are abusing calendar invites and meeting requests to steal Microsoft 365 credentials
• Attackers hide malicious links in .ics files, fake meeting details, QR codes, and invite pages
• Researchers observed hundreds of thousands of phishing emails targeting over 40,000 organizations

If you get a calendar invite in your inbox be wary - it might be a carefully created phishing lure, designed to have you hand over Microsoft 365 or other login credentials.

Security firm Check Point Research (CPR) recently sounded the alarm for “several large-scale phishing campaigns,” abusing the fact that businesspeople routinely share calendar invites, and all designed to harvest their victim’s credentials.

Different approach, same result

CPR says it identified two separate approaches. In some cases, the threat actors would share calendar invites as .ics attachments. These pass email filters (since the file type itself is harmless) and land directly into people’s inboxes. In other cases, the invites would come as links (which end up redirecting the victim away from their calendar and right into a trap).

The former is arguably more dangerous: the attachment is disguised as a meeting request or a payment notification, and when the recipient opens or accepts the invitation, it ends up in their calendar. Sometimes, depending on each user’s settings, the calendar entry may be processed automatically, too. In both cases, the fraudulent content now looks like an ordinary work appointment or service notification.

So far, none of these things are malicious, or dangerous, on their own. There is no vulnerability exploited, or malware deployed, here. However, the event description, location field, or embedded QR code, may direct the victim to a fake Microsoft 365 sign-in page, or a fraudulent payment portal. The victim, not realizing the landing pages were spoofed, may end up sharing their login credentials or payment information with the attackers.

The latter approach is easier to set up, but arguably harder to pull off. A link placed directly in the email, even if it looks benign on the surface, might get flagged by email security services and filtered out into spam. If it passes, though, victims will have a rather difficult time spotting the ruse.

In one of the examples shared by CPR, a victim received a fake Microsoft Teams meeting invite, and simply hovering over the “join” link revealed its real destination - a credential-harvesting page at a third-party website.

Large campaigns

The campaigns are quite large, CPR stressed, and growing. Hundreds of thousands of these emails get sent every month, from countless compromised email addresses:

“Check Point Email researchers are tracking these campaigns and have seen a significant surge starting September 25, 2026,” the report reads.

“A new detection layer specifically designed to identify this type of attack has flagged more than 302,386 unique phishing emails among our customers’ emails, sent to more than 40,000 organizations.”

The campaigns average more than 8,300 emails per active day, CPR said, adding that the messages came from more than 33,890 different sender domains and more than 247,270 unique sender addresses.

“Activity is not fading, it is accelerating. Daily volume grew from a few thousand emails a month in April to more than 118,000 in September, and to more than 740,000 in just the first two weeks of October. The busiest single day so far was October 8, with almost 200,000 emails,” the researchers concluded.

Phishing is one of the oldest and most used attack vectors out there, and for good reason. Besides being omnipresent, it is the cheapest and most effective way to compromise a target network.

That being said, defending against it usually revolves around common sense. Employees should be made aware that unsolicited emails carry real risk of cyberattacks, and that any email or instant message asking the recipient to urgently download a file, or log into a service, is most likely an attempted attack.

Private Internet Access (PIA) has released the v3.8.0 update for its eponymous VPN, which the company says could boost Windows connection speeds by more than 200 per cent.

The update makes WireGuard the default protocol on all platforms, replacing OpenVPN, and updates Windows clients to use the WireGuard-NT 1.1 kernel driver.

In the patch notes, PIA says this driver can boost ‘WireGuard speeds by more than 3x on higher-bandwidth systems’.

Compared to OpenVPN, WireGuard is a more modern and less CPU-intensive protocol, making it a great all-purpose VPN for multiple device types. It's also faster than OpenVPN on average

Though PIA previously offered WireGuard as an optional protocol, it used OpenVPN as standard. Making WireGuard the default gives users quicker access to a faster connection in most circumstances.

Many everyday users use their VPN of choice for video streaming or moving files securely, so connection speed can be the difference between choosing one VPN over another.

OpenVPN remains available as an optional protocol, which will be welcome news for businesses and large networks that rely on its well-developed infrastructure.

For Windows users, the update adds the OpenVPN DCO kernel driver, which can boost connection bandwidth by up to 100 per cent depending on your system and connection specs.

As mentioned, OpenVPN is typically slower than WireGuard, so anything that boosts connection strength or speed is a welcome addition.

Improving more than speeds

WireGuard is now PIA's default protocol on all platforms, good news for less powerful devices like smartphones (Image credit: Future)

The update also adds the AmneziaWG protocol to Linux and macOS, making it possible to obfuscate VPN use.

While most consumer VPNs disguise your web traffic, obfuscation means disguising the fact that you’re using a VPN. This is useful for getting around VPN blockers in regions or environments that restrict VPN use.

The addition of AmneziaWG means Linux and macOS users can hide their VPN use if necessary while retaining the benefits of WireGuard, namely fast connection speeds and light resource usage.

Users can activate the Amnezia protocol by heading to the Protocol page, selecting WireGuard, and switching on Obfuscation.

Finally, the update patches a macOS bug that left the app hanging if split tunnelling system extension setup was left incomplete in the system settings.

PIA hasn’t always been the best for regular updates and expansions, but recently the Colorado-based firm has issued a string of useful updates, from expanding its server network to adding an F-Droid app for de-Googled Android users.

Most recently, PIA added 10 new locations to its server network across the Americas, Middle East, Africa, and Australia.

As well as the security and privacy updates we’d expect to see from all VPNs, we’re always on the lookout for feature updates and network improvements when it comes time to put together our lists of the best VPNs on the market.

A better update cadence gives PIA a better chance of holding onto its spot as one of the best cheap VPNs you can buy.

Calling all creatives who want a laptop that will not quit. This 16-inch laptop is designed for photo and video editors who don't necessarily need a full 4K display, but still want an RTX 5060 GPU and a touch-based OLED panel.

It has a laptop touchpad with designer pen input and photographic design input, with a level of precision most laptops only dream of. It has spectacular ports, an incredible refresh rate, and jaw-dropping color accuracy.

In my tests, this proved it's not just a laptop. This is a creative graphics studio that fits in your backpack. If that is the world you live in, then this laptop is purpose-built just for you.

Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Gen 11 Aura Edition: Price and Availability

The Lenovo Pro 9i AE Gen 11 16-inch OLED Touch comes in several build options, and is available from Lenovo US, Lenovo UK, and other territories. Prices start at $2,499.99 / £2,719.99 at the time of review. My review unit came in at just over $3,000.

(Image credit: Collin Probst // Future )Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Gen 11 Aura Edition: Unboxing and First Impressions

All right, I'll say it: Lenovo makes some pretty sharp-looking laptops. Even this laptop, as large as it is, still looks sharp and sleek. The box includes the power cable, power adapter, Yoga Pen, and documentation, along with the laptop itself. Everything was fairly well packaged, too. I wasn't quite sure what to expect with Thunder Gray, but I'm actually a big fan of the color.

Even with how hefty this machine is, it still feels manageable with day-to-day use. Yeah, I won’t want to carry this around one-handed while working off it, but bringing it from a coffee shop to a desk to a meeting and back to a desk, or lugging it around in my quality backpack, all seem very reasonable.

I wouldn't want to commute with it all day, every day, but for the power you can get from this machine, it's pretty spectacular. The OLED panel and 120 Hz motion are spectacular and immediately recognizable.

Another thing that I noticed right away is the keyboard and haptic force trackpad. For creatives, having that kind of quality input makes a huge difference. That's why so many creatives love having their customized keyboards and fancy mice. Input tools matter when you are creating.

(Image credit: Collin Probst // Future )Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Gen 11 Aura Edition: Design and Build Quality

This is all about a pretty sharp-looking laptop. One of its biggest strengths is the impressive OLED panel and Intel Core chips. It also has that crazy-good force pad and Yoga Pen Gen 2, which reminds me a lot of the drawing and design pads that were popular a few years back. People could use a pen on a surface and have it appear on the screen.

It's a little bit interesting in this sense because there is a touchscreen as well. However, after about 2 minutes of learning to match your eyes on the screen to what is in your hand with the pen and drawing on the force pad, it works pretty well. I've seen people who do photo editing or graphic design get used to it pretty quickly, especially those who have used one of those drawing pads before.

As someone who normally draws on my iPad, it's a little odd, but nothing out of the ordinary or too hard to get over. Plus, the precision is pretty good, which might be why Lenovo chose the touchpad over the OLED panel. And probably because they didn't want to risk damaging the OLED panel, if I had to guess.

Thankfully, the trackpad also works as a pretty high-quality trackpad. As someone who uses my laptop's trackpad as much as possible (gestures, multi-finger motions, and more), I always appreciate a quality, enlarged touchpad.

Another thing I really appreciate is the port offering. I'm glad to see that some of these more Pro, power, and tech-savvy laptops are bringing back USB-A and even full-size HDMI.

A lot of what I do in my own space is use USB-C, as any good citizen should. I still go to plenty of places that don't have a USB-C hub or dock, so having that HDMI port is super helpful. Being able to plug into more legacy items with USB-A is also helpful. USB-C has been around for a long time, but I don't know about you; I still run into way too much USB-A day-to-day.

Perhaps it's just my IT and systems background, but I still run into a lot of that day-to-day. As I continue to grow in my creative endeavors, an SD card reader is a benefit I continue to maximize.

One more thing I'll mention is that this machine throttles its heat pretty well. By throttling, I mean it just vents heat, not necessarily throttling speed. I haven't noticed any of that through some of the more intense workloads I put this through, but through benchmarking, video editing, running heavy LLMs, and some pretty intense terminal sessions where I'm utilizing a lot of the internal power to build several agents and workers (along with using Codex, Claude Code, and Notion all at the same time, along with some browser views and computer control), this machine seems to be running just fine. Yes, the fans kick on under heavy loads, but it doesn't give up or slow down.

In my testing, I handled video editing in DaVinci Resolve while running several lines of 4K video. I could jump in and out without excessive loading, processing, or rendering. It feels fast. It feels like something that I would happily give to any video editor.

Yes, it may not be as good as a machine three times the cost, but for the price, portability, and use case, this is a very capable video editing machine. Of course, since it handles video editing, it can also handle some of the larger, several-GB photos I send it.

In my day job, we have several-GB files for giant banners that crash some of our other computers, but this one seems to be operating just fine right now. That's a testament to how powerful that chip is and how efficient this is.

(Image credit: Collin Probst // Future )Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Gen 11 Aura Edition: In use

As mentioned above, I've thrown just about everything I can at my very broad workday. As the years go on, my days can include: heavy AI use, terminal use, app building, video editing, photo editing, content writing, systems engineering, heavy database builds, and so on

Using this as a mobile workstation gives me a sense of security that I won't need to transfer to another device or hand off heavier workloads elsewhere. Sure, there's still something to say about servers and things like that, but for what I can and should do on the device, this doesn't seem to limit what I do on a normal day.

The OLED panel is also gorgeous. That helps. I've had plenty of computers where the machine is powerful, but the screen is mediocre at best, and it just doesn't feel the same as using a brilliant display like this. To use a machine that a lot of people can compare with, this feels a lot like carrying around a MacBook Pro 16-inch or one of the 16-inch Dell laptops. It's big, but not too cumbersome. If you need that power, it's well worth it, and it's obviously better than carrying a desktop or a remote into a desktop.

If you're the kind of person who needs raw power and values the extra screen real estate, then this is absolutely worth getting. Even as somebody who is very partial to the 14-inch form factor, this 16-inch is nothing insane.

Lastly, on some other important factors, I've enjoyed using the keyboard. It's been comfortable for even long sessions. The touchpad is comfortable, accurate, and easy to use. The camera is good enough for virtual meetings, and the microphone is good enough, though obviously not the best. In a room or home office, it's fine, but if you're in a public space, please, for the love of everybody else on the call, get a pair of headphones or a dedicated mic.

Even if it's just a cheap pair of earbuds, which may be my biggest unlock of the year, it can make a huge difference, especially if you're using tools like Wispr Flow or voice agents. The mic is good enough if you're in a private office or home office, maybe with a little bit of background noise. If you're in a loud space, accurate vocal input is essential.

(Image credit: Collin Probst // Future )Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Gen 11 Aura Edition: Final verdict

This laptop's pretty clearly designed for people in the creative space, or at least for anyone who works with it. Yes, it's wildly powerful, so really anybody who's in the heavy technical space, or if you're in the AI space or vibe coding space, you could utilize something like this as well.

With that beautiful OLED panel and force touchpad with pen input, this is clearly designed for graphic designers, photographers, video editors, and similar work. If you don't do those things, you'll still enjoy using this laptop, but there may be another one, even from Lenovo, that better fits your unique specifications and requirements.

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For more creator machines, we've tested the best photo editing laptops and the best laptops for video editing.

October 2026 is going a bit too fast for my liking. Indeed, it only feels like yesterday that I was writing this month's first streaming round-up, let alone its third and latest edition.

But, hey, the weekend is here now, and that means you can settle in front of your TV and watch myriad new movies and shows on the world's best streaming services. Personally, I'll be tuning into the final Marvel TV show of the year on Disney+, but there are plenty of other things to enjoy if you've fallen off the superhero band wagon. So, scroll on to see what's worth catching before Monday comes calling again. — Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

VisionQuest (Disney+)

VisionQuest is the third and final chapter of the Wanda/Vision TV trilogy — and, as I noted in my VisionQuest review, it might just cement this small-screen saga as one of the MCU's very best three-part stories.

Picking up some time after WandaVision ended, the latest Marvel Phase 6 TV series reunites us with Vision who, after regaining his memories in the aforementioned show's finale, has gone into hiding and is suffering an identity crisis. However, he's soon forced to go on the run with Thomas Shepard, a young thief claiming to be one of his twin sons, when nefarious forces come calling to secure Vision's highly advanced tech for themselves.

Episodes 1 and 2 are out now. Want to know when the others will air? Check out my VisionQuest full release schedule piece. — TP

• Watch VisionQuest on Disney+

Sacrifice (Netflix)

It's not often that a star-studded Netflix movie receives a very limited release on the streaming giant. But, that's the case with this dark comedy action flick, which only dropped in the US and France on launch day, aka October 16.

In it, Marvel icon Chris Evans plays Mike, a movie star experiencing an existential crisis when he's suddenly kidnapped by a group of radicals led by Joan (Anya Taylor-Joy) at a charity gala. Along with two other abductees, Mike soon learns Joan's followers plan to, well, sacrifice the trio in order to prevent the world from ending.

Sacrifice was panned by critics prior to release, so temper your expectations for this one accordingly. If it's as bad as it sounds, though, it might be one of those "so bad, it's good" must-see films. — TP

• Watch Sacrifice on Netflix

Love of Your Life (Prime Video)

Margaret Qualley leads the cast of this new Prime Video romance movie, where she plays a nurse named Maya who is estranged from her mother.

Maya's life changes when she meets Charlie (played by The Night Agent's Gabriel Basso), and begins to fall in love with him. But the COVID-19 pandemic threatens to ruin everything as Maya becomes overworked, and the virus is quickly spreading.

This raw, emotional movie is a character-driven one as we follow Maya and Charlie as they navigate their lives and romance amid a life-threatening pandemic, something that many of us can sadly relate to. — Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch Love of Your Life on Prime Video

The Diplomat season 4 (Netflix)

All eight episodes of The Diplomat season 4 are available on Netflix this weekend, making it the perfect binge watch for fans of political thrillers.

In season 4, the plot centers around a dangerous conspiracy and crumbling relationships among those in power. Things have never been more tense as US President Grace Penn (Allison Janney) and newly appointed Vice President Hal Wyler (Rufus Sewell) enter a secret alliance to steal a Russian nuclear weapon off the coast of England.

US Ambassador Kate Wyler (Keri Russell) is back, of course, and she's got plenty of work to do. — LB

• Watch The Diplomat season 4 on Netflix

Tenzing (Apple TV)

After last week's terrible movie offering in Matchbox: The Movie, Apple seems to have re-found its footing with its next original film in Tenzing.

Featuring a cast of heavy-hitters including Willem Dafoe and Tom Hiddleston, it tells the tale of Tenzing Norgay (played by Genden Phuntsok). A gifted Himalayan climber, Tenzing led the expedition that resulted in the first successful summiting of Mount Everest, for which Edmund Hillary (played by Hiddleston) went down in the history books for.

Hopefully, Apple TV's dramatization of this historic moment will make us reassess the story behind this perilous yet triumphant achievement, and the forgotten man who helped to make it possible. — TP

• Watch Tenzing on Apple TV

The Death of Robin Hood (HBO Max)

A24's dark adaptation of the ballad Robin Hood's Death is coming to HBO Max, with Hugh Jackman in the titular role.

The plot of the new movie follows an aged Robin, who is tormented by his past killings as an outlaw whilst living in a self-imposed exile. After he's wounded, he takes refuge in a priory where he befriends an orphaned girl Sister Brigid (Jodie Comer).

Reviews of The Death of Robin Hood were mixed, and it has been described as slow-paced and grim, rather than the action packed Robin Hood tale we've come to expect. But it might just surprise you this weekend. — LB

• Watch The Death of Robin Hood on HBO Max

Crystal Lake (Peacock)

Friday the 13th prequel series Crystal Lake arrives on Peacock this weekend. With all eight episodes dropping at once, horror fans will want to clear their schedules.

The series follows Pamela Voorhees (Linda Cardellini), and is set eight years before the original movie. After her son Jason drowns at Camp Crystal Lake, we follow the depths of her grief and her growing paranoia, as she becomes the serial killer fans of the franchise are very familiar with.

Welcome to Derry writer Brad Caleb Kane serves as showrunner, too, so this horror prequel looks like it's in very good hands. — LB

• Watch Crystal Lake on Peacock

Something I've wanted to do for a long, long time: ask an audiologist for their expert advice on protecting our hearing when it comes to today's ever-advancing audio tech. I test headphones, speakers, DACs, turntables and the like all day every day, so my auditory system is one I'd like to safeguard — and sometimes I worry that noise cancellation and volume control aren't always the rock-solid defense shields we think they are.

I also happen to have a friend who recently spent over £4,800 (around $6,390 or AU$9,189) on top-of-the-range Amplifon hearing aids, a notable expense for a freelance professional guitarist even if their hearing loss is classed as 'severe' in the left ear and 'moderate-to-severe' in the right (that'll be the amp under their left ear, won't it?). If we can all stave off that extra cost, it'd be lovely to know how, no?

On the day of this interview, I'm also heading out to see Brandon Flowers in Bournemouth's O2 Academy (a rather loud gig venue, I think we can all agree). I wonder what we lifelong live music lovers can do to help protect our ears when we're not covering or invading our canals with small speakers, all piping sound into them — but paying to be surrounded by massive, loud line arrays instead?

Meet the expert: Dr. Rachel Artsma

So, I have questions. And Dr. Rachel Artsma, Lead Audiologist at Hear.com (a US company billed as the world's leading online provider of medical hearing aids) has agreed to provide the answers.

I ask her what we need to know about the damage we may inadvertently be doing to our hearing, and it becomes immediately clear that Dr. Artsma has more experience in explaining these complex systems to worried patients than I've had hot dinners. "Essentially, when we're talking about damage to the inner ear, or damage to the ear, we're talking about little hair cells that stand up", she explains, putting both hands straight up, to offer a visual representation. "And when sound comes in, either at high volumes or for a long duration, or both, the hair cells lay flat.

"Unfortunately, if somebody does that damage to those hair cells, they don't stand back up. They remain damaged.

"So sometimes if somebody goes to a concert or they're exposed to noise, they might feel like their hearing's muffled after, or they might get ringing in their ears — but it does reverse. That was almost like a warning sign, 'Hey, we were listening to a lot of noise there.' But sometimes it can be permanent.

"Just being aware of the warning signs can be really beneficial: ringing in the ears, feeling like your hearing's muffled, dizziness, that buzzing sound. These are all signs that you should definitely go and get your hearing checked."

(Image credit: Future)

Hearing health features can be a useful tool, but they're not a replacement for professional hearing care

Dr. Rachel Artsma, Lead Audiologist at Hear.com

I wonder whether Dr. Artsma is against the use of consumer earbuds that offer listening tests and profiles to atone for your hearing loss. Several flagship options such as AirPods Pro 2 and 3, Samsung's Galaxy Buds3 Pro and Galaxy Buds4 Pro as well as Nothing's Ear (3) and CMF Buds 2 Plus offer such tests now, with Apple leading the charge thanks to its 'Hearing Health' suite of features.

Actually, Dr. Artsma welcomes these innovations, with one caveat. "It is something that people are talking more and more about, now that it's becoming more available for consumers," she begins. "Of those features, especially when it comes to a feature that's being marketed as almost like hearing amplification, it's very similar to what we see with over-the-counter hearing aids.

"In general, it can be a good thing, because it's increasing awareness and getting people more into the hearing space. But while it definitely can be a tool, it's not a replacement for care, and not a replacement for getting professional hearing care.

"The way I look at it is, it helps get people in the door, almost like a gateway. But definitely we don't recommend that [consumer earbuds] as the long-term solution for hearing care, and we of course recommend getting a full diagnostic evaluation so we know where your hearing stands."

When treating hearing loss we need to be wearing our hearing aids all waking hours — it's really important for the brain. So, not just in restaurants

Dr. Rachel Artsma, Lead Audiologist at Hear.com

I'm ready to move on, but there's another point Dr. Artsma wants us to know. "Something that also is really important is when it comes to treating hearing loss is that we are wearing the hearing aids all waking hours," she adds emphatically. "It's really important for the brain. So in terms of treatment, that's also where hearing aids are beneficial, because we want to be wearing them all waking hours, not just for restaurants or things like that."

I hadn't thought of the issue of stamina, and it's a key point — very few consumer earbuds will last a full 12 hours without needing to be charged, and when battery-draining features such as personal hearing profiles are deployed, you're looking at a number much less than that.

What of ANC to protect our ears — help, or hindrance?

(Image credit: Apple, Bose, Bowers & Wilkins (Future shots used in trio) )

I ask about the active noise cancellation technology most of us use in our headphones now. Is this helping our hearing? "Typically when we're talking about active noise cancellation and the cancellation of that sound wave, we're usually talking about 20dB — that's what it's going to actually reduce, in terms of noise," Dr. Artsma begins. "So for some people, yes, they might not hear noise at all if it's within that range to start with, but if said noise is still really loud, the person will still hear it. So it does depend on the noise level surrounding them."

Interesting. Because ANC works by creating an anti-phase sound wave to effectively counteract the audible one we perceive as noise, I ask whether it would it be fair to say that active noise cancellation technology in headphones doesn't actually protect your hearing, and that controlling the volume of your headphones is much more beneficial to hearing health? "Correct, exactly, and I feel that this can be a misconception with active noise cancellation", Dr. Artsma says. "Sometimes people see that, or they read it and they think, 'Oh, I'm protecting my hearing with these.' But volume is important; we want to make sure that the consumer is also reducing the volume because of the benefit of ANC.

"Usually ANC is more effective for lower frequencies, so the lower-pitched tones. And in general, this can be a beneficial feature — it definitely does not protect our hearing, but indirectly it can, because this feature allows for the listener to not have to compete with outside noise.

ANC only works to help protect your hearing if you also lower the volume

Dr. Rachel Artsma, Lead Audiologist at Hear.com

"So if commuting on a train or on a plane, say, often wearers have to increase the volume of what they're listening to, to compensate for the noise. Active noise cancellation can be a nice feature because it allows the consumer to still hear what they're listening to, just at a lower volume."

Dr. Artsma sighs. "Of course, that only works if they do actually lower the volume though!"

Again, I wonder whether that's this topic covered, but no — we've not even got to the key issue yet. "But what's really important is the duration of how long people are exposing themselves to noise," Dr. Artsma continues. "Exposure is cumulative. So volume is only half the equation; duration is the other half.

"I like to use the 60/60 rule, which essentially means you don't listen with the volume higher than 60 percent, and no longer than 60 minutes in duration, and then you take a break. The two go hand in hand and both are very important when it comes to hearing protection."

It's a key point and one I've thought about often in the two days since we spoke. I can't help but think that when I review the best headphones for battery-life and sound, I stick to 50% volume (since that's how brands themselves measure that metric) but I have no idea what volume buyers will listen to, once they've made their purchase.

Is the pressure sensation I experience with ANC anything to worry about?

(Image credit: Apple)

We're nearing the end of our allotted time, but I'm keen to ask Dr. Artsma about the pressure sensation some readers tell me they experience when listening to music with the ANC deployed in their headphones. Does it mean anything is wrong?

I mention that readers have emailed to tell me they experience a wind tunnel effect, or a vacuum noise when using ANC. What's happening there? Dr. Artsma smiles and I know that this time, she's about to reassure, rather than warn. "Absolutely, but lots of times that pressure sensation is a perception, not real pressure," she says. "What happens is because the active noise cancellation is reducing the low frequencies, the brain perceives that in a similar way to when we go on an airplane and we have that altitude change.

"Now in general, of course, if somebody ever feels like they're getting any ringing, or they feel like their hearing is muffled after listening, and they feel like they're getting ringing after using headphones, then of course you want to get your hearing checked. But all in all, it's typically just harmless and it's the perception of pressure, but not actual pressure."

Volume is only half the equation; duration is the other half

Dr. Rachel Artsma, Lead Audiologist at Hear.com

Seeing as we're on a reassuring curve, I ask what I might do tonight at my Brandon Flowers gig to keep my shell-likes — that really do love his new album but don't want to suffer — from damage? "Oh, there are things that you can do as a concert-goer, and a key one is to position yourself appropriately," Dr. Artsma says. "Don't stand right next to the speaker, right! Distance yourself from the speaker.

"Of course, if you also are going to be exposed to this level of noise, wearing high-fidelity hearing protection and protecting our ears is also a recommendation."

I quickly circle back to the 60/60 rule and ask how long a break we should be taking from our cans, after listening for an hour at 60% volume? Dr. Artsma is more serious here. "Definitely not just like a two-minute break and then going back," she says. "Probably closer to an hour break, because we want to allow time — our ears are very sensitive."

I understand and have to confess, that recommended break from exposure is longer than I'd have thought. I consider the concert I'm attending tonight and realize that I will not be leaving the arena after an hour, to take an hour's break for my hearing health. And perhaps, then, I really do need to be thinking about at least a set of inexpensive noise-reducing concert ear plugs. I'll add a link to a set that my colleague swears by (called the Loop Experience 2), below this missive.

If we love music (and I do), we want to keep our ears healthy enough to enjoy it for a long old time, right?

This might be one of the coolest office chair collaborations I've ever seen. Sega has teamed up with Branch, the company behind some of our top-tested seats, to release three office chairs themed around Sonic, the Sega Genesis, and the Sega Dreamcast.

I spent way too many hours playing the Genesis as a kid, and I still mourn the passing of my beloved Dreamcast. The hours I sank into Shenmue is honestly obscene. So I am ecstatic to see the excellent Ergonomic Chair Pro get a true retro console make-over here. Yes, it's a nostalgia play. And yes, it absolutely has me reaching for my wallet.

• Best for: Nostalgic professionals like me, Sega fans, and gamers who want a serious ergonomic chair with a retro console twist.

• The chair: The Branch Ergonomic Chair Pro: Sega Edition chairs start from $569 at Branch.

• Why I like it: It's rare to see a proper office chair get a gaming cross-over. Secretlab's omnipresent Titan Evo is the closest in terms of theming, but that's a full-on gaming chair. Here, you're getting a genuine ergonomic desk seat for work - with a cool gaming design.

Ergonomic Chair Pro: Sega Edition chairs from: $569
The Branch x Sega Edition Ergonomic Pro chairs feature 14 points of adjustment, 5D armrests, a two-way adjustable lumbar, forward seat tilt and a 275lb weight capacity. They come with a seven-year warranty, and a tall cylinder for people 5'11" and up is a $29 option.View Deal

Why it's worth a look

We haven't tested the Sega Edition chairs, but we've tested out the pre-makeover chair. The Branch Ergonomic Chair Pro scored 4.5 stars in our review, where we found "an impressive ergonomic chair with 14 points of adjustment."

Overall, it's a "highly adjustable, comfortable ergonomic chair with premium features and a solid frame," although the armrests were a little loose in our tests.

Branch says the ergonomics and build quality of the Sega Editions match the standard chair. That makes it a rare gaming chair that is also a proper office chair, and a good excuse to sit at your desk like it's the 90s.

The Sonic design uses blue mesh with red and gold accents, while the Genesis and Dreamcast designs use vegan leather, and all three get custom stitching and branded casters.

Price & Value Context

At $569 the SEGA Edition isn't on sale. When we reviewed the standard chair, Branch listed it at $599 with the headrest costing an extra $79, so the Sega Edition is about $109 less than that combined price.

Should you buy it?

✅ Buy the Branch Ergonomic Chair Pro: Sega Edition if...

You want a well-reviewed ergonomic chair for work and play, and you'd love a Sonic, Genesis or Dreamcast design at your desk.

❌ Skip the Branch Ergonomic Chair Pro: Sega Edition if...

You're a Nintendo fan (for what it's worth, we owned both Sega and Nintendo consoles; we're not here to flame that particular war!).

• See all office chairs at Branch

• A leak suggests Suunto is working on a screenless fitness tracker
• The device would monitor your heart rate and health
• Photos have appeared but few other details are known

Screenless fitness bands are having a moment right now, with the likes of the Fitbit Air and the Garmin Cirqa showing that you don’t need a display to get a great wearable. Now, it looks like Suunto might be about to enter the fray with its own screenless option, and it might end up ditching the expensive subscription as well.

The device was first spotted by the5krunner, which found a listing in the UAE’s Telecommunications and Digital Government Regulatory Authority database. This described a Suunto heart rate monitor under the codename HR264, and it follows similar listings made in South Korea and Singapore in recent weeks.

Unfortunately, we don’t know much else about the device. The listing does not include a product name, price or features list, so much of the details remain unknown for now. As pointed out by the5krunner, we don’t even know if the device is a chest strap, armband, wrist-worn tracker, or something else.

However, the5krunner notes that “certification photos of its HR264 heart rate monitor show a rechargeable optical band used for 24/7 recovery tracking,” with images appearing to show the product measuring roughly 44mm in height and 30mm in width.

Suunto’s app is currently free and offers an optional paid AI coach on the side, and it seems the HR264 heart rate monitor could take a similar approach. That would help it avoid the kind of expensive subscription that is required for devices made by the likes of Whoop.

Still ‘months away’

I've put the photos, where it sits against CIRQA, LOOP and the rest, and what's still unknown on the page. I'll keep it updated until launch. https://t.co/uCKnUPIcUiOctober 15, 2026

Suunto has established itself as a maker of impressive smartwatches, with the likes of the Vertical 2 scoring highly when we reviewed it. And Suunto has past pedigree with heart rate monitoring, with its Race 2 smartwatch performing well in this area when we tested it last year.

But the HR264 would be the company’s first foray into screenless devices, and this is a very different area to compete in because the user experience relies almost entirely on the product’s companion app. But as our reviewer noted when they tested the Vertical 2, “While Suunto’s smartphone app is perfectly acceptable, I’d argue it isn’t as good nor as all-encompassing as Garmin.”

Still, there’s time for Suunto to get this right ahead of the HR264’s launch, which the5krunner believes could still be “months away.” When that happens, there will be another screenless fitness tracker for interested users to investigate, and that competition could help drive the industry forward if it brings something new to the table.

• A new vibe-coded app offers a simple, browser-based office suite
• Each file is 'saved' in the code for the URL
• The apps come with a variety of options for sharing links/files

AI vibe coding is now at the stage where these apps and agents can clone big-name software packages just by observing how they work. Now there's a new web app, apparently written with AI's help, that puts a simple office suite right in your browser, with no logins or cloud access required.

It's called Tiny Little Office, and it comes from veteran developer and 'technology thinker' Paul Ford. There are 10 different components here: word processor, outliner, presentation tool, spreadsheet, calculator, drawing tool, diagram maker, animator, calendar, and trip planner. You can just click around and start working.

There's one main principle the office suite is built around: the link is the document. Any changes you make to a file are saved as codes in the URL itself, and sharing that URL shares an exact copy of the file. Someone else can take that URL and make their own edits (though they'll stay local and won't sync back with yours).

When you share links, they can be protected by passwords, configured as read only, and set to expire after a certain time period (from an hour to a month). For your own use, multiple files can be saved locally in the browser, or you can choose to wipe everything each time you close down the page.

Six years in the making

Introducing Tiny Little Office tinylittleoffice.com?c=xdgpfud#/v...

— @tinylittleoffice.bsky.social (@tinylittleoffice.bsky.social.bsky.social) 2026-10-16T13:08:46.635Z

The story of the project starts six years ago, when Ford's colleague Rich Ziade built TinySheet, a small ten-line spreadsheet that ran in the browser like Tiny Little Office does now. That was followed by TinyCalendar, but the projects were eventually abandoned, as were the URLs associated with them.

Now the idea is back as a full 10-app suite of products, because "it really is easier to build small than ever before". Ford says he uses the tool to leave himself notes in Slack, and that "if Signal was an operating system, this could, one day, aspire to be its productivity suite" due to its private, simple approach.

"There are lots of tradeoffs," adds Ford. "This is not, in any way, how web apps are expected to work. The links can get unwieldy pasted in chat, and you can't upload video or images, full stop. It's not collaborative like Google Docs. It's collaborative like handing out zines at a street fair."

The Tiny Little Office code is open source and can be viewed and used by anyone, there's support for LLM agents, and you can also find Tiny Little Office on Bluesky. Quite how much of it was vibe coded isn't clear, but according to the docs posted by Ford, Claude Code was doing at least some of the work.

With RAM prices on the up - and analysts suggesting it could stretch on for years - we've been highlighting price cuts on DDR5 and DDR4 memory kits wherever we find them.

Readers regularly tell us that they're sticking with DDR4 memory to ride out the current price hikes, so the the Crucial Pro 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4-3200 kit for $230 (was $249) at Newegg caught our eye. It's not the biggest discount, but it's one of the cheapest ways to upgrade a PC without changing platforms while the component crisis rages.

• Best for: Owners of DDR4 desktops who want to double their memory without replacing their core setup.

• Why we like it: Crucial Pro is a familiar choice for a simple, plug-and-play upgrade without RGB or the fuss of overclocking. It can also downclock to 3000 or 2666MT/s on systems that don't support 3200, which helps if you're upgrading an older machine.

• What to know: The RAM-pocalypse continues to force component costs up to unfathomable prices (thanks AI). This is a standard CL22 latency modules, and as it's DDR4, it's worth grabbing only if you plan to keep your motherboard to see out the current component price spikes.

Pro 32GB (2x16GB): was $248.49 now $229.99
The kit is two 16GB DDR4-3200 (PC4-25600) modules running at 1.2V, with non-ECC UDIMM memory and Intel XMP 2.0 support. Newegg Business says it works with 8th to 13th Gen Intel Core and AMD Ryzen 1000 to 5000 series desktop CPUs. View Deal

Price Context & Historical Value

At $229.99, this is $18.50 (7%) off the $248.49 price, so the saving is modest. Newegg Business also lists a New-from price of $229.99 and one open-box kit from $206.99, though open-box stock is hit and miss. We couldn't find a reliable price history.

Should you buy it?

✅ Buy the Crucial Pro 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4-3200 kit if... you're upgrading a DDR4 desktop and want 32GB from a well-known brand, and you'll take any discount on pricey RAM.

❌ Skip the Crucial Pro 32GB (2x16GB) DDR4-3200 kit if... you have a DDR5 system, since this kit won't fit; you want RGB or higher speeds; or the small saving isn't worth Newegg Business's restocking fee if you need to return it, and we haven't tested this kit ourselves.

• See all desktop memory at Newegg.

• Accenture's central budget will afford $29 in Claude credits for workers
• Team and project budgets could unlock more usage where it's appropriate
• Some workers are using as much as $1,000 a month in credits at the moment

Accenture has become the latest company to limit workers' access to AI tools amid soaring costs, with workers now limited to just $29 in Claude Enterprise credits every month.

The restriction came into force at the start of October 2026, per 404 Media reporting, which states that some workers were spending as much as $1,000 per month on Claude.

Rather than framing $29 as an absolute cap, it's being seen more as a soft limit, with certain projects or teams able to exceed this usage where it's deemed necessary.

Accenture becomes the latest to limit Claude usage due to costs

The report explains how Accenture will centrally fund up to $29 in Claude credits for workers, however separate budgets within the company may allocate further usage.

"License allocations are reviewed periodically, and access may be reassessed based on business priorities, role requirements, usage patterns, and evolving workforce needs," the internal announcement reads.

The newly imposed restriction reportedly affects General accounts, and many intensive users are seeking to upgrade to a Premium account so circumvent the limitation. However with a $250 weekly token limit, the Premium account is considerably more expensive.

One of the unnamed employees cited by 404 Media stressed that Claude Code had been integral to their work on developing an AI accelerator for Accenture's own customers.

"Our approach today is to provide the right tool for the right work, and we continue to invest in AI capabilities, skills and enablement that deliver greater value for clients and our own organization," a company spokesperson told the publication.

More broadly, Accenture isn't the only company to be limiting Claude consumption. Meta and Microsoft also recently launched similar schemes to cut down on external AI costs while simultaneously boosting uptake of their own AI tools.

TechRadar Pro reached out to Anthropic to hear about the potential impacts on revenue, but we did not receive an immediate response.

Adobe Acrobat Pro has long been our number one PDF editor - and we've tested about a hundred different ones. It does everything professionals need, with a raft of tools and features like Fill & Sign. But we'd expect nothing less from the company that invented the PDF format in the first place.

The main issue many business owners and freelancers talk to us about is the price of an on-going Adobe subscription. So, when I saw Newegg Business running a sale on the Acrobat Pro 2024 three-year license for $274 (was $324) with code BGTWF272, it raised an obvious question: is it actually worth it?

• Best for: Small business owners and freelancers who use Acrobat's desktop tools every day and don't want another subscription.

• What we like: Acrobat Pro remains our favorite PDF editing software based on all our tests. It's packed with features, and this three-year license removes the biggest hurdle: recurring monthly costs.

• Is it worth it?: Yes, if you only need the desktop tools, because three years of Adobe's cheapest Acrobat Pro plan costs $719.64, more than double the license price. It effectively works out at $7.61 a month vs. $19.99 a month.

Today's best Adobe Acrobat Pro deal

Acrobat Pro 2024 (3 year subscription): was $324 now $274
Acrobat Pro 2024 is a three-year term license delivered as a download code, for Windows and Mac. It includes offline desktop PDF tools for editing text and images, reordering and deleting pages, converting PDFs to Word, Excel or PowerPoint, filling and signing forms, password protection and redaction. It is non-renewing, so no subscription is required, and Newegg Business sells and ships it with a limit of three per customer.View Deal

How the math works

On Adobe's pricing page, Acrobat Pro costs $19.99 a month on an annual plan billed monthly, which comes to $239.88 a year, or $719.64 over three years.

The $274 price works out to about $91 a year, saving $445.64. It's the equivalent of $7.61 a month.

Adobe's per-license team plan is $287.88 a year, or $863.64 over three years, so the gap is wider for businesses that would otherwise pay for teams.

What small business owners should watch out for

• It's non-returnable. Newegg Business says this product is non-returnable and non-refundable, so make sure it's the right edition before you buy.

• It ends after three years. This is a term license, not a perpetual one, so it won't renew, and you'll need to buy again or switch to a subscription when the term ends.

• One code per Adobe account. Newegg Business says only one redemption code can be redeemed per Adobe account, and it limits purchases to three per customer, so equipping a whole team means juggling accounts. The page doesn't mention team management tools, so check before buying for staff.

• No AI Assistant. Newegg Business says Acrobat Pro 2024 can't be used with Adobe's AI Assistant add-on, and paid features aren't available in web browsers or on mobile.

• The code is temporary. The $50 savings with BGTWF272 is described as a limited offer, so the $274 price may not last. The offer is also available only to customers in the United States.

Should you buy it?

✅ Buy the Adobe Acrobat Pro 2024 three-year license if...

You're a freelancer or small business owner who uses Acrobat's desktop editing, conversion and signing tools all the time, and you'd rather pay once for three years than subscribe.

❌ Skip the Adobe Acrobat Pro 2024 three-year license if...

You need AI features, web or mobile editing, easy team management or a license that never expires, or you only open the occasional PDF, since free tools may do, and we haven't tested this license ourselves.

For more top picks, we've tested the best PDF editors and the best free PDF editors.

• OpenAI says an ex-worker took 100+ secrets about unreleased hardware to Apple
• The complaint forms part of an ongoing lawsuit, in which Apple made similar complaints
• Apple just lifted the wraps off its own, brand-new AI-powered hardware, including the HomeView

OpenAI has accused a former employee of taking more than 100 highly confidential files of unreleased hardware to Apple.

The ChatGPT maker said the worker transferred top-secret files to a personal account before returning to work at Apple – this particular worker was said to have worked at OpenAI for a six-month stint between two separate stints at Apple.

But crucially, the OpenAI complaint actually stems from a much broader case in which Apple originally sued OpenAI and two former Apple employees for similar reasons relating to trade secrets.

Apple and OpenAI embark on a tit-for-tat lawsuit

In response to the Apple lawsuit, OpenAI accused the worker of transferring detailed images of unreleased hardware, confidential engineering and manufacturing information, supplier details and more. The company even accused the worker of delivering a presentation about OpenAI's product plans to senior Apple execs, including Apple's VP of Operations in Asia.

OpenAI is especially concerned about its foray into hardware and Apple's simultaneous foray into AI-powered devices, but after raising the issue directly with the iPhone maker, it didn't get the assurances it requested.

The company wants the court to establish wether its confidential information did indeed reach Apple, and to determine whether there are grounds for further legal action.

"Apple said it has policies and procedures in place to ensure new employees do not use confidential information from previous employers and it has found no evidence to support OpenAI's allegations," Reuters reported shortly after the news broke.

The complaint is especially timely given Apple's recent smart home product announcements, including the AI-powered HomeView display.

As for what's next, the ongoing case between the two companies continues, with both facing complaints from the other party about how they handled confidential information.

Apple made a splash last month when it unveiled its first foldable phone, the iPhone Duo, alongside the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max. While the latter two devices are now widely available, along with our full review, there’s been a bit of a wait for the Duo — but not for long.

Pre-orders for the iPhone Duo in Australia started on October 16 at 11pm AEST through Apple Australia, various retailers and telcos.

Prices begin at a slightly eye-watering AU$3,499 for the base 256GB model (for reference, Samsung’s equivalent Galaxy Z Fold 8 starts at AU$2,699), and go as high as AU$5,899 for the 2TB configuration.

As expected, we haven’t seen any discounts on the handset itself, but retailers and telcos have added freebies and bonuses to make it worth your while.

The standout deal we’ve seen so far is Vodafone, which is offering a AU$300 trade-in credit on top of your old device's value, which can be up to AU$1,585 depending on the model.

Telcos have also revealed the monthly instalment costs, with plans starting at AU$117.89 per month — if you’re willing to take on a longer repayment period.

The best iPhone Duo outright deals

If you’re ordering directly from Apple, financing is available via Afterpay when you pre-order the iPhone Duo, starting at AU$145.79 per month for 24 months. The trade-in values from Apple are also more generous, with up to AU$1,595 depending on the device.

Otherwise, the device is also available through a range of retailers, with the current pre-order offers listed below:

iPhone Duo (256GB): $3497
Like the iPhone 18 Pro and Pro Max, Amazon isn’t offering a handset discount on the iPhone Duo either, but the retailer offers trade-ins of up to AU$2,595 off the Duo, depending on the device.View Deal

iPhone Duo (256GB): $3499
JB Hi-Fi is offering 10% off JB Hi-Fi Extras with every iPhone Duo pre-order. You can also trade in your old phone for a JB Hi-Fi gift card that will go towards an iPhone Duo pre-order. Get an estimate of your trade-in value here.View Deal

iPhone Duo (256GB): $3498
The Good Guys isn’t offering a trade-in program, but the handset is listed for AU$1 cheaper than the official Apple price. It’s not much of a discount, but it’s still so far the lowest outright price.View Deal

The best iPhone Duo telco deals

Apple iPhone Duo (256GB) | Optus Launch Plus Promo Plan | 360GB | 24 months | AU$204.77/m (first 12 months, then AU$224.77/m)

No handset discounts here, but Optus is offering a 360GB plan for AU$59/m for the first 12 months (then AU$79/m) when you pre-order the iPhone Duo. Optus is also throwing in the Upgrade and Protect plan for free, as well as AU$120 worth of free SubHub credit that you can use on subscription services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Kayo and more.

Total cost over 24 months: AU$5,154.48View Deal

Apple iPhone Duo (256GB) | Vodafone Small Plan | 65GB | 24 months | AU$190.79/m (first 12 months, AU$203.79/m)

Like Optus above, Vodafone is also offering its Upgrade and Protect Plus plan for free with any iPhone Duo pre-orders, but the key differentiator comes when you trade in your phone — the telco will throw in a AU$300 bonus trade-in credit on top of the device trade-in value. If you don’t mind sticking with Vodafone for the long haul, the telco has started offering 48-month repayment plans. For the base 256GB model, the monthly repayment is AU$117.89 with Vodafone’s Small Plan (for the first 12 months, then AU$130.89/m).

Total cost over 24 months: AU$4,734.96View Deal

What’s new with the iPhone Duo?

(Image credit: Getty Images / Karl Mondon)

The iPhone Duo is Apple’s first attempt at a foldable handset, adopting a shorter and wider form factor than traditional book-style folding phones. Featuring a 5.4-inch outer display with a 7.6-inch Super Retina XDR inner display, the device looks somewhat like a squat iPhone mini when folded and an iPad mini when opened.

It features the new A20 Pro chipset and a titanium frame, which Apple says is reinforced by ceramic fibres. The Duo, however, also has a few core iPhone features missing, like Face ID, a telephoto camera and the action button, but is still undeniably the star of the show.

There are also some exclusive software features that look to take advantage of the larger folding display, like some new Liquid Glass animations and multitasking features. Moreover, the Duo will also get Apple Pencil support, which is a first for any iPhone.

Sony ECM-W5: two-minute review

Sony’s ECM-W5 is a prosumer wireless microphone system cut from the same cloth as the DJI Mic 3, Insta360 Mic Pro and Rode Wireless Pro. Like all those, it's available in a package featuring two clip-on transmitters, a receiver that plugs into your camera or phone, and a charging case to keep everything topped up. At £350 for the full kit, however, it costs more than any of them — so it needs to bring something extra to the table.

It does just that. The headline feature is in-camera 32-bit float recording, something no other wireless mic I’m aware of can do. Rivals will happily record 32-bit float files to their transmitters' internal storage, but that leaves you syncing separate audio in the edit. With the ECM-W5 mounted on a Multi Interface Shoe camera such as the Sony A7 V, that extra headroom is baked straight into your video files. Most people won’t need it day to day, but if you’re shooting somewhere unpredictable, where a sudden bang or boom could clip your audio, it’s a useful safety net.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

There’s plenty more for pros to like. Each transmitter has a 3.5mm lav mic input with a screw-lock connector (a feature DJI dropped after the Mic 2), along with a generous 62.5GB of usable internal storage. There’s timecode support and an optional 96kHz/24-bit Hi-Res Audio mode, too. The claimed 500m range is the longest I’ve come across, and in my testing the signal held up flawlessly through two floors of my house — a situation where other mics have faltered.

Sound quality is clean and clear, though in fairness that’s true of every decent wireless mic these days. The noise reduction is on the gentler side and less effective than what DJI and Insta360 offer, but it doesn’t introduce any odd artifacts.

The trade-offs are size and price. The transmitters are noticeably chunkier than the DJI Mic 3’s, the receiver’s touchscreen faces backwards when it’s mounted on a camera, and Sony doesn’t even include a 3.5mm audio cable in the box. Even so, for Sony shooters in particular, the ECM-W5 is one of the most capable wireless mic systems you can buy.

Sony ECM-W5: price and release date

• $399.99 / £350 / AU$619 for two transmitters, a receiver and a charging case
• Transmitters $189.99 / £110 / AU$179 and receiver $189.99 / £180 / AU$289 individually
• Available from November 2026

The Sony ECM-W5 will be on sale from November 2026, priced at $399.99 / £350 / AU$619 for the full kit, which includes two transmitters, a receiver and a charging case. Individual transmitters are available for $189.99 / £110 / AU$179, and the receiver on its own costs $189.99 / £180 / AU$289, which is handy if you want to expand your setup or replace a lost unit.

That makes it more expensive than its closest rivals. The DJI Mic 3 launched at £259 for an equivalent two-transmitter kit, for example, so you’re paying a premium of around £90 for the Sony. Given the ECM-W5’s unique features, I think that’s justifiable for the right buyer — but it’s a premium nonetheless.

Sony ECM-W5: specs

Dimensions

TX: 31 x 47 x 22.3mm / RX: 53.5 x 17.8 x 37.5mm

Weight

TX: 27.1g / RX: 35g

Range

Up to 500m

Connectivity

RX: Multi Interface shoe / USB-C / 3.5mm jack

Bluetooth

Yes

Battery

Up to 7 hours (transmitter), up to 7 hours (receiver), up to 11 hours with fully charged case

Noise cancelling

Yes

Sony ECM-W5: Design

• Chunky transmitters with fixed clips and 3.5mm lav mic inputs
• Receiver’s touchscreen faces backwards when camera-mounted
• No audio cable included, and no room in the charging case for windshields

In terms of size, the ECM-W5’s transmitters are closer to the original DJI Mic and Mic 2 than to the much smaller (and current, at the time of writing) DJI Mic 3. Each of the ECM-W5's transmitters has a fixed clip for attaching to clothing (it can’t be removed or rotated), and Sony includes small button magnets for thinner shirts. Despite the extra bulk, the transmitters are light enough that I barely noticed them once they were clipped on. Sony also says the system is dust- and moisture-resistant, but stops short of guaranteeing full IP-level protection.

Controls are simple: a power button, a record button (double-press it to toggle noise reduction on or off) and a USB-C port for charging and file transfer. More interesting is the 3.5mm input with a screw-lock connection for plugging in an (unsupplied) lavalier mic, which pros will appreciate. The furry windshields cleverly slot into this jack too, so they sit more securely than on some rivals. Each transmitter also packs around 62.5GB of usable internal storage (64GB before formatting). That's almost double the 32GB you get in the DJI Mic 3 and Insta360 Mic Pro transmitters.

Future | Sam KieldsenFuture | Sam KieldsenFuture | Sam KieldsenFuture | Sam KieldsenFuture | Sam Kieldsen

The receiver can be fitted with either a USB-C connector or a Multi Interface Shoe adapter, and the latter also slots into standard hot and cold shoes (albeit without the MI Shoe’s digital connection). There are 3.5mm audio in and mic out ports, plus a small touchscreen for adjusting settings. My one real frustration is that this screen faces backwards when the receiver is mounted on a camera, so when I was filming myself I couldn’t see it to make changes. It’s a common problem with wireless mic receivers, and I’d love to see a manufacturer make the display rotatable.

The charging case holds both transmitters, the receiver, the adapters and the magnets, but there’s no room for the windshields. Sony doesn’t include a 3.5mm audio cable in the box either, so if your camera lacks an MI Shoe you’ll need to buy one separately. A soft drawstring bag is supplied, though, and it’s big enough for the case, the windshields and a couple of cables.

Sony ECM-W5: Performance

• World-first in-camera 32-bit float recording
• Rock-solid signal and a claimed 500m transmission range
• Noise reduction is less aggressive than Insta360 and DJI rivals

The ECM-W5’s standout feature is its ability to record 32-bit float audio directly in-camera, as well as onto each transmitter’s internal storage. Rivals such as the DJI Mic 3 and Insta360 Mic Pro can only record 32-bit float files on the transmitter itself, which you then have to sync up in the edit. I don’t think many people need 32-bit float day to day, but if you’re recording in uncontrolled environments where sudden loud noises might occur, having that headroom baked into your footage is a real advantage.

There’s both automatic and manual gain control, with the latter offering a nicely granular range of -12 to +12. I mostly left it on auto and found it worked well. Sound quality is good, but then so is that of pretty much every decent wireless mic. The difference compared with the built-in mic on your phone, computer or camera is night and day, particularly outside on a windy day. Sony also offers a 96kHz/24-bit Hi-Res Audio option, which beats the maximum quality of most rivals I’ve tested, though that’s reflected in the higher price.

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)

Sony claims a range of up to 500m between transmitter and receiver, which is much further than its rivals. I can’t think of many situations where you’d need that much, and I didn’t test it to the limit, but it’s reassuring to have in reserve. Sony also says the connection is around three times more stable than that of its predecessor, the ECM-W3.

More tellingly, when I left the camera and receiver downstairs and walked up two flights of stairs to my bedroom with a transmitter, the signal stayed crisp and clear throughout — something other mics have struggled with in my home.

The single-level noise reduction isn’t especially aggressive, and I think DJI and Insta360 offer markedly better cancellation. That said, it noticeably reduced the hum of a fan at home without adding any odd artifacts, so you can probably just leave it switched on all the time.

Sony quotes up to seven hours of battery life for the transmitters and receiver, rising to 11 hours for the transmitters if you top them up from the charging case. And when the receiver is mounted on a compatible camera’s MI Shoe, it draws power from the camera and switches on and off with it, so there’s one less battery to keep an eye on. Add up to two extra transmitters (sold separately) and you can also record up to four audio channels in-camera, which should appeal to anyone shooting multi-person interviews.

Sony also offers wireless monitoring via compatible Sony wireless headphones that support Bluetooth LE Audio, so you can keep an ear on your audio without a headphone cable, and compatible models such as the WH-1000XM6 can even be used as mics for binaural recording. I didn’t have a compatible pair of headphones to hand (and the binaural feature wasn’t available before launch), so I wasn’t able to test either feature.

The ECM-W5 also supports timecode, another feature that'll appeal to professionals.

Should I buy the Sony ECM-W5?Buy it if…

You shoot with a Sony camera
The ECM-W5 receiver fits straight onto the Multi Interface shoe used by Sony's recent cameras, and the resulting in-camera 32-bit float recording is something no rival offers.

You want pro-grade features
A lavalier mic input, timecode support and 62.5GB of storage per transmitter make it a serious tool.

You record in unpredictable places
Baked-in 32-bit float and a 500m range give you a big safety margin when you can’t control the conditions.

Don’t buy it if…

You want the smallest, lightest wearable mic
The DJI Mic 3’s transmitters are far smaller and less conspicuous when worn.

You’re on a strict budget
Rivals premium microphones from DJI and Insta360 cost less and still sound excellent.

You need strong noise reduction
The ECM-W5’s noise reduction is gentle, and DJI and Insta360 do a markedly better job of removing background babble.

Sony ECM-W5: also consider

Insta360 Mic Pro

Insta360’s Mic Pro stands out with a customizable e-ink display on each transmitter, and it pairs strong AI noise canceling with 32-bit float internal recording and 32GB of storage per transmitter. It’s a great pick for Insta360 camera owners, though it lacks the ECM-W5’s lav mic input and in-camera 32-bit float.

Read our Insta360 Mic Pro review

DJI Mic 3

DJI’s latest flagship wireless mic is considerably smaller and lighter than the ECM-W5, with stronger noise canceling and a lower price. It lacks a lav mic input and can’t record 32-bit float in-camera, but DJI’s inexpensive MI Shoe adapter makes it an easy fit on a Sony camera too.

Read our DJI Mic 3 review

(Image credit: Future | Sam Kieldsen)How I tested the Sony ECM-W5

• One week of testing indoors and outdoors
• Connected to Sony A7 V camera via Multi Interface shoe and OnePlus tablet via USB-C

Sony loaned me a review sample of the full ECM-W5 package along with a Sony A7 V camera for the purposes of this test, which allowed me to fully test the Multi Interface Shoe connection. I also tested the USB-C connectivity, by attaching the receiver to a OnePlus Pad tablet and recording video.

I used the mic system for about a week, recording in both 24-bit and 32-bit float modes and testing the noise reduction capabilities both indoors and outdoors in a variety of situations. I also tested its range and signal stability by leaving the receiver downstairs and walking up two floors of my house with a transmitter.

• First reviewed: October 2026
• Read more about how we test

Scancom has long been one of our favorite sites for business SIM and eSIM cards. One stand-out option I've found is the Three 1000GB data eSIM is £54 (was £249.99). That works out at just shy of £2.35 a month contract-free, with no monthly fees when you use code HUKD MAX.

For businesses that rely on internet connectivity away from a fixed office, this is a great alternative to expensive monthly mobile broadband plans. Although this is a Three SIM, it can automatically access Vodafone's network through Multi-Operator Core Network (MOCN) technology.

• Best for: Sole traders, small businesses, remote workers, and anyone eligible who needs substantial mobile data for work.

• Why we like it: The data allowance renews each month until September 2028, without needing to worry about monthly payments. It offers 1,000GB of 5G mobile data every month with automatic access to Vodafone's network where supported.

• Keep in mind: You'll need to be registered as a sole trader to get the SIM card at this price. As ever, I recommend checking network coverage before signing up too.

Today's best Three SIM deal

1000GB Data SIM: was £249.99 now £54
This data-only eSIM provides 1000GB monthly UK data, automatic Three and Vodafone network access, QR-code activation, and renewals until September 2028. For the full discount, use code HUKD MAX.View Deal

Why we recommend it

As a Three SIM card, it uses Vodafone's network through Multi-Operator Core Network technology. That means you may benefit from improved reception in areas where Three's signal is weaker, although actual availability and speeds will depend on local network conditions.

You can opt for a physical SIM or eSIM (a digital eSIM delivered by email as a QR code) when buying. The data allowance renews each month until September 2028, without needing to worry about monthly payments.

Price context & historical value

Scancom normally charges £249.99 for this SIM deal, but entering HUKD MAX at checkout reduces the price to £54. That's a saving of £195.99, or approximately 78%. It's a brilliant deal, and cheaper than it has been lately.

Should you buy it?

✅ Buy the Three 1000GB data SIM if...

You need regular large amounts of mobile data. It could be useful for connecting a laptop or compatible mobile router when working away from the office.

❌ Skip the Three 1000GB data SIM if...

You aren't eligible as a business or registered sole trader. It's also unsuitable if you need a mobile plan that includes calls, text messages, or international roaming. There's no built-in data usage monitoring, either, so you'll need to track consumption via your device or a third-party application.