TechRadar News

• A new Marvel's Wolverine trailer has been swarmed by angry PlayStation fans
• Users are sharing their disdain for Sony's decision to end physical disc production
• Many are sharing how glad they are that Wolverine will be available on disc

PlayStation fans angry with Sony's decision to end physical disc production have descended on the latest Marvel's Wolverine to make their thoughts known.

Insomniac Games just released a new cinematic trailer for the upcoming Marvel superhero game titled 'Ain't No Hero' ahead of the game's launch on September 15.

It looks awesome, but if you think fans are having a healthy discussion about how cool the game looks in the comment section, you'd be dead wrong.

As of writing, the video has over 8,000 comments, and the vast majority are from fans who aren't backing down from their efforts to make PlayStation reverse its decision to retire physical discs in 2028.

"You know who isn’t the hero? The killer of physical," reads the top comment, which has over 12,000 likes.

"Wolverine was really getting PHYSICAL in this trailer, he has such a DISCtinct presence," one user said, with another writing, "Wolverine's treasured photograph demonstrates the importance of physical media."

Thankfully, Marvel's Wolverine will be getting a physical copy at launch, so fans won't have to worry about that. The only games that will be affected are titles launching from January 2028 onwards, and fans are letting PlayStation know how they feel about it.

"Can't wait for my DISC copy to come in," one comment reads, followed by numerous more of the same variety, like, "Can't wait for my PHYSICAL COPY," and "Looking forward to getting a PHYSICAL edition."

Since sharing the announcement earlier this month, Sony has been notably quiet in the face of the backlash. To urge the company to reverse its decision, fans have also created a petition, which now has over 326,000 signatures.

According to analysts, despite pushback from fans, the PlayStation maker won't reverse its decision because "digital is just too lucrative."

• Group‑IB uncovers ClickLock, a new macOS‑focused infostealer using aggressive social engineering by spamming password prompts and terminating key apps every 210ms until victims comply
• Once credentials are obtained, it exfiltrates browser data, crypto wallets, password manager entries, FTP configs, and device info via Telegram Bot API
• Active since May 2026, spotted in 33 countries (mostly Europe), distributed via ClickFix campaigns, and initially undetected by security vendors until recently

Security researchers from Group-IB have uncovered a new infostealer targeting primarily macOS users in Europe.

Dubbed ClickLock, it is more of an annoying social engineering mechanism rather than a full-blown malware variant, constantly popping up a login prompt on the victim’s device, until they finally comply and share the credentials.

Every 210 milliseconds it terminates key apps on the device (Finder, Dock, TErminal, etc.), essentially making it useless. At the same time, it keeps prompting a password dialog on the screen, making sure the victim can do nothing but provide the credentials.

Targeting Europeans

The loop is set to continue for more than three straight days, or until the victim folds.

After getting the keys to the kingdom, the malware gets to work and starts exfiltrating valuable information.

This includes data from key browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Brave, and others), saved logins, cookies, autofill data, and other browser information, data linked to cryptocurrency wallets and extensions, encrypted wallet vault material that can be cracked off-site, data from password managers, cached cryptocurrency addresses across EVM, Bitcoin, Solana, TRON, TON, and Stacks, shell histories, FileZilla FTP configuration and recent-server data, and basic device information.Everything is then packaged into a .ZIP archive and exfiltrated via a Telegram Bot API.

Group-IB says the campaign has been active since at least May 2026, so it’s been active for a few months now. A researcher submitted a variant to VirusTotal in early June, but it remained undetected by all security vendors until recently, Group-IB says.

So far, it has been spotted in 33 countries, more than half of which are in Europe, it was also added. The malware is most likely being distributed via a ClickFix social engineering campaign, and has not been tied to any particular threat actor.

• Group‑IB uncovers ClickLock, a new macOS‑focused infostealer using aggressive social engineering by spamming password prompts and terminating key apps every 210ms until victims comply
• Once credentials are obtained, it exfiltrates browser data, crypto wallets, password manager entries, FTP configs, and device info via Telegram Bot API
• Active since May 2026, spotted in 33 countries (mostly Europe), distributed via ClickFix campaigns, and initially undetected by security vendors until recently

Security researchers from Group-IB have uncovered a new infostealer targeting primarily macOS users in Europe.

Dubbed ClickLock, it is more of an annoying social engineering mechanism rather than a full-blown malware variant, constantly popping up a login prompt on the victim’s device, until they finally comply and share the credentials.

Every 210 milliseconds it terminates key apps on the device (Finder, Dock, TErminal, etc.), essentially making it useless. At the same time, it keeps prompting a password dialog on the screen, making sure the victim can do nothing but provide the credentials.

Targeting Europeans

The loop is set to continue for more than three straight days, or until the victim folds.

After getting the keys to the kingdom, the malware gets to work and starts exfiltrating valuable information.

This includes data from key browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Brave, and others), saved logins, cookies, autofill data, and other browser information, data linked to cryptocurrency wallets and extensions, encrypted wallet vault material that can be cracked off-site, data from password managers, cached cryptocurrency addresses across EVM, Bitcoin, Solana, TRON, TON, and Stacks, shell histories, FileZilla FTP configuration and recent-server data, and basic device information.Everything is then packaged into a .ZIP archive and exfiltrated via a Telegram Bot API.

Group-IB says the campaign has been active since at least May 2026, so it’s been active for a few months now. A researcher submitted a variant to VirusTotal in early June, but it remained undetected by all security vendors until recently, Group-IB says.

So far, it has been spotted in 33 countries, more than half of which are in Europe, it was also added. The malware is most likely being distributed via a ClickFix social engineering campaign, and has not been tied to any particular threat actor.

RugOne Xlink 7: 30-second review

The RugOne Xlink 7 wants to solve an old problem in a new way. Traditional walkie-talkies are brilliant until you walk out of range. Hills block them. Buildings block them. Distance blocks them. The Xlink 7 sidesteps all of that by using 4G instead of short-range radio, so two or three people can stay in touch across a city, a country, or, in theory, the whole planet, as long as there's signal.

That idea alone makes it worth a look. Add a genuinely tough build, IP68 and IP69K rated, plus MIL STD 810H certification, and you have a device that will survive rain, dust, a drop, or a dunking, all while weighing just 84g. It comes loaded with sensible extras too. A wireless PTT (push-to-talk) remote means you never have to fumble for the unit itself while riding or climbing. An emergency SOS mode, backed by GPS, GLONASS and Beidou positioning, can sound an alarm and share your live location with five quick presses. There's even a basic AI assistant for weather checks and settings, and a noise cancellation system tuned for wind and speed.

None of that comes without trade-offs, though. The biggest one is that this is a cellular device, not a true radio, so it lives and dies by 4G coverage. Head somewhere genuinely remote, deep countryside, mountains, open water, and it becomes a very expensive paperweight. A proper VHF or UHF handset, or a satellite communicator, will keep working exactly where the Xlink 7 cannot. There's no screen either, so every bit of feedback comes through LED colours and beeps, which takes some getting used to. Group calls are capped at three people and thirty minutes, which will frustrate anyone hoping to coordinate a larger crew.

So who is this for? Cyclists, hikers, skiers and runners who mostly stay within reach of a network but want a proper safety net and a simple way to stay in touch with a partner or small group. It might also work for parents keeping tabs on older kids, but surely they’d have phones. It could be an easy panic button for lone workers, as long as they’re not underground.

It's less convincing for anyone heading truly off-grid, where a satellite device or traditional radio still makes more sense, as some of the best rugged phones I've tested already have. Think of the Xlink 7 as a rugged companion for populated wilderness rather than true remoteness, and it starts to make more sense.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)RugOne Xlink 7: price and availability

• How much does it cost? $159
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? Direct from RugOne or via an online retailer

The RugOne Xlink 7 is available direct from RugOne's global store, on Amazon.com for $159.99, and on Amazon.co.uk for $139.99.

Unless I’m mistaken, the RugOne Xlink 7 launched its Kickstarter campaign in June 2026, with a Super Early Bird duo pack priced from $159.99 against a stated standard retail of $299.98 for the same pack, a 47 per cent discount.

Coverage on a popular news site said it has cleared the Engineering Verification and Design Verification stages and was, at the time of writing, running final Production Validation Test builds ahead of mass shipping from August 2026. But that plan evidently wasn’t correct or got changed, because it's already available to buy now.

To be crystal clear, I’m not a fan of companies that don’t need the money running Kickstarter campaigns as marketing exercises, and the way that this one was able to move from announcement to product and retail in a matter of weeks gives the true picture away. That reality being the Xlink 7 was probably finished and in production even before the Kickstarter ever began.

In the bundle that most purchasers will choose, they get a SIM card that works in 41 countries, and that will work for a year. No price has yet been revealed for extending the SIM contract at this time, but you can just buy a data-only SIM for your country and use that instead.

In most countries, this would be a no-brainer based on cost, but if you live in a region where mobile providers must approve each device that connects, it might be an issue.

Depending on how you intend to use this hardware, the price might be seen as competitive or excessive.

Compared to a proper satellite-based communicator, like the Garmin inReach Mini 2 ($509.99), it might seem a bargain. But the Garmin will work in practically any geographic location, and doesn’t need cell service.

Not needing a cell service or a SIM card, Motorola makes an extensive range of walkie-talkies, like the Motorola Solutions Talkabout T475 Extreme. A two-pack of those is only $94.99, and they use FRS radio frequencies, can receive NOAA weather alerts and will work for up to 12 hours on a charge.

There are dozens of brands selling walkie-talkie designs, some using Mesh technology that generally undercut the RugOne Xlink 7, typically offering two handsets for less than the price of one Xlink 7.

But there is an even cheaper choice, and that’s to use Zello on your existing smartphone, which costs precisely nothing. As they say, competing with zero isn’t easy.

Overall, there are some cute features on the RugOne Xlink 7 that might attract some customers, but since they don’t have a fallback technology when there is no 4G service, they seem overpriced.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

• Value score: 3/5

RugOne Xlink 7: Specs

Product

RugOne Xlink 7

Dimensions

63.6 x 51.7 x 22.95mm

Weight

84g

Build

Plastic body with metal buttons and rubber seals

Durability

IP68 (1.5m for up to 30 minutes) and IP69K under IEC 60529, MIL STD 810H, operating range -30C to 55C

Display

None. Status is shown via seven front LEDs plus audio tones

Chipset

ASR1609S, Cortex R5 at 614MHz

Memory

8MB PSRAM, 8MB ROM

Network

4G LTE, nanoSIM. FDD LTE bands 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/20/25/26/28A/28B/66, TDD LTE bands 34/38/39/40/41

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.2

Positioning

GPS, GLONASS and Beidou

Battery

1,050mAh typical / 1,020mAh rated Li Po, USB Type C charging at 5V 0.5A

Battery life (claimed)

Up to 87 hours standby, 24 hours typical use, 10 hours continuous talk

Calling

Full duplex hands-free voice for up to 3 simultaneous users, 10-minute default call length, 30-minute maximum

AI features

On-device AI voice assistant for Q&A and settings, plus chip and AI-based noise cancellation rated to a peak of 55dB reduction

Safety

Emergency SOS via five rapid presses on the action button, triggers a siren, calls emergency contacts, and shares live GPS location

Extras

Built-in TorchX flashlight, wireless Bluetooth push-to-talk remote ring, dedicated group set-up button

App

RugOne Xlink app for iOS and Android, required to activate the device

In the box

Xlink 7 unit, USB-C to USB-C cable, pre-installed screen film, wireless PTT remote ring, long and short Velcro straps, sports armband, magnetic back clip, lanyard, SIM card (Bundle version only), manual and warranty card

RugOne Xlink 7: Design

• Tough and tiny
• Lots of buttons
• A box full of accessories

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)Which countries does the SIM card support?

United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Ireland, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Iceland, Poland, Czech Republic, Greece, Portugal, Luxembourg, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Liechtenstein, Vatican City, San Marino, Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Ukraine, and Belarus.

The Xlink 7 is a small, octagonal puck that RugOne compares to a chunky earbud case. At 84g and just under 64mm tall, it disappears onto a backpack strap or handlebar far more easily than a traditional VHF or UHF radio ever could. The body mixes plastic with rubber seals and metal buttons, and the whole thing carries an IP68 rating for a 1.5 metre dunking and an IP69K rating against pressure washing, on top of MIL STD 810H certification. That is a serious durability claim for a device this size, and on paper, that puts the Xlink 7 ahead of most consumer electronics in this price bracket.

There is no screen. Every status update, battery level, signal state, Bluetooth pairing, comes through a bank of seven LEDs and a set of audio tones. That keeps the design simple and the waterproofing easier to guarantee, but it also means a genuine learning curve before all those beeps and colours become second nature.

The one that most owners might easily recall is the built-in AI, as even at the lowest volume settings, it shouts information at you like a drill sergeant. Maybe on a windswept hillside or next to a roaring rapids, this might be good, but in less noisy spaces, it seems excessive and bludgeoning.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

Since there is no screen, all the modes and features of the RugOne Xlink 7 are activated using a series of buttons, and there are some simple back-lit icons to provide basic feedback. These tell you if a voice call is active, Bluetooth is being used, battery status, the device is on, volume and mute, and mobile signal strength. But most of these are superfluous, since if you change the volume, for example, the unit will shout at you the current volume setting.

Buttons are provided for powering on, AI, Group functionality and initiating or answering calls.

A single button activates an on-device AI assistant for simple Q&A, weather checks, and device settings, and RugOne pairs a dedicated audio chip with an AI noise-reduction algorithm rated at a peak of 55dB, tuned for conditions up to 40km/h on skis or 30km/h on a bike, according to RugOne. But this technology appears to be deactivated when you’re not on skis or a bike, when you get put on full audio blast anyway.

Rubber plugs cover both the SIM card slot and the USB port, which made me wonder why they weren’t together under a single plug. And, the other feature worth mentioning is that there is a TorchX flashlight, which might become useful if you’ve not reached your basecamp before nightfall.

For those wondering how you configure some of the more complicated aspects, that’s all done through a smartphone app. So, if you want to change those, you’ll need to bring a smartphone, which somewhat undermines the function of the RugOne Xlink 7.

One impressive detail about this device is all the supporting hardware that comes in the box, which includes long and short Velcro straps, a sports armband, a magnetic belt clip, a lanyard and a Bluetooth-connected talk button.

Design score: 3.5/5

RugOne Xlink 7: Hardware

• Multi-person communication
• ASR1609S SoC
• 1,050mAh cell battery

Available in ‘Sports Black’ or ‘Sand Dune’, the RugOne Xlink 7 has some interesting twists on the normal 4G communication model.

These include the ability to have group conversations between three Xlink 7, with each call limited to 10 minutes, or with three connected up to 30 minutes.

Where I’m slightly confused is that in some literature, three users are mentioned, and in others, up to five people can talk. But since I only received two of these to test, I can ascertain which number is correct.

That said, the idea of five people on the same line just sounds like a recipe to step on other people's speaking, so if it only supports three people, it might be more practical.

The platform that this was built on is the ASR1609S, a cost-effective, high-performance 4G LTE IoT baseband processor manufactured by ASR Microelectronics.

This SoC is a single ARM Cortex-R5 core running at 614 MHz, integrating a modem, Bluetooth 5.2, GNSS, power management, 8GB PSRAM, and 8GB Flash in a single assembly.

Positioning comes from a combination of GPS, GLONASS and Beidou, and an emergency SOS mode is triggered by five rapid presses of the action button. That sounds like a loud siren to alert others nearby, automatically calls pre-set emergency contacts and shares a live location through the companion app.

For hikers, cyclists and lone workers, this is arguably a bigger selling point than the group calling itself. But this again assumes that everyone wearing one of these devices is also conveniently carrying their phone.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

RugOne quotes up to 87 hours of standby, 24 hours of typical use, or 10 hours of continuous talk time from the 1,050mAh cell. Those are manufacturer figures rather than independently measured ones, and if you are on the edge of cell service, you might find the battery wears out faster than expected.

I can’t be overly critical of the hardware, since it was made to both fit inside the limited confines of the RugOne Xlink 7 but also to do a specific job that isn’t as general as you might expect from a Smartphone SoC.

But, this SoC didn’t include the technology for PTT-type communications without 4G, which is unfortunate, since most mobile phones can do that trick, and would last longer on battery than the Xlink 7 can.

• Hardware score: 3/5

(Image credit: RugOne)RugOne Xlink 7: Final verdict

The RugOne Xlink 7 is a difficult call, since I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with the hardware or the design, except possibly how shouty the AI is.

That said, I strongly suspect that this design was originally intended to support conventional or mesh wireless technology alongside 4G functionality, until someone realised that might affect future income from SIM sales.

What we ended up with is a walkie-talkie that’s useless when you’re away from cell service, which is problematic. Given that lots of cheaper devices will work anywhere without 4G, it brings into question whether the RugOne Xlink 7 is the right product for you.

While I accept that most walkie-talkies can’t link two people on different continents, most can connect those people 100M apart on a mountain or in a jungle, and that’s not a guarantee with this hardware.

RugOne need to put Zello-compatible wireless in the Xlink 8, and make the price significantly more competitive.

Should I buy a RugOne Xlink 7?Oukitel WP66 Score Card

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Value

Affordable, but compared with other walkie-talkies, it is on the pricey side.

3/5

Design

A compact and rugged puck that can be carried in numerous ways

3.5/5

Hardware

Efficient SoC and 1,050mAh battery, but needs 4G network to talk

3/5

Overall

Not suitable for true off-grid use

3.5/5

Buy it if...

You like to walk and talk
With up to three-person communication, this device could be useful for those who work together but are physically separated. Mounted on the armband, using the belt clip or lanyard makes this more easily accessible than a phone.

You might need help quickly
There are certain occupations where it's possible to run into trouble and need assistance quickly, and the ability of this device to send out an alert with your exact position could be a lifesaver. But only if you can push the SOS button five times to summon help.

Don't buy it if...

You like to walk and talk
With up to three-person communication, this device could be useful for those who work together but are physically separated. Mounted on the armband, using the belt clip or lanyard makes this more easily accessible than a phone.

You might need help quickly
There are certain occupations where it's possible to run into trouble and need assistance quickly, and the ability of this device to send out an alert with your exact position could be a lifesaver. But only if you can push the SOS button five times to summon help.

For more ruggedized devices, we've reviewed the best rugged tablets, the best rugged laptops, and the best rugged hard drives

RugOne Xlink 7: 30-second review

The RugOne Xlink 7 wants to solve an old problem in a new way. Traditional walkie-talkies are brilliant until you walk out of range. Hills block them. Buildings block them. Distance blocks them. The Xlink 7 sidesteps all of that by using 4G instead of short-range radio, so two or three people can stay in touch across a city, a country, or, in theory, the whole planet, as long as there's signal.

That idea alone makes it worth a look. Add a genuinely tough build, IP68 and IP69K rated, plus MIL STD 810H certification, and you have a device that will survive rain, dust, a drop, or a dunking, all while weighing just 84g. It comes loaded with sensible extras too. A wireless PTT (push-to-talk) remote means you never have to fumble for the unit itself while riding or climbing. An emergency SOS mode, backed by GPS, GLONASS and Beidou positioning, can sound an alarm and share your live location with five quick presses. There's even a basic AI assistant for weather checks and settings, and a noise cancellation system tuned for wind and speed.

None of that comes without trade-offs, though. The biggest one is that this is a cellular device, not a true radio, so it lives and dies by 4G coverage. Head somewhere genuinely remote, deep countryside, mountains, open water, and it becomes a very expensive paperweight. A proper VHF or UHF handset, or a satellite communicator, will keep working exactly where the Xlink 7 cannot. There's no screen either, so every bit of feedback comes through LED colours and beeps, which takes some getting used to. Group calls are capped at three people and thirty minutes, which will frustrate anyone hoping to coordinate a larger crew.

So who is this for? Cyclists, hikers, skiers and runners who mostly stay within reach of a network but want a proper safety net and a simple way to stay in touch with a partner or small group. It might also work for parents keeping tabs on older kids, but surely they’d have phones. It could be an easy panic button for lone workers, as long as they’re not underground.

It's less convincing for anyone heading truly off-grid, where a satellite device or traditional radio still makes more sense, as some of the best rugged phones I've tested already have. Think of the Xlink 7 as a rugged companion for populated wilderness rather than true remoteness, and it starts to make more sense.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)RugOne Xlink 7: price and availability

• How much does it cost? $159
• When is it out? Available now
• Where can you get it? Direct from RugOne or via an online retailer

The RugOne Xlink 7 is available direct from RugOne's global store, on Amazon.com for $159.99, and on Amazon.co.uk for $139.99.

Unless I’m mistaken, the RugOne Xlink 7 launched its Kickstarter campaign in June 2026, with a Super Early Bird duo pack priced from $159.99 against a stated standard retail of $299.98 for the same pack, a 47 per cent discount.

Coverage on a popular news site said it has cleared the Engineering Verification and Design Verification stages and was, at the time of writing, running final Production Validation Test builds ahead of mass shipping from August 2026. But that plan evidently wasn’t correct or got changed, because it's already available to buy now.

To be crystal clear, I’m not a fan of companies that don’t need the money running Kickstarter campaigns as marketing exercises, and the way that this one was able to move from announcement to product and retail in a matter of weeks gives the true picture away. That reality being the Xlink 7 was probably finished and in production even before the Kickstarter ever began.

In the bundle that most purchasers will choose, they get a SIM card that works in 41 countries, and that will work for a year. No price has yet been revealed for extending the SIM contract at this time, but you can just buy a data-only SIM for your country and use that instead.

In most countries, this would be a no-brainer based on cost, but if you live in a region where mobile providers must approve each device that connects, it might be an issue.

Depending on how you intend to use this hardware, the price might be seen as competitive or excessive.

Compared to a proper satellite-based communicator, like the Garmin inReach Mini 2 ($509.99), it might seem a bargain. But the Garmin will work in practically any geographic location, and doesn’t need cell service.

Not needing a cell service or a SIM card, Motorola makes an extensive range of walkie-talkies, like the Motorola Solutions Talkabout T475 Extreme. A two-pack of those is only $94.99, and they use FRS radio frequencies, can receive NOAA weather alerts and will work for up to 12 hours on a charge.

There are dozens of brands selling walkie-talkie designs, some using Mesh technology that generally undercut the RugOne Xlink 7, typically offering two handsets for less than the price of one Xlink 7.

But there is an even cheaper choice, and that’s to use Zello on your existing smartphone, which costs precisely nothing. As they say, competing with zero isn’t easy.

Overall, there are some cute features on the RugOne Xlink 7 that might attract some customers, but since they don’t have a fallback technology when there is no 4G service, they seem overpriced.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

• Value score: 3/5

RugOne Xlink 7: Specs

Product

RugOne Xlink 7

Dimensions

63.6 x 51.7 x 22.95mm

Weight

84g

Build

Plastic body with metal buttons and rubber seals

Durability

IP68 (1.5m for up to 30 minutes) and IP69K under IEC 60529, MIL STD 810H, operating range -30C to 55C

Display

None. Status is shown via seven front LEDs plus audio tones

Chipset

ASR1609S, Cortex R5 at 614MHz

Memory

8MB PSRAM, 8MB ROM

Network

4G LTE, nanoSIM. FDD LTE bands 1/2/3/4/5/7/8/12/20/25/26/28A/28B/66, TDD LTE bands 34/38/39/40/41

Connectivity

Bluetooth 5.2

Positioning

GPS, GLONASS and Beidou

Battery

1,050mAh typical / 1,020mAh rated Li Po, USB Type C charging at 5V 0.5A

Battery life (claimed)

Up to 87 hours standby, 24 hours typical use, 10 hours continuous talk

Calling

Full duplex hands-free voice for up to 3 simultaneous users, 10-minute default call length, 30-minute maximum

AI features

On-device AI voice assistant for Q&A and settings, plus chip and AI-based noise cancellation rated to a peak of 55dB reduction

Safety

Emergency SOS via five rapid presses on the action button, triggers a siren, calls emergency contacts, and shares live GPS location

Extras

Built-in TorchX flashlight, wireless Bluetooth push-to-talk remote ring, dedicated group set-up button

App

RugOne Xlink app for iOS and Android, required to activate the device

In the box

Xlink 7 unit, USB-C to USB-C cable, pre-installed screen film, wireless PTT remote ring, long and short Velcro straps, sports armband, magnetic back clip, lanyard, SIM card (Bundle version only), manual and warranty card

RugOne Xlink 7: Design

• Tough and tiny
• Lots of buttons
• A box full of accessories

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)Which countries does the SIM card support?

United States, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Netherlands, Switzerland, Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Ireland, Austria, Belgium, Finland, Iceland, Poland, Czech Republic, Greece, Portugal, Luxembourg, Hungary, Slovakia, Slovenia, Croatia, Cyprus, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Bulgaria, Liechtenstein, Vatican City, San Marino, Serbia, Albania, North Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Moldova, Ukraine, and Belarus.

The Xlink 7 is a small, octagonal puck that RugOne compares to a chunky earbud case. At 84g and just under 64mm tall, it disappears onto a backpack strap or handlebar far more easily than a traditional VHF or UHF radio ever could. The body mixes plastic with rubber seals and metal buttons, and the whole thing carries an IP68 rating for a 1.5 metre dunking and an IP69K rating against pressure washing, on top of MIL STD 810H certification. That is a serious durability claim for a device this size, and on paper, that puts the Xlink 7 ahead of most consumer electronics in this price bracket.

There is no screen. Every status update, battery level, signal state, Bluetooth pairing, comes through a bank of seven LEDs and a set of audio tones. That keeps the design simple and the waterproofing easier to guarantee, but it also means a genuine learning curve before all those beeps and colours become second nature.

The one that most owners might easily recall is the built-in AI, as even at the lowest volume settings, it shouts information at you like a drill sergeant. Maybe on a windswept hillside or next to a roaring rapids, this might be good, but in less noisy spaces, it seems excessive and bludgeoning.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

Since there is no screen, all the modes and features of the RugOne Xlink 7 are activated using a series of buttons, and there are some simple back-lit icons to provide basic feedback. These tell you if a voice call is active, Bluetooth is being used, battery status, the device is on, volume and mute, and mobile signal strength. But most of these are superfluous, since if you change the volume, for example, the unit will shout at you the current volume setting.

Buttons are provided for powering on, AI, Group functionality and initiating or answering calls.

A single button activates an on-device AI assistant for simple Q&A, weather checks, and device settings, and RugOne pairs a dedicated audio chip with an AI noise-reduction algorithm rated at a peak of 55dB, tuned for conditions up to 40km/h on skis or 30km/h on a bike, according to RugOne. But this technology appears to be deactivated when you’re not on skis or a bike, when you get put on full audio blast anyway.

Rubber plugs cover both the SIM card slot and the USB port, which made me wonder why they weren’t together under a single plug. And, the other feature worth mentioning is that there is a TorchX flashlight, which might become useful if you’ve not reached your basecamp before nightfall.

For those wondering how you configure some of the more complicated aspects, that’s all done through a smartphone app. So, if you want to change those, you’ll need to bring a smartphone, which somewhat undermines the function of the RugOne Xlink 7.

One impressive detail about this device is all the supporting hardware that comes in the box, which includes long and short Velcro straps, a sports armband, a magnetic belt clip, a lanyard and a Bluetooth-connected talk button.

Design score: 3.5/5

RugOne Xlink 7: Hardware

• Multi-person communication
• ASR1609S SoC
• 1,050mAh cell battery

Available in ‘Sports Black’ or ‘Sand Dune’, the RugOne Xlink 7 has some interesting twists on the normal 4G communication model.

These include the ability to have group conversations between three Xlink 7, with each call limited to 10 minutes, or with three connected up to 30 minutes.

Where I’m slightly confused is that in some literature, three users are mentioned, and in others, up to five people can talk. But since I only received two of these to test, I can ascertain which number is correct.

That said, the idea of five people on the same line just sounds like a recipe to step on other people's speaking, so if it only supports three people, it might be more practical.

The platform that this was built on is the ASR1609S, a cost-effective, high-performance 4G LTE IoT baseband processor manufactured by ASR Microelectronics.

This SoC is a single ARM Cortex-R5 core running at 614 MHz, integrating a modem, Bluetooth 5.2, GNSS, power management, 8GB PSRAM, and 8GB Flash in a single assembly.

Positioning comes from a combination of GPS, GLONASS and Beidou, and an emergency SOS mode is triggered by five rapid presses of the action button. That sounds like a loud siren to alert others nearby, automatically calls pre-set emergency contacts and shares a live location through the companion app.

For hikers, cyclists and lone workers, this is arguably a bigger selling point than the group calling itself. But this again assumes that everyone wearing one of these devices is also conveniently carrying their phone.

(Image credit: Mark Pickavance)

RugOne quotes up to 87 hours of standby, 24 hours of typical use, or 10 hours of continuous talk time from the 1,050mAh cell. Those are manufacturer figures rather than independently measured ones, and if you are on the edge of cell service, you might find the battery wears out faster than expected.

I can’t be overly critical of the hardware, since it was made to both fit inside the limited confines of the RugOne Xlink 7 but also to do a specific job that isn’t as general as you might expect from a Smartphone SoC.

But, this SoC didn’t include the technology for PTT-type communications without 4G, which is unfortunate, since most mobile phones can do that trick, and would last longer on battery than the Xlink 7 can.

• Hardware score: 3/5

(Image credit: RugOne)RugOne Xlink 7: Final verdict

The RugOne Xlink 7 is a difficult call, since I don’t think there is anything inherently wrong with the hardware or the design, except possibly how shouty the AI is.

That said, I strongly suspect that this design was originally intended to support conventional or mesh wireless technology alongside 4G functionality, until someone realised that might affect future income from SIM sales.

What we ended up with is a walkie-talkie that’s useless when you’re away from cell service, which is problematic. Given that lots of cheaper devices will work anywhere without 4G, it brings into question whether the RugOne Xlink 7 is the right product for you.

While I accept that most walkie-talkies can’t link two people on different continents, most can connect those people 100M apart on a mountain or in a jungle, and that’s not a guarantee with this hardware.

RugOne need to put Zello-compatible wireless in the Xlink 8, and make the price significantly more competitive.

Should I buy a RugOne Xlink 7?Oukitel WP66 Score Card

Attributes

Notes

Rating

Value

Affordable, but compared with other walkie-talkies, it is on the pricey side.

3/5

Design

A compact and rugged puck that can be carried in numerous ways

3.5/5

Hardware

Efficient SoC and 1,050mAh battery, but needs 4G network to talk

3/5

Overall

Not suitable for true off-grid use

3.5/5

Buy it if...

You like to walk and talk
With up to three-person communication, this device could be useful for those who work together but are physically separated. Mounted on the armband, using the belt clip or lanyard makes this more easily accessible than a phone.

You might need help quickly
There are certain occupations where it's possible to run into trouble and need assistance quickly, and the ability of this device to send out an alert with your exact position could be a lifesaver. But only if you can push the SOS button five times to summon help.

Don't buy it if...

You like to walk and talk
With up to three-person communication, this device could be useful for those who work together but are physically separated. Mounted on the armband, using the belt clip or lanyard makes this more easily accessible than a phone.

You might need help quickly
There are certain occupations where it's possible to run into trouble and need assistance quickly, and the ability of this device to send out an alert with your exact position could be a lifesaver. But only if you can push the SOS button five times to summon help.

For more ruggedized devices, we've reviewed the best rugged tablets, the best rugged laptops, and the best rugged hard drives

• Bethesda Game Studio has shared a major update
• The announcement confirms two Fallout remasters in addition to further Starfield support
• The developer is also teaming up with Obsidian Entertainment for a new Fallout title

Bethesda Game Studios has just shared a major update, confirming that it will continue supporting Starfield, and is currently working on remasters of both Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas.

"We love making these worlds as much as you love playing in them. Today, we want to share what's next," begins the latest post on the Bethesda website.

It adds that the company is "investing more deeply in the worlds players love" — but what exactly does that mean?

First, the developer says its latest release, 2023's Starfield, will continue to receive updates and support throughout the coming year with gameplay improvements, new story content, and "additional updates" planned.

The popular Fallout series is also receiving plenty of love. Fallout 5 is currently in development, though it's still a "long-range destination" in the early phase of production that will likely take many years to complete. In the meantime, however, players will be able revisit the worlds of both Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas in the just-announced remasters.

There's no word on when those will release either, but I imagine they're not too far away — particularly that Fallout 3 remaster, which has been rumored to be in the works for years.

The post goes on to confirm that Bethesda is partnering with New Vegas developer Obsidian Entertainment on a "new Fallout project". This is presumably the New Vegas sequel teased in reports earlier this month that suggested the two teams were collaborating on a new title.

Of course, upcoming RPG The Elder Scrolls 6 is also mentioned, and described as the studio's "primary development focus today." As expected, however, a release date is not mentioned, and the title is still likely half a decade away.

(Image credit: Future)

All of this comes just over a week after Microsoft announced that Xbox, Bethesda's parent company, would be undergoing the "most significant restructure" in its history with a total of 3,200 jobs lost over the coming months.

In an email sent to Xbox employees, CEO Asha Sharma said that while the move would be "painful" it would allow the brand to to focus on "higher priority projects" with its Activision, Bethesda, King, Mojang, and Xbox Game Studios teams — a strategy already evident in the high-profile releases announced today.

• Bethesda Game Studio has shared a major update
• The announcement confirms two Fallout remasters in addition to further Starfield support
• The developer is also teaming up with Obsidian Entertainment for a new Fallout title

Bethesda Game Studios has just shared a major update, confirming that it will continue supporting Starfield, and is currently working on remasters of both Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas.

"We love making these worlds as much as you love playing in them. Today, we want to share what's next," begins the latest post on the Bethesda website.

It adds that the company is "investing more deeply in the worlds players love" — but what exactly does that mean?

First, the developer says its latest release, 2023's Starfield, will continue to receive updates and support throughout the coming year with gameplay improvements, new story content, and "additional updates" planned.

The popular Fallout series is also receiving plenty of love. Fallout 5 is currently in development, though it's still a "long-range destination" in the early phase of production that will likely take many years to complete. In the meantime, however, players will be able revisit the worlds of both Fallout 3 and Fallout: New Vegas in the just-announced remasters.

There's no word on when those will release either, but I imagine they're not too far away — particularly that Fallout 3 remaster, which has been rumored to be in the works for years.

The post goes on to confirm that Bethesda is partnering with New Vegas developer Obsidian Entertainment on a "new Fallout project". This is presumably the New Vegas sequel teased in reports earlier this month that suggested the two teams were collaborating on a new title.

Of course, upcoming RPG The Elder Scrolls 6 is also mentioned, and described as the studio's "primary development focus today." As expected, however, a release date is not mentioned, and the title is still likely half a decade away.

(Image credit: Future)

All of this comes just over a week after Microsoft announced that Xbox, Bethesda's parent company, would be undergoing the "most significant restructure" in its history with a total of 3,200 jobs lost over the coming months.

In an email sent to Xbox employees, CEO Asha Sharma said that while the move would be "painful" it would allow the brand to to focus on "higher priority projects" with its Activision, Bethesda, King, Mojang, and Xbox Game Studios teams — a strategy already evident in the high-profile releases announced today.

• Tiny drone uses sonar and AI to hunt mosquitoes autonomously
• Former MBDA engineer develops insect-killing drone with missile-inspired technology
• Tornyol drone detects small objects using extremely low transmission power

Alex Toussaint, a former engineer at the missile manufacturer MBDA, has built a 40g autonomous drone that hunts and kills mosquitoes using AMD ultrasonic sonar.

The system pairs phased-array microphones with onboard AI to detect insects mid-flight, then intercepts them before they enter a designated zone.

His startup, Tornyol, backed by Y Combinator, prices the current prototype at $1,100, though mass production could eventually lower that cost.

Early test results

In an early trial, the company reported that the drone detected a 2 mm-wide plastic ball from 30 centimeters using only 1/1300th of planned transmitting power.

Toussaint said the result validated the signal-to-noise budget and moved the project closer to its stated three-meter mosquito tracking goal.

The team also announced its first air-to-air kill, when the autonomous drone intercepted a flying moth during an outdoor test flight.

Toussaint called it "a big step towards completely eradicating mosquitoes," describing the milestone as central to his company's stated long-term mission.

To use the drone, a user first defines the protection area on the base-station map before starting the mission, requiring no installation or wiring.

A single Tornyol unit is designed to protect outdoor or indoor areas covering up to 5 acres in size.

Battery life on the current prototype runs to three minutes of flight time on a single charge before recharging.

Once the battery runs low, the drone automatically returns to its charging station and begins recharging.

The recharge process takes about 30 minutes, after which the unit resumes its patrol schedule automatically.

For continuous protection throughout the day, the system intelligently manages and adjusts patrol schedules over time.

Hardware, deployment, and design choices

The drone uses TDK InvenSense T3902 MEMS microphones for its sonar array and consumes less than 5W of power, within USB 3.0 limits.

The microphone array relies on an FPGA to process incoming acoustic data from dozens of sensors in real time.

Current estimates imply that the prototype could be mass produced for a few hundred dollars, though a scaled-down version might cost less.

Toussaint’s background at MBDA, a European missile maker, suggests the underlying sonar and interception system could extend into military applications.

Small, autonomous drones capable of acoustic detection and aerial interception could intercept enemy drones just as they intercept mosquitoes.

Neither Toussaint nor Tornyol has publicly addressed any defense, surveillance, or dual-use potential linked to the underlying sonar technology so far.

On Tornyol‘s website, the drone is marketed as a silent, chemical-free alternative to pesticides, with a refundable $100 deposit reserving a spot.

Buyers can choose a subscription plan, which can be cancelled at any time, or a one-time purchase that grants outright ownership with no recurring fees.

Owned units come with a one-year warranty covering accidental damage, while subscription units are replaced for free if a drone breaks.

Across Europe, “tech sovereignty” is rising up the agenda. For business leaders, however, the implications are practical rather than political. At its core, sovereignty is about control, resilience and trust in the systems that underpin modern operations.

The European Commission’s recently announced technology sovereignty package reflects this shift. With proposals including the Chips Act 2.0, the Cloud and AI Development Act, an EU Open-Source Strategy and a Strategic Roadmap for Digitalisation and AI in Energy, it is intended to strengthen Europe’s digital independence and resilience.

That matters because IT infrastructure is now vital infrastructure. Cloud platforms, connectivity, AI systems and cyber security capabilities are becoming as essential to economic growth and national stability as energy and transport networks.

For years, digital transformation was driven by globalization, scale and efficiency, with organizations prioritizing rapid innovation, cost optimization and access to global technology ecosystems.

But cyber-attacks, regulatory divergence and geopolitical uncertainty have exposed a fundamental reality: efficiency without resilience creates fragility.

From efficiency to resilience

Today, organizations are focused not only on whether systems can withstand cyber-attacks, but whether they can keep operating if a provider, jurisdiction or supply chain becomes unavailable.

Protection and prevention remain essential. But resilience also depends on where systems are hosted, who controls critical infrastructure, how data moves across jurisdictions and whether essential services can be restored quickly during disruption.

Sovereignty is best understood as the ability to continue functioning with confidence when external conditions change. This is particularly relevant for organizations delivering critical services.

Why this matters for the UK

The UK faces many of the same pressures as Europe: rising cyber threats, tighter regulation and rapid AI adoption. But it also has real strengths, including a mature cyber security sector, world-leading professional services expertise, and a strong reputation for governance and innovation.

Those strengths give the UK a significant opportunity to position itself as a trusted partner for secure, resilient digital infrastructure. Realizing it, however, will require continued investment in infrastructure, skills and technology ecosystems.

The UK already has strong foundations. Within Vodafone Business, for example, security services for government and defense customers date back to 1989, underlining the long-term importance of trusted communications and secure operations.

Sovereignty must include AI

The sovereignty conversation is no longer limited to networks, cloud computing infrastructure or cyber security; it now extends to AI itself.

The UK government’s recent £400 million commitment to next-generation AI chips reinforces that ambition and signals a more deliberate push to build sovereign capability in the technologies that will underpin future competitiveness and resilience.

Government investment in sovereign computing capability and broader AI infrastructure also signals recognition that access to advanced computing resources is becoming a strategic national asset.

This matters because AI is rapidly becoming foundational infrastructure. Organizations are embedding it into business operations, cyber security programs, customer engagement and decision-making.

For businesses, sovereignty is not about limiting innovation. It is about ensuring critical capabilities can be developed, governed and accessed in ways that support long-term economic resilience and trust.

Connectivity as critical infrastructure

One of the most important and often overlooked aspects of sovereignty is connectivity. As organizations rely more on AI services, IoT devices and real-time data exchange, networks become the foundation of operational resilience.

If connectivity fails, everything built on it is affected, from customer services and supply chains to communications and core business operations.

That is why investment in secure, resilient, high-capacity networks is central to the sovereignty debate. Without trusted connectivity, digital sovereignty remains theoretical rather than practical.

The formation of VodafoneThree is a significant step in strengthening the UK’s digital backbone. With a commitment to invest £11 billion in next-generation connectivity and an ambition to deliver 99.96% population coverage by 2034, the UK is building infrastructure to support future growth and resilience.

As AI workloads, edge computing, hybrid working and data-intensive applications expand, resilient connectivity becomes a strategic national asset.

This is particularly important for organizations delivering essential services. Today, 77% of UK Blue Light services already run on Vodafone Business networks, underlining the growing importance of trusted connectivity in critical operations.

A strategic moment for the UK

Europe’s emerging sovereignty agenda should not be mistaken for digital isolation. Rather, it reflects a growing recognition that interdependence must be understood, managed and secured.

For security leaders, that means broadening the conversation beyond traditional threat protection to include critical dependencies, digital supply chain resilience and operational continuity. Cyber security is increasingly part of a wider discipline of digital resilience, where security, connectivity, infrastructure and governance converge.

By combining cyber security expertise, growing sovereign AI capabilities, regulatory strengths and continued investment in connectivity, the UK has an opportunity to establish itself as Europe’s trusted security ally.

In the next phase of digital transformation, success will not belong only to those with the most advanced technology, but to those with the most trusted, resilient and transparent foundations.

The sovereignty economy is already taking shape. The question is whether the UK chooses simply to participate in it, or to help define it.

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This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today.

The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit

• Surfshark adds thousands of servers to its FastTrack optimisation feature
• The technology now spans over 2.000 servers
• The VPN is gathering user feedback for further expansion

It was August 2025 when Surfshark told TechRadar that it would expand its custom-built FastTrack technology — its feature designed to optimise VPN traffic routing — and we’re pleased to confirm that it has kept its word.

In a recent post shared on X, Surfshark announced that it has upgraded its infrastructure, making the technology available on more than half of its servers across all continents.

In practical terms, this means that FastTrack, which promises speeds 70% faster than even the best VPNs, is now available on around 50% of its current network of 4.500 servers. If you’re a user, chances are it’s already available in your city too; just check for the FastTrack icon in the server list to find out.

A wide network upgrade

FastTrack is an optimization feature that Surfshark uses on part of its server network.

Rather than simply routing the user via a single virtual private network (VPN) path to connect to a server, FastTrack's algorithm calculates the actual latency values detected within its network to identify the fastest route to that specific VPN server.

Specifically, globally distributed probes run speed tests, measure latency, and save the results to determine the best-performing route for a user located in a specific country who needs to access a specific VPN location.

The system differs from traditional systems, where a server establishes a direct connection with the VPN server, and traffic follows the available route. With FastTrack, all network nodes are constantly monitored. Something that allows the system to continuously select the optimal connection.

FastTrack update: started with 3 locations last year, now covers more than half of our server network across all continents.Up to 70% faster VPN speeds on macOS. Real-time route optimization, fully automatic.Look for the FastTrack icon in your server list.July 16, 2026

Karolis Kaciulis, Leading System Engineer at Surfshark, claims these calculations optimise routes regardless of their geographical location. "For example, if a longer path can actually enhance performance due to better conditions, as it uses more advanced routers or higher-capacity cables, FastTrack will select it."

While the feature was initially limited to just three servers (Sydney, Seattle, and Vancouver), Surfshark has now converted more than 2.000 of its exit nodes to FastTrack, allowing users to connect to a much wider range of new servers that can benefit from the same speed boost.

The expansion seems almost a natural progression and follows the VPN provider’s announcement in October 2025 regarding a massive expansion — both in quantity and quality — of its global server network.

Last year, Surfshark indeed released another innovative self-healing VPN tool, Everlink. The feature aims to ensure connection stability even in the event of serious malfunctions or service interruptions.

More than speed

Of course, speed is obviously the main advantage of FastTrack, but using FastTrack also brings additional benefits, Surfshark claims.

For example, it ensures a significant reduction in routing errors, as one of the key features of Nexus — Surfshark’s routing infrastructure — is precisely its redundancy.

Indeed, as Nexus offers multiple routes within the network, if one route encounters a problem, traffic can be automatically redirected via another available route, thereby helping to prevent interruptions or slowdowns.

Surfshark also claims that FastTrack improves the VPN service overall, as it operates on a different data center network from traditional ISPs, naturally reducing the likelihood of throttling or various network limitations.

So, are there any drawbacks to this unique technology? Probably the most pressing issue currently is that it is only available on Surfshark’s VPN app for Mac and iOS platforms. These limitations have already prompted some users online to call for an Android version as well.

"We are connecting user feedback to help determine where to expand next," a Surfshark spokesperson told TechRadar, fuelling hopes that new updates are already on the way.

• 1Password unveils Claude partnership, letting Anthropic’s AI authenticate on users’ behalf via zero‑exposure architecture
• Users approve each login with biometrics
• New Agentic Mode in the browser extension locks down the interface when AI agents take over

Top password manager company 1Password has launched a new tool that allows artificial intelligence assistant Claude to authenticate on behalf of their user, and thus complete assignments that were previously impossible without major security tradeoffs.

1Password for Claude is built on “zero-exposure architecture” - so in practice, it means Claude can essentially ask 1Password to complete the sign-in process, but it will never see the credentials, and they will never be loaded into its memory.

In turn, 1Password will notify the user, and will request biometric approval before proceeding. Once granted, it will autofill the credentials and check to see if they were exposed on the page or not. If submission fails, it will clear the filled values and report back.

Agentic Mode

"We need a new security model that is purpose-built for agents, not just humans,” said Nancy Wang, CTO of 1Password. “The answer isn't handing agents your secrets. It is to let a user give an agent permission to use a credential without letting the agent see it. Claude knows it used your login; it does not need the password or one-time code in its context. That distinction is where trust in agents starts and the foundation we're building with Anthropic."

To further strengthen its security posture, 1Password also announced Agentic Mode, a new feature in the browser extension that gives users visibility and control over browser-based AI agents. When a compatible AI agent takes over, the 1Password extension automatically locks down and hides the interface. The agent can only use the logins and OTPs explicitly approved for the current task.

Even if the integration is not set up, and even if 1Password is not required for the current agentic task, Agentic Mode works, the company stressed. Other agents, besides Claude, are supported, as well.

Currently a major debate is ongoing, about how much permissions AI agents should receive, and under what rules. We’ve already seen horror stories of AI agents deleting people’s entire email inboxes, or otherwise ruining days of hard work. Whether or not this picks up or most people remain skeptical about giving AI access to certain services, remains to be seen.

• Streaming giant Netflix has revealed that 300 movies and shows used generative AI in 2026
• The news was shared in a shareholder letter, obtained by the website Kotaku
• Generative AI was used to “enhance crowds, historical battle sequences, and worldbuilding establishing shots.”

Netflix has recently admitted to using AI tools in a huge number of its movies and shows, with the shocking announcement delivered in its shareholder letter on July 16.

According to Kotaku, which obtained the shareholder letter, Netflix says that AI is now fully integrated into many different projects and is used from the concept stage through pre-visualization, filming, and post-production.

They also revealed that generative AI was mostly used in post-production across the 300 shows and movies using it in 2026.

“We are increasingly leveraging these tools to deliver higher quality output more quickly and at a lower cost than traditional methods,” Netflix said in the shareholder letter. “In some cases, productions would have had to leave out key shots and sequences in the absence of GenAI technology.”

Using The American Experiment as an example, Netflix added that using generative AI tools “enhanced crowds, historical battle sequences, and worldbuilding establishing shots.”

It's not just the best streaming service's shows that are affected either, as AI is also working its way into the app itself, with Netflix explaining that it will use LLMs and AI to “improve title discovery” and “better understand member preferences.”

First they cancel all my favorite shows, now they're using AI

Netflix canceled The Boroughs recently, joining a long line of shows axed by the streaming giant. (Image credit: Netflix)

Netflix has made a lot of poor decisions in recent months. Recently, my colleague Rowan Davies criticized the streamer for chasing YouTube content, saying he was worried they don't actually care about the future of their shows and movies.

I'm inclined to agree, too, as the streaming service has a track record of cancelling its shows. Just recently, The Boroughs was canceled after one season, and it's not the first time they've abandoned shows early on.

They have also used an AI-generated voice of the late actor Gene Wilder in a new reality show, which our editor at large, Lance Ulanoff, said was "too far".

This, teamed with the most recent AI announcement, has filled me with despair, and I'm worried a lot of my favorite Netflix shows aren't getting the love they deserve.

This decision will no doubt divide fans, but this is the kind of thing that's going to make me turn away from Netflix and prioritize other streaming services instead. It feels like Netflix is falling out of love with its shows, and I'm starting to do the same.

It's officially summer holiday season in the northern hemisphere (sorry, readers in Australia and New Zealand), and that means it's time to put the TV on for the kids before you go on family vacation.

You won't want to stick any of the following new movies or TV shows on for them, though. None of them are family friendly, so I'd advise you to load up something else on one of the world's best streaming services instead.

However, once they're tucked up in bed, I implore you to throw on one or more of these seven great-looking films and TV series. That said, maybe don't start this week's number one choice before you head off for a good night's rest yourself, because it is terrifying in the best way possible. — Tom Power, senior entertainment reporter

Obsession (Peacock)

I'm not joking when I say Obsession, the breakout movie hit of 2026 so far that's finally landed on Peacock, is frighteningly fun. I spent weeks thinking about this supernatural horror after seeing it, and I'll readily admit that I felt uncomfortable for the first few nights post-watch, too.

For those who don't know: Obsession follows Bear (Michael Johnston), a lovesick loser who has a crushe on one of his besties Nikki (Inde Navarrette). When Bear stumbles upon an item called the One Wish Willow, he buys one and uses it to make Nikki fall in love with him. It's a spur-of-the-moment action that ends up having horrifying and deadly consequences, and will have you constantly repeating Nikki's "No, no, no, no, don't do thaaaaat!" line in your head as the plot progresses.

Before you stream it, check out our review of Obsession to see why everyone's, well, become obsessed with a film that, on a reported budget of just $750,000, has made $400m globally, broken horror film box office records, and turned Navarrette into a serial awards contender. And hey, if Peacock isn't available in your region yet, see where you can rent or but the Curry Barker-directed phenomenon instead. — TP

• Watch Obsession on Peacock

Heartstopper Forever (Netflix)

Guys... the end we've been dreading is here. Nick and Charlie's wholesome relationship has been an IP central to Netflix original content, but now it all ends with Heartstopper Forever.

If you're bummed out because we're not getting a full fourth season, don't be. As Nick, Charlie, and the gang all brace before going their separate ways to university, a feature film actually reflects their growing maturity and crises of confidence much more fittingly.

Heartstopper Forever really is forever... at least, it is in my house, where I'll be replaying it so much that Netflix might issue a warning. Its spirit and generation-defining impact will live on, and that might be the most special achievement the streamer has ever been responsible for. — Jasmine Valentine, entertainment reporter

• Watch Heartstopper Forever on Netflix

Ride or Die (Prime Video)

Whoever thought to cast Octavia Spencer and Hannah Waddingham together in an Amazon action comedy show needs a raise immediately. Ride or Die gives us the entertainment duo that we didn't know that we needed and plenty of laughs along the way.

The pair play best friends Debbie Claybourne and Judith Burton, who thought they knew everything about each other. But, when Judith (Waddingham) turns out to be an international assassin when a mysterious figure emerges, their worlds are turned upside down.

Tackling everything from menopause to, well, the complexities of life, this Prime Video Original is an incredible amount of fun. And, surely that's the most important thing in life, right? — JV

• Watch Ride or Die on Prime Video

Lucky (Apple TV)

Is there anything Anya Taylor-Joy can't do? Ever since she made her debut in Robert Eggers' The Witch, I've been impressed by just how varied each of her roles are.

In Apple TV's Lucky, she plays a con artist forced to go on the run after a heist goes wrong. Across seven episodes, we follow Luciana 'Lucky' Armstrong as she tries to evade the FBI and a ruthless crime boss, hoping that she'll live up to her nickname and make it out alive. It seems that breaking the law runs in her family, too, as Timothy Olyphant stars as her father who's in prison when the story begins.

The first two episodes are out now, and something tells me this will be another Apple Original for me to get hooked on. — Lucy Buglass, senior entertainment writer

• Watch Lucky on Apple TV

The Hawk (Netflix)

If you ask me, Will Ferrell and golf feels like a natural TV marriage. The Hawk on Netflix is proving me right, with Ferrell playing Lonnie Hawkins, a top golfer in 2004. Two decades on and he's trying to recapture his magic late in his career. However, he refuses to believe he's anything other than one stroke away from golf's greatest comeback.

If you've ever watched Happy Gilmore or The Phantom of the Open, this is for you... even if you're pretending that you actually know the first thing about the sport, which is easily done. — JV

• Watch The Hawk on Netflix

Descendants: Wicked Wonderland (Disney+)

The Descendants franchise continues over on Disney+ with Wicked Wonderland, which marks the fifth installment in the series (even I didn't think that there had been so many).

Picking up shortly after Descendants: The Rise of Red, Red and Chloe return from their time-travelling adventures to find that the Queen of Hearts is trapped. The once notorious villain now has a nice streak, but that gives way to a new evil: Maddox Hatter.

Personally, I still can't believe that a UK 2010s popstar is playing one of the most iconic fictional queens of all time. If you're British, it has to be seen for that reason alone. — JV

• Watch Descendants: Wicked Wonderland on Disney+

Murder 101 (Prime Video)

Prime Video's new three-part docuseries is a fascinating one. Murder 101 is about a high school sociology class based in rural Tennessee who help revive a decades-old case into a shocking present-day hunt for a killer.

It's the sort of thing you'd expect to find in a work of fiction, Netflix's How to Get Away with Murder springs to mind, but this is 100% real. You can also check out the podcast of the same name if you'd like to dive in deeper.

Ultimately, this program showcases the power of a local community as we follow a group of students turned amateur sleuths. I'm already locked in. — LB

• Watch Murder 101 on Prime Video

"We decided not to limit VPNs." These six words from Online Safety Minister Kanishka Narayan ended months of tension on Wednesday, confirming the government's U-turn on age-gating privacy tools.

VPN services are popular software that millions of people in the UK use every day to encrypt their online activities for better privacy and security. Yet, their ability to grant access to geo-blocked content has also been making enemies among democratic countries lately, as age verification laws spread across the world.

This friction has led some British lawmakers to dub VPNs a "loophole that needed to be closed," prompting a national consultation to investigate how kids use this technology.

The announcement of an upcoming UK teen social media ban has made this process even more crucial. Since then, many have speculated that it would have helped to tip the scales towards new VPN restrictions. And yet, that didn't happen.

"This is the right call, and a welcome recognition that VPNs play a crucial role in everyday cybersecurity," Justas Pukys, Senior Product Manager at Surfshark, told TechRadar, adding that protecting children online and preserving strong cybersecurity tools "can, and should, go hand in hand."

But why did the UK government choose to leave VPNs alone after all? And can this bold decision pave the way for a similar response in the rest of Europe?

Why the UK government will not age-gate VPNs

(Image credit: Jose Sarmento Matos/Bloomberg via Getty Images)

As the UK Science, Innovation and Technology Secretary, Liz Kendall, explains in a parliamentary statement, VPNs have legitimate privacy and security uses. The reason why, she explains, "we will therefore not age-gate or ban them."

Independent research conducted by Kendall's department has indeed found that privacy is the top reason UK children use a VPN. Only a small minority of them — between 7% and 10% — do so to bypass mandatory age checks.

The latest Ofcom report on the use of age assurance — which was also published on Wednesday — paints a similar picture. While confirming that VPN usage doubled in the UK following the enforcement of mandatory age verification, only "a relatively small minority of children" use these tools to access restricted content or features.

These findings mirror separate YouGov research commissioned by the VPN Trust Initiative, which revealed that a mere 1.4% of surveyed minors use a VPN specifically to access platforms meant for older demographics. Before that, a May 2026 study conducted by Internet Matters also found that only 7% used a VPN to circumvent age restrictions.

This evidence doesn't necessarily mean that children aren't trying to evade controls. Yet, they show how most young people do so simply by entering a fake birthdate or using a parent's login.

So, the onus to prevent kids from evading controls is now back on the platforms. But the government also shared the intention to "engage with VPN providers on voluntary action and strengthen guidance and support for parents."

NordVPN's Privacy Advocate, Laura Tyrylyte, welcomes the prospect of working with lawmakers to find a balanced solution, praising Kendall's decision.

"The Government is right to recognise the important role that VPNs play and to adopt an evidence-led approach," Tyrylyte told TechRadar.

And while arguing that "it should have been obvious from the start," Windscribe's CEO, Yegor Sak, explains that this move reassures VPN users in the UK that they can continue using VPNs. "Without worrying that a legal privacy tool is about to be treated as suspicious by default," he added.

Will other countries follow the UK?

UK wasn't alone in toying with the idea of age-restricting VPN apps.

The EU is also considering something similar following the release of its age verification app. On a national level, France is also evaluating VPN use as it gets ready to enforce its under-15 social media ban.

That's why Mozilla Product Policy Manager, Svea Windwehr, urges European governments to follow the UK's lead.

"We urge policymakers everywhere to address the root causes of online harms, and follow the UK's evidence-based approach in keeping VPNs accessible for everyone," Windwehr told TechRadar.

And while the wider industry is now hopeful that VPN restrictions will ultimately disappear from politicians' agendas, the tensions between children's safety and people's privacy have not been defused yet.

"If an online safety regime only works when everyone's location and identity are easy to verify, the problem is the regime. Not the tool that prevents constant identification," Sak from Windiscribe told TechRadar.

NymVPN's CEO, Harry Halpin, agrees with Sak on this, warning that UK lawmakers' action could still impact VPN users in the country.

"The problem is that the UK government is still pursuing its idea of connecting your passport to your internet usage," Halpin told TechRadar, arguing that this still "hinders free access to the internet even if VPNs are usable."

The road to ensuring age verification systems don't hurt our digital freedoms may still be long. But protecting the integrity of the VPN is certainly a step in the right direction that we hope more politicians will replicate.

The question of where data lives has become considerably more fraught over the past few years.

A mix of regulatory scrutiny, geopolitical tensions across the Atlantic, and the related unease about the concentration of infrastructure power among the hyperscalers have all combined to push data sovereignty up the executive agenda.

The result? A strategic posture that’s increasingly shaped by political anxiety rather than operational logic.

And while both need to be considered by the boardroom, leaning too much on the former leads to very different decisions.

To be clear, there’s no debate that compliance with data residency requirements remains a genuine obligation for organizations in regulated industries, and nobody is suggesting otherwise.

The concern is with what comes next: many organizations are at the "we must manage our data carefully" stage, and are considering a leap to "we should consider exiting hyperscaler infrastructure entirely." While the logic could be understandable, the reality is that full disengagement is neither effective nor necessary for the bulk of organizations.

The hyperscalers earned their position because they offered capabilities that were genuinely difficult to replicate at scale, and the organizations that depend on them most deeply are not in a position to unwind that dependency in any near-term timeframe. A multi-year transformation program with substantial execution risk is rarely the right answer to a political concern that may itself shift within that same period.

Conflating data residency and operational resilience

The focus on sovereignty has meant that ideas about data residency, infrastructure control, and operational resilience are being treated as interchangeable concepts. While connected, these are distinct ideas with distinct impacts on a business’s ability to function effectively and comply with regulation.

Let’s consider the incidents that really bring organizations down, and what makes data recovery harder than it needs to be. It’s system failures, slow incident response, and exploited security vulnerabilities that take customer-facing services offline, erode trust and incur regulatory fines. A platform that fails during peak demand causes the same commercial and reputational damage regardless of where its data is stored.

Similarly, a security breach does not become more or less severe based on whether it occurred on domestic or international infrastructure. The metrics that determine whether an organization functions under pressure are uptime, security posture and the quality of incident response capability. Sovereignty is one input to that picture, not the frame through which the whole picture should be viewed.

Simply put, an organization is not resilient simply because its data sits in the right jurisdiction. Resilience is an architectural and operational property that has to be built deliberately.

Where real control lives

If sovereignty decisions are best understood as one component of broader operational resilience, then the more productive question is where in the stack is control most effectively exercised. The answer, particularly as AI applications proliferate, is primarily at the data layer.

The database has moved beyond its traditional role as a storage mechanism. In modern architectures, it is often the most reliable point of deterministic control in the entire stack: the place where governance is enforced in practice rather than documented in policy.

Data location, encryption, access controls, cross-region movement – all of these are data infrastructure questions at heart. Getting them right is what makes meaningful sovereignty achievable, not as a political statement, but as an operational capability.

So in turn, when an organization has genuine control over governance at the data layer, suddenly the choice between a hyperscaler and a fully domestic alternative becomes less relevant. The question shifts from which provider to use to whether the infrastructure is flexible enough to enforce the appropriate rules for each workload. That reframing tends to produce considerably better outcomes.

In practice, this means building in tiers: cloud-native performance where the business requires speed, scalability and flexibility, on-premise or segmented deployments for regulated workloads, and the architectural flexibility to move between configurations as circumstances change. After all, regulations will continue to evolve.

The geopolitical environment that is currently driving sovereignty conversations will look different in three years. That means infrastructure decisions made under today's conditions need to remain workable under tomorrow's.

Building for change, not for certainty

The practical implication for technology leaders is straightforward: meet your regulatory obligations, exercise genuine control at the data layer, and build the architectural flexibility to adjust as requirements shift.

But after that, it’s important to give equal attention and consideration to the failure modes that are statistically far more likely to cause very tangible and costly problems: outages at peak load, delayed incident responses and vulnerabilities that could be exploited.

At the end of the day, those are far likelier to be discussed in post-mortems – not sovereignty. And while sovereignty deserves its place in the technology strategy conversation, it should sit within a resilience framework, not above it.

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This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today.

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If a 32GB DDR5-6000 kit is on your build list, I've just found two good options that are now even cheaper.

First up, you can get V-Color's Manta XSky CL30 kit for $419.99 (usually $449) at Newegg.

Then there's the Corsair Vengeance CL36 kit for $429.37 (usually $476.99) at Amazon — both discounted, with the tighter timings on one and the brand-name safety net on the other.

Today's top DDR5 RAM deals

32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 (PC5-48000) kit with SK Hynix ICs, CL30 timing (30-38-38-96) at 1.35V, AMD EXPO profile support, and RGB lighting in a black heatspreader. Backed by a limited lifetime warranty.View Deal

32GB (2x16GB) DDR5-6000 (PC5-48000) kit with CL36 timing (36-44-44-96) at 1.35V, dual AMD EXPO and Intel XMP 3.0 support, and a low-profile grey aluminum heatspreader with no RGB. Backed by Corsair's limited lifetime warranty.View Deal

Both of these kits run at the same 6000MHz headline speed, but the timings tell a different story. The V-Color kit's CL30 rating is meaningfully tighter than the Corsair kit's CL36, and in real terms that means lower memory latency — the kind of difference that shows up in CPU-bound games and latency-sensitive workloads, even if the two kits post similar raw bandwidth numbers on paper.

Corsair's Vengeance line, on the other hand, is one of the most established names in desktop memory, with dual AMD EXPO and Intel XMP 3.0 profiles baked in — useful if you're not committed to a platform yet, or if you're building a system for someone else and want the broadest possible compatibility without needing to hunt down a platform-specific SKU.

Aesthetically, the two kits split down the middle too. The V-COLOR Manta XSky ships with RGB lighting in a taller black heatspreader, which matters if this is going in a windowed case you actually look at. The Corsair Vengeance kit skips the RGB entirely for a lower-profile grey heatspreader, which can be the safer pick if you're running a large air cooler and need to double-check RAM clearance.

A couple of honest notes: neither kit's rated 6000MHz speed and timings are guaranteed on every motherboard — actually hitting CL30 or CL36 at 6000MHz depends on your board's memory controller and BIOS support for AMD EXPO or Intel XMP, so it's worth checking your motherboard's supported memory list (QVL) before buying either.

And while V-COLOR is a well-regarded enthusiast memory brand, it doesn't carry the same broad name recognition or retail support network as Corsair, which is worth weighing if brand support history matters to your purchase.

If tighter timings and RGB matter more to you, go with the V-Color Manta XSky at $419.99. If you'd rather stick with an established name and broader platform support, the Corsair Vengeance kit at $429.37 is the safer call.

• See all memory deals at Newegg and Amazon.

Last week, as European lawmakers packed their bags for the summer recess, a controversial surveillance law was quietly brought back to life. It's the latest plot twist in the struggle to find a balance between digital privacy and children's safety.

Through an unusual procedural loophole, the European Parliament revived what’s been dubbed "Chat Control 1.0." It's a temporary rule that allows tech giants like Meta, Google, and Microsoft to voluntarily scan citizens' unencrypted private messages in search of child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

While the law — which is expected to officially pass once MEPs return from summer recess — excludes end-to-end encrypted apps like Signal and WhatsApp, its resurrection has sent shockwaves through the digital rights community.

Critics have not only slammed the revival procedure as "undemocratic," but also warned that it could mean mass scanning becomes permanent.

Central to the debate is whether Big Tech should use mass scanning (where everybody's data is checked) or targeted scanning (where only people identified as potential suspects are affected).

And while the European Parliament decided to reject mass scanning in March in favor of a "proportional and targeted" approach, last week’s vote represents a major U-turn that brings it back to the table.

But how did a law voted down over three months ago end up on the fast track to be enforced? And what will be the lasting impact on our privacy?

How Chat Control 1.0 was revived

(Image credit: Photo by Pier Marco Tacca/Getty Images)

Due to the "rarely used" legal procedure adopted last week, an absolute majority was required to reject the proposal.

This meant at least 361 MEPs were required to vote against it — something critics say was difficult to achieve as many of them were already on holiday.

So, despite the majority of MEPs rejecting it (314 against, 276 in favor), the motion was sent to the Council for final approval, which is expected in September.

Initially intended as a stopgap while lawmakers debated the permanent Child Sexual Abuse Regulation (CSAR) bill — aka Chat Control 2.0 — the interim framework was in place from 2021 until it terminated in April of this year.

Since then, child safety groups and some MEPs have argued that the legal vacuum this caused required urgent action — a gap addressed by last week's vote.

However, Google, Meta, Microsoft, and Snapchat issued a joint statement in April pledging to "continue to take voluntary action" to execute CSAM scans — regardless of whether the interim scanning law was enacted.

The privacy backlash

Many critics didn’t like how the Chat Control gambit unfolded, calling EP President Roberta Metsola's actions a political stunt. They allege she used a legal loophole strategically to schedule a vote during the final meeting of the legislative season to maximize its chances of passing.

A long-standing critic of the CSAM scanning law, former MEP for the German Pirate Party and digital rights jurist Patrick Breyer didn’t mince words, slamming Metsola's move as a "farce" that "damages democracy."

Robin Wilton, the Internet Society's Senior Director for Internet Trust, also told TechRadar that the "extraordinary bending of parliamentary procedure" required to pass the bill should concern everyone.

In a written statement to TechRadar, Roberta Metsola’s press office said, "it was not the President who brought this up or pushed for it" but that the issue was raised by other political groups during a meeting in June.

The lasting impact of Chat Control 1.0

While the temporary legal framework is expected to be reinstated soon, the more significant battle over CSAM scanning and digital privacy continues in the background.

Lawmakers are still discussing the terms of the permanent CSAR law, with negotiations reportedly stalling over the issue of targeted or mass scanning.

Critics are now concerned that last week's vote could steer the direction of the debates regarding the permanent law. And not in ways that would protect people's digital privacy.

Rand Hammoud, Director of the Security, Surveillance and Human Rights Programme and Regional Encryption Lead at the Center for Democracy and Technology (CDT), fears that passing the temporary law risks legitimizing mass scanning and says that opposition may become "more difficult" to sustain.

Put simply, because the temporary law allows for mass scanning, the permanent legislation may be more likely to include the same provision.

Did you know?

(Image credit: Colin Andreson Productions pty ltd/via Getty Images)

Some technology researchers have warned that mass scanning may lead to a surge in false positives. While some groups may view these errors as an inevitable part of any technology that can be fixed, Belgian cryptographer Bart Preneel — the author of multiple research papers on this matter — warns it could take at least two years to develop a better solution.

Digital rights advocates have long argued that mass scanning is a privacy "disaster waiting to happen," calling for more targeted solutions. They believe that even when the scanning is "voluntary" — meaning when tech companies can choose whether to perform the scanning or not — it remains problematic.

For child safety groups, however, voluntary scanning is non-negotiable. According to Hannah Swirsky, the Internet Watch Foundation's (IWF) Head of Policy and Public Affairs, it would be a mistake to limit detection only to individual suspects.

"The scale of the issue with CSAM requires technology to be used widely across platform systems," Swirsky told TechRadar.

Either way, Hammoud from CDT Europe says finding the right balance between privacy and children's safety "demands careful, evidence-based lawmaking" — a standard she argues was lacking in the fast-tracked procedure last week.

What’s next for the privacy of chats?

Despite the temporary law expected to officially pass in autumn, some opponents of Chat Control are still hopeful.

Crucially, the vote showed that most MEPs remain unconvinced about the current legal framework being developed. And while there is deep disagreement on how to do so effectively, it is worth noting that people on all sides want to find solutions that keep children safe online.

As the EU institutions pull down the shutters for the summer, we can only hope that politicians are able to reach a compromise that upholds democratic principles while keeping children safe and defending citizens' digital privacy.

• Coca‑Cola confirmed a ransomware attack on its dairy subsidiary Fairlife, forcing suspension of US production operations while Canada sites remain unaffected
• Incident response protocols were activated, with third‑party experts and authorities engaged; product quality and safety were not impacted
• Analysts warn the financial impact could be significant given Fairlife’s importance, with losses compounding the longer production remains offline

Coca Cola was forced to shut down parts of its operations to tackle an ongoing ransomware infection.

In an 8-K form recently filed with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company said the attackers struck Fairlife, its dairy company.

“On July 16, 2026, The Coca-Cola Company announced that fairlife, a dairy company owned by the company, identified unauthorized access by a third party to a portion of its systems, including its production-related systems, in connection with a ransomware event,” the filing reads.

Compounding impact

Coca Cola then explained that it kicked off its incident response and business continuity protocols, bringing in third-party cybersecurity experts to help investigate the attack and assess the damages. It also notified relevant authorities.

However, the production in the US has been affected, since parts of the operation had to be suspended: “Product quality and safety have not been impacted. However, as a result of the incident, production operations at fairlife in the United States are temporarily suspended. fairlife’s Canada production operations are not currently impacted,” Coca Cola explained.

It said it was now working to bring the systems back up, and that it has “not yet determined whether the incident is reasonably likely to materially affect the company.”

In a statement shared with TechRadar Pro, Cybersecurity Researcher and Advanced Services Lead at Arcova, Joseph Perry, stressed that the material impact is likely to be great. How great - depends on how fast Coca Cola moves.

“Fairlife is not a minor business buried inside Coca-Cola’s portfolio. Coca-Cola generated nearly $48 billion in net revenue last year and made a $6.1 billion contingent payment tied to its acquisition of fairlife, which provides important context for the value of the operation now sitting idle,” Perry explains.

“With production suspended across fairlife’s US facilities, every hour can compound the financial impact through lost output, delayed shipments, recovery costs, inventory exposure and potential disruption for retailers. Coca-Cola has not yet quantified the loss, but the longer production remains offline, the more quickly a cyber incident becomes a material business event.”

Via BleepingComputer

House of the Dragon season 3 will officially enter its back half later this week. Indeed, with four episodes down and just as many left to be released before this season's final end-credits sequence rolls, the high-fantasy show's latest multi-part installment will be over before we know it.

Regardless, plenty of melodrama, fiery action, and shock moments await us over the next few episodes. So when will House of the Dragon's next entry present itself to the world? You know the drill by now: read on to find out more!

What is the launch time for House of the Dragon season 3 episode 5?

House of the Dragon season 3 episode 5 will premiere at 6pm PT / 9pm ET on Sunday, July 19 in the US and Canada. Fans who live elsewhere will have to wait until Monday, July 20 to check it out.

As for the time that the Game of Thrones prequel's next installment will internationally, the below list will tell you:

• US — Sunday, July 12 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• Canada — Sunday, July 12 at 6pm PT / 9pm ET
• UK — Monday, July13 at 2am BST
• India — Monday, July 13 at 6:30am IST
• Singapore — Monday, July 13 at 9am SGT
• Australia — Monday, July 13 at 11am AEST
• New Zealand — Monday, July 13 at 1pm NZST

How do I watch House of the Dragon season 3 episode 5?

No factions here. pic.twitter.com/hCGFFHiAdoJuly 12, 2026

By loading up one of the best streaming services in your region of the world, of course.

For the vast majority of you, HBO Max is the platform you'll need to head to — as long as you have an active account, anyway — to catch the HBO TV Original's next entry. However, if you haven't signed up to the Warner Bros-owned streamer, or if it hasn't launched where you live, don't fret. Scroll on to see which other TV networks and streamers it'll be available on in your neck of the woods:

• US — HBO and HBO Max
• Canada — Crave
• UK — HBO Max, Sky Atlantic, and Now TV
• India — JioHotstar
• Singapore — HBO Max
• Australia — HBO Max
• New Zealand — HBO Max

When will House of the Dragon's next episode come out?

You've earned a seat on Rhaenyra's small council. What's your dream role?July 14, 2026

If it wasn't obvious by now, new chapters will drop every Sunday in North and South America, and every Monday on other continents.

For the third and final time in this article, read the list below to see when the remaining three episodes will be released near you:

• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 1 — out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 2 — out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 3 — out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 4— out now
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 5 — July 19/20
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 6 — July 26/27
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 7 — August 2/3
• House of the Dragon season 3 episode 8 — August 9/10

We’re in what’s being dubbed the ‘year of AI ROI’. Four years on from the AI boom - ignited by the launch of ChatGPT - many businesses now believe that they’re AI-ready, using successful early-stage chatbot and copilot rollouts as evidence.

Yet there is a significant difference between experimenting with AI and embedding it across complex business processes and operations.

The real barrier to this transformation sits beneath the models themselves. While most AI outcomes-related conversations focus on model performance, GPUs, and compute capacity, organisations are increasingly realising that it’s their data infrastructure holding AI projects back.

Up until now, businesses have got away with operating successfully despite their disconnected file environments, inconsistent data governance, and information spread across multiple repositories.

This is because historically, data has been accessed sporadically, mostly by human employees who could compensate for shortcomings when data lacked context or wasn’t where it should be.

Simply put, data infrastructure didn’t need to be perfect, so it wasn’t. However, these fragmented file environments are now impossible to ignore as AI demands 24/7 consistent access to information, strong governance, and trusted data.

This puts enterprises in an uncomfortable situation: under pressure to deploy AI, but missing the foundations needed to be truly successful with AI projects at scale.

AI makes the data puzzle more complicated

Traditional file environments were built for a world where information lived in separate locations, individual teams managed access, and gaps in governance or data availability could be worked around.

This means that enterprises are now operating with fragmented information spread across multiple locations, with inconsistent governance and varying levels of accessibility. When data is accessed primarily by human employees, these inefficiencies are a source of frustration rather than a barrier.

This is where AI changes things. Models depend on fast, reliable access to information. If data is difficult to find, lacks context or cannot be accessed consistently, its value diminishes rapidly. In this instance, enterprises have data, but it’s completely unusable.

Overconfidence is coming at the expense of real success

Most organizations realize that their data infrastructure is far from perfect. Yet, the pressure to demonstrate progress on AI is intense. If businesses aren’t investing in and experimenting with AI, they’re seen as behind the curve. This is creating a strong incentive to deploy new tools as quickly as possible.

The problem is that organizations' early-stage AI learnings, if not outright success, are creating an overconfidence in their wider AI readiness and ability to scale up. Chatbots and copilots, which provide a lower barrier to entry to AI, are enabling organizations to demonstrate early, tangible AI outcomes.

When these projects deliver value, enterprises start to think that perhaps their infrastructure is future-proofed after all, despite a lack of sustained attempts to address and resolve deeper structural issues around their data accessibility, governance and infrastructure. These same businesses are also struggling with data recovery after cyber incidents - the warning signs are there, but current overconfidence is blurring reality.

As a result, businesses are moving rapidly onto major agentic projects, only to face delays, questions over ROI, and often, an implementation that fails. The irony is that an urgency to deploy AI is actually slowing long-term progress.

Organizations hellbent on deploying AI are risking overlooking the deeper risk management and data management work required to support it, while those that invest in strong data foundations are more likely to achieve sustainable success as their AI ambitions grow.

Shifting data from a cost to an asset

Most businesses don’t suffer from a lack of data; if anything, they have the opposite problem. Unfortunately, this is still viewed as an operational cycle driven by capacity planning, refresh cycles and expansion requirements, rather than a strategic asset. Industry research consistently shows IT teams still struggle to get a grip on their unstructured data - where most of their data assets reside - despite most of them believing their file data setup is robust.

The difference now is that AI systems operate continuously, drawing on information created today, yesterday, and sometimes decades ago. To deliver meaningful outcomes, they require consistent access to trusted data, rich context, and clear governance.

This means that organizations need to rethink their approach to enterprise information. When data is treated purely as a storage refresh challenge, AI quickly exposes the limitations of that approach. However, when it’s treated as a strategic asset, organizations can create environments where information is accessible, governed and ready to behave in the way that AI expects.

C-Suites’ goal should be to move from steady-state storage capacity to data utility, creating centralized environments with fewer systems, where data can be used no matter where it is located. This shift reduces fragmentation, simplifies data management and creates a unified view of the enterprise’s information, and with it the path to competitive edge.

The fewer barriers that exist between AI and the data it needs, the easier it becomes to move from isolated AI successes to meaningful deployment at scale for productivity and efficiency benefits.

Fix the foundations before scaling AI

The success of chatbot or copilot rollouts does not indicate AI readiness. It is instead measured by data utility: whether the data underpinning AI tools is accessible, secure, and fit for purpose at scale.

The organizations that succeed with AI in the coming years will not be those deploying the most advanced models or the biggest number of agents, but those who can provide AI with consistent access to trusted, well-governed data.

Those boards that keep investing in sophisticated AI tools without upgrading their data layer and governance will find their operations shackled for years to come by the same underlying data access and governance limitations.

It’s time to stop viewing data as an operational burden and start treating it as a strategic asset, helping unleash organizations' true IP and powering their ability to innovate. Building strong data foundations today will set organizations on the path to realizing long-term AI value, instead of discovering down the line that AI ambitions outpace their ability to support them.

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This article was produced as part of TechRadar Pro Perspectives, our channel to feature the best and brightest minds in the technology industry today.

The views expressed here are those of the author and are not necessarily those of TechRadarPro or Future plc. If you are interested in contributing find out more here: https://www.techradar.com/pro/perspectives-how-to-submit