Eliana Willis

Jack Wallen / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETZDNET’s key takeawaysLinux offers more security, privacy, and freedom from vendors.Modern Linux distros are user-friendly — even for non-techies.Linux Mint, Zorin OS, MX Linux top beginner distro list.Why would you want to switch to the Linux desktop? There are many reasons, but the short version is that the operating system is more secure, provides far more privacy, and frees you from vendor lock-in. For current Windows users, it also provides a way to continue using your Windows 10 PC even if your machine cannot be upgraded to Windows 11.Besides, contrary to popular opinion, anyone can use and enjoy Linux as a desktop operating system. I taught my then-mother-in-law, who was 79 years old, how to use Ubuntu Linux, and we didn’t even speak the same language! If she could do it, you can do it. Also: 8 ways I quickly leveled up my Linux skills – and you can tooYes, Linux was once difficult to learn, but those days are long gone. Don’t believe me? Ever use an Android phone? A Chromebook? Congratulations, you’re already a Linux user, but maybe you didn’t know it. If you want to, you can dive deep into Linux shell scripts and do all your work from the Bash shell, but nobody must do that anymore. There are old-school desktop distributions, such as Gentoo and Linux From Scratch, where you need to be a Linux maven to make the most of them. But those distros aren’t for you. Also: The best Linux laptops you can buy: Expert tested for students, hobbyists, and prosYou need a Linux distribution that looks like Windows with a gentle learning curve. I get that. While I’ve used Linux for over three decades and Unix desktops before that, I know what it’s like to be a new user. It also doesn’t help your situation that there are hundreds of desktop Linux distributions to choose from. Some are hard, but most are simple. I’m here to help you select the version of Linux that will get you started on the right foot. I’ve tested all these myself. 1. Linux Mint Best Linux distribution for beginners overall Price: Free | Core code: Ubuntu 24.04 | Open source: Yes More

Motorola Razr (2025) <!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Motorola Razr (2025) is on sale for $700 and comes in four distinct colors. Its OLED touchscreen, robust camera system, and flexible design combine to create one of my favorite smartphone experiences in 2025. However, the performance from the MediaTek chipset is rather lackluster. more buying choices […] More

Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNETZDNET’s Key takeaways:Apple Intelligence will be upgraded with GPT-5. GPT-5 is OpenAI’s recently launched most capable model.Users will be able to access GPT-5 in iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and macOS 26. OpenAI released GPT-5 on Thursday, saying it’s the company’s most capable, smartest, and fastest model to date. While everyone, including free users, can access the model for free today via ChatGPT, Apple device users will be able to try it out even more easily. Apple’s first foray into the AI race was the launch of Apple Intelligence in 2024. Taking its time to enter the AI space, the company took a different approach from competitors, forgoing the release of its own AI models and choosing to use OpenAI’s instead via an integration with ChatGPT. Soon, that integration will use GPT-5. Also: 3 Apple Intelligence features that would convince me to ditch Gemini and ChatGPTApple confirmed to me that the iOS 26, iPadOS 26, and MacOS 26 operating systems, which are slated to launch in the fall, will be accompanied by GPT-5. Currently, with the existing ChatGPT integration, Apple users have the option to send Siri queries to ChatGPT instead if they’re better suited for the chatbot’s capabilities. Other integrations are ChatGPT with Writing Tools, which uses the chatbot to compose text or images in different areas of the interface, and ChatGPT with Visual Intelligence, which leverages ChatGPT’s multimodal capabilities to give users insights into their surroundings. Because of the update, all of the aforementioned functionalities should give users better answers. For example, at launch, OpenAI claimed GPT-5 is its most capable writing collaborator, which should improve users’ output when using Writing Tools to compose emails, texts, and more. The model is also more accurate than any previous reasoning model and has fewer hallucinations. GPT-5’s responses are 45% less likely to contain a factual error than GPT-4o with web search enabled on anonymized prompts, according to OpenAI. Also: This free GPT-5 feature is flying under the radar – but it’s a game changer for meGPT-5’s biggest appeal is that it is a unified model that combines a smart model for most queries with a deeper reasoning model for harder problems. Then it uses a real router feature that allows GPT-5 to understand which model to use automatically based on the conversation, complexity of the prompt, and more. This allows users to take advantage of the best OpenAI’s models have to offer in terms of quality and speed. Now, Apple users should be able to experience the same thing natively, which should, in theory, improve the Apple Intelligence experience as a whole. Do I think it will make a big change? No, only because I don’t know many Apple users who rely on ChatGPT integrations very often. However, it is nice knowing that even when you do reach for the features once in a while, they will be reportedly state of the art. I am more excited about the many iOS 26 AI features that have been announced and are slated to be released. While less flashy, they are bound to improve the user experience. Some favorites include the Visual Intelligence expansion to the iPhone screen, real-time translation on FaceTime and Messages, and AutoMix in Apple Music.Also: I used Perplexity to make a restaurant reservation – now I’m wondering if Google is holding us backIf you can’t wait to get started with GPT-5 and want to try it out for yourself, you can do so simply by visiting the ChatGPT website or app and signing in to your account. If you don’t have one, creating one is easy — just use Google, Microsoft, Apple, or even your phone number. Once you’re signed in, the model picker will automatically be set to GPT-5.  Artificial Intelligence More

Liz Leyden/Getty Images ZDNET’s key takeaways With Ubuntu Pro, Canonical’s OpenJDK build includes 12 years of support. ‘Chiseled’ builds are faster, more secure than other OpenJDK builds.  Canonical is aligning Ubuntu’s and OpenJDK’s release cadences. Canonical, the company behind Ubuntu Linux, has announced the introduction of its own certified OpenJDK builds. With 90% of Fortune […] More

Kerry Wan/ZDNETZDNET’s key takeawaysiOS 26 introduces a new gesture behavior to the iPhone camera switcher.This shift in app navigation has caused frustration among pros and casual users.On the latest dev beta, Apple has added a toggle to revert the behavior to the original.While many would say that the public development of iOS 26 has been rocky, one recent feature, introduced in the latest developer beta, has given me renewed faith in Apple.When the company first launched the iOS 26 beta, most people were drawn to the polarizing Liquid Glass design language. The revamped camera app UI came in second, but something was clearly off about it: Navigating the various camera modes was needlessly changed.Also: Five iOS 26 features I already can’t live without – and how to access themCamera buffs noticed it immediately, followed by regular consumers, including myself — muscle memory will do that to you. When gliding left or right, the different modes would pan in the same direction. Why it’s a problemThis is a departure — a complete 180, if you will — from Apple’s traditional interface physics, where widgets, text, and other elements would move counter-directionally, as if you were dragging them away. This has been the case since the early versions of iOS, whether you were scrolling through a web page or a carousel.Also: Update to iOS 26? We tested the public beta on our iPhones – these features are a big dealBeyond going against your instincts, this gesture change introduces the problem of blocking pertinent information on the screen. As you’re scrolling between camera modes, your finger naturally covers where and what you’re scrolling to. You can see things in motion below.[embedded content]The fixIn response to this issue, Apple has added a new setting for the camera app that allows you to revert the scroll direction to how it was in iOS 18. This is only accessible in the latest developer beta, and can be found at the bottom of the Camera settings page under Mode Switching.Also: Best iPhone 2025: I tested the top models and found the best options for youWith it toggled on, scrolling between camera modes will feel like how it’s supposed to. Should Apple want to make the software transition period less disruptive for users, especially once new iPhones launch in September, it would be even wiser to set the original gesture behavior as the default and allow users to toggle it off instead. Hopefully that’s not asking for too much.Get the morning’s top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter. More

panithan pholpanichrassamee ZDNET’s key takeaways: Google Finance is getting an AI upgrade, including a chatbot. The upgrade comes with a live news feed, plus other features. It will roll out to US users in the coming weeks. You’ll soon be able to ask Google Finance all your money questions via a new AI chatbot, the […] More

SOPA Images / Contributor / Getty Images ZDNET’s key takeaways AT&T’s $177 million settlement is for data breaches in 2019 and 2024. Claim up to $5,000 (first breach) and $2,500 (Snowflake hack), or both. File claim by Nov. 18, 2025, either online or by mail. If you’re a current or former AT&T customer, here’s some […] More