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    I invested in a premium multitool, and it’s made all the difference to my workflow

    A good multitool can be a reliable companion for decades (as long as you don’t lose it!). Adrian Kingsley-Hughes/ZDNETI like having a good multitool close at hand and at all times. While they can’t replace a proper toolkit, I don’t fancy carrying a full toolkit with me when I’m out and about. Many of my readers are like me, often finding themselves doing random and unplanned DIY tasks throughout the day, so having a portable toolkit that can handle the basics is essential.Also: I gave my Android phone thermal vision superpowers with this accessory – and it’s on saleNot a week goes by without someone asking for my multitool recommendations. My advice is always the same: check out what Leatherman More

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    Google Maps can identify and save places in your screenshots – here’s how

    Lance Whitney / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETI often hop online to research places I want to visit when my wife and I travel to other cities or countries. If I find a web page on a museum, restaurant, landmark, or other spot that interests me, I might take a screenshot of the page to save for future reference. Now, I can do more with those static screenshots than just store them in my photo library, thanks to a new feature from Google.A cool skill that scans screenshots of specific locations is now available in Google Maps for both iOS and Android. After identifying the name and other details of the location, the app lets you add it as an entry. From there, you can get directions to it, set it up as a favorite, or share it with another person. Also: 6 Google Maps tricks to try for the navigation app’s 20th birthday”If you ever have trouble keeping track of all of the screenshots you take of travel blogs, news articles, or social media posts when you’re researching places to go for an upcoming trip, you’ll want to try out this new Google Maps feature,” Google said in a blog post on Wednesday. “It uses Gemini capabilities to find names of places in your screenshots and helps save them to a list for you, making travel planning a breeze.” More

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    This Motorola Razr deal at Best Buy is the top offer I’ve seen on the flip phone

    Clicks Last month, Motorola unveiled three new Razr flip phones, including a first-ever ‘Ultra’ model that ZDNET’s smartphone expert Kerry Wan says is “feature-packed, fashionably styled, and unsurprisingly expensive.”  The new Razr models, which start at $799, are finally available for preorder in the US at retailers like Best Buy<!–>, Amazon–>, and Motorola<!–>. The devices will […] More

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    Meet two Apple Swift Student Challenge champs building apps that solve real-world problems

    Jason Hiner/ZDNETCoding skills can be applied to tackle real-world problems. Apple’s Swift Student Challenge supports the next generation of developers, creators, and entrepreneurs who want to get involved. Rising to the challenge Apple’s Swift Student Challenge invites students around the globe, as young as 13, to embrace their coding skills and use Swift — the coding language for all Apple platforms — to create an app playground that tackles a real-world problem of their choosing. “It’s really a way for people around the world, people with different experiences, different backgrounds, different ages, to be able to really showcase their passion, their creativity, and their coding skills in a way that’s really relevant for them,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s VP of developer relations, education, and enterprise. Also: The most popular programming languages (and what that even means)Out of thousands of global applicants, 350 students are selected as winners. The prize? More development opportunities, including a one-year membership in the Apple Developer Program and a pair of AirPods Max. Apple then selects 50 distinguished winners whose work has risen to the top of the applications. These 50 students earn a visit to Cupertino for WWDC. Conor Ebeling and Tamera Middlebrooks, whose coding projects were dedicated to helping people with disabilities, are among the distinguished winners. ZDNET spoke to Ebeling and Middlebrooks to learn more about their apps, journeys, experiences, and advice. Here’s what they said. More

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    Meet the secret weapon that declutters my desk and cools my laptop in one go

    <!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Belkin Connect Universal Pro Dock retails for $150, but right now it’s on sale for $141 This midrange docking station is an excellent accessory, adding 11 additional ports while serving as a supportive base The device sports a power cable that cannot be removed and may get in the way. […] More