Jakub Porzycki/NurPhoto via Getty Images The rivalry between Threads and Bluesky continues to heat up as Meta steps into Bluesky’s territory to reveal a new feature. On Thursday, Instagram boss Adam Mosseri announced that Meta, which owns Threads, is testing a feature that enables users to “find and easily follow collections of profiles that post about popular topics on […] More
<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways The Tineco Pure One Station 5 vacuum cleaner is available for $459. It’s a powerful cordless vacuum with a self-emptying base station, perfect for pet owners and parents. Some parts can be finicky, like lining up the floor brush on the base station, or its accessories getting stuck and not easily […] More
Price: $79Features: Covers 1,095 square feet | 3-in-1 filter | Touch controlThis Amazon best-seller is perfect for cold and flu season; with a HEPA-grade filter, it can purify a space about three times as big as the average New York City apartment. It even works well in Sleep Mode, as confirmed by a third-party lab, and helps filter away dust, allergens, pet hair, and more, including smog and wildfire smoke. This filter is also quiet while still being effective, making it a great choice for anyone who’s held off on getting an air filter due to the disruptive noisiness. Normally $100, this air filter is on sale for $79 on Amazon. More
Schools and colleges will often block websites and online services in the name of safety, but sometimes, these blocks become a frustrating catch-all or accidentally restrict educational resources. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can help you circumvent these blocks and firewalls by disguising your IP address and rerouting your traffic through a server network, hiding your online activities and preventing you from being monitored by school or college administrators. Also: The best VPNs for streamingStudents have enough to manage without being prevented from accessing online resources. Indeed, as a former teacher, I would use a VPN in some of the schools I worked at to stop myself from being blocked from social media and other services. To easily bypass existing restrictions, you need a VPN service that combines privacy, speed, a robust server network, and one that has a reputation for successfully managing firewalls and restrictive policies.What is the best school VPN right now?Our pick for the best school VPN is NordVPN More
Moor Studio/Getty Images Popularity in the tech world is hard to measure. I’ve talked at length about this in my discussions of programming language popularity. It really comes down to what you use to measure popularity — and how available those metrics are to those doing the analysis. When it comes to AI, that’s even […] More
Maria Diaz/ZDNETMy kid had been asking for a Toniebox More
Are you in the market for a power station suitable for camping, off-grid adventures, or as a dependable backup during power outages or other emergencies? Whether you’re exploring the great outdoors or preparing for unexpected situations, the right power station can make all the difference, ensuring you have a reliable source of energy wherever you go!Also: The best portable power stations you can buy: Expert testedBut power stations are expensive, however I have good news for you. Right now, top power station brand Bluetti is having a sale on Amazon, slashing prices of some of its most popular power stations. The sale goes from December 16 and ends on December 22 promptly at 11.59 PT.There are a total of five power stations and one power station and solar panel bundles currently being discounted. Also, there’s a special discount code that ZDNET readers can use to get an extra 5% off at Amazon — use the code ZDENTBFCM5. More
Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNETOpenAI is constantly adding new features to ChatGPT to make it more functional for everyday needs. The recently added Canvas feature — unveiled in October — has transformed my ChatGPT workflow, and as of this week, it’s available to all ChatGPT users for free, with some updates. Canvas is a new interface that makes collaborating on your writing and coding projects easier with ChatGPT. How to use ChatGPT to create: Code | Excel formulas | Essays | Resumes | Apps | Charts and Tables During the fourth day of 12 days of OpenAI, where the company unveils a new feature every day, it was announced that OpenAI-developed Canvas is coming to all web users, regardless of plan. Canvas will be built into GPT-4o natively, meaning you can call on the tool instead of going to the toggle on the model selector.If you use ChatGPT as a co-editor in any capacity, you will never again use ChatGPT without this feature. Don’t believe me? The concept is best understood visually, so stick with me. Here’s how Canvas works. More
