Robotics

Sabrina Ortiz/ZDNETWhen ChatGPT first launched two years ago, the AI chatbot was met with such high demand that OpenAI introduced a premium plan called ChatGPT Plus. This plan guaranteed access to the chatbot even during blackout periods. The plan’s perks also included access to OpenAI’s most advanced models, which at the time included GPT-4, making the $20 plan almost a no-brainer for superusers. However, as OpenAI’s offerings have continued to grow over the past few years, so have its plans. Also: ChatGPT’s subscribers and revenue soar in 2025 – here’s whyIf you consider yourself an AI superuser, you’re likely wondering which ChatGPT tier you should try. In this guide, we’ll help you decide whether a free plan, ChatGPT Plus, or a $200-per-month ChatGPT Pro subscription is the best fit for you. You should use ChatGPT Plus if… More

After choosing a reliable VPN provider, you’ll typically follow these steps to set up the VPN:-Sign up. Choose a suitable business, team, or enterprise plan, depending on the size and needs of your organization.-Install the VPN software. Follow the provider’s instructions for installing the VPN on cloud servers or local devices.-Set control panel. Sign in and access the main dashboard to manage the VPN and connections.-Add users and permissions. Create accounts and register employees using their company emails or work devices and allow permissions to connect. -Configure built-in security settings. Navigate to the settings sections and configure or enable advanced protection features provided by your VPN service, like static IP servers, kill switch, always-on VPN, split tunneling, MFA, and access controls.-Deploy to network and devices. Set up site-to-site tunnels and gateways, and route traffic accordingly. You can now send installation links or use mobile device management (MDM) tools to install the VPN on company devices. Employees can also download the provider’s app directly on their devices, especially if it’s a remote access VPN. More

Jason Hiner/ZDNETOn Wednesday, April 2, President Donald Trump announced that the United States would impose a new series of tariffs against trade partners. Rates will range from a baseline amount of 10% up to 49% for certain countries. These hikes are slated to go into effect starting April 5. Also: Yes, your internet provider can throttle your speed. Here’s a simple way to stop itA full list of the tariffs can be found on the Rapid Response 47 account on X, which is run by the Trump administration, and it details every single country that’ll affected. It’s nearly eight pages long, with the first two highlighting some of the biggest increases.China, for example, will be hit with a 34% tariff. The European Union is going to see 20%. Vietnam is receiving one of the largest tariffs at 46%, only beaten out by Cambodia at 49% and Laos at 48%. More

Matthew Miller/ZDNETThe main reason I always have a Garmin watch on my wrist is due to the comprehensive ecosystem powered by Garmin Connect. While the service will continue to provide a free, personalized experience via its phone app and website, Garmin recently launched another option, called Garmin Connect Plus, for those who want more from their devices, and it is, understandably, rubbing the community the wrong way. More later.Also: New FDA-cleared blood pressure monitor delivers medical grade results at homeGarmin Connect Plus is an optional subscription service for $6.99 monthly or $69.99 annually. There’s a free 30-day trial to test the service, which includes new tools like Active Intelligence, powered by AI, designed to give you insights personalized to your daily health and activity data collected by various Garmin devices. The more you use it, the more it will be tailored to you and your goals. More

Lance Whitney / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETGoogle’s NotebookLM is a handy note-taking service, ideal for putting together any type of project that requires extensive research. Normally, you have to gather and add the necessary sources, which NotebookLM then incorporates into your project. Now, the service promises to save you even more time by collecting the right sources on its own.Also: Gemini Pro 2.5 is one of only two AIs to crush all my coding tests – and it’s freeIn a blog post published Wednesday, Google announced a new NotebookLM tool known as Discover. Instead of manually scouring the web for the right sources, just describe the topic you’re researching. NotebookLM surfs the web on its own and automatically creates a curated list of relevant sources. How it worksExplain your topic, and NotebookLM looks at hundreds of possible online sources. After analyzing them all, the AI displays the names and brief summaries for the 10 it considers the most relevant. You can import them all, or deselect any you don’t want to include. The sources are then added as research to your project. Also: Google’s NotebookLM can discuss your notes with you now. How to access itWith the sources added, you can ask NotebookLM to generate a study guide, a briefing document, an FAQ, and even a timeline. Even cooler, you can ask for a podcast that features two AI-generated but human sounding hosts chatting about your topic. You’re also able to request a summary and ask questions about the topic as covered by the sources. More

<!–> ZDNET’s key takeaways A premium quality pocket tool with a good selection of tools for under $30. All the tools are nice and sharp when new, and retain their sharpness even after extended use. Because this is a pocket tool, don’t expect pliers or a lifetime warranty. more buying choices I’ve been a big […] More

Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNETAs part of my AI coding evaluations, I run a standardized series of four programming tests against each AI. These tests are designed to determine how well a given AI can help you program. This is kind of useful, especially if you’re counting on the AI to help you produce code. The last thing you want is for an AI helper to introduce more bugs into your work output, right?Also: The best AI for coding (and what not to use)Some time ago, a reader reached out to me and asked why I keep using the same tests. He reasoned that the AIs might succeed if they were given different challenges. This is a fair question, but my answer is also fair. These are super-simple tests. I’m using PHP and JavaScript, which are not exactly challenging languages, and I’m running some scripting queries through the AIs. By using exactly the same tests, we’re able to compare performance directly. One is a request to write a simple WordPress plugin, one is to rewrite a string function, one asks for help finding a bug I originally had difficulty finding on my own, and the final one uses a few programming tools to get data back from Chrome. But it’s also like teaching someone to drive. If they can’t get out of the driveway, you’re not going to set them loose in a fast car on a crowded highway. To date, only ChatGPT’s GPT-4 (and above) LLM has passed them all. Yes, Perplexity Pro also passed all the tests, but that’s because Perplexity Pro runs the GPT-4 series LLM. Oddly enough, Microsoft Copilot, which also runs ChatGPT’s LLM, failed all the tests. Also: How I test an AI chatbot’s coding ability – and you can, tooGoogle’s Gemini didn’t do much better. When I tested Bard (the early name for Gemini), it failed most of the tests (twice). Last year, when I ran the $20-per-month Gemini Advanced through my tests, it failed three of the four tests. But now, Google is back with Gemini Pro 2.5. What caught our eyes here at ZDNET was that Gemini Pro 2.5 is available for free, to everyone. No $20 per month surcharge. While Google was clear that the free access was subject to rate limits, I don’t think any of us realized it would throttle us after two prompts, which is what happened to me during testing. It’s possible that Gemini Pro 2.5 is not counting prompt requests for rate limiting but basing its throttling on the scope of the work being requested. My first two prompts asked Gemini Pro 2.5 to write a full WordPress plugin and fix some code, so I may have used up the limits faster than you would if you used it to ask a simple question. Even so, it took me a few days to run these tests. To my considerable surprise, it was very much worth the wait. Test 1: Write a simple WordPress pluginWow. Well, this is certainly a far cry from how Bard failed twice and Gemini Advanced failed back in February 2024. Quite simply, Gemini Pro 2.5 aced this test right out of the gate. Also: I asked ChatGPT to write a WordPress plugin I needed. It did it in less than 5 minutesThe challenge is to write a simple WordPress plugin that provides a simple user interface. It randomizes the input lines and distributes (not removes) duplicates so they’re not next to each other. Last time, Gemini Advanced did not write a back-end dashboard interface but instead required a shortcode that needed to be placed in the body text of a public-facing page. Gemini Advanced did create a basic user interface, but that time clicking the button resulted in no action whatsoever. I gave it a few alternative prompts, and it still failed. But this time, Gemini Pro 2.5 gave me a solid UI, and the code actually ran and did what it was supposed to. More

Kerry Wan/ZDNETThe Bravia TV lineup, which consistently tops our list of best Sony TVs, is getting a little bigger. Sony just announced its 2025 Bravia models, and while some sets carry over from last year, three new additions — including an OLED and a Mini-LED — are joining the fold. Also: This Hisense 85-inch TV is still over $1,100 off on Amazon – and I highly recommend itLeading the way is the Bravia 8 II, a flagship QD-OLED that’s the successor to the popular A95L from 2023 (the “crown jewel” of that year’s lineup, in the words of my former colleague Rebecca Isaacs).  More