Latest news, developments and reporting on Products & Applications.
Amazon's fall Prime Day 2026 is in its final 24 hours, with Fire tablets and TCL's TAB A1 NXTPAPER at record-low prices. TechRadar also reports a possible Android-powered Fire Max 11 by year-end, while 9to5Mac staff share their own deal picks.
Amazon-owned Ring announced its first smart lock, a $249 deadbolt that can be hand-cranked if its battery dies, along with five new security cameras including its first 4K indoor model.
After the Iran war disrupted fertilizer shipments and sent prices soaring, Zambian farmers are using homemade bokashi compost to cut costs and rebuild soil, with research showing yields comparable to mineral fertilizer.
TechRadar says cold, rainy weather is a good time to buy a portable air conditioner, citing Prime Day discounts, winter dehumidifier and heater functions, and the prospect of another hot summer.
Tab emerged from stealth at a $300M valuation. Its personal AI assistant handles tasks via iMessage and WhatsApp.
Crystal Lake, the Friday the 13th spin-off starring Linda Cardellini as Pamela Voorhees, is expected to debut on Peacock on October 15, with international streaming dates rolling out through late October and all eight episodes arriving at once.
YouTube is testing a desktop layout that moves comments and video details into a right-hand sidebar and puts large recommendation thumbnails below the player, drawing complaints from viewers.
The Verge reports that Bissell's ProHeat 2X Revolution Pet Pro Plus upright carpet cleaner is down to $209.99 at Amazon and Bissell during October Prime Day, from $279.99. It is pitched for pet owners and larger carpet-cleaning jobs.
Amazon shoppers found a settings page listing inferences the retailer draws about them, including 'flat buttocks' and 'cannot keep real plants alive.'
Ninja has discounted several coffee makers for Amazon Prime Day, with deals in the US and UK, while launching a new vertical Belgian waffle maker in the UK for £99.99. Prime Day offers end tonight, October 7.
TechRadar says the Canon EOS R6 II's low price makes the newer EOS R8 II hard to recommend. Exact pricing and specifications were not included in the source.
Amazon has cut the Mammotion LUBA 3 AWD 3000 robot lawn mower to $2,109 for Prime Day, $590 off the $2,799 list price, according to Android Authority.
Prime Day cuts soundbar prices from Sony, Sonos, Bose, JBL, TCL and Fire TV, per a TechRadar roundup.
Google DeepMind, Meta and Isomorphic Labs put $300M into Biohub’s virtual cell, while Healthleap and Rivercell raise new AI-biology funding.
A 9to5Mac writer says Apple's Call Screening, introduced with iOS 26, has stopped every spam and scam call since it was enabled earlier this year, while genuine callers still got through.
TII has introduced Falcon-ASR, a 1.6-billion-parameter speech recognition model focused on Arabic and the Emirati dialect. It supports five languages and reports lower error rates than compared systems on Arabic and internal Emirati evaluations.
Mumsnet denies AI-written posts; fake AI ads steal ad accounts; Tony Fadell faults first-wave AI gadgets.
A previously unreleased Army study found electric-shock gloves that ICE plans to buy caused intense pain and immediate compliance in military exercises. ICE signed a $16.7m contract for 6,000 pairs after leaders were aware of the findings, records show.
TechRadar has published a piece attributed to Rob, its managing editor for gaming and streaming, framed around controller, headset and OLED screen upgrades ahead of GTA 6. The supplied text contains his biography but no specific product recommendations.
Google's Pixel Buds 2A and Pro 2 are receiving an update that adds Pixel Watch-powered sleep detection, tap-to-mute, one-tap live translation, Gemini voice controls and, on the Pro 2 only, Dynamic ANC.
OneSpan unveiled new and planned OneSpan Sign features aimed at document preparation, verification and post-signing workflows for banks. The offering includes AI field placement, document summaries, tamper checks and planned Model Context Protocol support, though release dates were not disclosed.
DoorDash has warned Bay Area restaurants they may be listed without consent on Bites, an AI-native delivery startup, The Verge reports. Stuut Inc. separately said it raised $52.5 million to automate corporate collections with AI agents, SiliconANGLE reports.
TechRadar reports that Xteink's X4 Pro, X4 Classic and X3 ereaders are discounted during Amazon's October Prime Day, with US and UK prices running below comparable Kindle models.
Xreal has opened pre-orders for its Android XR-powered Aura glasses, starting at $1,279. The tethered device is set to ship first in the US, Canada, Japan and South Korea, with more markets in 2027.