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The Acer Predator Helios 18 AI is down to $2,539.99, a $560 saving off its $3,099.99 comp value, and it represents the kind of spec sheet that leaves very little on the table. An RTX 5080 with GDDR7, a 24-core Intel Core Ultra 9, and a 250Hz Mini-LED panel at 1000 nits add up to a gaming laptop that doesn’t ask you to compromise anywhere that matters.

What you’re getting

The RTX 5080 is the obvious headline, and the 16GB of GDDR7 backing it up is the detail worth paying attention to. GDDR7 delivers significantly higher memory bandwidth than GDDR6, which translates to better performance at higher resolutions and under demanding ray tracing workloads. DLSS 4 support extends that further, using AI-based frame generation to push frame rates well beyond what the hardware alone would produce.

The 18-inch Mini-LED panel on the Predator Helios 18 runs at 2560×1600, 250Hz, and 1000 nits with G-SYNC, which is the right screen for a machine at this price. Most gaming laptops in this bracket are still shipping IPS panels; the Mini-LED here is a meaningful step above in both brightness and contrast.

The Core Ultra 9 275HX is a 24-core processor that boosts to 5.4GHz, built for sustained workloads rather than brief peaks. Two of the four memory slots are occupied, leaving room to expand to 128GB, and three M.2 slots give the Helios 18 storage upgrade options that most laptops at any price don’t offer. Dual Thunderbolt 5 ports, Wi-Fi 7, and a 5GbE ethernet port round out a connectivity spec that holds up just as well at a desk as it does on the move.

Why it’s worth it

RTX 5080 laptops are not cheap by any standard, but the Helios 18 packages that GPU with a display, processor, and connectivity spec that justifies the category. The $560 saving brings it to a price where the overall package is considerably harder to replicate from competing brands without spending more, and the Thunderbolt 5 and 5GbE ethernet give it a longevity argument that pure gaming specs alone don’t always make.

The bottom line

The Acer Predator Helios 18 AI at $2,539.99 is a no-compromise gaming laptop that delivers on every front. The RTX 5080 with GDDR7, 250Hz Mini-LED panel, 24-core processor, and Thunderbolt 5 connectivity add up to a machine that handles anything you put in front of it, and the $560 saving makes the decision easier than the price tag might initially suggest.

More than half of Gen Zers in the US use generative AI regularly. So you’d think they’d be its biggest cheerleaders. As it turns out, not so much. 

According to a New York Times report, a new survey by Gallup, the Walton Family Foundation, and GSV Ventures surveyed more than 1,500 people aged 14 to 29 and found that Gen Z is growing increasingly skeptical of the technology they use every day.

Is the excitement wearing off?

The numbers are pretty telling. Excitement for AI dropped 14 percentage points since last year, hopefulness fell nine points, while anger rose by nine points. Only 18% of Gen Zers say AI makes them feel hopeful, and just 22% say it excites them. Meanwhile, 42% report feeling anxious about it, and 31% feel outright angry.

What’s interesting is that even daily users, who are generally more positive about AI, are becoming less optimistic. Among those who use AI every day, excitement and hopefulness dropped 18 points and 11 points, respectively, compared to last year. More access clearly isn’t translating into more confidence.

What’s driving the frustration?

A big part of it comes down to what Gen Z thinks AI is doing to their brains. A whopping 8 in 10 respondents said it is likely that using AI tools will make it harder for them to learn in the future. They are also skeptical about its impact on creativity and critical thinking, with 38% and 42% respectively saying AI will do more harm than good in those areas.

The workplace isn’t looking much rosier. Among employed Gen Zers, 48% say the risks of AI outweigh the benefits, compared to just 15% who see it as a net positive. Trust in AI-assisted work is also low, with 69% saying they trust work done without AI more.

That said, Gen Z isn’t giving up. Close to half of high schoolers believe AI skills will be necessary for their future careers. They’re not ignoring it, they’re just going in with their eyes wide open.

If your Mac has been running for weeks without a restart and it feels sluggish, there is a very specific reason for that. Researchers at Photon have uncovered a macOS bug that functions exactly like a ticking time bomb.

After 49 days, 17 hours, 2 minutes, and 47 seconds of continuous uptime, your Mac quietly loses the ability to establish new internet connections. Apps stop working, websites fail to load, and your CPU starts working significantly harder than it should.

So what exactly is happening inside your Mac?

The bug lives in how macOS tracks time for managing network connections. The operating system uses a 32-bit counter, which can hold values up to 4,294,967,295 milliseconds. That ceiling corresponds precisely to 49.7 days of continuous runtime.

Once that number is hit, the counter overflows and rolls back, much like a car odometer flipping from its maximum back to zero. At that point, macOS loses the ability to correctly close finished network connections. Those dead connections start piling up instead of being cleaned up.

Your Mac has around 16,384 connection ports available. Once those fill up with connections that should have been terminated, no new ones can be formed. The CPU then spends increasing effort managing thousands of connections that serve no purpose, which is why the slowdown feels so real.

But why hasn’t your Mac stopped working already?

Well, the strange part is that not everything breaks. Pings still work, and any connections that were already open before the overflow continue functioning normally. It is only new connections that fail, which makes the bug feel inconsistent and hard to diagnose without knowing what to look for.

This class of bug is not new. Windows 95 and Windows 98 famously crashed after 49.7 days for the same underlying reason. Some Linux systems face a related issue on January 19, 2038, when their own 32-bit time counter reaches its limit. macOS is now confirmed to have the same kind of problem.

How to prevent your Mac from slowing down?

The fix right now is straightforward: restart your Mac before the 49-day mark. A reboot resets the counter to zero and gives you another 49.7 days before it happens again.

Photon says it is working on a software-level workaround that would not require a full system restart, but until that arrives, a periodic reboot is your best option.

If you were hoping to get your hands on the Galaxy Z TriFold, this might be your last shot at buying one. Samsung is apparently bringing back the Galaxy Z TriFold one more time in the US.

The company seems to have plans to restock the trifolding phone later this week, through both online and in Samsung Experience stores across the country. Samsung has shared that the timing in a media note shared with 9to5Google, with the online listing already being updated with a countdown timer, which ends at 9 AM ET on April 10.

Why this might really be your last chance

The big hook here is not just the restock itself, it’s the fact that this really might be the last we’re seeing of the Galaxy Z TriFold. To recall, the US launched this premium foldable phone in the US back in January. But just 2 months later, the brand had discontinued the product, making the upcoming batch look more like a last inventory drop than a regular return to shelves.

So this isn’t Samsung’s big comeback for the device. Rather, it sounds like one final cleanup run for a foldable that already had a pretty short retail life in the US.

Where can I buy the Galaxy Z TriFold?

The official restock will go live through Samsung.com, where buyers can sign up for notifications. Furthermore, Samsung will also have units in stock starting April 10 at select Samsung Experience stores. This includes locations like Cerritos and Glendale in California, Bloomington in Minnesota, Elmhurst and Garden City in New York, and Houston and Frisco in Texas.

In-store availability could matter a lot since online inventory usually disappears quickly, just like the previous batches. For people who missed the TriFold the first time around, walking into any of these Samsung stores may actually be the more realistic move this time.

A new report from Korea Business TV sheds light on not one but two important aspects of the upcoming Galaxy Z foldable lineup. First, it claims that Samsung is gearing up to unveil new foldables devices at its second Galaxy Unpacked event of the year, which could take place in London on July 22, 2026. 

The lineup, as we’ve previously heard, could include three new Galaxy Z foldables, including the Fold 8, Flip 8, and the brand-new addition dubbed Wide Fold. Barring the flip phone, we’ve already seen high-quality renders of the Fold 8 and the Wide Fold in the last week of March. 

One of the three foldables could come with support for the S Pen

That’s right. It could be the Galaxy Z Wide Fold — expected to arrive with a wider screen with a 4:3 aspect ratio) — that might revive S Pen support. This is quite noteworthy, especially because the last foldable to support S Pen input was the Fold 6, before Samsung killed the stylus with the Fold 7 (to make the phone as thin as possible).

To give you more context, the S Pen remained an integral part of Samsung’s foldable experience from the Fold 3 (2021) to the Fold 6 (2024). Even though the experience was limited, in the sense that the phones didn’t have built-in slots for the stylus and input was only supported on the inner screen, the S Pen served as a unique differentiator.

The S Pen seems to be Samsung’s answer to Apple’s iPhone Fold 

Its removal from the Fold 7 bothered a significant number of users, who had either used the stylus on their previous Fold or upgraded from a Galaxy S series smartphone that came with an integrated stylus. However, you should also know that the report doesn’t provide any clarity about the S Pen’s arrival on the Fold 8.

Apple is gearing up to enter the foldable market later this year, and Samsung isn’t taking it lightly. While there are plenty of rumors about the iPhone Fold on the internet, support for an Apple Pencil isn’t one of them, and this is exactly where Samsung wants to sell potential customers on its Wide Fold with the S Pen. 

Verum Messenger, a privacy-focused communication platform, has released a new update centered on improving its built-in AI assistant and enhancing the stability of its offline messaging capabilities.

The update introduces several usability improvements to Verum AI, the app’s integrated chatbot designed to assist users directly within the messenger. One of the key additions is the ability to send images in AI conversations — either from the device gallery or captured in real time using the camera. This expands the assistant’s functionality beyond text-based interaction.

The platform has also introduced notifications that alert users when the AI has completed processing a request. This feature is aimed at improving workflow efficiency, particularly for users who rely on AI for content generation, analysis, or quick responses.

In addition, the interaction with AI-generated text has been refined. Responses are now easier to copy and reuse, making the tool more practical for everyday tasks.

Focus on Stability in Offline Communication

Alongside AI improvements, the update addresses the performance of Verum Messenger’s offline chat functionality — a feature that allows users to communicate without relying on a traditional internet connection.

According to the developers, connection speeds for offline chats have been increased, and overall reliability has been improved. These changes are intended to ensure that communication remains stable even in environments with limited or unstable connectivity.

A Messenger Built Around Privacy and Independence

Verum Messenger positions itself as a platform focused on user privacy and control. Unlike many traditional messaging services, it does not require a phone number or personal data for registration. Encryption keys are generated locally on the user’s device, and communication is designed to remain under the user’s control.

In addition to messaging and calls, the platform integrates a range of tools including a VPN, anonymous email, eSIM connectivity, AI features, and financial services within a single application.

With this update, Verum Messenger continues to expand its functionality while maintaining its focus on privacy, usability, and communication resilience.

As the Artemis II crew begins their return trip to Earth after a successful lunar flyby earlier this week, NASA has unveiled impressive new footage of the April 1 launch that propelled them into space.

The detailed tracking shot captures the immense power of the Space Launch System (SLS) rocket, showcasing its four core RS-25 engines and two solid rocket boosters as the 98-meter-tall vessel ascended from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

@NASA has just released some EXTRAORDINARY tracking footage from Artemis II’s launch just one week ago.

Mesmerizing exhaust flow interaction between all four RS-25’s & twin SRB’s. pic.twitter.com/Q49oZh5RrB

— Max Evans (@_MaxQ_) April 8, 2026

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At liftoff, the SLS generates a massive 8.8 million pounds of thrust, surpassing the Apollo-era Saturn V by about 1.2 million pounds. This is roughly half the power of SpaceX’s Starship, which is currently under development and intended for future lunar travel.

The rocket’s propulsion is provided by a la own mix of high-performance engines. The core stage features four RS-25 liquid-fueled engines that utilize liquid hydrogen and oxygen for maximum efficiency. Interestingly, these engines are repurposed components from the retired Space Shuttle program, which ended in 2011.

The vehicle also relies on two huge solid rocket boosters to provide the majority of the initial power needed to lift the massive rocket and the crewed Orion spacecraft into orbit.

The Orion spacecraft pushed the crew further from Earth than any humans in history as it looped around the moon earlier this week.

In addition to collecting lunar data, the mission serves as a critical test for human operations in preparation for upcoming Artemis missions, with the goal of returning humans to the moon’s surface as soon as 2028.

Following eight days in space, the four Artemis II astronauts are now heading home and are scheduled to splash down off the California coast this Friday, marking a memorable return.

For more information on how to follow the final stages of the Artemis II mission, Digital Trends can help.

I’ve never been a fan of Apple’s MacBook, but I have to admit that the platform is getting a lot of things right. Living with Windows has been a hassle recently, and Apple has been inching ahead for all the right reasons. While I still rely on Windows, familiarity alone isn’t the whole game anymore.

In 2026, there are some macOS conveniences that feel less like luxury perks and more like basic computing features Microsoft should have figured out by now. And the annoying part is that Apple’s advantage is not always raw power or flashy AI. A lot of the frustration comes from smaller, more practical things. These are the sort of features that quietly save time, make things feel super smooth, and make a computer feel like it belongs in the same world as the phone in your pocket.

Sharing Wi-Fi passwords should not still feel this good on a Mac

This is the one that always gets me. Apple lets you share Wi-Fi passwords from an iPhone, iPad, or Mac to another nearby Apple device almost instantly, as long as the devices are nearby and the accounts are properly set up. I’ve seen people around me use this feature for years, and it feels like I’m locked out of it.

You can even share Wi-Fi passwords from a Mac to another Mac, iPhone, or iPad. It is such a small thing, but it feels magical in the exact way modern computing should. Meanwhile, Windows still makes something this basic feel manual. You’re still stuck relying on good old memory. But in 2026, this is just embarrassing.

Universal Clipboard is still one of Apple’s most unfair advantages

Seamless is the thing you come to expect from the Apple ecosystem, and nothing showcases this more than the Universal Clipboard feature. Copy something on your iPhone, paste it on your Mac. Copy an image on your Mac, drop it into a message on your iPad. Apple’s Universal Clipboard sounds boring until you actually use it, and it becomes the kind of feature you start to miss immediately when you go back to a less-connected setup.

Apple officially supports this across iPhone, iPad, and Mac as a part of its Continuity stack. And this is what puts macOS ahead. It makes the ecosystem with multiple devices feel like extensions of one workspace. To be fair, Windows has gotten a lot better about linking to phones, but Apple still makes the handoff feel more invisible and more natural.

Unlocking your Mac with an Apple Watch is exactly the kind of laziness I respect

This may be the most Apple thing on the list, but I mean that as praise. If you are wearing an unlocked Apple Watch, your Mac can automatically unlock when you wake it, and the watch can also approve password prompts and admin requests. Apple supports this officially as Auto Unlock, and the convenience is obvious.

Is it life-changing? Probably not. Is it the exact sort of effortless quality-of-life feature that makes a platform feel more premium and more thoughtful? Absolutely.

Honorary Mention: Continuity Camera

Apple letting an iPhone become a Mac webcam is one of those features that sounds like a gimmick right until you realize how useful it is. Continuity Camera lets a Mac use the iPhone’s vastly better camera system wirelessly or over USB, and Apple also supports some nifty tricks like Center Stage, Portrait mode, Studio Light, and even Desk View.

You can also use the same Continuity feature to scan documents or snap photos straight into Mac apps like Notes, Finder, and others. Windows has caught up with native smartphone camera support with Phone Link, but it isn’t as feature-packed as Apple’s solution.

My problem with macOS is that it keeps getting the little things right

So my jealousy just comes down to Apple constantly solving everyday annoyances before Microsoft does, and once those solutions exist, it becomes harder to go back. Sharing Wi-Fi passwords, copying across devices, and unlocking your computer with a watch aren’t enough individually to make me abandon Windows overnight. But together, they create a kind of convenience stack that feels annoyingly mature.

The original Stranger Things series ended on December 31, 2025, after five seasons and nearly a decade of terrifying adventures in Hawkins. But Netflix was never going to let one of its biggest franchises simply fade into the Upside Down.

Less than four months after the finale, the universe is expanding again with an animated spinoff called Stranger Things: Tales from ’85. The whole core gang is back, there’s a bold new character joining the mix, and a new monster lurking under the snow. So, here’s everything you need to know before the animated Stranger Things show arrives.

What is Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 about?

The series picks up in the winter of 1985 in Hawkins, Indiana. After the chaos of Season 2, things are supposed to be relatively calm for Eleven, Mike, Will, Dustin, Lucas, and Max. The gate to the Upside Down has been closed. The kids have settled back into the rhythms of normal teenage life, playing Dungeons and Dragons, having snowball fights, and enjoying some hard-earned quiet. But quiet, in Hawkins, never lasts.

Beneath the ice and snow blanketing the town, something terrifying has awakened. The official blurb asks three questions that the show promises to answer: Could it be from the Upside Down? From the depths of Hawkins Lab? Or from somewhere else entirely? The gang must race to solve the mystery and save Hawkins once again, this time in a world rendered in a vivid animated style designed to capture the spirit of the 80s while still carrying real stakes.

When does Stranger Things: Tales from ’85 take place?

If you are wondering where this fits in the timeline, here’s what you need to know. Tales from ’85 is not a sequel, and it does not continue from the Season 5 finale. Instead, it fills in a gap that the main series always skipped over.

Stranger Things covered a very specific timeline across its five seasons. Season 1 was set in the autumn of 1983. Season 2 followed in the autumn of 1984, ending with the Snow Ball dance in November of that year. Season 3 then jumped forward to the summer of 1985, opening with the Starcourt Mall already in full swing.

Tales from ’85 is set in the winter months between Season 2 (Dec 1984) and Season 3 (June 1985), when Eleven had just closed the gate, Will had returned from the Upside Down, and the couples formed at the Snow Ball were still new.

Who voices the characters in Stranger Things: Tales from ’85?

One of the biggest talking points surrounding the show is its cast. None of the original live-action actors is returning to voice their characters, and the animated series has assembled an entirely new lineup of voice talent to take over the iconic roles.

Here is the full voice cast of Tales from ’85:

• Brooklyn Davey Norstedt as Eleven
• Luca Diaz as Mike Wheeler
• Benjamin Plessala as Will Byers
• Braxton Quinney as Dustin Henderson
• Elisha “EJ” Williams as Lucas Sinclair
• Jolie Hoang-Rappaport as Max Mayfield
• Brett Gipson as Jim Hopper
• Jeremy Jordan as Steve Harrington
• Alessandra Antonelli as Nancy Wheeler
• Alysia Reiner as Karen Wheeler
• Jack Griffo as Jeff
• Valeria Rodriguez as Rosario
• Lou Diamond Phillips as Daniel Fischer
• Janeane Garofalo as Anna Baxter
• Robert Englund (Victor Creel in Season 4) as Cosmo
• Odessa A’zion as Nikki Baxter