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Editor’s note, Nov. 1, 2023: Although it was released back in 2021, the Roku Express 4K Plus remains our Editors Choice pick for 4K streaming devices in 2023. Even two years on, the Roku Express 4K Plus remains responsive running Roku’s latest software, maintains its simple app-based menus and is a more than capable streamer that offers impressive value for the money. As we mentioned in our Streaming Stick 4K review, the differences between the Express 4K Plus and Stick 4K are minimal and since both are regularly on sale we recommend going with whichever of the two is cheaper. We give the Express 4K Plus the slight edge mainly because it often is at a lower price. Check out our Roku Streaming Stick 4K vs. Roku Express 4K Plus comparison for more details.

Our original review, from May. 11, 2021, is as follows.

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The Roku Express 4K Plus sets a high bar for features and value, beating out other Rokus like the $50 Streaming Stick 4K, as well affordable streamers like Google’s $50 Chromecast with Google TV and Amazon’s $50 Fire TV Stick 4K.

SimpleRokuinterface? Check. 4K HDR streaming? Check. Wired Ethernet support with an optional adapter? Yup. Cheaper cost? At $40 compared to Roku’s own Streaming Stick 4K’s $50 sticker price, the Express 4K Plus has that, too. After using the device for a few days, watching everything from Netflix and Disney Plus to Apple TV Plus and YouTube TV
, I can say the Roku Express 4K Plus deserves CNET’s Editors’ Choice award as the best streaming device for the money.

A simple, familiar design

As with other recent refreshes, such as Roku’s 2020 Ultra or Apple’s new Apple TV 4K, the outside of the Express 4K Plus will look awfully familiar. It’s slightly larger but keeps the half-moon dongle design of the cheaper, HD-only Express, and on the rear, there’s an HDMI output and a Micro-USB port for power, as well as a reset button.

The front is glossy and nondescript, with just a single indicator light. The bottom is where you can apply the included adhesive strip to attach the miniature box to the back or bottom of your TV. Because the Express 4K Plus ships with Roku’s “point anywhere” voice remote, you can hide the box pretty much anywhere near your TV and it will still work — it doesn’t require direct line-of-sight to control the player.

In my testing I had the Express 4K Plus placed behind a few-years-old Samsung 4K TV and encountered no issues controlling it with the remote. I was also able to power the Roku directly from my Samsung’s built-in USB port, no power adapter required. Using the device with a 2019 TCL 6-Series Roku TV similarly produced no issues. Assuming you have a fairly recent TV with a 5V USB port, the Roku should work fine hiding using your TV’s power.

In addition to the tape, Roku includes Micro-USB and HDMI cables and AAA batteries for the remote, along with a wall adapter for power in case you need to use that instead. Keeping the Roku plugged into the wall for power, as opposed to your TV, can also save a few seconds of boot-up time.

While it would’ve been nice for Roku to finally embrace USB-C, on this device — which is meant to be plugged into your television and left alone — I don’t mind the use of the aging port.

The remote has the same simple layout and design found on other Rokus, with TV volume controls on the right-hand side. There is no rechargeable battery or always-listening microphone (for that you’ll need to shell out another $30 for the company’s Voice Remote Pro), but it is a perfectly good controller that paired instantly with both the Express 4K Plus and easily controlled volume, mute and power on my TV.

The only real difference I noticed was a new shortcut key: this remote has the new Apple TV Plus button to go along with dedicated keys for Netflix, Disney Plus and Hulu.

Note: An Express 4K without the “Plus” in the name will be available for $35 at Walmart. The only difference between this device and that one is the Express 4K Plus comes with this better remote as opposed to a simple, IR one that lacks voice and TV control. I’d recommend spending the extra $5 to get the Express 4K Plus.

Solid 4K HDR streaming

Running on Roku’s latest OS 10 software, the interface is largely the same as all its recent devices, complete with the same shortcomings such as the limitations of its voice assistant compared to those of Amazon’s Alexa and Google’s Assistant.

That said, all the apps I tried on the Express 4K Plus seemed to open and load quickly and painlessly. I had no problems opening shows or movies on Disney Plus, Netflix or Apple TV Plus, and playback of a baseball game on MLB.TV or a Champions League soccer match on YouTube TV both opened and loaded quickly. I noticed it was also slightly zippier opening apps compared to my Streaming Stick Plus.

(I was able to get YouTube TV to reinstall from a backup of older Rokus despite the company’ ongoing carriage dispute with Google, which has also added a way to watch YouTube TV through the regular YouTube app.)

I had to go into my TV’s settings to make sure my Samsung was set properly to HDMI UHD Color to enable 4K HDR. Once that was set up, the Roku was able to take advantage of the higher quality streams. I had no such issues setting up 4K HDR on the TCL.

I was equally impressed with how well the Express 4K Plus handled Apple AirPlay, which, as with all recent Rokus, is available on the device. Streaming videos off of YouTube or mimicking myiPhone’sscreen worked fine, and I was even able to play games cast from an iPhone via Apple Arcade or the Xbox Cloud Gaming iOS beta.

The former worked a lot better than the latter, and while the Roku isn’t designed to play games, it worked well enough casting that I do wonder if apps for cloud-based gaming could be in Roku’s future.

Also new on this Express 4K Plus is the ability to connect Ethernet, a feature that on its players has most recently been limited to its Ultra boxes. As with other streaming players like the Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K. I used a $12 cable from a company called UGreen. With this, I simply plugged in the cable to the Roku’s micro-USB port, connected the adapter’s USB power to my TV’s USB port and plugged in an Ethernet cable.

The big difference between this and the Ultra is that the Express 4K Plus lacks Dolby Vision support. Seeing as how rival $50 streamers such as Google’s Chromecast with Google TV and Amazon’s Fire TV Stick 4K both support Dolby Vision, it would have been great to see Roku include it here. On the other hand, we don’t consider Dolby Vision a must-have, in part because it’s not a major image quality upgrade over standard HDR.

Dolby Atmos audio is supported by the Express Plus 4K on certain apps if you have the proper sound system.

Roku Express 4K Plus vs. Roku Streaming Stick 4K

The biggest question for those looking at Roku’s lineup is probably which of these two devices you should buy. Roku prices the Express 4K Plus at $40, while the Streaming Stick 4K sells for $50. What does that $10 difference get you? Not a whole lot.

The main difference is that you get Dolby Vision on the Streaming Stick 4K, plus a sleeker stick design that is good for wall-mounted TVs and long-range wireless. Dolby Vision support is the biggest selling point here, given that the Express 4K Plus can easily tuck under or behind a TV. Roku also never quantifies its Wi-Fi improvement and I’ve found that signal on the Express 4K Plus works fine, and unlike the Streaming Stick Plus, this device is compatible with Ethernet adapters for wired connections if needed.

So is Dolby Vision worth the extra money? For some people, maybe. But it’s a feature that is only useful for those who own TVs that also support Dolby Vision. If you own a Samsung TV, for example, don’t bother — your TV doesn’t support it. And even on TVs that do support Dolby Vision, its improvement over standard HDR is usually minimal.

My pick? Save the $10 and get the Express 4K Plus.

Roku Express 4K Plus or Chromecast with Google TV?

Google’s Chromecast with Google TV is the closest competitor to Roku’s players. We compared the latest Chromecast with Roku’s Streaming Stick Plus in December, and while Google’s player has excellent search and voice control, it was hard to beat Roku’s super-simple interface.

While it remains to be seen what kind of updates Google will give its revamped Google TV platform at its I/O developer conference

, for now, Roku remains the choice for most people, especially when you consider the Express 4K Plus is $10 cheaper than Google’s player.

When we reviewed the Nothing Phone 2 we said that it was a phone that definitely stands out but that it would be even better if it was cheaper. Someone at Amazon must agree because right now you can pick one up while saving a very respectable $92.

That means that you won’t have to pay the usual $699 price to get your hands on one of these phones. Instead, you’ll hand over just $607 if you’re quick — and we do mean quick. Not only does Amazon have a limited number of these handsets available at this special price but it seems to be getting dangerously close to single figures, too. If a new Nothing Phone 2 is on your wishlist now might be the time to treat yourself.

It’s also worth noting that this deal is only available on the white model, although the dark grey model is still cheaper than usual — you’ll pay $629 rather than $699.

You’ll get the same great phone underneath no matter which color you choose. That phone comes with 256GB of storage and 12GB of RAM with both paired with a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 chipset. In terms of display, the 6.7-inch OLED panel is nice and big and the variable 120Hz refresh rate means all of your apps will be buttery smooth in use.

Other notable features include a pair of 50-megapixel cameras out back and a 32-megapixel selfie camera, while 15-watt wireless charging is aided by fast wired charging that fully powers the phone in just 55 minutes.

With so much to like and a price to match, all you need to do now is make sure you get that order in before it’s too late.

There’s another chance at finding love for beloved previous cast members from TV’s most popular reality show, with new spin-off series Love Island Games hitting streaming services.

Once again exclusive to Peacock in the US, the new show is set to bring together former Islanders from the UK, US, Germany, Sweden and Australia to an all new villa in Fiji.

Familiar faces taking part include Curtis Pritchard, who finished fourth place on the 2019 series of Love Island UK, alongside 2018 contestant Meghan Barton Hanson, musician Kyra Green from Love Island USA season 1 and Mitch Hibberd and Tina Provis from the Aussie version of the hit show.

Love Island UK’s Maya Jama will host, while Iain Stirling will be on hand to narrate all the drama-filled “twists and turns.”

Don’t miss a moment of all the steamy drama from the villa by following our guide to watching Love Island Games from anywhere in the world.

When does Love Island Games start?

In the US, Love Island Games starts on Peacock on Wednesday, Nov. 1, with new episodes hitting the service six days a week, much like the original UK show.

How to watch Love Island Games from anywhere on VPN

So what if you’re traveling outside your home country and want to enjoy the show or want an added layer of privacy for streaming? There is an option that doesn’t require searching the internet for a sketchy website: You can use a VPN, or virtual private network.

With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the show. If you find yourself unable to watch locally, a VPN can come in handy. Plus, it’s a great idea for when you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

Most VPNs, like CNET’s Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it easy to virtually change your location. Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals.

Watch Love Island Games in the US

Can I stream Love Island Games in the UK and Australia?

At the current time of writing, there’s no confirmed broadcaster for the new spin-off in either of these two territories. With ITV the original home of the Love Island franchise, as well as the broadcaster of the US and Australian versions of the show in the UK, our expectation is that the show will eventually appear on the network at some point soon.

Similarly, with Channel 9 having broadcast previous seasons of both Love Island USA and Love Island UK, as well as being the home of the show’s Australian version, it’s looking like the free-to-air network will be the Aussie home of Love Island Games at some point in the future.

Watch Love Island Games in Canada

Streaming service Crave will be showing Love Island Games in Canada, with episodes available in tandem with their release on Peacock in the US.

Tips for streaming Love Island Games using a VPN

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — experience and success may vary.
• If you don’t see your desired location as a default option for ExpressVPN, try using the “search for city or country” option.
• If you’re having trouble viewing after you’ve turned on your VPN and set it to the correct viewing area, there are two things you can try for a quick fix. First, log in to your streaming service subscription account and make sure the address registered for the account is an address in the correct viewing area. If not, you may need to change the physical address on file with your account. Second, some smart TVs — like Roku — don’t have VPN apps you can install directly on the device itself. Instead, you’ll have to install the VPN on your router or the mobile hotspot you’re using (like your phone) so that any device on its Wi-Fi network now appears in the correct viewing location.
• All of the VPN providers we recommend have helpful instructions on their main site for quickly installing the VPN on your router. In some cases with smart TV services, after you install a network’s app, you’ll be asked to verify a numeric code or click a link sent to your email address on file for your smart TV. This is where having a VPN on your router will also help, since both devices will appear to be in the correct location.
• And remember, browsers can often give away a location despite using a VPN, so be sure you’re using a privacy-first browser to log into your services. We normally recommend Brave.

Foldable phones are still niche, but in 2023 you can find one from almost every major smartphone maker. While there’s more choice than ever before, it can still be a challenge to know whether buying a foldable phone is the right decision.

Foldable phones have been available for almost half a decade, with the first models from Samsung and Huawei having in 2019. But their high prices, limited software functionality and fragile designs initially made them hard to recommend.

A lot has changed over the last four years. Not only are there more options, but cheaper devices like Motorola’s $700 Razr (2023), which arrived in October, are starting to emerge. And while there’s still plenty of room for the software experience to evolve and improve, companies like Samsung, Google and Motorola made strides in 2023.

The larger outer screens on Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Motorola’s Razr Plus, for example, make it possible to actually use apps without opening your phone rather than just checking notifications. Google’s Pixel Fold has a new language translation feature that leverages both the external and internal screens.

More foldables launched this year than ever before, with new devices from Samsung, Motorola, OnePlus, Google, and Oppo hitting the market. Sales of foldable phones are expected to increase this year, with the International Data Corporation reporting a 43.9% boost compared to 2022 and Counterpoint Research pointing to a 10% bump in the second quarter of 2023 alone.

If you’re thinking about buying a foldable phone, consider your budget and how you intend to use your phone, among other factors. Check out CNET’s list of the best flip phones and best foldable phones to learn more about our top picks.

What’s your budget?

The most important question to ask is how much you’re willing to spend on a new phone. Even though foldable phones aren’t as expensive as they were back in 2019, they’re still significantly pricier than most standard phones. The Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 5 and Google Pixel Fold, for example, start at $1,800 without a trade-in, while the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Motorola Razr Plus cost $1,000. Motorola’s 2023 Razr is the cheapest of the bunch at $700, but you have to sacrifice that larger external screen in exchange.

Book-style foldable phones like the Galaxy Z Fold 5, OnePlus Open ($1,700) and Pixel Fold are among the most expensive phones you can buy. But flip phones are priced around the same as premium non-folding devices like the iPhone 15 Pro and Pixel 8 Pro, both of which start at around $1,000. So if you’re used to budgeting for a device in that price range, splurging on a flip phone won’t feel much different.

Don’t forget to keep an eye out for discounts and trade-in deals to make those prices more palatable. But keep in mind that many of those deals usually ask that you meet some type of requirement, like opening a new line with a carrier or trading in a relatively recent phone.

Are you careful with your phone?

While today’s foldables are sturdier than earlier models, the simple fact that they have hinges and bendable screens still makes them more delicate than regular phones. Shortly after Google launched the Pixel Fold in June, some Reddit users reported broken screens, for example. Most foldable phones aren’t dust resistant and have a lower water resistance rating than standard devices like the Pixel 8 and Galaxy S23 lineup.

If you work outdoors, have a tendency to drop your phone or handle it roughly or prefer not to use a case, you’ll want to be careful when switching to a foldable phone. It’s also a good idea to familiarize yourself with repair options from the device maker as well as third-party services.

Is it the right time to buy a foldable phone?

Like many electronics, foldable phones are often released on a seasonal basis. You’ll want to consider this to avoid spending $1,000 or more on a device that may soon feel outdated. While you can sometimes find compelling discounts on older models, it’s usually a good idea to opt for the latest version if you can.

Companies only usually support their phones with new versions of Android for a few years. The Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5 will get four generations of OS upgrades, for instance, while the Pixel Fold and Razr Plus get three years of Android platform updates. Buying the newest model ensures that your phone will continue to get software updates for as long as possible.

Samsung typically releases its new foldable phones around August, although it introduced the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Z Fold 5 slightly earlier than usual this year in July. If Google releases new Pixel Fold devices on an annual pattern, we can expect the second-generation model in June. Motorola hasn’t followed an annual cycle with its Razr phones, but the high-end Razr Plus also arrived in June while the cheaper model debuted in the US in October. The OnePlus Open, which is the brand’s first foldable phone, also launched in October.

The Black Friday shopping weekend is also a great time to look out for deals on foldables, especially since new models for the year have already launched. The Galaxy Z Fold 4 was on sale last year, and Samsung also held its own Cyber Week sale around the same time.

What do you want from a new phone?

This is probably the most significant consideration aside from your budget. Foldable phones are expensive and have some shortcomings compared to regular phones.

For example, they can sometimes feel bulky and awkward to use when closed thanks to their unconventional designs. The cameras on foldable phones often aren’t as advanced as the ones you’ll find on premium non-folding phones like the iPhone 15 Pro, Galaxy S23 Ultra and Pixel 8 Pro. There’s also a slight learning curve that comes with using a foldable phone for the first time, especially for larger book-style foldables. And most importantly, many of today’s foldables still have a visible crease that runs across the screen.

But those compromises can be worth it for the right audience. If you watch videos and play games on your phone often, a phone-tablet hybrid like the Galaxy Z Fold or Pixel Fold could be worth it. When I switched to the Galaxy Z Fold 4 for several weeks earlier this year, I loved having a larger canvas for writing and reading emails. I even left my tablet at home during a flight and used my phone solely for watching Netflix on the plane. Think long and hard about whether you need a phone that can double as a tablet and are willing to pay a higher price for that benefit.

Flip phones are for those who want a regular-sized phone that can fit in pockets and purses more easily. Since phones like the Motorola Razr and Galaxy Z Flip essentially have a built-in kickstand, they’re also ideal for those who like to take selfies and group photos without finding someone else to take the picture.

Newer flip phones like the Galaxy Z Flip 5 and Motorola Razr Plus also have cover screens that allow you to run full apps when the device is closed. Not only does this make it easier to quickly check Google Maps or Spotify from the palm of your hand, but I find that it can turn my phone into a mini smart display. When I tested the Razr Plus, for example, I enjoyed propping it open like a tent to play music, view album art and skip to the next song in my playlist while doing household chores.

With that in mind, flip phones are best for those who prioritize convenience and portability above almost everything else in a smartphone.

Overall, deciding whether to buy a foldable phone comes down to your budget and what you’re looking for in a new phone. Factors like durability and timing are also important to consider, but it all comes down to how much you’re willing to spend and what you’re hoping to get from your device. What is certain, though, is that 2023 was a big year for foldable phones, and they’re likely to continue improving in 2024 and beyond.

Editor’s note, Aug. 12: The Quest 2 increased in price Aug. 1 by $101. That makes it less of an impulse purchase, but still a CNET Editors’ Choice for now. Below is our updated review.

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There’s a pair of magic goggles I’ve gone back to again and again over the last two years, opening up worlds of games, theater, conversations, art and experiences that are tough to even describe. The Meta Quest 2 (formerly, and sometimes still, the Oculus Quest 2) is an improved, less expensive sequel to the 2019 Oculus Quest. It’s already been my portable holodeck, my little magic fitness room, my escape space and one of my favorite game consoles.

However, it’s no longer the budget buy it once was. A surprise $101 increase in the headset’s price means that hardware that used to cost $299 for 128GB of storage and $399 for 256GB is now $400 or $500. That’s a big price jump for aging hardware, even if Meta is offering a free download of Beat Saber as a $30 consolation prize. In a year when everything seems to be getting more expensive, it feels like an unwelcome slap in the face.

Does that mean you should hold off on buying it? All indications are that Meta’s next pro-level VR headset coming later this year will be even more expensive, and a true Quest 3 may not come until 2023 or later. But the reality is, there isn’t any standalone VR headset in existence with the app library or value that the Quest 2 has, even at its higher price.

Meta upgraded the base storage on the entry-level Quest 2 last year, doubling it from 64GB to 128GB. 128GB should be more than enough storage for most, but serious VR gamers will appreciate the 256GB storage tier step-up — there’s no way to expand storage otherwise.

While the Quest 2 is aging, it keeps impressing me. The Quest 2 keeps improving its software: It can get phone notifications, pair with keyboards and connect with virtual meeting apps, do basic fitness tracking and wirelessly stream from PCs. It’s still the best self-contained VR headset right now, and the most affordable for its features.

But, yeah, you have to accept that this is Facebook’s world (and that involves possibilities for future ads, too). While the Quest will soon allow account creation without using a Facebook login, it’s still worth keeping in mind the Quest 2 isn’t designed for kids, even though lots of parents I know have kids who use it. Parental controls are steadily being added, but they’re still not at the level of everyday game consoles like the Nintendo Switch, Xbox or PlayStation.

The Quest 2 has a VR-optimized Qualcomm Snapdragon XR2 processor, a higher-resolution display than the older Oculus Quest and Rift headsets, and it works surprisingly well as a tethered or wireless PC VR headset, in case you need it to.

I find I use the Quest 2 mainly as a game console, or a fitness device, or as a social tool for meeting with friends in virtual worlds. I don’t use it all the time. It’s an experience I dip into once in a while.

If you think of the Quest 2 as a game console, it’s a fantastic little game and experience machine. It might even be my second-favorite game console right now next to the Nintendo Switch. But if you imagine it fulfilling needs for work and the rest of your life, it raises deeper questions and complications.

Mark Zuckerberg and Meta remain focused on trying to turn VR into a better work and connectivity tool, but all of that’s still very much a work in progress. There are work apps in the Quest app library, but none of them work well enough for me to use them. Horizon Worlds and Horizon Workrooms are trying to build out social places for work and play.

Meta’s social media ambitions are clearly aligned where VR and AR are heading, and the Quest 2 still feels like the centerpiece of those efforts. Meta is allowing accounts to bypass needing a Facebook account login soon, but to be clear, you’ll still be under Meta’s umbrella in some way or another.

Read more: Why You Should Buy a Nintendo Switch Lite and Oculus Quest 2, Instead of PS5 or Xbox Series X

More game console than work device

If you treat the Quest 2 as a motion-enabled game console for your face and hands, or a way to socialize with friends in magic worlds where you can run around as invented avatars, it’s fantastic. It’s also a great little machine for playing Beat Saber. The Oculus Quest was already the best self-contained VR headset on the planet, and the Quest 2 is even better.

The experiences I’ve had in Oculus Quest have been surprising and strange, magical and active. The Quest 2 looks to be walking that same path with its curated app store and self-contained ecosystem. The full-motion six degrees of freedom (aka 6DoF) tracking, using four in-headset cameras, is all the same right now. The controllers are complex but well-designed. It’s more of a VR mini game console than anything, but its other tools — virtual big-screen computer monitors, fitness training software, immersive theater portals — could add dimensions you may not even have considered.

There are work tools in the Quest ecosystem, and ways to have virtual meetings: Spatial’s app brings people into shared spaces with workflows and cloud storage tools. Virtual monitor apps like Immerse can turn the Quest into a virtual series of monitors for your real computer. Plug in a USB cable, and the Quest 2 can be a PC VR headset and work with a lot of Steam apps as well. Meta’s Horizon Workrooms shows possibilities, too. I’d still consider these work apps experimental right now, though, and not essential.

Still, the Quest doesn’t really interface with Apple iOS or Google’s Android OS, although it pairs with a phone app like a smartwatch for some basic syncing and screen casting. You can’t just hop into a Zoom call or share a doc, and the flow between my virtual computer work life and the VR virtual flow isn’t there yet. I hope it can arrive because in my opinion, VR headsets should be more like immersive visual headphones. Right now they’re more like customized and different toolkits with positives (physical immersion) and negatives (no face-to-face camera conversation, and no easy work tools like a mouse and keyboard).

A great example of VR’s limits is the Quest 2’s still-evolving hand tracking. I can use my hands to reach out and touch things, controller-free, which is wild. But I can’t get physical feedback, and mastering the specific gestures needed to open an app, drag an object somewhere or type a response to a message feels extremely difficult.

What’s excellent

The display resolution:The 1,832×1,920-per-eye pixel resolution is improved from the 1,400×1,600 on the older Quest, and it makes everything smoother, removing a lot of the “screen door” pixelation. The Snapdragon XR2 processor also cuts down on the lower-res halo on the edges of the display that happened previously due to fixed foveated rendering (which only made the center of the display look ultrasharp to help the older processor). It’s more universally clean and crisp now, although there is still some pixelation at the edge of your vision if you look carefully.

Built-in audio doesn’t need headphones: The ambient spatial audio that comes out of the side straps is fine, and I prefer it to using headphones. It sounds a bit better to me than the first Quest. There’s also a 3.5mm headphone jack.

The XR2 chip looks pretty versatile, still: Qualcomm’s XR2 chip remains the best standalone processor for VR at the moment, and VR graphics on recent games have been pretty impressive. The Quest 2 can also handle hand tracking and mixed reality by overlaying virtual objects with its black and white passthrough cameras.

The refresh rate is smooth:The first Quest could run at 72Hz, a bit less than PC VR headsets that can go to 90Hz. The faster the refresh rate, the smoother the experience. The Quest 2 can even do 120Hz for some games and apps.

The size and weight aren’t bad: The Quest 2, at 17.7 ounces, or 503 grams, is not super light, but it’s still pretty portable for a self-contained headset. It’s still a pair of goggles, but it’s possible to carry it around. The elastic flex straps are easy to pack down, too, although the Quest 2 still isn’t as portable as an iPad or a Nintendo Switch.

Great controller battery life: The revamped Oculus Touch controllers have the same buttons and analog sticks and triggers, like a split-apart PlayStation controller. But the new controllers are bigger and sturdier-feeling, and have a bigger button area with a thumb rest. The controllers still use AA batteries as opposed to being rechargeable, but last a lot longer on a single battery: Mine lasts on a pair of AA batteries for months. Also, the battery cover doesn’t randomly slide off like it sometimes does on the older Quest controllers.

The game library: The Quest 2 is full of great VR game options. Many of these games can even look as good as their PC versions, although there may come a time in the next year or two when the hardware starts to feel its age.

What’s a bit of a letdown

It’s not as friendly to my larger glasses: The eye area on the new Quest is a bit smaller, and the included foam padding feels firmer and cushier. But my glasses now seem a bit more jammed in than on the older Quest. Meta sells a fit pack ($50) with a few different snap-out foam frames for different face types, so maybe I need one of those.

It takes a long time to recharge:The headset lasts two to three hours, which is like the last Quest. I find battery life can run down in just one evening, and then I need to recharge. And recharging takes a long time — an hour or more, which means you’ll need to take a VR break whether you like it or not. Meta does sell an Elite Strap with an extra battery pack, plus a helpful case, which helped my longer-term play sessions a lot.

The included USB-C cable is a lot shorter now: The original Quest included a super long USB-C cable that could be used to charge while playing, or tether via USB-C to a PC. The shorter charge cable with the Quest 2 makes that impossible, but guess what? Meta sells a longer cable for $80 (or you could buy your own for PC tethering via Oculus Link).

No expandable storage: The 128GB on the $400 Quest will hold enough games and apps for most people (a few dozen, roughly). Still, no expandable storage means that you need to choose carefully. Hardcore VR users should consider the 256GB option.

The LCD display’s blacks aren’t as black as the original Quest OLED: The fast-switch LCD on the Quest 2 is generally better, but the black levels are clearly less black. In a darkened virtual movie theater or with a dark game like The Room VR, I’m a lot more aware of the display’s light. (On the upside, bright images and text like web pages seem more vivid.)

IPD adjustment for my eyes was a bit of a learning process:The older Quest fit my eyes perfectly, and also had an interpupillary distance slider to fit eye distances for nearly anyone. The Quest 2 replaces the slider with three preset eye distance settings (53, 63 and 68mm) that are meant to fit most people, but at first my vision didn’t feel 100% with any of them. Over time, I readjusted the straps to my head and started to get better results. I also have thick prescription glasses, FYI.

You can’t really use it in sunlight: The Oculus Quest 2 is like a vampire — keep it indoors. Direct sunlight can cause permanent damage to the displays if beams go through the inner lenses, and when I played outside, the headset tracking had some trouble finding the controllers. It’s a reminder that VR headsets still aren’t everyday take-absolutely-anywhere things quite yet, though I’ve done some outdoorsy experiments from time to time.

A possible magic doorway to more, but what happens next with Meta?

Meta’s road to the future is set toward augmented-reality smart glasses that can blend the virtual and real, but that could still be years off. In the meantime, the Quest 2 could have enough onboard power to evolve new ideas for the company’s immersive work. Its pro-level headset, Project Cambria, should introduce better controllers, more mixed reality, eye and face tracking, and a better display. It could be another bridge to where Meta’s AR ambitions lie, but at a much higher price. The Quest 2, meanwhile, could hang on as a more “budget” device for everyone else.

Besides whatever concerns about Facebook and data you may have, there’s also the question of how open Meta will allow its VR universe to be. While the Quest connects easily with PCs, what about the future of phones? How will the Quest dovetail with the apps we use every day? Right now, it doesn’t. Mark Zuckerberg keeps pledging that the Quest’s future will be open. But the future ahead will be about phones and tablets that plug into VR and AR, and the Quest needs to find a way to be part of that future, too.

For now, the Quest 2 remains a memorable VR and experiential headset, and the best self-contained device VR has ever had. The only question is how much better it can get.

First published Sept. 16, 2020.

At Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Summit in Hawaii, the company revealed its next set of chips including the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3, which will power next year’s top Android phones, likely including the Samsung Galaxy S24 series. In addition to expected improvements in performance and battery efficiency, the new silicon brings on-device generative AI to phones. At the summit, I saw Qualcomm give demos highlighting situations in which the feature could help users out. But it was during a day trip Hawaii adventure that I thought up specific ways that smartphone generative AI could be truly helpful.

Following the summit, I remained on Maui to, ahem, do more research. Other summit-goers suggested a staple adventure of the island: the famed Road to Hana. From the Kahului Airport at the north of the island, it’s a bit more than a two-hour drive to Hana on the northeast side of Maui, but only if you don’t stop at the dozens of rest points, attractions, swimming pools, waterfalls, state and national parks, eateries and scenic views of the Hawaiian coast.

The Road to Hana is as famous for its beauty as it is infamous for its challenges. The road rises hundreds of feet above the waterline and drops back down several times over the course of the 620 hairpin turns that block views of oncoming traffic. The road is barely wide enough to fit two cars abreast, except when it narrows to a single lane over 59 old concrete bridges that only fit one car at a time, forcing drivers to negotiate crossings with cars on the other side.

And for most of the drive, there is zero cellphone service.

As I encountered obstacles and made discoveries about the road, I couldn’t help but ponder what on-device AI could’ve helped with. In some ways, it might have told me exactly what I needed to know before I did it. But there are still things our current vacation survival guides and simple word-of-mouth do better to help us than any AI.

Making plans for a last-minute day trip while abroad

Let’s start from the beginning. After waking up Saturday morning from a post-summit sleep, I made the call at 8:30 a.m. to commit the whole day to the Road to Hana. I did as much research as I could, reading official guidebook sites and TripAdvisor forums and watching YouTube videos for a rundown of the day. I had a baseline of knowledge to make a timeline, plus advice from previous travelers about must-see experiences.

I needed to make a limited agenda since I set out in my rental car at 10 a.m. Hana Highway veterans suggest leaving at daybreak to get the most out of the experience. I guessed which attractions would suit me and hoped for the best as I drove up from Maui’s southwest coast.

Here’s how I think on-device AI could’ve helped: Several of Qualcomm’s demonstrations at the summit showed people asking a Snapdragon-powered generative AI to make a travel plan. Rather than spend an hour researching, I could’ve had the AI give me a plan in seconds, and refined it with follow-up questions. Or better yet, I could’ve jumped in the car earlier and had the AI make plans for me on the go.

It’s not just that the on-device AI could make planning faster. Qualcomm says that the virtue of on-device AI is that it can consider more of your personal data since it’s being processed on the device and not going up to the cloud. The AI can draw conclusions about what people like from their behavior patterns, locations visited and photos. My device-generated itinerary could’ve recommended more beaches among the other attractions, which is what I ended up doing anyway only after guessing what things would’ve been less appealing for me.

Getting directions when signal was out

As online forums and videos suggested I do, I bought an app audio guide (the Gypsy Guide specifically for Road to Hana) that voiced suggestions and area lore, which was brilliantly triggered when I passed specific GPS coordinates, effectively timing the advice ahead of upcoming attractions so I could choose if I wanted to see them.

This audio guide was invaluable in helping me decide whether I should pull over or keep driving, especially as a solo explorer. But here’s the rub: Even if I had other people in the car with me to research while I drove, that wouldn’t be helpful once their phone signal cut out, which was the case for much of the Hana Highway.

On-device AI could supplement the audio guide in other ways while on the drive. If I veered away from the guide’s path, I could ask the on-device AI for navigation help to find my way back to the main road. If there’s a map downloaded to the phone, the on-device AI could give me step by step directions contextually dependent on where I’d driven off to. As it was, I got too worried about leaving the main road to venture out.

Filling in photo edges? Only if my photo is crooked

Here’s another fun challenge about exploring alone: You’re taking all your own selfies, especially if kind strangers aren’t around to help. Even with friends, there are situations like in low light where I’d want to use the more powerful rear cameras to take better photos of us. I’ve developed a curious workaround of setting my camera to ultra-wide and flipping the phone around to blindly shoot selfies. If I want to make more of an effort, I use the Apple Watch’s camera app to try to preview the image, requiring extensive angling of phone and watch. It works about as well as you’d think.

Qualcomm showed off another Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 on-device trick at the summit: using generative AI to expand the borders of a photo and predictively fill in what wasn’t originally captured. In practice, this could mean a photo taken with the main camera is made to look like it had been taken with an ultra-wide lens instead.

But I found another potential use: fixing those janky photos you take accidentally. If I mistakenly took a photo at a Dutch angle, most phones’ existing editing tools will let you tilt it back to being level with the horizon — but that might end up shaving off too much of the sides. Generative AI could fill in the photo’s sides while keeping most of the original subject in the center of the shot.

There’s also the neat trick Qualcomm showed off on stage for removing unwanted subjects out of videos. Like Google’s Magic Eraser or Magic Editor that deletes people or things out of photos, a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 phone could do the same fix for video, which would be nice given all the other people I inadvertently captured while shooting my litany of “I’d come back to this beach” videos.

Telling me if I had time to stay out or turn back

I triumphantly passed through Hana and technically finished the road, but my audio guide said there were still a few must-see areas beyond. As the sun started dipping behind Haleakalā, I got nervous about the hairpin turns and bridges that I didn’t want to navigate in the dark. I stopped at a crossroads with the famous Wailua Falls ahead of me — and out of an abundance of caution, I turned back up the road to reverse my journey.

I could’ve pushed on, and I regretted not feeling confident enough to see the vaunted pools below the waterfalls. Still out of signal range (I occasionally got a single bar of LTE), I would love to have asked a specific question: Do I have time for a quick visit and to get past the worst of the turns and one-lane bridges before nightfall?

Those are the kind of “I wish I had an expert sitting next to me” questions I’d have loved to get answered on the spot. The audio guide cleverly checked in with seasoned advice depending on how far people got, so I had some sense of whether I should return, but nothing smart enough to consider timing the sunset for the current date or forecasting road conditions like whether traffic would slow me down enough before it got dark. Or, with personalization, taking into consideration how long my “quick stops” usually ended up being.

With up-to-the-minute travel info, on-device AI could take into consideration my grumbling stomach and laid out a few options for dinner, given my timetable. In a place like Maui where shops don’t always keep regular or expected hours (alas for missing Sam Sato’s that closed at 2 p.m.), it would be nice to have an inkling of dinner options on the drive back.

Keeping me company on the long road

Much hay has been made about generative AI’s capability to instantly write short stories or create images based on prompts, and unskilled people have rejoiced in the possibility of using ChatGPT or Midjourney to get rich quick with regurgitated material. But there’s potential in storytelling that isn’t used to feed capitalism’s yawning maw for content, and instead to help bored travelers pass the time.

The audio guide came in extremely useful here, especially on the return journey as it thoroughly summarized the history of mankind’s millennia coming to and living on the Hawaiian islands. But what it couldn’t do was answer any follow-up questions I had. For instance, when Sanford Dole led business leaders in a coup dethroning the last monarch of Hawaii, Queen Lili’oukalani, leading to the annexation of the islands by the US and disenfranchisement of the Hawaiian people in favor of business moguls, I could’ve asked for more clarification on the impact of America’s colonization of the islands.

There are other neat ways generative AI could help other folks in the car, like backseat gremlins getting restless who may calm down if a generative AI tells them stories. If some promising AI models are to be believed, we could even see AI-generated video soon, which would certainly help placate folks until a return to mobile signal range to stream their trusted favorites.

And then there’s the stalwart driver, stoically handling every harrowing turn, who might welcome some conversation, however auto-generated. If I hadn’t had the foresight to download a couple podcasts to my phone, I would’ve had silence between the audio guide’s travel tips and history lessons. Heck, even though I fully downloaded those podcasts, Apple’s perpetually horrendous Podcasts app sometimes demanded internet connectivity to play them.

In summary, I survived my solo adventure thanks to quick planning, and making tough calls on the road to forgo what could have been incredible sights and envy-inspiring Instagram photos. But offloading a lot of that cognition or even having a voice to help me sort my thoughts could make travel a lot easier. Take this all with a grain of salt, of course, as we’ve yet to personally test Qualcomm’s generative AI in a real product. (The Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 launched in its first phone, the Xiaomi 14, during the summit, but we’ll have to wait until next year to see most of the handsets that will pack the chip.)

Still, the possibilities remain. Who knows how having a bonus brain in your pocket will remove some of the friction of travel and make the views that much easier to enjoy.

Editors’ note: CNET is using an AI engine to help create some stories. For more, see this post.

When it comes to a great home theater experience, there’s nothing that beats a large-screen TV with some great specs behind it. For example, this Q80C TV from Samsung is not only 85 inches, it also runs a QLED panel, which is better than a traditional LED panel on its own. Even better, the whole thing has a significant discount, bringing its price down to $1,998 from $3,298, a significant $1,300 off.

One thing that’s pretty great about the Q80C is that it has its own internal upscaling chip, which can bring your older content up to a 4K standard. While it’s certainly not perfect and will vary depending on the quality of the source, it’s nice to have the option to upscale content, especially with a TV so big that you’ll start to notice lower resolutions. It also has Quantum HDR Plus, similar to HDR 10 Plus and will give you some excellent color reproduction and clarity.

Another interesting aspect of the TV is that it runs at a base 120Hz refresh rate, which makes it perfect for watching high-intensity television like sports or action movies. It’s also great for gaming, so if you play on the PlayStation 5 or the Xbox Series X, you’ll get a lot out of this TV. If not, The Q80C supports Samsung’s Gaming Hub, which allows you to stream game content, assuming that you have a good enough connection and the right subscriptions.

Overall, the Q80C is an excellent TV for an 85-inch screen at budget prices. While it might not have an OLED panel, it’s packed with enough features that it’s well worth grabbing one if you like the deal. Otherwise, check out some of these other great TV deals.

During its Scary Fast event Monday, Apple launched the new M3 chip series for its Macs alongside new MacBook Pros and iMacs. But it was the end of the presentation that caught my attention when a title card appeared that stated: “This event was shot on iPhone and edited on Mac.”

The fineprint under the text said that all the presenters, locations and even drone footage were recorded with an iPhone 15 Pro Max. Apple has used slickly shot and edited prerecorded videos in lieu of in-person live presenters for product launch events since 2020. But this is the first time Apple ever broadcast a keynote event video that was filmed entirely with an iPhone.

Yes, the same phone you use to record your kids playing around the house, or concerts or your pets being cute was used to record Apple CEO Tim Cook and other executives launching updated Macs. But this wasn’t the case of an eager Apple employee holding their new iPhone 15 Pro Max in landscape orientation, recording video and helping Cook find his best light.

The $1,199 phone was mounted on pricey accessories like a camera crane, drone, gimbal and dolly, all while feeding video previews to multitudes of monitors. The iPhone 15 Pro Max was in a BeastGrip cage, which, depending on the specific model, costs anywhere from $140 to $325. There were external hard drives connected to the iPhone to save recordings, external mics used to record the audio, professional lighting and modifiers to make everyone from Cook to Issa Rae look their best.

The video shoot and post-production involved a small army of professionals. Meaning that everything else, aside from the iPhone, still costs tens of thousands of dollars if not more.

Apple isn’t shy about promoting videos shot on an iPhone. Steven Soderbergh used an iPhone to shoot full-length films like Unsane and High Flying Bird. There’s no shortage of iPhone-shot music videos for singers like Lady Gaga and Olivia Rodrigo. Heck, Steven Speilberg shot his first music video (Marcus Mumford’s Cannibal) on an iPhone.

In a press release that provides a behind-the-scenes look, Apple mentions that an iPhone 15 Pro Max with the free Blackmagic Camera app was used to record ProRes video in Apple Log, which allows a lot of leeway to color grade videos and minimize image noise in the shadows. Even with all the lighting, large stretches of Apple’s event video were filmed in darkness, with Cook standing outdoors under a night sky and wishing us all a “good evening” instead of his usual “good morning.”

You can learn more about how Apple made the prerecorded event video here.

Microsoft has revealed its pricing for Microsoft 365 Copilot, launching Nov. 1, which integrates the large language model tech from OpenAI’s ChatGPT into Office applications, and it comes at a steep cost.

While it’s still in early access, Microsoft said that 365 Copilot will cost $30 per user per month for E3, E5, Business Standard and Business Premium Customers when it becomes broadly available. In March, Microsoft brought its artificial intelligence-powered Bing into the Edge browser, calling it a “copilot” for the web.

Bing Chat is also coming to Microsoft 365 enterprise users in preview form, Microsoft said Tuesday. One key selling point is the price: If you’re a Microsoft 365 E3, E5, Business Standard and Business Premium user, you’ll get Bing Chat Enterprise at no additional cost. In the future, it will be available as a stand-alone product for $5 per month.

Microsoft is also pushing privacy as an important point, saying AI-powered chat data is protected and won’t leak outside an organization.

“Chat data is not saved, and Microsoft has no eyes-on access — which means no one can view your data,” Microsoft said in a blog post. “And your data is not used to train the models.”

Not to be outdone by Google, Microsoft is rolling out multimodal capabilities, bringing Visual Search to Bring Chat. This means you can use images in Bing Chat to search for things.

With the launch of ChatGPT late last year, an AI chatbot that could answer almost any question with a unique response, there’s been a rush to use that tech across multiple applications. We’ve already seeing AI chatbots help people code, help with college applications and assist in dating apps. Heck, there’s even a ChatGPT-powered sex toy. But in business and enterprise applications, AI could become a powerful force. Already, Google is testing its Duet AI for Google Workspace, which brings the power of AI to Gmail and Docs to help people write.

The enterprise AI market is expected to reach $88 billion by 2030, according to Verified Market Research. Given the rapid growth, it’s not at all surprising that companies are being bullish in the space.

Bing Chat Enterprise isn’t Microsoft’s first flirtation with AI. The company was quick to up its investment in OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, earlier this year and integrate its tech into Bing.

Editors’ note: CNET is using an AI engine to help create some stories. For more, see this post.

Bored with streaming? A new show from A24 and Showtime may be able to lift the curse.

Starring Emma Stone and Nathan Fielder — known for the comedy series Nathan For You and The Rehearsal — The Curse is a 10-episode, genre-bending series that follows a couple trying for a baby while co-starring in a socially conscious reality show, Fliplanthropy. Unfortunately, paths of off-camera destruction accompany the on-camera renovations in the twisted series, per a Showtime synopsis.

The Curse, which premiered at the New York Film Festival in October, also stars Benny Safdie, who co-created the show with Fielder. If you want to stream it, you’ll need to be a subscriber to Paramount Plus with Showtime. It’ll also debut linearly on Showtime. Here are the release dates, plus why using a VPN might make sense for you.

When you can stream The Curse (Paramount Plus with Showtime subscribers)

You’ll need a Paramount Plus with Showtime subscription to watch The Curse. In the US, the first episode premieres on Nov. 10 at 12:01 a.m. ET/Nov. 9 at 9:01 p.m. PT.

If you want to catch it on Showtime, you’ll have to wait until it airs on Nov. 12 at 10 p.m. ET/PT.

Paramount Plus with Showtime — not to be confused with Paramount Plus’ $6 per month ad-supported Essential plan — costs $12 per month and comes with perks including downloads, Showtime programming and your local live CBS station. While the Essential plan is ad-based, Paramount Plus with Showtime only displays ads on “live TV and a few shows.”

How to watch The Curse with a VPN

Perhaps you’re traveling abroad and want to stream Paramount Plus while away from home. With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the series from anywhere in the world. There are other good reasons to use a VPN for streaming too.

A VPN is the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds by encrypting your traffic. Using a VPN is also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network and want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins. Streaming TV can be a bit smoother with a reliable, quality VPN that’s passed our tests and security standards.

You can use a VPN to stream content legally as long as VPNs are allowed in your country and you have a valid subscription to the streaming service you’re using. The US and Canada are among the countries where VPNs are legal, but we advise against streaming or downloading content on illegal torrent sites. We recommend ExpressVPN, but you may opt for another provider from our best list, such as Surfshark or NordVPN.

Follow the VPN provider’s instructions for installation, and choose a country where The Curse will be streaming on Paramount Plus. Before you open the streaming app, make sure you’re connected to your VPN using your selected region. If you want to stream The Curse on more than one device, it’s possible you’ll need to configure each one to ensure you’re signed in. Go to settings and check your network connections to verify you’re logged in and connected to your VPN account. Now you’re ready to open Paramount Plus to stream.

If you run into issues with streaming, first make sure your VPN is up and running on its encrypted IP address. Double-check that you’ve followed installation instructions correctly and you’ve picked the right geographical area for viewing. If you still encounter connection problems, you may need to reboot your device. Close all apps and windows, restart your device and connect to your VPN first. Note that some streaming services have restrictions on VPN access.