Category: Technologies

If you bought an iPhone 15or iPhone 15 Pro, then one of the first things you should do is buy a phone case for them to keep them safe. That’s especially the case given they’re some of the best iPhones so far and are worth a fortune depending on where you get them from. Luckily, CNET has an exclusive promo code from Speck that will let you save 20% on your order.

That order doesn’t have to be only for cases, either. Speck has other accessories available, including screen protectors — never a bad idea — plus stands, grips, wallets and more. They’re all compatible with the new iPhones, so make sure to add what you want to your order before checking out if you want to save 20% on everything. Enter code CNET20 to lock in that discount.

There are plenty of different cases to choose from whether you’re looking to protect the iPhone 15 or the range-topping iPhone 15 Pro Max. There are cases with Speck’s ClickLock MagSafe support in a range of colors, while people who prefer their cases to be clear can choose one of those, too. With some interesting iPhone 15 colors on offer, that could well be the way to go. We’re not so sure about those muted iPhone 15 Pro colors, though.

Remember to enter discount code CNET20 when checking out, and that this deal will end Jan. 16 at midnight PST. That means you still have just under two days left to make your purchase, but don’t forget, or you’ll wind up paying more than you had to.

The Green Bay Packers snuck into the playoffs as the NFC’s last Wild Card team with a 9-8 record. The Pack now heads to Dallas to take on the 12-5 Cowboys, who overtook the Eagles in the final weeks of the season to win the NFC East.

It will be the first playoff start for Packers quarterback Jordan Love, who overcame some struggles early in his first full season as a starter to lead the team to a 6-2 finish and into the playoffs.

They will face a tough Dallas defense led by All-Pro linebacker Micah Parsons and an explosive offense behind the duo of quarterback Dak Prescott and wideout CeeDee Lamb.

The Packers and Cowboys kick off Sunday’s second Wild Card playoff game at 4:30 p.m. ET (1:30 p.m. PT) on Fox. Here’s how you can watch, stream and follow along.

Packers vs. Cowboys game today: When and where?

This Wild Card matchup sees the Cowboys host the Packers at 4:30 p.m. ET (1:30 p.m. PT) on Sunday. The game will take place at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, home of the Cowboys.

How to watch Packers vs. Cowboys in the US

Sunday’s Packers-Cowboys game is on Fox nationally. The good news for football fans is that Fox is available on most of the major live TV streaming services. The least expensive such service is Sling TV Blue.

Numerous other live TV streaming services carry local Fox stations as well, namely YouTube TV, Hulu Plus Live TV, DirecTV Stream and Fubo. They all cost far more than Sling, but they also carry a full complement of live channels, including football broadcasting channels like CBS and ESPN. Check out our live TV streaming services guide for details.

All the live TV streaming services above offer free trials, allow you to cancel anytime and require a solid internet connection. Looking for more information? Check out our live TV streaming services guide.

An over-the-air antenna connected to your TV provides another option for Fox. The best part about antennas is that there are no streaming or monthly fees required, though you will need to make sure you have good reception.

Each year, the Consumer Electronics Show provides us with amazing demos and concepts that won’t be available to regular consumers for years (we’re all still waiting to make ColdSnap ice cream in minutes). On the flip side, there are some fabulous and futuristic products from CES 2024 that you can buy right now.

All of the products below are available to preorder or purchase directly. From clicky iPhone keyboards to smart indoor meat smokers, here are the best products of CES 2024 available right now. While you’re here, check our our best of show picks for CES 2024 and take a look at the weirdest gadgets we found at the show.

For all of our CES 2024 coverage, from stained-glass window solar panels to 115-inch TV sets, be sure to hit up our full CES 2024 roundup.

It’s pretty easy to use your smartphone to order takeout food, play music, watch videos or schedule a ride share, but what if you didn’t have to unlock your phone (or even pick it up) to do any of those things? At CES 2024, tech giants and small startups provided a look at what the world might look like if you could video chat or book a vacation without touching your smartphone at all.

From putting voice assistants fueled by the tech behind ChatGPT in your pocket and car to mixed reality headsets that position virtual screens all around you, CES 2024 was full of ideas about how apps as we currently know them could evolve.

Read more: Best of Show: Our Most Exciting, Innovative and Impactful Tech Winners of CES 2024

It’s an ambition that’s been in motion for the better part of the last decade following the debut of voice-first gadgets like the Amazon Echo and early modern VR headsets such as the Oculus Rift. There’s renewed interest around these ideas heading into 2024, thanks to the boom in generative AI-powered assistants like ChatGPT and Apple’s entry into the mixed reality market. That sentiment was on full display during CES.

Smarter voice assistants that can do more

Amazon’s Alexa, Apple’s Siri and Google Assistant have existed for years, and ChatGPT has been part of the cultural zeitgeist since it arrived in November 2022. At CES 2024, we saw new ways in which large language models — or AI models that have been trained on large amounts of data to better understand natural language — are being implemented into hardware. These advancements, should they live up to their promises, could potentially eliminate or reduce the need to use traditional apps as often.

The Rabbit R1 is the biggest example of this. This tiny, orange box-shaped device is about half the size of your smartphone, and its 2.88-inch display is considered miniscule by today’s smartphone standards. That’s because you’re not meant to browse apps and watch videos on that small screen. Instead, the R1 hopes to be a smarter virtual assistant than your phone since it foregoes apps in favor of AI.

Rather than running on a traditional operating system, the Rabbit R1 is powered by a large action model (LAM), an algorithm that learns how people navigate apps so that it can automate those processes for you, along with OpenAI’s GPT-4 large language model. Rabbit CEO and founder Jesse Lyu likens it to handing your phone to a friend to order takeout or book an Uber rather than doing it yourself.

Volkswagen, meanwhile, wants to make it easier to get information without having to use apps on your phone while on the road. In partnership with Cerence, Volkswagen is incorporating ChatGPT into the automaker’s voice assistant in certain electric vehicles.

That means it’ll be capable of answering more complex questions, possibly making it so that you don’t have to pull over to whip out your phone or have a passenger look up such queries. It would be a step beyond Volkwagen’s current voice assistant, named Ida, which can be used to set destinations or change the temperature using your voice, as my colleague Antuan Goodwin reports.

Mixed reality is having a moment

Other companies are looking for ways to expand apps way beyond the confines of your phone’s tiny 6-inch screen. One such example comes from Chinese startup Xreal, which debuted a new pair of augmented reality glasses called the Air 2 Ultra at CES. Xreal is already known for making AR glasses that can simulate the experience of watching a large TV. Xreal’s newest pair of glasses include 3D environment sensors, enabling them to run 3D apps and track motion.

Xreal is currently courting developers into creating 3D apps and experiences for its glasses. In the meantime, the company’s CES demo provided a glimpse into what these apps may look like. Xreal’s new glasses can place virtual screens all around the room, with a music player floating to the left and a YouTube video to the right, for example. The contacts page for communicating with friends and family members conjures up a 3D avatar of the person once you select them. It’s a much different experience than just looking at a contact’s photo on your phone.

In perhaps another sign that apps as we know them may change, Sony announced a mixed reality headset at CES 2024 designed specifically with content creators in mind. The goal, according to Sony’s press release, is to provide developers and creators with tools for building 3D content. Whether the content built using Sony’s new headset lives on your phone, future smart glasses or elsewhere is yet to be determined, but it’ll surely look and feel much different than the flat apps we use today.

Companies like Xreal, TCL and Lenovo have been developing and promoting smart glasses for years. Such devices are now in the spotlight thanks to Apple’s Vision Pro, the company’s first head-mounted computer. It’s perhaps no coincidence that Apple announced retail availability for the Vision Pro during CES, just as companies like Xreal were drawing attention toward their own mixed reality eyewear.

The Vision Pro, which launches on Feb. 2, provides a much larger canvas for viewing iPhone and Mac apps by virtually placing them in your environment. Aside from just enlarging apps, though, Apple’s demonstration video shows how the Vision Pro will show 3D representations of icons and graphics that animate and fill your entire room for a more in-depth experience. It’s Apple’s biggest bet in years to move beyond the iPhone and the myriad apps that live on it.

Just like smartphones and tablets never wholly replaced laptops the way some had predicted, smarter voice-enabled chatbots and mixed reality experiences won’t make the apps on your phone obsolete. They may change their role and place in our lives.

Tottenham take on Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday as the north Londoners look to complete their first league double over the Red Devils since the 1989 to 1990 season.

Spurs claimed a 2-0 victory at home in the reverse fixture at the start of the season back in August, thanks to a Pape Matar Sarr strike and a Lisandro Martínez own goal.

The visitors come into this game with two reinforcements to boost their push for the top four. Timo Werner joins on loan from RB Leipzig and defender Radu Drăgușin arrived from Genoa, with both new recruits cleared to play on Sunday.

United have yet to dip into the transfer market so far this window, despite their inconsistent form which has seen them marooned in mid-table, with Erik ten Hag’s side losing to Nottingham Forest before beating Wigan in the FA Cup in their last two fixtures.

Below, we’ll outline the best live TV streaming services to use to watch the game live wherever you are in the world.

Manchester United vs. Tottenham Hotspur: When and where?

Manchester United host Tottenham Hotspur at Old Trafford on Sunday, Jan. 14. Kickoff is set for 4:30 p.m. GMT (11:30 a.m. ET, 8:30 a.m. PT in the US and Canada, and 3:30 a.m. AEDT in Australia on Monday, January 15).

How to watch the Man United vs. Spursgame online from anywhere using a VPN

If you find yourself unable to view the game locally, you may need a different way to watch the game — that’s where using a VPN can come in handy. A VPN is also the best way to stop your ISP from throttling your speeds on game day by encrypting your traffic, and it’s also a great idea if you’re traveling and find yourself connected to a Wi-Fi network, and you want to add an extra layer of privacy for your devices and logins.

With a VPN, you’re able to virtually change your location on your phone, tablet or laptop to get access to the game. So if your internet provider or mobile carrier has stuck you with an IP address that incorrectly shows your location in a blackout zone, a VPN can correct that problem by giving you an IP address in your correct, non-blackout area. Most VPNs, like our Editors’ Choice, ExpressVPN, make it really easy to do this.

Using a VPN to watch or stream sports is legal in any country where VPNs are legal, including the US, UK and Canada, as long as you have a legitimate subscription to the service you’re streaming. You should be sure your VPN is set up correctly to prevent leaks: Even where VPNs are legal, the streaming service may terminate the account of anyone it deems to be circumventing correctly applied blackout restrictions.

Looking for other options? Be sure to check out some of the other great VPN deals taking place right now.

Livestream the Man United vs. Tottenham game in the US

Sunday’s Man United-Tottenhammatch is streaming on Peacock. You’ll need a Peacock Premium or Premium Plus account to catch the game live.

Livestream the Man United vs. Tottenhamgame in the UK

Premier League rights in the UK are split between Sky Sports, Amazon Prime Video and TNT Sports (previously known as BT Sport). Man United vs. Tottenhamis exclusive to Sky Sports, showing on its Sky Sports Main Event, Premier League and Ultra channels. If you already have Sky Sports as part of your TV package, you can stream the game via its Sky Go app, but cord-cutters will want to get set up with a Now account and a Now Sports membership to stream the game.

Livestream the Man United vs. Tottenhamgame in Canada

If you want to streamMan United vs. Tottenhamlive in Canada, you’ll need to subscribe to Fubo. The service has exclusive rights for this Premier League season.

Livestream the Man United vs. Tottenhamgame in Australia

Football fans Down Under can watch this EPL fixture on streaming service Optus Sport, which is showing every single Premier League game live in Australia this season.

Quick tips for streaming the Premier League using a VPN

• With four variables at play — your ISP, browser, video streaming provider and VPN — your experience and success when streaming EPL matches 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 getting the game 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 into 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 cable network’s sports 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.

New 16-inch, 240Hz OLED panels and a crop of new CPUs from Intel and Nvidia mean a raft of new laptops at CES to host them. Intel announced its gaming-focused 14th-gen Core HX series here, and in December, Intel and AMD launched their flagship Core Ultra and Ryzen 8000 series laptop CPUs.

The companies behind the chips are focused on AI, and that’s what you’re going to hear a lot about in 2024, as they try to use it to differentiate these newer premium models from older generations — to try to sell you on upgrading.

The best laptops of this year’s show offer new designs to take advantage of new features, such as reducing cooling systems to make them smaller and lighter or incorporating the latest Wi-Fi 7 wireless. These are the models we think went the extra mile.

Read more: CNET’s Picks for Best of Show, The Most Exciting, Innovative and Impactful Tech Winners of CES 2024

Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid

Lenovo’s been playing around with offbeat laptop designs for a while, and its dual Android and Windows ThinkBook seems almost conventional compared to some of its previous concepts.

The device has a processor in each half: a Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Plus Gen 1 processor powering the tablet and its 14-inch, 2.8K OLED screen, and an Intel Core Ultra 7 chip in the base. That means the base can function as a Windows system when connected to an external monitor. The question is, though, do enough people want two different operating systems sharing the same hardware for it to get any traction?

Read more: Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid Can Switch Between Android and Windows

Asus Zenbook Duo

Asus helped pioneer the concept of the dual-screen laptop, but historically that second screen has been only a slice of the depth of the notebook and tended not to match up. With the 2024 model, Asus has expanded to two matching full-size OLED touchscreens, allowing it to create the equivalent of an almost 20-inch monitor.

The screens are 120Hz, 2,880×1,800-pixel panels linked by a hinge that lets it lie flat and a detachable keyboard. There’s also a built-in kickstand; without one I’m not sure the design would work. You’ll be able to configure it with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 H-series CPU, up to 32GB of memory and up to 1TB of storage. Ports include two Thunderbolt 4, a USB Type-A, HDMI out and a headphone jack.

If you strip out the computational power, it’s like looking at the ZenScreen Fold OLED.

Read more: Asus Zenbook Duo Laptop Has Dual 14-Inch OLEDs for 20 Inches of Workspace

Alienware m16 R2

Alienware’s M series has been an awkward fit in the product line ever since the company launched its svelte X series. This year, the company took the opportunity to scale it back in several ways in order to fix that. Most noticeably, it got rid of the forward-hinge design, basically lopping off a lot of the extra airflow it needed to cool the system.

To make that work, Alienware also scaled back on the components, especially the GPU, which tops out with a GeForce RTX 4070 rather than the RTX 4090 it previously could support. By making it a smaller, lighter and less expensive system, Alienware now has a true midtier line. It’s shipping this month starting at $1,650.

Read more: Alienware Made the New m16 R2 Laptop More Portable and Discreet by Cutting Off the Rear

HP Omen Transcend 14

The new 14-inch model in HP’s Omen Transcend line is designed to straddle work and play, cutting back drastically on the RGB glitz and sharp corners we’re used to with gaming laptops. An interesting addition is a built-in wireless receiver compatible with the excellent HyperX Cloud 3 Wireless gaming headset (HP owns HyperX), so that’s one less dongle you need to worry about.

It’s light enough for your commute but doesn’t skimp on the power. You can configure it with up to an Intel Core Ultra 9 185H and up to a GeForce RTX 4070, and is built around a 14-inch, 2.8K OLED display with a 48-120Hz variable refresh rate. It starts at $1,500 and is available now for preorder.

Read more: HP Omen Transcend 14 Is More Versatile Than Your Average Gaming Laptop

HP Spectre x360 14

We’re big fans of the Spectre 2-in-1 laptop line, and the 2024 model maintains that reputation. It’s sleek, generally well designed, and is the first laptop we’ve laid hands on equipped with the Intel Arc graphics integrated GPU that comes in the new Core Ultra processor.

Its screen is a 2,880×1,800-pixel OLED panel that supports variable refresh rate up to 120Hz — VRR is made possible by that Arc GPU. It’s available now starting at $1,500.

Read more: HP Spectre x360 14 (2024) Review: Meteor Lake Arrives in Style

MSI Titan 18 HX

MSI redesigned its most mammoth gaming laptop, streamlining it without the huge forward hinge, and beefing up the display to a new 120Hz, 4K mini-LED panel that’s DisplayHDR 1000-certified and has Calman Verified color. And check out the touchpad — we’re big fans of illuminated pads.

As you’d expect from a power gaming laptop, it incorporates the latest components, in this case up to the Intel Core i9-14900HX and GeForce RTX 4090. MSI has also opted to incorporate Wi-Fi 7, which is optional (versus Wi-Fi 6E) for that CPU’s chipset.

Razer Blade 16

The 2024 Blade 16 incorporates one of the new 2,560×1,600-pixel, 240Hz OLED displays or alternatively the company’s dual-refresh mini-LED IPS screens that can switch between 4K (2400p) 120Hz and 1200p 240Hz. The OLED display is rated ClearMR 11000 (a new measure of motion blur sponsored by VESA) and DisplayHDR True Black 500-certified, which is pretty much top of the line for a laptop screen.

It also incorporates the new Intel Core i9-14900HX and up to a GeForce RTX 4090. It starts at $3,000 and you can buy it now.

Read more: Razer’s 2024 Blade Laptops Bring All the Newness

Dell XPS line

It’s been a while since Dell updated the design of its XPS laptops. Last year’s 13-inch “Plus” model was the first in a long time, and it must have been a success, because now the entire line boasts the signature look: the lattice-free keyboard and a touch function key row that lights up when you want it and goes dark when you don’t, and a seamless glass touchpad with haptic feedback.

All the models will incorporate the Core Ultra CPUs; the 13-inch will use the chip with integrated Arc graphics, while the other two support discrete Nvidia RTX 40-series graphics. They expected to ship soon, but we don’t have pricing.

Read more: Dell’s New XPS Laptop Line Has a Fresh but Familiar Look

Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 and G16

The ROG Zephyrus are well designed and well liked gaming laptops, and the 2024 models look like they’ll continue that trend. The company has redesigned the LED array on the top of the G14 — one of that model’s original novelties which is still unique — and both sizes bring OLED screens to the line for the first time. 240Hz, natch.

As is the norm for the G series, the 16-inch model is Intel-based, in this case up to a Core Ultra 9 185H and up to a GeForce RTX 4090. The 14-inch uses AMD CPUs, up to the Ryzen 9 8945HS, accompanied by discrete Nvidia graphics, up to an RTX 4070.

Read more: Asus’s New Strix Scar Gaming Laptops Have Fancy Mini-LED Displays

Acer Predator Helios 16 and 18

Acer’s latest Predator Helios 16 and 18 models have incorporated swappable mechanical switches (for the WASD keys, only) that provide tactile feedback and faster response time where you need it. Three sets of switches are included in the box so gamers can dial in the right feel. Both the 16- and 18-inch models also feature 250Hz mini-LED display options.

In addition to getting updated with the latest 14th-gen Intel HX silicon, they can be configured with up to RTX 4090 graphics.The Predator Helios 16 (PH16-72) will be available later this month starting at $1,900. The Predator Helios 18 (PH18-72) will start shipping in March starting at $2,000.

Read more: Acer Brings 14th-gen Intel HX Chips to Its Helios and Nitro Gaming Laptops

Razer Blade 18

This one was really just a teaser, but it holds a special place in my heart because it’s one of the few new models that plans to offer Thunderbolt 5 support — higher bandwidth for docks, faster external drives and the ability to drive three 4K monitors are pretty compelling — in addition to the few new capabilities provided by Intel’s 14th-gen HX chipset.

Plus, you’ll be able to configure it with newest 165Hz 4K OLED screen, which is a nice perk. And it retains the same black-slab, work-or-play design that the Blades are known for.

Read more: Razer’s 2024 Blade Laptops Bring All the Newness