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Are you on the hunt for the best VPN for your Windows device? We have good news for you: Thanks to Windows’ dominance as a desktop OS and its comparatively customizable operating environment, you’ve got a wide range of options. While MacOS users have to factor in several Apple-specific requirements, finding the best VPN for Windows — and getting the widest range of protocol options to work with your device — is a lot easier. Nearly every major VPN provider offers an app on both desktop and mobile environments for Microsoft.

To determine the fastest and most secure VPN services for Windows 10 and Windows 11, we hands-on tested a variety of VPN services across both Windows and MacOS platforms. Our CNET team specifically tackled a number of core factors in our testing, including reliability, security strength, ease of remote access, browsing and streaming speeds, and value for the money. All the recommendations on our main list of the best VPN providers are compatible with all currently maintained Windows versions, and CNET has tested them for use in the latest available operating system. (That means they’ll work seamlessly on Windows 11, which is available for download now on your laptop or desktop.) All of them also offer a stand-alone VPN client that will work without a hitch on your desktop.

Here you’ll find our top picks for the best VPN for Windows, ranked for their performance across all categories. Once you choose the right VPN service for you, be sure to read our guide on how to set up a VPN on Windows 10.

ExpressVPN

ExpressVPN

Editors’ Choice: Best overall VPN for privacy protection and speed

• Latest tests: No leaks detected, 2% speed loss in spring 2022 tests
• Network: 3,000-plus servers in 160 locations across 94 countries
• Jurisdiction: British Virgin Islands
• Price: 5 simultaneous connections for $13 per month, $60 for six months or $100 for a year (current discount: 3 months free). 2-year subscriptions available.

Despite battling major upheavals through the end of 2021, ExpressVPN clenched our Editor’s Choice Award for best VPN in 2022. One of the two largest providers globally, the VPN titan has been in business since 2009 and once again aggressively raised the industry bar for service transparency this year.

In the past year, ExpressVPN increased its independent third-party audit count, published details about its TrustedServer deployment process, joined the i2Coalition to call for improved VPN industry ethics, and released an open-source Lightway encryption protocol.

After a setback in 2020, ExpressVPN is again currently in first place as the fastest VPN we’ve tested. While most VPNs will cause you to lose half or more of your normal internet speeds, ExpressVPN caused us to lose just 2% of speeds in our 2022 speed tests. It also unblocks Netflix and other streaming services more reliably than most other VPNs, and seamlessly surpasses geo-blocking for access to international gaming servers and torrenting sites.

All of our top-rated VPN’s have wide compatibility across platforms and operating systems, but ExpressVPN’s collection of setup guides, detailed FAQs and troubleshooting articles give it a clear advantage for users. So does its 24/7 customer support, and its no-questions-asked, 30-day money-back guarantee.

While you can get a better month-to-dollar bargain with ExpressVPN’s two-year subscription, we don’t recommend anyone purchase any two-year VPN subscriptions at this time due to overall market volatility. ExpressVPN’s best plan offers five simultaneous connections for $100 a year (which includes three extra months, for a limited-time deal totaling 15 months of service). You can also opt for a $13 per-month plan, or pay $60 for six months.

Read our ExpressVPN review.

ExpressVPN

• Current fastest VPN we’ve tested
• Unblocks Netflix, great for gaming and P2P
• Solid security and transparency, zero leaks
• Excellent customer support, easy refunds

49% off with 12-mo plan (+3 free months)

$6.67/mo at ExpressVPN

Surfshark

Surfshark

Editors’ Choice: Cheap VPN packed with features

• Latest tests: Zero data leaks and 19% internet speed loss in fall 2022 tests
• Network: 3,200-plus in 99 countries
• Jurisdiction: Netherlands
• Price: Unlimited connections for $48 for the first year (then $60 annually) or $13 per month. 2-year subscriptions available.

Surfshark boasts an impressive suite of privacy and security features, unlimited simultaneous connections, easy-to-use interface and expansive global network. And it’s still significantly cheaper than most of its competitors. That’s what helped Surfshark earn CNET’s Editors’ Choice for Best Value VPN in 2022.

Along with standard VPN features such as a kill switch and DNS leak protection, some of the more notable Surfshark features include camouflage mode (which hides the fact you’re using a VPN), split-tunneling, NoBorders mode (which lets you use Surfshark in regions where VPNs are restricted) and multihop VPN connections. You’ll also get access to Surfshark’s CleanWeb technology, which blocks ads and malware and helps you avoid phishing attacks.

One innovation we’re excited to see Surfshark roll out over the next year is its Nexus network, which connects the VPN’s entire network of servers together and allows you to choose multiple servers to route your connection through. The functionality is somewhat similar to Tor, but Surfshark says it’s faster. With its Dynamic MultiHop, IP Randomizer and IP Rotator functions, the Nexus network can give you a few extra layers of protection while you use the VPN — which can be particularly beneficial to users with critical privacy needs.

Surfshark says it doesn’t log any user activity. And although no-logging claims are virtually impossible to prove with 100% certainty, German cybersecurity firm Cure53 declared Surfshark’s security to be “solid” in its 2021 security audit of the VPN. Surfshark says a new audit is forthcoming by the end of this year.

As of February 2022, both Surfshark and NordVPN have the same corporate parent (Tesonet), but Surfshark said it is legally bound not to share any information between the entities that would go against its privacy policy or terms of service. We didn’t find any language in either document that would indicate Surfshark has any obligation to share user data with its parent company or any sibling companies, which include NordVPN.

Surfshark rates consistently as one of the fastest VPNs available. Which is why we were surprised that one of the only issues we had with Surfshark came in our speed test. While it still ranks as one of the fastest VPNs we’ve tested — with an internet speed loss of just 19% — we were disappointed with the inconsistent speed results we got to certain locations. Speeds to Europe and Singapore were erratic (dipping as low as 9Mbps to Singapore), while speeds to New York were slower than speeds to the UK and even Australia. Surfhark is in the process of significantly expanding its server network, now offering more than 3,200 servers in 99 countries. The continued expansion of its server network could potentially help bring some more consistency to the VPN’s speeds.

In our tests, Surfshark had no problems unblocking Netflix and Amazon Prime Video content, but we did run into a fair bit of trouble accessing Disney Plus. After testing various servers in the US and other countries where Disney Plus is available, we were finally able to access the content when we connected to a server in Boston. You may need to test a few servers yourself before gaining access to Disney Plus content with Surfshark.

Surfshark offers cheaper introductory prices that jump after the first billing cycle. Even so, Surfshark manages to keep its prices lower than most other VPNs — helping it earn CNET’s Editors’ Choice for Best Value. The yearly plan starts out at $48 for the first year, then jumps to $60 for any additional years of service. If you opt for the two-year plan, you’ll pay $60 up front for the initial two years combined, then $60 per year for any additional years. Surfshark’s monthly plan stays constant at $13 a month. If you’re not satisfied with the service for any reason, Surfshark offers a 30-day money-back guarantee.

Read our Surfshark VPN review.

Surfshark VPN

• Best value VPN in 2022
• Lots of unique security features
• Unlimited simultaneous connections
• RAM-only server network

84% off with 24-mo plan (+2 free months)

$2 at Surfshark VPN

NordVPN

NordVPN

Best VPN for reliability and flexible payment options

• Latest tests: No leaks detected, 13% speed loss in summer 2022 tests
• Network: 5,600-plus servers in 84 locations across 59 countries
• Jurisdiction: Panama
• Price: 6 simultaneous connections for $12 per month or $60 for a year (current discount: 3 months free). 2-year subscriptions available.

NordVPN is one of the most recognized brands in the VPN field. It offers a generous simultaneous connection count, with six simultaneous connections through its network, where nearly all other providers offer five or fewer. NordVPN also offers a dedicated IP option for those looking for a different level of VPN connection, and the ability to VPN into Tor. More than half of Nord’s 5,000-plus server fleet is optimized for peer-to-peer sharing, though Nord has blocked torrenting in 14 countries.

In our latest test rounds, we noticed a few hiccups in Nord’s killswitch when using its iOS app, which could be a concern for torrenters. However, Nord has a sideloaded iOS available on its website that it recommends to users. In our most recent speed tests, NordVPN’s performance recovered from middling speed scores of 2021 and zoomed back into the ranks of the fastest VPNs we’ve tested, causing us to lose just 13% of base internet speeds.

NordVPN doesn’t accept PayPal payments, but you can purchase a subscription with any major credit or debit card, AmazonPay, Google Pay or ACH transfer. If you’d rather pay anonymously, you can pay with a variety of cryptocurrencies including bitcoin, ethereum, tether and dogecoin. NordVPN has also partnered with a handful of retail stores like Staples, Best Buy and Walmart — where you can even purchase your VPN with cash.

Read more: NordVPN Review 2022: Feature-Rich and Speedy, but Privacy and Transparency Issues Need Attention

Read our NordVPN review.

NordVPN

• Among the fastest VPNs
• Tons of features
• Diskless RAM-only server infrastructure
• Solid encryption

68% off with 24-mo plan (+3 free months)

$2.99/mo at NordVPN

Windows VPN FAQs

For more, check out our picks for the best cheap VPN and the fastest VPN. And here’s why we recommend avoiding a free VPN and using a paid VPN whenever possible.

Apple’s AirPods Max are quite pricey, but that’s because they’re such excellent headphones. And for such a high-quality product, you’ll want to use the best AirPods Max accessories along with it.

Apple has its own suite of accessories, which you might want to try if you own a pair of AirPods Max, but third-party vendors make plenty of essential AirPods Max accessories that are also worth considering. From traditional “shell” cases that replace the AirPods Max’s controversial cover to charging stands and earcup and headband covers, there’s no shortage of great accessories.

Here’s a look at some of the best AirPods Max accessories available, most of which I’ve tested. I’ll update this list as new accessories arrive.

Amazon

Spigen Ultra Hybrid Pro

Clear protection

Spigen’s known for its affordable phone cases, but it also makes assorted other accessories, including the Ultra Hybrid Pro, a set of protective covers for the Max’s earcups. They’re a little pricey at $27, but if you just want some protection while still being able to show off the natural color of your AirPods Max’s aluminum design, this is a good option.

$27 at Amazon

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Wired Apple cable

Apple Lightning to 3.5mm audio cable

Apple doesn’t include a cable for wired listening with the AirPods Max, which is pretty irritating because the fact is they do sound better in wired mode, and sometimes it’s easier to plug into a device than pair with it wirelessly, particularly if you’ve got non-Apple devices that aren’t on your iCloud account.

The easiest way to listen to high-res audio is to plug into a Mac or Windows PC and load up some FLAC files, which I did. Obviously, you can also listen to streaming services this way (and any other audio). The volume levels were plenty high on the MacBook Pro I was using and I did experience a subtle but noticeable bump up in audio quality going the wired route.

Also the cable does eliminate any latency, which might be a factor while gaming or with music production. Note that the AirPods Max still need battery power to deliver audio, even in wired mode; there’s no “passive mode” available.

$35 at Apple

Amazon

Co2crea Hard Case with Sleep Mode

Best value case with magnets

You can find several AirPods Max hard carrying cases on Amazon, but this is arguably the best value. This case has a plush interior, a slot for storing a power adapter and magnets to put the AirPods Max into their lower-power sleep state (hibernation mode). It comes in multiple color options with prices ranging from $33 to $37.

$37 at Amazon

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Waterfield Designs Max Shield

Swanky case with magnets

When Apple released the AirPods Max, it got a lot of grief about the headphones’ unusual protective covering, which drew its fair share of bra and purse comparisons and was criticized for not fully protecting the headphones. I wasn’t as down on it as others, but I knew we’d soon see a bunch of third-party AirPods Max case options, and several have already arrived, including Waterfield Design’s $89 Max Shield case.

Aside from its swanky design, what makes it different from all the $20 to $25 generic cases showing up on Amazon is that it has what Waterfield calls a Magnetic Butterfly that puts the AirPods Max in low-power mode just like the magnets on Apple’s cover do. With other cases, you stick the AirPods Max (with their cover on) inside — they don’t have magnets.

The Max Shield is designed to house the AirPods Max either naked or wearing their cover, and has an inner pouch to store the included USB-C-to-Lightning charging cable or the optional Lightning-to-3.5mm audio cable for wired listening. There’s also an exterior zippered pocket, as well as an exterior stretch mesh pocket for storing additional items. The Max Shield is available in eight color variations.

$99 at Waterfield Designs

Amazon

Seltureone AirPods Max Earcup Protectors

Earcup protection

If you drop your AirPods Max headphones on the wrong surface, the aluminum earcups could get dinged up. That’s where a silicone earcup protector could save the day. There are plenty of them available on Amazon in plenty of color options. The Seltureone model is currently rated most highly by users — and it’s priced around $10 — so that’s my current pick in this category. But that could change as new versions become available.

$10 at Amazon

Amazon

Toluohu Headband Cushion

Headband enhancer

The AirPods Max mesh-infused headband is designed to be quite sturdy, but this headband cushion serves three purposes: It offers some increased protection for the mesh, adds some extra cushion for the crown of your head and customizes the look of the headphones.

It’s available in a few color options and can be easily removed and washed.

$11 at Amazon

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Amazon

Spigen Klasden case

Affordable case (without magnets)

The Spigen Klasden is a relatively affordable hard case for the AirPods Max. Designed for use with the AirPods Max case, it’s an extra layer of protection. it doesn’t have built-in magnets to put the headphones to sleep; it does have an internal pouch for storing cables and an integrated handle.

$27 at Amazon

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David Carnoy/CNET

Spigen 40W Dual USB-C charger

Dual USB-C fast-charger

The AirPods Max include a USB-C-to-Lightning charging cable in the box, but no power adapter. Spigen’s compact 40W Dual USB-C charger (it uses GaN technology, which helps reduce its size) can charge two devices at the same time and has plenty of juice for charging your headphones and iPhone at the same time — or even an iPad. Each USB-C port delivers up to 30W if you’re charging only one device or up to 20W if you’re charging two devices simultaneously. That’s why it’s rated for 40W.

$29 at Amazon

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Amazon

Wiwu AirPods Max Stand and Holder (Update: Currently unavailable)

Magnet stand with auto-sleep

Don’t want to put your AirPods Max in their soft Smart Case to make them go to sleep? This simple, attractively designed stand is easy to assemble and serves as a convenient resting spot for your headphones. Thanks to an integrated magnet, when you put the AirPods Max on the stand they auto-disconnect from your devices, then reconnect when you take the headphones off the stand. This stand also works just fine with other headphones — however, the auto Bluetooth disconnect feature only works with the AirPods Max.

$50 at Amazon

Read more: Best AirPods Pro Accessories

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Not every gadget is a winner. And as it turns out, quite a few are complete losers. The massive electronics bonanza known as CES 2023 is in the books and it featured plenty of weird gadgets of its own, from pee-reading toilets to a cutting board with a screen. But what if we turn back the clock to take in the CES shows of yore?

Over the past 20-plus years, I’ve seen gadgets so stupefying that sometimes they seem to exist purely because journalists like me will write about them. But it’s time to call out the really awful ones, the worst of the worst. Vacuum shoes, toilet paper robots, MP3 weapon holsters, it’s your time to shine!

The most interesting part about this rogues gallery is that some of these products — the Pepe pet dryer, the HapiFork and the Hushme, to name a few — are still being sold today. That’s right: You blew it up, you maniacs!

Dyson Zone Air-Purifying Headphones

Not technically a CES product, as this was announced during 2022, but Dyson was demonstrating the Zone headphones in Las Vegas during CES 2023. Though the Zone looks like it should be a COVID mask, that’s unfortunately not what it does. According to the Dyson site, development on the Zone began way back in 2016 as a personal air filter — for pollution, mainly — and as such, it was never designed to protect against COVID. Furthermore, one critic has claimed the gadget’s force-driven fans could even help maximize your chances of catching coronavirus. CNET’s Katie Collins, who tried it out at Dyson’s HQ in the UK, thought it was “too brilliant and bizarre to ignore.”

Read more: Dyson Zone Air Filtering Headphones on Sale in January for $949

Charmin Rollbot

Computer peripherals manufacturer Razer is the king of creating “look at me” products specifically for CES, but toilet tissue brand Charmin became notorious for this 2020 entry. That’s right, in the year that saw the mass panic buying of toilet paper came a robot that could bring you even more! Coincidence? Yes… probably. The RollBot was never going to be a real product, but we loved/loathed it anyway.

Read more: These Charmin Robots Make Us Wonder: Is Pooping the Next Tech Frontier?

Kolibree Smart Toothbrush

Remember when we had to wash our hands for 20 seconds by singing songs to ourselves? The same methodology also applies to brushing your teeth, but why should you use your own brain and lips like a sucker? There have been many smart toothbrushes over the years, but today I’m picking on the Kolibree. Everything was just fine until the arrival of “the world’s first connected electric toothbrush.” Happy birthday to you, happy birthday to you…

Read more: Kolibree’s Connected Toothbrush Aims for Better Dental Health

Taser MP3 Holster

Back in the 2000s, the iPod became such a cultural phenomenon that every company rushed to create an MP3 player of its own. This culminated in what is one of the dumbest CES products in recent memory: the Tazer MP3 holster. Imagine trying to not only charge your holster but also connect it via USB to your computer to fill it up with 1GB of tunes.

Read more: What Every Taser Needs: A Music-Playing Holster

Pepe Pet Dryer

Want to find a new way to make your small dog or cat hate you forever? Lock them in a cube prison for 25 minutes (!) and subject them to gusts of hot air. This combination torture device/dryer would have set you back $660, or you could just throw a towel over your wet dog like a normal human.

Read more: At CES 2019, a $660 Sauna Will Give Your Dog the Blow Dry of His Life

HapiFork

Throughout history, there have been so many gadgets designed to limit normal human behavior, but this one takes the (pan)cake. The HapiFork is yet another vibrating gadget that tells you to eat your meals slower (over 20 minutes), with the idea being that you are less likely to overeat. Personally, I wolf my own meals down like I’m in prison, so do your worst, HapiFork. I’ll eat with my hands if I have to! You’re not the boss of me!

Read more: Bolting Your Food? Put On the Brakes With HapiFork

Hushme

The Hushme is literally a “dumb” product — it’s designed to make its user mute to other people in the immediate vicinity. It was pitched as being useful in workplaces, but… if a co-worker gave me one of these, they’d better be wearing vacuum shoes, in order to clean up the gleefully stomped-on bits.

Read more: Hushme May Be the Weirdest, Yet Most Useful Wireless Headphones Ever Created

Belty

The original Belty was a prototype smart belt with a motor in it that adjusted itself to whether you just ate or were sitting down. Impractical as hell, but kind of cool? While there is a newer model, also called Belty, this one is even weirder — there’s no auto-sizing, but it does have a power bank charger in the buckle. OK, two things. Not only do I not want a potentially volatile compound near my nethers, I don’t want to connect a series of devices there either.

Read more: Meet Belty, the Ridiculous but Strangely Popular Show-Stealer of CES Unveiled

Xybernaut Poma

First shown off at CES 1998, the Hitachi Xybernaut wearable computer was a terrible idea long before Google Glass was even a gleam in Babak Parviz’s eye. The Windows CE-based Xybernaut Poma offered a 128MHz RISC processor and 32MB of RAM for the low price of $1,499, plus it strapped to your arm and your face and your belt!

Read more: Hitachi Fashioning Wearable PCs

Denso Vacuum Shoes

Shoes. You wear ’em. They wear out, you buy more. But that’s not exciting now, is it? They need things in them — phones, rockets, rollers and… vacuums? There are so many puns I could make about even just the name of the Denso Vacuum Shoes, but the fact that they existed at all was the biggest joke of all.

Read more: Vacuum Cleaner Shoes Show Up at CES Because Why Not

For the most part, I enjoy all the new features and settings that iOS 16 brings to the iPhone. You don’t know how happy I am to finally be able to unsend text messages and get haptic feedback whenever I type — but there’s one feature that I’m not so fond of.

I’m talking about the addition of the Search button to the bottom of the home screen, right above the dock. While the Search feature is useful for quickly finding text messages, files and settings, the new button is placed in a location where it’s easy to accidentally tap, especially when I’m scrolling through my various home screen pages.

And when I do inadvertently hit the new Search button, the Search feature blows up in full screen. Then I have to swipe out of it to go back to my home screen, which can get annoying real quick. Fortunately, there’s a fix.

Read more: Best iPhone 14 Cases So Far

And if you want to learn more about iOS 16, check out how to view all your saved Wi-Fi passwords and customize your lock screen with widgets.

How to get rid of the new Search button on iOS 16

On your iPhone running iOS 16, launch the Settings application, go to Home Screen and toggle off the Show on Home Screen button underneath “Search.” Instead of the Search button on your home screen, you’ll now see several dots indicating your various home screen pages instead. If you press on it, nothing happens.

If you want to access the Search feature after removing the home-screen button, you can access it the traditional way: swipe down from anywhere on your screen.

T-Mobile has reportedly laid off a number of employees as the carrier shifts its retail strategy. Company workers have been impacted by the retail move and have been told about their options and next steps.

The carrier declined to offer specifics on the scope and scale of the layoffs, but Wave7 Research analyst Jeff Moore told Light Reading they could amount to about 600 employees. Moore said the layoffs are mostly among territorial retail managers and retail dealers.

This would reflect the greater retail strategy change that Jon Freier, president of T-Mobile’s consumer group, outlined in a blog post Thursday. The carrier is moving away from one-size-fits-all stores and expanding to four kinds of retail formats: showrooms for events and product launches, broad-service “Experience stores,” smaller company-owned stores stocked with “top products,” and the Metro-branded “Express stores” aimed at the prepaid market .

“Is brick-and-mortar retail dead? Here’s what I think: Yes, the way we’ve known it is dead,” Freier said in the post.

On Thursday, early reports noticed by Nwida said T-Mobile and Metro by T-Mobile territory managers were being laid off. They were reportedly offered the option to apply for their old jobs, which would have new titles.

T-Mobile has gone through waves of layoffs in recent years. Hundreds of jobs in the carrier’s small business sales unit were reportedly cut in June 2020 as part of streamlining following finalization of T-Mobile’s $26.5 billion merger with Sprint. Absorbing the other carrier led to later rounds of layoffs, in 2021 and 2022, though T-Mobile has also hired new workers in this period as it shifts its strategies.

T-Mobile isn’t alone in cutting jobs. Verizon announced an undisclosed number of layoffs last August after a disappointing second quarter, and AT&T let go of a few hundred employees in December as part of a refocus on faster-growing segments like 5G and fiber internet.

On the surface, Marvel Snap is a mobile card game with simple mechanics. But with hundreds of different heroes to play with, the game can get complex. Our Marvel Snap beginner’s guide will get you started and take you through higher competitive tiers.

Developed by Second Dinner, a studio filled with veterans from Blizzard’s successful digital card game Hearthstone, Marvel Snap is a refreshingly streamlined game that’s built to play well on smartphones. It plays in a vertical orientation and its quick match times typically last as long as a pop song. The mechanics are easy to learn, but there’s enough variability to keep things fresh.

Marvel Snap is downloadable from the Apple App Store and Google Play Store, or on PC via Steam if you prefer. (To make it easier to port your collection between phone and desktop, sign up with your Google login when making an account.) It’s free to play, with microtransactions, but you can’t buy your way to the top in this game — everyone has to play a lot to grow their collection of cards.

Snapping superheroes down to card size

Each card represents one hero, and most of them have a special ability. In addition to snazzy comic book art, cards have an energy cost in the top-left corner and a power level in the top-right corner. Each deck you bring into a match must have 12 cards, and outside of rare cases, matches last six rounds. You start matches with one energy point per round and gain another each turn, with more powerful cards costing more energy. The goal is simple: Play your cards into three locations (each with four card slots), and the winner is whoever controls at least two locations at the end of the match.

Plenty of factors can complicate a match. Locations are randomly assigned and each has special rules, while unique hero abilities change how the match plays. Players start with three cards and draw another every turn, so you won’t get to play your whole deck by the end of the match. This randomness keeps the game fresh and can occasionally hand you victories, though it can also ruin your chances to win.

Bluffing with cubes

This uncertainty raises the stakes for the final mechanic, a pokerlike betting system around cubes (of the Cosmic variety). Marvel Snap pits players against each other as they climb the competitive ranks and earn rewards; to climb, you need cubes, which are awarded to the winner of each match and subtracted from the loser. If a match isn’t going well, you can retreat early and lose only one cube to avoid the two-cube toll when you’re defeated. But you can manually raise the stakes by tapping the cube icon at the top — now the game is worth four cubes, and your opponent can tap it again to raise it up to an eight-cube game. Yikes!

Much like in poker, you can aggressively tap the cubes (called Snapping in a reference to the Marvel Cinematic Universe’s big baddie Thanos’ famous act, hence Marvel Snap). This can intimidate opposing players into retreating, though some will call your bluff. You may be confident in your hand of cards, but you have to wait to see which cards opponents play (and where) to understand their strategy and estimate whether you’ve got a winning chance. That’s the risk and the thrill — but don’t worry if you take a hard loss, as matches last only three to five minutes, making it easy to shake off losing and breeze right into the next potential win.

First steps for Snap

Don’t worry about knowing all these rules up front, as Marvel Snap has a generous tutorial. The first matches are against computer opponents who aren’t too tough to beat, offering space to learn the ins and outs of the match flow before going up against human players.

You’ll start with some basic cards, and playing matches (win, lose or tie) earns boosters, which are a currency to enhance the appearance of cards, making them look even more like they’ve sprung out of a comic book. While boosting a hero grants purely cosmetic upgrades like moving backgrounds and shiny hero names, it also ratchets up your overall collection level — which is the way you get more cards.

For the first several collection levels, you’ll get a preset series of cards that are key to simple yet powerful strategies; like silver-age hero Ka-Zar, who powers up your smallest one-energy cards, or Wolfsbane, who gains power based on how many cards are already at her location. These early cards fit into a handful of different deck strategies, from empowering minions to repeating the “on reveal” abilities with the late-game Odin card for a dramatic finish.

On reaching collection level 18, you’ll move on from the beginner slate of preset cards to a wider set. At higher collection levels, you’ll be rewarded with a random card from the first pool and face opponents with access to the same card group. You’ll enter the second card pool at collection level 222, and the third pool at 486. As time goes on, even more cards will be added to this last pool, with newer cards showing up more rarely.

Upgrading cards requires spending the in-game currency credits (which are different than boosters), gained through daily missions that typically involve playing cards of a certain cost, earning wins, or drawing cards. You can either wait to earn enough boosters for cards or head to the in-game shop and pay extra credits to upgrade cards early. Later on, you’ll also be able to gain ‘collector tokens’ to buy single cards showcased one at a time in the in-game shop.

What’s the fastest way to get more cards?

Marvel Snap is geared toward granting players new cards as rewards for playing, though the rate of new cards slows in higher collection levels. There are only a couple of ways to buy new cards with real money: buying very pricey seasonal bundles that include specific cards, or paying for in-game currency to indirectly boost your collection level.

The latter is a slightly complicated sequence. You can pay real money for gold, a secondary in-game currency mostly used for buying variant versions of cards you already own, but that can also be used to buy credits. As previously mentioned, credits can be spent in the in-game store to rapidly upgrade cards to bypass boosters and climb the collection level, which earns you new cards. It’s a hassle, and you don’t get much currency for your hard-earned real money — best to save it for bundles that offer more value.

It may be disappointing to hear, but simply playing more matches is the best way to get cards.

Tips for winning matches

Winning in Marvel Snap seems simple — just secure two out of the three locations — but wild swings can happen in any of the six turns (or seven, on rare occasions). As you play, you’ll get a feel for what kind of decks you’ll face and the best strategies to counter them.

But there are several basic things about the game that aren’t immediately obvious. In a match, see whether your player handle or an opponent’s is ringed with light — that’s who’ll flip cards first next turn, which can matter if an “on reveal” effect relies on opponents having certain cards in play. Also, tapping your or your opponent’s player portraits opens up a dropdown status menu showing how many cards each has in hand and in the deck, along with how many have been destroyed or discarded during the game — key info for certain card abilities.

To win matches, you want to control locations. You probably won’t have enough power to win all three, so you’ll want to focus on the two you’re most likely to win. This might change as location abilities are revealed and your opponent plays cards, so remain flexible for the first few turns to see how the board plays out. You can even deceive your opponent by looking like you’re going to invest in one location and abandon it for the two others in later turns.

Keep refining your decks. If you’re losing, go back to the collection and see whether different cards might fit your strategy better, especially new ones that haven’t been tested yet. Remember, the worst that can happen is losing cubes and rank progress — but you can gain that back later with strategic Snapping.

Speaking of, the last tip is to know when to Snap and when to retreat. There’s no shame in ducking out if it looks like you’re not going to win. A good rule of thumb is that if you aren’t winning at least two of the locations going into the sixth and/or final turn, you might want to back out — it’s going to take too much power to flip multiple locations.

On the other hand, if you have more power in two or three locations and have a strong final play, you might want to Snap to increase your winnings, which could scare the opponent off to retreat. Like in poker, a win is a win, whether you’re bluffing with weaker cards or the opponent is too intimidated to play cards that actually would’ve beaten yours.

That’s it for now, so get out there and start building your collection. If you’re struggling, look online for guides on popular decks made of cards in your collection. And don’t be afraid to experiment, as there are many, many interactions that aren’t clear until you slam down your cards — just look at this recent combo that skyrockets a single card from four to over 600,000 power. Excelsior!

LastPass, one of the world’s most popular password managers, is yet again under the microscope after its latest security breach. In late December, LastPass CEO Karim Toubba revealed in a blog post that a security incident the company first disclosed in August had ultimately paved the way for an unauthorized party to steal customer account information and vault data. This is the latest in a lengthy string of security incidents involving LastPass that date back to 2011. It’s also the most alarming.

An unauthorized party now has access to unencrypted subscriber account information like LastPass usernames, company names, billing addresses, email addresses, phone numbers and IP addresses, according to Toubba. That same unauthorized party also has a copy of customer vault data, which includes unencrypted data like website URLs and encrypted data like the usernames and passwords for all the sites customers have saved in their vaults. If you’re a LastPass subscriber, the severity of this breach should have you looking for a different password manager because your passwords and personal data are at risk of being exposed.

What should LastPass subscribers do?

The company didn’t specify how many users were affected by the breach, and LastPass didn’t respond to CNET’s request for additional comment on the breach. But if you’re a LastPass subscriber, you need to operate under the assumption that your user and vault data are in the hands of an unauthorized party with ill intentions. Though the most sensitive data is encrypted, the problem is that the threat actor can run “brute force” attacks on those stolen local files. LastPass estimates it would take “millions of years” to guess your master password — if you’ve followed its best practices.

If you haven’t — or if you just want total peace of mind — you’ll need to spend some serious time and effort changing your individual passwords. And while you’re doing that, you’ll probably want to transition away from LastPass, too.

With that in mind, here’s what you need to do right now if you’re a LastPass subscriber:

1. Find a new password manager. Given LastPass’ history with security incidents and considering the severity of this latest breach, now’s a better time than ever to seek an alternative.

2. Change your most important site-level passwords immediately. This includes passwords for anything like online banking, financial records, internal company logins and medical information. Make sure these new passwords are strong and unique.

3. Change every single one of your other online passwords. It’s a good idea to change your passwords in order of importance here too. Start with changing the passwords to accounts like email and social media profiles, then you can start moving backward to other accounts that may not be as critical.

4. Enable two-factor authentication wherever possible. Once you’ve changed your passwords, make sure to enable 2FA on any online account that offers it. This will give you an added layer of protection by alerting you and requiring you to authorize each login attempt. That means even if someone ends up obtaining your new password, they shouldn’t be able to gain access to a given site without your secondary authenticating device (typically your phone).

5. Change your master password. Though this doesn’t change the threat level to the stolen vaults, it’s still prudent to help mitigate the threats of any potential future attack — that is, if you decide you want to stay with LastPass.

LastPass alternatives to consider

• Bitwarden: CNET’s top password manager is a highly secure and open-source LastPass alternative. Bitwarden’s free tier allows you to use the password manager across an unlimited number of devices across device types. Read our Bitwarden review.
• 1Password: Another excellent password manager that works seamlessly across platforms. 1Password doesn’t offer a free tier, but you can try it for free for 14 days.
• iCloud Keychain: Apple’s built-in password manager for iOS, iPadOS and MacOS devices is an excellent LastPass alternative available to Apple users at no additional cost. iCloud Keychain is secure and easy to set up and use across all of your Apple devices. It even offers a Windows client, too, with support for Chrome and Edge browsers.

How did it come to this?

In August 2022, LastPass published a blog post written by Toubba saying that the company “determined that an unauthorized party gained access to portions of the LastPass development environment through a single compromised developer account and took portions of source code and some proprietary LastPass technical information.”

At the time, Toubba said that the threat was contained after LastPass “engaged a leading cybersecurity and forensics firm” and implemented “enhanced security measures.” But that blog post would be updated several times over the following months as the scope of the breach gradually widened.

On Sept. 15, Toubba updated the blog post to notify customers that the company’s investigation into the incident had concluded.

“Our investigation revealed that the threat actor’s activity was limited to a four-day period in August 2022. During this timeframe, the LastPass security team detected the threat actor’s activity and then contained the incident,” Toubba said. “There is no evidence of any threat actor activity beyond the established timeline. We can also confirm that there is no evidence that this incident involved any access to customer data or encrypted password vaults.”

Toubba assured customers at the time that their passwords and personal data were safe in LastPass’s care.

However, it turned out that the unauthorized party was indeed ultimately able to access customer data. On Nov. 30, Toubba updated the blog post once again to alert customers that the company “determined that an unauthorized party, using information obtained in the August 2022 incident, was able to gain access to certain elements of our customers’ information.”

Then, on Dec. 22, Toubba issued a lengthy update to the blog post outlining the unnerving details regarding precisely what customer data the hackers were able to access in the breach. It was then that the full severity of the situation finally came to light and the public found out that LastPass customers’ personal data was in the hands of a threat actor and all of their passwords were at serious risk of being exposed.

Still, Toubba assured customers who follow LastPass’s best practices for passwords and have the latest default settings enabled that no further action on their part is recommended at this time since their “sensitive vault data, such as usernames and passwords, secure notes, attachments, and form-fill fields, remain safely encrypted based on LastPass’ Zero Knowledge architecture.”

However, Toubba warned that those who don’t have LastPass’s default settings enabled and don’t follow the password manager’s best practices are at greater risk of having their master passwords cracked. Toubba suggested that those users should consider changing the passwords of the websites they have stored.

What does all of this mean for LastPass subscribers?

The initial breach ended up allowing the unauthorized party to access sensitive user account data as well as vault data, which means that LastPass subscribers should be extremely concerned for the integrity of the data they have stored in their vaults and should be questioning LastPass’s capacity to keep their data safe.

If you’re a LastPass subscriber, an unauthorized party may have access to personal information like your LastPass username, email address, phone number, name and billing address. IP addresses used when accessing LastPass were also exposed in the breach, which means that the unauthorized party could also see the locations from which you used your account. And because LastPass doesn’t encrypt users’ stored website URLs, the unauthorized party can see all of the websites for which you have login information saved with the password manager (even if the passwords themselves are encrypted).

Information like this gives a potential attacker plenty of ammunition for launching a phishing attack and socially engineering their way to your account passwords. And if you have any password reset links stored that may still be active, an attacker can easily go ahead and create a new password for themselves.

LastPass says that encrypted vault data like usernames and passwords, secure notes and form-filled data that was stolen remains secured. However, if an attacker were to crack your master password at the time of the breach, they would be able to access all of that information, including all the usernames and passwords to your online accounts. If your master password wasn’t strong enough at the time of the breach, your passwords are especially at risk of being exposed.

Changing your master password now will, unfortunately, not help solve the issue because the attackers already have a copy of your vault that was encrypted using the master password you had in place at the time of the breach. This means the attackers essentially have an unlimited amount of time to crack that master password. That’s why the safest course of action is a site-by-site password reset for all of your LastPass-stored accounts. Once changed at the site level, that would mean the attackers would be getting your old, outdated passwords if they managed to crack the stolen encrypted vaults.

For more on staying secure online, here are data privacy tips digital security experts wish you knew and browser settings to change to better guard your information.

Going into 2023, you don’t have to spend a fortune for a decent set of noise-canceling earbuds. With solid sound quality, active noise cancelation and a transparency mode, the Beats Studio Buds are a great option to consider. And right now, they are back down to their best-ever price of $90 at Amazon. That’s $60 off the suggested retail price, though the discount only applies to gray color at present, with other options seeing a $50 price break.

Beats Studio Buds are small, lightweight, comfortable to wear and fit most ears securely. Despite being made by Apple these days, Beats products work great with both iPhones and Android phones and there are plenty of features to love, including quick pairing and sound quality that CNET’s David Carnoy said beats out AirPods Pro and Powerbeats Pro in his review.

Unlike some other Apple-made Beats products, the Studio Buds lack a few of the fanciest features like in-ear detection and the ability to pair to all of your Apple devices via iCloud and switch between them automatically. That probably won’t be a deal breaker for most folks, especially given the price differential between the Studio Buds and something like the AirPods Pro.

The Beats Studio Buds provide up to 8 hours of listening time on a single charge, with up to 24 hours when combined with the charging case. They are also IPX4-rated sweat and water-resistant, so they’re a solid option to use on your commute or at the gym.

And if the Studio Buds aren’t quite the right fit for you, check out the other Beats headphones deals currently available.

Apple’s 5K monitor, the Apple Studio Display, debuted in March last year. It’s currently the most budget-friendly external display in Apple’s lineup, and while Apple rarely discounts its own products, there have been a few deals on this display at some third-party retailers.

Right now Amazon has discounted the standard glass version of the Apple Studio Display by $100 and the nano-texture glass version by $150 for a limited time, bringing the cost to $1,499 and $1,749, respectively. Both discounted displays are the models with the tilt-adjustable stand.

Each of these monitors feature a 27-inch 5K Retina screen, an A13 chip, a 12-megapixel ultrawide camera with Center Stage and a high-fidelity, six-speaker sound system. Their three-mic array makes for clear audio on calls and voice recordings. More than 14 million pixels and 1 billion colors at 600 nits of brightness make for a phenomenal display. And an antireflective coating also ensures better readability, while the nano-texture glass option further minimizes glare.

They each have one Thunderbolt 3 (USB-C) port with 96-watt charging capability to connect your Mac, and three standard USB-C ports. Plus, you can pair your Studio Display with Mac notebooks and desktops, as well as Magic accessories (sold separately).

It’s important to note that this monitor doesn’t play nice with Windows computers — but if you’re already an avid Mac user, these deals at Amazon can help you score a solid monitor for less than you’d pay at the Apple Store.

My iPhone‘s flashlight isn’t just a tool I casually fire up if something accidentally rolls under the couch, it’s a feature I use daily to light up the way to the bathroom in the middle of the night, scan my backyard when animals make weird sounds and… OK, yeah, find something I’ve lost under my couch. And since I use the iPhone flashlight so often, I’ve turned on a tool deep in the iOS settings menu that makes it faster to light up the torch — no more fumbling with the lock screen for the flashlight icon or unlocking the phone first.

I don’t exaggerate when I say this hidden iPhone feature has changed the flashlight for me.

Don’t miss: Here’s How to Track Any Flight From Text Messages on Your iPhone

Back Tap for the iPhone is an accessibility feature that Apple introduced with iOS 14,. It lets you quickly perform certain actions — say, taking a screenshot or launching your camera — by simply tapping the back of your phone. Essentially, it turns the entire back of your iPhone into a button.

This is an important benefit for all kinds of people, and for me, enabling Back Tap has let me turn it into a customizable button to quickly trigger the iPhone flashlight. I’ll tell you exactly how to set it up for yourself, and you can of course customize Back Tap to trigger other actions.

Also, if you want to learn more about other iPhone and iOS features, check out these 10 next-level iOS 16 features and how to find the “secret” iPhone trackpad.

How to set up Back Tap on iPhone

Whether you want to link Back Tap with your flashlight, camera or launch a different iPhone app, the path through your iPhone settings begins the same way.

On your compatible iPhone (iPhone 8 or later), launch the Settings application and go to Accessibility > Touch > Back Tap. Now you have the option to launch your action (in this case, your flashlight) with either two or three taps. Although two taps is obviously faster, I would suggest three taps because if you fidget with your phone, it’s easy to accidentally trigger the accessibility feature.

Once you choose a tap option, select the Flashlight option — or a different action if you prefer. You’ll see over 30 options to choose from, including system options like Siri or taking a screenshot, to accessibility-specific functions like opening a magnifier or turning on real-time live captions. You can also set up Back Tap to open the Control Center, go back home, mute your audio, turn the volume up and down and run any shortcuts you’ve downloaded or created.

You’ll know you’ve successfully selected your choice when a blue checkmark appears to the right of the action. You could actually set up two shortcuts this way — one that’s triggered by two taps and one that’s triggered by three taps to the iPhone’s back cover.

Once you exit the Settings application, you can try out the newly enabled Back Tap feature by tapping the back of your iPhone — in my case, to turn on the flashlight. To turn off the flashlight, you can tap on the back of your iPhone as well, but you can also just turn it off from your lock screen if that’s easier.

For more great iPhone tips, here’s how to keep your iPhone screen from dimming all the time and cancelling all those subscriptions you don’t want or need.