IT General

Grab your Raspberry Pi out of the drawer it’s sat in for far too long, dust it off, and get ready to tackle some fun projects this weekend. Today, I’m going to show you how to build your own addressable LED strip, an AI failure detection system for your 3D printer, and even how to access your Calibre server from anywhere in the world.

Kia has opened 2026 on a high note, posting the strongest first-quarter sales performance in its history. Strong demand for core SUVs, hybrids, and family-focused models has helped push the brand to a new milestone, proving its mainstream lineup continues to resonate with buyers.

The iPhone may have more in common with Android than ever—the reverse is true, too. However, iOS still lacks several basic features that have been a core part of Android for years. While some of these may never make the jump, a few could be coming sooner than you think.

Ever since its release in 2012, Dolby Atmos has built a history of being the solid, industry-standard name for the very best in cinematic audio. This level of precision naturally turned the technology into a fancy marketing term for high-end quality, leading many, including myself, to actively look for the Dolby Atmos logo when buying equipment for a home theater.

It’s that time of the week again—time to break out the terminal and upgrade your homelab with some new projects! This weekend, I’ll show you how to deploy a self-hosted certificate authority, a recursive DNS platform, and a Notion replacement with real-time collaboration.

Open-source apps can have a mixed reputation. They're often seen as being very powerful but lack the polish of their closed-source counterparts. But it doesn't have to be like that. Some of the best apps I use every day on my Android phone are open-source.

I'm getting tired of the narrative that paints AMD as this forever underdog. It used to be true, and in some ways, it still is true, but AMD isn't the weak non-entity some people keep treating it as, and it's important that we let go of that mindset completely.

There's a new screen-free way to dive into the joy of Pokémon. Freshly introduced today, the two-player Guess Who? Pokémon Edition Game is up for grabs at Amazon.

Opens in a new window Credit: Hasbro Guess Who? Pokémon Edition $24.99 at Amazon
  Get Deal

The Pokémon version of Guess Who? plays like the standard version, but instead of asking, "Is your person bald?" you'll get to ask fun questions like, "Is your Pokémon a water type?" The first player to guess five mystery Pokémon's first is crowned the champion.

Credit: Habro Credit: Hasbro

Each game comes with two double-sided sheets full of characters to guess, totaling 48 Pokémon and eight types. A round of Guess Who? usually takes about 15 minutes to complete which makes this a great quick game for road trips or when the kids have a friend over.

So far, the game is exclusively available at Amazon, but we'll keep this page updated if we see it pop up at other retailers. Happy guessing!

Hyundai has used the New York International Auto Show to unveil the Boulder Concept, a rugged SUV that previews the automaker's first "fully-boxed" body-on-frame platform and a production midsize pickup that will use the architecture by 2030. The off-roader is targeted at the US and will be designed and built in the country using American steel.

Honestly, I wasn't sure we needed more of The Handmaid's Tale.

When Season 1 premiered during the early months of the first Donald Trump presidency, it struck a nerve, reflecting real-life concerns over the decline of women's rights and the rise of authoritarianism. Those concerns are more relevant than ever during Trump's second presidency, as the administration continues to systematically attack women and queer people in ways that recall the Christo-fascist nightmare of Gilead.

SEE ALSO: 'The Testaments' trailer: 'Handmaid's Tale' sequel sees June's baby all grown up

Yet between these presidencies, and between The Handmaid's Tale's start and finish, the series lost its way. After Season 1, it moved beyond Margaret Atwood's novel, and in its efforts to outdo our own growing dystopia, it turned into a grim, self-indulgent spectacle.

Much of that grimness remains on display in The Testaments, a follow-up series based on Atwood's 2019 novel of the same name. However, the show also finds something new — and perhaps even hopeful — to say, and that's all thanks to its focus on the younger generations growing up in Gilead.

The Testaments focuses on the youth of Gilead. The ensemble of "The Testaments." Credit: Disney / Russ Martin

The Testaments introduces viewers to a new tier of Gilead's rigid hierarchy: the Plums. Named after the distinct shade of purple they wear, Plums are the young daughters of high-ranking Commanders. Unlike the leads of The Handmaid's Tale, they didn't have independent lives before Gilead. They don't know what they've lost, only the world they're being raised in.

The Plums are being trained for marriage at a school run by The Handmaid's Tale's Aunt Lydia (Ann Dowd), whose role in the series has been substantially cut down compared to her role in Atwood's novel. In fact, quite a lot has changed between the novel and the show, which builds out the sickening pageantry of the marriage process between Commanders and their child brides. From high-stakes tea parties to a ball that puts a disturbing twist on prom, The Testaments ushers its young ensemble through a fraught coming-of-age story.

Our gateway into this world is Agnes MacKenzie (Chase Infiniti), the adopted daughter of a powerful Commander. Born before the coup that established Gilead but too young to remember much of it, she has been raised in a stew of religious, patriarchal propaganda that vilifies women as temptresses. Agnes recalls how, after smiling at a boy once, she was forced to stand with her mouth taped, holding a sign reading "slut." On a field trip, Aunt Lydia's underling Aunt Vidala (Mabel Li) shows her students a group of men who have been hanged for rape. The lesson? That these men did something wrong, but so did their victim, who "liked attention."

SEE ALSO: 'Something Very Bad Is Going to Happen' review: Marriage is a killer

These horrifying "lessons" are meant to grind the girls down into perfect cogs in Gilead's machine. But they're still teenage girls, and in The Testaments' most refreshing moments, we see them acting as such. In one telling scene, the Plums recite their pre-lunch prayers, emotionlessly, as one. Once the Aunts grant them permission to "socialize," the spell of their robotic routine breaks and they launch into excited discussion. Elsewhere, they play outside, fret over their outfits, and even harbor secret crushes that they know Gilead would consider sinful. Even Gilead isn't immune from mean girl behavior, as one of Agnes' friends Shunammite (Rowan Blanchard) regularly throws shade at other students. Her disdainful delivery of "weirdos" is a welcome break from the girls' go-to "proper" dialogue about the Lord's blessings and the fine weather. (Although it does make you wonder how such slang has carried down through Gilead's years of repression.)

Between the messed-up marriage market and the disquieting school environment, The Testaments proves just as chilling as The Handmaid's Tale, but far more reserved in its depiction of atrocities. There is the occasional scene of harsh punishment, but no graphic depictions of sexual violence. The restraint is a welcome departure from the original series, and it's also one of The Testaments' greatest strengths: proof that seeing a sinister ideology take root can be more effective than a violent scene played for shock value.

The Testaments' young ensemble is remarkable. The ensemble of "The Testaments." Credit: Disney / Russ Martin

Another one of The Testaments' greatest strengths is its cast, led by One Battle After Another breakout Infiniti. Her Agnes is a bundle of repression, made to mask her greatest fears and desires below a placid exterior. As the series continues, she strains against this forced pleasantness again and again, committing small acts of rebellion that bring catharsis and further trouble. It's remarkable to watch Infiniti chart that growth, especially as Agnes' jaded voiceover suggests further rebellion down the line.

Co-leading the series is Lucy Halliday as Daisy, a Pearl Girl. These are young women from outside of Gilead who have joined the country and converted to its ways. Daisy is originally from Toronto, and, as the trailer shows, she may still have connections to Canada that prove she isn't the perfect pearl Gilead wants her to be. She's a firecracker whose rebelliousness must be dimmed if she's to survive, and Halliday plays that contrast with just the right amount of anxiety, and even a touch of dark comedy.

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The Testaments' other Plums are standouts as well. Blanchard's sassy Shunammite brings a welcome dose of comic relief to the series, yet as the season goes on, her insecurities result in some painfully vulnerable moments. Elsewhere, Mattea Conforti will break hearts as Becka. She's recently gotten her period and begun the matchmaking process, but she's less elated and more terrified of being caged. Who can blame her? While The Testaments avoids a lot of the claustrophobic close-ups that defined The Handmaid's Tale, it still evokes a sense of imprisonment. The series frequently returns to Agnes' large dollhouse, a replica of her own considerable mansion. Like her dolls, she and the other Plums are considered playthings, made to act however Gilead wishes. The effect is stifling.

At times, The Testaments' mix of The Handmaid's Tale's bleakness and coming-of-age tale doesn't quite work, such as the inclusion of a love triangle that falls into melodrama territory. However, the series finds new power in its young adult perspective, centering on people who have never known anything but authoritarianism, but who are slowly gaining the resolve to do something about it. Perhaps that messaging, combined with some of The Testaments' use of YA tropes, will speak to audiences of Agnes and Daisy's age in a way that the bleakness of The Handmaid's Tale might not be able to.

The first three episodes of The Testaments premiere Apr. 8 on Hulu, with a new episode following each week.

For a long time, I treated incognito mode like a privacy shield. Open a private window, browse freely, close it, and everything just disappears. No history, no tracking, no trace. It feels clean, almost anonymous, and that's exactly why it's so easy to misunderstand what it's doing.

Were you planning to get a black iPhone 17 Pro last year, only to be sideswiped with the revelation that there was no black iPhone 17 Pro? Well, if you were hoping that Apple would come to its senses and release a black iPhone 18 Pro later this year, then we have more bad news for you.

According to one Apple leaker, Apple has no plans to release a black iPhone 18 Pro. 

SEE ALSO: Apple to issue emergency patch to protect iPhones from DarkSword spyware

The leaker, known as Instant Digital on the Chinese social media platform Weibo, has a good track record when it comes to advance knowledge of Apple's upcoming devices. Instant Digital has previously shared accurate information in previous iPhone leaks.

This would mark the second year in a row that Apple decided to pass on a black color option for its premium iPhone models. Apple shocked its fans last year when it released the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max without a standard black option (the phones were offered in silver, deep blue, and cosmic orange).

The iPhone 17 Pro line had an anodized aluminum body (instead of titanium), which proved to be extremely scratch-prone, and "scratchgate" could explain the lack of a black color option. Scratches were more visible with the darker deep blue colors.

SEE ALSO: What is ‘scratchgate’? Unpacking the iPhone 17 Pro scratching problem.

As 9to5Mac points out, while the cosmic orange offering caught consumers off guard, the color option was actually widely popular and may have partially led to Apple having its best fiscal quarter in its history.

It appears Apple may be trying to catch lightning in a bottle twice. As Bloomberg's Apple insider Mark Gurman previously reported, the company is currently working on a "Deep Red" color offering for the upcoming iPhone 18 Pro models. This would be the first iPhone to come in any shade of red since the iPhone 14 was offered in red as part of the (PRODUCT)RED lineup.

For iPhone users who must have a black color smartphone, the iPhone 18 base model will likely still come in black. In addition, Apple is reportedly passing on any fun colors for the much-talked-about iPhone Fold, which is rumored to launch by the end of the year. Apple appears to be opting for more traditional Apple colors for its first foldable mobile device (think space gray and, yes, black).

With all that being said, Apple could still change its mind or even unveil a completely different color lineup for the new iPhone 18 line come September.

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SAVE $500: The 55-inch Samsung OLED 4K S85F Series TV is on sale for $897.99 at Amazon, down from the list price of $1,397.99. That's a 36% discount.

Opens in a new window Credit: Samsung 55-inch Samsung OLED 4K S85F Series TV $897.99 at Amazon
$1,397.99 Save $500   Get Deal

The Amazon Big Spring Sale has come and gone, but Amazon forgot to turn off the discounts on TVs. We're still seeing many models sitting at their sale price two days later, but we're not mad. Baseball season is here, after all, and if you could use an upgrade to watch this year's games, check out this Samsung deal.

As of April 2, the 55-inch Samsung OLED 4K S85F Series TV is on sale at Amazon for $897.99, down from the list price of $1,397.99. That's a 36% discount that takes $500 off the price.

With 4K resolution, dynamic brightness, and excellent contrast, the 55-inch Samsung OLED TV will be a welcomed addition to your home's entertainment setup. Samsung mentions this model uses the brand's NQ4 AI Gen2 processor to ensure each scene has optimal brightness. Samsung also tapped into the color experts at Pantone to make sure skin tones were realistic and accurate.

SEE ALSO: The Google TV Streamer 4K is $20 off at Amazon — save on this streaming game-changer

When it comes to watching sports on the 55-inch Samsung OLED, the 120Hz Motion Xcelerator brings smoothness to quick movements. Plus, Samsung used object tracking sound technology which allows sound to follow objects on screen, giving a more life-like experience.

In addition to today's sale price, Amazon is tossing in free delivery and unpacking service, which usually costs $29.99. This means delivery will come to the room of your choice with unboxing and packaging removal.

Upgrade to the 55-inch Samsung OLED 4K S85F Series TV while it's still sitting at the sale price we saw earlier this week at Amazon's Big Spring Sale sale. You'll be saving $500 that can be used for your favorite streaming services in the future.

The next generation of PlayStation consoles might not appeal to people who enjoy building physical game collections.

A hardware leaker known as KeplerL2 posted in the NeoGAF forums this week (via WCCF Tech), claiming that the still-unconfirmed PlayStation 6 will not have a disc drive built in.

In a reply to another user's inquiry, KeplerL2 also said the base PS6 would come with just 1TB of storage space on its internal SSD. For reference, that's exactly the same as most PS5 models. Typically, specs like that only get better over time, but it seems like Sony might make a lateral move at best for storage capacity this time around.

SEE ALSO: Sony sued over high PlayStation Store 'monopoly' prices and download fees

That's almost certainly because of the AI-driven global RAM shortage, which was recently rumored to potentially cause the PS6 to miss its intended late 2027 launch date. All things being equal, Sony might be inclined to put a 2TB drive in each base PS5, but that might not be feasible right now.

As for the lack of a disc drive, that's going to ruffle feathers for a multitude of reasons.

Yes, the PS5 has had a no-disc-drive variant since its launch in 2020, but Sony also sells a standalone attachable disc drive unit in case users want one. Obviously, Sony could do the same with the PS6, but we don't know that yet. And while a large majority of video game sales happen in digital marketplaces as opposed to physical retail stores, plenty of people still like to own their games, whether it's out of concern for digital storefronts eventually shutting down, or just to build a nice collection of physical media. And, of course, sometimes you get good discounts on used games.

Needless to say, if this is true, it will be controversial.

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Are you still using Thingiverse to find models for your 3D printer? It’s time to upgrade your 3D model search engine with these three sites that are better in just about every way.

Your router can do more than provide a Wi-Fi signal or an Ethernet connection to your devices. It is a miniature computer, and most of them allow you to run extra services that can improve functionality and security.

People love to share their Home Assistant dashboards on chat groups and forums. A lot of these dashboards look really impressive, but so many I see seem to be making the exact same mistake.

SAVE $101.99: As of April 2, the Sony ULT Wear headphones are on sale for just $148 at Amazon. That's 41% off the list price of $249.99.

Opens in a new window Credit: Sony Sony ULT Wear $148 at Amazon
$249.99 Save $101.99   Get Deal

If you've got expensive taste, but a more moderate budget, the Sony ULT Wear headphones were made for you. And two days after Amazon's Big Spring Sale officially came to a close, they're still on sale for over 40% off.

As of April 2, you can pick up a pair of Sony ULT Wear noise-cancelling headphones at Amazon for just $148 instead of their list price of $249.99. That's over $100 in savings, although not quite their lowest price on record.

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Mashable Deputy Shopping Editor Miller Kern tested the ULT Wear headphones when they launched in 2024 and was "genuinely shocked" by how great they were. "We try not to make sweeping claims in our reviews at Mashable," she writes, "but these honestly might be my favorite pair of headphones I’ve tried — especially when you consider the price."

With comparable sound to Sony's flagship headphones and heavy bass that can be bumped up two levels, these noise-cancellers earned the title of Mashable's favorite headphones for bass heads. "The booming sound makes other (decidedly good) headphones sound flat," Kern says.

Admittedly, they are slightly bulky compared to Sony's much more expensive XM6s, but they do fold down for easier portability and come with a carrying case. Not to mention, on sale, the ULT Wears are less than half the price of the XM6s. They're an excellent choice if you want a new pair of noise-cancelling headphones, but you're balling on a budget.

RAID is typically the go-to method for redundancy in servers, and it definitely has stood the test of time. What if I told you I intentionally stopped using RAID on my Plex server? Here’s why.

There's a lot to enjoy with an Amazon Prime membership: a plentiful streaming service full of acclaimed originals, same-day shipping, and Grubhub+. But that's just a sampling of the extensive benefits for members. Prime members who also happen to be bookworms can maximize their monthly reading with the Amazon First Reads program.

Similar to Book of the Month, every month, Amazon First Reads drops a new collection of discounted titles. However, unlike Book of the Month, these books are totally free for Prime Members. Here's everything you need to know about Amazon First Reads.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Amazon First Reads   Learn More What is Amazon First Reads?

Amazon First Reads is a monthly program in which eight editor-selected books are offered free to Prime members. Members are allowed to choose one book per month, which is then added to their library. Non-Prime members can still join in on the fun, but they have to pay $1.99 per book.

Featured Amazon First Reads books are totally free at checkout for Prime members. Credit: Screenshot: Amazon / Mashable composite

Some months, like Prime Day's July and Black Friday's November, offer two free books. And in others, you can select a free short story with your one free e-book.

To select your book, visit the Amazon First Reads home page to browse the options. As a Prime Member, you'll see the option to "read now for free " when you go to purchase the titles. Once you make your selection, it'll automatically be added to your Kindle library.

Which books are featured in Amazon First Reads?

Among the eight books selected each month, the book editors at Amazon provide a variety of genres for every reader. The books are typically new or soon-to-be-released books — many of the books are published under one of Amazon's publishing imprints, so they're exclusive to Amazon's shelves.

In addition to the eight full-length books offered each month, there's typically a short story available, too, exclusive to read through the Kindle Store. You'll find familiar names in the First Reads collections. Past authors include Abby Jimenez, Rebecca Yarros, Lee Child, Fredrik Backman, Alice Hoffman, and Dean Koontz.

Kindle Unlimited members are able to read most of the previous First Reads picks for free, so if there are multiple each month that you want to add to your digital bookshelf, consider a Kindle Unlimited membership.

April 2026 Amazon First Reads books The April 2026 First Reads collection includes the children's book 'Kimi the BALLerina', illustrated by a former Pixar artist. Credit: Amazon / Mashable

April's First Reads line-up feature eight novels, one children's picture book, and one short read. This month's short read, Lift Me Up, comes from Sunday Times bestselling author Milly Johnson. The enemies-to-lovers workplace romance is described as "A pitch-perfect love story for fans of Jenny Colgan, Debbie Macomber, and Katie Fforde," by Maisie Lawrence, an Amazon book editor.

This month's titles also includes a children's picture book, Kimi the BALLerina, written by Korey Watari and illustrated by her husband Mike Wu, a former Pixar artist.

Here are all of the First Reads picks for April 2026:

• Lift Me Up by Milly Johnson

• When The Storm Passes by Manel Loureiro

• Where the Sea Lavender Grows by Kitty Johnson

• The Dead Room by Catriona McPherson

• Wake-Up Calls by Mariah Stewart

• The Roaring Ridleys by K.M. Colley

• The Last Sunday in May by Kate Clark Stone

• The Final System by Anthony Tardiff

• Ways to Find Yourself by Angela Brown

• Kimi the BALLerina by Korey Watari

Do you need a Kindle for Amazon First Reads?

All of the books selected are technically purchased through the Kindle Store. But does that mean you need a Kindle to read them?

Nope! No Kindle e-reader is necessary to read books collected through First Reads. All books purchased through the Kindle Store are available in the Kindle app, which can be read on a smartphone, tablet, or computer.

However, if you're asking if you should get a Kindle, that's a different question. While a Kindle is not required to enjoy the bounty of the Kindle store, it is our favorite e-reader brand if you're in the market.

Kindle Paperwhite $134.99 at Amazon
$159.99 Save $25   Shop Now at Amazon Shop Now at Best Buy