IT General

There are many ways to tinker with 3D printers. You can mod the software, add extra lights, build filter boxes, and so much more. What if I told you that I decided to buy a simple $2 humidity sensor before doing anything else to my 3D printer—including buying extra filament? Here's why a humidity sensor is important in my 3D printing setup.

What should you watch this weekend? If you're staying home to watch something on streaming, NBC has a sitcom about a newly married couple that might suit your interests. On Hulu, an intriguing mystery comedy premiered earlier this week and has already attracted attention.

Airbnb is telling hosts to ease up on checkout chores, and some are furious. There's a petition to reverse the policy, calls to pull listings in protest, and heated Reddit debates over whether guests should have to wash dishes before leaving (yes, even after paying a cleaning fee).

But not all hosts are on the same side. While some argue that Airbnb is taking away their control over their properties, others have a message for their fellow hosts: This is the hospitality business. Let people enjoy their vacation.

The new policy being debated over — which applies to reservations booked on or after Nov. 20 — generally prohibits hosts from asking guests to complete time-consuming tasks or work typically handled by a cleaner. That includes stripping beds, taking trash off-site, and washing and putting away dishes. It also requires house rules and requests to be disclosed in the designated listing section before booking.

For travelers tired of paying a cleaning fee and still getting a checkout chore list, that might sound like good news. In host Reddit threads, however, the dirty dishes have become a much bigger debate about what guests owe the people renting them a place to stay.

SEE ALSO: Airbnb hosts can’t make guests do chores under new rules Some hosts want Airbnb to reverse course

A Change.org petition (with over 11,000 signatures) is asking Airbnb to reconsider its restrictions on washing up. Its argument? Renting a place with a kitchen comes with some responsibility for what happens in that kitchen.

"These are not professional cleaning duties," the petition reads. "They are ordinary aspects of living responsibly in somebody else’s property."

Credit: Screenshot: Change.org

The organizers say they support restrictions on excessive demands, including laundering linens and deep-cleaning kitchens. But they argue that washing dishes is different, and warn that additional cleaning expenses could eventually mean higher prices for guests.

Some hosts are calling for a strike. According to WIRED, one person in a Facebook group for hosts proposed collectively unlisting properties for a day or two. "Airbnb built its empire on OUR properties. It’s time we reminded them who actually holds the power," they wrote. For Ryan Robbins, a host in Searsport, Maine, the change has prompted questions about whether to keep using Airbnb. Robbins, told NEWS CENTER Maine that though he already cleans his rental himself and typically only asks guests to wash their dishes, the rule-change "doesn't allow us to manage our properties the way we should be able to."

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On Airbnb's own community forum, a host argued that the company was limiting hosts' ability to protect their properties. "We are not running hotels. We are sharing our properties," they wrote.

Similar frustrations have surfaced on Reddit, where one host's complaint about the policy opened with: "This might be a new low for what is already one of the worst companies in the world." The poster said cleaners in their region typically don’t include dishwashing in their service, and argued that manually washing dishes accumulated over a week could make it difficult to get a property ready between reservations.

One post goes as far as asking fellow hosts, "can we not just band together and build our own post-airbnb platform?"

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The backlash has also prompted hosts to explain why they welcome the change.

In one Reddit thread in r/airbnb_hosts, the poster described being frustrated by a stay that combined a cleaning fee with instructions to strip beds, start laundry, and navigate a parking garage to dispose of garbage. At their own rental, they said, they prefer to handle tasks such as removing sheets themselves so they can check for damage. Another commenter said their cleaners specifically ask guests to leave beds intact for the same reason.

Several hosts said they already offered an easy checkout, and now it won't distinguish their listings. "My only (selfish) complaint is that now I feel like my listing won't be special by not requiring a single thing upon checkout," one commenter wrote.

In another post, a user who described their rentals as "no chores stays" urged others to rethink their expectations. "We run a business," they wrote. "Also, we are in the hospitality business. Hotels don’t ask their guests to do these things, and neither should we."

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Other commenters argued that considerate guests tend to tidy up anyway. Making everyone follow a chore list, they suggested, risks frustrating the very people who were already going to leave the place in good shape.

Guests still have responsibilities

Some of the discussion goes beyond dishes. In the supplied threads, hosts also raised concerns about how the redesigned rules section accommodates local regulations, fire precautions, and restrictions tied to their properties.

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Airbnb does provide a designated section for local rules, including homeowners association policies and government requirements that could result in fines. Those concerns shouldn't be confused with a blanket ban on setting expectations for guests.

And the cleaning changes don't give travelers permission to trash a rental. Airbnb's ground rules for guests still prohibit leaving a property in a condition that requires excessive or deep cleaning, with moldy dishes and soiled carpets among its examples. Hosts can also leave cleanliness ratings and reviews.

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"Most guests just clean up because it's normal human behaviour, not because you told them to," one Reddit commenter wrote. "The ones who don't won't change regardless of what the rules say."

As of Oct. 22, 2026, Amazon has rebranded Kindle Unlimited as Kindle+. We've updated this article to reflect the name change.

Just bought a new Kindle? If so, you might have scored a sweet deal to get a month of Kindle+ totally free. While you might enjoy the access to endless books in the Kindle+ library for a bit, eventually, you'll be charged $11.99 per month to keep enjoying said books.

If $12 a month isn't in the budget, or you're just not utilizing Kindle+ to its full potential, it's time to break up. So here's a quick three-step guide on how to cancel your Kindle+ membership.

How to cancel Kindle+ membership Total Time

• 5 min

What You Need

• Computer

Step 1: Go to your Subscriptions & Membership tab

Under the 'Accounts & Lists' tab on Amazon, you'll find a 'Memberships & Subscriptions' link. Click the link and you'll find a list of all your subscriptions.

Credit: Amazon / Mashable

Step 2: Find Kindle+ and click 'Cancel'

Under 'Memberships & Subscriptions' you'll find a list of all your active and past memberships. Find Kindle+ and click 'Cancel'. Move through the prompts to continue cancellation. If you're on a free trial, your membership should stay active through the promotion period.

Credit: Amazon

Nvidia's DLSS 5 came at a time when little else was going on in the GPU world, and it shook its very foundations. People loved it, people hated it. It had several big problems, and the AI slop was not even the worst of it.

I have a number of Windows computers around my home. Some are media centers, others handle my outdoor cameras and smart home, and some are just for basic office work. I’m also the person in my circle of friends and family who gets the call when there is a technology problem. Basically, this means I’m working on other people’s PCs pretty frequently. I don’t particularly enjoy having to install the same group of apps on every machine I’m working on, especially when the PC isn’t mine. Having portable apps on my thumb drive means I don’t have to.

New US users can get a Babbel lifetime subscription with all 14 languages for just $159 (reg. $299) using StackSocial’s code LEARN for a limited time.

Opens in a new window Credit: Babbel Babbel Language Learning: Lifetime Subscription (All Languages) $159
$299 Save $140   Get Deal

Learning a new language isn’t easy, but it also might not be as hard as some apps make it seem. If memorizing vocab lists isn’t working for you, check out Babbel. They take a more practical approach to teaching, and there’s even an AI conversation partner who can help you practice your pronunciation.

Normally, a Babbel lifetime subscription would cost $299, but right now it’s on sale for $159. Check out what that gets you.

Babbel gives you lifetime access to courses in 14 different languages, and the format is designed to fit into real life. Each lesson takes around 10 to 15 minutes, so you can actually stick with it whether you’re commuting, traveling, or just squeezing in some study time between meetings.

Here are a few of the included languages:

• Spanish

• French

• German

• Italian

• Portuguese

• Swedish

And that’s just the beginning.

Unlike other apps that focus heavily on word games or repetitive matching drills, Babbel centers its content around practical conversation topics. You’ll get lessons on travel, shopping, business, culture, and more, all developed by expert linguists and backed by academic research. Speech recognition helps fine-tune your pronunciation, while the new AI-powered conversation partner lets you practice speaking in real time.

Lessons sync across devices, so you can start on your computer and finish on your phone. There’s also an offline mode if you want to download lessons in advance. You can move at your own pace, revisit review sessions, and jump between beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels based on your comfort.

Use code LEARN to get a Babbel lifetime subscription for only $159 for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

While the iPhone Duo has been mostly showered with praise on its launch day, there has been some criticism of the device. Reviewers aren't fans of the FaceTime camera's output quality, many apps have not yet been optimized for Apple's first foldable device, and there's a new report showing that the inner display's crease at the hinge becomes more visible as users fold and unfold the device over time.

However, just hours after the iPhone Duo was released, some users are going home to find what appears to be a major defect that makes those previous critiques pale in comparison.

Reddit

The inner display of the iPhone Duo is cracking from top to bottom along the entire hinge — right where the device folds — for some very unlucky first-day iPhone Duo users.

It's unclear exactly what the issue is, but the result appears to be the same each time, according to photos of cracked iPhone Duo displays spreading across social media. A large crack appears on the inner display right along the hinge. In addition, the cracked hinge causes a pixel issue on the right-hand side of the inner display, resulting in a bright white line.

Reports of faulty iPhone hinges don't seem to be contained to any specific market, either. While it's also unclear just how widespread the defect is, users from the U.S. to Australia to China have all reported cracked iPhone Duo displays at the hinge.

Reddit

A Reddit user in Australia shared his customer support experience while contacting Apple about his defective iPhone Duo. Over the phone, the company offered to provide an express replacement; however, the user would have to "put down a hold for the full cost of the phone." Apple also couldn't guarantee a timeframe for when the replacement would arrive. The user decided to go straight to the Apple Store instead, where they "apologized and replaced it with a brand-new one on the spot." It seems Apple may have some extra iPhone Duo devices in-store as replacements for when problems arise.

The Australian Redditor said the crack occurred in less than 6 hours after picking up the iPhone Duo and after they folded the device fewer than 20 times.

As MacRumors points out, Apple may be looking to collect broken devices to investigate what went wrong and fix the issue when manufacturing iPhone Duo devices going forward.

Consumers should always expect some issues and bugs with first-generation devices such as the iPhone Duo. But a huge crack down the middle of the inner display is certainly an extreme defect. Apple will undoubtedly fix the issue for unlucky customers, but it's certainly a big launch-day inconvenience for the first iPhone Duo owners. 

Hands up if you use Google Maps almost every day. Yep, same here. Between grocery runs, long drives with my husband, and picking up my daughter from school, I open it so often that I assumed I knew all the useful bits.

You might have suspected that Google was using personal app data for more than your own tasks, but now you have confirmation. Google has updated its privacy policy with an exception that lets its services use your shared content for personalized ads when you connect them to apps like Drive, Gmail, and Photos.

Who's up for some brilliant documentaries? At the moment, there are a few fresh Netflix documentaries trending in the Top 10. One of those is Tyson, a limited series about one of the "baddest men on the planet," Mike Tyson. On the comedy side, Norm Macdonald's documentary is winning over viewers thanks to the late comedian's indelible humor.

Linux has come a long way from the days when getting a graphical desktop running could feel like a project of its own. Today, you can install a modern Linux distro, open a browser, connect your Bluetooth headphones, and get on with your work. That experience is the result of decades of development, arguments, ambitious redesigns, and a few spectacular failures.

There's always a new AI photo trend on TikTok, whether people are turning themselves into caricatures or posing for an '80s yearbook portrait. If you've tried those and are looking for another excuse to play around with AI image generation, the "I'm so sorry" trend has people digging through their childhood photos — and apologizing for what they find.

SEE ALSO: ChatGPT '80s trend: Prompts to try it yourself

People are sharing edited versions of their baby pictures, childhood snapshots, and old Halloween costumes, then revealing the changes one slide at a time. With every swipe, another detail gets stripped away until they unveil the real photo — and the result is usually pretty horrifying. Horrifying enough that users feel compelled to caption their posts with "I'm so sorry." The carousels are usually set to Harry Styles' "Coming Up Roses" or Prince's "Purple Rain."

The appeal of the trend is in the anticipation. Once you understand the format, even an innocent opening photo becomes suspicious. You start inspecting the hair, the outfit, the background. Something is going to go. Something is going to appear. You just don’t know what!

In the Halloween versions, that can mean revealing a costume was much more homemade or culturally offensive than the opening image suggested. Other versions start with a picture-perfect baby portrait before revealing a newborn photo that is not as cute as expected (I'll leave it at that). Some depict yearbook photos or women after giving birth.

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According to Know Your Meme, one of the earliest known examples came from TikTokker @theywanthunter on Aug. 22, when he posted a carousel featuring his supposed girlfriend saying, "Happy 2 years bae," before revealing that both the woman and the man in the image had been edited. The video had accumulated more than 25 million views by October.

Viewers online are eating it up, for the most part. "The 'I'm sorry I lied' trend on TikTok has to be the funniest trend ever," one user wrote. Another said it was "actually making me feel better about my childhood photos."

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But others are less amused by exactly how those slideshows are made. "Why do we keep normalizing uploading pictures of children into a public AI?" another user asked, raising a real concern that in order to participate in the trend, people are handing real childhood photos over to AI tools.

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Those very real concerns center on what happens after the upload. Depending on the service and its settings, images may be retained or used to help train AI models. The public can also easily copy and manipulate those without permission. UNICEF has warned that real photographs of children are being altered into sexually explicit deepfakes. Of course, that doesn’t mean participating in this trend will lead to abuse, but it helps explain why some viewers are questioning the privacy trade-off behind the joke.

How to do the 'I'm so sorry' trend

Start with the photo you want to reveal at the end, then use an AI image editor (any will do) to create a more polished-looking version. You might change the hairstyle, upgrade the outfit, or give the background a makeover.

Then, for a gradual reveal, add in one edit at a time and save each version. Then arrange the images in reverse order. Upload the images as a TikTok photo carousel or create a video slideshow using an editing app, and add captions over each photo, admitting to each change as you go.

Finish with the original photo and the obligatory "I’m so sorry," then add your chosen audio from either the Harry Styles or Prince track. They're both pretty great songs.

While many undertake ESP32-based electronics projects for fun, because they find building rewarding, or to learn, saving money is another valid reason to DIY a solution. It could be argued your own time has a price too, but if you find the build enjoyable, then you’re probably not going to mind the time commitment.

Android gives several ways to customize your phone. Most users use the Quick Settings panel for the same handful of things — Wi-Fi, brightness slider, flashlight, location, and mobile data. These barely scratch the surface. Tucked inside the Quick Settings edit menu are tiles that save you several taps and put useful controls one swipe away. To add tiles, swipe down from the top of the screen, tap the pencil icon, and add the one you want into the panel. The exact steps vary by phone and Android version. Here are five Quick Settings tiles that are worth the space.

Shopping on Etsy shouldn’t require figuring out whether the product in the photo actually exists. Now, the marketplace is introducing new rules to help take some of that guesswork out of buying.

Etsy announced new restrictions on Oct. 22 in a news post titled "Creativity and Trust in the Age of AI," in which the marketplace banned AI-generated patterns, recipes, and other instructions that buyers follow to create a finished product. Sellers must also show a real example made using those instructions. An AI-generated image of what your project could theoretically look like won’t cut it.

"AI should support our sellers' creativity and craftsmanship, not replace them," James Ossman, Etsy’s vice president of customer operations, wrote in the announcement.

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For most listings, sellers will need to include at least one completely unedited photo showing the actual product against a real background. Some categories, including digital, customized, and made-to-order items, have different requirements. Sellers can still edit additional photos using software or AI tools, but those images must accurately show what buyers will receive.

There are potential consequences for misleading listings. If a seller's images don't meet the requirements and a buyer opens a case because the product looks materially different, the seller could be responsible for a refund. Bot-generated listings without human involvement will be removed and could also result in the seller’s shop being removed from Etsy.

SEE ALSO: Etsy says it will allow the sale of AI-generated art but not AI prompts

For shoppers, the frustration goes beyond disliking AI art. According to online testimonies, generated images can make it harder to judge the actual product. In a Reddit discussion about the announcement, one user said they stopped buying from a shop selling molds used to make bath bombs after it replaced real product photos with AI imagery. They wanted to see both the mold and a bath bomb made with it so they could assess the details and quality before buying.

"I can't tell anything from a fake generated unrealistic idea of the mold," they wrote.

Another commenter said the search itself had become exhausting: "I spent hours today trying to find an item that didn't have AI-generated art and eventually gave up."

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For some sellers, the frustration extends to their own shopping habits. "As a seller myself, I only shop on Etsy when I’m looking for something very niche," another user wrote. "Otherwise I don’t have the patience to scroll through several pages of AI crap before finding something not AI." One X user said: "Half the listings there looked nothing like what showed up in the mail, so this is overdue."

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The company, to their credit, had been listening to complaints. "Today, many active buyers say they can’t tell which items involve AI-generated content. It’s become a top-three barrier to shopping more often on Etsy," Ossman wrote in its notice to sellers.

Can sellers still sell AI art?

Yes. Etsy will continue allowing AI-generated art when sellers have a clear creative role and disclose their use of AI. They cannot present it as handmade or entirely their own creation.

That approach dates back to Etsy's July 2024 policy update, which allowed artwork generated using sellers’ own original prompts, provided they disclosed the AI use in the listing description. But Etsy drew a line at selling AI prompt bundles — collections of instructions for generating content — separately from finished artwork. The new restrictions expand those limits to AI-generated recipes, patterns, and other functional guides.

Appropriate use of AI, according to Etsy Credit: Screenshot: Etsy Inappropriate use of AI, according to Etsy Credit: Screenshot: Etsy

Enforcement is the next test. Etsy says it’s investing in technology to identify misleading images and fraudulent listings, with plans to expand removals over the coming months. It's also introducing prompts that alert sellers when an uploaded image appears AI-generated and offer guidance on meeting photo requirements. Shoppers will also have a new option to report misleading AI imagery.

eReaders offer the perfect solution to break free from the dreaded doom scroll trap, as they provide you with a meaningful way to finally convince yourself to actually start reading more. The Xteink X4 Classic takes that idea a step further with a pocket-sized design you can carry without the need to pack along another large device like a tablet. This newer model is now under $80 on Amazon, and though it's not a massive discount on an already affordable model, it's enough to help you save a bit.

As of Oct. 22, 2026, Amazon has rebranded Kindle Unlimited as Kindle+. We've updated this article to reflect the name change.

E-readers are one of our favorite topics to cover here at Mashable. Partly because we love testing them, but also because there is so much you can do with an e-reader to maximize your experience. We've walked through instructions on how to download EPUB files to a Kindle, covered the joys of Libby and Stuff Your Kindle Day, and taught you how to save when you spend with Kindle Rewards, but now we want to talk about Kindle+.

If you're a Kindle user, when you got your device, you were probably offered a free trial of Kindle+. But what exactly are you signing up for? In short, it's like Amazon's very own library service... except you have to pay for it. Here's everything you need to know about Kindle+.

SEE ALSO: 8 Kindle features you should be using What is Kindle+?

Formerly known as Kindle Unlimited, Amazon has rebranded its subscription service as Kindle+. But rather than streaming shows, it offers a catalog of books and magazines that users can borrow to read on an e-reader or through the Kindle app. It offers more than, say, a membership to Book of the Month does. Instead of getting one new book a month, with Kindle+ you receive access to the Kindle+ library, which is full of millions of titles.

It works like a library where you can borrow up to 20 books at a time (magazines don't count toward your borrowing limit). To be honest, if you use Libby, you're basically getting the same service for free, but Libby often results in long wait times for popular books, which isn't the case with Kindle+ — all of the books in the Kindle+ library are available all the time.

However, the Kindle+ library doesn't offer every book. Its library has a regular rotation, and some books are only temporarily available through Kindle+.

Want to learn more about getting the best out of your tech? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories and Deals newsletters or get Mashable push alerts today. 

How much is Kindle+?

Kindle+ costs $11.99 per month. It's a recurring payment, and no annual membership is offered. During shopping events, like Prime Day and Black Friday, Amazon typically offers a Kindle+ free trial for three months.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Kindle+ $11.99 per month Learn More at Amazon What books are on Kindle+?

We can't go through every book offered on Kindle+ because that would mean parsing through millions of titles; however, the mix of books in the Kindle+ library is huge. It features books across all genres, plus bestsellers. The fantasy phenomenon Fourth Wing and the entire The Empyrean series are available on Kindle+.

Other featured titles included in Kindle+ are The Housemaid by Freida McFadden and Regretting You by Colleen Hoover — both of which are getting movie adaptations soon.

Other popular titles include books that are now Amazon Video adaptations, including The Summer I Turned Pretty by Jenny Han and Red, White & Royal Blue by Casey McQuiston.

While browsing books, you'll know if a title is available on Kindle+ if it's prompting you to "join now to read." If you're already a member, it will prompt you to add the book to your library.

If a book is available on Kindle+, you'll be prompted to read for free. Credit: Amazon Do I need a Kindle to use Kindle+?

We love e-readers, and if you're thinking of getting one, especially a Kindle, you won't regret it. We have reviews on nearly every model, including the basic Kindle, Paperwhite, Paperwhite Signature Edition, and Scribe, all of which you can use to read with Kindle+. But you don't actually need an e-reader to use Kindle+.

You can read on any device with the Kindle app, including your computer, smartphone, and tablet. You can even read on a web browser.

Shop e-readers Kindle $149.99 at Amazon Shop Now Kindle Paperwhite $199.99 at Amazon Shop Now Kindle Colorsoft $289.99 at Amazon Shop Now Kindle Scribe $399.99 at Amazon Shop Now Kobo Clara Colour $179.99 at Amazon Shop Now Kobo Libra Colour $259.99 at Amazon Shop Now

Buying a new router feels like a sure-fire way to fix a bad internet connection (even though a router that's new to you may not be new at all). But if your internet was alright before and you bought a new router and it's all gone downhill, you're not imagining it. It's completely possible for a new router to mess up your connection despite all that money you just spent on trying to improve it.

A TV is an infrequent purchase, and every time that opportunity comes by, there is a whole list of new technologies and features to contend with.