Technology

Keeping shows and movies downloaded for those times that you find yourself without an internet connection can be a lifesaver. I generally have a list of things loaded on my phone and ready to go, meaning I can catch up on some content when I'm on a bus, plane, or just on the treadmill at the gym. I am, however, chronically bad at making sure my downloads are up-to-date.

Upgrading an older desktop doesn't always require ripping out your motherboard and RAM. If you're still on an AM4 platform, the AMD Ryzen 7 5700X is a perfect way to breathe new life into your PC without starting from scratch. Amazon has the 8-core, 16-thread chip available for $159, which is a solid price for gamers and multitaskers who want reliable performance without the premium of a next-gen socket.

After debuting Gemini Intelligence on the Pixel 11 series and holding back its AI-powered widget builder, Google is bringing that and more to Pixel devices through the November Pixel Drop.

If you were waiting for the upcoming Samsung Galaxy S27 lineup to drop before upgrading your smartphone, we have some bad news, particularly if you were hoping for some premium camera updates.

According to a new leak from Samsung news outlet SammyGuru, Samsung doesn't seem to have any major camera upgrades in store for the upcoming line of devices.

Another recent leak suggested that the Samsung Galaxy S27 line would see a big camera redesign. However, based on the SammyGuru report, there may not be too much new when it comes to the cameras themselves — at least for the S27 and S27 Plus models.

In fact, if you have a Samsung Galaxy S26 and are considering an upgrade to the Galaxy S27 or Galaxy S27 Plus, it looks like there will be no change to the cameras at all. Both the S27 and S27 Plus will reportedly be equipped with a 50MP main camera with a Sony IMX955 or Samsung S5KGNG sensor, SammyGuru reported. The ultrawide lens will reportedly be the same 12MP Sony IMX564, as well as the same 10MP 3x telephoto lens and 12MP selfie camera.

The camera array on the Galaxy S26 Ultra smartphone. Credit: Joseph Maldonado / Mashable

The Galaxy S27 Pro and Galaxy S27 Ultra, thankfully, will see some upgrades, according to the new report. However, at this point, it's unclear just how much of an upgrade they'll be.

SammyGuru reported that the S27 Ultra and S27 Pro will both get a new 200MP main camera with a Samsung S5KHP6 sensor. The S27 Ultra's predecessor, the Samsung Galaxy S26 Ultra, has a Samsung S5KHP2 sensor, so there is a change here between the two device generations.

The S27 Pro and S27 Ultra could also receive a selfie camera upgrade with a 16MP front-facing lens, which is an upgrade from the 12MP resolution of their predecessors. Finally, SammyGuru reported that the S27 Pro will have a 3x optical zoom telephoto camera, and the S27 Ultra will have a 5x optical zoom.

Of course, the report is unconfirmed for now. Typically, Samsung phones leak heavily in the months before they launch. And with the Samsung Galaxy S27 line of smartphones expected to arrive in January or February 2027, we expect a flood of leaks in the near future.

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Fedora is already a solid Linux distro, but a fresh installation doesn't have to be your final setup. A few small tweaks can make it more convenient, unlock additional software, and give you better control over your system.

Before Windows introduced native support for more archive formats, having an archive tool was pretty much mandatory. And while you can create 7z archives on Windows 11 without 7-Zip, I still find myself installing and using the tool pretty regularly.

TL;DR: Convert and edit PDFs on Mac or Windows with a lifetime license to AcePDF Converter & Editor, now $23.99 (reg. $99.99) with code DEAL20.

Opens in a new window Credit: Acethinker AcePDF Converter & Editor: Lifetime License $24
$99.99 Save $75.99   Get Deal

PDFs show up everywhere, from tax forms to rental applications, and most of them arrive in a format you can’t easily change. Full-featured PDF software usually fixes that with a monthly subscription. If you’d rather pay once, try AcePDF Converter & Editor, a desktop app that turns PDFs into editable files and back again. With code DEAL20, a lifetime license drops to $23.99 (reg. $99.99).

Turn any PDF into a file you can work with

Conversion goes in both directions. You can convert a PDF to Word, Excel, PowerPoint, text, HTML, PNG, or JPG, and AcePDF preserves the original layout, images, and hyperlinks. Going the other way, you can build a PDF from Word documents, spreadsheets, slides, or images. Batch mode converts a stack of PDFs in one pass, so you aren’t stuck feeding files in one at a time.

Scanned documents are usually where basic PDF tools give up. AcePDF has built-in OCR that extracts text from image-based PDFs in multiple languages, so an old scanned contract or a photographed receipt becomes text you can copy and edit.

Page tools come along with the converter. You can merge several PDFs into one, split out only the pages you need, rotate or delete pages, and pull every JPG and PNG out of a file in one click. Oversized files can be compressed for email, and a password can lock a sensitive document or unlock one you already have the password for. Forms get attention too. You can design an interactive form from scratch or fill an existing one with text, check boxes, shapes, and annotations, then add watermarks, stamps, and comments as needed.

Next to Adobe Acrobat Pro, AcePDF does most of the same everyday jobs, including conversion, OCR, form filling, compression, and password protection, but without a monthly bill. Reviewers on Trustpilot give it 4.4 out of 5 stars.

AcePDF runs on Windows 8, 10, and 11, plus macOS 12 or later with full Apple Silicon support. One license works on two computers, and updates are included. Conversion does need an internet connection. You’ll have 30 days after purchase to redeem your code.

Stop paying every month just to edit a PDF. Use code DEAL20 to get a lifetime license to AcePDF Converter & Editor for $23.99. Offer ends Nov. 15 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

One of the big benefits of Samsung devices is that they are pretty deeply customizable. However, if you're looking to take things a step further, then you absolutely need Good Lock. It is a free and official suite of modules designed by Samsung to give Galaxy users the ability to deeply personalize their devices, boost productivity, and streamline navigation.

Being born in the 2000s, I hardly got the chance to use any of the old operating systems many people talk about. As a Linux user, this topic always fascinates me. How old operating systems worked, what they offered, and most importantly, how they shaped modern OSes.

SAVE $99.01: The new Apple Watch Ultra 4 (GPS + Cellular, 49mm) is on sale for the record-low price of $699.99 at Amazon and Costco as of Nov. 10. That's 12% off its standard sticker price of $799.

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple Watch Ultra 4 (GPS + Cellular, 49mm) $699.99 at Amazon
$799 Save $99.01   Get Deal at Amazon Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple Watch Ultra 4 (GPS + Cellular, 49mm) $699.99 at Costco
$799 Save $99.01 Not restricted to Costco members. Get Deal at Costco

The opening days of the holiday season have brought us a $99 discount on Apple's latest premium smartwatch — its biggest markdown since launching in September, and a likely preview of its Black Friday deal.

As of this writing, Amazon and Costco both have the new Apple Watch Ultra 4 on sale for just $699.99, or 12% off its $799 MSRP. It's never been cheaper before, according to the price-tracking site camelcamelcamel. (Costco's deal isn't a member exclusive, FYI.)

Both retailers' deals apply to Ultra 4 models with a Natural titanium case. You can choose from three different band styles: Desert Alpine Loop, Sand Trail Loop, or Translucent Gray Ocean Band.

The Ultra 4 is Apple's fanciest, longest-lasting, and most rugged wearable. While it looks the same as its predecessor, the Apple Watch Ultra 3, it has better optical and electrical sensors that can take more accurate and consistent heart rate readings. It also boasts a faster processor that supports a couple of new features, like a Readiness score and Siri Recap conversation summaries.

In his 4.5/5 review of the Ultra 4, Mashable's Stan Schroeder called it "an essential upgrade" for athletes.

Will the Apple Watch Ultra 4 get cheaper before Black Friday?

We don't expect the Ultra 4 to get any cheaper on or around Black Friday. For the past two years, the latest Apple Watch Ultra model has been on sale for $699 over the holidays.

If you're like me, you're always looking for a reason to justify buying a few more power tools. Or, more importantly, additional battery packs for your collection. If so, I have good news. While it's not quite the holiday season yet, that hasn't stopped The Home Depot from launching a slew of discounts or free battery and tool deals that are too good to pass up.

When it comes to gifting, kids can be particular. The things kids like change not just with age, but also with evolving trends from TV shows and new technology. If parents are lucky enough, their kid will write a long list of the precise items they'd like as a birthday or Christmas or Hannukkah gift and put it up on the fridge with pride. But sometimes, it can be as much of a crapshoot as coming up with a gift idea for someone else's kid. Without further ado, here are the best gifts for kids of all ages — including toy and non-toy gifts alike.

On Tuesday, Rockstar Games gave us some details about how Grand Theft Auto VI will look and run on current-gen consoles. But there was a fascinating buried lede in that blog post.

Specifically, it will actually be possible to play GTA 6 on a last-generation Xbox One console at launch. There is, obviously, a huge catch to that: You'll only be able to play it that way by streaming the game over the cloud. The actual news here is that GTA 6 will be playable through Xbox Cloud Gaming, a feature available to Xbox Game Pass subscribers, starting at 1 a.m. ET on Nov. 19, the day the game comes out.

SEE ALSO: 'GTA 6' on PS5 vs. Xbox: What we know This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Using Xbox Cloud Gaming, you'll be able to stream GTA 6 to an Xbox Series console or an Xbox One. I'm not entirely sure why you'd stream it to one of the newer consoles instead of just running it natively, but the option is there, nonetheless. If you play GTA 6 this way, the stream will use the Xbox Series S version's graphics settings.

Of course, there is one final very relevant detail here: Starting this month, Xbox has imposed strict hourly limits on cloud gaming. You can only stream games for five to 15 hours per month, depending on which version of Game Pass you pay for. There's also the matter of game streaming being subject to the whims of internet quality, so things like buffering, latency, and poor visual quality can be part of the experience.

So, it might still be worth it to just try and find a current-gen console instead.

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Before smartphones became ubiquitous, the whole idea of a phone was to have a small communication and entertainment device that could comfortably slide into your pants pocket, jacket, or purse.

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

Scrooge.

Hurdle Word 1 answer

GRUMP

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Choppy.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for November 10, 2026 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

JERKY

Hurdle Word 3 hint

Gripped.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Meanings for each word for Nov. 10, 2026 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Meanings for each word for Nov. 10, 2026 Hurdle Word 3 answer

CLUNG

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Chocolate.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

BROWN

Final Hurdle hint

Refuge.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Games available on Mashable Hurdle Word 5 answer

HAVEN

If you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now! Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Sometimes the most-watched part of a two-hour podcast is the 30 seconds someone else pulled out of it. That's good publicity for the show, but if the clip takes off on another account, who gets paid?

X's new clipping tool lets both the person who posts the clip and the creator who made the original video earn from it, as long as they’re enrolled in the platform's Original Content Rewards program. Every clip also links back to the exact moment in the original video, so anyone who wants to hear what happened next can keep watching.

"Everyone wins when great moments travel. Clipping is one more step toward making X the best place to create, grow and earn," the @XCreators account posted on the platform.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Using this new feature, making a clip works a lot like reposting. Tap the repost icon, choose "Clip video," and trim the moment you want to share. You can add your own commentary, and anyone who taps the "Clip from" label can pick up the original video right where the clip begins.

The tool is live on iOS and Android, with web access on the way. For now, it works on prerecorded videos at least two minutes long, and clips can run from five to 60 seconds, or up to 30 percent of the original.

What does a good clip actually pay?

People were getting paid to find those 30-second clips before X put a button on it.

Podcasters, streamers, and marketers recruit clippers through Discord servers and marketplaces like Whop, where they pay people to cut up footage and post it on their own accounts. Marketers told Business Insider earlier this year that campaigns typically pay $1 to $4 per 1,000 views. One Whop listing offered $1.75 per 1,000 views for clips of Sofia Franklyn's Nov. 10 appearance on Aspire With Emma Grede. That’s $175 before fees for 100,000 qualifying views (assuming the clip meets the campaign’s terms).

People online are equally as excited as creators.

"this is HUGE for creators and their payouts," said X creator @0xhades. "amazing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! prayers answeredddddd" said another user. "Whoa this is crazy useful. Nice," wrote a third.

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed. This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

As X introduces an easier way to clip, YouTube is moving in the opposite direction. As Mashable reported in October, YouTube is changing what it recommends in the Shorts feed to give less reach to reposts that add little to the original. YouTube wants clippers to bring something of their own, whether that's commentary, creative editing, or a story built around the footage in order to "improve the Shorts experience for everyone."

SEE ALSO: YouTube Shorts is cracking down on clipping. Here’s what that means for creators.

For now, X's clipping rules don’t list a flat rate. And if creators would rather keep their videos from being clipped in the first place, they'll have to wait for the opt-out X says it’s working on.

If X clipping catches on, the next thing to watch is whether podcasters start uploading full episodes to X just to see which moments fans pull out of them.

From YouTubers and TikTok stars to streamers and podcasters, Mashable talks to creators about how they built their platforms, the gear they swear by, and the trends they see coming next. Read more of our creator coverage, sign up for our Trending Now and Top Stories newsletters or get Mashable push alerts to discover the internet's most exciting voices. 

Durable watches that can take a beating don't need to be pricey, and you can find options like Timex's legendary Expedition Scout for under $50 with a limited-time Amazon deal. It's the quintessential field watch, blending style and simplicity to take on your outdoor adventures.

Kai Cenat has one more game to beat before he can call his Grand Theft Auto marathon done. The streamer, with 22 million followers on Twitch, cleared GTA III, Vice City, San Andreas, and GTA IV in under 100 hours. And on Monday night, Nov. 6, he told fans on X he’d made it to the fifth and final game on his list. "PLAYING GTA 5 NOW GET IN HERE," he posted on X.

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Cenat kicked off the marathon Nov. 5 with a plan to beat all five games on stream. Along the way, the games started spilling into real life. In a video posted to his YouTube channel with over 500,000 views, Cenat dressed as GTA IV protagonist Niko Bellic and took a performer dressed as Big Smoke to a McDonald's drive-thru, where Big Smoke tried to place his famously huge San Andreas order.

Now that Cenat is back in Los Santos, some viewers were hyped. "Let's gooo," said one user, while another viewer joked that he was "warming up like it's a preseason game" ahead of GTA 6, which launches Nov. 19 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S.

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For GTA 6, though, Cenat is planning to take his time. As Mashable previously reported, he wants to spend time exploring between story missions and encouraged fans to make time for their own playthroughs, too. As for when he’ll log off, he’s leaving that open. "I ain’t coming off stream until I feel like it’s the right time," he wrote.

GTA 6 launches Nov. 19 on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S, bringing the series back to Vice City. Until then, there’s still one stop left on Cenat’s tour. The marathon is streaming on Twitch.

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The Raspberry Pi is great for DIY projects, but it has a few limitations that become obvious once you start connecting sensors, motors, and other electronics. The ESP32 has its own limitations, especially when you want to run more demanding software. If you have been using either board for a while, you have probably run into situations where you wished it could do something the other handles easily.

We live in an increasingly disposable world where people upgrade their perfectly functional phones every year or are forced to replace products because they're no longer supported. It's not always the case; my surround system is still going strong after more than 15 years, which isn't something that can always be said of soundbars.