Technology

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.

Mashable 101 Fan Fave: Nominate your favorite creators 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

A treat.

SEE ALSO: Apple’s new M3 MacBook Air is $300 off at Amazon. And yes, I’m tempted. Hurdle Word 1 answer

SNACK

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Over-the-top.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 7, 2026 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

GRAND

Mashable 101 Fan Fave: Nominate your favorite creators today

Hurdle Word 3 hint

Female.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 7 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 7, 2026 Hurdle Word 3 answer

WOMAN

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Attempted.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

TRIED

Final Hurdle hint

Polar.

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

IONIC

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

The lunar cycle is now in its final phase before the New Moon, when the illuminated side of the Moon faces away from Earth, making it virtually invisible in the night sky.

What is today’s Moon phase?

As of Friday, Aug. 7, NASA's Daily Moon Guide tracker tells us the Moon phase is in Waning Crescent phase, with 37% of its surface visible.

We're down to the last few nights of being able to spot lunar features. Without visual aids, you should be able to catch a glimpse of the Aristarchus Plateau and the Copernicus Crater. Binoculars will bring more into view, including the Grimaldi Basin, the Gassendi Crater, and the Mare Humorum. If you have access to a telescope, you'll also be able to see the Schiller Crater and the Apollo 12 landing spot.

When is the next Full Moon?

The next Full Moon will take place on August 28.

What are Moon phases?

The Moon's appearance changes throughout the month as it orbits Earth, completing one full lunar cycle approximately every 29.5 days, according to NASA. During that journey, the positions of the Sun, Earth, and Moon are constantly shifting, altering how much of the Moon's illuminated surface is visible from our perspective. That's why we see the familiar sequence of phases, from a slim crescent to a half Moon, then a Full Moon, before the pattern begins again.

The eight phases are:

New Moon - The Moon is between Earth and the sun, so the side we see is dark (in other words, it's invisible to the eye).

Waxing Crescent - A small sliver of light appears on the right side (Northern Hemisphere).

First Quarter - Half of the Moon is lit on the right side. It looks like a half-Moon.

Waxing Gibbous - More than half is lit up, but it’s not quite full yet.

Full Moon - The whole face of the Moon is illuminated and fully visible.

Waning Gibbous - The Moon starts losing light on the right side. (Northern Hemisphere)

Third Quarter (or Last Quarter) - Another half-Moon, but now the left side is lit.

Waning Crescent - A thin sliver of light remains on the left side before going dark again.

Mashable Deals Be the first to know! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Loading... Sign Me Up By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Thanks for signing up!

I spend a lot of time trawling through the depths of the online world to find deals that are genuinely worth your time and money. And no, I'm not talking about those heavily discounted products that have actually been stuck at that "low price" for months. I'm talking about limited-time discounts on the products that I'd actually recommend to a friend.

That's the aim of the game for Mashable's team of shopping experts. We're constantly scanning leading retailers like Amazon, Walmart, and Best Buy to bring you new opportunities to save your precious cash. But we're not satisfied with the current state of affairs. We don't want you to miss a thing, and that's why we landed on the Mashable Deals text group.

Become a subscriber of the Mashable Deals text group and I'll send you the very best deals directly to your phone. You don't need to pay anything to get access to these deals. Simply sign up above and you'll be the first to know about huge savings on MacBooks, limited-time discounts on AirPods, price cuts on items under $50, and all of those other deals that drop throughout the week.

I'll send a Deal of the Day most days. During major shopping events like Prime Day and Black Friday, we may bump this up to a couple of sends per day. But that's only if we come across multiple offers that are truly worth the send. If we track down a bunch of impressively low prices during a busy shopping event, we'll drop those in a single text.

We're not going to spam you. The daily deals that we send to the Mashable Deals text group will have been researched and assessed by the team with the same level of care that we dedicate to the rest of our shopping content.

Signing up for the Mashable Deals text group is quick, safe, and totally free. You can also opt out anytime you like. I hope you give it a try.

Today's Connections: Sports Edition will be easier if you've ever watched baseball.

As we've shared in previous hints stories, this is a version of the popular New York Times word game that seeks to test the knowledge of sports fans.

Like the original Connections, the game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight, and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier — so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for the latest Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections: Sports Edition?

The NYT's latest daily word game has launched in association with The Athletic, the New York Times property that provides the publication's sports coverage. The sports Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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

Each puzzle features 16 words, and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake — players get up to four mistakes before the game ends.

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

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. Here's a hint for today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Field fixers

• Green: Mile High Sports

• Blue: Sneakers

• Purple: Defunct basketball teams

Here are today's Connections: Sports Edition categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Grounds Crew Equipment

• Green: Denver Teams

• Blue: Famous Classic Basketball Sneakers

• Purple: Former NBA Team Names, Minus the S

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections: Sports Edition #683 is...

What is the answer to Connections: Sports Edition today?

• Grounds Crew Equipment: DRAG MAT, MOWER, RAKE, TARP

• Denver Teams: AVALANCHE, BRONCOS, NUGGETS, SUMMIT

• Famous Classic Basketball Sneakers: AIR JORDAN, PUMP, QUESTION, WEAPON

• Former NBA Team Names, Minus the S: BOBCAT, CHAPARRAL, ROYAL, SUPERSONIC

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be new sports Connections for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints.

Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

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

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Welcome to your guide to Pips, the latest game in the New York Times catalogue.

Released in August 2025, Pips puts a unique spin on dominoes, creating a fun single-player experience that could become your next daily gaming habit.

Currently, if you're stuck, the game only offers to reveal the entire puzzle, forcing you to move on to the next difficulty level and start over. However, we have you covered! Below are piecemeal answers that will serve as hints so that you can find your way through each difficulty level.

How to play Pips

If you've ever played dominoes, you'll have a passing familiarity with how Pips is played. As we've shared in our previous hints stories for Pips, the tiles, like dominoes, are placed vertically or horizontally and connect with each other. The main difference between a traditional game of dominoes and Pips is the color-coded conditions you have to address. The touching tiles don't necessarily have to match.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 7, 2026

The conditions you have to meet are specific to the color-coded spaces. For example, if it provides a single number, every side of a tile in that space must add up to the number provided. It is possible — and common — for only half a tile to be within a color-coded space.

Here are common examples you'll run into across the difficulty levels:

• Number: All the pips in this space must add up to the number.

• Equal: Every domino half in this space must be the same number of pips.

• Not Equal: Every domino half in this space must have a completely different number of pips.

• Less than: Every domino half in this space must add up to less than the number.

• Greater than: Every domino half in this space must add up to more than the number.

If an area does not have any color coding, it means there are no conditions on the portions of dominoes within those spaces.

SEE ALSO: NYT Strands hints, answers for August 7, 2026 Easy difficulty hints, answers for August 7 Pips

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 3-2, placed horizontally.

Number (8): Everything in this space must add up to 8. The answer is 3-2, placed horizontally; 0-5, placed horizontally.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 0-5, placed horizontally; 1-6, placed horizontally.

Equal (6): Everything in this space must be equal to 6. The answer is 1-6, placed horizontally; 6-3, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (2): Everything in this space must be greater than 2. The answer is 6-3, placed horizontally.

Medium difficulty hints, answers for August 7 Pips

Greater Than (2): Everything in this space must be greater than 2. The answer is 3-0, placed vertically.

Equal (2): Everything in this space must be equal to 2. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally; 2-1, placed vertically.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 2-5, placed horizontally; 5-4, placed vertically.

Number (10): Everything in this space must add up to 10. The answer is 5-4, placed vertically; 6-0, placed horizontally.

Number (7): Everything in this space must add up to 7. The answer is 3-4, placed vertically.

Less Than (4): Everything in this space must be less than 4. The answer is 1-1, placed horizontally.

Hard difficulty hints, answers for August 7 Pips

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-6, placed vertically.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 0-2, placed horizontally.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 0-2, placed horizontally.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-1, placed vertically.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-0, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 5-0, placed vertically.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 2-1, placed vertically.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 0-4, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 3-4, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 3-4, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 1-3, placed vertically.

Number (0): Everything in this space must add up to 0. The answer is 0-3, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-3, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-5, placed horizontally.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 4-5, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 0-3, placed vertically.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 2-3, placed vertically.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 4-1, placed horizontally.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 4-1, placed horizontally.

Number (1): Everything in this space must add up to 1. The answer is 1-5, placed vertically.

Number (2): Everything in this space must add up to 2. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally.

Number (4): Everything in this space must add up to 4. The answer is 2-4, placed horizontally.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 5-2, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 1-5, placed vertically.

Number (5): Everything in this space must add up to 5. The answer is 5-3, placed horizontally.

Number (3): Everything in this space must add up to 3. The answer is 5-3, placed horizontally.

Greater Than (0): Everything in this space must be greater than 0. The answer is 5-2, placed vertically.

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

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you have a good sense of smell.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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

Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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

Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for August 7, 2026 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Let it burn

• Green: Brrrr

• Blue: Get a lift

• Purple: Papa bear

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Components of a candle

• Green: Cold things

• Blue: Parts of an elevator

• Purple: Starting with male animals

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #1153 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Components of a candle: FRAGRANCE, JAR, WAX, WICK

• Cold things: LIQUID NITROGEN, REFRIGERATOR, SNOW, SUNDAE

• Parts of an elevator: BUTTONS, CABLES, MOTOR, SHAFT

• Starting with male animals: BUCKYBALL, JACKPOT, RAMBO, TOMATILLO

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 7, 2026

Are you also playing NYT Strands? Get all the Strands hints you need for today's puzzle.

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

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Connections.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you easily lose your train of thought.

Strands, the New York Times' elevated word-search game, requires the player to perform a twist on the classic word search. Words can be made from linked letters — up, down, left, right, or diagonal, but words can also change direction, resulting in quirky shapes and patterns. Every single letter in the grid will be part of an answer. There's always a theme linking every solution, along with the "spangram," a special, word or phrase that sums up that day's theme, and spans the entire grid horizontally or vertically.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable

By providing an opaque hint and not providing the word list, Strands creates a brain-teasing game that takes a little longer to play than its other games, like Wordle and Connections.

If you're feeling stuck or just don't have 10 or more minutes to figure out today's puzzle, we've got all the NYT Strands hints for today's puzzle you need to progress at your preferred pace.

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 7, 2026 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: Struggling to find the words

The words are related to brain fog.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe brain farts.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is diagonal.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Whatchamacallit.

NYT Strands word list for August 7

• Thingymajiggy

• Gizmo

• Whatchamacallit

• Dingus

• Doohickey

Looking for other daily online games? Mashable's Games page has more hints, and if you're looking for more puzzles, Mashable's got games now!

Check out our games hub for Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more.

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Strands.

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you're a good actor.

If you just want to be told today's word, you can jump to the bottom of this article for today's Wordle solution revealed. But if you'd rather solve it yourself, keep reading for some clues, tips, and strategies to assist you.

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 7, 2026 Where did Wordle come from?

Originally created by engineer Josh Wardle as a gift for his partner, Wordle rapidly spread to become an international phenomenon, with thousands of people around the globe playing every day. Alternate Wordle versions created by fans also sprang up, including battle royale Squabble, music identification game Heardle, and variations like Dordle and Quordle that make you guess multiple words at once. 

Wordle eventually became so popular that it was purchased by the New York Times, and TikTok creators even livestream themselves playing.

What's the best Wordle starting word?

The best Wordle starting word is the one that speaks to you. But if you prefer to be strategic in your approach, we have a few ideas to help you pick a word that might help you find the solution faster. One tip is to select a word that includes at least two different vowels, plus some common consonants like S, T, R, or N.

What happened to the Wordle archive?

The entire archive of past Wordle puzzles was originally available for anyone to enjoy whenever they felt like it, but it was later taken down, with the website's creator stating it was done at the request of the New York Times. However, the New York Times then rolled out its own Wordle Archive, available only to NYT Games subscribers.

Is Wordle getting harder?

It might feel like Wordle is getting harder, but it actually isn't any more difficult than when it first began. You can turn on Wordle's Hard Mode if you're after more of a challenge, though.

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for August 7, 2026 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

To pretend.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

Meet The Mashable 101: Our list of the content creators shaping the internet today

Today's Wordle is a 5-letter word that starts with...

Today's Wordle starts with the letter F.

SEE ALSO: Wordle-obsessed? These are the best word games to play IRL. The Wordle answer today is...

Get your last guesses in now, because it's your final chance to solve today's Wordle before we reveal the solution.

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

FEIGN

Don't feel down if you didn't manage to guess it this time. There will be a new Wordle for you to stretch your brain with tomorrow, and we'll be back again to guide you with more helpful hints. Are you also playing NYT Strands? See hints and answers for today's Strands.

Reporting by Chance Townsend, Caitlin Welsh, Sam Haysom, Amanda Yeo, Shannon Connellan, Cecily Mauran, Mike Pearl, and Adam Rosenberg contributed to this article.

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

Not the day you're after? Here's the solution to yesterday's Wordle.

A South Korean lunar orbiter got the shot that virtually every telescope and spacecraft attempted to snap on Wednesday when a wayward SpaceX rocket accidentally smashed into the moon. 

The Danuri lunar orbiter recorded the site before and after the collision. It started watching the zone about 30 minutes before the crash, then adjusted its orbit to pass over the site several times, according to the Korea Aerospace Research Institute, or KARI. Officials said the Falcon 9 rocket made moonfall at 2:34 a.m. ET Aug. 5. The spacecraft completed eight photoshoots. 

"Through this observation, changes in the terrain around the impact site and traces of ejecta spread were confirmed," the space agency said in a translated X post, referring to the debris thrown from the high-speed impact. 

The observations give researchers an unusual chance to look at changes caused by the collision. The new images will be combined with follow-up observations from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter, which is expected to photograph the new crater from orbit, to support international research into how impacts reshape the moon. 

SEE ALSO: When AI hallucinates aliens: Some think NASA should be nervous This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

The roughly 4-ton Falcon 9 upper stage struck the moon after spending more than a year drifting through space. The crash was unintentional, caused by a combination of solar activity and gravity gradually pushing the stray rocket onto a collision course.

"We actively work to be as responsible as possible with hardware left in space to ensure space safety, including for more complex missions," SpaceX said in a statement. "Impacts like this are rare, but they can happen with objects in these types of orbits, and we worked with NASA on the optimal disposal solution."

View this post on Instagram

Ground-based observers could not directly see the impact. But astronomers reported using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Chile to detect a plume of material that likely came from the crash. Independent space trackers also concluded the rocket reached the predicted impact site near Einstein Crater, close to the boundary between the moon's near and far sides.

The rocket launched from Cape Canaveral in Jan. 2025, carrying Firefly Aerospace's Blue Ghost and ispace's Resilience lunar landers. After releasing both spacecraft, the spent stage remained in space as planned instead of returning to Earth. Blue Ghost later became the first privately built spacecraft to achieve a successful lunar landing, while Resilience crashed during its landing attempt.

A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launches two moon landers into space on Jan. 15, 2025, from Cape Canaveral, Florida. Credit: SpaceX

Coincidentally, the South Korean orbiter took the same type of ride to get to the moon. It launched on the same class of rocket — another SpaceX Falcon 9 — almost exactly four years ago, on Aug. 4, 2022. Its core mission is to map the lunar surface, measure magnetic and gamma-ray data, and identify future landing sites.

The SpaceX incident has renewed concerns about space debris around the moon as lunar missions increase. 

NASA has planned a steady stream of robotic missions in support of its Artemis program in coordination with private spacecraft operators, while both SpaceX and Blue Origin are developing lunar landers for future astronaut missions. Scientists have warned that accidental impacts could become more problematic as traffic around the moon increases.

The streaming services are coming out strong to start the month with new and returning shows. Prime Video has a new teen drama, and no, it's not The Summer I Turned Pretty. Instead, it's a refreshing entry into a crowded teen drama field, and it happens to be my top show to watch this weekend.

TL;DR: Get the award-winning Luminar Neo Lifetime Bundle for $79.99 (reg. $332) for a lifetime.

Opens in a new window Credit: Luminar Neo The Award-Winning Luminar Neo Lifetime Bundle $79.99
$332 Save $252.01   Get Deal

Most photos don’t need hours of editing. Instead, they just need the right tools. The Luminar Neo Lifetime Bundle is available for $79.99 (reg. $332), pairing Skylum’s AI-powered photo editor with creative assets and training that can help turn good photos into polished, professional-looking ones without a tough learning curve.

The fundamental software is Luminar Neo, an intuitive photo editing app for Windows and macOS that also works as a plugin for Photoshop and Lightroom. Its AI-powered tools can handle time-consuming edits like replacing skies, relighting scenes, removing unwanted objects, retouching portraits, and enhancing overall image quality in just a few clicks. If you’re not sure where to begin, the built-in AI Assistant can even analyze a photo and recommend edits based on what’s in the frame.

Mashable Deals Be the first to know! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Get editor selected deals texted right to your phone! Loading... Sign Me Up By signing up, you agree to receive recurring automated SMS marketing messages from Mashable Deals at the number provided. Msg and data rates may apply. Up to 2 messages/day. Reply STOP to opt out, HELP for help. Consent is not a condition of purchase. See our Privacy Policy and Terms of Use. Thanks for signing up!

The extras help round out the package without requiring additional purchases. Along with the software, you’ll get a nearly three-hour landscape editing course featuring 20 guided lessons and practice images so you can build confidence with the tools. The bundle also includes creative presets, LUTs, sky replacement packs, and overlays that make it easy to develop a consistent editing style or quickly change the mood of a photo.

Whether you’re touching up vacation photos, building a photography portfolio, creating social media content, or simply looking for a faster editing process, the bundle is designed for photographers of all experience levels. Beginners can rely on the AI tools to produce polished results without spending hours learning complex editing techniques, while more experienced photographers can use layers, masking, local adjustments, and creative assets to fine-tune their work and maintain a consistent visual style across an entire collection.

If your camera roll deserves more than basic filters, the award-winning Luminar Neo Lifetime Bundle is available for $79.99 (reg. $332) for a limited time.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

For years, VLC has been my gold standard for media players. It'll happily open every weird file format I throw at it, and it doesn't cost a dime. It has only crashed two or three times in the decades I've been using it.

Google Drive’s free online storage is a popular, convenient way to share files across devices and keep copies in the cloud. As the backend store for Google Docs, Gmail, and Google Photos, it’s a service that many of us use, whether we like it or not—whether we even give it a moment’s consideration.

Last year, the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 7 was the best foldable I'd ever tested, thanks to an extremely sleek form factor that made it by far the most comfortable phone in the category to actually hold in your hands. This year's follow-up has a new name, but it's broadly the same phone, for better and worse.

Meet the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra, a re-branded follow-up to the Z Fold 7. Confusingly, there is also a phone called the Z Fold 8, but it's a totally different device. Regardless of that, Samsung's newest and most premium flagship foldable checks most of the boxes you would want it to check: It's still very comfortable in the hands, the displays are bright and vivid, and the battery has gotten a sizable boost over last year.

But, sadly, that's about it. Aside from all of that and a modest camera upgrade, you're paying $2,099 (a $100 price increase year-over-year) for a phone that's very similar to its predecessor. The Z Fold 8 Ultra might be a great get for anyone who doesn't already have a foldable, but Z Fold 7 owners can likely wait until the next big revision to upgrade.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: Design and specs It's a tiny bit thinner. Credit: Joe Maldonado/Mashable

Starting with the phone's physical design, Samsung has not reinvented the wheel in 2026.

That might read as disappointing, but last year was such a big sea change for the Fold series that it's fine for this year's phone to carry that torch forward. There really wasn't much that needed changing. Samsung did shave one tenth of a millimeter off the total thickness, bringing it down to 4.1mm instead of 4.2mm on the Z Fold 7, but the two devices otherwise look, feel, and weigh the same.

As for colors, your options this year are fairly boring: Cream, Graphite, Violet Shadow, and Green Shadow. The last one is an online exclusive on Samsung's store.

Here are the rest of the relevant specs for the Z Fold 8 Ultra:

• Inner display: 8-inch AMOLED display with 120Hz refresh rate

• Outer display: 6.5-inches AMOLED display 120Hz refresh rate

• Processor: Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chipset

• Unfolded dimensions: 158.4 x 143.2 x 4.1 mm

• Folded dimensions: 158.4 x 72.8 x 8.9 mm

• RAM: 12GB to 16GB RAM

• Storage: 256GB, 512GB, or 1TB storage

• Battery: 5,000mAh battery

Compared to the Z Fold 7, most of those specs are roughly the same. The displays haven't changed much, but that's fine because they were already great. One important change Samsung did make was to up the max brightness from 2,600 nits to 3,000 nits, making the Z Fold 8 Ultra a little bit more accommodating in bright outdoor conditions. I wouldn't say that was a problem on the Z Fold 7, but it is a little bit improved here.

Samsung also packed a newer Snapdragon chip in the Z Fold 8 Ultra, which has become customary for annual phone releases on this end of the price spectrum. Perhaps the biggest upgrade is the new 5,000mAh battery, up from 4,400mAh on the Z Fold 7. We'll get into specific later, but rest assured, the new battery is much better.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: Performance The outer display is great. Credit: Joe Maldonado/Mashable

Speaking of the new chip, performance on the Z Fold 8 Ultra is rock solid. Everything loads and opens smoothly and quickly, and I never noticed an egregious amount of overheating despite the phone's thin frame. I won't say this is a big improvement over the Z Fold 7, as that phone also had great performance, but the good news is that it certainly didn't get worse.

Using the Geekbench 6 benchmarking software, the Z Fold 8 Ultra registered a multi-score score of 11,262. By comparison, the Z Fold 7 was 9,600, so it definitely seems like there's more power under the hood here, even if it's not eminently noticeable during daily use.

These new Snapdragon chips also enable the use of Samsung's proprietary AI features, as well as Gemini, but as far as I can tell, the AI experience here is largely the same as on other Samsung flagships like the Galaxy S26 Ultra.

Existing features like Now Brief (a daily personalizes summary of weather and other info you might like) and Now Nudge (which reads your screen to surface relevant information when you need it) are here, but they're a little hard to test out fully during a brief review period because they need time to learn more about you.

And so is the inner one. Credit: Joe Maldonado/Mashable

Still, I will say I like that you can make custom cards for things like a weather forecast in Now Brief. I was able to create a weather card with only the information I would want, like a seven-day forecast with precipitation and humidity measurements, merely by asking the phone to do that. However, I would note that a good weather app would show you these things already without any intervention by AI.

One intriguing feature I was not able to properly test was My FanCam. This is a feature for shooting videos that will lock the frame around a human subject you've chosen to highlight, you know, like a fancam. This is extraordinarily difficult to test if you don't have kids or are afraid of filming strangers in public, though, so I can't give a real verdict on it just yet. If I have one gripe, it's that it doesn't seem to work with animals at all.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: Battery life

As much as I loved the Z Fold 7, battery life was its biggest downfall, by a wide margin. The 4,400mAh cell inside that thing simply wasn't good enough for a $2,000 phone. Using our normal battery testing methods (which involve playing an HD video on the display until the phone dies), I was only able to get about 20 hours of juice out of the Z Fold 7, which is well below average for a flagship phone.

Good thing Samsung fixed that. The 5,000mAh cell here gets the job done, producing about 24 hours of battery life using the same testing method. That's still not spectacular for a phone of this price, but average is better than below-average.

Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: Cameras

One thing I feel the need to establish right away is that you really shouldn't buy a foldable phone if you want the best of the best in terms of mobile camera tech. Anyone who is serious about photography should probably go for something a bit more conventional. That said, the Z Fold 8 Ultra's camera array is totally fine.

The 200MP main shooter from last year remains, as does the 10MP telephoto lens, but Samsung upgraded the ultra-wide lens from 12MP to 50MP this year. I have to be honest: I don't know if this actually makes a huge difference in photo quality, though it does make a difference in photo file size. Still, ultra-wide photos taken at 50MP do look quite nice.

Ultra-wide photos do look pretty good. Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable

Macro photography is also still adept at capturing little details on tiny objects.

The amount of outdoor plants in Brooklyn makes my job easy sometimes. Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable

You'd think the telephoto lens (which has 3x optical zoom) would produce quality zoomed in shots. If you keep the zoom level at around 10x or lower, things do tend to look OK.

At around 10x zoom, you can still get decent-looking shots. Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable

But if you go beyond that, the phone's software starts filling in the blanks and things can get very ugly, very fast. I don't even know why 30x zoom exists on this device when every 30x photo I took looked like this.

Gross! Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable

But, aside from that, shots taken with less extreme parameters still usually come out looking colorful and pretty.

Shout out to New York's graffiti artists. Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable

And I'll leave you with a portrait shot of the sign outside my favorite bar.

This place has a cat. Credit: Alex Perry/Mashable Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra: The verdict

I think the Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra would probably still be my foldable of choice, if money weren't an object. The thin chassis, gorgeous displays, and newly improved battery go a long way towards making it a very good phone. Its cameras are also the best among the new Samsung foldables.

The only problem here is that almost all of that (aside from the battery) was also present a year ago. Sometimes I wonder if we still need to do annual updates for phones, and this is one of those times. Especially with the $100 price hike.

Most Allied fighter planes early in World War I used rotary engines, a design in which the whole engine spun with the propeller rather than being bolted to the airframe. The spinning mass created a powerful gyroscopic effect. The Sopwith Camel, one of the era's most feared fighters, turned so much faster to the right than to the left that novice pilots crashed when attempting sharp right turns. Veteran pilots learned to fly the Sopwith Camel despite the quirk.

If you can tear yourself from the Big Brother live feeds and are all caught up on Lioness's third season premiere, give yourself a break from the reality TV mayhem and the intensity of Zoe Saldana's covert ops with something from Paramount+'s solid library of documentaries and docuseries.

The days of giving your children cash allowances are over — at least, if your family lives in Google's universe. You can now send money to your kids through Google Wallet for use on their Android phone or Wear OS smartwatch.

We need to talk about Ariana Grande.

Quite literally, the recent nonstop internet discourse about Grande suggests an urgent need to name what's happening to the movie and pop star's body.

Concern mounted in recent weeks as Grande posted Instagram photos of her physique while performing on tour. Some worried the singer was disappearing before their eyes.

SEE ALSO: I tried to scrub weight loss content from my FYP. Here's what I learned.

Then Grande released the music video "Petal." The imagery in the seven-minute-long film prompted worried fans and onlookers to claim Grande has an eating disorder, though she's never shared such information. Rather, Grande has previously pleaded with the public not to comment on her body.

The furor led to an announcement from her team Sunday that she'd be "taking a step back from visibility" following the end of her tour next month.

How to respond to imagery of Ariana Grande

Eating disorder experts who spoke to Mashable say the public shouldn't judge or diagnose Grande, including on social media.

"We have no idea what's what's going on in people's lives, and I think it's very dangerous when we make assumptions," said Johanna S. Kandel, founder and CEO of the National Alliance for Eating Disorders.

The temptation to fixate on or post about Grande, even out of genuine concern, is strong. She's one of the world's most famous celebrities, adored by young girls and women who may aspire to look like her. Grande is also a businesswoman with a distinctly curated image, repping brands like Swarovski and her own cosmetics company, r.e.m. beauty. She possesses immense cultural power.

Still, there's another way to respond to the debate over the singer's health: We should name what's happening to us as a result, said Dr. Elizabeth Wassenaar, regional medical director of the Eating Recovery Center.

After all, Grande's appearance and the public reaction to it can feel legitimately confusing and painful.

That's why it's important to identify how imagery of Grande, along with the related online discussion, makes us feel about ourselves and the people we love — including those who may live with an eating disorder, be in recovery from one, or face fat phobia and discrimination because they live in a larger body.

"We don't want to to squelch the conversations [about] the feelings that are being brought up in people as they're viewing these images," Wassenaar told Mashable. She added that the feelings can include concern, disgust, and even jealousy.

Those emotions are an opportunity to take stock, support loved ones particularly affected by the controversy, and learn more about eating disorders.

The relationships that really matter

Wassenaar understands the vocal concern about Grande. Some people have a parasocial relationship with her. Others fear staying silent will normalize the imagery of her.

Wassenaar believes the collective unease demonstrates concern for Grande as a human. Then there's worry for loved ones exposed to content that could potentially trigger an eating disorder relapse or curiosity about food restriction and dieting.

"So what can we do in those relationships with the people that we are actually connected to?" Wassenaar asks.

How to talk to loved ones

A mom concerned that her tween daughter might see Grande's appearance as aspirational, for instance, can spark a nonjudgmental conversation about the topic.

Wassenaar said it's OK to neutrally observe that bodies naturally change over time, gaining and losing weight for different reasons. The parent can even ask how her daughter feels about the imagery of Grande and the related discussion of her body.

Importantly, though, the conversation should shift to reassuring the tween that she doesn't need to lose (or gain) weight to make herself acceptable to others.

For people who know someone in eating disorder treatment or recovery, Wassenaar suggests supportively reaching out. They can acknowledge the general resurgence of weight stigma, partly due to GLP-1 weight loss drugs, and empathize that both the imagery and discussion of Grande might be difficult or triggering.

Kandel also told Mashable the National Alliance for Eating Disorders helpline is receiving an unprecedented number of calls about "body bullying." While these are unrelated to Grande, the growing and resurgent cultural obsession with thinness is contributing to bias against people in larger bodies, Kandel said.

How to handle your own feelings

For some people, regardless of whether they experience disordered eating, photos and videos of Grande may elicit jealousy or envy, Wassenaar said.

She recommends naming those feelings and the "wish" underlying them. That can include associating a certain body size with better grades, professional success, a new relationship, and personal fulfillment.

Wassenaar suggests following that "thread" to its conclusion, because changing one's body often doesn't lead to the life changes people desire.

Recognizing these dynamics "gives us a key to begin to investigate for ourselves...what about my life isn't where I want it to be, and what kind of work can I do with that?" Wassenaar said.

She also noted people should seek support if imagery of Grande triggers urges to diet or restrict food.

Fear of repeating the '90s and '00s

Kandel said there's a prominent fear that we'll repeat history if we don't talk candidly about Grande's appearance.

The mainstreaming of body inclusivity and positivity movements in the 2010s seemed to leave the unforgiving "heroin chic" beauty standards of the 1990s and 2000s behind — until the emergence of GLP-1s and the reported MAHA politicization of thinness.

For some, imagery of Grande has become a worrisome bellwether of this accelerating trend.

Kandel acknowledged the research demonstrating how imagery of thinness can increase body comparison and body checking for some. Vulnerable viewers may compare themselves to that imagery and think that's what an eating disorder looks like — and that they're not sick enough.

At the same time, Kandel said that expressing concern for Grande's size inadvertently reinforces unhelpful or even harmful judgments about people's bodies.

This tension has put many in a rhetorical bind, but both Kandel and Wassenaar offer a way out.

Instead of adjudicating Grande's size and well-being, Kandel suggests using the debate as an opportunity to learn about eating disorders in general.

The emphasis on Grande, for example, obscures the reality that men and people of color experience disordered eating, as well. Anorexia is also one of several eating disorders, including binge eating and avoidant/restrictive food intake disorders.

Wassenaar said people concerned about the broader societal implications of Grande's appearance can focus on their behavior and activism.

"We can change our experiences with our bodies, and we can influence the young people in our lives by modeling that, and that's what we can control," said Wassenaar.

If you are concerned about your eating behavior, visit the National Eating Disorders Association (NEDA) website for more information. You can also text CONNECT to 741741 for immediate support from a trained volunteer at the Crisis Text Line.

Shopping for a used luxury SUV usually comes with a catch. You might get premium performance, upscale materials, and an impressive badge, but you're also likely inheriting higher maintenance costs, expensive repairs, and reliability concerns that can quickly erase the savings of buying used.

It's been over 20 years since Sony released a cassette player, and cassette sales are so minuscule they barely show up on market reports. So, naturally, I decided now would be a good time to buy a Walkman. I can explain.