Technology

Late in the week, an Amazon Web Services outage affected a range of websites. In the wake of that outage, which lasted from Thursday into Friday, Amazon has revealed what happened.

In an update on the official AWS status website, Amazon revealed that the outage was caused by a "thermal event resulting in a loss of power" at a single data center in northern Virginia. In other words, some tech overheated. This prompted Amazon to shift traffic away from that data center's "Availability Zone" during the late afternoon on Thursday. By early afternoon on Friday, Amazon had managed to restore its cooling systems, which kick-started the process of getting everything back online.

"Our main effort during the event mitigation strategy was to bring back our cooling systems capacity. By May 8 1:50 PM, we were able to stabilize cooling system capacity to pre-event levels, which helped us to restore the majority of the impaired EC2 instances and EBS volumes," Amazon said. "A small number of instances and EBS volumes remain impaired, and we continue to work to recover all affected remaining resources."

The outage affected some popular apps, like FanDuel and Coinbase. Users were unable to bet or trade as they normally would on those apps for a while, likely leading to some consternation on Thursday and Friday. However, the issue seems to be mostly resolved at this point, so you can probably get your NBA playoff prop bets in now, if you so desire.

You may not think of your PC or as a a smart home sensor, but there's a significant amount it can tell you. Your computer knows when you're active, when you're idle, when you're using a particular app, or even when you're on a video call. You can use that information to create some very useful automations in Home Assistant.

I've never assumed any one tool can do everything, and neither should you. These are like apples and oranges, so picking something like Claude over Gemini or Codex isn't something I recommend. These AIs are trying to do the same thing, but they are done in very separate ways. You should be using those strengths to make your own apps better. I used them together to make a calculator in under 10 minutes, and it did exactly what I needed.

While we won’t see the host of brand-new content that we’re used to seeing each month on Paramount+, we are getting a highly anticipated new original show so monumental it deserves all the standalone attention it can get. Additionally, we’ll also see new seasons of several returning, fan-favorite TV shows, including a psychology-driven documentary series centered around couples, a long-standing crime drama full of fresh cases to crack, and the 2026 American Music Awards.

Package managers are an extremely convenient part of Linux operating systems, but Windows, despite being more "user-friendly," doesn't have anything nearly as useful. However, using one free, open-source project and a built-in Windows command line utility, you can get the exact same thing on Windows.

Android Auto is a convenient and useful feature on most modern cars, even if it's a bit underused. By default, most drivers end up using Google Maps even though there are countless solid alternatives. While there's a lot to love about Google Maps, I use Waze with Android Auto instead, and here's why.

There are a lot of uses for 3D printing in science, medicine, and research. From prosthesis to housing, these ideas push the boundaries of what is possible in modern manufacturing.

Almost every Linux command has options to control the way it works, and applies default values when you don’t provide any. But these defaults are very sticky, and what made sense in 1970 doesn’t always make sense today.

This weekend’s homelab project roundup is all about expanding your homelab’s capabilities. From installing Proxmox to spin up virtual machines to setting up a wake-on-LAN server, here are three homelab projects you should try this weekend.

Robotic pool cleaners have steadily moved from niche upgrades to more practical, everyday tools. Cordless designs, smarter navigation, and broader cleaning coverage have made them easier to adopt, especially for users who want to spend less time on manual pool maintenance.

You already know the difference between SATA and NVMe—that part's not the problem. The problem is that knowing that difference can actually make you more confident about a purchase you probably shouldn't be confident about. The spec that actually separates a good SSD from a disappointing one isn't the interface—it's the type of NAND flash inside, and most buyers never consider checking it before buying.

It's no secret that Milwaukee makes some of the best cordless power tools used by professionals everywhere, but that doesn't mean they're always the right choice. Milwaukee tools are often quite expensive, and with several other brands readily available, you have a lot of options. Here are three reasons Milwaukee might not be right for you, along with what to buy instead.

When Antigravity came out, a lot of people were interested enough to ditch VS Code. Unfortunately, plenty left soon after because it is not an easy way to program if you don't know what you're doing. Claude is very similar because it is great at giving an overview of what to do before starting, but that is due to a misconception of how to use Antigravity correctly. If you know what you're doing and can avoid the rate limits, you'll never go back to Claude for coding. At best, Claude will seem like a good way to get your ideas together, but not a good way to implement them.

Are you ready for some fun Raspberry Pi projects to do this weekend? Well, for starters, you definitely need to get a Home Assistant server running if you have’t already. Then, utilize Home Assistant to know when your washer and dryer are done running. Then, kick back and relax while you read your favorite articles with Readeck.

If you're sick of paying a small fortune to subscribe to the ever-growing list of streaming services, there is another option. You can set up a media server, add your media files, and make your own streaming service. This sounds like it might be complicated, but with Jellyfin, it's simple enough even for most non-technical people to set up.

Windows users like to give Linux enthusiasts heat because they love the Terminal so much, but the truth is that even for some everyday tasks it's often better to use a command line interface instead of clicking a bunch of pictures.

You’re getting to the end of a roll of filament, and you’re not confident there’s enough left to justify using it for another print. So you throw it in the drawer, next to the other almost-empty spools from the last time this happened.

AI assistants are quietly becoming the Swiss Army knife no one expected. I’ve already turned ChatGPT into a project management system and a Grammarly Pro replacement. But Claude is different—not only can it do almost everything ChatGPT can, but it also has access to my file system. So when I noticed my storage was nearing 80%, I decided to use Claude to free up some disk space.

Aqara’s latest Doorbell Camera G400 packs a lot of premium features in a budget-friendly package. With on-device AI, power-over-Ethernet (PoE) as a power option, and local recording, this $100 doorbell camera is the one to beat in 2026.

Mashable 101 Fan Fave: Vote for your favorite creator today!

Any old smart TV can play a 10-hour-long YouTube slideshow of famous paintings. True art TVs have a few unique characteristics that separate them from the average flatscreen:

1. A flush mount: Art TVs come with a special mount that allows them to hang flat against the wall, just like a framed photo or print. From the side, you won't see any metal arms holding the TV up.

2. A matte display: The original versions of the world's famous paintings aren't displayed behind traditional shiny glass — if they were, you'd be able to see your own reflection better than the artwork. The Frame brought elite glare-free displays to the TV category to better replicate the authentic museum experience. The best art TVs use anti-glare coating so you can enjoy TV, games, and artwork even in bright sunlight.

3. Interchangeable bezels: The decorative picture frame-esque border is the other half of the "not a TV" illusion. Different art TVs use different frame colors, but all have the option to swap the traditional black outline for a white or wood-like finish.

So while the Hisense Déco TV that I tested and loved has a pretty curved white frame, it doesn't meet any of the above criteria — it's more of an artsy TV than an art TV by the books, though you may still want to consider it as an alternative to The Frame. If you're looking for a small bedroom TV that won't clash with your decor, I highly recommend the QLED Déco TV. We'll call it an honorable mention for this list.

Competition between the best frame TVs is about to stiffen up in the second half of 2026. Preorders opened for the pricey OLED LG W6 Wallpaper TV and the full-array mini-LED LG Gallery TV with Frame at the end of April, so release dates should be coming any time now. TCL has also confirmed that a pro version of the NXTVISION TV is on the way. I'll update this guide accordingly as each model becomes available for purchase.