Technology

The Japanese SUV that makes German rivals look overengineered

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 23:00

For years, the performance luxury SUV space has basically been a German playground. BMW, Mercedes-AMG, and Porsche set the tone with sharp tuning, hard-hitting power delivery, and chassis setups built to feel razor-focused at speed.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Home Depot’s Father's Day Ryobi and RIDGID deals are too good to miss

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 22:44

The hot weather is officially here, and that means Father's Day is coming up, or it's time to start summer projects and DIY jobs. If you need some new power tools or battery packs, Home Depot has discounts on a bunch of tools for Father's Day, from a huge RIDGID 10-tool combo or Ryobi battery kits that are too good to pass up.

Categories: IT General, Technology

DOJ urges court to toss data center pollution case, claiming national security threat

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 22:38

The Trump administration is pushing back against actions to address the environmental impact of data centers as it uses AI to beef up its war machine.

Late Monday (June 15) night, the Department of Justice intervened in a Mississippi federal court case, urging the court to dismiss the lawsuit in a memo from associate attorney general Stanley Woodward, Jr.

The lawsuit was brought forth by the NAACP. It argues that the presence of unpermitted gas-powered turbines operated by xAI and its subsidiary, MZX Tech, in Southaven, Mississippi disproportionately pollute Black neighborhoods and violate the Clean Air Act.

SEE ALSO: The NAACP is fighting back against AI data centers

In the notice, the Justice Department argued that the lawsuit is a national security threat because it "seeks to shut off the power supply for artificial-intelligence innovation that supports the Department of War’s military operations," the New York Times reported.

It's not the NAACP's first time suing over the widespread environmental concerns prompted by expansive data center investment. In January, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) ruled that xAI's Colossus methane gas turbines in Memphis, Tennessee could not skirt air regulation requirements. It was considered a victory for the NAACP, which filed a lawsuit over the turbines' potentially cancerous nitrogen oxide emissions.

SEE ALSO: Report: AI can perpetuate anti-LGBTQ hate

But those same turbines are also operating just across the border in Mississippi, powering xAI's Colossus 2 data center. Building on the previous win, the NAACP is now seeking an injunction and $124,000 per day per violation payout from xAI for its Mississippi operation.

The Justice Department's memo is a rare instance of the agency intervening to prevent environmental law from being enforced, advocates say. In addition to a call to halt the case, Woodward argued that individual citizens and groups should not have the power to sue over the enforcement of the Clean Air Act and asserted that the federal government should have "unchallenged authority" to stop them. The Act has historically provided a pathway for citizen suits on behalf of affected communities and environmental groups.

Categories: IT General, Technology

5 entertaining HBO Max movies under two hours worth adding to your watchlist

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 22:30

Time is a valuable asset, especially when it comes to streaming movies. I hate complaining about runtime — if a movie can hold my attention for three hours, then by all means do it. I will admit that there are times I want to get in and out with a movie in under two hours. Thankfully, there is an excellent section of movies under 120 minutes on HBO Max.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The World Cup is turning lesser-known players into social media stars

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 22:06

The World Cup has always created unlikely heroes. In 2026, it is also turning them into social media sensations.

The latest example is Cape Verde goalkeeper Josimar José Évora Dias, better known as Vozinha, who entered Monday's match against Spain with roughly 50,000 Instagram followers and a 19-year career largely unknown to casual soccer fans. But after helping Cape Verde hold one of the tournament favorites to a 0-0 draw in the country’s first-ever World Cup match, his following has surged to 12 million.

His performance in the game gave the internet plenty to work with. The 40-year-old goalkeeper made seven saves against Spain, which took 27 shots but failed to score. Vozinha was named Man of the Match — and a digital darling.

Much of his early attention came from Brazilian streamer Casimiro “Cazé” Miguel and his platform CazéTV, a digital sports broadcaster that has the rights to all 104 World Cup games in Brazil. The channel, which has more than 31 million YouTube subscribers, is known for a more stream-like broadcast style built around fan participation.

During the match, Cazé noticed Vozinha's relatively small Instagram following and asked viewers to follow him. Vozinha went from about 50,000 followers before the match to more than 1 million shortly after the final whistle, and nearly 10 million less than 24 hours later — surpassing the likes of NBA superstar Victor Wembanyama and Super Bowl champion Patrick Mahomes.

His sudden fame has done more than boost his metrics. After the game, Vozinha went viral when he emotionally revealed that his mother couldn't attend due to visa issues and costs. Now his story has prompted the U.S. State Department to step in, saying it's working to help his family with visa services.

Vozinha may be the tournament's latest viral main character, but he is not the first. Before the tournament began, New Zealand defender Tim Payne became the subject of a similar campaign after Argentine influencer Valen Scarsini, also known as El Scarso, set out to find the World Cup's "least-known player." Payne had fewer than 5,000 Instagram followers at the time, but after Scarsini encouraged his audience to support him, Payne's following climbed to 6 million.

Australia's Kai Trewin also saw his profile rise after creator RubikayTV pushed a campaign to make him "the Cristiano Ronaldo of the World Cup," helping his follower count jump from around 3,000 to more than 100,000. And Curaçao backup goalkeeper Trevor Doornbusch gained tens of thousands of followers after a shoutout from soccer influencer FiagoBall.

The trend clearly reflects how this World Cup is being distributed and watched. FIFA named TikTok its first-ever preferred platform for World Cup video content this year and reached a deal with YouTube allowing broadcasters to stream the first 10 minutes of every match live. Those deals have made the tournament more accessible to audiences who are following games through clips, livestreams, creator commentary, and social feeds as much as traditional broadcasts.

In this developing environment, a player does not need to be a household name before kickoff to become one by the final whistle. A great performance, a well-timed shoutout, or an organized fan push can quickly turn lesser-known players into some of the tournament’s most visible figures online.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The luxury brand that doesn't come with luxury-car headaches

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 22:00

When people talk about reliable, affordable cars, Toyota and Honda usually dominate the conversation. Their luxury divisions have solid reputations too, but neither quite delivers the same mix of premium appeal, value, and ownership confidence as one up-and-coming rival.

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to watch Ghana vs. Panama online for free

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 22:00

TL;DR: Live stream Ghana vs. Panama in the 2026 FIFA World Cup for free on ITVX. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

The 2026 FIFA World Cup group stage has already delivered bags of drama, and we're expecting more of the same from Ghana vs. Panama. England and Croatia are the other sides in this group, so these teams will be desperate to start with a win in this opening-round matchup. It's only going to get harder from here.

If you want to watch Ghana vs. Panama in the 2026 FIFA World Cup from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is Ghana vs. Panama?

Ghana vs. Panama in the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off at 7 p.m. ET on June 17. This fixture takes place at the BMO Field.

How to watch Ghana vs. Panama for free

Ghana vs. Panama in the 2026 FIFA World Cup is available to live stream for free on ITVX.

ITVX is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock ITVX to live stream the 2026 World Cup for free from anywhere in the world.

Live stream Ghana vs. Panama for free by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

  4. Visit ITVX

  5. Watch Ghana vs. Panama for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can access free live streams of the 2026 World Cup without actually spending anything. This obviously isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream Ghana vs. Panama (plus more World Cup fixtures) before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to the best free streaming services from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for ITVX?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on ITVX, for a number of reasons:

  • Servers in 105 countries including the UK

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

  • Fast connection speeds free from throttling

  • Up to 10 simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $68.40 and includes an extra four months for free — 81% off for a limited time. This plan includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream Ghana vs. Panama in the 2026 FIFA World Cup for free with ExpressVPN.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Spider-Man: Brand New Day trailer: Peter Parker teams up with the Hulk and Punisher against a mysterious new villain

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 21:50

The latest trailer for Spider-Man: Brand New Day crackles with wild MCU meet-ups.

SEE ALSO: 'Spider-Man: Brand New Day' trailer: Tom Holland yearns for Zendaya in action-packed first look

The film sees Peter Parker (Tom Holland) suffering from strange new spider mutations, including organic webbing. To figure out how to control — or maybe completely reverse — these incidents, Peter goes to the MCU's supreme expert in all things mutation: Bruce Banner (Mark Ruffalo), aka the Incredible Hulk.

That's not the only team-up to look forward to in Brand New Day, though. Later in the trailer, Peter brings MJ (Zendaya) to Frank Castle (Jon Bernthal), aka the Punisher, for safekeeping.

Speaking of MJ, she and Ned (Jacob Batalon) still don't remember Peter following the magical memory wipe at the end of Spider-Man: No Way Home. However, they're still very much part of Peter's life, as they're his neighbors. Based on a yarn wall in their apartment, Ned is very invested in finding out the true identity of Spider-Man... How long before he and MJ crack the case?

That's most of Spider-Man: Brand New Day's cast accounted for, but one face is conspicuously missing from the trailer: that of Sadie Sink. The Stranger Things star has been cast in an undisclosed role, although she's rumored to be playing X-Men mainstay Jean Grey.

If that's the case, then Sink may be hiding in plain sight in the trailer as the villainous figure who is controlling people's minds and wreaking havoc across New York. Apparently, only Peter is immune to this villain's effects. Will he stop them in time? More importantly, will he and MJ find their way back to one another? Based on a too-brief swinging scene in the trailer, the answer seems like a yes.

Spider-Man: Brand New Day hits theaters July 31.

Categories: IT General, Technology

I wish more wearables were as repairable as Google’s Pixel Watch 4

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 21:30

Broken wearables don't need to be cast off as e-waste. Repairability is here, although it's not yet as widespread as it should be.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Nintendo responds after alleged third-party data breach: Our ‘systems have not been compromised’

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 21:26

Nintendo of North America says it's aware of what's been described as a small third-party data breach affecting some of its employees.

"Nintendo’s systems have not been compromised," the company told Mashable in a statement, acknowledging that a third-party service was affected by an "issue."

Earlier this week, a hacking group calling itself ShadowByte$ posted a threat on a "well-known cybercrime forum," according to CyberNews. The group alleged it stole 859MB of internal corporate data from a third-party service called TinyPulse, which collects employee feedback for companies.

The stolen data reportedly includes the results of employee satisfaction surveys, private messages, and the names of Nintendo employees. According to a LinkedIn profile, TinyPulse is part of WebMD Health Services.

The hacking group reportedly issued a $2 million ransomware demand to prevent the release of the data. Per Kotaku, after failing to get results with Nintendo, the extortion group reportedly tried its luck with TinyPulse as well. However, Nintendo downplayed the sensitivity of the data, telling Mashable the alleged TinyPulse breach is "limited to internal survey content comprising a small subset of our employees."

We are aware of an issue involving TinyPulse, a third-party service used for internal employee surveys at Nintendo of America. Nintendo’s systems have not been compromised, and no personal customer or financial data has been accessed. The data involved is limited to internal survey content comprising a small subset of our employees, and most of the information dates back several years.   

We appreciate our employees’ willingness to share their perspectives, take all feedback seriously, and take action when needed. We are working with the service provider to address the issue.

In recent years, ransomware-as-a-service tools have made it easier for bad actors — even those without sophisticated coding or hacking skills — to obtain sensitive data from companies and individuals.

Mashable reached out to WebMD Health Services about the alleged TinyPulse data breach, and we'll update this story if we receive more information.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This cheap device helped me add Android Auto to my car without replacing the head unit

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 21:00

Android Auto is certainly not new, but neither are a lot of the vehicles that people still drive. I’m one of those people—proud owner of a 2009 truck—and I still wanted the conveniences of a modern head unit. Thankfully, it was easier than I expected.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The American SUV that costs RAV4 money but delivers real off-road capability

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 21:00

Affordable SUVs have become incredibly capable over the last decade, but many of them now prioritize efficiency and everyday practicality above everything else. While that formula works for a lot of buyers, it has also led to a market full of crossovers that feel increasingly similar. For shoppers who want a little more personality and adventure in their daily driver, the choices can feel surprisingly limited.

Categories: IT General, Technology

5 Android 17 features to try ASAP

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 20:47

Android 17 is out, and if you have a Google Pixel phone, you can try it right away. Android 17 comes with a bunch of new features, including a new green-screen selfie tool, a Pause Point tool and loads of video and photo improvements for Instagram.

Categories: IT General, Technology

These Wi-Fi 8 routers are massive, overbuilt, and completely useless right now

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 20:30

Wi-Fi 8 routers have officially started showing up, and let me tell you, they are absolute units. ASUS just dropped the ROG Rapture GT-BN98 Pro, billed as the world's first Wi-Fi 8 gaming router, and the thing looks less like a piece of networking gear and more like a small spacecraft that crash-landed on your TV stand.

Categories: IT General, Technology

NFC can now set up your smart home devices before they even power on

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 20:20

Setting up a smart home has always involved a bit of ritual—scanning a QR code, opening an app, and waiting for Bluetooth to kick in. To remove this friction, the Connectivity Standards Alliance is releasing the Matter 1.6 update today. While the update is incremental, it’s worth paying attention to as it aims to make setups feel a lot less clunky. Beyond this, the version also introduces Joint Fabric and Thermostat Suggestion features.

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to watch England vs. Croatia online for free

Mashable - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 20:13

TL;DR: Live stream England vs. Croatia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup for free on ITVX. Access this free streaming platform from anywhere in the world with Proton VPN.

England have had to be patient, but they can finally kick off their 2026 FIFA World Cup campaign against Croatia. There are a lot of group-stage games where on team should win, but this contest is really evenly matched. England are slight favorites, but this could go either way.

England will need the likes of Harry Kane and Jude Bellingham to be at their best if they want to secure three points. Croatia will be relying on familiar names like Gvardiol, Modric, and Kovacic.

If you want to watch England vs. Croatia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is England vs. Croatia?

England vs. Croatia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off at 4 p.m. ET on June 17. This fixture takes place at the AT&T Stadium.

How to watch England vs. Croatia for free

England vs. Croatia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup is available to live stream for free on ITVX.

ITVX is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming platform with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can unblock ITVX to live stream the 2026 World Cup for free from anywhere in the world.

Live stream England vs. Croatia for free by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (we recommend Proton VPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

  4. Visit ITVX

  5. Watch England vs. Croatia for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: Proton VPN Proton VPN (1-Month Plan) $4.99 only at Proton VPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can access free live streams of the 2026 World Cup without actually spending anything. This obviously isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream England vs. Croatia (plus more World Cup fixtures) before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to the best free streaming services from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for ITVX?

Proton VPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on ITVX, for a number of reasons:

  • 20,000+ servers in 140+ countries

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

  • Fast connection speeds free from throttling

  • Up to 10 simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A two-year subscription to Proton VPN is on sale for $71.76 — 70% off for a limited time. This plan includes a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $4.99 (with money-back guarantee).

Live stream England vs. Croatia in the 2026 FIFA World Cup for free with Proton VPN.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Skip the Toyota GR Corolla: This used German sports sedan is quicker and costs less

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 19:45

Performance cars are becoming increasingly expensive, which is pushing many enthusiasts toward the used market in search of better value. While there are still some fantastic new options available, depreciation can create opportunities that are difficult to ignore. For the price of a brand-new hot hatch, you can often step into something that was positioned as a premium performance model just a few years ago.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Arch Linux's largest software repo is blocking sign-ups due to a malware crisis

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 19:35

You won't see new developers sharing their apps with Arch Linux users in the near future. AUR (Arch User Repository), the Linux distribution's largest repo for community software, is blocking new registrations while maintainers deal with a malware crisis.

Categories: IT General, Technology

My Galaxy Watch was acting weird—wiping the hidden cache fixed it

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 19:30

As much as I love my Samsung Galaxy Watch, I’d be lying if I said it always runs smoothly. Recently, I was having some annoying syncing issues between my watch and phone. No amount of reboots fixed it, but wiping the system cache did.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Lucid teases the design of its more affordable Cosmos EV

How-To Geek - Wed, 06/17/2026 - 19:27

Lucid Motors is hinging much of its future on the Cosmos EV and you finally have a chance to see what that make-or-break car looks like. The startup has registered the midsize electric crossover's design at the European Union Intellectual Property Office, and it's now clear what you can expect.

Categories: IT General, Technology
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