Mashable

Anthropic has unveiled a new AI model it says comes close to Claude Fable 5 in its levels of intelligence — at half the price.

Claude Opus 5 was just released by Anthropic on Friday. The AI company is already pushing the model out as the default model on Claude Max, Anthropic's highest subscription plan which starts at $100 a month. It's also the strongest available model on Claude Pro, the company's $20-per-month subscription tier.

Claude Opus 5 tops Anthropic's other models in key areas

Opus 5 is "designed to be used every day," Anthropic says, adding that it's more efficient than the company's previous models.

Most notably, the company calls Opus 5 its "most aligned model to date." This means Opus 5 abides by "human values" and safety guidelines.

When compared to prior models like Opus 4.8, Sonnet 5, or Fable 5, Opus 5 has the lowest rates of deceptiveness and is the least likely to be tricked into misuse, Anthropic says of its "safest model yet."

One intriguing test highlighted by Anthropic: how fast Opus 5 solves a problem that the model has never seen before. The company says it's three times as fast as the next-best model, and scored nearly four times higher than OpenAI's GPT-5.6 Sol.

Claude Opus 5 benchmarks Credit: Anthropic

Compared to Fable 5, Opus 5 performs better or the same in the vast majority of Anthropic benchmark tests. (Notable exceptions: health and legal benchmarks). It beats OpenAI's GPT 5.6 Sol in every benchmark except for Agentic coding.

Anthropic is especially proud of Opus 5's science benchmarks, calling the model the "most capable generally available model for scientific research." Still, Mythos 5 beats Opus 5 in areas such as biology research.

Cybersecurity is another area where Opus 5 falls behind, and that's by design. Anthropic says it purposefully left such tasks out of Opus 5's training. The model can still find vulnerabilities as it expands its dataset, but is much worse at exploiting them than Mythos and previous models.

The choice is a notable one in the wake of an OpenAI agent recently going rogue and hacking a client's server. Opus 5 was clearly trained by Anthropic with safeguards in mind.

How to try Claude Opus 5

Claude Opus 5 is available as of Friday July 24, across Anthropic's platforms.

Opus 5 is now the default AI model on Claude Max and the strongest available model on Claude Pro. The model costs $5 per million input tokens and $25 per million output tokens, which is equivalent to Opus 4.8's pricing.

The general perception of RAMageddon has been, for a while now, that it will get worse before it gets better. Qualcomm is seemingly confirming that.

Bloomberg reported on Friday that the chip maker, whose chips can be found in all of Samsung's new foldables, Windows laptops, and smartwatches, has reportedly told clients to expect a price increase on its products for anything shipped after Sept. 1. The specific size of the price increase is not known at this time, but Bloomberg said it will be a percentage in the double digits, so it's not a small one.

SEE ALSO: The 4 best laptops of 2026 (so far) offer exceptional value despite RAMageddon

All of this, of course, was attributed to rising memory component costs due to the AI spending spree. AI companies are in the midst of a huge data center construction boom, and the industry requires massive amounts of memory. This phenomenon, commonly called RAMageddon, has contributed to a wave of price increases across the tech industry, and it doesn't show any signs of slowing down.

In our previous reporting on the global memory crisis, experts have told Mashable the situation will likely get worse before it gets better. International Data Corporation research manager Jitesh Ubrani told Mashable earlier this year that relief will likely not happen until at least 2028, and even then, don't expect much.

"The memory supply will remain tight from a device's perspective for the remainder of 2026 and well into 2027," Ubrani told Mashable in May. "We will see some alleviation in 2028, but keep in mind that prices will continue to rise throughout. And even in 2028, assuming this new [memory] capacity comes online and is able to provide some alleviation, we don't see device prices dropping significantly."

In other words: Ouch. Not good.

Mini, pocket-sized e-readers are having a moment. The Xteink e-readers are catching eyes for their truly pocket-sized build that can even attach to the back of your iPhone. Well, they're not the only ones embracing the mini e-reader: Boox just revealed its Picco.

The Boox Picco (cutest name ever?) comes with a 3.97-inch monochrome ePaper display. It's even smaller than Boox's current smallest tablet, the Palma Pro. It will have a front light and TF card support, too. And well, that's about all we know about the mini e-reader at the moment.

While no exact price was provided, in a press release, Boox says the Picco has an "accessible price point." There's no release date available for the Picco at this time, either.

The Boox Picco is a phenomenal development for readers looking to get a mini e-reader. While I do love the concept and size of the Xteink e-reader, the issue is that those e-readers only support DRM-free files. This means if you use Libby or have a bountiful Kindle library, you can't access any of those books on an Xteink e-reader.

However, the Boox ecosystem is far more expansive. As long as the Picco has access to the Google Play store, users will be able to download the Kindle, Kobo, and Libby apps. That means any of the books you read on your Kindle can be accessed and synced on the Picco.

Boox has yet to confirm that the Picco has the same ecosystem as the rest of its e-readers, but if it does, that's massive potential for such a small e-reader.

Prime Video released the teaser for The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power at San Diego Comic-Con, and things are looking bad for Middle-earth.

SEE ALSO: 'Blade Runner 2099' teaser: Michelle Yeoh and Hunter Schafer team up and hunt rogue replicants

Season 3 picks up five years after the fall of Eregion, with Sauron (Charlie Vickers) now comfortably in control of Middle-earth. His armies have swept across the world, and only a few places remain free from his dark grasp. The dwarves have shut themselves away in Khazad-dûm, while the elves remain ensconced in the realms of Lindon and Rivendell, protected by their three rings of power. Their time of relative safety may be coming to a close, though, because Sauron is hard at work on his greatest piece of statement jewelry yet: a little bauble called the One Ring. Surely that won't cause any problems, right?

The teaser isn't all doom and gloom, though. It offers up our first glimpse of the reunion between Galadriel (Morfydd Clark) and her long-lost husband, Celeborn (Jamie Campbell Bower), who share some passionate moments even as the world crumbles around them.

Celeborn isn't the only new character joining this season. The Rings of Power Comic-Con panel also saw the announcement of three major players this season: Thrain (Eddie Marsan), older brother of King Durin IV (Owain Arthur); Anarion (Andrew Richardson), the younger son of Elendil (Lloyd Owen); and Marnûkh (Adam Young), a mysterious Orc. Oh, and for the first time ever, the ferocious Balrog will be speaking, and will be voiced by Simon Pegg. More Balrog can only mean one thing: Khazad-dûm isn't long for this world.

To watch all these characters and more — including the Nazgnagôl, early incarnations of the Nazgûl — in action, check out the full teaser above.

The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power Season 3 premieres Nov. 11 on Prime Video.

In a sea of bad headlines for PlayStation, a big network outage probably isn't going to help.

PS5 owners logged into their consoles on Friday to find that PlayStation Network, the online infrastructure that makes everything from game purchases to online matches work, was experiencing an outage. Multiple sources, both primary and secondary, confirm this, as DownDetector shows a steady stream of complaints starting on Friday morning and continuing into the afternoon. On top of that, PlayStation's own server status page showed that all services were experiencing issues at the time of publication.

Credit: Screenshot courtesy of PlayStation SEE ALSO: 'Splatoon Raiders' is a spiffy single-player makeover for Nintendo's coolest series

Mashable has reached out to Sony for comment and will update this article if we receive a response. As of early Friday afternoon, the PlayStation support account on X had not acknowledged the outage at all.

All of this comes amidst a very, very rough time for PlayStation's public relations.

PS5 consoles recently saw price increases nearly six years after the initial launch, and word is that the next PlayStation console might cost north of $1,000 whenever it launches. If that wasn't bad enough, every single PlayStation social media account has been hounded by angry comments from players who are aghast at Sony's recent decision to stop manufacturing games on physical discs in 2028.

Needless to say, this is not the best time for a major, unexplained network outage.

This is a developing story...

Google made nearly $120 billion in earnings last quarter. Somehow, that still was not enough to cover what the company is pouring into AI.

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Alphabet, Google’s parent company, announced Wednesday, July 22, that it recorded negative free cash flow of $5.9 billion for the second quarter of 2026, marking the first time that figure has fallen below zero since the company went public. Google generated $39.1 billion in operating cash flow, but spent $44.9 billion on capital projects, with most of the money going toward the servers, data centers, and networking equipment needed to support its AI products.

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To be clear, Google is still making plenty of money. In the Q2 2026 earnings report, the company disclosed $119.8 billion in quarterly revenue, a 24 percent increase from the same period last year. Its operating income reached $40.8 billion, while its net income climbed to a record $112.1 billion.

There is an important catch to that record profit, however. Much of it came from Alphabet’s investments rather than its main businesses. The company reported approximately $98 billion in other, primarily from unrealized gains in its portfolio of equity investments. Those gains reflect assets that increased in value but were not necessarily sold for cash.

Free cash flow offers a look at the money Google actually had left after covering its operating expenses and investments in assets such as equipment and facilities. The company typically produces billions of dollars in free cash flow each quarter. This time, though, its rapidly growing infrastructure costs consumed more cash than its businesses generated.

And Google does not plan to slow down.

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Also on July 22, the company raised its expected capital spending for 2026 to between $195 billion and $205 billion. Google had previously told investors during its first-quarter earnings report on April 29 that it expected to spend between $180 billion and $190 billion this year. The updated forecast would be more than twice the approximately $91 billion it spent in 2025.

The bill is expected to keep growing next year. During Alphabet’s call on Wednesday, Chief Financial Officer Anat Ashkenazi told investors that capital expenditures would increase "significantly" again in 2027.

"We expect that free cash flow will remain under pressure driven by our investments in technical infrastructure, which enable us to capitalize on the AI opportunity and continue to drive attractive returns," Ashkenazi said.

So, where is all that money going?

According to Ashkenazi, approximately 60 percent of Google’s technical infrastructure spending during the quarter went toward servers. The remaining 40 percent went toward data centers and networking equipment.

Google also said it needs that additional capacity to meet demand from outside cloud customers and support its own products, including Search, Gemini, and Google Workspace. There are already signs that some of the spending is paying off: Google reported that Cloud revenue reached $24.8 billion during the quarter, an 82 percent increase from the previous year, while its operating income more than tripled to $8.8 billion.

Google’s other major businesses continued to grow, too. The company also reported that Search advertising generated $63.3 billion, YouTube advertising brought in $11.1 billion, and revenue from subscriptions, platforms, and devices reached $12.9 billion. Google said demand for AI subscriptions helped boost its Google One business.

They are hardly the only company writing enormous checks for AI. Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta are collectively expected to invest more than $700 billion this year, largely in data centers, chips, and electricity required to build and run their AI systems.

Investors, however, did not appear reassured by Google’s growth. Alphabet shares fell nearly 7 percent on Thursday, July 23, the day after the company raised its spending forecast and warned that free cash flow would remain under pressure.

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Google still has a substantial financial cushion, but with the company already warning that infrastructure spending will climb significantly again in 2027, this may not be the last quarter in which Google’s enormous AI bill outpaces the cash coming in.

Prime Video revealed the first teaser for Blade Runner 2099 at San Diego Comic-Con, and the sneak peek is as rainy and neon-lit as you'd expect.

SEE ALSO: 'Percy Jackson and the Olympians' Season 3 teaser gives us our first look at the Titan's Curse

The sequel series, executive produced by Blade Runner director Ridley Scott, takes place 50 years after the events of Denis Villeneuve's Blade Runner 2049. In those 50 years, Los Angeles has been transformed by a replicant uprising. Now, these synthetic humans are running the show, but that doesn't mean blade runners aren't still around to hunt down any replicants who step out of line.

One of those blade runners is Olwen (Michelle Yeoh), a replicant who's tracking down a group of missing replicants who have gone rogue. With only days left to live, she'll stop at nothing to complete her mission.

She'll team up with Cora (Hunter Schafer), a human fugitive who becomes a blade runner in an attempt to finally stop running. The teaser shows her fleeing through Los Angeles and getting captured by Olwen, so it looks like their partnership will get off to a contentious start. Can this unlikely duo find the runaways and save their fragile city from total collapse?

Watch the full teaser above to see Olwen and Cora in action, plus the return of the iconic Voight-Kampff test.

Blade Runner 2049 also stars Dimitri Abold, Lewis Gribben, Katelyn Rose Downey, Daniel Rigby, Johnny Harris, Amy Lennox, Sheila Atim, Matthew Needham, Tom Burke, and Maurizio Lombardi.

Blade Runner 2049 premieres Nov. 20 on Prime Video.

Jimothy has crossed Seattle streets and climbed neighborhood staircases, and now he's wandered into the gaming world.

The unusually shaped raccoon became an internet celebrity after Seattle resident Kiana Hall spotted him in the city’s Ballard neighborhood on July 13, 2026. Since then, his compact torso, rounded back, and long legs have inspired memes, murals, tattoos, merchandise, and an expanding collection of digital recreations.

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Players and developers have already begun recreating Jimothy across video games and tabletop worlds. And now, one of gaming’s biggest studios is preparing to make room for him.

“You asked, Jimothy answered,” the official World of Warcraft X account wrote on July 24. “Coming soon to Azeroth.”

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It is the latest step in Jimothy’s rapid transformation from neighborhood raccoon to cross-platform gaming character.

How Jimothy scurried his way into gaming

Before Jimothy became a prospective Azeroth resident, he was simply an unusual-looking raccoon walking beneath a parked car in Seattle.

Hall initially mistook the animal for a cat, then began recording when he emerged with the masked face of a raccoon and a noticeably shortened torso and neck. She named him Jimothy because, as she later explained to Today.com, he simply looked like one.

The brief video accumulated millions of views. Experts believe Jimothy’s appearance may be caused by a congenital spinal deformity resembling short spine syndrome. Despite his compressed build, videos show him walking, climbing, finding food, and independently navigating the neighborhood.

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Those same physical features also made him immediately recognizable when artists began translating him into different virtual worlds. Some redrew Jimothy in their games’ established art styles, while others creatively repurposed existing character models to reproduce his distinctive silhouette.

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In an Old School RuneScape tribute, Jimothy becomes a low-poly raccoon who looks as though he has always been wandering through Gielinor. Mouse: P.I. For Hire transported him to Mouseburg, redrawing him in the black-and-white rubber-hose animation style of its 1930s-inspired world.

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Dead by Daylight gave him a horror makeover complete with glowing features and bloody tentacles. The official Sims account attempted to build him using a human Sim, producing a character who resembled someone wearing a slightly unsettling raccoon costume.

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Halo’s interpretation required another inventive workaround. Rather than creating a new animal model, senior community manager John Junyszek bent a Spartan onto all fours and extended its neck and feet to imitate Jimothy’s proportions.

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Other images placed the resulting raccoon-like soldier near Master Chief’s crashed escape pod in scenes based on Halo: Combat Evolved and its Campaign Evolved remake.

Jimothy also reached several other established gaming worlds. Warner Bros. Games imagined that he had arrived in Gotham City, while the teams behind Among Us and Cult of the Lamb redesigned him to fit their respective visual styles.

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Most of these official tributes exist only as images. Fans and modders, however, have gone further by turning Jimothy into a character people can actually play with.

Fans make Jimothy playable

Artist and entrepreneur Chris Pirillo built an entire browser game around Jimothy. The four-level, NES-style game borrows elements from classic arcade titles including Frogger and the original Donkey Kong, transforming parts of the raccoon’s real and imagined adventures into short challenges.

One level asks players to help Jimothy cross traffic, while others involve raiding garbage cans, escaping paparazzi, and climbing ladders.

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Fans have also inserted Jimothy into several popular games through mods. In Skyrim, one fan-made addition turns him into a character players can approach and speak with. Stardew Valley modders have created multiple versions, including options that let players keep Jimothy as livestock or purchase him from Marnie as a companion.

In Minecraft, a creator modified the raccoon from the Naturalist add-on to match Jimothy’s proportions, translating his shortened body and long legs into the game’s blocky visual style.

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Dungeons & Dragons has produced one of the most elaborate interpretations so far. Its official Jimothy stat block identifies him as a "Beloved Cryptid" and gives him abilities based on both his physical appearance and the increasingly elaborate stories surrounding him.

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"Compact Frame" allows Jimothy to squeeze through gaps measuring less than four inches wide. "Hurl Garbage" lets him attack enemies with trash, dealing both bludgeoning and poison damage. The stat block contains everything players need to add him to a tabletop campaign, where he can search for food, befriend adventurers, or become an unexpectedly dangerous opponent.

Together, these official tributes and fan-made creations have allowed Jimothy to enter gaming in nearly every possible form: artwork, character models, mods, browser games, and tabletop campaigns.

The real Jimothy remains a wild animal roaming Seattle, where wildlife officials have advised people to observe him from a distance. His digital counterparts, however, are proving much easier to approach — and collect.

For some social media users, Facebook may feel like an app left behind in an online era of the past. However, for others, Facebook has reinvented itself as the modern-day Craigslist with Facebook Marketplace.

Meta seems to have taken notice and is now releasing a standalone app for the Facebook Marketplace power users who keep the platform going: It's sellers.

The new app, aptly named Seller, launched on Friday and provides Facebook Marketplace sellers with tools to list their wares and manage their current listings. 

Like Facebook Marketplace itself, the Seller app is free for users. Meta monetizes Facebook Marketplace with ads and does not take any percentage of its users' sales. Users will be able to download the app and login with their Facebook account starting today.

Credit: Facebook

Seller provides a tool to post new listings, a dashboard to manage their existing ones, an in-app inbox to reply to prospective buyers, and analytics for all of their old listings. 

Seller also introduces a few new tools for sellers as well. According to Facebook, Seller users will be able to scan their products with their smartphone, and AI will fill-out the listing details automatically.

In an interview with the New York Times, Facebook head Tom Allison said that the app would be the Marketplace seller equivalent of a video editing tool for content creators. Allison also explained how Meta is experimenting with more standalone products for Facebook's power users, which include Marketplace Sellers and Facebook Groups administrators.

As social media users move to competing platforms like TikTok and Meta's own Instagram, Facebook has found new life within specific, once-niche features on the platform. In May, Facebook launched a standalone app called Forum for its Facebook Groups power users. Now, the company is doing the same for Facebook Marketplace sellers.

Meta says that one-third of young adults who use Facebook also use Marketplace. And, every month, more than 420 million items are listed on the Marketplace platform. 

A member of the Ferrell family is going viral, although this time, comedy has very little to do with it.

Magnus Ferrell, the 22-year-old musician and oldest son of Will Ferrell, is reaching a wave of new listeners (and arguably becoming social media's summer boyfriend) through "Asleep Talking," his bedroom-pop single about being unable to stop thinking about someone, even while asleep.

"I AM SO HAPPY!" he captioned a July 3, 2026 TikTok, calling the number of new people showing love to the song "absolutely mind boggling."

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Released April 24 (but gaining fresh momentum this summer), "Asleep Talking" features understated piano and guitar production as Magnus returns to the song’s central idea: someone has occupied so much of his mind that he talks about them in his sleep. Its official video has received more than 400,000 views on YouTube and has over 600,000 streams on Spotify.

The track is also reaching some of the internet’s largest music-reaction creators. The Morning Shift Show, which has more than 1 million followers on the platform, listened and reacted to "Asleep Talking" July 23, introducing the song to its own audience — one commenter arrived on Magnus’ page writing "sent here by ma boys The Morning Shift," adding that the track was already "on repeat."

The song received another endorsement on July 1, when Ferrell appeared on Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson’s IMO podcast. Will played "Asleep Talking" for the hosts, and Obama gave the song a round of applause.

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For those unfamiliar with the Ferrell family tree beyond Will, Magnus is the oldest of the actor’s three sons with his wife, Swedish auctioneer Viveca Paulin. The couple, who married in 2000, also shares sons Mattias and Axel.

Magnus began playing piano as a child and later became interested in jazz, which gave him more freedom to improvise and develop his own approach to music. He has frequently collaborated with his longtime friend Gabe Yaron, who co-wrote the viral song.

By the time Magnus enrolled at the University of Southern California (USC), his father’s alma mater, he and Yaron were roommates, posting covers and original songs online. Magnus later took a leave of absence from USC to focus on music full-time and signed with Republic Records.

In a 2025 interview with Atwood Magazine, he described his approach as "groove therapy," or a way to share his love of music while allowing listeners to take their own feelings from it.

On TikTok and X, listeners have been finding their own ways to describe its dreamy, nostalgic sound. One called it "dancing in the kitchen making dinner sipping wine music," while another heard "Super 8 rom com vibes."

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Like many celebrity children (or "nepo-babies") pursuing careers of their own, Magnus has acknowledged that his father’s fame inevitably affects how audiences first encounter his work.

"I’m not someone who’s going to pretend it’s not a thing," Magnus also told the publication. "Most definitely, it is. I’m not going to hide it."

"Asleep Talking" may be introducing Magnus to a much larger audience, but it’s far from his first release. His earlier catalog includes tracks like "Drinks on Me," "Life or Death," and "Miss Me Vendetta," along with the EP Hasn’t Even Started. He’s also no stranger to the stage, having performed at the 2025 Summer Bash in New York and the MTV Video Music Awards that September as a solo artist.

One of Magnus’s earlier tracks made its way into a project starring his father. He and Yaron wrote "Slow Down" while trying to break out of a creative rut, then sent it to Will during production of the 2025 Prime Video comedy You’re Cordially Invited. The song eventually landed in one of the movie’s party scenes. Later, at his band’s first live performance—a 2022 Cancer for College benefit—his father joined him onstage with a cowbell, recreating the instrument at the center of his famous Saturday Night Live sketch.

The father and son generated another viral moment the following year when Will DJed a USC fraternity tailgate at Magnus’ invitation. With Magnus beside him, the actor played tracks including Survivor’s "Eye of the Tiger" for the crowd.

Magnus later explained that he simply asked his dad whether he wanted to take over the music for a few minutes. Will agreed, and another Ferrell family video began making its way across social media. When asked where he learned to DJ, Magnus joked, "I got my chops from my pops."

"Asleep Talking" is producing a different introduction. This time, Will Ferrell may provide a familiar name, but Magnus has given TikTok a song it cannot get out of its head.

San Diego Comic-Con, the annual gathering for all things comic books and nerd culture, is here. This year's event kicked off on July 23 and runs through July 26, so you'd best prepare for a weekend of big reveals and new movie trailers.

This year's edition of the long-running pop culture showcase features panels from all over the world of movies, TV, video games, and maybe even a comic book or two, here and there. Our friends at IGN created an excellent rundown of the weekend's schedule of events, but there are a few announcements in particular we're looking forward to. (Mashable and IGN are both owned by the same parent company, Ziff Davis.)

So, here are some of the biggest panels and announcements we expect this weekend at SDCC 2026.

SEE ALSO: 'Supergirl' review: Better than the comic, but not DC's best Somehow, Spaceballs returns

Comedy legend Mel Brooks just celebrated his 100th birthday, and he still has jokes to tell, as a long-awaited sequel to his old Star Wars parody, Spaceballs, is in the works. Spaceballs: The New One comes out next April. There's a panel at SDCC on Friday featuring the cast and crew of the new movie, where they will discuss the project in detail, and maybe even give us a real look at it, since it's only been shown in brief teaser form thus far.

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Earlier on Friday, you can expect some new info from Amazon about two of its higher-profile streaming TV projects.

First, The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power is set to return for its third season, after season two took the series to new heights all the way back in 2024. Amazon's panel will feature a look at season three of the expensively produced and divisive fantasy epic.

Beyond that, Blade Runner 2099 will make its debut at this panel. The new Prime Video series stars Michelle Yeoh and Hunter Schafer and returns viewers to the bleak techno-dystopia that somehow became a nearly 50-year-long media franchise.

A look at the future of Apple TV

Apple is holding a panel focused on original Apple TV programming, which has really hit its stride recently with shows like Silo and Widow's Bay. Apple's official description for this panel is very vague, but hopefully, we'll get updates on the streaming app's best new shows. Check in on Saturday if you want to hear more about the next moves for Apple TV.

Some fresh God of War: Laufey insight

SDCC is not generally a big gaming show, especially with Gamescom coming up in August. But PlayStation will have a presence at the show, and that includes a God of War: Laufey panel on Friday night.

And finally, the MCU returns with Doomsday

You may have heard that there's a new Avengers movie coming out. I mean, there usually is, but this one seemingly has way more guys in it than usual. It also features the MCU debut of fan-favorite villain Dr. Doom, played by returning star Robert Downey Jr.

Saturday night will see a Comic-Con panel featuring Kevin Feige and other "special guests," and they should give us an idea of what to expect not just from Doomsday, but from the next year or two of the MCU.

The best TV deals to shop this weekend: Best Art TV deal Hisense 65-inch S7 Canvas Hi-QLED 4K TV $899.99 (save $1,100) Get Deal BEST RGB TV deal Hisense 65-inch UR8 RGB Mini LED 4K TV $1,299.99 (save $700) Get Deal Best OLED TV deal LG 65-Inch C6 OLED 4K TV $1,799.99 (save $900) Get Deal Best cheap TV deal LG 55-inch 75B QNED 4K TV $379.99 (save $220) Get Deal

While it's not traditionally the best time to buy a TV, I did some digging and found plenty of TVs from our favorite brands — Hisense, Samsung, LG, etc. — in all shapes and sizes for cheaper than usual.

If you've recently realized your TV is on its last leg, now's as good a time as any to make the investment in something better. With a new NFL season on the horizon and a ton of new series and movies coming to streaming, you'll be glad you upgraded.

We've rounded up the best TV deals to shop this weekend at Amazon and Best Buy below, so you can weigh your options.

Best Art TV deal Opens in a new window Credit: Hisense Hisense 65-inch S7 Canvas Hi-QLED 4K TV $899.99 at Amazon
$1,999.99 Save $1,100   Get Deal Why we like it

Hisense's 2026 version of the highly popular Canvas TV features a Hi-QLED display with an AI RGB ambient light sensor. So, not only does it offer deeper color accuracy and richer hues, but it can also auto-adjust brightness and color temperature based on the lighting in the room. It also added a motion detection (and energy saving) feature that can wake up your display when you enter the room and fade when you walk away. Otherwise, it still packs the same 144Hz refresh rate, Hi-Matte design, teak frame, and free digital art library that transforms your TV into fancy artwork. As of July 24, it's down to $899.99 at Amazon, just $51 away from its record low.

Best RGB TV deal Opens in a new window Credit: Hisense Hisense 65-inch UR8 RGB Mini LED 4K TV $1,299.99 at Best Buy
$1,999.99 Save $700   Get Deal Why we like it

Hisense finally launched its highly anticipated RGB TVs in early June, and just a month later, there are deals on both the UR8 and UR9 at Best Buy. The UR8 is the more affordable option (about $400 cheaper at the time of writing) and can reach a peak brightness of 3,500 nits, has a 180Hz refresh rate, and offers a panel of four HDMI ports. Of course, it also features new RGB technology that utilizes pure red, green, and blue LEDs for seriously precise lighting and color vibrancy. The entry fee for this technology can be steep, so a savings of $700 is a pretty sweet deal.

Best OLED TV deal Opens in a new window Credit: LG LG 65-Inch C6 OLED 4K TV $1,799.99 at Amazon
$2,699.99 Save $900.00   Get Deal Why we like it

The C6 is LG's mid-range OLED model for 2026, so its price tag and performance are a bit more modest than the flagship G-Series. Still, it's a pretty awesome value, especially now that it's $900 off its list price. At $1,799.99 for the 65-inch model, it's just $200 more than the entry-level B-Series and $3 more than its best-ever price. Mashable's sister site PCMag calls the C6 the "best midrange OLED TV out this year," highlighting its brilliant picture, strong streaming features, hands-free voice control, 165Hz refresh rate, and, of course, its price.

More of the best TV deals this weekend

• Hisense 58-inch QD50 QLED 4K TV — $199.99 $399.99 (save $200)

• LG 55-inch 75B QNED 4K TV — $379.99 $599.99 (save $220)

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• Insignia 85-inch QF QLED 4K TV — $629.99 $1,099.99 (save $470)

• Hisense 50-inch S7 Canvas Hi-QLED 4K TV — $647.97 $1,299.99 (save $652.02)

• Amazon 55-inch Ember Artline QLED 4K Art TV — $699.98 $899.99 (save $200.01)

• Hisense 85-inch QD6 Mini LED QLED 4K TV — $749.99 $1,099.99 (save $350)

• Samsung 55-inch The Frame Pro Neo QLED TV — $1,297.99 $1,497.99 (save $200)

• Hisense 65-inch UR8 RGB Mini LED 4K TV — $1,299.99 $1,999.99 (save $700)

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• Samsung 77-inch S90F OLED 4K TV — $1,799.99 $3,499.99 (save $1,700)

• Hisense 85-inch UR8 RGB Mini LED 4K TV — $2,199.99 $3,499.99 (save $1,300)

• Hisense 85-inch UR9 RGB Mini LED 4K TV — $3,499.99 $4,499.99 (save $1,000)

Before Cindy Pham became a New York Times bestselling author, she spent years building an audience on YouTube as Read With Cindy, where nearly 600,000 subscribers tune in for her thoughtful book commentary. In today's publishing industry, that's the kind of platform many authors dream of, one that can help sell books long before readers crack open the first page.

But Pham has always been wary of turning creativity into a commodity.

She still works full-time as a graphic designer, deliberately keeping writing and content creation separate from the job that pays her bills. It's a choice that gives her the freedom to write slowly, chase ideas that genuinely excite her, and resist the pressure to create for algorithms or sales numbers.

SEE ALSO: BookTok creators share the reading essentials they actually use

That philosophy shapes every part of her career, from the way she approaches YouTube to the way she wrote her debut young adult novel, The Secret World of Briar Rose, a sapphic reimagining of Sleeping Beauty that asks one haunting question: What if Sleeping Beauty didn't want to wake up?

For this edition of Creator Playbook, Pham reflects on balancing three careers, navigating the blurry line between author and influencer, and why she believes the goal isn't representation — it's resonance.

Cindy Pham wants her work to outshine her platform Credit: Ian Moore/Mashable/Kokila

Mashable: Before nearly a million people followed your book recommendations on YouTube and TikTok, what was your relationship with books and reading growing up?

Cindy Pham: I actually wasn't a big reader growing up. I started reading avidly after I graduated from college, and I think part of it was that no one was telling me I had to read anymore. Once it became something I chose for myself instead of an assignment, I became much more interested in it.

Writing actually came first. I'd been writing since elementary school as a form of escapism. Reading came later, and thankfully, that made my writing a lot better. You're probably not going to become a good writer if you aren't reading a lot of books.

I definitely came to reading later than most people. I missed the Twilight era, The Hunger Games, Harry Potter — which, in retrospect, maybe missing Harry Potter wasn't the worst thing. But once I started a YouTube channel dedicated to talking about books, it made me much more conscious of the stories I was consuming. It helped me understand what I loved, what I didn't, and ultimately the kinds of stories I wanted to write. It was a little backward, but everything came together in the end.

What came first: the YouTube channel or the idea for The Secret World of Briar Rose?

The writing always came first. In elementary school, I'd get obsessed with a video game or TV show and write novelizations of it. In middle school, I wrote fanfiction. By high school, I was writing original fiction, and during my senior year, I wrote the first draft of The Secret World of Briar Rose. Then I went to college and put writing aside to focus on becoming a designer.

After graduation, I started reading a lot more. I was reading so much that I needed somewhere to talk about the books because posting a photo on Instagram just wasn't enough. I wanted to rant about whatever shenanigans had happened in the story, so I started a YouTube channel. Honestly, I thought I'd lose interest after a week or a month. It was just something to do. But people started watching, commenting, and subscribing, and that encouraged me to keep going.

The channel really grew alongside my interests. I've always approached content creation by making videos about whatever I'm genuinely excited about, rather than thinking, I need to make a video about this because it'll perform well. As I became more immersed in books and storytelling, my brain kept returning to that novel I'd written in high school. Only this time, I had a fully developed frontal lobe. I was more socially conscious, more politically conscious, and much more widely read.

The core of the story stayed the same. I'd always wanted to write about depression and suicidal ideation, using Sleeping Beauty as an allegory. But revisiting it as an adult gave me the tools to tell that story with a lot more depth. Reading a lot of books doesn't necessarily make you a better writer. I think it makes you a more purposeful one. It helps you figure out what you actually want from a story instead of chasing whatever the average person thinks makes a good book.

Opens in a new window Credit: Kokila / Penguin Random House The Secret World of Briar Rose $15.59 at Amazon
$21.99 Save $6.40   Get Deal

One thing that really stood out to me is that you still work a full-time job as a graphic designer while writing books and making YouTube videos. A lot of creators wrestle with when, or whether, to quit their day jobs.

I like my job being just a job. It gives me financial security, which means I can write books and make videos because I genuinely enjoy doing them, not because I need them to pay my rent or because I need strangers on the internet to like me to make a living. That balance has been really important for me.

I see similar pressures with full-time creators and full-time authors. When your creative work becomes your entire livelihood, everything feels heavier because it's your whole world. I don't want to put all my eggs in one basket, especially living in New York. It becomes harder to enjoy what you're making when it's fully monetized, and you're constantly worrying whether you can live off it.

I'm also a very slow writer. I like to sit with ideas. I like to experience life and let that inform the story. That isn't always compatible with what publishing wants, so I'd rather create on my own timeline than someone else's.

I'm always amazed by someone like Brandon Sanderson, who's somehow writing thousand-page books every other year.

[Laughs.] That's definitely a particular kind of creative personality. I'm the turtle in that race. I like taking my time, and right now I'm also juggling three jobs: designer, content creator, and now author. That's been its own challenge.

One of the biggest buzzwords in the creator economy is authenticity. The creators who build the strongest communities are usually the ones who are the most authentic to themselves. Reading your book, it feels like that same philosophy applies here. This story feels deeply personal — not just because it draws from your experiences, but because it's rooted in the themes and worldview you wanted to explore.

I think there's definitely a lot of overlap. Being a content creator for so many years before becoming a published author helped shape that mindset. It thickened my skin when it comes to public perception, but it also reinforced something I've believed for a long time: I never want my livelihood to depend on whether people like me.

I want to create because I'm genuinely interested in something. If other people connect with it, that's wonderful. If they don't, that's OK too. I don't want validation, or my ability to pay rent, to depend on strangers enjoying my work. That's the attitude I've tried to bring into publishing as well.

Unfortunately, writers can't really just disappear into a room and write anymore. So much of publishing is now tied to your public identity. I think that's a shame, even if it's something that's ultimately worked in my favor.

We've written about that at Mashable — the way BookTok and social media have pushed authors to become content creators and marketers. Publishers increasingly want authors to have an online presence, to promote themselves alongside the book. You were already ahead of that curve because you had built a community before publishing.

I think it's a flawed system. Authors shouldn't have to become marketers. The book should be able to speak for itself.

At the same time, I recognize that I benefit from that system while also critiquing it, so I try to make the most of that privilege. One way I do that is by spotlighting other debut authors who don't have the same publisher investment or platform that I do. When The Secret World of Briar Rose debuted at No. 1, I made a point of highlighting other books that released the same day because there are so many incredible authors whose work deserves attention. A bestseller list isn't a pure meritocracy. It's also a reflection of which books publishers are willing to invest in and promote.

There's another downside, too. Because my name is so closely associated with the book, I don't think the novel will ever completely stand on its own. If someone thinks my videos are annoying, they'll probably approach the book with those assumptions. If someone loves my channel, they may expect the book to be a masterpiece before they've even opened it. Neither is really fair to the reader or the writer.

That's why it's so important for me to always come back to my North Star: why I wrote the book in the first place. It can't be about external validation or the credibility of being an author. It has to be about self-expression and writing something that would have mattered to my younger self, not writing for a market or an impossible standard. A lot of this is really about building the mental fortitude to resist the pressure of numbers, sales, and validation. I think creators and authors are fighting a lot of the same battles.

At least publishing gives you a team whose job is to worry about those numbers.

Exactly. [Laughs.] They're the ones who can worry about sales. I'm just here to have fun. The other thing that's been really meaningful is that everyone involved in the creative production of this book is a South or Southeast Asian woman. I'm Vietnamese. My editor is Pakistani. My cover artist is Filipina. My cover designer is Taiwanese. My interior designer is Black and South Asian. The imprint itself focuses on marginalized voices. So when something good happens to the book, it isn't just a win for me. It's a win for everyone who worked on it. Whenever I start getting too self-conscious, I try to think about the ripple effects. It's never just about me.

Maybe you should judge this book by its cover. Credit: Kokila / Penguin Random House

I know you're not supposed to judge a book by its cover, but I have to say: it's a gorgeous cover.

In this case, I absolutely think people should judge the book by its cover. I was lucky enough to have a lot of creative control over it. I got to put my designer hat back on and be really specific about the direction, even choosing the cover artist. That ended up being one of the most fun creative parts of the whole process.

I read your People essay, which is beautiful, and you describe how public conversations around your book made you more self-conscious about your own identity and queerness. Looking back, do you think the internet made it harder to figure yourself out, or did it ultimately push you to ask questions you might not have otherwise?

I think it's both. The internet helped me become more socially and politically conscious. Honestly, I don't think I would've realized I was queer without it. I was exposed to more queer media and more conversations about identity and diversity, which changed how I understood both myself and the stories I wanted to tell.

Before that, my writing was very heteronormative. It was very colorblind. Becoming more aware of those things changed the way I approached storytelling. I was also the only "straight" person in my friend group for a long time. I met my girlfriend through the book community online, and even before I realized I was queer myself, I was participating in queer culture through friendships and allyship.

At the same time, being perceived publicly comes with its own pressures. Early on, people assumed I was a straight woman writing a queer story, and those conversations made me second-guess myself. I started wondering, What if they're right? What if I'm exploiting something I shouldn't be? I knew why I'd made those creative choices. The queer relationship wasn't there for representation alone — it reinforced the book's themes of escapism and the oppressive forces the characters were trying to escape. But the internet doesn't always leave room for that kind of nuance.

When my girlfriend first confessed her feelings for me, I didn't have an answer right away because I'd spent so much time compartmentalizing that part of myself. Even after we started dating, I worried I was somehow "queerbaiting" her. That's such an internet thought. A normal person who's never been online wouldn't think, "Oh my God, I'm queerbaiting someone." That's something that comes from living inside internet discourse.

Overall, though, I think the positives outweigh the negatives. As I've gotten older, I've become better at separating public speculation from who I actually am. People are always going to make assumptions about you online, but they don't really know you. That's why it's so important for me to have a balanced life and relationships outside the internet.

One thing you wrote that really stayed with me was the idea that your goal wasn't representation so much as resonance. What's the difference?

I completely understand why representation matters. When I see queer stories now — or Vietnamese women in books — that means something to me. But I don't think any marginalized group is a monolith. There's no single story that can represent every queer person or every Asian person. That's why I prefer to think about resonance. I'm not trying to write a story that represents everyone. I'm trying to write something that feels true to me.

If that resonates with another queer person, or another Asian reader, that's incredible. And if someone doesn't necessarily feel represented but still connects with the emotional truth of the story, that's meaningful too. For me, that's the priority. When I'm writing, I start with the character and the themes. Once I understand who this person is and what role they play in the story, then I ask how their identity adds another layer to those themes. I don't usually start with identity and build outward from there. I know other writers do that beautifully, but resonance is the framework that makes the most sense to me.

Looking back now, after more than a decade with this story, how does the finished book differ from the one you first wrote in high school?

It really grew up alongside me. The core idea was always there. I always wanted to write about depression and mental health. But high school Cindy didn't know herself or the world the way I do now. Living life, going through depressive episodes, going to therapy, growing older... all of that gave me the emotional intelligence to write richer characters.

Even when I wasn't actively working on the manuscript, I was still writing it in a way because I was living the experiences that eventually shaped it. The first draft was mostly interested in the personal. As an adult, I realized those personal choices are political, too. If your story is about characters escaping oppressive systems, then asking what it means to ignore politics is itself a political question. Those were ideas I never would've understood as a teenager.

I think of that original manuscript as a seed. Over the years, it just kept growing new branches as I learned more about myself and the world.

I love the central question of the novel: What if Sleeping Beauty didn't want to wake up? Even as a teenager, that's such an emotionally rich question to ask.

Thank you. I also think it's important that YA stories are allowed to be dark. I was a depressed, angsty teenager, and this is exactly the kind of book I would've wanted to read. Before you can get to hope, you have to acknowledge the darkness. Hearing platitudes like "It gets better" never really resonated with me because nothing is guaranteed.

I think it's more honest to say that there are objectively awful things in the world, and we still owe it to ourselves and to each other to stay here and help one another. Holding both of those truths at once is what growth looks like.

Where to preorder the new Samsung Galaxy phones Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 $1,199.99 at Samsung Pre-Order Here Amazon Galaxy Z Flip 8 $1,199.99 at Amazon (get a $200 Amazon gift card) Pre-Order Here T-Mobile Galaxy Z Flip 8 $1,199.99 at T-Mobile (save up to $1,100 when you add a new line) Pre-Order Here Amazon Galaxy Z Fold 8 $1,899.99 at Amazon (get a $350 Amazon gift card) Pre-Order Here Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 $1,899.99 at Samsung Pre-Order Here T-Mobile Galaxy Z Fold 8 $1,899.99 at T-Mobile (get it for $0 with eligible trade-in) Pre-Order Here AT&T Galaxy Z Fold 8 $1,899.99 at AT&T (get it for $0 with eligible trade-in) Pre-Order Here Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra $2,099.99 at Samsung Pre-Order Here Amazon Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra $2,099.99 at Amazon (get a $350 Amazon gift card) Pre-Order Here T-Mobile Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra $2,099.99 at T-Mobile (save up to $1,100 when you add a new line) Pre-Order Here

New Samsung phones are here. At Samsung Galaxy Unpacked 2026, three new phones were announced: the Galaxy Z Flip 8, Galaxy Z Fold 8, and Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. The new phones are successors to the Z Flip 7 and Z Fold 7, so if you're ready for a new phone, get ready to preorder these devices.

We've been anticipating the new models for weeks, vetting rumors of what's to come with the latest foldables. Now that we're here, we can finally confirm exactly which models are available and just how much each will cost.

Galaxy Z Flip 8, Z Fold 8, and Z Fold 8 Ultra pricing breakdown

Here's the pricing breakdown:

• Galaxy Z Flip 8 (pink, graphite, cream, mint) — starting at $1,199

• Galaxy Z Fold 8 (lavender, graphite, cream, pistachio) — starting at $1,899.99

• Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra (violet shadow, graphite, cream, green shadow) — starting at $2,099.99

Both the Z Flip 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra are $100 more than last year's models; no surprise in the face of the global memory crisis. All of the new models are up for preorder as of July 22 and will be available Aug. 7.

If you've previously owned the Z Flip and Fold series, the successive models are slightly different. So here's what you need to know about the new Samsung smartphones.

About the Galaxy Z Flip 8 The Galaxy Z Flip 8 is the successor to the Z Flip 7. Credit: Joseph Maldonado / CNET Group

The Galaxy Z Flip 8 is the successor to the Z Flip 7. It folds down into a pocket-sized square, flipping open to a 6.9-inch Dynamic AMOLED display. The display is phenomenal and extremely impressive, the crease of the phone indistinguishable when flipped open. It comes with a dual lens camera with up to 10x zoom and 4K video, filming at 60 fps. It has 12GB of RAM (more than some computers) and either 256GB or 512GB of storage space.

The Z Flip 8 comes in four different colors: pink, graphite, cream, and mint (online only). It starts at $1,199.99.

Galaxy Z Flip 8 $1,199.99 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at Samsung Pre-order Here at T-Mobile About the Galaxy Z Fold 8 The dimensions of the Galaxy Z Fold 8 are suspiciously close to the leaked foldable iPhone. Credit: Joseph Maldonado / CNET Group

Apple has yet to release a foldable iPhone, but Samsung has already come out with a phone destined to compete. Rumors were floating about this model, with some thinking it would be called the Galaxy Z Fold Wide. Now we know it's actually the Galaxy Z Fold 8, a new model with a fullscreen ratio of 4:3.

It's a midrange option between the Z Flip 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra, with a 5.5-inch folded screen and a 7.6-inch full-size screen. Like the Flip, it has a dual lens camera, but is able to film in up to 8K at 30 fps. You can go for models with 12GB of RAM and either 256GB or 512GB of storage, or a model with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage.

The Z Fold 8 starts at $1,899.99. It comes in lavender, graphite, cream, and pistachio (online only).

Galaxy Z Fold 8 $1,899.99 at Samsung
  Pre-order Here at Samsung Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at T-Mobile About the Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra The successor to the Z Fold 7 is the Z Fold 8 Ultra. Credit: Joseph Maldonado / CNET Group

If you've previously seen or used the Z Fold 7, its successor is the new Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra. It's the largest phone among all of Samsung's foldables with a 6.5-inch cover screen and an 8-inch full screen. It's the only foldable with a three-lens camera, letting you film in up to 8K with 3x optical and 30x space zoom.

The Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra comes in violet shadow, graphite, cream, and green shadow (online only). It starts at $2,099.99.

Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra $2,099.99 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon Pre-order Here at Samsung Pre-order Here at T-Mobile

GET A FREE $200 GIFT CARD: Pre-order the upcoming Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 for $1,199.99 at Amazon by August 6 and get a $200 gift card for free.

Samsung Galaxy Z Flip8 Unlocked Cell Phone + $200 Gift Card, 256GB Graphite $1,199.99 at Amazon
  Pre-order Here at Amazon

Getting a new phone is almost never cheap. But if you're already planning to upgrade to Samsung's latest flip phone, you might as well get paid to do it.

SEE ALSO: T-Mobile is giving away the new Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8 for free — how to claim

Right now, if you pre-order the 256GB Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 8 in Graphite at Amazon for $1,199.99, they'll throw in a $200 Amazon gift card. You just have to place your order by August 6 (its official release date is August 7).

The Z Flip 8 features a 6.7-inch main screen and a 4.1-inch cover screen (which Samsung calls the FlexWindow). It lets you check notifications and send messages without opening your phone. As for the cameras, you get a 50MP wide lens and a 12MP ultrawide lens on the back, plus a 10MP front camera. Thanks to the folding design, you can set it down half-open on a table to take hands-free photos or shoot Super Steady video — no tripod required.

Considering a $200 gift card basically covers your screen protectors, a durable case, and a few other things in your cart, this is a pretty good pre-order bonus.

Oura isn't the only one with a new smart ring. RingConn, a subscription-free alternative, just dropped its Gen 3 smart ring. It measures all the essential biometrics you want in a smart ring, and works around the screen-free design with a new innovation: a vibration motor.

The announcement of the new RingConn Gen 3 also comes the same week as Garmin announced the Cirqa, a tracker that looks noticeably similar to Whoop's health trackers.

About the RingConn Gen 3 Smart Ring The new RingConn Gen 3 comes in 10 sizes and five finishes. Credit: RingConn

What sets RingConn apart from fellow smart ring maker Oura is that it is subscription-free, meaning once you buy the ring, there's no recurring cost. The new Gen 3 comes in 10 sizes (6 to 16) and five different finishes, including silver, gold, black, brushed silver, and brushed rose gold.

The new ring claims outstanding battery life, up to 14 days, one of the longest of any fitness tracker we've seen. However, it's a bit shorter if you have vibration turned on. The vibration motor is a new addition to the Gen 3, notifying you of health alerts, sedentary reminders, and low battery.

When Oura launched the Oura Ring 5, its slimmer design was the headline, and the RingConn Gen 3 is only slightly bigger. It has a thickness of 2.3mm and a width of 6.8mm, while the Oura Ring 5 is 2.28mm thick and 6.09mm wide.

Take the RingConn Gen 3 with you in the water as its waterproof up to 100m. Credit: RingConn

The Gen 3 now detects blood pressure and sleep apnea, although neither feature is FDA-cleared. It's water-resistant, waterproof up to 100m.

Included with RingConn Gen 3 models is a travel charging case, which provides over 150 days of battery life.

The RingConn Gen 3 starts at $349 (brushed finishes cost $369) and is now available to order from RingConn and Amazon.

RingConn Gen 3 $349 at Amazon
  Shop Now at Amazon Shop Now at RingConn

Oura isn't the only one with a new smart ring. RingConn, a subscription-free alternative, just dropped its Gen 3 smart ring. It measures all the essential biometrics you want in a smart ring, and works around the screen-free design with a new innovation: a vibration motor.

The announcement of the new RingConn Gen 3 also comes the same week as Garmin announced the Cirqa, a tracker that looks noticeably similar to Whoop's health trackers.

About the RingConn Gen 3 Smart Ring The new RingConn Gen 3 comes in 10 sizes and five finishes. Credit: RingConn

What sets RingConn apart from fellow smart ring maker Oura is that it is subscription-free, meaning once you buy the ring, there's no recurring cost. The new Gen 3 comes in 10 sizes (6 to 16) and five different finishes, including silver, gold, black, brushed silver, and brushed rose gold.

The new ring claims outstanding battery life, up to 14 days, one of the longest of any fitness tracker we've seen. However, it's a bit shorter if you have vibration turned on. The vibration motor is a new addition to the Gen 3, notifying you of health alerts, sedentary reminders, and low battery.

When Oura launched the Oura Ring 5, its slimmer design was the headline, and the RingConn Gen 3 is only slightly bigger. It has a thickness of 2.3mm and a width of 6.8mm, while the Oura Ring 5 is 2.28mm thick and 6.09mm wide.

Take the RingConn Gen 3 with you in the water as its waterproof up to 100m. Credit: RingConn

The Gen 3 now detects blood pressure and sleep apnea, although neither feature is FDA-cleared. It's water-resistant, waterproof up to 100m.

Included with RingConn Gen 3 models is a travel charging case, which provides over 150 days of battery life.

The RingConn Gen 3 starts at $349 (brushed finishes cost $369) and is now available to order from RingConn and Amazon.

RingConn Gen 3 $349 at Amazon
  Shop Now at Amazon Shop Now at RingConn

Oura isn't the only one with a new smart ring. RingConn, a subscription-free alternative, just dropped its Gen 3 smart ring. It measures all the essential biometrics you want in a smart ring, and works around the screen-free design with a new innovation: a vibration motor.

The announcement of the new RingConn Gen 3 also comes the same week as Garmin announced the Cirqa, a tracker that looks noticeably similar to Whoop's health trackers.

About the RingConn Gen 3 Smart Ring The new RingConn Gen 3 comes in 10 sizes and five finishes. Credit: RingConn

What sets RingConn apart from fellow smart ring maker Oura is that it is subscription-free, meaning once you buy the ring, there's no recurring cost. The new Gen 3 comes in 10 sizes (6 to 16) and five different finishes, including silver, gold, black, brushed silver, and brushed rose gold.

The new ring claims outstanding battery life, up to 14 days, one of the longest of any fitness tracker we've seen. However, it's a bit shorter if you have vibration turned on. The vibration motor is a new addition to the Gen 3, notifying you of health alerts, sedentary reminders, and low battery.

When Oura launched the Oura Ring 5, its slimmer design was the headline, and the RingConn Gen 3 is only slightly bigger. It has a thickness of 2.3mm and a width of 6.8mm, while the Oura Ring 5 is 2.28mm thick and 6.09mm wide.

Take the RingConn Gen 3 with you in the water as its waterproof up to 100m. Credit: RingConn

The Gen 3 now detects blood pressure and sleep apnea, although neither feature is FDA-cleared. It's water-resistant, waterproof up to 100m.

Included with RingConn Gen 3 models is a travel charging case, which provides over 150 days of battery life.

The RingConn Gen 3 starts at $349 (brushed finishes cost $369) and is now available to order from RingConn and Amazon.

RingConn Gen 3 $349 at Amazon
  Shop Now at Amazon Shop Now at RingConn

SAVE $800: As of July 24, LG's 83-inch OLED evo AI 4K C6 Series Smart TV is down to $4,499.99 at Amazon. That's a 15% discount off its usual $5,299.99 price.

Opens in a new window Credit: LG LG 83-inch OLED evo C6 Series Smart TV $4,499.99 at Amazon
$5,299.99 Save $800   Get Deal

LG's 83-inch OLED evo 4K TV just dropped to $4,499.99 at Amazon, a 15% discount that saves you $800. If a bigger screen has been on your radar, this one delivers — 83 inches of OLED, with AI upscaling that cleans up older or lower-res content too.

This TV can get up to 3.2x brighter in the highlights, and since it's OLED, you still get deep, true blacks along with that brightness — over 8.3 million individually lit pixels mean the contrast looks accurate instead of washed out. The processor is fast too, so menus and streaming apps load and respond quickly.

SEE ALSO: The huge LG 100-Inch Class QNED evo AI TV hits record-low price at Amazon — save $700

For movies, you get Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, plus a Filmmaker Mode that shows the film the way it was actually shot, without extra picture enhancements added on top. If you game, this TV supports a 165Hz refresh rate, both NVIDIA G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, and a 0.1ms response time, so fast-moving games look smooth without lag.

The OLED Care feature is built to help protect the screen's picture quality over time, and the TV runs on webOS, LG's smart TV platform, which now includes Google Gemini and Microsoft Copilot for AI-assisted searching and streaming.

83 inches of pure OLED confidence — grab LG's evo 4K C6 Series Smart TV on Amazon before it goes back to full price.

SAVE $800: As of July 24, LG's 83-inch OLED evo AI 4K C6 Series Smart TV is down to $4,499.99 at Amazon. That's a 15% discount off its usual $5,299.99 price.

Opens in a new window Credit: LG LG 83-inch OLED evo C6 Series Smart TV $4,499.99 at Amazon
$5,299.99 Save $800   Get Deal

LG's 83-inch OLED evo 4K TV just dropped to $4,499.99 at Amazon, a 15% discount that saves you $800. If a bigger screen has been on your radar, this one delivers — 83 inches of OLED, with AI upscaling that cleans up older or lower-res content too.

This TV can get up to 3.2x brighter in the highlights, and since it's OLED, you still get deep, true blacks along with that brightness — over 8.3 million individually lit pixels mean the contrast looks accurate instead of washed out. The processor is fast too, so menus and streaming apps load and respond quickly.

SEE ALSO: The huge LG 100-Inch Class QNED evo AI TV hits record-low price at Amazon — save $700

For movies, you get Dolby Vision and Dolby Atmos, plus a Filmmaker Mode that shows the film the way it was actually shot, without extra picture enhancements added on top. If you game, this TV supports a 165Hz refresh rate, both NVIDIA G-Sync and AMD FreeSync, and a 0.1ms response time, so fast-moving games look smooth without lag.

The OLED Care feature is built to help protect the screen's picture quality over time, and the TV runs on webOS, LG's smart TV platform, which now includes Google Gemini and Microsoft Copilot for AI-assisted searching and streaming.

83 inches of pure OLED confidence — grab LG's evo 4K C6 Series Smart TV on Amazon before it goes back to full price.