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Anthropic just made Claude a lot more useful for a bunch of users.

The company's flagship AI chatbot just got upgraded to be compatible with several major apps, meaning it can now handle things like ordering food, hiring people for odd-jobs, and other random tasks that you might otherwise have to manually open an app to perform. Combine these new integrations with Claude's increasingly agentic capabilities, and you can offload a lot of work to Anthropic's chatbot.

Claude already had an extensive list of possible app connections, but there are some real heavy-hitters in the list of new additions:

• AllTrails

• Audible

• Booking.com

• Instacart

• Intuit Credit Karma

• Intuit TurboTax

• Resy

• Spotify

• StubHub

• TaskRabbit

• Thumbtack

• TripAdvisor

• Uber

• UberEats

• Viator

SEE ALSO: Discord group says it accessed Claude Mythos by guessing location

Anthropic's press release also noted that more are on the way. With these new connections, you can book a trip, order food, arrange a ride-share, or hire someone to mount your TV, all from one chatbot window. On top of these apps becoming compatible with Claude, Anthropic has also adjusted the chatbot so it will automatically suggest certain apps for certain actions, based on the context of your conversation with it.

Anthropic also clarified that there won't be sponsored answers or suggestions in the chat, maintaining that Claude is and will be ad-free going forward. Connected apps are also not used to train Claude, and they can't see other conversations you've had with the chatbot.

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Things are going pretty well for Netflix—it just wrapped a first quarter that pulled in $12.2 billion in revenue, and the company says its paid subscribership by the end of last year was somewhere in the vicinity of 325 million, globally (not to mention the $2.8 billion breakup fee it got for walking away from the Warner/Paramount thing.

SAVE 13%: As of April 24, you can get the 27-inch Asus ROG Swift OLED gaming monitor for $699, down from $799, at Amazon. That's a 13% discount or $100 savings.

27-inch Asus ROG Swift OLED gaming monitor $699 at Amazon
$799 Save $100   Get Deal at Amazon

I'm a big believer that your gaming setup is only as good as your monitor. You can have the most expensive, tricked-out PC in the world, but if your screen is lagging or blurring every time you move your mouse, it's basically useless. (Plus, playing on a slow display is super annoying.)

SEE ALSO: The best gaming laptops of 2026: Check out our top picks

Right now, you can upgrade your battlestation for less at Amazon. As of April 24, the Asus ROG Swift OLED 27-inch gaming monitor is down to $699, from $799. That’s a 13% discount or $100 savings.

According to Asus, this is the world's first 1440p 480Hz OLED gaming monitor. (Translation: it's, like, really fast.) You'll get a 480Hz refresh rate paired with a 0.03ms response time. It also features a built-in AI assistant (because, of course, it does), a matte screen, and anti-flicker tech to save your eyes during marathon gaming sessions.

Every day is the same story: your phone’s battery starts at 100%—hopefully—and by the afternoon, apps and services have chipped it down by half. That’s the simple part, but deciphering what’s actually using the battery is not as straightforward as you would think.

The Vim statusline is endlessly customizable, with a set of standard variables available, plus the ability to host almost anything using Vim script. But all this tweaking still takes effort; effort that others have already gone to, so you don’t have to.

It’s 2010 and it’s 1 a.m. early Sunday morning. You’re having a sleepover with your closest friends. You just finished a movie you ordered on Pay-Per-View without asking, hoping your parents won’t ask questions in a month when they get the cable bill. The clock says it’s time for bed, but you and your buddies aren’t tired. You break out the laptop. YouTube videos. ‘Shoes’ by Kelly for the hundredth time. Facebook ‘like for a rate’ posts. You give your crush an 8 because you don’t want to come off too eager. There’s just one last thing to do. 

Talk to strangers on the internet.

In 2009, Omegle launched with a simple premise: connect strangers from around the world one-on-one via text or video chat. The pairing was random, and anyone with internet access could join for free, no account required. Anonymity was baked into the website, meaning a 13-year-old in Oklahoma could just as easily be paired with a 47-year-old from Turkmenistan. For many users, it led to genuine lasting connections. But not everyone came to Omegle with good intentions. After it shut down for good in 2023, longtime users were left wondering: what happened to Omegle? We're here to tell you.

SEE ALSO: Adult Friend Finder vs. Tinder: How they compare as hookup apps What was Omegle?

Omegle was created in March 2009 by an 18-year-old in Vermont named Leif K-Brooks as a simple, anonymous text chat site that connected strangers one-on-one from around the world. It amassed over 150,000 page views every day after its first month and quickly became a go-to for bored internet users across the globe. A year later in March 2010, Omegle began offering one-on-one video chat with strangers. That means if you had a webcam, you could now use Omegle to chat face-to-face with people from just about anywhere. 

Omegle was marketed as a site for users ages 13 and up. If you were under 18, Omegle stated in its policy that you needed parental approval before accessing. Because there was no account needed, there weren’t any limitations at all. No parents were needed to sign this made-up permission slip. Anyone had the ability to access Omegle.

SEE ALSO: Omegle changed cybersex forever, for better or worse

In 2022, things changed. Well, that’s a lie. Just words did. Omegle’s new policy stated that users had to be 18+ without exception. Still, no account was needed to join, providing access to anyone who could type the word ‘Omegle’ into their internet search bar.

How did people use Omegle?

The premise was simple: connect with another person, judge them for a half-second based on their appearance, and decide whether or not you wanted to have a conversation. Conversations would typically begin with 'ASL?', standing for age/sex/location. You could chat by mic or keep it to text, awkwardly staring at each other until someone said something funny. When the conversation was over, you could choose to click the “Next” button at the bottom left corner and be connected with somebody else.

As mentioned, not everyone used Omegle for wholesome chatter. Some users were only there for one thing. To get off. This was a huge issue for children using the app. It was almost impossible to skip one person without the next being a man stroking his penis.

To combat this, Omegle eventually added 'moderators' — mainly just an automation system that banned people who exposed themselves from the jump. Due to ‘moderation’ in Omegle’s later years, you'd see way less dicks unless you were actively looking for them. You could start a conversation innocently enough and end up masturbating with a stranger if things went that way. Technically, this didn’t seem to break any rules Omegle was implementing, as long as you didn't lead with it.

Whether the conversation was platonic or sexual, all Omegle users came for the same reason: connection.

When was Omegle most popular?

Omegle was at its peak in its early years, but became a lifeline for human connection during the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020-2021. There was a resurgence in popularity with streamers, TikTokers, and YouTubers who were stuck inside with nothing to film. This brought a new generation to the site, connecting people across the globe during a time when people needed connection most. Between the months of February and May of 2020, Omegle reportedly had a monthly increase of 10 million. That’s pretty serious. We surely can’t count that high.

What made Omegle unique?

While Omegle was active, its only real competitor was Chatroulette, though it couldn't match Omegle feature for feature. Chatroulette was strictly video-to-video, while Omegle offered both text and video chat. Omegle also let you tailor your experience through 'tags'. Tags were keywords you typed in before starting a chat. Omegle would then match you with someone who typed the same thing, so you'd have something to talk about from the start. Tags could be anything — art, sports, dogs, beach, whatever came to mind.

SEE ALSO: App fatigue is real. I tested the best dating apps of 2026 to find the ones that really work.

Omegle also had 'Spy Mode', though it seemingly never quite caught on the way one-on-one chat did. Spy Mode worked one of two ways: you either submitted a question and watched two strangers debate it without being able to intervene, or you were one of the two strangers being watched. Like tags, you could ask any question you wanted.

Was Omegle safe?

The short answer? No. Omegle was not safe. While there were many ways to try and stop inappropriate interactions, there was nothing moderation could do to make it work.

Users with sexually-inclined tags — horny, sex, jo (jerking off), boobs — were typically matched with each other, separate from those just looking to talk. And since anyone could type anything into the tags bar, moderation was essentially nonexistent. Users could write anything, including racist and homophobic slurs, references to inappropriate and illegal content, and more. This means a 13-year-old could type the same tags and be matched directly with predators using them.

Omegle had an 'unmonitored' section, a designated space where users could be explicitly sexual without risk of being banned. The problem? Anyone could choose to use this section with the click of a button. The majority of people there were masturbating openly, meaning anyone who wandered in had access to explicit content with zero restriction. If a 'moderator' flagged you for inappropriate behavior, you could be dumped into the unmonitored section without warning (sometimes for days or weeks) with no way back into regular chat.

A full ban meant you couldn't access Omegle at all via your IP address, though it was never permanent. Days, weeks, maybe months later, you'd be back.

Spy Mode questions were also an issue, ranging from 'what's your favorite Pokémon?' to improv scenarios with your stranger, to what age you lost your virginity, to someone dropping an Instagram handle and telling both strangers to go message that person and tell them to kill themselves.

Essentially, there were no rules. Because of that, for many people, especially those under the age of 18, Omegle really could not be considered ‘safe’.

So, why did Omegle shut down?

After 14 years, Omegle shut down in November 2023, taking with it a strange little corner of the internet that millions of people had once called their own. When trying to access the site, users were greeted with the Omegle logo with the years 2009-2023 on a gravestone. A long message from founder K-Brooks followed, expressing why he came to the decision to shut the site down.

The goodbye letter was… weird. Defensive. Very ‘woe-is-me’.

In this message, K-Brooks mentions that financially and psychologically, he’d become unable to manage Omegle, explicitly saying he didn't want to "have a heart attack in my 30s." He pushes back on critics who accused him of letting crimes happen and turning his head, suggesting the moderation standards people expected of him were simply impossible to meet. He explains the shutdown of Omegle as "destroying the universe because it contains evil", essentially telling people that this decision is an attack against a free internet.

Toward the end of Omegle's life, something was going on behind the scenes. In 2019, a person identified only as 'A.M.' from Oregon filed a $22 million lawsuit against Omegle, alleging she was a victim of child sex exploitation on the site. The lawsuit argued that Omegle knew exactly what was happening, with the site even displaying a message that read "Predators have been known to use Omegle, so please be careful," right before accessing the rest of the site. Omegle tried to get the case thrown away, citing that the Communications Decency Act protected them from being held responsible for what users did on their platform, but the judge didn’t take the bait. Omegle’s design actively and knowingly paired minors with adults. It made Omegle culpable.

The $22 million lawsuit was settled just a few days before K-Brooks pulled the plug on Omegle entirely. His farewell letter even acknowledges A.M. by name, saying "I thank A.M. for opening my eyes to the human cost of Omegle."

And just like that, Omegle was in the trash bin.

Could Omegle ever come back?

Omegle was built with pure intentions by some kid in Vermont who just wanted to see what human connection could look like on the internet. For a lot of people, it delivered on that promise in ways no other site could. It made the world feel a little smaller, and a little less lonely.

But bad actors will act. And if you can't keep up with that, or take accountability for handing those people a platform in the first place, things will crumble.

In 2026, Omegle alternatives like Uhmegle, Thundr, and OmeTV fill the void, letting users chat with strangers across the globe the same way Omegle did. Most come with actual accountability measures Omegle never had. There are also fully NSFW Omegle alternatives now, designed specifically for one-on-one sexual content, giving that crowd a dedicated place to land.

So, could Omegle ever come back? Sure, but it probably won’t. Given the lawsuit and K-Brooks' farewell letter, Omegle seems destined to exist only in memory. And honestly, that's probably for the best.

Well, it’s time for some more fun homelab projects to try out this weekend! Today, I’m showing you how to replace Google Analytics with your own self-hosted tool, a better homelab dashboard, and even how to build out your own wiki (because your homelab really does need one).

About a month ago, the FCC decided to ban the import or sale of all new, foreign-made WiFi routers. Now, the list has expanded a bit.

Our friends at PCMag spotted an update to the FCC's router ban FAQ this week, indicating that portable WiFi hotspots are now included in the ban. In case you've never used one, these are little boxes that you can use to activate a WiFi network on the go. They use a SIM card to connect to a cellular network, converting it to WiFi for your other devices, rather than connecting to a modem via Ethernet.

The ban now also extends to fixed 5G wireless access points, which use a 5G cell network to blanket a home with WiFi.

SEE ALSO: The confusing U.S. router ban, explained: Which routers are banned?

Before you start panicking, it doesn't seem like this is going to affect very many people in the short term. For starters, using a smartphone to create a mobile Wi-Fi hotspot is still totally above board under these regulations.

Beyond that, T-Mobile told PCMag that the FCC's regulations do not prohibit the sale of networking equipment that you can already buy in the U.S. That means if the router was approved for sale prior to the ban, you can still buy and use it.

"The FCC's updated list of 'covered devices' does not affect any existing routers that were previously approved, so current customers have nothing to worry about and no action to take and their service will continue to operate normally with no equipment change necessary," T-Mobile told PCMag.

Given that ISPs tend to supply users with older or more basic routers, and that most people don't bother to voluntarily switch those out for newer and more advanced equipment, many WiFi users in the U.S. might not notice the effects of the FCC router ban at all.

However, it will become a nuisance for power users who want better performance or more features out of their routers. It will be interesting to see how long the U.S. government sticks to its position that routers pose a national security risk.

Want to learn more about getting the best out of your tech? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories and Deals newsletters today.

I have spent the past year working almost exclusively from my Galaxy devices. During that time, I fell in love with Samsung hardware and One UI software, but as well as it's worked, I've decided to ditch it all. I now carry a Murena Fairphone 6 in my pocket instead. Why? Well, I've grown tired of Big Tech doing what Big Tech does.

Milwaukee is one of the most popular and recognizable names in power tools, and there's a reason you're also seeing Milwaukee's red products in almost every pro or DIYer's pocket lately: the brand makes excellent utility knives and multi-tools that are the perfect balance of rugged reliability and sleek everyday carry.

SAVE 25%: As of April 24, you can get the DJI Neo mini drone for $149 at Amazon, down from $199. That's a 25% discount or $50 savings.

DJI Neo $149 at Amazon
$199 Save $50   Get Deal at Amazon

If you're interested in getting into droning (not sure if that's even an official word, but let's make it one), you're most likely going to want something that's small (i.e., doesn't require FAA registration), easy to fly, and has some sort of fail-safe just in case you run it into a tree or fly too close to an open body of water.

SEE ALSO: Insta360's new drone brand Antigravity teases world first 360-degree camera drone

Right now, you can get all of those beginner-friendly features and more at Amazon for just $149. As of April 24, the DJI Neo mini drone is marked down by 25% (a $50 price cut from its standard $199 price tag, and its lowest price to date, according to CamelCamelCamel).

The DJI Neo is super accessible. You don't even need a controller to fly it; it takes off and lands directly from the palm of your hand with just the push of a button. (You can also use voice control, the mobile DJI Fly app, or a standard RC). It weighs just 135g, features smart subject tracking to follow you around, and comes with full-coverage propeller guards so you can safely fly it indoors or navigate through tree branches without panicking.

Computer architects have always struggled with the problem of keeping processors fed with data. If a CPU is waiting for data, it's wasting performance. But the high-speed memory (RAM) that can keep it fed is expensive and limited in size, while secondary storage is large and cheap, but orders of magnitude slower.

ESP32s are so hot right now. More people than ever are discovering just how versatile these tiny boards can be, and their rock-bottom price point makes them perfect for use in fun DIY projects.

Affordable transportation is no longer limited to small gas-powered sedans. As electric vehicles become cheaper to buy and easier to live with, some are starting to deliver genuine long-term savings without the premium pricing that once defined the segment. One American EV stands out by proving that going electric can be one of the smartest financial decisions a budget-conscious buyer can make.

If your weekend plans involve doing something interesting with your Linux setup, I've done some of the legwork for you. Instead of spending three hours reading Reddit threads only to install something mediocre, here are three apps worth actually trying. One fixes cross-device file sync without touching the cloud, one makes Markdown readable in your terminal, and one turns speech into text locally without phoning home.

SAVE $300: The Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV is on sale for $597.99 at Amazon. That's the best-ever price and includes Xbox GamePass for free.

Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV $597.99 at Amazon
$897.99 Save $300   Get Deal at Amazon

We were thrilled to spot the Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV on sale at Amazon. We were even more pleased to see that is was down to its best-ever price, and we almost combusted when we noticed that one month of Xbox GamePass comes free with purchases.

We see a lot of deals, so almost erupting into flames is not regular occurrence. But then, this isn't a regular deal. The Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV is on sale for $597.99 at Amazon. That's $300 off the list price for a limited time, before you even consider the Xbox GamePass freebie.

To claim Xbox GamePass for free with your purchase, you need to follow these simple steps:

1. Add the Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV to your online cart.

2. When you're done shopping, select Go to Cart.

3. The offer will automatically be applied at checkout, if eligible.

It's that easy.

A number of TVs qualify for this promotion, but this Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV might offer the best value for money. The picture offers the sharp and accurate contrast of Neo QLED enabled by precision-controlled Mini LEDs. Users also get AI enhanced picture quality and optimized sound for superb performance in everything you watch.

Score the best-ever price on the Samsung 55-Inch Class Neo QLED TV at Amazon.

Most of the time when AI features are shoehorned into software and services these days, it gets in the way more than being of any real use.

In 2024, I made a concerted effort to cut every paid subscription I could. I moved what I could to free and open source alternatives, including replacing my Microsoft 365 workflow and rethinking how I handled cloud storage. I also cleaned up the obvious redundancies, things like overlapping streaming services and subscriptions I was barely using. On paper, it worked. My monthly spend dropped, and I proved to myself that you can get surprisingly far without paying for software.

On April 12, I attended the PWHL game at TD Garden in Boston between the Boston Fleet and the Montreal Victoire. The Heated Rivalry effect was inescapable. It was an opportunity for hockey fans to turn out their favorite merch — someone in my row excitedly ran toward the crowd cameras to show off her 'I'm coming to the cottage' T-shirt. Heated Rivalry actor Ksenia Daniela Kharlamova was in the crowd, and the cheers that ensued when she appeared on the screen made you think one of the teams had scored a goal. And when the Heated Rivalry look-a-like contest winners shared a kiss on the jumbotron while t.A.T.u's "All the Things She Said" played, it caused the 17,000-person crowd to collectively lose their minds.

Since HBO Max's Heated Rivalry premiered in November 2025, actors Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie, as well as their characters Shane Hollander and Ilya Rozanov, have become household names. But so has Rachel Reid. The author of Heated Rivalry and the Game Changer series, of which it's a part, has always had a loyal fan base, but now that the show is a global hit, it reaches far beyond the scope of the show and books.

BookCon 2026 marked the first big event for Reid since the Heated Rivalry adaptation, and fans came ready to celebrate and meet their favorite author. I sat down with Reid to chat about fandom and maintaining a sense of normalcy amidst the phenomenon.

Rachel Reid kicked off BookCon 2026 with "Heated Rivalry" show creator, Jacob Tierney. Credit: Samantha Mangino / Mashable

Samantha Mangino: What's it like meeting fans at BookCon?

Rachel Reid: It's been great. For the last few years, more and more people have been wanting to meet me at these kinds of events. Even before the show [HBO Max's Heated Rivalry], it was already pretty surreal and overwhelming, but in a really good way. Now with the show, it's really exploded. I mean, I'm doing a photo line. That kind of thing makes you feel like you're in a Marvel movie.

SM: You said during your panel yesterday that authors aren't supposed to be seen like this, so I imagine it feels unbelievable to have all the eyes on you.

RR: Getting recognized all over New York, too, is a pretty wild feeling as an author. I've been getting like drive-by, "I love you, Rachels," and people on the street recognizing me. As an author, that's very odd. I think even the biggest authors on earth don't get recognized that often. We're just not seen that often.

SM: I think it really speaks to the show's popularity.

RR: Yeah, with all the promo the show has gotten, and everybody who made the show has been fantastic about including me in that, and that's been the difference maker.

SM: How do you feel life has changed since the show came out?

RR: I have to be a little more aware that things I say might become headlines. I can't just make flippant jokes. Things I share tend to get shared, so maybe I don't post as often. I'm also aware that people could be photographing or video recording me at any time. So I'm a little more careful there, although not as careful as I should be. I'm still getting used to that.

Obviously, my career has leveled up many, many levels very quickly. I feel like I've skipped steps somewhere. I had a list of goals that I checked off all at once. So now it's about thinking ahead and rethinking my goals.

SM: Have you been online, kind of watching the fandom explode?

RR: Not that much. I try to stay out of fan spaces generally, and I did that before the show, too, but certainly since the show, and my new book was announced. I've stayed away from like Reddit. I'm not on Threads, I haven't been on Twitter in years. I haven't been on Goodreads in years. I just use Instagram. I think it creates a nice barrier. I do have friends, so if I see hints of things happening on Threads, I'll be like, "Can you explain this to me?" I'm not gonna look myself.

SM: Are there any other boundaries you've created online?

RR: Definitely, I don't want anybody giving me ideas for the book. That's a big one. Obviously, I don't read fan fiction because that would not be a good idea.

I try to make myself a little less accessible than I used to be, and sometimes I feel bad about it, but it's just necessary. I do have kids, and I'm trying to maintain our privacy as much as possible. It helps that I live in Nova Scotia, Canada, which is not a big or fancy place. So when I'm home, my life doesn't feel that different. When I travel for things like this [BookCon], I get to face it.

SM: What's it been like gaining so many new fans since the show aired?

RR: It's been wild to see how Ilya and Shane have become household names. My characters went from having a small but loyal fan base, which was lovely too, but now everybody I've ever known knows these characters and has opinions about them. It feels like I found a genie and wished for the world to be obsessed with everything I wrote.

Everyone is so into these characters, and I think it speaks to how amazing a job Jacob [Tierney] and everyone involved did making the show.

It's a beautiful show, and I'm not surprised that people like it as much as they do, but I certainly didn't think it would find such a wide audience. There's something about the timing of it, and I think what people are craving too, that just made it all click.

People have told me it has changed their relationships with coworkers, neighbors, and even some relatives, because they didn't think they could be open about who they are with these people. Still, then, because they're such big fans of the show, they thought maybe it would be OK if I told them a little more about myself. Places feel a little safer than they did before.

We've all been there. A friend comes over, asks for the Wi-Fi password, and you hand it over without a second thought. Then your new gaming rig joins the same network as your old laptop, your partner's work PC, and that mystery device from three apartments ago that somehow still remembers your SSID.