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Today's NYT Strands hints are easy for a workaholic.

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

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

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

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

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 26, 2026 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: All in a day's work

The words are adjectives related to an occupation.

Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe responsibilities.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.

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NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is Part of the Job.

NYT Strands word list for August 26

• Errand

• Assignment

• Part of the Job

• Duty

• Task

• Chore

• Project

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

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

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

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

Looking for spoiler-free NYT Connections hints or just wondering why Connections is trending today? We've got what you need to understand the clues for today's puzzle without spoiling any of the answers.

Of course, Mashable has also provided daily hints and answers for Connections, Wordle, and Strands for years, so we can help you if that's also what you need.

While we are focused more on meanings than hints in this story, sometimes learning that many of the words have completely unrelated meanings is a clue in and of itself. Connections frequently includes clues that involve words within words and other visual clues.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 26, 2026 Park meaning

To stop driving a vehicle, or a green space for people to enjoy.

Lime meaning

A type of fruit.

Forte meaning

Area of expertise.

Largo meaning

A musical term.

Presto meaning

A musical term, or a word a magician might say.

Signature meaning

A music-related term, or when someone signs their name.

Page meaning

A single sheet of paper within a book.

Gift meaning

Something given to another, usually for a special occasion.

Phosphorous meaning

A chemical element.

Behold meaning

To look upon, sometimes used as an exclamation.

Chain meaning

An object, often metal, connected by a series of links.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

Voilà meaning

A French expression that essentially means "here it is."

Talent meaning

Referring to skill and ability.

Shazam meaning

Something a magician might say.

Strength meaning

Related to characteristics that allow someone or something to lift or withstand.

Piano meaning

An instrument that is played by pressing keys.

Have you learned the meanings and still want the things? Check out the hints and answers for today's NYT Connections puzzle.

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

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

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

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

Today's Wordle answer should be easy to solve if you have a farm.

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

SEE ALSO: Mahjong, Sudoku, free crossword, and more: Play games on Mashable SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Clues, answers for August 26, 2026 Where did Wordle come from?

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

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

What's the best Wordle starting word?

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

What happened to the Wordle archive?

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

Is Wordle getting harder?

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

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for August 26, 2026 Here's a subtle hint for today's Wordle answer:

A castrated rooster.

Does today's Wordle answer have a double letter?

There are no recurring letters.

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

Today's Wordle starts with the letter C.

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

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

Drumroll please!

The solution to today's Wordle is...

CAPON

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

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

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

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

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

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

If you like playing daily word games like Wordle, then Hurdle is a great game to add to your routine.

There are five rounds to the game. The first round sees you trying to guess the word, with correct, misplaced, and incorrect letters shown in each guess. If you guess the correct answer, it'll take you to the next hurdle, providing the answer to the last hurdle as your first guess. This can give you several clues or none, depending on the words. For the final hurdle, every correct answer from previous hurdles is shown, with correct and misplaced letters clearly shown.

An important note is that the number of times a letter is highlighted from previous guesses does necessarily indicate the number of times that letter appears in the final hurdle.

Want more tech and digital culture news delivered to your inbox daily or sent straight to your device? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter or get Mashable push alerts today.

If you find yourself stuck at any step of today's Hurdle, don't worry! We have you covered.

SEE ALSO: Hurdle: Everything you need to know to find the answers Hurdle Word 1 hint

Hurled.

Hurdle Word 1 answer

THREW

Hurdle Word 2 hint

Doomed

SEE ALSO: Wordle today: Answer, hints for August 26, 2026 Hurdle Word 2 Answer

GONER

Hurdle Word 3 hint

Belief.

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for August 26, 2026 SEE ALSO: NYT Connections hints today: Meanings for each word for Aug. 26, 2026 Hurdle Word 3 answer

FAITH

Hurdle Word 4 hint

Member of the Catholic Church.

Hurdle Word 4 answer

FRIAR

Final Hurdle hint

A tooth.

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

MOLAR

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

TL;DR: Babbel helps you learn a new language naturally, and lifetime access is just $159 with code LEARN.

Opens in a new window Credit: Babbel Babbel Language Learning: Lifetime Subscription (All Languages) $159
$299 Save $140   Get Deal

Every language-learning app is a little different, but many of them have the same issue. Instead of learning a language naturally, you just end up memorizing vocabulary and obscure grammar rules. Steady conversation practice matters more than rote memorization. Babbel builds its courses around real dialogue across 14 languages, with speech recognition and an AI conversation partner to help you sound more natural. Right now, a lifetime subscription is only $159 (reg. $599).

Babbel gives you lifetime access to courses in 14 different languages, and the format is designed to fit into real life. Each lesson takes around 10 to 15 minutes, so you can actually stick with it whether you’re commuting, traveling, or just squeezing in some study time between meetings.

Here are a few of the included languages

• Spanish

• French

• German

• Italian

• Portuguese

• Swedish

And that’s just the beginning.

Unlike other apps that focus heavily on word games or repetitive matching drills, Babbel centers its content around practical conversation topics. You’ll get lessons on travel, shopping, business, culture, and more, all developed by expert linguists and backed by academic research. Speech recognition helps fine-tune your pronunciation, while the new AI-powered conversation partner lets you practice speaking in real time.

Lessons sync across devices, so you can start on your computer and finish on your phone. There’s also an offline mode if you want to download lessons in advance. You can move at your own pace, revisit review sessions, and switch between beginner, intermediate, and advanced levels based on your comfort level.

Use code LEARN by Sept. 10 at 11:59 p.m. PT to get a Babbel lifetime subscription on sale for $159.

StackSocial prices subject to change.

With rare exception, I start my day by skimming a handful of RSS feeds specific to my interests and my work. Then, if any of them are relevant to a work project, I paste them into a document so I can reference them later.

BMW's latest electric SUV shows just how far the automotive industry has pushed its touchscreen obsession. Its enormous infotainment display doesn't just handle navigation and entertainment. It replaces many of the physical controls drivers once used without taking their eyes off the road. BMW says the shift reflects changing preferences among younger buyers, but the result feels less intuitive rather than more advanced.

Dolly Parton, the country music legend who somehow felt less like a distant superstar and more like someone America collectively knew, has died, her family announced. She was 80.

Parton's nephew Bryan Seaver announced her death in a video posted to her official social media accounts on Aug. 25. He said Parton died peacefully in Nashville and that "Dolly has lived in the light and is in the arms of Jesus." A cause of death was not announced. A small, private service will be held for her immediate family.

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Almost immediately, social media filled with the usual markers of collective grief: favorite songs, old interviews, movie scenes, personal stories, and declarations that this particular loss felt different. But people were not only mourning the woman who gave the world "Jolene," "9 to 5," and "I Will Always Love You." They were mourning Dolly herself — the rhinestones, the one-liners, the enormous hair, the even bigger heart, and the uncanny ability to make millions of strangers feel as if she were rooting for them personally.

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Parton was one of the rare celebrities whose fame never appeared to place much distance between her and everyone else. She spoke openly about growing up poor in a one-room cabin in Tennessee. She joked about her wigs, her body, and the money it took to achieve her famously over-the-top look. She could deliver a perfectly constructed punchline, then turn around and say something so sincere that it caught people off guard.

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Best of all, her humor made it clear that the "dumb blonde" persona was always a performance, and that she was the person most in on the joke: "I’m not offended by all the dumb blonde jokes because I know I’m not dumb," she famously said. "And I also know that I’m not blonde."

The combination of glamour, intelligence, warmth, and self-awareness made her beloved far beyond the country music world. People who had never bought one of her albums still knew Dolly, somehow, someway.

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Parton was musician Miley Cyrus' godmother, and according to Cyrus, "Dolly's been like a mother to me." She guided Cyrus through every stage of her career, and the two performed together many times, including on "Jolene" and a soaring New Year's Eve medley of "Wrecking Ball” and “I Will Always Love You.”

Cyrus once recalled Parton sending her a fax that read, "How much do I love you? As much as my heart can hold and as far as my arms can reach."

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Parton has spent much of her career championing younger female artists, like Cyrus. She joined Kesha on a recording of "Old Flames (Can’t Hold a Candle to You)," and Kesha later called Parton a "guiding light" and said that working with her changed the way she judged her own music. Parton also sang with Bebe Rexha on the 2023 ballad "Seasons" and Sabrina Carpenter for a country-inflected version of "Please, Please, Please." Back in January, she brought Miley Cyrus, Lainey Wilson, Queen Latifah, and Reba McEntire together for a new recording of "Light of a Clear Blue Morning", with proceeds benefiting pediatric cancer research.

She also never prohibited other women from reinterpreting her music. Beyoncé put her own spin on "Jolene." The White Stripes turned it into garage rock. Whitney Houston transformed "I Will Always Love You" into a global phenomenon. Parton seemed genuinely delighted whenever someone found a new way into one of her songs; after all, she always saw herself as a songwriter first and foremost.

"At the end of the day, I hope that I will be remembered as a good songwriter," Parton once wrote. "The songs are my legacy

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Parton reportedly wrote thousands of songs during her life, often drawing from the people, poverty, faith, and complicated emotions of her childhood in the Smoky Mountains: "My Tennessee Mountain Home" captured the place that continued to ground her after she became famous. "Light of a Clear Blue Morning" turned her own hard-won independence into an anthem about believing better days were coming. And in "The Bargain Store," she transformed a secondhand shop into a tender metaphor for a heart that had been hurt but still had something to give.

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The numbers behind that legacy are staggering. Parton sold more than 100 million records worldwide, landed 25 songs at No. 1 on Billboard's country chart, and placed 47 albums in the country Top 10. She earned 10 competitive Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award in 2011, and two Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song. She was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1999, the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001, and the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2022.

And music was only one part of what she built. Parton starred in movies including 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, and Steel Magnolias; wrote the score for the Broadway adaptation of 9 to 5; and co-founded the production company behind projects including Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Father of the Bride. She also turned Dollywood into one of Tennessee’s best-known attractions and, in 2025, received the Academy’s Jean Hersholt Humanitarian Award for using her success to help others.

Her care for people took forms more tangible than a song to play over and over again. Parton founded the Imagination Library in 1995 because her father could not read or write. What began as a program for children in her Tennessee home county grew into an international effort, Dolly Parton's Imagination Library, that has sent hundreds of millions of free books to children.

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She also donated $1 million to research at Vanderbilt University, which helped fund the development of Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine. She also supported communities affected by wildfires, funded scholarships, and invested in her home state through Dollywood. For Parton, generosity was not a carefully managed addition to her image, but part of what she did with the power that image gave her.

"Don't get so busy making a living that you forget to make a life." - Iconic quote from the late Dolly Parton

Parton's husband of nearly 60 years, Carl Dean, died in March 2025. She later postponed and ultimately canceled a planned Las Vegas residency while dealing with health problems. Yet just four days before her death, she was still talking about what she wanted to create next.

"I’ve dreamed myself into a corner, and I still have so many things I want to achieve," she told People on Aug. 21.

Dolly was never simply preserving a legacy. She was always writing another song, planning another project, making another joke, or finding another way to help.

Those wishing to honor Parton are urged by her family to share a message by tagging @DollyParton on social media or leaving one on her official website. In lieu of flowers, the family has requested donations to Dolly Parton’s Imagination Library.

For years, Android users have been sneaking into the Developer Options to make their phones feel faster—this article is not about that. I found a different, less “hacky” setting that sped up my Pixel phone, and I didn’t expect it to matter as much as it did.

Cyberdecks have been wildly popular with DIY enthusiasts for a good reason: you can build a portable computer that does what your usual PC can't, often with more style and a lower price. Raspberry Pi is eager to hop on the trend, and has just shared a tutorial that teaches you how to build a cyberdeck from scratch.

Your car's 12V outlet is probably one of its most overlooked features. While many drivers only use it for an old-fashioned cigarette lighter or a phone charger, it can power a surprisingly wide range of useful accessories, from dash cameras and tire inflators to portable coolers, vacuum cleaners, and even heated blankets.

Food photos are supposed to make you hungry, but the ones currently haunting social media look more likely to crawl off the menu than end up on a plate.

Over the weekend, tech reporter Sam Biddle shared a deli sign featuring what appears to be a dozen glossy, shrimp-shaped bagels sitting on a pile of noodles. Other dishes on the menu included perfectly round piles of pasta, strangely smooth sandwiches, and ingredients that seemed to melt into one another.

"The death of folk graphic design in favor of AI slop across our country's delis is leading to some incredibly Lovecraftian food horrors," Biddle wrote on X.

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The post struck a nerve. Soon, users were flooding the replies and quote posts with their own equally cursed sightings of apparent AI-generated food ads in delis, restaurants, food trucks, fairs, and even their mailboxes.

Some shared menus filled with suspiciously perfect cheesesteaks and sandwiches whose ingredients seemed to fuse together. Others posted burgers with porous, honeycomb-like buns and fillings resembling mushrooms or tentacles. "More AI flyer slop menus. They’re popping up everywhere and it seems to be getting worse and worse," one user said.

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The conversation was not limited to restaurants. "Quirky, low-budget signage is being replaced by this grotesque, uncanny monoslop," X user Adam Johnson wrote. "Not the biggest injustice in the world, but a small piece of culture is dying."

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That idea — that something small but distinctly human is being lost — appeared repeatedly throughout the conversation.

Communications executive Jules Mossler acknowledged online why a small business with "razor thin" margins might turn to tools promising cheaper, more professional advertising. But she argued that doing so can erase the handmade details people actually like about local businesses. "We want the sign you and your sister made; the misspellings, the chipped paint," Mossler wrote on X.

"I don’t think people know how to articulate why [these AI images] leave you deeply sad," she added.

The internet is already fed up with AI slop

The restaurant backlash is part of a much larger revolt against the synthetic material flooding the internet. "AI slop" generally refers to low-quality, mass-produced generative AI content created to fill feeds, attract clicks, or make a quick buck. It can take the form of generic LinkedIn posts, fake celebrity photos, impossible animal-rescue videos, nonsensical recipes, or advertisements filled with people and products that never existed.

SEE ALSO: The internet is drowning in AI slop. Here's how we got here.

The term has become so inescapable that Merriam-Webster selected "slop" as its 2025 Word of the Year, defining it as "digital content of low quality that is produced usually in quantity by means of artificial intelligence."

People are not simply complaining about it anymore. Platforms are beginning to respond to users who want less AI-generated material in their feeds.

Pinterest introduced controls that let people request fewer generative AI images, eventually expanding the setting to its food and drink category. Snapchat announced that fully AI-generated videos would no longer qualify for recommendations on Spotlight. LinkedIn is introducing a "Seems like AI slop" option that allows users to flag posts they consider generic or machine-made. More than 1 million people reportedly used the button within its first few weeks.

That broader exhaustion helps explain why the restaurant menus struck such a nerve. People are already tired of examining every image and video in their feeds for signs that it is fake. They especially do not want to play detective while deciding what to eat for lunch.

AI food looks like food...until it doesn't

Food photography has always involved a certain amount of fakery. Professional stylists carefully arrange ingredients, manipulate lighting, and edit photos to make dishes look more appealing. But an AI-generated food image introduces a different disconnect — and an uncanny effect.

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The effect is apparently strong enough to provoke a physical response. Reddit threads featuring these images are filled with mentions of trypophobia, an aversion to clusters of small holes or bumps. "Gah it gives me trypophobia — kinda ruins my appetite," one commenter wrote beneath photos of an AI-generated restaurant display in San Francisco.

In a separate r/antiai thread, commenters compared the pictured food to mold, bugs, intestines, brain matter, and diseases. "Everything looks like it was grown into position; nothing prepared or assembled," one user wrote, describing it as "more creature or sentient fungus than food."

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Generated text can make matters even worse. According to a Food & Wine column, an apparent AI-created restaurant menu advertised dishes including "Crslay Fried Mussels Pot Ksascte Barno" and "Homemade ice Croams."

AI is also creating problems before food ever reaches a menu. Social media platforms are filling up with generated recipe videos depicting impossible cheese pulls, contradictory instructions, and finished dishes that cannot be recreated.

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Earlier this year, a writer at The Cut spent a week cooking recipes that appeared to use AI. The results included garlic "breadsticks" that became an eggy sheet and zucchini "crackers" that remained soft in the middle while burning around the edges. One of the few recipes that tasted good appeared to have been copied almost word-for-word from a human food blogger.

Looking gross is only part of the problem. Many people participating in the online conversation said that seeing AI-generated food made them less likely to trust the restaurant.

"Please know that if you’re a restaurant that uses AI slop to sell your food, I automatically do not trust you and will not eat at your establishment," one X user wrote.

Others argued that having no pictures would be preferable to showing a synthetic version of what a dish might look like. Another post contrasted a plain, old-fashioned letterboard menu with a glossy AI-generated sign, asking how to explain to small-business owners that the simple menu was "one billion times more appealing."

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Some restaurants are getting doxxed. Grind & Unwind, a new café and bar in San Francisco's Haight neighborhood, got exposed in the subreddit r/sanfrancisco back in July when commenters compared its AI-generated focaccia to a loofah, said a croissant looked like an alien larva, and described the pulled pork and coleslaw as something straight out of The Last of Us.

The restaurant's owners confirmed to SFGATE that the display used AI-generated images and was intended to be temporary.

"It was kind of a stir on Haight Street, which is good and bad, I guess," co-owner Lyndsey Lozano said. "But the response was not what we were expecting."

The online criticism eventually spilled into the real world when the restaurant's awning was vandalized. The owners have since removed the AI display and replaced it with a window showcasing the restaurant's actual pastries.

The debate moved up North: Posters advertising food at Toronto's Canadian National Exhibition recently prompted another online conversation over apparent AI use. Images promoting items, including a "KD Smoothie" and a "Cotton Chick Buldak Ramen Taco," drew as much attention for their strange textures and inconsistent ingredients as for the food concepts themselves. Reddit users were already placing bets on how many AI posters they would find around the fair.

Credit: Screenshot: Reddit, r/toronto

Other restaurants appear to be reading the room. As Rachel Karten, writer of Substack Link In Bio, pointed out, small businesses are now going viral by publicly promising not to use AI-generated advertising.

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The Chugwater Soda Fountain in Chugwater, Wyoming, shared a photo of an employee holding a handwritten cardboard sign reading, "We will not be using AI flyers or photos to promote ourselves."

"From-scratch food and from-scratch marketing," the restaurant wrote in the caption. As of Aug. 25, the post had received more than 71,000 likes. GOAT Nantwich, a bar in the UK, joined the trend with its own handwritten note promising: "We will not be using any AI posters to promote ourselves."

The anti-AI declarations are still marketing, of course. But their popularity shows how quickly the use of AI has gone from a convenient shortcut to something businesses may feel the need to disavow.

Restaurants once tried to make every image look as polished as possible. But now, it seems a piece of cardboard and imperfect handwriting can become their biggest selling point.

Ultimately, the internet's request is not particularly complicated: make the food, put it on a plate, and take a picture. Restaurants, it's OK if it doesn't look perfect. At least it won’t look back at us.

Perplexity originally made its name as an AI search engine, but it also has a product called Computer.

Don't hate me for saying this, but summer is on its last legs. But if you must stay inside for some binge-watching, you could do worse than HBO Max. While the service is basking in the green glow of its chart-topping, 93%-rated Lanterns, U.S. subscribers still have some new and new-ish things to watch.

Chevrolet introduced the High Country trim for the 2014 Silverado, giving the truck a touch of rugged luxury, complete with its signature chrome trim and saddle-brown leather. Since then, Chevrolet has added the High Country to four other models in the lineup, including the Tahoe, Suburban, Traverse, and Silverado HD. Now the High Country nameplate is getting what is arguably its most visible redesign yet, and Chevrolet is introducing it on an SUV before anything else.

Nintendo is releasing a pair of new Switch 2 bundles later this fall, the company announced Tuesday. Both bundles will include a three-month Nintendo Switch Online Individual membership and a download code for a game.

The timing of this announcement is notable: The Switch 2 is getting $50 more expensive on Sept. 1, jumping from $449.99 to $499.99. These new bundles will be two ways of saving a little money on the popular console following its price hike.

Credit: Nintendo

The first bundle features Mario Kart World and launches sometime in "late September," according to a company press release. It will retail for $549.99, which works out to a $37.98 savings versus buying the system, the game, and the Switch Online membership separately.

The second bundle comes with a copy of Nintendo Switch Sports Resort, the latest entry in Nintendo's sports simulation series. It arrives on Oct. 22 — the same day as the game itself — and has a sticker price of $529.99, saving shoppers $27.98. Preorders for the bundle will open "soon," the company said.

Credit: Nintendo

Nintendo used to sell three Switch 2 game bundles (sans memberships) for $499.99, including one with Mario Kart World, but they were out of stock everywhere at the time of writing.

The gaming giant announced its $50 Switch 2 price hike this May "[in] light of changes in market conditions." As Mashable previously reported, that's almost certainly a reference to the global memory shortage stemming from the AI boom, aka "RAMageddon." In recent months, tech companies like Amazon, Apple, Dell, Microsoft, and Sony have increased their own hardware prices due to the same circumstances.

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

Not too long ago, seeing only 30% battery left on your status bar meant your phone was basically as good as dead. In fact, that's still a reality for many people with fairly new phones. However, ever since I upgraded to a phone with a silicon-carbon battery, I've been leaving the house with a third of my battery left without a hint of anxiety. Let me explain why.

Imagine opening Instagram and reaching the bottom of your feed. Or having to press play on every Reel yourself. Stories no longer disappear after 24 hours, beauty filters are restricted, and the algorithm has less control over what you see next.

That version of Instagram may sound almost unrecognizable, but it could become a reality if Meta loses a landmark lawsuit brought by California and 28 other states.

The states accuse Meta of deliberately designing Facebook and Instagram to keep children and teenagers online while concealing what it knew about the potential harms. Infinite scrolling, autoplaying videos, disappearing Stories, beauty filters, push notifications, visible "likes," and algorithm-driven feeds are all under scrutiny.

SEE ALSO: Which countries have banned social media for kids?

That means this case isn’t only about whether Meta owes an enormous amount of money, but it could determine whether Instagram and Facebook are allowed to keep working the way we know them.

"Hook, hold, harvest, hide."

The trial began Aug. 18 in Oakland, California, and is expected to last six to eight weeks. California, Colorado, Kentucky, and New Jersey are leading this phase of the case, with support from 25 other coalition members, including Arizona, Connecticut, Illinois, New York, Oregon, and Wisconsin. During opening statements, California Deputy Attorney General Megan O’Neill summed up Meta’s alleged strategy with four words: "hook, hold, harvest, hide."

According to the states, Meta "hooks" young users with psychologically compelling features, "holds" their attention for as long as possible, "harvests" their data, and then "hides" evidence of the resulting harm from the public.

The lawsuit goes beyond the familiar argument that teenagers simply spend too much time on their phones. In their federal complaint, the states allege Meta deliberately designed Facebook and Instagram to exploit young people’s lower impulse control and heightened sensitivity to rewards. They also accuse the company of collecting personal information from children under 13 without parental consent, in violation of the Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, and misleading parents and users about the safety of its platforms.

If the states prevail, Meta may have to do more than write a massive check. The attorneys general are seeking injunctive and monetary relief intended to address Meta’s alleged conduct and break that cycle of compulsive use. That could mean removing or substantially redesigning infinite scroll, autoplay, algorithm-heavy feeds, beauty filters, Stories, and other features accused of keeping young people glued to their screens.

And those changes may not stop at children’s accounts. Maintaining different versions of Instagram and Facebook for different ages and countries would be complicated and expensive, so Meta could end up changing the apps for everyone. Other platforms may follow its lead, too — especially if they think similar lawsuits are headed their way.

"This trial is potentially the end of social media as we know it," Forrester principal analyst Kate Winick told CNBC.

"An outlandish payout"

Of course, Meta is also facing a staggering financial threat. The company has warned that potential damages could reach approximately $1.4 trillion, although state attorneys have reportedly described roughly $200 billion as a more realistic figure. The larger sum is close to Meta’s total market value, while even the lower estimate would rival the company’s annual revenue.

Meta has denied the allegations. "Rather than sticking to the facts or the law, the states have instead decided to chase an outlandish payout," company spokesperson Liza Crenshaw told The Guardian.

During opening statements, Meta attorney Paul Schmidt argued that the company has acknowledged people can struggle with social media use and has developed tools intended to help. He also said Meta does not allow children under 13 to create accounts and has disabled more than 1 million accounts belonging to underage users.

The states, however, are attempting to show that Meta knew its existing safeguards were not enough and failed to act when employees raised concerns. One of their most prominent witnesses is Arturo Béjar, a former Meta safety engineer who worked at the company during two separate periods between 2009 and 2021 and said he briefed Zuckerberg more than 100 times.

Béjar testified Aug. 18 and 19 that the issue became personal after his teenage daughter received unwanted sexual advances, explicit images, and misogynistic insults on Instagram. When she tried to report the abuse, he said, the platform’s existing tools were either ineffective or unavailable. Béjar described Meta’s approach to child safety as a "don’t ask, don’t tell strategy."

During his testimony, attorneys showed the jury a 2021 email Béjar sent to Zuckerberg about Meta’s own internal research. The survey, which questioned nearly 240,000 Instagram users, found that more than half of teenage respondents had encountered at least one harmful experience during the previous seven days. Béjar also testified that content connected to those experiences was removed only 0.02 percent of the time. He said he sent the findings directly to Zuckerberg because he had seen the company move quickly when its CEO made something a priority, but Zuckerberg never responded.

Meta has disputed Béjar’s account and unsuccessfully tried to prevent him from testifying. The company later told The Guardian that he had overstated his role at Meta and taken credit for work he did not perform.

The trial is far from over. Zuckerberg and Instagram head Adam Mosseri are both expected to take the stand before it wraps up. The jury will weigh the evidence, but its verdict is only advisory; U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers will ultimately decide whether Meta is liable and what it may have to pay.

And Meta isn’t the only platform with reason to pay attention. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has said YouTube and Snap could face similar cases, meaning any changes forced on Facebook and Instagram may eventually spread across the rest of social media.

And for the first time in years, "You’re all caught up" might actually mean it.

If you’ve ever opened the Instagram Reels editor, selected a pile of videos, and immediately decided that posting might not be worth the trouble, Instagram would like to prevent that particular creative crisis.

On Aug. 25, the platform globally launched First Draft, a new one-tap editing tool that turns several videos into a short, fully edited Reel in under 10 seconds.

The process starts the same way as making any other Reel: You select the videos you want to use from your camera roll. But instead of pressing “Next” and manually cutting them down, you can tap the new "First draft" button.

Credit: Instagram

From there, Instagram's model works through three steps: analyzing the clips, identifying their highlights, and trimming them to reduce the overall length. It then delivers a complete cut that users can preview, continue adjusting, add music to, or move directly to Instagram's usual posting screen.

Credit: Instagram

The cuts can be pretty substantial. In an example shared with Mashable, First Draft condensed four minutes and 54 seconds of footage into a 17-second Reel featuring highlights from several rollerblading videos.

The idea isn’t to let Instagram make every creative decision for you. Instead, First Draft handles some of the repetitive work of finding usable moments and cutting them together, while still giving creators the option to change its selections before posting. Basically, it eliminates some of the "staring at your camera roll and questioning your life" portion of the process.

Credit: Instagram

First Draft is also built directly into Instagram’s existing Reels creation flow, so creators won’t have to move their footage into another app to use it. That separates the tool from Edits, Instagram’s standalone video editor, which offers more advanced features, including a frame-accurate timeline, storyboards, effects, and performance insights.

Instagram said it created First Draft because manual clip trimming can be "tedious and frustrating" for creators. "Instead of staring down a collection of clips and figuring out where to start, creators can use First Draft to quickly get to a starting point and then make the edit their own from there," the company told Mashable. They added that the tool is beneficial for creators with accessibility needs.

Credit: Instagram

The launch is the latest example of Instagram trying to make short-form video production require slightly less production. The platform already offers customizable Reel templates, while Edits includes tools such as automatic enhancements, captions, and AI-powered video effects.

First Draft can analyze your footage, find the highlights, and transform nearly five minutes of video into something short enough for the Reels feed. You’ll still need to decide whether the internet actually needs to see it. Instagram has not yet invented a one-tap solution for that.

With the RAM-pocalypse wreaking havoc on the PC hardware market, I'll be honest, we're sort of running out of things we can actually buy. It's not that stuff isn't on the shelves; it is. It's just that most people can't actually afford any of it.