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Having a Windows and Linux PC doesn’t mean you need entirely different toolsets for each platform. Many apps offer seamless cross-platform experiences, ensuring productivity without the hassle of relearning software. Here are seven apps that work smoothly on both Windows and Linux.

I used to wish that I had an awesome supercomputer so I could run my own AI, but then I found out that I didn't have to. Just like with other DIY projects, you can make a server with what you already have; you just need to think outside the box. If you own a spare PC, can find one, or can buy one cheaply, you're one big step closer to an AI server. What's even better is that LM Studio was built to make this easier for you.

Drills and impact drivers are great for driving lag bolts or self-tapping screws, but they are also the fastest way to ruin a DIY project if you don't respect their power. If you're constantly using your impact driver on 3 (or the fastest setting) and stripping heads, snapping screws, or overdriving, you're using it wrong.

Windows 11 Pro costs more than the Home Edition of Windows, but many people who own Pro aren't making use of some of its most interesting features. They're not flashy, but they provide a very noticeable improvement over Home editions, especially if you like to experiment with applications or customize your PC.

In a surprising turn of events, the Trump Mobile T1 smartphone might actually start rolling out.

On Tuesday, Trump Mobile CEO Pat O'Brien told USA Today that the golden phones will start shipping to customers who've pre-ordered them "this week."

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It's good news for buyers, but the Trump Organization-licensed company sure did test their patience before it got to this point. The phone was originally announced in June 2025 by the U.S. president's sons Eric Trump and Donald Trump Jr., with a planned launch in September, but the launch date kept moving into the future.

To make matters worse, Trump Mobile's terms and conditions changed in April 2026 to say that the $100 pre-order deposit does not guarantee customers will actually get the phone, prompting some to call the entire scheme a "scam".

Besides the launch date, the original promise of the phone being made in America was changed, too, with the company now calling it an "American-proud design."

SEE ALSO: Seth Meyers reacts to Trump saying he doesn't 'think about Americans’ financial situations'

In his interview this week, O'Brien said that the first T1 phones were "assembled in the United States," while new models will use components that were "primarily manufactured in America."

Despite reports that roughly 600,000 people paid the $100 deposit for the T1 phone, O'Brien wouldn't confirm the exact number of pre-orders. Instead, he said that Trump Mobile is "incredibly pleased" with the interest in its products.

Featured Video For You Moltbook's real risk isn't AI. It's your data

Is bigger always better? For your bank account, absolutely. For the spider currently sprinting across your living room floor? Definitely not.

Do you have two minutes to spare and a craving for stunning animation? Then you're in luck, because LAIKA, the animation studio behind Coraline, ParaNorman, and Kubo and the Two Strings, has released the teaser trailer for its upcoming film, Wildwood. No surprise here, given LAIKA's past track record, but it looks absolutely gorgeous.

Directed by Travis Knight (Kubo and the Two Strings) and based on the novel by the Decemberists' frontman Colin Meloy, Wildwood transports us to Portland, Oregon, and a magical world just beyond its boundaries.

The film centers on headstrong teenager Prue McKeel (voiced by Peyton Elizabeth Lee). Despite warnings from her parents not to leave their house, she does so anyway, bringing her baby brother with her. When a murder of crows abducts him, she has no choice but to venture into the Impassable Wilderness, an enchanted forest full of talking animals and dangerous bandits. With the help of her classmate Curtis Mehlberg (voiced by Jacob Tremblay), will Prue be able to rescue her brother and make it home?

LAIKA previously released a first look at Wildwood focused on one character: the majestic golden eagle known as the General (voiced by Angela Bassett). With this teaser trailer, it fleshes out the rest of the Impassable Wilderness even further, showing off animal armies, menacing witches, and a mysterious boy who appears to be made of clockwork. It all comes to life in captivating stop-motion, promising a handmade fantasy of epic proportions.

Wildwood's voice cast also includes Carey Mulligan, Richard E. Grant, Awkwafina, Amandla Stenberg, Tom Waits, Charlie Day, Blythe Danner, Arthur Knight, Maya Erskine, Jake Johnson, Tantoo Cardinal, Rob Delaney, Jemaine Clement, Marc Evan Jackson, Len Cariou, Ólafur Darri Ólafsson, and Mahershala Ali.

Wildwood hits theaters Oct. 23.

Mesh Wi-Fi is one of those upgrades that genuinely changes how your home network feels, often doing a lot more than an expensive router ever could. The dead zones disappear, the streaming gets smoother, and you stop fighting with your router every time you walk into the wrong room. For most people, that's the whole story, and honestly, that's where the experimentation ends.

Loop Earplugs are Mashable favorites — partly because they work really well, but also because they come in a bunch of luxe finishes. Unlike traditional earplugs, they look like jewelry, not boring foam nubs.

Loop's Engage 2 earplugs became instant bestsellers when they dropped in an iridescent lavender colorway across two launches last June. Then, they became highly coveted finds on the resale market. ("this is embarrassing to I admit but I’m honestly willing to pay a RIDICULOUS price for these at this point," reads one "DESPERATE" post on r/LoopEarplugs.) Loop said they were "the most in-demand look the brand has ever released."

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Mercifully, Loop dropped another batch of iridescent earplugs this month, just in time for the start of music festival season. They're available in the triple-duty Switch 2 style this go-around, and they retail for $64.95 only on Loop's website. That's $5 more than the standard Switch 2 colors, for reference.

Opens in a new window Credit: Loop Loop Switch 2 Iridescent $64.95 at loopearplugs.com
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The iridescent Switch 2s aren't just a limited release, but a "strictly limited" release with "no planned restock," per a company blog post. If you can't believe we're at a point where earplug drops are in such high demand, well, just look how pretty they are.

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The Switch 2s have three different audio-muffling modes for different scenarios. You can switch between them by turning a dial on the earplugs' housing:

• Quiet — offers the most noise cancellation for when you're trying to sleep or focus.

• Experience — filters a moderate amount of noise to protect your hearing at concerts.

• Engage — lowers ambient noises just enough to where you can have conversations without getting distracted or overwhelmed.

The iridescent Switch 2s come with a matching case that you can hook on a keychain, plus four sets of different-sized ear tips.

If this particular colorway doesn't do it for you, or if sells out by the time you go to buy a pair, stay tuned for Loop's collab with Pleasing, singer Harry Styles' lifestyle brand. It's set to launch on Thursday, May 21, but you can get early access 24 hours prior by signing up for email notifications on loopearplugs.com.

Like many people, I bought Amazon Echo smart speakers, thinking that they were the future of the smart home. Being able to control your smart home using your voice seems ideal, but the reality is that Amazon's proprietary system is restrictive and only supports fairly basic automations.

Obsidian might help you build a second brain, but it won’t help you collaborate with a second person. It’s famously a local-only tool. If you want to share your notes with someone else, you have to zip up your vault and email it over—which is a clunky solution. Alternatively, you can upload your vault to a cloud service like Google Drive—but then your local notes are exposed to a third-party server.

TL;DR: Amazon has the LG 27-inch UltraGear OLED gaming monitor (27GX704A-B) on sale for $477.99, down from its $799.99 list price. With a $300 saving, you get a glossy QHD OLED display with a 240Hz refresh rate, 0.03ms response time, and much more.

Opens in a new window Credit: LG LG OLED 27-inch OLED QHD UltraGear Gaming Monitor (27GX704A-B) $477.99 at Amazon
$799.99 Save $322 Get Deal

Although in-demand OLED gaming monitors aren’t exactly known for being cheap, this new LG deal will earn you one of the popular 27-inch UltraGear models for just below $480. 

As of May 13, Amazon has the LG 27-inch UltraGear OLED gaming monitor listed for $477.99, down from $799.99. With this 40% discount, you’ll save $322 on a display built for players who want the speed of a competitive monitor without giving up OLED picture quality.

At 27 inches, this UltraGear keeps things desk-friendly while still giving you a proper QHD 2560x1440 resolution. This means you’re still getting a sharper jump over 1080p without needing the costlier firepower of a full 4K setup, which makes it a nice middle ground for anyone playing fast multiplayer games like League of Legends, big single-player releases on the level of Crimson Desert, or just using the same screen for work and streaming on Netflix. 

This is also where the major benefits of this UltraGear monitor’s OLED panel come in. This glossy display reaches a standard 275 nits of brightness and peaks at 1300 nits, while VESA DisplayHDR True Black 400 and a 1.5M:1 contrast ratio help keep blacks actually black. It also covers up to 98.5% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, so any game you play or TV and film you watch, will now come with darker worlds, neon-heavy cities, or colorful effects that should look sharper than ever.

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Performance is just as strong, with a 240Hz refresh rate and 0.03ms response time designed to keep motion crisp in shooters, racers, and anything else where a few missed frames can cost you. At this speed, fast-paced titles — like Rocket League or Counter-Strike 2 — will run like a dream. 

What’s more, NVIDIA G-SYNC compatibility and AMD FreeSync Premium Pro are also included to help reduce screen tearing — alongside dual HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, USB ports, and a height, tilt, swivel, and pivot-adjustable stand. 

If you also need a budget-friendly monitor to add to another setup in your household, the Samsung G5 gaming monitor has just hit a record-low price at Amazon. If you’re looking for an even larger display, the 39-inch curved OLED UltraGear gaming monitor is on sale for only $749. 

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

SAVE OVER $500: As of May 13, the LG gram Pro 16-inch laptop (Intel Core Ultra7 255H Processor, NVIDIA RTX 5050, 32GB RAM, 2TB SSD) is down to its lowest-ever price of $2,299 at Amazon. That's $500.99 off its list price of $2,799.99.

Opens in a new window Credit: LG LG gram Pro 16-inch Laptop $2,299 at Amazon
$2,799.99 Save $500.99   Get Deal

If you're in the market for a new laptop, but don't want something that's too bulky to carry around, the LG gram Pro 16-inch laptop deserves your attention. Coming in at just three pounds, it's perfect for those who want a lightweight device for work or personal use. At the moment, it's even marked down to its lowest-ever price at Amazon, making now a great time to pick it up.

As of May 13, the LG gram Pro 16-inch laptop has dropped from $2,799.99 to $2,299 at Amazon, making for $500.99 in savings.

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The LG gram Pro is a tiny but mighty device. Alongside its lightweight feel and thin frame, this particular model is packed with an Intel Core Ultra7 255H Processor, NVIDIA RTX 5050 graphics card, 32GB RAM, and a 2TB SSD. It also has a 16-inch display with 2560x1600 resolution, making what's on your screen shine with sharp details and bright colors.

On top of all that, everything on screen will look smooth thanks to a Variable Refresh Rate that adapts from 31Hz to 144Hz. So no matter if you're using it for streaming, gaming, or just flipping between different tasks, you won't have to deal with stutter on screen.

This is the time to make a move on the LG gram Pro 16-inch laptop before the offer is gone for good.

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I am having way too much fun with the terminal on my phone. When I learned that Termux was available on Android, I downloaded it and immediately started playing around with the command line itself and integrating the API. I was pleasantly surprised by the experience.

There's no denying that so-called "suitcase" record players are stylish and would look pretty awesome on a shelf or mantle. Even better, you can pick up a cheap one from your local supermarket these days, and all the kids are getting into vinyl records again, so why not?

The Windows Registry is a large database that includes a mountain of settings and configuration data used by Windows programs, services, system components, and hardware. It also includes paths to programs and files stored on your PC, as well as a wide range of other information needed for Windows to function properly.

Julia Louis-Dreyfus' interview with Stephen Colbert may start with a kiss, but the gloves quickly come off.

In the clip above, the Veep star surprises the Late Show host with two pages of roast jokes written by the Veep writers, which she performs in character as Selina Meyer while Colbert cracks up.

The one that makes him laugh the most? "When my people said I should come and say farewell to you I was hoping it would be more of a hospice-type situation."

Want more of the best of late night? Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter.

Cooling your home can be expensive, even with a modern and efficient air conditioning system. If you want to save money, you should aim to prevent your home from getting too hot in the first place.

The NYT Connections puzzle today is not too difficult if you frequent your local deli.

Connections is the one of the most popular New York Times word games that's captured the public's attention. The game is all about finding the "common threads between words." And just like Wordle, Connections resets after midnight and each new set of words gets trickier and trickier—so we've served up some hints and tips to get you over the hurdle.

If you just want to be told today's puzzle, you can jump to the end of this article for today's Connections solution. 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 What is Connections?

The NYT's latest daily word game has become a social media hit. The Times credits associate puzzle editor Wyna Liu with helping to create the new word game and bringing it to the publications' Games section. Connections can be played on both web browsers and mobile devices and require players to group four words that share something in common.

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Each puzzle features 16 words and each grouping of words is split into four categories. These sets could comprise of anything from book titles, software, country names, etc. Even though multiple words will seem like they fit together, there's only one correct answer.

If a player gets all four words in a set correct, those words are removed from the board. Guess wrong and it counts as a mistake—players get up to four mistakes until the game ends.

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Players can also rearrange and shuffle the board to make spotting connections easier. Additionally, each group is color-coded with yellow being the easiest, followed by green, blue, and purple. Like Wordle, you can share the results with your friends on social media.

SEE ALSO: NYT Pips hints, answers for May 13, 2026 Here's a hint for today's Connections categories

Want a hint about the categories without being told the categories? Then give these a try:

• Yellow: Deli order

• Green: Reason

• Blue: iPhone features

• Purple: Jam

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Here are today's Connections categories

Need a little extra help? Today's connections fall into the following categories:

• Yellow: Long sandwich

• Green: Pretext

• Blue: Smartphone photo editing options

• Purple: Jelly ___

Looking for Wordle today? Here's the answer to today's Wordle.

Ready for the answers? This is your last chance to turn back and solve today's puzzle before we reveal the solutions.

Drumroll, please!

The solution to today's Connections #1067 is...

What is the answer to Connections today

• Long sandwich: GRINDER, HERO, HOAGIE, SUB

• Pretext: ARGUMENT, BASIS, CAUSE, GROUNDS

• Smartphone photo editing options: ADJUST, CROP, FILTERS, MARKUP

• Jelly ___: BEAN, BELLY, DONUT, ROLL

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

SEE ALSO: NYT Connections Sports Edition today: Hints and answers for May 13, 2026

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

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 today's Connections.

Today's NYT Strands hints are easy if you're courageous.

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 May 13, 2026 NYT Strands hint for today’s theme: You've got...

The words are related to determination.

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Today’s NYT Strands theme plainly explained

These words describe courage.

NYT Strands spangram hint: Is it vertical or horizontal?

Today's NYT Strands spangram is vertical.

NYT Strands spangram answer today

Today's spangram is What It Takes.

NYT Strands word list for May 13

• Nerve

• Spunk

• Gumption

• What It Takes

• Pluck

• Grit

• Fiber

• Heart

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 today's Strands.