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The Framework Laptop 12 just got a welcome upgrade, particularly if you prefer Linux to Windows. Framework has updated its more affordable PC with not just Intel's newer Core Series 3 chips, but an option to have Linux pre-installed.

There are plenty of new cars on the market that I would have absolutely no hesitation recommending. Some are practical, some are incredibly fast, and others offer an impressive amount of luxury for the money. That doesn't necessarily mean I'd want to own them, though. Personal preference matters a lot when you're spending your own money, and sometimes a seemingly minor flaw can completely ruin an otherwise fantastic car.

So, you want to run Proxmox in your homelab? It's a fantastic operating system that is now a cornerstone of my own homelab, but there are some beginner projects you should definitely get under your belt before going all-in on Proxmox. Here are the five things I think you should master in Proxmox before building your dream homelab.

This is the perfect time of year to update your office setup, whether you're a student or not. Take advantage of Secretlab's back to school sale and save big on the most popular models of the company's gaming chair and desk lines!

If you're looking forward to your Siri AI settlement check of up to $95 from Apple, it looks like you'll be waiting a little while longer.

Apple's settlement in the Siri AI-related class action lawsuit received preliminary approval last month. According to a new court document, the final approval hearing is now scheduled for February 24, 2027. That's actually seven months earlier than the previous date of September 29, 2027, but payments still won't arrive anytime soon. Once the court approves the settlement at that hearing, payments typically take a few months to reach consumers — specifically, until any appeals are resolved and eligible claims are processed.

SEE ALSO: Siri AI beta available now: 7 things to try

In 2024, Apple heavily promoted its new Apple Intelligence features, including a more personalized, AI-powered version of Siri. However, those Siri features were apparently not ready for release and Apple delayed them. Multiple class action lawsuits were filed against Apple alleging that the company promoted these AI features as a major reason to buy the new iPhone. These lawsuits were eventually combined into a single class action lawsuit.

In May 2026, Apple reached a $250 million settlement while admitting no wrongdoing.

According to the agreement, qualified consumers will receive anywhere from approx. $25 to $95 dollars, although that amount could rise or fall depending on the number of claims and other factors.

To qualify, a consumer must have purchased an iPhone 16, iPhone 16e, iPhone 16 Plus, iPhone 16 Pro, iPhone 16 Pro Max, iPhone 15 Pro, or iPhone 15 Pro Max between June 10, 2024 and March 29, 2025. 

SEE ALSO: The New Siri AI Is Great if You Do These Things First

As of now, the settlement's claims website has not gone live, so there is nothing eligible consumers need to do yet. Potential class members are expected to receive instructions by email or mail once claims open.

Apple finally unveiled Siri AI at this year's WWDC, and the revamped assistant is currently being tested in iOS 27 betas. Apple says it will will finally become more broadly available as a beta later this year. However, those delays turned out to be costly for Apple.

Home is where the heart is. On Linux, home is where everything personal to you is: your documents, downloads, screenshots, and configuration. In fact, your home is so special, you really ought to be showing it a bit more love.

NFL fans noticed something unusual at training camp this year: The quarterbacks were doing an awful lot of canoodling.

Within days of one another, cameras captured Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert getting cozy with fiancée and singer Madison Beer, Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Joe Burrow sitting on the field with rumored girlfriend and model Olivia Ponton, and New York Giants quarterback Jaxson Dart sharing a "quiet moment" with girlfriend and influencer Marissa Ayers.

"Wtf is going on?" one X user asked. "Why are all these QBs hanging out with their girlfriends at practice? Or if this always happened then why is it just now always making the broadcast?"

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As it turns out, the pattern was not entirely a coincidence.

The viral moments are part of a larger content campaign designed to reach women and younger viewers, a source close to the NFL told Front Office Sports. The push falls under the league’s "helmets-off" strategy, which focuses on players’ personalities and personal lives rather than only what happens on the field.

"Whether it’s training camp, weekly practice or a major event like the Super Bowl, we look for authentic opportunities to highlight our players and the people who are part of their journey," Ian Trombetta, the NFL’s senior vice president of social and influencer marketing, told FOS. "The content is authentic, genuine and relatable, and that’s resonated strongly with women and young fans, who are key growth audiences for the NFL."

SEE ALSO: How to watch NFL preseason games: Streaming guide

To be clear, the highlighting of players' relationships does not necessarily mean the affection itself was staged. The Chargers told FOS that the team had not planned any formal content around Beer specifically. What was coordinated was the league’s decision to place more of these relationships in front of viewers.

The business case is fairly obvious: Beer, Ponton, and Ayers collectively have more than 70 million followers across Instagram and TikTok, compared with the NFL’s combined 53 million. When the league reposted Beer and Herbert’s engagement photos, the Instagram post received more than 500,000 likes — roughly 10 times the engagement of an average NFL post. Women follow these women, and the NFL wants to capitalize on that interest.

The internet, however, had one small note for the league: Women can also just like football.

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The criticism is not necessarily that women dislike celebrity relationships, fashion, or gossip. Plenty of people clearly enjoy the content, and a relationship can absolutely be the reason someone first becomes curious about a sport. Research cited by FOS found that 49 percent of Gen Z fans have become interested in a sport or athlete because of viral content or something outside the game, including an athlete’s relationship.

The problem is presenting WAG content — an acronym for "wives and girlfriends" — as the content for women. Women are already a massive part of the NFL audience: A poll published last year found that 41 percent of American women considered themselves NFL fans.

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The financial incentive to keep that audience growing is enormous. The NFL generates an estimated $2.75 billion in retail sales from licensed consumer products each year, and attracting more women opens up new merchandise categories, brand partnerships, ticket buyers, and viewers whom advertisers want to reach. As one licensing expert told Front Office Sports, adding a demographic with disposable income gives the league "another gold mine to tap into."

Taylor Swift, of course, demonstrated how quickly attention surrounding a relationship can turn into business. Apex Marketing Group estimated that Swift generated nearly $1 billion in equivalent brand value for the NFL after she began dating Kansas City Chiefs tight end Travis Kelce — a phenomenon known as the "Swift Effect." Seen from that perspective, the league’s WAG strategy is not difficult to understand. But amplifying other football couples does not guarantee that the NFL can recreate "the pop culture moment that Taylor and Travis had," as one X user put it.

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Beer, Ponton, and Ayers bring tens of millions of their own followers, many of whom fall within the exact young female demographic the NFL wants to convert into regular viewers and consumers. If even a fraction begin watching games, buying jerseys, or following teams because of them, the campaign becomes very valuable.

The online backlash suggests the problem is not the NFL's commercial logic though, but the limited way it is applying it. Rather than investing primarily in better merchandise, women's perspectives on the sport, female creators, or access that treats women as knowledgeable fans, it risks falling back on the assumption that women need a romance plot to care about football at all.

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As Awful Announcing put it: "Remember when the NFL just made everything pink and called it a day for women? This is somehow even lazier."

Here's a piece of advice, from a life-long Pittsburgh Steelers fan: If the league truly wants to convert women into lifelong fans — and customers — it may need to offer them more than quarterbacks with girlfriends. Some of them, (breaking news!), are also interested in football.

Do you think Linux is just for homelabs or servers? Worried it can't handle your professional workflow? Well, I've been daily-driving Linux for 10 years, and here are five ways it helps me do real work.

Nobody online wants to be polyester right now.

That is not a compliment.

According to the Gen-Z lexicon, something "polyester" is a way of saying it feels cheap, mass-produced, low-effort, or inauthentic. It might look polished at first glance, but underneath the sheen, something about it feels artificial.

A generic influencer brand can be polyester. An overly polished video can be polyester. So can your relationship.

The insult draws on the fabric’s increasingly poor online reputation. Polyester is a synthetic fiber made from plastic, and younger shoppers have spent years complaining about finding it in expensive clothing, purging it from their closets, and searching for cotton, wool, and other natural materials instead.

Polyester is not necessarily low-quality — different versions of the material have legitimate uses, including in performance clothing — but online fashion discourse often treats the word as shorthand for the cheap, shiny fabric associated with fast fashion. That made it particularly effective as an insult for anything that looks manufactured or disposable.

Where did the polyester meme come from?

Before people had polyester lifestyles, TikTok had "polyester edits." The term emerged around a style of aggressively edited fan video featuring characters such as Spider-Man and Iron Man. The videos layer poses over rapidly flashing footage, usually accompanied by metallic music and enough visual effects to make CapCut beg for mercy.

According to Know Your Meme, examples of the editing style appeared as early as October 2025. A pretty chaotic Spider-Man edit posted the following month later resurfaced and went viral in the summer of 2026. Viewers began calling videos in the format "polyester edits" to suggest they were flashy but cheaply made.

The insult quickly escaped editing circles. Streamers and influencers selling 100 percent polyester merchandise have been mocked for it, with LowTierGod earning the nickname "the Polyester Prince." Creators have also parodied the stereotypical polyester wearer by assembling loud, all-over-print outfits involving galaxy pants, wolf shirts, and other relics of a deeply synthetic era.

From there, “polyester” became less about what something was made from and more about its overall spiritual composition.

The internet has a lot of ways to call you fake

The term joins a growing collection of online insults for anything perceived as fake, generic, or painfully uncool. Someone adopting an identity for attention might be accused of "larping." A man carrying a tote bag and reading Joan Didion exclusively to impress women is "performative." A celebrity whose success feels suspiciously manufactured is an "industry plant," while a person with no original thoughts or tastes might be dismissed as an "NPC."

But wait, there's more! "Slop," the internet’s preferred term for low-quality content churned out in bulk, especially with AI. Calling someone the "Temu version" of another person makes them a cheaply produced imitation, while "corny" remains the remarkably durable verdict for anyone visibly trying too hard. "Cheugy," a personal favorite, similarly targets tastes that felt dated and overly curated, although using it now may itself be considered cheugy.

"Polyester" overlaps with all of them while adding a judgment about quality. Something can be genuine and still be polyester if it feels tacky, disposable, or assembled from whatever happens to be trending. It is "slop" with a fabric-composition label — or "Temu" without naming the store.

That makes it a useful insult for an internet increasingly filled with AI-generated posts, deepfakes, dropshipped products, and lifestyles seemingly designed by an algorithm. Of course, the more people use "polyester" to describe everything they dislike, the cheaper and more generic the insult itself will become.

Which would be extremely polyester.

August has been building up to this on HBO Max, and it's finally here. Lanterns was one of the streaming service's most anticipated new series of the year, expanding James Gunn's new DCU further, and bringing Hal Jordan to prestige TV—it's this week's top pick. American subscribers to the service now have something new to look forward to in the 9:00 p.m. time slot vacated by House of the Dragon.

The NFL's regular season is fast approaching, which is good news for fans and bad news for fans' spouses. It also means fantasy football season is gearing up, with drafts happening every day until the league kicks off on Sept. 9.

SEE ALSO: How to watch the Champions League online for free

Not every fantasy football platform requires a buy-in. For managers who just want to draft, talk trash with friends, and manage a roster without any money on the line, several major platforms remain free to use. Each of these platforms lets you build a full season-long league without spending a dime — the differences mostly come down to interface preference, customization depth, and how social you want the experience to be.

Here's a rundown of five options worth considering for the 2026 season.

ESPN Fantasy Football

ESPN remains one of the most widely used fantasy platforms, and it costs nothing to create or join a league.

The app lets commissioners set up custom scoring and rules, and its recent interface overhaul has made managing a roster from a phone considerably easier. It's a solid default for casual leagues among coworkers or friends. It's also added a new "Knockout" League, a Survivor-style fantasy challenge in which the lowest-scoring team each week is eliminated until one team is left standing.

Yahoo! Fantasy Football

One of the OG's of internet-based fantasy sports, Yahoo's fantasy app has been around since 2008 and continues to draw a loyal user base. (My Gen X parents still use Yahoo for their fantasy league). Leagues are free to create, and the platform supports several formats beyond standard season-long play, including Survival and Pick'em modes.

Deep customization options make it popular with groups that have played together for years and want specific league settings.

Sleeper

Sleeper has become a go-to option for newer leagues. Particularly in the dynasty and social league space.

Creating and joining a league costs nothing, and the app's chat and notification features are designed to keep a league engaged throughout the year, not just on game day.

NFL Fantasy Football

The NFL's own fantasy app is free and doesn't involve prize money or paid contests, making it a straightforward option for fans who want to play without any financial stakes attached.

It includes mock drafts, league-creation tools, and player-comparison features, along with behind-the-scenes content tied to real games.

CBS Sports Fantasy Football

CBS Sports offers a free, all-around season-long platform that has traditionally appealed to larger, deeper leagues. While it doesn't have the same market share as ESPN or Yahoo, it remains a reliable, no-cost option for commissioners seeking an alternative.

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

SAVE $400.99: As of August 18, get the Ecovacs Deebot X11 Omnicyclone Robot Vacuum and Mop for $699 at Amazon, down from its usual price of $1,099.99. That's a discount of 36%.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Ecovacs Deebot X11 Omnicyclone Robot Vacuum and Mop $699 at Amazon
$1,099.99 Save $400.99   Get Deal

If you're tired of constantly vacuuming and mopping up around your home, it might be time to let a robot vacuum handle all of that. Robot vacuums are a great way to save time and money, and you can do both with the right model. We've found one on sale that you can scoop up for a significant discount, and it can handle just about any task you throw at it.

As of August 18, get the Ecovacs Deebot X11 Omnicyclone Robot Vacuum and Mop for $699 at Amazon, down from its usual price of $1,099.99. That's $400.99 off and a discount of 36%.

SEE ALSO: The best budget robot vacuums to buy in 2026, expert tested at home

This heavy-duty robot vacuum and mop is ready to jump in and tackle any mess. Its Ozmo Roller 2.0 with TruEdge 3.0 cleaning system and nylon roller is all about scrubbing strength with 50% better edge versus the previous model. It can handle cleaning around walls and corners without breaking a sweat, so to speak. Plus, it uses 19,500Pa suction and a 100W motor to really get into the ground-in dirt and debris.

Anti-tangle brushes help you cut through pet fur and tangled human hair so that you don't get stuck in a certain spot. And when it's time to switch over to the mop, it can lift its own roller mop and carpets and raise brushes so that it doesn't unnecessarily get parts of your floor and carpet wet. All this, plus it can empty on its own and charge itself, so you really don't have to worry about anything it's doing except when it's scheduled to run.

If you're ready to let a robot tackle tidying up at home, this one is an excellent choice, ad it's on sale right now. It's time to give up the ghost and have robots step in for you.

Like some of its streaming rivals, Peacock is raising plan prices once more — in some cases very sharply. NBCUniversal has instituted price hikes for all tiers starting today (August 18) for new customers and from September 17 onward for existing customers.

Best Beats deals at a glance Best overall Beats deal Beats Studio Pro $169.95 at Amazon (save $180.04) Get Deal Best Beats earbuds deal Beats Fit Pro $129.99 at Amazon (save $69.96) Get Deal Best Beats deal for working out Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 $199.95 at Amazon (save $50.04) Get Deal

A new pair of headphones can feel like a hack for a fresh start. Strolling down the street or hopping onto the train with headphones or earbuds that sound way better than your previous pair offers a brand new take on the world. If you'll be traveling soon, a solid pair of noise-cancelling headphones is practically as important as the airplane ticket itself.

For years now, Beats has made excellent headphones. The lineup today features comfortable headphones for wearing all day, earbuds that stay put during workouts, and options that come in at affordable prices.

If you're thinking a new pair of headphones or earbuds is on the must-buy list during back-to-school season, Amazon has a handful of excellent Beats deals. Check out our favorites.

Best Beats headphones deal Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Beats Studio Pro $169.95 at Amazon
$349.99 Save $180.04   Get Deal Why we like it

The Beats Studio Pro won the honor of being named Mashable's favorite Beats headphones. Considering we awarded them this accolade when they were at full price of $350 means we love them even more when they're on sale for $170. They excel in ANC and have great sound quality, not to mention they get up to 40 hours of battery life or 24 hours with ANC turned on.

Mashable Tech Reporter Alex Perry reviewed the Beats Studio Pro and praised sound and performance. "The active noise cancelation is tremendous. My loud window air conditioner unit just a few feet away might as well not exist when I wear these babies," he wrote.

Best Beats earbuds deal Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Beats Fit Pro $129.99 at Amazon
$199.95 Save $69.96   Get Deal Why we like it

If you prefer the compact nature of earbuds over headphones, the Amazon has the Beats Fit Pro on sale for $129.99, down from the normal price of $199.95.

When the Apple launched the Beats Fit Pro in the fall of 2021, Mashable Tech Reporter Alex Perry wrote, "Apple may not put its name directly on any Beats products, but the Beats Fit Pro are so much better than the new AirPods that maybe they should start doing that."

Perry found the Beats Fit Pro to unironically fit incredible well, never feeling like they were going to fall out. After wearing them for six hours straight, he had no complaints about the comfort.

Best Beats deal for working out Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Beats Powerbeats Pro 2 $199.95 at Amazon
$249.99 Save $50.04   Get Deal Why we like it

Mashable's favorite earbuds for working out are the Beats Powerbeats Pro 2. Alex Bracetti reviewed the Powerbeats for six months, noting that the excellent fit, heart-rate monitoring, and long battery life are major highlights. According to Bracetti, the fit is excellent for workouts that see plenty of movement. "The Powerbeats Pro 2 perfect wireless audio athleticism. It starts with the signature ear hooks," he explained. "These are ideal for all workouts, especially running. I always use them when jogging fast-paced on the streets and treadmill. They wrap gently around the ear and lock on for a secure and stable fit that never slips out."

Getting 10 hours of playtime per charge and up to 45 hours with the included charging case, the Powerbeats Pro 2 are ready for fall workout routines.

Swapping out a default Android keyboard for an open-source alternative usually comes with a long list of compromises, but thanks to FUTO Keyboard, that has changed. Here is a private, trustworthy option with features like gesture swiping and voice-to-text that actually work. However, there is one unexpected feature that still leads me to switch back to Gboard.

Plex has decided to bring back its familiar sidebar navigation on its smart TV app. The streaming service is listening to its users who spent the last year complaining that the redesigned app's new top-bar navigation was too slow and unintuitive.

An obvious way to speed up an old PC is to upgrade it or buy a new PC. But what if you can't or don't want to? (And who can blame you, with consumer GPUs pushing beyond $1,600.)

SAVE $320: As of August 18, get the Bose Smart Ultra Dolby Atmos Soundbar for $679 at Amazon, down from its usual price of $999. That's a discount of 32%.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Bose Smart Ultra Dolby Atmos Soundbar $679 at Amazon
$999 Save $320   Get Deal

If you watch a lot of movies or TV, you know the regular sound from your standard TV can be a bit lacking. A soundbar can punch it up considerably, so you need the right setup to get the best audio out of your media. If you need one to facilitate that, this deal at Amazon can help you get started without breaking the bank.

As of August 18, get the Bose Smart Ultra Dolby Atmos Soundbar for $679 at Amazon, down from its usual price of $999. That's $320 off and a discount of 32%.

SEE ALSO: The best soundbars for upgrading your home entertainment

This soundbar covers a lot of ground. Not only does it offer great audio, but it can work as a Bluetooth speaker and surround system addition to your setup. It uses Dolby Atmos and Bose TrueSpace technology to help separate sounds to place them in different parts of your room. That makes it sound as though you're right in the middle of what's going on on-screen.

It uses AI Dialogue Mode to help balance voice and music so you can actually hear what's going on clearly as well. If you're looking to hear the explosions and chatter of each scene, you'll appreciate the surround sound setup, too. There are six transducers and two custom-engineered upward-firing speakers as well, meant to fill your entire space.

If you're ready to improve your home audio tenfold with additional bass and clarity, this soundbar will be a welcome addition to your setup. And the best part is, you won't have to drain your savings to make it happen. Just be sure to get yours while it's still discounted.

The Mashable Big Guessing Game is back again for our third and final round. In the first round, we tried to guess the new name of macOS (only one person correctly predicted "Golden Gate"), and in the second round, we tried to predict whether a foldable iPhone or touchscreen Mac is coming this year (we still don't know!)

In our last round of the contest, we're focusing on the expected Apple event in September, where we expect to see a full new lineup of iPhone models, including the highly anticipated foldable iPhone. Will new CEO John Ternus appear on the roof of Apple Park? How much will the latest and greatest version of the iPhone Pro Max cost? If there is a foldable iPhone, what will Apple name it?

Make your predictions for September with five quick guesses, then sit back and watch the event to see how many you get right. Each correct guess earns you an additional chance of winning the grand prize, the latest edition of the new Apple Watch.

This final round of contest questions will run until 11:59 p.m. PT on Sept. 1.

NO PURCHASE NECESSARY to enter or win the "CNET Group Big Guessing Game" Giveaway. Open to legal U.S. residents in the 50 U.S. & D.C., 18+ yrs of age. Other restrictions apply. Begins May 19, 2026 at 12:01 pm ET and ends Sept. 1, 2026 at 11:59 pm ET. Void where prohibited. Subject to Official Rules: https://www.mashable.com/article/mashable-big-guessing-game-apple-edition-official-contest-rules/. Sponsor: Ziff Davis, LLC.

Apple is not a sponsor of, affiliated with, or endorser of this sweepstakes. Apple Watch is a trademark of Apple Inc.