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As a pro vacuum reviewer, I can only back a few early Black Friday robot vacuum deals so far

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:52
A peek at the best early Black Friday deals on robot vacuums Best budget robot vacuum deal Eufy E20 3-in-1 $349.99 at Amazon (Save $150 at Amazon) Get Deal Best mid-range robot vacuum deal Narwal Freo Z10 Ultra $799.99 at Amazon (Save $500 at Amazon) Get Deal Best premium robot vacuum deal Dreame Aqua10 Ultra Roller $1,199.99 at Amazon (Save $400 at Amazon) Get Deal

I test robot vacuums for a living and have been keeping tabs on robot vacuum deals trends for over half a decade — and I'd say Black Friday's count of robot vacuums on sale beats spring cleaning sales and even both Prime Day. It makes sense: Many brands release their new vacuums for the year at CES in January (or at least near the CES time frame), so Black Friday is often an eleventh hour push to sell the "old" but still great robot vacuums from the past year.

SEE ALSO: I tested 25 robot vacuum and mop combos and found 5 that actually scrub

But I'm noticing something peculiar this year: There aren't as many good early robot vacuum deals as there were at this point in 2024. Last year, the week before Thanksgiving saw a major chunk of Black Friday vacuum deals already live (officially marked with the retailer's "Black Friday deal" tag). In 2025, confirmed early Black Friday prices feel impossible to come by so far — despite Amazon, Best Buy, Walmart, and Target being in the thick of their early Black Friday sales.

Below, I've pulled the early Black Friday deals on robot vacuums that are actually worth your money — the ones at record-low pricing or matching their October Prime Day sale price. But my ultimate advice? Use the next few days to read up on what to look for in a robot vacuum and assess the features that are non-negotiables in your home. Then, check back to this post as more deals go live ahead of Black Friday.

Best early Black Friday robot vacuum deal so far Opens in a new window Credit: Dreame Dreame Aqua10 Ultra Roller $1,199.99 at Amazon
$1,599.99 Save $400   Get Deal Why I like it

The Dreame Aqua10 Ultra Roller is the most powerful robot vacuum on the mainstream market, and it's back at its record-low October Prime Day price of just over $1,000. Spending that much on a vacuum probably sounds like brain rot to budget shoppers, but think of it this way: The Dreame's 30,000 Pa of suction power is more than 10,000 Pa stronger than the most powerful robot vacuums we saw on sale last Black Friday, and they were still hovering around the $1,000 mark. With the addition of a robust self-rinsing roller mop, this is a real bang for your buck.

I've been testing the Aqua10 Ultra Roller at home for over a month and can personally confirm its efficacy. Its pet hair pickup on rugs has impressed me the most: It has had about a 99 percent pickup rate for large clumps of cat hair that I put in its path and smoosh down into various pile heights. On patterned rugs that camouflage the layer of fur to the naked eye, I've ChomChom-ed the area after the Aqua10 Ultra Roller has done a few passes — and there's barely anything left over to get rolled into the ChomChom compartment. This carpet performance plus a livestream pet camera make the Aqua10 Ultra one of the best vacuums a pet owner could have on hand (robot or not).

More robot vacuums on sale ahead of Black FridayRobot vacuum mop combosRobot vacuums that don't mop
Categories: IT General, Technology

Windows 11 is overhauling the taskbar, again

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:46

Microsoft is making a massive pivot in how Windows 11 operates. The company is turning the entire platform into an "agentic OS" that starts with integrating new AI agents directly into the Windows 11 taskbar, which should help make things easier for those who use it.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Snag the Apple Watch Series 11 for its lowest price yet

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:44

SAVE $49.01: As of Nov. 18, get the Apple Watch Series 11 for $349.99 at Amazon, down from its usual price of $399. That's a discount of 12% and the lowest price we've seen.

Opens in a new window Credit: Amazon Apple Watch Series 11 $349.99 at Amazon
$399 Save $49.01   Get Deal

Looking to pick up a new smartwatch? There are tons of great choices out there, but for our money, Apple serves up some of the best. One of the best picks you can opt for out of the bunch, in fact, is on sale right now thanks to an early Black Friday deal at Amazon. If it's time to lock in a purchase, this might be the best one.

As of Nov. 18, get the Apple Watch Series 11 for $349.99 at Amazon, down from its usual price of $399. That's $49.01 off and a discount of 12%. It's also the lowest price we've seen.

SEE ALSO: The 30+ best early Black Friday Apple deals: We found record lows on AirPods and MacBooks already

The Series 11 offers a range of smartwatch-centric features such as calling, texting, and app availability from the App Store of course. But some of its most attractive features are its health and fitness sensors. It can notify you of potential high blood pressure issues, give you a daily sleep score, help you take an ECG any time, track your heart rate, and much more.

It can also track your workouts, help you figure out your training load, connect to Apple Fitness+ for more healthy options to stay in shape, and even measure potential sleep apnea as well as your blood oxygen levels. There's a lot it can do in terms of keeping you in the loop health-wise, so you might want to scoop it up just for that alone.

This watch also boasts up to 24 hours of battery life with normal use, a durable glass display, and a water resistance rating of 50m with IP6X dust resistance. It really does have just about everything you might need, so if you've had your eye on one, now's the time to dive in.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The Chronology of Water trailer: Kristen Stewart makes her directorial debut with swimming drama

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:43

Kristen Stewart has already had a long and varied career, moving from child star in films like Panic Room to teen blockbuster lead in Twilight. From there, she jumped into daring arthouse films, earning critical acclaim and an Academy Award nomination for Spencer, and embracing her status as a queer heartthrob in Love Lies Bleeding. Now, her career continues to evolve as she steps behind the camera for her feature directorial debut, The Chronology of Water.

Based on the memoir of the same name by Lidia Yuknavitch, The Chronology of Water stars Imogen Poots. She plays the film's version of Lidia, who escapes from an abusive home and immerses herself in the world of competitive swimming in the 1980s. But when her athletic pursuits come to an end, she finds herself grappling with love, sexuality, addiction, and her penchant for self-destruction, all while discovering herself through writing. The trailer teases the film's fragmented nature, as Lidia moves through flashes of the memories that came to define her.

The Chronology of Water had its premiere at the 2025 Cannes Film Festival, where it received positive reactions. Critics praised Stewart's strong sense of direction and Poots' lead performance.

In an interview with the New York Times out of Cannes, Stewart joked that critics were actually being too kind to the film. "I'm totally willing for people to come for it," she said. "I'm almost wanting it."

The Chronology of Water also stars Thora Birch, Jim Belushi, Earl Cave, Tom Sturridge, Charlie Carrick, and Kim Gordon.

The Chronology of Water hits select theaters Dec. 5, before expanding nationwide on Jan. 9.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Before Black Friday hits, a 4-pack of Apple AirTags is already on a major discount at Amazon

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:41

SAVE $34.01: A 4-pack of Apple AirTags is on sale at Amazon for $64.99, down from the normal price of $99. That's a 34% discount and just 50 cents more than the lowest we've ever spotted at Amazon.

Opens in a new window Credit: Apple Apple AirTag (4-pack) $64.99 at Amazon
$99 Save $34.01   Get Deal

Amazon's official Black Friday sale kicks off this Thursday, but we're already seeing deals that worthy of buying now. Shopping early means you'll avoid the chaos of Thursday and your order will already be en route (or delivered) in case of any shipping congestion that might occur. If your holiday plans involve travel, you'll want to tune in to this deal.

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As of Nov. 18, a 4-pack of Apple AirTags is on sale at Amazon for $64.99, marked down from the normal price of $99. That's a 34% discount that saves shoppers $34.01. This sale price is just 50 cents more than the lowest we've ever spotted at Amazon.

A Bluetooth tracker is one of the smartest items to pack for any holiday travel. One needs to go into checked luggage, but it's also smart to toss one into your carryon items, and get a functional keychain attachment to make sure you can always find those. You can locate missing items by playing a sound on the built-in speaker or find items that are further away thanks to the Apple Find My network.

SEE ALSO: The 30+ best early Black Friday Apple deals: We found record lows on AirPods and MacBooks already

The four-pack is a great one-click purchase compared to buy individual AirTags. A single AirTag is currently on sale at Amazon for $17.97 which would make four come to a total of $71.88, so the four-pack is a much better deal.

Since Amazon's Black Friday sale officially kicks off on Thursday, snagging the 4-pack of Apple AirTags means you can avoid any future shopping chaos. Consider the stocking stuffers bought.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Get four months of Spotify Premium for free with this offer

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:32

SAVE $47.96: As of Nov. 18, new subscribers can get four months of Spotify Premium for free. Typically $11.99 per month, that saves you nearly $50.

Opens in a new window Credit: Spotify Spotify Premium get 4 months for free (save $47.96) Get Deal

If you don't already have a music streaming subscription, now's a good time to hit that subscribe button because Spotify is offering new users four months of its Premium service for free.

Through Dec. 31, if you've never tried Spotify Premium before, you can enjoy four months of unlimited listening without spending a cent. And yes, even as a free trial listener, you'll still get all of the benefits you'd enjoy as a Premium Individual subscriber.

With Spotify Premium, you'll ditch ads for good, be able to download music to listen to offline, enjoy listening with friends in real time, get full control over your music (unlimited skips, playlist organization, etc.), and finally enjoy lossless audio with sound quality up to 24-bit/44.1 kHz. You'll also unlock things like Discover Weekly, which helps you find new artists and songs based on your previous listening habits, as well as "Daily Mix" playlists, mood-based "daylists," those famous Wrapped stats, and new weekly listening stats.

Premium accounts also get 15 hours of audiobook time per month, so you can tap into your TBR list without spending a fortune on new books or waiting in the queue on the Libby app.

One thing to note: Your account will automatically be charged $11.99 per month after the trial is up. So if you decide you want to cancel, do it before the four-month period is up. You have until Dec. 31 to secure the deal.

Categories: IT General, Technology

2026 brings major tech updates to this Corolla Cross alternative

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:08

The Lexus UX has been around since 2019, and it’s sticking to its sharp, compact vibe for another year. After getting a big powertrain upgrade for 2025, it slides into 2026 with a few more updates to keep it feeling current.

Categories: IT General, Technology

The 40+ best tech gifts of the year, hand-picked by professional gadget nerds

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:05

The coolest tech gifts may look like the most boring box in the present pile... until they're unwrapped. But in a second, you'll both unlock a new favorite memory: They get to gush over owning one of the most sought-after gadgets of the year, and you get to watch their face light up.

Our tech gift guide for 2025 includes some of the best new releases of the year from Apple, Nintendo, GoPro, and Razer, most of which we personally reviewed. We're obviously loving the latest upgrades, like the AirPods Pro 3 and the long-awaited Nintendo Switch 2. But even if you're not shopping for an early adopter, we've still found some awesome under-the-radar gadgets that'll speak to their niche interests. The skincare enthusiast on your list may not care about the new fleet of Echos that Amazon just announced, but they will freak over the Shark LED face mask.

To find the best holiday gifts for the techies in your life, Mashable's tech and shopping reporters have come together to curate a guide to our favorite gift-worthy gadgets of the year — the true 'I can't believe you got this for me' gifts. So, whether you're splurging on an iPad or searching for stocking stuffers, here are 40+ of the best tech gifts for 2025.

Categories: IT General, Technology

This new Spotify feature changed how I listen to audiobooks

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:01

Since audiobooks were added to Spotify Premium's lineup of content, my consumption of them skyrocketed. Much like podcasts, I like to listen to them when I'm in the car or at the gym. They're often an entertaining way to experience a book, and are sometimes read by their writers, or the actors who've starred in their movie or TV show versions.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Wicked: For Good review: Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande return for a sensational conclusion

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:00

Pour one out for the doubters. When Universal announced director Jon M. Chu would be breaking the hit Broadway musical Wicked into two films, there was a lot of grumbling that this was a cash-grab decision that would not be justified in the storytelling. 

Sure, 2024's Wicked had a terrific climax, ending with Elphaba's escape from Emerald City and the show's greatest song, "Defying Gravity." But how do you make Act 2, a wobblier construct with new characters and jarring reveals, work as its own movie? Chu shows us how with Wicked: For Good. 

SEE ALSO: 'Wicked: For Good' trailer: Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande return to conclude Elphaba and Glinda's story

The screenplay, written by the Broadway show's book writer Winnie Holzman and screenwriter Dana Fox, smartly builds out elements glossed over in the bustling second act of the theatrical production. The film features dynamic action sequences, heavy-handed flashbacks, and two new songs, one for Academy Award nominee Cynthia Erivo and another for Academy Award nominee Ariana Grande-Butera (as she's credited). Now, some of this certainly plays as filler. But much of it bolsters Chu's cinematic vision of this reimagined Oz. 

Once again the double act of Erivo and Grande sets a dizzyingly high bar, one that will thrill movie audiences and inspire generations of theater kids to defy gravity of their own.

Wicked: For Good paints a dystopia — but with brighter colors. Credit: Universal Pictures

Critics of Chu's first Wicked (me included) jeered the toned-down colors of Emerald City and the plethora of poppies. For much of Wicked: For Good, he's course corrected — or color corrected — to better revel in the vibrant hues of Nathan Crowley's meticulous production design and Paul Tazewell's glistening costumes of Oz. Elphaba's black robes strike a sharper contrast in visuals and tone against the emerald of the Wizard's realm and the princessy pinks of Glinda's garb. As the film gets emotionally darker for its heroines, Chu gives over to the gray again, seemingly covering the film in a dull veil that frustratingly obscures the focus and faces of his stars. However, there are still many opportunities for them to stand out. 

Wicked: For Good picks up with the not-so-wonderful Wizard (Jeff Goldblum) using enslaved, near-voiceless animals as beasts of burden to construct the Yellow Brick Road, while sneering human guards whip the critters without mercy. Naturally, Elphaba (Erivo) soars in, pulling off a superhero landing to free her fellow Ozians and scare off the violent guards, unavoidably feeding into the Wizard's smear campaign that has her as Oz's public enemy #1. 

Featured Video For You How director Jon M. Chu made 'Wicked'

Back in the glittering glory of Emerald City, Glinda (Grande-Butera) is a celebrated public figure being gifted her famous mechanized bubble, courtesy of a scowling Madam Morrible (Michelle Yeoh). Such whimsical transport will help complete the masquerade that Glinda the Good (as she's been branded) possesses incredible magic. And to complete the picture, the Wizard and Morrible have plotted a marriage between their poster girl and their debonair Captain of the Guard Fiyero (Jonathan Bailey). 

While Elphaba fights single-handedly for the freedom of animals and the overturning of the Wizard's regime of lies, she suffers the heartache of having lost her best friend, her beau, and her connection to her sister, Nessa (Marissa Bode). In For Good, she reconnects with each, making sparks and spells fly, resulting in the turns very familiar to fans of The Wizard of Oz. 

Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande-Butera are spectacular in Wicked: For Good.  Credit: Universal Pictures

With the first film, Erivo was unconvincing as an insecure ingénue. Her strong physicality and booming vocals are better suited to Wicked's second half, where Elphaba has metaphorically found her voice. Here, Erivo channels a radiant intensity into every step, every lyric, and every glare. 

Grande-Butera is her pitch-perfect foil. Where Elphaba's attitude reflects the darkness overtaking Oz, Glinda's bubbliness mirrors the citizens' blithe and oblivious attitude toward their Wizard dictator. In terms of balancing comedy and drama, Erivo and Grande-Butera work as a terrific team. Erivo broods and belts, while Grande-Butera bubbles and…also belts.

Even within the grimmer turns this sequel takes, Grande-Butera finds in-character moments for lightness and comedy. The "tap to bubble" bit teased in trailers is undeniable fun. But even as Glinda lays down heavy truths, Grande-Butera finds notes of "dumb blonde" bounciness that enrich without distracting. 

Credit: Universal Pictures

When these two friends and foes face off in a physical fight, there's an emotional charge but a comic tone, as they fight not like powerful witches, but like frenemies ready to rip each other's hair out. (Think when Colin Firth and Hugh Grant fight in Bridget Jones's Diary.) 

It almost goes without saying that both Erivo and Grande-Butera crush the vocals, not only for the well-known Wicked numbers, but also for the Elphaba song "No Place Like Home" and Glinda's "The Girl in the Bubble." However, neither song is as strong as those from the Broadway soundtrack. 

Wicked: For Good goes surprisingly hard into the darkest turns.  Credit: Universal Pictures

Fans of Gregory Maguire's novel or the long-running Broadway musical that was born from it won't be surprised by the revealed origins of Dorothy and her Yellow Brick Road-trekking friends. However, they might still marvel at the costume and makeup transformations that bring these iconic figures to life anew. (Save for the Cowardly Lion, voiced by a theatrically trembling Colman Domingo, who is a fluffy CGI gesture.) 

Ethan Slater brings a sharp viciousness to cursed Munchkin Boq, while his Nessa finds her inner wicked witch. As for Bailey, he is every inch the dashing hero when the script calls for it. But it's a love scene with Erivo that will have fans swooning — and likely launch untold crushes. (That Chu has this strapping man baring his chest hair and rocking some rolled-up shirt sleeves suggests the director understands female desire better than scads of his peers.) Even after a fateful transformation, Fiyero is a charmer. Simply put, Bailey is living up to his recently earned Sexiest Man Alive title — even when his vocal range seems strained by the demands of a duet opposite Erivo. 

Elsewhere, Yeoh is satisfyingly snarling as the vicious Morrible. Goldblum is beguiling as the Wizard, but admittedly one-note, choosing to play the "corn-fed" villain as dedicatedly decorous even in the face of his darkest secrets. Fans of the comedic treasure that was the team-up of Bowen Yang and Bronwyn James will be disappointed, as their Pfannee and Shenshen appear in only one brief sequence. (They do get laughs though!) Overall, the ensemble is good as gold. 

Where Wicked: For Good fumbles is in its insistence to look back. The new song numbers give the audience a deeper insight into the internal struggles of Elphaba and Glinda. The flashbacks, however, are indulgences. One features a small army of adorably dressed children in an insufferably simplistic explanation of why Glinda would lie to please people — as if that wasn't clear by this point in the story. The other flashback is more useful because the show has been split into two parts, so it's helpful in connecting a potentially lost thread. But this sequence also features a CGI de-aging that is distractingly poor. These moments highlight how Chu is struggling to pace the final chapter of his Wicked adaptation. But none ruin the fun, just the flow. 

In the end, Wicked: For Good is sure to enthrall fans of the Broadway show, the first movie, and just about anyone who loves a splashy movie musical. Despite its faults, it's still good. 

Wicked: For Good opens in theaters on Nov. 21. 

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to watch Brazil vs. Tunisia online for free

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 18:00

TL;DR: Live stream Brazil vs. Tunisia in an International Friendly for free on ITVX. Access this free streaming site from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

World Cup qualification is already sorted for Brazil, but now it's time to build some momentum and test out new lineups ahead of the main event. Fresh from beating Senegal 1-0 in their last International Friendly, Brazil now face Tunisia in Lille. We're expecting an entertaining tussle between two talented sides.

If you want to watch Brazil vs. Tunisia in an International Friendly for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is Brazil vs. Tunisia?

Brazil vs. Tunisia kicks off at 7:30 p.m. GMT on Nov. 18. This fixture takes place at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy.

How to watch Brazil vs. Tunisia for free

Brazil vs. Tunisia is available to live stream for free on ITVX+.

ITVX is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming service with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can access free live streams on ITVX from anywhere in the world.

Lve stream Brazil vs. Tunisia for free by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

  4. Visit ITVX

  5. Stream Brazil vs. Tunisia for free from anywhere in the world

Opens in a new window Credit: ExpressVPN ExpressVPN (1-Month Plan) $12.95 only at ExpressVPN (with money-back guarantee) Get Deal

The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Brazil vs. Tunisia without actually spending anything. This clearly isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream select games before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free streaming sites from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for ITVX?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on ITVX, for a number of reasons:

  • Servers in 105 countries including the UK

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

  • Fast connection speeds free from throttling

  • Up to eight simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.95 (including money-back guarantee).

Live stream Brazil vs. Tunisia for free with ExpressVPN.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Home Depot's early Black Friday deal gets you a free DeWalt tool

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:52

It's that time of the year again. The time to complete any remaining DIY projects before the cold winter months arrive, and to take advantage of holiday shopping events. Now is the perfect time to buy new power tools or battery packs, especially if you're a fan of DeWalt. Home Depot's popular sale is back, and here's what you need to know.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Meta creates tool to prevent rampant Reels content theft

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:44

Meta is continuing its crackdown on copycat content.

The company is introducing a new tool for Facebook Reels creators that protects creators' content from being reposted from other accounts without permission.

On Monday, Meta announced a tool called content protection, which helps users "safeguard your reels and maintain control over your creative work." It's located in the Professional dashboard in the Facebook app, and currently the only users who are eligible for the tool are creators in the Facebook Content Monetization program "who meet enhanced integrity and originality standards." Users can check to see if they're eligible in their Feed, Professional dashboard, and profile.

"Your original work is your voice, and you should have the tools to protect it," Meta said in a press release about the change. "That's why we built content protection — a powerful yet simple new tool in your Professional dashboard in the Facebook app that helps you safeguard your reels and maintain control over your creative work. It’s part of our ongoing focus this year to help authentic creators break through on Facebook."

Once users enroll in content protection, they allow their reels to be scanned by the same matching technology as Meta's Rights Manager for matches. If the tool detects matches — be that full or partial — Facebook will notify the creator, who can review the content and decide to take action or not.

If the user decides to take action, they can choose to either track, block, or release. Tracking is the default setting and keeps the matching reel visible, but the user can stay informed about its performance.

"You can always revisit and take a different action at any time," Meta said about the tracking option. "You can also add attribution links to select eligible tracked matches on Facebook, which puts an 'original by' label on the reel that links back to your Page or Profile."

Users can also block, which makes the matching reel not visible without taking disciplinary action against the other account, or users can release their claim. They can also grant permission to certain accounts to use their content, which adds them to an "allow list" and makes it so that their matching content won't be flagged.

This is all part of an ongoing attempt from Meta to stop copycat creators. In July, the company said it took down 10 million profiles impersonating other content creators and "took action on" 500,000 accounts engaged in spammy behavior.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Cloudflare down: What we know about the outage so far

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:35

UPDATE Tuesday, Nov. 18, 11:33 a.m. ET: Cloudflare confirmed it had fully resolved the issue causing outages on Tuesday. This morning's Clouflare outage caused widespread errors across popular services, apps, and websites.

The company wrote in an emailed statement to Mashable that the outages stemmed from a crash in a software system that handles traffic, while adding that there was no evidence it was caused by malicious activity.

Read the statement:

"Many of Cloudflare's services experienced a significant outage today beginning around 11:20 UTC. It was fully resolved at 14:30 UTC. The root cause of the outage was a configuration file that is automatically generated to manage threat traffic. The file grew beyond an expected size of entries and triggered a crash in the software system that handles traffic for a number of Cloudflare's services.

To be clear, there is no evidence that this was the result of an attack or caused by malicious activity. We expect that some Cloudflare services will be briefly degraded as traffic naturally spikes post incident but we expect all services to return to normal in the next few hours. A detailed explanation will be posted soon on blog.cloudflare.com. Given the importance of Cloudflare's services, any outage is unacceptable. We apologize to our customers and the Internet in general for letting you down today. We will learn from today's incident and improve."

UPDATE Tuesday, Nov. 18, 10:28 a.m. ET: It appeared Cloudflare's issues were nearing a full resolution on Tuesday.

"A fix has been implemented and we believe the incident is now resolved," read a recent status update from the company. "We are continuing to monitor for errors to ensure all services are back to normal."

User-reported issues on Downdetector did appear to be quickly falling off. (Disclosure: Downdetector is owned by Ziff Davis, the same parent company as Mashable.)

The company noted in a more recent update that some Cloudflare users may still be experiencing login issues, but that it is working on a fix.

UPDATE Tuesday, Nov. 18, 9:18 a.m. ET: Cloudflare confirmed it was experiencing serious issues on Tuesday morning, noting in an emailed statement to Mashable that the root cause appeared to be "a spike in unusual traffic."

Read the statement from Cloudflare:

We saw a spike in unusual traffic to one of Cloudflare's services beginning at 11:20 UTC. That caused some traffic passing through Cloudflare's network to experience errors. We do not yet know the cause of the spike in unusual traffic. We are all hands on deck to make sure all traffic is served without errors. After that, we will turn our attention to investigating the cause of the unusual spike in traffic. We will post updates to cloudflarestatus.com and more in-depth analysis when it is ready to blog.cloudflare.com.

The latest status update from Cloudflare read that it was "working on restoring service for application services customers."

The internet appears to be breaking again.

On Tuesday morning, at 11:48 UTC, Cloudflare confirmed its global network is experiencing issues impacting "multiple customers."

SEE ALSO: Cloudflare launches way to charge AI bots for crawling sites

Here's the full statement published on the site's status page.

Cloudflare Global Network experiencing issues

Investigating - Cloudflare is aware of, and investigating an issue which potentially impacts multiple customers. Further detail will be provided as more information becomes available.

Nov 18, 2025 - 11:48 UTC

This Tweet is currently unavailable. It might be loading or has been removed.

Cloudflare is a service that "powers Internet requests for millions of websites and serves 78 million HTTP requests per second on average," according to its site. In short, when Cloudflare has problems, the internet has problems. Users on X are already reporting issues, and Down Detector — the site that's normally a go-to for checking what's broken and what's not — appears to be having issues itself. (Disclosure: Ziff Davis owns both Mashable and Down Detector.)

Credit: Downdetector

It's worth noting this isn't the first time Cloudflare has experienced major issues. Large portions of the internet went down back in June due to Cloudflare disruption, causing problems for users of Twitch, Etsy, Discord, and Google.

Which parts of the internet are affected?

Here's a working list of all the sites and services affected by the Cloudflare outage:

'Please unlock Cloudflare challenges' error

Many sites impacted by the Cloudflare outage, including OpenAI.com, are displaying an error message that reads, "Please unblock challenges.cloudflare.com to proceed."

This is a developing story and will be updated as new details emerge.

Featured Video For You How TikTok is Changing the Music Industry
Categories: IT General, Technology

Cloudflare outage cause revealed: This is what happened.

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:31

UPDATE Tuesday, Nov. 18, 11:27 a.m. ET: Cloudflare confirmed it experienced a "significant outage" on Tuesday that stemmed from a crash in a software system that handles traffic for a number of its services.

The company wrote in an emailed statement to Mashable that the issue had been fully resolved and added that it did not appear to be an attack or caused by malicious activity.

The statement from Cloudflare read:

"Many of Cloudflare's services experienced a significant outage today beginning around 11:20 UTC. It was fully resolved at 14:30 UTC. The root cause of the outage was a configuration file that is automatically generated to manage threat traffic. The file grew beyond an expected size of entries and triggered a crash in the software system that handles traffic for a number of Cloudflare's services.

To be clear, there is no evidence that this was the result of an attack or caused by malicious activity. We expect that some Cloudflare services will be briefly degraded as traffic naturally spikes post incident but we expect all services to return to normal in the next few hours. A detailed explanation will be posted soon on blog.cloudflare.com. Given the importance of Cloudflare's services, any outage is unacceptable. We apologize to our customers and the Internet in general for letting you down today. We will learn from today's incident and improve."

Issues with Cloudflare — one of the internet's major infrastructure providers — led to massive outages Tuesday morning as East Coast folks logged on to work. We're now starting to get answers as to why that happened.

Cloudflare emailed a statement to Mashable, suggesting that unusual, heavy traffic to its services was to blame. The company has not yet stated whether the unusual traffic appears to be of a nefarious nature.

SEE ALSO: Cloudflare outage list: X, OpenAI, Canva, Spotify, more impacted

Read the statement from Cloudflare:

"We saw a spike in unusual traffic to one of Cloudflare's services beginning at 11:20 UTC. That caused some traffic passing through Cloudflare's network to experience errors. We do not yet know the cause of the spike in unusual traffic. We are all hands on deck to make sure all traffic is served without errors. After that, we will turn our attention to investigating the cause of the unusual spike in traffic. We will post updates to cloudflarestatus.com and more in-depth analysis when it is ready to blog.cloudflare.com."

That spike in unusual traffic, it seems, sparked the massive issues on Tuesday. The list of services experiencing outages was vast, but appeared to include heavy hitters like OpenAI, X, Grindr, and many more. Pretty much anyone with an internet connection would be affected by a Cloudflare outage. User-reported issues on Downdetector continued to spike as we neared 10 a.m. ET, indicating the problems persisted. (Disclosure: Downdetector is owned by Ziff Davis, the same parent company as Mashable.)

"We've deployed a change which has restored dashboard services. We are still working to remediate broad application services impact," read the most recent update on Cloudflare's status page.

Like the recent AWS outage, Cloudflare is one of the major pillars of the internet. When it goes down, the downstream effects are serious and vast — as we're seeing Tuesday.

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Categories: IT General, Technology

Unlock Hidden Galaxy Phone Features with a Samsung Account

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:30

Samsung prompts you to create a Samsung account when setting up a new phone. It’s easy to think signing in with a Google account is enough, but aside from accessing the Play Store, I personally use my Samsung account more. The list of perks is longer than I expected.

Categories: IT General, Technology

Rebble kept old Pebble watches alive—now its work is being stolen

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:24

When Eric Migicovsky and his new company, Core Devices, popped up, there was a lot of new excitement for the Pebble ecosystem again. The folks at Rebble, who have painstakingly maintained the Pebble App Store for the last nine years, initially joined in that excitement. However, the situation has soured.

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to stop windows from reopening apps and folders at startup

How-To Geek - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:16

Do apps from your previous session reopen when you start Windows? Or do some programs launch every time, even if you don’t use them? This can seriously slow down the boot process. Thankfully, Windows makes it easy to manage which apps launch on startup—and turning them off takes just a few tweaks.

Categories: IT General, Technology

How to watch Scotland vs. Denmark online for free

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 17:00

TL;DR: Live stream Scotland vs. Denmark in World Cup qualifiers for free on BBC iPlayer. Access this free streaming site from anywhere in the world with ExpressVPN.

There is nothing quite like a winner-takes-all game. One point separates Denmark and Scotland in Group C of World Cup qualification, meaning that if Scotland win this final game against the Danes, they leapfrog their opponents and secure automatic passage to the main event next summer. It really doesn't get much bigger than this.

If you want to watch Scotland vs. Denmark in World Cup qualifiers for free from anywhere in the world, we have all the information you need.

When is Scotland vs. Denmark?

Scotland vs. Denmark in World Cup qualifiers kicks off at 7:45 p.m. GMT on Nov. 18. This fixture takes place at Hampden Park.

How to watch Scotland vs. Denmark for free

Scotland vs. Denmark in World Cup qualifiers is available to live stream for free on BBC iPlayer.

BBC iPlayer is geo-restricted to the UK, but anyone can access this free streaming service with a VPN. These tools can hide your real IP address (digital location) and connect you to a secure server in the UK, meaning you can access free live streams on BBC iPlayer from anywhere in the world.

Lve stream Scotland vs. Denmark for free by following these simple steps:

  1. Subscribe to a streaming-friendly VPN (like ExpressVPN)

  2. Download the app to your device of choice (the best VPNs have apps for Windows, Mac, iOS, Android, Linux, and more)

  3. Open up the app and connect to a server in the UK

  4. Visit BBC iPlayer

  5. Stream Scotland vs. Denmark for free from anywhere in the world

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The best VPNs for streaming are not free, but most do offer free-trials or money-back guarantees. By leveraging these offers, you can watch Scotland vs. Denmark in World Cup qualifiers without actually spending anything. This clearly isn't a long-term solution, but it does give you enough time to stream select World Cup qualifiers before recovering your investment.

If you want to retain permanent access to free streaming sites from around the world, you'll need a subscription. Fortunately, the best VPN for streaming live sport is on sale for a limited time.

What is the best VPN for BBC iPlayer?

ExpressVPN is the best choice for bypassing geo-restrictions to stream live sport on BBC iPlayer, for a number of reasons:

  • Servers in 105 countries including the UK

  • Easy-to-use app available on all major devices including iPhone, Android, Windows, Mac, and more

  • Strict no-logging policy so your data is secure

  • Fast connection speeds free from throttling

  • Up to eight simultaneous connections

  • 30-day money-back guarantee

A one-year subscription to ExpressVPN is on sale for $99.95 and includes an extra three months for free — 49% off for a limited time. This plan also includes a year of free unlimited cloud backup and a generous 30-day money-back guarantee. Alternatively, you can get a one-month plan for just $12.95 (including money-back guarantee).

Live stream Scotland vs. Denmark in World Cup qualifiers for free with ExpressVPN.

Categories: IT General, Technology

What is Cloudflare?

Mashable - Tue, 11/18/2025 - 16:51

For the second time this year, Cloudflare has experienced major issues — this time disrupting a wide range of platforms after what the company called an "unusual spike in traffic."

If you're not familiar with Cloudflare, you're not alone. Often described as "the biggest company you've never heard of," Cloudflare manages and secures traffic for roughly 20 percent of the web.

SEE ALSO: Cloudflare outage cause revealed: This is what happened. What is Cloudflare?

Cloudflare is an internet infrastructure and cloud computing provider that functions similarly to Amazon Web Services. The company hosts numerous online services, but it's best known as a global Content Delivery Network, which speeds up websites by routing them through servers located closer to users. In practice, Cloudflare acts as a giant internet middleman — the thing that makes a U.S.-hosted site load quickly even if you're browsing from halfway around the world.

Cloudflare has servers everywhere, and they can cache a huge amount of content. That allows the company to spread traffic across thousands of nodes — individual servers in Cloudflare’s global network — each capable of handling a high volume of requests on its own without passing everything back to the original server. It keeps sites from getting slammed all at once and reduces the chances of an overload.

Your local Cloudflare node is also almost always several hops closer than the server where the site is actually hosted. A hop is just one step in the journey your data takes as it moves through the internet. Fewer hops mean less distance and less time waiting for information to move between points. That shorter path translates to lower latency and faster overall load times.

Because Cloudflare's software underpins so many businesses, outages like this have a significant impact. Tuesday's disruption rippled across the web, taking down or slowing services including OpenAI's ChatGPT, the social platform X, and even digital tools for NJ Transit.

Categories: IT General, Technology
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