Wednesday, December 27, 2023

Windows and Mac Users Can Snag Microsoft Office 2019 for Just $40 - CNET

If you need access to Microsoft Office but don't want to sign up for an expensive subscription, this $40 lifetime license is the perfect option.

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Latest Tech News

Every year since its inception, hackers have stolen more cryptocurrencies than the previous year, until 2023, new research has claimed.

Data presented on the REKT platform, which keeps track of all the different crypto-related hacks and thefts, says that in 2023, hackers stole a total of $1.83bn.

“This amount, though dispersed across various incidents, underscores the persistent vulnerabilities and challenges within the DeFi ecosystem,” De.Fi wrote in its paper, TechCrunch reported. “2023 stood as a testament to both the ongoing vulnerabilities and the strides made in addressing them, even as interest in the space was relatively muted by the ongoing bear market in the first half of the year.”

The biggest incident happened on Multichain, with more than $230 million lost on the bridge in early July. Other notable mentions include Euler Finance ($196m), Mixin Network ($142m), and Poloniex ($122m). 

While almost $2 billion is a lot of money, this is the first time ever that hackers stole less compared to the previous year. Blockchain analysis firm Chainalysis reported $3.8 billion stolen last year, and $3.3 billion stolen in 2021. Most of the cash stolen in these incidents went to Lazarus Group, a notorious North Korean state-sponsored threat actor, which is said to be helping fund the country’s nuclear program with the stolen money. 

“It isn’t a stretch to say that cryptocurrency hacking is a sizable chunk of the nation’s economy,” Chainalysis said at the time.

REKT tracks hacks and crypto breaches to mid-2011, and in total more than $77 billion have been stolen. At the same time, $6.6 billion has been recovered by law enforcement and other agencies. 

While the networks of the biggest chains, such as Bitcoin and Ethereum, remain secure, surrounding infrastructure is where most hacks happen, with lending protocols, bridges, and similar, remaining the industry’s weakest link. 

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Tuesday, December 26, 2023

Apple Stops Selling Its Newest Watches in the US. What to Know - CNET

Apple can no longer sell the Series 9 and Ultra 2 in the US due to a lawsuit, but the Apple Watch SE is still available.

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Latest Tech News

Now that the holiday season is winding down, it's time to prep for the year ahead. Unfortunately, like the rest of us, you've probably amassed a lot of junk throughout the year. There's a reason why spring cleaning is a thing in the first place. 

Spring cleaning isn't an easy chore, but you can get through it easier and with less fuss when you have the right tools. A cordless vacuum, for example, will make the job more effortless since they tend to be lighter and cord-free. 

True, there's a steep price of admission for that type of vacuums, making them a little pricier than their wired counterparts, but you can get one for less by scoring a great deal now. Christmas deals may be over, but now, many retailers are trying to get rid old stock to make room for new products, which means you can still get a cordless vacuum for less.

And with Walmart holding it's Can't Miss Clearance sale, less means up to 75% off the retail price. 

I'm not kidding. I found five highly-rated cordless vacuums at Walmart that are now so cheap, they're almost too good to be true. And they're just the perfect tools to get through that inevitable spring cleaning you have to do easier, quicker, and with less effort from you.

Up to 75% on cordless vacuums from LG, Shark and more

Shark Cordless Pro Stick: was $299.99 now $159 at Walmart
Save $140.99 - Praised by verified customers for its powerful suctioning on both hard and carpeted flooring, easy set up, and long battery life of up to 40 minutes, this Shark vacuum cleaner is understandably a little pricier than others. Luckily, with Walmart's clearance sale, you can get it for almost 50% off with this deal that knocks $140 off its retail price. This is probably the best choice out of the deals on this roundup, if you're not seeking a budget-basement price.View Deal

Wyze Cordless Stick Vacuum: was $199 now $78 at Walmart
Save $121 - Wyze is known for its fantastic yet very affordable smart home products, but did you know it makes home appliances as well. This budget-friendly cordless vacuum cleaner from its home appliances line is lauded for its light weight, great maneuverability, and a battery that's detachable. It's already affordable, but it's even cheaper now with this Walmart clearance sale that gives you $121 in savings. That's such a large discount, you're getting more of it than what you're paying for the vacuum.View Deal

LG Cord Zero A9 Cordless Stick Vacuum: was $344 now $179 at Walmart
Save $165
- If you want a more premium product, this cordless vacuum from LG might be for you. It's great for carpeted flooring and homes with sensitive family members. It comes with a 5-step filtration system to filter 99. 99% of dust, a whopping 50-hour battery life, and an adjustable wand length. Users love it for its powerful and effective suctioning as well as its ease of use. At its retail price, it's pretty expensive. However, thanks to this Walmart end-of-the-year deal, it's almost 50% off, making it a must-grab now.
View Deal

INSE Cordless Vacuum Cleaner: was $348.99 now $87.37 at Walmart
Save $261.62 - You may not be familiar with this brand, but if there's one thing I learned from this job is that even unknown brands can deliver excellent products. This one, which has more than 4,000 reviews on Walmart, is a great value according to customers, praising it for its durability, effective suctioning. good battery life, and great design. With this 75% discount from Walmart, it's a better value than ever. This is a great option if you don't have very demanding vacuuming needs.View Deal

HART 20-Volt Cordless Stick Vacuum: was $168 now $86 at Walmart
Save $82 - Another highly-rated cordless vacuum at Walmart, this one from Hart is a crowd-favorite, thanks to its washable filter that traps over 99.9% of dust and allergens - something that you only typically find in pricier vacuums. Customers says that it's got powerful suctioning as well, great for all types of flooring and for cleaning up pet hair. With this $82 Walmart deal, it's almost half off, making it an even better value.View Deal

End of the year sales 2023: quick links



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Monday, December 25, 2023

Latest Tech News

Dell has added an AMD-powered server to its ranks of high-performance computing portfolio for AI workloads.  

Alongside an Nvidia-powered version, customers can soon snap up a new version of the Dell PowerEdge XE9680 fitted with eight AMD Instinct MI300X accelerators. This helps businesses train and run their own in-house large language models (LLMs) – offering 1.5GB of high-bandwidth memory (HBM3) and over 21 petaFLOPS of performance. 

Customers can also scale systems they deploy with the global memory interconnect (xGMI) standard, and connect AMD's GPUs over an Ethernet-based AI fabric with a Dell PowerSwitch Z9664F-ON. It follows Dell's launch of the unit fitted with Nvidia H100 GPUs earlier this year.

Dell adopts an open approach to AI infrastructure

This comes alongside a new standard called Dell Validated Design for Generative AI with AMD. It's a mouthful, but is essentially a framework for organizations wishing to run their own hardware and networking architecture to run LLMs. 

Dell customers could use the solution to build generative AI platforms with various frameworks that guide the integration of the technology as well as physical installation and optimization for performance.  

It also uses AMD ROCm powered AI frameworks, which is an open source package of drivers, dev toolkits and APIs compatible with AMD Instinct accelerators. They include popular frameworks like PyTorch, TensorFlow and OpenAI Triton – which all have native support on the PowerEdge XE9680 that's fitted with the AMD accelerators. 

Dell's continued push for standards-based networking, as a member of the Ultra Ethernet Consuortium (UEC), means it's adopted a more open approach to that adopted by Nvidia. 

Although an AI infrastructure industry leader, Nvidia differs from AMD in that the latter advocates for an open Ethernet for AI – in which switches from different vendors can interoperate together on the same system. Likewise, Dell wants businesses to take an open approach across the compute, fabric as well as storage components needed to power generative AI models in-house.

The new hardware and services that comprise Dell's latest AI push are set to be available during the first half of next year, the company said. 

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Best Latex Mattresses of 2023 - CNET

No standard mattress can beat latex mattresses for durability, pressure relief and sustainability.

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Sunday, December 24, 2023

What to Know About EndeavorRX, the Video Game to Treat ADHD - CNET

The FDA extended its authorization to more kids and teens; adults can play it without prescription. Here's what to know about it.

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Saturday, December 23, 2023

Latest Tech News

Christmas deals abound, and you can still save a lot, whether you're still seeking last-minute Christmas gift ideas or you're prepping for the new year. The unfortunate thing is that it is December 23 now, and most online stores will tell you that unless you order online and pick it up at one of their physical locations, you won't be getting that order until after Christmas.

You always have the option to join the shopping fray, but it's like the Wild West out there, and unless you're a glutton for punishment, you'd want to avoid that as much as possible.

The great news is that you absolutely can. While most items on Amazon won't arrive until after Christmas, even for Prime members, the retailer is still offering its free one-day shipping for a handful of products. And I found 9 of them for your convenience - because trust me, it's not easy.

There's more good news: all of these nine products that include an educational toy for the kids, some of the best-rated headphones, and a couple of tablets are heavily-discounted still. You know what that means. Not only are you saving yourself a massive headache and a whole lot of stress, but you're saving money as well.

Just keep in mind that these products have varying time-frame in terms of that one-day shipping privilege. Some, you can get by the 24th when you order within the next 12 hours; others, you'll only have a few hours. Make sure to check before you hit that buy button.

Christmas sales 2023: quick links

Today's best deals to arrive on the 24th

LeapFrog Magic Adventures Microscope: was $79.99 now $55.99 at Amazon
30% off -
Christmas may be the perfect time to spend with the family, but the adults need a bit of relaxation as well before the new year. If you're looking for a new toy to get the kids entertained over the holiday break, this educational toy from LeapFrog may just be the solution. With 8double-sided smart slides showing educational BBC videos and images and 15 topics including flowers, animals, food and minerals that can enjoy on its 2.4-inch display, the kids will have hours of fun while the adults can put their feet up and unwind with a glass of wine and a good book. Order this within the next few hours, and you can get it delivered by the 24th for free!View Deal

Beats Powerbeats Pro Wireless Earbuds: was $249.95 now $159.99
Save $89.96 –
For those looking for fitness-inspired wireless earbuds, the Powerbeats Pro are a great pick. You're scrapping noise cancellation in favor of fantastic comfort and an ear grip design that ensures your buds will never slip out during even the most intense of workouts. Plus, you're getting up to 9 hours of listening time and more than 24 hours with charging case. Currently, the ivory version is a whopping 36% off, and you can get delivered for free on the 24th if you order now.View Deal

Amazon Fire TV Stick 4K: was $49.99 now $29.99 at Amazon
40% off -
Get the best-selling Fire TV Stick on sale for just $29.99. The HD streaming player allows you to enjoy tens of thousands of channels, apps, and Alexa skills and features an Alexa voice remote, plus support for Dolby Vision, HDR10+, and immersive Dolby Atmos audio. What's even better is that the included remote has Alexa built-in so now only can you quickly find content with just your voice, you can also use it to control compatible smart home devices like cameras, lights, and more. Order this today, and you'll also get it on the 24th, giving you enough time to wrap it and nestle it under the tree before Christmas morning.View Deal

KitchenAid Variable Speed Corded Hand Blender: was $59.99 now $44.99
25% off -
Winter is soup season, and this immersion blender from KitchenAid is just the perfect affordable last-minute gift for the chef or aspiring chef in your life. This comes with a removable bending arm, a 4-point stainless steel blade, and a 3-cup blender jar for smaller jobs. Bear in mind that KitchenAid doesn't hold sales as often as other brands, so this is a must-grab. As with all the others on this list, you can get it before the 24th if you order soon.View Deal

Amazon Fire 10 Kids: was $189.99 now $129.99 at Amazon
Save $60 -
With a 10.1-inch 1080p display, this kiddie tablet offers the best immersion for young kids as they consume educational content for hours and hours. As with Amazon's other kids tablet, it comes with a kid-proof case, a free year of Amazon Kids+, and comprehensive parental controls. As a new release, it's also 25% faster than its predecessor, which means the kids won't get impatient waiting for their favorite content to be pulled up. Order this tablet today, and you can rest assured you'll get it on Christmas Eve.View Deal

Amazon Fire HD 10 (2023): was $139.99 now $89.99 at Amazon
Save $50 -
Amazon promises a 25% performance improvement on this new Fire HD 10 over the previous Fire HD 10 slate, with a feature set built for "streaming, reading and gaming." Amazon has also worked on the tablet's durability, while the 2023 HD 10 also promises up to 13 hours of battery life and a baseline 32GB of storage. Order this one today at 36% off, and you can get it by Christmas Eve!View Deal

Sony SRS-XB100 Wireless Bluetooth Portable Travel Speaker: was $59.99 now $38 at Amazon
37% off - Summer may be months away, but this portable Bluetooth speaker from Sony may just be the perfect gift for the beach bum in your life. This comes with IP67 waterproof & dustproof, a versatile strap, and  up to 16 hours of battery life. It also comes in different colors, but the blue shade in discounted right now for the holiday season. Order it today, and you'll get it before Christmas with Amazon's free one-day shipping.View Deal

Sony LinkBuds S x Olivia Rodrigo: was $199.99 now $178 at Amazon
$21 off - Sony's LinkBuds S are great noise-canceling earbuds that have smart features and are lightweight in design. But this version are even more fantastic, especially to the Olivia Rodrigo fan in your life. Coming in an adorable pink-and-purple colorway, these are a special edition that must not be missed, especially since they come with two custom EQs tuned by Olivia herself. Order these within the next few hours, and you'll get it delivered by Christmas Eve.View Deal

Echo Studio: was $199.99 now $159.99 at Amazon
20% off -
Want the best-sounding smart speaker for Amazon to gift to the audiophile in your life? Then the Echo Studio is your best bet. Not only does it come with all of Echo's basic smart home features to control your devices, but it comes with a smart home hub as well. As a speaker, it's able to automatically sense the acoustics in the room to adapt its audio and it comes wtih a booming bass as well. Order within the next few hours, and you can get this on the 24th, leaving you just enough time to gift-wrap it.View Deal



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6 Tips to Prevent Frozen Pipes and Costly Repairs This Winter - CNET

Save yourself a big headache and a big bill by avoiding burst pipes.

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Latest Tech News

Google accompanied the recent launch of its Gemini AI models with the latest version of its flagship tensor processing unit (TPU) for AI training and inference, in what appears to be an attempt to take on Nvidia's own market-leading GPUs.

TPU v5p – Google's most powerful custom-designed AI accelerator – has been deployed to power the firm's 'AI Hypercomputer'. This is a supercomputing architecture that's built specifically to run AI applications, rather than supercomputers which normally run scientific workloads, because TPUs are unsuited to this.

The latest version of its TPU has 8,960 chips per pod (which comprise the system), versus 4,096 in v4, and it's four times as scalable in terms of total availability of FLOPs per pod. These new pods provide a throughput of 4,800Gbps. The new pods also have 95GB of high-bandwidth memory (HBM) versus 32GB HBM RAM in TPU v4. 

Nvidia H100 vs Google TPU v5p: Which is faster?

Unlike Nvidia, which offers its GPUs out for other companies to purchase, Google's custom-made TPUs remain in-house for use across its own products and services. Google's TPUs have long been used to power its services including Gmail, YouTube and Android, and the latest version has also been used to train Gemini. 

Google's v5p TPUs are up to 2.8 times faster at training large language models than TPU v4, and offer 2.1-times value-for-money. Although the intermediary version, TPU v5e, released earlier this year, offers the most value for money of all three, it's only up to 1.9-times faster than TPU v4, making TPU v5p the most powerful.

It's even powerful enough to rival Nvidia's widely in-demand H100 GPU, which is one of the best graphics cards out there for AI workloads. This component is four times faster at training workloads than Nvidia's A100 GPU, according to the company's own data

Google's TPU v4, meanwhile, is estimated to be between 1.2 and 1.7-times faster than the A100, according to research it published in April. Incredibly rough calculations would suggest the TPU v5p, therefore, is roughly between 3.4 and 4.8-times faster than the A100 – which makes it on par or superior to the H100, although more detailed benchmarking is needed before any conclusions can be drawn.

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Friday, December 22, 2023

Best Squat Racks: Top Fitness Picks for Your Home Gym - CNET

Is it time to level up your weight lifting workouts? These are the best squat racks to add to your home gym.

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Latest Tech News

We’re about to witness a significant surge in the deployment of DarkGate and NetSupport, security experts are warning.

Researchers from Proofpoint claim to have observed a brand new threat actor, dubbed "BattleRoyal". This threat actor mounted at least 20 email campaigns in the months between September and November this year, to deliver the DarkGate malware

In late November and early December, the group pivoted from DarkGate to NetSupport, a legitimate remote access tool frequently abused by hackers to establish persistence on targeted endpoints. Besides emails, the group also used a series of compromised websites and fake update lures to get people to download the malware. 

Abusing a SmartScreen flaw

The reasons for the switch remain a mystery, with the researchers hinting it might be due to DarkGate drawing too much attention. 

In any case, the group was abusing a vulnerability tracked as CVE-2023-36025 to deliver the malware. Other groups abused this flaw too, but the BattleRoyal cluster “exploited this vulnerability more than any other actor observed in Proofpoint threat data.” BattleRoyal was abusing it even before it was published by Microsoft, the company said.

The flaw is found in Windows SmartScreen, a security feature designed to stop people from visiting dangerous websites. Proofpoint explained that the attackers could bypass SmartScreen defenses by getting the victim to click on a specially designed URL, which the vulnerability allowed.

As explained by Malpedia, DarkGate is a commodity loader first documented in 2018. It comes with numerous features, including the ability to download and execute files to memory, a Hidden Virtual Network Computing (HVNC) module, the ability to log keystrokes, steal sensitive information, and escalate privileges. DarkGate abuses legitimate AutoIt files and typically runs multiple AutoIt scripts. 

New versions of DarkGate have been advertised on a Russian-language eCrime forum since May 2023, the report concludes.

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Thursday, December 21, 2023

The 18 Best Food and Drink Subscriptions to Gift in 2023 - CNET

Whether your giftee covets coffee, cheese, whiskey or wine, there's a perfect food club membership or boozy subscription to lay on them this year.

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Latest Tech News

Beeper Mini is officially no more. The developer is calling it quits in trying to find new workarounds for bringing iMessage to Android devices.

Instead, Beeper would much rather work on its own projects and achieve its goal “of building the best chat app on Earth.” The developer goes on to state in a recent announcement post that every time Beeper Mini goes offline or is made worthless because of Apple’s meddling, its credibility takes a hit, adding it’s unsustainable to continue like this. It admits that it just “can’t win a cat-and-mouse game with the largest company on Earth”. It’s just not worth the hassle anymore. They would rather move on. 

The final workaround

There is a final workaround available although it is very convoluted. The process requires you to first own a Mac or Linux computer (a Raspberry Pi works as well) with the Beeper desktop app installed and a jailbroken iPhone. 

You plug the iPhone into the computer then run certain commands in the Terminal tool. You will need to install an app called Palera1n along the way. Eventually, you will install Beeper Mini onto the smartphone in order to receive an iMessage registration code for your Android device. Then and only then, will you be able to use the service as intended. Also, the iPhone at the heart of all this must be connected to your Wi-Fi and turned on at all times, according to TheVerge.

That's the basic rundown. We glossed over a lot of the more elaborate steps involving Palera1n. What’s more, if your Mac is equipped with Apple silicon, you may have to unplug the iPhone when the word “Checkmate!” appears otherwise the workaround presumably fails. Beeper doesn’t explain why you need to disconnect the device. As we said earlier, this whole thing is convoluted.  

Beeper Mini's future

If you don’t own a jailbroken iPhone, you can buy one from Beeper. Prices range from $30 to $60. Or you can rent one for “several dollars per month”. You will however need to sign up and fill out a special form on the developer’s website before renting or buying. Interested users will need to act fast because it looks like the service will stop at the end of the year. But “if there is enough interest”, Beeper will extend the program into the new year.

This solution, as crazy as it may seem, is the final method. If Apple decides to block it, the developer says it won’t make another. Again, it’s not worth the hassle in their eyes. That said, Beeper believes it managed to create a workaround that the tech giant is willing to “tolerate”, although whether or not this is true remains to be seen.

Goodbye, Beeper Mini; we hardly knew ye.

While we have you check out TechRadar's list of the best encrypted messaging apps for Android.

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Wednesday, December 20, 2023

How to Watch 'Beau Is Afraid' From Anywhere - CNET

Go on an extremely weird road trip with Joaquin Phoenix, as the A24 horror comedy hits Paramount Plus.

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Heat Domes and Surging Grid Demand Threaten US Power Grids with Blackouts

A new report shows a sharp increase in peak electricity demand, leading to blackout concerns in multiple states. Here's how experts say ...