The company hasn’t been back in the US TV market for long, but the Z95B OLED proves that Panasonic can hang with Sony, LG, and Samsung at the very high end. Panasonic returned to the US TV market last year, and only a matter of months later, I’ve convinced myself that its latest flagship OLED is the best TV of CES 2025. It’s an impressive resurgence for a brand that many home theater enthusiasts remember for producing superb plasma sets back when those represented the crème de la crème of display technology for the living room. After a long hiatus, Panasonic is back in the game and squaring off with Sony, LG, and Samsung in the very premium (and very pricey) TV category.The company’s new OLED, the Z95B, will come in three sizes: 55 inches, 65 inches, and 77 inches. It uses the latest and greatest OLED panel from LG Display, which is a new four-layer tandem structure that beats out the brightness of last year’s LG G4 even without the micro-lens array technology that squeezed as much brightness as possible out of that TV. Last year’s Z95A from Panasonic also used MLA, but the new approach gets better results and is cheaper to produce.So the panel is top tier and should be a formidable alternative to the QD-OLED display used in Samsung’s respective 2025 flagship, the S95F. OLED TVs just keep getting brighter, more vivid, and dazzling — and consumers really can’t go wrong with any of them. The Panasonic stopped me in my tracks on the show floor and looked phenomenal. I couldn’t help but stare at it for several minutes. The Z95B also offers support for gaming at up to 144Hz, so it’s a strong contender there as well, though both LG and Samsung stepped it up to 165Hz this year. Technics (another Panasonic brand) handled the audio tuning of the Z95B. Another thing that sets the Panasonic apart is its built-in Dolby Atmos speaker array. The drivers and sound performance have been tuned by Technics, with a badge that advertises as much. I really dig the fabric sides of this TV; it’s a classy way of concealing the side-firing and upward-firing speakers.Yes, that audio hardware results in this being a thick set by 2025 standards — especially for an OLED. Panasonic didn’t hold back in making the Z95B a hulking beast of a TV. But the good news is that many people won’t need to bother with a separate soundbar since this system will (likely) sound so good. As noted by the excellent Caleb Denison at Digital Trends, the company has also reworked the TV’s cooling system with a new heat dissipation technique that should help keep that four-layer OLED panel in tip-top shape over the long term. The TV has a built-in woofer and revamped heat dissipation system. This is not a thin TV. But in exchange, you might be able to skip a soundbar. But there is one glaring dilemma with Panasonic TVs: they run Amazon’s Fire TV OS. That’s rather unfortunate. It’s my least favorite TV platform among the pack, and I’d argue Amazon has crossed the line when it comes to pushing ads on customers — even if the most egregious examples can be disabled in settings. Fire TV has some good ideas here and there; the ambient mode widgets are something Google has taken note of. But I really hope that Panos Panay and the Fire TV team take a sledgehammer to this software and come back with something much sleeker, more intuitive, and worthy of a TV that’s certain to be very expensive if the Z95A is anything to go by.Even so, I know plenty of people who mostly ignore their TV’s default software and use an Apple TV, Nvidia Shield, or some other streaming player as their preferred entertainment interface. With Samsung and LG both being very aggressive with the AI gimmicks this year, I anticipate seeing even more of that. The LG G5 will feature an LLM-powered chatbot, has an AI button on its remote, and even ships with Microsoft Copilot built in. It’s getting to be a little much, no? Panasonic’s using the very latest, very brightest LG Display with a four-layer tandem structure. To me, the “best TV” of CES comes down to what kind of home theater experience it will provide. And Panasonic is already doing an impressive job keeping pace with Sony when it comes to delivering a living room centerpiece that nails both picture and sound. I wish the Z95B (and the company’s 2025 Mini LED TVs) ran, well, any other TV operating system. But I don’t think Fire TV OS is bad enough to sink this high-end set. If you disagree, at least it’s relatively easy to just use something else most of the time. It’s great to see Panasonic giving Sony, LG, and Samsung some premium TV competition. I can’t wait to spend more time with the Z95B when it starts shipping later this year. More competition benefits everyone who’s on the lookout for a new TV. Companies like TCL and Hisense have done a great job setting new expectations of what you can get for under $1,500. And now Panasonic’s return is showing us what’s possible for those with the means to splurge on their next big upgrade.Photography by Chris Welch / The Verge

Having a ton of devices that run off of a lithium battery is fantastic for convenience, but things get a little complicated when they all need charging at the same time. Fortunately, Plugable is here to save us from having to juggle several devices on one cable with this amazing 10-port charging station announced at CES 2025.

When people think about DIY electronics and maker culture, they tend to think about Raspberry Pi’s and 3D printers, but the humble Arduino is often overlooked. Despite being overshadowed by its competitors, the Arduino remains a viable choice for home-built projects that don’t need the full power of a single-board computer, but still need to manage electrical components.

So you've built your own self-hosted cloud storage solution using Nextcloud, CasaOS, or some other platform, and now you want to migrate your Google Drive to it. Where do you start? Given that you can have a very similar experience to Google Drive with your own self-hosted platforms, it's a no-brainer to at least try it out, and Google even gives you the tools to make that migration happen.

You might not have a gaming computer or laptop with a powerful graphics card inside, but that doesn't mean you can't enjoy some fantastic games. Integrated graphics are pretty good these days, they are able to play a wide variety of games with decent frame rates.

The threat environment for cybersecurity has changed drastically over time, and home broadband use has skyrocketed. When remote jobs and hybrid working arrangements are added, the security features in many consumer routers might not be enough. Adding a hardware firewall appliance to your home network adds another layer of security to your network, while giving you advanced features to manage network traffic and connect to corporate networks.

Having space available on your PC's drive for files, data, and apps is essential. Instead of constantly storing your files on your drive, you can use OneDrive’s File On-Demand feature to help free up room for other things. It allows you to see your collection of files from your computer without having to download them. This transfers the space that files are taking up over to the cloud, so you have space for other important items on your PC.

Have you heard the news? According to a renowned leaker, a new Half-Life project is currently undergoing friends and family testing over at Valve. People use the term "Half-Life 3" to refer to this game, but there's no absolute 100% guarantee that it's actually Half-Life 3. After all, we have the codename "HLX" but not a release title, so it might not be a third installment after all.

Joplin is a popular open-source note-taking app loved by privacy-minded folks and productivity gurus. It’s easy to sync your notes across devices, but if you want to keep your data totally safe and in your hands, you can set up your own Joplin server.

Gaming on Windows doesn’t have to cost you a fortune, and that’s where open-source games come into play. They are like hidden gems — free, creative, and fun. While open-source software programs are highly popular among Windows users, open-source games rarely get talked about. Although these games are free, you still get the creativity, engaging gameplay, and a variety of genres. From epic battles to relaxing explorations to strategy making, they’re perfect for gamers looking for something different without spending a penny.

Plugable has been really hitting it out of the park during CES 2025. It revealed a range of devices that it claims are world-firsts, such as a 5-screen dock and a 10-port charging station. Now, the company has announced its third world first product: an adapter that can turn one USB-C port into four 4K 60Hz HDMI ones.

Image: Tesla Tesla has officially revealed the latest version of its Model Y crossover following images leaking online that teased the EV’s redesign. Codenamed “Juniper,” the Model Y 2025 refresh is now live on Tesla’s website in China and other Asia-Pacific markets with deliveries expected to begin in March.It’s the most significant update to the Model Y design since it first launched in 2020, which became the first EV to top global car sales last year. Notably, the new variant launching in Australia clearly shows a physical turn signal stalk, which had otherwise been replaced by capacitive buttons on recent Teslas. The refresh comes after Tesla experienced its first year-over-year drop in sales since the company started mass-producing cars in 2012 — with CEO Elon Musk’s antagonistic behavior suspected to have contributed to the decline. Image: Tesla Blessed be, is that a turn stalk I see inside the updated cabin? Good news for capacitive-button haters. There are two specifications of the Model Y available at launch according to the Chinese website listing. The 263,500 Chinese yuan (about $35,935) rear-wheel drive edition features an estimated range of up to 593 kilometers (about 368 miles), while the 303,500 Chinese yuan (about $41,390) long-range version can supposedly reach 719 kilometers (about 446 miles). These are “estimated” ranges based on China’s CLTC driving cycle standard, however, which Electrek notes isn’t as strict as the US EPA system.New @Tesla Model Y official video from Tesla China. pic.twitter.com/3711QX6VkQ— Jay in Shanghai 电动 Jay (@JayinShanghai) January 10, 2025Both specs have a top speed of 201 kilometers per hour (about 124 mph), and peak charging speeds remain at 250kW. Tesla says that the tires, wheels, and suspension have been updated to provide a smoother, quieter ride, with 19- and 20-inch wheel options available on both models. The estimated vehicle ranges have been calculated using the smaller 19-inch wheel configurations. A performance version has yet to be announced.The new Model Y otherwise features many of the same improvements as the 2023 Model 3 sedan update, including higher efficiency and performance, an eight-inch touchscreen display for rear passengers, and a quieter cabin with an ambient lighting strip running throughout. The back seats can be folded down electrically to expand the total storage capacity to 2,138 liters, and there’s a front-view camera to provide a wider field of view when using assisted driving features.The exterior design doesn’t look terribly different from its predecessor, save for a few changes like switching the headlights and tail lights for slimmer light bars that stretch across the front and rear of the vehicle. The front and back ends have also been slightly reshaped, which “effectively improves the vehicle’s endurance, performance, and service life,” according to Tesla.It’s unclear when we can expect the redesigned Model Y to launch in other markets like the US and Europe. Mass production of the vehicles is expected to start in Shanghai this month though, and we know that it took the Model 3 update around four months to reach the US last year.