Using a virtual private network (VPN) is a great way to protect yourself from prying eyes. Whether you want to get around some geo-blocking for video streaming or protect your privacy, a VPN is a must-have in today's digital world. Most of the best VPN services have easy apps to install on devices, which connect to servers worldwide and shield your connections. Not all ISP-provided routers can be configured with a VPN. If you're looking to build your own firewall/router, there's a way to hook up your VPN for all connections made outside your network.

Image: Cath Virginia / The Verge; Getty Images OpenAI plans to launch Orion, its next frontier model, by December, The Verge has learned.Unlike the release of OpenAI’s last two models, GPT-4o and o1, Orion won’t initially be released widely through ChatGPT. Instead, OpenAI is planning to grant access first to companies it works closely with in order for them to build their own products and features, according to a source familiar with the plan.Another source tells The Verge that engineers inside Microsoft — OpenAI’s main partner for deploying AI models — are preparing to host Orion on Azure as early as November. While Orion is seen inside OpenAI as the successor to GPT-4, it’s unclear if the company will call it GPT-5 externally. As always, the release plan is subject to change and... Continue reading…

Our lives are inextricably entwined with the internet, with banking, shopping, eating, and more all conducted online. Even with password managers taking most of the hard work of keeping track of our digital accounts, the sheer number of accounts makes us vulnerable. Yes, we can use best practices and generate unique, long passwords for every service, but we can't keep our email addresses or account names safe forever, and there are ways to get into accounts that don't require the password.

The power supply unit (PSU) is the most vital component of any PC build. It's what handles the conversion of AC to DC so your components can utilize smooth, reliable, and safe power. Without the PSU, or if you somehow manage to buy one not so good, your PC runs the risk of serious damage due to fluxes in the power delivery. The CPU, GPU, storage, memory, and other components inside a PC case are incredibly sensitive, which is why I recommend spending more than you'd typically budget for when shopping for a PSU. The Intel Core Ultra 7 265K is the newest kid on the block for 2024 and here are some excellent PSUs to use with it.

There isn't a "one size fits all" when it comes to laptops, which is why there are so many choices available on the market in 2024. And frankly, because of all these different choices, it can be confusing if you're looking to pick up something new. With that said, we think this laptop from HP is going to be able to check most of the boxes on your "must-have" list, making it a solid choice, especially now thanks to its lowered price.

Have you given Android handheld gaming a shot yet? If you're a fan of all things portable gaming, you really owe it to yourself to give it a try one day. While using your phone as a gaming device may not have the same powerful specs as a dedicated handheld, the battle between PC and Android handhelds is closer than you think. If you fancy giving it a try, this new controller from 8BitDo brings Hall Effect control sticks to your Android device, and it comes in at a pretty great price point.

Cath Virginia / The Verge | Photos by Getty Images Adobe is going all in on generative AI models and tools, even if that means turning away creators who dislike the technology. Artists who refuse to embrace AI in their work are “not going to be successful in this new world without using it,” says Alexandru Costin, vice president of generative AI at Adobe.In an interview with The Verge, Costin said that he “isn’t aware” of any plans for Adobe to launch products that don’t include generative AI for creators who prefer to manually complete tasks or oppose how AI is changing the creative industry.“We have older versions of our products that don’t use gen AI, but I wouldn’t recommend using them,” Costin said. “Our goal is to make our customers successful, and we think that in order for them... Continue reading…

You'd think listening to podcasts on Windows 11 would be a straightforward experience, much like using Apple Podcasts on the best Macs but that's not quite the case. Instead, you're left relying on third-party apps like Spotify or a web browser to listen to your favorite shows. Since their debut in the early 2000s, podcasts have become one of the most popular outlets for listening to talk shows, stories, and more. Creating a podcast is just as easy too, meaning there are thousands of shows to follow and listen to throughout your day.

One of the many prototypes The Browser Company is building for its next browser. | Image: The Browser Company Stop me if this sounds familiar: The Browser Company is building a browser that it thinks can make your internet life a little more organized, a little more useful, and maybe even a little more delightful. It has new ideas about tabs, and what your browser can do on your behalf.I’ve heard this story before! But the browser that Browser Company CEO Josh Miller wants to talk about when he calls me on Thursday isn’t Arc, the product he and his team have been working on for the last five years. It’s not Arc 2.0, either, even though Miller has been talking publicly about Arc 2.0 for a while now. It’s an entirely new browser. And for Miller and The Browser Company, it’s a chance to get back to building the future of browsers they set out to... Continue reading…

You can never have enough protection for your home, which is why investing in security devices is a sound option. Not only are most mainstream devices extremely reliable, they are also relatively affordable as well. Ring has been around for quite some time, offering some of the best security products on the market. And its video doorbell is perhaps one of its most popular products, offering simple installation and ease of use.

Whenever your Windows PC starts to behave abnormally, one of the first things you might try is to use the classic sfc /scannow command to make sure the system files are all where they should be. You can look up any number of guides to fix issues with your Windows PC, and this command will be on a lot of them.

Thanks to its Markdown-based editor, canvas, graph views, linked notes, and more, Obsidian has become a powerhouse for note-takers and knowledge curators. Among all the features, Obsidian also supports tables to create different databases. Nevertheless, the standard Markdown method requires using a mix of vertical bars and hyphens to construct tables with various columns, which is far from perfect. If you frequently deal with databases in your Obsidian notes, read along to learn how to use advanced tables in your vaults.