I always have such mixed emotions while watching a fan-made concept video. If you've never seen them, someone will occasionally make a mock-up of what they imagine an operating system will look like. This could be based on an operating system that's on the way, one that never managed to make it to market, or just people speculating what would have happened if Microsoft never canned the Windows Phone. Rest in Peace.

Google’s mystery new speaker appeared briefly in its keynote alongside F1 driver Lando Norris. Google announced plenty of new hardware at this week’s Made by Google event, but halfway through we were distracted by the brief appearance of what appeared to be a new, previously unknown Gemini-powered smart speaker. Now Android Headlines claims that this speaker is real, and will launch with new colors and the ability to pair with a Google TV Streamer.Android Headlines reports that it’s seen additional images of the mystery speaker, which will apparently come in four colors: bright red, light green, black, and white. As seen briefly in the keynote video, it features a light around the base — rather than across the top, as on previous Google speakers — and a fabric finish.As for features, the big new one is that the speaker will apparently be able to pair with a Google TV Streamer to deliver spatial TV audio, a trick borrowed from Apple’s HomePods, which can connect to Apple TV hardware. Hopefully it can also connect to TVs that run the Google TV OS. It will apparently also include new natural voice options, the ability to detect unusual sounds like glass breaking or a smoke alarm, and full support for Matter.Gemini will deliver the smarts, rather than Google Assistant, which is no surprise. The company announced Gemini for Home this week, which will arrive on existing Nest smart speakers and displays from October this year. It will include a paid tier and support for Gemini Live, though it’s not clear which features will be gated behind the premium subscription.Android Headlines calls the new hardware the “Home Speaker,” though it’s not clear if that’s its full or final name. We also don’t know when it will be released, though a launch alongside Gemini for Home in the fall seems likely. We’d expect to see an updated smart display before long too, since Google hasn’t updated its Nest Hub line since 2021, and we’ve already found that Amazon’s new Alexa Plus works best on devices with screens.

We all love a Star Wars game, and why shouldn't we? This brilliant universe created Mr. Lucas has given us some of the most unforgettable stories we've seen and experienced in our lives, after all. The best part? As a gamer, the interactive medium opens up whole new avenues for this universe, and you get to live and play as a Sith, a Jedi, or as something else entirely, in a timeline eons before or after the mainstream movies.

We can only hope that Trump keeps his own aesthetic preferences out of it. | Image: Bloomberg via Getty Images President Donald Trump signed a new executive order on Thursday to improve the “usability and aesthetics” of US government services by creating “first-class online and offline experiences for Americans.”“It is time to update the Government’s design language to be both usable and beautiful,” Trump said in the order, which establishes an America by Design initiative meant to “improve comprehensively the visual presentation and usability of Federal services provided to the public in both digital and physical spaces.” A new National Design Studio is being set up to facilitate this, led by a chief design officer — with Airbnb co-founder Joe Gebbia reportedly lined up for the position, according to Reuters.Gebbia has already been tasked with overhauling the sluggishly paper-based federal retirement process after joining Trump’s DOGE service in February. It’s unclear what direction Gebbia’s design choices will take, but here’s hoping he isn’t too influenced by Trump’s love for all things golden, gaudy, and gilded. Refraining from randomly capitalizing text would also be a bonus.

The T1 Phone (left) looks uncannily like the S25 Ultra in a Spigen Thin Fit case (right). When Trump Mobile first unveiled the T1 Phone, we were confused by the mixed marketing, which included dubious renders of what at least appeared to be an original phone along with multiple appearances from what was quite clearly a gold-plated iPhone. Now we can add Samsung’s Galaxy S25 Ultra into the mix.The Trump Mobile team shared an ad to X on Wednesday pushing preorders of the T1, but with an image we’d never seen before. You don’t have to look hard to realize that this is an S25 Ultra that’s been Photoshopped gold with a T1 logo and US flag; looking a little closer confirms that it’s a render of that phone in a Spigen case, right down to the Spigen logo they didn’t bother to remove. It’s a remarkable choice because the S25 Ultra looks even less like the T1 Phone’s official renders than the iPhone the company has previously used in promotions. Even Spigen noticed the dupe, saying what we’re all thinking in its reply on X: “??? bro what” The new X post promises that “The wait is almost over!” for the T1 Phone, which originally advertised launch dates of August and September (one in the press release, the other on the site), but now lists no date at all. The company also no longer claims the phone will be made in the USA, instead saying there are “American hands behind every device.” The phone has shrunk dramatically since launch too, now promising a 6.25-inch screen, way down from the 6.78-inch display described when it was first announced.

It's seemingly human nature to always want something new and better. Take the smartphone, which is usually replaced every year or two on rolling contracts. This enables us to receive the next best thing, replacing now-outdated technology. The same goes for vehicles, with leases becoming the norm and replacements being sought after just two to three years. PC hardware is no different, with many opting to buy components deemed overkill for the tasks at hand. How many of you are running Intel Core i9 or AMD Ryzen 9 processors? Do you really need them?

Back in 2020, a delightful game called Untitled Goose Game was released. It really took the internet by storm, with people making tons of memes about it. Plus, the game itself is really fun; I had a blast with it when I played it on release.

After years of working with various tools designed to make my writing process faster and more efficient — including both paid and free ones — I've found out that, for obvious reasons, paid versions are often the best overall. But before you toss free software into your recycle bin, hear me out.

Mini PCs have become the perfect way to get a project off the ground, offering versatility thanks to their size, power, and price. If you've been looking to build a media PC or want to put together a NAS, then this Beelink Me Mini is going to be right up your alley. Not only do you get impressive internals, but it also comes in at a price that can't be ignored. For a limited time, you can score this mini PC for its best price as it drops to just $199.

Most gamers love a title that has a lot of action in it, but that doesn't always mean brawlers and shooters. Sometimes, the best kind of action in a game involves the suspense of staying hidden before eliminating an enemy with ease. These are the types of games that make stealth tactics a central focus, rewarding players who keep things quiet and efficient. Why burst through the door to fight groups of bad guys when you can take them out before any of them know what's happening? After all, theatricality and deception are powerful agents, or rather, powerful tools in the right hands.

It's no secret that we're big fans of OPNsense here at XDA. I've got two virtual machines with it running for testing purposes, plus I recently got a DEC750 OPNsense hardware firewall to save my brain from having to remember layers of virtual networking. With the number of features OPNsense comes with, plus the community plugins and packages created by other developers, it's a powerful way to secure your home network or home lab and create local domain redirects for self-hosted tools.

Digg is making a comeback. With the backing of people like Digg cofounder Kevin Rose and Reddit cofounder Alexis Ohanian, Digg has ambitions to once again be the homepage of the internet. The revival is still in its very early days - the platform is still invite-only - but Digg launched its new mobile apps this week, and I installed the iOS app on my phone to see what it's like. New Digg operates similarly to Reddit: people submit links that others can comment and vote on, and links with a lot of "diggs" (upvotes) will bubble up the feed. You can also tap a downvote-like "bury" button, but on posts (not comments), the bury button functions …Read the full story at The Verge.