News
- AI with Gemini including voice activation, plus translation in real time
- The best battery life of any Galaxy Buds
- Buds 3 Pro looks and controls, including pinch and swipe gestures
It's not a leak, it's not a rumor and it's not another mishap: the Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 FE (or Buds3 FE as Samsung likes to style it) are here.
This hasn't been an easy road: the buds were spotted on June 12, leaked on July 22, then actually launched prematurely by Samsung's Panama arm on August 7, but now they're officially officially here, as announced by Samsung.
So what's new? The first thing to note is actually something that's not new, and that's the Buds 3 FE's strong resemblance to the flagship Buds 3 Pro. And it's not just a pretty dress either: you also get the Buds 3 Pro's control functions, including pinch and swipe gestures (yes, you can swipe the blade to adjust volume).
Also, the Buds 3 FE are IP54-rated for dust, sweat and water resistance, which is a high rating for buds, and something I love to see.
Another thing I love to see? The longest quoted battery life of any Galaxy Buds to date, with up to 8.5 hours of uninterrupted listening in the earpieces (or 6 with ANC on), or 30 hours including case recharging (24 hours with ANC on).
On the subject of ANC, Samsung promises enhanced noise cancellation and call quality from the six-mic array, since one mic in each earpiece has been moved into the blade, closer to the mouth for clear voice pickup.
And although the buds still contain a solo dynamic driver under the hood – which also houses a Bluetooth 5.4 chipset with SSC (Samsung Seamless Codec) plus AAC and SBC support – it's a little bigger this time around for more immersive audio.
Big Galaxy x Gemini smarts (Image credit: Samsung)But let's get granular: what about AI? Like their Pro siblings, the Galaxy Buds 3 FE feature Google Gemini including voice activation, plus translation piped into the buds in real time via the Samsung Interpreter app – all part of the Galaxy AI suite.
To clarify (in case you're yet to be acquainted with this particular kind of Samsung-meets-Google tech), that means you'll be able to access Google Gemini for conversational AI assistance, but with the Galaxy AI Interpreter app you'll also be able to use Real-Time Interpreter through the buds or Live Translate to translate phone calls while they're happening.
Of course, this is Samsung, so the Buds 3 FE will work seamlessly with your Samsung TV, tablet, PC or phone, with Auto Switch for easy-breezy device switching – and as you'd expect, the Find My earbuds feature is here, so you can get the buds to emit a 'beep' should you misplace one.
The Samsung Galaxy Buds 3 FE are available in two finishes – black and gray – with a matte dual-tone finish.
We can't vouch for the sound just yet, but if these 'Fan Edition' buds live up to the hype in testing, our best earbuds buying guide may well have a fresh contender… watch this space.
The Galaxy Buds 3 FE will go on sale in the US on September 4 at Samsung.com, as well as selected retailers, priced at $149.99 – that's around £110 or AU$230, although official prices for these regions are yet to be confirmed.
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- NordVPN is killing its Meshnet feature, starting from December 1, 2025
- The provider has claimed the decision is due to a lack of usage
- NordVPN rolled out Meshnet in 2022 to give users a new, secure way to connect multiple devices
NordVPN has just announced it is killing one of its features due to a lack of usage.
Meshnet is set to be discontinued starting from December 1, meaning that all functionality associated with it will be removed.
Rated as TechRadar's best VPN, NordVPN, launched Meshnet in 2022 to give its users a new, secure way to connect multiple devices to securely share files, multiplayer gaming, or collaboratively remote working. A tool, however, that never quite picked up among the NordVPN community.
Saying goodbye to MeshnetMeshnet lets you create a virtual network that up to 60 devices can join and use simultaneously to communicate with one another (Image credit: NordVPN)"When we built Meshnet, our goal was to give users more control over their connections and networks. By offering it as a free add-on to NordVPN’s core service, we hoped it would become a valuable part of your online experience. But sometimes even good ideas don’t reach a wide enough audience," wrote NordVPN in an official announcement.
Discontinuing Meshnet, the provider explains, will free significant resources that the team would be able to use to focus on improving what most of NordVPN's users care about, namely faster speeds, stronger security, and smarter VPN features.
This is why starting from December, Meshnet and its functionalities will shut down for good. These include options like device linking, traffic routing through other devices, and personal mesh networks.
The provider ensures that the virtual private network (VPN) service will continue to work as usual, with the change affecting only Meshnet-linked features.
Finding a Meshnet alternativeIf you're one of the few people who have been enjoying NordVPN's Meshnet, it is now a good time to look for alternatives.
The provider recommends that anyone who used Meshnet for secure file sharing switch to NordLocker instead. We also suggest looking into Proton Drive, as it comes with both free and paid plans.
If building your meshnet virtual tunnel for different purposes is what you're after, you should be happy to know that there are a few mesh networking solutions on the market you can switch to, such as Netmaker.
We approached NordVPN for other tips to support existing users with their transition, but are still waiting for a response at the time of publication.
You might also like- Sol Rodríguez has revealed which DCU project she wants to appear in next
- Rodríguez is one of many new actors viewers will see in Peacemaker season 2
- The character she plays has big ties to one of DC Comics' most popular heroes
Peacemaker season 2 actor Sol Rodríguez has expressed a wish to appear in one of the DC Universe's (DCU) most anticipated productions.
Speaking to TechRadar, Rodríguez, who plays ARGUS agent Sasha Bordeaux in the returning HBO Max show, said she would "really love" to feature in The Brave and The Bold (TB&TB). That's the current title of the DCU's Batman movie, which slow but important progress is being made on.
Bordeaux (right) is positioned as ARGUS' new high-ranking officers in Peacemaker season 2 (Image credit: Curtis Bonds Baker/HBO Max)Without spoiling anything significant about Bordeaux's backstory in DC Comics, the character has big ties to The Caped Crusader. Created by Greg Rucka and Shawn Martinbrough, she first appeared in the long-running Batman-led Detective Comics literary series in December 2000 and has been part of the wider DC Universe – the comics-based version, that is – ever since.
It might seem strange that Bordeaux makes her live-action debut in Peacemaker's sophomore season rather than a Batman-centric story.
Nevertheless, considering the John Cena-starring TV series and TB&TB are part of the DCU's larger storytelling tapestry, Bordeaux's appearance in the former doesn't mean she can't appear in the latter. After all, Justice Gang members Hawkgirl and Guy Gardner/Green Lantern appeared in James Gunn's Superman movie and will cameo in Peacemaker 2. Why can't Bordeaux do likewise in one of the best HBO Max shows' second installment and TB&TB?
The Brave and the Bold was announced as part of the DCU Chapter One line-up in January 2023 (Image credit: DC Studios)The short answer is: she could, but only if Gunn says so. Indeed, while Rodríguez is extremely keen to see Bordeaux make the trip to Gotham City in the DCU Chapter One film, it's up to Gunn and his DC Studios co-chief Peter Safran whether she will.
When I asked if Gunn had spoken to her about Bordeaux's possible appearance in TB&TB, Rodríguez said: "No, he hasn't – yet. That last word is the key one that gives me hope, though. I hope she gets to go to Gotham and have some fun over there. I'd really love that with my whole being.
"I'm just focused on playing Sasha in Peacemaker [for now]," she continued. "I want to respect the fans so, when I got the part, I read everything about her [in the comics]. Then, when I saw the scripts, the essence [of the character] is still there, but I also feel like I brought my own thing [to the role] as well as what James had already written, so I hope everyone likes what I've done in this show."
Would you like to see Bordeaux show up in TB&TB? Let me know in the comments. And, before Peacemaker returns to our screens, read my dedicated guide to Peacemaker season 2 and then my Peacemaker season 2 review to see what I made of its first five episodes.
Peacemaker 2 arrives with a one-episode premiere on August 21 (North and South America) and August 22 (everywhere else).
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- Workday has been targeted in a data breach
- The breach was part of a campaign of social engineering attacks
- The campaign has also targeted Google, Dior, and Adidas
Popular HR platform Workday has revealed it was been hit by a data breach originating through a social engineering campaign.
“We want to let you know about a recent social engineering campaign targeting many large organizations, including Workday,” the company confirmed in a statement.
“In this campaign, threat actors contact employees by text or phone pretending to be from human resources or IT. Their goal is to trick employees into giving up account access or their personal information.”
Further phishing risksFortunately, Workday says so far there has been ‘no indication of access to customer tenants or the data within them’, and the firm has added extra safeguards to mitigate the risk of similar incidents in future.
The statement adds the information the threat actor obtained was ‘primarily commonly available business contact information, like names, email addresses, and phone numbers, potentially to further their social engineering scams.’
It seems that this breach could be part of a wave of security breaches that are targeting Salesforce CRM instances through phishing and social engineering attacks. These attacks have used these tactics to breach Google, Adidas, Dior, and more.
The hackers are likely to have used these phishing attacks to link malicious OAuth apps to the company’s Salesforce instance - then downloading and stealing databases before using the information to extort victims, BleepingComputer reports.
“As this type of breach is technically easier to perform yet still highly effective, we could see even more threat actors adopting these tactics” Senior Manager of Cyber and Head of SecOps at Immersive, Kevin Marriott told TechRadar Pro.
“CRM tooling is often a key target for threat actors as they typically store limited, but valuable information that threat actors can either use themselves or sell on, with databases full of information that is useful such as email addresses and other personal information.
“If this attack is indeed linked to the broader campaign targeting Salesforce instances, it highlights how threat actors such as ShinyHunters are focusing their efforts on SaaS platforms that hold valuable customer data from a variety of organisations.”
Users should make sure they stay vigilant online following the incident, and be skeptical of unsolicited incoming messages, especially those that demand urgent action or threaten with a disaster.
These are, and will continue to be, the biggest red flag in phishing attacks.
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- Check out our choice for best antivirus software
- Google says hackers stole some of its data following Salesforce breach
A new NYT Connections puzzle appears at midnight each day for your time zone – which means that some people are always playing 'today's game' while others are playing 'yesterday's'. If you're looking for Monday's puzzle instead then click here: NYT Connections hints and answers for Monday, August 18 (game #799).
Good morning! Let's play Connections, the NYT's clever word game that challenges you to group answers in various categories. It can be tough, so read on if you need Connections hints.
What should you do once you've finished? Why, play some more word games of course. I've also got daily Strands hints and answers and Quordle hints and answers articles if you need help for those too, while Marc's Wordle today page covers the original viral word game.
SPOILER WARNING: Information about NYT Connections today is below, so don't read on if you don't want to know the answers.
NYT Connections today (game #800) - today's words(Image credit: New York Times)Today's NYT Connections words are…
- VERMOUTH
- PLYMOUTH
- CLASSIC
- DASHBOARD
- BLABBERMOUTH
- DARTMOUTH
- LITTLE
- PORT
- FLYWHEEL
- CHATTERBOX
- RUSHMORE
- MARSALA
- WINDBAG
- THE
- SHERRY
- PRATTLER
What are some clues for today's NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: First with the gossip
- GREEN: Grapes with added spirit
- BLUE: Add a word that’s like a big stone
- PURPLE: These begin with fast words
Need more clues?
We're firmly in spoiler territory now, but read on if you want to know what the four theme answers are for today's NYT Connections puzzles…
NYT Connections today (game #800) - hint #2 - group answersWhat are the answers for today's NYT Connections groups?
- YELLOW: QUITE THE TALKER
- GREEN: FORTIFIED WINES
- BLUE: ___ ROCK
- PURPLE: STARTING WITH WAYS TO MOVE QUICKLY
Right, the answers are below, so DO NOT SCROLL ANY FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT TO SEE THEM.
NYT Connections today (game #800) - the answers(Image credit: New York Times)The answers to today's Connections, game #800, are…
- YELLOW: QUITE THE TALKER BLABBERMOUTH, CHATTERBOX, PRATTLER, WINDBAG
- GREEN: FORTIFIED WINES MARSALA, PORT, SHERRY, VERMOUTH
- BLUE: ___ ROCK CLASSIC, LITTLE, PLYMOUTH, THE
- PURPLE: STARTING WITH WAYS TO MOVE QUICKLY DARTMOUTH, DASHBOARD, FLYWHEEL, RUSHMORE
- My rating: Hard
- My score: Perfect
A great puzzle today, with just the right level of difficulty – which I believe is demonstrated by the fact that I got the four groups in difficulty order.
Being something of a BLABBERMOUTH, the Yellow group was an easy spot. Next, I flirted with joining PLYMOUTH, DARTMOUTH and RUSHMORE as they all sound like American colleges, but fortunately my knowledge of FORTIFIED WINES is better than higher education, so I abandoned this diversion.
Finally, I was able to spot ___ ROCK from the remaining eight tiles, mainly thanks to THE – which made no sense until I saw the link with CLASSIC. Ahh, the sweet smell of success.
Yesterday's NYT Connections answers (Monday, August 18, game #799)- YELLOW: INDICATION CUE, NOD, PROMPT, SIGNAL
- GREEN: OPPORTUNITY BREAK, CHANCE, OPENING, SHOT
- BLUE: HOTEL AMENITIES BREAKFAST, PARKING, POOL, WI-FI
- PURPLE: WORDS BEFORE "WATCH" DIGITAL, POCKET, STOP, WRIST
NYT Connections is one of several increasingly popular word games made by the New York Times. It challenges you to find groups of four items that share something in common, and each group has a different difficulty level: green is easy, yellow a little harder, blue often quite tough and purple usually very difficult.
On the plus side, you don't technically need to solve the final one, as you'll be able to answer that one by a process of elimination. What's more, you can make up to four mistakes, which gives you a little bit of breathing room.
It's a little more involved than something like Wordle, however, and there are plenty of opportunities for the game to trip you up with tricks. For instance, watch out for homophones and other word games that could disguise the answers.
It's playable for free via the NYT Games site on desktop or mobile.