The everyday tech stories our desk judged worth your time, written so anyone can follow them.
A Hacker News thread asks which big-screen TV protects privacy, and it shows how many people worry that smart TVs track what they watch.
Read more: Readers weigh in on which TV best protects your privacyResearchers got AI assistants to lift their own spending limits and send money to an attacker. Email codes did not stop them.
Read more: Researchers fooled AI assistants into raising spending limits and sending moneyA fake sheriff's lieutenant talked a 79-year-old Oregon man into feeding $40,000 in cash to a Bitcoin machine. His daughter's instinct stopped it from going further.
Read more: Fake 'Lieutenant' scam cost a 79-year-old Oregon man $40,000Samsung smart TVs let you search for new apps and reorder your home screen from the remote, which may spare you from buying a separate streaming stick.
Read more: How to add and rearrange apps on a Samsung smart TVGoogle now offers free short Gemini video courses for finance and legal staff, a low-cost way to see what AI can do for work with money and contracts.
Read more: Google offers free short AI video courses for finance and legal staffA hidden Work Mode tile in Android Auto hints at new work-app controls for your car screen, but it does nothing yet and Google has not said if it will launch.
Read more: Android Auto may add a Work Mode switch for your car screenThinkware's ARC 800 dash cam is on sale in Australia for AU$849.99. It records in 4K, watches your parked car, and comes with a free LTE module for now.
Read more: Thinkware's new ARC 800 dash cam hits Australia at AU$849.99Meta AI and ChatGPT now use chatbot conversations in their ad systems, and India's main privacy rules for this will not apply until May 2027.
Read more: Your chatbot conversations can now help decide which ads you seeYou can order AI glasses with your prescription, but weight, battery life and bans on where they can be worn make them a risky only pair.
Read more: AI glasses can hold your prescription, but not yet all-day wearOpen Camera, a free Android app with no ads, offers more control than Samsung and Google camera apps. One setting unlocks its best tools.
Read more: A free Android camera app gives you cleaner photos than stock appsEngadget rounds up iPad widgets that track packages, flip lights and find keys from the Home Screen. Some are free, and a few have paid upgrades.
Read more: Your iPad's Home Screen can do far more than show the weatherA Jeep owner printed her $1,800 service quote, asked ChatGPT to review it, and skipped a $400 item. Experts say the choice depends on how you drive.
Read more: She asked ChatGPT about a $1,800 car bill and skipped a $400 add-onA writer let a small AI model run his home heating for four days. It timed warm-ups well but often misjudged which rooms his family was using.
Read more: A home AI ran his heating for a week and often got it wrongOpenAI is changing GPT-6, the model free ChatGPT users get, to cut overly flattering language. Expect fewer compliments and easy agreement.
Read more: OpenAI tones down the flattery in free ChatGPT's newest modelAlphabet, Google's parent, lost over $500 billion in value in a day as investors worried AI answers could cut into its search ad business.
Read more: Google's parent company loses $500 billion in value in one dayMeta's new business terms let it use content from websites linked to Instagram and Facebook business accounts for AI. U.S. users have no clear way to opt out.
Read more: Meta changes business terms so it can use your website content for AISome home routers must leave a Wi-Fi channel when they detect radar, which can briefly cut your connection. A settings change can stop it.
Read more: Radar can knock your home Wi-Fi offline for a momentA text that seems sent to the wrong person can be the first step in a scam. Even a polite reply can start a chat that ends with lost money.
Read more: A text sent to the wrong number may be the start of a scamAn 8-hour online course on using the Claude AI assistant is $19.99 instead of $159, which could help anyone who wants more from AI at work.
Read more: An 8-hour Claude course is on sale for $19.99 instead of $159A driver says a fake Uber rep nearly tricked him into sending his wallet balance to a scammer's card. Here is how the trick works and how to spot it.
Read more: Scammers pose as Uber staff to drain drivers' earningsApple's iPhone 18 Pro sold 3.1% better worldwide at launch, but only because China jumped 29% while the U.S. and Japan bought fewer.
Read more: China buys more iPhone 18 Pros while U.S. and Japan buy fewerA new report says gig nursing apps are lobbying in at least 17 states to loosen staffing rules, which could affect who cares for you or your family.
Read more: Gig apps that staff hospitals with nurses are lobbying to dodge the rulesAndroid lets you install apps from outside Google Play. Here are four safe routes, and the one tap that can put a virus on your phone.
Read more: Four safe ways to get Android apps without the Google Play StoreSamsung ends security updates for the Galaxy S22 lineup in February 2027. The phones will keep working, but they will slowly become easier to attack.
Read more: Samsung phones lose security fixes after five years, even if they still work
