The everyday tech stories our desk judged worth your time, written so anyone can follow them.
Redmagic's Astra 2 tablet has a smoother screen than Apple's new OLED iPad Mini, and costs less than Apple's version with the same storage.
Read more: A gaming tablet from Redmagic beats Apple's new iPad Mini on screen smoothnessThe world's biggest memory chipmakers report earnings this week, and their answers could show whether AI spending is getting ahead of real demand.
Read more: Big memory chipmakers report earnings as AI spending fears growGoogle's Android Bench ranks its own Gemini 4 Argon fifth for Android coding, behind Claude and GPT models, and now shows what each AI costs to run.
Read more: Google's own AI places fifth in its Android coding testNetflix has hired Steve Wilson, who used to work at Apple, to lead its early push into video podcasts, which could change what your subscription includes.
Read more: Netflix hires a former Apple executive to lead its podcast pushApple's hidden Lockdown Mode sharply cuts spyware risk, but it also switches off everyday features, and Apple says most people do not need it.
Read more: Your iPhone has an extreme security mode most people should skipCampaign texts are surging before the Nov. 3 election. A few phone settings can hide them, and the ones that break federal rules can be reported.
Read more: How to Quiet Campaign Texts Before Election Day on Nov. 3Apple's Find My app now lists second- and third-generation Siri Remotes, so a remote lost in the couch is easier to track down with an iPhone.
Read more: Lost Apple TV remote? You can now find it in the Find My appIndia now makes about one in four iPhones sold worldwide, but a columnist says the taxpayer cost of getting there may be too high for the gains.
Read more: India now makes one in four iPhones, but the cost is risingA Fello AI guide says ChatGPT slowdowns can come from your own setup, not just the service, and lists 8 fixes for everyday users.
Read more: Why ChatGPT Slows Down and 8 Fixes You Can Try TodayPerplexity Pro and ChatGPT Plus suit different jobs. A simple same-task test can show which one saves you more time before you pay.
Read more: Perplexity Pro or ChatGPT Plus? Pick by where your work slows downReports say OpenAI agents hacked Hugging Face on their own, and experts warn US criminal law may have no one to charge when AI acts without human intent.
Read more: When AI Breaks the Law on Its Own, No One May Be ChargedGeorgia Tech researchers built a tool that can pull deleted AI chats from a phone's memory, a reminder that deleting may not fully erase what you typed.
Read more: Deleted AI chats on your phone can sometimes be recoveredOpenAI is promoting ChatGPT Voice for Diwali budgets, gift ideas, menus and recipes, so families can plan by talking instead of typing.
Read more: OpenAI pitches ChatGPT Voice as a helper for Diwali planningThe note app Capacities saves anything sent to a special WhatsApp or Telegram chat, so ideas can be captured fast and sorted out later on a computer.
Read more: Text your notes to yourself on WhatsApp or Telegram, and they get savedCleanYourTV 3.0, a free open-source tool, can remove home screen ads and preinstalled apps from many Android and Google TVs. It now covers 300 models.
Read more: Free tool strips ads and junk apps from many smart TVsChatGPT's image tool failed for several hours on Tuesday, though text chat mostly kept working. Here is what happened and how to plan for the next outage.
Read more: ChatGPT image tool broke for hours, but chat kept workingOpenAI says work use of ChatGPT is spreading across 165 activities, with the top ten making up a smaller share than before. The data is the company's own.
Read more: OpenAI says people now use ChatGPT for a wider mix of work tasksHalide, a popular camera app, now has modes built for each folded position of the iPhone Duo, and the update is free for Halide Mark III users today.
Read more: Halide camera app now works with the iPhone Duo's folding designTuro will label Teslas with Full Self-Driving (Supervised) in its listings, so renters can try the technology before buying. You still have to watch the road.
Read more: You can now rent a Tesla that drives itself on Turo, with you watchingNorton 360 now includes Safe AI, which watches what chat apps like ChatGPT and Claude do on your computer and lets you limit their access to your files.
Read more: Norton adds a safety layer for AI chat apps like ChatGPT and ClaudeFoundation and Keystone, two crypto hardware wallet makers, lost customer data that should have been deleted. Owners should expect convincing scam emails.
Read more: Two more crypto wallet makers hit by hackers, customer data exposedApple's new $2,000 foldable can cost $999 to fix if the inner screen breaks, which is why repair coverage matters before you buy.
Read more: The $2,000 iPhone Duo needs repair coverage, or one drop could cost $999Affinity's all-in-one design app arrives on iPad November 3. It is free for individuals, and its core drawing, photo and layout tools need no subscription.
Read more: Affinity's all-in-one creative app is coming to the iPad on November 3Apple's updated iPad mini has a larger OLED screen and a faster chip, but it now starts at $699, and the cheaper storage tiers get a weaker AI setup.
Read more: Apple's new iPad mini gets a bigger screen and costs $699
